Maggie stepped a few feet back from the back door of the yellow bus and kept her eyes glued to that door as Daryl opened it. A couple of walkers came out and she jabbed the knife in her hands through the skull, but as he was trying to let another out, more then one came out. As the walkers pooled out of the bus, she jabbed each one in the head with force, out of breath and sweating from the sweltering heat. She stopped and watched as Daryl took out more zombies, leaving just a few left now, but Maggie couldn't move. She stood frozen to the spot. So far she hadn't seen Beth or anyone she really knew. She had zoned out, her head buzzing with noise. She hardly noticed the walker as it inched closer to her.
Bringing herself back to reality, she jabbed her knife in its head, pushing the body to the ground. All of the walkers from the bus was dead now, but her eyes moved back to the bus and she stopped at the back entrance. She took a deep breath in and stepped on. She slowly walked down the aisle, looking in each seat for Beth. She got to the front of the bus and took a shuddering breath as she was a jeaned leg with a brown boot. Leaning over the seat, shaking, she checked and fell into the seat, sobbing with relief. It wasn't her, but that just meant she was out there somewhere. She had to be. Resting her forehead on the leather seat, she just cried. Mostly from relief that her sister wasn't on the bus, but also from fright. She was still out there, somewhere, and that thought scared her the most.
A walker grabbed onto his bag as Daryl was pulled off balance. Swinging his bow down, he heard a sickening crunch as the pull vanished. Hearing the sound of walkers dropping around him, he knew Maggie was dealing with her share of walkers. Not bothering in retrieving his arrows yet, Daryl kept putting down his former compatriots. He wondered what they were saying as he busted up their bodies, the people. Did they hate him or grateful to be laid to rest? Shit, the hell was he thinking these sappy thoughts for? Never needed pity or acknowledgement from anyone.
As the last of the walker fell, he saw Maggie rush into the bus. He was about to tell her to wait, but he knew she wouldn't listen. No way Maggie would rest until she confirmed her worry - be it good or bad news. Daryl walked amongst the corpses as he stabbed each in the head. When he could double tap or stab, he did. He retrieved his arrows as he went along. Done with the task, he walked towards the bus and hopped up. He saw Maggie up ahead, shoulders shuddering.
"Ah hell," he said as he slowly made his way towards her. The bodies to either side were staying down for good. Either Maggie put'em down or they offed themselves. Sorry way to go. As he stood behind her, he placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. He looked over and saw a body. It wasn't Beth. He misunderstood the whole thing. Lifting his hand, he took a seat across from the older Greene. "Told ya. Siblings never listen to siblings. Good thing too. She's still out there."
Maggie stayed there what seemed like hours, even though it was probably just a few short minutes. She was brought out of her daze by a warm, living hand on her shoulder. She looked up to look at Daryl, giving him a tiny smile, one that didn't match her eyes. She nodded. "Yes.. I guess so, but I'm not sure if that's reassuring or not. Not knowing where she's at..." Maggie said, her voice a soft whisper. Biting her lip and closing her eyes, she did something she never thought she'd do again, not since the world went to Hell, but it was something her father would often do in times like this. She prayed, she prayed for her sisters safety and for the safety for the rest of the group.
Getting up, Maggie looked towards Daryl. "Well, let's go look for her, then." She said as she walked off the bus, examining each walker now that she had time to calm down a little. She knew all of them, but only a couple she actually socialized. There was a couple children, they was always the hardest, so innocent and unaware of what the rest of their lives would be like. She wondered if there was a cure out there somewhere, or if this was just how they'd spend the rest of their life. Running, fighting, going from place to place. Was there even a safe place to go? She sighed as she bent down to pick up her bag and slung it back over her shoulder. She wasn't sure where she needed to look first, so she looked to Daryl for suggestions. "What do you think? Which way?" She asked him.
Daryl saw the worry. It was painted across Maggie's face as clear as day. He wanted to say something profound. Something that some fancy philosophy professor would concoct in their stuck up heads. As he swirled words around, he figured being straight up was the preferred choice. "It sucks. I know. Way back in the day, Rick chained my brother up on a rooftop," he said. The memory was still fresh, but the bitterness wasn't there. "Found out when they came back to camp. God, I wanted to mess him up good. No matter how messed up you people thought he was, he was still my brother. Scared me not knowing where he was. Beth'll be okay. We'll see her again."
Getting to his feet, Daryl followed Maggie out as he looked at the faces of the walkers. The blame he confessed to Maggie when they were still at the house burned anew. If he only he killed that son of a bitch governor, none of this would've happened. Merle would still be alive, and Herschel - rest his soul - would still be spouting his high and mighty logic. He missed the man. He wouldn't admit it openly, but he missed his realism. Shooing away his pity party, he hefted his bag on his bag. He looked either way. He doubted going back to the prison was a good idea. Walkers probably held the place.
Nudging Maggie with his shoulder, he began to walk the opposite way. "Come on."
Favoring the side of the road, he kept his eyes open as he turned into an opening in the tree line. Walkers weren't the only thing they had to be wary of. Survivors were just as dangerous. The more desperate the person was, the more risk. Daryl had his fair share of encounters, and he wanted to avoid that as much as possible.
Keeping pace with Maggie, he looked at her. "How're you holding up? I figure we find a building to hold up in. Regroup and rest. Be neat if we knew where we were."
