sofie!

Rick nudged your shoulder, “When he opens the door stay by me. This is your first run, don’t get cocky.” 

You nodded and held your knife up. Rick finally agreed to let you go on a run with him and Daryl. His excuse was always that you were too young, despite being far older than Carl. You spent the past week learning how to handle walkers and with your recent birthday, Rick couldn’t say no anymore. 

Daryl broke the chain on the door and stepped back as the walkers came rushing out. You grunted as you slammed your knife into the skull of one. When you first started learning how to kill walkers you always had a problem with the knife getting stuck. This time you gripped your knife harder and ripped it out. Rick stepped forward and stabbed the last walker before going into the store.

“Come on,” Daryl waved you forward. 

You stepped over the bodies and followed behind Rick. The store shelves were still stocked full. You grinned at the sight. This amount of food is exactly what the prison needed. 

“Stay cautious,” Rick walked off down an aisle so you went down a different one. 

A group of walkers was huddled together feasting on something on the floor. Since they were distracted you crept forward and stabbed the one closest to you. You pulled your knife out and the body slumped forward. As the second walker turned you quickly stabbed it as well. The third walker continued eating. 

You gagged and stepped back as you realized that the walker was eating a cat. It crawled towards you with the half eaten tail hanging from its mouth. As fast as you could you stabbed it and ripped your knife back. You groaned as you wiped your knife against your pants. 

The shelves were stocked full of food. You slid your bag off your back and began tossing cans inside. Carl had requested that you grab as many canned raviolis as you could so you slid all the cans off the shelf into your bag. A small sound caught your attention. You froze and looked around but when the store continued to stay silent you began to stuff other cans into your bag. This time a clear meow broke the silence of the store. You zipped your bag and slung it over your shoulder as you searched for the noise. Another shrill cry came from behind you.  

A can fell from the shelf and rolled towards your feet. You bent down to pick it up as yet another rolled onto the floor. Whatever was behind the cans obviously wasn't that big, you crouched down and moved the cans. A small orange kitten was stumbling between the cans on the shelf. It hissed when you grabbed it. The kitten was small and its eyes were barely open. You could tell it was just born a few days ago. You realized that the cat the walker had been eating was most likely its mother. 

There was no way you were going to leave it but obviously if you planned to keep a kitten in the prison you'd need to grab some things. You cradled the kitten against your chest as you made your way to the pet aisle. You walked up and down each aisle but you couldn't find what you needed. 

“What, no kitten milk,” you groaned as you rounded the corner of the last pet aisle. “Sorry baby, looks like you're starting on wet food early.” 

You shoved as many cans you could into the little space left in your bag and whatever you could fit into your pockets. 

“Y/N,” Rick’s voice boomed through the store. “We're leaving!” 

“Coming,” you yelled back as you did your best to get the kitten into your jacket.

They both gave you odd looks as you sped past them to the car.

“What's that,” Rick asked as he climbed into the car. 

“What's what,” you asked as you looked around. 

“That thing moving in your jacket.” 

“Uhh, a new toy for Judith,” as you finished the sentence the kitten let out a loud ear piercing screech. Daryl shook his head as Rick glared at you. “It's a kitten.” 

You pulled the wiggling mass from your jacket to show them. It screamed loudly and Rick continued to give you a glare. You gave him a nervous smile. 

“That thing is your responsibility,” Rick grumbled as he turned back around and started the car. 

“Yes!” 

“Mmm it's a little too early to tell the gender. Most orange cats are male though,” Hershel passed the kitten back to you.

“Have you picked out a name,” Carl asked excitedly. He was the first one to notice that you brought back a kitten and nearly combusted at the sight. 

You shook your head, “Not yet.” 

“What about Spider-Man?” 

“Spider-Man,” you chucked as you sat the kitten down. “Maybe not Spider-Man.”

“Carl,” Rick's distant yell caught his attention. He gave you a quick fist bump and took off. 

You watched as the small bundle of fur began trotting away to explore. A list of possible names ran through your head but not a single one you came to felt right. Naming something was never a simple task for you. Even as a child it would take weeks for you to come up with the best name for your newest stuffie. The kitten let out a loud screech as it clawed at your bag. 

“Alright tiger, calm down,” you picked up the tiny tot and grabbed a can of cat food. It continued to scream at you as you ripped open the can. “Hold on you little gremlin.”

The second you sat the can down it stopped screaming and began to scarf down the food. Thankfully you chose the softer food so it was really easy for the kitten to eat. 

“Well, what do we have here?” 

You grinned and jumped up to give Michonne a hug, “Thank goodness you made it back.” 

“Of course I would,” she smiled and crouched down to pet the kitten. “Who's this cutie?” 

“Found it on my run, a walker was munchin’ on its momma when I got there.” 

“Does he have a name?”

“Name is pending, I haven't decided on one yet.” 

“Well if you ever need anything for him, let me know,” she ruffled your hair before walking off to her cell. 

You gently pulled the kitten away from the can. With the way it was eating there was no way it wouldn't try to eat the entire can if you left it there. It screamed and dug its claws into your knuckles. 

“Hey!” 

Raising a kitten was definitely going to be a task. 

“What about Ron?” 

You looked at Daryl, “Ron?”

“Ain’t that the name of the redhead in that book you're always readin’?”

Your jaw dropped, “You read Harry Potter?”

“Nah, you're just always takin’ to me about it. I do actually listen.” 

You looked over to where the kitten was sprinting around the courtyard. It had gotten much a bit bigger now and loved running around outside. Surprisingly it never ran far and would always come back to you when it was time to head inside. 

“Call and see if they'll respond.” 

After saying you couldn't choose a name, Carl decided to start calling out different names to see if the kitten would respond. After Michonne started doing it too, everyone slowly began to do it. For the past few weeks everyone in the prison had been coming up with various names to try. They've suggested everything imaginable. They tried boy names, girl names, names that were gender neutral, names of food, hell they even tried random things like paper. Never once did the kitten ever respond or even show any interest in the name. 

“Ron,” Daryl called out. 

Like you predicted the kitten acted as if it heard nothing and continued its zoomies. You shook your head and turned back to hand Daryl another plank of wood. 

“So you always want to act like you can't stand having a kitten around but you suggest the most names for it and we're sitting outside so you can build it a cat tree,” you chuckled and shook your head. 

“I don't act like I don't like it.” 

“Just this morning you said you hated it.” 

“Damn thing was screaming in my ear this morning!” 

You couldn't deny that the hellion had some lungs on it. The kitten has become the group's natural alarm clock, waking everyone up with its loud hungry cries. This morning however the kitten had decided it wanted to wake Daryl up first. You giggled at the memory of Daryl’s pissed arguing with the screaming creature. 

The sound of a vehicle caught your attention. Michonne and Rick were back from their run. You sprinted off the gate so you could let them in. Daryl grabbed the kitten as Rick drove into the yard. 

“We got more litter,” Michonne said as she got out of the car. “And I grabbed the candy you asked for.” 

“Here,” you barely had a second to catch the bag Rick threw your way. “Picked this up for your baby. It gotta name yet?”

The thing he threw at you was a bag of cat treats. You grinned, “Thanks Rick. Nope, name is still pending.”

The kitten let out a loud yowl and sprinted towards you. You let it crawl up your leg and perch itself on your shoulder. Very early on you learned how agile the kitten was and as much as it loved running, it loved climbing even more. By now it was beyond normal to find the kitten on your shoulder like a parrot. Michonne reached forward to rub the kitten's ears. 

“Here Daryl, we got everything for the tree,” Rick dropped some supplies down at Daryl's feet. 

“Thanks man.” 

“Well, y'all need to finish this tree soon,” Rick said. “I want everyone inside before it gets dark.”

“Yes sir,” you gave him a fake salute before picking up another piece of wood and passing it to Daryl. 

“Oatmeal! Grilled Cheese! Lisa! Carter!” 

The sound of Carol calling out different things woke you. You sighed and rolled over to try and go back to sleep. It had been another two weeks of trying every name possible. You had no hope for them finding a name the kitten would actually respond to. 

“At this point let's just pick his name out for ‘im, he'll learn it anyways,” Daryl chimed in. 

“No,” Carl snapped. “Batman! Robin! Superman! Wonder Woman! Robin!” 

You chuckled and decided to just get up. The slippers Daryl snagged on his latest run were sitting under your bed. He claimed he got them for himself and yet here they were sitting in your cell. You grinned and slipped them on before heading out to the common area. 

The kitten was sitting in the middle of the table. When it noticed you it quickly scampered off the table and towards you. You didn't slow your walk as it climbed up your body. By now you two had gotten so comfortable that the kitten could climb up and down even if you were moving. 

“Nothing stick yet?”

Carl shook his head, “No we've been trying all morning, we even made a list” 

You just chucked as you scooped some of the oatmeal from the pot. The kitten was stubborn, it knew the name game by now. Everytime they started up the call out, it was suddenly so interested in the most random things. 

“Eventually we'll find it.” 

“Hershel said it's been enough time,” Carol interjected. 

Not a single word was said as you slung your bowl onto the table and sprinted off to Hershel's cell. He was sitting on his bed, reading the bible. You paused at this door and knocked on the wall. When he looked up and you gave him a quick smile. 

“You can come in,” he closed the book and sat it down. “I assume you wanna know the gender?” 

You nodded and handed the kitten to him. It let out a quick meow as Hershel lifted its tail up to look. You grimaced at the thought of how it must feel to have something hold you up and look at your junk. 

“It appears that she's a girl and she's a great size for how old she is.”

“Oh awesome,” you sat her down on the floor and she darted off. “Thanks Hershel.”

He nodded and went back to reading. You left his cell and went back to the table to finish your breakfast. During dinner Rick had asked you to join on the run he and Michonne planned for today. You wanted to try and at least eat half the bowl before Rick called for you. 

“Y/N,” Carl called. “Have you seen my hat?” 

“Not since it was on your head this morning,” you said as you turned to face him. “How'd you lose it?” 

He frowned, “I left it on the table while I was changing.” 

You shrugged, “Sorry buddy I haven't seen it.” 

He nodded, “Oh hey, what did Hershel say?” 

“She's a girl.” 

“Dang it, I was gonna try Bruce Wayne.” 

You snorted as you looked around, “Hey, can you see the kitten anywhere?” 

With the way the block was set up you could always look around and find her unless she was in a cell. However when she ran from Hershel's cell she took off towards the common area. You searched around all her usual hangout spots but she was nowhere to be found. 

“So we lost my hat and the cat.” 

The sound of the door opening caught your attention and you spun to see Maggie and Glenn coming back inside. Maggie's face lit up when she noticed you. 

“Has the kitten gotten its name yet?” 

“Uh no, we're actually looking for her right now. Name is still pending.” 

A loud cry cut through Maggie's next word. Carl sprinted off towards the sound with you close behind him. The sound came from upstairs, you laughed as Carl booked it up the stairs. He always made it a race to who could get up the stairs first. On the second story Carl's hat laid in the middle of the walkway. 

“How'd it get up here,” he questioned as grabbed his hat, exposing the kitten who was curled up under his hat. She yawned and stretched before sprinting back up your leg.

"There's your answer."   

“Y/N!” 

“Crap I gotta go,” you gave Carl a quick fist bump before sprinting back down the stairs. “I'm coming, Rick!” 

“Do you really think it's a good idea to bring her?” 

You glanced at Rick, “She deserves to get out of the prison too. She won't get in the way, I promise.” 

He didn't reply, just pulled up to the store he and Michonne had found. It was much bigger and seemed to be one of those huge “we sell everything” stores. You slipped your backpack on and waited until the kitten was in her usual spot on your shoulder before following Michonne to the door. 

“Still no name?” 

You shook your head. She just nodded and stroked the kitten's head as Rick grabbed the bolt cutters. 

“Alright, just cause the door is chained shut doesn't mean there ain't walkers in there,” Rick pointed at you. “Stay careful.” 

He always made sure to specifically tell you to stay safe, despite you having been on twelve runs by now. You simply nodded and stepped back as he and Michonne banged on the doors. It was definitely smarter to kill the walkers at the door but you hated waiting for them to come up. When you could hear their low growls you pulled your knife out and readied yourself as Rick cut the chain. 

The doors burst open and two walkers stepped out, they were dressed in uniforms with the store logo embroidered on their chest. Michonne sliced through their heads and their bodies crumpled to the ground with a thud. Rick stepped through the door and looked around before he waved you both in. 

“Now is a good time to grab some clothes, food, and anything else you see that'll be good for the prison. If you get in trouble just scream for us,” Michonne passed you an empty duffle bag. 

“Thanks,” you took the bag and split off towards the clothes. 

New clothes were a luxury in the apocalypse so you did your best to find something for everyone. While you did your best to grab things that would be protective you also decided to grab some things that actually looked nice. Finding something for Daryl was the hardest out of everyone. You folded a few shirts and pants you thought he'd like and tucked them into the bag. 

“Alright kitten, I think we got a good clothing haul.” 

The kitten screeched as a hand reached out to you and you stumbled back as a walker suddenly came through the racks of clothes. Three more appeared, trapping you between them all. One snarled and reached for you. You tried to run but something caught your ankle and you hit the ground. Another walker had grabbed you from the ground, its back half was nothing but a bloody mess. You screamed and kicked it away but the others began to close in on you. 

“Run,” you screamed to the kitten as a walker began to swipe at it. 

As the kitten sprinted away you screamed, pulling the attention back to you. You scrambled away enough so you could get back up on your feet. 

“Y/N!” 

Rick's distant yell caught your attention, “Rick hel-” 

You were cut off as the walker grabbed your shirt, tearing the fabric and pulling you back to him. It was truly shocking how strong they could be. Another of the group grabbed your arm and you did your best to fight them off but between the two of them it was helpless. 

Suddenly a blur of orange came rushing past your head and launched itself at the walker holding your shirt. The kitten had come back and was now yowling as it dug into the walker's face. It let your shirt go and reached up towards her. Quickly you punched the other walker holding your arm and ripped yourself from its grip. It was no longer about your survival anymore, you had to protect the kitten.

The kitten screamed as the walker grabbed it. Fear burned through your body as you grabbed the walker. You fought the walker's grip and freed the kitten. With your knife laying somewhere on the ground you had no weapon and no way to protect yourself as the other walkers began to grab at you again. You wailed as you watched another walker take after the kitten. 

“Help,” you screamed as you tried your best to fight their grip. Michonne's sword suddenly sliced through the walker's arm and Rick pulled you away. “No! Find the kitten!” 

You tried your best to break Rick's grip on you but he held you tight. 

“We'll find her in a second, I need to make sure you don't get bit or scratched,” his words felt like ice water, you froze as he began to check over your body. “You're okay. Hey, look at me. We'll find her.” 

“A walker was chasing her,” your voice felt hollow. “What if it got her?” 

A faint distant meow caught your attention, Rick didn't even have a second to process as you pushed him away and sprinted off towards the sound. 

“Kitten!” 

You stopped to try and listen but there was nothing. Your stomach churned as you imagined the walker with the half eaten tail dangling from its mouth. The kitten began to shriek and you took off towards the sound. Suddenly her cries died and you ran as fast as you could. Sickening images filled your head as you ran. You found the walker stumbling down an aisle but the kitten was nowhere to be seen. 

“Did you eat my kitten,” you almost couldn't breathe as you asked. The walker turned and began to stumble towards you. “DID YOU EAT MY KITTEN!”

Rage boiled through your veins as the walker continued towards you. It didn't answer and you knew it couldn't but its silence only fed the fire. She was nowhere to be seen and you couldn't tell if the blood around its mouth was fresh or old. You yelled as you punched it in the face. It collapsed and you straddled it, your hands shook as you continued to punch it with all the force you could muster.

“Where's my kitten? Where's my kitten! WHERE'S MY KITTEN!?”

You beat the walker until it's face was mush. If it did eat the kitten, you wanted to make sure. You searched the walker's pants for something you could cut it open with. A box cutter was tucked into the front pockets. 

“What are you doing?"

“I need to know if he ate my kitten,” you sniffled and wiped your face as you answered Michonne. The box cutter slid through the walker's skin with ease. You gagged and sobbed as you slipped your hand into its slimy insides. “Please kitten.” 

When you found the stomach you pulled it out and used the box cutter to open it up. The smell made you retch. You covered your nose as Michonne checked its contents. 

“Don't worry, no kitten.” 

You sighed, “No kitten.” 

“We'll find her I promise.” 

“How,” you shook your head. “She's not responding. She's probably terrified. She doesn't have a name. How do I-” 

You stopped yourself as you thought about it. She did have a name, the one word she always responded to and always came. You laughed as you realized that she had chosen her name. 

“Pending!” 

Just as you expected a loud yowl echoed through the store. You cried in relief as you stood up. Michonne gave you a questioning look but you just grabbed her hand. 

“Pending!” 

Another loud cry came and you dragged Michonne towards the sound. She finally caught on and began to call for Pending as well. You both rounded the corner of the final aisle but no kitten in sight. 

“Pending,” your voice wobbled as you called out for her again. This time a softer meow came from behind the cans. You sobbed and pushed the cans away. “Hi baby.” 

The relief made your legs feel like Jell-O. She purred as you picked her up and cradled her against your chest. 

“Oh my god, y'all are fast,” Rick panted as he sprinted around the corner. “Why the hell were y'all yelling pending?” 

You chuckled as she chirped and climbed back up to her spot on your shoulder. 

“Her name is Pending.”