Chapter Text
Even as a kid, you knew hunger more than you knew the feeling of a full stomach. Those memories helped a lot when the world went to shit.
You were almost 16 years old and staying with your grandfather. He worked at Yellowstone National Park and had a fortified small compound on site. Ever since your dad passed away in the Gulf War when you were really young, he’d never been the same. He’d turned paranoid and was convinced the end of the world was near. You were the only one he let in, taking you in for the summers so you could get a break from your mother.
She never recovered from the loss of dad and turned to the bottle. Well, that and the ever-revolving door of men she brought in. Basic care of her daughter was obviously not on her mind. If it wasn’t for the money your grandfather sent you and the one hot meal a day you could get when school was on, you probably would have died. You were forced to spend every evening and weekend in your room, out of the way of your mothers’ suitors. Mostly anyway.
The summer you were 15, you decided. You weren’t going back. Your summers with your grandfather were the best times of your life. Yeah, he was crazy, but he taught you everything you needed to save your life countless times over the past decades. He taught you to shoot a gun and a bow (the bow being your favourite) and showed you how to hunt, grow, and prepare your own food. Your mother didn’t even bother coming to look for you when you didn’t come back, even after a month.
The compound was so deep into the forest, you came across people maybe once or twice a year. Never infected, although you knew about them through your little radio. Your grandfather had a set of connections with fellow preppers across the country. They used to talk on message boards on the internet apparently. When he started deteriorating a couple of years into the outbreak, he’d made his connections promise to take care of you. You would trade with them occasionally, and their conversations kept you sane after your grandfather died. And especially after you lost the rest of your world a few years later.
It was one of those connections who told you about Jackson. Jake was the connection you had who was physically closest to you, so you talked most often. He was a bit older, but just as weird and closed off as you.
“A group of families came close by, didn’t seem like a threat despite being armed, too many kids, but thought I could trade with them. They’ve found a place, to start over. I’m going to help them. You should come too.”
It was tempting. The past couple of years had been so tough all alone, and Jake knew it. Still, it was hard to trust people. You didn’t even really trust Jake, your relationship purely business.
“They need us hon, there’s way more non-fighters than fighters. And I know you, you can’t even let go of the runt of the litters. Speaking of, you can bring Gleam. They didn’t seem to have many horses.”
You say you would think about it, but both of you knew you wouldn’t be able to say no, especially with vulnerable kids about.
That’s how you helped start Jackson. After a tense stand off with their leader, you convinced them you meant well with the most precious thing you had to trade – your compound, your home, your everything.
Over the years, you were essential in making Jackson successful. You helped build the wall (your grandfather had actually built the house in his compound), you trained all the adults in various weaponry, your medicine stash was accepted gratefully by the Doctor in their group. Despite that, you made no effort to speak to anyone outside of what was absolutely necessary.
The leader’s daughter, Maria, was in charge of organising the town and was setting up a town council. She’d asked you to join and you refused, cringing at the thought of conversation. Jake agreed though, so at least there was one paranoid prepper there to keep the optimism in check.
Once Jackson was set up, you made your focus protecting what you built. You would patrol on occasion, wanting to take Gleam out to stretch her legs, but your real skill was walking the wall. Whenever raiders managed to get too close to the wall, you were able to sense them before anyone else could and take them out silently with your bow. If any escaped, you would then report to the gate who’d get a search party out.
Many times you had been told that if it wasn’t for you, they would have certainly dealt with an attack by now. You always grunted and stormed away at that, hating the attention. To this day, tried to stay away from the personal side of the town. Everything you learned about the people of Jackson was against your will. You already learned all you needed to survive and protect your people.
It was on one of your solo wall walks you spotted the large group returning. It had been steadily snowing the past few weeks and despite the daily sweeps, it was still too slippery for anyone but the most experienced, which saw you walking double shifts. They were returning near the end of your shift, the heckles on your neck sensing it before you looked up. Thankfully, one of them was waving a flag as you weren’t expecting the group back before you finished your shift.
You shout down to the gate crew to let them in, before deciding that your skills were needed more on the ground right now. What kind of trouble had they found that meant they came back early?
It was when you heard the loud, booming voice shout “Tommy!” that you realised this was a new person. Knowing information about your people was useless, but knowing their voices was essential. You didn’t know this person, and that meant they were a threat. From your position, the group couldn’t see you, but you had a clear view of the man, and had an arrow positioned directly at his throat – your preferred kill spot.
It shocked you when Tommy embraced the man with ease. This situation was unusual. New people was common enough, but rarely people who had this kind of connection with one of her people. You couldn’t help but be curious, watching them head to the dining hall. It was lunchtime, so you did have to eat.
You’d rather not eat at the dining hall, preferring your own company, but it was under orders from the Doctor after a routine blood test showed some deficiencies. Now you had to be seen eating in the dining hall and allow someone to bring you food for your wall walks. You didn’t have to be social, but if word got to the Doctor you weren’t keeping your side of the deal, he’d prescribe a minder. That was your own personal hell.
Entering the hall, you noticed the atmosphere was different, slightly electric. This always happened with newcomers. You take your food tray over to the corner, a spot now designated to you by virtue of no one wanting to get on your bad side. It’s tucked away enough for people’s eyes to not drift to, but a good spot for tracking the environment.
You spot the newbies in the centre, at a table with Tommy and Maria. The man has a girl with him. You pray it’s his daughter or niece, thinking to yourself to keep an eye out if they were staying.
You could only see them from behind, but you noticed when the mans back stills. He’s got a broad back and well-defined shoulders. This man was a warrior. The child on the other hand, she was bouncing in her seat. And then they were gone. Now you needed to sleep, you had another shift in under 12 hours.
After a few hours sleep, you get restless, not liking the feeling of your town being vulnerable. Even if these people knew Maria, you couldn’t stop the tightness in your stomach. You had only survived all these years by fully trusting your intuition. So, you set up in front of your place, knowing you were in eyeshot of Maria’s place, hoping you’d get another glance at the pair.
Looks like they’ve been placed in the house next to yours. The cynical part of you wonders if Maria did it so you could intervene if needed. The girl gets back first and is very obviously upset. A much-buried part of your mind awakens, pushing you to comfort the child, however you are very used to pushing that back.
A few minutes later, and the large man returns. His head down, deep in thought, he pauses outside the house. From the side, you finally get a look at his face. Recognition flashes through you, causing an imperceptible gasp to escape you. His actual features are unknown, but the way he carries it, the etches and pain. You had seen it on your grandfather, and subsequently on your own face. For the first time in years, you felt a stirring in you. You were curious. You wanted to know this man’s story, whether you had kin in this world.
And then he was gone, you assumed he’d stepped into the house, but you hadn’t seen it. This was dangerous. You couldn’t afford distractions. Distractions meant people would die.
You start your next wall shift at 6am the next morning, practicing shooting at your target range just before to ensure you were still on top of your game. Given how busy you were, it wouldn’t be hard to avoid the man and the girl if they decided to stay. As luck would have it, you hear the crackling on your radio, signalling the gate opening for someone leaving, and you leaned over your section of the wall watching the two of them leave on horseback. You allowed yourself to fully breathe in for the first time since seeing his face last night. You could get back to your life of protecting your people.
No word reached you as to who the people were, only noting that it had caused a small rift between Tommy and Maria. You assume that’s why the gossiping was on the minimal. In a town as small as this, it was inevitable for gossip to get around, but Maria was the de-facto leader here, no one wanted to get on her bad side.
It didn’t take long for Jackson and you to return to normality. Well, as normal as it can be in a post-apocalyptic society. You helped fix some roofs damaged in a storm. You patrolled and continued building your personal library. And you walked the wall. Almost every day.
Including the day you see two figures in the distance. A man and a girl.