"It's good to see you, Kat." Rick said finally, glancing sideways at her. "It's been a while since the farm."
Katie narrowed her eyes at him, trying to process his expression. Sadness? Guilt? Her eyes flicked beyond him, towards the fence. Walker corpses littered the ground; more of the group was gathered around one of them. She tugged at her jacket sleeves, feeling an ache in her throat.
"Who is that?" she asked faintly. The pain in Rick's face was blatantly obvious.
"This isn't easy to say…" he started. He looked around, as though the right words would come from their surroundings. "Things were hard after the farm. Winter was cruel. We didn't have food, water, barely had shelter. We lost some good people."
"Where's Carol?" Katie asked again, louder this time. "Where's Sophia?"
"I'm right here."
Katie jerked her head towards Lori's direction. Carol stood beside her, arms tucked around herself. She strode quickly over to Katie, enveloping her in a tight hug. Katie sighed heavily in relief, returning the hug full strength. She heard boots approaching; Nikolai and Anna had exited the humvee.
"You care to introduce us to your friends?" Rick asked. Nikolai slung his gun over his shoulder.
"I could ask same thing, Winters." he said, nodding at Rick. Katie relinquished her hug and stood between the Blackwater team and Rick.
"Right. Rick, this is Nikolai Koldaev, Anna Lerwick, and Cesar Ramirez." Katie introduced obediently. "Guys, this is my group. Rick Grimes is the leader."
"A pleasure I'm sure." Nikolai said, extending his hand. He and Rick shook firmly, looking intently into each other's eyes. Anna folded her arms across her chest, eyeing Lori. Katie noticed the expression in her face; disgust. Katie could tell by Nikolai's face that he didn't think much of Rick, either.
"Likewise. We had started trying to take this prison," Rick explained, looking back at it. "But we ran into some…complications."
Katie followed his gaze to the group near the fence. It was then Katie saw Maggie and Hershel, holding each other and sobbing. Katie lowered her eyes, chewing her lip. Then a thought struck her.
"Where's Sophia?" she asked, looking at Carol. Pain twisted in the woman's eyes, and she lowered her head.
"It was so cold." Katie heard her say. "She got sick and there was nothing I could do. No medicine to give her, no food to fill her stomach and keep her strong. There was nothing I could do."
Carol put a hand over her mouth as Katie pulled her into a hug. Shock hung over her. That sweet little girl; dying of cold and starvation while she and the Blackwater team ate happily with warm clothes. Katie squeezed her eyes shut to erase the images that came to mind.
"I'm so sorry." she said in a low tone. Carol released her, shaking her head.
"It wasn't your fault. Don't blame yourself." She adjusted Katie's hair, brushing it away from her face and straightening Katie's jacket collar. Carol forced a smile onto her face. "I know a few other people who will be happy to see you."
She led Katie over to where the others had gathered. Beth lay on the ground, a large bite in her shoulder, and a gunshot wound in her forehead. Maggie was beside herself with grief, and Hershel held on to her tightly, rocking his daughter back and forth. Glenn and T-Dog turned to see them approach. Both looked equally shocked to see Katie there.
"Long time, no see." Glenn said. His machete was in his hand, sticky with dark blood. Katie hugged him and T-Dog, looking down at Beth sadly.
"How did this happen?" she asked quietly. Glenn pulled her to the side.
"I'll tell you later. Now's not a good time."
Katie nodded. She looked down the fence, ears prickling at the sound of moans. Walkers on the other side were scrabbling at the chainlink, trying to get at the person stabbing each of them methodically in the head. Her heart did a flip. Daryl was standing there, timing his jabs with precision. Carol called out to him.
"Daryl! Look who it is!"
He killed one more Walker before turning his head. Picking up his crossbow, he strode towards them. Katie watched him approach, thinking back to their time together on the road. He looked leaner now, his dark hair falling into his eyes. She ducked her head a little as he approached, and they stood a little awkwardly, looking at each other.
"How ya' been?" Daryl asked finally. He gave her a once-over. "Nice get-up."
She grinned, eyeing his large poncho playfully. "I could say the same for you."
Carol nudged her with her elbow. Daryl jerked his head towards the others.
"It wasn't a good start. Beth wasn't payin' attention. Got bit. Passed away a little 'fore you got here."
Katie looked over at the Greens, holding each other and grieving. Glenn held onto Maggie's shoulder, looking grimly down at the body of sweet and gentle Beth.
"So you join the military or somethin'?" T-Dog asked. Katie chuckled, pointing over to the Blackwater team. Nikolai and Rick appeared to be deep in discussion, gesturing at the prison every now and then. Anna had a pair of binoculars pressed to her face, and was speaking to Cesar and pointing.
"They saved my life, actually. They're former private military, a group called Blackwater. They have a lot of equipment." Katie explained. Carol gave her a look.
"You trust these people?" she asked.
"How can I not? They saved me." Katie replied. Scout caught her eye, and she smiled. "Plus they have a dog."
Carol rolled her eyes, smiling. Katie was glad she could do at least a little to lighten the mood. She turned to the Greens, kneeling beside them next to Beth. Maggie didn't look up, but she met Hershel's eyes. Pain and sorrow filled them, but he reached out to put a hand on her shoulder. He seemed unable to find words, but Katie nodded at him understandingly. They needed to be alone to grieve. Getting to her feet, she took Carol by the arm.
"Come on, I want you to meet them." she said, pulling her towards the humvee. "They're actually pretty cool once you get used to them. I mean, you can't really get used to Anna, but you kinda deal with her."