RE: Drunk Journal
This is probably a really dumb idea. But I've been watching that show The Walking Dead, lately, and I've begun building fantasies and stories using the zombie theme as a base.
So, the setting is post-apocalyptic, with a band of survivors traveling and hiding from the walking dead that now populate the Earth. These are the "diseased" type of zombie that spread through bites that cause death and then undead resurrection. And they're running and climbing zombies, with vestiges of remembrance from their humanity - like, how to open doors, how to use tools like a rock to smash open a thick window that's blocking them from prey.
So, our band of survivors is traveling and scavenging from city to city; the men scout ahead of the vehicles that carry the women, children and older men. During one of these scouting missions, they're on high ground looking down into a valley where a city is situated. As the one guy looks through his binoculars, trying to make an estimate of how many undead are around - and there are a few, milling aimlessly about - he spots something that causes first surprise, then alarm and then confusion.
Down among the abandoned buildings, lounging/sitting in a broken out window sill, with a rifle across his lap and sunglasses on, is a guy smoking a cigarette. ...with zombies walking about 6-10 feet from him. Not only does he act like he doesn't have a care in the world, as if he's just "hanging out", but the undead completely ignore him. The guy with the binoculars alerts his fellows("Holy shit! You guys aren't gonna believe this!") and the leader of their group(your stereotypical, mid-thirties guy who plays the "hero" in these kinds of plots) he takes the binoculars and looks through them himself. Not only does he immediately see the smoking man, but he also notices a zombie wander by him, close enough to the window to nudge his shoulder and the dude scowls, picks up his gun one-handedly and pokes/shoves the zombie in the back in "reprimand" as it walks away... and it does not react to him at all, except to lurch and stumble when it's pushed.
I like to imagine how bizarre this discovery would be, especially since this group has faced its share of tragedy and horror and "getting out by the skin of their heels" in different situations since the world has ended. So, of course, they're intrigued because obviously, this son of a bitch isn't insane; there is SERIOUSLY something about him that gives him immunity to the monsters. Not only that, but as the leader starts planning on how they'll proceed - contact must be made; maybe the guy's a scientist? Maybe he found a cure or some form of protection? - he spies movement down in the street below. A young girl of about 8 or 9, with dark hair and dark clothes, runs with her back to them towards the smoking man, but she does so in a playful way that clearly marks her as still a part of the living. And she weaves in between a couple of zombies - fully within their sights - but remains unassaulted and unharmed. She wanders up to the smoking guy, who reacts to her with a casual interest and tolerance, as if he knows her. She's found something that has excited her and she shows it to him while he gets up and gets ready to leave their "post".
I haven't exactly planned out how our group of survivors meets up with this guy face-to-face, but the scouting group probably did something along the lines of getting the guy's attention in some way without getting the attention of the undead he hangs around with, and without being followed or further accosted by the horde, he searches them out and they meet in a secluded area. Of course, the questions fly wildly, but he takes it in stride, sometimes completely unfazed and seemingly bored, and other times, relaxedly amused. And the girl with him remains stony-faced and quiet, unafraid, yet interested in the conversations.
And what this guy ends up revealing is... that he's a zombie herder(shut up; I said it was stupid). And yes, he uses those terms to describe himself.
I haven't yet ironed everything out and it's just something I've been messing around with, so as far as his explanation for his immunity to being eaten alive, it has different possibilities, currently. One of them is, he doesn't know. He has no idea why him and the girl are special(this, of course, is the least interesting to me, because I actually picture him being a bit more arrogant about his "status". Putting him in control of it makes his arrogance a lot more plausible). A different explanation involved actual training and "herding" the undead. That through some method, similar to coaxing wild animals to listen and obey instruction, he's earned the right to manipulate the undead through a similar means. Again, not very interesting to me, but has possibilities, I suppose.
The third explanation he could possibly give... is really stupid, but it's the one I like best for this story. Apparently, he is a cannibal himself, except he eats infected humans. Meaning, zombies. He kills them when he wants to eat and somehow blahblahblahpsuedo-science-and-or-magic it keeps the rest of the undead from attacking him. And he found the little girl one day and taught her to start eating them too, which keeps her from getting attacked as well.
I don't know. Just liked the idea and the horror of it, particularly combined with this guy's ease and apathy when explaining it to other people. And his arrogance as well, which is to the point where, when he's with them, their entire group gets ambushed by a small swarm of undead and he rolls his eyes and clicks his tongue as if it's a bother and goes about systematically killing all the zombies in sight as if a child could do it. And he's actually offended that they were incompetent enough to force him to have to.