What Lies Ahead
The decision was made to head towards Fort Benning, but it wasn't long before the group was hindered again by the breakdown of Dale's RV. They stopped to look around, Andrea and Dale entering an argument and Glenn helping in the attempts to repair the RV.
Felicia got out of Shane's jeep, stretching her legs and allowing Teeth to do the same before he began running circles around his master, obviously no longer afraid.
Shane got out as well, and Felicia followed tentatively while he sought supplies. He located a truck full of water and became visibly excited, shouting and grinning at Felicia. He unplugged one of the water containers, allowing it to spill all over his head. He playfully flicked some water at Felicia, who smiled to see that, at least in this moment, the black cloud over his head seemed to be gone.
It was then that Rick approached and frantically whispered for them to find shelter- there was a herd of Walkers headed their way. The lightheartedness of a moment before disappeared and Shane scampered under a car, his expression back to a combination of stress and determination. Felicia ducked down and rolled beneath a pickup truck, motioning at Teeth to follow her. The dog, sensing danger, did as she wanted, crawling on his belly to sit a few feet away from her.
Heart pounding in her ears, Ingrid darted under a car some distance away from Carol and Lori, who were under one together. Carl was nearby, as was Sophia, who had taken shelter with her doll. Ingrid's eyes were as big as dinner plates and she gripped the crowbar that still hadn't gotten rid of, making eye contact with Sophia and then her mother.
Felicia was clinging to Teeth, eyes darting from where Shane was clutching his gun and not looking at her, to where the others were. Her heart, which had dropped to her stomach when she realized there were Walkers, now dropped to her feet as she realized that T-Dog was nursing an arm wound that was gushing blood. She was tempted to see if she could help him, but that was when the first of the Walkers began shuffling past, and it was all she could do not to let her breathing get out of control. She buried her face in Teeth's fur, listening to his insides (far less disgusting than those that were falling out of the Walkers) and trying to keep her mind blank.
Ingrid kept her gaze glued to the tire next to her face, trying to focus on the rubber patterns more than the decomposing feet stumbling blindly past the car where she was hidden. She caught a glimpse of Daryl assisting T-Dog and covering the two of them in corpses as Walkers stumbled directly around them. It seemed like a million years before the crowd of Walkers began to thin. Ingrid was beginning to relax when she heard a yelp from Sophia's direction. She gasped when she saw a Walker investigating her little sister's hiding place, at which Sophia was smart enough to scoot in the opposite direction. When the Walker had actually began reaching for her, Sophia scrambled out from under the car and onto the side of the road.
All but two Walkers had moved on, but these two both locked onto the little girl the moment she was out from under the car. Ingrid looked frantically at Carol, who Lori was restraining, and slid towards the other side of the car, almost ready to grab her crowbar and attack the remaining Walkers. Almost. Even as she watched her sister race down with the Walkers in hot pursuit, she couldn't bring herself to move from the safety of the vehicle.
As soon as the Walkers around Rick were clear, he slid out from under his car and took off after Sophia. The rest of the group got up, Carol now practically in hysterics and Lori trying to calm her down. Ingrid darted to her mother, grabbing her by the wrist and doing what little she could to soothe her.
Felicia squirmed out from under the truck, helping Teeth free himself as well. Shane was already out from under his car, and was moving to reunite with the rest of the group. Felicia followed slowly behind him, still wondering what had happened. It didn't take long for her to figure it out, however, as the group began discussing what had just happened.
Some time later, Rick returned without Sophia. The sun was starting to set by now, and as he rapidly explained what had happened, Carol was in full hysterics. Rick promised that the next morning he would go out and continue the search for the missing girl, and Felicia bit her lip as she retreated towards one of the cars. Even though she knew she should be worried about Sophia, she felt more awkward about sharing the Jeep with Shane, and opted to find a car of her own. This didn't take long, and once she had removed the corpse from the driver's seat of a convertible, she was able to recline, Teeth sitting next to her, and drift into an uneasy slumber.
The next morning, everyone but T-Dog (who was still nursing an extremely unpleasant-looking wound) and Dale left to continue the search. Felicia accompanied the others as they headed into the forest, Teeth following uneasily. When they came to a tent, Carol began quietly saying Sophia's name, trying to elicit a response.
Growing impatient, Ingrid said, much too loudly, "Sophia! Sophia, are you-"
"Shut up!" Daryl snapped as he approached the tent and unzipped it. That actually worked, as Ingrid suddenly found a blade of grass stuck to her shoe much more interesting than what was going on in front of her.
There was no Sophia in the tent; rather, a decaying corpse with an expression of twisted satisfaction on its half-rotten face.
The tolling of a church bell drew the group to a small chapel next. Felicia was excited until it was discovered that this was an automated sound (after entering the church and encountering several Walkers). Felicia was standing in the back while Carol and Ingrid sat in one of the pews. Nature called and Teeth retreated to take a piss. She followed him outside but stopped when she overheard the last of a conversation between Shane and Andrea. She rounded a corner and practically bumped into Shane as he was attempting to do the same. She crossed her arms defiantly and asked, "What was that about?"
"Nothing," Shane replied gruffly, sidestepping her and continuing on his path.
She turned and followed him, stating, "If you're planning something, you should probably-"
"I'm not," Shane snapped, turning just enough to respond to her probing. "You oghtta be looking for Sophia," he advised.
Felicia searched for something to say in response, but eventually just exhaled loudly and went to look for Teeth, who had finished urinating and was now looking for her at the same time.
Shane, happy to have gotten away from Felicia, whose presence was unnerving him slightly, had teamed up with Rick and Carl to search a bit more. That was when they saw a deer, Rick and Shane exchanging glances as Carl slowly approached it. Shane's mind had just started to wander when the sound of a gunshot pierced the air, and Carl and his animal friend fell to the ground.