THE PRISONERS had agreed to clear out there own cell block and to keep their distance from Rick's group. Keeping their distance would avoid the risk of violence and attempt at keeping the peace for both groups. Meanwhile, Hershel was still passed out in his cell, though Carol had stopped the bleeding and he didn't have a fever. Despite the good news, Missy knew that everybody was afraid of the unspeakable— what if Hershel turned into a Walker? Missy didn't even want to think about it, though her mind haunted her with the thought constantly. For safety, she decided to keep her gun in her pocket.

"Wanna do somethin'?" Missy asked Carl, lowering her voice as she approached the boy.

"Like what?" Carl questioned, keeping his eyes on Hershel.

"Well, his leg's ain't gonna get better without bandages." Missy prompted, and Carl looked at her with a knowing smile on his face.

The two kids snuck out of the cell block, attempting to find the infirmary. The hallways were dark and smelt of rotting flesh, though they both had stolen a knife from Daryl's bag to make their killings quiet. They didn't want to shoot their guns to attract more Walkers, so any dangers they faced, they planned to use sharp daggers.

Missy and Carl both aimed their flashlights at their surroundings, creeping cautiously through the hallways. Missy didn't imagine a prison to be this confusing, with pathways winding around each other, though she realised that the darkness probably didn't help with her sense of direction.

"This way." Carl whispered, gesturing for Missy to follow him up a set of stairs.

"Carl?" Missy spoke quietly, as the two continued to walk silently, "Do you have a crush on Beth?"

"No! I mean, no." Carl said quickly, trying to remain calm, "Why'd you ask? Did she say something about me?"

"No— just wondered." Missy explained casually, "You act weird around her."

"No, I don't." Carl defended quickly, "Beth's my friend. She's our friend. But... I don't know, we've just got closer now because you... you don't play cards with us anymore."

Missy scoffed sarcastically, "So it's my fault that you have a crush on her?"

"I don't..." Carl lowered his voice, "Fine, Beth's pretty. Really pretty. But... I..."

"You love her!" Missy teased with a chuckle. She cooed, "Awh! Carl!"

"Shut up!" Carl flushed a bright red, shining his flashlight in Missy's face as he nudged her playfully. He warned, "If you tell her, you're Walker-bait."

"Ew, Carl! That's disgustin'." Missy pulled a face with a laugh, "Stop aimin' that light in my damn face."

Carl laughed, continuing their quiet walk before turning to glance at the girl with a soft smile, "You know, I haven't heard you laugh in ages."
Missy wasn't quite sure what to say. Suddenly, the flashlight beam in front of her became very interesting.
Carl added, "Do you miss him? I do."

"Yeah, a lot." Missy replied hoarsely, swallowing the burning lump in her throat. She also still hated her Dad. It was a weird mixture of feelings.

"Mom told me not to talk to you about it. In case... I don't know, you freaked out again." Carl explained calmly, "But, you're my best friend. I feel like we should talk about it... if you wanted."

Missy nodded, "There's nothin' to say. I'm just... tryin' to move on."

"You don't have to do that alone, though." Carl replied optimistically, "You can do that with me."

"Thanks, Carl." Missy smiled at him. Her eyes caught a glimpse of a sign on a closed door, stopping her in her tracks. She read the sign aloud, "In... infirmary. Carl, look!"

"Yes!" Carl cheered, before slowly opening the creaking door. Inside, the shelves were filled with bandages, bottles of different medicines, and lots of things that Missy didn't know the name of. The creaking of the door must've caught the attention of something because Missy heard a distant gurgle. She looked at Carl, and the boy nodded in approval.

Missy walked inside, lowering her flashlight and holding the large knife in her hands. She separated from Carl because, from the sounds of the low growls, there seemed to be two Walkers inhabiting this space.
One kill each.

Missy crept around the shelves, squinting through the gloom of the room. She looked at the nearby Walker, who was heading towards the door. The girl waited for the Walker to pass her before creeping up behind it and using her knife to stab it into the back of its head. The Walker screeched, as Missy ripped the weapon out of its skull. She plunged the knife into its head again and again. Soon, the Walker collapsed to the floor and Missy retrieved the weapon from its oozing brain; she had gotten used to the smell of rotting flesh over the months.

"You okay?" Missy asked, and the boy appeared at the end of the aisle with a huge smile of pride on his face.

Carl was successful in his kill, too. He joined Missy in cleaning the shelves of supplies and stuffing everything they could find inside of an empty duffel bag that Carl had brought on their journey to find the infirmary.

The way back to the cell block was peaceful, and the two kids couldn't stop gloating about their achievements. Carl had repeated his story about how he killed the Walker a hundred times, before Missy continuously shared hers.

When they arrived safely, Glenn's eyes narrowed at the two kids, questioning curiously, "Thought you were organising the food."

"Even better." Carl smiled proudly, before entering Hershel's crowded cell.

Missy dropped the bag down, unzipping it to reveal the multiple bandages and medicines, "Check it. Cool, right?"

Carol gasped in relief, immediately pulling out a few rolls of white bandages for the man's leg, "Where did you get this?"

"Found the infirmary." Carl nodded excitedly, "Wasn't much left, but we cleared it out. Right, Missy?"

"Yeah," Missy smiled, but it quickly faded when she saw the expression on Maggie and Lori's faces.

"You went by yourselves? Are you both crazy?" Lori questioned in shock, and the tone of disappointment in her voice caused Missy's body to tense up. The same tone that Shane used when he was angry at her. Then, he would ignore her and purposefully spend time with Carl to make her jealous. Missy felt her heart drop, and suddenly she felt the familiar feeling to protect herself. To justify her actions.

"We didn't do anythin' wrong." Missy defended quickly, "We killed two Walkers. Lori, it was fine—"

"Okay, do you see this?" Lori shot back sternly, gesturing to Hershel, "This was with the whole group."

"We needed supplies, so we got them!" Carl retorted, raising his voice slightly.

Lori argued, "I appreciate that, but—"

"Then get off my back!" Carl snapped.

"Carl!" Beth cut in, "She's your mother, you can't talk to her like that." And, with that, Carl was running out of the cell. Missy watched the boy leave, her chest heaving from the rise of voices in the cell. Arguing reminded Missy of her Dad, and she couldn't shake the feeling of having to defend herself. The anxiety of it.

Lori took a breath, "Listen, I think it's great that you wanna help, but... Missy, what you both did was dangerous. Do you understand that?"

"We killed Walkers." Missy defended, "We came back! I still have my leg, don't I?" She gestured to Hershel, though maybe that was a mistake because everyone's expressions dropped.

"Hey!" Lori raised her voice at her sarcastic remark. She shook her head warningly, before scolding, "You don't say things like that, Missy."

"Why not?" The girl argued, "I ain't a baby! I can do things."

"Nobody's sayin' you can't, Missy." Maggie joined in, "Just... it's dangerous out there. Ya could've asked me to come with you."

"Hey," Glenn added, "Or me. It's safer that way."

Missy's mind couldn't hear the soft voices around her over the drumming of her heart. She didn't know why she felt so panicked, but her body was reacting in a way that made her palms sweat anxiously. The girl frowned, "Stop gangin' up on me."

"Nobody's ganging up on you, Missy." And the gentle tone of Lori's voice made the girl feel like she was going crazy. She felt like the cell walls were closing in on her. She needed to leave now, because Missy's heart was beginning to hurt again. Lori instantly noticed the overwhelmed expression on the girl's face; her voice was soft, "Hey, Missy, look at me."

"Just— leave me alone!" The girl shot back, nudging passed Glenn as she escaped the small cell. Panting heavily, the girl rushed up the metal set of stairs towards her own cell. Inside, she found Carl sitting on his bottom bunk, glancing up at her in confusion. She ignored the calls which shouted her name from downstairs, as she chucked herself onto her bed. Missy curled herself up into a ball, holding her heart as if it was actively shattering inside of her.

"Are you okay?" Carl's voice asked softly from below.

Missy sobbed heavily, trying to keep quiet because she knew Carl was below her. The more she tried to suppress it, the more it hurt. Her throat was sore, her eyes were streaming with tears, and she felt detached from herself, as if the world wasn't real. Missy wished she could wake up from this nightmare where she was falling apart. She grieved for her Father... but also for the girl she once was.