Date: Thursday, April 26th, 3007.
Time: Approximately 6:15 p.m.

Jasmine sat quietly in her father's car. Jim had parked it, as per her request, at the garage after unhooking it from the Hummer. She wanted to look it over, and make sure it was in good condition. It needed to be polished, and maintained.. Jasmine had grabbed all the stuff that her Dad kept in the garage for that kind of work, and hoped she could find some more later. Maybe it was a feeble hope, that she could maintain the car the way her Dad would have wanted her to.. but since it didn't appear that her brother had made it back to the house (if he was even alive), the responsibility was on her shoulders.




Jasmine swallowed back the memory, and moistened her lips with her tongue. Then she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and turned the keys. The engine sprung to life with a low purr, and Jasmine let out a sigh of relief as she leaned back in the driver's seat. When she spoke, it was more to herself than anything.

"Great. Now what?"

(Edited to correct Jasmine's father's heritage.)

Dan had forgotten one of his wrenches in the shop. He made his way back and found it, and as he was leaving to put it in his humvee he saw the big Cadillac. He heard the pur of the big engine and smiled. He walked closer for a look, his eyes tracing the lines of the car. It looked excellent, though it was dirty from the drive to the refuge.

Dan then noticed it was Jasmine in the driver's seat.

"I'll say this much that car looks and sounds great. A little cleaning and it'll look like it just came off the showroom floor."

He nods. "You gonna go take her out for a spin?"

Jasmine glanced up and around, startled out of her reverie by the sound of someone talking. She smiled a little at Dan, and shook her head sadly.

"I'd love to.. but I can't. Dad never.. we never had time for me to learn how. And I'm afraid to just try on my own.. I have no idea what I'm doing. It's a stick - I don't want to wreck it. It was Dad's. Maybe it was silly for me to even grab it.. I shoulda just found some old beat up clunker to drive around in, or an SUV or something practical like that to learn on. Who drives around after a zombie apocalypse in a '65 Cadillac convertible?"

She smiled a little weakly at the Marine, and shrugged.

"Just stupid sentiment, I guess."

"Sentiment is never stupid."

He nods. "I can drive pretty much anything Jasmine, if you like I could try to teach you."

Cars brought out his more human side, they had ever since Z-day.

"There are other vehicles we can us though, we don't have to take a chanc with your Cadillac."

Jasmine glanced down at the wheel, and bit her lip. She closed her eyes for a minute, picturing herself driving down the highway, wind in her hair, sun on her face.. she flips on the radio, shifts gears, and.. the transmission falls out. She opens her eyes again, and her lips twist into a wry smile.

"Maybe I'd better learn on something else. If I mess up his car, Grandpa might find me - dead or not - and duct tape my hands to the wheel, and drive me over a cliff in it."

About twenty more minutes found them outside of the gates, with Jasmine in the driver's seat of one of the bases random SUVs. She clicked her seat belt into place, and then looked at Dan.

"Okay.. now what?"

The "terrified teenager" look that had suddenly replaced her "mature zombie killer" expression was awfully hard not to laugh at.

Dan nods and launches into a detailed and in-depth explanation of how to drive a manual transmission vehicle.

"Standard transmissions have anywhere from 3 to 6 forward gears and one reverse gear. Most modern cars have either 5 or 6 forward gears. Understand that the different gears are designed to handle a specific range of speed and that greater speed is obtained from higher revolutions per minute (RPM) and that all engines have a limit when it comes to safe RPMs indicated by the redline on the tachometer. For normal driving, most cars should shift between 1500 and 2500 RPMs. But always listen to the engine and make sure you don't over rev."

"First, press in the clutch and brake and start the car. Shift into first gear, release the brake and slowly release the clutch while gently pressing the gas. To make a smooth take off from a stand still, you want to "ride" the clutch just enough to get rolling. If you "pop" the clutch at a stand still you will lunge forward and the engine will die. Release the clutch slowly, and once the car starts rolling, fully release the clutch and accelerate."

"First gear will rev quickly and you will need to quickly shift into second. Press the clutch, release the gas, then shift from first to neutral, then to second. The pause at neutral is just for a split second and allows the gears to synchronize. Release the clutch and press the gas. Continue up the gears as you require more speed."

"When you decelerate from the upper gears, remain in gear and break. As your speed falls toward the lower limits of the gear you are in, press the clutch and tap the accelerator and engage the next lower gear. The idea is to match the RPMs with the car's speed. Stop down shifting at fourth or third gear, depending on your particular gear ratios. Never down shift into second or first gear under normal driving conditions. From fourth or third gear, press the clutch, shift into neutral and break until you stop."

He stops his lecture and smiles. "That's the very basics. Want to give it a try?"

Jasmine was silent for a long moment.. then she nodded briefly, and took a deep breath.

"I only have one question.. what's the clutch?"
______________

An hour later, Dan found himself on the highway, cruising at a moderate speed with a slightly less nervous Jasmine behind the wheel. In the end, he'd ended up having to demonstrate - she seemed to learn better from watching him than just from descriptions. The poor SUV had taken a bit of a beating at the beginning, and it was probably going to need a little work by the time this was all over. In retrospect, he was pretty glad he'd offered the other vehicle, because the thought of her ripping up the transmission like that on a classic car like hers made him cringe inwardly. But she had managed to make it to the highway, and though he didn't have a lot of confidence in her ability to do anything but drive straight at the same speed yet, it was a start.

"So.. you do a lot of the work on the cars around the base, huh? Were you a mechanic or anything? You know.. before?"

Dan nods. "I was One of the main mechanics at the Motorpool at Fort Bragg before Z-day. I spent my waking hours fixing or repairing things or training recruits."

"Even as a company commander I believed in getting down and dirty with the men. I didn't ask anything of them that I wasn't willing to do myself."

There's a hint of sadness in his vocie, he missed his comrades, or that was how it seemed.

"At the refuge, it's how I repay Fox for letting me stay as I wish. I'm a better mechanic than anyone else there, so it helps considering what we drive there."

"What about you? You were a student before right?"

"Yeah.. when I wasn't busy being sick. I swear it was like a full time profession. I had cancer, it had been in and out of remission.. spent a lot of time in the hospital, or doctor's offices. But I was still on course to graduate this year, so that was good, I guess."

At Dan's indication, Jasmine shifted gears as she picked up a little more speed. The transmission made a slight grinding noise, but it was a little better before. After a moment of making sure she was still okay, she glanced over at Dan.

"Bet this woulda been a lot harder to teach with cars on the road, huh? Do you think you could show me? You know - how to work on cars? So I can take care of the Caddy?"

"Oh yes, it would have been virtually impossible. It would be a pleasure. We can start tomorrow morning, this poor thing's transmission's going to need some work after the strain of today."

"Don't worry though. It can be fixed pretty easy compared to something like one of the big rigs. We'll start with something small, and wor our way into the bigger stuff tomorrow. When you're ready, We'll go to your cadillac and put everything into practice."

He didn't sound like he was making fun of her.

"You've done pretty well for never having really been shown this before. With more prctice you'll be cruisin' on your own in no time." He sounded reassuring, something few people got from him.

Jasmine nodded, and smiled at him warmly. She hadn't been around long enough to really know how people talked about him at the refuge, or to realize that he wasn't usually this outgoing or friendly. It was kind of nice, to not get treated like a pariah.

"Thanks.. I really appreciate it. I don't think I ever would have figured this out without some help. And I appreciate you offering to show me how to fix it too. I'll probably stick around Fox's most of the time, but if I am out by myself, it'll be good to know what to do if something happens. After all, it's not exactly like I can dial Triple A these days from my cell phone, huh?"

The smile turned into a bit of an amused grin then, and she kept driving, hoping to get as much practice in for the day as Dan had time for. Eventually though, she turned back around (with some verbal assistance), and started heading back towards Fox's Refuge.

Dan nodded. "No, definitely not."

The next day began early, Dan stood there waiting for her in one of the bays with the Truck already lifted.

"Today we learn how to service and repair a transmission, probably one of the least fun jobs in Vehicle repair."

He chuckles. "The good news, if you can do this, you can do most anything on a Car."

"I hope those are old clothes, you're gonna get dirty today."

Jasmine looked up at the truck, then nodded at Dan. She was wearing the same clothes she had worn a couple days ago on the Dallas trip.. clean, but with a couple rips and stains they hadn't had before the fighting at the Wal-Mart.

"I.. had a feeling that might happen. Once clothes have been coated in zombie goo, they definitely count as "old" in my book, I don't care if I scrub them with bleach afterward."

She took the tools that he picked up and handed to her, and nodded as he detailed what their uses were. She was a bit relieved to discover he was going to have her watch first, and then try. As he had seen yesterday, she was more of a "learn by watching" kind of girl.

He got underneathe the vehicle and began disconnecting everything, while she watched from the side and handed tools as requested. It took three hours to get the transmission out and apart on a towel. "Each part has to be cleaned." After showing her how clean he wanted them he left her to that part of the job while returning to the engine. He changed out the spark plugs and changed the oil and went back to check on her. "Done yet?"

"Almost."

He saw that she had cleaned about eighty-five percent of the parts thoroughly, and laid them out separately on the towel. She had tried to group them into parts that she knew went together, and although she had made a few mistakes, he was pleased to see that she had paid attention to what went there when he was taking it apart.. either that, or she just seemed to kind of get where things would fit together. Either way was good, and showed that she wasn't just here to screw around, or because of boredom.

"So what's next?"

He looked at the parts and smiled. "Now I show you how to reassemble a transmission." He sat down and over the next two hours showed her exactly how to reassemble a transmission.

He stood up and stretched. "Alright, lunch time. Let's go grab a bite then we can come back and you can put it back in where it goes."

Jasmine hopped up, twisting slightly to stretch. Then she followed Dan to the cafeteria so they could grab some lunch. As they walked, she asked him questions about the transmission, and about cars in general and how to maintain them. She seemed naturally inquisitive about it, and paid a lot of attention to what he had to say.

They got to the cafeteria and grabbed lunch, finding an empty table to eat at. They sat down and started eating in silence at first, but after a few moments, she glanced up at him inquisitively.

"So.. did you get into the mechanic stuff because of your job in the military? Or were you a car guy when you were a teenager, too?"

Dan smiled. "My dad was big into cars my whole life. He had a '69 Dodge Charger all hot rebuilt as the ultimate hot rod. I can remember being four and five and handing him tools as he did all his own maitenence. I always helped out, and took vocational studies in high school. After that I joined the Marines and learned to fix effectively everything that moves."

"I've always had a soft spot for cars though, they bring back memories of a better time."

"What about you? What were you planning to do when you got out of school?" Dan devoured several sandwiches, showing a seemingly bottomless pit that was his stomach.

Jasmine had picked out a small amount of food - certainly nothing compared to what many of the 'supers' ate. She picked up a couple pieces of fruit, and about a cup of pasta in pesto sauce that looked really delicious, and that was it. Dan had noticed that Jasmine ate very little to nothing most of the time, and that when she did eat she took the time to savor and enjoy it, never rushing through the food.

She listened quietly as he spoke, and then grew thoughtful for a moment, thinking back on her conversation with Myf the other day at the school.

"I was thinking about architecture. My Dad was an electrician, and he dabbled in home repair and construction and stuff on the side. We built the add-on to the house ourselves, the only help we had was with the plumbing. It was pretty cool, I really had fun. I think I was nine or ten, something like that. My brother got stuck with the hammer and nails, stuff like that, even though he was older. He wasn't very good at that sort of thing. But I helped out with the power tools."

She grinned a little then, looking amused at the memory. She bit her lower lip after a moment, and shrugged.

"I don't know, maybe that kind of stuff will come in handy now.. though it's not like I'm ever gonna go to school for it or anything. But I did take some drafting classes in high school, it was easy to do on my own during my time at the hospital when I had to miss class - you could learn a lot of it just from the books. And some of my teachers used to tape their lectures for me when I missed class. I've been trying to help Violet lay out her upstairs area for more people to be able to stay there - the place isn't fully built yet, and we're about ready to start dividing the top floor into smaller spaces for people to stay at."

"Anyone with Architectural training is going to be in high demand. There's alot of ebuilding to be done even here at the Refuge. I've helped, when I have time."

"It's odd. Before I was just a mechanic, but now I can work on structures just as easily. quirks of reality I guess."

He looks at her quizzically. "Is that really all you're going to eat? I don't even start getting full till I've eaten at least 4 or five sandwiches."

She bit her lip for a moment, her eyes flickering cautiously around her. Fortunately it wasn't normal "lunchtime" for most of the refuge's residents - those that came to the cafeteria to eat usually did so around mid-afternoon, in order to get out of the heat of the sun. People trickled in for breaks now and then, but at the moment it wasn't too terribly full, so Jasmine spoke.. though her voice was a quiet murmur, pitched for Dan alone to hear.

"I don't need to eat any more. I do, sometimes.. to look normal, and because it's enjoyable. But.. I don't have to. I don't have to eat, I don't have to drink. I don't need sleep, although it still helps with stress.. I don't even need to breathe, I just seem to do it out of habit sometimes. It's.. weirdly creepy. I try not to tell people.. I'm pretty sure it would weird them out. But I don't like eating a lot, because I don't need to. Why waste the food when other people need it?"

Dan nods. "That's pretty cool. You're lucky in that regard. I have to do all the normal things, though sleeping, drinking, and breathing I don't do as much. I eat four or five times what I used to though."

"So what are your plans Jasmine, both immediate and future?"

"Well, immediate plans are pretty tight. Priest and I, along with Violet, are leaving tomorrow on a trip to Gabrielle's refuge. We're going to take the little girl we found - Pumpkin - and see if Gabrielle's would be a good place for her to stay, for now. I'm thinking it might be the best option for her, but we need to go there to see, and to see if Gabrielle would even be willing. We plan on staying there a couple days if possible, and then coming back in time for the trip to New Mexico. After that.. I don't know."

She shook her head slightly, looking a bit lost.

"I mean.. some of the things I really like here.. and some things I really don't. So.. I don't know, we'll just have to see what happens in New Mexico, and.. if I find my family or not. After that, I think I'm winging it."

She smiled a little, and shrugged at him before popping another olive in her mouth.

"Dan nodded. "Would you like me to accompany you as well? Priest and Violet aren't fighters, and I doubt he'd be rushing his crew right back out into the hell beyond the compound. That means they'd largely be depending solely on you for defending all three of them."

"I can easily help with that, along with any other difficulties that may be encountered."

He looked at her "What don't you like here?" As an afterthough he nods and adds, "What you say stays between us."

She hesitated for a long moment, and then sighed slightly. She sat her fork down, most of her desire for food gone.

"I dunno, exactly. I mean.. I guess it just doesn't feel like a good way to run a place. I mean, yeah.. back in the day, one person running a place was okay, cause people didn't know better. But people now.. you know, everyone was used to a certain lifestyle, and while I'm not saying everyone's gonna get that - I mean really, we're lucky to have this place, period - I get that. But I just.. the way it's run makes me a little uncomfortable. I feel like some kind of royalty or something - like I can just stay here, without having to contribute unless I really want to. But the regular people - they're out there working their butts off. I should be out there every day, no matter what. So should James, so maybe even Violet, as long as she has.. I dunno, a chaperon, I guess."

Her lips twisted in a wry smile at that, but after a moment it flickered and died. She shrugged, and continued, idly popping a bite of the food into her mouth without really tasting it before looking back up at him.

"But we aren't, and they are.. and I don't like that. It bothers me, I suppose. A military dictatorship because of a bad situation is one thing.. but establishing us as some kind of nobility or something, just cause we got the luck of the draw, doesn't seem right to me. And I don't know if I want to be a part of it or not."

She picked at her food for another second before giving up and pushing the plate away.

"We're leave tomorrow - please, feel free to join us. The extra protection couldn't hurt, especially with Pumpkin along. You never know when something's going to happen."

He looked at Jasmine and nodded. "Fox does indeed run the show, but then again he had the forsight and presence of mind to set all this up, So I don't begrudge him being in control. As to how the supers are treated,There are some who don't do as much as others, but everyone contributes. We all go out on scavenger runs, Fox oversees the administration with Ger and Jules, and I spend most of my waking hours in either the machine shop, the armory or building something for someone."

"No one is forced to stay here. But let me say this, If you really want to make a difference you can either fight the system, which probably won't work in this case, or work from within to change it."

I know for a fact Priest Treats every single person here as just that, a person. I don't dare begrdge the fact that he looks after his daughter and crew first and above all others. Considering what they all do for the community I say they're entitled to what they ask for."

"I myself don't ask for much, beyond a place to come back to,and the supplies I need to fulfill my mission."

His lecture/speech done he smiles, a real smile. "Tell me about Pumpkin, her abilities and such. I'd heard from Fox but he didn't have alot of time. She can create creatures that help and protect her?"

Jasmine skipped over the topic of the refuge, glad he had mentioned Pumpkin so that she'd have something to move on to. His response made sense intellectually, but it didn't negate the wrongness that Jasmine felt about the way things were being handled. So she grabbed onto the change of topic gladly, breaking into a small smile at the mention of the little girl.

"She's an absolute doll. She's very cute, blond curly hair. She creates these creatures.. I don't know exactly how it works, but they seem real, and they're like protectors for her. They must be what's kept her alive all this time, which means they're not just some sort of illusion. Her first ones, the ones that were out when we found her were these dog-type creatures, and the one I saw her with the other day was just this little dragon-snake type thing that could fly. So.. I guess it's whatever she can dream up."

"That's intriguing, and very unique. None of us can do anything like that."

He looks away a moment. "It just goes to show that these powers, or abilities we all got were halfway random. I mean we all got things that let us survive, but each of us is different."

"She's in total control of these creatures, or do they gove about instinctualy on their own?"

Jasmine thought about that one for a moment before answering, and nodded slightly at his comment.

"I think it's a little bit of both. I think they can act on their own, to a certain extent. I mean, that one that was looking around the library darted off as soon as it spotted me, and went straight back to her - but she wasn't there to tell it to do that. Unless she can communicate with them somehow when they're out of sight. But they certainly seem to obey her orders, and do what she tells them to do. There's probably no way to know for sure without asking her about it, and I'm not sure if she'd be able to explain it just yet. She's still a bit young. She might be able to though.. perhaps telepathically, or something."

"Never underestimate children."

"Thus far it's only been the dog-like things and the serpent? Has anyone else asked her if there are other things she can make?"

"No.. not really. I suppose someone should get around to asking her that at some point, huh?"

She smiled a little sheepishly, and finished off the last of her food, glad Dan had been willing to let the conversation about her opinion on the refuge go. She finished the small glass of soda she'd gotten, and sat it down, noticing that Dan had about finished off his glass.

"Well.. I suppose we should be getting back to work. After we finish, can we take it out for one last drive?"

"That will work." They finished and got back to work finishing the rebuilding an hour before sundown. He tossed her the keys after shutting the hood and smiled. "Start her up and let's go for a ride."