They reminded her of the old days, before all this horrible stuff happened.
Adelyn knew it wasn't so long ago that the dead stayed in the ground, but to Sophia, it was ages ago in her childish mind.
The two sat on the dying grass in the warm sunlight. The clouds did not oppress them on this evening out.
Sophia told her about the young boy, Carl's reaction to her skill with a .45, extremely proud of herself. She carried herself differently, with more confidence, it would seem.
This pleased Adelyn greatly, just to know that she could help.
It took a total of three days for the rest of the group to grow comfortable with her, though for her it had yet to happen.
This was a strange situation for her, despite the state of the world.
''Daryl, Glenn, and Adelyn come with me.'' Rick began walking past the camp, heading for the silver Hyundai in the dirt driveway.
They followed without question, guns in tow and a slight look of confusion.
''What is it, Rick?'' Glenn asked, furrowing his brows lightly as they got to the car.
''I went out this morning, took a look around...'' Rick looked around at the three. ''There's a small herd, nothing we can't handle.'' He assured, '' But we need to take care of it now.''
Daryl nodded mutely and hopped onto his brother's bike.
''I didn't want to alarm the others.'' Rick told the two left, before getting into the driver's seat.
Glenn followed into the passenger and Adelyn sat in the back. She felt like a little child again. A smile tugged at her lips at the almost lost memories of when everything was alright.
When she was happy.
Rick drove into the nearest town, a small old fashioned array of shops. He and Daryl both pulled to the side, and they all hopped out.
There were a few stray biters aimlessly walking through the abandoned and pillaged town.
''Try not to use your guns. Don't want to attract even more.'' Rick told them, raising a rather promising club from the trunk.
Glenn grabbed a crowbar from the trunk and met a walker halfway.
Adelyn sighed, taking a ball bat. She wasn't as confident without her guns.
Though the bat did its job and soon they were taking care of the last few.
"This isn't good." Rick sighed, running a hand through his hair as he leaned back on the silver Hyundai.
"A herd has never gotten this close before...'' He spoke what everyone was thinking, looking around cautiously.
''What are we gonna do?'' Glenn asked, looking worried. As if he hadn't thought of it that way.
''We can't keep moving around all our lives. We need to take a stand.'' Rick stated sternly. He was wary of constant travel. And with the baby on the way, he wasn't ready to leave the solace of peaceful farm life.
''Sounds good to me.'' Daryl shrugged. He didn't mind putting the sum bitches down.
''It's not a game, Daryl!'' Glenn looked a bit pale. He had been acting strangely of late and they silently wondered why. Ever since he and Maggie got back from their trip out.
''These things are dangerous! We need to stop forgetting that.'' He ranted, and to Adelyn's surprise, Daryl did not shift to defense, but cast his eyes down in what seemed to be reflection and shame.
They had forgotten. And that would only hurt them in the end.
''You're right, Glenn. We're all forgotten how hazardous the times are.'' Rick nodded, patting his shoulder briefly to convey his understanding.
''Now let's get back to the farm.'' He walked around the car and got inside, a still Glenn reanimating at last.
Adelyn followed, a bit uncomfortable with their intimate moment.
Back at the farm, they all gathered in the camp, even Daryl decided to join.
Everyone seemed more lighthearted than usual, but their was a tension in the air. Between a nervous Glenn and a wide-eyed Dale.
She wondered what happened between the two, but she wouldn't have to wonder long.
''There's walkers in the barn.''
Everyone went quiet, staring at Glenn for a long moment.
Shane was the first to get over the surprise. He angrily marched to the barn, the other's in silent tow.
Sophia had stuck close to her mother. Though her newfound confidence allowed her to refrain from quivering.
Adelyn didn't agree with the placement of the biters, but she was new to the group and didn't think she had right to an opinion just yet.
The entire day Shane could be seen sending distrustful looks at the barn from their campsite and Rick could easily be found looking wearily at Shane.
Nobody really said much about it, but the silence said all that they thought.
Rick tried to justify the farmer's motives, for some desperate need to stay on the quint little farm.
But when he was spent with explanations, he thought he might get them from the man himself.
Adelyn took over Shane's 3 hour shift atop the RV. He hadn't even eaten lunch in his distress.
Rick returned, seemingly fine with the whole situation, Shane got angry and wandered off in the direction of the barn.
Adelyn concluded that he was keeping watch there, where the immediate danger lie.
She didn't blame the muscle bond ex-cop, it's what she would do, had she thought she earned her place.
A very unsurprising sight appeared on the side of the RV, a disgruntled Daryl Dixon.
She rose a brow as he climbed the latter, his bow on his back and a grimace on his lips.
He hold in his hand a porceliane plate displaying their lunch down in the campsite.
"From Carol." He grunted, shoving the plate at her.
He made for the latter, but Adelyn spoke, "Wait! Stay with me? I feel so disconnected." She sigh, feeling so terribly out of place in their tight knit group.
Daryl groaned lightly, but obliged nevertheless.
"Thanks for the food." She looked down at it, corn on the cob, fried chicken and green beans.
Daryl huffed a 'whatever', sitting on the edge of the RV's roof.
Adelyn sigh inaudibly at the unpleasant and dirty man to her right, but said nothing.
She was used to men like him, disrespectful and disconnected.
After a moment, she spoke. "What do you think of the walkers in the barn?" She asked, making conversation.
Daryl shrugged, glancing over at her for the first time since he took a seat.
"Don't really matter what I think."
Adelyn shook her head, "Sure it does. You've been here way longer than I have. I think you've earned your keep."
Daryl said nothing, but shifted to pretend he was looking out near the barn.
"You can go if you want.'' She told him, noting how uncomfortable he seemed to be and how awkward she was beginning to feel.
Daryl didn't mind, he had nothing more to do, but he began climbing down anyway. Too discombobulated to prolong his presence atop the winnebago.
The russet haired survivor sighed softly, wondering if she would ever feel accepted by this small group. At times she thought of leaving.
Glenn pulled himself up a half hour later to take her place. He seemed ill-at-ease and woeful as he avoided her face.
''Is something wrong?'' She asked, feeling obliged and concerned. ''Worried about the walkers in the barn?''
Glenn sighed, running a hand through the sweaty raven hair under his cap. ''Well, not really... I mean-'' He huffed again, glancing over at the farm house to their right. ''Maggie's mad at me.'' He confided.
''Because you told?'' Adelyn asked, raising her brows apprehensively at him.
He nodded in reply, pushing his hat back on by the beak.
"Well if she knew how dangerous they are, I'm sure she would understand. I'm afraid sooner or later she will see for herself and all will be forgiven."
Glenn nodded but sigh. Hoping she would understand sooner rather than later.
Adelyn climbed down with her rifle and bottle of water, but was unsure of where to go. Or where she was even wanted.
She solemnly journey to the outskirts of the farm, on the edge of the wood.
She could be alone, feel comfortable and keep watch all at once. It seemed a good party for her time.
She sighed as she looked into the thick trees but jumped when she heard an uproar across the farm.
Gunshots, shouting.
She ran to the noise, her heart pounding. Had the walkers escaped? Has a herd come through?
When she got there much faster with the adreline pumping through her, to find the walkers coming from the open barn doors.
Shane aimed as they spilled out and everyone began to panic.
Rick ran over with a biter of his own, held at arms length by a pole of some kind.
He screamed at Shane to stop, to think about what he was doing.
The farmer close behind seemed to believe they were living people with a simple disease and opposed to the killing of them.
Rick did not want to abolish their welcome and have to carry on in the dangerous world without a safe home with shelter and food.
He tried to stress that with an irrational Shane, but he just got more and more upset.
He shouted to Hershel if he thought a living breathing human could walk away with two shots to the chest and proceeded to shot the walker the farmer held at arms length.
He then shot it in the head and the old man fell to his knees.
Maggie shouted at Shane and rushed to her broken father.
Rick tried to stop Shane but he opened fire on the advancing undead barn dwellers and the other's had no choice but to join.
They were hungry and approaching fast.
Sophia hid behind her mother who pulled her away from the gun fire.
Adelyn covered them as the gun shots annihilate their hearing.
When all firing subsided and all the dead fell silence wrapped them in awkwardness.
The farmer had not moved from his knees and tears fell endlessly from his daughter's eyes.
Beth's mother and brother had been among the dead and now... they were truly gone.
The farmer and his daughters fled to the house and the group sat in silence at their campsite, unsure if they would be kicked out of their newfound paradise.