Hello everyone and welcome back for another exciting episode! A big thank you to all who reviewed...

Rebel29

poiserose

LoneWolfPack

shika93

sillygabby

ScornedxRose

Pein's Kid

Petalclaw's PatriceBethPorter

momoxvolturi

Guest

doulder

Guest

tanakaL

hfward1221

pandasninjasndkikiws

guest

guest

guest

finalfan21

Diclonious57

SexySelena666

jaoosa2

Guest

Foresthunter

no control16

SilverNeira

Alaria von Ravencroft

trinitee64

Pr3tTyGuR1Na3

LittleMeep

JJ

CobraQueen35

Guest

Hello everyone! I'm back again! Lots of things to talk about!

DARYL IS OURS! NOT CAROL'S! OURS!

Sorry, the first two episodes of season 4 of the walking dead just make me want to kill off the chick now! I HATE her! And Lori, she's always been a bitch till the very end. I almost cried when she died.

Anywho! Love the season so far and I SO many ideas for when we get into season 3 and 4! Whoot! I just hope I continue on strong with this story.

Here we start season one! Things will follow the TV show but I may change it up a bit now and then. Our girl has got to get out now that she's got her feet wet.

Hope you all enjoy this newest chapter! Thank you so much for the awesome feed back! I appreciate it! Love you guys!

I've also been m.I.a for a while due to the fact that I've been under writers block along with some sort of depression after the loss of two friends. Please forgive the last update. All updates from now on will be what I can type out until I'm back into my writing swing.

~oOo~

Others.

There are others out there, alive, surviving, living even as the undead harass them at every turn, threatening them with a most painful violent death. Everyone suspected that we would be the only ones felt alive with maybe a few others from other states. There's that lingering hope they call cling to, the small spark I see in their eyes, just waiting for the day to come where we might survive this after all with wild stories to tell our children about one day in the future. No, not in this life. Maybe not ever if the living keep becoming the dead.

But this man...

Driving towards the city...

Is about to end his life to join the undead...

Amy wants to warm him, Lori wants signs put up so people know about the fallen city, and Shane wants everyone in camp to be kept happy and safe.

That's an illusion in itself.

"What do you think will happen to him?" I asked Amy who shook her head.

"If he goes into that city he'll die." She said and turned towards me. "I just hope he meets up with our group. Maybe they'll help him if he does find them." She said, that spark of hope still once again in her eyes. She smiled and turned to finish her chores.

"Yes, maybe. What are his chances of surviving though?" I said to no one and went towards the shared tent of Merle, Daryl, and myself. While the boys are away I decided to tidy up a bit, wash clothes, and just make the tent a little bit more comfortable. I know Merle like his sleeping bag ruffled with pillows while Daryl has taken a more shared approach with me sleeping next to him. With only one other pillow and blanket we've shared everything together. I know he doesn't like being touched but when I wake up in the morning I find one of our hands entwined together.

My fierce protector.

"Hey Hope, we're gonna go pick some mushrooms. Wanna come with us?" I looked over at Amy who held a red bucket in her hand with Carl standing near her.

"Sure. Give me a minute."I said, folding up the blanket I was shaking out. I stuck it back inside the tent and slipped on my sandals that I found one trip. They're easier than my shoes and it makes better for me to walk around in. Amy smiled and the three of us went looking.

Since there are walkers still out there, we're only allowed to go small distances away from the camp. There's only been one walker sighting and that was when Ed attacked me. After that there hasn't been any sign of them this far up the mountain. And when we're looking for things like these, there's only so much we can find in such a small range.

Then again...

It still feels amazing to be outside. Sometimes I take off my shoes just to enjoy the feel of the dirt between my feet. There's a cool breeze and I love the feel of it. Even with my long hair, strange because of the length of it, I can feel it rake its cool fingers through every strand. I can imagine myself running through the trees down a dirt path towards...something. I just feel glad that Marcus took me out of the CDC to experience these feelings and this chance to have a life I never got to have.

A freedom I never got to have, that was taken away from me.

I found a few and stood up, looking back towards the camp with a small frown. They all still find me strange and different. Even after everything that has happened, all the times I've made myself useful and such, and after all the times I tried to seem like I haven't spent most, if not all, of my life in a white-walled room being poked and prodded; they still have the same smile and look about them.

One that speaks volumes without saying any words.

I've experienced so much in this new world, this violent and harsh world, that I've only just now have scratched the surface. Though, if I slip and fall, I might just fall further into a nightmare I can't get out of.

"Lunch time Hope." I looked up from where I looked over the quarry, ten minutes after Amy, Carl, and I went looking for mushrooms. Amy gave the bucket to Lori and I went off on my own to think like I usually do when I have no one to talk to. I got up from where I sat and went to the fireplace where I was handed a weird looking cup full of noodles. On it read instant lunch and it smelled somewhat good. I remember Glen picking this up from the last time we went out together. He said it's better than nothing and it can fill you up pretty good.

Lunch was quiet except for a few conversations. The other people who I haven't talk to yet stare at me and Amy just gives them a look back. They always stare...

"Stop looking at me!" I snapped at them and they seemed taken back, they're eyes going back to their food. Amy gently gives me a shove to look at her and when I do, she's smiling at me. She's proud.

I spoke up...

A rumbling came from where and we all looked up to find that the sky was clear. Everyone looked around for the noise until we saw black clouds in the distance. Someone, I think it was Dale, who said that flash rains come every so often and said that it should be heading towards us soon. I don't like the rain. It's cold and wet. I like warm and dry places. Just because I can't get sick anymore doesn't mean I can go out and try and get sick. No one knows that I can't...it's better that I never say anything. The doctor may be right.

"It's late. They should've been back by now." Amy said, pacing after lunch was done and over with.

"Worrying won't make it better." Dale said, fixing the RV again. Everyone was off doing something, hanging up clothes or fixing tents as the thunder grew louder.

"Hello base camp. Can anybody out there hear me? Base camp, this is T-Dog. Anybody hear me?" The radio went off and everyone scrambled for it. T-Dog then began to talk from what we can hear, saying they were trapped in a department store. Everyone's faces turned pale and my heart began to clench. Oh no.

"He say they're trapped?" Shane asked Dale who manned the radio. The storm was interfering with the signal, making T-Dog's voice hard to hear.

"There are geeks all over the place. Hundreds of 'em. We're surrounded."

"T-Dog, repeat that last. Repeat." Dale said but all we got was static from the other end.

"He said the department store." Lori said and Dale confirmed it.

"Shane?"

"No." Shane answer what Lori was going to say right away. "We do not go after them. We do not risk the rest of the group. Y'all know that."

"So we're just gonna leave her there?" Amy asked Shane.

"Look, Amy, I know that this is not easy-"

"She volunteered to do." Amy interrupted Shane. "To help the rest of us."

"I know, and she knew the risks, right?" Shane asked her. "See, if she's trapped, she's gone. So we just have to deal with that. There's nothing we can do."

"She's my sister, you son of a bitch." Amy said and ran off. Shane and Lori exchanged looks, Lori shaking her head.

"There's always something we can do." I spoke and everyone turned their heads towards me. "T-Dog, Jacqui, Merle, Andrea, Glenn, Morales. They have names. They all volunteered to go." I said and briskly walked towards the spot where me and the good doctor had our meetings. When I got to the edge I closed my eyes real tight and concentrated...

"If there is anyone out there, hearing me. In the city there are people still alive. Please, do not harm them. I need them to come home safely."

~oOo~

"What is it?" Amy asked Dale who had the binoculars on, looking for the thing that was creating a horrible noise.

"Stolen car is my guess." He said and we watched as a red car pull up, blaring away a noise that was unwanted. Everyone started to scream at Glenn as he got out, asking him questions and demanding things all at th same time. If it wasn't for the loud noise their yelling would've been the one making my head hurt.

"Yes! Yeah, fine. Everyone is. Well, Merle not so much." Glenn said and turned his face towards me. No...

"Are you crazy, driving this wailing bastard up here? Are you trying to draw every walker for miles?" Shane demanded.

"I think we're okay." Dale said.

"You call being stupid okay?" Shane asked.

"Well, the alarm was echoing all over these hills. Hard to pinpoint the source. I'm not arguing. I'm just saying. It wouldn't hurt you to think things through a little more carefully next time, would it?" Dale asked Glenn.

"Sorry. Got a cool car." Glenn said.

"Glenn," I said and he slowly turned his head. "what about Merle? What happened?" I asked him.

"I'll tell you later, I promise." He said just as everyone watched as a truck pulled up. Andrea, Jacqui, Morales, T-Dog all got out, everyone embracing them as they got out. Andrea gave me a sad smile as she pulled me into a hug with her sister. She wasn't giving me a hug because she was alive but she knew I cared about one person that didn't come back.

"New guy—he got us out." Glenn said.

"New guy?" Shane asked.

"Yeah, crazy vato just got into town. Hey, helicopter boy! Come say hello." Morales said to someone still in the truck. We heard a door shut and a middle age man, dressed like a police officer walk out with his hands on his hips. "Guy's a cop like you."

I watched three faces. One belonged to Carl, who cried, running up to the man who I believe is his father. Shane looked surprised and yet happy but also sad. Lori's face gave it all away to what I've figured out about the three of them. Shane and Lori are together, the real father out of the picture, and they have yet to inform Carl of their involvement of each other. But now that the father is back...things...will get messy.

"Disoriented."Rick, the man from the van, started. It's later at night, after dinner, and we're sitting all around the fire, watching the flames. No one has yet to tell me what happened to Merle and I'm starting to guess that they don't want to tell me. "I guess that comes closest. Disoriented. Fear, confusion—all those things but...disoriented comes closest."

"Words can be meager things." Dale said. "Sometimes they fall short."

"I felt like I'd been ripped out of my life and put somewhere else. For a while I thought I was trapped in some coma dream, something I might not wake up from ever." Rick explained.

"Mom said you died." Carl said to his dad.

"She had every reason to believe that." Rick told his son. "Don't you ever doubt it."

"When things started to get really bad, they told me at the hospital that they were gonna medevac you and the other patients to Atlanta, and it never happened." Lori explained and I watched their faces. Lori seemed to be saying something that Shane...has a different story playing out in his mind.

"Well, I'm not surprised after Atlanta fell." Rick said. "And from the look of that hospital, it got overrun."

"Yeah, looks don't deceive. I barely got them out, you know?" Shane said with his words thick.

"I can't tell you how grateful I am to you, Shane. I can't begin to express it." Rick said and once again Lori and Shane's faces told all who paid attention. The air was thick with lies.

"There go those words again. Falling short again." Dale spoke again softly with wise words. Talking kept going, Ed putting more fire than should, Shane getting up to deal with it. That man never learns and makes Carol do all the hard work, the bastard. His eyes still linger on me since Daryl and Merle aren't here to punch time.

"Have you given any thought to Daryl Dixon? He won't be happy to hear his brother was left behind." Dale said and my fits clenched.

"I'll tell him. I dropped the key, it's on me." T-Dog said, my fist getting tighter.

"I'll tell him, I cuffed him." Rick said.

"Guys, it's not a competition. I don't mean to bring race into this, but it might sound better coming from a white guy." Glenn said.

"I did what I did." T-Dog said. "Hell if I'm gonna hide from him."

"We could lie." Amy offered.

"Or tell the truth." Andrea said. "Merle was out of control. Something had to be done or he'd have gotten us killed. Your husband did what was necessary. And if Merle got left behind, it is nobody's fault but Merle's."

"And that's what we tell Daryl?" Dale asked.

"Or me." I spoke clear and loud.

"Hope..."Lori began but I snapped my head towards her.

"No, don't anyone start!" I yelled, my fists tight with my nails digging into my palms. "Just today we were talking about leaving every single one of you in that city to die! Shane, telling Amy, your sister Andrea that there was nothing to be done! Now, your telling me that you left Merle in that city because it had to be done?!" I screamed.

"Hope, your voice..."Shane started but I turned my anger on him.

"I don't care about my voice for I have been silent for far too long! Ever since I join this group with Andrea and Amy all anyone has done is see me as a weakness, nothing more than dead weight." Shane looked guilty, keeping his eyes low. "Once I proved myself, coming back with...walker blood on me from getting medicine I'm still treated differently. The only people who've actually cared about me is Daryl and Merle. They protected me from the bastard sitting over there!" I pointed to Ed who shot me a look to which I shot back. "When you tell Daryl I won't hold him back. He deserves to take swings at all of you for leaving his family behind. If it was somebody else this wouldn't have happened but since it's Merle all rules fly out the window. We're still people. We all are." I said and left, storming to the tent I shared with Daryl and Merle or used to share with Merle.

When I got into the tent I feel into tears, noticing that something dark was staining my hands when they stung. I looked for the first aid kit, doing a very poor job wrapping my hands. I cried myself to sleep that night, ignoring the sounds of the other, just wishing Daryl or somebody I knew was here.

I hate this life.

~oOo~

The following more was woken up by the children I made friends with. They asked me if I wanted to play with them and since everything about yesterday placed a bad taste in my mouth I wanted to get my mind off it, but not nearly forget about it. I got dressed in a pair of jeans, a tank top with a sweater, and sandals leaving my hair down today. I still cover my arms even with it being hot outside. If I can still hide them, then I will. They didn't notice them before when I was in nothing but a towel so why would I want to show them now?

After I got dressed I followed them to where they wanted to play. We laughed and tagged each other. We ate some stale crackers Carl brought with him and continued to play around until we heard a thud somewhere.

"What was that?" Carl asked and we looked around for it.

"I don't know but be careful okay?" They nodded their heads and we began to look around. I was looking through some bushes until Carl and the kids started to scream. I ran to where they were screaming from to see a walker, a familiar one, eating a deer.

Everything seemed to go into slow motion. I approached the walker slowly and watched as it turned it's head towards me. Dr. Carter, the good doctors who told me about what I can do. He's kneeling in front of me, eating a dead deer, with blood and gore all over him.

"Dr. Carter?" I asked and I got no answer. It returned to eating, ignoring me completely but I know his face. I can still hear his voice in my head and I miss it. I want to hear someone say that I can make it in this world. He was the only one who knows...the only one who understands.

Then there was blood.

More blood and gore than I ever saw up close.

Everybody came running, drawing weapons and taking out the threat. My hand was outstretched, trying to get Dr. Carter's attention as I watched him be beaten and then watched as his head rolled once Dale cut it off.

"Hope, Hope are you okay?!" Amy asked and all I could do was continue to stare at it, the body and the head. "Hope?"

"Doctor Carter?" I asked and then heard voices until there were more rustling in the bushes. My protector stepped out with squirrel tied over his shoulder. He cursed, kicking Dr. Carter's body, getting into Dale's face all while I continued to stare at my friend. I shrugged Amy off and crawled over to his head. "Doctor Carter? Doctor?" I asked and the head came to life, looking me in the eyes.

"Only you can control us. You...must learn. You...are safe...seek...shelter...when you need us..." He said what he could and I felt tears roll down my face.

"I'm sorry." I said and rested my hand on his face.

"No...forgive us..." He said just as an arrow went into this skull.

"It's gotta be the brain." Daryl said and then everyone realised that I was really close to it. Daryl dropped to the floor and started to check me over once he moved the head over. "You alright?" He said, wiping my tears away.

"Doctor Carter?" I asked and everyone looked at the dead man.

"You know this guy?" Daryl asked and I nodded my head.

"His name is Doctor Carter. He worked with my parents." I told them and that's all I would say in the matter. Amy and Andrea got me to my feet, walking me back to the camp as Daryl called for Merle who didn't answer for he wasn't in camp. I knew what was going to happen next. I wasn't going to stop Daryl's anger.

Like I predicted, Daryl took swings at Shane and Rick who then over powered him, holding him down. I could understand that since Daryl pulled out a knife. I understood his anger but not so much for I didn't know Merle that much but...he looked after me, kept me safe and provided something to sleep under when no one else would.

"He'll show you." Lori's voice snapped me out of my thoughts. "Isn't that right?"

"I'm going back." Rick said and I thought he was out of his mind. I watched as Daryl and Rick walked away to get ready to go back into the city. They're nuts. They can't make it if they don't have help. There's too many walkers in the city.

That's why I'm going.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Daryl asked as I approached the truck with a backpack.

"I'm going with you." I answered him with a straight face.

"No you're not." He said and I stepped up to him.

"Yes I am. You can't stop me." I said and got in the truck with Glenn. Daryl looked even more pissed and got in as well. Once he was in he pointed me in the chest then at him.

"You stick to my side like glue you hear me? No wandering off, so sight seein', no nothin'. Got it?" He asked and I smiled.

"Yes sir." I said and a slight pink color came over his cheeks, making him shuffle where he stood.

"And no callin' me sir either." He said and called to Rick and T-Dog who were still talking to Dale and Jim to hurry up. Once they were in the truck we started to move. Daryl sat by me as Glenn drove with Rick in the passenger seat.

"So, you're Hope." Rick said and I turned my head towards him. "Sorry to hear about what happened to you in the city." He said and Daryl was about to say something but I place my hand on his arm.

"Sorry about what happened to you. Must be scary waking up to that, seeing the world as a nightmare." I said and it was quiet in the truck.

"Yeah. A nightmare." Rick said and I stared at him for a long time, trying to figure the man out. For some odd reason I just can't...see him. I felt Daryl take my hand and give it a squeeze. I turned my head towards him and welcome his shoulder, the warmth he gave off that I missed since he's been away.

I enjoyed the warmth as I could because a cold shiver ran up my spine because I feared what we'd find in the city of ruin. The dead that walked...I don't fear them anymore...

I just fear the living I might find still living there.

~oOo~

So, there you guys have it. Please review and let me know what you think. I'm sorry if the next chapter might be short or late. Still trying to get back into things.