Day's End

Too Young for a World like This

          Rose stared at the massive horde of walkers, who returned the glare with agitated groans and grabbing and snapping at her ankles. She stomped around in frustration, only succeeding in irritating the nearby walkers even more than they already were. She cursed loudly, punching the metal, bloodied side of the truck, which sent a wave of pain through her hand and arm. Of course, the bastards had taken her damn bow and any other damn weapon she could've used. Rose kicked a dead walker that hung from a hook, its limp body shaking at the impact. Her gaze snapped to the hook.
        Rose tugged at the walker's body, attempting to shake it down or do something. She repeatedly and roughly tugged on its arms and neck, but she stopped when a sickening crack signaled something. The walker's neck snapped completely, and its body tumbled off of the hook, only leaving its impaled, rotted head and bits of the broken spine dangling from the hook. Rose ignored her gagging response in a rush to get to wherever Natalie was or find whoever did this to them, and one can be sure, when she did, she'd offer no mercy. She easily slid the head off of the hook, and it was rusted with old blood and chunks of the rotten brain.
         Rose grabbed the hook, ripping and tugging at it as hard as her body would allow. The weakened, rusted chain eventually snapped loudly with some reluctance, and Rose smiled down at it. Now that she had a weapon, she just needed to figure out how the hell she was going to get out of here. The horde of walkers, from what she saw, consisted of about twenty or so. However, a few walkers nearest to the front weren't agitated at the sight of her, which aroused her curiosity. She studied her appearance and saw that the minutes of attempting to take down the dead walker had rubbed its entrails on her torso and, even, her face. Another idea placed itself into her mind, but Rose hesitated to follow this one's heed. She looked around the compact truck; there was no way in hell that there was another way out, and, if there was, the truck was completely surrounded by the dead. This idea was the only thing that was going to keep her alive, and, if she must, she might as well take the risk.
         Rose dove the hook into the walker's torso, tearing the thin flesh of the deceased downwards so as to reveal its bloody organs. She hesitantly picked up the small intestine, holding back the urge to vomit as she rubbed it onto her arms, shoulders, chest, torso, and even her face. Rose then smeared the entrails on her legs and feet, once done, throwing the organ off to the side and vomiting. She shivered and stood up, crossing her arms meekly on her chest. She squeezed her eyes shut and dropped herself over the edge of the exit, bracing herself for the unmerciful jaws of death. It never came. The walkers merely stumbled around her, some groaning and looking down at her, only to continue on.
         She huffed, pushed herself up, and shoved her way through the horde, all the while hiding the hook under her arm. As she pushed her way through the last of the walkers, Rose gasped to breathe in the fresh air, which was a far cry from the rotting smell of the walking corpses. She stumbled onwards, not bothering to look back at what once could've held her to a death sentence. All she had to do now was to find Natalie, but she had no inkling of an idea as to where to start. Hell, she didn't even know where she was. She'd have to start off finding the city once more, and then, maybe, she'd have an easier time tracking down Natalie. Rose was still exhausted from whatever it was she went through, and she only found it easy to limp along, not taking the risk to push herself to walk or even run.
         Soon, Rose found herself on the side of an empty gravel road and cursed to herself, as she realized how far away she really was from the former city. She looked around in all directions, cupping her hand above her eyes to see clearly. There was a large field off to her right, and, if she saw correctly, there was a tiny speck on the horizon, which could mean anything, really, from this distance. Anything is better than nothing, she reasoned with herself. Rose began her trek off the road, which, she admitted to herself, probably wasn't the best plan, but she continued into the field anyways; anything to help her get to where she needed to be.
         As Rose neared the object, she eagerly quickened her pace with excitement for what would await her. What she saw in front of her was a house; a rather large one at that. It looked to be in decent shape, and she didn't immediately see anyone around it. Then again, she'd have to look inside the seemingly empty house to confirm that. Rose stumbled up the porch steps, almost falling in her haste to get inside, and she did exactly that; she threw open the front door, forgetting her cautiousness as she immediately searched for food and rummaged almost ravenously through the nearby cabinets. She passed the staircase in her hunt for anything edible, but a noise stopped her in her tracks; an almost inaudible click, but she heard it. Her eyes trailed to her right side, slowly traveling up the stairs and widening at the sight of a pair of torn up sneakers.
"Don't move," a light voice broke the eerie silence that had passed between the two only moments before. "Put your.." The voice paused, hesitating. ".. hook-thing down."
Rose obeyed the voice's commands, setting her rusty hook on the surprisingly clean counter.
"Good.. Now, turn around and face me."
She did as was told and faced the now-revealed voice. It was a damn kid.
Her face evidently gave away her frustration and surprise, as the other asked, "Something wrong?"
Rose slowly shook her head.
"It's alright; you can talk. I don't want to hurt you."
She didn't make a sound, refusing to offer her voice to the stranger.
They sighed, lowering their weapon. "What's your name?"
She cast a suspicious glare, again, refusing to speak.
"Alright, fine. I'm Sidney."
Rose studied the stranger closer, and, from what she saw, it was a young boy; probably around the ages of eleven or twelve.
"Are you mute or something?"
She shook her head once more, figuring that this kid couldn't do much to her if the problem arises. "I'm Rose."
"That's a start," Sidney smirked to themselves. "Like I said, I don't want to hurt you; it's alright."
Rose relaxed a little. "Like you could if you tried."
Sidney's smirk never faltered as they sat on the top step. "Just don't eat all of my food."
Rose looked around, only having been able to find a small amount. "You don't have much food, anyway."
"Yeah, I guess, but, anyway, how did you get here?"
"Long story, but.. I'm looking for someone."
"Really? Who?"
"Her name is Natalie. She might have a horse with her, but I'm not totally sure."
"What'd she do?"
Rose looked sharply at Sidney. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, did she do something? Are you hunting her down?"
The elder scoffed. "She wouldn't hurt a fly, and, no, we just got separated is all."
"Damn. How did you get all bloodied?"
"Again, it's a long story. It happened after we got separated."
"Any idea where she is?"
"Nope. Not at all. And-" Rose suddenly realized something. "Are you alone?"
"Yeah.. Long story."
"And how old are you?"
"Thirteen. How old are you?"
"Twenty-four."
         The two of them stood in an awkward silence for what seemed like minutes but, in reality, was actually mere seconds. Sidney finally stood up, picking up his weapon and making his way down the stairs to stand next to Rose. Rose all the while kept her eyes trained on them, not missing any movement. "Y'know, what Rosie? I'll make a deal with you."
'Rosie?' Rose thought to herself. 'A little early to be using nicknames.' "What is it?"
"I'll help you find this 'Natalie' if you let me go with you."
"Go with me?" Rose repeated as if she hadn't heard.
"Yup. Two people is better than one." Sidney held out their hand, asking again, "Deal or no deal?"
Rose sighed; she did agree with that, after all, and they could very well help. "Fine. Deal."
         The partners shook hands, and Sidney smiled up at the taller. Rose's gaze softened at their hopeful smile, but she also held a feeling of remorse for them. Sidney was far too young to have the experiences that they will inevitably have, but, now that they were under her watch, she would have to go through those experiences too. Rose sighed, looking down at the teen, but, despite herself, she smiled.