Replanted Remastered

Backyard Camping

As evening approached, Alice quietly returned downstairs, walking into the kitchen to retrieve a snack. Peter and Crazy Dave were still planning their invention.

Peter drew a line on the large sheet of paper they'd laid out, seemingly connecting two points. "-But.. There's one part that I'm really unsure of. The enhanced vacuum, that's simple. - But a battery strong enough to power this thing, that's also small and light enough to make the invention still lift-able? - That's the hard part,"

"Hmm.. You got any gizmos of yer' own that could work?" asked Crazy Dave.

"I haven't got a clue,"

"Well, let's not worry about this righ' now, okay? It's gettin' late. You gotta rest that thinkin' brain of yours,"

Alice zoned out of listening to them speak as they looked for a snack in the fridge. They grabbed a chocolate bar. When they glanced back, Peter was leaving the kitchen. They watched him leave the house through the front entrance.

"That Lemonade feller's got a very bright mind," said Crazy Dave. "Grah, he reminds me of myself when I were young,"

"..Cool," Alice replied.

They spotted Ragz coming down the stairs just as they were heading out of the kitchen. He waved at them.

"What are you doing?" asked Alice.

"Looking for you. I was lonely, and Pudding isn't the best company," he explained.

"Oh. Huh." Alice fidgeted with their wrist.

"You eatin' that?" Ragz asked, gesturing to the chocolate bar Alice held.

"..Well, not right now, but-"

"Can I have it?"

Alice sighed, rolled their eyes, and handed him their chocolate bar.

"Thanks, Alice!" he tore the wrapper. "D'you know where Peter is?"

"..Why do you ask?"

"No reason. Jus' wanna know,"

"Well.. he left a minute ago." Alice looked out the window and spied Peter's orange tent pitched in the front yard, near the front gates. "Oh. There he is,"

"Peter's so weird. Camping when there's a house he could stay in," said Ragz. "I wonder what's up with him,"

"..I could ask, y'know. He's right there,"

"Really? Do you really think he'd answer you?"

"It's worth a try. He's probably lonely,"

"Fine. Suit yourself. I'm going to bed." Ragz walked away, leaving Alice alone and chocolate-less.

They slipped on their sneakers and stepped outside, making the short walk through the wet grass to Peter's tent. Through the light illuminating the tent, Alice could make out Peter's silhouette. Eventually, they stood in front of the zip-up door.

"..Hello? Peter?" they said.

"State your name and purpose," Peter ordered. Alice could see him holding his crossbow in his silhouette through the tent.

"It's just me, Alice, and.. I wanted to talk to you,"

"Oh. Fine, you can come in." Alice could see him putting away his crossbow. They unzipped the entrance of his tent and ducked inside, closing it behind them. Peter was already back to reading a book of his, which on further inspection proved to be Ernest Hawingway's Toad Psychic.

"What's up?" asked Alice. "I'm surprised you let me in at all,"

"Nothing's up. -And I can be polite sometimes, you know, especially since I'm sure to be seeing you much more often. I'm sorry that we got off on the wrong foot,"

"..You threatened me with a crossbow,"

Peter swallowed. "I.. I apologize for that. I was acting rash, at the time,"

"Yeah. No kidding,"

There was a pause between them. Peter returned to his book. In the silence, Alice finally noticed his jarring pajamas; a jungle green onesie with a large yellow lightning bolt across the front. He was also wearing socks, like the nerd he was.

"So.. is that a good book?" Alice asked, gesturing to Peter's copy of Toad Psychic.

"Yes, despite the old tired trope of the butler being the culprit. I first picked it up at school to serve as my necessary Language Arts novel, but.. of course, the apocalypse happened. This is technically stolen,"

"Oh. I like your style, I don't even know how many books I've stolen from school libraries over the years,"

"You enjoy reading too? I thought you'd be the type to call it a waste of time,"

"I'm not much of a 'real' books person; I read comics. A lot of comics,"

Peter's expression dropped. He frowned slightly. "Oh. I see. Well, if you'd ever like a good 'real' book, I'd recommend Barbara John's autobiography. She was the founder of Bloom & Doom, and her book has all sorts of ridiculous stories about fighting zombies. I'm sure you'd find it entertaining,"

"..You're giving me a book recommendation?"

"Of course I am! I'm not sure if this interests you, but that autobiography is from the seventies. It's a perfect snapshot of the past, and it's very fascinating to me!"

"Let me guess, you're a history person,"

"Yes. I am. In fact, Margot here-" he picked up his crossbow. "-is named after Margaret Hamilton, the lead coder of the Apollo 11 mission!"

"You named your crossbow?"

"Of course I did. I'm a nerd, remember?"

"Ohh, right,"

There was a pause.

"Well, I'm glad we're gonna be friends. You seem pretty cool," said Alice with a smile.

Peter pushed up his glasses. "I'm going to return to my river placement as soon as Dr. Zomboss is dealt with, Alice. Don't expect me to stay,"

"..Oh. Okay then,"

"You can leave now, I'd like to actually get some rest tonight, if that's alright with you,"

"Okay, okay! Fine, I'll go,"

They stood up and left, Peter zipping up the tent behind them.