ᴅᴇᴀᴅɢɪʀʟᴡᴀʟᴋɪɴɢᴡᴘ (On Hold)

Peace

Hannah woke up to the sound of birds  tweeting and a door closing nearby. She looked up to catch the back of Maggie walking out onto the porch and sat up, moving quietly to follow her. She slid her shoes off in order to remain quiet, not wanting to wake anyone up, T-Dog, Glenn and Shane were all asleep in the living room with her. Hannah slowly padded along the wooden floor and opened the front door, the creaking noise catching Maggie's attention and she turned, smiling as she noticed the little girl. "Mornin' peach" she said quietly, Hannah gave her a small smile and joined her in leaning on the porch railing.

The pair stood in silence for a few minutes, breathing in the crisp morning air and relishing in the quiet atmosphere. Hannah loved mornings like this, everything was so beautiful. The grass was covered in glistening dew drops, a fine mist settled over the surrounding area as the sun hadn't risen enough to melt away the cold brought on by the darkness of night. She could hear the faint sound of crickets, she hadn't heard that since she was a little girl when she used to go on vacation to a cabin by the lake with her aunt Laura. She wondered what happened to her, Laura had been living in New Jersey with her husband Nick when the world fell to pieces. She had told her niece and father that she was on her way to Atlanta once the radio broadcasts started, Dale and Hannah had stayed put for as long as possible, but when the dead invaded their neighbourhood they were forced to flee. What if Laura was still alive somewhere? Or had she been torn apart by walkers before even making it to Atlanta?

Hannah shook her head to rid her mind of the vivid images of her aunt potentially being ripped to pieces. She hated when her mind wandered like that, like she would just keep thinking and thinking, falling down a rabbit hole until her mind settled on something awful. "You OK?" Maggie asked, making her jump. She nodded and felt awkward at the sudden unwanted attention, she could feel the woman's eyes studying her as her own eyes bored intently into the ground below her, biting her fingers anxiously.

"Hey, you a fan of horses?" Maggie suggested, seeing the distressed look on her face. Hannah thought for a moment and then slowly smiled, nodding in agreement. "Come with me" she said, starting to walk down the porch steps. She went to follow the woman and then came to a halt, looking down at her feet, she had left her shoes inside. She didn't want to go back in there and risk waking everyone up, Shane was really cranky in the morning and she didn't want to be the target of his grumpy moods. Maggie realised the girl wasn't behind her and turned, "What's up?" she questioned. "I left my shoes inside" Hannah signed. She chuckled and hopped back up the porch steps. "Wait here a sec", she patted her shoulder and went back inside, resurfacing a few moments later with Hannah's shoes in hand. "Thanks" the girl signed, taking the shoes from her gratefully. She sat down on the porch steps and slipped the tattered converse onto her feet. They had originally been a dark green colour, but had since faded to darker, dusty version of their original shade as a result of their time at the quarry.

Hannah faltered yet again after the shoes were on her feet, as she realised the laces were untied. She didn't know how to tie her shoes, it simply being a skill she had never taken the time to learn. Dale had always tied her shoes for her, but he wasn't here. Maggie noticed the girl's struggle and smiled, "I got it" she reassured her, crouching down in front of the girl. She tied one shoe and then moved onto the other, tying the laces into neat bows with ease. "All done" she declared, tapping the converse and standing up, offering a hand. Hannah took it with a smile and allowed Maggie to lead her down the gravel path, further onto the farm.

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They had been walking for a few minutes before coming to the old wooden stables that lay on the property. Maggie let go of her hand and unlocked the padlocked doors, swinging them open and beckoning for Hannah to follow her inside. A familiar smell hit her and her nose wrinkled as she entered the barn, she looked around and was greeted with the sight of 4 horses, cosily tucked into their stalls. Maggie watched as she little girl approached the nearest one, holding her hand out and allowing the horse to sniff it. She stroked the horse gently, giggling as it huffed in response.