Sonder • TWD

° The Hunt °

Hunter's legs ached he walked through the woods with Rick and Shane, though he refused to ask for a break until they found Rex. He ignored his burning muscles and pushed on, picking up the pace to fall in step beside the two men as they made their way towards the agreed upon meeting spot for the two groups. As both had set off in opposite directions, they had planned to double back after a few miles and meet in the middle. 

The sun was beating down on their necks as they trekked through the forest, Rick and Shane checking behind every bush and tree for any signs of the two missing girls. Shane suddenly stopped, holding up a hand and putting a finger to his lips. Rick and Hunter followed his gaze and a smile slowly spread on Hunter's face, the circumstances for being out there momentarily forgotten as he spotted a young deer in the clearing ahead. The beautiful fawn cocked its head, looking directly at the trio with its deep hazel eyes, it didn't appear scared, more inquisitive. 

Hunter took a careful step forward, wincing as he stepped on a twig, the snapping noise echoing throughout the trees. The deer flinched slightly but remained in the same position, its gaze still firmly fixed on the young boy. The two men watched with a smile as Hunter cautiously approached the deer, slowly and quietly, until he was standing directly in front of it. He tentatively reached out a hand, and to everyone's amazement, the fawn leant its head forward, pressing its soft fur into Hunter's palm. 

After a few moments, Hunter took a step back, intending to allow the deer to move on so they could continue on their search. That was, until a deafening crack reverberated across the clearing. The deer dropped to the floor with Hunter following suit. His vision became blurry as he tried lifting his head, he raised his hand to his chest and his fingers became coated in the thick, crimson blood now gushing from the gaping hole just below his sternum.

"Hunter!" Rick yelled, both men dropping their bags and guns to run to the young boy, now lying on the forest floor and writhing in pain. Shane used the base of his palms to put pressure on the boys chest, desperately trying to stop the bleeding as a figure emerged from the trees. "Stay with me kid!" Shane begged, oblivious to the stranger now introducing himself to Rick and profusely apologising. The young boy gasping for air as the pain took over his body brought back the horrific memories of Rick, in the same position all those weeks ago. He wasn't going to lose Hunter like he almost lost Rick, he had to keep the boy awake and stem the blood flow, if he slipped into a coma just as Rick had there'd be nothing he could do to bring him back.

Hunter felt as though he was underwater. His vision was blurry and the voices of the panicked men sounded so far away. He was so tired, if he could just close his eyes for a second and rest then he'd be OK. All he wanted was for everyone to stop yelling and for Shane to stop shaking him back to consciousness. In that moment, Hunter was fine with dying, he thought, at least he'd be with his family again. He smiled as he pictured his parents' faces in his mind as his eyes flickered shut.

----- 🦖 -----

"You still worried about it?" Andrea asked Lori as the group traipsed through the woods. "It was a gunshot, we all heard it. Why just one?" the woman replied, her voice strained as she once again feared for the safety of her husband. "They probably took down a walker or something, I'm sure it's fine." Andrea replied, giving Lori a reassuring smile. Not wanting to argue about the ridiculousness of the possibility that Rick would use the loudest possible option to take down a walker, Lori simply nodded and kept walking. 

The group walked mostly in silence, aside from the occasional swishing of weapons against various bushes to check for any traces of the missing girls. That was, until they were interrupted by a distant galloping noise, rapidly increasing in volume as it grew closer. Everyone turned in the direction of the disturbance, which they could now make out to be a woman on horseback, a tense look on her face as she rode closer and eventually skidded to a halt in front of the group.