CHEROKEE ROSE PART 1

Visions. Crude images of blood, rot, and death ensnared Natasha's thoughts as she limped through the woods. Not only had they taken over her thoughts, but they also blotted out all other sounds from around her. She couldn't even hear crunching leaves until she abruptly pulled out her knife and swung it around her right side, making contact with the head of a walker that was nearly on top of her. Natasha gasped sharply and snapped her head over her shoulder, finally now seeing how close the walker really was. Actually, it been following her for quite a while. She just didn't care to deal with it until now.

"Jesus…" Natasha said in a single sharp gasp. She yanked her knife out and stepped back as the body crumbled at her feet. "That was close. Way…way to close."

She breathed out an exhausted groan and continued on her way, going deeper into the woods where she finally found a place that looked safe enough to stop and rest for a second. It was right beside a small creek that had fresh, untainted water flowing through it. Natasha practically crumbled to her knees in front of it and fully dipped her head into the fresh spring, scrubbing her face and getting the grime off. After that, she took off her heavy coat and pulled her boots off her legs to get a better look at them. Her knees and ankles were bruised, but she didn't feel any fractures or broken bones underneath her skin.

"Good. Good, good, good," she said before pressing her back against a large pine tree beside her.

It's been some time now, but she can assume Shane probably made it back to the farm by now. Not only with the equipment needed to save Carl, but her own equipment as well…along with the pills.

"Damnit…" Natasha growled under her breath. "Damnit, damnit. DAMNIT!" She raised her fist and slammed it down into the water, throwing up cold droplets of water all over her. She breathed heavily, shaking with anger as she pulled her limbs together and curled up into a ball. "Calm. Just stay calm. The ball is probably still in your park. Calm down."

Natasha closed her eyes tightly for a second and listen to the sounds around her. Nature sounds that calmed her chaotic mind. There was the running water, chirping songbirds, and better yet, the lack of groans and gurgles that came from the dead. For once in a long time. Natasha was alone.

She pulled her legs away from her chest and stretched them out, running her hands up and down her bruises to try and get the blood flowing again. She glanced back over her shoulder up the path she had just come from, still seeing the dead walker laying on the ground. Slipping her worn-down boots back on, she limped back over to the body and squatted down beside it. She searched through its pockets for anything. Something that might be helpful, but after not finding anything in the front pockets, she rolled the body onto its back and began to look in its shirt pockets.

"Ah? What are you hiding?" She felt a square object in the pocket and pulled out what looked to be a scuffed-up zippo lighter. "Ah-ha! Knew you smelled of…smoke?" Natasha tilted her head to the side when she saw something white lying underneath the walker. Curious, she stood up and yanked the body away…only to see a Cherokee rose smashed into the ground. Its petals were ripped, and it was obviously now starting to die because someone must've stepped on it. Either her or the walker. "Oh no…why does this feel like an omen?"

It was nearing morning when Otis's blue truck drove up the driveway of the farmhouse, alerting everyone inside who came out immediately. Their happiness soon turned into despair though when they saw only Shane limping out of the truck with three bags on him, one being Otis's, and the other was Natasha's brown satchel.

"Carl?" Shane asked against a struggled and exhausted voice. His face was soaked with sweat and his eyes were wide and deranged looking, like he had just been shown the world's most gruesome and unfathomable thing.

"There's still a chance," Rick said, taking the bags and handing them over to the farmhands. All except Natasha's satchel that Shane held onto tightly.

"Otis and Natasha?" Hershel asked, and immediately Shane turned his eyes away and spoke in a low voice.

"No."

Hershel kept composed as much as he could, though the glimmer in his eyes mixed with shock and distraught. He turned his head around to those beside him, urgency now flooding his voice. "We say nothing to Patricia. Not till after. I need her."

Hershel and them quickly headed back inside with the supplies, leaving Rick, Lori, and Maggie outside with a still bewildered Shane. Rick not only looked to be in shock but probably still hadn't processed his best friends' words yet. Lori, on the other hand, understood them just fine and had to suck in a deep breath, lowering her head to try and keep herself together. There were too many things to cry about right now. Far…to many. She had cried in pain for her son, now she wanted to cry all over again for Natasha's sake.

Shane swallowed hard when he saw Rick slowly begin to process his words. "Buddy, there is, uh…something else you need to know. About Nat. I don't think now is the right time though."

Rick raised his hand and shook his head, stopping Shane in his tracks. "No. No, no. It…it's alright. What was it about Natasha?" He walked up to Shane and grabbed his stiff and trembling shoulders. He saw the look in his eyes and could tell that he didn't want to talk about it. Turning his face away and avoiding eye contact.

"It wasn't right, I say. She was good, but…she wasn't right," Shane began. He reached into Natasha's bag and pulled out one of the many pill bottles, setting it down in Rick's open hand. "I don't think she's who we all thought she was. I think she might've been an addict."

This time, Shane's words were like a hard punch right into Rick and Lori's gut. They felt their knees wanting to buckle from shock as they both looked down at the pill bottle in hand. Shaking and having the overwhelming urge to curl up into a ball.

"I…I don't get it," Rick said.

"Man, you didn't see her. She looked at those pills like they were made of gold. Grabbing bottle after bottle and stuffing them into her back. I…I'm sorry, man. I really am. She was great, but…this…" Shane rambled on until he was out of breath and had to stop. He didn't continue after taking a breath though. He said what he wanted to say. It was up to Rick and Lori to process it how they pleased.

As Shane walked by them and headed inside the house, Maggie reached over and grabbed the bottle in Rick's hand. She turned the bottle over to read the label, and as her eyes scanned over the words, her face immediately turned perplexed.

"She was an addict?" she muttered while glancing back at the doorway Shane disappeared into.

"Fever's gone down," Hershel said while pressing his hand against the pale child's forehead.

Slowly, Carl began to regain consciousness and open his eyes, immediately making his parents get up from their chairs.

"Baby?" Lori whispered.

"Carl?"

Carl took in a deep breath before speaking in a weak and hushed whisper. "Sophia? Is she okay?"

Rick swallowed hard and glanced at his wife briefly, hesitating whether to tell the truth or not. "Fine. She's fine."

"Rest. We'll be right here, okay? Okay." Lori said and watched her son slowly go back to sleep with little effort. He was still so weak.

T-Dog then peeked his head into the room. "They're here," he said

Immediately, everyone got up from their seat and headed outside where they saw the rest of the group, the ones who were up at the highway now down with them. They were all now back together.

Dale was the first to ask the most pressing question. "How is he?"

"He'll pull through, thanks to Hershel and his people," Lori said, gesturing to Hershel.

"And Shane. We'd have lost Carl if not for him." Rick chimed in, motioning over to Shane who stood meekly behind all of them. Rick's face suddenly stoned up though as Natasha flashed through his head. He still needed to tell everyone the bad news. "And…there's one more person. A couple actually…who are, uh…not here with us anymore. Shane didn't go alone. He, um…had Natasha and a man named Otis go with him."

Rick had to clench his hands tightly to try and keep himself composed, but it was hard watching everyone's faces and seeing them slowly began to realize. Without Rick having to say anything more. He even noticed Daryl looking around, now noticing that Natasha wasn't among them.

Dale looked like he didn't want to be the one to ask, but he did anyway. "What happened?"

"Shane was…the only one who made it back," Rick explained briefly to them.

Collectively, everyone's face broke out into grief, but there was an oddness to Daryl. He looked as if he almost couldn't believe it. Shaking his head and turning his back to everyone. Carol looked like she was going to cry, Andrea kept it together as best as she could but had to hide her face by turning it to the side, and Dale just looked distraught.

"You can't be serious."

The group, along with Hershel and his people gathered around a small patch of land where two mounds of stones laid. An empty grave and vessel for Natasha and Otis. They all took their turns going up to the mounds, setting down a single stone on each one.

Hershel waited until everyone was done before flipping open a bible in his hand and reading out the scripture. "Blessed be God, father of our lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to him for the gift of our brother Otis and sister Natasha, for his span of years, for her willingness and dedication. Otis, who gave his life to save a child's, and Natasha for her selflessness. We thank you, God, for the peace they enjoy in your embrace. They died as they lived, in Grace.," he finished and had a quick moment of silence before glancing over to Shane. "Shane, will you speak for Otis and Natasha?"

Shane swallowed hard and turned his head away, mumbling under his breath. "I'm not good at it. I'm sorry."

Patricia looked at him, pleading with tears in her eyes. "You were the last one with them. You shared Otis's final moments. Please. I need to hear. I need to know his death had meaning," she begged.

Shane bit down on his lips and held his words back for a second. "Okay. We were about done. Almost out of ammo. We were down to pistols by then. Nat, uh…had a bad landing and was limping. She could barely walk. It was that bad." He took a breath and closed his eyes tightly. It looked like it pained him to even speak. "Nat…Nat said this to me. 'You guys get out of here. I'm gonna see if I can lure some of them away.' Next thing I knew, she shoved her bag onto me and…took off in the opposite direction with…God knows how many behind her. I…I didn't see her again after that…just heard the screams that came right after. But even with that sacrifice. Even with that commitment! There…was still too many. This was when Otis looked at me. He gave me his backpack. He shoved me ahead. 'Run,' he said. 'I'll take the rear. I'll cover you.' And when I looked back..." He shook his head and didn't allow himself to finish that sentence. "If not for Otis and Nat, I'd have never made it out alive. And that goes for Carl too. It was those two. They saved us both. If any death ever had meaning, it was theirs." Shane took two stones from the wheel barrel and laid them each down on the rock piles.