A/N. I don't know about this guys, it isn't very long yet, but it has been sitting in my drafts for a while so here you go. Also, there will be zombies, it is that kind of apocalypse.
Emerald eyes opened to an uninterrupted silence, narrowing and widening chipped green and black hues without focus. There was little light, and even less warmth, and as Emma sat up and escaped the hovel in the ground she had spent the night in, she did not look anywhere but south, teetering between where the sun rose, and where it set.
One foot hit ground followed by another in a continuous beat. Broken shoes, met broken glass, and broken feet trodded onwards. Every hill was conquered by an unconscious mind that searched for the sound of consciousness.
It was well past dark when a crackle and the soft smell of smoke led off worn pavement and into a small clearing. Shuffling feet dragged tattered clothes into the warm light of the fire and as her body finally gave in, Emma wondered at how life could survive in such complete silence.
"Wake up DAMMIT!"
Emma was on her feet in seconds monitoring every shade of sound and every inch of the colours spinning around her.
"Emma?" came a tentative word on her left, instinct told her to lunge at all sound, but she couldn't and instead she was face first in the grass, a rope elegantly tied around her ankles.
"How'd you know my name" it came out muffled in the grass, Emma hardly lifting her head enough to make her voice clear
"You wrote it on the only useful thing in you pack" came a response, "are you always this idiotic?"
And for the first time Emma was intrigued. This person didn't sound menacing, or at least Emma could hear the fear searching her out from behind every word.
"Do you have water?" It came out of Emma's mouth instead of retaliation and despite the rebellion bubbling beneath, Emma was too concerned with her desperate need for something cold and wet to really care.
"Don't you want to know my name?" was the court reply, followed by a metal water bottle, thrown and bouncing to a stop were Emma remained, lying on her stomach in the tall grass.
After chugging the entire contents of the bottle Emma sat up and tossed it back to waiting hands. Watching the figure return the bottle to her pack, Emma took the time to analyze her new acquaintance.
It was a woman, though that was obvious from her voice, and she looked healthy enough, considering. Her clothes were definitely the cleanest Emma had seen in a while, hardly worn, or bloodied from living among the brush and beasts. Her long brown hair was tied back in a braid, unlike Emma's wild blonde hair that was matted with leaves, and grass. It took a moment but she could see a knife sheathed on the girls hip, strap open and ready for easy access, the girl was smart at least. But then, she would have to be.
Emma had lost her knife, what would probably be days before, when she had a close encounter with some of them. A mental list checked itself off as she realized she might be in a tighter situation then she thought. She wasn't injured, no bites. Her pack was in reachable distance. She was looking down at her feet when fingers crossed her vision and began untying the ropes.
"It's Regina"
"What?" Emma was lost
"My name, it is Regina" the girl looked her up and down before wrapping the rope into a tight knot and tying it to her pack.
"Well that is bloody fantastic" Emma responded with as much sarcasm as she could muster as she stood up, ignoring the eye roll she received in return.
"If you could just toss me my bag and blanket, I will be on my way" Emma took Regina's silence as agreement and reached for her bag only for it to be snatched up by Regina who danced away.
"You don't look like you would get very far at all" Regina responded, shoving the worn blanket she had removed back into Emma's pack, chucking it at her feet. The sound of empty cans and bottles clanking together as it landed, deafening in the empty air.
"I would say, you haven't eaten in awhile, which means you probably aren't from around here" Regina continued unfazed.
While Regina had been speaking Emma had steadied herself against a tree with one hand. lifting her pack with the other. Yet, as Regina continued with some nonsense Emma tilted her head to the side; it was distant, but it was loud.
"Regina we have t'go" Emma had one hand around Regina's wrist and was dragging her into the trees. "NOW"
"What the hell?" was all Regina could get out before she heard the distinct sounds of moaning and shuffling echoing through the brush. Immediately gripping Emma's wrist tightly she veered to the left and dodging down a sloped hill, both muttered the same word, "Corpses"
