Maisie got out of the Jeep and strode over to the group, her arms crossed.

"I brought back your adorable little Korean," she teased, coming to a stop and rocking back on the heels of her boots.

"I'm literally your age," Glenn sighed as he came from her car.

"Whatever you say," Maisie sing-songed.

She glanced at the bloody redneck, the corners of her lips quirking upwards at his severe look of disapproval. He hated her, and she loved it. As Daryl opened his mouth, a tense situation was avoided when the sky opened up and released a downpour on them, soaking them completely.

Carl took his sheriff's hat off his head and held it over Judith, while tipping his head back and sticking out his tongue like many of the adults in the group. The cool water felt good on their dry throats, even if it was just a little bit.

"Guys! I have empty bottles in my car," Maisie exclaimed, running back to her Jeep, closely followed by Glenn and two women.

She threw open the doors and they grabbed all the empty water bottles they could carry.

"Why do you have a gazillion empty bottles?" Glenn smirked, suppressing a laugh.

"For times like this," Maisie shot back, walking back and sitting down on the road. She went to work uncapping all the water bottles.

"Wait a second," Abraham said suddenly, straightening up. "Someone's been here," he said cryptically.

Everyone turned to see what he was looking at. Eugene gasped. Someone had left a dozen water bottles and two gallon jugs with a sign stuck to them in the middle of the road. Maisie squinted hard to read the sign:

Gifts from a friend.

"Is that for us?" Carl asked.

"I'm on quality control," Eugene declared, rushing forward and uncapping one of the strange bottles. He recoiled when Abraham slapped it from his hands.

"Why'd you do that?" Tara asked, bending down to pick up the water bottle before it spilled anymore.

"It could be tainted," Rick told her, before he spun around and marched to Maisie. "Did you have anything to do with this?" he demanded fiercely, towering over her.

"No, sheriff. I swear."

Rick stepped back. "How'd you know I was a sheriff?"

"First of all, your boy's got a cool hat that they don't just give out for free; second, you've still got a badge clipped to your belt," Maisie said simply.

Rick put his hands on his hips and looked at the ground before taking the badge off his belt and whipping it into the woods.

"Bold move, sheriff," Maisie said, nodding in approval.

"What're we gonna do about that water?" Rosita asked.

Maisie looked down; she and Tara were laying in the road, letting the rain wash over them. Maisie resisted the urge to join them.

"Grab it and go, the weather's getting bad," Glenn told them. Lightning cracked overhead, strengthening his case.

"There's a barn a little ways west!" Maisie shouted over the rumbling thunder.

"Let's go!" Rick called, shoving bottles into every backpack in the group.

Maisie looked up at Jackson's barking in the Jeep. He thought he was gonna be left behind. She jogged over to the vehicle and reached in through the window. She grabbed the keys from the ignition, and her dog from the front seat.

"Oh, you're not gonna like this," she muttered as she opened her backpack wide and placed the dog inside, leaving a gap in the zipper.

"Let's go!" Rick roared over the storm.

The group took off through the trees, fighting off few walkers on the way. They found the barn as the wind kicked up fiercely. Relief came when they closed the barn doors. Maisie turned from the door to Rick's Colt Python in her face, the safety released.

"Well, then," she said stiffly, slowly shrugging off her backpack and putting it on the ground gently. Jackson nosed the zipper enough to slip out.

"Sit down," Rick snapped, nodding his head at the wooden post behind him.

"Whoa, whoa, I thought you were cool with her!" Glenn squawked, his eyes wide.

"How many walkers have you killed?" Rick persisted, ignoring Glenn.

"That's like asking me how many raindrops fall from the sky."

"Fair enough. How many people have you killed?"

"Seven."

"Why?"

"Target practice." Maisie smirked as the mouths of Glenn, Eugene, Tara, Maggie, and Carl fell open in unison. Rick ignored them too.

"Alright," Rick said after a tense silence, holstering his gun.

Maggie walked into one of the stables and saw a mess of clothes and supplies, and a walker crawling towards her. She embedded her knife in its skull and looked around the stable once more.

"Shame, she had a gun, too," Daryl muttered, looking in over her shoulder.

"You're just gonna clear her? Dad, she's a murderer!" Carl exclaimed, not bothering to keep his voice down.

Maisie looked up when the doors opened slightly and then closed again. The moans could just barely be heard over the howling winds.

"Biters!" she hissed, shooting up from her spot at the post and throwing her body against the door. When her boots started sliding forward, she was aided by Rick, Daryl, Abraham, Eugene, and Glenn, who pushed their shoulders against the rotting wood. They were soon joined by everyone who wasn't Judith or Jackson.

The biters pushed hard, but they were unable to break through, and eventually either lost interest, or were swept away by the storm.

〄

The storm had ceased sometime overnight. Maisie, who was the first one to leave the barn the next morning, was shocked at the total destruction left behind in the storm; trees had been knocked over and biters were caught amongst the roots, their limbs scattered everywhere.

Ignoring the biters that clawed at her from the ground, she sat down on a fallen tree and closed her eyes, inhaling the scent of the forest and the rain. Her eyelids parted when she heard footsteps in the wet ground and saw Maggie walking towards her.

"Can I sit?" Maggie asked, nodding at the spot next to the woman. Maisie nodded and she sat down.

"I was talking to Rick a few minutes ago," she started. Maisie noted she had the southern accent of a farm girl.

"And?"

"And he thinks you'd make a great addition to this group."

Maisie surprised Maggie by barking out a short laugh. "Christ, I bet Daryl had a ton to say about that."

"Oh, he did. But, Daryl, although hotheaded, agreed to let you stay."

"Alright, we'll see."

Maggie nodded, exhaling through her nose.

"Glenn's a cool guy, you're a lucky woman," Maisie said suddenly, sincerely.

Maggie opened her mouth to say something when Maisie suddenly sprang up, her gun drawn. Maggie looked up, and went to the blonde's side, drawing her own gun as she went.

A man they didn't know was approaching them.

----