Darker Skies *The Walking Dead*

Chapter 7

Skylar woke up early to go see the horses. She had been waking up almost every hour, very different from her deep little nap yesterday. She didn't want to move from her cell until the first sign of light came through the window that was high on the prison wall. The smelled like fresh grass and manure, two smells that Skylar thought better than blood and death. Warm dew was coating her boots as she walked through the grass. It wasn't too hot yet, so Skylar could enjoy herself in the stuffy stable with the two horses. The horses had been standing outside but moved to meet her inside when they saw her. She figured they were looking for more snacks or breakfast, so she looked for and found a large bag of horse feed.

As Skylar filled their troughs, she tried her hardest not to think about last night. Her first night in a new place and there was already at least one death. And Carl didn't like her anymore. The little conversation she had with Patrick was enjoyable and everyone else she'd seen was either too old or too young to really understand her. She was alone, again, and she did not like it. Sure she knew Rick well and it was nice to be able to hug him, but he's Carl's dad and she feels like she can't really go to him now.

"Skylar." A gentle voice came from behind her, but she jumped a bit and squeaked. It was only Rick.

"I'm sorry for scaring you." He smiled softly, humor lacing through his voice. "I saw you walking out and I wanted to know what you were doing."

"Just checking on the horses. I saw them when I arrived." Skylar patted the one who reached his head over the stall. "Am I allowed to be with them?"

"Yeah. You can do a lot of things here." Rick stood there for an awkward minute before saying, "I heard that you and Carl aren't working as well as I had thought."

"Yeah." Skylar didn't know how he already knew unless he talked to Carl. "We just... spent too much time away from each other. We outgrew each other."

"Well, to be honest with you, Carl's been acting out a little lately." Rick sat on a stool that was in a corner of the stable. "I think he needs you more than he knows right now. And you probably need him more as well." Skylar didn't know what to say. Is Carl acting out? He was a pretty straight kid. And did she really need him? She had gotten along fine so far. But she did miss him a lot and felt like a part of her was missing.

"It's just food for thought, don't make yourself do anything." He stood up and put a hand on her shoulder. "Let's go get some breakfast, they're cooking bacon outside." Rick lead her out and up to the prison.

~~

Skylar sat between Rick and Daryl, taking small bites out of her bacon and eggs. Everyone was having a different conversation that she could listen to. She noticed Maggie with a cute Korean man, obviously they were in a relationship. There were families sitting together at other tables that made Skylar feel jealous. She got to meet a pretty blonde girl named Beth who was babysitting Rick's daughter Judith. Skylar got to hold the tiny baby for a bit and wanted to cry. But then she noticed Carl staring at her and went stony-faced again.

"Skylar tell Daryl about your dad's hunting skills." Rick started a conversation. Skylar didn't want to talk to Daryl because she felt bad about punching him and he had a decent sized bruise on his cheek. And he's a little intimidating. And where did he get that opposum when everyone else has a prepared meal?

"Um, yeah my dad used to go hunting any chance he could." She looked at Daryl's plate as she talked.

"What'd he use?" Daryl grumbled.

"Depended on what he was shooting," Skylar shrugged, "but usually a Timber Classic." She saw him nod his head out of the corner of her eye.

"And you set traps?"

"Yeah, he didn't let me start shooting until I was 11." Another nod and then the conversation was over. Until Skylar decided she could be brave enough to apologize.

"I'm sorry I punched you last night." She got the words out but she couldn't even look at his plate now. But when she heard him laugh a little bit she couldn't help but look up at him. His face was stern, just as she'd first seen when they met, but there was a small twinkle in his squinted brown eyes.

"You're fine." A man of few words. Skylar had never met an adult so quiet, all the ones she knew wanted to talk her ear off about anything and everything.

After breakfast Rick showed her around to some more places in the prison, telling her where she could and could not go. He found her old laundry in the laundry room and also found a shirt, pants, and socks. He told her to try to make friends with anyone she can, that she'll need good people by her side. He told her to try working in any place she could at least twice so she could figure out how she can pull her weight. Skylar was a little more focused on keeping an eye out for Carl though. She just wanted to see him, but the prison was so big they didn't see him at all. Maybe he was going to try even harder to avoid her. Stupid Carl. Stupid, stupid Carl.