The Virus Within (Original rough draft)

Chapter 48

Nicky was going to bring a plate to me on the rooftop. I had not expected her to show up with Liz in tow. Liz ran over to give me a hug. I awkwardly returned it, I still failed to see why this child was always overjoyed to see me.

Nicky chuckled as she took a seat, "She really wanted to see you again and I knew you didn't mind her hanging around."

Liz looked up at me in excitement, "Nicky said that you helped her shoot her bow. Can you help me after supper?"

I sighed, but gave in, "Sure." It wasn't as if I had anything else to do and people would come up here once they had finished their supper. I wondered how many people here were going to have a heart attack when they saw a child walking with me.

We finished our supper before people started leaving the mess hall, so no one even saw us walk over to the archery area. There were actually bows for children here, which surprised me. Nicky grabbed a bow similar to what she had last time as she faced the target. I had Liz practicing a few lanes away, just in case Nicky's aim was worse than what I thought was possible.

It was almost peacefully quiet out here. Everyone was eating, so there weren't any people wandering around and talking, no one was banging around while working or anything. Just the twang of the bows and the three of us. The feeling surprised me and I examined it carefully as I helped Liz stand properly to fire the bow.

My instincts had retreated temporarily. This reminded me a tiny bit of when I had been traveling with just Marissa, Tom and the two kids. It reminded me more of my friendship with Kelly and Travis, although it was different than that as well since Kelly and Travis were Nightstalkers.

None of the humans I originally rescued had been a potential threat or suspicious of me. Some general irritation was still present and always would be since I was a Nightstalker, but I knew Nicky wouldn't harm me and Liz simply wasn't capable of it even if she tried – and I doubted she ever would considering how happy she was whenever she saw me.

Both accepted me for what I was and were also perfectly at ease with me. At the moment, I was about as relaxed as I could get in the presence of humans. It had been a long time since I had felt anything like companionship around humans. I didn't mind the feeling. Too bad it wouldn't last very long, I knew it would disappear the instant another human came into sight or hearing range.

I went down on one knee as I helped Liz aim her bow. Her close proximity burned my throat, but Daniel had been right, I was getting acclimatized to the constant smell of humans. I barely noticed it unless I thought about it. Even the usual bloodlust was barely bothering me, but that may be due to me hunting so much more than normal.

Nicky kept muttering as she shot arrow after arrow. She was at least hitting the target now. Liz was shooting at a much closer target. She wasn't bad, although she missed the target more often than not. She was only about seven years old, so it was to be expected. I remained on one knee beside her as I kept helping her nock the arrow before letting her fire it.

I glanced up as I heard footsteps approaching. Marissa was approaching and it was clear from her uneasy expression that she didn't like how close I was to Liz. She had done a very good job at avoiding me once we got to the Stronghold. I slowly got to my feet as she approached, the relaxed feeling gone.

Marissa called to Liz as she approached, "Liz, time for your bath."

Liz pouted, "But I don't usually have a bath until later."

She still obediently put her bow back in the shed and went to where Marissa was waiting. Marissa wasted no time in taking her hand and leading her away. My instincts stirred slightly and I looked around subtly while going to collect Liz's arrows.