❝ Maybe forever was a word meant for memories and not people ❞
𝗜𝗡 𝗪𝗛𝗜𝗖𝗛 Sixteen year old Katherine James navigates her way through an apocalyptic world, surrounded by the dead, her little sister by her side and a group of survivors she met on...
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019. the calm before the storm
The following morning, Katherine and Harlow sat on a tree stump, eating a plate of eggs and bacon each. Glenn walked around them nervously, he told Katherine last night that she was right, the group had to know about the barn walkers.
"Um, guys" Glenn called out, earning everyone's attention, "So... the barn's full of walkers"
That made everyone aware, in a matter of seconds, Shane was up and sprinting towards the barn, everyone hot on his tail. He stopped when he was at the barn doors, and peered inside.
A second later, a walker on the other side came into view, Shane moved back and turned to Rick, "You cannot tell me you're all right with this"
"No, I'm not, but we're guests here. This isn't our land" Rick replied.
"God, this is our lives!" Shane shouted.
"Shane, shut up" Katherine told him.
"We can't just sweep this under the rug" Andrea stated.
"It ain't right, not remotely" Shane says, "We've either got to go in there, we've got to make things right or we've just got to go. Now we have been talking about Fort Benning for a long time"
"We can't go" Rick cuts him off.
"Why, Rick. Why?" Shane asked.
"Because my daughter is still out there" Carol answers, stepping forward.
"We're not leaving her behind," Katherine adds.
"Okay" Shane rubs his hands down his face in frustration, "I think it's time that we all start to just consider the other possibility"
"Shane, we're not leaving Sophia behind" Rick tells him.
"I'm close to finding this girl" Daryl steps in, "I just found her damn doll two days ago"
"You found her doll, Daryl. That's what you did. You found a doll" Shane told him.
"You don't know what the hell you're talking about" Daryl snaps at him, as Rick puts his hand out in front of him.
"I'm just saying what needs to be said. You get a good lead it's in the first 48 hours–" Shane goes on.
"Shut up, Shane!" Katherine cuts him off, "You're always doing this, going on and on, about people like they're dead. But who are you to say Sophia is dead? She could be alive and scared"
It was just like at Atlanta when some of the group was trapped in the store, and when Amy and Katherine wanted to go after them, Shane shut them down and told them they were as good as dead. And here he was again, doing the same thing with Sophia.
"Kat, stop. Shane, stop" Rick came between them.
"Let me tell you something else" Shane looked at Daryl, "If she was alive out there and saw you coming all methed out with your buck knife and your geek ears around your neck, she would run in the other direction"
Daryl jumped forward to attack Shane, "Shut your mouth!"
Rick had to get between them. Andrea did. Lori did. Even Katherine jumped in. Andrea and Katherine kept Daryl back, while Lori pushed Shane back. "Keep your hands off me" Shane growled at her, however, before stalking away from her.
"Now just let me talk to Hershel. Let me figure it out" Rick stated.
"What are you gonna figure out?!" Shane shouted, stepping forward until Lori came between them again.
"If we're gonna stay, if we're gonna clear this barn, I have to talk him into it. This is his land" Rick states again.
"Hershel sees those things in there as people– sick people– his wife, his stepson" Dale intervened.
Katherine remembers Beth telling her she lost her mother and brother. Saying things will get better. This is what she must've meant. That they're both only sick and will get people in the end. How Katherine felt sorry for the girl.
"You knew?" Rick turned to Dale.
"Yesterday I talked to Hershel," Dale replied.
"And you waited the night?" Shane accused him, angrily.
"I thought we could survive one more night. We did" Dale shot back, "I was waiting till this morning to say something. But Glenn wanted to be the one"
"This man is crazy, Rick" Shane stated, "If Hershel thinks those things are alive or no–"
He was cut off when the barn doors rattled, Katherine was going to snap at Shane again, but them all shouting at each other out here, has made the walkers inside know of a fresh meal on the other side.
⋆ ★ ⋆
Now that the whole group knows about the walkers in the barn, they have to figure out what to do. If they're gonna clear it, or leave it, they had to wait for Rick's word after he spoke with Hershel.
Katherine stood hurling her knife at a nearby tree, she was getting some of her anger out from before, when she missed, she growled in frustration, going over to pick it up and lean against the tree.
She started just spinning the knife between her fingers. She was worried about Sophia.
Maybe Shane was right. Maybe Sophia was dead and they were simply wasting their time looking for a dead girl. Katherine didn't want to think she was dead. She loved that little girl, like she was her own little sister. She couldn't imagine what Carol was going through, not knowing if her only daughter was still alive or died out in the woods. It was killing her inside.
The group had been through so much already, lost so much, but, if Sophia was added to the list of things lost, the group would just break.
"Hey" Harlow said, sitting next to her sister.
"Hey Harls" Katherine replied.
It was silent between the two sisters for a moment, before Harlow broke it with a heartbreaking question, "Do you think Sophia is dead?"
Katherine looked at her sister for a moment, thinking her answer over. She wanted to say no, that she was confident that the little girl was still alive. But, they'd only found her doll so far, which meant she was nearby, but that doesn't mean the little girl is alive.
"I don't know Harls, I don't want to think that but– She could be, yeah" Katherine said truthfully.
Harlow sniffed, tears leaving her eyes, that wasn't the answer she was looking for. She wanted her sister to tell her that Sophia was alive and they would find her soon, but Katherine gave her the truth.
"She seems near" Harlow states.
"She could be Harls, maybe closer than we think" Katherine replied.
"Am I going to turn out like that? Missing and never found?" Harlow whimpered.
Katherine's heart broke for the little girl, Harlow was so scared and worried that she might end up like Sophia one day. "No, of course not. As long as I'm around, nothing is ever going to happen to you" Katherine told her sister, bringing her into a side hug, "I promise"
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I'm so not ready for the next chapter :( Kat's gonna HURT
Kat ending men >>> I CANNOT wait for her to meet Negan, she is gonna end him
