WARNING! This story contains spoilers, racial slurs, violence, graphic details, and explicit adult scenes.
(I have failed to add the DISCLAIMER in the first chapter! Anyways, I do NOT own The Walking Dead, if I did...there would be a cure by now.)
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Chapter Two — Long Dark Roads
~May 26th, 2010~
It's been two long months since the outbreak happened. Two long months of constant killings of the dead. Two long months of sleepless nights for the worried, single mom.
Thalia looked in the backseat of one of the cars she hot-wired miles ago, to see her two girls sleeping peacefully.
Peaceful —such an unfamiliar word to her. It wasn't anything peaceful about the shit boat they were in. Maybe soon peace will be a thing once she reaches her destination.
Atlanta, GA.
Thalia was smart enough to take the bumpy, mountain ways out. She wanted to avoid any main roads, fearing that she'd run into the undead.
The mother heard groaning in the backseat, it was coming from her oldest daughter, KK.
"You okay, baby?" Thalia asked, glancing from the backseat to the road.
"How much further?" The little girl asked, officially walking up from her short slumber.
"Not far." Thalia told her. The girl sighed as she looked out the window, something that she doesn't do anymore. "Okay, what's wrong?"
"I'm tired of this shit."
"Watch your mouth!" Thalia snapped. KK nodded sadly.
"Sorry."
Thalia sighed and kept her eyes on the road. "It's okay. Mommy's tired of this shit too." Thalia smirked at the little girl. KK smiled at her mom and shook her head. "Just think, once we get to Atlanta...we'll be out of this hell hole."
Just then the car stopped. "I spoke too soon." Thalia mumbled.
"Ya think?" KK replied smartly.
"KK, stay in the car with your sister. It's dark out and I don't want y'all behind me."
"I know, mom. I know." KK reassured her.
"You have your gun?" Thalia asked to which the child replied with a nod.
~The CAMP~
Dale knew that not bringing Merle back would cause a lot of trouble with Daryl. No matter how much people might dislike Daryl, they needed him in the group.
The camp fire that everyone surrounded themselves with got quieter as each person went off to bed. Dale bid his good nights and went on top of the RV, keeping watch.
It was moments later when Dale spotted a white car passing the gravel road that led to camp. The car stopped, he noticed a woman get out and check under the hood.
He then realized the woman had children when he saw a little girl carrying a smaller child in her arms. Dale had to help them. He quickly climbed down his RV to fetch Shane and Rick.
~By The Car~
Thalia sighed when she looked to see the engine blew. It was dead.
"Shit," she cursed under her breath.
"Mom?"
Thalia jumped slightly but relaxed quickly when she heard her daughter's voice.
"I thought to told you to stay in the car." Thalia scolded.
"I know, but I got hot. Plus, Emma Kate woke up. She was crying for you." KK said, holding the four year old child close. Thalia picked up the child out of her big sister's arms. The small child held on to her mom tightly.
"You okay, bug?" Thalia asked. The four year old nodded. Thalia sighed, the little girl haven't uttered a word since the apocalypse started. Thalia knew it was because she was scared, but it still worried her that she wouldn't speak.
"What's wrong the car?" KK asked crossing her arms.
"Well, it's dead." Thalia said truthfully. KK's face fell.
"You're kidding, right?"
"No, I'm not kid—" the mother was going to reply but stopped when she noticed headlights of a car heading her way, she quickly grabbed KK's hand; pulling the child beside her. Thalia gave Emma Kate to her sister.
The mother quickly grabbed hold onto her gun, ready to draw it if these people were trouble. The car stopped and two men, one with a sheriff's outfit and the other with police clothing, stepped forward.
"Whoa. Whoa. We don't mean any trouble." The man in the police clothing said.
"That's what the all say." KK snapped. Thalia looked down at her, nudging her to behave. The two men looked at the little girl, then at each other.
"Feisty one." The man in the sheriff outfit said. Thalia scoffed.
"You don't know the half of it."
"Ma'am, my name is Shane," the man in the police clothing said, pointing to himself. "And this is Rick. We have camp set up, just up the road."
"And?" Thalia asked with her hand still tight on her gun, ready to draw on them.
"Our watchmen saw that you had car trouble and thought you could use some help." Rick told her, hands on his hips.
"We're on our way to safety. Atlanta." Thalia told them. The two men looked at each. Rick shook his head.
"Ma'am, you do NOT want to go to Atlanta. It's been overrun."
"What?" KK asked. A deaf man could hear the hurt and sorrow in her voice. The adults all felt a rip in their hearts to see how disappointed the eleven year old girl was.
"Sorry to be the ones to tell y'all. Look, we want you all to come to our camp. We have food, water, and other children for the kids to play with." Shane told Thalia. The mother didn't know wether to believe the men or not, she looked down at her girls and she knew they needed shelter and not to be out and about around this time.
"Okay," she said with a nod. "Take us to your camp."
Shane and Rick grinned at the lady as she quickly grabbed her children things and Emma Kate's car seat. She had a tough time trying to get it buckled.
"Here, allow me." Rick said softly as he buckle the small child into her seat. Thalia mumbled at soft, "thank you" as she allowed KK to sit on her lap.
"So, how old are your kids?" Shane asked.
"Wouldn't you like to know." KK mumbled under her breath, only her mother could hear her. She quickly pinched the child. "ow."
"Behave," Thalia said sternly in her daughter's ear. "Um, 11 and 4." She could see the two men nod.
"We have children raging from the age 8-12." Shane told her.
Thalia nodded before whispering in her oldest child's ear , "Some kids for you to play with KK."
~•~
The ride to camp was a lot quicker than expected. Thalia got out and smiled at the campsite in front of her. 'these people really got it figured out, huh?' The mother thought.
"There's not anymore tents, but we do have tents available." Shane realized how stupid he sounded.
"Like, that tent over there," he pointed, "the guy who stays in that one is on a hunting trip. We'll figure out everything else tomorrow."
Thalia nodded and led her kids into the tent, which was oddly kept up well for a man to be leaving here.
"The guy must never be in here..." KK said as she looked around. "It looks brand new."
"Yeah, it does." Thalia said as she laid down, something she hasn't done in a long time. "Come on, girls, cuddle up to mama."
Emma Kate was the first one to go to sleep in her mother's arms.
"Mama?"
"Yes, KK?"
"Do you think we'll ever get the chance to meet our daddy?" KK asked as she turned around to face her mother. "I mean, all we got is a photo of you two hugging. We can barely see his face."
Thalia sadden at the thought of their father, wondering if he was still alive. "I don't know, baby. The way this world is going now, it's not like I can call him and set up a meeting."
"I wish you had before." KK said sadly before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep. Thalia played with KK's soft, curly hair before drifting off to sleep herself.
~•~
Thalia woke up in the tent alone. The woman with brown skin patted the empty spaced tiredly, but then her brain caught up with her and she realized her kids were missing. Thalia jolted up.
"Emma Kate? KK?" Thalia said as she looked around the tent. She quickly put on some jeans and ran out of the tent. She was frantically looking around.
"Don't worry. They're playing with the other kids. We fed them and everything." A woman with olive skin and long brown hair said. "I'm Lori. Rick's wife."
"I'm Thalia. Your husband and his friend was kind enough to let us stay with y'all."
"Yeah, they didn't want you or your kids out in the dark like that. It's dangerous nowadays." Lori said carrying the dirty pots to the "wash area."
"You're telling me." Thalia mumbled. Lori smirked.
"Your kids are precious. One of 'em doesn't talk?"
"Emma Kate? No, she doesn't. Not since this shit went down." Thalia told her. Lori nodded and handed her a plate with food in it. Thalia shook her head. "I'm fine. As long as my girls are being fed."
"It's okay! We made this for you." Lori told Thalia with pleading eyes. Thalia took the food and sighed, starting to eat.
"Mom! You're awake!" KK said excitedly, running towards her and holding onto Emma Kate's hand.
"My babies!" Thalia said as she ran to them hugging them tightly. "You girls being nice?" They nodded.
"I always play nice." KK commented playfully to her mother. Thalia took note of KK's cheeky grin before shaking her head at the child.
"Like I said, be nice." Thalia told her children, mainly talking to the older mischievous one. "Okay, go play some more."
"Let me introduce you to the group." Lori said walking pass Thalia.
"This is Glenn and Amy," she said pointing at a blonde girl and Asian boy. "Amy's sister, Andrea. Carol and Jacque. They usually help with laundry." Thalia took in the appearances and gave them a small wave.
"That man over there is Jim. That's T-Dog. Morales and his family. You know Shane and Rick. The man on the RV is Dale, he's the one who spotted you last night. That's everyone."
"Who's the man with the cigarette, watching the women work?" Thalia nodded over to the slightly heavy set man, his whole body language screamed trouble. She knew men like him, they disgust her.
"Oh, that's Ed, Carol's husband."
"Hm. Remind me to keep my girls from him." Thalia said crossing her arms.
"Noted." Lori said with a smirk.
Suddenly, they heard screams of children howling with the wind.
Thalia quickly took off in that direction. The spotted the kids running towards her.
"Get behind me." Thalia whispered as she walked over into the direction the kids once stood. It was a walker, gnawing on some deer meat.
"Hey, pretty boy." Thalia said as she whistled towards it, getting it's attention. She pulled out a knife and threw it horizontally, decapitating it's head. Moments later the men come around with their weapons, only to see that everything was already taken care of.
"Damn." T-Dog said once he noticed that his work was already finished by the woman with one small knife.
"You got skills, I'll tell ya that." Shane said with a playfully scoff and smirk.
"You can say that again." Rick said playfully. "Why the hell are these walkers in the woods?"
"Running out of food in the city, they starting to branch out." Jim said.
Thalia walked over to the deer and grabbed her knife, that got stuck on the deer after she threw it. That was when she noticed the arrows with the initials "D.D" on them.
"No fucking way." Thalia said under her breath.
There was some rustling in the bushes to her left. Thalia grabbed her knife quickly, slowly backing up, getting ready for what was coming next. She heard Shane grunt, then she noticed light brown hair popping out of the woods.
"Oh, Jesus." Dale mumbled to himself.
"Son of a bitch. That's my deer!" The familiar accent said. It was really Daryl Dixon. "Look at it. All gnawed on by this… filthy, disease-bearing, motherless poxy bastard!" Daryl said angrily as he kicked the carcass of the walker.
"Calm down, son. That's not helping." Dale said in attempt to calm Daryl. Thalia wanted to tell the older man to not to waste his breath, there was no calming Daryl down.
"What do you know about it, old man? Why don't you take that stupid hat and go back to "on golden pond"?" Daryl said. Thalia could hear KK giggle as quietly as she could. Daryl looked over at the little girl and smirked. He walked over to the deer again. "I've been tracking this deer for miles. Gonna drag it back to camp, cook us up some venison. What do you think? Do you think we can cut around this chewed up part right here?"
"I would not risk that." Shane said with his gun behind his head.
Thalia frowned at the thought of eating walker leftover food. Daryl sighed.
"That's a damn shame. I got some squirrel… about a dozen or so. That'll have to do." Daryl said as he walked pass a few people, not even noticing Thalia. Suddenly, the head of the walker started to move its teeth.
"Oh god." Amy groaned on the verge of gagging.
"Come on, people. What the hell?" Daryl said as he aimed his crossbow towards the head. Thalia lifted her knife and threw it to the head of the walker before Daryl could shoot it.
"It's gotta be the brain. My fault, heat of the moment." Thalia said as she placed her hand on her hips.
Daryl immediately recognized that voice and turned around to make sure he wasn't going crazy.
"Thally?" Daryl asked. She nodded. Daryl wanted to so badly wrap her into his arms, but knowing their history, he felt it wouldn't be appropriate.
"Mama, Emma Kate wants to color." KK said as she walked pass the man her mother called Daryl. Thalia nodded at the girls before they walked off.
"Mama? You a mama now?" Daryl asked. Thalia stood there, crossing her arms.
"Have been for the past twelve years," she informed him. Daryl nodded and grunted as he walked off. The group stood there awkwardly.
"We missing something here?" Shane asked her. Thalia shook her head and walked off in the same direction Daryl went.
~•~•~•~•~•~ [A/N]
~If Daryl Dixon falls in love with you, he will love you for the rest of his life. – Norman Reedus~
Daryl unofficially met his girls! Thalia is still in love with him, hopefully. We all know that he stills love her, never stopped loving her.
Leave a comment! It gives me confident and I love to hear feedback.
Thank you to the people who support this story already! It means so much to me!
This has been edited to the best of my abilities.
Also, if you want to imagine the characters in your own way...by all means...do it!
