Chapter 25: Hannah

Hannah rolled over with a groan, placing a hand to her pounding head. Everything was moving too fast for her liking, including her stomach. She laid still for a minute, shaking the haze from last night's events. And everything came spinning back with a blur. She tensed as she remembered the words slipping off his tongue. Maybe it was the booze talkin'. God knows how people get when there's SoCo involved. She tried to reason with herself, but she knew he'd meant it. So what now? Where the hell were they supposed to go from here? Riding off into the sunset happily ever after? Fuck if she knew. She heaved herself up with a grunt, noticing a substantial lack of bodies in the tent. She pulled on her boots and stepped out into the sun. It was at least noon and she had no idea what to expect after her scrap with Andrea last night. She needed to get the hell away from these people, even for a little while. She needed the kind of solidarity that only hunting could provide. She walked up to camp, nodding to Dale and Rick.

"There a map around here somewhere?" She asked, trying to will away the splitting headache she had. Dale handed her a map and she smiled at him.

"See the eye's getting better." He observed and she realized that she could open it finally.

"Yeah, guess so." She said to him. He leaned in closer.

"Don't worry 'bout Andrea, she's a little temperamental sometimes." He said with a wink before walking away. She spread the map out, surveying a creek that ran next to the quarry for a few miles, if there was any decent animals to catch, they'd be somewhere along there.

"You look like you got hit by a bus!" Daryl said, treading up next to her.

"Ugh. I feel like I got hit by a bus and then it reversed over top of me." She moaned, trying to quiet her rising stomach.

"You thinkin' about goin' huntin?" He asked eagerly, his eyes on the map laid in front of her. She could tell he needed to get outta there too.

"Yeah, I was thinking about followin the creek south a few miles, see if I can't catch somethin along it." She said, marking the trail with her fingers.

"When are we leavin?" He asked, not waiting for her to invite him.

"Dunno jus yet." He nodded simply, looking at her.

"Y'alright?" He said as her stomach growled. There was 2 options right now, empty it, or fill it and Hannah chose the latter. She rifled through the supplies they'd gotten yesterday, finding a single can of beans. She opened the top with the tip of her machete and stuck it on the fire to cook, old school style. Rick took a seat next to her as she waited for her makeshift breakfast to heat up.

"Daryl an' I are gonna go huntin' today. We're followin' the creek south a few miles, hopefully catch some deer or sumthin." She said, showing him the map. He agreed and she could tell something was troubling him.

"What's on yer mind?" She asked, taking her beans off the fire and letting them cool.

"We can't stay here much longer. Walkers are startin' to come out further and further from the cities cause the food source is runnin' dry." He said quietly and Hannah had a feeling not everyone knew about this.

"But where to?" She asked. The highways were clogged for miles with broken cars and walkers alike. There was no way a group as big as theirs could go undetected.

"Haven't quite figured that part out yet." He sighed as she devoured her food quickly. She gave him a sympathetic smile and patted him on the back.

"Least I'll be gone for a little and ya won't have to worry about me an' Andrea." She said with a grin. She emptied her backpack out in the tent, trying to figure out what to bring and what to leave behind. In the end, she decided on water, her first aid kit that she'd restocked finally, the map and ammunition for her gun. In the last few months she realized that just because you don't expect walkers, doesn't mean they won't show up uninvited. She swept her hair up into a bun, her usual hairstyle for hunting and they tread off silently into the woods. It was a nice May day and the birds were chirping loudly to each other as they made their way towards the creek. Hannah wasn't sure if this would be awkward, seeing as she didn't really know what to make of last night. But Daryl's attitude hadn't changed a bit. Focus Hannah Mae, it's huntin' time, not some sleepover. Ya can gush later. She mentally reprimanded herself, forcing her eyes to the ground as they neared the creek bed. They stopped and checked the map.

"'S the only creek for at least 10 miles, so I figure there'll be deer round here. Specially if the walkers have been keeping away." She said quietly, checking the sun to get their direction. They started walking, Daryl taking down smaller animals as they went along.

"So your dad taught you how to hunt?" He asked after they'd been walking for a while.

"Sort of, he taught me the basics, but after my mom left, he just started working at the shop later and later an I saw him less an' less. Zack basically taught me everything I know." She said, not taking her eyes from the ground. She walked lightly, her feet barely making a sound.

"Ya miss her? Yer mom I mean." He asked, glancing up from the forest floor.

"Naw. I was happy the bitch left. She wasn't gettin' any mother of the year awards." She said sourly. She felt Daryl glance at her, waiting for her to continue. "Sarah…my mom…she didn't include getting knocked up into her glamorous life plans. Especially getting knocked up twice in 3 years. I wasn't exactly playin' dress up neither and she, well, she tried to beat the lady into me, lotta good that did her." She ironically, but her words still rang with a touch bitterness. Daryl looked at her and she met his glance.

"I know the feelin', Paw could get pretty bad when he was drunk." He said quietly to her. They heard the soft fall of footsteps that could only come from walkers and they looked at each other before hiding. There were two of them, stumbling blindly as they followed the smell of flesh. The one on the left was missing an arm, his suit tattered and ripped as he'd walked around, starving for humans. The other one looked like it'd turned pretty recently. The blood from the chunk missing from it's neck had yet to dry completely. Daryl signaled that he would take one and she, the other. She nodded silently, unhooking the machete from her hip. This is what she'd really needed, to take her aggression out on something. They moved silently as ghosts to the walkers, Daryl's arrow hit with perfect aim and the fucker dropped like a fly. Hannah flew at the walker and jammed her machete right between the eyes, twisting until she knew for sure it wasn't getting back up. She wiped the blade off on the grass beside the body and kept going.

"Saw tracks up ahead, but we need to keep our eyes open. Heard that the walkers are startin' to wander away from the city to find food." She warned as they continued on their trail. She'd been right and they found healthy sized tracks in the mud by the bank.

"Fresh too, he was probably here about 10 minutes ago." Daryl said. They were soundless as they trekked on, eyes open for deer and walkers the same. They'd followed the tracks for about another few minutes when they crept up on the buck. It was grazing on the hill a few feet away, unaware of it's fate. Hannah wished she could take it down herself, but she didn't want any unwelcome company. Daryl took aim, and she watch him inhale before he pulled the trigger. The buck didn't even know what hit 'em. He crumpled silently and they moved in, excited for their kill. Hannah knew they'd only been out for about a half an hour, judging by the sun.

"Hot damn, we're good!" Hannah said, smiling. Being in the woods revived her, it was where she felt the most at home. She didn't have to pretend to be anything but herself. Nature had always soothed her heart, because, let's face it, she was a pretty angry chick. But there was something about the feel of being completely alone, something about the smell and the way the animals leapt around her that just made her feel like this is where she belonged.

"Well, let's get this fucker back to camp so Merle can gut it." Daryl said, as they both grabbed an antler, quiet as they dragged their catch back to camp.

"I meant what I said last night." Daryl said eventually. She couldn't help but blush.

"I know, figured it was yer brother that used that line just to get laid." She joked as her face turned serious. "But I meant it too." She said, squinting in nervousness. Daryl smiled faintly. They dropped the buck as they took a quick breather. Hannah guessed they'd be back at camp in about 5 minutes. She drank some water, giving some to Daryl as well. They looked at each other and before Hannah knew it, his mouth was smashing down on hers, lustfully. The world slipped away and it was just their bodies, tangled in each other as they finally gave into their mounting desires.