Hey everyone! I'm soooo sorry it's been so long since I've updated! I found myself lacking in motivation... I'm hoping this chapter will tide you over while I try to get my inspiration back! Reviews help, so if you want the story to continue, please let me know! Constructive criticism is welcomed! I didn't edit this chapter much, so if there are any errors then I am very sorry! Please enjoy and leave me a review! :)
~Disclaimer~ I do not own The Walking Dead, I only own my OC's!
Piper ran her fingers through Bailey's hair soothingly as the little girl dozed. She looked out the window of the pick-up truck, watching as the lines of cars piled along the highway passed from her view. As she was day dreaming, a loud honk was heard from the RV. Daryl cussed under his breath before pulling over. He shifted the truck into park before turning off the ignition and climbing out.
Piper gently woke Bailey and carried her out of the truck, keeping her tucked close to her body protectively as she walked up to the group surrounding the front of the RV. She stood next to Shane, who smiled at the pair before turning back to the smoking RV.
"What's going on?" Piper asked Dale as he fumbled around in the engine. He let out a frustrated sigh before turning to address her question.
"I told them, we needed that hose from the van. Now we don't have it and I don't know where we're going to find another-" He looked up at his surroundings and let out a chuckle. "Well, I guess that was kinda stupid."
Shane let out a half-hearted chuckle. "If you can't find the hose here…" He trailed off as he dug through the trunk of a car. Piper felt slightly uncomfortable watching the group raid the cars.
"This place is a goldmine!" Glenn said cheerfully as he pulled out some supplies. Lori scoffed slightly.
"This place is a graveyard. We shouldn't be doing this…" She wrapped an arm around Carl and looked on disapprovingly as the group foraged. Piper walked up to her and rubbed her shoulder comfortingly.
"We don't have a choice. They won't be needing them anymore and it could help us survive. Just think about Carl, okay? It'll help." Piper smiled comfortingly, which was returned with a slight grimace and a final nod of acceptance.
As the others spread out to search the area, Piper found an unoccupied car, opening the door and sitting Bailey down in the driver's seat. She then opened the back door and rummaged through the back seat. She managed to find a few glass bottles of soda and some children's clothes. The clothes would be a bit big on Bailey, and seemed to have belonged to a boy, but the sweatshirts and pants would be a blessing in the cold winter months approaching.
Bailey squirmed in the front seat as her boredom grew. She let out a heavy sigh before standing on the seat and poking her head over the top to watch Piper. "Momma?" She said sweetly. Piper turned and hummed a response as she gathered up what she had found.
"Can I go pway wiff Sophie and Cawl?" Piper looked up and saw Bailey giving her puppy dog eyes. She sighed and pulled herself out of the car, turning to see where the children were located. Sophia was sitting in a car just a short distance away from Carol and Lori, while Carl was rummaging through nearby vehicles.
"If you're going to play with them, you need to stay where an adult can see you at all times, okay? No excuses. And stay out of the vehicles." Piper looked at her sternly. Bailey nodded her head vigorously and kissed Piper on the cheek before running off to play with the other children.
Piper watched for a moment as Bailey approached Carl, who was playing with a ball he found in one of the cars. Before Bailey had walked up to him, he had a dejected look on his face, but when she came over to play, a genuine smile crossed his features as he sat on the ground and rolled the ball back and forth with the little girl. Piper smiled at the scene before going back to rummaging through cars. She found a large laundry basket that she emptied and began filling with supplies.
She had found some canned food and water, as well as a fair supply of clothing that would have to be sorted closer to the RV. She was piling more clothes into the stuffed basket when she felt something hit the back of her head. She gasped at the sharp pain and turned to face the one who threw it with an accusing glare. Shane was gesturing her to get under the car and she saw Carl pull Bailey under and tuck her head into his chest to hush her.
Panic rushed through her as she dove under the car and silenced her breathing. Before long, she saw and heard the shuffling steps of Walkers as they trudged past her hiding spot. She trembled with fear as they drug their way down the highway. She could see Glenn and Shane under a vehicle off to her right, but her main focus was on Carl and Bailey, who were under a car a few yards ahead of her. She could see their feet, motionless as the Walkers passed them by. Piper closed her eyes and prayed for everyone to stay safe. She wasn't very religious, but she figured it was better to be safe.
After a few minutes, Shane crawled out from under the vehicle and rushed over to Piper, gripping her arm firmly and pulling her out. When she realized it was Shane pulling her out, she flew up, rushing over to Bailey and Carl, quickly picking up the little crying girl and running a hand through Carl's hair before kissing his head.
"Thank you Carl." She said strongly. He smiled slightly, but Piper could tell the boy was shaken up. She rested her free hand on his shoulder and led him up to Lori and the others. Shane was walking directly behind her, with one hand on her back and the other was tightly gripping his shotgun. Glenn ran up from behind them and nervously jogged ahead of them.
When Piper approached the group, she saw Lori tightly gripping Carol in a hug as the woman sobbed violently. Andrea stepped out of the RV covered in Walker blood while Dale climbed down from the top of the RV. Carl ran up to his mom while Piper approached right behind him.
"What happened?" Piper asked nervously. She noticed that Daryl, T-dog, Rick and Sophia were all missing from the group. Carol's response was a violent sob. Lori turned to her and her expression made Piper's blood run cold.
"Sophia was being chased by two walkers. Rick went after her." She rubbed Carl's back soothingly as the boy silently cried, watching the woods for his father's return.
"Oh god… I'm so sorry Carol." Piper said sadly as she rocked the still crying girl in her arms. Carol sent her a tight smile and shook her head.
"Don't be. It's not your fault. Just keep your little girl safe." Her voice broke and a fresh batch of tears poured down the woman's face. Piper was pacing as she rocked Bailey gently.
"Has anyone seen Daryl or T-dog?" She asked in frustration after a few moments of her nervous pacing. When nobody said anything, she approached Shane. He turned to her curiously when she nudged his arm.
"Can you take her? I'm going to go look around by the car I was at. Maybe I can get a sign of them." Shane went to refuse, but she silenced him with an exasperated glare. "I can handle myself Shane. And I have a big laundry basket full of supplies that we're going to need." He stared her down for a moment before letting out a sigh in defeat. He reached his arms out for the little girl after strapping the crossbow to his back.
After just a moment of hesitation, Bailey reached out for him. She wrapped her arms around his neck tightly, burying her face in his neck. He rubbed her back and talked softly to her, nodding to Piper when she made her way back to the car.
She kept her large knife in her hand as she quietly walked between cars, keeping an eye out for the missing group members. She made it back to the little red car she had been at when the Walkers showed up. The laundry basket was knocked over, but its contents were still in good shape.
She piled everything back into the basket and dug through the car one last time. She found a very generic first aid kit as well as a bottle of Ibuprofen that she stuffed in the basket. When she was turning to carry it back to the others, she heard a groaning. She stiffened and whipped around to see Daryl half carrying T-dog in her direction.
She sat down the basket and ran forward, nearly bowling the pair over as she hugged them tightly. T-dog groaned in pain and she quickly pulled herself away.
"I'm sorry T-dog! I was just so worried you guys were chased off too!" She said teary eyed. Daryl glared at her sternly.
"What do you mean 'too'?" Piper looked at the ground sadly before gesturing them forward.
"I'll tell you on the way back to the others." She stopped to grab the basket on their way back, telling them of Sophia's disappearance on the way. When they approached the rest of the group, they saw that Rick had returned, but no Sophia.
Daryl and Piper lowered T-dog onto the seat of one of the open cars and Piper immediately started cleaning his gaping arm wound. When she dumped the peroxide on the wound, he cried out loudly, cursing violently.
"I'm sorry! But we have to keep this clean." Piper apologized as she dumped the small amount of remaining peroxide on the wound before putting a large gauze pad over it and taping it in place. "Now I'm no nurse, but don't move it around too much. We need to keep you from bleeding out." He grumbled in response and shooed off her comforting hand on his shoulder.
She grimaced as she approached the rest of the group minus Dale, who was tending to T-dog in her absence. She heard the tail end of their plan to search the woods for Sophia. While she wanted to help them search, she knew she was next to useless when it came to tracking anything. She would only be in the way.
Shane turned when she approached and sent her a sad smile, which she returned. Daryl, Rick and Glenn went off to gather their weapons and Shane handed Bailey off to Piper. The little girl had stopped crying, but was still severely shaken up. Shane rested his hand on Piper's shoulder, gripping it comfortingly before grabbing his gun and knife and heading over to the others.
Piper stood next to Carol and Lori as they helplessly watched the men go searching for the little lost girl.
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