Though the meaning of 'traipse' is to "walk reluctantly", when I envision the word and someone "traipsing along", I envision a light gallop or a jolly walk. That's just me though.
(but isn't that onomatopoeia)
yes, but the best writing not only communicates what you want literally, but the sound should ideally match up too, gg writing a love poem in black speech for instance
If I had to write someone walking nervously, I'd try and get the language to be slower, draw out the sentence more, and use words such as "trepid" or "cautious" - if you really want to make the writing ooze that this person does not belong in a society.
Especially in a short story, where words are at a premium, your word choice has to be very well done - almost like poetry.