Happiness (One)

First chapter of Dust to Dust, sequel to Ashes, Ashes, We All Fall Down

"Happiness can be found in the darkest of times if one only remembers to turn on the light."

-Dumbledore, Prisoner of Azkaban

It seemed so unfair. The world as I knew it was over, and yet the sun was still able to shine, a breeze was still able to blow. Those days reminded me of Saturday track meets; the flexing of muscles, the burn of the run, the satisfaction of placing. I hated the soft breeze now. It only revealed the stink of rotting flesh, replacing the once fresh scent of contentedness.  

I turned away from the clear, sunny day, returning to the shadows of the alley I was hiding in. I twisted my torso to look at the little seven year old crouching behind me. "You okay, silly?" 

She looked up at me with her big green eyes; they were always curious, always wondering. Her eyes flicked to the beautiful weather ahead of us. "Can we play this time?" She asked softly, staring avidly at the light creeping towards.

"We're in a new place...I don't think its very good idea, kid..." I said hesitantly, frowning. She was little, and she deserved to be able to play. But the world was just too dangerous now, even if it seemed safe right now.

We're never safe. 

"Okay..." She said brokenly, letting her head drop. I frowned, and peeked around the corner again. 

We were standing in an abandoned alley between two businesses built of brick. In front of us was a large meadow with plush and green grass and small trees. The walkways had benches every few yards, and I could just spot the white of a gazebo in the distance. This must've been a town square or something, judging by the ring of shops and stuff to do. 

Sighing, I glanced to the left. We'd come here in search of the coast, maybe to find a boat or something. I'd heard that maybe some islands were plagued with the walking dead. "Maybe...maybe we can play later..."

It didn't seem right to rob this little girl of any innocence we could salvage. I knew that it probably wasn't safe, I knew I shouldn't trust the silence, but I couldn't resist when I looked into her young eyes. 

We knew we had to be careful, and I had to save ammo in case we got into a jam. I kept the high power pistol and the 9mm pistol i had into the same bag as the hunting rifle i kept for emergencies. Unsheathing my sword, I peeked around the corner again.

Yeah, thats right. I said sword. My dad was into all that pretentious stuff before he died. Unfortunately, he didn't die by freak cannibalism, he had a heart attack three years ago. After the heart attack, I had to take care of my little sisters.

Blood.

Red. 

Splatters.

Shaking my head to clear my mind, I took a few steps into the sunlight. I turned back again to face her and put a finger to my mouth. Looking around, I spotted a rusty Spaghetti-O's can and gave it a kick. Its clatter echoed around the circle, the silence making it louder than normal. 

I waited for about five minutes and when there was no sign of any noise anywhere, I gave her the signal. She came out, clutching her tiny spear. I took her hand and said softly, "It's okay, silly. We just need to be careful, kay?"

Her grin was enough to make this worth it. We'd lose some time, but a little girl needs to have this. So I dropped the bag onto the grass and grabbed her tiny hands and began to spin her around. As she began to fly in the warm air, the sun glinting off of us, she started to giggle. 

This girl's giggle gave me a warm feeling in my chest. I began to laugh too as I spun her, going faster and slower, lifting her higher and lower. Our laughter gave me hope and for the first time in awhile I liked the feeling of the sun on my face and the warm breeze blowing lightly across us. 

"Faster! Faster!" She managed to gasp between laughs, a smile I'd never seen before lighting up her tiny face. Finally I began to slow her down, my heart beating fast and a smile stretching across my face. I collapsed onto the grass, staring at the blue sky. "You having fun, kid?" I breathed.

She snuggled into my side and gave a fast, tiny nod. I figured we should find somewhere safe to crash, because though I wished it were not, the world as we knew it ended. I gave a long sigh, pulling my leather jacket closer. I could fall asleep right about now.

That was one of the many downs of this whole apocalypse thing; if it were normal, I could just fall asleep here in the grass, my only worry being drawn on by a friend or foe. But now, with the dead lurking around every corner of my mind, I had to have every door locked, double locked, blocked and windows barricaded before I could even think about sleep. 

I looked down at the resting form beside me and smiled again. Safety was number one when it came to her, she was a child and children were the only hope left. I slowly sat up, reaching for my bag. "Alright Silly, I think it's time we keep moving. We'll stay in this general area, for now it seems pretty..."

Before I could get the last word out,  a scream rippled through the once beautiful day, making our bodies tense. My head whipped in the direction it came from, my ears now hearing the shuffle and scream of the walking dead.

"....Safe," I said slowly, my face beginning to fall and harden. 

Author's Note

Okay so first chapter :D
I couldn't use the quote I wanted to because I couldn't find it, but it was also a Harry Potter quote. I'll find it somewhere...
Anyways carry on :D

Reviews

[Abbie]

awesome chapter amanda! I love it! and same questions as sophie, crossing out the louis bit.... XD

[Sophie]

Who is this and ahhhh I have a feeling its a he and he's going to be attractive and adorable with little kids (like Louis...) and ahhhhggg

[Amanda]

;)