Hope

[KamiKaze]

((Godmodding of Iris permitted))

To be honest, Holly was kind of scaring Iris.

She had appeared to calm down, and even made a comment about her and Cristo having children. Why she made that comment, she had no clue. But, Holly had smiled again. That was always a good sign. Smiles meant happiness. But, just a few seconds ago Holly was back to pointing a gun, this time at the newcomer. He had responded with a strange look, almost as if he was trying to mimic an expression.

At that, though, Cristo had leaned in to say something to her.

He wanted to leave?

Iris wasn't so sure...

Even though Holly and Cristo had acted... off, they were still good people in her eyes. They were just scared, is all. They weren't evil people at all! But, he said he wanted to be with her... protect her... It didn't help that he was so attractive, as well.

And, wordlessly, he kissed her on the cheek and left, as if expecting her to follow him.

Should she follow him, though? On one hand... she didn't think he was bad. On the other... everyone was out there, aiming to kill each other with steel and bullets. Even though Iris was a little naive, she was still aware that she might die if she trusts the wrong person. Plus, was it really a good idea to leave Holly and that other guy behind? Although Holly was acting weirdly, it wasn't as if she were a horrible person. Maybe even that other guy needed to be saved, too.

But, soon enough, she made her decision. As Holly and Chris talked, she lifted her things off the ground, and slung the bag over her shoulder. Iris made her way towards the exit, and quickly glanced back once she was at the door.

Maybe she should bring Holly along? That way, if something were to happen to her, she would not only have Cristo, but Holly around as well. Plus, as much as she liked Cristo... as much as she found him the most attractive man she laid eyes on... as much as she was fascinated by him... well, he looked like the type who would play along, to be honest.

She almost opened her mouth, to cry out to Holly. But, nothing came out, for some reason. Looking directly at Holly, who was now looking back, she prayed that Holly figured out what was going on, and that she would follow.

Finally, Iris turned back, to follow Cristo.

Momma always told her never to talk to strangers... but right now, both Cristo and Holly were... well, they were the closest things she had to friends right now. She was vaguely aware of Holly calling out her name as they stepped away from the church, but was not sure if it really was her.

Was she going to regret this?

_______________________________________________

Chris, huh?

He seemed to be nervous that a gun had been pointed at him. Then again, anyone would. But, he was clearly acting a little awkward. Heck, he even asked that he put his arms down!

Holly smiled once again, and responded with "Okay, yes, you can. Just as long I as I don't see anything bad happening."

She quickly glanced back at the charming young couple, and at this point, Cristo was whispering to Iris about... something. Holly raised an eyebrow at this.

It better not be "Holly Chapman is a psychotic bitch", she found herself thinking. But most likely, it's a confession of looooove.

Once Cristo was done with his little chat with Iris, he immediately turned and left with his things. This would be a cause for celebration for Holly, since she would not have to deal with him again for a while. Except the fact that after a few seconds, Iris seemed almost... confused, and eventually she started walking towards the exit like Cristo had.

She was leaving too?!

Damn it, that bastard... he told her to leave with him, didn't he?

"Iris...?" Holly started, watching her leave.

Iris had looked back, and for a few seconds, she seemed almost as if she was pleading with Holly to follow her, and that she was helpless. She quickly turned and left, passing Chris.

Holly was not sure what to do. Let Iris go...?

It was her choice.

Wait, no.

It was Holly's problem. In spite of the fact that any person on this island could kill her, she still felt a degree of concern for Iris. To Holly, it would be irresponsible to just let Iris walk off with some guy who had been flirting with her, and yet had the potential to be a horrible person. Plus, he had pointed a gun at them. Sure, Holly had pointed a gun at people too. But, something seemed off about him.

But what if she did not want Holly to follow her?

It didn't matter. She had to do the right thing.

A few seconds later, Holly had picked up her things, and stormed out of the church, almost completely forgetting about Chris.

"Iris? Iris! Iris..." she called out, looking for the two.

They were already some distance away. But, Holly wasn't giving up just yet.

She was going to go look for them. In her eyes, it was the right thing to do.

Holly stepped out of the church, and went on her way.

((Iris and Holly continued here))

[armeggedonCounselor*]

Chris was... he didn't know a word to describe it. Perhaps irate would be a good descriptor for what he felt as both girls ran out of the Church after the boy with the nails. He stared after them with his jaw dropped. He glanced down to make sure he could still see himself, which was silly. Of course he was still there. If he was invisible, he wouldn't be able to see anything, much less himself. He sighed and wandered into the church proper. The last time he had been in church had been when he was... young. Very young. He sat in one of the pews and stared at the huge cross which dominated the wall over the altar. He rummaged through his day pack and pulled out the gun. As long as he had some time to kill, he might as well investigate the piece.

He carefully pointed the gun away from himself and slid his hands along it. He tried cocking it manually, but found that that didn't do anything about it's ability to shoot. Then he noticed the switch. It was above the trigger and was black. He fiddled with it and found that it clicked into another position on the other side of the gun. This side had a red face. Chris held the gun up and pulled the trigger.

The gunshot echoed through his brain for minutes afterward. His hand was numb from the recoil and there was a small brass cylinder burning the wood of the pew. Chris swatted it onto the floor and changed the switch back over. He looked around in the faltering light to see if he could find where the bullet had hit. His gaze traveled up the cross to see a hole in the wood Jesus' head. Chris blinked and burst out laughing. He felt bad shortly afterward and quickly crossed himself with a muttered apology. He didn't particularly believe in God, but it was better to be safe than sorry, especially in these dire straits.

Chris shoved the gun into his pocket, thanking Levi for big pockets and small... ish... guns. He picked up his pack again and walked out of the Church, angling toward the mountain with the radio tower. He doubted there was a way to walk up the thing, but there might be another way up. He would walk until he couldn't see by moonlight anymore.

((Chris Richardson continued in Darkness.))