Death is the Start

Growth

A man dressed in a rather nice suit looks Jane who was doing a lot better now over multiple times a puzzled look forming on his face. "Sorry I can't say I recognize her." Jasmine and Sarah were both surprised by this, "How is that possible why would a child be there if she wasn't apart of your family?", Jasmine asked. "Remember not everyone staying there was a member of my family we still guards and staff staying there with families. It's possible she was one of their kids." The man reached his hand out to pet Jane's head but she hid behind Sarah in fear her, "Regardless I don't think she wants to come with me, if anything it looks like she wants to stay with you." Sarah looked down at Jane with a look of surprise and shock, did this girl that she met a few hours ago really trust her that much. Jane then looked up at her tears in her eyes, "Please let me stay with you." Sarah took a deep breath trying to compose herself before reaching down and petting Jane's head, "Yeah." Jane's face lit up like beaming with joy and excitement. "With all this taken care of I should probably head back home now it's... it's been a difficult couple of weeks for everyone." As the man turned away Jasmine could swear he could see a tear forming in his eye, 'Probably the first loved ones he's lost to zombies most people by his age run out of tears shed.' The man walked out the guild hall leaving just the three of them there.

Jasmine turned her attention to Sarah who's holding Jane now, "You sure your gonna be alright with her taking in survivor especially one so young is never an easy task." "To be honest not really but she only feels comfortable around me right now so it's our only option." Jasmine went to pet Jane's head also but she flinched like she did for the man, "Do you even have a place for her to stay?" "Yeah Blake helped me find a place on the other side of the settlement." "How is Blake doing anyway? After he rejected our offer, we sorta lost touch with him." "He's doing fine, he got a job at a bar close to where I live." Jane let out a yawn as her eyes started to droop, "I should head out now, she's had a rough couple of weeks." Holding Jane tight Sarah walked out the building into the streets.

The walk to her apartment was long but mostly pleasant. Sarah looked around at everything the settlement had to offer a little fountain where birds that got in from outside would flock around, the main square where she could kids running around and adults would talk about who knows what, a playground with a swing set, a slide, and even a sandbox, 'I should take Jane here sometime.', she thought to herself. As she continued walking she heard cries and screaming, she looked where these sounds were coming from and stopped in horror she couldn't believe what she saw. A set of gallows just like the ones in her old settlement, people circled around it crying out as one by one the elderly and people sick or injured were lined up waiting for to be hung. Sarah's face turned dark, "It's the same here", she said quietly to herself, "No matter who hard you try your fate will always be walking across that gallows to meet your end." She tried to walk away from the gallows as quickly as she hearing all the cries of pain and sorrow growing louder and louder. Jane awoke to the sound of Sarah's sobbing, "Are you ok." Sarah looked down at her fear and worry all over her face, she tried to hide the best she can saying, "Of course everything's ok just a little tired." She said that but in the back of her mind she thought, 'Is this really how it'll end for me and her? Being hung just because we got sick or a little too old.' Sarah let out a deep breath trying to shake these thoughts from her mind, 'No I can't think like that. Not now at least.'

Continuing past the gallows Sarah and Jane arrived at the shopping district where people were selling all sorts of different things food, dining ware, even furniture. Suddenly two children burst out of the crowd running as fast as they could from who knows what pacing Sarah. Out of the crowd a very angry man covered in water came running towards her he then stopped gasping for air next to Sarah, "Hey...hey girl you didn't happen to see two kids run by just now did...did you." Sarah pointed down an alleyway to her left a completely different direction from where the kids ran in. "Thanks.", the man said running off in the direction she pointed. "Why did you lie to that man?", Jane asked. Sarah couldn't help but chuckle slightly, remembering how that's the exact same thing she did not too long ago, "Pulling pranks and getting into trouble is a part of being a kid, and besides if I ratted them out there's someone I know that will never let men here the end of it." Sarah would often prank many people of her old home whether she had a good reason to or not, but out of them she found that street venders were rather easy to mess with, being out in the open all day made planning and escaping relatively easy. 'That was fun getting into trouble that just me and...', Sarah's face turned sad again, 'Just me and Chelsea.' Jane noticed how her face started to turn sad, "You seem sad is that because you're too old to do that stuff anymore?" That comment snapped her back to reality, "Too old you say well let's see about this." Sarah quickly looked around seeing a man standing next to a building and a bucket sitting on the roof. Casually Sarah picked up a rock and chucked it at the bucket causing it to fall over landing directly on the man's head blinding him. Muffled screams of panic and confusion came from the bucket as he flailed around bumping into everything, he then ran into a brick wall knock himself out and falling over. Sarah held in her laugh while keeping a hand over Jane's mouth, once it looked like they were in the clear laughter exploded from both of them. "Who's the old fart now?!" "Still, you but at least you know how to have fun!" "Hmm fine I'll take it for now.", Sarah lend in close to Jane and whispered, "Just know I'm very good at getting revenge."