A/N: I'm hoping I didn't disappoint too many people with that last chapter, but that was sort of my plan the whole time... Sorry... I also had to do A LOT of research for the States (I'm a Canadian) and I found out a little bit about the different locations in the game. There is also going to be more than a few time jumps here. Sorry...

TheSeagullMilker: Yeah, I would think they'd have EVERYTHING that we do except for Walking Dead stuff (because, well, they ARE the Walking Dead). I just gotta be careful because most modern video games take place in the time that they were made, so if I'm gonna be making movie, music, game or even book references, I just gotta make sure they coincide with the time.

Chapter Genre: Angst

Chapter Rating: T

Rating Content: Brief Mild Language, Mild Depictions of Violence, Mild Depictions of Gore

"You know, Maria, that was real gutsy standing up to Kenny like that. But leaving?"

Marianne looked around the corner, checking for any signs of Chompers. "Ye know, ye can still go back to the house, lass."

"I'm not leaving you and Ben alone out here!" She hissed.

Seeing that the coast was clear, she turned the corner and readjusted the back pack on her shoulder. "What about Lee?"

Carley hesitated. "I don't think he even liked me back... Besides, it was probably hero-worship I was feeling. He was the one who saved me."

"Are ye sure, Carley?"

"Don't think that placing doubt in me will make me go back. I'm not leaving you two alone!"

Ben cautiously tapped Marianne on her shoulder. "Are you sure this is the way we came from?"

"King Street, Benjamin. Tha's where we came from, when th' herd ambushed us." Her eyes caught sight of a small item on the ground and she smiled, wlaking over to it. "An' here's my crossbow..."

She took her back pack off her shoulder and opened the zipper, pushing aside the arrows and her Bible to make room for the weapon. "Ah have only a few snacks in my pack." She informed them. "It'll last us fer a few days, barely."

"Is that all you've planned, Maria?" Carley asked. "We need more than food; we need a decent plan, a location and another plan for if we ever get separated."

Marianne stood and placed her back pack onto her shoulder again, turning to face Carley. "Ah feel like there's more tae tha' sentence..."

Carley's eyes darted briefly to her other shoulder.

"Ye know what tae do if Ah turn." She tapped the side of her head.

"You won't turn, Maria!" Ben exclaimed. "Would you stop talking like that?"

Marianne raised her hand. "Fine, lad. Let's just get out o' Savannah, an' then we can think o' a plan."

They continued to walk down the street. "We need a plan as to where we're going, at least." Carley said.

"Let's try either a small town or out in th' country."

"And if that doesn't work?"

"We can keep movin' until we find my home." Marianne replied. "An' if tha' fails, we keep movin' until we find a small community. But we cannae stay fer too long; we've all seen what can happen..."

Carley sighed. "Would you be open to going to another city? Richmond Hill isn't too far from here."

Marianne smiled and nodded. "Aye, as long as we dinnae stay fer too long. We need tae find supplies somehow."

/ / /

"I don't see the train; are you sure we're not on the other side of the city?"

"We aren't looking for the train and I don't think we're on the other side of the city... yet..."

"Ye know, Ah trusted ye tae lead because Ah thought ye knew the way tae Richmond?"

Carley rolled her eyes. "I do know the way to Richmond, I've been there to visit family before! We just need to find the road leading to the highway. In the meantime, we should look in the different houses and stores for supplies."

They had gone deeper and deeper into the city, and those strange marks on the doors were no longer showing up. Marianne assumed that whatever people in whatever community had made those marks didn't get this far into the city. There were hardly any Chompers either, which was good. No need to fire a gun or use arrows from the crossbow.

Which was also good, because Marianne was feeling incredibly tired. More tired than usual, which was odd. She had slept before they got to Savannah.

"Do ya think we'll really find anything?" Ben asked.

"Aye, there's bound tae have been something overlooked. Ye never know!"

They passed by a car that had crashed into a hydro pole, which had a corpse sitting inside it. Ben suddenly stopped and looked inside. "Hey, uh, guys?"

Marianne walked over to where Ben was standing. "Aye, what?"

He pointed. "I don't think he turned..."

They all peered inside to see the man in the driver's seat leaning heavily onto the wheel, blood splattered all over the cracked windshield. There was a deep indent in his head. He also wasn't wearing his seat belt. He looked fairly young, perhaps in his early twenties. "I don't know if that's a worse way to go, or a better one..."

"How recent does it look, Benjamin?" Marianne asked, peering inside the windows.

"How would I know?"

"Ye used tae watch all o' those murder-mystery shows, aye?"

"That doesn't mean I'll know how fresh a body is."

Marianne shrugged. "Just a thought, really..."

Carley opened the door and gingerly removed the man from the steering wheel. She grimaced at the gruesome sight. "Well, it looks recent enough to me..." She reached around and pulled the keys out from the ignition. "And if it's recent, looks untouched..." She pressed a button on the key.

The trunk of the car opened up and Marianne pushed the lid up. "No' much, Ahm afraid..."

Ben looked into the trunk and grabbed the back pack that was in it, opening the zippers to look inside. "More food and some water." He handed the back pack to Carley, who swung it over her shoulders. He then pulled out a map that was on the floor of the trunk. "Why'd he have the map in the trunk?" He asked.

Marianne shrugged and closed the trunk. "Maybe he lived here in Savannah? Ah dinnae ken."

Carley took the map and opened it on top of the trunk lid, looking over the area. "Okay, so we're here in Savannah." She pointed to a spot on the map. "If we want to get to Richmond, we'll have to move south of the city-"

"South?" Marianne asked. "Is tha' really a good idea?"

"Why wouldn't it be?"

"Everyone down south would have wanted tae move north." She explained to the older woman. "As it's th' only way tae go fer them. So, we should probably do th' same, aye?"

Carley's eyebrows quirked. "Alright, fair point. So, how far north should we go?"

"Do ya think Arvo's still alive?"

Marianne made a face. "Ben, do ye really think he would be? Although Ah do recall him saying tha' his sister had friends somewhere in North Carolina, it does no' mean they made it there."

Ben shrugged slightly. "It's worth a shot, I think. It's better than staying put."

They all looked at one another, looking for some form of confirmation. Although Marianne was the one who left and Ben and Carley were really just there to help her, she didn't like the idea of being a leader. The final decision, she felt, shouldn't be hers to make.

Carley finally spoke. "Alright, then; North Carolina it is." She folded up the map and put it into Marianne's back pack. "If we want to get there, we should get moving now. It's almost dark and we don't have a base or shelter."

"An' the herd is oan its way, too."

They looked at her. "Herd?" They asked in unison.

Marianne gestured back towards where they came from. "Do ye no' remember the herd tha' nearly got us back at the bridge? They followed us because of the loud train. Ah have no doubt tha' they're still making their way here, now. An' Ah doubt tha' we can make it oot before they get here."

Carley crossed her arms. "Okay... what do you suggest, then?"

She shrugged. "Get oot, like ye suggested. If the herd gets oan us, though, we should probably try an' get tae higher ground."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Ben stated.

/ / /

They had made it back to the train in good time, although it was getting incredibly dark outside. Being out in an open area was alright, but during the daytime. In the evenings, it was better being in a spot that was crowded, like a town or city or even a forest.

It especially wasn't good when someone was barely able to walk.

"Maria, come on..."

"Ahm tryin', Ben, Ahm tryin'." She hissed, resting against the train. "Ah cannae be this sick already..."

She didn't remember the illness getting to her so quickly the first time she had been bitten. It wasn't until the next day that she had started getting a fever.

Well, then again, it wasn't as big of a bite compared to the one she had received several hours ago. The Chomper seemed about ready to take a chunk out of her!

"Do you want to stay in the box car until morning?" Carley asked her. "It's literally right here."

Marianne immediately shook her head. "Nae, we need tae keep movin'." She stated. "Ah know tha' there could be houses oot in th' country areas... we find one o' those, we should be fine..."

Before they continued onward, she grabbed at her silver Cross and held it close to her heart. "Lord be with us as we move oan an' please, keep us shielded an' protected..."

/ / /

Ben swung the hatchet at a lone Chomper, killing it almost instantly. "This is the first one we've seen out here..." He said.

"Herd." Marianne stated, pointing out into the distance. "Comin' our way..."

The evening had gone by, although slowly, for them without a hitch. Of course, Marianne had a few moments where she would collapse from dizziness, or she would suddenly be gagging up whatever contents were left in her stomach. At first, she was scared she was turning, but Carley was quick to clarify that if she was going to turn, it would've happened a while ago. And she also wasn't coughing up blood.

But still, she was feeling incredibly sluggish and sore!

Carley kicked at the Chomper. "Well... how are we going to do this? I don't think we can walk around them. And we don't have many bullets or arrows, and a hatchet can only do so much."

"We walk through them."

She rolled her eyes. "Great idea, Ben! Maybe you could hack off my legs while we're at it and make it even more easier to eat me."

Marianne shook her head. "Nae, he's right... we did this once."

"You just walked through a group of, well, Walkers."

She nodded. "Aye, but we had 'dead' literally all over us." She took the hatchet from Ben and, using the sharpest end, gutted the fallen Chomper, making Carley groan in disgust. "Ah learned, after getting bitten back before meeting all o' ye, tha' having their guts all over ye will make them tend tae ignore ye. Ye smell like them."

Marianne scooped her hand into the guts of the Chomper and rubbed herself all over, careful as to properly cover her legs and feet. Any crawlers that smelt something off would be more than happy to chew someone's legs or feet off. She then put some on her cheeks, forehead and ear. She didn't bother with the other one, as it was still bandaged.

"Ya need me tae scrub ye down, Carley?" She asked.

Carley made a face and crossed her arms. "I don't know..."

Ben practically dug into the guts and splattered himself with them. "Come on, the smell isn't that bad."

"It's not the smell I'm worried about."

"If yer scared 'o germs an' such..." Marianne groaned at the strain in her muscles as she stood back up, cringing at the sound of her knees cracking. "Dinnae worry, lass. As long as ye dinnae eat any, ye should be fine."

Carley looked back off into the distance to see the crowd of Walkers slowly making their approach. She sighed and crouched down, hesitantly dipping her own hands into the guts. "You think they'd be warm, but they're just stone cold."

"Aye" Marianne nodded. "Cold is good. Cold means dead. An' the stench stays long enough."

As Carly wiped herself down, Ben made sure that Marianne's back was covered. "Are you sure walking through them is a good idea? I mean, you are pretty sick."

She simply shrugged. "We dinnae have any other choice, Ben. We got tae keep movin' forward."

With all of them finally covered up in the remains of the Chomper, they continued onward, closer towards the slow-moving herd of Chompers. As they got closer and closer, they could begin to hear their hungry growls and groans.

"Guys, I really don't know about this..." Carley said.

"It works, lass." Marianne reassured her. "We've done it, before. As long as ye dinnae bump too hard into one, make any sudden fast moves or odd sounds, ye should be fine."

Carley swallowed but nodded.

The herd was almost directly on top of them. Marianne quickly whispered to them, "If ye get separated, just keep movin' forward! We meet each other at the end o' the herd."

The first row of Chompers slipped between them and Carley immediately went into a half-crouch, leaning down slightly, almost as if it would help them not see her.

Marianne and Ben stuck close to one another. She held onto his jacket sleeve, taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself down.

Big mistake.

She smell of the guts was already bad enough, but combined with the more fresher, deader smells of an entire horde of Chompers and along with the fact that Marianne felt sick to her stomach, that did not make for a good outcome.

Ben's eyes widened as Marianne suddenly gagged and she held onto her stomach. He placed a hand on her shoulder, leaning in close to her. "Just keep going." He whispered. "Don't breathe so deeply."

She nodded and swallowed the bile that had accumulated in her throat, making a face of pure disgust. Worse than eating a "peach" bean-boozle, she thought.

"Just a little bit longer," He whispered again. "And we'll be-"

He hadn't been watching where he was going and in turn, he failed to see the Chomper that had been crawling towards him. He had stepped on its hand and, finally realizing that the thing stepping on it was warmer than usual, grabbed at his ankle with a loud snarl.

Ben cried out in shock and fell down with a loud thud. The other Chompers, attracted to the sudden sound of something living, all crowded around Ben. Marianne had almost screamed but she quickly covered her mouth.

She slowly backed away as the Chompers crowded around the fallen survivor, who was now screaming in pure agony. She could hear the sound of tearing flesh, of cracking bones, of teeth sinking into whatever they had gotten into, the blood splattering on the ground.

She ran, then. She didn't know why, but she just ran. She needed to get away from them, get away from the ongoing assault. Marianne dodged under various outstretched arms, pushed at whatever Chomper got too close to her, sliced at any Chompers that got in front of her. This wasn't the plan, she thought. They were supposed to get through slowly and calmly! This wasn't supposed to happen!

Marianne had been running so quickly that she didn't even realize she had gotten far past the herd. Far past what had happened to Ben... dear god, why was everything going so wrong?

"Maria!" She heard someone call out. Someone. It wasn't the person she wished it was.

Carley stopped beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, Maria! What happened? I just saw you taking off! Where the hell is Ben?"

She looked back at the herd, shaking her head as tears spilled from her eyes. "He..."

Carley suddenly grabbed her shoulders and gently shook her. "Hey, we gotta keep going! Some of them are following us, Maria!"

"He just..."

"Maria, snap out of it!"

"He's gone."

Carley grabbed at her hand and suddenly pulled her along. "We'll mourn later! We need to move, now!"

Finally snapped out of her trance, Marianne ran just behind Carley, running as far away from the Chompers that were chasing after them. 'Lord, please let his soul rest!'.

/ / /

3 Days Later...

They were both huddled close to the fire, trying to keep as warm as possible. Normally, one of them would be taking a shift. But neither of them could sleep. How could they? They've been doing nothing but moving, their brains are on overdrive, constantly on survival mode.

Empty stomachs most certainly didn't help.

Marianne could feel Carley staring at her, but she didn't bother with calling her out on it. What was the point? All she would want to do was talk.

Carley sighed. "Come on, Marianne. Talk to me."

She hugged her knees close to her chest and placed her chin on her knees. "Only my maw can call me Marianne..."

"You've barely said a word since we got out of Savannah. I get you're not feeling the greatest, but a fever doesn't keep people from talking."

Marianne shrugged. "Whit is there tae say?"

"It's not good, keeping those feelings built up, Maria." Carley continued. "That's what Kenny did."

Marianne swallowed heavily. She was right. "Ben was one o' my last friends left. First, Travis was murdered. Then, Ben died from a stupid Crawler... Ah have no friends left, friends Ah knew before this all started! Ah dinnae ken if Arvo is still alive or no'. Even if he is, Ah doubt tha' we'll even find him. America is massive."

Carley licked her dry lips. "Well, you did say his sister had friends in North Carolina. We're in South Carolina, right about now. It's not too far away."

She shook her head. "Dinnae try an' place false hope, Carley. There's no hope in this world, anymore."

"How can you say that?" Carley asked, almost incredulously. "Maria, for as long as I've known you, you have been the most strongest girl I've ever known! You've stuck to your faith, your friends, people you considered family! The only reason that you stuck with those for so long is exactly because of hope; you can't give that up now!"

Marianne chuckled. "Hope is dyin', Carley. Ah used tae have hope, hope tha' Ben and Ah would make it oot together, tha' we could find more survivors, ones we knew. Maybe even a few strangers. But ye cannae trust strangers anymore, Carley. And ye cannae trust even friends. Even the tightest o' circles can fall apart if someone gives tha' wee nudge."

Carley didn't bother with a reply. She just needed more time, she thought. They've been moving for so long, she hasn't been given the proper time to mourn for Ben. Just let her think.

The bush was filled with nothing but the chirps of crickets and the crackling of the fire. They could both hear twigs snapping, not in the fire of course, but somewhere around the bush.

Marianne looked back over her shoulder, her hand suddenly resting on her crossbow. Carley got her gun ready. "I heard it, too..." She answered Marianne's unspoken question.

Carley stood and Marianne turned around and got onto her one knee, aiming their weapons at the approaching noises. "Keep your finger off the trigger!" Carley sharply reminded her.

"Aye, it is!" She hissed.

"Are ya'll friendly?" A voice called out. It was fairly masculine, with a hint of a southern drawl.

Marianne looked back over her shoulder and gestured with her head. "Who's asking?" Carley replied.

"Well, I am, obviously- ow!"

"Don't get smart with these guys!"

Marianne, having heard a second voice (also masculine), quickly backed up, careful as to avoid the fire and stood beside Carley. "They may have more than two."

As the figures soon started coming closer to the light, they spoke again. "We're friendly! We won't shoot if you don't!" A pause, then, "We have a kid."

The two women hesitated. "Carley," Marianne whispered, "If they have a wean, Ah doubt they're oan their own."

Carley nodded in agreement.

They both waited, weapons still aimed, until the two men and the rest of their group made their presence known to them. The first man was fairly tall, wearing a brown shirt with a pair of jeans. He had brown, wavy hair and brown (they guessed) eyes. The second man was just about the same height as the first. Blue shirt with a white one underneath. Camouflage patterned pants. Almost tacky. They could see the faintest of stubble on his jawline and upper lip. His eyes were a metallic blue and he wore a cap on his head. Was that a mullet?!

Carley gestured with her gun. "Where's the kid you mentioned?"

The man in the blue shirt shook his head. "Nuh-uh, weapons down first."

The two women exchanged a look. "Ye first, lads." Marianne stated.

The man in blue placed his rifle on the ground and the man in the brown shirt took a large blade, most likely a machete, out from the hilt on his back and dropped it onto the ground. Marianne was surprised with how well these strangers were cooperating with them.

"Alright," the man in the brown shirt said. So he was the one with the southern drawl... "Your turn."

Carley slowly placed her gun down and Marianne followed suit. "An' who are ye two lads, eh?"

The man who had the machete tilted his head. "You sound like you're from Scotland or something."

"Answer the question." Carley growled.

"I'm Luke." He responded. He then gestured to the man beside him. "This is Nick."

"I'm Carley."

Luke looked to Marianne, who huffed slightly and crossed her arms. "Marianne. Tae establish things; only my maw can call me tha'! Ye call me either Maria or Mary."

"What about 'Anne'?" He asked.

Despite herself, she cracked a small smile. "Ye know, Ah never really heard someone call me tha', lad."

"Okay," Carley interrupted. "Where's the kid?"

Nick gestured from behind him. "It's alright, guys."

Four more people slowly approached them. For sure, there was a kid in their group. A young girl. Flowing black locks and a pair of glasses. A man had a hand on her shoulder, most likely her father. He had equally black locks, although much shorter, and he also had some stubble on his chin. He was wearing an orange plaid shirt. Another man, appearing much older than the others, had greying hair and wore a green jacket. There was a woman in their group. She looked to be almost in her late thirties, early forties. Short brown hair and she was wearing a black jacket with jeans.

Marianne smiled at the young girl. "Hello, there."

The girl smiled back.

"We just saw the fire and we thought we'd check it out." Luke explained. "It's hard to trust people, you know?"

Marianne nodded. "Aye, tha' Ah can understand. Wholeheartedly."

"So, are you from Scotland?"

"Aye. Ah am."

"Where did you guys come from?" Carley asked. "And if you're looking for food, we're pretty much out."

The older man stepped forward and placed a hand on Luke's shoulder. "We've been walking for a while, looking for a safe place to rest." He approached Marianne, holding out his hand to her. "My name's Pete. You in charge, here?"

Marianne hesitantly shook it. "Please tae meet ye. And nae, Ahm no' in charge. Technically, neither o' us are in charge. No point tae leadership."

Pete nodded. "I agree. You know, it isn't exactly safe for two young ladies such as yourselves to be out here on your own."

"Hey, we've been on our own for a few days." Carley stated. "We're doing just fine."

"You never know who you could come across."

"Aye, true enough."

Pete considered the two young women for a moment. "You know, we could use a few people who know how to handle a weapon or two. We've only got two guns, and my nephew here can't shoot for shit." He looked back at Nick, who just sneered and rolled his eyes.

Carley tapped Marianne's shoulder and, catching her attention, made a slight face. How do you feel about a group?

Marianne shrugged. Better than nothing. She turned her attention back to the group of strangers and carefully addressed them. "Aye, we could tag along fer a while. But... we've just had a bad experience with our one group. One sign o' trouble, and we're gone. Aye?"

The man chuckled. "I already like you; you've got a spirit to you. Alright, that's fine by us."

Marianne held back a sigh. She definitely wasn't comfortable with getting back into another group, especially after the things that had happened with Lee's group. But these seemed like nice people; a couple of families, a child, and two people with a sense of humour. It seemed promising enough.

But she didn't dare hope. Heaven knew that hope only lasted so long in this world.