It had been two weeks since Eleanor and Roy had arrived at Alexandria, and Roy was on a run with Daryl, Rick, and Michonne. So, Glenn and Maggie were watching, Eleanor and Judith.
Eleanor loved Judith. Even though Judith was four years younger than her, they were already best friends. Judith was also taking a nap, so it was just Eleanor, Maggie, and Glenn.
"So, were you guys together before the walkers happened?" Eleanor asked. She had been asking so many questions, but Neither Maggie nor Glenn seemed to mind, so she just kept asking.
"Nope, I found her when we went to her farm." Glenn says with a soft smile.
"You used to live on a farm!" Eleanor asks with pure excitement. "That's so cool! I wish I lived on a farm, but this place is cool too." Eleanor says with a smile. "At my Mom's house we used to have baby chickens!"
"Really, did you give them names?" Maggie asks with a smile.
"Yep! Mom let me name all of 'em. Branch, tulip, and pinky!" Eleanor states with excitement.
"Did you have baby animals on your farm?"
"Yep, we had a lot. Baby chicks too." Maggie says.
"Oh, Maggie? So you know how you have a baby in your tummy." Eleanor pauses. "How did it get there? Like did you wake up and it was just there or did someone put the baby inside you?"
Maggie and Glenn's faces both immediately turn red. But Eleanor doesn't notice, she's too busy looking at Maggie's stomach.
"I-uh. How about we stop talking about babies." Glenn says with a small embarrassed smile.
"But, why? Babies are cute!" Eleanor says with confusion.
"How about we play hide-and-seek?" Maggie ask and Eleanor nods her head rapidly. "Alright. How about you hide, ok?" Eleanor just nods her head again.
Eleanor gets up and walks down the hallway, looking for a room to hide in. She comes across a room she hadn't been in yet, so she decides she would hide in that one. When she opens the door she recognizes it as a laundry room, so she walks in and closes the door behind her slowly, so she doesn't make any noises, she then goes and sits behind a tall laundry basket.
"Ready!" Eleanor yells, so Maggie and Glenn know to come and find her.
As Eleanor sits there, waiting to be found, she notices a small brown circle on the wall, with legs and it's moving, it was a spider. Eleanor hated spiders.
Eleanor screamed so loud that's she was pretty sure the neighbors heard her. She got up so fast and ran down the hallway, then she crashed into Glenn, and Maggie was right behind him with a panicked look on her face.
"Hey hey, what's wrong? What is it, are you hurt?" Glenn asks as he picks up the young girl.
Eleanor had tears threatening to fall from her eyes. "There's a spider in there!" she states loudly as she points at the laundry room.
"Oh my god, Ella. We thought you were hurt!" Maggie says with a sigh.
"Can you kill it!?" Eleanor questions.
Glenn puts Eleanor down before walking into the kitchen and coming back with a paper towel. He then walks into the laundry room and comes back out with a scrunched up paper towel.
"Did ya' get it!" Eleanor ask while raising her eyebrows and Glenn nods. She hated that she was scared of spiders because she knew the couldn't hurt her that bad, it's just the way they look, that's what scares her.
☆• ☆• ☆• ☆
Eleanor had ended up having to spend the night at Maggie and Glenn's because neither Roy nor Daryl were back yet, along with Rick and Michonne. Carl had pick up Judith though, and Eleanor missed her company, but she also didn't mind much that Judith was gone because she was tired.
When Eleanor woke up, Maggie made her some cereal, and Glenn wasn't at the house because he was on watch at the south wall.
"Maggie?" Eleanor speaks up while they walk along the sidewalk, hand-in-hand.
"Yea, sweetie." Maggie responds, looking down at the young girl.
"Did you know I have a sister?" Eleanor ask and Maggie shakes her head in response. "Oh, well her name is Khloe, and she's older than me, and she's with my dad." Eleanor pauses. "I think."
"You know, I used to have a little sister. Her name was Beth." Maggie says with a sad smile.
"Really?! Beth is a great name!" Eleanor states as she bounces up and down on her toes. Maggie just smiles at Eleanor before they continue their walk.
"Ella?" Maggie questions, almost sounding cautious "What were your parents names?"
The question takes Eleanor off guard, not because she was upset, but because she didn't know her dad's name, she forgot. She knew that Roy remembered though, so she made a mental note to herself to ask him when he got back from his run.
"Uh- my Mom's name was Ashlyn, and I don't- I don't remember my Dad's name. I only remember what he looks like." Eleanor says with a slight frown.
"That's ok." Maggie responds with a small smile.
☆• ☆• ☆• ☆
Eleanor was eating lunch with Maggie and Glenn when they heard a knock on the door, Glenn got up, answering the door before two people walk into the kitchen. One of them being Glenn, and the other being Roy.
"Roy!" Eleanor squeals with excitement before getting up and running into Roy's arms.
"Hey, El." Roy says with a smile, while patting her back.
"Did the run go okay?" Maggie asks while standing up from her chair.
"Yep, we found tons of medicine, and quite the bit of food." Roy pauses. "Also, a few silencers." He says with a smile.
"Really? That's good." Maggie says before picking up the two empty bowls on the table, and putting them in the sink.
"Alright, well why don't you go grab your bags, and we'll head home." Roy says, looking down at Eleanor.
Eleanor nods before running down the hallway and into the room she had slept in, grabbing her pink backpack off of the chair in the corner of the room. When she turns around to leave the room, she sees Maggie standing in the doorway with a pair of clothes.
"You left these in the bathroom." Maggie says while walking over to the young girl, handing her the pair of clothes.
"Oh, thanks Maggie!" Eleanor says with a smile, shoving the clothes in her bag. "Hey, Maggie?"
"Yea, sweetie." Maggie replies, while looking down at the young girl.
"Can I have a sleepover here again, sometime?" Eleanor asks with a small smile.
"Sure, how about next time, when Daryl and Roy go an another run?" Maggie responds.
"Okay!" Eleanor says with excitement.
Eleanor and Maggie then walk out of the room together, side by side.
"What do you say, to Glenn and Maggie?" Roy asks one Eleanor and Maggie reach the end of the hallway.
"Thanks, Maggie." Eleanor says before hugging Maggie, then walking over to Glenn and doing the same. "Thank you, Glenn."
After saying their goodbyes, Roy and Eleanor start walking back to their shared house with Daryl.
"Ya' have fun?" Roy asks and Eleanor nods.
"It was so fun! Me and Glenn had a pillow, and me and Maggie colored, and we all played hide and seek, but I found I spider so we stopped. Oh, and I got to play with Judith for a little." Eleanor pauses. "I asked Maggie, and she said I could come back on the next run you and Daryl go on!"
"Sounds like fun." Roy says. "Hey, Daryl and I have another run to go on soon, with Rick." He adds.
"Oh, when? Eleanor asks.
"I don't know, but soon." Roy says and Eleanor nods.
Eleanor and Roy get back to their house, and as soon as Eleanor walked in she could smell some sort of meet being cook.
"Hi, Daryl!" Eleanor says once she sees Daryl in the kitchen, while running up to hug him.
"Hey, Els." Daryl says with a smile, while patting Eleanor's back.
"Did ya' get it?" Eleanor asks, looking up at Daryl.
"Go look on the couch." Daryl responds.
Eleanor unwraps her arms round the older man before heading off to the couch. Before Daryl had left for the run, Eleanor had asked him if he could find her a stuffed animal pig. Once she gets to the couch, She sees a pink stuffed pig, along with a brown stuffed bear.
"Thank you!" Eleanor yells out with excitement. She then picks up the two stuffed animals, before walking over to Daryl and giving him another hug.
"Ya' gonna name 'em?" Daryl asks.
Eleanor looks down at the stuffed animals, before nodding. "I'm gonna name the pig, Rosie. And the bear is gonna be-" she pauses, and looks around. "Daryl."
"Ya' really gonna name it that?" Daryl asks, raising his eyebrows and Eleanor nods. "Ok." He huffs.
"I'll be right back." Eleanor says before walking away and heading upstairs.
Once Eleanor gets to her room she puts her new stuffed animals on her bed, and changes into a new pair of clothes, before going back downstairs.
"Ya hungry?" Daryl asks, once he sees the young girl.
"Um, sure." Eleanor says, as Daryl puts a plate of meat and broccoli in front of her. "What kinda meat is it?"
"Rabbit." Daryl says, and Eleanor nods. "Ya' have fun at Maggie's?"
"Mhm, Judith was there too. But she didn't sleepover, I wish she did, but Carl came and picked her up." Eleanor says. "Where did Roy go?" She asks.
"Carl came by, he left with him." Daryl responds, and Eleanor nods while shoving a piece of broccoli in her mouth.
"Daryl? Can you read me a story tonight, before bed?" Eleanor asks.
Daryl nods his head. "Yeah, sure."
"Thanks, cause I'm not that good at reading." Eleanor says, before eating the last piece of food on her plate.
Daryl then walks over and sits down on the chair across from Eleanor. "Ya' know, ya' can go to the school here, right?" He asks.
"Yeah, but I don't wanna." Eleanor says, putting her hands on her cheeks, while resting her elbows on the table.
"You're gonna have to at some point." Daryl says. "It's been two weeks." He adds.
"But, there's no point!" Eleanor argues.
"You're six years old, El. Ya' gotta, or ya' ain't gonna learn nothing." Daryl says.
"Maybe next week?" Eleanor asks with pleading eyes.
"Okay, next week, but why don't you wanna go?" Daryl questions.
Eleanor had only been in preschool, and she didn't remember it, so she was scared to go to school. Which she thought was weird, considering the fact that she lived in the woods for two years with walkers trying to eat her.
"I jus' don't wanna." Eleanor lies, shifting uncontrollably in her chair.
"Alright." Daryl pauses. "How 'bout we clean this up, then we could go on a walk or somethin'?" He asks and Eleanor nods.
Eleanor puts her plate in the sink, and Daryl puts the rest of the meat in a container before he puts it in the fridge. Eleanor then walks over to the front door and puts her shoes on, then she waits there for Daryl. Soon after, Daryl goes to the front door and slides his boots on.
"Ready?" He asks the young girl.
"Mhm, I was waiting for you." Eleanor says while raising her eyebrows, before grabbing Daryl's hand. Daryl just snorts at the remark.
They walk in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, before Eleanor breaks it. "Anything fun happen on the run?"
"Nah, nothing fun." Daryl says as he and Eleanor continue to walk hand-in-hand.
"So, did something bad happen?" Eleanor questions.
"Nothing bad either." Daryl responds.
"Oh." Eleanor says.
"We met some people though." Daryl says. "They weren't good, they called themselves the saviors." He adds.
The name 'The Saviors' sounded familiar to Eleanor, so she thought about it, and she then remembered why it sounded familiar. She and her Dad made up a game and in the game you got to create your own team, and every time her Dad's team name would be 'The Saviors'.
"That's weird, my Dad would call his team name the saviors." Eleanor says.
"Team name?" Daryl questions.
"For the game we made up, his group would be named the saviors." Eleanor says as she looks up at Daryl, Daryl just nods. "Daryl, do you think my Dad is still alive?"
Daryl wasn't expecting the question Eleanor had asked. He obviously didn't think her Dad was alive, but he didn't want to hurt the young girls feelings.
"Maybe, El. I don't know." Daryl says, before looking down at Eleanor as she nods.
When they finish their walk, Eleanor takes a bath and gets ready for bed. Roy had gotten home during Eleanors shower, so he and Daryl had just been sitting in the couch.
Once Eleanor gets out of her bath, she changes into purple pajamas, and brushes her hair, and teeth. Then she goes down stairs, hearing the muffled voices of Daryl, Roy, and someone else. Eleanor recognizes the voice as Maggie's, so she picks up her pace going down the stairs, nearly tripping.
"Hi Maggie!" Eleanor says as she races to hug the older woman. Eleanor pretty much hugged everyone she saw, but she always loved hugging Maggie the most. Maggie always reminded Eleanor of her Mom, but a better version.
Eleanor loved her Mom, and her Mom never hurt her, physically. Ashlyn was kind to her kids, for the most part. She was just a bad drunk, and would say rude things to her kids when drunk. But Eleanor loved her nonetheless.
"Hey, you left bubblegum." Maggie says, wrapping an arm around Eleanor, while holding the tiger in her other hand.
"Oh, thank you." Eleanor says with a smile while taking the stuffed tiger from Maggie's hands.
"Of course. Well, I better get going, I'll see y'all tomorrow." Maggie says with a small smile.
After everyone says their goodbyes, Roy goes upstairs to go to bed, and Daryl goes with Eleanor to her room so he can read her a story. Though Eleanor falls asleep, not even half way through the story. So, Daryl shuts off the lamp on the night stand next to her bed, and closes the door just a little, allowing a small bit of light into the room.
☆• ☆• ☆• ☆
Eleanor woke up in a cold sweat. She couldn't quite remember what her dream was, but she knew it was bad. Her chest was heavy, she was cold, yet hot at the same time, and she was scared.
She decided she didn't want to be alone in her room anymore, so she got up out of her bed and walked out of the room, into the hallway. She tiptoed her way to Roy's room, opening the door as quietly as possible, but when she opened the door, Roy wasn't there. That's when she remembered that Roy had watch on the North wall.
Eleanor then thought of the next best thing, Daryl's room. She hoped he wouldn't be mad, she really didn't want to be alone anymore. So, she made her way over to Daryl's room. Walking faster than before because the hallway was dark and scary.
Slowly, she opens up Daryl's bedroom door, and walks over to the side of the bed he's sleeping on.
"Daryl!" Eleanor whisper yells. Daryl nearly shoots out of his bed, and Eleanor takes a step back.
"What what? What wrong!?" Daryl rushes to say with urgency.
"I had a bad dream." Eleanor mutters.
Daryl sighs and runs his hand over his face. "Jesus, El. Scared the shit out of me." He says.
"I'm sorry, can I sleep in here?" Eleanor asks.
"What- uh yea, okay." Daryl says before laying back down, putting the back of his hand over his eyes.
What Daryl hadn't expected was for Eleanor to hop on the empty side of the bed, and that's exactly what she did. Though, he didn't say anything, thinking that the young girl was probably just scared.
"Daryl?" Eleanor whispers.
"Mhm?" Daryl hums, obviously tired.
"Did you know when people die they become stars?" Eleanor says in a sleepy voice.
"That's nice ,El." It wasn't really nice at all, Daryl was just tired and wanted to go back to sleep.
"Yeah, so one day I'll be a star." Eleanor pauses. "I hope I'm a big star, so that way everyone will be able to see me."
Daryl didn't like that though, he cared for the young girl, He didn't want her to die. "Nah, you ain't gonna be a star. Not anytime soon."
Eleanor doesn't say anything for a little bit, thinking about what Daryl said 'not anytime soon'.
"Goodnight, Daryl."
"Night, El."
☆• ☆• ☆• ☆
Authors Note:
I don't know how I feel about this, but I think it was kinda cute. Btw you guys are gonna love Judith's and Eleanor's friendship after the time jump.
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2/15/24
(2868 words)