A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites. And thank you to Hongo En for reviewing. I enjoy your enthusiasm.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

Chapter Seventeen

Like Marianne said, she and Jimmy were on their way again right after the sun had risen. They drove east until they came to a fork in the road.

The road on the left heading south looked promising but the right one heading north also had its merits. She studied their map intently going through a checklist. There was a growing herd west of them that were heading in a northerly direction but that didn't mean a well placed flock of birds getting spooked and bursting out of the trees would turn them south.

It was a hard decision but she managed to make up her mind. "We'll go left."

And that was how it went. Marianne studied the map and chose the route she thought the group would take, trying to put herself in Rick's shoes. He'd be looking for a more permanent residence for Lori to have the baby and trying his best to make sure the group had shelter every night.

She worried she was wrong but didn't let Jimmy see it. In front of him she was confident in every move they made. In turn, he was confident in her and it scared Marianne a little that he depended on her. She was responsible for him whether or not she wanted to be.

"You're doin' it wrong." Marianne said looking critically at the animal snare Jimmy was making. She almost regretted her offer to teach him.

"I'm doin' it exactly how you showed me."

"No you ain't. That's the wrong knot."

"What difference does it make?"

"The difference between a full belly and an empty one. Redo it," she said a little too sharply.

"Okay, okay." Marianne watched as Jimmy redid it and found the snare adequate when she inspected it.

They started heading back to the house they chose to stay in for the night. "Now if we catch anything and get to it before the walkers I'll teach you to skin and gut it. I'll even let you kill it."

"Lookin' forward to it."

"Is that sarcasm I hear?"

"Maybe." Jimmy glanced over at Marianne to see how she'd react. She wanted to be annoyed at his flippancy and tell him off but after a week with Jimmy she didn't let it. It was too exhausting and she had better things to do.

"Didn't anyone tell you to respect your elders?"

"You're only a few years older than me."

Marianne let out a short laugh. "If I didn't know any better I'd think you were tryin' to compliment me. I've got a good decade on ya."

Jimmy stopped walking. "You're not serious."

"As serious as a walker bite. Merle gotta a kick out of callin' me 'baby face' for the longest time." This time Jimmy laughed but mentioning Merle dampened Marianne's mood. She had started out with two brothers but now they were all separated. She didn't even know if Merle was still alive and she could say the same thing about Daryl but she wasn't going to.

The twelfth day after the farm had fallen Marianne and Jimmy were lucky enough to switch to their fourth car with half a tank while the one they had was running on empty, but their new car ran dry before they could reach the next town.

"We'll have to downsize. Some lucky bastards'll come across our supplies," Marianne said, opening the trunk.

"I hope they're not assholes," Jimmy said, making Marianne grin.

He wasn't looking forward to having to go on foot and even less so at abandoning over half of what they'd accumulated. To him, every single item was essential to their survival. Marianne wasn't happy about it either but it was an easier pill to swallow for her. It'd be like camping with Daryl, except instead of Daryl there was Jimmy and instead of killing buck they'd be killing dead people.

"Relax, if it makes you feel any better we'll stuff the best of what's left in the trunk and lock it. Maybe we'll be back this way someday."

They pushed the car off the road and hid it the best they could.

Nearby they camped for the first time without the safety of a working car waiting for them in case they needed to make a quick getaway. Watches were all the more important. Marianne always took the first one and Jimmy should've been asleep already. He had an easier time of it than Marianne but tonight he seemed restless.

"You best get to sleep now. It's late. I won't let 'em get you."

Jimmy stared into the dying fire where all that was left were smoldering embers. However cold it was getting she didn't let them keep a fire going at night yet.

"I barely know a thing about you," he said quietly. "You don't talk."

"I talk."

"You order me around."

She shrugged. "That's still talkin'." Marianne looked at him. What's with this mood all of a sudden? From her experience, teenage boys weren't interested in talking the way Jimmy wanted to right now. "Look, this ain't a sleepover and we're not gonna be best friends. I'm busy keepin' both of us alive."

"I can survive by myself." His sullen voice made an appearance.

"Maybe a few days but not this long." She could see this made him angry and she probably shouldn't have said it but he needed to know that he wasn't ready to be on his own. Jimmy finally got into the sleeping bag and turned his back to her. Marianne gave her full attention to the dark forest around them.

A couple of hours passed with no trouble as she walked around the perimeter of their tiny camp, stopping every few minutes to stare intently into the dark.

She heard them before she saw them. The rustling wasn't the wind and only meant one thing and she didn't stick around to see how many of them were coming.

"Jimmy, we gotta go." Marianne knelt down to shake the boy's shoulder with one hand and used the other to cover his mouth so he wouldn't make any unnecessary noise. It only took another second for him to wake up. "Shush. Walkers."

That's all the explanation he needed. He was out of the sleeping bag in a flash. Between the two of them, they grabbed everything and Marianne took off making sure Jimmy was right behind her.

Her sprint through the trees was nearly silent but Jimmy's wasn't so she slowed down to a fast walk which seemed to help. She led them to the road and they stepped out into the open but they stayed next to the tree line. If she was alone it would've been safer to stay in the woods but, with Jimmy, this way was faster. They could always duck back into the trees if they needed to.

About ten minutes passed and they hadn't slowed down because Marianne didn't want to take any chances. After a few more they literally stumbled onto a three way intersection. Both of them were breathing heavy and Marianne resisted the urge to lie down on the ground.

They could either continue straight or turn right. Marianne chose to go right. She calculated that it was the best option to get away from the herd.

Their pace eventually slowed and it was late morning when a rest stop appeared. They'd passed signs for it and kept an eye out but never expected to see it. Not expecting shelter made it less disappointing when they didn't find any. Marianne decided they wouldn't travel any further for the day.

The rest stop had picnic tables, an outhouse, and a building with showers that no longer worked but was good enough for sleeping in after they killed the cockroaches. Marianne decided they could have a fire going all night inside. There was even ventilation to keep the place clear of smoke.

Up to this point and fortunately for them, food had never been a problem. Marianne strictly rationed it and they were hungry half of the time but they weren't starving.

She looked at the remains of their dinner, two empty cans of chicken noodle soup next to their feet. "Pull out a can of peas. We'll split it."

Jimmy's face lit up. "Really?"

"Yes really. We've earned it."

The next morning they were in the best moods they'd been in for over a week. Neither of them were as hungry as they usually were and the shelter of the small concrete building combined with their fuller stomachs led them to a more restful sleep.

Marianne woke up to chirping birds, a good sign since walkers usually scared them away. She rolled over to find that the fire was almost out but it didn't matter. Not this time. The morning weather wasn't too hot or too cool and she actually felt like getting up to start the day.

They were usually on the road an hour after she woke up but Marianne let them linger. They deserved a lazy morning since they'd been searching nonstop for the group, never staying in one place for more than a night.

The two of them were standing face to face in the shower room. After packing everything up Marianne had decided to teach him a few tricks.

"Eye goungin' is always fun," Marianne said after another failed attempt at Jimmy trying to punch her.

"Isn't that fighting dirty?"

"You need'ta fight dirty. There's no code of honor when someone's tryin' to kill you." Jimmy nodded. "I'll show ya." They both got in a fighting stance. "We'll do it slow. You go in for the punch and I'll block it." Jimmy punched and when she blocked it they stayed in that position. "Good, now I'll use my free arm—you gotta be quick— to strike." Marianne did that in slow motion. "See how I'm holdin' my hand?"

"Where'd you learn all this?" Jimmy asked as they stepped away from each other.

"Daryl." She went to grab a canteen so she wouldn't have to look at Jimmy. "He told me he was gonna teach me how to win and he did."

"You'll see him again."

She shrugged before turning to look at him and tried to keep her voice light. "I'm countin' on it. We're gonna kick some of their asses for leavin' us behind."

Eventually they had to go. Marianne looked at the map before they left and saw that their detour meant they would have a long haul to the next town.

"Look there." Marianne pointed at something in the distance. Jimmy squinted.

"Is that a building?"

"Looks to be. It's small though."

"How can you tell?"

"Practice."

When they got closer they found out it was a gas station. It only had one pump and the building looked abandoned but, out there, that didn't mean it hadn't still been in business before the outbreak.

When they reached it Marianne took a walk around the building and scanned the area. For now, all was calm.

"Stay out here. We don't want anything sneakin' up on us."

Jimmy kept watch, facing away from the rinky-dink gas station. Marianne did the usual routine and knocked on the door. Nothing came. When she opened the door a bell jingled above her. It had barely begun to shut when she sensed something was wrong.

She raised her bow, ready to shoot. A figure shot up from behind the cashier's counter to her right. Her eyes still hadn't completely adjusted from the bright sun outside to the darkness inside. She released the arrow and narrowly missed. Marianne readied another arrow but it was too late. A gun was pressed to the back of her head.

"Put it down, nice and slow," said a rough voiced man behind her. The figure in front of her turned into a second man who also had a gun trained on her.

"No funny business," said the man in front of her as he walked out from behind the counter, all the while pointing his gun at Marianne. She lowered her bow so the arrow was pointing to the ground. The man was now standing directly in front of her and grabbed it from her hands. Marianne could see him clearly. He was foot taller than her and had a long, thin unhealthy looking face. His unwashed hair was pulled back into a short ponytail.

"This is a nice piece of equipment. Can't shoot for shit with it. I'm more of a gun kind of guy." He placed her bow on the counter. "My name's Frank and that's Will. He prefers knives."

"What's your name?" Will asked. Marianne didn't answer him and Will grabbed her hair, yanking her head back and pressing the gun to her temple.

"Answer me you little bitch or we'll go outside and kill the boy."

"Marianne." Her voice was steady. "You can take our stuff and we'll all be on our own way. There's no need for violence."

"We don't want your stuff." She could hear the smirk in Will's voice as plainly as she could see Frank's predatory smile.

"We want somethin' else from you," Frank said.

Her hands clenched into fists. Like hell they were going to do that. Frank must have noticed a change in her. Maybe he wasn't as stupid as he looked. "Take that knife off her belt," he ordered Will."And search her." She held her breath as Will gladly complied. He took away her Ruger from where it was tucked into the back of her jeans. He found a knife in an outside jacket pocket and another that she'd hidden in an inside pocket but the one in her boot stayed there.

Thinking she no longer posed a serious threat Frank lowered his gun but Will kept his pressed into her side. He tossed her Ruger to Frank but kept her knives.

"Now let's go introduce ourselves to your friend outside."

Will pushed her towards the door. "Ladies first."

When she opened the door the bell jingled again and Jimmy turned around his mouth open to say something but when he saw the two men behind Marianne he raised his gun instead.

"Jimmy, don't do anything stupid. Put the gun down," Marianne said, trying to tell him with her eyes that it'd be all right. She'd deal with these assholes and both of them would continue their trek none the worse for wear.

"Listen to the lady here boy," Frank said. "Put down your weapons." Jimmy didn't move.

"So that's how you're gonna play it," Will said.

She felt the edge of the knife and then a strong sting along her cheek. Blood ran down her face.

"Stop!" Jimmy looked horrified and quickly put his gun and two knives on the ground. Frank searched him but came up empty. She doubted Jimmy had another knife hidden somewhere.

"You know what I like Marianne?" Will asked.

"Enlighten me." Dumbass.

"I like my women a little messed up."

"I'm not your woman," she said through gritted teeth. Will chuckled.

"Oh, you will be."

Jimmy's face paled and she guessed it had fully sunk in for him what these men's intentions were for her.

"Don't fuck her up too much. The rest of us still want her pretty."

So there was more than two. She needed to act fast before they joined up with the others.

"Enough small talk. Let's get goin'," Frank said.

"What are we gonna do with the boy?" Will asked. Marianne tensed.

"You can join us if you want," Frank offered. Marianne couldn't tell if he was serious or not.

Jimmy's face turned red. "I'd rather die." No, don't say that.

"Fair enough." Frank aimed his gun at Jimmy and shot him twice in the stomach. With each gunshot, Marianne's body violently jerked.

Jimmy didn't make a sound as he collapsed to the ground. Blood blossomed across his shirt and ran through his fingers as he pressed his hands against his wounds. Marianne felt like she was going to throw up.

"Raise your hands where we can see 'em," Frank said calmly as if he hadn't shot a person seconds ago.

Marianne glared at Frank and she would've glared at Will if she could see him. She did as she was told and raised her hands, thankful that they weren't shaking. She needed to stay focused.

"I can promise y'all one thing."

"What's that sweetheart?" Frank asked.

"You'll both be dead soon." The two men laughed.

"Big words from a little thing like you," Will said.

They headed into the woods. Will was in the lead while Frank stayed behind Marianne, pressing his gun to her back and using a vice like grip on her shoulder to steer her.

They made her keep her hands raised and she kept pretending to trip which seemed, to her great satisfaction, to piss off Frank.

"Watch where you're goin'."

"I'm tryin'. You keep pushin' me."

"And don't make so much noise. How the hell did you survive this long without pullin' in walkers?"

She didn't answer him and apparently Frank didn't need one because they walked in silence for a few minutes before Marianne faked a fall and made him stumble. By the time he'd recovered Marianne had already slipped the knife out of her boot and up her sleeve. "Get up!"

He grabbed the back of her jacket and forcefully yanked her up. When she was on her feet again a quick jab was all she needed to plunge the knife into Frank's side. It took the men by surprise and Marianne had time to grab her Ruger from Frank before taking off.

She zigzagged in between the trees as bullets whizzed by her. Marianne crouched behind a big one that had bushes growing around it. She peeked through the foliage to see Frank hadn't moved but Will was chasing her. The man momentarily paused and Marianne fired. She hit his right arm making him drop his gun.

Now both men were cursing in pain. Will pushed through it and began searching for his gun hidden in the undergrowth. Frank began firing blind and Marianne took cover again. The gunshots stopped and she dared to look around the tree again. There was movement behind the two men, a lot of it. The gunfire had attracted a group of walkers.

One of them crept up behind Frank and she was surprised he didn't hear it. She watched as it got right next to him and bit his shoulder. Frank screamed as the walker tore away a chunk of his flesh, making Will turn around. Instead of helping Frank, Will began to run away. Marianne aimed again and fired. This time she hit his left knee and he crumpled to the ground. The walkers became incensed and started moving as fast as they could to their next meal.

They surrounded Frank but Will hadn't gone unnoticed.

She estimated there were fourteen of them. Marianne silently walked away before the walkers knew she was there. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she listened to both men scream in agony.

After putting enough distance between her and the gruesome scene, Marianne began to circle around to the gas station. She needed to get back to see if Jimmy was still alive.

Before she got very far she heard gunshots in the direction of the walker feast. Someone else must've crossed paths with the walkers and it sounded like more than one person.

Maybe they were Frank and Will's people. She had to find their camp.

It was a testament to her skills as a tracker that Marianne found it, but it was empty and she'd have to wait. Marianne didn't know what she was going to do.

She intended to assess their threat level but what was her game plan after that? There were limited options here. She could steal their stuff before they came back. Their truck looked to only be a few years old and it was filled with supplies, but then she'd have to count on them leaving the keys behind. Was it worth the risk?

Marianne sat there thinking too long and started to hear people talking and walking through the woods towards the camp.

She waited patiently as two men and a teenage boy came into view.

"Can't believe Frank and Will got caught like that," the teenager said.

"We need to pack up and get outta here," the man wearing a plaid shirt said.

"What for?" The teenager asked. "We killed 'em all."

"There could be more," plaid shirt said. "What about you, Greg?"

"There could be more where we end up goin'." Greg shrugged. "We'll stay here for now. Move on tomorrow like we planned."

They were leaving tomorrow and could end up going the same direction she did. Marianne wasn't willing to take that risk. She knew what she had to do.

It was scary how easy it was. She shot Greg in the head first since he was still holding a rifle. Before the other two had time to process what had happened she shot plaid shirt in the head too. The teenage boy looked around terrified and held up his hands.

"Don't shoot. Please."

Marianne lowered her gun. He was only a couple of years older than Jimmy but Jimmy's age hadn't stopped Frank from putting two bullets in him.

"You can have everything. Just please don't kill me." Randall had pleaded for his life too. Rick couldn't go through with it because Carl had walked in but she wasn't Rick and there was no one watching her now. Marianne pulled the trigger.

A/N: Poor Jimmy. In earlier versions of my story he wasn't supposed to make it off the farm but something didn't feel right about the chapter and I realized that it was because he survived. I had plans of keeping him around long enough to make it to the prison but the same thing happened. However much I wanted to see his character grow and to even write an awkward reunion between Jimmy and Beth it just wasn't meant to be.

Also, I think some of you are probably anxious for Marianne's reunion with Daryl and the group. It's going to happen and she won't be spending the entire winter on her own.

Chapter 18 will be posted sometime this week.

Any thoughts? Reactions? I'd love to hear them!