Our Extinction Event {Daryl Dixon}

Friend Or Foe?

"Judith! Parker shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth as she frantically looked around, unable to locate either of them. Alexander!"

"Jude?!" Laura called, Aaron's voice echoing the same names.

"Judith!" Rosita yelled as she came running out of the woods, everyone regrouping in a small clearing.

They had been in the woods hunting, taking Judith and Alexander with them. Eugene carried a dead deer over his shoulders while Parker, Aaron, Laura, and Rosita kept watch for more game- and walkers.

Somehow, Alexander and Judith had managed to slip away without telling anyone where they were going. Parker had tracked them for a good distance before eventually losing their trail.

"We're here!" Alexander's voice finally answered.

Every adult turned toward the sound. Two figures came running out of the brush.

"Alex?" Parker gasped. Relief washed over her as she ran toward her son and niece. She dropped to her knees in front of them and immediately pulled them both into a hug. "Are you both okay? Are you hurt?" She asked, cupping the sides of their faces.

"I'm fine, Aunt Parker," Judith promised.
Parker looked past her toward Aaron as he approached.

"Mom, I'm okay. But we found-" Footsteps sounded behind them. Parker immediately stood. She shoved Judith and Alexander behind her and raised her gun.

She hated meeting new people. The last time Alexandria had let strangers inside, she had nearly lost her children and Judith. The scar across her back was a painful reminder of that mistake.

"I heard them calling," Judith quickly explained, grabbing onto Aaron's arm. "They needed our help." The newcomers froze at the sound of Parker's gun clicking.

"Our rig- it got overrun... by sickos," A man with grown-out black curls explained, barely catching his breath. He had clearly been running while helping someone else who was injured. "We owe our lives to those two kids."

"Please. They need medicine. Or just somewhere to sleep for a day." Alexander looked up at his mother. For a moment, Parker almost gave in. Almost. She shared a look with the others before forcing herself to hold her ground.

"We can't take anyone else in," She told her son. Then she directed her attention toward the small group. "We could help clear out the dead. Maybe clear a building for you to settle in for a little while. But even that's pushing it."

"They still need our help," Judith insisted.
She took the water bottle from Parker's shoulder and handed it to the injured woman.

"We can't." Rosita shook her head. "You know that."

"But-" Judith started to say.

"We can't, Jude," Parker repeated, more firmly this time. "We can't," Parker said once more to her son, slowly lowering her gun.

"Hey, uh..." The curly-haired man glanced toward Eugene's deer. "I dabbled in the culinary arts." He pointed toward the animal, his voice nervous. "Once upon a time, you know, with a little bit of help, I can whip this buck into a mighty fine osso buco."

"Luke." A blonde woman gestured for him to come back toward the rest of them.

"Stew," Eugene stated. "We make stew. More mileage for the masses."

"There are more of you?" The curly-haired woman asked- the same one who called Luke back.

"There's a lot more of us," Alexander answered before Parker could stop him. "We have walls, and food, and-"