XXXIV

—/<3/—

Taking the rest of the prison was harder than they expected it to be. They were overconfident. The guards were the hardest to take down with their armour and helmets, especially with at least 40 other walkers surrounding them. If Rick and Daryl hadn't rushed to lock one of the gates, they would've been forced to retreat back to the fields.

It took the better part of an hour for Glenn, Rick, Daryl, Rory, Maggie, Archie and T-dog to clear the first courtyard, and only then did they realise that there was definitely walkers wandering in from outside from a breach somewhere in the prison walls. Still, they pushed inwards.

The first room they entered was clear, but judging by the bloodstains on the walls, there was definitely something lurking about. They managed to get into cell block C which only had a few stragglers locked in the cells that they took down easily, then they grabbed the rest of the group.

"Is it secure?" Lori asked with a smile.

"This cell block is. We'll look for a cafeteria and infirmary in the morning," Rick replied.

"Are we sleeping in the cells?" Beth set the bags she was carrying onto the floor.

Rick nodded. "There's beds in there, Daryl and I each have a set of keys to open them."

"I ain't sleepin' in no cage, I'll take the perch." Daryl stormed towards said perch and began taking his things out.

"Rory let's be roomies!" Niamh smiled happily. Rory, nodded, matching her energy.

"Niamh," Mikey whined.

"Bros before hoes." Rory stuck her tongue out at him, the golden ball of her piercing glinting in the light from the window.

"There something wrong with rooming with me?" Archie raised an eyebrow at Mikey.

"Not at all." Mikey shook his head. "I'd just like to share with my girlfriend is all."

"Relax, I'm teasing you." Archie snickered, slapping a hand on Mikey's shoulder.

Rory and Niamh giggled happily between themselves as they ran up the stairs to claim a cell for themselves.

"Can I take top bunk?" Niamh asked.

"Yeah, I prefer the bottom anyway."

The girls got settled on their beds. They weren't the most comfortable; the mattresses were lumpy and the were pillows old and smelled of mildew, but it was better then sleeping on the ground like they had been for almost nine months.

"So, you've been spending a lot of time with Daryl..." Niamh started, leaning over the edge of the top bunk to she could see her best friend.

"Yeah, so?" Rory raised an eyebrow.

"I'm just saying... the only other men you ever willingly spent that much time with are Mikey, Jonah, Archie and that dick Liam."

"Ew don't mention him." Rory grimaced at the reminder of her cheating ex boyfriend.

"You see where I'm going with this though, don't you? Other than those four, all your friends were girls and you rarely had one night stands, Daryl must be important to you if you chose to spend so much time with him."

"He's my friend," Rory said, not understanding why Niamh was making such a big deal out of it.

"And you're telling me you've never thought about him in any other way?" Niamh narrowed her eyes. She sat back up on her bunk, the blood that had been rushing to her head becoming uncomfortable. She slid off the top bunk and sat on the end of Rory's bed.

Rory hesitated. She had entertained the idea of being something more than friends with Daryl but she'd pushed it to the back of her mind where it had laid dormant for weeks now. They were in no position for her to be developing a crush, so she ignored it. But they were safer now, and they could be safe for a while.

"You have!" Niamh whispered.

"You're sworn to secrecy." Rory hissed. "It can never get out or I swear to god I will tell everyone about that time you—"

"Rory, we're gonna scout out the cafeteria, see if we can get supplies, you coming?" Rick appeared in their doorway. Both girls jumped, not expecting him to be there.

"Yeah." Rory cleared her throat and stood up. She threw Niamh a threatening glare as she walked out to reaffirm what she said.

—/<3/—

Walking through the halls to try get to the cafeteria was like something straight out of a horror movie. There were carcasses littering the floor, it was dark and every single sound made them jump out of their skin.

It looked pretty abandoned until they took a wrong turn and walked straight into a herd of walkers, all of them springing to life when the light from the torches shone in their faces. Archie gripped Rory's shoulder and pulled her back as the group retreated back the way they came, only to be met with another group of them.

"C'mon this way!" Daryl yelled as he led them down the last remaining corridor. There were more down that way too, and they were forced to hide inside a supply closet where there was definitely not enough room for 6 people.

"Where's Glenn and Maggie?" Rick whispered.

"We have to go back," T-dog said.

"Which way?" Hershel asked.

No one answered as Rick inched open the door to check if the hallway was clear, then he slid out of the closet, the rest of the group following him.

"Maggie?" Hershel whispered as he crept through the hallway. "Mags?" He stepped over a walker that he assumed was a corpse. The walker's arms latched onto Hershel's leg and sunk its teeth into his ankle half a second later.

Hershel screamed in agony as he fell to the floor with an echoing 'thump'.

"No!" Rick yelled. He pulled his gun out and shot the walker in the head before rushing towards the old man. Maggie and Glenn rounded the corner a moment later and assisted Rick in getting him off the ground.

"We're blocked! Get back!" T-dog shouted. Daryl, Rory and Archie began shooting down the walkers that got too close as they ran down yet another hallway.

"Get in!" Glenn yelled as he broke the lock and pushed open a set of double doors. "Shut the door!"

Archie and Daryl slammed the door behind them and leaned up against them, their bodies jolting forward every time a walker pushed against it. T-dog secured the lock and everyone rushed towards Hershel in a panic.

"Hold him down," Rick said shakily as he began to unbuckle his belt. Hershel continued to wail as Glenn, Daryl and Rory pinned his body to the ground. Maggie sobbed quietly as she held her father's hand.

"Only one way to keep you alive," Rick said as he finished the tourniquet on Hershel's leg and reached for the axe the old man had been carrying.

Hershel's screams grew in volume as Rick began to hack off his leg, until he passed out from the pain. Rory shuddered and looked away, suddenly feeling nauseated.

"He's bleeding out," Rick called once Hershel's lower leg was separated from the rest of his body.

"Duck," Daryl whispered, spotting movement out of the corner of his eye. He stood up and shone the light on his crossbow at the figures.

"Holy shit..." one of them said as they stared in horror at Hershel on the ground.

—/<3/—