Luke was looking everywhere in interest as we ended the tour. Others also watched him in curiosity, but they were mindful to give him space. Luke hadn't shown any signs of discomfort or tension, which was surprising considering that he hadn't been around groups of people since he turned.

Nina asked, "There are several rooms in the secondary building open if you like. Each of the three floors has an empty room or two. The rooms are all the same. Daniel and I are on the main floor and Trinity is on the second floor. Do you have a preference as to which floor you wish to be on? You can always move later as well."

I smirked slightly. I knew that the main floor was not even on Luke's radar with Daniel down there. Luke scratched his head as he looked at me, "Mind if I stay on the same floor as you?"

We had managed to share my cabin for several weeks without snarling at one another, so I didn't see any issue with it. Both rooms beside mine were occupied, so I knew he wouldn't be right next door. That would make things easier on my instincts as well as on his.

I shrugged, "Fine by me, just keep in mind that Nicky is also on that floor and some mornings are louder than others."

Luke turned back to Nina, "If I could get a room on the second floor, I would appreciate it. If there is more than one empty room, then I would prefer whichever one is further from hers. The stuff in the cave can remain there for anyone else who wants to stay there."

Nina nodded happily, "Certainly. Let's just go drop word with a few bored people. I am sure we will have several volunteers if we ask for help moving things into your new room."

"I wouldn't want to impose on them. I can move things myself if I am shown where they are stored."

Nina nodded, but didn't reply. I knew that she or Daniel would manage it without Luke realizing it. We rounded a corner as we headed toward the main area. I now saw why we hadn't seen that many people for a while. They were all waiting here. Luke looked at the large crowd and for the first time seemed a bit uneasy, probably since they were clearly waiting for him.

Josh came forward with a friendly grin for Luke, "I hope you enjoyed your tour."

Luke slowly blinked his red eyes at the relaxed human and courteously responded, "I did, thank you. It seems very well set up from what I have seen."

"May I ask if you plan to stay? Things tend to be safer when there are sane zombies around if a feral shows up."

Luke nodded slowly, "I am hoping to stay here." He was just as taken aback with their welcoming demeanor as I had been. He also wasn't sure why such a crowd had gathered as if expecting some sort of showdown to occur. Perhaps he was guessing that they were about to kick him out.

The old carpenter grinned, "Glad to hear it. If you encounter any difficulties or need anything, just come find me. I am usually in the wood shop. Oh, did any of these friends of yours mention your house warming gift?"

Luke was caught off guard, "Uh... No they didn't. You didn't have to go to the trouble of getting me anything..."

Josh chuckled, "Everyone deserves a home warming gift of some sort. It is this way."

Josh started ambling toward the one gate. Luke was still somewhat in shock as he watched him go. I chuckled and walked up beside Luke, "I am pretty sure that he intended you to follow him."

My proximity and my words brought him out of his stunned trance. He shook his head to clear it and started heading after Josh. The rest of us followed them in anticipation. Luke was a bit confused as we went past the gate, but continued to walk beside Josh at a comfortable—for Luke—distance.

He didn't seem to realize that there was anything out of the ordinary with the shed until we got closer. He froze in stunned disbelief. Josh chuckled at his reaction, "Perhaps my eyes are just old, but one can appreciate it much better if they get closer."

Luke shook himself out of his daze and walked forward swiftly with eyes that were glowing slightly in his building excitement. He walked around the shed with wide eyes before opening up the door. He stood there silently in shock before slowly walking inside.

It looked like almost everyone in the Stronghold had followed us out here. Many were grinning at Luke's astonishment. Luke appeared in the doorway again with a huge grin on his face. To say that he was thrilled was an understatement. He was completely ecstatic.

I had never seen someone get so excited over a shed before.

He came back over and looked at Josh, "Thank you so much!"

Josh chuckled, "Now there is a reaction I can appreciate. I don't think I have seen anyone so happy in a very long time. There may be hope for this world yet."

Luke transferred his gaze to me, "Now why do I suspect that you had a hand in this?"

I smirked, "Well, you either had a mindreading stalker, talked in your sleep, or I might have commented that this place lacked a rabbitry."

He grinned at me, "And mysteriously a rabbitry gets set up when it was plainly built with zombies in mind? I may be a Runner, but I am not that slow of wit."

"Okay, I may have mentioned a detail or two..."

Luke snorted and shook his head, but he was still over the moon. I had kind of thought that he would react like this. Nina added, "The rabbits are due here later this week."

Luke was clearly once more shocked. The poor guy just kept getting blindsided with surprises. "Thank you so much. This really means a lot to me."

Nina smiled, "We just want you to feel at home. This Stronghold can be your home for as long as you want. There will always be a place here for you."

Luke was speechless. If he hadn't been a zombie, he might have even shed a few tears. For a friendly and outgoing person like Luke, to be openly accepted and welcomed even though he was a red eyed zombie meant more than most people could have possibly imagined.

His voice was soft, "Thank you."

Some people started cheering and it soon spread as others began clapping or cheering a welcome. Luke gazed around in astonishment. The observing crowd slowly broke up and headed back to whatever they had been doing.

It left just the five of us standing there. I sniffed the air, "It is just about time for lunch. Feel like hanging out with us as they eat?"

Luke nodded slowly, "Sure." We all headed back inside the fence, although Luke kept glancing back at this rabbit shed as if to make sure that it hadn't just been a mirage.

I wasn't about to tell Nina, but chances were that he would not leave at this point unless something really infuriated him. They were looking for his brother in places that Luke could not easily go and he was welcomed here. That acceptance was a huge thing for him.

Besides, Luke wasn't really the kind of person who liked unceasing traveling. The word 'home' was an important one to him and it wasn't something he had since he turned. This was a huge game changer for him.

~

Nicky moved a chair to the end of the table and let Luke sit beside me. She somehow defied the laws of logic, common sense, and self-preservation as she looked completely relaxed as she sat between Daniel and Luke. I clearly recalled that Louise had been quite uneasy just sitting between Daniel and Nicky.

The two women ate while the rest of us just took a water. Luke and Nina were jabbering about sciency stuff and I didn't even know what some of the words were. Parts of their conversation were like listening to someone read off everything on an ingredients label.

We looked up as two men came to stand tentatively near our table while they waited for a break in the conversation. I recognized the one man as one of the people on the main council that helped run this place. He spoke, "Sorry to interrupt your lunch. Nina, Daniel, when you are done, could you swing by the main office. There is quite an important meeting about to start and I apologize for the late notice."

Nina nodded, "Certainly. What time do you want to start? I can leave now if need be."

He shook his head, "Don't rush, we will start once we are all present."

The two of them turned and headed toward another person that was also supposed to attend. Considering how the man had glanced at Daniel, he was not about to suggest that Nina interrupt her meal for a hastily arranged meeting. Such a suggestion probably would have annoyed Daniel and an annoyed Terror was not something you wanted in a meeting room.

Nina glanced between Luke, Nicky and I, "I hate to just disappear on you, but it has to be a pretty important meeting for us to drop everything."

I shrugged, "Things happen."

Nicky grinned, "I bet we can make things happen too. Especially when we know that Nina and Daniel are preoccupied in a meeting for some time."

Daniel growled a warning as his eyes flashed red, "You cause any trouble or get into any mischief and every speck of clothing in your wardrobe will become bright pink."

Nicky wasn't bothered by Daniel's growl and simply grinned at him, "You really need to come up with better threats, you know that right?"

A second growl from Daniel was her answer. I decided to intervene, "Nicky you can't tell him when you plan these things. You have to attempt it when they don't expect it. We should probably help Luke move into his new room anyway. Maybe he will let you paint his door."

Nicky perked up, "I saw a can of Persian green on the shelf that the yellow came from. Can I use that?"

"That is Luke's call."

Luke glanced at me in confusion, "I don't even know how bad of a color it is..."

I tilted my head, "If I recall correctly, it is a cross between green, cyan and seafoam. It can come in darker or lighter shades as well."

Luke still looked confused, apparently painting had never been a hobby for him, "Is it going to give me a headache or remind me of puke?"

"No and no."

Luke sighed, "Fine, Nicky can paint my door. I don't even know what color it currently is, so it isn't any loss on my part."

Nicky chuckled, "Unless I am mistaken, it is currently a dirty white."

I prayed that Nicky didn't try to paint my door. Wherever she was finding these cans, they had obviously been put there due to their rather uncommon coloration.

We left the dining hall. Nina and Daniel headed to wherever the meeting was usually held while I accompanied Nicky and Luke as we went to locate his room to see what it currently held.

Luke was quite taken with the small room. It was about as big as mine, so it barely held a single bed and a dresser. The bed and dresser were already present and from the lack of dust they had been hauled up here sometime during the last day or so.

The faint traces of that scent killing sanitizer meant that someone, likely Nina, had been thoughtful enough to ensure that there were not many lingering traces of human scent on the items they had packed up here. I suspected that each empty room had been similarly prepped in case Luke chose that one.

"Well, it looks like we don't have to bring anything up." Luke had a valid point. There was even a new toothbrush and toothpaste still in the package on the dresser.

Nicky hadn't entered the room and simply stood outside the doorway, "Well, I still call dibs on painting the door."

The white door had seen better days, so a coat of paint might actually be a good idea. I nodded, "Go find that green color and you can get started. I will show Luke around the building."

Nicky disappeared without a word, eager to get her hands on coloring implements. That lady really should have been a painter or an artist. I showed Luke the three floors, the showers and washrooms, as well as the three different staircases.

Luke looked perplexed, "Just why are there three separate staircases?"

"Not a clue."

We passed Nicky in the hallway. She had a sad face, "Houston, we have a problem."

We stopped and I cautiously inquired, "What kind of problem?"

Nicky sighed as she turned the can of paint upside down and some green specks floated gently down, "This paint is drier than a popcorn fart. It was the only can in that color too. I will have to go find another can that won't cause my imminent death. I think I saw a blue in there somewhere."

Luke inquired, "Do you need help?"

Nicky thought for a moment before nodding, "Yeah, you better tag along since it is your door. Some of those paint names left me clueless. What freaking color is Endorsement Deal supposed to be? Or Happy Ending? Or Fairy Bell? Honestly, who named these colors?! I think they must have been the ones who stole my medication."

Luke was starting to look kind of worried. I shook my head, "How about we open the cans up and take a look?"

Nicky led us to a rather rickety looking shed that sported shelf upon shelf of dented and mismatched cans. I had no idea what half of the colors were by simply reading the names. Nicky passed me a can and my strong nails allowed me to peel the lid off. Nicky peered in and shook her head, "Even I wouldn't use that color."

A dozen cans later we found a turquoise color that Luke liked and Nicky headed off with that instead.