𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐃 ﹙the walking dead﹚¹

xlvii. terminus

chapter forty seven.   terminus

﹙season four, episode sixteen﹚
A

SHE WAS AWOKEN BY a hand lightly shaking her shoulder. Jules quickly flinched, eyes snapping open on instinct as she sucked in a sharp breath.

     "Hey, whoa, whoa," a familiar, and comforting voice grabbed her attention, gaze flickering over to the boy in front of her, steadying her with hands on her shoulders. Jules immediately relaxed with a sigh, running a hand over her face. "The trip to Washington is still on, but we're going to Terminus first. Sasha and the rest seem to think we have some chance of finding everyone."

Jules nodded half heartedly as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, reaching over next to her to grab her pack before standing. Everyone else had already been awake, gathering their things together, gearing up.

She turned to Scout, who was also already ready. Jules frowned at him in disapproval. "Why didn't you wake me up earlier?"

The blond gave her a funny look. "Um, 'cause you were sleeping. Like, actually sleeping." Jules narrowed her eyes at him skeptically, causing him to sigh in defeat. "I was going to wake you, but Sasha glared at me."

Jules hummed in reply with a small smile, feeling triumphant for being able to squeeze the truth out of him.

Not long after, the group set out for Terminus: a promised sanctuary that left them all wondering how real it was. The bright sun caused the girl to squint her eyes as they adjusted, used to being in the dark tunnel.

The walk was silent with the occasional whisper. The same thoughts and hopes spread across them, coming to an end as they neared a large group of buildings. On the largest one, in bold letters, read TERMINUS.

No words were exchanged, except relieved and hopeful expressions. They paused their steps, momentarily taking the sight before them in, before their pace quickened towards the building.

     Coming up on an entrance, a small sign sat by the gate. Lower your weapons, you will be met. You have arrived at Terminus. Their weapons were still held tightly in their hands.

In that moment, as they stepped inside, and everything looked normal, Jules felt elated. From the fresh plants growing in a crevice by a building, to the laundry and buckets piled on tables and chairs. Jules's eyes widened momentarily as her gaze traced the pathway, until it landed on a lone woman cooking on a grill, back turned to them. At the sight, all of their guns felt weightless, now falling to their sides.

     The woman, probably hearing their footsteps, turned. An immediate smile crossed her lips as she stepped out from the grill to greet them. "Hi. I'm Mary," she spoke, before sighing sympathetically. "Looks like you've been on the road for a while."

     "We have," Maggie breathed in agreement, a small grin on her lips, like she was still in disbelief.

     "Well, let's get you settled, and we'll make you a plate," Mary spoke, her sweet smile never faltering. "Welcome to Terminus."

     It felt like all of her problems were going to be fixed there in Terminus. From there on out, she could only wish that this wasn't another false promise.

౨ৎ

SHE HAD NEVER BEEN more wrong. Her vision went black, and not long after she was stripped of all her valuables. Which, just happened to her jacket and knife.

     And, the next thing she knew, she was back awake. When she opened her eyes, breath ragged, she couldn't even tell if her eyes were open or not. She didn't know where she was, not being able to pick anything out in the dark abyss.

     Her throat felt dry, her heart rate spiking as her body shook. She didn't trust herself to stand. A hand found her's in the darkness, and she knew who it was. It did nothing to calm her.

As Jules's eyes slowly adjusted (as much as they could, anyway) she found that she wasn't away from her group. They were all there, sitting in a similar position that she was in. Their eyes casted down, stripped of their weapons and dignity.

It was quiet for a long time. Jules didn't know how much time had gone by. All she was thinking about is how much longer they had until they'd all inevitably be killed.

She was sure their time had come to an end when she heard shouts and other words being spoken from outside. What they spoke was incoherent to her.

She felt numb as the door to whatever they had been in slid open, light immediately climbing the surfaces. Three figures stepped in, followed by another, much smaller one. As Jules took in the figures, she felt like she was about to cry.

Scout and Jules jumped to their feet, as did the rest of the group, coming out of the shadows to reconnect. "Rick?" Glenn called shakily, voice barely above a whisper and filled with uncertainty as they moved forward.

"You're here," the man returned. The other three behind their former leader snapped their heads around, shock mixed with relief. As Tara stepped forward, the recognition flashed on Rick's face.

"They're our friends," Maggie vaguely explained, briefly looking back at the latest additions to the group. "They helped save us."

"Yeah," Daryl spoke, in that same gruff voice of his that Jules had nearly forgotten about. "Now they're friends of ours."

"For however long that'll be," Abraham cut in plainly, his words cryptic as Jules held her breath.

"No," Rick denied right after, shaking his head. And for another short while, the air around them was silent and tense. "They're gonna feel pretty stupid when they find out," he started, beginning to pace around the short space, before putting his head next to a crevice, looking out.

"Find out what?" Abraham questioned, voicing everyone's thoughts.

The air was suffocating around them as Rick Grimes finally responded, "That they're screwing with the wrong people."

end of
xlvii. terminus

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