Last One Standing ~ TWD Daryl Dixon

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Daryl

I left Beth back at our camp so I could go hunting. I hadn't seen much in the forest but I didn't know if it was because of the time of year, or because Beth moved through the brush like an elephant.

It took me nearly an hour before I saw my first squirrel. I crouched patiently until I had my shot lined up. I fired and scowled when I missed. I shouldn't have missed. The shot was lined up perfectly.

I walked up to the tree and pulled the bolt out. I hadn't realized the shaft was cracked. It wouldn't fly true again. I bent the bolt and it shattered. I shook my head and threw the pieces on the ground angrily. My supply of bolts was limited and I hadn't considered the possibility of them wearing out.

I was on my way back to camp empty handed when I heard a distinctive rattle nearby. I prowled through the underbrush until I found what I was looking for. It wasn't my first choice, but beggars can't be choosers.

Merle had taught me how to hunt snakes when I was ten. I broke off the branches on a stick to form a tight Y and followed the rattler. I stepped lightly so I wouldn't alarm it into striking before I could get into position. I held the stick above it's head and struck down, pinning the head to the ground. I stabbed, cutting off the head. It wasn't a big snake, but it would be something to eat tonight.

Beth wrinkled her nose in disgust when I returned to camp, but didn't say anything while I cooked it over the small fire she built while I was gone. We ate in silence. There was nothing to talk about. We were surviving, but barely.

"I need a drink," she finally spoke up, after she finished eating.

Without looking at her I threw the bottle of water we had been sharing at her.

She flinched back from it instead of catching it. "No, I mean a real drink. As in alcohol."

I didn't bother to answer her.

"I've never had one. Cause of my dad. But he's not exactly around anymore so..."

I kept eating.

"I thought we could go find some..."

She was acting like a little kid.

"Okay...well enjoy your snake jerky." And she pulled her knife out of the ground and walked out of camp.

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Jo

I hiked along the tracks for a few hours. It was easy walking but there was no sign anyone had been this way. I kept my eyes on the undergrowth, looking for any evidence that anyone had been here. I wasn't as good as Daryl, my only experience was identifying animal tracks. So after a few hours I wasn't sure if there was nothing to find or if I had simply missed it.

I stopped and ate a small amount of food, sitting on the tracks. It was weird, even now it was strange sitting on train tracks and not needing to be aware of whether or not there was a train coming. I wasn't sure if it was something I would ever get used to. I still looked both ways before crossing a street.

I walked only a little further before I came upon a group of dead Walkers. I frowned down at them. Some seemed to have been killed by a blunt weapon, while three looked like a slim blade...or an arrow. I bent over them, studying the killing blows, but there was no way to know for sure. I wanted so badly for it to be Daryl I didn't trust myself.