#v; keep moving

[shctsfired]

@mettleborn continued from x.

"What? The walkers?" Harper can't help but squint, trying her best to see what she must be missing, though she doesn't notice it until he points it out. "Damn, good eye. I didn't even notice ‘em." She trails off quietly. It was at moments like these that she realized just how vigilant and intelligent Sam was. She hadn't even thought twice about the corpses and he had pegged them as a threat from this far away. She knew Sam was capable from the moment they met, but the way he approached situations with such thought and caution made her feel much more safe. Before Sam’s, Harper’s approach was very much head-on without thought, but in their small amount of time together, now she knew better.

"Well, we've wasted too much gas just to go home empty handed." She bit down on her bottom lip in thought, gaze glued to the walkers ahead. She mostly stuck to the forest and the countryside instead of the cities so she didn’t know the best way to approach something like this… but when it came down to it, she did trust Sam’s shot more than her own. She unclicked her seatbelt and leaned forward to retrieve her pack. “If one of us is going to play bait, it should be me. I don’t look as intimidating as you.” She paused to shoot him a smirk. “Plus, I think you have a better shot than me. I mean, I would feel better picking them off from here, but we don’t need to draw attention. Especially if you haven’t cleared this area, no telling how many walkers could be hiding in buildings.” She placed her pistol in her holster and offered him a nod as she opened the truck door. “I’ll motion to you if I see a trip wire or something that could set them off. Just make sure some creep doesn’t get the upper hand on me.” She pulled her machete from the floorboard before shooting him one last reassuring grin. “We’ve got this.”

As she turned on her heels to start down the street, her grin began to falter as she gripped the hilt of her machete tighter. Not that she would ever admit it out loud, but this situation put her on edge. Honestly, just the thought of being chased down as a target again struck fear in her but she had to push that thought to the back of her mind and keep her thoughts on the task at hand. She knew she could take her time to focus if Sam had her in his sights, so she scanned the ground, calculating each step. It had been going good until about halfway, she came to a quick stop and held up her fist to eye level so Sam could see. It wasn’t a trip wire, but it was a well-disguised pit. She lowered herself to her knees and picked up some debris only to toss it, causing some of the sticks and leaves to give way. She slowly stood, looking for Sam in the distance; the place had been bobby-trapped. They needed to be very cautious if they decided to continue. Though the traps didn't necessarily mean there were people… Just someone had been there at one point.

[shctsfired]

@wrathfulmercy said “ i’m not leaving until you tell me what the fuck is going on. ”

She heard him say something, but she remained quiet, quickly shoving her items into her pack. Her mind was racing at a mile a minute and it wasn't until he raised his voice that she finally came to a stop. She shook her head before raising her hands to cover her face momentarily, clearly trying to keep her composure. She dropped her hands from her face, throwing them in the air with an exasperated sigh. "What the fuck does it look like I'm doing, Rick." She stated quietly, slowly looking over her shoulder to lock eyes with him; though she found herself breaking that gaze shortly after, maybe due to guilt. "Look, I know you told me I don't have to worry, but I just can't stay here! I know I'm probably just paranoid but they feel so fucking close." Harper closed her eyes tightly, digits nearly pulling at her hair from anxiety alone. "I have to keep putting distance between me and them."

Her old group had tracked her down once and took their shots at her. A few grazed her but none actually hit her. Considering her group had retired snipers, it was safe to say they weren't shooting to kill. They wanted to bring her back alive. Slowly, her hands fell, wrapping them around herself for comfort. "The thought of what they might do if they found me? It terrifies me..."

[shctsfired]

@mettleborn​

“Fuck, I don’t know how much longer I can keep going like this.” With a huff, the blonde shifted to lean against the tree beside her. How long had she been walking? Two? Three days now? 

With an attempt to save her energy, and also take a small break, the girl removed the automatic rifle from her back and set it beside her just before taking a seat on the ground. It seemed like it was the first time she had stopped moving since passing through a town called Athens in God knows where. The place was crawling with walkers and just to add a little icing on the cake, her former “teammates” finally caught up to her there. One thing was for sure, they were persistent little fuckers. Then again, she would have probably done the same thing if someone had killed one of her partners.

With the recent scuffle on her mind, her gaze traveled to her bandaged upper arm. Thank god they weren’t the best shot or she would have gotten worse than a bullet graze. She needed to continue to try to find a town with some supplies; if she didn’t find more disinfectant, the wound could get infected and she didn’t want that. In all honesty, it needed to be stitched up, but without another set of hands, that wasn’t going to happen. So with a groan, she collected her bag, slung her gun back on her shoulder, and continued on. If she found somewhere safe enough, maybe she could rest for more than ten minutes.

It took about two more hours of walking until she stumbled upon a clearing, leading to a road littered with broken down cars. She normally stuck to the forest since it was harder to be tracked, but according to her map, there was a town nearby and she needed to search for supplies. She needed to be quick and smart about this... her old group could be anywhere from hours to days behind. If she was clever enough, perhaps she could hide out long enough for them to pass through without even realizing she was there. Sadly, this plan seemed to falter as she got closer to the town and realized it might not be as empty as it appeared.

The abandoned cars on the road into the town went from ordinary to covered in wooden spikes and spears, a method she had seen from time to time. Despite this, she continued, carefully making her way through makeshift barricades and can alarms. She was hoping this would throw her unwanted guests off her trail. Who in their right mind would risk wandering into a guarded town alone? It was a risk, but one she would have to take.

As she wandered deeper into the town, she kept her gun at eye level, scanning the road ahead and then to the tops of buildings. There had to be someone around. After all, there were no walkers and so many well placed barricades. Suddenly, she came to a stop with wide eyes when she heard the cans and bottles smashing together. “Fuck!” She breathed out, looking to the side. She was too busy scanning the roof that she completely missed the tripwire. If there was any secret that she was there, it was gone now.

[shctsfired]

@mettleborn sent “i’ll kill anyone who ever makes you bleed again.”

As a hand snaked around her frame and the other covered her mouth, blue hues went wide with fear as he muffled her cries. He worked quickly, twisting her hand to cause her to drop her gun before she even had a chance to raise it. Sam was only a floor above her but without any commotion, how long would it take him to clear his floor and meet back up with her? Ten minutes? Maybe longer if he found something worthwhile. Long enough to cause concern.

She kicked and squirmed despite his threats; she took a chance and bit down on the hand covering her mouth until she tasted blood, causing him to yank it away with a yell. "SAM!" She called out in hopes of alerting him before taking advantage of the moment of surprise. Harper bowed her head only to yank it back, forcefully connecting with the other's forehead; this caused him to drop her immediately. The blonde fell to the floor, slightly dazed due to the head-to-head impact. "Dumb move blondie." With a shake of her head, she rose to her knees only to be met with a knee to her chest, successfully knocking the air from her. 

She had barely had a moment to recover before he pulled her up by her collar. He reared his arm back and her eyes closed tightly preparing for the blow but it never came. She opened her eyes to see him staring at her blankly, silently. His grip loosened and he started to waver, causing her to sidestep quickly before he collapsed. There was a knife dug into his back and Sam stepped out of the shadows, practically panting. 

As soon as she saw Sam, she reached for him, still shaky from the close encounter. "He must have been hiding since we came in.." She trailed off as he pulled back and cupped her cheeks. "I’ll kill anyone who ever makes you bleed again." The blonde melted against his touch, eyes closing once more resting her forehead against him. "You know I would do the same for you, right?"

[shctsfired]

@wrathfulmercy continued from x.

The scuffle had already been going on for a few moments when she felt the stranger's hand on the strap of her backpack. "Fucker! Don " Before she could even get her footing, he gave a sharp tug forward and stepped to the side, causing her to land face-first on the ground. She flipped as quickly as he could and he was on top of her, hands firmly pressed against her neck. She immediately used her left hand to claw into his wrists, attempting to loosen his grip as her other hand reached for anything. She kicked her legs and thrashed about but he wasn't letting up. It can't end like this...not after Kyle.

Desperately, her hand continued to search for something, anything that could aid her. That's when she felt it. Harper gripped the rock as tightly as she could and quickly swung at him, making contact with his temple. She gasped, coughing immediately as she regained her breath but she couldn't stop now. It was him or her. She gripped her survival knife and scrambled to her feet just as he regained his balance. He grabbed for her once more, but she allowed it. And as he pulled her towards him, she yelled, digging the dagger into his abdomen. Survival took over and when she came to her senses, her hands were covered in his blood and his lifeless body was riddled with wounds. She gasped, eyes widening and hands shaking as she fell to her knees, still gripping the knife. She hadn't even had time to process the situation when she heard footsteps from behind. She spun quickly, raising her knife to find another male. Was he with the other? She gulped, hands shaky and eyes wide, almost feral.

However, she found herself lowering the knife as he continued. He didn't seem to mean her any harm, but one could never be too sure in a world gone to shit. "This is my fault... look at him." She dropped her knife as her hands entangled in her blonde locks. "My brother was always the protector, the one who got his hands dirty, but now that he's gone..." She choked up, tensing slightly as he took a seat next to her. He couldn't really blame her after what she just went through.

She stared at him for a moment before her gaze fell to her bloody hands and she quickly attempted to wipe them off on her jeans. He was right, it was her or him at that moment but it didn't make it any easier. "The crazed look in his eyes, I can't get it out of my head. He was inches away and then..." She trailed off, slowly pulling her knees to her chest for comfort. "I've seen death before, I mean we all have. But this was different." Something about a knife was just so personal. "It was like an out-of-body experience. I could see what I was doing, but I-I just couldn't stop." She exhaled deeply, trying to slow her breathing back to a normal pace. "I take it you weren't with him since you haven't laid a finger on me yet." She slowly looked over at him with a raised brow. Very seldom did she come across survivors with their humanity still intact. "Did you see it happen? Does it ever get any easier? ....I feel like I blacked out back there for a moment."

[shctsfired]

@brokenreality--x said ❛  who did this to you?  ❜

The blonde slowly begins to stir awake, head tilting back against the floor with a groan as a noise repeats like an alarm. As the distorted noise becomes louder and louder, Harper can't help but wince, slowly turning her head to the side as if this will deafen the sound but this only causes her to whine involuntarily. Her head was pounding so hard she felt as if it would explode and it just might if that annoying echo didn't stop. And that's when it clicked; she was hearing her own name. And as if that shocked her back into consciousness, her eyes opened slowly. Things were a little blurry but she could make out a figure above her.

"Jax?" She called out quietly as she rubbed her eyes in an attempt to clear her vision. As her hands fell back to her side, she felt a wave of relief wash over her when he came into view. "Thank God it's you and not some bandit assh " Her words trailed off as her eyes widened. How long had she been out? The last thing she could remember was searching the kitchen and everything just went black. Her gaze traveled to the side to see the pan lying next to her; she must have been knocked out but why? They didn't take her supplies and most would have just taken her out...why spare her? Was this some weird trap that they had fallen into? "I don't know, but unless they snuck by you, they're still here."

[shctsfired]

@brokenreality--x continued from x.

"Nows the time you get a fucking sense of humor?!" If only she had reached him quicker, she could have shot that motherfucker between the eyes before he was able to dig his blade into Jax. But she wasn't. Yet again, she came up short when it mattered the most. She quickly dropped to her knees beside him, propping him up carefully before allowing him to rest his head in her lap.

As he allowed his eyes to close, Harper couldn't help but pat his cheek to keep him awake and alert. "No. Jax, we're not about to do this bullshit, you hear me? You're not dying today. It might hurt like hell but I can fix this." She cleared her throat, attempting to shake the quiver in her voice. "I need to take a look, alright? ...can you roll over?"

[shctsfired]

@mettleborn continued from here.

She stands there for a moment but as soon as she hears the piano keys, it’s a dead giveaway. She laughs softly, nodding as her gaze falls towards the floor. “Actually yeah. My dad was a hugggge fan. Saw them live more than once. And overplayed their albums to the point that Mom, Kyle, and I started to hate that Africa song." It was a fond memory, one that she was surprised to hear come out of her mouth. She was usually so guarded but her stay with Sam seemed to have softened her somewhat callous persona. It could be due to safety, but more likely it was a result of how comfortable he made her. Sure, the first two weeks were awkward and filled with paranoia, but that seemed to fade as her injury healed. Now, things seemed so normal to her, like they had always been a team.

"Junior prom, huh? Please tell me you wore one of those colored tuxedos." She hummed with a smirk, scrunching her nose at the thought. She often forgot the age difference between the two, but this song definitely aged him. Though that smirk seemed to fade as he took her hands in his own and she couldn't help but groan slightly before finally giving in and closing the gap between them. "To be honest, I may be the one stepping on your feet. I don't have to tell you this but I'm not the most graceful." She laughed as her gaze traveled downwards, trying her best to follow his lead. "I haven't had much practice. After all, I'm usually providing the music. Even at my prom, I spent more time on stage than the dancefloor." She looked back up at him, a smile warming her features. "I have to say, I think you’re pretty smooth on your feet.”