Z

Beth and I made our way through the woods carefully, taking turns hacking at the over growth. The sun was barely peeking through the canopy of the trees leaving the forest dim.

"You thought that sheriff was a looker, huh?" I asked, smirking over at Beth. She rolled her eyes as she took a whack at some fallen limbs.

"What about Daryl and his squirrel?" She asked me, accentuating her southern accent when she said his name. I giggled quietly as I took the lead to clear our way. I found him attractive, yes. At the end of the world, there were not many men to gawk at. It had been nice to have a simple feeling of normalness for a fleeting moment. It was another simple luxury.

"He wasn't bad," I said, over my shoulder "Kind of an ass, but not bad lookin'."

"He was handsome," Beth admitted of Shane, "I can't believe the circumstances," She said, "The dead are walking and here we are talkin' about men."

"Nothin' like some girl time, Eh?" I asked, looking back again, I took another step forward, but found no ground beneath my footfall. I cried out as I tumbled down a steep incline, hitting my head against the hard stone sticking out from beneath the dirt and moss.

"ROSE!" I heard from Beth, she sounded miles away. I landed hard with a wet squish and the world went dark for a few moments. I was sinking in what felt like tar and I couldn't find which was up. Panic took over as I began thrashing around, desperately trying to find my way out of my surroundings. My lungs burned and my heart beat furiously against my ribs from holding my breath; my time was dwindling down to nothing. Finally, my hand broke the surface and I fought to get my head above the mud. I took a gasping breath and wiped at my eyes, only to be confronted by a snarling walker, just feet away from me. A scream escaped me, the walker kept furiously reaching for me as I did my best to push my way through the mud.

"Beth!" I choked out, noticing the second walker, this one on my right and a bit behind me. The second walker was able to graze my leather jacket with the tips of its fingers, making it far too close for comfort, "Help me," I said, my voice cracking as I struggled against the mud, which was still pulling me down. I looked up at her, standing on the edge of the ridge and without saying a word she turned and disappeared from my view.

"No!" I screamed, struggling harder, "No! Beth! Don't do this to me! Don't do this! BETH!" My screams only made the walkers more riled and eager for me, the walker directly in front of me had been able to make some progress, making it that much closer to me. It was easier for them to move in the mud, they'd seemed to stumble into it, rather than be plunged deep down like I had. So, while they were only in waist deep, I had mud up to my chest.

"Oh god," I breathed, getting winded from the fight, "Oh my god." The first walker grabbed my arm, attempting to pull me closer. Its fingers dug into my jacket, making me thankful that I'd kept it on. The smell of them made my stomach churn.

She'd left me to die, just like the man she'd told me about. The feelings of betrayal and anger were hushed by the fear and death staring me in the face. The walker behind me hadn't been able to move much, it was deeper in the mud than the one currently yanking on my arm. That was a plus. On the other hand, the geek holding onto my arm was now nearly on top of me as I held it's snapping head to the left. The added weight was causing me to sink further down into the swampy mess.

"Rose!" I heard from above me, I looked up to see Beth standing on the edge of the ridge again. Daryl was climbing down quickly, his bow slung over his shoulder.

"Beth?" I called back, still avoiding the teeth of the walker.

"Hang on, girl," Daryl called, nearly all the way down the steep incline. Once he made it to the bottom he took aim, "Hold its head up," He called.

"Don't you hit me," I said desperately, holding the walkers head as high as I could. An arrow pierced through the its eye, ceasing its chomping teeth and our struggle. I sighed in relief as the body slumped and I was able to push it back, away from me. Daryl handled the other walker with ease as Beth paced uneasily atop the ridge. He set his crossbow down before easing himself into the mud.

"The trick," he said moving slowly, "Is not to struggle against it," I watched him collect he arrow out of the walkers head closest to him and toss it back onto solid ground, "Or you'll sink faster."

"I didn't really have the option," I said, waiting for his help, "to just slip into the mud." Daryl chuckled as he slowly moved closer to me, he was in just as deep as I was, but he moved much more fluidly. He found my hands under the mud and began slowly easing me towards the bank, "Fuck," I whispered as pain erupted in my ankle.

"What?" Daryl asked, stopping all movement.

"My ankle," I said, he nodded and moved even slower, taking care not to hurt me anymore.

"You're gonna have a shiner," he said, looking me in the eyes, then to my cheek, "And you got a pretty nasty cut."

"You two okay?" Rick's voice made both of us look up to see him and Shane standing with Beth.

"We're good," Daryl called, "She wasn't watchin' her step." I glanced over to the other side of the mud and saw two more walkers struggling to make their way through the trees.

"Daryl," I said, not taking my eyes off of them. He followed my gaze over towards them, but he didn't seem to panic. He worked more diligently to get us out of the mud and once we reached solid ground, he loaded his crossbow and carefully picked off the two new walkers. I sat on the rocks at his feet, covered in mud; the pain was finally flooding into me now that the adrenaline had worn off.

"Daryl?" Shane's voice rang through the trees, "You want a rope or something to get her up here?"

"Nah," Daryl called, "The incline isn't as steep closer towards the farm, we'll walk."

"We'll meet you back there," Rick called down. I could see Beth's face was red and puffy, she was crying.

"Walk?" I asked, looking at my throbbing ankle, "I can't walk."

"You want 'em to hoist you up that ridge with a rope?" Daryl asked, "'Cause that's gonna hurt a hell of a lot more than walkin'." I weighed my options and held my hand out to him to help me up. He looked at my muddy fingers for a moment, as if debating whether or not he was going to help me, before taking my hand and easing me to my feet. He positioned himself on my right - my injured side - and placed my arm around his shoulders, helping me support my weight. He held his crossbow in his free hand, ready to defend if necessary.

"Thank you," I spoke through gritted teeth. Pain screamed from my ankle with every step as I limped along with his aid. In response to my thanks, I received a nod.

After staggering along in silence, the farm came into view. We'd been walking for what felt like an hour and each step was increasingly painful than the last. Involuntary tears had sprung from my eyes and were making their way down my cheeks when Daryl spoke.

"At this pace," He complained, "We ain't gettin' back to the farm 'til dark."

"Sorry I'm weighing you down," I said, angry at his comment. I squeaked and wobbled unsteadily as he removed my arm from his shoulders. He caught me by the arm as he slung his crossbow over his shoulder, "What're you doing?" I demanded.

"Gettin' us back before dinner," He said, "Or do you wanna walk?" I gritted my teeth as he scooped me up in his arms. I let my aching head fall on his dirty shoulder as Daryl walked quickly and with purpose back towards the farm. My vision condensed down into a tunnel as the sky came into view again, my body felt like it was floating as everything went dark.



"You die on me?" Daryl's voice floated through the darkness. I rolled my head from side to side, "Open them eyes, girl."

"Oh my god," That was Beth.

"Go away," I croaked, that was directed at Daryl. A hand was on my face, feeling my forehead.

"Will you step out?" Footsteps fell away from me, "Can you open your eyes?" This was Hershel's voice, "You've got a concussion, honey. I need you to open them and stay awake for me."

"It hurts," I mumbled.

"I know," Hershel was calm and patient, "Just try and open them for me." Slowly, I got my eyes open, the sunlight coming into the kitchen made my head ache worse. I was laid on the breakfast table with a pillow under my head. My cold and muddy clothes were still clinging to my skin.

"Rose," Beth was beside me in an instant, hugging me as best as she could in my current position.

"You're getting muddy," I spoke quietly and she laughed, I could tell it was out of nervousness, "I need a shower."

"We can do that," Hershel said, "I'll have Maggie get you some clothes."

"Thank you," I said. Once Beth had released me, I slowly made my way into sitting up.

"Would you mind helping her to the bathroom?" Hershel asked of Beth, "It's just around the corner and to the left." Hershel left us in the kitchen.

"We can go when you're ready," Beth offered her hand.

"Okay," I nodded, still moving slow, "I thought you left me."

"I know," Beth said, still standing beside me, "I told you I'd never do that to you. I meant it. When it comes down to it," I took her hand and she helped me off the table, "We stick together. No matter what."

"No matter what," I reaffirmed her words. We made it to the bathroom at a sluggish pace, I was looking forward to getting into clean, dry clothes.

"I'll be out here," Beth said, "Call me if you need help."

I nodded and hobbled my way into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me. I stripped myself of my filthy clothes and placed them in the sink to keep from getting mud all over the clean white tile. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. Daryl was right, my left eye was already darkening and I had a cut running along my cheek, I brushed my matted hair back and turned my attention to the glistening, inviting tub. I turned the water on, expecting only cold water, I held back a joyous laugh as hot, steaming water began flowing from the shower head. I didn't even bother turning on the cold water before slipping into the shower - minding my injured ankle - and beginning to scrub the muck and the filth off of.



That night Beth and I sat in Shane's tent with a lantern turned down low getting ready for bed. Hershel had bound my ankle in an ace bandage for me after I'd gotten out of the shower and was dressed in clean clothes. For me, the rest of the day was spent staying out of everyone's way as they made a plan to look for their missing little girl and Beth helped. Dale had given me a novel and a puzzle book to keep myself busy - that had helped for about an hour.

"Beth," Rick's voice came from just outside our tent, "Rose, may I come in?"

"Yeah, Rick," Beth said, unzipping the tent door to allow him entrance.

"I just wanted to let you know that I spoke to Hershel," He said, taking a seat on the cot beside me, "And he's agreed to let you stay until my group leaves. You're welcome to join us, if you'd like."

Beth and I soaked this information up for a moment before either of us spoke.

"We appreciate that, Rick," I said, "But, I don't-"

"We'll need to think on it," Beth said honestly.

"I understand," Rick said with a smile, "If you do decide to stay, we'll talk some more." He stood up, ducking his head to avoid hitting the top of the tent, "Goodnight, Ladies."

"Goodnight," We said in unison as he zipped the tent up behind him.

"We'll talk in the morning," Beth decided, I had no objections as she turned the lamp off. I laid on my cot, covered by a quilt given to me by Lori. I was thankful for this groups hospitality and all they'd done for us already, but I didn't want to risk spending time with them and forming bonds, just to have them broken by the cruelness of the new world. I had a hard enough time hanging on to Beth.

"Beth?" I asked in the dark.

"Yeah?" She answered.

"Where did Daryl go?" My voice was barely a whisper. I hadn't seen him since that morning.

"He left when Hershel told him to," She said, "But he stopped me before he went to look for Sophia and he asked if you were alright."

I owed him for saving my life.