Curative
By Kaimaler
The episode we've all been dreading. I know. S0207. If anyone remembers what happens in that episode... well, y'all see. :3
Been writing up a storm. Anybody notice that I've written 130k+ words, 24 chapters, in 12 days? I've been so sick and had horrible ass vertigo that I can't move.
So I've been bedridden this entire time just writing. Literally. I've done nothing but write.
WTF is wrong with me? xD
Me: LIFE NEEDED.
Review Replies:
RPBuk:
Oh stop it you! :3
I'm actually extremely flattered. Really, I just... This review made my night. It's like... 5:28 AM and I have not slept all night sooo... yeah. xD
Anyways, I'm thrilled you like this story so much! I'm trying my best here and it seems to be paying off. At first I got zero reviews, then all I get is a ton of reviews saying that they liked the idea and that it's unique.
Unique! I can hardly believe it! I was trying to go for something new and unusual, but I didn't expect this kind of a turn out! :O
I'll continue this as long as I possibly can, but we're coming up on Season 3 pretty fast and, let's face it, I can't update beyond the point that Season 3 had its little intermission because I don't know what happens next. So things might move a little slower when we reach that point, but until then, I won't stop writing! I love this story so much! I've done more for this story then any other story I've ever written.
I put a lot of time and love into it, I only hope it pays off in the end. :D
I'm humbled to get such a lovely review, I hope this latest chapter lives up to expectations! I do what I can! :)
Laura had sat in the forest the entire night, she didn't make any attempts to move. She stayed there, crossbow in her hands, and thought about what Andrea said.
Was she dangerous? If her heart just stopped, could she turn and hurt them?
Laura wanted to pretend she hadn't spent her night wracked with guilt and crying her eyes out, she never sobbed or wailed, but her tears flowed openly and she didn't wipe them away in her anger.
The problem was that while Laura felt hurt by Andrea turning against her for Shane, someone who wanted to kill her, Laura also realized the truth. Andrea knew Shane longer then she had known Laura, they barely ever spoke to each other and though Laura tried to take a leap and extend trust between them to get closer to the group, Andrea would still choose the others over her.
It was common sense, Laura was sure that, in Andrea's shoes, she would've done the same without a second thought. Laura hated that she couldn't blame Andrea for it either. She understood.
Laura sneered, she always understood when people were against her, she sympathized and listened. She picked up a rock and threw it at another tree, she was so angry, with herself, with her life, with her father, she hated the world and what it did to her.
What it was doing to them. If all of this never happened, had the dead not started walking around and eating people all of this wouldn't be here. They'd be safe living a normal life.
But she couldn't dwell on what if, she had to focus on what was actually happening right now.
Was she dangerous? Laura pressed her hands on either side of her head and squeezed. She didn't know the answer, she didn't know and she tried to force the knowledge to just pop into her head.
Every time she tried to figure it out she'd just hit a dead end. When she thought about going back without the answer to that question, she felt sick. She'd made it this far, what were the chances of it happening just because she starting thinking about it? She didn't have the answer to that and she hated herself for it.
She'd been with this group the entire time and could very well be a threat to them all.
Was Shane right...?
She couldn't ignore the possibility that Shane was right about her, not that she'd actually consciously eat someone while she was alive, but that she could be a danger to the group. What happens if one night when on watch her heart fails and she finally dies, would she turn? If she did, what would happen? Would they be able to react fast enough so she didn't hurt anyone or would her appearance cause them to hesitate long enough for her to hurt them?
Laura had nothing, no solutions, no answers, and no way to say that Andrea was wrong, Shane was wrong, that she would never turn and hurt them.
She had no control over whether or not she turned and if she did, if she would bring harm to them. If she turned, as a walker she would most definitely try to hurt them.
Would they be able to understand that she had no control over this? If she brought it up, would they still accept her?
Would Daryl?
By the time Laura looked up, the sun had just started to rise. Laura sighed, she needed to get back. She'd been out there all night long and felt emotionally spent. She wondered if they even knew she was gone.
Standing up, Laura began making her way back to the camp. She could still barely see the farmhouse through the trees, in her anger she wasn't too far gone to remember that she still couldn't navigate the woods.
On her way back into camp, the sun had risen and she could see people up and about already. She rubbed her face clean, making sure there wasn't anything noticeable on her face to suggest where she was or what she was doing last night.
When Laura approached, Carol was the first to greet her and she did so with a plate of hot eggs and a smile. "Morning. Breakfast is ready." She handed the plate to her and Laura accepted it, she was hungry again.
Laura came around to the fire, warming herself up as she ate. She distinctly noticed Daryl eyeing her from his spot on the chair next to the fire. He didn't say anything, but she suspected he'd pry later.
It was actually rather comforting thinking that Daryl cared enough about her to pry into where she had gone, because he was concerned about her.
As she ate her eggs, Laura felt a little more relaxed around them, her thoughts almost erased completely. They would've been gone if she hadn't become aware that she could be placing them all in danger if she ever did turn all of a sudden.
Didn't exactly make for a good morning discussion.
So she distracted herself with other things, trying to concentrate on the others in the camp. T-Dog was tending to the fire, Carol was serving more eggs around the camp, Rick, Lori, and Carl all sat together a little ways from the fire, Andrea was sharpening a knife, and Shane was standing by a tree while he ate.
It was quiet, strangely so. Usually when the group had those rare moments when they were altogether they were always talking about one thing or another. The group was very social, even when mad at each other.
This new stillness was a little different then what she was used to with the group, but she wouldn't complain. No talking meant no one wondering where she was all night.
"Um, guys?" Laura looked up from her breakfast, it was Glenn who looked so distress that Laura became instantly concerned about him. He was shifting on his feet, hesitating to speak up. "So..." He had everyone's attention, they were all looking at him but not with the same amount of worry that Laura had. She'd seen that face before. It wasn't good.
"The barn is full of walkers."
Laura's eyes rolled shut, she just knew this quiet breakfast, the group altogether, and rested up had to come to a screeching halt. He put her plate down and ran her hands over her head.
Everyone, at that moment, stopped whatever they were doing and looked at Glenn. Each one just as equally shocked at the other.
They dropped breakfast, all of them, Rick and Shane lead the way as they all headed down to the barn. Laura wasn't far behind Rick, the crossbow on her shoulder and ready for use if need be.
Once they were all at the barn, they stopped around the door. No one spoke up, but Shane approached the barn and looked in through a crack in the wooden planks of the door.
Laura eyed the barn suspiciously, the old barn didn't look capable of holding in a lot of force. The locks on the barn looked secure enough, but the rest of it, the wooden boards looked old and dilapidated, like they were ready to give way at the slightest inclination.
Shane came back, storming into the group. "You cannot tell me you're alright with this." Shane passed Rick who looked just as mad as Shane. "No I'm not, but we're guests here, this isn't our land."
"God, this is our lives man!" Shane paced, "Lower your voice!" Lori shut him up, she was glaring at the barn of walkers.
"We can't just sweep this under the rug." Andrea commented and she was right, this wasn't safe, all those walkers stuffed into this old barn? The chance of them getting loose was too much.
"It ain't right, not remote." T-Dog was on the far side, just as curious and angry about the barn as the rest of them.
"We either gotta' go in there, we make things right, or we just gotta' go. Now, we have been talkin' about Fort Benning for a long time-" Rick put his hand up to Shane, "We can't go." He growled.
"Why Rick, why?" The two of them stared each other down until Carol stepped forward. "Because my daughter's still out there."
Shane scoffed, running his hands down his face. "Okay, okay. Carol, I think it's time that we all start to just... consider the other possibility-" Rick shook his head, "Shane! We're not leaving Sophia behind."
"I'm close to findin' this girl, I just found her damn doll a few days ago." Daryl stepped up, still favoring his side a little.
Shane nearly laughed at this. "You found her doll Daryl. That's what you did, you found a doll."
There was a few tense moments before Daryl started to approach Shane, "Man, you don't know what the hell you're talkin' about!"
Rick put his hand in between him and Shane. "Alright, alright." He tried to calm the two volatile men. "I'm just sayin' what needs to be said here!-" Laura couldn't hear him over Rick anymore, they were both arguing and Rick was trying to step in to shut Shane up.
"Let me tell you somethin' man, if she was alive out there and saw you comin'. All methed out with your buck knife and geek ears around your neck, she would run in the other direction!" He pointed away, all Shane was doing now was attacking Daryl.
Laura was sick of this, sick of Shane and their arguing.
Daryl lunged at Shane, the only thing separating the two was Rick and Laura quickly got involved, stepping in with Rick to try and defuse the situation. The two men were more then ready to find out who could best each other. Laura hated to say it, but from what she saw in camp the first time she saw Daryl, it really looked like Shane would win that fight.
Laura put a hand on both their chests, pushing them away from each other. Rick and her got knocked around between them both until more people stepped in, Glenn, Andrea, and Lori all started pushed them apart. Shane smacked her hand away harshly, sneering at her.
Shane backed up and Daryl did to, both still glaring daggers at each other.
"Now just let me talk to Hershel, let me figure this out." Rick was still doing this the hard way, but he was right. Laura didn't want walkers near them, but Rick was already dealing with Hershel wanting them off his land, if they dealt with the walkers without consent, they'd be kicked off the land by tonight.
Shane jumped back to Rick, "Man, what are you gonna' figure out?!"
"Enough!" Lori shoved Shane back and he stopped.
"If we're going to stay, if we're going to clear this barn, I have to talk him into it!" Rick answered, he was getting short with Shane. Laura never saw Rick so pissed off. "This is his land!"
"Hershel sees those things in there as people. Sick people." Laura blinked, Sick people? At one time, but they're dead now. "His wife, his- his stepson!" Dale explained and all Laura could wonder is how Hershel could possibly think the walkers were still people.
"You knew?" Rick questioned and Dale just nodded in reply. "Yesterday I talked to Hershel."
"And you waited the night?" Shane snapped, Dale just sent him a disapproving look. "I thought we could survive another night. We did. I was waiting until this morning to say something, but Glenn wanted to be the one."
"Man is crazy Rick, if Hershel thinks are alive-" Rick kept trying to calm Shane, "Shane-"
The door squeaked, the walkers inside heard them and started rushing the barn door. Laura instantly pulled up the crossbow, an arrow ready to fire. She watched the doors as they were knocked outwards by the walkers inside.
She could swear those doors were ready to snap.
The group backed away, but Laura remained in front with the crossbow ready just in case.
"I'm going to talk to Hershel, everyone stay away from the barn!" Rick started ushering people away and they were all too happy to get away from the barn. Everyone kept looking back, but Laura stayed at the barn doors.
She stayed, she had to. While everyone else left the barn to get something to defend themselves with and wait for Rick to speak with Hershel, Laura remained resolute.
Laura didn't care if she was danger to them right now, she wasn't about to let the walkers break out and hurt the group. She'd stay and watch the barn, if anything happened, she'd do what she needed to in order to insure that the walkers never reached the group.
After a few minutes, Shane came strutting up.
He paused a moment when he saw her. Laura brought the crossbow up a little, making sure he realized that she wasn't defenseless. He carefully made his way passed her and to the barn doors.
Shane started to check the locks, pulling at the chain near the top, the padlock in the middle, and finally the board across the doors. Laura didn't mind him down here, he was certainly unnerving to her, but right now all he was doing was checking to see if the barn really was secure.
The doors jutted out, the walkers inside heard him and caught his scent. Laura jumped up and aimed the crossbow at the doors, she may not like Shane, but she wasn't about to let him get eaten.
He reached down to his belt, but got annoyed when there wasn't anything there. She remembered that Hershel didn't want them to carry guns on his land, she assumed Shane was reaching for his gun only to remember that he didn't have it on him.
It was a dangerous thing to not have any protection against the walkers in the barn.
A little surprise came to Laura when she realized when she stepped up to aim the crossbow at the doors, Shane actually stepped behind her, seeking her to shield him. She smirked, he was acknowledging that she was there to protect him against the walkers, even if he didn't say anything.
When the doors didn't give way and the walkers calmed down, she lowered the crossbow and turned around to see Shane watching the barn like the walkers would come pouring out of it any second.
As far as they knew, that was a possibility.
"You shouldn't be down here, it's dangerous." She went and leaned against one of the posts. "Should head back up with the others, I've got this."
Shane looked at her, she successfully diverted his attention from the barn to her. Though she really didn't want his attention. He looked down to the hat in his hands and smiled a little. "Y'know, we've had our differences in the past," Laura huffed at him, "Understatement of the century." He nodded and looked back up to her, putting his hat on. "Yeah, I know. You can't stand there and tell me that you agree with this."
She sighed, keeping the crossbow firmly in her hands. "I don't like it, but there's no real way around this without pissin' someone off. Hershel's land, his rules, but y'all's safety comes first to me. Then again, if we don't listen to Hershel we can get kicked off the farm an' there ain't no where out there that's as resourceful and as safe as this farm has proven to be."
"So you agree with me then? This barn has gotta' be cleared out. To protect our own." She looked away, biting her lip viciously. "I... Maybe a little. I dunno'. All I know is that there's a barn full of walkers an' that if there's even the slightest chance they could get out... that they get anywhere near y'all... I'd say screw it, screw the rules, I'd deal with 'em all myself if it came to that."
Shane stepped closer to her, nodding as she spoke. "Then we're on the same page."
"For once." Laura glared at him.
"I get it, I pointed a gun at you and your pissed-" She shook her head, pushing herself off the beam. "Shane, for fucks sake no. I ain't mad at you for that... I mean, it's not like I don't wanna' be. I do, I wanna' kick your ass for it... but I get it. I get why you did it an' I ain't mad. Dammit, I fuckin' get it." Laura was aware she was growling like an angry cat. She hated being so understanding, she just wanted to not understand and be angry at someone for once. "I just... about Daryl... Y'know what, it doesn't even matter anymore. All that matters is the barn full of walkers, everythin' else... can be sorted out later."
"Good, 'cause all I can think about are those walkers." Shane smirked and Laura pointed at him, "Now that we can agree on."
Shane looked back to camp, "What're you gonna' do about it?"
Laura gave him a very stern look, "What do you mean?"
"I mean, when the shit hits the fan, and it is, what're you gonna' do? You gonna' clear that barn, get rid of the problem? Or are you gonna' stand on the sidelines while me and whoever else joins me deals with it?" Shane was planning something, Laura frowned at him.
"If the walkers got loose or in anyway threatened the group... I'd kill 'em all."
He grinned, he got his answer and Laura hated that he was happy about that. "Well then, you and me are gettin' along. How 'bout that?"
"It's not permanent, I'm sure."
Shane kicked dirt under him, "No, I guess not, but for now, I don't have a problem with you."
"Until you accuse me of tryin' to eat someone again." Now she was getting a little angry with Shane, she didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that she just wanted to go in that barn and clean out all the walkers, be done with it.
"Now you know I only said that 'cause you're a-" She held her arms out, stepping up to him. "I'm a what Shane? What am I, hmm? Am I a walker? Is that what I am? Do you think I'm gonna' eat you right here an' now? Or do you still think I'm plannin' this shit out?"
Shane reversed a little, "Honestly, I think you're still a walker somewhere in there. Doesn't matter if you got cured or not, just matters what you do and I'm not seein' a whole hell of a lot from you that tells me you won't try to eat one of us the day you get us alone."
"You have your chance to be rid of him... Just take him here and now. That burning hunger you ignore, let it go." The Voice hit her like a ton of bricks. "He's big enough to make for a good meal, should hold you for sometime until you get another one." Laura shook her head slightly.
"We're alone right now Shane. You an' me. Just sittin' here in front of the barn full of walkers. Y'know, you told me that I was plannin' out how I was gonna' eat someone. Like when I went searchin' with Daryl, how I planned to be alone with him." She kept stepping forward the angrier she got and Shane kept backing away. "Look at us here an' now Shane. If I did that kinda' thing, if I ate people, don't you realize that right here, right now would be the perfect opportunity to get rid of the one person who doubts me an' have a little snack. I can break the door to the barn, tell everyone the walkers got out, that they got you an' they'd be none the wiser. Ever think about that Shane?"
He was tense with a snarl on his face, but he conceded defeat. He was unarmed and she was right. If she had any part of her brain that thought like a walker that did want to eat people still, then their position was in her favor.
The barn full of walkers, the already warped and weak door, Shane alone and defenseless against her. He could overpower her, sure, but she did have that crossbow up and ready to fire.
Shane turned away and left to the far side of the barn, leaving Laura to guard the barn doors alone.
"Yeah, you better turn tail. Jackass." She leaned against the post again and waited to hear from Rick, she didn't want these walkers here any longer then they had to be.
The sooner the walkers were dead, the safer everyone would be.
Laura could feel Shane's eyes on her, he wasn't too far away from the barn, just sitting on a tractor nearby. He was keeping an eye on the barn and while she was fine with that, she began to wonder if by clearing out the walkers Shane might've included her in that category.
It was another thing she didn't want to think about right now. The barn was important and it demanded immediate attention. She had to keep a close eye on it, make sure no walkers got loose.
After a few hours of guard duty, Laura saw Rick exiting the farmhouse and making his way to Shane over by the tractor. She couldn't hear them at all, but she could see the discussion got heated, Rick and Shane were having more and more arguments lately rather then talks. They fought more and didn't seem to like each others presence at all.
Every now and then she could hear the echoes of their heated argument from the barn, but after a while Rick turned and walked away. He was coming straight to Laura and she stood up straight as he approached.
He was cautious at first, making sure there wasn't anything wrong with the barn before walking towards her.
"Laura." He addressed her and she just gave him a small smile. "What's up Rick? How's things with Hershel?"
He sighed, "Not good. We're talking about it, but he won't listen." Rick pointed to the farmhouse, "He thinks the walkers are people who just got sick, that they're still people. I don't know how to convince him otherwise."
Laura came up to Rick, the crossbow lowered, and put a hand on his shoulder. "You knew this wasn't gonna' be easy. Hell I knew it when Glenn told us, but we both know that there has to be a way to show him. Somehow."
"Maybe," He looked a little distant, "Laura... Do you think you can try and... help the walkers in the barn? See if you can do something about them?"
"What, like try and cure them like Jenner said?" She stepped back and looked at the doors, "I need to see them, see how far along they are. It wouldn't be a good idea to try and revive them if they're too far gone. If they've already started decomposition, then I won't do it, no matter what. The pain they'd be in constantly... and they wouldn't make it long. Decomp isn't reversible after a certain point. It would do more harm then good."
"I understand that, can you go inside and take a look? Just to find out?" Laura nodded, "Keep watch until I come back?"
"I'll be here."
Laura went to the side of the barn and saw the ladder. She made her way up and climbed into the door on the side of the barn. It was dark inside, barely any light was getting in to the ground floor.
She went around the haystacks and saw the walkers inside, they made no move to her even when she sat on the edge of the second story and dangled her legs over.
The walkers she was looking at had been mostly missing large portions of their faces and bodies. She sighed, most of the walkers were so badly damaged that no human could survive those injuries and the others, the stage of decomposition. They were months into it and she couldn't revive those.
Laura figured that, she could for maybe a few seconds bring one of them back, but they were so far gone that even if she did and they woke up, alive again, they'd be in such misery that it would be mercy to kill them.
They could never recover from the injuries and decomposition that she could see.
Laura got up and left the barn, she hadn't gone down to inspect all the walkers, she didn't want to, but she did as Rick asked and went to find out if she could. She climbed back down the ladder and went straight for the front of the barn.
Rick was waiting, but he was pacing back and forth. When he saw her, he stopped. "What do you think?"
"These are old walkers Rick, most of them are missing most parts of their bodies. A few of them have their jaws and faces torn apart, others are missing arms, some have massive gashes and holes in them that would make survival for any person impossible." She answered and shook her head, "I'm sorry, but I would never even try to bring those walkers back, they're in such bad shape that even if I can revive a walker... they'd suffer so much only to die afterwards."
Rick closed his eyes and ran his hand through his hair and over his growing beard. "It's alright, I understand. I just had to be certain."
Laura nodded, "I'll be here if you need anythin', I ain't leavin' until the group is safe."
"Thank you, I'm going to go out again to look for Sophia, can you keep an eye on things around here?" Rick's eyes glanced up to Shane who was still sitting on the tractor. "I'm concerned about what some people might do is all."
"You got it Rick."
After Rick left, Shane wasn't too far behind him, though he wasn't following Rick. Shane headed off in the direction of the camp and Rick had gone towards the RV.
Laura kept to her word and didn't move more then ten feet from the barn, she kept that crossbow armed and ready for anything. She wasn't going to let walkers harm her group.
The day flew by, her mind caught onto many things to distract her from time.
Namely the moans from inside the barn, they sounded so similar to the sounds she remembered making when she was a walker. Of course they were though, they were walkers and they all tended to make generally the same noises.
Laura glanced around her and growled deep in her chest, a hoarse hiss came from her mouth. She clamped her mouth shut and stared out over the fields to the camp and farmhouse.
The sound she made was exactly like a walker, it was an unnatural sound. It came from her chest and reverberated through her throat and jaw. It felt strange, so very alien that she knew she shouldn't be able to make anything akin to that sound.
She was sure no one in the camp could do that, the feel of it, the sound that she felt and heard... It wasn't normal in the slightest and she was disturbed knowing she could do it.
Taking a good look around her, she tried again and made it louder. The sound scratched in her chest, the resulting sound was a walker growl, loud and demanding. Laura coughed, her throat strained when she did it. She didn't know why or how she did it, just that she could. It may come in handy in the future and she was determined to use whatever she had at her disposal to survive.
Aside from the strange sounds she learned she could make out of curiosity, Laura was extremely annoyed at Shane. For everything he's done so far, the groups survival before Rick arrived was solid, but as things got worse and walkers began finding their way out of the city, suddenly everyone started blaming Rick for the walker's behavior.
Laura knew fine well the walkers would find their way out of the city one day, that the hordes would eventually clear out of Atlanta and make their way further out. She knew it because she was watching it happen before she ever joined the group.
Because Rick just so happened to show up and take charge when things were actually getting worse, everybody thought Rick was mucking things up. She saw the walkers, she knows what they do and how they do it, and the walkers left the city and began working their way through the roads and woods.
Their progression had nothing to do with Rick, in fact, Laura firmly believed that had they not rushed off to get the guns that many more lives would've been lost.
Laura rocked on her heels and kept herself mindful of the barn. She couldn't let herself be distracted, in this situation it could cost lives.
So she waited and stared at the barn door, running her hand along the wood planks, they were old and worn down after years of service. The walkers inside didn't even bother with her, they could see her, hear her, smell her, and thought her as one of their own.
She wondered if she actually smelled that bad.
Laura's thought were broken when she heard commotion up at the farmhouse. She could see the group on the porch, but couldn't make out a lot. There was definitely something going on.
She took a step forward only to freeze in place, she couldn't leave the barn, it wasn't safe. She had to stay and keep watch on the walkers. If she left and something happened... Laura couldn't even imagine it. Rick trusted her to keep anyone who wished to defy Hershel away. She was going to do just that.
But what was happening at the farmhouse?
The noise got a little louder, nothing she could hear but distant sounds. She didn't like what was happening, it didn't look right from where she was standing.
All of a sudden, the commotion stopped and she could see a figure bolting across the yard in front of the farmhouse.
Growls caught Laura's attention, they sounded louder and clearer then the ones in the barn and she brought up the crossbow in front of her, checking the doors just to make sure.
Until she looked over her shoulder and saw Rick, Hershel, and the boy Jimmy coming towards the barn and the group running towards them.
"Rick?" Laura pointed the crossbow at the two walkers Rick and Hershel had on two pole ends. What the hell? She didn't know what to do, Jimmy was leading the walkers ahead and they weren't doing anything towards actually killing the walkers.
She didn't know whether to fire or figure out what Rick was doing.
The group neared them and Laura hitched the crossbow on her shoulder again, coming up to Rick, Hershel and Jimmy. Shane shoved the gate open and ran to them. "What the hell you doin'?"
"Shane, just back off." Rick demanded, but the entire group was there now watching Rick hold a walker on the end of a pole. It wasn't something Laura thought she'd ever see.
"What're your people doing with guns?" Hershel asked, clearly having some difficulty with the walker he was holding.
"Are you kiddin' me?" Shane circled Hershel and Rick, "You see? You see what they're holdin' onto?!"
"I see who I'm holding onto." Hershel snapped right back at Shane. Laura shook her head, he really did think walkers were people and this was dangerous, having walkers anywhere near them was a big risk.
"Shane, just let us do this and then we can talk!" Rick was struggling with the walker, trying to keep it away from Shane who got closer and closer with every second.
"What do you wanna' talk about Rick?" He jumped back from one of the walkers, "These things ain't sick! They're not people! They're dead!" The others had guns, they were all armed and aiming at the walkers Hershel and Rick held. "Ain't gotta' feel nothin' for 'em 'cause all they do, they kill! These things, right here! These are the things that killed Amy! They killed Otis! And they gonna' kill all of us unless we do something!"
"Shane, shut up!" Rick cried, he was incapable of stopping Shane with the walker in his hands.
"Hey Hershel, lemme' ask you somethin'. Can a living, breathing person, can they walk away from this?" Shane pulled out his gun and fired three shots into the female walker Hershel was holding.
"Stop it!" Rick was far beyond the point of anger, he was enraged, but unable to get to Shane. Laura tried to get closer, but Shane started again and she didn't want to get caught in the crossfire.
"That's three rounds in the chest, someone who's alive, could they just take that? Why is it still comin'?!" Shane fired off two more shots, "That's its heart, its lungs! Why is it still comin'?!"
Three more shots, Shane was unloading into the walker. "Shane, enough!" Rick pleaded, he had been trying this whole time to convince Hershel to let them stay and Shane was destroying all his work.
"Yeah, you're right man, that is enough." Shane stormed up to the walker and put it down, one shot clean to the head.
When the walker fell, Hershel went with it, he was on his knees and speechless. He didn't utter a single word.
Shane turned around and was facing her at the barn doors. She tensed, he still had his gun out and she knew fine well that Shane thought of her as nothing more then a walker.
"Enough lookin' for a little girl who's gone!" Shane got closer to her, he was moving fast. "Enough livin' next to a barn full of things that are tryin' to kill us! Enough lettin' one of those things sleep in our camp! Enough! Rick, it ain't like it was before."
Rick just watched Shane, glaring at the man. "Now if y'all wanna' live, if y'all wanna' survive, y'all gotta' fight for it! And I mean fight! Right here! Right now! Startin' with this one!" Shane turned and ran towards the barn door and Laura went for the crossbow, but Shane reached out too fast and grabbed her by her neck, the force of which was enough to strangle a normal person.
"We've been lettin' one watch over us while we sleep! In our camp! Next to us!" She could barely move, hunched over from how Shane was dragging her along, and trying to grab Shane's hands as he pulled her away from the barn.
"Shane, let her go!" Rick yelled at Shane, who just brought up his other hand to grab her hair and yank her head back, one hand still tightly around her neck. "This thing ain't one of us! It'll try an' kill us the second it gets the chance! It may act all innocent, but it ain't no different then the others!"
The group was tense, Shane increased the pressure of his hand around her neck until she couldn't breathe at all, but she didn't need so much air, so the only problem she had was the force of his hand, the crushing feeling of her throat being squeezed until it bruised.
Laura tried to kick against him, struggled to fight him off, anything to loosen his grip. She may not need a lot of air to live like them, but she still needed to have a neck and Shane was dangerously close to crushing her windpipe and that kind of extensive damage would kill her.
"Stop it!"
Laura was well aware that Shane, while attempting to strangle her, had brought out his gun again and was aiming it at her head, the barrel pressed against her skull.
She looked to the group, she saw them all watching with wide eyes, shocked at Shane. Daryl was closest, his gun still trained on the walker Rick was holding. He made a snarl before turning around to Shane and started to approach, but Shane cocked the gun. "One more step man, just one more." Shane threatened and Daryl stopped, he couldn't risk it.
The group got closer though just a little, Rick was stuck with the walker on the polearm and the rest started to get worried. She knew most of them didn't know exactly what Shane thought of her, Andrea maybe, Rick knew, Glenn and T-Dog had an inkling, and Daryl knew enough, but this was a far more dramatic display then she expected.
"There ain't no room for these things! And this one, she ain't one of us! She's one of them! It won't stop until we're all dead!" Laura took her chance, or rather, she made one.
Her nails were long, sharp, and strong. She never wanted to find out if they could be used against people, but she didn't have much of a choice. She reached up to his shaved head with both hands and hissed, her walker-like sound combined with her nails scarring the back of his neck and head caused him to drop her and recoil.
Laura's neck felt crushed, but when she hit the ground there was instant relief. She coughed, the pain burned her throat.
Shane came back around after having felt and seen the blood from the wounds she caused and fully intended on putting a bullet in her head, but once she was able to shoot her hand out and grab his hand, tearing her nails down it until he pulled back.
He moved far too fast for her though as she was about ready to pull the crossbow around from her back, Shane's fist connected with her jaw and with a heave, he lifted her up and yanked her around, she couldn't see much, but her feet failed her and she was thrown aside, hitting the ground hard and tumbling away.
Shane left her alone after that and went to the barn, Daryl was about to pursue him until he saw what Shane was doing. He took a step back, taking aim back at the walker Rick held. Shane took a pickaxe from the side of the barn and starting to bang at the locks.
"Hershel! Take the snarepole! Hershel!" Laura groaned, she was still sore from being thrown off a horse, her body ached and now her throat burned something terrible. She felt like she'd been hit with a car, days of wear and tear on her body finally caught up with her.
But she moved, managing to get herself to a stand. It was shaky and hurt, but she did it in time to see Rick shouting at Hershel, trying to get him to take the walker from his hands while Shane tore off the locks from the barn door.
They all took aim and Laura was finally able to get the crossbow in her hands, she had it trained on Shane, in case he felt the desire to put a gun to her head again.
"Shane! Shane!" Rick called out, but Shane was off in his own world, snapping the locks off the barn door. "Do not do this brother!"
Shane broke off one of the padlocks, "Don't do it!" She heard Glenn shout. "Rick!" It was Lori, eventually, there was just too many people shouting that she couldn't tell one voice from another.
The last thing separating them from the walkers was the board across the doors and Shane lifted it, threw it away, and banged on the doors to get the walkers attention.
The barn doors slowly opened up and walkers began rushing out, everyone hurried into a line and turned it into a shooting gallery. The walkers didn't stand a chance and the group opened fire, at this point they had no choice.
Shane turned around, looking at Rick. Laura could see that whatever they had before was shattered and it actually made Laura sad. Shane shot the walker Rick had on the pole, but Rick didn't join in. He stayed there, behind the front lines as Lori and Carl came up behind him.
Gunfire went off rapidly, there wasn't a split second where a gun wasn't being fired and the walkers fell just about the moment they stepped out of the barn. Laura never fired a single arrow, she couldn't bring herself to do it and at the same time had to keep an eye on Shane who was so convinced she is a walker that he nearly killed her for the second time.
By the time the guns stopped, no body knew what to do. The pile of walker bodies in front of the barn, Hershel was kneeling on the ground, crying, Maggie holding him and crying too.
Laura lowered the crossbow, everything went still.
The group was in shock, everyone scared of what just happened. There were more walkers in the barn then Laura had seen, many more, but as if that wasn't enough, Dale came walking up to the scene.
Laura glanced to the man, he must've heard the gunfire, but when he arrived he put it together. He knew what had happened.
However, through the crying of the Greene family, Laura heard a growl emitting from the barn. She looked at the group, they all clearly heard it.
She stepped forward from the side of the of the dirt path to the barn and approached the line they made when they were shooting down the walkers. It sounded like only one walker, easy to handle.
When the walker stepped into the light, it was a different story.
Laura felt her heart plummet, the little girl that stepped out of the barn was the very same they searched the woods for.
Sophia.
She heard Carol cry out and try to run to her daughter, only to be stopped by Daryl who grabbed onto her and held her back.
Everyone was stuck, the mere sight of Sophia as a walker destroyed them all. They had spent days combing the forest, Daryl and Laura collected their own injuries from the search, the group was here because of Sophia, and there she was.
They found her.
Sophia stepped over the walker corpses, growling and hissing as she did so. Her yellow eyes watched them as she approached the group, if it wasn't Sophia, it would be more menacing.
Laura saw in the corner of her eye Rick coming from behind the firing line, his revolver in hand.
This is your chance. Laura glanced between Rick and Sophia quickly. It's time to start making a difference. It starts here. Prove Jenner wrong. He paused in front of the group, raising his pistol to Sophia.
Laura acted fast and jumped in front of the gun, grabbing onto Sophia and holding her away. "Wait!" Her voice was rough, painful, Shane nearly crushed her neck. Rick just stared her down, he was ready to shoot Sophia until Laura got in the way. Sophia was behind her trying to get passed, but Laura held her back. It was easy, Sophia was small and didn't have a lot of weight behind her.
"Let... me t-try." She struggled to get the words out without coughing, but her throat was hurting so bad, she could feel scratching in her throat and chest as she spoke. "Give me... a... chance." He looked at her face, her walker appearance, her healing black eye, the cut on her head when Shane hit her with the butt of his shotgun and the new bruise forming on her jaw.
Rick understood and lowered his pistol, giving her a nod.
"What do you need from us?"