pollyspin

[topazy]

Tomorrow’s promise

Paring: Shane Walsh x reader, Rick Grimes x sister reader

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of blood

Chapter: 2.01

You watch as Shane inspects a gun that belongs to Andrea, occasionally looking away from it to glance at Jace, who is secured to his chest. The thought of Jace so close to a weapon should make you unnerved, but because Shane was on the other end, it didn’t. It helped you sleep at night knowing your son had a dad and an uncle who’d do anything for him.

You bit your bottom lip so you wouldn’t wince when you shifted your leg, which was still painful from cutting it. You were sitting on a chair with your leg resting up on another, and despite your best efforts to hide the pain you were feeling, it hadn’t gone unnoticed. Daryl had given you a few painkillers from his brother's stash.

“Looks complicated,” Andrea says, watching him take the gun apart.

The interest in Shane’s eyes was obvious. “The trick is getting all these pieces back together the same way. I could clean yours, show you how. Oh yeah. It's a sweet piece.”

The blonde smiled. “It was a gift from my father. He gave it to me just before Amy and I took off on our road trip. He said two girls on their own should be able to defend themselves.”

“Your father is a wise man. Soon as Jacey here is old enough, I’m going to teach him how to defend himself, just like I taught his mama,” he says before gently kissing the top of your baby's head.

Andrea looks back at you, just as your eyes roll at the memory. “He taught you to defend yourself, that’s sweet.”

“It was our second date,” you laugh.

She looks back at Shane, who’s trying not to smirk. “You took someone you were trying to impress to a shooting range?”

“Yeah.”

She looks back at you. “I thought you would have known how anyway, since your brother was a sheriff.”

Shane ignores her and continues to talk about the gun. “Look, it's a limited capacity. See? only holds seven rounds.”

Suddenly, the RV comes to a halt. Both Dale and Glenn get out and take a look at the front of the vehicle. You get out of the RV last, and the moment you do, Carl runs to you with a cheeky smile on his face. He leans against you as you playfully ruffle his hair while looking around. The RV had broken down in what looked like a graveyard of abandoned vehicles.

“What’s going on?” You ask as Glenn and Dale look under the popped hood.

“Oh, just a small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere, with no hope of—” Dale says sarcastically before cutting himself off. “Okay, that was dumb.”

Shane takes a look and says, “I can’t find a radiator hose here.”

Daryl scoffs, “There’s a whole bunch of stuff we can’t find.”

It's been decided that your group will split up to look for supplies in the abandoned cars.

“Come on, y’all. Look around; gather what you can.” Shane says addressing everyone.

“Jace?”

“I’ve got him,” he says softly. He senses your hesitation and sighs, taking your hand in his. “He’s fine, I promise I won’t let anything happen to him. You just concentrate on not catching your limbs on anything sharp. Be safe, baby, and watch out for walkers.”

—

Searching abandoned cars and vans should have been easy, but of course, the process doesn't go as smoothly as you'd all hoped. As T-Dog places his hand on your back, quietly ushering you along as walkers slowly walk in your direction. Your stomach drops, forming a heavy pit as you think of Jace.

“Ahh shit,” he hissed.

You turn to see him slicing his arm on a broken window and bleeding profusely. You rip the bottom of your shirt and wrap it around his arm.

Delirious from the sight of his blood loss, you struggled to hold T-dog upright, but luckily, Daryl appeared beside you. “Quick, get under the car.”

You drop to the ground and roll under a car while Daryl places a dead body on top of T-Dog, then does the same to himself just in time as the dead walk by. You clamp your hand over your mouth to keep yourself quiet. Your body shook with fear as you thought about your son. You internally prayed to God or whoever would listen that he was safe.

—

When the horde has passed, you get up and assist T-Dog to his feet. You put his good arm over your shoulder and said, “Let’s get you back to the others.”

You walked mainly in silence, watching Daryl curiously. His sleek movements while looking for danger made it seem like he’d been living in an apocalypse all his life.

“How does hiding under dead bodies keep walkers from noticing you?” You ask, distracting yourself from the fear of what you might find in a few moments time.

He looks over his shoulder at you, and he almost seems amused by your question. “The rotten bodies hide your scent.”

When you reach the RV, Andrea and Dale rush over to help T-Dog, who’s in bad shape, while Shane rushes to your side. You're relieved to see that he and Jace are both fine. His eyes widen with worry as they trace over you, soaking up the blood. “Lily,” he says in a low voice. “Are you hurt?”

“No, it's T-Dogs blood,” you say as you look around and notice your brother isn't there. “Where’s Rick?”

Shane clenches his jaw and says, “You should change your shirt.”

—

The last few hours had been tense as you waited for news on Sophia. Carol's daughter had gotten scared by the walker horde; your brother went after her but lost her while luring two walkers away. He came back to get help, and Shane, Glenn, and Daryl left to help him search for her. The only positive was that you managed to clean and cover up T-doggy cuts the best you could with what little medical supplies you had.

“He doesn’t cry much.”

You turn to see Dale standing behind you as you lay Jace down on some blankets inside the RV. “Oh, he does. Jace just likes to pick his moments.”

Dale nods his head, giving you a forced smile. “I know, I’ve heard him cry when he’s hungry, tierd or needing changed.”

“But?” You know by the look on his face that he’s holding back.

“I’ve noticed he doesn’t react much to loud noises.”

You frown and ask, “What are you getting at?”

Dale goes to answer you but closes his mouth again when he sees Glenn and Shane return through the small window. He leaves the vehicle just as Jace wakes up fussing, the noise he makes indicating he is hungry.

Dale doesn’t know what he's talking about.

—

You step out of the RV mid-conversation.

“It can't be soon enough for me,” Andrea says. “I'm still freaked out from that herd that passed us by, or whatever you'd call it.”

Glenn nods in agreement and says, “Yeah, what was that? All of them are just marching along like that.”

Shane steps closer to you and places his hand on your back before addressing the rest of the group. “A herd. That sounds about right. We've seen it. It's like the night camp got attacked. There are a few wandering packs. Okay. Come on, people. We still have a lot of work to do. Let's stay on it. Let's go, come on.”

Once everyone else had walked away, you turned to Shane and whispered. “What’s really going on?”

“You've got to keep them busy and focused on a task. Dale fixes the RV, we start moving these cars and clear a path.”

“You don't think we will find Sophia, do you?”

He shakes his head.

—

“Hey, I know what will make you feel better.”

Your brother sighs while rubbing at his forehead, “Yeah?”

You stretch out your arms, signaling for him to take the baby in your arms. Which he does happily, talking to him in a baby voice. “I remember when Carl was this size. He grew up so fast.”

Rick looked defeated when he returned without Sophia. He’d even cut open a walker to check its insides to see if it had eaten her; he blamed himself for what happened. You look in the opposite direction to see Lori trying to comfort Carl. Poor kid. He looked terrified. It was going to be a long night waiting till morning to resume searching for the young girl.

“I don’t know what’s going on between you and Lori, but I imagine things are going to get worse before they get better, and we are going to need each other.”

Again, you felt your heart harden with rage towards Shane and Lori, because you knew if your brother ever found out, it would tear him apart. With his free hand, Rick pulls a gun from his holster and hands it out to you. “This stays between us. I want to know you're safe at all times.”

You take it from him, nodding in thanks, knowing that if the others saw it, they wouldn’t be happy since Dale was keeping a hold of the guns. “Thank you,” you say as you double-check the safety before slipping it between your waistband and belt and hiding it beneath your long shirt. “Here’s hoping I never need to use it.”

—

You roll your eyes as Andrea argues with Dale about her not having a weapon. Personally, you thought she was far too emotional to handle it, but you remained silent, knowing that all the arguing was wasting time.

“Aunt Lily,” Carl gets your attention as you cross the barrier that heads toward the woods Sophia had run into.

“Yeah?”

“My dad says I can come too, so I need to stay close.”

“Well, I feel much better now that you're beside me, munchkin,” you say as you wrap your arm around his shoulder. “But you gotta stay beside your mom and dad so they don’t panic, okay?”

“I will,” he says, nodding. “Why isn’t Jace staying with T-Dog and Dale?”

“Because he’s safest with me, now let’s go. We don’t want to get left behind.”

Out of the corner of your eye, you notice Daryl staring in your direction, but when you look at him, he quickly marches on ahead.

—

The group walks in single file through the woods, everyone keeping an eye out for any sign of the young girl. You notice Carl walking by you to talk to Shane, who was at the end of the line. “Look, Shane,” Carl says, holding up a pocket knife. “Dad said I could carry it, and mom said as long as I was—”

“Keep it down. We're looking for Sophia. You need to focus on the task,” he snaps, making the young boys' faces fall.

“Carl, go keep up with your mom,” you say as you place a hand on Shane's chest to block his path. “I don’t know what’s gotten into you today, but cut it out. He's just a kid.”

He shakes his head and says, “That kid? He needs to toughen up. I love him like our own, but it’s the truth.”

You shake your head, not wanting to hear whatever he is about to say. You continue to walk in silence until Rick signals to stop when he reaches a tent.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t inside. It was just the remains of a man who killed himself.

You try to comfort Carol as best you can; you've only been a mom for a short time, but you can’t imagine anything worse than losing your kid. “Did you hear that?”

“No, wha-” Glenn shakes his head.

“Shh,” you cut him off. “There it is again. It sounds like bells.”

“It’s church bells,” Andrea says, in agreement “It could be Sophia or someone who’s found her.”

—

Shane shakes his head as you walk out of the church. “I'm telling you, it's the wrong church. It's got no steeple, Rick. There's no steeple.”

There was no sign of Sophia inside the church, which only had walkers inside. Feeling the heat, you walk around to the other side of the church to stand in the shade. You stand observing your surroundings for a few moments before unintentionally listening in on a conversation. You slowly look around the edge of the church to see Lori following Shane.

“Are you really leaving?” she asks.

“Don't you think it's best for all of us?”

“I think it is. What made you decide?”

You blink a few times to make sure you aren’t hallucinating the sight in front of you. But it’s real, and you feel sick watching your fiancé talk to a woman who now makes your skin crawl.

“I'm just trying to be the good guy here, Lori, and I just want to do what’s best for my family. What happened between us was a mistake and never should have happened.”

She walks towards him, pointing her arm in the direction of the church. “You're just gonna disappear? You're not even gonna tell Rick?”

“He'd only try to stop me. No, that's on you. You tell him what you want. Or tell him nothing at all. You're his wife.”

“And Lily? She’s happy to go along with this idea.”

He rubs his chin and says, “She doesn’t know we’re leaving yet.”

“Are you insane?” She hisses. “You really think she’ll just take the baby and go with you? And what about Carl?”

“Don’t, I love Carl. I'm trying to put this behind me. I'm attempting to make our lives easier. This ain't easy on any of us, least of all me. I'm the one who loses his family when Rick finds out.”

“This isn’t just about you. Rick would-”

“Rick would forgive you!” He yells. Fortunately for him, no one else was outside to hear him. “Rick would forgive you, he’d do anything to keep you, Carl, and him together. But Lily? If Rick found out what we did, he wouldn’t be able to be around me, so she’d need to choose. And I doubt she'd choose me... which is why we need to leave before things get out of hand.”

Not wanting to hear anymore, you storm forward and grab Shane by the wrist, pulling him behind you and away from Lori. “Let me make one thing clear,we’re not leaving. I am not leaving my brother or nephew, and you are not leaving either.”

“Wait just a minute—”

“One of the reasons I fell in love with you is because of how protective you are, so I know you think you're doing what’s right.” You cup his face in your hands, “but you're wrong. I'm not leaving them, so if you really want to go, then it’s going to be on your own.”

He looks hurt by your words. “I’d never leave without you and Jace.”

Your conversation is cut short when the others join you. You watch nervously as Rick and Shane walk off to have a conversation in private. You assumed they would be talking about Sophia where her mom couldn’t hear.

—

Reluctantly, the group split into two. Shane and Rick kept searching for Sophia, and Carl went with them while the rest of you headed back to the RV.

The walk back was filled with uncomfortable sighs and glances, mainly from Andrea, who was walking ahead but kept glaring back at you and Lori. Finally you have enough and snap, “Whatever you want to say, just say it.”

Her response is immediate. “I think it’s bullshit that we can’t defend ourselves properly, especially since we’ve now got a ticking time bomb with us.”

You follow her line of sight to the baby strapped to your chest, and anger boils inside you. “Excuse me?”

“Keeping the kid with you is selfish. You should have left-”

“Knock it off!” Daryl barks at her. “Unlike you, the kid causes no problems and makes a helluva lot less noise. So I suggest you shut the hell up and keep walking.”

Andrea scoffs and walks on ahead. You supposed you could chalk all the dirty looks and comments down to the blonde having a genuine fear that a crying baby could possibly bring a horde, but you had a feeling there was more to her sudden issue with you.

“So this is it?" This is the whole plan?” Carol asks, sitting down on a fallen tree.

Daryl shrugs. “I guess the plan is to whittle us down into smaller and smaller groups.”

Andrea directs her gaze at Lori, “carrying knives and pointy sticks. I see you have a gun.”

“Why, you want it? Here, take it. I'm sick of the looks you're giving me.” She hands Andrea the gun before facing Carol. “Honey, I can't imagine what you're going through. and I would do anything to stop it. But you have got to stop blaming Rick. It is in your face every time you look at him. When Sophia ran, he didn't hesitate, did he? Not for a second. I don't know that any of us would have gone after her the way he did or made the hard decisions that he had to make, or that anybody could have done it any differently.” She takes a sip of her water before looking at the rest of the small group. “Anybody? Y'all look to him, and then you blame him when he's not perfect. If you think you can do this without him, go right ahead. Nobody is stopping you.”

Andrea hands the gun back to Lori and says, “We should keep moving.”

You walk at the back of the group alone until Daryl slows his pace and walks beside you, talking low enough that only you can hear him. “It’s probably best if you keep the fact that you have a gun to yourself.”

You look down to see your gun is still hidden by your clothing. “How did you know I have one?”

Daryl raises his brows and chews on what looks like a bug, then walks ahead without saying a word.

[maddiehu7]

Apocalyptic | Daryl Dixon |

Chapter 3

"Hey you alive in there?" The voice questions I pick up the radio quickly

"Hello? hello?" I ask urgently

"There you are you had me wondering" the man says relived

"Where are you? Outside? Can you see us right now?" Rick says grabbing the radio from me

"Yeah I can see you, your surround by walkers, that's the bad news" the radio cackles

"There's good news?" Rick says back

"No"

"Well that's great" I sigh out

"listen whoever you are I don't mind telling you we're a little concerned in here" ricks says getting agitated

"Oh man, you should see it from here you'd be having a major freak out" the man over the radio says, that's helpful i think to myself rolling my eyes

"Got any advice for us?" He questions hopelessly

"Yeah, I'd say make a run for it" he says I grab the radio angrily

"That's it? Make a run for it?" I grit out

"My ways not as dumb as it sounds you've got eyes on the outside here, there's one geek still up on the tank but the others have climbed down and joined the feasting frenzy where the horse went down, you with me so far?" He asks

"So far" I say back

"Okay the street on the other side of the tank is less crowded, if you move now well there distracted you stand a chance, got ammo?" He questions

"In that duffel bag I dropped out there and guns can I get it?" I reply back

"Forget the bag ok? It's not an option what do you have on you?" He asks

"Hang on" I drop the radio going to grab the gun Rick got from the army dude checking its clip theres only 15 rounds...shit I sigh going to check the army man's body when I find a Grenade oh hell yeah I think handing it to Rick going back over to the radio picking it up

"I've got a Beretta with one clip, 15 rounds" I say worriedly

"Make em count, jump off the right side of the tank keep going in that direction, there's an alley up the street maybe 50 yards be there." The man says back

"Hey what's your name?" I ask curiously

"Have you been listening? Your running out of time" he says rushed, right I think to myself I let go of the radio looking over at Rick

"You ready?" I say looking at him nervously

"As ready as I can be" he says also nervous I grab a baseball bat and give Rick the gun sense he's worse at killing walkers I go to open the top of the tank I take a deep breathe before pushing it open I look out and see the walker at the top swinging at it making it fall to the ground I push myself out looking back to make sure Rick gets out, we head down the tank jumping off at the bottom I immediately jump into action swinging at walkers rick shooting them, we're heading down the street when I go to swing at someone in an alley

"Not dead! Come on! come on!" I stop mid swing running down the alley with him Rick trailing behind watching our backs

"Come on!" The man says climbing up a ladder i go up first rick still shooting

"What are you doing come on!" I say looking down at Rick he runs out of ammo throwing the gun starting to climb once we get halfway we take a break I look Down seeing how many walkers there are

"Holy shit" I sigh out of breath

"Nice moves there Clint Eastwood" the man says looking at me I smirk

"You the new sherif riding in to clean the town up?" The man asks Rick I huff a chuckle out

"It wasn't my intention" Rick says out of breath

"Yeah whatever yeehaw, your still dumbasses" the man says rolling his eyes

"Rick, Alex, thanks " rick pants out going to shake the man's hand

"Glenn, your welcome" he says shaking ricks hand

"Uh guys pause the love fest for a second" I say pointing towards the walkers starting to climb Glenn goes to the ladder looking how far up it is

"Bright side, it'll be the fall that kills us" he says looking at me

"What a nice bright side" I say smiling sarcastically Glenn smiles back as we all start to climb. After what feels like forever we get to the top walking over a board to the next building over

"Are you the one that barricaded the alley?" Rick asks

"Somebody did-I guess when the city got overrun, whoever did it was thinking not many geeks would get through" Glenn says as we start to run over to a ladder down into a building Glenn opens the top throwing his backpack into it

"Back at the tank, why'd you stick your neck out for us?" I say looking at him suspiciously considering we still only just meant

"Call it foolish, naive hope that if I'm ever that far up shit creek somebody might do the same for me, guess I'm an even bigger dumbass than you guys" he says climbing down the ladder I look down smirking and start to climb down, when we get to the bottom we run through a exit climbing down some stairs

"I'm back, got two guests plus four geeks in the alley" Glenn says into a walki-talki we reach the bottom of the stairs to see walkers roaming  I start to panic when some people with bats come out killing them

"Let's go!" Glenn shouts me and Rick running after him into a metal door

"Morales let's go!" Glenn shouts looking back at the man in amour with a bat swinging at the walker, he runs over closing the door swiftly

"You son of a bitches we outta kill you" I look up to see a gun pointed at me and Rick by some blonde lady

"Just chill out Andrea, back off" Glenn says trying to diffuse the situation

"Come on ease up" morales says taking off his armor

"Ease up? Your kidding me, right? We're dead becuase of these stupid assholes" Andrea says angrily

"Andrea, I said back the hell off" morales saying coming up to her she thinks for a moment before dropping the gun starting to tear up

"We're dead-all of us becuase of you guys" she says frustrated

"I don't understand" Rick says confused

"Look, we came into the city to scavenge supplies you know what the key to scavenging is? Surviving! You know the key to surviving? Sneaking in and out, tiptoeing not shooting up the streets like it's the o.k. Corral" morales says pushing us into a hall way leading us into a department store shoving us towards the windows

"Every geek for miles around heard you popping off rounds" he says gesturing to the hoard of walkers outside

"You just rang the dinner bell" Andrea adds

"Get the picture now?" Morales asks annoyed I look at the window scared seeing the glass start to crack under there weight but then one grabs a rock and starts smashing the glass

"Oh god" I say us all backing up

"What the hell were you doing out there anyway?" Andrea asks us

"Trying to flag the helicopter" Rick's says

"Helicopter man that's crap there ain't no damn helicopter" some guy with a do rag on his head says

"You were chasing a hallucination imagining things it happens" another lady with short black hair says

"We saw it" I snap not liking feeling crazy

"Hey, t-dog try that c.b. Can you contact the others?" Morales tells the man with the walki-talki

"Others, the refugee center?" I question

"Yeah the refugee center they've got biscuits waiting in the oven for us" the short haired girl says sarcastically which makes me roll my eyes

"Got no signal, maybe the roof" t-dog suggests when we hear a shot from above

"Oh no is that Dixon?" Andrea says freaking out a bit everyone starting to head for the stairs

"Come on let's go" Glenn says following the group up the stairs to the roof, when we reach the top I see a blading grey haired man shooting a rifle

"Hey Dixon are you crazy?!" Morales yells, the man continues shooting

"Hey! Y'all be more polite to a man with a gun!" He looks back yelling over at us

"Huh only common sense" he says dropping down from the ledge he was on

"Man you wasting bullets we ain't even got! And you're bringing even more of them down on our asses! Man, just chill" t-dog yells running over angrily

"Hey! Bad enough I got this taco-bender on my ass all day now I'm gonna take orders from you? I don't think so bro that'll be the day" the man with the gun says

"Oh great a racist" I mutter to Rick already hating the man

"That'll be the day, you got something you wanna tell me?" T-dog questions

"Hey t-dog man just leave it it ain't worth it, now Merle just relax, ok?" morales sighs out

"You want to know the day?" Merle ignores him continuing

"Yeah" t-dog stands up taller

"I'll tell you the day, Mr."yo" it's the day I take orders from a nigger" Merle says but before he can even finish t-dog attacks him but Merle's to strong he punches him back almost knocking him to the ground

"Dixon!" Andrea says trying to stop it, rick goes over to help but Merle just punches him in the face making him fall back

"Oh hell no" I mutter out seeing this asshole hurt my brother going over to him but when I get there Merle slams t-dog against a pole him groaning in pain on the ground every one rallies around trying to stop him but when he pulls out a gun and points it at t-dog we all pause

"Yeah! All right!" Merle says on top of him spitting on him

"We're gonna have ourselves a little powwow, huh? Talk about who's in charge I vote me anybody else?" He continues getting off of him

"I vote no you racist piece of shit!" I yell at him he turns around pointing the gun at me now

"And who is this fine piece of ass?" He says smirking licking his lips I visibly recoil in disgust, well he's focused on me they pull a groaning t-dog away from under Merle

"Don't talk to my sister like that" Rick comes up behind Merle punching him to the ground handcuffing him to a pipe dragging him upwards by his shirt

"Who the hell are you man!" Merle says slightly scared

"Officer friendly" Rick says sarcastically going to grab his gun discarded on the ground unloading the clips in it

" look here Merle, things are different now there are no niggers anymore no dumb-as-shit inbred white-trash fools ether only dark meat and white meat theres us and the dead, we survive this by pulling together not apart" rick finishing his speech reloading the gun

"Screw you man" Merle replies

"I can see you make a habit of missing the point" Rick smiles looking at him harshly

"Yeah we'll screw you twice" Merle spits out at Rick

"Ought to be polite to a man with a gun only common sense" Rick grits out pressing the gun into Merle's head cocking it

"You wouldn't your a cop" Merle says but I can tell he's slightly scared

"All I am anymore is a man protecting his sister and looking for his wife and son, anybody that gets in the way of that is gonna lose I'll give a moment to think about that" Rick says looking Merle dead in the eyes, reaching into his pocket he finds coke he grabs his face looking up his nose

"Got some on your nose there" Rick says flicking his nose

"What are you gonna do? Arrest me?" Merle says laughing but stops when he sees Rick starting to walk towards the edge of the roof throwing the coke off the building

"Hey! What are you doing? Man, that's was my stuff!" Merle shouts angrily

"Hey!" He grunts trying to get lose from his handcuffs

"If I get lose you'd better pray-yeah you hear me you pig?!" Merle shouts over to Rick as he walks over to the ledge, me and morales start walking over

Yeah your voice carries!" I shout back annoyed

"You're not Atlanta p.d, where you guys from?"  Morales questions

"Up the road a ways" rick sighs out

"Well officer friendly and officer friendlies  sister from up the roads a way, welcome to the big city" morales says looking towards all the walkers down below

"God, it's like Times Square down there" Andrea sighs out as we come over towards the group

"How's that signal?" Rick questions

"Like dixons brain-weak" t-dog says looking towards Merle which makes Merle flip him off

"Keep trying" morales says

"Why? There's nothing they can do not a damn thing" Andrea says looking at me and Rick still blaming us I roll my eyes wanting to say something but bit it back watching her walk away

"Got some people outside the city is all, there's no refugee center" morales says looking at Rick

"Then she's right we're on our own it's up to us to find a way out" Rick sighs looking back towards me

"Goodluck with that these streets ain't safe in this part of town from what I hear, ain't that right sugar tits?" Merle smirks looking at me

"Oh pets names hm what would yours be let me think....small dick? Yeah small dick fits you" I say smiling sweetly at him his smile drops gritting his teeth

"What about under the streets? The sewers?" Rick says to morales looking at Merle harshly

"Oh man...hey Glenn check the alley you see any manhole covers?" Morales ask Glenn

"No, must be all out on the street where the geeks are" Glenn says

"Maybe not, old building like this built in the 20s-big structures often had drainage tunnels into the sewers in case of flooding down in the sub basements" I say looking at them they stare at me confused

"How do you know that?" Glenn asks

"I payed attention in school" I say shrugging

"Ok well let's go then" rick says heading towards the stairs

"Hey what about me!" Merle yells

"T-dog stay with him" Rick says t-dog groaning but nodding

(To be continued!) @duckybird101

[novamariestark]

Tell it to the Frogs

— 5 years ago —

"Aunty Cindy, stop it," Carl giggled as his aunt mercilessly tickled him. He laughed as he squirmed around on the floor trying to get away.

Cindy laughed as she continued her tickle assault on her nephew, "No, not until you change your answer," she told him.

Carl laughed, "Ok, ok, ok. You're cooler than Uncle Shane," he told her and she ceased her attack and nodded in approval, satisfied with his answer.

Rick walked in, still dressed in his uniform. He looked at his son and his baby sister, still sat on the floor of the living room, "What's going on?" he asked with a laugh.

Cindy held up her hand before she began to speak, "This little weasel," she started, she poked Carl's cheek, before continuing, "Said Shane was cooler than me,"

"So she attacked me with tickles until I changed my answer," Carl added, causing his father to erupt with laughter.

Rick shook his head, "You two..." he said before jogging up the stairs to change out of his work clothes.

— Present day —

Carl woke up with a smile on his face, remembering his dream. His eyes adjusted to the bright light of the sun peering through the fabric of the tent. When they did, he remembered where he was, his smile then dropped when he remembered that both his father and his aunt are gone.

"Carl, honey. Time to get up," his mom's voice sounded from outside of the tent.

Carol was sat near the campfire, helping Carl and Sophia with math. Lori walked over towards her son after finishing folding the laundry.

"Hey sweetie," she said softly, she sat down beside him, "How are you doing?"

"Okay," he replied shortly. Lori ran her hands through her son's hair.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked him, although she had a pretty good idea what it was.

Carl looked up at his mother, his bottom lip quivering, tears brimming in his eyes, "Do you think aunty Cindy is dead too?" he asked, the tears broke free from his eyes, like a dam had exploded.

"I don't know, sweetie." She told him honestly. She continued to comfort him, "I can't know for sure..."

"She got out," Shane's voice spoke suddenly from behind them, startling them both. Carl looked up hopefully at his dad's best friend. Shane crouched down beside him, "She's resourceful, she's smart. I bet she's on her way now. We left a note for her, remember?"

"To meet us in Atlanta, Shane," Lori reminded him, she was horrified by the thought that her and Shane had sentenced her sister-in-law to a slow, painful death.

Shane stayed silent, he didn't know how to answer that. He stood from his position and walked away. Lori's eyes followed him before they fell to her son, "Sweetie, finish your work, I'm going to cut your hair later," she told him.

The van was cruising down the road. Rick's thoughts centred around the man that they had left on the roof, wondering what happened to him. if he was alive or dead. Morales spoke up, pulling Rick from his thoughts.

"Best not to dwell on it, that Merle got left behind. Nobody's gonna be sad he didn't come back," he spoke, he tone of his voice suggested he was trying to comfort him, "Except maybe Daryl," he added.

"Daryl?" Rick asked him, turning his head from the road to the man beside him.

"His brother," he replied, Rick nods slowly then returns his eyes to the road ahead. They then heard a car alarm quickly approaching. Rick looked into his mirror to see the red sports car. Glenn was having the time of his life. Speeding down the empty highway. Miles of clear road ahead of him to enjoy the car to the fullest. To drive it the way it was meant to be driven, like an animal that needed to run. The engine purred as it sped over the asphalt. Cindy chuckled at the whoops that could be heard from the car.

"At least somebody's having a good day," Morales commented as they watched the red car speed by before quickly leaving their field of vision.

Back at the camp, Jim is hanging empty food cans between trees around the camp as an alarm system. Shane, Lori and Carl were sat beside the campfire. Shane is cleaning his shotgun while Lori is sitting behind Carl, with a comb and scissors in her hands, giving him a haircut.

"Baby, the more you fidget the longer it takes. So don't okay?" Lori said to him as she attempts to cut his hair. "I'm trying," he whined back to her in response.

"Well, try harder," she said as she continued to cut his hair. Straightening his hair with the comb and clipping the ends.

"You think this is bad? Just wait until you start shaving. That stings. That day comes, you'll be wishing for one of your momma's haircuts." Shane spoke up, still cleaning his shotgun.

"I'll believe that when I see it." Carl said, disbelief evident in his tone.

Shane chuckled at his reply, "I'll tell you what, you just get through this with some manly dignity and tomorrow I'll teach you something special." He said, Carl's face lit up with interest, "I will teach you to catch frogs." Lori looked up to at Shane and smiled.

"I've caught a frog before." Carl told him.

"I said frogs, plural. It is an art, my friend. It is not to be taken lightly. There are ways and means. Few people know about it. I'm willing to share my secrets." Shane said with his signature smirk spread across his face.

Carl snapped his head behind him to look at his mom, unsure of what to say, "Oh, I'm a girl. You talk to him," Lori told him, turning the young boy's head back to look at Shane.

"It's a one-time offer, bud, not to be repeated." Shane told the young boy, he smirked as he continued to clean his weapon.

"Why do we need frogs, plural?" Carl asked, he arched his eyebrow, confusion written on his small features.

"Have you ever eaten frog legs?" Shane asked the boy.

Carl scrunched up his face in disgust and squirmed in his seat, "Ewww." He groaned as Shane laughed.

"No, yum!" Shane argued.

"No, he's right. Eww," Lori agreed, as she resumed cutting Carl's hair.

"When you get down to that last can of beans, you're gonna be loving those frog legs, lady. I can see it now" Shane told her, "Shane, do you think I could have a second helping, please? Please? Just one?" he teased in a higher pitch, at an attempt to imitate Lori's voice.

"Yeah, I doubt that," Lori snorted as she shook her head with a laugh.

Shane chuckled and continued, "Don't listen to her, man. You and me, we'll be heroes. We'll feed these folks cajun-style Kermit legs,"

"I would rather eat Miss Piggy," Lori commented, she saw the amusement on Shane's face and nodded, "Yes, that came out wrong," she laughed, followed by a few laughs from Shane.

"Heroes, son, spoken of in song and legend. You and me, Shane and Carl." Shane and Carl laugh, their conversation is cut short when the sound of a car alarm, increasing in volume as it quickly approached the camp.

Shane stood up a rushed towards the RV, "Talk to me, Dale!" he instructed. Dale stood on his RV holding up his binoculars to his eyes, trying to find where the noise was coming from, "I can't tell yet," he replied.

"Is it them?" Are they back?" Amy asked him, eyes filled with hope. Dale continues to look through his binoculars and spots a red Dodge Challenger speeding up the hill.

"I'll be damned," Dale exclaimed as he lowered his binoculars to see if he really was seeing the red car approaching.

"What is it?" Amy asked the question everyone was thinking.

"A stolen car is my guess," he replied to the girl as the car slowly approached the entrance of the camp. Lori shields her eyes from the sun to get a look at the approaching vehicle.

Glenn pulls to a stop and gets out of the car, a big grin on his face, the alarm still blaring, "Holy crap, turn that damn thing off!" Dale yelled.

"I don't know how!" Glenn exclaimed over the car alarm.

Shane and Amy start talking, over each other, at Glenn. "Pop the hood! Pop the damn hood, please!" Shane ordered tapping hood as Amy continued to ask him about her sister, "My sister, Andrea-"

"Pop the damn hood!" Shane said raising his voice a little to be heard over the alarm and now Amy.

"Is she okay?"

"What? Okay, okay. Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!" Glenn said to Amy as he gets into the car and leans over to press the button to pop the hood.

"Is she okay? Is she all right?" Amy continued her question filled assault on Glenn as he tried to listen to both her and Shane.

"Yeah, yeah" Glenn said as he got back out of the car, Shane opens the hood, "She's okay! She's okay!" Dale had climbed down from the RV and came to stand beside Jim and the car.

"Is she coming back?" Amy asked, Jim pulls a wire out of the engine and the alarms stops.

"Yes!" Glenn yelled even though the alarm had been disabled. He was a bit annoyed how people were just shouting all at once at him just moments ago.

"Why isn't she with you? Where is she? She's okay?" Amy maintained her onslaught of questions.

"Yes! Yeah. Fine. Everybody is." Glenn replied to her, voice rising as he got a little annoyed at being shouted out, "Well, Merle not so much." Glenn added sadly, the tone of his voice suggested something bad had happened.

Shane looked up angrily at Glenn still leaning on the car, "Are you crazy, driving this wailing bastard up here? Are you trying draw every walker for miles?" Shane questioned him, looking at him like he was an idiot.

"I think we're okay," Dale spoke up in Glenn's defence, having a quick look around.

"You call being stupid okay?" Shane asked, looking behind him at the older man.

"Well, the alarm was echoing all over these hills. Hard to pinpoint the source." Dale explained, Shane stood up from leaning on the car and shut the hood. His hands on his hips as he looked at Dale, "I'm not arguing. I'm just saying." He pointed at Glenn, "It wouldn't hurt you to think things through a little more carefully next time, would it?" he asked Glenn who looked down at the ground bashfully.

"Sorry. Got a cool car." He said quietly shyly. Amy stood up on her tip toes to get a good look at the car. Dale nods in agreement as he looks over the car. Slowly the cube van approached. Glenn smiled at the group and looked at the van as it pulled to a stop behind the red Challenger and a white Dodge Ram Wagon with the words 'Holy Cross Lutheran Church' written on the side.

Rick turned off the engine. His hands were shaking. He doesn't know why he was so nervous. Morales said he and his sister would be welcome here. Especially since he saved their skins. 'We're just staying the night to rest up and then we're going to look for our family. If they are alive. I hope they are. But what if they're not. No, Rick. Don't think like that.' He thought. Morales' voice brought him out of the warzone of his thoughts, "Come meet everybody." he placed a hand on Rick's shoulder before getting out of the truck and reuniting with his family.

Cindy moves to sit beside her brother, "You okay?" she asked. Rick sighed and nodded, Cindy gave her brother a sad smile, she knew exactly what he was thinking about, "You're lying. We'll find them. They are with Shane and you know he wouldn't let anything happen to them." She whispered as she put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Rick sits up in his seat and runs a hand down his face, "Yeah, you're right. As usual." He replied whispering the last part. Of course she heard it and gave him a playful shove in return.

Andrea gets out the back of the truck and immediately runs to hug her sister, "You scared the shit out of me." Amy cried into her shoulder.

Morales' family run up to him, "Papi," Morales picked up his daughter and hugged his wife. Carl began to cry at the sight of Morales being reunited with his family. He remembered all the times when he ran to hug his dad after came home from work. And Cindy too. When she was on leave she would come and stay with them. He hoped that they'd drive up the road and they could all be together again but his father was dead, his aunt was left alone. For all he knew, she could be dead too. He tried telling himself that she could handle it, that she was his badass aunt that could survive anything but there was no way to know. All he could do was hope.

Lori crouched down beside the boy as he continued to cry, "I'm sorry baby. I know you sometimes hope that they will walk right into camp, alive and well but your father is gone and..." she paused looking down to the ground before continuing, "And aunt Cindy, we know she's tough and can handle a lot of things but she was never trained for this. None of them were."

"I know. I just want them back." He cried as his eyes began to overflow with tears desperate to break out.

"I know, baby. So do I." she spoke softly to him.

Shane looked at the pair as Dale spoke to Morales "You are a welcome sight," he greeted as he gave him a hug, "I thought we had lost you folks for sure."

"How'd y'all get out of there anyway?" Shane questioned the group that had just returned, interrupting the joyous moment.

"Two new guys, they got us out." Glenn replied placing his hands on the door of the red sports car.

"New guys?" Shane questioned a little unsure about new people. He knew there were a lot of nasty people out there. Probably even more dangerous than the dead. He just hoped that they were good people and not a danger to the group. Especially to Lori and Carl.

"Yeah, crazy hermanos just got into town," Morales said with a laugh. He turned his head to look at the van they had arrived in, "Hey, helicopter twins! Come say hello," he called, looking back towards the van that they had just arrived in.

'Helicopter twins' Cindy repeated as she chuckled, shaking her head whilst opening the door to get out of the passenger seat as her brother did the same.

"One of them is a cop like you."

Rick came into view first. Everything seemed to move in slow motion. Shane's facial expression turned to one of disbelief as his eyes landed on his best friend. Alive and well. Rick's expression mirrored Shane's as he realised who was standing no more than five metres away. Shane took a step backward, as if he saw a ghost.

Carl's small head turned to his left, and within a second his breath was taken from his throat as he stared at his father. Trying to figure out whether it was real or just his imagination.

Lori followed Carl's gaze and her eyes landed on her husband. Her face registered shock, looking at the man who she thought was dead.

Rick's eyes began to water when he saw them. He glanced to the side at his sister with a tearful smile. She nodded back to him, "Well? What are you waiting for?" she asked with a smirk on her face.

Rick pointed at them as he started towards them. Carl immediately reacted and ran at full speed towards him, Lori quickly followed, "Dad! Dad!" he cried, launching himself into his father's arms. Lori froze in shock. Cindy stood back and let them enjoy their family moment.

Rick hugged his son, gripping onto him as if he were afraid it wasn't real. As if he would disappear. He picked him up and made his way to his wife. As he started making his way towards her, Lori became unfrozen and started walking towards him, her pace increasing with every step she took.

Rick pulled her into his embrace, still a little in shock. Lori looked over Rick's shoulder at Shane. His expression not as happy as it should be. A few minutes of them hugging each other, Shane spoke up, "I thought there was two of them?"

Rick smiled and looked in the direction his sister was standing and back to his wife and son. She was watching the reunion of her family. He needed his own time with them. After all she had seen them more recently than Rick.

Rick looked to his son with a smile, "I've got a surprise for you," Carl's eye lit up like the 4th of July. A wide smile making its way onto his face. Carl muttered a quiet 'What'. Rick turned his head to look at his sister again.

She took this as her cue to join, she walked from beside the van and into view of everyone in the camp. Carl's smile returned to his face when he saw who it was. Rick placed Carl back on the ground, "Aunty Cindy!" he cried as he immediately ran towards her. She crouched down to the ground arms wide open as he ran into them. Carl returned her hug and then started to cry.

"I've missed you so much, Little Man," she said as she ruffled his hair. Carl smiled at her use of the nickname she gave him. It was way better than the first nickname she gave him 'Carly' and with enough whining on his part, she changed it.

"I missed you too, Aunty Cindy." He replied. Relief swept through the young boy like waves in the ocean. His family was back together. Everyone was alive and safe. Nothing could ruin this moment. He was happy. Completely, genuinely happy.

Later that night

The night was dead silent, besides the sound of crickets and the crackling of the fire. Everyone was sat round the camp after dinner, enjoying the warmth and the company of those around them. Rick was sat in the middle, Lori on his right, Rick's arm wrapped around her, his other wrapped around Carl, who was in his lap leaning against his chest as Lori ran her hands through his brown locks. Cindy sat on the other side of Rick. Carl's small hand in hers as if he was making sure she didn't go anywhere. Cindy laid her head on her brother's shoulder, enjoying this time with her family. She had a feeling that it wouldn't always be like this, so she wanted to enjoy it while it lasted.

"Disoriented. I guess that comes closest. Disoriented." Rick started as everyone around the fire listened to him, "Fear, confusion... all those things but..." he pauses again as the sound of thunder echoes in the night sky, "Disoriented comes closest." As he finished the sentence his grip on his family tightened protectively.

Another voice spoke up, an older male that sat directly opposite the family, "Words can be meagre things. Sometimes they fall short." He put his drink down on the floor and looked at the faces around the fire.

Rick continued his view of the new world, "I felt like I'd been ripped out of my life and put somewhere else. For a while I thought I was in some sort of coma dream, something I might not wake up from... ever," he said, his head turned to look at his sister beside him, "That is until after I found Cindy. At first I thought she was getting me back for the prank me and Shane pulled on her but when I realised she was serious... I just can't put it into words."

"I remember that." Cindy spoke up, Shane laughed as he also remembered the prank he pulled on her about ten years ago, "Asshole." she muttered, eliciting laughs from all the members around the campfire.

"What prank did they play on you?" Amy asked, she loved the idea of having a female her age to talk to in camp.

"I want to know too," Carl's small voice spoke up, his pleading eyes looking up at her like an adorable puppy.

Cindy nodded, agreeing to tell the story. Rick chuckled from beside her which she returned sarcastically whilst flipping him off. He muttered 'That's rude,' under his breath causing Cindy to shake her head.

"Well, it was about 10 years ago..."

—10 years ago—

Rick was stood at the front door of his old family home, waiting for his sister to come down the stairs. She was taking a long time to get ready. It was no secret to her brother that she didn't want to go, "Come on, Cindy. You're gonna miss your appointment!" he yelled up to her.

"That would be a shame!" Came her reply from upstairs. Rick rolled his eyes as his father came from the kitchen.

"She still not ready?" his father asked him, laughing at his daughter's attempt to get out of her appointment. Rick shook his head in response. He soon started to smirk when he got an idea, his dad's face screwed up in confusion, "What?" he asked his son. Rick held up his index finger indicating for his dad to wait a moment.

"Hey, Cindy. If you go to your appointment I'll buy you a car for..." As soon as the word 'car' left his mouth a door slammed and hurried footsteps patted on the ceiling above him then made their way down the steps. Cindy came to a stop at the bottom of the steps with a big smile on her face. Rick nodded, obviously pleased with himself, "I thought that would work," he told his dad, he looked at his little sister and motioned her to follow him. As he stepped out of the door, she hesitated and took a step backwards, "Ah, ah, no dentist, no car." He smirked.

"You're enjoying this aren't you?" she asked him as she walked out the door and down the porch steps.

"Nah. Well maybe just a little." He said as he followed her towards his squad car. He laughed when his sister gave him the middle finger as she got into the passenger seat.

Rick got into the other side and started the car, reversing out of the driveway and making his way to the hospital, "There's nothing to be worried about, besides think about the ice cream you'll get to eat,"

"Ooh, ice cream," Cindy's mouth began to water as she could practically taste the triple chocolate ice cream, "So... what car are you getting me?"

Rick chuckled at her directness and shrugged, "What car do you want?" he asked her, she smirked and placed her finger on her chin, as if she were deep in thought.

"Something expensive." She replied as she continued to think about the car she wanted.

"Don't push it." Rick said as sternly as he could although he couldn't help the smile that came onto his face.

"Hey, it's the least you can do. You're the one driving me to be tortured."

Rick rolled his eyes at how dramatic his sister was being, "You're not going to get tortured. You're just having your wisdom teeth removed."

"Tooth extraction is a known torture technique to either get information or inflict pain." She argued, Rick chuckled and shook his head. The random things she would come out with always put a smile on his face.

Not long after, they arrived at the surgery. Rick parked the car and stepped out. Cindy, however, stayed put. Rick threw his head back and sighed. He walked over to the passenger door and opened it, then leaned on the roof as he spoke to her, "Come on, Cindy. You're 16 next month, not six." She still didn't budge so he continued, "A brand new car," he said trying to convince her.

"Okay," she stepped out of the car, closing the door behind her.

They were sat there for about twenty minutes before someone called her name, "Cindy Grimes," the lady spoke.

Cindy started to get really nervous and Rick immediately reacted and gave her a hug, "You'll be fine, Cindy. I promise." Cindy nodded and followed the woman out of the waiting area and into a room.

Rick stayed seated in the waiting area. He sat there in silence for a good thirty minutes until Shane walked through the doors. Immediately Rick thought there was an emergency and he had to go to work but when he saw the smirk on Shane's face, he knew his best friend was up to something.

"What are you doing here?" Rick asked him when he sat on the vacant chair beside him.

"I just couldn't miss this opportunity." He replied vaguely, his smirk still situated on his face.

"Why? What are you up to?" Rick questioned, which is returned by a hearty chuckle, Shane looked at his best friend "Just go with it, Rick. It'll be good" He told him. His eyes were sparkling with both amusement and mischief.

Rick didn't know what Shane was up to but he had a feeling he would find out soon.

An hour passed before the door opened and a very lost but fascinated looking Cindy being wheeled through the double doors of the waiting room, "Wheeee!"

Shane burst out laughing immediately, hunched over and completely red in the face as if he'd forgotten how to breathe, "It's already so good," he said after he'd finally regained his breath and composed himself.

The nurse then wheeled the teenager out of the surgery and into the car park, towards the car. Rick helped his sister get into the car and thanked the nurse. She smiled and walked away taking the wheelchair back in with her.

Shane clapped his hands together, "Right. We need to get out of here." He said. Rick furrowed his eyebrows at his best friend, Shane smirked at his best friend's confusion and continued, "We need to go before the aliens get here."

"What aliens?" Cindy slurred, the cotton in her mouth muffling her voice a bit, "Like Martians or E.T"

"What are you doing?" Rick whispered to his best friend.

"Oh, come on Rick. It'll be good. I promise." Shane said trying to convince him. Rick knew he wouldn't let this go he also knew that there would be hell to pay when Cindy was in her right mind again. He just hoped he was around to watch when she decided to kill Shane.

"It's your funeral, she will kill you for this." Rick warned him, Shane just shrugged and stated that it was 'worth it.'

Shane got into the back of the squad car as Rick climbed into the driver's seat, "It was on the news. Aliens have landed and they've been taking children to turn into their little workers. Ages 20 and under."

Cindy gasped, "I'm under 20," she cried, she looked out of the window as trees and buildings went by, looking out for any sign of aliens coming to take her away, "I don't want to be taken away." Tears were rolling down her eyes as she spoke. Rick looked into the rear-view mirror and shook his head at his best friend. Shane just snickered and carried on teasing the poor girl.

"Yeah, we have to go to a safe place. Food, protection. We'll be safe. We just have to get there." Shane said, it wasn't long until they pulled back up into the driveway. Cindy was still in tears.

"Why are we here? It's not safe." Cindy told her brother. Her features showed severe panic.

"Come on, Rick. We have to get out of here." Shane said, pretend fear laced in his voice.

"Wait... I need to get my pet unicorn." Cindy said as she attempted to get out of the car without undoing the seatbelt which amused both Shane and her brother. Shane found it funny whereas Rick found it kind of adorable.

"Cindy, you don't have a unicorn," Rick replied carefully as if not to upset her.

"Yes I do. I want my unicorn." She cried, her salty tears dampening her face as a waterfall flowed from each eye, "I can't let the aliens eat her."

"Shane come on. This isn't funny." He whispered turning his head to look at him.

"Hey, I said nothing about no unicorn." Shane said in his defence. His hands up in surrender as he shook his head.

— Present Day—

Everyone around the campfire laughed as the girl finished her story, glaring at Shane opposite her. He tried to feign innocence but Cindy wasn't having any of it.

"The most upsetting part was finding out that I didn't have a unicorn." Cindy told the group, a smile on her face as she recalled the memory.

"Did you kick Uncle Shane's ass?" Carl asked looking up at his aunt. She opened her mouth to respond but before she could Shane interrupted

"She came at me with a wrench."

"I did try to warn you," Rick pointed out with a chuckle which had a domino effect around the fire.

"I was sitting at the dinner table, this man was telling me all about what's happening in the world, which I didn't believe. Not at first. Then we heard a thump from upstairs and who comes trotting down?" Rick asked as he turned his head to his baby sister.

"Well, I had to get in somehow." She stated simply with a shrug, "The doors and the windows downstairs were barricaded shut. How else was I going to get in?" Cindy questioned. One that didn't really require an answer.

There was a moment of silence before Carl broke it, "Mom said you died." He told him as he looked up at his father.

Rick looked at Lori before looking down at the boy in his arms, stroking his hair as he replied, "She had every reason to believe that, and don't you ever doubt it." Rick was always so understanding and sympathetic. It made Lori feel about 3 ft tall as guilt swept over her, she stole a quick glance at Shane through the fire as she thought about what they did not even 24 hours ago.

"When things started to get really bad... they told me at the hospital that they were going to medevac you and the other patients to Atlanta... and it never happened." Lori said a little bit distraught and relieved that it didn't happen. His chances of survival in Atlanta would have been slim to none especially now the city belonged to the dead.

"I'm not surprised after Atlanta fell," Rick looked around the campfire at the other survivors. Realising that this is actually real. It is not a dream. He keeps hoping it's a dream but it's not. His sister had come to terms with it. Now he had to do the same. To protect them. To protect his family, "and by the looks of that hospital it got overrun."

"Yeah, looks don't deceive. I barely got them out, you know." Shane spoke as he looked at Rick.

"I can't tell you how grateful I am to you Shane. I can't begin to express it." He replied to him, Cindy nodded and smiled at him whilst still attached to her brother's shoulder. She couldn't express her gratitude enough either.

"There go those words falling short again. Paltry things,"

"Rick, I was there. I told you what happened, remember?" Cindy asked her brother, picking her head up from his shoulder to look at him.

Cindy watched as a cogs turned inside her brother's head eventually turning on a light bulb, "Oh, yes. I remember."

Cindy looks down at Carl and pokes her brother's temple, "See, this is what happens when you get old." She joked, Carl giggles in response which amplifies when he saw the look on his dad's face.

"I. Am. Not. Old" Rick said, emphasizing every word he spoke. Which only caused more giggles to erupt. The sound of wood clanged not far from where they sat alerted them. They all turned to see Ed throwing more wood into the small fire he and his family were sitting around. Away from the others.

"Hey, Ed, you want to rethink that log?" Shane questioned him although it was more of a suggestion. The tone is authoritative, showing himself as the unspoken leader of the group. As a former cop, he knew how to shoot, and how to protect, and everyone naturally felt safe around him.

"It's cold, man," Ed said as he lazily threw his head back, all eyes were on him. Cindy raised her head from Rick's shoulder and looked at Ed. She could tell something was about to happen. She looked at the woman and the young girl also sat at the fire. Curled up into balls as if they were afraid of something. Or someone. Her eyes returned to the man who was currently centre of attention and she studied him. Closely.

"The cold don't change the rules, does it? Keep our fires low, just embers so we can't be seen from a distance, right?" Shane questioned him again. Rick silently watched the conversation. His eyes watching both Shane and Ed.

"I said it's cold. You should mind your own business for once," Ed fired back at Shane.

Shane got up from his seat at the fire, T-Dog held out his hand to stop him but he was already gone. He approached the smaller fire and stood in front of the man, trying to intimidate the man without actually doing anything, "Hey, Ed. Are you sure you want to have this conversation, man?" his voice, a little bit more serious than before but still not too threatening. He let his towering figure do that.

"Go on. Pull the damn thing out," Ed ordered Carol, looking at her, to quiet the man tall above him. Carol's gaze flickered between the log and her husband, "Go on." He repeated. She stood up, placing her blanket on her chair and pulled the log out with her hands.

Cindy did not like this guy at all. Controlling. Fear was evident on the woman's face as she did what she was told as if something bad would happen if she didn't. 'So possibly abusive' she thought to herself. The gaze then shifted to the young girl, Sophia. Her sad eyes followed her mother's every move. To Cindy, it seemed that Ed's abuse wasn't just focused on Carol but on the young girl too.

"Christ," Shane muttered as Carol placed the log on the ground away from the fire. The wood crackled on the ground, Shane stomped on it to put the fire out. Shane then crouched down and looked at Carol and Sophia, "Hey, Carol, Sophia, how are y'all this evening," he asked them softly.

"Fine. We're just fine," Carol replied quickly, she gulped as she glanced at her husband, a scowl carved on his face as he stared at his wife, "I'm sorry about the fire-" she apologised but was cut off by Shane.

"No, no, no. No apology needed," Shane assured her with a small smile ignoring the huff of annoyance coming from the man behind him, "Y'all have a good night, okay?" Shane bid them before he stood up, "I appreciate the cooperation," Shane told Ed as he walked past him, sarcasm and a tinge of anger dripping from his voice. He walked towards the towards the larger group and sat back down in his spot.

"Have you given any thought to Daryl Dixon?" Dale asked after a moment of silence. Daryl, the younger Dixon brother, who mostly kept to himself or was with Merle and he didn't talk much. He was more the strong, silent type. An expert hunter and tracker. He often went out hunting for food for the group, mainly as an excuse to get away from the group. Merle however threw countless insults towards members of the group, especially Glenn and T-Dog. Daryl voiced some insults but overall, it was the eldest Dixon that caused the trouble, making some of the survivor's uneasy.

"He won't be happy to hear that his brother has been left behind." Dale finished, 'Well, no shit he won't be happy.' Cindy thought to herself. 'If Rick was left chained to a roof to be ripped apart. I'd be a little pissed too.'

"I'll tell him. I dropped the key. It's on me," T-Dog said, eyes never leaving the fire. It was obvious that T-Dog blamed himself for the abandonment of Merle, the guilt stained his features.

Rick shook his head at the man as he spoke, "I cuffed him. That makes it mine."

"Guys, it's not a competition. I don't mean to bring race into this, but it might sound better coming from a white guy," Glenn pointed out. T-Dog still wanted to tell him, "I did what I did. Hell if I'm gonna hide from him," reruns of the events of the past few hours replayed in his head. Torturing him, it was his fault he was left behind so he thought he should be the one to tell Daryl and endure his anger.

"We could lie," Amy suggested from her spot beside Andrea, the two have not let each other go since the group came back from Atlanta.

"Or tell the truth," Andrea countered, despite the fact she tried to shoot Rick, she firmly believed he did the right thing when he cuffed Merle to the roof, "Merle was out of control. Something had to be done or he'd have gotten us killed," Andrea looked at Lori when she added the next part, "Your husband did what was necessary. And if Merle got left behind, it is nobody's fault but Merle's." she finished, a moment of silence followed as the group weighed in their options

Everyone, for the most part, agreed with Andrea's statement. Everyone besides Dale and Cindy. She felt that if it was one of her loved one's that were up on that roof, it wouldn't matter what way she was told, she'd be pretty pissed. Cindy soon realised she wasn't the only one who doubted the past suggestion when Dale spoke up, "And that's what we tell Daryl? I don't see a rational discussion to be had from that, do you?" Dale asked everyone stayed silent as the older man looked around the fire.

"The way I see it?" Cindy asked the older man, looking up at him. She wasn't expecting an answer, she was merely signalling to the group that she was going to voice her opinion. Dale nodded at the young girl to continue, "It doesn't matter what way you tell him. The result stays the same. One pissed off man." She stated with a shrug, "I mean, I know if it were Rick and if he was all I had left. There would be hell to pay." Cindy gave a small smile to Dale before settling back in her seat.

Dale spoke up with the girl's words in mind, "We're gonna have our hands full when he gets back from his hunt."

"I was scared and I ran," T-Dog's voice shivered as he spoke, the terrors of the day taunting him, "I'm not ashamed of it." He admitted. Cindy was confused as to where he was going with this. He didn't need to be ashamed. Of course he was scared, his life was on the line. Run or die.

"We were all scared. We all ran. What's your point?" Andrea spoke up, asking the question on everybody's mind.

"I stopped long enough to chain that door. Staircase is narrow. Maybe half a dozen geeks can squeeze against it at any one time. It's not enough to break through that. Not that chain, not that padlock. My point...Dixon's alive and he's still up there, handcuffed on that roof. That's on us," T-Dog informed them he stood up and headed towards his tent.

The revelation that Merle was still alive on that roof got the siblings thinking. Cindy wanted to go back, so did Rick. Neither of them wanted the other to go. All that Cindy knew, is that if it were Rick on that roof... Nothing would stop her from going after him. She had a feeling Daryl would do the same.

Silence fell on the group and all that could be heard was the crackling of the fire. It wasn't long before everyone else started to head to bed.

The Grimes' went to their tent, where there were two different cots. One for Carl and one for Lori and now Rick, "Cindy, I'm sorry... I completely forgot. I'll go and see if..." Lori began to apologise and walk past the girl. Cindy grabbed her arm and shook her head.

"Don't worry about it, I'll sleep on the floor for tonight," she told her, not wanting to bother anyone, especially now because they were going to sleep.

"You sure?" Lori asked, she didn't want her sister to sleep on the hard floor.

"Yes, mother, I'm sure," Cindy replied with a smirk as she settled down on the ground, she looked up at Carl, "Night, little man,"

"Night, Aunty Cindy," he said back, pure joy in his tone. Rick was sat beside him tucking him in.

"I found you, didn't I?" Rick asked gently the young boy as he stroking his head.

"I love you, Dad." He responded to his dad before letting out a big yawn.

"I love you, Carl." Rick replied in a serious tone. Rick kisses him on the forehead before Carl turns over to go to sleep. Lori reaches her hand up from the bed and takes Rick's. He lays down beside her kisses her, "I found you both." He told her after he settled under the covers.

"Yeah." Lori whispered, barely audible.

"I knew I would." Rick told her which made Lori smile.

"You're getting cocky now, a little bit." Lori told him, her smile still shining on her face.

"No. No, I knew." Rick continued

"He really did," Cindy interjected, from the floor causing the two adults to look at her and laugh.

"Walking into our home, finding an empty house, both of you gone." Rick added, remembering when he went back home and finding nobody.

"I'm so sorry." Lori spoke, her voice breaking. She felt guilty she left him but she thought he was dead, she wasn't at fault.

"I knew you were alive." He told her, reassuring her and silently telling her that it gave him the will to fight.

"How?" Lori asked, wondering how he could possibly have known that they were still alive. It was the same situation they had with Cindy, they had no idea whether she was alive or dead or... undead.

Thunder rumbled outside as Rick replied to his wife's question, "The photos were gone, all our family albums." Lori smiles in return and chuckles. She kissed his hand and reached for the album that is sat beside the bed.

"I told you so." He said with a smug look on his face.

"Now you're getting cocky, huh? A lot." Lori laughed as she opened the photo album to look through it. Landing on a picture of her, Rick, Cindy and Carl with a birthday cake. The one beside it was of Cindy and Carl with frosting all over their faces. Rick sits up and reaches into his pocket and to show Lori the photos he'd carried with him. The two from his squad car. He placed them both in the album, "They belong in here."

"Baby, I really thought I would never see you again. I'm so sorry... for everything. I feel like– when you were in the hospital I just—I wanted to take it all back—the anger and the bad times. But the mistakes..." Rick kisses her to stop her rambling. Cindy mentally rolls her eyes, 'That's one way to shut her up.' Cindy thought.

"Maybe we got a second chance. Not many people get that." Rick whispered to her, He leans down and kisses her again. She pulls out her the locket and his wedding ring circled around the chain, "I wondered where that went."

"Do you want it back?" Lori asked, her voice breaking as if she feared he would say no.

"Of course." He replied to her with a smile. Lori had always been who Rick wanted. He was devoted to her. No matter how many arguments, fights, bad memories he never, ever wanted to give up. He couldn't live without her.

Lori takes the ring off the chain and puts it on his finger. They kiss with passion, emotion. Rain pattered down onto the material of the tent. Lori reaches over and turns off the lantern. Rick looks over at Carl, checking if he's asleep.

"He won't wake up." Lori told Rick. Cindy's brows furrowed in confusion. 'Why would they be worried about that.' Seconds after that thought she realised what was going on.

"Oh, god. I'm happy for you, seriously I am but if you two are going to start screwing can you please keep it down." Cindy gagged, disgusted with very words that left her mouth. If it weren't raining she'd sleep outside.

The couple giggled at her words as Rick moves under the covers...

The next morning, Cindy woke up early, like she usually did. Lori was gone. Carl and Rick were still asleep. She got dressed and walked out of the tent. Immediately spotting Lori and the two blonde sisters and made her way over to them, "Good morning, ladies." She chirped to them, wrapping her arms around her sister-in-law.

"You're very cheerful today," Lori noted as she continued her chore of hanging up clothes on the line. Cindy released her from her hug and began helping Lori hang the recently washed clothes.

"Why shouldn't I be? I've got my whole family back." She spoke happily. She couldn't stop the smile on her face. It was like it was permanently painted on her face like a tattoo. Cindy's eyebrows scrunched up when she thought about how to approach the topic she was thinking about last night, "I was thinking, and Rick would definitely object to this but... the man we left behind..." Cindy trailed off awaiting her reaction. Lori shook her head at the girl as she threw another piece of clothing on the line.

"You want to go back?" Lori questioned the girl, Andrea, and Amy both stopped their actions when they heard this, shocked that the girl would even think about entering that city again.

"I can't leave him like that, Lori. Believe me, I know he's an asshole but if I leave him up there, what does that make me?" Cindy asked, her tone as serious as her steel features. As a marine, she protected the nation and it's people. Why should now be any different? "I spent years defending this country, protecting our people. Just because the world ended, doesn't mean I should stop." Cindy's views from a few days ago had changed. She used to think that her role in the corps meant nothing now but after leaving that man on the roof, she felt she had a duty to help him. She realised that her job mattered now more than ever.

"Ok," Lori spoke to her softly. Lori knew she couldn't force her to stay but she didn't want her to go. She just got back. She'd feel a lot better knowing she was around.

Cindy smiled and walked away towards Glenn, who she saw standing a few meters away next to the sports car. She stopped beside him, smiling until she saw the look on his face as if he were mourning then Cindy's look changed to one of concern, "What's wrong?" she asked him.

"They are going to strip it for parts." Glenn replied sadly, eyes never leaving the car. Cindy's eyebrows raised as she looked at him as if something he loved had been taken away from him. Cindy couldn't help it, she burst out laughing causing everyone, including Glenn, to look at her.

"I'm sorry, but you're mourning a car?" she spoke when she finally stopped laughing and caught her breath.

"It's a cool car," Glenn argued gesturing to the sports car in front of him.

"I agree it's cool, but it's a car." She said, highlighting the word 'car' to illustrate her point.

"I know, but it was cool," he repeated, Cindy shook her head and walked away towards the woman who was sitting at the smaller fire the night before.

"Hey, I'm Cindy," she introduced to the woman with a smile.

"Carol, and this is my daughter, Sophia," she replied, her smile mirroring Cindy's. Sophia however, shrunk further into her seat. Poor thing looked terrified.

Cindy smiled at the young girl and made sure not to startle her, "Do you need any help," Cindy asked the older woman.

Carol smiled at the young girl, "That would be great, thank you,"

"No problem, I'm just going to get Rick's clothes. I know for a fact they need washing," Cindy replied, gaining a laugh from Carol.

Cindy went into the tent where Carl was wide awake, "Should I wake him up?" Carl asked, gesturing to Rick. Cindy shook her head.

"Nah, he needs his rest. Old people tend to sleep more." Cindy joked as she looked around the tent for her brother's bloody garments. Spotting them on the floor she picked them up and stepped out of the tent, Carl giggled as he followed her.

Carl immediately went to play with Sophia. Cindy smiled at the sight. Despite everything going on, they could still act like children. Sure there were restrictions but they looked happy.

She held up the shirt to Carol, "It's supposed to be white," she told her. Carol giggled at the sight of the shirt that was stained with blood, "This'll take some time to clean, maybe I should charge a labour fee," Cindy joked, gaining a smile from Carol.

About an hour later, Rick stepped out of the Grimes' tent, fresh clothes and well rested. He walked around camp, greeting members as he passed them. He noticed Cindy next to Carol who was pressing his shirt that Cindy had managed to get clean, "Morning," Carol greeted Rick as he approached.

"Morning," he replied with a small nod of his head.

"Morning brother," his sister greeted him to which he responded with a hug.

"They're still a little damp. The sun'll have them dry in no time," Carol informed him, looking up from the ironing board for just a second before returning to her chore.

"You washed my clothes?" Rick asked her, his voice full of amazement. Surprised someone would take the time to do that for someone they barely knew.

"Well, best we could. Scrubbing on a washboard ain't half as good as my old Maytag back home," she tells Rick. Saying that, her mind started list all the other things she missed. She shook her thoughts away and focused on the new members. Especially the girl she had recently befriended, "Your sister helped. Would have taken twice as long without my assistant." She joked, 'That's the first time I've joked in a long time.' She thought to herself. She smiled when she realised that the girl beside her had made her feel like the old her. The one with so much happiness and joy to spread, the one who could joke and laugh, the one who was free.

"That's very kind, thank you," Rick told her with a smile, Rick was very grateful for her to make the effort to iron his clothes for him.

The clanging of tools can be heard from behind Cindy and Carol. Dale and Jim were still in the process of tearing the red car apart. Using it for fuel and additional things that the other vehicles may require.

Rick made his way over to Glenn and the car. Glenn hadn't moved from the spot Cindy left him for over an hour, "Look at 'em. Vultures. Yeah, go on, strip it clean." Glenn said disappointment in is voice.

"Generators need every drop of fuel they can get. Got no power without it. Sorry, Glenn." Dale apologised to him.

"Thought I'd get to drive it at least a few more days," Glenn whispered to Rick.

"Maybe we'll get to steal another one someday," Rick said to him as he patted him on the back and walked over to where Lori is hanging clothes on the line.

"Morning, officer," she said with a small smile as he approached.

"Hey." he replied, Andrea and Amy were still there helping Lori with the newly washed clothes, they share a smile as they watched the couple that so obviously loved each other.

"You sleep okay?" she asked him as she folded another piece of clothing.

"Better than in a long time." Rick replied to her, she chuckled, never once deviating from her task.

"Well, I didn't want to wake you. I figured you could use it," Lori stated. Rick didn't respond he just looked at her, wondering how he was going to tell her about what he was thinking, "God, what?" she asked, when she noticed there was something on his mind.

"I've been thinking about the man we left behind." Rick told her, Lori's smile falls as the words left his mouth.

"You're not serious." Lori asked, hoping that he'd say that he wasn't but she knew that wasn't the case, she began to chuckle slightly. Rick just looks at her, confused, "Like two peas in a pod," she told Andrea and Amy. Rick's confusion only grew larger when she said that. As if reading his mind, Lori answered his question, "Cindy was thinking the same thing about an hour ago,"

A car approaches the camp and the conversation is temporarily paused when Shane gets out of his jeep, "Water's here, y'all. Just a reminder to boil before use." Shane nods to Rick who nods back in response.

Rick turned back to Lori, "Are you asking me or telling me?" she asked as she continued to fold clothes.

"Asking," Rick replied simply.

"Well, I think it's crazy. I think it is just the stupidest way to break your son's—" Lori began to tell him but was cut off by a woman's piercing scream.

"Mom!" Carl's voice echoed through the trees, Cindy immediately sped into the woods towards the sound of her nephew's calls. Lori, Rick, Shane and a few other's followed quickly after.

"Carl?" Lori called as she ran quickly through the woods. Shane runs toward Carl, shotgun in hand.

"Dad!" Carl's screams became more frequent as his fear increased, "Cindy!"

"Baby!" Lori cried, hoping to god nothing happens to her little boy. Lori ran through the trees, dodging obstacles calling her son's name.

"Mama! Mommy!" Came the sound of a girl's cry. Possibly Sophia. Her and Carl were playing together earlier. Maybe they strayed too far from camp.

"It's okay. I got him. I got him." Jacqui reassured when they finally found them.

Lori crouched down in front of Carl, checking him for injuries, "Nothing bit you? Nothing scratched you?" Lori asked him frantically. When she found nothing, she sighed in relief and pulled him into a hug.

The group came to a clearing where they saw a walker chewing on a deer, the deer had arrows embedded in it. The group circled the deer drawing the walker's attention to them. It began to rise to it's feet and turned towards Rick. It growled and lunged at him. Rick held up his spear whacks the walker with his spear. The walker keeps attempted to get up so Morales, Glenn, Rick, Jim and Dale continue to hit it like it was a piñata.

Cindy rolled her eyes and pushed Rick and Morales aside. She swung her bat at it's legs knocking it over on it's hands and knees. Cindy nodded to Dale, signalling him swing the axe in his hand. Dale swung the axe and sliced the walker's head clean off.

Everyone looked at the woman a little shocked, she looked around at their faces and confusion fell onto hers, "What? Were you waiting for it to spit out candy?" she asked, gesturing to the corpse that lay at her feet. Everyone stayed silent for a moment.

Dale broke the silence, worry in his tone when he looked at the dead walker, "It's the first one we've had up here. They never come this far up the mountain,"

"Well, they're running out of food in the city, that's what," Jim stated, the sound of a branch snapping and rustling bushes put the group on high alert. Cindy edged closer to the sound, her hands twisting around her bat. Shane came to stand beside her, shotgun at the ready.

A man with a crossbow appeared from behind a tree and Shane immediately put his shotgun down, "Oh, Jesus," Shane grumbled to himself. Cindy lowered he bat slightly but not completely. Yeah Shane put his weapon down but still, Cindy remained on her guard. The man looked down at the deer that had been chewed on by the walker and it angered him.

"Son of a bitch. That's my deer! Look at it all gnawed on by this," he groaned as he started to kick the walker, "Filthy, disease-bearing, motherless poxy bastard!"

"Calm down, son. That's not helping," Dale said, which angered him more, he paced towards the older man.

"What do you know about it, old man? Why don't you take that stupid hat and go back to "on golden pond"?" the man teased him getting up in his face. Cindy placed her hand on Dale's shoulder and guided him back and wedged herself between the two.

"Daryl Dixon, I assume," She speculated as she looked at him.

The man then looked down at the young woman and glared at her, "Who the hell are you?"

Cindy never shifted her gaze, "I'm someone you want as an ally not an enemy." She responded. Daryl just laughs at her. To him she's just a little girl trying to act tough, but she doesn't shift eye contact, "You don't touch him. You hear? Or anyone else. It's about time you grow the fuck up and change your attitude."

"No one has ever spoken to me like that!" he growled, pointing his finger at her, stepping closer to tower over her, trying to be intimidating, she's handled worse, much worse. She could handle Dixon. Besides she wasn't that much smaller than him.

"Obviously someone should." She retorted, she picked up her bat placing it behind her neck resting it on both her shoulders before walking back towards camp.

The group looked at the dazed Daryl she left behind, as he watches her walk away. No one has ever spoken to him like that, especially not a little girl. Shane had a smirk hidden on his lips. Daryl shakes his head and returns his attention back to the deer, "I've been tracking this deer for miles." He told them as he yanks his arrows out of the remains of the deer. "Gonna drag it back to camp, cook us up some venison. What do you think? Do you think we can cut around this chewed up part right here?" he indicated with his arrows, leaning over to trace a line around the hole the walker had left.

"I would not risk that." Shane said, his shotgun resting behind his neck, much like Cindy's bat.

Daryl sighs as he stood upright, "That's a damn shame. I got some squirrel, about a dozen or so. That'll have to do." He told the gesturing to the squirrels hanging on his shoulder, all attached to a piece of string. The head of the walker starts snapping it's teeth.

"Oh God." Amy groaned in disgust, Andrea put her arms around her sister and guided her away

"Come on, people. What the hell?" Daryl said as he aimed his crossbow. He shoots it straight through the eye. He walked over to the head and placed his foot on it and pulls the arrow out, "It's gotta be the brain. Don't y'all know nothing?" he asked as he walked past. Rick looked at him, observing his behaviour. Trying to figure out the best way to tell him about Merle.

Shane followed behind Daryl, taking the matter into his hands as the unspoken leader of the camp. The group followed closely behind.

"Merle! Merle!" Daryl called as he made his way over to the RV, "Get your ugly ass out here! I got us some squirrel!" he placed his crossbow down against a pile of wood, "Let's stew 'em up." he said as he continued his walk towards the RV

"Daryl," Shane called, gaining Daryl's attention. Shane placed his shotgun in the front seat of his jeep, "just slow up a bit. I need to talk to you," Daryl slowed to a stop and looked at the man.

"About what?" he asked, Shane walked around him, between Daryl and the RV.

"About Merle. There was a... There was a problem in Atlanta." He started, as he stopped in front of him. Daryl looked around the camp, all eyes were on him.

"He dead?" he asked, Cindy kept her eye on Daryl, watching for any signs that suggest he's going to attack. Lori stood in the doorway of the RV watching the interaction, Carl was behind her, trying to catch a glimpse of what was going on.

"We're not sure." Shane replied to him, there was no way for anyone to know for sure. No one in this camp could tell him anything different.

"He either is or he ain't!" Daryl yelled, his anger quickly rising at the fact he wasn't getting a straight answer.

"No easy way to say this, so I'll just say it." Rick spoke up as he walked over to Daryl and Shane. Daryl turned to him.

"Who are you?" he asked impatiently.

"Rick Grimes."

"Rick Grimes," Daryl repeated mockingly, "You got something you want to tell me?"

"Your brother was a danger to us all, so I handcuffed him on a roof, hooked him to a piece of metal. He's still there." Rick told him truthfully. T-Dog came into the camp, his arms full of firewood, quickly realising what was going on. What they were talking about.

"Hold on. Let me process this. You're saying you handcuffed my brother to a roof and you left him there?!" Daryl yelled, anger burned through him, making his blood boil.

"Yeah." Rick admitted quietly, taking the blame for T-Dog. He didn't want to rat him out.

Daryl grunted as he threw the rope of squirrels at Rick. Cindy ran towards him and extending her arm out to the side catching his neck and throwing him on the ground. T-Dog drops the firewood and steps forward, "Hey." Daryl then pulled out his knife and goes after her. "Watch the knife!" T-Dog warned the girl.

Daryl started swinging his knife. Cindy ducked under his arm, twisted it, knocking the knife out of his hand. She hooked her ankle with his and pulled it from beneath him. She then quickly ran behind him, putting him into a chokehold, "What did I just say to you" she asked him, "Huh?" she questioned, everyone around camp watched the scene, taken aback, that the girl dared to go head to head with Daryl when he was pissed and unpredictable.

"You best let me go!" he yelled at her, trying to pry her arms from around his neck.

"Nope, don't think so," she replied, gripping her arms tighter around him.

"Choke hold's illegal," Daryl protested, grunting as he continued to attempt to escape the hold.

"Well you can file a complaint. My brother's a cop." She replied sarcastically, "Although it might be a while before you hear anything." She looked up at the two "Officers" that just stood there like a couple of barbie dolls, "Either of you want to talk to him or do you want to just stand there looking pretty?" Cindy asked them, whilst still keeping a firm grip on Daryl.

Rick crouched down in front of Daryl, "I'd like to have a calm discussion on this topic. Do you think we can manage that?" Rick got closer to him, looking him dead in the eye, "Do you think we can manage that?" Rick asked him again when he didn't reply. Rick looked up at Cindy and nodded at her, silently telling her to release him. Cindy nodded back to him and dropped Dixon on the floor.

Daryl looked up at, Rick. Panting to get his breath back, "What I did was not on a whim. Your brother does not work and play well with others," explaining his reason for handcuffing Merle on the roof in the first place.

"It's not Rick's fault," T-Dog spoke up, making everyone look at him, especially Daryl. Cindy shook her head at him, mouthing, 'We got this,' T-Dog smiled at the girl but he didn't want to hide from what he did. He didn't want them to take the blame for something that was his fault, "I had the key... I dropped it," he admitted to Daryl, who was still sat on the floor.

"You couldn't pick it up?" Daryl asked, confusion crossed his features, not understanding why T-Dog couldn't pick up a lousy key.

"Well, I dropped it in a drain," T-Dog added sadly, a shadow of guilt flooded onto his face.

"If it's supposed to make me feel better, it don't," Daryl said as he got up, tossing dirt and small stones that he had grasped in his hands. About to walk past him and to his tent, T-Dog's voice and next statement stopped in his tracks.

"Well, maybe this will. Look, I chained the door to the roof. So the geeks couldn't get at him...with a padlock," he told Daryl

"It's gotta count for something." Rick spoke from behind him. Daryl wipes tears out of his eyes before. 'He's not that bad, he just wants his brother,' Cindy thought. Daryl didn't come across as an asshole to her. Something deep within his eyes suggested to Cindy that he was a misunderstood, tortured soul. Something haunted him and it wasn't the world going to shit.

"Hell with all y'all! Just tell me where he is so's I can go get him." Daryl demanding and a little desperate. Anxious to get his brother back.

"They'll show you. Isn't that right?" Lori asked, still leaning on the door frame of the RV. 'They?' Cindy thought. As far as she knew, she was the only one thinking about going back. Everyone looked at Rick, awaiting his reply. Cindy however looked around the group of people staring at her brother, she shook her head, 'No, don't say that you're goi-' her thoughts were cut off by Rick's voice.

"I'm going back." Rick announced, Cindy mentally groaned, she ran a hand down her face, 'Damn it, Rick' Cindy thought. Lori's face fell, she had hoped he had changed his mind but the whole confrontation with Daryl only gave him more reason to go back.

"Me too," Cindy spoke up from beside her brother. He was about to protest but Cindy held up her hand and cut him off, "No arguments, Rick. I'm going. You should stay, with Carl and Lori. I'm sure me and Daryl can handle it," she gestured to herself and the younger Dixon.

"Not a chance, if you're going, I'm going too," Rick protested, Lori, hurt and angry, climbs into the RV. Carl flops down onto the couch, upset, heartbroken that his father was leaving just a day after he got back. Not only that but is aunt was going with him.

Daryl walked over to the unlit campfire and sat down to clean his arrows. Rick made his way to the tent, "I'm just gonna get changed," He told his sister as he walked past, Cindy nodded in acknowledgement and made her way over to the fire and sat beside Daryl.

"I'm sorry we left your brother," she told him sincerely, he paused his current action to look up at her. She sent him a small smile, his gaze softened for just a moment, she would have missed it had she not been looking, "You okay?" she asked him softly.

He didn't know how to respond, how to talk to her. So he just shrugged his shoulders. She was much gentler than earlier, sensitive. It was like she truly cared about his feelings. He was silent, millions of thoughts twirling through his mind. The words that came out of his mouth shocked both himself and Cindy, "'m sorry I came at ya with a knife,"

Cindy smiled and looked to the ground, "It's understandable, you were upset. I mean, I'm pretty sure I would be if it was Rick," she said, the end of the sentence becoming a whisper.

After a few minutes Rick reappears from the tent buttoning up his uniform. Shane was waiting for him outside the tent, "So that's it, huh? You're just gonna walk off? Just to hell with everybody else?" he questioned.

"I'm not saying to hell with anybody. Not you, Shane. Lori least of all." Rick told him seriously as he walks up the hill towards the cube van.

"Tell her that." Shane called to him, Rick turns back to face Shane.

"She knows." He replied, with a raise of his eyebrows. He turned away from him and walked away, Shane following after him.

"Well, look, I-I don't, okay, Rick? So could you just- could you throw me a bone here, man? Could you just tell me why? Why would you risk your life for a douche bag like Merle Dixon?" Shane asked as they've walked up to the now cooking fire where Daryl and Cindy were waiting. Shane's choice of words didn't sit well with Daryl.

"Hey, choose your words more carefully." Daryl warned, standing up straight as he glared at Shane, angered that he had insulted his brother.

"Oh no, I did. Douche bag's what I meant," Shane said as he looked at Daryl, then back at Rick, "Merle Dixon- the guy wouldn't give you a glass of water if you were dying of thirst." He kept switching his gaze between Rick and Daryl as he spoke about Merle, glaring at Daryl as if he were the exact copy of him.

"What he would or wouldn't do doesn't interest me. I can't let a man die of thirst. Me. Thirst and exposure. We left him like an animal caught in a trap. That's no way for anything to die, let alone a human being." Rick said, continuing to explain his reasons for wanting to save Merle.

Shane still wasn't budging, he wanted to leave Merle, just as he did with the others who were trapped. So Cindy added some words of her own, "We can't just leave him there, Shane. It's not right, it's not human." Shane sighed, knowing there was nothing he could do to change their minds.

"So you two and Daryl, that's your big plan?" Lori questioned them sceptically, her eyebrows raised looking between the siblings. Rick turns and looks at Glenn with an expression silently asking him to come with them.

"Oh, come on." Glenn groaned, he didn't want to go back especially with a group after what happened last time. He took his cap off for a second to run his hand through his hair before placing it back on his head.

"Rick, no." Cindy told him, it was unfair to ask him to risk his life. Rick didn't listen, he felt he needed Glenn to guide them, he thought he'd know the safest route, hiding spots, exits.

"You know the way. You've been there before. In and out, no problem. You said so yourself. It's not fair of me to ask, I know that, but I'd feel a lot better with you along. I know she would too." He said gesturing to Lori. Glenn looks over Rick's shoulder at Lori and Carl.

"That's just great. Now you're gonna risk four men, huh?" Shane questioned, anger bubbling in his throat.

Cindy cleared her throat, holding her hand up in the air, "Woman," she said, correcting Shane's sentence.

"Five." T-Dog stepped forward, Daryl huffed, still messing with his arrows.

"My day just gets better and better, don't it?" he muttered sardonically.

"You see anybody else here stepping up to save your brother's cracker ass?" T-Dog asked as he glared at the man.

"Why you?" Daryl asked, Cindy punched him in the arm. He looked at her with a glare.

"He's just trying to help," she whispered to him.

"That's five," Dale confirmed, joining the conversation. Looking around at the five people returning to the city.

"It's not just five. You're putting every single one of us at risk. Just know that, Rick." Shane spoke sharply as he ran a hand down his face, "Come on, you saw that walker. It was here. It was in camp. They're moving out of the cities. They come back, we need every able body we've got. We need 'em here. We need 'em to protect camp."

"It seems to me what you really need most here are more guns." Rick said, hoping that it would sway Shane into accepting the group to go and save Merle.

"Right, the guns." Glenn thought aloud stepping forward to stand beside Cindy.

Shane's eyebrows jerked up in confusion, "Wait, what guns?" he looked between both Rick and Glenn awaiting their reply but another voice answered and his head snapped towards them.

"Six shotguns, two high-powered rifles, over a dozen handguns." Cindy listed, Shane looked her and then Rick when he began talking.

"We cleaned out the cage back at the station before we left. I dropped the bag in Atlanta when we got swarmed. It's just sitting there on the street, waiting to be picked up." he told Shane, trying to urge him to change his mind. His expression changed to one of interest.

"Ammo?"

"700 rounds, assorted," Rick replied, making him step back with a nod. Shane knew that those rounds would be valuable. The trip would be worthwhile for those guns.

"You went through hell to find us. you just got here and you're gonna turn around and leave?" Lori spoke up, still questioning Rick's decision to go back.

"Dad, I don't want you or Aunty Cindy to go," Carl told him quietly, Cindy looked down at her feet and nodded.

"To hell with the guns, Shane is right. Merle Dixon? He's not worth one of your lives, even with guns thrown in." Lori voiced, her voice became distressed, she stood to come face to face with Rick, "Tell me. Make me understand." She pleaded.

"I owe a debt to a man I met and his little boy." Rick told her, Lori looked down at Carl silently asking, 'What about our little boy,' Rick cut her off from her thoughts as he explained," Lori, if they hadn't taken me in, I'd have died. It's because of them that I made it back to you at all."

"They took me in too. The initial outbreak which," Cindy spoke up, pausing to look around the group, "I'm sure we all remember. Panic, people running in every direction. There was loads of them. It was a bloodbath, they didn't have to take me in but they did."

"They said they'd follow us to Atlanta. They'll walk into the same trap we did if we don't warn them." Rick added, trying to explain to her why the bag of guns meant so much to him. He couldn't turn his back on Morgan, neither could Cindy. She may have gone on all the supply runs and risked her life for them but they gave her something more valuable. They gave her a reason to keep fighting. Something worth fighting for.

"What's stopping you?" she asked him softly, looking to the ground for a second then back at Rick for his reply.

"The walkie-talkie, the one in the bag I dropped. He's got the other one. Our plan was to connect when they got closer," he explained, she was starting to understand a little why Rick had to go back.

"These our walkies?" Shane asked from behind Rick. He had now sat down on the bumper on his jeep. Rick turned his head a little to the side but kept Lori in the corner of his eye.

"Yeah," Rick replied.

"So use the C.B. what's wrong with that?" Andrea asked, trying to help find a way for him to communicate without having to risk his life in the city. She knew exactly what it was like there, having her close call just the day before.

"The C.B's fine. It's the walkies that suck to crap. Date back to the 70's don't match any other bandwidth. Not even the scanners in our cars," Shane explained in a way that the people in camp would understand.

"I need that bag," Rick whispered to her, tilting his head silently begging her to understand. Lori didn't respond, just looked at the ground, defeated. Rick walked around Lori and crouched down in front of Carl, "Okay?" he smiled in return and nodded. He looked up at Cindy who smiled back at him. Everyone stood up and got ready to leave.

Glenn got into the cube van and turned it around, reversing back up the track. Rick and T-Dog make their way over to Dale, beside his RV, "Rumour is you have bolt cutters," Rick stated as he come to a stop.

"Maybe," Dale replied loosely. Not liking where this conversation was going.

"Yeah, we get to that roof, we'll need to cut that chain and the handcuffs." T-Dog explained to him. Daryl paced around in the cube van, impatiently waiting for the others to climb in.

"I never like lending tools, last time I did," Dale looked at T-Dog and pointed at him, "And yes, I am talking about you. Let's just say your bag of guns wasn't the only bag that was dropped. My tools got left behind. With Merle." He told Rick, obviously upset with the loss. Daryl paused his pacing and glared at the older man, who seemed to care more about tools than the life of his brother.

In the corner of her eye Cindy saw Shane. He gestured for her to come over, she nodded and held up her index finger, "I'll be back in a sec," she whispered to her brother. Rick nodded in return and Cindy made her way over to Shane.

"You sure about this, Cinderella?" he asked her, looking for any uncertainty in her features. She nodded with a laugh.

"Yes, Shane. I'm sure. I'd probably be dead if it weren't for Morgan. Duane reminded me of Carl, so full of life." She smiled as she remembered her new friends. Her smile slowly fell when she started to think about how she wished they were here, where she could protect them.

"Cindy, I'm so sorry I left yo-" Cindy shook her head and cut him off.

"I'm glad you did. I was afraid I'd find your body when I went back to Rick's room..."

—Flashback— (1 Month, 17 days ago)

Wednesday 15th September 2010

"Afternoon Cara," Cindy greeted the receptionist as her and Shane walked through the front door of the hospital.

"Afternoon Cindy, officer," she greeted back with a cheery smile.

"Afternoon beautiful," Shane flirted, causing both Cindy and Cara to roll their eyes. She grabbed Shane's arm and pulled him away, she mouthed a 'Thank you.' causing Cindy to giggle, "Hey, I was talking to Carla," Cindy scowled at Shane for using the wrong name.

"Her name is Car-a." Cindy stretched out the name slowly, trying to get it into his head, she dropped his arm and continued towards her brother's room, "Besides, you're not her type."

"Oh yeah? What is her type then?" Shane challenged. Cindy knew what Shane was like. Never had a girlfriend more than a month, apart from Patricia. She knew he would hurt her, break her heart. Cindy was friends with Cara's older brother. Had been since they were very young. In a way, Cara was her baby sister too. So naturally, she wanted to protect her. Cindy liked Shane but sometimes he was a real asshole.

"I don't know, someone with a brain," she remarked with a shrug of her shoulder as she turned a corner and began to walk down the corridor.

"Actually, I think you'll find that I'm very intelligent. Maybe smarter than you," he argued, following closer behind her. Cindy stopped on the spot and turned to look at Shane with her arms crossed.

"Really?" she asked, her eyes glowing with amusement. Shane's smirk matched Cindy's as he nodded at her, she scoffed, "And I'm the queen of Mars," she remarked as she continued walking down the corridor.

Shane followed after her, "You heard about the biters?" he asked her.

"Yeah, on the news. Said that people were getting bitten by other people," she shook her head at the thought. Why would you bite someone. That's just weird.

"Don, got bit. On the neck," Shane told her, Cindy's eyes widened as she looked at him.

"Is he okay?" she asked. Concerned about the man that her brother had worked beside for many years.

Shane shook his head at her, "Got him good. Died from blood loss in less than a minute," he told her, his voice low. His mind running back through the events of the day, wondering whether he could have done something to save him.

"Something strange is happening. It's big, whatever it is," Cindy spoke, voicing her opinion. She knew something was happening. Hundreds of people are getting bitten by others. Why? No one seems to know. Or at least no one is telling the public. They soon came to Rick's door. Cindy entered first, holding the door open for Shane.

"Thank you, princess."

Cindy rolled her eyes at the nickname, "I was raised to respect my elders." She joked back, her smirk making its way back onto her face.

"Hey, I'm not old." Shane groaned as he sat down in the seat beside Rick's bed. He took out his phone and started texting, presumably Lori, telling her that he and Cindy had arrived at the hospital.

Cindy walked over to the other side of the bed, taking her brother's hand in hers, "Hey Ricky." She grazed her thumb over the top of his hand and smiled at him, she leaned forward to whisper, "You have to come back. Shane is annoying me, so much I wanna shoot him,"

"I heard that," Shane spoke from his seat not looking up from his phone. Cindy sat up straight and looked at him.

"You were supposed to," she shot back at him. Shane raised his eyebrows as he looked up at the girl. He put his phone away in his pocket.

Shane reached into his back pocket and pulled out some money and handed it to her, "What's this for?"

"It's your turn to make the coffee run and you clearly need some." Shane replied, Cindy groaned, throwing her head back.

"I'll be back in a bit," she told him as she walked out the door. She made her way back towards the canteen near the entrance.

She walked down the corridor, nodding and saying 'hello' to those she passed. It didn't take her long to reach the canteen and get into the queue. The canteen was almost full, mostly nurses on their lunch break and others were visiting their loved ones. Cindy absentmindedly looked around at her surroundings when she spotted multiple military vehicles parked outside. Armed soldiers jumping out and wasting no time entering the hospital. Her eyes widened when they raised their guns and began shooting at everyone.

She instinctively rushed to take cover. She was scared. Her, a marine, was terrified. The military were supposed to protect these people, why the fuck were they shooting them.

"Remember the mission. Shoot everyone. Don't let no one leave." A man's voice spoke. A chorus of 'yes sir.' followed shortly after and footsteps scattered away. Cindy grabbed her phone and texted Shane.

'Get the fuck out of here. The military are shooting everyone.'

'Nice try, princess.' came his reply. She screwed her hand into a fist and then typed back furiously.

'Shane I'm serious.'

Cindy inwardly growled in annoyance when no reply came. Why can't that man just listen for once? Cindy knew she had to get back to Rick's room fast but quietly. She couldn't risk getting killed, for whatever reason, the military were executing people. She had heard about a virus causing the infected to become aggressive and bite people and the numbers kept increasing.

Smoke floated in the air around her, as she crawled from her cover. She crept towards the receptionist's desk at the entrance. Looking for Cara, hoping she was okay but when she reached the desk she found her lying on the floor, bleeding out, "Cara," she slide beside her, placing her head in her lap.

"I hurt," she cried, tears of pain, fear travelled down her cheeks. Cindy nodded in understanding. She had been shot a couple of times, not pleasant.

"Shh, you're gonna be fine," she comforted her. Truth was, she knew she wouldn't be. She couldn't exactly call for help, she'd get killed. She didn't know what to do. So she just stayed beside her, running her hand through her hair, "You'll be okay," she repeated.

Cara held up her arm, starting to fiddle with her bracelet, soon enough the bracelet was in her hand. She grabbed Cindy's hand and placed the bracelet in her palm, "T-to remember me," she trembled. Cindy looked at the jewellery in her hand. It was the bracelet she had given her as a graduation present.

"Do you think I'd ever forget you? We spray painted Shane's car. Remember? Turned it pink?" Cindy giggled, shortly joined by Cara, "You just think about that, Shane's face when he found his car," Cindy continued to run her hand through Cara's hair, trying to relax her as best she could. Cara closed her eyes and visualised the day that Shane found his car covered in yellow spray paint. A genuine happy smile appeared on her face as she did.

It wasn't long before Cara stopped breathing. Tears poured down Cindy's face, as she held the young, lifeless body. The girl she had known most of her life, just died in her arms. Cindy placed her forehead against Cara's, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she whimpered, she kissed her forehead and gently lay her down on the ground. Cindy clasps the bracelet around her wrist, glancing at Cara one last time. She wiped her eyes and looked around her. She had to get to Shane.

At the sight of no one around, no one alive that is. She stood up slowly, keeping an eye on every direction. She can hear gunshots and screaming coming from the direction of Rick's room. She took a deep breath and began down the corridor.

Halfway down the corridor she noticed a group of people running towards the exit, rushing past her. Running for their lives. She continued down the corridor, keeping an eye on every door she went past. She stopped when she heard someone barking orders up ahead, seeing a group of soldiers she quickly ducked into a room. Where she found a man munching on a woman, "What the hell?" she asked aloud, causing the man to look at her. His eyes were grey, dead. He growled and stumbled towards her. Cindy instinctively backed away from him. She asked him to stay back multiple times but he kept coming at her, he grabbed her arms pulling her towards him, his mouth aiming for her throat. 'He ain't going to stop.' She thought to herself. She grabbed her knife and rammed it into his skull. His body dropped to the white floor. "What the fuck just happened?" she asked herself. Unsure if that just happened or if she had imagined it. She looked at the monitor next to the woman and there were no signs of life.

"The biters," she whispered. Everywhere around the world there have been reports of people biting people. She had almost got bitten. Some broadcasts even spoke of people coming back from the dead. Cindy, however, thought that was a load of crap. But then again. The guy who just tried to eat her looked dead, smelt it too. Could it be true?

If so she had to be careful. They turned somehow. She poked her head slightly out the door. Scanning the corridor. A groan come from behind her. Her breath hitched in her throat as she whipped her head round. The woman was alive. Cindy scrunched her eyebrows and cautiously stepped towards the woman. She was still on the bed, "Ma'am? Are you... are you alright?" she asked, Cindy mentally facepalmed at her question 'Of course she isn't alright, you idiot. She was chewed on by this freak.' The woman didn't reply just looked at her with the same dead eyes as the man who tried to bite her.

Cindy's eyes widened, 'It is true. She's dead.' she looked down at the man she had killed not too long ago. She nodded to herself and walked towards the woman, knife at the ready, "I'm sorry," she whispered before pushing the knife through her forehead.

She pulled the knife back out and headed towards the door, she still had to find Shane. She understood now why the military were here. They must think it's airborne. She reopened the door and slid out, back into the corridor, continuing her journey towards Rick's room.

She got to Rick's room with no more trouble to see a hospital bed in front of it. She moved it out the way and entered her brother's room. He looked the same as he did before. Thank god. She sighed, she had to get out of there. Cindy felt as if there was a chance that Rick could wake up, so she wrote him a note and left it on the side table.

She kissed his forehead before leaving. She had to get back to the house and fast. She never saw Shane on the way out. Relief washed over her as she exited the hospital doors, she quickened her pace. Seeing two soldiers by the trucks, she carefully tiptoed around them. She began to run as soon as she was out of their range.

—Present Day—

"I'm glad I didn't find your stupid ass on the floor," Cindy told him with a smirk.

"I'm glad I didn't find you dead too. Even though you are rude to me," he replied, his face mirroring Cindy's for a moment before his expression turned serious, "Be safe, yeah?" Cindy smiled and nodded.

"I will. I'll bring them all back," she promised him, looking at the group who were getting ready to leave. Cindy had always been like a little sister to Shane. They'd bicker, pull tricks on each other and just annoy the shit out of each other.

Shane opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by the sound of a horn blasting, "Come on let's go!" Daryl shouted catching the attention of T-Dog and Rick who were still talking to Dale.

Cindy smiled at Shane, she turned around to head over to the van when a small hand stopped her. She looked down to see Carl looking up at her, "Hey, little man. You okay?" she asked him, he look up at her with sad eyes.

"Will you come back?" he questioned in a small, sad voice. He looked scared, probably thinking that something might happen to Rick and Cindy. Cindy crouched down to his level, taking his hands in hers.

"Yes we will. Safe and sound," she told him, her voice soft but serious.

"Promise?" he asked, his bottom lip beginning to quiver.

Cindy nodded and held out her pinkie to him, he clasped his pinkie around hers, "I pinkie promise your daddy will come back," she promised. This made Carl feel a lot better, Cindy never ever broke a pinkie promise. Carl threw his arms around Cindy's shoulders and hugged her tightly.

"Cindy, you ready?" Rick called from beside the van. Cindy nodded as she stood up, ruffling Carl's hair.

"Be back soon, little man," she told him as she walked away towards the group waiting for her. She reached the back of the truck, about to climb in when a hand reached down to help her. She looked up and saw the younger Dixon standing over her. She smiled and grabbed his hand. He helped her up into the truck and then returned to his seat, "What a gentleman," she joked as she looked behind her back to Carl. He was still crying. Cindy shook her head at him and held up her pinkie. Carl smiled and held up his as well.

"Hey Rick," Shane called, coming to stand beside him at the back of the van, placing his bag on the edge of the van, "Got any rounds in the python?" he asked

"No," Rick replied, he used all of his bullets in the city yesterday.

"Last time we were on the gun range, I'm sure I wound up with a few loose rounds of yours," Shane told him as he sifted through his bag.

"You and that bag, like the bottom of an old lady's purse," Rick joked as he waited for Shane to finish his hunt through his bag. Shane chuckles at his friend's joke.

Shane pauses his task his face turning serious, "I hate that you're doing this, man. I think that it's foolish and reckless but if you're gonna go, you're taking bullets."

"I'm not sure I'd want to fire a shot in the city. Not after what happened last time." Rick told him, mind rewinding back to the events of yesterday.

"That's up to you. Well... five men five rounds," Shane said as he held the bullets in the palm of his hand, "What are the odds, huh?"

"Woman!" Cindy called from above Shane and her brother. Shane looked up at the girl.

"Well, I don't have any pink ones." Shane told the girl, who in return flipped him off and turned to sit down, "Let's just hope five is your lucky number, okay?" he finished, dropping the rounds in Rick's palm.

"Thank you." Rick told him. He walks away and gets into the passenger seat. Loading his python with the bullets Shane had given him. Daryl closes the sliding door as Glenn starts the truck and drives away. The survivors watch as the van leaves the camp.

Lori walks into the Grimes' tent to find Carl lying on his bed. She's trying to keep her tears at bay. For Carl. The thought of her husband and sister-in-law risking their lives scared her. She should be used to it with their past jobs but it feels different now. There were more risks now, more dangerous scenarios.

"Hey." she began, sniffling as she spoke. She sat down beside Carl's bed and continued, "You know, I bet they'll be just fine."

"I'm not worried." His small voice told her, "Are you?"

"Yeah, a little." She admitted.

"Don't be." He told her calmly.

"Why?" she asked, wondering how her son could be so calm about this.

"Think about it, Mom. Everything that's happened to dad so far; nothing's killed him yet and aunty Cindy won't let anything happen to him. She promised." Lori chuckles, her tears ceasing to fall. She takes Carl's hand and thinks about what he had just told her. Thoughts still swirled around her head 'I hope you're right baby boy,' Lori didn't know whether she could handle losing Rick again.

In Atlanta, Glenn pulls the cube van up along some railroad tracks.

"He'd better be okay. It's my only word on the matter," Daryl threatened, his eyes glued on T-Dog.

"I told you the geeks can't get at him. The only thing that's gonna get through that door is us." T-Dog told him. Cindy rolled her eyes.

"Would you two stop?" Cindy snapped causing both men to look at her, "We all need to be focused if we are going to survive this. Cus if not, you may as well just kill each other right now. It'll be less painful." What she said was true. If they didn't work together they would fail and failure resulted in death.

The brakes squeak as Glenn pulls to a stop, "We walk from here," he told them. Looking at each face in the van. They all exit the van and follow the tracks into Atlanta.

Cindy rushed to the front of the group, "Stay close and stay quiet,"

"Who put you in charge?" Daryl asked rudely. Cindy stopped in her tracks and walked straight up to him. She was not going to stand for his snarky comments while they were risking their lives for his brother. They needed to work together, they needed to be on their guard. They needed to not get killed.

"How many stealth missions have you commanded, huh, tough guy?" she asked him, getting into his face. He didn't respond to her. In fact the whole group were silently watching her, "I didn't think so. 37. We do this by working as a team. If you go rogue, I will knock your ass out and drag you back to camp," she looks around the group and continues towards the city, "Come on, let's go,"

They came to a stop by a fence, they cut open the fence and stepped through, Rick turned to Glenn, "Merle first or guns?" he asked. Before Glenn could answer, Daryl butted in.

"Merle! We ain't even having this conversation," he shouted at Rick. Cindy glared at him to which he responded with a roll of his eyes.

"Glenn knows the city better than anyone, it's his call," Cindy told him, she turned her head to look at younger man, "Glenn?"

"Merle's closest. The guns would mean doubling back," Glenn told them as he lead them through the city to the department store.

"Merle's first then," Cindy stated as she followed Glenn, keeping as close to him as she could so she could protect him if anything attacked.

As they entered the store, Rick and Cindy walked up in front. Ready to take out any walkers that may remain in the store. Rick looked at Daryl and nodded towards the walker, silently telling him to take it out. Daryl crept up, stopping in front of it and raising his crossbow, her looked at her as she growled at him, "Damn... you are one ugly skank," he insulted her just seconds before releasing and arrow into her forehead. She fell to the floor with a thump that echoed around the store.

Daryl walked up to the now dead walker, ripping his arrow from it's head. Blood and slices of brain clung onto it, he wiped it on his pants and took off towards the stairs. There were no walkers when they made it to the door, to which they were relieved. T-Dog cut the chain on the door and Daryl wasted no time kicking the door open. They all rushed out onto the roof, "Merle! Merle!" Daryl shouted as he ran across the roof, in search of Merle. But all he found was Dale's hacksaw, drenched with blood. Handcuff still dangling from the pipe. Below it a hand sat in a puddle of blood. Merle's hand.

Daryl was in tears, pacing backwards and forwards but his eyes never leaving the chain or the hand, "No! No! No!" he cried. Cindy looked to the ground, guilt tearing through her like a knife as she looked at what was left of the man that she had left behind. There were very few things that could make Daryl cry and this was one of them. Losing the only person he had left in the world. His brother...

Masterlist <Previous Chapter

[frost-queen]

Bodyguarded // part 5 (Reader!Grimes x Daryl Dixon)

Forever tag:@missmelodramatic, @merlin-dahlia, @alex--awesome--22, @elllie-does-the-posts, @floatlosers, @merlieve, @queen-of-books, @glimmering-darling-dolly @denkisclown, @wildieflower, @meyocoko, @bubblybrianna, @justanothercoco, @subjecta13-thefangirl, @m-rae23, @harleyquinnswifeyfrfr, @swampthing07, @melsunshine, @panhoeofmanyfandoms, @venomsvl, @the-uncoordinated-house-cat , @rosecentury,  @imagines-by-her,  @evilcr0ne, @vviolynn , @niktwazny303 Tag: @strangerthingslover69 , @ankhmutes , @yoowhatthefuck , @sseleniaa, @deansapplepie , @abbiesxox, @skulliecadaver-blog, @winterassassin1804 , @love-zami

Summary: When there is a need for supplies, a select group goes to the city. Shane and you are forced to be together. How will this play out? Will you find a way out savely out of the city with the others? [series]

Shane slammed his hand on the hood, alarming everyone they were set to ride. Rick kissed Lori goodbye and gave Carl a hug before joining Shane by the car. Glenn already stood by it, wanting to drive. Shane came standing before him with a glare. Glenn swallowed nervously getting the hint. He moved to the backseat as Shane got in the front. Rick joined Shane on the other side. Daryl was by his motorcycle with Carol. Carol was speaking to him, telling him to be careful.

He listened half, finding her motherly concern a bit overrated. You tossed an empty bag in the trunk, shutting it. You were about to get into the car when Daryl whistled loud. It made you look back at him, seeing him ask you over. Smiling, you went up to Daryl. The car door opened as Shane set one foot out, standing up. – “In the car!” – he ordered. – “She’s riding with me!” – Daryl called back.

“Y/n! the car!” – he made clear. Daryl let the engine roar of his motorcycle to overpower Shane’s overrule. You went over to Daryl anyways, grabbing his back as you swung your leg over the motorcycle. Shane puffed annoyed getting back in the car. Your hands were on Daryl as he took them, wrapping them tighter and closer to the front around him.

Daryl rode off, passing by the car. Shane easily caught up with him, riding past him. Shane then slowed a bit down so Daryl and you were still close by. Daryl wasn’t speeding much to not attract any walkers with the noise of the motor. You were leaning against his back, watching the trees pass till it would eventually make way for the highway. – “Hey Y/n.” – Daryl said catching your attention. It made you lift your head up from against his back. – “Yeah?” – you answered.

Daryl turned the steering a bit, getting closer to the woods as you were confused to what he was doing. – “How about a little detour?” – he chuckled out. – “Daryl!” – you called out slapping him against his back. Daryl steered back to the middle of the road where the car drove a few meters up front. – “Shane would go feral.” – you told him. – “I don’t care.” – Daryl answered back.

“Yeah cause having him drive after us like a maniac with Glenn and my brother in the car is so thrilling.” – you teased with a roll of your eyes. Daryl chuckled already picturing it. – “It’s not funny!” – you called out giving him another slap against his shoulder.

Wrapping your arms tighter around him, you snuggled closer against him. – “Just enjoy this.” – you mumbled out. Daryl kept tailing the car till they made it up to the highway. There they started to speed up knowing they had to have daylight at their side. If they would be stuck in the city by night, it would be hell. By the edge of the city, they parked. Not wanting to attract the walkers that roamed the city. Their city now. Fallen a few years ago.

You got off Daryl’s bike as he held you in place by taking your wrist. You turned confused at him. Daryl pulled out a gun, putting it in your hands while his gaze was on Shane up ahead with the car. – “I don’t want my girl to be unarmed.” – he told you, pushing your hand closer to your body. You turned your back to the car, putting the gun away out of eye’s way.

Daryl knew Shane would never let you have a gun. It was even a surprise that were allowed on this run for supplies. You leaned down resting your arm over his shoulder. – “I always have you to save my ass.” – you told him smirking. Daryl inhaled deep bringing his hand on your back down to your bottom. – “A fine one too.” – he answered making you snort.

Daryl and you kissed quick before he got off his motorcycle. You went over to Glenn, taking an empty bag from as well. Glenn stepped away when he saw Rick approach you. – “Nervous brother?” – you asked when he slid his arm over your shoulder. – “Only for you.” – he responded. – “I’ll be fine. I’ve dealt with walkers more than you.” – you laughed out patting him against his cheek.

Rick chuckled giving you a little shove. – “Hey you’re the newbie here.” – you teased giving him a bump with your hip. Shane came walking around you and Rick having a little comment to say. – “Try not to scream at a walker Y/n.” – he said making you smile sarcastically back at him. You left Rick’s side going after Shane wanting to reply to that. – “Try keeping him alive now.” – you commented hinting your brother.

Shane’s eyes widened briefly but before he could reply, you had joined the others. – “Here you go.” – Glenn said offering you a machete. You accepted it, looking over at Daryl. You didn’t think you would be given a weapon. You then looked over to Shane, wanting to see what he would do about it. He didn’t comment on it, so you got to keep the machete.

Glenn took the lead as he knew some good routes to a nearby store. Daryl and you walked at the back, keeping a good eye on your behinds. The streets were silent. Papers and trash scattered around. Some moving with the wind. Glenn stopped at the front of an alleyway that led up to the main road. Shane and Rick right behind him. Daryl turned his back at you, holding his crossbow up to the other end of the alley in case one would dare to sneak up.

Glenn overlooked the main road, seeing some walkers stand mindlessly still. Some wandering a bit at the slowest pace. Almost unactive from not having eaten so long. – “And?” – Shane asked keeping his voice low. – “It’s a risk.” – he answered seeing a walker sniff the air, making him pull back into he alleyway. – “The stores are up ahead across this street. I don’t think we can make it across unnoticed.” – Glenn spoke lowly looking at Rick and you.

“What if we distract them with noise?” – you suggested making everyone look at you. – “This way we’ll clear the road for you all to cross.” – you finished. – “And who are you suggesting to sacrifice themselves?” – Shane asked with crossed arms.

“It’s not a sacrifice if you do it right.” – you replied with a glare. Shane puffed loud. He then pushed Glenn forwards amidst you all. – “He’ll go.” – he put up. Glenn stared angry at him. – “No, Glenn is the fastest runner, besides he knows the place.” – you countered, backing Glenn up. – “I’ll do it.” – you proposed. – “Y/n no!” – Rick let out, shaking his head. – “It’s not up for discussion.” – you told your brother. Daryl joined having been on guard the entire time. – “I’m coming too.” – he said.

Shane shook his head, pinching his nose bridge. – “We need focus, not more distractions.” – Shane let out. Daryl came up to Shane. – “You got a problem?” – he asked. Shane puffed up his chest to appear larger. – “Enough!” – you shout-whispered coming in between them. Now was not the time and place to argue and fight.

“I don’t care who comes with me, but if we stay here any longer there will be an army of walkers feasting on our flesh!” – you said frustrated. Shane grabbed you by the elbow, pulling you away. Apparently he was coming with you. Daryl wanted to go after you but Rick held him back. – “We have to be ready when they clear the road.” – Rick told him.

You pushed Shane’s hand off you. The two of you rounded the back of some abandoned houses. Shane knocked some wooden planks off that boarded up the broken windows. – “After you.” – he said gloating. It made you roll your eyes. You gave him a little shove out of the way so that you could crawl through the window. Shane got in after you. With his gun up, he sneaked through the dark room to scout for any walkers.

You heard some faint groaning sounds walking up to it. Amidst the rubble was a walker. Stuck underneath parts of the ceiling that had crumbled down. The walker started to groan louder, reaching out to you to grab. You stood in front of it, shoving your machete down in it’s head. Giving it a twist so it surely was dead. Shane found one as well stuck as he knelt down, taking out his knife.

He stabbed it in the head. Blood spattering up. Shane wiped his knife clean on the walker’s dress. Shane and you rejoined in the middle of the room. – “All clear.” – he said making you nod. The two of you started to search for something to cause noise. – “What do you see in him anyways?” – Shane asked from across the room, going through some stuff.

“You mean what don’t I see in you?” – you responded back. Shane’s eyes widened brief, stopping his search, caught off guard. You came over to him. – “That’s what you want right? For many years now.” – you added finding something useful in a dusted box. An football horn, you so hoped still worked, but didn’t want to test out now. You showed Shane the horn as he came over to you.

Grabbing you tight by your arms. The way he stared at you, made you feel uneasy. His hard stare with that struggle deep inside of him. For a moment you thought he was going to kiss you forcefully. Having wanted nothing more. Ever since you were teens perhaps. The making fun of you, the teasing, always coming around.

It was clear now that he liked you but never dared to show it openly because of your brother. Now that he was older, his methods might have become more violent. Cursing at you and threating you bad just because he knew he never had a chance with you.

“What are you going to do.” – you dared him feeling him squeeze your arms tighter. – “Why can’t you just…” – Shane began nearing with his face. It made you gulp, thinking he might actually kiss you now. He kept coming closer with his face as it made you turn your head away. Shane’s forehead came in contact with your side as he shut his eyes hard. Then he tore himself away, taking the horn from you.

Letting out a loud breath, your heart was pounding. This could’ve taken a different direction. You followed Shane back out of the broken window. Jogging after him, you went further down the street to head into one of the next alleyways. Shane looked around and spotted a few cars parked in the middle of the road. He ran over to it, you right behind him.

Shane got up on the car, standing on the roof. He pressed on the horn as it let out a loud sound. Shit you thought, opening the car door and trying to see if the car worked. The walkers were alarmed. Groaning and calling it out as they collectively all turned towards the sounds. Shane horned again and long to lure them over. You kept turning the key, trying to start the car.

Looking briefly through the window, you saw the others carefully look before running across. This car was no use as you got out and went over to another car. Shane horned again, firing at some walkers that were coming near. Anxiously you were trying to start the next car. It was great that all the walkers were coming your way, but you still needed to escape. This car wasn’t working as well as you got back out and checked the hood. The engine stolen.

“Shane!” – you called out. Shane turned his head to you. – “None of them start!” – you yelled at him. Shane aimed his gun your way as you thought for a moment he was going to shoot you. His gun fired making you jump out of your skin. Then you heard a body drop to the ground. Looking over your shoulder you saw a walker down.

Gasping loud, you saw more walkers come from alleyways or hit their heads against glass to get to the noise. With no other way out, you climbed on the roof of the car with Shane. Taking out the gun Daryl had given you. You noticed Shane taking a moment to stare with wide eyes at it. – “Shut up.” – you said not wanting to hear complaints.

Some walkers were below at the car, swaying their arms around to grab for your feet. You started shooting at them. Each hit right through their skull. Shane blew the horn again luring more walkers to you. A walker threw himself on the hood, snapping his mouth around. Shane moved his arm over your shoulder, shooting at him. You shot a few by the trunk as their dark blood splashed the car. The space on the roof was just manageable for two if you didn’t move too much. You gulped feeling a hand grab at your ankle.

You felt yourself slip back off the roof. Before you could fall down reacted Shane. He had taken a hold of your wrist, holding you in place as your back dangled over the walkers. He pulled at your wrist, pulling up against his chest. With an arm around you, he continued to shoot around. Your heart was pounding still trying to recover from your almost fall.

The walkers were snapping their jaws at you and swaying their arms around. Gurgling loud with their calls. You so hoped they raided the place quick. Not sure how much longer you could hold them off. You fired at them one by one. They dropped down like flies but kept coming closer in tenfold. Shane stepped on a walker’s fingers as they reached the roof.

“Give me that horn.” – you told Shane. He gave it to you as you took a hairband from your wrist. You pressed the horn in, wrapping the hairband around it so it kept blowing. You were about to throw it away yourself, but offered it to Shane instead, knowing he might throw further than you. Shane accepted the blowing horn from you, throwing it further down the street. Some walkers were drawn to it that hadn’t smelled your flesh yet.

The others staid around the car, snapping beastly at the two of you. Shane and you fired at the remaining one’s. You furrowed your brows seeing a walker slide down the car side with an arrow in his head. Looking up, you saw Daryl, Glenn and your brother up ahead. They had come back from their raid. Rick was shooting as well, clearing a way for the two of you.

Walkers dropped down lifeless with each hit. Shane jumped off the roof first. You jumped after him, falling through your knees. Shane jerked you up by your arm. He then started running with you. The two of you met up with the others as Shane let go of you. You ran straight in Daryl’s arms, hugging him tight. Daryl exhaled relieved, hugging you back.

“Let’s go.” – Glenn called out knowing more would come soon. The five of you started to run back towards the alleyway. You were hallway through when a few walkers appeared on the other end. It made Glenn stop, you bumping against his back. – “Go back.” – he called out as you already turned around. Shane took about a few steps before he stopped. From the other side walkers now as well. They were closing in, having cut off your escape routes. – “Up!” – Rick called out seeing a ladder hanging a few feet above the ground. 

Rick grabbed you, picking you up for you to reach the ladder. You grabbed it, pulling yourself up by your hands before your feet could touch the first step. After you, Rick helped Glenn up. Daryl didn’t need any help as he jumped grabbing the first step with his hands. Rick and Shane joined last climbing up to the roof. Up, you helped Glenn from the ladder.

Daryl, Rick and Shane joining moments later. Glenn looked down the alleyway, seeing the walkers cramped up together, arms up trying to grab for you all out of reach. – “How are we going to get to the car now?” – Glenn panicked with his hands in his hair. Rick stood by the edge, overlooking the town from above.

You looked around the rooftop trying to look for a way out. Daryl joined your side, pulling you closer to him for a moment. Over his shoulder, he glanced at Shane close to Rick. Wondering what had occurred when he wasn’t near. You checked your gun, seeing how many bullets you had left. It wasn’t enough, perhaps to kill a few walkers. Rick whistled loud to round you up. – “We either wait for it to calm down or we take a risk.” – Rick suggested.

“If we wait they’ll just keep roaming below mindlessly cause nothing attracts them anymore.” – Glenn answered. – “Glenn’s got a point.” – Daryl spoke in agreement. The five of you set out to look around the roof top for anything useful. You neared the side of the roof towards the back, feeling that the foundation beneath your feet didn’t feel stable.

Rick was nearing as you stopped him. – “Stop!” – you called out, standing completely still. Rick stopped confused, setting his foot back. – “It’s unstable.” – you explained standing in the middle of it. This part of the roof probably rotten from damp and rain. It wasn’t sturdy cement. The others neared as well, standing by Rick.

You tried to set a foot down back towards them, but felt the foundation crack underneath you. – “Careful.” – Glenn called out. Perhaps if you ran, you could outrun it crumbling away. Eyes locked on Daryl, he knew what you were going to do. He nodded holding his hands out to catch you if he needed too.

You started running towards him, feeling the foundation crack underneath you. The foundation sunk below you, making you leap for Daryl. Daryl sucked in a breath holding his arms further up to you. Your hand touched his hand, swiping down it as he couldn’t catch you in time.

The foundation gave way beneath you, getting sucked into the building. – “Noooo!” – Daryl called out as you screamed loud, disappearing into the gaping black hole. Swallowed by the gaping gap left by the rotten foundation. Your back hit the ground, leaving you in complete darkness.  

----------------------------

Read more of my fics on my Masterlists!  

[lunajay33]

Masterlist

Fluff>☆ Angst>꩜ Spicy>ꨄ︎ Suggestive>❀

Daryl Dixon🏹

{Pre-Apocalypse}

Best Friend> ☆

Not the Only One> ꩜

Not the Only One Part.2> ꩜☆

{Season 1}

Connection> ☆

Always You> ☆

Conflict> ☆

My Before> ☆

Found You> ☆

{Farm Era}

Hurt Part.1> ꩜ ☆

Hurt Part.2> ꩜ ☆

Hurt Part.3> ꩜ ☆

Sleepover> ☆

Never Be Alone> ☆

Missing> ꩜☆

Precious> ☆

My Man> ꨄ︎

{Prison Era}

Jealous> ꩜ ☆

Prison Attack> ꩜ ☆

Brother Trouble> ꩜ ☆

Cold Nights> ☆

Pain Reliever> ☆

Caught> ꨄ︎

Scared & Sick> ☆

Scared & Sick Pt.2>꩜☆

Both> ꨄ︎+ Rick

Both Part.2> ꨄ︎☆

Migraine> ꩜☆

Searching> ꩜☆

Puppy Love> ☆

{Terminus Era}

Tired> ꩜ ☆

Reunion> ꩜

Peach> ☆

Hurting> ꩜☆

Finding You> ꩜☆

{Alexandria Era}

Home> ☆

The Quiet One> ☆

Ready> ☆

First Time> ☆ ❀

Dreams> ☆ ❀

Touch Starved> ☆❀

{Saviours Era}

Hope Part.1> ꩜ ☆

Hope Part.2> ꩜ ☆

Hope Part.3> ꩜ ☆

Hope Part.4> ☆

The Day Will Come> ꩜

{Series}

New world-> Part.1•Part.2•Part.3•Part.4•Part.5ꨄ︎•Part.6•Part.7•Part.8•Part.9•Part.10•Part.11•

Part.12•Part.13•Part.14

Enjoy the Silence-> Part.1•Part.2•Part.3•Part.4 Completed

Change-> Part.1•Part.2•Part.3•Part.4•Part.5•

Part.6•Part.7 continue part on Masterlist 2.0

Carl Grimes

{Alexandria Era}

Blooming> ☆

Caught>☆❀

Not Enough?>꩜☆

Other Half> ꩜

Ride the Cowboy> ꨄ︎☆

Insecure> ꩜☆❀

Been Waiting> ☆

{Series}

Just Us-> Part.1•Part.2•Part.3•Part.4•Part.5

Rick Grimes

{Farm Era}

Glances> ꨄ︎

{Prison Era}

Both> ꨄ︎ +Daryl

Both Part.2>ꨄ︎☆

Worry> ꩜☆

Negan Smith

{Saviours Era}

The One> ☆❀

{Cowboy Negan}

Save a Horse> ꨄ︎

Taste for Older Men> ꩜☆

Taste for Older Men Part.2> ☆

{Coach Negan}

Forbidden> ꨄ︎

{Series}

Lost-> Part.1•Part.2•Part.3•Part.4

Supernatural🦇

{All 3 Winchesters}

Guardian> ꩜☆

Mothers Daughter> ꩜☆

Terror> ꩜

{Castiel}

I’ll Be There> ☆

Mastelist 2.0🤍

[daryl-dixon-daydreams]

"Hey—before you go, come over here," your brother said, waving you toward him. He was standing on the front porch, his signature cowboy boots on and his holster looking strange as it was empty.

"What's up?" you asked, stopping beside him.

He gave you a long look and sighed. Your nerves sizzled.

"Rick," you laughed. "You're freaking me out... what is it?"

"We're safe here," he said. "At least for now." It wasn't lost on you that he seemed to be more relaxed than you'd seen him since the best days at the prison.

"I know," you nodded.

He fixed another gaze on you and this time his mouth turned up at the corners in a slight smile. "Mhm... Is that why you've been spending so much time with Daryl lately?"

Your cheeks immediately flushed. You groaned internally. "Rick..."

"I'm just askin'!" he said, laughing, holding his hands up. He gave you another perceptive look. "But you do like him? Right?"

Your face still flushed, you managed to nod and meet your brother's eyes. "Yeah. I do."

Rick sighed. "Well, I'll do my best not to shoot him then," he said, though his eyes were crinkled at the corners in a smile.

"That's all I can ask," you laughed. "Besides, we both know he's the best man I've ever been interested in. You two are like brothers already."

Rick rubbed a hand over his face. "Yeah..." he drawled thoughtfully. "At least I don't think I'll have to punch him out like that kid who took you to sophomore homecoming and left you there."

You rolled your eyes. "Ugh... Daniel Thompson," you remembered, wrinkling your nose. "Yeah, please don't punch out Daryl..."

"I don't think I'll need to," he said, giving you a fond look. "Besides, you aren't 15 anymore and you're more than capable of punching him out yourself if he gets outta line... Alright," he said, suddenly feeling awkward and clearing his throat. "Good talk. Be good..."

You grinned at him and grabbed him into a quick hug that made him smile again. "See you later."

Prompt: "You do like him?" / "I do." / "Well, I'll do my best not to shoot him then." / "That's all I ask."

[andy-clutterbuck]

6x15 | East

[ririchonne]

Fun interview of Andy and Danaï for The ones who live

@nerd4music can we get some gifs of this itw pretty please?☺️

[sheriffgrimes-archerdixon]

Harmful words

Warnings: arguments, shouting, cruel words

Request: hi!! I was wondering whether you could do one when Daryl snaps at the reader whom is like a daughter to him and she sees him as a father figure and they get into an argument that causes issues and he says things he regrets please? Thank you. (A/n this’ll be written during the prison era)

Someone better take my phone away from me the amount of sad twd drafts I’ve got saved is becoming concerning 😭🤣

“I’m sorry okay,”

Your words were weak and tired as Daryl stood in front of you, crossbow hung just over his shoulder “sorry isn’t going to cut it y/n. You could’ve been killed-“ “well I wasn’t.” Your words were harsh as you glared into his eyes “please stop treating me like a goddamn kid! I’m sick of it… you hear me? Sick of it! All of it!”

He looked at you a hurt expression lingering in his eyes “what the fuck y/n?”

“Stop treating me like your god damn daughter! I’m not your kid! I’m just someone you rely on since you can’t do shit yourself!” You yelled, you didn’t mean it. They were just words. Angry words that you couldn’t even comprehend as you failed to notice the growing anger and sadness forming on his face “you’re right.” He spoke disgust visible on his face as he began shaking his head “you aren’t my daughter,” he continued shaking his head “and I sure as hell ain’t your dad.”

His words caused your breath to hitch as you stared off into space your eyes full of sadness before you looked down, Daryl didn’t mean to be so harsh- regret immediately forming on his face. You didn’t think he would go that far, you were just angry and it upset you that he would even say something like that. You had gone on a run, a risky run at that but it wasn’t your fault you wanted to get things for the group but you knew Daryl was protective over you so it was most definitely a stupid decision. You knew it would cause an argument but didn’t the groups lives matter more than yours?

“I- I didn’t mean to say that y/n…” he spoke and your eyes flicked to him a saddened expression on your face “I’m not Merle, I’m more than capable of saving myself and not getting killed. Okay? Get off my back for once yeah? I just want to support the group! Don’t you get that? It isn’t just us anymore!” You raised your voice as Daryl’s breathing became heavier his eyes narrowing as a slight worry and sadness consumed his face but he didn’t say anything he just stayed quiet “we’ve got to support Rick! Beth! Carl! And Judith, she cannot live without baby formula! What do you expect me to do? Just sit around here on my ass all day when I can go and get supplies for everyone!” Your voice was raw with emotion anger in your eyes. You knew Daryl meant no harm, he was only protective over you but sometimes it felt overbearing- overwhelming- as if you were walking on eggshells whenever you went out. It was as if he didn’t believe you could protect yourself.

“I know damn well we need to go get supplies but that don’t mean you should go out there risking your life! We go in groups! Not as individuals!” He shouted, raising his voice his hands moving about a lot as he talked a lot of his emotions through his hands. “And I know you ain’t Merle but that isn’t the point! You’re the last part of me that I’ve got! I cant lose you as well if I lose you then what the hell is the point of living anymore, huh?” His words cut into your heart harshly and you closed your mouth, falling silent as you shook your head “haven’t got an answer because you know damn well if you weren’t here I’d be dead!” And that’s when you snapped walking up to him getting in his face “don’t patronise me. Don’t you dare. Don’t put your life in my hands…. Just don’t.”

Daryl wanted to say so much more his eyes full of pain but before he even could Glenn quickly moved in between the both of you “c’mon just stop this. There’s kids here. Stop shouting…” he said desperate as he held his hands out to you and Daryl as if trying to keep you both away from each other. “What’s happened?” Glenn spoke trying to sort everything out and you looked at Daryl who was now pacing back and forth “y/n goin’ on that supply run alone… could’ve gotten killed. Stupid decision.” He spat out and Glenn listened as you scoffed rolling your eyes. You loved Daryl a lot, he protected you when you couldn’t protect yourself but you didn’t want him not believing in the fact you could protect yourself.

Glenn went to say something but a different voice spoke up “I have to agree with Daryl on this one.” You looked at Rick as you frowned but he held his hand up to you telling you silently to remain quiet instead of inputting your opinion “if Carl had gone out there-“ “Carl is a kid. I am an adult.” You cut Rick off, an unimpressed look forming on the older man’s face “if Carl had gone out there I would’ve had the same reaction as Daryl. What you did was charitable, good work- yes, but risky as hell… what happened if you got bit, hm?” You remained silent as you stared down at the ground. Hearing it from another person made you realise that maybe you were being slightly too harsh. You sighed quietly as you ran a hand over your face,

“We don’t need another fight breaking out so please solve this quickly.” Rick spoke calmly but it was as if he was ordering the both of you to make up and as he and glenn left the room Daryl continued pacing back and forth whilst you stayed still. “I’m sorr-“ he started but you cut him off “no. I’m sorry. I should’ve been more careful. I was being an ass” you said softly as the archer smiled slightly at you his eyes growing softer as he walked closer to you wrapping an arm around you as he pulled you into his side as you hugged him tightly “forgive and forget?” He asked and you nodded your head “forgive and forget.”

~~~

You sat on the table in the prison eating some chocolate pudding from a small can, everyone else was eating some food and Daryl was holding Judith in his arms holding a bottle of milk to her lips as she drank, everyone else ate as much as they wanted to your attention soon turning towards Beth as she nudged you nodding towards Carl.

You looked towards the kid noticing how he was eyeing up the can of pudding in your hand, he had fruit but didn’t seem to be too interested in it. “Eat up,” Rick spoke quietly to Carl but you quickly stepped in “trade?” You questioned sliding the can of pudding over to the boy who’s face and demeanour immediately lit up as he began eating the pudding, you reached over getting the fruit as you began eating the canned fruit Rick nodding slightly at you in a silent way to say thank you and all you did was smile. They were family. You’d do anything for them.

As night drew closer, the sun going back into hiding you made your way to your cell climbing up onto your top bunk as you exhaled. You shared a room with Daryl- he slept on the bottom bunk and you slept on the top. As you laid down you felt a sudden vibration against the bottom of the bunk making you jump in fright a chuckle falling from Daryl’s lips as he stared up at the mattress “sorry,” he said and you let out a little laugh “it’s fine… you know you preach on about people not sneaking up on you yet you sneak up on us all the time.” You laughed out and a small smile remained on his lips “oh shut up,” he spoke playfully and you rolled onto your side as he continued talking to you, the sound of him talking easing you into a tired mindset as you began relaxing “you warm enough?” He suddenly asked and you hummed in affirmation “enough pillows? You can have mine if you want.” He offered. He did this every night and you always said no. “I’m fine, really.” You spoke and he sighed gently “alright..” he laid back down onto the hard bunk resting his arms under his head “sleep well…” he knew once you hadn’t responded that you were flat out and he smiled slightly,

“I love you sunshine.”

[ankhmutes]

So I had to do another mood-board. This is for a fic I'm working on (ish). What if Dean and Sam had a sister.... This hit me in the head a few days ago and I've kind of been sitting on it but I just had to do this.

She has no real name- she can be any of us- but I gave her the nickname Sunny. Because she just lights up a room in her own special way. And Daryl Dixon calls her "sunshine" and it just sticks.

So... Welcome, Sunny! <3 I can see her swooping in town, making special friends with the local boys, and then swooping out with her brothers after the hunt is done.

and yes, I'll eventually do Dean at some point but his little sister just was begging to be written.

[ficnation]

Chapter 6: Facing the Strangers

Series: Way Down We Go || Season 1 Word count: 2,5k+ Pairing: Rick Grimes x Female! Reader; Shane Walsh x Reader; Daryl Dixon x Sister! Reader Warnings: usual twd themes A/n: Aye, it's WDWG time! I wanted this chapter to be as packed with tension as it was possible. Let me know your thoughts and theories! If you’re not on the taglist but you’d like to be added let me know!

FULL MASTERLIST

WAY DOWN WE GO MASTERLIST

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You woke up to the warmth of the morning sun, the rays streaming into the backseat of the car where you had fallen asleep. Merle snored in the reclined passenger seat, his boots propped up on the dash. You shifted your body into a sitting position, the wound on your side still aching horribly. You clenched your teeth and peeked through the window, gaze searching for Daryl and his beloved crossbow. 

Your younger brother stood near the lake, observing the water shimmering in the morning sun. He was finally taking a break from patrolling the perimeter. You wondered how long it has been since he got some rest—some real sleep—not a fifteen-minute-long nap. 

After the stunt Merle pulled at your camp near Turner Reservoir, you both agreed you’d not let him take another watch shift alone. You, though injured, were more trustworthy than him in spotting incoming threats and getting rid of them. Merle turned out to be too reckless, and you couldn’t risk coming all this way just for him to fuck up again.

As you stretched, the car creaked with your movement, the sound of metal and fabric shifting before settling into silence again. You slid out of the vehicle, unbothered by the loud slam of the door as you pushed it closed behind you. You secretly hoped it was clamorous enough to wake Merle from his deep slumber.

Daryl looked up from his spot near the water as you dragged your feet forward, rubbing the sleep away from your eyes. At least your injury wasn’t pulsing as painfully as it did the day before—that was a win in your book.

“You should get some sleep, Daryl,” you said when you reached him, standing by his side and looking at the water ahead. It was so peaceful.

“Don’ think tha’s a good idea,” he replied, looking you up and down, lost in thought. “Does it still hurt like a bitch?”

“Yeah, but less than yesterday.” You hid your yawn behind your palm. You only managed to get a few hours of sleep—the pain on your side was too unbearable to allow more than that. “Seriously, you should kick Merle out of the car and take a nap yourself,” you insisted, studying the dark circles underneath his eyes and the paleness of his face.

“Nah, I should probably catch us somethin’ to eat.” Daryl stretched his arms above his head with a groan before letting them drop down to his sides.

“Can I go with you?” you asked with an excited glint in your eyes.

You used to do that together when you were kids—when Will took you to the cabin and all the cupboards were empty. Every mention of your hunger was a reason for him to lash out; he used to yell about how ungrateful you were, saying you should finally learn to fend for yourself. You were just a kid, and you had to worry about finding something to satisfy your hunger because your own father was an asshole who refused to provide for you.

Although Daryl is younger than you, he was always the resourceful one while you followed him like a lost puppy, clumsily stumbling over every branch and rock. When you got lost in the woods, he was the one who got you food and clean water as you bawled your eyes out. He was the one who taught you which berries and mushrooms are safe to eat and which can make you wish you were dead.

You shook your head to will the memories away as Daryl responded, “Nah, ya should stay ‘ere with Merle.” Just when you were about to protest, he fixed you with a challenging quirk of his eyebrow and you instantly shut your mouth. “Yer wounded.”

You groaned in exasperation, then nodded your head in agreement. You had no reason to get pressed—even though you could move a little bit easier now, you’d still be a nuisance to him on a hunting trip. “Alright,” you mumbled in agreement.

The moment the words left your lips, your ears picked up noise in the distance. You whipped around toward your brother, meeting his gaze in a silent question. His squinted eyes told you that he heard it too.

The noise got closer and closer with every passing second—its source was definitely heading your way. You could see the gears turning in Daryl’s head as he realized the same thing.

“Get to the fuckin’ car!” he ushered you, swinging his crossbow off his shoulder while his unoccupied hand pushed you gently toward the vehicle.

You listened to him without a second thought, moving forward as fast as your legs allowed you to. You got to the car just in time for another vehicle to come barreling forward and skidding to a stop by the lake, and the large boulders you occupied yesterday. As the door to the black Jeep Wrangler opened, Daryl’s crossbow was already raised and aimed in that direction.

First, a muscular man jumped out of the driver’s seat, then the other doors opened, and a few women exited the car. They had yet to notice your presence. You felt Daryl nudging your arm—a silent sign to get into the truck before they spotted you.

But before you could do anything, the metal door opened with a loud creak as Merle darted out of it. He had the best timing ever—you had to give him that. You heard the commotion as the strangers finally noticed your group of three. And oh my god, Merle had a gun.

You stopped in your tracks, motionless, your eyes darting toward the newcomers. The driver also pulled out his gun as he started moving toward you. Daryl was saying something to your older brother, but your brain turned itself off, focusing solely on the dark-haired man ahead. He came to a stop not too far away, but not too close either, his weapon raised in your general direction.

You had a chance to give him a good look over as the world seemed to slow down around you. His eyes were dark brown but seemed almost hazel as the morning sun hit them. The hair on his head was black and wavey, a subtle stubble decorating his scowling face.

You don’t know what exactly happened, but suddenly those same rich brown eyes were studying your person, almost concerned. “Ma’am, do you know these men?” he asked, his voice deep as his gaze darted between you and your companions.

Daryl moved in front of you, shielding you away from the stranger’s view. No one answered the man’s question—no one even thought about it. You noticed Merle tense up next to you, clutching tightly the pistol in his hands. The stranger’s expression remained unwavering, but his eyes did glance at your older brother’s weapon briefly before they tried to catch a glimpse of you once more.

A thought popped into your head, and you looked down at your injured side, quickly connecting the dots. Now, you understood the glint of concern in his eyes. Your shirt and jeans were still stained with the dried-up blood—you completely forgot about it.

You peeked over Daryl’s shoulder and your gaze met the stranger’s. You’re not sure what he saw in it, but it somehow encouraged him to take another step forward in your direction. Your heart was pounding hard inside your chest. Everything looked like it was in slow motion, the man’s movement, the crowd behind him watching your stare off, every twitch of your younger brother’s muscles. The silence hung heavily in the air as you waited with bated breath to see who was going to fold first and finally say something.

Someone from the unknown crowd walked over and took a stand by the dark-eyed man. “Ma’am, are you injured? Do you need help?” The voice belonged to a woman, it was gentle, with a hint of annoyance at the unnecessary hostility between your groups. “Shane, put the gun away,” she urged the man beside her with a hushed tone—almost a whisper.

Shane listened to her, and although tentatively, he did lower his weapon. The woman stepped forward with a confident walk, escaping the arm that shot out to keep her from going any further. She was a woman on a mission, you could respect that. Her gaze locked on Daryl as she tried to sidestep him, but his aim followed her. You could hear Shane say something to her—maybe even to all of you—but your brain didn’t quite catch it, once again. Merle was oddly quiet.

“Woman, ya step any closer an’ I’ll blow yer pretty brains outta tha’ head.” Yep, he's still here.

Merle didn’t take his gaze off her, he was still clutching the gun, ready for the stranger to try something. Daryl looked even more uneasy than before, and you wondered whether the end of the world squashed all of your trust in humanity into the ground or have you always been like that—you were leaning more towards the second theory. Your older brother, however, seemed calm, like he was the only one who was in control of the situation. He looked around, sizing everybody up with a mean look in his Dixon blues.

“Where did you come from?” Shane asked, tensing up as your older brother stepped into the woman’s path when she tried to sidestep Daryl again.

You noticed the mocking snort that escaped Merle, his knuckles almost white from gripping that pistol so tight. Maybe he wasn’t as sure of himself as he was pretending to be. You had a feeling he was about to do something stupid.

You grabbed him by the wrist, shaking your head disapprovingly. He rolled his eyes, but let you pull him back, seeing the imploring look in your eyes. Don’t do it.

The unknown man’s expression grew darker when he noticed you weren’t really caving in. “Drop your weapons,” he ordered. “We don’t wanna harm you.”

Daryl and Merle didn’t say a word, simply refusing to give up their weapons. You lifted your leg, then kicked the old man in the calf, not too hard, but not too delicately either. He dropped the pistol in resignation, grunted, and pushed it a step away with his foot. Daryl agreed wordlessly and lowered his crossbow.

“Wha’ do ya all want from us?” Merle barked out, towering over the petite woman that finally gave up, understanding she wasn’t going anywhere near you.

You don’t know what gave it away, but the strangers seemed to understand the two men at your side were your friends rather than kidnappers.

“We have a camp nearby. We come here almost every day,” the woman spoke, looking you up and down once you sidestepped the protective wall consisting of your two brothers. “Are you injured?”

“She’s good. Old blood,” Daryl responded to her question. He was met with a suspicious look from the strangers once again.

“The woman can speak for herself, for fuck’s sake.” Shane sighed deeply, clearly annoyed by the whole situation already.

“She don’ speak.”

“Oh…” You took the chance to look the brunette up and down. She was quite skinny with sharp cheekbones and long wavy hair with side-swooped bangs. From her behavior, you figured out she was a classic example of a woman who thought she was untouchable.

“Can I at least take a look at it?” she proposed—a pinch of concern in her voice.

You noticed the way her companion looked at her with admiration at her “selfless” attitude—like a love struck teenager. You guessed he was probably her husband—a lover at least. The man must’ve felt your eyes boring into him, he met your gaze, making you withdraw it instantly. The texture of the ground beneath your feet suddenly seemed far more interesting.

“Wha’? Ya wanna get a chance to feel up mah lil’ sister?” Merle, please, shut your fucking mouth.

“Dressing’s old. Might probably need a change, or it’ll get infected,” Daryl’s response surprised you, your eyes shot up to his face and the worry-etched frown decorating it.

“We have a medical kit back at our camp. We can bring it around, or you can come with us.” The brunette seemed just as shocked as you did, judging by her expression. She probably expected him to put up a fight and refuse to say anything about your injury. “You didn’t set up camp anywhere nearby, did you?”

“Nah, we’re jus’ passin’ through.” Daryl’s shoulders relax visibly as he let out a deep breath. “Plannin’ to head into Atlanta once ‘er wound heals up a little.”

“Atlanta?” Shane snorted loudly, earning himself a disapproving shake of his companion’s head. “Man, you got a death wish?”

You glared at him, his tone toeing the line between surprised and sarcastic. Judging by the scowl that started growing on Merle’s face—he was the one who had a death wish. Shane must’ve felt your eyes boring into his face, he stood a little straighter, holding your gaze.

“Place is swarmed with those things,” the woman added, nodding her head in agreement. Her eyes darted between you and Shane, a frown growing between her thin eyebrows.

“You heard ‘bout the refugee camp?” Shane asked as his gaze left yours, focusing on your younger brother instead. Daryl’s nod confirmed his suspicions. “It’s not there anymore. Don’t think it survived the napalm.”

The archer looked at you, and you could almost see the gears turning in his head. You could’ve met the same fate if you didn’t leave the city to look for them. The thought that he could’ve lost you made him sick to his stomach. He exhaled deeply, his chest shaking with the trembling of his breath. You squeezed his arm briefly—a simple reassurance that you’re still there in one piece.

“Guess our plan jus’ died,” he mumbled out, mostly to you and Merle. His words were a weight off your chest.

Shane eyed Daryl’s crossbow, and an idea popped into his head. “You good with that thing?” He nodded his head toward the weapon, making the archer look between him and the crossbow confused.

“Shoots since he was a lil’ bastard,” Merle butted in before his brother could muster up a response. “Should’ve seen how many squirrels and bucks he brings back from huntin’.”

There was an uneasy feeling stirring up in your gut, Merle had a plan, and you were almost one hundred percent sure it wasn’t one worth considering. God, you’d give anything to know what silly little idea he brewed up in this empty skull of his. But he put it in motion before any of you could talk him out of it. Seeing the amazement in the brunette’s eyes and the silent understanding between her and her friend—it was too late for you to save the situation.

“You guys have a tent?” The man asked, crossing his muscular arms over his chest. Did you just see the corner of his mouth quirk up?

“Nah, why?”

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[topazy]

Tomorrow's promise

Paring: Shane Walsh × reader, Rick Grimes × sister reader

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of blood and guts

Chapter: 2.04

A sharp cry cuts through the room as you enter the kitchen. “I know, I know. It's been a long night.”

You kiss the top of Jace’s head, rocking him gently in your arms. You walk out onto the front porch, where it’s empty, and feed Jace while looking out into the field, which was bare aside from a few horses. A few years ago, this would have been Shane’s dream house to raise a family in.

“Morning,” Maggie says, standing beside you. “How did you sleep?”

“I didn’t… Did you?”

She shakes her head and gives you a sad smile. You notice she has a glass of juice in each hand and offers one to you. “You gotta stay hydrated and keep your strength up.”

“Thank you.” You take the drink from her. “And not just for this, but for letting us into your home. I don’t think we could ever thank your dad enough for saving Carl.”

“You don’t need to thank us; kindness is what keeps us human.”

A pit began to form in the pit of your stomach. The Greene family were good people, and Shane... you didn’t have any proof, but your gut told you that he was lying about Otis' death. He told you a different version of the story he told Rick the night before; he told you Otis fell behind and he was too slow to notice, but if he had, he could have saved him. You didn’t believe him.

You both stayed outside in a comfortable silence, and just as you finished feeding Jace, Glenn and Shane joined you on the porch.

Glenn blushes as he notices the brunette standing beside you. “Morning Maggie,” he waved at her nervously before gushing over your son, tickling his cheek with your finger. “Hey, little man.”

Hearing the sounds of traffic nearby, you all turn to watch as the rest of your people arrive at the farm.

—

You feel physically sick as you look at Shane wearing Otis clothes as they hang off his body.

Otis’s friends and family laid stones for him at a small memorial not far from the farm house while Hershel read from the Bible. “Blessed be God, farther or out lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to him for the gift of our brother Otis, for his span of years, for his abundance of character. Otis, who gave his life to save a child, is now more than ever our most precious asset. We thank you, God, for the peace he enjoys in your embrace. He died as he lived, in grace.”

Your heart speeds up when Hershel turns to Shane, who says, “Shane, will you speak for Otis?”

He struggles to find a reason not to. “I’m not good at it. I’m sorry.”

Otis' wife Patricia lets out a sob, “You were the last one with him. You shared his final moments, please. I need to hear this. I need to know his death had meaning.”

Reluctantly, he agrees, handing Jace over to you with tears building in his eyes. Probably from guilt. He clears his throat and looks down at the ground, saying, “We were about done. Almost out of ammo. We were down to pistols by then. I was limping; it was bad. ankle all swollen up. ‘We’ve got to save the boy.’ See, that’s what he said. He gave me his backpack, and he shoved me ahead. ‘Run,’ he said. He said, ‘I’ll take the rear, and I'll cover you.’ And when I looked back…” Shane pauses, searching for everyone’s reactions to his story. He limps forward and places a stone on the memorial. “If not for Otis, I’d have never made it out alive, and that goes for Carl too. It was Otis; he saved us both. If any death ever had meaning, it was his.”

You and Shane exchange an intense look while the others make their way back to the farm house. You wanted to yell at him, demanding for him to tell you the truth, but you had a feeling he wouldn’t admit to whatever he did so easily. You only look away from him when you feel a hand on your shoulder. Andrea gives you a serious look and says, “What I said that day... when we were looking for Sophia…”

You cut her off, patting her hand, and you say, “Water under the bridge.”

“Thank you.”

Inside, you were still pissed off that she referred to your son as a ticking time bomb, but now wasn’t the time for any arguments or grudges you might have had in the world before. Almost losing Carl made you realize you needed to let go of the hurt and pain you’d been holding onto, and this was a good way to start.

—

A group of you crowd around a map of the local area to plan the search parties for Sophia, which so far have been derailed. Hershel says neither you nor Rick were safe to search after giving so much blood to Carl, and with Shane’s ankle swollen, he wouldn’t get far on foot, leaving Daryl to search alone for the remainder of the day.

“If we are going to do this right, it means we can’t have our people out there with just knives,” Shane points out. “They need the gun training we’ve been promising them.”

“I’d prefer you not carry a gun on my property,” Hershel says. “We’ve managed so far without turning this into an armed camp.”

“With all due respect, you get rid of those things wandering in here.”

Rick interrupts him before he can finish his sentence. “Look, we’re guests here. This is your property, and we will respect that.”

You watch Shane screw his face up as Rick sits his gun down on top of the map. You place yours down beside it and chime in before Shane causes an argument. “Rick’s right. The training can be done off the farm, but while we’re here, we hand our guns over. It's only fair.”

You nod in agreement before continuing, “First things first, set camp, find Sophia.”

Shame bites on his bottom lip, looking deep in thought, before suddenly snapping out of it. “I hate to be the one to ask, but somebody’s got to. What happens if we find her and she’s bit? I think we should all be clear on how we handle that.”

Rick gulps down, “You do what has to be done.”

“And her mother? What do you tell her?” Maggie asks, looking horrified by the suggestion.

“The truth.”

When Jace begins to whine, you step back, not wanting to distract them.

—

You sit on the grass outside beside your brother, as he gently rocks Jace to sleep while telling you about Carl’s slow recovery. Every time you’d gone to see your nephew, he’d been asleep, so you hadn’t been able to talk to him since he’s pulled through.

You spot Daryl walking by with his crossbow slung over his shoulder and jump to your feet; it's getting dark, and you don’t like the idea of him being out alone at night. “Daryl?” He turns back to face you and asks, “Will you be okay out there on your own?”

He looks amused by your question until Rick stands beside you and his face hardens. He starts to walk away, saying, “I’m better on my own. I’ll be back before dark.”

Rick hands you Jace and calls after him, “Hey. We've got a base. We can get this search properly organized now.”

“You got a point, or are we just chatting?”

“My point is that it lets you off the hook. You don’t owe us anything.”

Daryl quickly turns his back, walking away while answering. “My other plans fell through.”

You swat at Rick’s chest with your hand and say, “You're such a jackass at times.”

—

You stand a good distance back from the others, shaking your head as Glenn is lowered into a well that has a walker trapped at the bottom of it. This was a terrible idea. What if the rope snapped?

You stare at the farm house for a few seconds, deciding if you should go check on Jace. You’d only put him down for a nap roughly ten minutes prior, but felt guilty for leaving him, despite knowing he was in the same room Carl was, with Patricia and Beth watching over them both. Hearing Glenn scream for help, you look over at the well to see the rope falling. You run over as T-Dog, Shane, Lori, Maggie, Andrea, and Dale all struggle to pull Glenn up. You get as close as you can to the well and start pulling at the rope.

“Get me out of here!”

As soon as you see his head, you and Shane both reach for him, grab an arm each, and pull him up onto the ground. When he’s caught his breath, Glenn hands Dale the other rope, which he had managed to secure around the trapped walker.

“Oh my god, I can smell it from here.” You scrunch up your nose as the walker gets closer and closer to the surface of the well; the smell could only be described as rotten seafood and death mixed together.

Just as the bloated walker reaches the top of the well, its body splits in half. Its bottom half drops back into the water, leaving its still-moving head on top, while the walkers' blood and guts spilled out onto the ground.

Maggie claps at her mouth, looking visibly distressed, and walks off. You want to go after her but decide against it when you see Glenn going to check on her.

Shaking your head you stare Shane down, “that was reckless. Glenn could have died.”

“Nobody had any complaints before hands,” he scoffs.

“I did! I told you it was a bad idea and as normal you ignored me,” you snap. Noticing everyone else was staring you smooth your scrunched up top out, “excuse me, I’m going to check on our son.”

—

Your one-sided conversation with Jace is interrupted when Shane comes into the room: “You talk so much to that boy, I’m surprised his ears aren’t bleeding. His first words will be telling you to shut up at this rate.”

You stare at him blankly.

“It’s a joke,” he says, sitting on the edge of the bed. Originally, you were going to sleep inside the RV, but Maggie insisted that you take her room and she bunk with her sister. She said it would help her sleep knowing Jace was safe in the house and not outside. “What have you got there?”

You hold up the small baby gown in your hand and say, “Patrica found baby clothes in the attic; she gave them to me for Jace.”

“They must be pretty old, huh?”

“Once I stitch up these holes, these clothes will be good as new.”

He watches you continue sowing, only looking down at Jace when he begins to babble, “He looks just like me.”

“That’s because he’s your son,” you say dryly. You squeeze your eyes shut, knowing you weren’t helping by being passive-aggressive. “How did Andrea’s training go? Is she a natural?”

He lets out a deep sigh and falls back onto the bed. “She’s still got a lot to learn. I keep telling her there’s a difference between shooting a target and the real thing, but I still don’t think she’s got it.”

When Jace’s babbling turns to a gurgling noise, you put the clothes down and pick him up, saying, “I’m going to take him outside for some fresh air before putting him down for the night.”

“Want me to join you?”

“No, it’s fine.” Trying to break the tension, you place a soft kiss on his lips. “I’ll be back soon.”

—

“You don’t think I talk too much, do you? And you're not going to start talking and tell me to shut up,” you say in a silly baby voice, unaware anyone else is listening until you hear the creak of footsteps behind you.

Looking over your shoulder, you’re surprised to see Daryl frowning. “Why would the kid tell you to shut up when he’s older?”

“Oh, it was just a joke, Shane said.” You look down, watching as Jace’s heavy eyes start to close and smile. The words you’d said seconds before are forgotten until you raise your head again and meet Daryl’s glare.

“That’s a bullshit thing to say. You have one of those voices, you know.”

Not knowing what he means, you let out a soft laugh and say, “Uh, no, not really.”

“You have a radio voice,” he shrugs. “Like when folks go on road trips and choose to listen to someone talk rather than playing music. The type of voice that sticks in your head.”

“That’s the strangest compliment I’ve ever had, but thank you.” You smile at each other until he looks away. “I saw the flower you gave Carol; that was a lovely thing to do.”

He grunts in response, “It was nothin'.”

“You might fool them with your bad boy exterior, but you don’t fool me. I know you care,” you say teasingly.

He fights the urge to smirk and rolls his eyes: “Yeah, yeah. I'm all love and rainbows.”

“Goodnight Daryl.”

“Yeah, whatever.” He looks over his shoulder as you enter the house and says, “Goodnight.”

[maddiehu7]

Apocalyptic | Daryl Dixon |

Chapter 2

It's the next day and we're teaching rick how to kill walkers and heading to ricks house

"I have to ask just one more time are we sure there dead?" He questions looking at Morgan

"They dead except for something in the brain that's why it's gotta be the head" Morgan confirms as we head down the porch stairs towards a walker lying on the ground it gets up when it hears our footsteps Rick approaching it with a baseball bat he swings a couple times killing it but on the final blow he hurts himself kneeling grabbing his stomach

"Hey you ok?" I ask softly putting my hand on his shoulder

"I need a moment" he says looking over at me quickly

"Ok" I say squeezing his shoulder before backing off, after a minute he gets up and we continue heading to the house killing a couple stragglers on the way

"Your pretty good at fighting" Duane says admiringly

"Thanks kid" I smile as we head up the steps to ricks house

"There alive- my wife and son at least they were when they left" rick says more so reassuring himself than anyone else

"How can you know?" Morgan asks walking in with Rick leading the way

"I saw them off" i say nodding at Rick

"There in Atlanta I bet" Duane speaks up looking at me

"That's right" Morgan says sitting down

"Why there?" I question

"Refugee center huge one they said before the broadcast stopped, military protection, food, shelter, they told people to go there said it'd be safest" Morgan says looking at me and Rick

"Plus they got that disease place" Duane adds

"Center for disease control said they were working out how to solve this thing" Morgan finishes I look at Rick smiling he smiles back going to grab something, he brings back the keys to the sheriffs department

"Let's go" he says walking out the door to which we all follow

~~~time skip~~~

We head into the sheriffs department guns ready, Rick opens the door flashing a light around the room we walk in checking for walkers but it seems clear

"You know I remember the showers here have there own propane tank" Rick says at this we all perk up heading to the showers. Rick turns a shower head on and warm water comes out I stick my hand under it

"Hell yes" I say moaning at the feeling

"You take a shower first alex then we'll get in" Rick says motioning everyone to leave

"Thank youuuuu" I say as they head out the door, I undress getting the grimy clothes off me and head under the shower nozzle

"This is amazing" I groan out smiling with pure happiness after a minute of just standing there a quickly wash up getting out wiping off with a towel I wrap it around me and search the lockers for some new clothes luckily I was able to find some black jeans and a black tank top I change quickly and let the boys shower, after everyone's done and in a better mood we head to the weapon storage Rick unlocking the door heading in

"A lot of it's gone missing" Rick says grabbing a gun

"Daddy can I learn to shoot?" Duane questions I smile thinking about when Rick taught me to shoot when I was younger

"Hell yes your gonna learn but we gotta do it carefully teach you to respect the weapon" Morgan looks at him seriously

"That's right it's not a toy you pull the trigger you have to mean it always remember that Duane" Rick adds

"Yes sir" Duane replies

"Here load up" Morgan says to Duane handing him a bag

"Ok" he says getting to work. Once we're loaded up we head out the back we're the cars are

"Conserve your ammo, it goes faster than you think especially at target practice" Rick says as we climb the stairs

"Duane take this to the car" Morgan says handing him a bag

"Ok" he says going to the car but stopping half way coming back to me

"Um I just wanted to say...it was nice to meet you" he says shyly smiling lightly I put my hands on my knees getting to his height

"You to kid, you stay safe listen to your dad ok" I tell him smiling

"Ok" he replies smiling still heading to the car I stand up straight watching him walk away

"You got a good one there" I tell Morgan

"Thanks Alex" he says smiling

"Are you sure you won't come along?" I ask not wanting them to leave

"A few more days by then Duane will know how to shoot and I won't be so rusty" he says looking at me, rick goes into the car and grabs something

"You got one battery I'll turn mine on a few minutes everyday at dawn you get up there, that's how you'll find me" Rick saying handing him a radio

"You think ahead" Morgan says appreciatively

"Can't afford not to, not anymore" Rick sighs

"Listen one thing they might seem like much one at a time but in a group all riled up and hungry, man you watch your asses" Morgan says looking at us

"You to" I say smirking rick shaking his hand

"Your good people I hope you find your family" Morgan says hopeful for us, they head into there car us heading into ours

"I'll miss them" I say looking out the window as we drive rick just nods picking up the radio attached to the car

"Anybody hear me please respond" he says into it a minute goes by and he repeats it

"No one's gonna answer" I say certain

"can you hear my voice" Rick asks

"If anybody reads this please respond, broadcasting on emergency channel, will be approaching Atlanta on highway 85 if anybody reads please respond" he finishes putting the radio back

"Told you so" I say smirking which makes him roll his eyes smiling

After a while we stop in the middle of the road out of gas

"We gotta find somewhere" I say hoping somewhere has gas around here Rick nods getting out of the car, we walk for a bit and see an old house

"There" ricks says walking towards it

"Hello?" He shouts stopping halfway to the house

"Police officer out here, can I borrow some gas?" He asks walking toward the back of the house I follow closely pulling my gun from my jeans just incase

"Hello" he runs up the stairs looking in the front door

"Rick would you mind not being so careless" I say urgently he just ignores me and goes to the side to look in the window but he backs away looking sick

"What" I say coming up to see what's wrong I look through and see a couple lying on the ground-suicide

"Shit" I say also backing away grossed out when I look to the side for Rick I see him sitting down on the steps spitting

"Hey you ok" I say coming over to sit next to him putting my gun away

"No Alex I'm not" he says running his hands over his face

"I'm sorry, this-this is all so fucked up" I say motioning to the world around us

"Yeah" he says fake laughing, I look around hearing something...is that a horse? I get up signaling Rick to come with me when I look over the side of the house and I see a brown horse I smile and I grab a lead from on the fence and walk towards it slowly it huffs a little walking back

“I’m not gonna hurt you bud I promise” I say with my hand out infront of me continuing to walk towards it this time it lets me and I carefully throw the lead over it’s head

“There we go, good boy” I say smiling petting his nose

“You always were an animal whisperer” rick says smiling coming over to pet the horse also

“It’s a gift” I say we both start laughing

“Now come on, let’s go boy” I say leading it out of the fences, once we get to the road I pet it once again reassuringly and jump up on it adjusting myself the horse its a little scared at first but gets use to it after a minute

“Come on Rick your turn” I say holding my hand out for Rick to grab and jump on

“Um ok” he says a little nervously but grabs my hand and hoists himself up regardless, once we’re both situated I signal for the horse to go and start riding into the city. After a bit we finally are here

“Holy shit” I say as we March through the city seeing the wreckage

“Holy shit is right” Rick confirms when I see a couple of walkers come out for a building the horse getting skittish

“Steady steady, there’s just a few nothing we can’t outrun” I say as we jog away from the zombies, I swear I see a helicopter in the reflection of a building Rick looks to shocked at the sight

“Hyah!” I say forcing the horse to go faster towards the helicopter but when we turn a corner we run into a massive hoard of zombies like I’ve never seen before the horse neighs and we look ahead in shock for a second before I snap out of it turning back the horse running at full speed away from the grabbing walkers but before I know it there coming in from every side

“Oh shit” I say not knowing what to do as they come closer starting to grab at us

“Oh god” Rick says in horror, we get grabbed off the horse falling to the ground I pull my gun out of my jeans shooting as many as I can before I run out of ammo throwing the gun to the floor

“Fuck!” I shout seeing the horse go down I feel like throwing up I look over and see Rick crawling under a car I run over and do the same but the walkers follow smushing themselves under the car we crawl faster thinking it’s over when I see a hole above us

“Rick come on!” I shout climbing up into the tank I reach down for him and he takes my hand climbing up too once he’s in i quickly shut the hatch securing it

“Thank god” I sigh out breathing heavily Rick just lays back in shock he grabs a dead army guys gun but he starts to move growling Rick screams and shoots him in the face being to close to the shot he groans in pain looking dizzily around

“Shit Rick you ok” I say coming over to him

“Mmh yeah-yeah in fine” he sighs out running his hand over his head i nod looking up to see the top hatch I go out to look but see walkers all around, our stuff laying abandoned on the ground I close the hatch trying to come up with a plan when I hear a radio cracking me and Rick look over confused when we hear a voice

“Hey you guys…dumbasses” I run over to the radio listening closer

“Yeah you guys in the tank, you cozy in there?” The voice asks, holy shit we might actually survive this I think to myself sighing out smiling in relief

( to be continued )

[novamariestark]

Days Gone Bye

— 2 months ago —

Her footsteps on the quartz floor were quick and unsteady as she made her way towards the exit. She couldn't help it, she was excited. After two years, she gets to see her family again. Her brother, her nephew and her sister-in-law.

She reached the arrival section of the airport, she quickly scanned the crowd for the familiar faces of her family but found the face of a close friend. Looking at his expression, she immediately knew something was wrong.

She slowly made her way to him "Shane... is he..." she trailed off. She couldn't even imagine something bad happening to her big brother.

Shane shook his head, "He was shot, today. He's in a coma. I'm sorry, Cindy. It's my fault. I should've seen that guy, man. I should've plugged him." Cindy held her hand up and shook her head, "Shane, it's not your fault. He'll be fine. You know Rick, sometimes he can be a stubborn son of a bitch." She laughed, earning a chuckle from Shane too. He picked up her suitcase. "Come on, Lori and Carl are at the hospital." He said heading out the exit with Cindy following close behind.

The car was silent for a while until Shane broke it, "So how's Marine life treating you?" he asked, one hand on the steering wheel and one on his thigh. Cindy looked down, fiddling with her fingers in her lap. "It's okay." Shane notices her change in behavior, "Hey, you okay? Did something happen?"

She laughed and shook her head "Sorry, Shane. I'm afraid that's classified." he rolled his eyes at her response.

— Hospital —

Shane pulls his truck into the hospital car park, into a space. He turned off the engine and got out of his truck. He headed towards the hospital but stopped when he realized there wasn't the thud of a car door behind him. He turned to see Cindy still seated in the truck. When she noticed him heading towards the passenger door, she took a deep breath and opened the door.

Shane led Cindy through the halls of the hospital, he stopped outside a door. Room '211' "He's in there." He said quietly, his hands in his pocket, "I'll give you some family time." He walks back towards the waiting room.

"Shane," he stops and turns to look at the girl. "Thank you... for picking me up." he smiles as he turns "No problem, Cinderella." He called over his shoulder.

She rolled her eyes, he knew how much she hated being called that. "Asshole." She muttered, only loud enough for her to hear.

'Here goes' she thought. She took a deep breath and opened the door.

Lori was the first to see her, "Oh my God, you're here." She said coming over to envelope her sister-in-law in a hug. She'd missed this. Being with her family. She came home just in time for her birthday. Tomorrow she turns 25 and the one thing she wanted for her birthday, was to spend it with her family. Over Lori's shoulder, she could see her brother, lying cold and motionless on his bed. His face, like a blank canvas. No color, no emotion, no life.

Cindy then looked over to her young nephew as Lori released her from the hug. His tear-stained face glistening under the combined light of the room and the sun peering through the window.

Lori noticed her gaze and looked over to Carl, "He's not long fell asleep, all the crying tired him out." Cindy lets out a watery laugh, "Yeah, I guess it would." Her smile drops as she recalls earlier, "God, as soon as I saw Shane's face, I knew. I mean, to come back from combat to find that he'd been..." she trailed off as tears threatened to fall. Lori rushed over to hug her again. "Shhh, it's okay. Baby, you have no idea how proud he is of you, Carl too. A couple of months ago he had to write an essay about his hero, he was torn between you and Rick," she laughs to herself "Rick told him to write about you because you were his hero too." Cindy looked between Lori and her brother, "He really thinks that?" Lori nods, Cindy laughs "When I was growing up, he was my hero, he still is. The best brother a girl could ask for."

She and Lori continued to talk for about half an hour when suddenly she was attacked by two small arms, hugging her from behind. "Aunty Cindy, you're back!" he cried

"Hey, little man." She says as she turns around, she looks at him and laughs "Ok, maybe I can't call you that anymore." Carl giggles. "When did you grow up?" he just shrugs his shoulders.

"When are you going back?" he asks as he sits down on her lap,

"Actually, I'm gonna stick around a while. Until your daddy gets better at least." She replied, "You really think he's gonna get better." Cindy chuckles and nods "Yes, your dad is strong, resilient. He's not going anywhere."

— Present Day —

A beeping noise filled his ears as he started to wake up. His eyes opened, at first, his vision was blurred but started to adjust. He scanned the room, surveying his surroundings when the face of his best friend and partner, Shane stood at his bedside holding a bouquet of flowers.

"Hey, bud." He started as he leaned closer to Rick. "We're still here... we're still hanging in," he looked down and shook his head "I'm sorry man, I know I say the same crap every time I come in here." He straightened his posture as the door opened.

Cindy walked in with two cups of coffee, Rick smiled at the sight of his baby sister. "Hey," she holds out a cup to Shane. "Any change?" Shane shook his head, "You know sometimes I feel like he can hear me. Maybe I'm going crazy." Shane shook his head again, "No, you're not. I sometimes think that too." He sighed looking back at Rick.

Cindy looked at the bouquet of flowers, "Nice flowers, you pick them out?" Shane looks over to the flowers and laughs "Nah, you know I'm no good at that sentimental crap." Cindy tilts her head in agreement "Uh, Linda and Diane picked these out. They wanted me to bring them down." He touched the flowers gently.

Cindy sat down in a chair beside the bed, "Tell them I said thank you." Shane nods in response.

Rick lies in his bed staring up at the ceiling as he listens to Shane and his sister talk, "That vase... That's something special. 'Fess up, you steal it from your Grandma Jean's house?" he laughs to himself before he continues "I hope you left her that spoon collection." He chuckled again but his laughter soon turned into coughing "Shane?" he called.

Silence.

He turns his head to the right to look at him but he isn't there. So he turns his head to the left to see an empty chair which his sister once occupied. "Cindy?" he looked around the room again. "Shane? You in the John?" he's met with silence again.

Rick then looks to the vase on his side table. Flowers that were once bright, colorful, beautiful were now dry, brown... dead.

He reaches a hand to the flowers taking a petal between his fingers causing it to crumble and fall to the table below.

He looks to the clock on the wall, to see that the hands aren't moving.

Rick starts blinking rapidly before he starts to climb out of the bed detaching all the wires connected to him. He chucked the covers off of him as he gently hung his legs off the side of the bed. He clutched onto the IV stand to help himself stand only to fall to the floor. "Nurse... help!" he called out, his voice coming out hoarse due to his dry throat. He pulled out the last tube from his arm. "Nurse... help!" he tries again. No one comes.

He uses all the strength he has to get up and shuffle towards the bathroom. He opens the door and looks in the mirror. He looked different, his clean-shaven face was covered by untidy, ragged stubble, his face was pale with bags beneath his eyes.

He turned the tap on as he dipped his head down into the sink to have a drink. After he had enough he walked back into the room towards his bed. He noticed something from the corner of his eye. A pink piece of paper with his name on it 'Rick'. It looked like his sister's handwriting. He hobbled over to the table to pick it up and read it.

'Dear Rick,

I've missed you so much. I have returned from my tour to find you have been hurt. I came straight here. I know this isn't how you would want me to spend my birthday but tough shit.' Rick chuckles at this part, 'Things are different now. I don't know what's going on, but if you wake and you are reading this... I will wait for you at your house. I have no doubt that you will come back and read this, you've always been strong. Go straight to your house and DO NOT stop for anyone.

Love from your Baby sister'

The note confused Rick 'DO NOT stop for anyone' he's a cop he's supposed to help people. He folded the note up and put it in his pocket. He turned to the door and walked towards it.

He opened it to find a hospital bed blocking the door, the corridor lights flickering, papers strewn all over the place. He moves the bed away from the door and looked both ways, looking for someone, anyone. He sees no one as he walks down the corridor towards a desk. Reaching it he spots the phone. He picks it up to dial his house only to hear nothing, not even the dialing tone. He searched the desk to look for something useful when he came across a matchbox.

He pulled out a matchstick and continued to walk down the deserted hall. He stopped at a set of double doors, leaning a hand on the doorframe. That's when he saw something horrifying, something he probably never thought he would. A dead nurse who appeared to have been... eaten... torn apart.

He started to breathe heavily as he backed away from the door and headed in the opposite direction only to find more horrific events that had happened there. A line of bullet holes in the wall accompanied by blood spatter and pools of blood on the floor.

Wires dangled from the ceiling and debris and ceiling tiles rested on the floor but the thing that really terrified him was the doors to the cafeteria. Four words that had been painted on the doors 'Don't open, dead inside.' The handles were wrapped in chains with a plank of wood placed between them.

He walked closer to the doors to inspect what the words meant.

The door began to open slightly as some fingers stretched through the crack and started to attempt to get to him. The chains rattled as they growled and moaned and thumped against the door trying to open it.

The hands looked dirty, decayed. The fingernails long and unkempt. Within a second Rick steps away, breathing rapidly as he rushed towards the elevator. He presses the button multiple times to find it's not working either. He found a door that led towards the stairs, he stepped in and when the door shut, he found himself in total darkness. He lit one of the matches he found earlier and carefully made his way down the stairs, holding onto the banister firmly.

He eventually found the exit, he blew out the match and pushed the door open where he is met by a blinding light. He raised his hand to shield his eyes from the sun. He walked down the few steps to the ground. He stopped at the bottom of them to look at the scene before him.

The ground was laid with rows of dead bodies. Covered by white sheets and secured with rope and just left there. Flies swarmed over every single one of them. He took a closer look to see that most of them were shot in the head.

He couldn't look at it anymore, it was making him feel sick. He climbed a small hill but to him, it felt like a mountain. He gripped the grass to aid him in climbing up. He reached the top only to stop to see more destruction. A street that was familiar to him. Gone and replaced by a deserted junkyard of destroyed helicopters, abandoned tanks and more dead bodies piled in trucks.

He started walking towards his house just as his sister instructed in her note. Every street he walked on was deserted, houses and cars abandoned. About 24 minutes into his journey he found a bike. He walked over to it and picked it up which is when he saw the upper part of a woman's body. He couldn't see the lower part anywhere like it had vanished. Her blonde hair was tousled, dull. Her guts were spattered on the grass, her skin was decaying and torn. She slowly turns to look at him.

He fell backward as she reached out to grab him. Her jaw nipped at him, trying to bite him. He looked into her eyes to see nothing, they were dark, lifeless, blank. She started to crawl towards him. He picked the bike up by the handles, he got onto it to start peddling continuing his journey towards his house.

He eventually came across a familiar street. He braked and swung his leg off the bike, releasing it and letting it crash to the ground below. He staggered up the steps and into the house.

"Cindy," he called. "Lori!" he shouted a little louder as he walked into the kitchen, then to the bedroom. Draws open, clothes scattered all over the place. He searched the whole house, rushing into every room. "Carl!" he called to his son, but he was still answered with silence. "Cindy!" he shouted, he hoped at least she'd be there, her note said she'd be here. He stepped back into the living room and collapsed to his knees, there was no answer. No sign of life. He began to cry, body trembling as he did. His mind was swarming with questions. 'Is this real? Where are they? Is this real? Or am I dreaming? What is happening?'

"Lori! Cindy! Carl!" he screamed between sobs. He rolled to lie on his side. He looked around the empty house one more time. He examined at the label tied on his wrist. "Is this real? Am I here?" he questioned examining the situation. 'Surely this isn't real. It can't be.' He thought.

He started to hit himself in the forehead with his hand repeatedly. "Wak-Wake up," he told himself. After he calmed down, he got up and walked outside to the porch. He sat down on the steps by the side of the road, looking around the empty street still wondering if this was real or if it was all a dream.

His thoughts were interrupted when he saw a man walking across the street. He stopped and turned his head to look at Rick. Rick held up his hand and waved at him. The man didn't wave back just started to walk towards him. He was limping slightly. Rick turned around when he heard a twig snap behind him and was met with a shovel in his face.

He fell onto his back from the impact to his face. Blood dripped from his nose, he looked up to see a young boy looking down on him, "Daddy! Daddy!" the boy called "Carl," he murmured as he looked up at him "I found you," he breathed.

"Daddy, I got this son of a bitch! I'mma smack him dead," the young boy called. Rick looked in the direction the boy was looking and saw a man hold up a gun to shoot the man he saw moments before. His body crashed to the floor as the other rushed over to them.

"He say somethin'?" he asked the boy as he pushed him away from Rick. "Thought I heard him say somethin'," he said looking between Rick and the boy.

"He called me Carl," the boy answered as Rick's vision started to become clear. He saw two black men standing before him, one older, about his age and the other, was young, just a little older than Carl.

"Son you know they don't talk..." the older guy said. He then looked to Rick "Hey mister... what's the bandage for?" he asked

"What?" Rick asked him, still dazed from being hit by a shovel. He held up his gun as he asked "What kinda' wound?" his voice was more harsh, firm, "You answer me, damn you," he spoke through gritted teeth. "What's your wound?" he asked again. "You tell me," His grip tightening on his gun getting ready to shoot him. "Or I will kill you," he warned but Rick couldn't hold his head up any longer as he passed out.

~1 week before the outbreak~

Rick and Shane were sitting in their squad car, munching on a take-out they had picked up for lunch. They were just sitting around talking awaiting a call from dispatch for their assistance.

"What's the difference between men and women?" Rick asked Shane as he offered him a napkin.

"This a joke?" he asked, raising his eyebrows and took the napkin. Rick shook his head at him as he picked up one of his fries to eat.

"No, serious," Rick answered as he continued to eat.

"Never met a woman that knew how to turn off the light," Shane replied as they picked out their food together, picking up fries and eating them. "They're born thinking the switch only goes one way. On," he joked popping one of his fries into his mouth as Rick laughed quietly at his joke.

Shane rests his arm on the car door as he continues, "They're, they're struck blind the second they leave the room, I mean...every woman I ever let have a key... swear to god. It's like... come home, house all lit up... and my job's apparently because...because, my chromosomes happen to be different and I then have to walk through that house, turn off every single light this chick left on," he spoke and as Rick looked at him as he spoke.

"Is that right?" Rick questioned, as he knitted his brows and pursed his lips.

"Yeah baby, mmm," he said and bit his bottom lip. His hand grasping onto the roof of the car and to smirk while he talked. "Oh Reverend Shane is preachin' to ya now, boy," he says and Rick chuckles at him.

"Then this same chick, mind ya, she'll bitch about, uh, 'global warming'. You see, this is, this is where Reverend Shane wants to quote from the Guy Gospel and say, "Um, darlin', maybe if you and every other pair of boobs on this planet could just figure out that the light switch, see, goes both ways, maybe we wouldn't have so much global warming?" he teased some more.

"You say that?" Rick asked him as he raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well, the uh, polite version. Still, man, that-that earns me this look of loathing you would not believe and that's when the "Exorcist" voice pops out," he said with a small smirk on his face. 'You sound just like my damn father! Always, always yellin' about the power bill and tellin' me to turn off the damn lights!'" he said in a deep voice.

"And what do you say to that?" Rick asked him curiously, a smirk playing on my lips.

"I know what I want to say. I want to say 'Bitch, you mean to tell me you've been hearing this your entire life and you are still too damn stupid to learn how to turn off a switch?'" he replies and they both burst out laughing. Their shoulders shook as they did.

"You know, I don't actually say that, though," Shane said

"That would be bad," Rick said laughing some more.

"Yeah, I go with the uh, go with the polite version there too." This made Rick chuckle a little and him smile.

Rick nods, "Very wise," he agreed as he looked at Shane, a smile on his face as he held in his laughter.

"Yes, sir. So how's it with Lori, man?" he questioned Rick as the laughter died down and the car became silent.

"She's good. She's good at turning off lights. Really good. I'm the one who sometimes forgets," Rick answered him.

"Not what I meant," Shane sighed

"We didn't have a great night," he answered, recalling the events from the night before.

"Hey look, man, I may have, uh, failed to amuse with my sermon, but I did try. The least you could do is, is speak," Shane recommended.

"That-that's what she always says. 'speak', 'speak'. You'd think I was the most closed mouth son of a bitch you'd ever hear her telling." Rick tells Shane and he just remained quiet for a second.

"Do you express your thoughts? Do you share your feelings and that kind of stuff?" he asked. Rick thought about how hard it had been lately and he didn't think it was fair on Carl. It wasn't like it was when they were younger, things changed.

"The thing is, lately, whenever I try, everything I say makes her impatient like she didn't want to hear it after all. It's like she's pissed at me all the time, and I don't know why," Rick answered, not sure what changed between them.

"Look man, that's just shit couples go through. You know, it's, it's a phase," Shane tells him trying to take the edge off.

"Last thing she said this morning? 'Sometimes I wonder if you even care about us at all.' She said that in front of Carl...our son. Imagine going to school with that in your head. Difference between men and women? I would never say something that cruel to her, and certainly not in front of Carl," Rick stated

"Shit man... have you heard from Cindy?" asked Shane, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah, she's coming back today... to see Carl, for her birthday. Her flight gets in at four." Said Rick, smiling as thought about seeing his baby sister after so long. He started to chuckle "Carl was so excited last night, took forever to get him to go to sleep."

"I still can't believe she's 25 tomorrow, man," Shane said, shaking his head.

Rick chuckles, "Me neither. My baby sister is not a baby anymore." Said Rick, Shane nodded in agreement with a chuckle.

"Although I think we found that out when she kicked the shit out of Shaun Weston when he tried to take advantage of her at the prom." Shane laughed, thinking about the time they were called to the high school after a 'fight' had broken out only to find Cindy in the middle of it.

Rick chuckled at the memory, "Yeah, I wasn't expecting to see that. Is it bad that I was proud?" he asked

"Oh no, man. I was proud too." Shane laughed, running his hand through his hair.

The radio began to inform them about a car chase. Requesting backup, they listened in then began to fasten their seatbelts. They wrapped up the food and Shane hung out the window and dunked it in the bin as they drove past. Driving towards the road the fleers were taking and switching on the sirens.

Dispatch continued to inform them of their position as they tried to prevent the car that was being pursued from getting away. Shane shot out of the car as Rick pulls it to a quick stop. Shane retrieved the tire shredder from the trunk of the car and jogging up the road to catch up to Rick. They placed the spikes upon the road and jogged back to the car. Rick reversed the car back to the other cop car, he parked the car on the opposite side that the other car occupied creating a small blockade.

Rick and Shane get out of the car. Shane places his cap on the roof of the car. The four men got into position, hands gripped on their weapons, turning the safety off. Rick's weapon on of choice was a Colt Python, a revolver and Shane had his shotgun.

"Sounds like they're chasing those idiots up and down every back road we got," Lam muttered as they all prepared to end this pursuit.

Then the other guy, Leon, spoke up, "Maybe we'll get them on one of those video shows, you know, like 'World's Craziest Police Chases', what do you think?" he asked as he started to bubble with excitement. Leon wasn't exactly the brightest and he had a tendency to get distracted sometimes even at critical moments.

"What I think, Leon...is that you need to stay focused." Rick reprimanded "Make sure you got a round in the chamber and your safety off," he continued Leon checked his weapon, seeing that he actually didn't have his safety off, he then fixes his mistake.

There was a moment of silence before Shane spoke up "Would be kind of cool to get on one of them shows," he commented as they all waited for the car to come speeding towards them. The distinct sounds of sirens can be heard, alerting the men that the car was on its way. The cars were speeding towards them, zig-zagging across the road and bumping into each other.

The car was being pursued by two cop cars. The car got nearer, when suddenly it's tires popped and deflated and the car skidded sideways causing it to flip over, rolling off the road and into the field beside the road. "Holy shit," Shane breathed as they cautiously began to advance on the car, weapons aimed. The car, now destroyed, was on its roof. The other cops step out of their cars. Guns drawn ready to fire.

A man opened the door, pointing in their direction.

"Gun! Gun! Gun!" a cop alerted them and he took cover. "Put it down! Put the gun down!" Rick ordered but the man ignored him. Instead a firefight started. Bullets racing through the air from multiple locations. Gunshots rang, echoing through the air. Rick was hit by a bullet and he dropped to the ground. He was protected him from getting hurt. "Rick!" Shane yelled, freaked that he just saw his friend fall to the ground in front of him.

Rick rolled around on the floor, keeping his head down, "I'm alright!" he panted, the gunfire ceased, his breath uneven as he struggled to his feet. Shane ran up to him.

"I saw you get tagged, man. That scared the hell out of me." Shane spoke, his breathing almost as fast as Rick's.

"Me, too. That son of a bitch shot me. Can you believe that?" he asked as he started unbuttoning his shirt.

"What? It catch you in your vest?" Shane asked, his eyes scanning for any wounds on his partner.

"Yeah." He replied looking down inspecting how much damage the bullet made to his vest. "Shane, you do not tell Lori that happened... ever." Rick told Shane, he pointed at Shane "You understand?" Suddenly a third man rose up from the grass and aimed in Rick's direction.

Rick crashed back down to the grass as the other cops pelted the third man with bullets. When the man is down, Shane drops to his knees as attempts to stop the bleeding. The flowed from the wound, pooling underneath his once white t-shirt. Had Rick not turned to point at Shane the bullet would have hit his chest instead of under his armpit.

Shane looks over his shoulder and yells, "He's hit! Leon! You get that ambulance down here! You tell them there's an officer down! You do it now!" he repeatedly tells Rick to stay with him, Rick slowly slipping into unconsciousness.

--Present Day--

Rick comes to, in a room he does not recognize. He looks up to see his hands tied to the bed. He was startled by a sudden voice, "Got that bandage changed out," he said, "It was pretty rank," he told him and he just looked back to his hands. "What was... the wound?" he asked, dipping his hands in a bowl of water, washing them. The young boy stood in the doorway, baseball bat in his hand as if he was anticipating something.

"Gunshot," Rick answered weakly. He remembered the reason why he woke up in the hospital.

"Gunshot? What else? Anything?" the man asked, wiping his forehead with a cloth.

"Gunshot ain't enough?" Rick questioned, his confusion increasing by the second.

"Look, I ask and you answer, it's common courtesy, right?" he pressed, he walked over to the bed and leaned in to look Rick in the eyes as he asked "Did you get bit?" emphasizing each word

"Bit?" he asked, this only added to his confusion. 'Why would I get bit?' he thought to himself.

"Bit," he repeated, telling Rick that he had heard him correctly, "Chewed. Maybe scratched. Anything like that," Rick shook his head lightly.

"No, I got shot," Rick replied as accurately as he could, considering he'd only just woke up, he couldn't be 100% sure what transpired whilst he was asleep. "Just shot as far as I know." Rick was still confused as to what was going on.

The man raised his hand and moves it towards Rick's face. Rick flinches away from his hand, "Hey... just let me," he said, Rick relaxes slightly as the man places his hand on his forehead as if to check his temperature for any sign of the illness.

"Feels cooler now," he noted, as he looked to the boy, "The fever would have killed you by now."

"I don't think I have one," Rick tells him and the man just looks at him with raised eyebrows as he spoke, "Be hard to miss," he reached behind his back and pulled a knife from his pocket. He opened the knife and held it to Rick's cheek. Rick looked at it from the corner of his eye, "Take a moment. Look how sharp it is" he advised

"You try anything I will kill you with it, and don't you think I won't," as he tapped the knife on Rick's cheek. He was silent for a moment, then he moved to cut the rope that restrained Rick to the bed. "Come on out when you're able." He walks towards the door, he looked to his son, "Come on." The boy looked at Rick for a second before leaving the room.

Rick rubs his wrists as he turns onto his side, his whole body trembling, a mixture of fear and being cold. He lay there for a while, gathering his strength to get out of the bed. He sits upright on the edge of the bed, feet hanging off the side. He looked around the small bedroom and notices a towel draped over a chair in the corner of the room. He shuffles across the floor to grab the towel and swung it around his shoulders.

He walked out of the bedroom and made his way towards the conversation taking place in the kitchen. He looked around the living room, "This place... it's Fred and Cindy Drake's.

"Never met them," the man stated simply, pouring the chili out into three bowls.

"I should remember, the same name as my sister." He said, looking down. He hadn't found her at the house, he hoped she was okay. He tried to change the subject, "I've been here," they were good people, kind. He walked around two mattresses that had been placed side by side on the floor. "This is their place," Rick stated.

He looked towards the window. Thick, opaque blankets cover every window, preventing anyone seeing out and no one could see inside. There was a mattress below the window, "It was empty when we got here," he informed, Rick turns to lift the blanket, "Don't do that," the man said quickly, stopping Rick in his tracks as he looks at him, "They'll see the light." He said as though was supposed to understand. Rick had no idea what was going on, his sister's strange note, his family is missing and this man seemed scared of something.

"There's more of them out there than usual," he started, continuing to set the table. "I never should have fired that gun today." Rick continued his trek towards the kitchen, "The sound draws them, now they're all over the street," Rick thought back to earlier, when this man shot another man, with no regret. The boy was sat down at the table ready to consume the meal in front of him. "Stupid using a gun, it all happened so fast," he put out a candle. "I just didn't think," he uttered to himself.

"You shot that man today," Rick spoke wearily

"Man?" the man questioned me baffled by Rick's statement.

"Weren't no man," the boy voiced.

"What the hell was that out of your mouth just now?" the man asked looking at the young boy, as if he was scolding him.

"It wasn't a man," the boy corrected himself. The man nodded to the boy as if to praise him.

"You shot him," Rick repeated, in his Police Officer voice, this man had murdered someone right in front of him, "In the street. Out front. A man." He continued, describing what he did earlier, his face staying serious.

"Friend... you need glasses. It was a walker," the man said as if the word was to supposed to mean something to him.

The man points to the chair beside him, "Come on," he started, "Sit down before you fall down." He said as he passed Rick a plate of food. "Here, eat." He instructed, Rick sat down, tightening the towel around him. He started to scoop up a bit of food when the boy spoke up, "Daddy. Blessing."

"Yeah," the man said, nodding to the boy, he held out his hands either side of him, as did the boy. The boy grabbed his father's hand, holding his hand out for Rick to take. After a few seconds Rick hesitatingly took their hands.

"Father, we thank thee for this food. Thy blessings... we ask you to watch over us in these crazy days," the man spoke, looking at Rick as he did, "Amen,"

"Amen," the young boy repeated, they let go of each other's hand and the man continued to look at Rick as if he were trying to read him.

"Hey mister, do you even know what is going on?" he asked curiously, most of his behavior the man had seen so far suggests he doesn't have a clue. Rick silently chewed on the food the man had prepared.

Rick stopped eating to answer, "I woke up today. In a hospital. Came home, that's all I know,"

"But... you know about the dead people, right?" he asked, looking at him, awaiting his reply.

Rick looked up from his plate to the man on his right, "Yeah, I saw a lot of that. Out on the loading dock, hauling trucks," the man shook his head.

"No. not the ones they put down... the ones they didn't." he started, "The ones they didn't." he pauses, "Like the one I shot today. Cause he would have ripped into you, try to eat you, take him some flesh at least." Rick just looks at him like he is crazy and the man notices his confusion. "But I guess if this is the first you're hearing, I know how it must sound,"

"They're out there now...in the street?" Rick asked, still not totally believing what the man was telling him

"Yeah," he said, fear evident in his voice. "They get more active after dark sometimes," he tells him, Rick looked between the boy and his father, they both had fear in their eyes, "Maybe it's the cool air or...hell. Maybe it's just me firing up that gun today," he speculated, indicating that he didn't entirely understand what was going on. "But we'll be fine long as keep quiet," he reassured, Rick looked behind him, to the window, he wanted to see the "Walkers" for himself. "Probably wander off by morning," he comforted, the boy relaxes a bit.

"Well... listen," he started, "One thing I do know... don't you get bit!" he nodded at his son, "We saw your bandage and that's what we were afraid of," Rick looks at him, 'What happens if I get bit' he thought, "Bites kill you, the fever burns you out," he advised. Rick couldn't help thinking about Lori and Carl, if they were okay, he knew that if they were with Cindy and Shane they'd be fine but there was no way he could be certain. All he could do right now is hope.

"But then after a while... you come back," that confuses Rick again, 'Come back?' right now Rick wasn't sure what to believe.

"Seen it happen," the boy spoke up. This started to scare Rick, they had actually watched it happen. 'Don't be stupid! It's the imagination of a young boy!' he tried to tell himself.

The man placed his hand on the boy's and gave it a small, comforting squeeze. "Come on," they then continued eating in silence, that was until the boy spoke up, his face filled with worry.

"Wait," startling both Rick and his father, his father looked at him examining his son's face. "What's up son?" he questioned

He pointed to the window, "You said there's a lot of them out there." he told him.

The man nodded at his son "Yes?" he questioned still not understanding his son's behavior "I know son."

The boy tapped his hand on the table, "Hello, how will Cindy get back in? What if she's hurt?" he asked, Rick perked up at the name, 'Cindy?' he knew it wasn't Cindy Drake because the man said he hadn't met them.

The man's eyes widened the size of golf balls, "Shit." He said dropping his spoon in the bowl.

"Cindy?" Rick asked, looking between the two.

"Yeah. We met her weeks ago," the man started, running his hand down his face, "How could I forget?"

"She saved us... tried to save mama but there was nothing she could do." The boy finished, looking down at his plate.

"She stuck around and started doing supply runs for us, I think she was waiting for someone." The man informed.

'That could be her, waiting for me.' He thought to himself, but he wanted to make sure, "What's her last name?" he asked

"Uhhh..." the man started thinking, trying to remember what it was. "Grimes," the boy announced

The man laughed, "She spends a lot of time with my boy here, they're like best friends."

Rick sighed in relief, his sister was alive, he couldn't help the smile that spread on his face but it soon dropped when he remembered she actually wasn't here, and couldn't get in. "That's my baby sister," Rick stated, "She's out there? Alone?"

The man looked to Rick, "I'm sorry, she knew we were running low on a few supplies. She wouldn't take no for an answer." He explained, Rick tilted his head to the side whilst raising his eyebrows for a second, 'Yep, that sounds like her.'

Rick pointed to the boy, "He said she can't get in. If we open the door they will see the light. Am I right?" he asked

The man opens his mouth to speak but closes it, he doesn't know what to tell him so he just nods his head. His sister is out there alone and they can't do anything about it now little did they know she had opened an upstairs window and was currently climbing through it.

They heard a thump on the ceiling above them, they all looked up "Dad. What was that?" the boy whispered.

The man stands up from the table, "I don't know son, you two stay here." Said Morgan grabbing a baseball bat and stands at the bottom of the stairs ready to kill.

Cindy quietly made her way down the stairs as she was about to step off the last step a baseball flew towards her face, but she quickly grabbed the bat to stop it connecting with her face.

"Hello to you too, Morgan." She said sarcastically with a smile.

"Cindy!" Duane whisper shouted as he ran to hug her, colliding with her body with some force, almost knocking her off her feet.

She steadies herself, giving the boy a tight squeeze, she laughed "Jeez, I wasn't gone that long." She said.

The boy looked up at her "But they're everywhere." He said

She nodded her head "Yeah Duane, I know, I was just out there" she pointed towards the door.

Morgan spoke up, "How'd you get in?" he asked, putting the bat down against the wall.

"Nice to see you too, man." She replied as she smirked at him, Morgan and Duane just stare at her, waiting for her to explain how she got in. Morgan wondering if they have a hole in their defenses. "Don't worry little man, I always have a backup plan." She said as she tapped Duane's nose.

Morgan spoke up again, "There's someone here I think you'll be happy to see." He said, Cindy's face scrunches up in confusion, 'someone she'll be happy to see?'

"Who?" Cindy asked. Morgan pointed behind her as Rick slowly stepped closer towards her.

She turned around and saw him immediately "Oh my God." She said as she collapses on her knees.

They all rushed to her, "Cindy! Oh my god. You ok?" Rick asked kneeling down beside her.

She poked at Rick's face to see if it was really him, or if it was her mind playing tricks on her again "You... you're alive." She muttered in shock.

He chuckled softly and nodded, "Yeah I am. I got your note. I came straight here. I can't believe you waited for me." Said Rick.

"I had to be sure. I couldn't just leave you." She said

"Are Lori and Carl..." he trailed off, Cindy looked down and shrugged, she really didn't know. She hadn't seen them since they were visiting Rick in the hospital.

Rick looked at her face and he didn't like the look it held, "How long have they been gone?" he asked

"I don't know. Me and Shane were in the hospital, I went to get coffee and that's when the army started executing people in the halls, staff, patients, visitors. They uh... thought it was airborne." She explained.

"You must be hungry, there's some chili left," Morgan spoke up, Cindy nodded and stood from the floor, she held her hand out for Rick to take, she walked into the kitchen to put the chili into a bowl.

"You guys, go to sleep. I'll keep watch." She said placing the bowl on the table and taking a seat, Morgan shook his head at the girl. No matter how many times he said it was unnecessary to do everything, she gave without any thought of reward, risking her life for him and his boy. To make sure they are well-fed even picks up something Duane asked for.

Rick, Morgan, and Duane sat down in their beds, Morgan and Duane are near the kitchen and Rick was near the window where Cindy's bed was placed, "Carl, he's your son, right?" Morgan asked Rick.

Rick turned his head to him and nods to him, "He's a little younger than your boy," Rick told him, memorizing every little detail of his young, innocent face. His steel, blue eyes. Pale, small face. Short brown hair. The sound of his voice.

"And, he's with his mother?" Morgan asked him. Rick looked around the room, wondering, hoping that they are alive.

"I hope so," Rick tells him

Cindy looked up from her dinner, "The last time I saw them, they were together," Rick looked to her, "I didn't see Shane on my way out so I assume they are with him." She said, munching the remainder of her food. "Thanks for dinner, M."

Morgan chuckles, "More you than me." Duane started to stir as Cindy went to sit down beside her brother.

"Dad?" he asked, his eyes still closed.

Morgan looked down at his son, "Yeah?" he asked, gently massaging the boy's head.

"Did you ask him?" the boy asked his father.

Morgan chuckles, "Your gunshot... we got a little bet going." He stated pointing between him and his son. "My boy say you're a bank robber," Rick and Cindy laugh softly.

"Yeah... that's me," Rick joked sitting up a little. "Deadly as Dillinger kapow," he laughed, causing Cindy to release a chuckle from beside him, "Sheriff's deputy," he stated, Morgan nods slowly as he muttered 'uh-huh'.

Cindy giggles, causing Morgan and Rick to look at her, "It's nice to know your terrible sense of humor hasn't changed." She laughed, Rick and Morgan laugh along with her.

Then suddenly an alarm went off, a car alarm. Duane sprang up from his sleeping position, eyes wide and a worried expression plastered on his young features because of the sudden blare. "Hey, it's ok... daddy's here," Morgan said as he embraced him, trying to ease his mind. "It's nothing. One of them must've bumped a car," he said, more to Rick than his son.

"You sure?" Rick asked. The boy still looked frightened but was starting to relax.

"Happened once before," Morgan replied, they stood up from their beds, making their way towards the window, "It went off a few minutes," he reassured, "Get the light, Duane," he told his son, Duane turned down the lights, Cindy got the light closer to her on her journey to the window as the room darkened, "It's the blue one, down the street."

They all peeked through the wooden planks nailed over the windows, "Same one as last time," Cindy added, looking at Morgan.

"I think we're ok," he reassured as they looked at the dead walking around on the street outside. Hobbling forms, feet dragging. Walking around aimlessly. No ambition, no emotion. No life. Feeling nothing but hunger. Not like before. Full of life, full of dreams but now nothing... just empty shells of who they used to be.

"That noise... won't it bring more of them?" Rick asked Morgan,

"Nothing to do about it now," Morgan said as we all stood there, staring out the window. "Just have to wait 'em out till morning," he tells us

"I could try and make a run for it," Cindy suggested

"No!" said Rick making as little eye contact with his sister to show her that it wasn't up for discussion, still looking out the window when they saw a woman turn to face the house.

Cindy's heart sunk when she saw the face of the woman she failed to save, "Oh my God," she looked down at Duane, he shouldn't have to see this. But he already did.

Duane gasped, "She's here." His body tensing at the sight of his mom, walking past. She looked directly at them and started her ascent up the porch.

Morgan gently pushed Duane away from the window but he didn't budge, "Don't look, get away from the windows," he told his son, the boy carried on looking, like he was glued to the spot. "I said go! Come on!" Duane ran over to the bed and collapsed on it and began crying. Morgan hurried over to him to quiet him down, "Come on, quiet." He whispered. He picked up a pillow, "Shh, shh. It's ok, here, cry into the pillow." Holding it gently over his face.

Rick walked towards the door to look through the peephole. The door was covered by planks of wood, the same as all the windows. "Can you remember?" Morgan asked Duane as he cuddled him. Rick's eyes gazing out of the peephole to see the woman had reached the door, looking around the porch and then straight at him. When she observed the peephole his breath got caught in his throat. Body shivering as she reached down to the door handle and began to twist it in an attempt to open it.

Rick slowly backed away from the door, legs still shaking as he neared his bed on the floor. His eyes stayed on the twisting door handle. He looked back over to Morgan still holding his son, "Shh. She, uh...she died in the other room. On that bed. Nothin' I can do about it here...that fever, man...her skin gave off heat like a furnace. Should have put her down. I should have put her down. I know that, but...you know what?" he snuffled, looking down at his son then back at Rick. Cindy tuned it out, an overwhelming sense of failure washed over her. She just played with her fingers as Morgan continued, "I just didn't have it in me. She's the mother of my child," he cried, he looked at Cindy and notices her vacant look.

She did this often. Curled up in a ball, staring into space, "It wasn't your fault, you did what you could. You saved me and Duane." Morgan's words drew Rick's attention, snapping his head to look towards his baby sister, "You did your best."

She looked towards Morgan, then at Duane, then back to Morgan, "Well. My best wasn't good enough." It broke Rick seeing his sister like this, broken, vulnerable. She was strong, enthusiastic. He looked at her face and she looked defeated. He knew that his sister blamed herself for the death of Morgan's wife and the mother of the young boy she had befriended.

Morgan looked at her, wearing a serious expression, "You saved my little boy," Cindy looked towards him, right into his eyes, and saw nothing but respect and appreciation, "Cindy, it was chaos out there. You didn't have to help us, but you did. You risked your life to save ours." Morgan looked at his son, and shook his head, "I can never repay you for that."

"You already have," she said softly, smiling lightly at him, "We should get some sleep," she suggested

They all lay down on their beds to get some sleep for the night. Morgan and Cindy fall asleep pretty quickly, Rick, however, struggled to fall asleep. Frightened about the dead lurking about outside. Staring at the door handle the woman tried opening.

— Next Day—

Cindy woke up before everyone else, checking the perimeter, making sure the barricades were still intact. She then walked upstairs, to look out the window. Surveying what was outside. The streets were empty, she couldn't see any walkers apart from the one sat beside the white fence. She sat down beside the window and kept watch. Two hours past before the others woke up, she got up from the chair and made her way back downstairs.

Morgan was in the kitchen preparing breakfast, Duane was playing with his cards and Rick was looking through the peephole again, "It's relatively quiet out there. Just the one walker sat just at the end of the path." She reported, Morgan looked at her and nodded.

Rick looked towards his sister, "Have you been awake all night?" he questioned, backing away from the door walking towards the kitchen to join everyone else at the table.

Cindy shook her head, "About two hours, give or take," she pulled out a chair beside Duane and sat down, looking at the cards, he was playing solitaire, "I did my usual routine of checking the barricades then took watch,"

Morgan let out a small chuckle, "She'd stay there all day sometimes." He said as he placed four plates on the table,

Cindy looks up from the cards, "Can't be too careful nowadays," she stated as they started to eat breakfast, she looked to Rick, "We should go round yours, get some clothes for you."

Rick nodded, "Yeah. Good idea." He agreed as he continued eating. Morgan handed Rick some clothes to wear, he thanked him and went into the other room to change into them.

Meanwhile, Cindy and Morgan were taking down the planks from the door, leaning them against the wall beside the door. Rick walked back into the lounge, Morgan handed him a protective mask, kind of like the one you'd wear if you were performing an autopsy, which is exactly what Rick thought when it was handed to him, he looked to Cindy, "Ironic, given the circumstances. Don't you think?" she then held out a baseball bat for him to take, which he did, "Just the one out there."

Rick opened the door followed by Cindy, Morgan then Duane. They descended down the steps of the porch, "You sure they're dead?" Rick asked looking back at Morgan and Cindy, they didn't respond, "I have to ask, at least one more time," he explained, Cindy understood her brother's uncertainty, he was a police officer, his job was to protect people, not hurt them. But these weren't people, they're dead. She imagined his view would be different if he'd been around when it all started. If he had witnessed the panic, the chaos. The massacre of innocent, defenseless people. It was a bloodbath, in a way she was glad he got shot.

She was pulled out of her thoughts when Morgan spoke up, "They're dead," he told him, Rick then proceeded down the steps, Cindy and Morgan close behind in case something happened, "Except for something in the brain." He tells him.

Cindy pointed towards the sitting figure at the end of the path, leaning against the white picket fence, "That's why it's got to be the head." She assessed, the sitting walker started to stand up, snarling at Rick as he did, he shuffled towards him only to receive a sharp smash to the head with the bat, he dropped to the floor but Rick kept beating him, repeatedly striking him with the wooden weapon. His body weakening from the sudden burst of exercise as he dropped to his knees, holding his side.

Morgan and Cindy stepped forward to check on him, "You alright?" Morgan asked him, worried by his sudden plunge to the ground. Rick slowly recovered, taking a moment to regain his breath.

"Need a moment," he replied. Morgan and Cindy stood by to help him if he needed it. He got back on his feet and headed next door, towards his house. Cindy and Morgan were temporarily stunned by his sudden movement, Morgan looked at Cindy. She shrugged and followed her brother. He went up the steps and opened the door, entering his former home. Rick drops the helmet just inside the front door, "They're alive... my wife and son." He voices, as he walked into the dining room.

Cindy nodded in agreement, "Well, they were when they left." She looked around then decided to go to the spare room, also known as her room as Rick explained to Morgan why he believed his wife and son to be alive. She scanned the room, she saw a bag of her clothes that she assumed Lori had packed for her, she looked slightly to the right and noticed a piece of paper on her bedside table. She walked over to pick it up.

Cindy,

Shane told us about what happened at the hospital. I'm sorry but we have to go, it's not safe. Not for Carl. We're heading to Atlanta, we'll see you there. Watch your back, Cindy, just please be safe.

xoxo Lori

She folded the note and walked back into the dining room to hear Duane speak up, "They're in Atlanta, I'll bet,"

"That's right," Morgan agreed, looking at his son over his shoulder then looked to Rick.

"Why there?" Rick asked, wondering why they would go to Atlanta. They've only been there a few times.

As if reading his mind Morgan spoke up to explain why they went to Atlanta, "Refugee center, huge one they said before the broadcast stopped," he told him, they stopped a while ago, not long after Cindy met Morgan and his family, "Military protection, food, shelter."

Cindy chimed in, "They told people to go there." She held up the note in her hand, "Lori left me a note, even started packing a bag for me. They headed for Atlanta."

Morgan nodded, "Said it'd be safest." He explained, Rick looked at Cindy, thinking about the note. It gave him hope that Lori and Carl are alive.

Duane spoke up, "Plus they got that disease place,"

"Centre for Disease Control," Morgan confirmed, making Rick wonder if they were still running, "Said they were working on how to solve this thing," he told Rick.

Rick walked into the kitchen to a small cabinet, where his keys lived, he grabbed the keys for the police station, whilst Cindy packed a bag of clean clothes for him. Rick held his hand out to take the bag but Cindy shook her head, "Don't worry, Rick. I got it," They got into Morgan's truck and went on their way. Rick gave Morgan directions to the police station, passing few walkers on the way.

When they arrived, they saw two walkers, Cindy picked up the bat and got out the truck, "I got them," she said before walking over them and bashing their heads in, she then looked back at Morgan and Rick, "You ladies gonna sit there all day?" she laughed, balancing the bat on her shoulders behind her neck.

They laughed and shook their heads as they got out of the truck. Cindy went to give Morgan the bat back, but he just shook his head, "It's yours now, consider it a late birthday present." He chuckled.

They walked through the station, Cindy took down a few more walkers, whilst Rick and Morgan secured the doors and windows. Rick walked into a room followed by Morgan and Duane. Cindy entered soon after, making sure the coast was clear.

"Gas lines gave been down for maybe a month," Morgan said as they neared the showers.

Cindy turned on the tap, "Station has got its own propane system," she told them,

Rick holds his hand under the water and laughs, "I was gonna say that," he said, amusement written on his face, he felt the water warming up, "Pilot's still on," he informed

"You guys can have your shower first." Said Cindy as she began to walk out.

Morgan looked up at her, "You sure?" he asked.

She rested her bat on her right shoulder and nodded, "Yeah. Someone's gotta keep watch, haven't they?" she asked

"Oh my Lord," Morgan howled as he bathed in the warm water. "Hot water!" Duane whooped as he danced around under the sprinkling water, both enjoying a luxury they had formally taken for granted.

"That feels good, right?" Morgan asked the boy, noisily relishing the feel of the warm water against their bare skin, whereas Rick showered quietly, shaving the facial hair that had grown whilst he'd been in a coma. Rick chuckled at the pair who were obviously satisfied with the hot water.

They wrapped towels around their bodies and ready to head to the changing rooms, "Your turn Cindy" Rick called

She opened the door and walked in, "You guys sure were loud enough. Thought I'd have to face a battalion." She joked walking towards the showers.

Rick and Morgan sat on benches in the changing room as Cindy walked past, she stripped herself of her bloodstained clothes and stepped on the cool ceramic tiles, toes flinching as she did. She turned the chrome valve. She closed her eyes as the lukewarm water dampens her long, brown hair, droplets rolling down her back. The feeling of the warm water soothes her, temporarily taking her mind off of the end of the world.

In the other room, Rick and Morgan are talking as Duane is getting changed into clothes that Rick gave him, "Atlanta sounds like a good deal... safer anyway," Rick said to Morgan in a hushed voice, "People," he said as Morgan put a shirt over his head.

"That's where we were heading," Morgan said as he slid his arms through the shirt, "Things got crazy. Man, you wouldn't believe the panic," he said as he shook his head, "The streets weren't fit to be on, and then... well... my wife couldn't travel," he said, his eyes slowly becoming withdrawn as he spoke about his wife, he was obviously still grieving her loss. "We were attacked by three of them," he began, he looked towards the door to the shower where Cindy was, "I couldn't protect them both... then my wife... got bit... that's when your sister came."

—Flashback—

Morgan was packing a bag of survival gear, food, water, med supplies, all the essentials. His wife, on the other hand, was packing photo albums, "Baby, what are you doing?" he asked her walking into the lounge.

She opened the album she was holding and looked at the photos, "What does it look like? These are irreplaceable, sweetheart." She replied, putting the album in the bag with the rest of them, "Where's Duane?" she asked.

Morgan pointed to the ceiling, "He's packing his clothes," he replied putting his bag down next to the door, peeking out the window, "We're going to have to leave soon, it'll be dark in an hour."

She nodded in agreement and zipped up the bag, "Just waiting on Duane." Just as the sentence left her mouth, screams roared through the neighborhood, causing both adults to look towards the window.

Morgan handed Jenny a crowbar, "Get Duane, we are leaving, now!" he instructed as he picked up his gun, his wife nodded and jogged upstairs. A few minutes later she came back down with their son, "There's a lot out there, we make a run for a truck, you don't stop for nothing." He ordered, he handed his son a baseball bat and opened the door. They walked out, weapons in hand, cautiously making their way to the truck.

Morgan was in front, ready to take out anything that threatened his family, his son in the middle and his wife close behind. None of them saw the walker sneaking up towards Jenny until it was too late. Everything happened so fast. Jenny lay flat on her back as the male walker hovered above her. She was screaming. Screams of fear, panic, desperation but Morgan and Duane were cut off from her, trapped by three walkers. She used all her strength to keep the walker away from her until her arms gave way. The walker dropped, biting her collarbone, her screams were now ones of pain as the walker tore her skin from her body.

The walker went for something more succulent when he suddenly dropped dead, deader than before. The woman looked up past the walker's head and saw a young woman standing there, holding a small knife that was coated with blood, she put her index finger to her lips, signaling the woman to be quiet as she snuck up behind the, now two walkers, attacking her family. With a quick stab to the head, they both dropped to the ground.

The boy held his father tighter as he looked up at the person who saved their life, "Get him in the truck. I'll get your wife," she instructed. Morgan put Duane in the truck then hurried over to help the girl with his wife. They got her into the truck and closed the door. The girl nodded and turned to walk away.

"Wait," the man called, the girl turned to look at him, "You alone?" he asked her.

She nodded, "I got separated from my friend." She looked around, people rushing, panicking. Trying to escape whatever this was. "You should go, something tells me it's going to get a hell of a lot worse." She began to walk away again when the man spoke up again.

"We got room for one more," he pointed out, she turned back around, "You're welcome to join us." She looked around at the carnage and then to the man's son. She nodded, agreeing to go with them. The boy reminded her of her nephew and she felt this need to protect him. She jumped in the back with the boy and they began on their way.

"I'm Morgan, by the way," he introduced as he drove out of the street, "This is my wife, Jenny," he pointed to the woman in the passenger seat, "And my son, Duane," he indicated with his head. The boy shyly waved and the woman smiled at the girl.

She waved back at the boy, "I'm Cindy, nice to meet you." She replied,

The boy giggled, "Like the princess?" he asked, causing his mom and dad to laugh along with him.

Cindy nodded, a giggle escaping her lips as well, "Yep, my brother's best friend called me Cinderella all the time,"

"Where's your brother now?" the boy asked. The question upset her, she left him. Alone. In that hospital. Now she doesn't know if he's alive or dead.

But she answered the question anyway, "He's in hospital. He got shot a couple of weeks ago. I've just come from there,"

Half hour the journey towards Atlanta, the woman's pain worsened, "Morgan, I can't... I need to lie down."

Morgan looked at his wife, "Ok, we'll find somewhere to stay for the night," he said

Cindy looked around and recognized the area they were in, "Hey, turn left here, I know a place." She spoke up, Morgan nodded and turned down the street. It was abandoned. No people, no walkers, "Stop here,"

Morgan stopped the truck and looked around, making sure there were no walkers about, "This your place?" he asked

Cindy shook her head, "A friend's. My brother lives around the corner." She replied jumping out the truck.

"Why did we stop here then?" Morgan questioned, confused as to why she didn't direct them to her brother's house,

She pointed to the house, "My brother's house is single floor. I can keep watch better from a higher floor," she informed, Morgan nodded as he helped his wife and son out the car. Cindy grabbed some bags and carried them into the house, she placed them just in the door and went back out to help Morgan carry his wife into the house, she led them into a room and placed her on the bed, "Will you guys be okay whilst go check my brother's house?" she asked,

Morgan nodded, looking down at his wife, he placed the back of his hand on her forehead, "She really warm," Morgan followed Cindy into the kitchen, she opened a drawer and pulled out a cloth. She held in under the tap to dampen it, she handed it to Morgan, "Thank you. Be back before dark." She nodded and walked out the door.

She carefully made her way towards her brother's house, knife in hand, ready to eliminate any threat that came her way. She made it to the house without bumping into any walkers. Taking a deep breath, she began to walk up the steps. She opened the door and looked around. It was empty. Her sister-in-law and nephew were gone. Drawers were open, clothes were missing. She hoped that they were with Shane and that they were safe, she took some clothes from the drawers in her room, it looked like they took some clothes for her, in case she caught up with them. She took one last look around the house then walked out.

She returned to the Drake house within minutes to find boards on the windows, entering the house she saw that they had set up mattresses on the floor of the lounge, "You should have waited, I could've helped," Morgan looked up and smiled at the young woman, "How's she doing?"

Morgan looked around, presumably to see if his son was in earshot, "I don't know... she's getting warmer. The fever, it's getting worse. The... uh... the broadcasts said not to get bit. I don't know how long until..."

"Morgan, I'm so sorry," she started but Morgan shook his head, "It's not your fault. If it wasn't for you, me and Duane would be in the same situation."

Just then Duane ran in, "There's something wrong with mama, she's not breathing." Morgan and Cindy immediately ran out of the room towards the bedroom. Cindy held up her hand towards Duane and Morgan, signaling them to wait as she stepped closer towards the bed. She looked to see if Jenny's chest was rising and falling but saw no movement. She then leaned her head close to her mouth to listen for breathing sounds or feel breath on her cheek.

After finding no signs of breathing, she decided to check her for a pulse. She picked up her wrist and placed two fingers above her radial artery. Waiting for the small beats but felt nothing. She looked up at Duane and Morgan in the doorway and shook her head.

Duane broke down into tears, collapsing on the floor with his head in his knees. Morgan knelt down to his level and embraced him, Cindy walked out to the kitchen to give them privacy.

Cindy set everything up to start preparing dinner. The meal was almost ready when Duane and Morgan walked in, "What you cooking?" Morgan questioned

She looked up at him to answer, "Beef ravioli, I hope that's okay." she said softly.

Duane smiled slightly, "Ravioli's my favorite," he told her, as he went to sit down at the table.

Morgan walked over to her, a wounded look on his face, "I hate to ask, you've done so much already but... could you help? With Jenny?" he asked, Cindy nodded in response, turning off the camp stove and pouring the ravioli into three bowls. She walked towards the bedroom, "You start eating, Duane. We've just got to sort your mama out." He said as he walked out, through the door Cindy had just gone through.

In the bedroom, Cindy is stood staring at the woman who lay there, lifeless, she began to wonder whether it was her fault. I wasn't fast enough. If I had got there sooner I could have saved her. A voice interrupted her thoughts, "It's not your fault, you know?" she looked up to see Morgan leaning on the doorframe, "You didn't have to help us but you did and for that, I'm eternally grateful."

"What do you want to do? They say it's got to be the head for them to..." she began but Morgan cut her off, shaking his head, "No, I can't, and I can't ask you to either."

"Morgan, you've got Duane to think about now. If she turns..." she said, trying to reason with him even though she knew there was no use.

He shook his head again, tears filling his eyes, "We could just set her free, outside. We don't have to hurt her," he persuaded

"And if she hurts an innocent person? Another family?" Cindy questioned making sure he knew the probable risks for letting her turn.

"Please," he begged, his voice breaking, cheeks wet from the stray tears that had fallen from his eyes. Cindy reluctantly agreed to place Jenny outside to set her free. They picked her up and carried her to the back door. Morgan opened the door and they exited. They laid her down on the floor just outside the backyard, "Thank you." Cindy just nodded, "Come on, we should get in before it gets darker," he proposed, she nodded her head in agreement and they walk back inside.

—Present Day—

"And then, after she died...we just stayed hunkered down," he told Rick, the look of regret evident on his face, "I guess we just froze in place and Cindy... after she found your wife and son gone," he shook his head and looked up at Rick, "I don't know, man. I think she was looking for a reason to live, then she got close with Duane." He paused looking at the door Duane had walked out of, "She started doing supply runs for us. Doing whatever she had to, to protect us. I can never repay her for what she's done for us,"

There was a moment of silence before Rick spoke up, "Plan to move on?" he asked him,

Morgan gave a small smile, "Haven't worked up to it yet," he replied, Rick gave him a sympathetic nod. Secretly Rick hoped he'd come with him and Cindy.

"You must be very proud of your sister," Morgan commented as they continued changing,

This made Rick smile and nod, "Yeah, always have been. Even more so when she enlisted" he said, his voice full of pride.

Morgan gave him a questioning look mixed with a hint of shock, "She's a soldier?" he asked, Morgan mentally slapped himself, Of course, makes sense now.

Rick laughed at newly found friend's face, "A marine to be more specific but yeah, she never told you?" he asked in amusement, Morgan shook his head in response, "She finished her tour the day I got shot. She was coming home for her birthday," he started, a small smile made it's way on his face, "My son was excited to see her. So was I and the idiot I am I go and get shot." He finished.

"How long had it been since you'd seen her?" Morgan asked

Rick thought about it for a moment before answering, "About 2 years." Rick replied, he smiled like a kid on Christmas morning, "I've got her now, that's all that matters."

Morgan shook his head in disbelief, "I know I should have seen it but why wouldn't she tell us?"

Rick raised his eyebrows at the man to his left, "The KA-BAR didn't give it away?" Rick questioned, completely intrigued by the fact he didn't notice her knife.

"I noticed the knife, she said she found it lying on the floor," he explained, earning a short reply of 'Ah' and a nod in understanding.

Cindy then walked back in, fully dressed, "Ready to go?" she asked

They nodded and Morgan spoke up, "How come you never mentioned you were a marine?" he asked curiously

Cindy gave a small shrug, "Doesn't matter now does it?" she replied shortly as she picked up her's and her brother's bags and walked out with the men close behind.

Rick caught up to her and signaled for her to follow. He led them to the armory, "A lot of it's gone missing," he observed as he picked up a shotgun and examined it.

"Hardly surprising," Cindy commented, as she picked up a pistol. Checking it over just like her brother had done.

"Dad, can I learn to shoot? I'm old enough," Duane asked his father, moving closer to him as his dad was packing some guns for himself.

"Hell yes, you're going to learn. We gotta do it carefully, teach you to respect the weapon," Morgan told his son, making sure he knew it wasn't a game.

"That's right. It's not a toy. You pull the trigger, you have to mean it. Always remember that Duane," Rick told Duane as if he was talking to a rookie cop. He placed his hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Yes, sir," the boy replied

"Here," Morgan told Duane, "Go look," ushering him towards the bag he had been preparing. Duane starts packing some ammo into the bag.

"Take that one. Nothing fancy. Scope's accurate," Rick reported as he gave sniper rifle. The armory fell silent as they continued to pack up the weapons. After the cage was completely cleared out they headed outside to the truck. "Conserve your ammo. Goes faster than you think." Rick started as they walked up the stairs.

"Especially during target practice," Cindy added, earning a smirk from her brother and a laugh from Morgan.

The siblings look at the man as he laughed, "That's cute, finishing each other's sentences." Duane then started laughing at his father's observation.

"Duane," Morgan called once he caught his breath, receiving a small, breathless 'yeah' in return. "Take this to the car," he directed as he passed the boy the bag of guns and ammo.

"You sure you won't come along?" Rick asked, needing to be sure before he left them. He felt guilty leaving them alone, as did Cindy.

"A few more days." He replied, "By the end, Duane will know how to shoot and I won't be so rusty," he explained, stroking his face anxiously. Rick opened the door to his cop car and pulled out a walkie-talkie, he turned it on to check it was working.

He then handed the small device to Morgan, "You got one battery. I'll turn mine on. A few minutes every day at dawn. You get up there, that's how you find us," he said, arranging a plan to stay in contact.

He patted Rick's shoulder, "You think ahead," he stated

"Can't afford not to," Rick spoke wisely, "Not anymore," he finished.

Morgan stopped his trek to his car, "Look, just one thing..." he started as Duane shut trunk of the truck, "They may not seem like much one at a time but in a group, all riled up and hungry. Man, you watch your ass," he warned.

"You too," Rick replied sincerely. Rick believed he was a good man and he wondered if he and his son would be safe on their own. They allowed his sister to stay with them. They were there for her when he couldn't be. He remembered what Morgan had told him in the changing room. That his sister was looking for a reason to live. He hoped that was him. She's all he's got at this moment.

"You're a good man, Rick," Morgan said, holding his hand out for Rick to shake. Rick took it without hesitation, "I hope you find your wife and son," he said with a genuine, kind smile.

"Be seeing you, Duane," Rick said, leaning down to talk to him, he shook, "Take care of your old man,"

Duane gave him a small nod, "Yes, sir," he spoke with a small smile on his face.

Cindy enveloped Duane in a big hug, "Oh, I'm gonna miss you kiddo." She said, trying not to cry, as she released her new best friend.

The boy laughed with tears forming in his eyes "I'm gonna miss you too. My dad's terrible at poker." He joked.

"Hey." Morgan cried, slightly offended at his son's statement.

Cindy giggled as she pulled the man into a hug, "I'm gonna miss you, man. Thank you. For everything you did for me." She spoke honestly.

Morgan scoffed, "Thank me? I should be thanking you. If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't have had food." He exclaimed, "You put your life at risk to go out and get us food." He finished.

She shrugged, "I owed you. For letting me stay." She replied, smiling at her new friend as he pulled her into another hug. "Be careful. I hope to see you again soon." He spoke honestly. They were about to walk to their cars when Morgan noticed something. The group turned around to see a walker.

Rick's eyes squinted in recognition, a man he previously knew and worked with, "Leon Basset? Didn't think much of him. Careless and dumb, but I can't leave him like this," Rick spoke. Cindy smiled at her brother's words, still the caring man she knew before she left two years ago. It didn't matter if he liked the person or not, he was still respectful towards them. He still wore his uniform. 'Must have been on duty when he died,' Rick thought.

"You know they'll hear the shot?" Morgan asked, concerned that Rick still didn't fully understand the situation. He held his son closely to his side.

Rick pulled out his gun, "Let's not be here when they show up," he advises as he walks up to the fence that separated the walker from the group.

"Let's go, son," Morgan told Duane as they backed away towards their car. Rick looked at Leon for a second as the walked rattled the fence trying to get at him, Rick aimed it at his head and pulled the trigger. He slowly collapsed to the ground, his grip uncurling as he fell, dead on the floor.

Rick walked back over to his cop car where his sister was waiting for him. She smiled at him sympathetically. He tilted his head towards the car, silently telling her to get in. She nodded in agreement and got into the passenger seat of the car.

Rick got into his seat and turned on the engine, he backed up and drove to the exit. Rick and Morgan beeped their horns as a way to say goodbye as the turned different ways.

Morgan and Duane drove back to the Drake house. Morgan hammered the planks back up on the door whilst Duane put the blankets over the windows. When he was done, Duane sat down on his bed. Morgan picked up a red suitcase, "Read your comic books a while. Daddy'll be upstairs." He said, picking up the sniper on his way out the lounge.

He situated himself in the room upstairs, going through a box of photo albums, looking at the pictures of his wife. Fighting to keep his tears at bay.

He places a photo up on the windowpane, positioning a chair beside the window and placing the gun on the back of the chair. He whistles, getting the attention of the walkers outside. Lining up the shot and he pulled the trigger.

Duane panicked, springing up from his spot on the floor, "Daddy?" he called,

"It's all right Duane, you stay there, son. Don't you come up here," he replied

Duane returns to his spot, his knees pulled up towards his chest, covering his ears with his hands to block out the noise.

"Come on, baby," Morgan says as he continues to shoot the walkers, waiting for one in particular.

She comes into sight and Morgan lines up the shot, tears breaking through, rolling down his face as she stared blankly at him. He drops the gun from its position, "Come on," he told himself, he aimed again, she had turned her attention elsewhere. She began to walk away, he dropped the gun again and broke down into tears

Cindy and Rick rode in silence. They were both thinking about their family if they'd see them again. Cindy's mind also wandered to Morgan and Duane, part of her felt guilty for leaving them behind but the other part wanted to find her nephew.

Rick then turned and began heading back towards his neighborhood. Cindy looked out the window and looked back to her brother, "Uh, Rick?" she asked, her brother looked at her, "Atlanta is the other way." She stated.

Rick nodded, "I know, there's just something I have to do first," he explained, Rick pulled over next to a small park, just down the road from his house. He got out and looked around, Cindy got out of the car too, wondering what her brother was doing. He walked over to what looked like a trail of brown grass. Cindy sat on the hood of the car as she waited for her brother to return.

He followed the trail all the way to where the woman had dragged her body, he slowly crouched down beside her and pulled out his gun, "I'm sorry, Hannah. I'm sorry this happened to you," he said sadly, he raised his gun, aiming it at her head and he shot her. Her arm dropped down to the ground.

He walked back over to the car where his sister sat waiting and dead corpse lay at her feet, "I see you had company," Rick observed.

She looked away from her brother and down at the corpse and shrugged, "Nothing I couldn't handle," she replied.

They got back into the car and continued their journey towards Atlanta, they sat in silence until Rick started talking into the radio, "Will be approaching Atlanta on Highway 85. Anybody reads, please respond," he spoke. There was no response, Cindy looked at her brother, she could tell he was sad.

"Worth a shot, I guess." She spoke, leaning her arm on the door.

He started talking again, "Hello, hello?" he called out, "Can anybody hear my voice? Anybody out there? Anybody hears me, please respond," he repeated.

"Hello, can you hear my voice? Hello? Hello?" he continued, hoping someone would answer.

On the other end of the radio, a group of survivors suddenly hear the crackling voice through the radio, "Hello, can you hear my voice? Hello? Hello?" everyone looked towards it.

A young blonde woman dropped the cluster of branches and rushed towards the radio and crouched down beside it, "Yes, I can hear you. You're coming through. Over." She replied through the radio, but it seemed he didn't hear her.

"Can anybody hear my voice?" the voice repeated as if he was the only one speaking, "Anybody who reads, please respond. Broadcasting on the emergency channel. We'll be approaching Atlanta on Highway 85. Anybody reads, please respond." He continued.

The girl quickly responded to the voice, "We're just outside the city." The voice stopped coming through and all that could be heard was static, "Damn it. Hello? Hello?" she tried again, "He couldn't hear me. I couldn't warn him." She spoke as the radio continued to crackle.

"Try to raise him again," an older man said, the blonde girl goes to speak, "Come on, son. You know best how to work this thing," Dale called out to Shane, he set the axe he held into a log, and picked up the radio to speak.

"Hello? Hello, is the person who calls still on the air? This is officer Shane Walsh, broadcasting a person unknown, please respond..." he spoke as he got down onto one knee, after a minute of nothing but static Shane spoke up, "He's gone,"

"There are others," Lori commented, her voice full of hope, "It's not just us,"

"Yeah. We knew there would be, right, that's why we let the CB on," he said with a 'duh' tone in his voice.

"Lot of good it's been doing," she retorted, her gaze briefly lays on the CB and then back to Shane, "And I've been saying for a week, we ought to put signs up on 85 to warn people away from the city,"

"Folks got no idea what they're getting into," the blonde spoke sadly.

"We don't have enough time," Shane responded as he got to his feet and his attention solely on Lori.

"I think we need to make time," Lori asserted, determined to stop people walking into the trap. Atlanta was done, it belonged to the dead now.

"Yeah, that... uh. That's a luxury we can't afford," Shane spoke, running a hand down his face, "We are surviving here. We are day to day," he reasoned.

"And who the hell would you propose to send?" the older man questioned

"I'll go. Give me a vehicle," Lori demanded, not wanting to let innocent people walk into certain death.

"Nobody goes anywhere alone, you know that," Shane told her, reciting the rules again. Lori just glared at him and walked away with a sarcastic 'yes sir' as she passed him.

Carl began to follow behind her but Shane stopped him, "Hey, hey, hey, come on, take a seat, bud. You're alright. Go on. You're alright," Shane told him before walking off in the direction Lori went.

Lori is heading towards her tent with Shane closely behind, "What, are you pissed at me?" he questioned.

Lori didn't answer, she just entered the tent, "You can be pissed at me all you want. It's not going to change anything. I'm not putting you in danger, okay?" he started as he enters after her, "I'm not doing it for anything. That makes you feel like sometimes you want to slap me upside the head... Tell you what, girl... you feel that need, you go right ahead. I'm right here. Go on."

Lori turns to look at him, infuriated. "You cannot walk off like that, all half-cocked. Look, if you do not want to do it for my sake and your sake, that's fine. You do it for him. That boy's been through too much and he's not losing his mother too, okay?" he asked, Lori nodded in response, "Okay?"

"Okay," Lori finally spoke, agreeing with him.

"You tell me 'okay'." he spoke softly and she nods. He began to chuckle, "It's not hard." He looks out through the tent windows and sees no one about. "All right, hey." He steps closer towards her and they begin to kiss. They continue kissing, the kiss becoming more passionate by the second.

"Mom?" a small voice called, they break apart and Shane walks out of the tent.

"What's up, bud? She's in there. Go on." Shane told him as he walked past him, leaving Carl and Lori alone. Lori crouched down next to him and smiled.

"Hey. I don't want you to worry. Your mom is not going anywhere. Okay?" she assured him, he nodded and she nodded with him, "Yeah, yeah. Go finish your chores."

"Okay," he replied with a nod, he smiled at her, happy she wasn't going anywhere. He ran back towards camp to finish his chores.

The siblings drive up to an intersection on a country road. Destroyed and abandoned cars dispersed over the road, Rick slowed the car to a stop, "We're low on gas," he told his sister.

She nodded, "I think there's a gas station, just up the road there." She indicated with her head.

Rick opened the trunk of the patrol car, they got out of the car and closed the door, "You can stay, I'll go get it," he said looking at his sister.

She reached through the window to get her bat and balanced it on her shoulder, "You are still recovering, I'm not letting you go off on your own." She told him

Rick walked to the trunk of the car and fetched out a gas can. Rick nodded to Cindy, letting her know that he was ready to go, "Let's go then." She responded, "Keep your eyes open," Rick nodded,

Rick held the can in his hand. They began to walk towards the gas station, we walked across the small field beside the station. Cars were torn apart like they had been searched by someone. Tents hung out of windows, toys and other possessions were scattered around the grass. Dead bodies covered in flies, their flesh rotting. Some still in their cars, "This is a graveyard." Cindy spoke.

When they finally arrived at the gas pumps, there was a sign rattling against the wall it hung on that read 'NO GAS'. Rick turned to look at his sister, a look of defeat appearing on his features, "We'll think of something," his sister comforted him. He went to say something when they both froze at the sound of feet shuffling on the concrete.

They dropped to the ground. They looked around to pinpoint where the noise was coming from. Rick then saw small feet scuffle past on the opposite side of the car. She wore bunny slippers and a light pink robe. She picked up the teddy bear that lay on the floor which caused Rick to spring up to get her, Cindy just looked at him wide-eyed, 'What the hell is he doing? Is he crazy' she thought.

The little girl looked like she hadn't had a wash in a while and not taken care of. That was what made Cindy wary. No way anyone would leave a kid on their own. Right? The girl looked fragile. Cindy tore her eyes away from the girl briefly to scan the area to make sure they don't have any company. She looked back to the girl, all skin and bone. Rick walked slowly towards the girl which put Cindy on high alert.

"Little girl...I'm a policeman...little girl?" he called out softly as not to scare her. The girl stopped at the sound of his voice, she stood there completely frozen.

Cindy's heart rate doubled, dread filling her body. "Rick, I don't think..." Cindy started to warn him but he started talking to the girl again.

"Don't be afraid," he told her softly as he continued to walk closer, holding his hand out to her, "Okay?" he asked, prompting a response from her.

The girl slowly turned around revealing her face. Rick's face falls as he sees the girl, disappointment, and sorrow in his eyes. Her eyes are dull, lifeless. Her mouth is torn and dried blood has marked her pajamas. Her eyes squarely on Rick as she hobbled towards him, causing Cindy to become more alert, her grip on her bat tightening. Rick raised his gun to shoot her backing up the closer she got. Cindy could sense his hesitation, "Rick, don't be stupid," she snapped.

Rick squeezed the trigger and the girl's body fell backwards, crashing on the ground below. Dead for a second time. Cindy looked hastily around, the sound surely attracting any walkers nearby, "Let's get out of here." She said to Rick as she turned to walk away, she stopped and turned when she realized Rick hadn't moved from his spot. She walked up to him, she stopped beside him. He just stared at her.

"She can't be any more than 8 years old," he finally spoke. Cindy gave him a sympathetic smile. She then had an idea, something to make him feel a bit better. She walked around looking in cars for a blanket. She found a pink one which she thought was perfect, she walked back over to Rick and the girl. "What are you doing?" he asked curiously, Cindy looked up at him and smiled. She placed the blanket over the girl, she then placed the teddy bear closer to the girl's face. Her gaze then shifted towards a row of flowers, she gets up and walks over to the flowers and uses her knife to cut them from the ground and walks back over to the girl. She places the flowers down on the young girl.

"There, she can rest properly now. Rick, it's horrible I know but we have to go," she started to reason to with him, looking around, "There could be more on the way. For Carl and for Lori, we have to go." She finished, Rick looked up to his sister and nodded.

"Let's get out of here," he spoke, Cindy nodded, picking up her bat. They ran back towards the car. They made it back to the car within a couple of minutes and immediately. They knew that they'd have to find gas soon because what they had wasn't enough to get them to Atlanta.

They drove for a whole before they pulled up to a house, "We can't get much further than this," Rick stated.

Cindy sighed, "Let's hope we can find some here." She said grabbing her bat from the floor below her. Before exiting Rick pulled down his visor, to reveal two pictures, one of him, Lori and Carl and another of just him and his sister just before she went on her first deployment.

Cindy looked up at the photo, "You keep that in here?" she asked him, Rick looked towards her, a smile on his face, a mixture of happiness and love. Heart swelling of pride.

"Yeah, of course." He told her, he takes the pictures from their spot on the visor and put them in his pocket.

They got out of the car and Rick grabbed the gas can again before walking towards the stairs of the porch, "Hello? Police officer out here. Can I borrow some gas? Hello?" he called out, hoping someone was here.

"Hello? Anybody home?" he called out again, knocking on the door, Cindy walked over to a window that she noticed was open.

She looked through the window, a vulgar smell immediately plagued her nose. She saw a man who appeared to had shot himself and a woman lay on the floor beside him, also dead. She had a gunshot wound, a message in her blood written on the wall 'GOD FORGIVE US'. Flies dancing around their corpses, "Yeah, Rick. I don't think anybody's going to answer," Cindy told her brother. He looks at her with worry in his eyes, 'Don't tell me there's some in there.' He thought walking up to her. he stops and peeks through the window, gagging from the smell.

"This place looks untouched," Rick spoke, Cindy furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, "I mean, it doesn't look like any walkers have been here." He clarified.

"Yeah but for how long?" she asked, not really expecting an answer, "Nothing is safe anymore, Rick. World's changed." She started, placing her bat on her shoulder, "You've got to fight for your admission here. They're not just gonna give you a free ticket." She walked past time and head over to a truck that was parked beside the house. No luck, she shook her head, "Nothing."

She walked back up to the house to search for the keys but stopped in her tracks when she heard her brother talking, "Easy now, easy. I'm not gonna hurt you," he said. 'Who is he talking to?' she looked around but she couldn't see him. "Nothing like that... more like a proposal. Atlanta's just down the road aways. It's safe there. Food, shelter, people, other horses too, I bet. How's that sound?" he asked, she rounded a small shed and saw Rick slowly approaching the horse.

Cindy snorted at the sight of her brother negotiating with the horse, "Are you really trying to persuade the horse to come with us?" she asked, he turns to look at her and shrugged, "You've gone mad." She spoke.

He mounted the horse, "We have to get to Atlanta somehow, Cindy." He stated.

Cindy giggled and shook her head, "You can't be serious." Rick didn't answer just held out his hand to help his sister onto the horse. She took his hand and climbed onto the horse.

"There we go. Good boy. Good boy." He told the horse, gently tugging the rope, directing him to turn, "I haven't done this in years." He said trying to keep his balance.

"Yeah, last time you did, Pepper... chucked you... right into the ... the muckheap." Cindy said breathlessly between laughs.

Rick laughed at the memory, "My ass hurt for 3 days," he added. They rode away from the farm and resumed their journey towards Atlanta.

Atlanta seemed deserted, a ghost town. A few walkers wandering around, nothing to worry about. As if reading her mind Rick spoke, "Steady, it's just a few. Nothing we can't outrun." He told the horse.

Rick guided the horse down another street, a few walkers lingered in a bus. Suddenly Cindy heard a whirring noise, "You hear that?" she asked her brother.

Rick nodded, gently pulling on the reins to signaling for the horse to stop. He looked up in the sky trying to locate where the sound was coming from.

Cindy spotted a reflection of the helicopter in a window of a high-rise building, "There," she pointed as it came into view. The resounding sound of hooves echoed through the streets as they cantered along, buildings gone in a second as they flew by.

Rick stopped sharply as he stared at the scene in front of him. Cindy looked over his shoulder to see a huge horde of walkers.

Cindy's grip on her brother tightened as the walkers turned and spotted the siblings. They began stumbling towards them, pushing and shoving to get the first bite, the juiciest flesh. Rick turned the horse around only to find they were trapped, "Shit," he cursed. He turned to look for an opening to escape. But it was no use. The walkers tried grabbing at anything they could. The horse squealed, rearing trying to fend off the threat. Rick lost his balance and falls off, taking his sister with him.

They rushed to get up and backed away from the walkers. Most of them occupied chewing on the horse. Some set their sights on the siblings. Scurrying towards them, one grabbed onto Rick's leg, Rick kicked him off and got up on his feet.

He pulled out his python and put it towards his head, "I'm sorry, Cindy." He cried.

She shook her head, holding her bat up in defense, "We're not done yet. They are busy. Under the tank. Now!" she directed, he looked at her confused. 'Surely that won't work, they'll follow.' He thought.

He scrunched his eyebrows and looked at, "What? Why?" he asked.

She whacked a walker in the face, his head squelching as she smashed the bat down, "Tanks have an escape hatch at the bottom. Get into it." She explained, he did as he was told. Cindy following close behind.

They both got into the tank unharmed, closing the door behind them. Rick backed away from the door, towards the side of the tank. Beside him there was a corpse, he began to move and Rick raised his gun to shoot him, "No, don't!" she screamed but it was too late, the shot had already been fired.

The high-pitched screeching sound tore through their ears as the bullet ricocheted off the walls. Rick climbed up to open the hatch on the top of the tank, easing the sound from their ears. Rick shut the hatch again, they were safe inside but they were surrounded. They had to think about what they were going to do otherwise they'd die of starvation or thirst. They were trapped.

Rick pulled his knees to his chest, his mind swirling with thoughts, scenarios. Thinking all hope is lost. Then the radio started buzzing, causing both siblings to look up at it. They looked at each other both confused, then a voice of a man sounded through, "Hey, you. Dumbasses. Yeah... you two in the tank. Cozy in there?" they were both in shock and just sat there and stared at the device.

Masterlist Next Chapter ->

[lunajay33]

Masterlist 2.0

Fluff>☆ Angst>꩜ Spicy>ꨄ︎ Suggestive>❀

Masterlist 1.0

Daryl Dixon🏹

{Quarry Era}

Soulmate> ☆

{Prison Era}

Future> ꩜☆

How to tell you I Love You> ☆

{Alexandria}

Despair> ꩜

Where’s My Wife> ꩜☆

{Series}

Change->Part.8•Part.9•Part.10•Part.11

Negan Smith

Crave> ☆❀

Just a Taste> ☆ꨄ︎

Supernatural🦇

{Sam Winchester}

New Addition> ꩜☆

Surprise> ☆

{Dean Winchester}

Help> ꩜☆

{Castiel}

Secrets> ☆

Twilight🐾

{Paul Lahote}

Destiny> ☆꩜ Pt.2 Pt.3 Pt.4 Pt.5 Pt.6

Pain> ꩜

The One> ☆

{Seth Clearwater}

My Beast> ☆

Valentines> ☆

Best Friend> ☆꩜

{Embry Call}

Desperate> ꩜☆

{Emmett Cullen}

Waiting> ☆꩜ Pt.2

{Felix Volturi}

It’s You> ☆꩜ꨄ︎ Pt.2

{Alec Volturi}

Am I Good Enough> ꩜☆

Avatar

{Neteyam}

Two Souls> ☆

Comfort> ꩜☆

Sweet Flower>꩜ Pt.2>☆

{Ao’nung}

Brothers Best Friend> ☆

{Tonowari}

Series

The Only One> ☆꩜ꨄ︎ Pt.2 Pt.3 Pt.4 Pt.5

Acotar🦇✨

{Azriel}

Struggle> ꩜☆

All in my Head> ꩜

{Cassian}

Innocent> ꨄ︎☆

{Lucien}

The Deer and the Fox> ☆

[daryl-dixon-daydreams]

reader pronouns: she/her, reader is Rick’s sister warning: language (it’s Negan so duh), threats of violence, fear and anxiety, angsssstttt

“Dwight, bring Daryl over here,” Negan said, still smiling broadly. “I want to make sure he can hear all of this.�� 

Dwight shoved Daryl hard in the back and he nearly tripped from it. He managed somehow to keep his feet under him and he walked forward until he was standing beside Negan.

Negan paced a line in front of all of you, but his eyes didn’t leave your face. You’d been singled out, and you felt nausea rolling in your stomach as you glanced across Negan’s tall, lean frame and looked at the state Daryl was in. The bat swung in a wide arc at Negan’s side and then perched up on his shoulder again as he stopped in front of you. 

“I can’t believe you all having been holding out on me,” Negan said. “I thought I made it perfectly fuckin’ clear that that shit would not be tolerated.”

Rick stepped forward, sweat dripping down his face from terror of what was about to happen. “We haven’t been holding—”

“Rick, shut the fuck up and get back where you fuckin’ were,” Negan growled, pointing a gloved finger at him. Your brother wilted, giving you a desperate and terrified look, and stepped back. 

“Now, where was I?” Negan paused. The scowl on his face melted back into that cocky smile and he stopped right in front of you. “Imagine how fuckin’ surprised I was to find out that Rick the Prick had a sister. Ya’ll must have forgotten to mention that one, hmm? And not just a sister,” he paused and clicked his tongue, looking you up and down, “but damn! I can see who got all the good looks in the family,” he finished, shooting another mocking smile at Rick.

Rick was shaking from anger and anxiety, his jaw clenched and his teeth ground together. He knew. Rick didn’t know how he’d found out, but Negan knew. 

Negan went on. “And imagine my shock when I find out that little Miss Grimes happens to have a special beau, my Daryl! Fuck me sideways, that shit is just too good to be true.” Negan looked back at you and pulled his bottom lip in between his teeth for a moment. “That must make you Alexandrian royalty or some shit. Right, doll? Brother’s the boss. Love interest is the biggest badass in the settlement. Want me to bow and show proper respect for your station?”

You didn’t know what made you do it. You were absolutely terrified. But your simmering hatred for the man, fueled by the state Daryl seemed to be in and Negan’s public grandstanding, got the best of you. “Rather you sucked my—”

“Whoa!” Negan, to your surprise, only laughed and grinned more widely at you. “Watch it, men! We’re in the presence of a proper lady.” His eyes raked over your face and there was something in them that dropped your stomach to the ground. “Dwight, let Daryl go.” For a split second, your heart leapt, but when it came to the Saviors, nothing was ever that good. “And get Miss Grimes here settled in my truck for the ride to her new home. We’re doin’ a goods exchange today everybody, and I gotta say, I think I’m getting the better end of this fucking deal.”

“No! No! Y/N! Keep me! Just leave her the fuck alone! Don’t fucking touch her! No!” Daryl was screaming as the blood drained from your face and time seemed to slow. He was trying to fight to you but several men seized him by the arms and dragged him around Negan, who stood watching him like he was really fucking enjoying his anguish.

“No, please,” Rick stepped forward again, his face desperate, but Negan’s smile vanished and he pointed his bat straight at him. 

“Rick, if you take another goddamn step forward I swear to my sweet Lucille I will bash somebody else’s brains in right here.” 

You looked over your shoulder as Dwight grabbed your elbow firmly. Your eyes were wide and glassy as you looked at your brother and Daryl, who finally seemed to have given up and gone nearly limp, almost crumpled onto the asphalt. You wondered if this would be the last time you’d ever see them. Prompt: “Want me to bow and show proper respect for your station?” / “Rather you sucked my—” / “Whoa! Watch it, men! We’re in the presence of a proper lady.” A/N: As soon as I saw this prompt, I knew it had to be Negan. Also, not me wanting to write this as an entire fic...