Apocalypsis 02 - Warpaint

course they are. Wouldn’t you?”
    “No. I wouldn’t.”
    “Yeah, well, you’re different than we are.”
    You’re not kidding . Before I could get my next thought out, we arrived at the ceremonial hut. A large crowd had gathered to say goodbye, and at the center of it all was Celia.
    My eyes were drawn to her arm wrapped in its bandages, and I had to swallow the lump in my throat. Her half-limb hung at her side, a testament to the seriousness and danger present in our mission. Seeing it really brought home the fact that my entire family was going to be at risk for the next few days - even our pets. The ridiculously awfulness of it was hitting me hard. I battled tears that threatened to come and embarrass me with their presence in the face of all these bold warriors. I was glad we had decided to put our warpaint on later.
    Bodo and Peter moved in closer, both of them stuck close to my sides. Normally, I’d just shove them away, but today I was glad for their nearness. It gave me a sense of security - probably a false sense, but I’d take that over feeling alone and vulnerable any day.
    “Looks like everybody’s here,” said Peter softly.
    The faces were all now turned towards us. I didn’t see anything negative or that looked like judgment, but still, it made me uncomfortable. I focused on looking for my team. One person wasn’t there. “Everyone but Trip, actually,” I said.
    “Wow, how could I have missed him?” said Peter under his breath, looking from left to right.
    I scanned the crowd and the trees around us to be sure. Nope. No Trip. “Well, we can’t wait for him. Let’s go. Maybe he’ll catch up.”
    “Why can’t we wait?” asked Peter. “He’s important, isn’t he?”
    “Of course he is. But we’re about to get rained on, and I’d like to be in place before the noise from the storm wakes up those canners and the rain gets so hard Nina and Bodo can’t keep up.”
    I separated myself from my roommates and went to stand by Kowi.
    “Hey.”
    “Hey, what’s up? Ready to go?”
    “Yeah. Where’s Trip?”
    “Getting some things for us to take.”
    “What things?” I looked at him suspiciously, not liking his evasive tone. We had already very carefully planned what we were taking and everyone had packed as lightly as possible. We couldn’t afford to be weighed down with extra stuff.
    “Things that will help us.” He looked up, his eyes catching something in the distance. “Ah. There he is. Right on time.”
    I looked over to see Trip entering the hut carrying the case holding the grenades I had brought with us when we arrived.
    “Oh, crap, are you kidding me?”
    “No. We discussed it and decided it was a good idea.”
    “Well, we weren’t in on that discussion,” said Peter, indignantly. “They’re our grenades, so I’m pretty sure we should have been included.”
    Trip stepped up and gave Peter a death stare. “You were asleep. And we figured you wouldn’t mind giving them to us to help. But maybe we have you all wrong.” He put the case down and puffed his chest out a little.
    “I’m easily wakened, and it has nothing to do with wanting to help, obviously , or I wouldn’t be standing here,” said Peter, his hands on his hips, staring Trip down with the meanest look I know he’s capable of making.
    “Well, next time I’ll come in and interrupt your little love fest in there and get your permission to do what I want in my swamp!”
    “Love fest? Love fest?! …” Peter took two steps forward, moving closer to Trip and letting his arms drop at his sides. He adjusted his feet to get better balanced, a move I’d taught him recently. Peter was ready to fight.
    Kowi snapped out of his daze and jumped in between them. “Whoa, whoa, guys, chill . What the heck is this all about?” He looked back and forth from Trip to Peter, like all the rest of us were doing, his face screwed up in confusion.
    I felt just as lost as Kowi looked. Peter and Trip sounded like me and Bodo arguing - like a couple. And neither of them seemed to realize it or notice that the rest of us were stunned into silence over it.
    Bodo leaned over and whispered, “Dey chust need to cuddle I think.”
    I elbowed him, telling him silently to shut up.
    Trip finally broke the stare between the two, stalking away. “Just forget it,” he said, without looking back. He left in the direction of the boats that were through the trees a few minutes’ walk away.
    “He’s right. Never mind,”