Season 01, Episode 05: "Lead Me Home"

*The scene opens up with Art's truck parked outside of a convenience store. We zoom up to the truck, Ash crying, laying on the floor as walkers start to approach the back windows. One walker, a female starts to push her bloody face against the glass, groaning, trying to get to Ash. Ash continues to cry, as Katniss starts to meow. Ash begins to cover herself with clothes that lay on the floor of the truck. The groans get louder and louder. Other walkers around the store start to take notice of the truck, as one starts to hobble over to join the other walker. Two walkers now on the driver's side of the truck begin to look through the window. One walker begins to drag her nails across the glass, as the other starts to pound on the window. The female walker begins to groan louder, pressing her bloody face even closer to the glass, blood dripping from her mouth, as the male walker is suddenly hit in the head with a baseball bat and falls to the floor. The female turns to look, only to suffer the same fate. Art swings away as Zero barks at oncoming walkers. More walkers start to approach the truck, and as each walker approaches, each one falls. Art grips the baseball bat in his hands and swings at their heads, knocking them down and destroying their brains. With his first kill under his belt Art now has no reservations about killing the undead. Art kills a few more walkers with his baseball bat, as Zero barks to alert him of any other oncoming walkers. After all is clear Art opens up the truck, throws the supplies in that he has collected from the convenience store, has Zero get in, and gets in himself, starts the truck, and at that very moment a walker sticks his upper body into the truck as Art tries to close the door. Art starts to hit the walker in the head with a Powerade bottle that he got from the store, until he reaches down and picks up the baseball bat, hitting the walker in the head with the handle. Art pushes the walker out of the truck, closes the door, and drives away, running over the walker's head with the back left tire of his truck, hitting and running over other walkers in the process.*



"I got Powerades and Poptarts," Art says, looking back at me, as if nothing just happened. He stares at me through the rear-view mirror, blood all over his shirt and face, as if expecting me to say something. I'm not sure if he wants me to thank him, or what. To be honest, I'm not very fond of him at this very moment. "So are you not going to talk to me for much longer, or what?"

Katniss meows, and I instantly grab her, holding her, covering myself in more clothes. I'm starving, but I'm too upset to eat right now. Art opens up a Poptart, feeding it to Zero as he pets him. "If you don't have any objections we have to make one more stop," Art says, looking in the rear-view mirror once again. "So...nothing? No objections? No thoughts at all?" I continue to look down at Katniss, too angry to even look at him. "Alright then," he says, feeding Zero the rest of the Poptart before grabbing a walkie talkie.

"Jace, do you copy? Jace, it's Art. Meet me at Bass Pro in 10 minutes." Art puts the walkie down, leaving it on as he looks back once again. We make eye contact for a second, then I look away. Art tosses me a box of Poptarts. "You're gonna need your energy. I can't leave you in the truck on this run, so you'll have to come with me."

We've hit up everything from clothes stores to gas stations, and every time I've stayed in the truck because Art was within shouting range. I never had to shout for him, he was always on top of it...but the idea of going out there, and inside of a building where there could be those things, those zombies, or walkers as Art likes to call them, I can't even begin to wrap my mind around it. Every time I see them I just think back to what happened to them, to my family, and how Art did what he did. I understand why he did it, but at the same time I don't know why he would come back for me.

"Are you going to eat up? I can't have you low on energy. We are running in, getting what we can, and running out. You need to be alert. You got that?" he asks, as if I'm some sort of child. I make a face as I open the Poptart, at that very second Katniss starts to nibble away at the exposed corner. Art turns around, focused on the road once again. "This run isn't going to be easy. We have to be alert, of everything. Not just the dead." At that very second a chill runs down my spine, because so far I have yet to see another living soul besides Art since he came and "rescued" me. I don't like the idea of going somewhere where there could be such potential danger, and I don't like the idea of being with Art and Jace, alone in this new world...but what other choice do I have? I guess I should be grateful, but I can't help but worry.



"We're here..." Art says, parking the truck, unlocking the doors and grabbing his baseball bat. I grab Katniss, looking at Art as he lowers the seat in order for me to get out. We start to make our way into the store, screams and gunshots filling the air. Art grabs a cart and looks back at me, "This has to be quick. Let's go. Whatever happens, if we get separated, keep running...no matter what."

My heart stops for a second, hoping to God that that won't be the case. We rush into the store, Art starts to fill the cart with supplies; camping stuff, guns, ammo, arrows, a crossbow. Zero stays on patrol, looking around. The store is in chaos, it's like a bad scene out of a movie, like it's Black Friday or something, but people are rushing, grabbing things, crying, screaming, dying. I look at isles across from us, seeing the dead feasting on the living. A man screaming as a walker bites through his neck, blood splattering all over the items on the shelves. Katniss meows in fear as I hold her close, trying to hold back the tears. I look behind us, seeing people fighting over weapons. I notice two guys pulling and tugging on a shotgun, as one slips, the gun goes off and shoots the other clear through the chest. He falls to the ground, eyes wide, coughing up blood as the other guy goes to him, crying, apologizing, as he takes the gun and runs. I can't begin to fathom the idea of people turning on each other, as my breathing starts to get heavy. I start to panic, reaching out, making sure that I'm within arms reach of Art. I turn around, trying to stay as close to Art as possible, but when I turn around I notice a gun pointed at Art's head.

"Drop the baseball bat, and step away from the cart and the girl."

At that moment I see a burly man, holding a gunshot to Art's head, demanding that Art put down his baseball bat. The man isn't shaking, he isn't nervous, he is focused on getting what he wants.

"It doesn't have to be this way, man," Art says, placing the baseball bat in the cart. Zero starts to bark at the man with the gun as the man points the gun at Zero.

"Get that dog to shut up, otherwise he's getting a bullet to the head!" The man begins to place his finger on the trigger as Art pulls Zero back by the red bandanna around his neck.

"Stay." Art pets Zero on the head, making him sit. Zero begins to whine, looking back at Art. "Take what you want, just leave us alone."

"I want the cart, the dog, and the girl," the man says, now pointing the gun back at Art. Zero begins to growl. Art pets the back of his neck, calming him down.

"I can't do that. You can have the supplies."

"I want the cart, the dog, and the girl. You can either hand them over, or I can shoot you and take what I want."



Art looks around the store, motioning to the man to look. "You really want to contribute to this? Are you going to be okay knowing that you killed an innocent man for a cart of supplies, his dog, and a girl?"

The man cocks his gun, making a clicking noise, stepping closer to Art, looking through the viewfinder. "Do you really want me to answer that question?"

Art continues to try to reason with the man, but he isn't having it. I don't remember much of what was said, all I remember was moving up, and holding Zero by his bandanna, because I knew at any moment Zero could lose it and attack, and I didn't want him to get hurt.

I looked over at Art, he appeared calm, but I could tell that he was nervous by the bead of sweat that dropped down his forehead. "This isn't worth it. We can make this work out best for the both of us."

"ALL I WANT IS YOUR CART, YOUR DOG, AND YOUR GIRL!" The man begins to shake in rage. "I'm getting pretty tired of telling you. I'm not afraid of spending a shell on your sorry ass."

Art takes a step up, as the man repositions the gun. "Put the gun down. We don't have to do this."

"I swear if you don't back up I will put a casing through your fucking head!"

"You do that and all these walkers will be coming after you. Is that going to be worth it then?" Art says, standing his ground.

"I'll take my chances." The man says, motioning Art to step back.

Art takes a step back, gulps, and nods. "So be it. I guess I'll take my chances as well."



Art then rushes the guy, tackling him to the floor as the gun drops, right in front of me. Zero begins to bark as I instinctively pull on his bandanna, keeping him out of it. Art and the man begin to scuffle on the floor. The man punches Art, trying to keep him off of him. Art reaches for the gun as the man continues to punch him in the face. Art looks at me in fear, as if he wants me to help, but I'm too afraid to move. The man gets the gun and gets up, pointing it at Art.

"You should have just walked away, punk." At that very moment a gunshot rings through the air, and I instinctively close my eyes. I open my eyes to see the man fall, shot through the head as he drops his shotgun. Art grabs the gun, gets up, looks at me and says, "We need to go." We start to run out of the store, cart, supplies, and pets with us, rushing out as fast as we can.



*The scene shows Art & Ash fleeing Bass Pro, as a shadowy figure steps out of one of the isles, smoke coming out of the barrel of a gun, as the figure looks over at the man, laying there, shot in the head. The shadowy figure cocks his gun, then starts to walk out of the store.*

*Art & Ash pack everything up into the truck. Ash and Katniss get in the back seats as Zero sits in the front passenger seat. Art pushes a walker off of him and holds the gun up and takes a shot, shooting the walker clean in the head. Art places the baseball bat and the shotgun on the floor in front of Zero's seat, and slams the door shut.*

"What the hell?!" Art says, staring back at me. "Why didn't you grab the gun?" I stare at him, not able to say anything. "We could have died back there, Ash! And you just stood there. I told you, you need to be alert. That was reckless as shit. You could be with that guy right now--"

"Instead of being yelled at by you?" I say, shocked that I was even able to speak those words. "Just shut up, Art. No one asked you to come back for me. No one told you to do any of this. You decided to do this all on your own. So quit yelling at me! We made it out, didn't we?! Now quit wasting time and let's get the hell out of here!"

"And where do you suggest we go?" Art asks. Just as he asks that question a big explosion takes place, setting Bass Pro on fire.

I look over at the store, watching the flames get bigger and hotter. "Take me to my father's," I say to Art, no eye contact being made at all as I continue to stare at the fire.

"Are you serious? That's like 60 miles away. You really think we are going to find anything there?" I start to get up, gathering some things, as Art looks on. "Ash, what are you doing? Sit down."

"If you won't take me I'll go there myself." I start to move towards the front passenger seat.

"No, no you won't." Art says, trying to keep me in the truck. I push his arm away and begin to unlock the door. "You really think you're gonna make it walking there? You really think there is something out there for you to find?"

"I have to go there. I was texting him before the signals all dropped. I promised I'd go." I look at Art, the expression on his face changing as he looks down, then to Zero.

"Alright. Sit down. We'll go," he says, not looking at me at all.


"Lead Me Home" by Jamie N Commons

Art turns the truck on and puts it in drive, as we start to drive away from the fiery scene. Art grabs the walkie, once again trying to reach Jace. "Jace, it's Art again. If you can hear me, we are going to Antioch. Walkie me as soon as you can."

Art looks around, I imagine to see if Jace is around. He sighs, and starts to drive faster. The truck starting to pick up speed as we start getting on the back roads. I want to hang on to hope, but I don't know what we'll find out there, or even if we'll find anything at all. All I know is that I made a promise, and I intend to keep it. At the very least, I'm not doing this alone. And even though I am very much angry at him, part of me is glad he came back. Even if we don't find anything there, at least we'll have each other...right?

*The scene ends with Ash grabbing a Poptart and eating it. Art looks at Ash through the rear-view mirror and smiles, his eye swelling up from the fight. We see the truck hitting the back roads, as we get a shot of Bass Pro burning. The shadowy figure is seen again from behind, watching as the store continues to burn, until he finally walks out of the shot.*

Music From This Episode:

"Lead Me Home"

Jamie N Commons

The Walking Dead (AMC's Original Soundtrack), Vol. 1

Season 01, Episode 04: "Everything Changes"

I don't know if it was the rush of adrenaline, the fear of dying before I could see her again, the fear of her dying before I could see her again, or just plain stupid love, but I knew I needed to get to her...as fast as I could.

*The scene opens with Art's truck screeching to a halt in front of Ash's house. Leaves are everywhere, with walkers a good ten yards away in each direction. Ash's neighbors are seen trying to fight them off, while others aren't as lucky, fallen as their former neighbors and loved ones feast on their lifeless bodies. Art locks up the truck, taking Zero with him.*

I don't know what I expected to see when I got there. The sight of her neighbors fighting off zombies both successfully and unsuccessfully sent a chill down my spine. I knocked on the door, only to hear Ash's screams.

"Ash!" is all I could mutter, realizing that if I yelled any louder the walkers would hear me, making this mission a lot more complicated than I needed it to be. With my baseball bat in hand I started to swing away at the doorknob. A few good swings and a few pieces of metal falling to the ground later and I was in the house in a heartbeat.

"Ash, where are you?" I whispered, trying to find her. Zero was way ahead of me, pushing the door to her room open, scratching at the closet door. I slid the door open to find Ash cowering, crying. I check her for bites or scratches, seeing none. "Let's get out of here," I say, turning around only to have Ash pull me back. Not a word is said, she just looks me in the eyes, then looks out her window. Her stepfather, now a walker, lurking outside of her window. Then I hear a noise inside of the house. Ash's whimpers grow louder as she covers her face. I get up and start to walk out towards the hallway.

"Don't..." is all Ash can say. My baseball bat gripped in my hand, as I start to realize what is going on. I hear tiny dragged footsteps coming towards me from the kitchen. The sound of footsteps on tile, then on wood, dragging along with the distinct sound of walkers breathing. But this time it was different. It wasn't as deep, or as loud; it was paced, and quiet, and meek.

I walked back into the room, closed the blinds so that Ash wouldn't have to see the turned form of her stepfather. I petted Zero, "Stay...both of you," I say, as I look at both Zero and Ash. I slowly closed the door behind me and walked into the hallway.



I knew what was coming, but I didn't want to believe it. I wanted there to be a mistake, or for them to be alright, but as the sunlight shined through the blinds, revealing the dead faces of the two in the kitchen, I realized that what I thought might happen was true.

It was Ash's siblings, a boy and a girl. Bite marks lined their small arms and necks. They had turned, and I knew at that moment that if I hadn't had shown up Ash may have suffered the same fate. The two looked at me, with their lifeless eyes, as I tried to hold my composure. All I could think about were the times I was over here, playing with them. Battleship, watching Spiderman, taking them to the park. I wanted so badly to go back to those times, but unfortunately now, in this world, everything changes. I could hear Zero whining, scratching at the door, as their tiny feet inched them closer to me. My bottom lip quivered as I knew what I had to do next.

I gripped my baseball bat a little tighter, a tear running down my face. "God, forgive me for what I'm about to do." As soon as I muttered those words I could hear Ash scream from her room, a very loud "NOOOOOOO!" as her closet door closed. I took a step forward, baseball bat in hand, wiped the tear from my face, and swung away.


"Serpents (Basement)" by Sharon Van Etten

*The scene quickly changes to Ash's room, Ash in her closet, covering her ears as she screams and cries. The zombie of her stepfather breaks through the window, making his way into the room. He gets his the upper half of his body into the room before Zero starts barking, then jumps and attacks him. Art rushes back in and beats him over the head with his baseball bat as Ash slowly opens the closet door. Ash rushes up to Art and tries to get him to stop, blood splattering all over the both of them. Ash finally pulls Art off of her stepfather, and falls down to the ground crying. Ash's cat, Katniss, walks into the room, Ash grabs the cat and holds her, still crying.*

"We have to go, Ash," is all I can figure to say. "I'm sorry, but we have to go." I look at Zero and motion for him to leave the room. I walk up to Ash and pick her up, holding her hand as we leave the room. "Don't look," I tell her, as we run past the corpses of her once siblings. Ash looks down, seeing their bodies laying on the wooden floor, as she begins to cry. She pulls away from me, and goes to her siblings, holding each of them and crying. "We have to go," I say again, grabbing her hand and pulling her away as gently as possible.

*The scene changes to see Ash, Art, Zero, and Ash's cat, Katniss, getting into the truck, closing the doors and driving away. Ash sits in the back seats of the truck, holding her cat, crying. Zero sits in the front passenger seat, as Art places the baseball bat in front of him. Ash looks at the bat, then back at the house, letting out a loud scream as the two drive away. Ash, covered in the blood of her family, continues to cry and holds Katniss close. Art wipes the blood off of his face, tears running down his eyes as he looks in the rear view mirror to see Ash, as Art thinks these next words in his head:

"I want to believe that it was love that made me do it...but I'm not so sure. All I know is that I needed to see her again. I know I can't do this alone, and now neither can she. We are stuck together. Whatever happened in our past doesn't matter now, because everything has changed. Now it's about where we go from here, and I haven't the faintest idea what the fuck to do now, except to do the one thing I said I was going to do."

*The scene ends with the truck driving away down the road, as the scene pans out to see the truck heading towards Bass Pro Shop.*

Music From This Episode:

 

"Serpents (Basement)"

Sharon Van Etten

Serpents (Basement) [From "The Walking Dead"] Single

Dedicated In Memory Of Liz