A walker crashed into the glass window of the pharmacy, snapping Daryl's attention away from Maggie. Another walker crashed into the window, and another after that. Daryl could see more walkers stumbling in the horizon. He was pretty sure they were coming this way. Five more walkers crashed into the window, pressing themselves up against the glass and other walkers, drooling and growling.
Daryl turned to Maggie. They needed to get out of here, the pharmacy was going to be swamped soon, but Maggie was still sobbing and didn't look like she was going anywhere soon.
"We need to go." Daryl muttered but Maggie continued crying. He could hear the thumps of more walkers crashing into the glass. Daryl spat and took Maggie's face in his hands, the urgency in his voice clear, "Maggie we need to go. You need to pull yourself together. Think about Glenn, think about the baby. We have to get out of here."
Maggie blinked, snapping out of her trance. She wiped her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. Her eyes widened when she saw the mass of walkers pressed against the window of the pharmacy. She swallowed and looked at Daryl, her panic obvious.
"We'll go out the back." Daryl murmured and armed his crossbow. He led the way through the dispensery and to the back door. He took a deep breath and opened the door. Hundreds of walkers had surrounded the pharmacy, encouraged by the scent of fresh meat. The walkers heads' turned towards the open door. There was a tense moment with Daryl staring at the walkers', frozen with shock at the sheer amount. Then the first walker moved and the horde followed. Daryl slammed the door shut into the face of the first walker and ran back into the pharmacy.
More walkers had piled against the window. Another walker joined the group and the window cracked. Daryl swallowed the bile rising in his throat and yelled, "Look for a way out."
His eyes searched along the walls and along the floors. He scanned the roof and felt a glimmer of hope. There was a small, dirty window set in the roof, filtering in weak sunlight.
"Maggie over here." He beckoned to her and climbed on top of a set of shelves under the window. He helped Maggie up and smashed his hand against the window. He could hear the walkers scrabbling against the back door, he could see the crack in the front window getting bigger. He smashed his hand against the window, hoping to pop the frame out of the roof. He grunted and smashed the butt of his crossbow into the window.
The glass shattered and Daryl covered his face with his arm. Maggie did the same. There was a huge crack from the back of the building. Maggie screamed as walkers started to appear, moving quickly and growling hungrily. The front window broke and a steady stream of walkers surged towards the pair. Daryl grabbed Maggie and lifted her through the broken window. He passed her the bag of supplies once she was on the roof and gripped the edges of the window frame, ignoring the stinging pain when shards of glass cut into his skin.
Walkers surrounded the shelves, pushing against them. Hands grabbed his trousers and boots, trying to pull him down. Daryl kicked them away and squeezed through the broken window. He rolled free of the window once he was safely on the roof. He pushed himself to his feet, panting heavily and looked at Maggie, who was trembling.
He looked around and was relieved when he saw other rooftops with jumping distance. They could get over the rooftops and escape from the far side of the town and backtrack through the surrounding forest to the car. Daryl swallowed, proud of his plan which he quickly told Maggie.
"Sounds like a good idea." Maggie nodded, hollowly. She had cuts on her hands and arms and blood was running freely. Daryl rummaged through the bag and found some binding plasters that he put on the worst of Maggie's cuts and scrapes. Maggie shivered under his touch and shook her head, like she was shaking away all her bad thoughts. She studied her hands and arms and looked at Daryl, a steeliness in her eyes.
"We should go now." She muttered, "While they're still trying to get up here." Daryl nodded and slung the bag over his shoulder long with his crossbow. Daryl led the way, jogging across the rooftops, leaping from one to another, staying low to avoid being seen by anymore walkers. Maggie kept pace but was struggling with the jumps. She didn't complain however, Daryl was thankful for that.
They stopped on a roof of an old bakery. It was at the edge of town and not that far from the car. Daryl stood up and looked around, making a map of the route back to the car. A short dash into the surrounding forest and then a couple of kilometres to the car. Maggie was bent over, clutching her side and breathing heavily. Daryl felt guilty about making her run across the rooftops in her condition but she'd lived and that was the important factor.
He peered over the edge of the bakery and looked for a way down. He didn't mind dropping over the edge of the bakery, as it wasn't very tall, but it wasn't fair to Maggie. One side of the bakery had a wooden platform jutting out from wall, about a two metres drop from the roof then another short drop down to the ground.
"Over here." He growled, his voice gruff. Maggie hurried over and looked over the edge. She nodded at Daryl with a silent thanks and sat on the edge of the roof. She swung her legs over the side and turned her upper body, gripping the edge of the roof. She lowered herself down until she was dangling before dropping onto the ledge beneath her. The platform wobbled under her weight and creaked. It held however and Maggie quickly vacated it, dropping to the mud below with ease.
Daryl shifted the bag on his back and slipped over the roof, not bothering to take his time like Maggie had. He landed heavily on the wooden platform. The sudden weight ripped the platform off the wall and threw Daryl to the ground, chunks of wood landing on top of him and around him. He groaned and pushed himself to his feet, his bones protesting with creaks and cracks.
He spat mud from his mouth and shook his head. Laughter broke the silence and Daryl glanced up to see Maggie, doubled over, tears streaming down her face, chortling away at his expense.
"Are you ok? That...was...too...funny!" Maggie giggled, pointing at Daryl and wiping her eyes.
Daryl shook his head and growled, "You're gonna get fat." Before marching into the forest, trying to recover from the embarrassing moment. They reached the car with no difficulty, only pausing to shoot a few lonely walkers. Maggie chatted away, not caring about Daryl's lack of input. He was always like that, silent and sulky. Plus he was in a huff with her.
When they arrived back at the car, Daryl finally spoke, "We need to move on. It ain't safe here."
"Where?" Maggie asked, climbing into the passenger seat. Daryl put his bag on the backseat, along with the crossbow. He paused for a moment, recalling their close call before climbing into the driver's seat, "Away from here."
"Very specific," Maggie muttered, her voice drenched with sarcasm. Daryl allowed a small smile as the car sped along the road, leaving the walker infested town far behind. Maggie noticed and giggled then burst out laughing. Daryl was taken a back by the sudden outburst and arched an eyebrow at her, "You're weird."
"Y'know something, I don't think I've ever seen you laugh." Maggie smiled, wiping her eyes and pushing her hair out of her face.
"Probably not. I don't laugh very often."
"So I noticed." Maggie smiled. Daryl shrugged and glanced over at Maggie who was looking out the window. She looked like she was about to drift off to sleep. Daryl nudged her arm, "You OK?"
"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired. I've not been out in a while and I've forgot how exhausting it is." Maggie yawned, "I might just snooze, wake me up when we stop."
Daryl nodded and slowed the car down so Maggie wouldn't be thrown over any bumps in the road. Maggie's soft snoring filled the car after a few minutes. Daryl glanced at her sleeping figure. She looked so peaceful, despite the situation she was in. Daryl huffed lightly and turned his attention back to the road, letting his mind wander.
Carol had seemed alright back at the prison, she wasn't mad at him, that much was obvious. If anything she overcompensating on the affection. Daryl shook his head, trying to clear Carol from his mind but failing. Maggie jerked in her sleep and whined before rolling over as best as she could in her sleep. Her face was smooshed against the window, drool pooling on her bottom lip. Daryl reached over and rolled her back into a more comfortable position. Drool was smeared on the window. Maggie groaned in her sleep again and drool ran down her chin. Daryl shook his head and sped up.
Carol waggled her fingers in front of Judith's face, cooing playfully. Judith gurgled and batted at Carol's hand before gripping one of the fingers in her chubby hands and shoving it in her mouth. Carol smiled and dislodged her finger from Judith's mouth. She dried her finger on her shirt before standing and scooping Judith up. She placed her in her makeshift cot and booped Judith's nose and smiling as the baby smiled tiredly. Carol leaned down and kissed the infant on the forehead, pulling the blanket up to her chin.
She made sure Judith was asleep before backing out of the cell and down the stairs. She spotted Beth sitting at one of the tables, reading a book. Carol sat down opposite her and looked at the cover. Carol was surprised when she saw it was Dracula by Bram Stoker.
"Never had you down as the type to read Dracula. It all seemed a little heavy for me." Carol smiled and leant on the table. Beth looked up and smiled, folding the corner of the page and setting the book down.
"I learned about it when I was in school. My English teacher Mr Dream- I mean Mr Turner..." Beth faltered and flushed red before continuing feebly, "He always told me to read it, said it was one of his favourite books. I found it in the Library and it just passes the time I guess."
"Mr Dream? Care to elaborate?"
"Mr Dreamboat, it's what my friends used to call him. He was...nice to look at." Beth smiled. Carol grinned and stood up, stretching her arms, "I'm gonna go get some air. Judith's asleep, making check on her in a while." Beth nodded and started to read her book again.
The air was warm and sticky when Carol got outside, she could already feel the beads of sweat forming on the back of her neck. She wiped them away and ran her hand through her hair, stretching her arms out and taking in the fresh air. She smiled and looked around, feeling peaceful for the first time in a long while. Hershel was sitting at one benches, talking to some of the elder Woodbury residents, Carl was polishing his gun, leaning against the guard tower and Sasha, Tyreese and Karen were in the field, chatting and squabbling playfully among themselves. Rick and Glenn were in the guard towers.
Carol waved as Tyreese spotted her and gestured for her to come over. She looked around, expecting Daryl to be frowning at her before remembering he wasn't here. He was on a run, he was away. Carol allowed herself a smile and joined the others in the field, feeling like a young women again.
While the Cat is away, the Mice will play.
Carol frowned at herself for thinking like that. She wasn't scared of Daryl. She smiled again and looked at Tyreese who was beaming down at her, "What did I miss?"
"Ty and Sash just actin' like kids again. Bickerin' over who's smarter." Karen grinned at Carol and sat down in the long grass. Carol joined her and looked thoughtfully between the siblings.
"Hmm. I'm gonna say Sasha is...When you first came to prison and Carl found you in the tombs, my first impression was that she was the smart one, the whole brains of the operation." Carol smirked as Tyreese scowled and playfully pushed her backwards with his foot. Sasha punched her brother gently in the arm and stuck her tongue out at him, "Told ya so!"
Carol grinned and swatted Sasha gently, "Don't tease him, he might cry." Tyreese chuckled and slumped to the grass, stretching out next to Karen.
"It is so good being able to come into the field and not get munched by walkers. I never thought I'd miss the feel of grass." Karen groaned, happily, "Just to be able to lie here means everything to me."
"Oh...Here's me thinkin' you had a crush on Daryl," Sasha poked Karen in the ribs and waggled her eyebrows, "You might've got lucky there. He ain't that bad lookin'." Karen blushed beetroot red and stared at the grass.
"What?" Tyreese and Carol echoed each other. Carol sat up and looked expectantly at Sasha, waiting for her to continue. Tyreese looked mortified as did Karen.
"Y'know, it's like a freakin' zombie apocalypse. We're survivors. We make do with the things we have. And a girl has needs. So does a guy. And when they both have those needs, they need each other to satisfy those needs." Sasha shrugged, "And I'm not sayin' Daryl would be my ideal guy, I'm just sayin' it is slim pickings and the game is fair. Jeez, I know I'm not the only one who thinks Daryl is nice to look at."
"He's not some animal you can hunt. He's not some game either. The only rules he plays by are his own." Carol stated, hating the jealousy that was blossoming in her stomach. Daryl wasn't hers. He was free to do as he pleased.
"Sash, c'mon, you're makin' him seem like a piece of meat. He has feelings and stuff, somewhere deep inside him." Karen paused then licked her lips and whined, "His arms though...Ugh. Imagine them wrapped around you."
"This is Daryl Dixon we're talkin' bout. He behaves like an animal, why not treat him like one." Tyreese shrugged, "But Sasha, you ever make a move on him, I will kill him myself."
"Shut up Ty, you're not the boss of me. And you wouldn't even get close to him, he'd beat the shit into you. He's done it before, or did you forget that when you forgot that uh, you're not the boss of me?" Sasha retorted, "Why are you suddenly so protective anyways?"
"He's not...He's not good enough for you. He ain't good enough for no one. He's not good enough to lick the shit off my boot. He ain't good." Tyreese fumed. Carol got to her feet, hating this conversation. This was Daryl, the one who got food, who protected the group, who saved lives. This was her Daryl and she was damned if she was gonna let anyone talk shit about him.
"Remember that next time you eat one of his squirrels or he saves your life, you dumb sack of shit. He ain't perfect but neither are you. And he certainly wouldn't stoop to your level and bitch about someone behind their back. He has the balls to say it to a person's face." Carol steamed, kicking Tyreese in the leg.
"Calm down Carol." Tyreese soothed but it only strengthened Carol anger.
"You have no right to say those things about him! He does more for the group that half of the Woodbury residents do combined. He's the reason you're alive. He gets food, he gets supplies, he watches over the prison while you sleep and you say that shit about him? He's a better man that you, he's a better man that you'll ever be, you prick." Carol kicked him again before storming up the field and back into the prison.
She spoke to no one for the rest of the evening, staying locked away in her cell.
A/N: I know I haven't updated in the longest of times. I know I said I would update once a week and so far I haven't. But trust me when I say, I simply haven't had the time to write.
Since I last updated, I turned 18 and for my birthday, my parents got me plane tickets and money to travel around the world. They had even cleared it with my school. So for the last 5/6 months I have been touring the UK and Europe. So I haven't exactly had time to write or wifi to post.
I'm touring Asia next but hopefully I will have a few chapters up before I leave for Asia.
Once again, I am so sorry for the slow updates and I can't promise frequent updates but I just want to thank everyone who has stayed with me so far and thank you to everyone who has left a review, or favourited. You guys motivate me to write.
Thank you guys so much.
Drop a review, comment, critque, praise or suggestion below :)
Oh and Merry Christmas :D