The landscape had changed, everyone had recognized it. They hadn’t used a card for a long time. It didn’t matter where they went or where they would end. Carl thought they were moving closer and closer to Mexico. He had never really cared about Mexico, but he still had a weak, cruel hope. Maybe they would live in peace in Mexico. Maybe they would arrive at the border, find a cure, and become Mexican citizens. They would ate tacos and Chili every day and Judith would learn to dance salsa. He’d mentioned his fantasy to the group and pretended he didn’t care, like it was a joke. His most hidden hopes had been dashed in haste and no possibility of return when Daryl snorted and said: “Believe me, they’ll be more dead than we are in this damn third world!” Not that Carl didn’t think about it. If the epidemic had brought one of the world powers to its knees in a few weeks, it would have been easier for the other countries to destroy it. But hope was still the last to die. They had spent the last two weeks hiding in a kindergarten full of drawings of children clinging to walls surrounded by toys. It had been a party for Judith, a little dream for Maggie. Unfortunately, the place was not as safe as they had imagined. The Walkers came at intervals of a few days, but when they hid it was hell. Rick had decided that it would be better to look for a safer place. Daryl was the first to recognize the change. They had left the forests of Georgia for a long time, they were in a place with different vegetation, a milder climate, more wild fauna and flora. It was a landscape Daryl didn’t like. He had gotten used to Georgia, its tall, dry trees, the thorn bushes. These lush, colorful plants with thick and green leaves were not exactly his favorites. And the humidity of this place, which clung to the skin and formed like a warm sweat, was unbearable. But now they were there, so they moved on through the bush, on the back roads and away from the cities.

“Stop.” Rick waved his hand and the others, not far from him, stopped without saying a word. Michonne looked around and narrowed her eyes and pricked her ears. Carl immediately loaded the weapon and pointed it forward. Daryl had struck an arrow in the crossbow. Both ready to shoot.

“Stay quiet.” Everyone was quiet for a while, listening only to the sounds of nature. A sudden crunch made each individual’s eyes look up. There were no special movements in the dense bush, but that was not the sound of an animal or a simple falling fruit. Branches cracked and broke under the weight of something. Daryl jumped forward, aimed his crossbow, but didn’t shoot. A figure began to move between the branches. The walk was insecure, awkward, slow, it had the desperation of those who can not move, but knowing that it has to do it. It was you.

“Hey!”, Daryl shouted, stepping forward until he was in close proximity to your figure. It took him only a short time to reach you and the moment he looked up, your figure lost his balance and fell on him. The first instinct was to go away, but after a flashy argument, he reached out an arm. He couldn’t do much. The unknown figure fell to the ground, but at least Daryl slowed the speed with which your head reached the ground. The others rushed to him, surrounding the bundle of misery within seconds, with loaded and ready-to-fire weapons. It soon became clear that so much caution was not necessary. The figure was a woman, you breathed and were no Walker. The members of the group looked at each other.

“What are we going to do with her?”, Carl asked. “Let’s go.”, Rick replied immediately. “What? Then you could kill her as well.” Michonne looked at him with angry eyes.

“We don’t know who she is, we don’t know if she’s dangerous or hurt, or if she has a group.” Daryl leaned over the woman and realized that you were nothing but extremely exhausted. You had a few weapons on your belt and a backpack on your back. Your Y/H/C hair was dirty and stuck to your face. “She’s dehydrated.”, Daryl said, looking up at the rest of the group. “That’s why she fell, she must have fainted.” He put a hand on your forehead. “Light fever.”

“Was she bitten?”, Carl asked. Daryl better fixed the stranger on the ground and examined your clothes, first with a cursory look, then smoothed his hands lightly over your torso and legs. “She doesn’t bleed, there are no bandages under the clothes, she is just sick.” Rick looked at the woman lying on the ground, his hands on his hips and his tongue between his teeth. He looked sideways at Michonne. “We don’t know who she is.”

“You didn’t even know who we were.”, she replied sarcastically, still angry. “Why don’t we tie her up?”,Carl suggested. “If the problem is that she attacks us or robs us when we wake up, then we make arrangements.” It seemed like a good idea. Daryl took the crossbow from his shoulders as a low noise made him turn around. You coughed, lay on the floor, barely opening your eyes, and your gaze was on Rick, who was watching you as well. Your eyelids flickered with the effort to keep them open.

“Travis?”, you murmured hoarsely. Then you fainted again. It was dawn when the stranger woke up completely. Two days had passed. The fever had subsided, you had stopped talking in the subconscious and occasionally called a Madison, an Alicia, a Nick and a Chris. You had finally fallen asleep and that for a very long time. The sun hit your face when you finally woke up again, you coughed, cleared your throat and tried again. “Madison?”

“Madison is not there, none of the names you mentioned.” Rick, guarding the camp, came over and handed you a small bottle of water. You took it and realized only then that you had tied wrists and feet. You emptied half the bottle in less than a few seconds, stopped to catch your breath, and gave the man a vicious look. “Who are you? Where are they?”

“You’re with my group, I can not say where, we don’t know it exactly.”

“Where are the others?”

“We found you alone, you were delirious, you had a fever, you fainted… We took you with us.” You only snorted. “Why?” Rick was quiet for a moment. “Someone didn’t think it was right to leave you behind.”

“What a magnanimous gesture, and why am I tied up?”

“You survived, you should know that you can not trust anyone, so you’re tied up.” Rick leaned over you and began to cut the ropes. You were weak and besides, Rick had stripped you of all the weapons you had with you, a pistol, a machete, a knife, and a bow. “My name is Rick, Rick Grimes.”You waited until you were free, rubbed your wrists, and then untied the ropes on your ankles alone. “Y/N.”

“Y/N?”

“Yes, that’s my name.”

“Good Y/N…”, Rick said as you finished. “You can go, none of us will stop you.”

“And my things?”

“We hid them, buried right under you.” You moved easily, keeping an eye on Rick. The earth was fresh and you could see that it had been moved. You took one last look at the man and began digging until you reached your backpack. Despite the morning chill, large drops of cold sweat began to wet your forehead and fell over your temples. As you did so, others woke up and prepared to leave. Neither of them talked to you and they didn’t look at you. Suddenly two hands appeared next to you to help you dig. A boy with long dark hair smiled at you. He had a blindfold, like a pirate from old adventure movies. “I’ll help you, my name is Carl.”

“Y/N…” In a few minutes you reached the backpack, buried in the ground and stuck in the shallow roots. You shook him and wiped the faded fabric as best as you could, then put the backpack over your shoulder. For the first time, you watched the other members of the group. Next to Rick and Carl was a woman with a katana on her back and a man with long hair, unshaven and wearing a biker jacket with angel wings. “I think I have to thank you.”, you said to Rick. “Thank Carl and Michonne.”, Rick said pointing to them. You nodded in their direction. “I…” A shiver passed over you and you leaned against a tree. “Are you okay?”, Carl asked. “Yeah, I’m fine, I probably just have to eat something.”

“Then stay a little bit longer, eat something with us.” You looked at the supplies of the group. You had not eaten for several days. Rick grabbed a can of fruits and handed it to you. Before you could grab the can, Rick held you back. “Do you have a group?”, he asked seriously. “Yes, but I don’t know where I am.”

“What happened?”

“We were attacked, they set fire to our camp, we parted ways.”

“Who attacked you?” You shrugged your head in retrospect: “Plunderers.” Rick nodded and gave you the fruits. “How many are in your group?” You, with your hands already immersed in the fruits, looked up. “Seven. Including me.”, you replied with your full mouth. “Where did you go?”

“We don’t go anywhere, we just want to survive, together, as a family…” You suddenly fell silent, shaken by a sob. You left the fruits on the ground and jumped up. With two long strides you reached the next tree and vomited everything you had just eaten. “Daryl, what the hell…”, Michonne said suddenly. “What?” The man put a hand into the can of fruits and took one. “You can not eat them, I think…” You reappeared, paler and sweatier than before. “Sorry… I didn’t mean to be rude.”

“How long have you not eaten?”, Michonne asked, giving Daryl one last look. “I don’t know.”

“You have to start over and over again, you are not fully up to date.” Carl let you look at his father and vice versa. At last he approached you. “Listen, why don’t you stay with us?” You shook your head. “I have to search for my group.”

“Only until you feel better.” The boy looked at his father for support. “Alright, just get better, it will not take more than two weeks, how long have you been traveling around here?”, Rick asked. “Very long, at least a few months already.”

“We’re looking for a safe place to rest and leave Atlanta to find something better.”

“Where are your people now?”, Rick added. “Not far from here, I think, or I hope…” You shook your head again. “It will not be safe there. Too many Walkers. We’ve already tried it.” Rick stepped forward. “Do you know this area? Do you know where we could go?” You looked uncertain: “I already told you, and you know it, there are no safe places, maybe you could try heading north, maybe you’ll find something that suits you, but don’t hope too much.” The man remained thoughtful for a moment, looking around as if the surroundings suggested the answer. “Carl is right, you’re sick, if you come with us, we could help each other, we could give you food and shelter, we also have medicines.”

“What should I do for it?”

“In return, you show us where we can go.”

“You said you wouldn’t stop me if I wanted to leave.”

“As a matter of fact. You are not a prisoner, you can go whenever you want. But… see it more as an opportunity. You have nothing to lose.”, Rick said and walked away, settling near Daryl, picking up a fruit and starting to eat it. Later, you all reached the nearest village and followed a street you pointed to. It was almost dark, but the figures of the Walkers were still distinguishable from plunderers. “There are still Walkers, but they are becoming less and less, following a herd from time to time, leaving the group and finding themselves on the main street after passing several miles of arable land.”, you sighed and looked at the empty streets. For a few hours, a sting in your stomach disturbed you to such an extent that you jumped when you made strange or sudden movements. “Let’s find a place for the night.”, Rick said, starting with the first house he could find. The group of Survivors settled in the large living room of a villa. There were not enough sofas for everyone, but some armchairs were very comfortable. The next day they donned a supply of clothes, blankets, you yourself took a new backpack, bigger and more spacious and a sleeping bag. Carl also found a lot of unhealthy food. “This guy had to have a high cholesterol level.”, you laughed and put chips, burritos and various sweets in a bag. Carl grinned. “Better for us.”

“In fact, the sugar does not stay in the body for long, and most of it is addictive, leading to long depression and impotence.” An arm appeared in front of you, reaching for a pack of nachos. “If you don’t like them, don’t eat them.”, Daryl said, opened the package and walked to the garage door. “What did you do before all this?”, Carl asked. You, distracted by the man’s harsh behavior, turned away from Daryl. “I studied, I went to university.”

“What did you study?”

“Veterinary medicine. Not really useful these days, if you really want to know, I should have left it to become a doctor.”

Daryl and you explored the house and decided to go out to Michonne’s suggestion to inspect the city. It was noon, the sun was high and started to burn. You walked along the street that looked like the main street when you saw some Walkers. “Shouldn’t there be a herd every now and then?”, Daryl asked and looked at you grimly. You smiled half apologetically. “That’s only luck.” And a short time later, a small herd was trudging along the road. Some of the Walkers had seen you both and already started growling and coming in your direction…

“I think it’s better if we go now.”