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THE PRISON WAS entirely silent as the morning whirled by, with each member of the group snoozing soundly in their cells. Pale ripples of red and orange swam across the walls of the prison as tiny footsteps waddled across the dust-ridden floor. The breeze skimmed through the dust, twirling it behind the small feet as that trudged through the prison, leaving trails of fresh daisies behind them merrily. It had been Coda — the only member to be awake at such early hours of the morning. She had pledged to bring peace back to the prison, and that glorious August morning, she had concluded to adorn the prison with the flowers she had accumulated from the grassland with pride.
Coda swung the flowers over her small shoulders as she skipped cheerfully along, humming delicate songs she had heard her mother use to lull her to sleep, amplifying the beauty in all the chaos. The last cell along the row that belonged to the group had been provided to the stranger that had brought Ellie to the prison, and Coda was instructed to ignore the cell. Valiantly, she hopped along until she sighted the cell, and hesitantly crept up towards the door. The child stealthily curved around the corner, peeking inside to reveal the woman doing push-ups on the ground, despite her apparent leg wound.
"What you doing here, kid?" The stranger inquired, without bothering to raise their gaze to Coda, which only astonished her more. Coda gulped, and took a few steps back, until the stranger asserted, "You don't have to be afraid of me."
Coda placed her hands on her hips dauntlessly, and replied with nonchalance, "I'm not afraid of you. I was bringing flowers to everyone."
The woman smirked, identifying how the child had evidently been reproducing the bravery she'd observed from the group around her. She pushed herself from the ground, and elevated her hand above her head, stretching out her muscles. Coda simply observed as her muscles protruded as she stretched them, and couldn't help but stare in astonishment at her strength.
"Do you want to ask me something?" the woman investigated, still not establishing eye contact as she proceeded with her workout.
Coda cleared her throat, and boldly crumpled her arms across her chest, "What's your name?"
"Michonne," she stated plainly, swapping her left arm for her right arm, "What's yours?"
"Coda," the child responded, raising her eyebrow suspiciously as she glanced around the small cell, noticing her katana nearby, "Are you a warrior?"
Michonne released a slight nasal laugh as she paused her routine, but her frown immediately twinkled back onto her sullen face, "You could say that."
"Well," Coda began, and unexpectedly entered the room, and sunk down onto the mattress, "my mom told me I could be a warrior and a princess at the same time. You are one of those, and I want to be like you."
