Atlanta

I woke up with a start, nightmares hitting me for the first time in a long time. It took me a few seconds to realise that I was in Atlanta, at the quarry, next to the RV. The events of the night before slowly returned to me, and I screwed my eyes shut to stop the tears. Shane had told everyone to go back to their tents and sleep, that him and Rick would be keeping lookout, so not to worry. Dani asked me to go back to my tent, but I couldn't leave either Amy or Andrea's side. I ended up giving inon the condition that I took my sleeping bag, and a blanket and went straight back outside. I set a blanket over Andrea, though I knew she probably didn't even notice, and slept in my sleeping bag right next to them. Back in reality, I crawled over to where Amy lay, and returned to the position I was sitting in when she died, kneeling at her side and stroking her clean arm.

"I'm so sorry Amy." I whispered. I slowly backed away again, giving Andrea space with her sister. She hadn't moved from the same position the whole night, and I started to worry about her. "Hey Andrea, I know you won't want to right now, but when you're ready to get up, i'm making some toast if you'd like any." I rubbed her shoulder before getting up and heading over to the fire to start. I began to notice what was going on around me - Morales, Glenn, Rick, T-Dog and Shane were all making sure the dead were put down, and then putting them into a pit and setting them on fire. I noticed Daryl helping them, so I called to him. "Daryl!" He glanced over, but kept on walking into the woods. I went to shout again, but he looked troubled, so I knew it was best to leave him.

"How you holding up?" I turned to my side and saw Carol sitting with Sophia. Sophia sat snuggled into her mother, while Carol looked as though she had cried all night.

"I'm...managing. What about you?" She forced a weak smile, and helped me load more bread onto the big tray.

"I'm fine. Just shocked." I glanced over at her, unsure.
"You're definitely fine?" I saw her lip tremble, and she shook her head. "Hey, hey, hey." I held her shoulders and let Sophia sit between us. "What happened?"

"We went back...to our tent....and....Ed." I gasped, realising how that must have been for them to experience, and immediately pulled Sophia into a hug - and then Carol.

"I'm so sorry." She wiped her eyes and shook her head again.

"There was nothing you could have done." I rubbed her shoulder, and started making up the toast, half with butter, half with jam. Glenn's voice broke my attention away.

"Our people go over there!"

"What's the difference, they're all infected anyway?" I heard Daryl retaliate, but Glenn stood his ground harder than i've ever seen.

"Our people go in that row over there! WE DON'T BURN THEM! We bury them! Understand?" I felt my heart ache for Glenn, and it was then that I realised I hadn't even spoke to him. I would do it soon, but not today, when everyone was so emotionallyraw.

"Y'all reap what you sow! Y'all left my brother for dead! You had this coming!" Daryl stormed off out of the camp once more, and I sighed. I wish I could get a way to speak to him without fear of him screaming at me.

"I can't blame Glenn," Carol started suddenly. "He's become pretty close with a lot of people here."

"I haven't even spoke to him yet." I confessed, and she nodded over to him.

"You should. He's a good guy." I nodded in agreement, and watched everyone cleaning up after each other.

"A walker got him! He's bit!" I shot up and spun around to see everyone cornering Jim. I took the toast off the fire and joined the rest of them to see what was going on. Everyone was yelling at him, holding their guns and weapons at the ready.

"Show us!" T-Dog appeared suddenly behind him, and held his arms, allowing Daryl to lift his tshirt, and there it was - an inexcusable bite mark. Rather than a big commotion, like I had expected, everyone went silent, and all you could hear was Jim repeatedly muttering "I'm okay".

The men walked off to discuss what to do, while I continued making the toast. I didn't expect anyone to have any, but I made it anyway. Gave me something to do, a distraction. Partly a distraction from the constant shouting and fighting, partly a distraction from the chaos in my mind. I didn't want to think about Daryl the way I did - the guy was ruthless. He'd probably kill everyone in this camp if he had the chance. But then again, he did save my life.

"He's putting them down, isn't he?" Carol asked, motioning over to Daryl. I merely nodded, not wanting to look at him for too long, and then she disappeared. I watched as she walked over to him, said something, and then he handed her his pickaxe. She gripped it tightly, ready to swing it, but hesitated continously, until she finally brought it down onto his skull. Instead of dropping it, she lifted it again and and dropped it again, and again, until she collapsed to her knees.

It was only a few minutes later before there was snarling again, and I saw Andrea gripping Amy tightly, while Amy tried to reach for her face. I walked towards them, but not too close. Seeing Amy as a walker was too much. I watched as she pulled out her pistol, and fired it directly into her head. I closed my eyes and had to turn away. I couldn't watch. It was nothing like swinging a pole at some walker. This was different. This was Amy.

~*~

I walked up the hill shortly behind Lori and Carl, not letting go of Dani's hand. If I needed support right now, I needed it from her. When we got to the top, we saw Rick, Shane, Daryl and Lori bickering.

"-We need time to mourn, and we need to bury our dead. That's what people do." I sighed a shaky breath as people started to unload the bodies, and place them into their graves. When Andrea came to collect Amy, I offered to help, but she shook her head.

"I have to do it myself."

She held the bodybag close to her as she lowered it into the grave, and I felt my emotional grip loosen. I cried on Danielle's shoulder, something I hadn't done in years, and clutched onto her arm, as Andrea dropped her completely. I couldn't believe she was actually gone, just like that. It was nothing like with my dad - a stranger coming to my house and telling me that my dad had died in a car crash, a freak accident that could not have been prevented - it just felt like he'd went on some holiday and never came back. Now, i'd seen Amy die. I saw her buried. This was different. I held my compass pendant tightly, when I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Hey." I looked up to see Andrea, and smiled warmly. "You got a minute?"

"Of course. What's up?" Everyone was walking back to camp, so we joined on, but slower, so we could have a proper conversation.

"I just wanted to thank you for everything, for being such an amazing friend to Amy." I swallowed the lump in my throat, and nodded. "She was so fond of you, and she told me once that she wished she knew you before all this. She-" I couldn't stop tears streaming down my face, so all I could do was wipe them with my wrist and nod.

"Your sister...she was one of a kind." I said, and Andrea nodded, through shaky breaths.

"And she asked me, two nights ago, she said...she said you were struggling to fit in, so I was to be there for you, and I promised her I would." I stopped dead in my tracks, and let go of my hold on the tears. This triggered Andrea, too, and I pulled her into a tight hug. I could see so much of her in Andrea now, which instantly gave me more comfort towards her.

"Thank you," I whispered, once I was able and Andrea gave me a comforting smile in return.