Better This Time

by AidenMarshal23

Summary:

Rick wakes up in the hospital back where it all began after dying horrifically under Negan's bat in S7 E1. He plans to do things differently this time

Chapter 1: Hospital

Rick's eyes snap open as he gasps for breath, the last thing he remembers is Negan's fucking bat coming down on his head. Confusion sets in as light blinds him coming from the huge windows in his...hospital room? The blue eyed man glances around in pure bafflement as the details in the room start to come into focus. As his gaze lands on a blue and white patterned vase with dried carnation flowers, a shocked and confused laugh bubbles from his dry throat.

A glance down, that reveals the bandage on his side and the ugly hospital gown over his boxers, proves he's right back in the hospital room he woke up in at the very beginning. Rick shakes his head and almost startles at the pull of the cannula in his nose, reaching up to pull it off results in another pull from the IV in his hand. Carefully removing both, the needle with a soft hiss of pain, he grabs onto the IV pole and uses it to carefully lever his weight off the narrow hospital bed.

Hissing again as bare feet land on the cold tiles, Rick balances most of his weight on the pole as his wound twinges painfully. Hobbling over to the bathroom door, he pulls it open and goes inside the now dimly lit space. Turning the faucet on and grinning at the tepid water that flows out, glad that it worked just like before. Cupping his hands under it, he slowly drinks his fill, not wanting to make himself sick like last time. Finding empty jugs under the sink, Rick fills them both with the water so he'll have something in case he finds nothing else.

Coming back out, he lowers himself down to the bed with another hiss of pain. As the sharp sting fades to a dull, manageable ache, he laughs. 'Is this a dream? Or were the last three years a dream and now I'm finally awake?' Rick thinks to himself, icy blue eyes running over the room again. Finding a duffle bag and pair of boots on the floor under a visitor's chair that he completely missed last time. Although the ache to find Carl, and somewhat for Lori, burns fiercely in his chest, Rick doesn't rush out like he did the first time. He makes himself wait, drinking water, eating crackers and cups of apple sauce he found in a drawer, and walking around the room for days until he feels stable enough to wander around.

After changing into his clothes, a white T-shirt and jeans, he stops to consider his deputy uniform...but ultimately leaves it on the hospital bed. He's not that man anymore. Slipping his boots on and grabbing the now empty duffle, he pushes open the door that separates his room from the rest of the hospital, stumbling some over the gurney in front of the doorway. Another laugh bubbles through him at the deja vu feeling.

Rick shuffles his way to the nurse's station, finding the pack of matches he already knew would be there. Lighting one, he looks around the empty, gore spattered hallway. Blood, bullet holes, and half eaten corpses litter the floor and walls, but it doesn't really bother Rick. He's long grown numb to the violent world he now finds himself in. As the last of the match burns down in his fingers, Rick spots a flashlight on the desk. Something else he missed last time. Picking it up and switching it on, he continued his exploration until he came across a locked door with a sign saying 'Pharmacy' above it. Peering through the glass partition on the top of the door, he spies a body laying between the shelves of medicine.

Figuring the body has the keys and with no other option, Rick looks for something to break the glass with. Deciding to use an IV pole, he twirls it around his hands for moment wondering if he really needs to do this. Then he remembers the outbreak in the prison and decided, yes, it's necessary. Winding back, Rick lets the pole fly into the glass as hard as his weakened body can manage. The glass spiderwebs but doesn't break, but it finally does on the third hit. Wrapping his hand in a thick towel, he reaches through the shattered glass to the door handle, unlocking it so that it swings open when he next turns the handle

Without conscious decision, Rick immediately checks the downed body. Finding her truly dead with a bullet hole through her head. He takes the small pistol still in her hand, a .38, and checks the chamber. A grin curls his lips at finding five out of six bullets inside, so he sets the safety on it and tucks it into his pants. Using the duffle hanging off his shoulder, Rick starts stuffing handfuls of pill bottles into it. Remembering Hershel saying to prioritize anything ending in 'cin' or 'cylin', he focuses on those. Collecting pain medication, antibiotics, anti-inflammatory, cold and flu medications, birth control, sedatives, and anti-anxiety pills into the bag before leaving the now nearly wiped-out pharmacy. Finding a closet that has miscellaneous medical supplies, he stopped to shove bandages, gauze, suture kits, disinfectants, antibiotic cream, syringes, packs of needles, tubing, bags of saline, and liquid skin into the bag with the pills.

Finishing that, he dumps the Pharmacist's too large purse out and begins shoving those little bottles of shampoo, body wash, deodorant and bars of soap into it. Taking rolls of toilet paper as well until it's bulging as full as the duffle. Finishing with that, he lays the purse next to the duffle bag on his hospital bed and goes back to exploring. Finding the staff room with the locker room is a boon because he finds two duffle bags and a backpack. Taking all three, Rick continues his search. Finally, after nearly an hour more, he comes across the cafeteria that he's been trying to find all along. Taking one of the duffles, he begins stuffing canned goods into it. Filling that up with the heavy cans before setting it aside. The next duffle he fills up with bags of rice, boxes of pasta, boxes of broth, snack cakes, crackers, bottles of juice, and water. The backpack ends up full of pudding cups, jello cups, fruit cups, and more bottles of juice.

Bringing those out to where he's left the medical supplies and toiletries, Rick ponders on what else the goldmine of a place might yield. Thinking back to that long, cold first winter on the road, he nods and wanders around the hospital until he finds the laundry room. Into two large laundry bags, he methodically rolls up and stuffs blankets, sheets, and warm socks. 'Even the thin, scratchy hospital blankets are better than freezing half to death', he reasons to himself.

Finished with his looting, Rick carries all of his bags, with great difficulty, down the stairwell he used to escape last time. The sunlight again nearly blinds him, causing him to throw up a hand to shield his eyes. The rows of white sheet covered, dead bodies doesn't horrify Rick this time, but it does make him incredibly sad. Stumbling over to the army camp that he ignored last time, he begins checking to see if one of the large military vehicles will start up after two months of disuse. Two of them are a bust but the third cranks right on up, so Rick loads his bags into the back and begins going through the camp for supplies.

Chapped lips break into a wide, pleased grin at his find. Rifles, automatic guns, two pallets of MREs, and bullet proof vests are what he finds in the camp. Carefully placing the guns in a gun bag he found in one of the tents, Rick loads those up before packing away the boxes of MREs, and vests into the back of the vehicle he'll be driving. With a last look at the hospital, Rick drives off towards his house.... his former house.

Chapter 2: Old, or New, Friends

Summary:

Rick returns to his hometown and meets an old friend

Rick stops the large SUV in his driveway, already trying not to break down at the sight of the house he hasn't seen in three years. Getting out and making sure it's locked tight, he grips a hunting knife stolen from the military camp and slowly creeps his way towards the open front door. Resisting the urge to call for Lori and Carl this time as he methodically makes his way through the house to check for walkers or people.

Once Rick's sure the house is empty, he begins packing. First emptying the kitchen cupboards into a duffle bag from under his bed, taking anything nonperishable. Then clearing his own clothing from the closet and dresser, breathing a sigh of relief when his beloved Colt Python is freed of the gun safe and back on his hip. It's as he's digging through the desk in his office that he finds the divorce papers that nearly send his world crumbling again.

Although he's no longer in love with Lori, his heart gives a painful throb for Michonne at that thought, the fact that she was so unhappy still fucking hurts. These papers are dated about six months before he was shot and put into the coma. Rick allows himself a little while to cry and drown in his sorrow about the loss of his marriage before pulling himself together to finish packing. Going into the bathroom, he emptied the medicine cabinet of anything useful and also packed what remained of their toiletries. After that he grabbed a large suitcase and began pulling blankets, towels, and pillows into it, stripping the beds bare. Finished with stripping the now cold and empty house of anything useful, Rick takes the packed bags to the SUV and loads them up. Taking a last look at the house, his home where his family thrived. A symbol of his and Lori's love and commitment.

Saying a last goodbye to his life before, Rick puts it out of his mind and goes about stripping the neighborhood houses of everything useful, putting walkers down as need be when he finds them. It's as he's working on bringing bags out of a house down the block that he hears the shuffle and drags of footsteps behind him, turning just in time to catch the shovel aimed at his face. Thankfully sparing him the bloody nose and small concussion. Rick has to fight back the grin threatening to overtake his face when he spots Duane on the other end of the shovel, his eyes wide and round with fear. His voice low and soothing, Rick tried to calm the terrified child not much older than his own boy.

"Hey, little man, I'm not gonna hurtcha, okay? I'm just gathering supplies." Though Duane doesn't respond, his eyes just shift to something over Rick's shoulder...just as the sound of a hammer being pulled back rings out followed by a very familiar, hostile voice.

"Just who the hell are you and why are you so close to my boy?" Rick slowly raises his hands and turns to face the voice, again having to fight back a grin when he sees a younger, less burdened version of his friend. Morgan stands there, pistol aimed at his head and a cold look on his stern face.

"Well?" Morgan asks again, prompting Rick to blush slightly as he's drawn from his thoughts.

"My name is Rick Grimes, I live...well lived right over there. I'm looking for my family, thought I'd gather supplies as well." He tries his best to keep his voice light, friendly, but not how you'd speak to a friend you've known for years. As Rick goes to lower the heavy bag off his shoulder, his wound twinges sharply causing him to hiss and grab at his bandaged side. All of a sudden, Morgan's face and tone become more hostile.

"Were you bit?!" He all but hollers at him, making Rick's lips pull into a frown as he rushed to reassure the volatile man.

"Gunshot. I'm a cop, or I was, and was shot in the line of duty. Was in a coma until just a few days ago."

Morgan's face twists into a disbelieving sneer. "Oh and I suppose the hospital just released you then?"

This actually causes Rick to laugh, making his side throb even more painfully. "No, I woke up. Just walked right out...no one was there to try and stop me." Here his voice turns hoarse and sad, remembering the walkers chained in the OR, the dead pharmacist, half eaten corpses, and rows of covered bodies.

"Look, I need to change the bandage anyway, you can look me over for bites then. But we should do it inside before any more of these things come out for a bite." Rick's voice has gone firm now, as it's starting to get dark and he doesn't want to risk Duane seeing his mother's walking corpse. After a long moment, Morgan nods and jerks his head towards the house across the street from the one Rick was just clearing, gun still out but no longer pointed at Rick's head.

"In there." Is all he says, motioning Duane to go on inside ahead of the men, dark eyes never leaving Rick. Rick, for his part, just grabs up his supply filled bags and walks into the house with Morgan hot on his heels. His former, or current?, friend sends his son upstairs before turning to look at Rick with a raised eyebrow. A sheepish grin curls the deputy's mouth as he strips all the way down. Too used to living in a world where one little bite could mean certain death to feel embarrassed or shy about his nudity.

Morgan's raised brows is all the answer Rick gets as the dark skinned man checks him over for bites before slowly tugging the bandages off his side. Something in his eyes and stance relaxes when all that's revealed is a slightly red, scabbed over gunshot wound. Rick reaches into the bag that was set on a chair, pulling out gauze, bandages, and antibiotic. Hissing through his teeth as he cleans and redresses the wound, Morgan watching on impassively through it all.

Finally, he just grunts and heads into the kitchen to presumably make dinner. Calling over his shoulder "You can put your clothes back on now, boy."

Rick blushes a little, pulling up his pants and redoing the belt before sliding back into his T-shirt and following his friend into the kitchen. He's much more appreciative of Morgan's help this time, now aware of what trust and a meal can cost someone in this kind of world. By the time he's pulled from his thoughts, Morgan's got a couple cans of beans heated up and poured out onto plates, calling Duane down from upstairs to eat. Rick's so hungry that he's got a fork full of the beans up to his mouth before Duane speaks.

"We gotta say the blessing, daddy." A blush once again lights his face as he sets the fork down and bows his head, listening to Morgan give thanks for their meal and continued health. Once that's done, he hungrily digs into the food, having to hold back his groans at how good it feels having something solid on his stomach. A car alarm goes off loudly, just down the street. Rick jumps, despite having known it would happen, as Morgan hisses under his breath and rushed to check the window.

"It's the blue one down the block, just like last time. Kill the lights, we don't need them swarming us." Rick obediently turned the oil powered storm lantern on a lower setting, glancing out of the window as well to see a dark skinned walker in a bedraggled nightgown wander it's way onto the front porch. He hears Duane whimper from beside him.

"Daddy, she's here." His voice is shaky and Morgan instantly moves to comfort his son, sending a burst of longing for Carl through Rick's chest so strong it nearly knocks him over. He can hear Morgan soothing his son, coaching him to cry into the pillow as he watches what was once Jenny Jones peer at the door with a look of recognition on her dead face, even going so far as to turn the door handle to try and get in.

"Come on away from the windows, it's quiet now." Rick hears Morgan's voice rumble awhile later, the car alarm having gone silent and Duane just rocking quietly on Morgan's lap. He wanders over to the mattresses in the middle of the floor, kneeling beside them both as Morgan begins to speak again.

"We were headed to Atlanta but the flow of traffic...should have been our first clue. We decided to hold up here for a couple days, and she got bit. The fever hit and, man, her skin gave off heat like a furnace. She died and I put her outside before she...before she turned. I couldn't just kill her, that's my Jenny, the mother of my child." His voice is soft, agonized and near pleading as he explains.

Rick swallows thickly, weighing his words before speaking. "You've got to put her down, Morgan. That's not Jenny, she's gone man. That's just flesh and bones that could end up taking a bite out of your boy. Do you want that?"

The other man just looks at him for a long time, jaw clenches and eyes watery before he finally nods. Turning to Duane and kissing his forehead.

"You stay inside, right here in this room, until we come to get you. Do you understand?"

"Yes daddy." Duane replies softly, fear beginning to cloud his little face. Morgan nods and heaves himself to his feet, looking at Rick. The blue eyed man stands slowly and moves towards the doors, hearing his friend following.

Unlocking the door and stepping out, gripping his trusty hunting knife, feels symbolic somehow. Jenny has wandered off so they pick a direction and start walking, hoping they'll find her. Sure enough, she didn't get far. The shambling remains of what used to be a beautiful woman is just a couple houses down, ambling by a flower bush. Morgan had frozen, hand clutching his gun, just staring at what's left of his wife so Rick pulls his Python and takes aim, firing a single shot before he can even think about it.

Jenny collapses like a puppet with her strings cut and Morgan let's out a wounded, strangled noise from behind him. Holstering his gun, not wanting to risk the shots bringing more of these things down on them, Rick uses his knife to dispatch the other three shambling corpses as they come close enough. Grabbing a still stunned Morgan's arm and tugging him back to the house, back to Duane.

Chapter 3: King County

Summary:

Rick and Morgan continue their search for supplies

Morning came too early for Rick, who hadn't slept well due to planning their next move out, and with it came another day of clearing the neighborhood houses of supplies and putting down trapped walkers, not that there were many. All of this after laying Jenny to rest in a three foot grave Rick had dug in the backyard of the house while Morgan went to retrieve his wife's body. A short, quiet funeral later and they set to work. Having Morgan and Duane at his side only made things better, having more eyes to watch for trouble and more hands for the monotone and repetitive work.

The three cleared houses and the corner store, which was a goldmine in preserved junk food and sodas, for most of the day. As evening fell, they loaded all of their looted supplies up into the back of the SUV, nearly over filling it.

"Ain't like we need to watch for other cars out the back window." Rick had joked, making Duane laugh and Morgan crack a smile. By the time darkness was falling, the deputy had led his companions to the police station, grateful he'd found his work keys on the dresser at home. After thoroughly checking the station, and quietly putting Leon down, Rick let Morgan and his boy in and locked it up tight. Leading both other men to the locker room for a shower, Morgan grinning at the sight of the running water.

"Guess a cold shower is good as we'll get from now on, better than that bucket we've been using." The dark skinned man had rumbled, beginning to get undressed.

Rick just laughed. "Station's got its own propane system, give it a minute." Grinning a little smugly as Duane whooped at the hot water, dancing and freestyle rapping while he bathed. Rick especially enjoyed the heated water flowing over his tired body, knowing that he wouldn't ever have this again. Even at Alexandria, the showers they managed to rig up were cold.

After long showers and a quick meal, Morgan and Duane settled in a cell, locking themselves in for the night. Rick, however, went about supply collecting. First emptying the gun locker of weapons, ammo, tasers, pepper spray, and batons. Loading them all up into two gun bags that he set by the station's front door. Next he takes a backpack one of the officers left and begins taking all of the non perishable food left in the small kitchen along with any snacks officers had at their desks.

Setting that by the gun bags, Rick grabbed two duffel bags from the locker room and dumped out the dirty clothes, setting to filling them with blankets, and sheets from the bunk area the station had for over night officers, and any towels and toiletries left in the shower area. Finally, after finishing his pack ratting, Rick allowed himself to lay down in a cell of his own to catch a few hours of sleep.

"Rick, wake up man. We gotta get going." It felt like only minutes after he'd laid down that Morgan's voice was waking him up through the bars of his cell. Pale dawn light was streaming in through the windows as Rick sat up and stretched with a quiet groan. Heaving himself off the bed with a low hiss of pain, the deputy unlocked the cell and stepped out after rolling up the scratchy blanket he'd used the night before. Stuffing it into a duffle before swinging all the bags onto his back and unlocking the station's doors.

An hour later, the bags had been carefully placed in the SUV along with four cans of gas siphoned from the squad cars and they were ready to finish raiding supplies in King County proper, not just Rick's neighborhood. Rick had them start with the dollar store, gas station, and tiny vet clinic.

The dollar store and gas station were mostly picked clean but the little group did find some cans of soup, beans, bottles of flat soda, and plenty of toilet paper and soaps. Finding the gas cans at the tiny gas station made Rick want to holler in joy as he showed them to Morgan with a wide grin. Morgan merely rolled his eyes and pointed out that all of the pumps had signs saying 'No Gas'.

The deputy didn't let that stop him from trying them though, laughing as gas poured from the nozzle and into the can under it. 'No gas, my ass', he thought to himself as the single pump filled two of the six cans. Two more pumps later and they had six full gas cans to go with the ones already in the SUV. Finished with that, the little three man group decided to tackle the small vet clinic. Having to put down three walkers in the main lobby before going deeper into the building. The animal keeping area was a sad sight to behold with empty, bloody cages and full ones of animals who'd starved to death. There was one walker back here, a man in a white coat. Morgan put him down.

Duane was crying as he took in the carnage, clinging to his father for comfort. The sight once again made Rick's chest ache for his son. Shaking his head, he needed a clear mind right now, the deputy got to work on breaking open the drug locker and piling pills, vials, and creams into a backpack. The outbreak at the prison has taught him that animal meds were the same as human, just different doses.

After cleaning out the drug cabinet, he turned to his companions. Reaching out to ruffle the boys hair as he shared a grim smile with his dark skinned friend. With a nod they turned, as one, to leave this gory house of horrors. Loading their supplies into the SUV and heading to the next stop on Rick's list, the small outdoor supply shop.

"Lots of people here used to hunt, so the place was always well stocked." He told his companions, pushing open the broken glass front door of the building. Slight disappointment filled his chest when he saw the ransacked shop, most of the weapons gone and everything else picked through.

"Ain't much left it looks like ." Morgan rumbles from beside him, sending Duane to check through the isles after he and Rick had cleared the place. Rick just nods and begins his search, finding many useful things that were overlooked apparently in the mad dash for supplies. Tents, sleeping bags, a few boxes of freeze dried food, a compound bow with a bundle of arrows, water filters, water tablets, sturdy winter clothes, and boxes of ammo top out the list. Icy blue eyes light up when he finds a couple bundles of crossbow bolts that look like they'd fit Daryl's. They'd be a good peace offering, and a way to open conversation with the man who'd gone on to become his brother.

Morgan is laughing as they're trying to stuff their newly looted supplies into the SUV, seeing how most of it just won't fit now that they've collected so much. The man making a quip about Rick being a packrat, a useful packrat but still.

"Can never be too careful, specially now that there ain't factories making shit like this anymore." Rick responds, making Morgan lose his grin and become thoughtful.

"You really think this thing is gonna last that long?" There's disbelief and a slight, cling to, hope in the older man's voice. Hope that rescue is still coming.

"Nah, look at the military camp. It's overrun and they were on the front lines. If the military can't even win against this mess, who do you think will be coming to save us? No, we're in this for the long haul." Rick's voice is quiet, solemn. He doesn't like destroying his friend's hope, but the sooner he realizes no one is coming to save him, the better. After all, no military has shown up even three years into this mess the last time Rick lived it.

"Let's find another car, you can drive it. That way we'll be able to pack all of our supplies and still have room for more when we find it " The deputy suggests to get off the heavy topic they're stepped in. Morgan just nods, still thoughtful, and they find a pale blue van and begin loading half the bags from the SUV into the back. Now there's room in both cars to fit more supplies when they come across them.

The last stop Rick makes in his home town is the bar. Morgan snorts, joking about how he didn't peg a law officer as a lush. Rick just chuckles and pushes open the door.

"Not a lot of people knew that the owner had a gun behind the bar. I did, I signed the permit. Plus, any liquor over ninety proof can be used to disinfect." Rick answers as he and Morgan put down the six walkers that were in the bar. He grabs a box off a shelf and digs under the bar until he finds the shotgun and two boxes of ammo, turning to smirk at his companion.

Morgan rolls his eyes and starts going through the liquor on the shelves, disregarding bottles that aren't at least ninety proof. It's late mid afternoon by the time they've finished, eight bottles of alcohol tucked carefully into the box and wrapped in newspaper. The gun is placed into one of the gun bags, Rick even ducked into the bathroom and stole the toilet paper. Hey, as he said, there won't be more being made anytime soon.

Supplies loaded securely, cars gassed up, and more fuel collected, they're finally ready to leave the sleepy little town. Rick is leading in his SUV, Morgan following in the van behind him. Both have walkies from the police station to keep in touch during the hours long drive to Atlanta. With a short blast on his horn, Rick drives down the highway, away from his home town for the final time.

Chapter 4: Atlanta and the Rescue

Summary:

Rick finally meets up with the group

The ride from King County to Atlanta took over a day, mostly because Rick kept having them stop to raid small stores, pharmacies, and gas stations, but the fuel collected kept them from being stranded. Rick wasn't about to go riding into the city on a horse again. They'd spent the night in an abandoned house about four hours outside of Atlanta.

At first light the next morning, the small group set out for the city. Arriving around mid morning to look for the refugee camp, one the deputy knew wouldn't be there. He couldn't see Morgan's face, as they were in different cars, at the devastation that the bombs had wrought onto the once bustling city, but he knew it had to be there. The number of walkers in the city was just as overwhelming as last time, making the small excursions out of the SUV for supplies that much more dangerous. It's as they were attempting to leave the city that a distressed voice sounded over the CB radio.

"Hello? Hello, is anyone out there? We desperately need help! We're trapped in the department store, geeks at all the doors. Please, if you can, come help us." A flash of fear went through Rick as he heard Andrea's desperate voice over the crackling connection. He'd hoped that by arriving days after his initial starting point, and not riling up the walkers with the gunshots, that the group wouldn't get trapped. Seemed some things were just meant to play out.

He glances behind him at the blue van following closely on his heels and nods, going a little ways out of the city and parking in the middle of the road. Climbing out of his SUV, he waits for Morgan to get out of his own car and come over.

"Did you hear that? There are people trapped. We, I, have to help them." Rick says, pale eyes begging his friend to understand and not be difficult about this. Morgan's mouth opens like he's ready to argue, but he stops and just stares at Rick for a moment before letting out a long breath.

"Fine, crazy bastard. Go on a suicide mission to save people you don't even know, but my boy and I are staying right here. If you're not back by nightfall, I'll leave the SUV but take the van and get the hell out of dodge." The older man's voice is low, trying not to be overheard by his son who's watching them out of the van's rolled down window. Rick nods once, sharply, and offers his hand for a shake. Grinning when Morgan actually takes it briefly.

Locking up his SUV with all the supplies, Rick sets about hotwiring a muscle car. 'Guess I got something useful out of following Shane around all our lives after all.' He thinks to himself with a small laugh, shaking his head. Giving a last wave to his companions, the deputy drives back into the city. Circling the department store where his family, not that they know it, is trapped and looking at the walkers pinned up and blocking both exits. Thoughts and plans roll around in his head, wondering how best to distract the walkers long enough to get everyone out, but not get himself eaten in the process.

Finally, he decides to act on one of the plans he's got. Rolling down the muscle car's window, he drives past several expensive looking cars on the block, tapping all of them to make the alarms go off. Instantly, several loud wailing alarms are filling the air, bouncing off each other and the buildings. Rick quickly drives away, getting out of his car at a vantage point a little back from the department store as he watches the walkers slowly wander away from the doors towards the overwhelmingly loud noise. Quiet and slow, the deputy creeps towards the doors and taps on them. Seeing forms moving behind the dirtied glass as he calls out softly.

"Hey! Not dead!" Here he has a flash of amusement, remembering Glenn saying that the first time around. "You need to get your supplies and get moving quick, while they're distracted."

His piece said, Rick steps back from the doors to a more defensible area and waits. It's not long until the doors slam open and six people come pouring out. Glenn, Jacquie, Andrea, T-Dog, Morales....and Merle. Andrea comes up to him, talking a mile a minute and thanking him for saving their lives but Rick's icy blues stay locked with Merle's own slate colored blues.

"Well, well, Officer Friendly. Nice to see you here, suppose I owe you thanks for saving our bacon, hm?" Those words rock the deputy to the core, Merle remembers. This is the same Merle who died trying to bring the damned Governor down. In all this time, Rick didn't honestly think anyone else could remember, that it wasn't just him alone with the obligation to change how things went.

Andrea pipes up then. "Wait you know him, Dixon?"

There's condescension in her voice that Rick doesn't really like, not if Merle's actually changed this time around and it looks like he has since he appears sober. Merle just laughs and winks at the blonde.

"Sure do, sugar tits, Friendly here has locked me up a time or two. But don't you worry, Ol' Merle here has changed his ways." He looks directly at Rick when he says this, like he's trying to make the former cop understand that he's not the same man Rick once knew. Rick nods at him, mouthing 'later', and clears his throat before addressing the group.

"We don't have a lot of time, who knows how long those alarms will keep their attention. We need to go, now. There's a construction sight down the block, it has those big box trucks. I'll take one of you, get one of them and bring it back for us. The rest of you, gather up your supplies." He's unconsciously slipped into leader mode, so used by now to people simply following his directions that he's surprised when the group just stares at him. That is, until Merle claps his hands together, isn't that something- Merle still having a right hand, and laughs.

"You heard the man, let's get to it. Chinaman, go with Friendly here. We'll get things straight." Glenn pulls a face, half heartedly glaring at the redneck as he mutters about being Korean. Rick holds back a laugh, another deja vu wave hitting him, and nudges the young Asian along with him at a sprint. Getting to the construction sight and scrambling up the fence as a couple of walkers take interest in them.

Finding a box truck, luckily with the keys still in it, he pushes Glenn into the seat and tells him to drive back to the others. Once that's done and the younger man has driven right over the fence, Rick climbs up into his own box truck and follows him. 'More space for supplies, don't have to worry bout overfilling the SUV' he reasons to himself even though he really likes the stolen military vehicle.

He pulls up outside of the department store and jumps out, helping the group load bags of supplies and Dale's tools up into the back before they all hop in. Rick does a quick head count a silent sight of relief leaving him when Merle is there too. The redneck catches his eye with a knowing, mocking smirk that has just a hint of bitterness. Ten minutes later, both trucks are on the highway headed out of the death trap city.

Rick hits the radio twenty minutes later, letting the other driver, Morales, known to slow down as they come across the SUV and van parked in the middle of the road. A wave out the window has Morgan getting out of the blue van to meet him half way, slapping his shoulder roughly.

"You crazy son of a bitch! You could have died but I'm damn glad you didn't." The older man rumbles in his deep, steady voice while still glaring unhappily at Rick. Duane comes out wrapping his skinny arms around Rick's middle in a light hug before hiding back behind his father as more of the group appears from the second box truck.

As Andrea, who's oddly bubbly this time around, greets Morgan and begins to talk about everything under the sun, Rick starts loading the bags of supplies from the SUV into his box truck. He ignores the dropped jaws and wide eyed looks from the group as he pulls ten duffles from the car and places them in the truck. Finishing that, the deputy begins unloading the blue van into the storage area of the truck as well. Another eight duffles and four backpacks of supplies all being loaded up.

"What the hell, Friendly, did you rip off every house between here and that hospital?" Merle's loud, crass voice breaks the tense, awed silence that's fallen over the group, causing people to snort or outright laugh.

"Ain't no wrong in being prepared, Merle. It'll help us in the long run." Rick replies, locking up the SUV again and tossing the keys into the box truck. Turning to raise a brow at Morgan. "You riding with me or sticking with your van?"

Morgan snorts, lifting Duane up into the cabin of the truck and sliding in after him. Rick nods, as that settles it, and waves at the group. Climbing into the cube and starting it up, reminding himself to hold back and let the other truck go first since he's not supposed to know where their camp is located. It takes a few minutes, and the snarling rasp of a walker, but the group snaps back into gear and piles back into their truck. Not long after and they're headed down the highway to the quarry.

Rick takes a steadying breath, looking forward to seeing Carl but dreading having to face Lori again.

Chapter 5: Quarry Camp

Summary:

Rick reunites with his son and has a confrontation with Lori

It took about an hour and a half to get back to the camp and Rick's heart was beating out of his chest in both excitement and nervousness. He tried to keep a straight face, since he wasn't supposed to know that his son was here, but Morgan saw right through him. A raised brow and pointed look prompted the deputy to sigh as he made up a lie on the spot.

"Just nervous, haven't been around this many people since before I was shot. Now large crowds mean something is trying to eat you." His weak joke makes Duane giggle but his father just continues to stare at Rick thoughtfully. They wait in the truck until they hear Morales call for them.

"Hey, cowboy, come say hello!"

Taking a deep breath and sharing a last look with Morgan, Rick climbs down from the cab and walks himself over to where the others are standing. The first thing he sees is Shane and it's very hard for him not to listen to what his gut is screaming at him and put down the threat. But this isn't that version of his friend, the unhinged one that forced him to either die or kill his brother.

This Shane actually has tears in his eyes as he grabs Rick up in a bear hug, dropping his gun in the process, and whispers in his ear. The sincerity in his voice almost painful. "Jesus, brother, I thought you were dead. It's so fucking good to see you."

Rick hugs him back tightly, allowing himself to savor just a moment of having his best friend and the life he had lived for years, before pushing him back and meeting his dark brown eyes.

"Carl?" Is all he has to ask, though he's nervous as his son didn't greet him in front of everyone like he did last go round. Did this mean Shane hadn't got them out? His worries are for naught though as a wide smile lights his partner's face and he nods, turning to holler at the tents for Lori and Carl. Before Rick can even turn around, a small body is slamming into his side and skinny arms are wrapping themselves around his middle. He can hear Carl's sobs as he clings to the front of his sweaty shirt. Despite already knowing that Carl was alive, tears still fill Rick's eyes. Seeing this younger, unjaded version of his son making his chest ache.

The deputy picks his son up, kissing the top of the eleven year old's head as Carl continues to sob into his chest. Icy blue eyes darken angrily when Lori steps up like she's about to throw herself into Rick's arms as well. At the hurt look on her face, he has to fight not to roll his eyes. Although a part of him will always love Lori, she was his wife for twelve years and the mother of his son, he's no longer in love with her. The divorce papers just made this part so much easier, trying to be what she wanted and keep the group safe last time about crushed him under the combined burden.

Rick sets his son down with a final kiss on the head and grabs the packet of legal papers from the cab of the box truck, shoving them into Lori's hands. Her face pales as she reads through them, brown eyes flashing up to his.

"Rick..." Her voice cracks and trails off as tears gather in her eyes. His signature is there on the last page, ink newer than her own which is also present.

"I found those while going through my desk at home, figured my dad's old Blue Jacket manual would be helpful. Imagine my surprise when I find those hidden inside it. The state of Georgia isn't really around anymore to grant us a divorce but from this moment on, consider us so."

His piece said, Rick strides off to set up his tent in an easily defendable spot. Grinning when Morgan chooses to set up his and Duane's about ten feet from that spot. After setting up his tent and putting sleeping bags and a few blankets into it along with an oil lantern, Rick goes to climb into the back of the box truck. Using light from a large flashlight that was liberated from the police station to see by as he goes about sorting and taking inventory of his supplies.

The blue eyed cop also takes this time to think and plan. He knows they'll need go return to Atlanta, the city is a gold mine of supplies if one knows where to look, but he also knows that the walker attack will happen in two days and that it will happen at night. The guns from the station and the army camp outside of the hospital will be a huge help but he needs to get silent, melee weapons and then teach the group to use them. There's only so much ammo in the world, with no factories to make them, until they can find Eugene. Not to mention that gunshots draw walkers, and unsavory human attention.

After taking stock and noting every item down in a notebook, Rick climbs out of the cube and locks it tight with a couple of pad locks, then glances around the camp to do a head count. Most people are by the central fire, the women down at the quarry doing laundry, Dale on the RV keeping watch, Merle in his tent, Ed sitting outside his smoking a cigarette. This sight fills Rick with rage, knowing what he's doing to Carol and most likely to Sophia at this point. 'One way or another, this bastard has to go. If the walkers don't get him, I'll put him down.' Rick promises to himself, thought he reminds himself of to be cautious. He can't behave how this new fucked up world has taught him, he can't show these green people the killer lurker just under the surface just yet.

They won't understand, not yet. Most will be afraid of him, and that's something he doesn't need right now...not if he intends to keep them all alive this time around. It's as he's walking back to his tent to check on Carl, where the boy had cried himself to sleep in his father's arms earlier, that Shane and Lori accost him. Lori's face is drawn into a hateful look and Shane's eyes are both happy and cold at the same time, which makes sense if he's still the same derailed Shane from last time.

"Rick, you can't just decide we're not married anymore! We took vows, damn it. You don't get to just abandon your family because you found papers I drew up in a moment of weakness!" She shrills at him, causing Shane to lay a calming hand on her shoulder. Rick's eyes zero in on the motion, something Shane notices as he quickly drops his hand to the side.

"I'm not abandoning my family. Carl is still my son and I'll continue to raise him, I'll also continue to protect and provide for you but I can't be your husband anymore. I don't want to be." Lori stumbled back a half step, light brown eyes showing shock and the beginnings of fear at his words. Shane's head tilts, eyes narrowing in the way they do when he's trying to work out a puzzle.

Finally, Shane catches his eyes and opens his mouth to speak. "Look, man, can you just...just make us understand? You come back from the dead, you abandon your wife, and then spend hours holed up in a damn truck."

"Ex wife. We're not married anymore." Rick corrects, ignoring the pleading on Lori's face or the anger beginning to build back up in her eyes. Shane shakes his head, throwing his hands up in the air, and stomps off unhappily, leaving Rick and Lori standing there staring at each other.

The brunette reaches for him, which he avoids by taking a step back. The anger is now covering her face.

"You son of a bitch, you don't get to just leave me! Not again!" Her words fade out, like she's too angry to speak. Rick decides to nip this little tirade in the bud.

"Like how you left me by sleeping with Shane? Yeah, Merle filled me in. I get that you thought I was dead but to jump right into the sack, with my best friend no less, mere days after? I wasn't even cold in the ground yet, Lori!" His voice is hard, thinking up a quick lie to cover how he knows about the affair. It doesn't hurt anymore, not like it once did, but it still pisses him the hell off that she and his brother fell into bed together literally days after he 'died'.

The woman in front of him pales even further. "That wasn't...we thought...he said you were dead! I NEVER, would have touched him if I thought you were still alive "

'There she goes, trying to blame anyone else for her actions. Again.' Rick thinks as he snorts, shaking his head. Another thought crosses his mind, Judith. Lori is probably already pregnant with her. Rick had fooled himself, making himself believe that she'd just come early at the prison, but he knows deep down that she was full term. Meaning Rick couldn't have been her biological father, the timing doesn't add up at all.

An unhappy noise from the brunette brings him from his thoughts and suddenly Rick is exhausted, too tired to deal with his ex's drama.

"Whatever, Lori." He rumbles out and steps past her, grabbing two bowls of whatever Carol's cooked at the fire and heading for his tent. Sleep is what he needs right now, the throbbing wound on his side reminds him. A meal, rest, and not having to deal with Lori or Shane for a few hours.

Chapter 6: Going Back

Summary:

First morning in camp spent a little different

Morning once again came too soon for Rick's liking. Pale light shined through the blue fabric walls of his tent as the soft sounds of birds chirping and Carl's breathing fill the space. Doesn't seem like anyone from the camp is up and about, though he knows that will change. Carol is usually up just after dawn each morning to make breakfast. Standing from his nest of blankets on the zipped together sleeping bags, the deputy tucks Carl in more securely and pulls on his boots. Fastening his gun belt into place before quietly leaving the tent.

Looking around outside, he catches T-Dog's eyes where the other man is on watch and nods at him before moving to the central fire pit and coaxing the embers back into a roaring fire. He's not alone for long as Carol joins him with a shy smile, Sophia at her side. Seeing the little girl sends a sharp pang through Rick's chest. 'It'll be different this time', he promises himself. 'I won't lose her, Carol won't lose her.'

Carol's head is down, eyes on the dirt under their feet as she mumbles about getting breakfast started. Rick feels rage bloom in his chest once again and has to dig his nails into his own palms to control the urge to find her piece of shit, abusive husband and shoot him in the head. He takes a deep, fortifying breath and promises himself again that Ed won't lay another hand on his wife, or his daughter. Not while Rick is around. Already plans are swirling through his head on how to make Carol the fierce warrior she was in his memories of the future without her having to lose Sophia.

Rick is constantly scanning the camp while Carol cooks oatmeal and powdered eggs for the group, his head on a swivel as he takes in the utter lack of protections Shane rigged up. The deputy sighs softly, knowing that's not exactly fair since the other man doesn't have the memories or mindset that Rick does. He hasn't lived through all of this, lost so many people. Camp security isn't as big a deal as it is for the wounded man. For a brief moment he wonders why Merle, who remembers, didn't set something up but figures Shane wouldn't have let him. No one in the beginning trusted, or even liked, the Dixon brothers. A sentiment that seems about the same now even with Merle being clean this time around.

He watches with a neutral expression as Shane emerges from Lori's tent, the larger man stopping in his tracks when he spots Rick looking at him. Rick just nods at his former best friend and continues watching the camp, sensing more than seeing Shane come over to sit on the log across from Rick's own. He knows what's coming before his former partner even opens his mouth, and it makes him sigh deeply and quickly bring up something that's been on his mind since he woke up this morning to try and avoid this particular conversation.

"I'm going back to Atlanta." Here he had to hold up a hand to stop Shane as he sees the larger man's mouth opening.

"I'm not asking for permission, just telling you how it is. I'm going back. The city is full of supplies, things we need if the group is gonna make it longer than a couple months."

His piece said, Rick watches as Shane chews on it. Obviously the brown eyed man is mulling over what Rick has said, weighing the pros and cons carefully which strikes Rick as odd. Shane isn't the type for logical, sound thought most of the time. He's a man ruled by impulsive actions and heat of the moment thoughts. He sees the other man's eyes flick to Lori's tent, where the brunette is slowly emerging for the day, and suddenly it all clicks. Rick knows now that Shane is considering the idea of Rick going into the city, a place full of walkers, and dying there. Leaving Shane with his grieving widow and impressionable son. Again.

Once again the former cop has to grit his teeth against anger. There's no pain behind his ex-wife and best friend's betrayal anymore but Rick sure didn't think the anger would be this profound. After yet another fortifying breath, he begins to speak again.

"I plan on taking Glenn, and Merle with me." At this, his former partner's eyes narrow and a brief flash of genuine concern appears in his dark brown irises before he shoots off his mouth.

"You're gonna take Dixon to watch your back? Are you crazy, man?! He'll leave you for dead first chance he gets. You know he will." A rough, dark laugh sounds from just behind Shane and Rick is startled to realize he didn't even hear Merle walk up. He makes a mental note to pay much more attention to his surroundings.

"Glad to know you have such a 'high' opinion of me, Deputy Dick, but I actually respect Grimes. Won't leave his lily white ass to be geek food, you can count on that." Once again, Rick is surprised by Merle Dixon. Their eyes meet as something passes between the two men. Rick nods to the redneck and Merle shoots him a sardonic grin. The former deputy has to fight back a chuckle at Shane's expression as the other man whips around to face the older Dixon, his ex partner's face is pinched in an almost constipated look of anger and distrust.

As Shane goes to speak, most likely to say something rude in response to the redneck's words, Rick once more cuts across the larger man before he can speak.

"Shane," he calls to get the man's attention. Once he has it, he continues. "I trust Merle enough to have him at my back. You're just gonna have to get over that. Plus, Glenn and I will need the muscle to move supplies in the city."

The conversation doesn't go any further because Carol is now handing out bowls of breakfast and eating is much more important than talking. Especially to Rick who knows just how rare food can be in this new world if you're not careful. Even as he wolfs down his meal, Rick is carefully looking around the now much more active camp. Lori is sitting by Carol a couple of logs away from Rick, and Shane, seemingly trying her hardest not to look at either of them. Carl is awake now and talking to Sophia as they eat, Dale is on watch now, and Glenn is talking to Amy with Andrea watching critically from beside them. T-Dog is sleepily inhaling his meal while Morales and his family are talking in Spanish amongst themselves in their own campsite.

Icy blue eyes narrow in renewed anger as he spots Ed sitting outside the Peletier tent and Carol leaving her own food to bring him a bowl. Rick watches the exchange carefully, all of his muscles tensed to intervene if that asshole even looks like he's going to hurt her. Luckily for Ed, all he seems to do is spit insults that have Carol lowering her head even more. The sight hurts Rick's heart for his friend but there's nothing he can do at the moment, so long as Ed doesn't actually lay a hand on her. The rest of the group can't yet see the monster lurking beneath the surface, it's too soon and they're too new to this life.

Once the food is eaten and the dishes piled in a bucket for the women to wash, Rick makes another mental note to start assigning chore rotations quickly so it's not just the women on menial tasks like laundry, dishes, and cooking, Rick calls for Glenn to join him, and Merle. The young Asian man does so with a shy, nervous look. 'Jesus, I forgot how nervous and jittery he was in the start.' Rick thinks to himself.

"Merle, and I are going back to the city to look for supplies. You know the city best so I wanted to ask you to come with us. We need more supplies than we have if we're gonna make it through the winter like this." The blue eyed man tries to keep the fondness from his tone, reminding himself harshly that he's not supposed to know the younger man as well as he does.

Glenn's naturally olive skin seems to pale at the idea of going back into the city so soon after their narrow escape but he seems to square his shoulders as he nods. "I'll go. We leaving now?"

At this, Rick nods and stands to say goodbye to his son and pack some provisions just in case this doesn't go as planned. Runs have a habit of going pear shaped when you least expect it. He walks over to where Carl is sitting beside Sophia and kneels down. The action catches the little boy's attention and eyes that match his own turn to meet Rick's.

"I'm going back into the city with Merle, and Glenn to look for supplies. We'll be back by nightfall if all goes well." He quietly tells the boy, though the camp has gone so silent that his whispered words carry almost as if he'd shouted.

"I don't want you to go, Dad. You just got here!" Rick expected the protest, after all Carl protested last time as well, but it still hurts to hear the fear of losing him in his son's voice.

"I know, son, and I promise you I'll be back again. Nothing will stop me from getting back here to you."

Carl still seems unhappy about Rick leaving again, but the words seem to have reassured him enough that he nods and launches himself at his father for a tight hug. The deputy clings to his son, holding this smaller version of his boy close to his chest as he breathes him in. After a few minutes, Rick pulls back and ruffles Carl's hair with a fond smile as the boy giggles and tries to flatten the brown mop back out. With a final whispered goodbye, Rick stands from the crouching position and heads towards his tent.

About halfway to his tent he stops and laughs to himself before changing directions and heading straight to the box truck that has literal bags upon bags of supplies in it. They'll need it to store more pilfered supplies anyway, so why pack up stuff to take when the back is already full of everything they'll need. He waits patiently for another fifteen minutes or so while Merle, and Glenn, get their gear together and join him in the cab of the truck. Glenn looks very nervous to be in between the cop and the redneck which Rick tries not to laugh at. They've made good time, it's still early morning compared to the noon trip last time so he's hopeful they'll return before dark as he promised his son.

With a final wave out the window to the camp, Rick turns the truck around and heads down the dirt road that'll take them out of the quarry and back to the nightmare of a city.

Chapter 7: Return to Atlanta

Summary:

Rick and co go back to the city to raid for supplies

The hour and a half trip isn't quiet this time but it is uneventful. Glenn tells Rick and Merle about different places that might have good supplies that as just one guy he's never been able to get to due to the number of walkers inhabiting the places. Rick's nerves ramp up some as they finally make it to the city limits, but he isn't truly afraid. He and the group of men he took in the first timeline made it through the city the next day perfectly fine while looking for Merle. Idly he wonders if they'll run into the Vatos this time but doubts it since this time there is no dropped bag of guns.

Instead of letting Glenn tell them to leave the box truck behind and go on foot the last couple of miles, he insists on taking the vehicle into the city.

"We're here for supplies. It'll be a lot easier to get out of a sticky situation if we're not loaded down with heavy bags or boxes. We can unload places we find into the back of the truck," Rick reasons with them, pleased when he can see the other two men mulling over and accepting his words. Eventually Glenn nods and so Rick drives the truck to the first location that Glenn mentioned.

By late afternoon the group of three has made some good progress. They've hit a sporting goods store, a gun shop, a thrift store, several houses, a library, and an apartment complex that Rick intends to return to so they can finish clearing it out. There are plenty of boxes and bags of toiletries, weapons, clothes, food and water, medicines, and how to books in the back of the box truck.

It's as they're getting ready to head out of the city to get back to the quarry before dark that Merle spots it. A food distribution center that looks untouched judging by the dozens of walkers inside the fenced in parking lot. Rick pauses to consider if it'll be worth the effort to clear it out.

Glenn is the one that pipes up with the unspoken question in all of their minds. "How would we even begin to clear all of those geeks? There has to be three dozen in there!"

"We could pop them through the fence with our knives or a crowbar, that might work. Though we'd have to worry about them all pushing against that chain link and bringing it down on us." Merle mutters, seemingly thinking out loud as his dark blue eyes scan the interior of the fence critically.

"It could work. We've just got to do it quickly." Rick nods in agreement with Merle's suggestion as he begins walking up to the fence, unsheathing his hunting knife as he goes along. Glenn looks a little alarmed even as he grabs a crowbar from the cab of the truck and follows the ex cop to the fence. Merle just laughs under his breath and unsheathes his own hunting knife.

"Balls of steel, Friendly. Balls of steel." Is his only response as Rick rattles the fence and whistles sharply, getting the attention of the walkers inside. He stabs the first one that gets close enough through the temple, barely grimacing as blood splatters his hand when he pulls the knife back out. Watching the body drop to the ground lifelessly doesn't bring anything other than a sense of relief that one less threat is in the world.

After that first one, Rick falls into that sort of tunnel vision focus of putting walkers down as they grab at the fence he's standing behind while also keeping one ear out for any approaching from the non-fenced areas behind him. Between the three men it only takes about twenty minutes to kill all forty or so of the walkers that had inhabited the parking lot. Rick calmly wipes his hunting knife off on one of the dead's shirts before slipping it back into the sheath on his belt and looking at his two companions.

Merle is wiping his blade on his jeans as Glenn stands there holding the gore spattered crowbar. Rick is a little amused and slightly concerned to see the Korean looks a little green from what he's just done. He suspects that at this point, the younger man had never had to kill so many at a time and none like they just did.

"C'mon, lets get in the place and see if there's actually anything worth taking." Rick softly calls to the other two as he begins to climb the fence to get inside, lacking a way to simply cut the lock off the gate. A soft thud sounds as his boots hit pavement on the other side and he turns to watch the other two make the climb. Laughing a little as Glenn nearly tumbles over the fence instead of landing on his feet like Merle and himself.

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up." Glenn grumbles at them as they begin making their way into the distribution center, it only making both of the older men laugh harder. The rollup door at the loading dock isn't locked, unlike the main entrance of the building, so Merle rolls it up with a grunt. Rick has both his Python and his hunting knife ready in case the sound draws any walkers that might be inside. The alertness saves Merle from being bitten by a walker in a green jumpsuit as Rick stabs it in the head with his blade.

Blood splashes over Merle's face from the extremely close call but he just nods to Rick in thanks and the trio creep silently into the building. It's right about sun set now so the inside of the steel and concrete warehouse is darkening but they can still see pretty clearly that there are a few half-eaten bodies lying on the ground but no more active walkers. Hopefully. Glenn has his t-shirt pulled up over his nose and Rick doesn't blame him, the entire place reeks of rotting bodies in the heat of a Georgia summer. A startled laugh bubbles from Rick's chest as elation fills him, the place is completely untouched. Bins and pallets of canned goods, boxed goods, and so much more lining the walls and covering the floor space in the middle.

"Well, I'll be damned if that ain't a pretty sight..." Merle whistles appreciatively while Glenn just looks like he's vibrating in happiness at their magnificent find. Rick just laughs again and thanks every deity listening for their continued good fortune.

"Alright, let's see if any of these semi-trucks actually run. Not all of this will fit in the cube." With the order issued, Rick and Merle see about finding the keys to the big hauler trucks and check to see if any of them will start after all this time of inactivity while Glenn starts checking through the pallets of things with wide, amazed eyes. Two of the trucks start up without a problem so Merle finds a forklift and begins loading the pallets and bins into the trucks while Glenn keeps watch to make sure no walkers are being drawn by the noise of the forklift.

Although all three men are tired from their day of hauling, lifting, and packing in the summer heat, they all work feverishly and without complaint to get this large load of food packed up to be transported home. It's well after dark when both of the semi's are packed as full as they can be, with just over half of the goods still in the distribution center, and Rick gives the call to begin pulling the trucks out of their docks after rolling the door back down and putting a master lock he found on a security desk inside on it to make sure no one else will be getting in to steal what's left of the food haul.

Using keys found inside as well, Glenn unlocks the gate so the trucks can roll through and then relocks them tightly once they're out. 'Better to leave as little evidence of people having been here as possible.' Rick thinks to himself. Though he grimaces at the walker corpses piled up by the fence, there's nothing he can do about it right now.

With Rick and Merle each behind the wheel of a loaded down semi, and Glenn in the cube truck, they head back out of the city and towards camp. Rick's watch tells him it's just a little after eight o'clock, so they've been away from camp for about twelve hours.

He prays silently that with the trucks, and not having to simply run for it, that they'll make it back to camp before the walker attack.

Notes:

Merry Christmas people!!!

Chapter 8: Attack

Summary:

The quarry camp is attacked by walkers

They're on the dirt path leading up to the quarry and Rick is still silently praying they make it back before the walker attack. He knows the attack has to happen; the group won't leave their 'safe place' until it's proven unsafe. The former deputy is determined to save Amy this time, maybe Andrea won't go off the rails quite like she did if her sister is still alive.

Thankfully when he pulls his semi-truck into the camp and circles around the tents for a place to park, the group is still calmly eating fish that Rick knows Andrea, and Amy caught. Sliding from the cab of the truck, Rick laughs as he catches Carl when the child runs up and throws his thin arms around his father's middle. He's still laughing when his son looks up at him with blue eyes a mirror to his own.

"Are those trucks really full of food, Dad?" Rick smiles brightly at the innocence in his boy's voice, though the smile fades some when he realized Carl will have to grow up quickly once again if he is going to survive.

"Yep. Both trucks are stuffed to the gills with just about every nonperishable food you can imagine and there's still more where this came from." The entire camp is listening to his words, and he watches as smiles and laughs break out from the gathered crowd at the news.

As the excitement over the amount of food the three man group brought back seems to settle, Rick watches as Amy stands and steps towards the RV. Andrea grasps her arm.

"Where are you going?" The older blonde asks, pale blue eyes squinting at her sister in the fire's glowing light.

"I have to pee, jeez, you try to be discreet around here." Amy responds, prompting the rest of the group to break out into giggles and smothered chuckles.

Andrea lets go of her sister's arm and Amy walks off into the RV to take care of her business. Something niggles in the back of Rick's mind about this, but he just can't seem to place it. That is until he hears the unmistakable sound of walker moans and growls seconds before they start emerging from the trees. Rick sprints across the camp to slam the RV door closed as Amy attempts to open it from inside, making the young woman scream.

Pulling his Python, Rick shoots the walker coming around the end of the RV between its milky, filmed over eyes. He assumes this is the one that bit Amy the last time, leading to her death. Moving away from the RV, the former cop shouts through the door at Amy.

"Stay inside, walkers are attacking!"

Not looking to make sure the blonde does as he says, Rick moves through the camp to gather his people as best he can. Shooting any walker that comes too close and ushering living people behind him towards the RV. Although extremely difficult, he resists the urge to uselessly scream for Carl as he did last time. All that does is add to the noise level and confusion, with a major chance of getting him bit by bringing more walkers in his direction than he can manage.

"Shit!" Rick cusses as the gun in his hand clicks when he pulls the trigger again, signaling the weapon is empty. A strangled sound leaves his lips when a pair of cold, rough hands grab him by the upper arms as he's trying to remove his hunting knife from its place on his belt. A grunt being torn from the former cop as the walker's weight brings them both to the ground. In his mind he's cussing himself as he frantically tries to keep the snapping jaws of the corpse away from his face or hands. Logically, Rick knows this body isn't as strong as he was before, or later?, and that he doesn't have the muscle memory honed by three years doing exactly this, but it still makes him angry that this is happening to him when he should have known better.

A sharp twang cuts through the air before the walker on top of Rick goes still, an arrow poking through its skull mere inches from Rick's face. Shoving the stinking corpse off and rolling to his feet, Rick looks around until his eyes meet a pair of guarded, slate blues. Daryl had arrived back in camp from his hunting trip at some point while Rick and the other two men where in the city, and the redneck had just saved his life. Again, if he counts all the times in his memories.

Rick nods to the younger man and grabs his Python that was dropped when the walker grabbed him, reloading it with a few loose rounds from his pocket before charging back into the fray. He manages to put down another walker before there are no more threats coming at him, no more shuffling or moaning sounds renting the air. Only the crying of women and children, and the agonizing cries of those who were bitten filling the otherwise eerily silent night.

Rick looks around frantically for his son, a sigh of relief being exhaled roughly at the sight of the sobbing little boy clutched to his mother's chest as the skinny brunette cowers behind Shane. With the knowledge that his son is safe, Rick can finally look around the camp and take stock of who's on their feet and who isn't. Andrea, gun still in hand, is on her knees beside a very still Dale and Rick feels a momentary rush of sadness. He may not always have liked the older man, or agreed with him, but he was a good man. Too soft for this new world but almost nobody deserves to die this way. 'At least her sister is still alive.' Rick comforts himself as he turns away from the scene to do another headcount. Carol is clutching Sophia and sobbing by the remains of her husband and Rick has to fight a vicious grin at knowing the man is dead and gone from this world.

Several other people, ones that he didn't bother to remember names of since he knew they wouldn't make it, are dead or dying on the ground as well. Quietly, Rick holsters his gun and leans down to pull the arrow from the head of the walker that nearly killed him. Walking over and offering it silently to Daryl as the other man stares at him suspiciously. The blue eyed man can't lie, the way the archer is looking at him hurts. Zero recognition and a whole lot of distrust and suspicion. While he knew it was bound to happen, it still hurts like a kick to the stomach.

Daryl takes the arrow, more like snatches it, and turns to face his brother. Rick shares a look with Merle, one that commutes just how much they wish the younger man remembered, before he moves away from the brothers to scoop his son into his arms. One of his calloused hands gently soothes up and down Carl's back as the young boy lays his head on his father's shoulder. No more tears are cried but the tracks left on the boy's face are evident even as he cuddles closer to Rick.

Everyone finds places to sleep for the night that's protected more than what a tent can offer. Most of the women slip into the RV to ride out the remaining hours of darkness and the families take shelter in their cars. Rick, Morgan, Duane, and Carl are in the cab of the semi-truck. The boys sleep in the bunk over in the sleeping area but the two men are wide awake throughout the night, even if not a word is said.

Come morning, it's clear that no one else slept either. Dark circles remain under all the adult's eyes, eyes that show hesitation and fear as they look warily around the woods circling their camp. 'Finally!' Rick thinks to himself as he starts dragging walker bodies away to be burned. 'Finally, these people are getting it, this place is not safe. Never was.'

Immediately, he feels bad for his own thoughts. It's not their fault, he knows. Rick was once just like these people, green to the new world around them and ignorant of how to survive it. 'I'll teach them, if they'll let me...I have to make them stronger this time.' He silently vows to himself.

A pale, petite hand lands on Rick's arm, causing him to turn to meet a pair of bright, fiery blue eyes. Andrea stands there with a look of recognition in her eyes that astounds Rick. Hours earlier, those same eyes had looked at Rick as if she'd never met him before. 'Technically,' he thinks to himself once again, 'she hadn't at the time.'

"Rick." His name is all she says but he gets it, he understands. So many things pass between their eyes as they stand there, surrounded by the carnage of what used to be their friends. A smile crosses chapped lips as Rick raises a hand to gently grip hers, giving it a soft squeeze.

"We'll talk later, I promise." Andrea nods and turns away from him, back to helping move bodies. Rick sighs and gets back to work himself, wincing a little from the tugging of the healing wound in his side.

Chapter 9: Discussions and Planning

Summary:

Rick and the group discuss what they're going to do before leaving the quarry behind

Burying their dead took up most of the morning and Rick feels a vicious sense of joy to realize Ed died the same way he had before, painful and slow with walkers eating him. A flash of pride blooms in his chest as he watches Carol drive the pickaxe through her late husband's skull repeatedly while crying. 'Good, this is the first step to her becoming a warrior.' The blue eyed deputy thinks to himself. He's sad to note that Jaqui is among those that died in the attack last night, though he doesn't remember much about the woman since she chose to stay behind at the CDC last time.

Rick suddenly stands bolt upright as that thought hits him. The CDC was no doubt a death trap, what with Jenner locking them inside, but it had a wealth of supplies that his group will need. He thinks about the abandoned army camp that was in front of the place, all those supplies just laying around untouched. A sigh leaves Rick's lips as he realizes that he'll have to take his group back to the CDC, this time hoping they can get out again before Jenner decided to lock them inside.

With another sigh he calculates how long he'll have to get them out and grimaces, not liking the answer his mind comes up with. Fifteen hours. That's how long they have until that thirty-minute mark where Jenner will lock them inside. So that gives him thirteen hours from the time they get inside to convince everyone to leave again if they want to be well out of the city by the time the place explodes. A sharp whistle leaves the ex-cop's lips, drawing the attention of the people still crowded around the graves.

"Gather up, folks. We gotta talk about where we're gonna go after this. This place ain't safe no more." He keeps his voice calm, trying not to relay the worry to the rest of the group like he did last time. If he keeps a cool, steady head...maybe they won't lose anyone else this time.

"I say we go to Fort Benning. The army will know how to handle this." Rick tries not to roll his eyes at Shane's predictable, to him, response. What none of these people know is that the group, after Terminus, decided to check Fort Benning out. It was overrun with evidence it fell very early on. The military didn't stand any more chance of surviving this than normal people.

Rick shakes his head and sighs, looking over to Shane and meeting his eyes. "That's a hundred miles in the other direction. We'd never make it, not without losing more people."

"A hundred and twenty-five." Glenn pipes up from where he's leaned over the map on the hood of a car in front of them. Rick has to suppress a smile, remembering the younger man saying the same thing last time around as well.

Rick meets the eyes of everyone in the crowd, noting which are skeptical and which seem to be on board with heading to the army base. He's pleased to note that Morgan seems to be on his side, along with Carol. Andrea is looking at Rick like he's lost his mind, she remembers what happened the last time they went to the CDC.

"A hundred and twenty-five miles of unknown territory, that could take months with the world as it is now. The CDC is right here, it's in Atlanta. They'll have scientists there, answers, and it'll be protected. No more sleeping in tents in the open waiting for another herd to blow through." Rick has to suppress the lump in his throat, knowing he's not leading these people to promised safety like he so desperately wanted to believe last time but they so desperately need the medicines and shelf stable foods that are in the CDC. It could mean the difference between life and death soon enough.

His words are clearly having an effect on the people around him, they're nodding along and looking hopeful for the first time since before the sun rose. Andrea is still looking at him as if he's gone insane, and Merle simply looks thoughtful. Rick bites the bullet and turns his gaze to his former partner. Shane is all puffed up like he's getting ready for a fight, face set in a dark scowl. With a deep sigh, Rick cuts across him before the larger man can even open his mouth.

"I have to do what's best for my family, Shane. You can come with us or don't, but we will be going to the CDC. They'll be able to better protect us there." Rick meets his eyes steadily, icy blue clashing with dark brown, until Shane huffs and throws his hands up before stomping away back to Lori's tent. The ex-cop nods and then turns to once again meet the eyes of everyone standing around.

"If you're coming with us, be packed and ready to go by noon. We want to get there well before dark."

With that said, Rick turns and heads into his tent to pack up his, and Carl's things. He's a little worried about Lori deciding not to come but reasons that she will. She'll want to stay with Carl, and the boy is definitely going where his father goes, and she'll want the guaranteed protection of the CDC rather than all those miles of unknown to get to a fort that might not still be standing.

It doesn't take long for him to pack up, neither he nor Carl have much personal items here, and even less time to take the tent down. Rick is relieved to see that Morgan already has his tent down and is waiting by the box truck for him along with Carol, who's got Sophia tightly clutched to her side. As he walks over to them, he idly notes that the Dixon brothers are standing by their loaded down truck as well.

"We all that's coming?" Rick asks as he loads their tent and bags up into the back of the box truck. Morgan shrugs and nods.

"Seems like it, all the others are still arguing about it." His friend rumbles out in his deep, calming voice. Rick shakes his head and looks around worriedly. Andrea and Amy are talking softly together in front of the RV, Glenn is packing his things from the tent that he and T-Dog share, and he can hear Lori and Shane fighting from their tent all the way over here. Carl is sitting in front of the box truck, playing in the dirt with Duane.

With a last, worried look at the rest of the group, Rick softly calls the boys over to where the adults are standing. It's as he's helping Carl into the cab of the cube that Glenn runs up to them, his bags clutched in hand.

"Hey, wait! I'm going with you." Rick's never been so relieved to hear the Asian's voice, not even when he was in that tank the first time around. Despite how nervous the younger man sounds, he's agreeing to come with Rick and his little group. The blue eyed ex-cop nods at Glenn and points to the truck.

"Load your things up then, we leave in fifteen minutes." He pitches his voice loud enough to be heard through their camp, making several people look up at him and the fighting from Lori's tent come to an abrupt stop. Glenn nods and scrambles up into the back of the box truck as footsteps sound behind Rick. He turns and raises a brow at the Harrison sisters. It's Amy that speaks, even as Andrea is still looking at Rick like she's trying to solve a puzzle.

"We're coming with you. The CDC is bound to have answers, right?" Rick resists the urge to sigh, having forgotten just how naïve people were at the beginning and how optimistic Amy was before her untimely death. Instead he nods and eyes the RV.

"You gonna take Dale's RV?" Andrea nods at this.

"Yeah, figure he'd..uh...he'd want us to take it now that he no longer...." She trails off, seemingly at a loss and Rick just nods, no stranger to the grief of losing loved ones even if most of those people are alive again now.

"Load up and get ready to head out then." Is his soft order as he turns to make sure the box truck is suitably packed up. Nodding to himself, Rick takes bags of supplies over to Carol's Cherokee, and the Dixons' truck. Loading them up with enough supplies to last a few days in case something happens.

"Alright folks-" "Rick!" The deputy is cut off from telling the group the plan by Lori walking over with her things packed up and Shane stomping along behind her, bags over his shoulder as well. Rick just sighs and shakes his head before raising a brow at his ex-wife, waiting for her to speak.

"Rick, you can't possibly be thinking of leaving for some unknown place without discussing it with me first. I'm your wife!" Her voice has gone shrill by the end of it and Rick watches more than one person wince.

"Ex-wife. Thought I made that clear. You wanna come? That's perfectly fine, load up in the jeep and let's head out. If not? Stay here with Shane then. As for the rest of you, load up. Glenn, you're with Carol and Sophia in the Cherokee. Andrea, Amy, you're in the RV. The Dixons can take their truck, Morgan you and Duane can ride with me or in the RV but we need to get a move on. We'll leave the food trucks here, it's secure enough that no one should find them, just in case the CDC is in fact a bust." Rick says before turning and climbing up into the cab of the box truck.

He watches through the rearview mirror as the group moves to their assigned cars, Lori stomping unhappily over to Shane's jeep and climbing into the passenger side after putting the bags in the back. Shane follows after her like a lost puppy. Morales and his family are staying here, going to be heading to Birmingham once again, but unlike last time Rick doesn't offer them a weapon. He now knows that weapons are better than gold these days, he can't afford to spare any.

Rick rubs a hand through Carl's hair, laughing softly as the boy grumbles and bats at his hand. Cranking up the cube truck, he takes a last look at the quarry before leading the caravan onto the road, headed to the CDC and praying things go differently this time.

Notes:

Happy new year, folks!

Chapter 10: CDC

Summary:

The group make it to the CDC and Rick strips it of supplies

It's early afternoon when the caravan rolls to a stop on the street in front of the imposing building. Rick climbs down from the cab of the cube truck and walks around to the back to pull out empty bags, instead of any full ones, as the rest of the group emerge from their rigs as well. His eyes scan the area constantly, on edge for living walkers. Thankfully, for now, all there seems to be are dozens of corpses that are covered in hundreds of buzzing flies. Through a lot of practice over time, Rick manages to ignore the smell of decomposing bodies in the summer heat as he carefully makes his way into the abandoned army camp.

"Start looking for things we can use. This camp could be a gold mine." Rick orders quietly, not wanting to make too much noise inside city limits. He gets several quiet replies as people begin combing through the ruins of the overrun camp.

Rick opens one of the empty bags hanging from his shoulder and begins stuffing it full of boxes of ammo, medical supplies, ration bars, MREs, and any handguns he comes across. Once that bag is full, he sets it aside and opens another. This one he fills with all of the rifles, and machine guns he finds inside tents or on dead soldiers. A backpack is filled up with a whole mess of grenades, smoke bombs, and flash bangs he finds in what appears to be the armory tent.

Rick is grinning as he loads the three bulging bags up into one of the army Humvees sitting abandoned in the grass. Though he does pocket one of the grenades from the backpack, knowing it'll be needed to get out of the CDC when the time comes. It takes the group about an hour to go through the camp with a fine-toothed comb. Daryl found more machine guns, a couple RPG launchers, and ammo for them. Glenn managed to find six boxes of ration bars and two cases of MREs. Carol collected any clothing she could find, including bullet proof vests, and steel toed boots.

With the camp emptied of anything that even might be useful, Rick turns his attention to the building in front of them. The shutters are down like he knew they'd be, but the ex-cop knows that Jenner is in there. Most likely watching them. Rick walks up to the shutters and bangs on them roughly, wincing at the loud sound his fist on the metal makes.

"Hey! I know you're in there! We have women and children, we need a place to stay tonight! Please!" It's not the desperate begging of before, he knows more now. This pleading is more angry at being kept out than frantic.

It's still a few hours to sunset, unlike last time, so the group isn't quite so nervous and eager to leave so Rick is able to spend more time banging on the shutters and yelling for them to be let in. Though half an hour in, most of the group is beginning to get antsy. Shane is tugging on Rick's shoulder.

"It's a dead end, man. Let's take the haul from the military camp and go find somewhere to post up before dark. Come on, Rick. There's no one in there." His voice lacks most of the aggression it's had while speaking to his former partner in the days since Rick reunited with them.

"Then why are the shutters down? Someone is in there! Please, let us in!" Rick calls out, banging on the side of the building until his knuckles are red. With a rough sigh, the blue eyed deputy turns his back on the shutters, deciding Jenner isn't going to let them in. Maybe he blew his brains out early this time.

He's only taken a few steps away from the building when a loud, grinding and shifting sound rings out. Rick spins around in time to watch the shutter doors roll up slowly, spilling bright, artificial lighting out onto the people waiting outside. Rick slipped a hand down to grip the butt of his Python instinctively as footsteps on linoleum ring out. An average height man with blonde, thinning hair and green/blue eyes stands there holding a machine gun that's pointed at them. Doctor Edwin Jenner.

"Is anyone infected?" He calls out, his voice still sounding as clinical and detached as the deputy remembers. Rick guesses that's how anyone would sound after they've given up the will to live.

"No, none of us are." He calls back, his left hand reached behind him to keep a hold of Carl to make sure the boy stays behind him and away from the weapon pointed in their direction.

"Why are you here? What do you want?" The doctor has moved closer, the gun in his hands never wavering.

"A chance." Rick replies, another flash of deja vu hitting him at saying those words again.

"That's asking an awful lot these days." Jenner replies, the gun lowering just a little.

"I know." Rick nods, his hand never moving from the gun at his hip. Wondering if the conversation will play out exactly like it did the first time.

"Everyone submits to a blood test. That's the price of admission." Jenner's voice is firm, the gun now dropped completely and resting at his side.

Rick nods again, looking back at his group before meeting the doctor's eyes. "We can do that."

"If you have stuff to bring in, you do it now. Once that door closes it doesn't open again."

Jenner stands and watches as most of the group scrambles to bring bags of their things in. Rick doesn't bother, knowing they won't be here very long. He notices Andrea, Merle, Daryl, and Morgan don't either. The doors roll shut as Jenner turns and leads them further into the compound to the lab room.

Half an hour later, Jenner had taken blood from everyone. With Amy being the final one to get it done. Rick felt a flare of pride as she stood up without swaying like Andrea had done before. He fed his group better this time. Andrea still, almost offhandedly, mentions being hungry as she glances from Rick to Jenner. This prompts Jenner to lead the group through the elevator and down into zone five. He suppresses a smile at the exact conversation as before happens, with Daryl asking Jenner about the machine gun on his shoulder and the doctor making a joke to Carl that has his boy giggling. As their walking through the hallways towards what Rick knows is a room full of workstations and computers, Carol makes a noise.

"Are we underground?" She asks, her voice coming out a little shaky.

Jenner turns to look at her without stopping, his voice is not concerned or sympathetic to Rick's ears. "Are you claustrophobic?"

"A little." Carol replies, her hand tightening on Sophia's shoulder a bit.

"Try not to think about it." Is all Jenner says before they reach the work room of level five, showing rows and rows of empty and powered down workstations. Rick is planning, mentally running calculations as he distantly hears Jenner tell Vi to power down the main workstation. Rick, simply to move things along, asks the same question he did before.

"Where is everybody? The other doctors, the staff?"

"I'm it. It's just me here." Jenner responds, making everyone else in the group tense up.

"What about that person you were speaking with? Vi?" Lori asks, her hands twisting the fabric at the end of her shirt nervously.

Jenner sighs and looks at the ceiling. "Vi, say hello to our guests. Tell them...welcome."

"Hello, guests. Welcome." A cool, automated female voice sounds around the room.

Jenner looks at Rick with an almost apologetic look. "I'm all that's left."

With that, he leads Rick and the group towards the kitchen to feed them supper. Talking to the rest of the group about hot water and power usage. Rick doesn't listen, mentally mapping the way through the place and what rooms will have the supplies his group desperately needs if they want to survive.

The food is just as good as last time, with Carol and Lori both happy to cook in an actual kitchen again rather than a campfire. Only this time, Rick doesn't partake in the alcohol the rest of the group is consuming in large quantities. The ex-cop knows he needs a clear head if he's going to be up all night gathering supplies. Another difference is that he showers alone this time instead of joining Lori in hers.

Rick also doesn't go and see Jenner, seeing no reason in rehashing that talk when he already knows what the man will say. Instead, he tucks Carl in on the couch in the room they've claimed for themselves and waits until everything is quiet and dark before slipping from the room and begins what he knows will be a very long night.

The former deputy was proven correct by that as, according to his watch, it's taken him six hours to pack the bags he's done up. One bag, a large duffle, is stuffed full of every medicine he's been able to get his hands on along with other medical supplies. Another large duffle is stuffed with blankets, pillows, sheets, towels, wash cloths, and several sheets of thick drop cloth. A backpack is crammed full of every pen, pencil, notebook, journal, and medical textbook he can get his hands on. Three duffle bags and a canvas bag are full of things from the kitchen. Cans of powdered eggs, milk, and butter, bags of flour, sugar, cornmeal, bisquick, crackers, and brown sugar. Tins of fruits, vegetables, and meats. Bottles of juice, soda, and flavored water. And best of all? Boxes of slightly expired snack cakes. Rick leaves just enough food in the kitchen for them to have for breakfast in the morning, knowing that most of the group will wake up hungry.

He leaves the bags in his room and checks the time on his watch, seeing it's just after two in the morning. That gives them just under six hours until they have to be out of this place, no exceptions. For now, though, he can manage a short nap.

Chapter 11: Escape

Summary:

The group escapes the CDC

Rick's alarm wakes him three hours after he fell asleep, it now being five in the morning. He groans and rolls from his pallet on the floor beside the couch Carl is sleeping on. Sliding on his boots and gun belt, Rick leaves the room and the bags of things he's collected. After a quick trip to the bathroom, the blue eyed man heads to the kitchen to get breakfast started for his most likely hung-over group.

Carol is, once again, the first one up as Rick is stirring a mix of powdered eggs and canned sausage in a skillet. She's wide awake and leading Sophia by the hand, stopping short when she sees Rick in the kitchen. The ex-cop smiles at the nervous woman, trying to make himself appear less threatening so she'll hopefully relax.

"You wanna start on the pancakes? There's some bisquick and powdered milk on the shelf." His voice is light, carefully phrasing it as a question and not an order. A smile covers Rick's lips when she nods and settles Sophia in at the table before starting on mixing up the batter for the pancakes. Despite the calm atmosphere of quietly cooking breakfast together, Rick stays tense. Knowing time is ticking down for him to get his people out of this place before Jenner locks them inside.

The rest of the group trickles in, coming in ones and twos, most shuffling and groaning from their hangovers. Rick can't help but laugh at poor Glenn, who's got his cold glass of orange juice pressed to his head, while he's putting eggs and thinly sliced pieces of fried spam onto his plate.

"Don't ever, ever, ever let me drink again." The younger man groans out as Carol puts a couple of pancakes on his plate. This only makes Rick laugh harder as he pats the boy on the shoulder and places a bottle of Aspirin in front of him. Breakfast is well under way when Jenner appears, looking even more detached and hopeless than he did the night before. Rick gets even more tense, feeling something tightening in his chest. Something he also notices is that there are no scratches on Shane's neck this time.

Rick watches and listens as Shane begins questioning Jenner right off, barely letting him get started on his meal, just like before. Andrea glances at Rick before saying 'we didn't come for the eggs', as if to keep this rolling with the previous timeline. The ex-cop stands with the rest of the group as Jenner leads them into the viewing room they were in the night before. He gently grabs Andrea, and Merle by their arms and tugs them to the very back of the group.

"This place is running out of fuel. In two hours, we need to be gone from here. Long gone if we want to avoid the explosion. Yes, Merle, explosion." Rick adds when the redneck opens his mouth, slate colored eyes widened in shock.

"I brought us here because we needed the supplies this place had. I have those, now we need to convince the rest of the group that we need to leave before Jenner locks that door. We can't cut it as close as last time." Both of them stare at Rick like he's grown a second head for a minute before nodding. Merle cocks his head to the side.

"How are we gonna convince this group o' prissy folks ta clear outta this place 'fore it goes boom wit'out gettin' locked in by the good Doc?" To this Rick shrugs, honestly having no idea. It's actually Andrea that solves that little issue.

"Merle, you were in the military, right?" She asks, to which the older Dixon nods slowly.

"Was a marine."

"We can use that. I'm sure marines are briefed on protocol for places like this. As the doctor said last time, this is the center for disease control. They handle nasty things that we don't want getting out, ever. So logically it'll decontaminate itself if the power runs out. The marines would know this, right?" She's getting more and more into the idea, Rick can tell by the way her pale blue eyes are blazing. Merle thinks it over before nodding.

"Mhm. Ya got a point, sugar tits. So's all I gotta do is cause a ruckus 'bout time runnin' out...how do ya suppose I do tha'?" Rick rolls his eyes at the blonde's angry look in response to Merle calling her that damn nickname of his.

"The clock. Last time we did this, Dale pointed out the clock was running down." The deputy responds before it can escalate into a fight between the two. Andrea's face lights up and she nods, chewing on her bottom lip.

"Right, the clock! So we just have Merle point out that it's counting down and ask why. Jenner will talk about the HITs again and we can convince the group to get out, but we need to keep Jenner away from the control panel. He cannot be allowed to lock us in this time." The woman is very animated as she plans this out, eyes shining with her thought process.

Rick hums and runs a hand through his hair, thinking over their options as he absently watches Jenner showing the group the brain scan of TS 19. The former deputy shifts his weight from foot to foot, contemplating how to bring it up. Last time it was Dale who asked about the clock, but the gentle old man is gone from this world now. Merle solves that problem for him.

"Hey doc, tha' clock there has been countin' down since we rolled up. What's it do?" The redneck's voice booms through the room, completely talking over everyone else.

Jenner clears his throat, glancing at the clock and then back at Merle. "The basement generators...they run out of fuel."

Merle starts cussing up a storm, grabbing his brother by the arm and pushing him towards the exit. Rick has to hand it to the man, he puts on one hell of a show. Daryl is trying to push Merle off him, cussing at his brother as the rest of the group begins to panic. Shouting questions at the elder Dixon.

Merle turns around to face the group. "Do you know wha' this place is?! When tha' clock hits zero, the whole place is gonna go up like a match! We gotta get our asses outta here 'fore tha' happens. Now move it, baby brotha."

He continues shoving Daryl, now unresisting and wide eyed in shock, out of the room to collect his brother's things. The rest of the group look at the clock, which shows they have only an hour and a half until the place explodes, before scrambling for the door with panicked shouts. Rick keeps a careful eye on Jenner, lunging for the man when he goes for the control panel.

"I don't know what you're about to do, but I don't like it. You had better not be trying to keep us here, knowing what this place is gonna do soon." He all but growls in the slightly shorter man's face. Jenner pales under the strength of Rick's gaze, his icy blue eyes blazing with anger at remembering how this all went down last time. He can clearly picture in his mind his son's terrified look and quiet sobbing at thinking they were all about to die.

"You know what's out there...a short, brutal life and an agonizing death." The doctor responds, his voice still that clinical, detached calm that Rick absolutely hates. "Is that really what you want for your son?"

"I don't want this!" Rick spits out the same words as last time, twisting around and pinning Jenner's wrist behind his back until he hears a sickening crack. Not even caring that he just broke the man's arm as he shoves the doctor away from him before making a mad dash towards the exit of the room.

The deputy makes it by the skin of his teeth, managing to barely clear the doorway before the metal door, that's designed to withstand a rocket launcher, slams into place. Locking Jenner inside what will become his final resting place. Panting from the adrenaline and slight fear coursing through his system, Rick takes off in a sprint to the room he and Carl shared the night before. Grabbing the bags of supplies before booking it out into the main lobby where the rest of the group are frantically, and fruitlessly, attempting to break the bullet proof glass of the windows.

"Everybody, get down!" Rick screams hoarsely as he pulls the grenade from his pocket and runs up to one of the windows. Pulling the pin as he sets the thing gently on the ground before turning and running away as fast as he can.

"Oh shi-!"

BOOM!

The grenade goes off with a wall shaking and, thankfully, glass shattering roar that sends Rick flying several feet to land painfully on his stomach next to Sophia and Carl. He scrambles to his feet, despite his barely healed gunshot wound throbbing painfully, and gathers his son up into his arms before tearing off out of the broken window. Calling back over his shoulder.

"Watch the glass!"

Setting Carl down outside the military vehicle that houses the supplies they gathered from the army camp, Rick rips open the trunk and starts grabbing as many bags as he can hold. Daryl, Merle, and T-Dog doing the same once they make it outside. Time is running out and the explosion of the grenade drew every walker for miles so it's a mad dash to the cars parked on the street and a scramble to get the bags loaded into whatever cars they'll fit in before people are jumping into the safety of their rigs.

It's not until they're on the road, with the CDC a fading speck in the rearview mirror, that Rick breathes a sigh of relief at their narrow escape.

Chapter 12: The Herd

Summary:

The group come across the herd on the highway...things end differently this time

After a brief stop back at the quarry for their semi-trucks loaded down with food, the caravan is now on the highway out of Atlanta. Rick knows that the next place they need to be is the Greene farm. He just prays that Hershel, or Maggie, remembers enough to not send them packing the moment they arrive. The former deputy is so lost in his planning as they drive that he doesn't even notice what stretch of highway they're on until the RV just behind the hauler trucks starts smoking from under the hood. A sense of dread bubbles up in his gut as he slips from the driver's seat of his cube truck.

"The kids need to stay in the cars. It's too dangerous for them to be out and wandering while we're stopped like this." He calls out to the group, intent on avoiding any mishaps like the one they had last time. He's relieved when the parents of the other children seem to agree with him and Duane, Carl, and Sophia are kept inside the vehicles they were traveling in. With that slight weight off his chest, Rick turns his attention to the Dixon's pickup truck.

"Merle, you think you can take a look at the RV? I know you used to work at an auto shop." His voice is pitched to carry, knowing that no matter what they do the herd is already heading their way. The redneck nods and saunters his way towards the RV. Rick turns to the rest of the people that are standing by the cars.

"The rest of you, start searching through the cars. See what we can find."

Daryl snorts. "There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find."

He heads towards a car, prompting the others to pick one and start looking through it.

"This is a graveyard. I don't know how I feel about this." Lori pipes up, a hand pressed to her chest like she's trying to protect herself. A bolt of worry fills Rick suddenly. With Dale gone, no one is keeping watch on the RV to alert the group to the herd when it arrives.

"Amy!" He calls out. "I need you up on the RV to keep watch."

The younger Harrison sister nods and climbs up the ladder, she's got Dale's binoculars as she settles into place. A little of the worry in the back of Rick's mind eases a bit as he goes back to searching cars. Periodically, he looks up to make sure his curious son is staying parked in the cube truck where it's safe. Shane gives a holler from further up ahead and Rick looks up to see that he's found the water truck again. Laughing at his friend's, former friend?, childish glee despite the fact that this time they aren't low on water, Rick turns to look at where Lori and Carol are looking at clothes in the trunk of a car.

Carol is holding up a red shirt to her front. "Ed never let me wear nice things like this."

Rick feels a strong flash of hate for the dead son of a bitch, half wishing he'd have killed the man himself. The disapproving look on Lori's face, that makes Carol fold the shirt up and put it back into the trunk, also pisses Rick off. So he walks over to the two women and picks up the shirt, placing it back in Carol's hands.

"Take it. You deserve something nice. There's so few nice things in this world now." He offers the slightly cringing woman his best smile, it getting a bit brighter when she relaxes a little and pulls the shirt closer to her chest. From the corner of his eye, he sees Lori huff and stomp away from them both and has to refrain from rolling his eyes.

"Walkers!" Amy's panicked voice comes from above, sending everyone scrambling.

"Get under the cars! Everyone under the cars!" Rick orders as he ducks under the car beside Carol. He has to put a hand over the terrified woman's mouth to keep her from screaming in fear as what has to be hundreds of feet shuffle by the car they're hidden under. A glance around shows the rest of his group, minus Daryl and T-Dog, under cars. Lori is under the one right in front of them, with Merle and Glenn under the RV. Amy is laying flat on top of the RV with Andrea hiding inside it. Morgan is under the cube truck that has both of their boys in it, Sophia in the Cherokee, and Shane hiding under the water truck. He's not all that worried about Daryl, knowing the archer can take care of himself but worry does niggle in the back of his brain about T-Dog.

After what feels like hours but is probably only about twenty minutes, most of the herd has moved on right past Rick and his people. The ex-cop shakes his head at Merle when the man looks over and mouths about moving from under the car, tightening his hold on Carol when she wiggles a little as if she's going to move. Then the worst thing imaginable happens, a car door opens and a small voice calls out.

"Mommy?!" The soft call is followed almost instantly by a scream of terror and the shuffling drag of a walker's feet. Before Rick can stop her, Carol is out from under the car and lunging towards the creature shambling towards her terrified daughter. The knife from Rick's own belt is clutched in a petite hand before it's slammed into the skull of the walker. There it stays as Carol pulls Sophia into her arms, rocking her while she sobs. Seemingly not even noticing the blood splattering her face and arms.

Rick slips from under the car and moves over to the two, almost frantically checking them both over to make sure the blood is just walker and not human. Carol looks up at him and her blue eyes, normally soft and timid, are the sharp, glacier cold of his Carol. The former deputy's breath catches in his throat as the woman lunges forward and wraps her arms around Rick as well as her daughter. Rick, in a daze, wraps his arms around her just as tight. He can feel the fabric of his shirt getting damp with tears as Carol murmurs over and over how sorry she is for not being there when he died.

The blue eyed man just shushes her gently, a hand rubbing soothingly up and down her back. Sophia is still crying, clinging to her mother as the rest of the group slowly emerge from their hiding places. T-Dog is clutching his arm, blood spurting from a deep cut. Seems he cut it on the car in this timeline as well. Lori is glaring daggers at Carol where she's still clinging to both her daughter and himself.

"Rick?" He hears a familiar, though softer and quieter, voice from behind them. Daryl is standing there, holding Sophia's doll and looking shell shocked. He's actually looking at Rick with recognition instead of that guarded, distrustful look he's had since the quarry. Rick grins and gently detangles himself from a quieted Carol, striding towards Daryl and gently gripping the back of his neck as he leans his forehead against the hunter's.

Daryl grips his shoulder tightly with one hand, slate blue eyes glimmering with tears as he murmurs. "Saw you die...knew it was ma fault. Shouldn'ta punched him."

Rick shakes his head clutching his best friend, his brother, tighter to himself. "No, Daryl. That's not on you. He was a sick son of a bitch, he'd have killed another of us simply because he wanted to."

"Pookie?" Carol asks, eyes softening with hope as she steps towards where the two men are still embracing each other in the middle of the road. Daryl releases Rick and lunges towards the gray haired woman, scooping her into a bear hug that she whole heartedly returns. Rick grins at the scene, peace filling his chest momentarily even if he still longs for yet unfound members of their family. He's so intent on the scene that he doesn't hear the person walking up behind him until a rough hand grabs his shoulder and spins him around. Shane and Lori stand there, both with angered, disbelieving looks.

"Rick, man, you wanna tell us just what the hell is going on?"

Chapter 13: Explanations

Summary:

Rick and co have some explaining to do

Rick sighs and runs a hand over his lightly stubbled jaw, already missing his beard. Icy blue eyes glance around the group, meeting several pairs of confused ones in return before he glances to his right and meets two sets of blue eyes, in different shades, that give him the strength to meet Shane's angry gaze.

"What I'm about to tell you all is gonna sound impossible. It's gonna sound insane, and you're not gonna want to believe me but it's all true." Here he stops, gathering his thoughts and looking out at the even more confused group of people surrounding him. Carol lays a comforting hand on his shoulder, giving him her support silently.

"We've lived this before. This exact life and these exact scenarios have happened before. I don't know why some of us remember and some don't, or even how memories are triggered but I-" Rick is cut off by Shane's loud, angry snort and Lori's huffing unhappily.

"You expect us to believe you're...what, in some type of time loop?" Shane's voice is hard, anger and disbelief etched in every syllable. Rick takes a deep, calming breath and shifts his gaze from his former partner and ex-wife to the little group now surrounding him closely, the ones with their memories intact.

"I don't know exactly what this is. If it's some kind of divine intervention or, or if it's a second chance to do things the right way." He begins, swallowing hard and weighing his words carefully.

"I made it three years into this mess, and no army or government came to save us. We are completely on our own. I...I died, and then I woke up back in that hospital thinking I was losing my damn mind." He ignores the wounded sound Daryl makes beside him, other than reaching back and laying a comforting hand at the nape of his neck, giving a light squeeze.

"I knew, from the moment I realized this wasn't a, a nightmare or some weird form of hell, that I had to do things different this time. I had to save as many of our family as I could. And that's what I've been trying to do all this time. I made sure we were better prepared food wise, that we had more ammo and weapons for the walker attack that would happen on camp. Doing so spared Amy's life." The younger blonde looks startled at that, sky blue eyes glossing over with tears as she clings to her elder sister like a lifeline.

"You knew-!"

"Yes, but would you have believed me if I told you it was gonna happen?" Rick effortlessly cuts across Shane's angry shout, years of practice making this almost easy. Shane's mouth snaps shut with an audible click and a mulish expression covers his face. They both know that the larger man would have ignored Rick, written him off as paranoid, and insisted the camp was perfectly safe.

Andrea steps up beside Rick, laying a hand on his arm as she smiles out at the group. "The attack is when I remembered. When I saw Amy so close to being bitten by that walker...it brought back the memories of losing her the first time around. I, for one, am thankful that Rick remembered in time to save her this go round." She smiles softly at Rick before stepping back to her original spot, holding her sister like a young child rather than a college age woman.

"Remembered two months 'fore all this started. Knew I had ta get clean 'n sober so's y'all wouldn't leave ma ass cuffed ta a roof this time. I'll warn ya bunch o' pampered folk, the biters ain't the only thin' ya gotta watch out fer. The livin' is more dangerous than the dead." Merle grunts from his place leaned up against the RV, right hand flexing automatically when he spoke about being cuffed to the roof. Rick feels a momentary flash of familiar guilt and regret before the older man shoots him a wink and a smirk, making the former deputy laugh quietly.

Carol just gives the group a smile, standing tall for the first time since Rick came back to the past. He can see the surprise on Lori's face when the previously mousy and timid woman stands there with her head held high and shoulders back. There are no traces of fear or nervousness on her face or in her eyes, just a cool confidence.

"I lost Sophia last time. To the herd that just passed by. She got spooked and ran off, Rick ran after her but so did two walkers. Sadly, Rick was still new to this way of living as well and couldn't fight off both of them and protect Sophia, so he hid her and lured the walkers away to kill them. While trying to find her way back, my little girl was bitten. We didn't know this for a few more weeks, weeks that were spent searching for her." Here the gray haired woman smiles down at the little girl grasped in her arms.

"I couldn't let that happen again. My memories were triggered at seeing her in danger from the walker. Rick's decision to keep the children in the vehicles was an effort to prevent that from happening this time." She finishes her say, sharp blue eyes scanning over the rest of the group. Daryl sighs from his place just behind Rick, hand tightening on the strap of his bow.

"Remembered when I saw the doll. Found it before, when I was lookin' fer the girl. Damn horse threw me, fell down a riverbank an' took an arrow in the side. Pickin' up the doll brought a flash of phantom pain in my side, that triggered the rest o' the memories." The archer is quieter, more reserved with his words, than he was before the herd. The whole group can see it.

"So let me get this straight, you're telling us all that this has happened before? You've lived it and now you're just...back? People don't time travel, it's just not possible." Lori's snarky voice sounds as she places her hands on her hips, long brown hair pulled back out of her face. Her big, brown eyes are looking at Rick accusingly. The blue eyed deputy is about to respond but Merle beats him to it.

"Listen here, queenie, no one woulda thought dead people walkin' was possible 'fore it happened but here we are. Believe it or don't, but shut yer trap and quit lookin' so accusin' at yer ex 'fore one o' these girlies lays into ya." He motions to where Carol, and Andrea are looking at Lori with fire in their eyes. The skinny brunette wisely backs down, standing slightly behind Shane. The big deputy puffs up even more than he already was, an arm reaching back and curling around Lori's waist protectively. Rick just rolls his eyes.

"As Merle said, you can believe it or not, but we have lived through this before. We know what we're doing and we can keep you safe. As long as you follow our lead. For now, we've wasted enough daylight here. Let's finish clearing out these cars and get somewhere to bunk down for the night. We don't wanna be this close to the city after dark. T-Dog, let Carol take a look at that arm. She got quite good with medical care during all this the last time."

With that he turns and goes back to searching through the cars. Carol sends Sophia to the box truck where the two boys are before she too gets to work on T-Dog's arm. By the time late afternoon rolls around, they've collected quite the haul. The five gallon water bottles that Shane found are loaded onto a pull behind trailer, along with two camping stoves, several bottles of propane, a charcoal grill, two bags of charcoal, a dozen solar and oil powered lanterns, and as many cases and jugs of water as they were able to find. The trailer is hitched to the Dixon's truck. They've collected more over the counter medicine, some prescriptions, and more first aid supplies along with clothes.

Rick wants to shake his head at the people who packed these cars. Not one piece of winter clothing, it's all for summer or spring. The total unpreparedness makes him edgy, but the ex-cop has to remind himself that he was just like that at the beginning last time. T-Dog got his wish about fuel, having found a truck with several empty gas cans in the back. He siphoned gas from the cars until he ran out of cans. The good thing is that most of the cars contain a firearm or two, along with ammo. 'Thank god we're in the south and not somewhere up north.' Rick thinks to himself.

Every head snaps up as Glenn hollers out, Daryl rushing over to him in case of a trapped walker or something. Rick can only shake his head when the hunter smacks the Asian man over the back of the head for the false alarm. The cry was apparently one of joy at his discovery of three cases of ramen in different flavors. The curly haired man just chuckles at his friends' antics and glances up at the sun before letting out a low whistle.

"Getting dark. Let's load up and find somewhere secure for the night." He carries the bright orange backpack he was filling up back to one of the cars, putting it in before climbing up into the box truck and waiting for the rest of the group to get into their riding assignments. Daryl, and Morgan are driving the food filled semi-trucks this time around. Within a few minutes, they're on the road and leaving Atlanta behind.

Chapter 14: Cranwall and Trouble

Summary:

The group runs into a spot of trouble and people remember

It's mid morning by the time the group packs up their ramshackle campsite and climbs into vehicles to continue their trek. Rick, Carol, and Daryl talked last night and decided that they need to backtrack to Cranwall, the town that the Greene's live in. They need to get started on finding the rest of their family, and pray that they remember.

Rick is leading the caravan this time, doing a U-turn on the highway and ignoring Shane's angry questions on the CB radio. Remembering what Maggie told the group last time, he looks for Fairburn Road. Finding it is easy, but Rick drives right past it purposefully. He wants to check the town, make sure none of Randal's group is lurking around. Rick won't leave a threat like that still roaming and a danger to his family this time. The Governor, and Terminus taught him that last time.

They make it to town within an hour and a half and Rick parks the cube truck at the bar they found Hershel in last time. The rest of the group parks their rigs around him, with the two semis being parked on the street. Right away, after climbing out of the cab, Rick notices something not right down the street. There are several cars parked in front of the pharmacy and loud banging is coming from it. Without stopping to explain to the group, or even to think, the ex-cop pulls the Python from its holster on his hip and stalks quietly over to the pharmacy to check it out.

Creeping up on the building, Rick notices six men in front of the main door. They're talking to each other about the 'pretty piece of ass' that they saw go into the pharmacy while trying to break the door open. Rick's blood runs cold and he knows, without even having to check, that it's Maggie they've got cornered.

"Come on, baby, just open the door~ We ain't gonna hurt ya...hell, ya might even like it if ya don't fight too much~" One of the men croons at the door, grabbing at his crotch suggestively as his buddies laugh loudly.

"Fuck you!" Comes through the door, unmistakably Maggie's voice.

"Oh you will, pretty bitch. We're all gonna have a turn, then we'll take you back to camp. The guys'll lo-"

His words cut off in a gurgle, choking on his own blood, as the bullet Rick fired hits him in the throat. Cutting off his vile words. He manages to drop one more with a headshot before the other four get a clue that someone is shooting at them and start to return fire. Rick ducks behind one of their cars to avoid being shot as the sharp twang of Daryl's crossbow rings out, one of the men dropping with an arrow through his eye.

Rick stands from his shelter, the three men that are left now focused on shooting to the right of him where the arrow came from and takes aim. The sound of the gun going off is loud in his ears as the bullet flies true, hitting the man about to shoot Carol, who'd come up behind the archer, in his stomach. Sending him dropping to the ground with a scream of pain. The gunshots are bringing walkers, he can hear the moans and the shuffling, but unfortunately he can't pause to focus on them at the moment. Not with two living, thinking people shooting at his family.

The two remaining men have left the pharmacy door, Rick can hear them moving over the pavement. They seem to have split up, one heading towards where Rick knows Daryl is waiting and the other heading towards the cars where the deputy is crouched. Holstering his gun, not wanting to draw any more unwanted attention, Rick pulls the hunting knife from his belt and creeps around the side of the car towards where the footsteps are coming from. He waits, crouched behind the tailgate of a rusted truck, for the bastard to get close enough. Sure enough, the man walks right by Rick's hiding spot without even looking and Rick pounces.

The man, more like kid, barely gets his gun raised before the former deputy is on him and the blade of the hunting knife is sinking into soft flesh of his throat. Rick slices sharply to the left, cutting the boy's throat from ear to ear and splashing blood all over his own face. It's only as he's driving the knife into his victim's temple to ensure he won't rise again that he notices it. He's just killed Randal.

Rick doesn't have time to pay it any more mind as he hears Daryl's muffled yell and Carol's groan of pain. He's on his feet and running towards them without thought, tackling the guy who's on top of Carol. He's got the guy in a chokehold, strangling him as the man frantically claws at Rick's arms. Carol gets up, panting softly through a busted lip, and lunges forward to drive her knife, actually Dary's knife, through the guy's temple. Rick lets the now dead body drop to the ground, pulling Carol into his arms for a reassuring hug.

"He do more than bust your mouth?" Rick asks quietly in her ear, relieved when the woman shakes her head. Daryl stands from where he was dealing with a seventh man that was apparently hiding. His jaw already has a bruise blooming on it as the archer leans down and pulls his bolt from the corpse's head.

"Damn bastards." Daryl spits on the body of the man Carol killed. "Any idea who they had trapped in the store?"

Rick grimaces and nods. "Sounded like Maggie."

The hunter cusses and tears off towards the pharmacy, Rick and Carol hot on his heels.

"Daryl, hold up. If she doesn't remember, it'd probably be best if she heard a woman rather than the men." Rick cautions his friend as they make it to the still locked door of the store. The redneck cusses under his breath and steps back, pacing like he does when he's nervous. Rick motions Carol towards the door with a nod. The gray haired woman nod and taps on the door gently.

"Hello? Is there anyone in there? You can come out now, sweetie. We took care of those men." She calls in a soft, motherly voice.

It's completely silent for a long moment before a rustle comes from inside and then a sliding noise, like a shelf being moved. The door opens a crack and what is definitely Maggie's voice sounds.

"They're gone?"

"Yes, they're dead. We made sure of it. They won't be able to hurt you, or anyone ever again." Carol assures, Rick and Daryl wait a few paces behind her and try to appear nonthreatening. The door slowly opens and Rick catches his breath at the sight of a younger, healthy Maggie. Her gray eyes still sparkling with innocence and hope. The last time he saw her was in the lineup, her skin a sickly gray pallor from complications with the pregnancy and fear of Negan.

She's looking at both men distrustfully even as she moves closer to Carol. The older woman lays a soothing hand on her shoulder as Rick smiles softly at the farmer's daughter. Daryl just grunts at her and reaches down to stab one of the dead guys in the head as he reanimates with a rasping growl. Maggie jumps back with a gasp of horror and shock. The rest of the group, who'd been taking care of the walkers that the gun fight had drawn, are finally coming up the pharmacy warily. Glenn is the first to reach them and the young man stops in his tracks when he lays eyes on Maggie. Rick sees the exact moment their eyes connect.

"Glenn?!"

"Maggie?!"

Then they're running to each other and embracing, both crying as they cling to one another. Rick's heart fills a little more at the scene, feeling another piece of their family fall into place. Once the couple has stopped crying and kissing, reassuring the other that they're both really here, Maggie looks around with a delighted gasp. Grabbing first Carol into a hug before lunging into Rick's own arms. The former deputy hugs her tightly.

"I'm so sorry for the way you died, Rick. So sorry I didn't do anything." She murmurs against his chest. Rick just shushes her, rocking her soothingly as he did for Carol. Eventually she pulls away from him and goes back over to Glenn, hugging herself tightly to his chest.

"You've got to come to the farm. Oh, I thought Daddy was crazy when he suddenly started acting so weird a few months ago. Turns out, he knew. He remembered."

Chapter 15: The Farm

Summary:

The group finally make it to the farm and things don't go quite to plan

It's early afternoon when the group makes their way to the Greene farm, though it looks different than how Rick remembers. The gate at the end of the driveway isn't the thin, metal farm gate anymore but a six foot tall, iron gate with an armed guard on it. The previously chain link fencing is now six foot, armor weave fence. The kind used by the military. Maggie leans out of the window of the cube truck.

"Hey, Shawn. They're the people Daddy was talking about. Open the gate."

The blonde teenager on the gate, now identified as her stepbrother, eyes the caravan critically even as he opens the gate and waves them through. Rick drives up the familiar lane towards the big, white house idly noting the changes on the property. There are small cottage like buildings in one field, a smokehouse beside the house, and another, metal building directly behind the house. Another thing Rick notices is that there are fewer cattle in the pastures, one of the fields is full of crops like a garden, and another large barn built by the one that houses the horses.

The cars come to a stop in front of the house and Rick watches the screen door open, people spilling out into the yard. There's Hershel, Beth, a woman who must be Annette, Patricia, Otis, and Jimmy. Rick climbs down from the cab and watches a smile light the farmer's face as he comes down the stairs to embrace him.

"You've been busy." Rick jokes as he hugs his mentor tightly, having missed the man's calming presence after his death. Hershel laughs and pats Rick on the back as the two separate. The older man looks over the group, eyes going dark when he spots Shane in the front of his jeep. Before anything can be done about that though, Rick hears a choked breath from beside them. Turning, he spots Daryl standing there and staring at Beth with glossed over eyes. It's clear the man is trying not to cry.

Rick sucks in a sharp breath, the memories of losing the little blonde replaying in his head uncomfortably. There's just one problem with the reunion that the ex-cop can see...it doesn't look like Beth remembers them. Rick's heart aches for his brother, knowing he loved the girl like a sister or a daughter and losing her left scars that the archer never fully recovered from. Carol wraps her arms around Daryl, comforting him quietly as the younger man struggles to pull himself back together. Hershel smiles sadly at the sight, though Rick doubts he knows the depth of what happened there.

"Let's talk inside, there's a lot to discuss and even more to plan. Annette has supper going but it'll be a while longer." Hershel tells the group as he starts back up the stairs to head inside. The woman who must be Annette smiles kindly at them all as she slips back into the house with Patricia. Everything is going great until Rick's group begins to come out of the cars. Shane saunters up like he owns the place and locks eyes with Otis.

The heavyset man is still clutching his hunting rifle, that he must have grabbed when people showed up uninvited on the property, as he steps towards Shane. Rick watches as he raises it, pointing the barrel at the big deputy.

"You! You killed me! You...it hurts...they're all over me! You son of a bitch! You left me! Don't leave me here like this! You can't do this! They're eating me!" Otis cries, seemingly half in his memories of his death and half in the present as he begins firing the gun.

Rick's quick to pull his own sidearm but it's not fast enough. Shane drops like a stone, a neat hole in his forehead and Glenn grunts and hunches over, blood rapidly blooming from his upper arm. Another bullet goes wide, barely missing Carl where he cowers into his mother's side, and Rick snaps. His Python is leveled, and the trigger is pulled before the red haze fades. The sound of gunfire and hysterical yelling is suddenly cut off as Otis falls backwards, dead before he hits the ground from a bullet wound to the side of his head. All that can be heard now is Lori's gasping breath as she stare's sightlessly at where Shane fell.

Rick slowly, as if in a daze, holsters his weapon and turns to look at Hershel as Carol rushes to Glenn. She's checking his wound as Rick locks eyes with the farmer.

"I...I had to. He was panicking and was gonna kill someone else..." He stutters, trying to explain himself as Hershel sadly looks at the body of his farmhand and friend.

Hershel just shakes his head and sighs before turning to look at Rick. "I know, son. I know. Trying to get the weapon away from him would have resulted in more injuries, and possibly more death. You did what you had to."

Rick lets out a relieved breath and turns to check on his son. The boy is shaking but Rick isn't sure if it's from nearly being shot or watching his godfather die. He gathers his boy up in a hug, rocking him gently as the front door bangs open and the women come back out of the house. Rick hears their whimpers and hitched breath before the screaming starts. The grieving screams that the blue eyed man is far too familiar with but wishes he never had to hear again.

He passes Carl off to a pale and nearly catatonic Lori with a meaningful look, that he's not sure she even registers, and turns around to find Patricia on her knees beside her husband's body, sobbing and screaming hysterically. Rick swallows thickly past the lump in his throat at the sight and forces himself not to look away. 'I did this, the least I can do is witness her grief.' He thinks to himself.

They all stand there in silence for a long time before a timer goes off inside, causing Annette to whirl around and rush back into the house. That seems to break the spell of grief over everyone, and Hershel gently guides Patricia up from her place on the ground, leading her into the home. Rick sighs and sends Glenn, and T-Dog in as well since they're injured before motioning to Daryl, and Morgan.

"Let's get the bodies under the tree out of the way, we'll dig graves and have a service tomorrow." He says, leaning down and gently gripping Shane's body by the shoulders. Morgan nods as he grips the corpse's feet, helping the ex-cop move his former friend's remains under the shade of the willow tree where the graves were made last time. Daryl doesn't say a word, just helps them both lift Otis and carry his body over to lay beside Shane's.

Once done with that, Rick gathers what's left of his people and gently herds them into the house away from the sight of the blood-stained grass. Inside they find Shawn setting the table while Beth helps her momma in the kitchen. Carol and Amy go to help as the three kids help the teen with the tableware. Rick is distracted from watching Lori stand listlessly by the wall by a noise on the stairs. He looks up as Hershel comes down the stairs, his face solemn.

"Patricia is resting, let's all leave her be for the night. This has been quite a shock for everyone and she's having a little trouble dealing with it." The older man says as he takes his place at the head of the dining table. Rick is surprised when Hershel waves him to take the seat at the head of the other end of the table. He didn't expect that in the farmer's own home.

The rest of the group find their seats, with Carl having to guide his mother to a chair, as the women bring out the food, Rick making sure to thank Annette for feeding them. Everyone bows their heads as Hershel leads them in a prayer of thanks for the meal and a prayer for the souls of those they've lost. The meal is the best Rick's had in a long time. Real beef, homemade rolls, and fresh vegetables.

When the meal is over, Amy and Carol volunteer to take care of the dishes so Annette can rest while Rick watches Hershel pull a well worn notebook from his inner pocket. The older man passes it across the table to Rick.

"I figure no one has the mental fortitude to plan and go over things tonight, with all that's happened, but I wanted to give you this to look over when you get a chance. It's all my plans for this place, and what I've already accomplished." He says before standing from the table and heading outside to sit on the porch. Rick sighs softly under his breath as he clutches the small book. Annette stands from the table and clears her throat softly.

"Let me show you folks to where you'll be staying for the night. We'll get you settled into cabins tomorrow after...after the service." She says, voice cracking when she mentions the funerals. Rick nods gratefully and follows along as she leads them through a house he's already very familiar with.

"I figure one of the younger ladies can room with Beth, if they'd like. One of the men can sleep on the pull out couch in Shawn's room as well. There's a guest room upstairs that the kids can share, and one downstairs for the women. The men can bunk down in the living room. The sofa is comfortable." She says, showing them the rooms available.

Rick clears his throat. "Amy can share with Beth, if they both decide to. Glenn on the futon in Shawn's room. Carl, Duane, and Sophia can stay up here with Carol keeping watch over them. That leaves Andrea and Lori in the guest room downstairs. T-Dog, Morgan, Daryl, Merle, and myself will sleep in the living room."

With room assignments handed out, everyone splits up for their nightly routines. Rick makes his pallet on the living room floor closest to the front door before pulling Hershel's notebook from his pocket and starting to go through it.

Chapter 16: Loss and Grief

Summary:

The group holds funerals and morns for their losses

The next morning Rick is up at dawn. He's still leaned against the wall by the door, Hershel's book clutched in his hand. Blinking blearily, Rick realizes he doesn't remember falling asleep. This has him laughing at himself. 'Guess being awake for nearly two straight days finally caught up to me.' He thinks to himself, shaking his head as he slowly rises from his pallet. The former deputy is on his way to the bathroom upstairs when he hears an out of place noise from a room he's never been inside.

Walking over to the door and pressing his ear against it, Rick jerks back in shock when he hears the distinct sound of a walker's moaning growl. He creeps downstairs quietly to Hershel's bedroom. Softly knocking on the door.

"Hershel, we have a problem. A big one." He says softly, trying not to alert anyone but the farmer. Hershel looks worn and weary as he looks at the younger man with a raised brow.

Rick clears his throat before coming right out with it. "Is anyone in the house keeping walkers?"

Hershel jerks back as if he'd been slapped, brows pulling down and mouth setting in a firm line as he stares holes through the ex-cop. He steps out of the bedroom, cautious of his still sleeping wife, and pulls Rick further away from the door.

"No! What even makes you think there are walkers on the property, let alone in the house?" The older man growls, his voice taking on that indignant, stubborn tone that Rick remembers from the early days of being on the farm last time.

"There's a door upstairs, the one right next to the room the kids are in, there's a walker in it. I could hear the groans through the door." Rick replies, a puzzled look on his face.

He doesn't get an answer as Hershel pushes past him and rushes upstairs to the door where Rick had heard the walker noises. There's sadness on his face as he listens to the groaning and shuffling inside the bedroom. It clicks in Rick's head then. 'This must be Patricia's room.' He thinks to himself, sighing softly. Rick pulls his hunting knife from his belt and steps forward, laying a hand on his mentor's shoulder.

"I'll take care of her. It'll be quick and gentle, I promise." He says. Hershel nods and goes downstairs, presumably to tell his wife about this. Rick takes a breath and carefully opens the door to the bedroom just wide enough for him to slip inside. The walker that used to be Patricia turns towards him and growls, reaching out for the meal that's just wandered into its space.

Rick carefully avoids her grasping hands to get behind her, gently sliding the blade into the base of her skull. The walker stops moving instantly, falling silent as the body drops to the carpeted floor. Rick wipes his knife on his pants before putting it away and gently scooping Patricia's remains into his arms in a bridal carry, heading out of the bedroom and downstairs. There he finds T-Dog awake and quietly motions to the door. The big man nods and eases the front door open for him.

Rick carries the body over to the willow tree and gently places it down beside her husband's. That done, he turns and heads back inside with a grim smile at the people now filling the living room. Hershel and Annette come out of their room, the blonde woman having tear tracks drying on her face, and head into the kitchen. Rick wanders in to see what they need help doing, finding Annette at the stove and Hershel sitting at the table reading his well loved copy of the bible.

The rest of the group slowly trickles in, finding seats at the table or helping Annette with breakfast. Beth comes in from the back door, a basket of eggs in her hand and feathers in her hair. Despite the somber, sorrowful mood, Rick can't help but laugh at the disgruntled expression on the teen's face. She makes a face at him behind her mother's back, which has him choking on laughter again, and goes upstairs to presumably shower and change out of pajamas.

The back door opens again as Annette is filling plates, this time it's Maggie and she's got a bucket of milk. Glenn comes in right behind her with a crate filled with bottles of milk. The younger man notices Rick's raised brows and laughs as he brings the bottles over for inspection.

"The bottles are from the goats and sheep in the other barn. Did you even know that those critters could be milked? I didn't." Rick laughs with him this time as he looks through the six bottles of milk, four from the goats and two from the sheep. As the laughter dies away, the ex-cop looks around and does an automatic mental headcount. A sigh escapes him when he realizes the only one not present is Lori. He turns and looks at Andrea.

"Was Lori awake when you came out for breakfast?" He asks, sipping his orange juice. The blonde nods, mouth currently full of food. Rick sighs again and stands from his chair, heading to the bedroom the two women shared the night before. He knocks on the door.

"Lori, you okay in there?" When no answer is given, he sighs again. "Alright, I'm coming in."

Rick opens the door, finding the bed neatly made and Lori sitting on the edge of it and staring off into space blankly. The curly haired man walks over to his ex-wife, she makes no indication that she knows he's there. Rick carefully lifts her off the bed and guides her out to the dining table where Annette is quick to put a plate of food in front of her. Rick is relieved to see that Lori starts eating automatically, like she's on autopilot.

Hershel clears his throat softly as he gazes around the table. "We should do the service before it gets too hot outside. Don't want the heat to...to affect them." He murmurs in his calming voice, looking uncomfortable. Rick nods and finishes his food before glancing at the uninjured men of the group.

"Let's get the graves dug." He orders gently, pressing a kiss to Carl's head before heading out the front door to the shed where shovels are kept. Morgan, Daryl, and Merle follow him out. There are only two shovels so they take turns doing the digging. Morgan and Rick doing the first half of each grave and Daryl and Merle doing the second halves. It takes them until early afternoon to get the graves dug, the bodies placed, and then filled in.

The four men tromp back into the house to clean up and change clothes for the service. Annette insists on them eating lunch before they do, knowing they worked up an appetite from digging in the heat. After eating, Rick guides Lori out to the grave sites where she drops to her knees in front of the grave holding Shane's body. Hershel steps up, having made wooden crosses for each grave, and he and Rick put them at the head of each plot.

Hershel says a soft prayer before flipping the bible open and reading from it. "Then I heard a voice from heaven say, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. 'Yes,' says the Spirit, 'they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.' Revelations 14:13."

The rest of the group share memories of Shane, Otis, and Patricia. Rick tells the story of how Shane stole the principal's car when they were in high school, making the group laugh softly despite most of them having teary eyes. Hershel talks about Otis' kindness and his willingness to help others, no matter the cost, and Annette shares stories of Patricia and the kids she used to foster and give better lives to. Each person lays a stone on the graves, silent prayers being said for their souls, before they all head back inside.

The day isn't over yet and there is a lot to plan if they're going to make it through winter.

Chapter 17: Preparing

Summary:

The group prepare for winter

Notes:

Short, filler chapter

Rick sits at the table that night after dinner, Hershel's book and a blank notebook spread out in front of him. He's making notes of his own such as plans for runs, preserving as much of the crops, meat, and anything they can forage as possible, and taking out certain places that shouldn't be allowed to exist. After about half an hour of note scribbling, he looks up to find most of the group sitting there, watching him. Rick fights a blush as he clears his throat and addresses the group.

"Well, the first thing we need to do is raid the town of anything and everything that could be useful. Runs will need to be planned out, no one ever goes out alone. Not with Randal's group potentially lurking about. Daryl, Merle, think y'all can hunt? We need to start preserving anything and everything we can so we're not starving come winter. It'll be here before you know it." He pauses, consulting his notebook as he waits for an answer.

Daryl just nods in response and Merle grunts softly. "Could do that. Late summer is the best time ta catch game. And with no wardens 'round ta put a limit on what we can take.." The older Dixon grumbles to himself thoughtfully. Rick nods to them both as Jimmy pipes up.

"I can hunt too. Used to go with...with Otis." The boy says, his words wavering on the man's name. Daryl eyes the teen critically, head tilting and slate colored eyes narrowing. Hershel turns to the boy and raises a brow at him.

Jimmy huffs. "I can hunt with them! I was taught." He's grumbling under his breath as Rick shares a look with Hershel, both of them remembering the time he joined the search for Sophia without asking permission first. The farmer nods slightly so Rick sighs and locks eyes with the teen.

"Fine. You can go, but you will listen to everything the Dixons tell you." He orders the now elated looking Jimmy. Merle rolls his eyes at them all and Daryl grunts softly. Annette, joined by Carol and Beth, gets up to make supper as Hershel takes control of the meeting.

"The building behind the house is full of dry goods such as canned food, rice, pasta, and the like. It's also crammed with as many medical supplies as I was able to get. Most of the medication was from the vet clinic, but it's still able to be used on people. We've been slowly butchering the cattle, getting it smoked and dried to preserve for winter. Otis and Jimmy have been bringing in game, but not much. The girls have been busy canning the fruits and vegetables. Bet they'd like a hand with that."

Rick nods, noting it down in his notebook. They continue discussing plans for the coming weeks until dinner is served and Annette insists that they put their notebooks away. Rick has to guide Lori from the couch in the living room to a seat at the table, worry for her mental state filling his mind as he eats. He raises his head, locking eyes with Hershel and nodding subtly towards Lori. The older man nods, watching her carefully as she blankly stares at the wall while eating.

 

That's how the next three months go by. Hershel butchers fifteen head of cattle, drying or smoking the meat. Leaving ten cows and five bulls to keep the herd going as strong as they can manage. He also butchers ten pigs and preserves that meat. Leaving four sows and two boars. Maggie helps her father by dealing with the chickens. Culling the hens too old to lay eggs, and most of the roosters. Leaving them with twenty hens and three roosters. Merle, Daryl, and Jimmy hunt daily. They bring back deer, rabbits, squirrels, beavers, grouse, wild turkey, boars, snakes, and alligators to butcher and preserve.

The Dixon men had also foraged as much as they could. Bringing back mushrooms, nuts, berries, wild fruit, edible weeds, medicinal plants, and edible roots. Glenn, T-Dog, Morgan, Carol, Maggie, Shawn, and Andrea were on rotating run teams to the town and neighboring farms. Already they'd cleared nearby farms of their crops such as sweet corn, oats, vegetable gardens, fruits, and herb gardens. They'd also taken abandoned livestock like horses, pigs, goats, chickens, cows, and they even found a small herd of donkeys.

From the town, they'd cleaned out the pharmacy, hardware store, food bank, medical clinic, and they'd even cleared the high school to get to the Fema shelter there. The group was doing their level best to be as prepared for winter as they possibly could. It's mid-November now, according to the date on Rick's digital watch, and the air is already getting a bite to it. The nights have turned bitterly cold, dropping barely above freezing most of the time.

With winter closing in, Rick decides it's time to begin clearing out the prison and getting it ready for them to live in. Even if just as a bolt hole in case the farm is attacked. It's forty-five miles from the farm to the prison, a distance that was nothing in the Before world but could take two days in this one. A sense of urgency is beginning to build in the ex-cop's chest as Lori advances in her pregnancy, that she only let the group as a whole know about when Andrea told her they all knew from last time. Every day her belly grows larger as Rick's little girl gets closer and closer to being brought into this world for the second time.

Hershel did a lot to help Lori through the deep depression she fell into after Shane's death. She's not back to who she used to be, Rick doesn't think she'll ever be that woman again, but she's more alert and aware now. She takes care of Carl and does chores without having to be guided from place to place. Rick suspects that his ex-wife was really in love with Shane, more than she let on that first time, and his death rocked her to the foundations. This time he died right in front of her, she saw it happen, and that's a hard thing to handle. It's not like she'll ever unsee it happening. At least she can't possibly blame Rick for it this time, and for that the man is relieved. Although he hates that he was forced to kill Otis, he's glad that his former partner's blood isn't on his hands this time.

Shaking off those thoughts, Rick loads the SUV, and the truck they're taking to the prison with supplies just in case they do get stranded for a couple days. Weapons, food, water, and blankets to keep them warm. This trip includes Rick, Andrea, Daryl, Maggie, and Glenn. After saying their goodbyes to loved ones, the group set out to check on their former safe haven.

Chapter 18: Unexpected Surprises

Summary:

Rick and his team scout the prison and find a surprise waiting for them

It takes a day and a half to get from the farm to the prison, stopping at any place that looked promising to raid for supplies. It's just past dawn when they leave the cars hidden in the trees near the train tracks where they won't be spotted from the road and make their way towards the fence where they entered the last time. It's Daryl that spots it, stopping them in the tree line.

"Rick, hold up. Look at that, there ain't walkers in the yard. Somethin' ain't right." His deep voice sounds from right behind the ex-cop. Rick nods, having spotted it as well. Icy blue eyes sweep over the corpse free yard with laser focus, brows raising in surprise when he sees a cluster of tents and two cars in the upper left corner of the yard closest to the prison.

"There, do you see that?" He asks the group, pointing towards the tents. The group makes surprised noises around him as they stare at the tent. As Rick watches, one of the tents unzips and a figure emerges. A very familiar figure. A wide smile curls Rick's lips at the sight of Michonne, the grin only getting bigger when a tiny person leaves the tent behind her. This must be her son.

"Michonne?!" Andrea murmurs under her breath, pale blue eyes wide in shock.

"If she's here then she has to remember, right?" Glenn asks, his face set in a joyous expression.

Rick only hums, creeping closer to watch the people slowly pouring from the three tents circled around a fire pit. The blue eyed man feels more and more settled with each person that emerges. Sasha, Tyreese, Tara, and a woman with a child he doesn't recognize but concludes they must be Tara's sister and niece from how the young woman interacts with them.

Rick slowly comes out of the trees with a low, two-toned whistle. It's something the group came up with after Terminus, a way to recognize each other when it wasn't safe to speak. Michonne's head snaps up, dark eyes meeting Rick's through the fence and a beautiful smile lighting her face as she whistles back loudly. Rick grins and nods to the small group in the trees, letting them approach as well. He loves the look on the samurai's face when she spots Andrea.

She motions to the gates of the prison and Rick nods, leading his small band of people over to them. Michonne has them opened quickly and is able to restrain herself just long enough for the group to get inside and the gates to be shut before she's in Rick's arms. The former deputy holds her tightly, feeling her tears soaking his shirt as he clings to her. From the corner of his eye, he can see Glenn hugging Tara tightly and Maggie in an embrace with Sasha.

"You're here, you're here." He murmurs to the woman in his arms, pressing kisses to her dreads. She pulls back a bit, eyes red rimmed and face covered in tear tracks, and pulls him into a desperate kiss. Rick kisses her back just as desperately, feeling like it's been years since he held her like this. They only break apart when Tara wolf whistles at them playfully, Rick's laughing as he flips her the bird.

"Momma?" A small voice calls and Michonne breaks away from Rick with a soft expression to pick up the toddler that spoke.

"Is this-?" Rick cuts himself off, amazed at the sight of the gorgeous little boy. Michonne nods with a blinding smile.

"Andre, this is my very good friend, Rick. Can you say hello?" She softly says to him, turning the toddler to face the older man. Rick smiles his best at Andre as the boy shyly waves at him and murmurs a hello. He meets Michonne's eyes and raises a brow, silently asking about his father. She shakes her head and Rick nods, pressing a kiss to her temple. Before anything else can be said, Rick feels himself being pulled away from Michonne and into Sasha's arms as she cries softly.

"It's so good to see you, Rick. Watching...I felt so horrible that I couldn't do anything." She says against his shoulder. Rick just soothes her gently as he did with the others. Icy blue eyes glance around at the others, pausing on a confused looking Tyreese as he watches Rick comfort his crying sister. He can see it in the bigger man's eyes, he doesn't recognize any of them. 'Damn, guess he doesn't remember, then.' Rick things to himself with a sigh. 'The only good thing about it is that he doesn't remember the trauma of his death.'

A laugh is pulled from his throat as he's passed from Sasha to Tara. The young woman holding him tight but not crying as the other two had. Looking over her head, he sees Michonne clasp hands with Daryl as Andrea wraps the lithe woman in a rib crushing hug. Glenn is hugging Sasha tight, lifting her feet off the ground. Once the reunions were out of the way, Rick turned to face Tyreese and Tara's family.

Sasha smiled at her brother, moving to pat the big man on the shoulder. "Ty, these are some of the people I was telling you about. This is Rick, Daryl, Maggie, Glenn, and Andrea. They're part of our family." She explains as Tyreese looks at all of them warily. Rick smiles at the gentle man, offering his hand for a shake. His lips curve upwards when Tyreese takes it, giving a firm shake. Tara steps back from Glenn with a wide grin, tugging her sister and niece forward.

"Guys, this is my sister, Lily, and my niece, Meghan. You didn't get to meet them last time...when Brian...when he attacked the prison, he kept them behind at our camp." She explains, stumbling a little when she mentions the attack. "Lily is a nurse! I thought we could use her skills..."

Glenn is the first one to step up, offering his hand to the shell shocked woman with a broad smile, Maggie right on his heels. Rick nods to the woman, smiling at the little girl at her side. As the introductions are wrapping up, Rick finds himself back beside Michonne with her hand wrapped up in his larger one. He clears his throat, getting everyone's attention.

"As happy as I am to find y'all here, I know folks who will be even more excited to see you. We're all stayin' on Hershel's family farm at the moment, about fifty miles from here. Myself, Andrea, Glenn, Maggie, Daryl, Hershel, and Carol remember so far." He tells them, giving Michonne's hand a soft squeeze as she smiles at the mention of Hershel.

"We'd love it of you returned home with us, all of you. We came here today to clear the prison yard but it seems you've already done that." Glenn laughs, grinning at the people around him. Tara cheers softly and high fives the young man, making Rick laugh at them. He looks to the woman at his side, pale blue meeting dark brown as he waits for her response.

Michonne just snorts. "If you think I'm letting you leave here without me, you're damn crazy." Rick grins brightly and leans in to kiss her again, feeling her smile against his mouth. Andre makes a huffing noise that has Rick leaning back and looking at the toddler. The boy is eyeing him carefully, and with much more focus than a child his age normally has. He smiles at Andre as the little boy snuggles against his mother's chest and closes his eyes. Michonne laughs softly.

"He never was very fond of strangers. Used to drive Mike crazy." Her voice is soft when she mentions her ex boyfriend and Rick places a comforting hand on her shoulder. He doesn't know what happened this time, but she'll tell him when she's ready. Rick looks at the gathered people and smiles as his heart fills even more.

"Let's get you folks loaded up so we can get back home." He says, smiling at the cheers from Sasha and Tara.

It takes less than an hour to get their camp packed and loaded into their vehicles. Once done, Rick decides to ride with Michonne and the Williams' siblings. Leaving Daryl to drive their car back. He's feeling much lighter, reunited with his love like this, when the convoy pulls away from the prison to head back to the farm.

Chapter 19: Reactions

Summary:

The group head back to the farm to reunite their family. Drama ensues

It took a further four days to return to the farm. Sasha had them stop at several places where she'd left supply stashes for them to collect that their own tiny group just didn't have the room to transport or store. This included an entire horse trailer of supplies that Sasha said had come from their neighbor Jerry's backyard bunker in Florida. Rick was damn glad to see all that they'd collected. The group wasn't hurting for food or warm clothing right now but with every little bit they collect, the worry clouding Rick's mind eases that much more.

The caravan pauses at the main gate to the farm and Rick rolls the window down, letting out that sharp, two-toned whistle. The guard, T-Dog today, opens the gate for the cars and waves them in. The blue eyed man reaches over the console to take Michonne's hand as they drive up, excited for their family to reunite. The woman gives his hand a squeeze and smiles softly at him before the car comes to a stop in front of the big farmhouse.

Rick brings her hand up to his lips and kisses her skin before sighing softly and getting out of the car, catching his son when Carl runs up and hugs him tight around the waist. He turns and watches the residents of the farm greet the new people with hugs and smiles. Michonne wrapped in a hug by Hershel as the man whispers in her ear and Carol hugging Sasha tightly. The gray haired woman falters slightly at seeing Tyreese, Rick can see her breath hitching, before steeling herself and smiling brightly, introducing herself.

"Well hell, ain't it nice ta see ya? Yer lookin' good, ma Nubian Queen!" Merle's loud voice booms out as he strides towards Michonne, a grin on his lips. Rick can't keep his laughter contained as Michonne smiles sweetly at the redneck before hauling back and decking him across the face hard enough the large man stumbles.

"That's for getting yourself killed, you stupid hick." She tells him, eyes narrowed into a glare that would make lesser men turn tail and run. Merle just laughs, rubbing over his jaw where a bruise is already blooming. Rick notes that Daryl is just watching them both with a smirk on his thin lips.

Rick smiles and wraps his arms around Michonne's waist, just happy to have the woman back by his side after months without her. He can see her dark eyes resting on Carl who stands on Rick's other side, a slight sadness in them for the lack of recognition on the boy's face. Rick nuzzles her neck softly in comfort, his smile getting wider when she squeezes his arms softly.

Everything is going great until the door to the house opens and Lori walks out. Her brown eyes immediately lock onto Rick where he's wrapped around Michonne from behind, her face going red in anger. He sighs and steels himself, giving the woman in his arms a soft squeeze as the skinny brunette starts stalking down the steps towards them. Everyone else has gone quiet, eyes bouncing between Rick and his very angry ex.

"What the hell is this? You leave me just to shack up with some skank you don't even know?!" Lori shrills at them, her chest heaving from anger. Rick feels his own anger flare at her insults towards Michonne, the woman in question stiffening in his arms. He can't see her face but knows the glare that must be on it. The same intimidating glare she gave him when they first met. The former deputy tries to deescalate the situation.

"Lori, there ain't no need to be so rude. This is Michonne, we were together in the other timeline. It was after you were...gone. Our marriage is done, was done long before me and Michonne got together." He keeps his voice reasonable, the same tone he used to take when they would fight while still married, but firm in his words. Lori's face screws up even more and she opens her mouth to argue but is cut off before she can even speak by Rick.

"No. I don't want to hear it, Lori. You don't have to like that we're together, but you will respect our relationship. Swallow it and move on." He tells her firmly, meeting her eyes with his own hard ones. He sees the woman stiffen, swallowing hard at the steel in his tone as Michonne relaxes enough to lean back against his chest, her eyes flicking to Lori's swollen stomach with recognition.

The brunette lets out a wordless scream of frustration and whips around, stomping back towards the house. Rick watches his ex-wife walk away with a mild sense of dread, knowing that won't be the last they'll see of her temper regarding his relationship with the dark skinned woman. A tug on his shirt makes the man look down to see Carl looking up at him with an innocent expression.

"Are you really with this woman, Dad? I thought...I'd hoped you and Mom would get back together eventually." His son says, cheeks going a faint pink at his admission. Rick sighs softly and gently steers Carl away from the group, tugging Michonne along by the hand. Stopping by the barn, the ex-cop kneels in front of his boy, looking into blue eyes so much like his own.

"Yes, Carl. Michonne and I are together, I really like her. I'm sorry if I gave you false hope of your mother and I gettin' together again, that is somethin' that won't be happenin'. Me and your mom...we just didn't work. You remember how we fought all the time before I was shot, right?" He says softly, a grimace of a smile appearing when Carl nods. Showing that he does remember the way Lori would blow up screaming at Rick about anything and everything. Only getting angrier when Rick didn't fight back.

Beside them both, Michonne kneels down and smiles at his son. "Hi, Carl. I'm Michonne. It's really nice to meet you." She says, holding out a hand. Carl takes it hesitantly, giving one shake before pulling back. Rick smiles at their interaction. She's treating him like an adult, an equal. Same as she always has.

"I have a son, a few years younger than you. His name is Andre. Would you like to meet him?"

Carl nods, seemingly more excited at the idea of meeting another child. Michonne stands from her kneeling position on the grass and heads back towards the car, his son following her and chatting ninety to nothing. Asking questions about her own son. Rick stays where he is, contentment filling him as he watches them interact, as he watches his whole family. There are still some people missing, but they'll find them. Rick knows they will.

He's looking at them still, seeing the way Carol softens when she sees Andre perched on his mother's hip, chattering at Carl excitedly. He spots the bittersweet smile on Maggie's face as she too watches the little boy, a hand over her flat stomach and longing in her eyes as she leans back into Glenn's chest. The young man himself is murmuring softly into his wife's ear, something that makes her smile turn a bit softer.

'This.' he thinks to himself. 'This is what we're fighting for. A life and family that gets to live in peace.'

Notes:

Weather is horrible here, might not have power tomorrow so enjoy the early update!

Chapter 20: Winter Begins and the Prison

Summary:

Winter sets in and the group begin clearing the prison

The next few months were a blur of cold and activity. By mid-December, the cold truly set in and didn't leave. The nights were well below freezing and the days hovered at barely above. Hershel had finally shown the group the purpose of the cabins dotted through one of the fields, homes for their people while they prepared. Between the two, they'd assigned the living quarters to ride out the winter.

Rick, Michonne, Carl, and Andre. Daryl, Merle, Carol, and Sophia. Tara, Lily, and Meghan. Andrea, and Amy. Sasha, Tyreese, and T-Dog. Morgan, and Duane. Glenn stayed with the Greene's in the main house. Lori stayed in a cabin by herself, furthest from the one Rick and Michonne lived in.

All of the group stayed busy from just after breakfast until the sun went down. Between farm chores, scavenging supplies from nearby towns, clearing and securing the area around the prison, and discreetly keeping an eye on Woodbury, the group was exhausted. Rick had taken the Dixon brothers back to Atlanta to finish clearing out the food distribution center, the apartment building they'd hit last time, and several more locations.

Jimmy had died not long after the first snowfall, a hunting trip gone south. It had devastated Beth. Rick and Daryl had watched the teenage girl closely as she went through the trauma, wondering if it would trigger her memory of the other time. Unfortunately, the tragic loss of her boyfriend had not triggered her memories. The ex-cop could see how desperately his brother wanted the girl to remember, wanted her to recognize him.

Today, Rick was taking a group to search through the prison, they'd picked up bricks from hardware runs to patch up holes in the tombs. The group consisted of the Rick, Michonne, Daryl, Glenn, Maggie, and Sasha. Enough strong fighters to watch each other's backs without taking everyone from the farm in case it came under attack. They needed people to defend their home as well.

The deputy sighed, thinking about the prisoners trapped in the cafeteria. He knew that Oscar and Axel would be alright, but he was unsure of the one they called Big Tiny. He was an unknown, seeing as he died so quickly. Rick knows that Tomas and his little sidekick would have to die. There was no other way around it. The skinny, squirrely man would not be allowed to invade the prison and set off the alarms like last time.

The trip was shorter this time, around a day, since they weren't raiding supplies constantly. The group easily slipped into the cleared yard of the prison, drawing knives as they went, and made their way up to the entrance of the prison proper. By the time they make it into the dark, dank interior, Rick is sweating despite the cold and covered in walker gore. Head lamps are lit, shining light into the gloom, and the curly haired deputy uses hand signals to direct his people towards cell block C.

The hallways are narrow and pitch black besides the thin beams from their lights, and the entire group is on edge for walkers that might reach out from the shadows and grab them. All of them have eyes on the ground as well, remembering how Hershel was bitten. Sasha lets out a startled noise as a hand grabs onto her short hair, pulling her backwards and off balance. She falls with a shout, the walker falling on top of her. Maggie is quick to drive her knife through the back of the walking corpse's head, making it go limp. Sasha shoves it off of her with a disgusted noise, jumping up to her feet.

"You alright?" Rick asks, icy blue eyes looking over her intently. He's relieved when she nods, readying her blade and pressing closer to their formation. They make it to block C without further incidents, though they're all completely splattered in walker fluids. Glenn has a wild smile on his face, dark eyes lit up in happiness. Rick can't blame him. The cell block is exactly how he remembers it from the first time. Secure, if a little filthy with blood and dead inmates.

It's not the desperate relief and joy at finally being behind walls that fills Rick's chest this time, but a low burn of comfort at being back in the familiar surroundings. This is where his daughter was born.

"We'll spend the night in the cells before pushing inward deeper into the prison." He says, going to what was once his cell and dragging the body of the inmate out of it. Trying not to grimace at the corpse's zip tied hands and the blood trail from the wound in the side of its head. The other members of the little group nod and pick out their own cells. Maggie and Glenn of course going into the same one.

The next morning, after a breakfast of protein bars, the group pushes deeper into the dark hallways of the prison. They're all even more tense than before, Sasha's near miss the day before putting them even more on edge. Thankfully there are no more close calls before they manage to reach the cafeteria doors. Rick lets out a deep sigh, knowing what they'll find behind these doors. His grip on his ax tightens as he nods for Daryl to open one of the doors.

The group files in and spreads out, weapons raised high and ready to defend themselves, only to be greeted by five faces looking at them. Two showing surprise and suspicion, two showing angry suspicion, and one showing relief and recognition. Axel steps forward, a wide smile on his mustached face as he nods to Rick before turning to his companions.

"There are the men I was tellin' you 'bout. They saved us last time." He says, as if that explains it all. Rick guesses that to him, it does. Some of the suspicion fades from the two larger black men behind the blonde. Rick is pleased to note that they seem to relax some, their stances getting less threatening. The sound of a gun cocking fills the room, drawing the blue eyed cop's attention back to Tomas. He has the little six shooter pointed at Rick's head.

"Hold the hell up, hoss. We don't know you." The Latino man growls out, his dark eyes narrowing as they scan over Rick's group. Rage tingles down the ex deputy's spine when he notices how those eyes pause on Sasha, Michonne, and Maggie. Seemingly undressing them in his mind. Daryl has apparently noticed it too as the redneck shifts his stance until he's standing slightly in front of Sasha. This makes Glenn take notice, the man pulling his wife a half step behind him. Rick doesn't even try to cover Michonne, knowing the samurai can take care of herself. Tomas scoffs and turns his gaze back to Rick's, near black meeting glacier cold blue.

"We're the folks who're gonna get you out of here, if you can follow our rules." Rick intones, though truthfully he has no plans on letting the shorter man, or his little sidekick, leave this room alive. The curly haired man moves closer to the Latino, confident in his safety with the way Daryl has his crossbow aimed between the other man's eyes.

"Good news, boys, you've been pardoned by the state of Georgia. You're free to go." He says, somewhat sarcastically, remembering Daryl saying that the first time around. The redneck's snort lets him know that he remembers that line as well. Andrew scoffs this time, glaring at the group in front of him. Tomas spits on the ground, seeming to puff himself up.

"The way you're talking, sounds like there's no place for us to go." He spits out, glare intensifying in a way that might have been scary if Rick hadn't lived all the time he had in the world of the dead. Rick gives a sarcastic grin and spreads his hands out.

"You can either take your chances on the road or join our group and follow our rules but let's get one thing straight. You will not be in charge." Rick has to try very hard to keep his voice even and calm, the sight of the two men across from him filling his entire being with rage. Remembering that Tomas nearly killed him and the devastation that Andrew wrought the last time. Losing T-Dog and Lori, thinking they'd lost Carol...

He barely sees it before everything happens at once. Tomas shifts his stance, grip tightening on the gun, before a sharp twang rings out and the Latino man drops with an arrow between his eyes. Rick immediately turns, drawing his Python while he does, and shoots Andrew in the head. Both men are dead before they hit the ground.

Chapter 21: Setting Up

Summary:

The group makes the prison habitable and safe

Things had gone smoothly after that, with the minor hiccup of the remaining prisoners that didn't remember looking at Rick's group like they were insane. Despite the relief of the two instigators being dead, cold-blooded murder is still something that green people are getting used to.

Rick has to smile as he leads the three men out of the prison and into the sun lit yard, the smiles on the inmate's faces at being out in the sun for the first time in months making him feel some type of way. Axel joining their group again is a given, but the ex-cop isn't so sure about the other two. He doesn't really know them, both having died rather quickly the last time around. He clears his throat and turns to look at the two large men.

"I need an answer. Are you staying here, knowing it means following our rules, or are you headed off?" Icy blue eyes meet two sets of deep brown, one after the other. Both men pause, weighing his words as they study the group surrounding them. Measuring them. Oscar takes a half step forward.

"What about my kids, my old lady?" His deep voice rings out, though he speaks softly.

"And my moms." Big Tiny pipes in, a forlorn look on his face.

"You got a phone or something we can use to call our families?" Oscar continues, nodding to Big Tiny in acknowledgement. Rick sighs and goes to answer, but Axel beats him to it.

"I tried tellin' you. There are no phones. No government, no Wi-Fi, cellphones, electricity unless you have a generator, or running water." The squirrely looking man says, eyes downcast in sadness. Seemingly at having to crush his friends' hopes. Rick nods.

"Near as we can tell, over half the population has been wiped out." The words are solemn, his lips turning down in a frown as he tries not to think about all the kids that are included in that number. It pains Rick to see the devastation sweep over the two men's faces, the knowledge that their loved ones are most likely already gone from this world.

"Come on, there's a lot of work that needs to be done. If you're staying that is?" He questions, raising a brow at the inmates. The two look at each other, a silent conversation happening, before Oscar meets Rick's eyes and nods once. Relief fills his chest at their decision. He could use the muscle, and it would be good for Axel to not lose his friends this time around. Rick claps his hands together and turns to head back into the prison, the rest of the group following along behind him.

The day is spent in an exhaustive sate of awareness for every member of the group as they move through the dark hallways of the tombs. They've managed to clear a good portion of the tombs, find and patch two holes with the bricks they brought, and find the infirmary. As Carl had said the first time around, there isn't much left but every little bit helps. It's a bone tired band of people who fall into beds in their cells that night, too exhausted to even remove their boots.

This was the routine for the next week, just clearing walkers and patching holes in the walls and fences. They kept in contact with the rest of the group still on the farm with radios taken from one of the military camps. At the end of the week, Merle and Tyreese drove one of the livestock trucks up from the farm with chickens, goats, gardening equipment, and seeds. They then spent the next few hours using scavenged wood to build pens and paddocks for the livestock while Rick got to work tilling part of the field for a garden.

A part of the man seemed to relax even more at the familiar work in such a familiar place. It was still a little too cold to plant, but that didn't mean he couldn't get the land tilled and soft for when it came time to in the early spring. When Rick wasn't outside working on his garden or helping build pens for the coming animals, he was inside doing cleaning to get the cell blocks ready for his people. There was plenty to do to keep himself busy, keep his mind from worrying about enemies like the Governer.

The bodies of inmates needed removing from the inner prison, walker bodies needed dragging out of the tombs, and all of them needed to be burned before the rot corrupted living spaces and soil. Once all the corpses were gone, the cell blocks needed scrubbing and sanitizing to remove the dried blood everywhere and hopefully prevent people from getting sick. Merle and Tyreese stayed another three days, helping where they could and going on supply runs to raid the nearest towns of their supplies.

By the end of two weeks the prison was cleaned and secured, a stockpile of supplies was placed in block D, and the animals were properly housed for the winter. There was even a paddock built for the horses once they were moved over. At the moment, Rick had no plans to live in the prison full time, it was more like he was creating a secure bolt hole in case the farm failed. It would eventually fail, Rick knew. Either by a monstrous herd of walkers or from people who want what they have.

Shaking those thoughts away, the curly haired man continued to pack up the meager belongings he'd brought with him for the trip. Mostly consisting of weapons, a couple changes of clothes, and toiletries. He also added two days of food and water in case they were to get stranded between here and home. Finishing with that, he walked out to the main area of the cell block his people had once called home and gave a two-toned whistle to get their attention.

"It's about time we got back home. Just in case it snows, I don't want to be stranded here away from the rest of the family. Oscar, Tiny, and Axel. You three will stay here to look after the animals and make sure no one tries to muscle in on our home, alright?" Rick speaks in a calm, authoritative voice. Years of leading these very people making him confident his orders will be carried out. Oscar just nods, having pretty much already expected that.

Rick nods in return and heads out of the prison to where they'd left their vehicles parked. Merle is doing a final check on the engines, making sure they're all up to making the drive. He slams the hood on a beat up truck as Rick approaches, wiping his hands off on a rag.

"They'll make it, but we might wanna ditch this junker once we's back at the farm. The engine is more rusted than Dale's damn RV." The redneck grouches, making the blue eyed man smile at the familiar complaint about the RV.

"We'll see about finding another truck once we're home. Not like we're not spoiled for choice with all the ones sitting abandoned." Rick replies, running a hand over the growing scruff on his jaw as he finds himself missing the thick, bushy beard he sported after the prison the first time around. Merle just grunts and spits off to the side before heading over to the livestock truck and climbing into the driver's side.

Before too long, everyone that's going is loaded up into their cars and leaving the prison behind. Big Tiny closing the gates behind them. Rick takes a slow breath, relief filling him at having a definite place to run to if the farm should fall, longing for his boy now driving him as he angles his truck towards the farm and steps down on the gas.

Chapter 22: End of Winter and Good News

Summary:

Winter comes to a close and the group gets some very good news

Winter was coming to a close. The days warming up to near uncomfortable temperatures even if the nights were still freezing, and Rick's group, his family, was flourishing. The crops that Hershel planted had been harvested. Thankfully he'd over planted in expectation of having a large group to feed, Rick is thankful for it as it means they can preserve a good portion of the harvest to save for future use.

They'd had luck with their farm animals as well. Several of the cows in the herd had calves over the winter months and two of their mares had foaled. Tara seemed to come back with some new type of critter every time she went on a run. Her finds had ranged from the normal things like pigs, horses, a couple of loose cows, to the odd animals like camels and a small herd of bison. The blue eyed man remembers Daryl nearly choking on his laughter when the rookie cop had called in a request for help capturing and bringing back the bison.

Today Rick was on his menial chore shift, laundry and helping cook supper. One of the first things he'd established when they'd arrived at the farm was that everyone, no matter their gender, would take two days a week to do chores around the farm. Most of the women were thrilled with this, as it meant that they were actually allowed to train with weapons and be sent on runs. The only one who wasn't was of course Lori.

She hated that the women were allowed a gun and taken out to participate in runs and raids. Rick subconsciously winces when he remembers the bitch fit she threw the first time he'd let Carl be taken on a run. Things had only gotten worse once Michonne had involved herself in the conversation, as she was the one Carl would be going with. All the pent-up emotions Lori had been bottling up about their failed marriage, about Rick and Michonne's relationship, and about how close the samurai was with her son had all come out that day.

Rick won't lie and say he didn't enjoy watching Michonne put his ex-wife in her place. Since then, all had been quiet. Lori was obviously unhappy, but she didn't cause scenes or unnecessary drama. The pregnant woman mostly kept to herself, as Carl would barely speak to his mother and no one else really wanted to be around her either.

Rick couldn't help but feel bad for the skinny brunette, but he also knew she'd brought it upon herself. 'Was she always like this?' He thinks to himself. 'Was she always this antagonistic, sheltered, and prejudiced against certain people? How did I not notice?' He shakes those thoughts off and goes on with hanging up the wet laundry on a line behind the main farmhouse. Thought like those are what drove him crazy the first time around. The what ifs and things he could have done different if he'd just paid a bit more attention.

It's getting dark by the time he is finished with his chore duty for the day, so he stacks the empty laundry baskets up on the front porch of the Greene house and goes inside for dinner. Carol smiles at him as she hands him a plate of meat and vegetables. Rick smiles back and winks at Sophia when he goes past the little girl.

It makes her laugh and that is music to his ears, knowing she's safe and whole is a blessing that's come out of all the hard work these last few months have been. They've just sat down to eat, Beth in the middle of saying a blessing, when a radio statics to life on Rick's belt. It's Sasha, who's on a gate watch shift.

"Rick, there's three cars coming up the driveway. The front is the one that the Dixons took last week, and the next two are unfamiliar." Her voice crackles through the tiny speaker. Rick looks up, exchanging worried looks with Glenn, Maggie, and Carol.

"We're on our way, don't let them inside until we get there." Rick orders, standing from his untouched dinner and heading for the door. Footsteps behind him let him know that at least two people are hot on his heels. A quick glance shows that it's Glenn and Maggie. He nods to them both and they slip into formation with an ease that only years of doing it together can produce.

Maggie chews on her lip as they jog down to the main gate. "Daryl wouldn't bring anyone here that meant to hurt us, right? And you know my dad sure as hell wouldn't. So these can't be bad people..."

Rick sighs and shakes his head. "They could be forced. We don't know what happened out there, they could have grabbed one of them and made the other two show them where they were holed up." He informs the girl, feeling a little bad about how her face hardens over at the thought of that.

They reach the gate and climb up to the little platform that Shawn had built so long ago. Rick holds his hand out, taking a pair of binoculars from Sasha. Looking through them, the ex-cop can't help the relieved laugh that booms from his chest. He turns and hands the binoculars to Glenn.

"Have a look. Maggie was right." Is all he says as he begins pulling on the ropes that'll swing the heavy gate open. Glenn spies through the lenses and chuckles, sounding breathless with relief.

"Carol will be so happy to see them." The Asian man grins as he speaks, handing over the binoculars to his wife when she makes an impatient noise. The car holding Hershel, Daryl, and Merle is the first one through the gates. Merle leaning out to the window to flip them off with a crooked smile that has Rick laughing once again.

The next two cars hold people that the former deputy never thought he'd see again. Inside the first car is Ceasar Martinez, Karen, and three teenage boys that Rick can't quite place. The second car holds Ryan Samuels, and one of his daughters- Rick can't tell which one- along with a bulk of supplies.

Rick climbs down from the watch platform and walks over to greet everyone as they begin to emerge from their cars. Ryan is holding his daughter close to his side as he gazes around at the farm in wonder and the teenage boys are attempting to hide behind Karen. It makes him a little sad to see the fear in their faces and he hopes to god that none of the kids remember the last time, remember how they died.

He claps Daryl on the shoulder as he passes, nodding when Hershel lays one of his own wrinkled hands upon Rick's shoulder. Daryl nods at him and heads straight for the house, no doubt to tell Carol that one of her surrogate children has arrived. Rick turns his attention to the newcomers once he's made sure with his own eyes that his people are whole and safe. Icy blue meets dark brown as Martinez steps forward with his hand extended.

"You may not remember us but I-" Rick cuts him off.

"I remember. I know who you are, Martinez. You as well, Karen." The Latino man's shoulders relax some at the knowledge.

"Good, good. Let me introduce everyone so you can relearn their names. This is Ryan and his daughter, Mika. The boys behind Karen are Jody, Patrick, and Noah." He points to each person in turn as he says their name. Rick finally manages to place the face of the boy with glasses. He's Patrick, the boy who used to hang out with his son at the prison. The first one to die of the sickness. 'That won't happen this time.' The ex-cop promises himself.

Further conversation is halted by the sound of multiple pairs of feet pounding in their direction. Rick looks up to see Carol, with Sophia and Carl following behind her, and Michonne running their way. The gray haired woman stops short when she catches sight of Mika, tears filling her blue eyes. The little girl, just a couple of years younger than Sophia, looks at her in confusion. No recognition in her own blue orbs.

Her father obviously remembers as he steps forward and wraps Carol up in a tight hug. Whatever he's whispering in her ear has the strongest woman Rick knows in tears as she clings onto the man's t-shirt. Michonne walks around the hugging pair, a small smile on her lips, and steps into Rick's arms. He kisses her cheek and grins softly. It still amazes him how much more open and affectionate she is this time around. Having her son back is having a profound effect on the previously stoic woman.

"Rick, there's something else I need to tell you." Martinez's voice calls his attention away from the woman in his arms and to the man himself. A raised eyebrow is all the answer he gives, and he watches the shorter man shift his weight nervously.

"The Governor is dead."

Chapter 23: Murderous Discussions

Summary:

Discussions take place on things that need to be done if the group is to live in peace

Rick could only stare at the other man in shock. He couldn't believe his ears. 'Dead? The Governor? Already?' These were the thoughts spinning around in his head, getting louder and louder as he tried to imagine what could have led to the extremely deranged man's death.

"What do you mean he's dead?" Andrea, having arrived in time to hear that last of their conversation, asks in an incredulous tone. "How in the world did a man as cunning as Philip die without it taking someone nearly dying themselves to end it?"

"I killed him myself." Martinez's words are flat, his expression having grown guarded. Rick tilts his head in thought, measuring the younger man. He wasn't part of the Woodbury contingent that arrived at the prison last time, having left with the Governor.

"Why?" The word is near whispered, but everyone hears it, feels the weight it carries. Martinez looks up from the ground and meets Rick's eyes steadily as he takes a deep breath.

"I remembered. I remembered the day everything started going bad....but not soon enough to save my wife or kids. I nearly ended it all, right there on the side of the road, but then a thought struck me. Revenge. He killed me last time, did you know? Hit me over the head with a beer bottle and threw me into a pit of biters." Here the Latino man shudders, his eyes haunted as he takes another deep breath.

"I knew he couldn't be allowed to live. So I did what I did last time, got myself picked up by him and his militia group. He remembered, I could see it in his eyes, but I pretended that I didn't. Was able to fool him for about seven months until he trusted me enough to let me close. We went out on a run one day, just me and him. I shot him in the head when his back was turned." His voice doesn't waver during this part of the explanation and Rick respects him all the more for it.

The old Rick, the man he was Before, would have been horrified at the idea of shooting someone in the back. Even someone as dangerous and crazy as the Governor. Rick isn't that man anymore. He sees the sense in taking out an enemy before they can strike, even if it means surprise attacks and shooting them in the back. After all, that's what his people did when they attacked Negan's satellite outpost. Killing all of those people in their sleep.

So instead of judging the other man for what he's done, Rick instead nods and offers him a hand. The meaning not lost on anyone as Martinez slowly reaches out and shakes it. This is Rick offering his protection, his friendship, and a place among his people.

"Come inside, dinner is ready. I'm sure Annette would love to have more people to fuss over and try to over feed." The curly haired man jokes as he turns and heads towards the main house. They'd just made it to the front porch when the screen door opens and out steps Tyreese. The big man freezes in his tracks when he spies the brunette walking behind Rick.

"Karen?" His voice has gone hoarse, eyes staring at the woman like he can't believe she's real. A wide smile lights Karen's face as she nods.

"Tyreese! I am so happy to see you." She says before the large man is thundering down the steps and wrapping her in a tender embrace. Rick has to look away when their lips meet, feeling the scene too intimate to watch. It feels like he's intruding. Instead, he squeezes the arm around Michonne's hips gently as he looks around at his people.

A small smile finds its way to his lips when he spots Carol watching the scene before them with joy on her face. It seems her pieces are being healed one by one. 'If anyone deserves peace, it's that dragon of a woman.' He thinks to himself, snorting at how he thinks of her in his mind. Everyone is pulled away from watching the reuniting couple by the screen door opening and Annette stepping out, hands on her hips.

"What is everyone doing out here when supper is getting cold on the table?"

Everyone, except the happy couple, look sheepish as they mutter apologies. The older woman shakes her head and spins around to go back inside. A laugh is shared among the group, all of them feeling like scolded school children, as they file inside to eat.

Dinner is quickly eaten and sleeping arrangements made for the night. Karen of course joins Tyreese in his room at the cabin he shares with his sister and T-Dog. Ryan and Mika end up joining Morgan in his cabin and the three teen boys get a cabin to themselves. Rick goes to sleep that night, Michonne already sleeping soundly in his arms, with a smile.

Early the next morning, the group gathers around the Greene's dining table for breakfast. Rick sits, nursing a cup of coffee with relish as he knows there won't too much longer that they'll have the drink due to expiration dates. Once everyone is mostly through with their food, he clears his throat. A small fission of pride flickers through him when he instantly gets every single person's attention.

Rick licks his lips to wet them before he begins. "We need to talk about what we're going to do with the rest of Woodbury now that the Governor isn't a threat. We also need to decide what to do about Terminus. There is no telling who, if anyone, remembers like we do."

Concern fills the faces looking back at him as everyone thinks over his words. Rick looks over at Karen.

"Will you please take the kids outside? They don't need to hear what's going on." He half asks and half orders. The brunette nods and gets up. Gathering up the children, including Carl who protests loudly about not being a kid, and taking them outside. Once everyone underage is out of the room, even Beth, Rick takes a deep breath and leans back in his chair.

"Martinez solved our problem with the Governor. That is one worry off our shoulders, as now the prison is safe from his attacks. This leaves us with the dilemma of what to do with the rest of Woodbury. You saw how the civilians were the first time around, they won't make it without their leader. We need to decide if that is our concern." His piece said, Rick goes quiet and watches the people around the table. It's no surprise that Andrea is the first to speak up.

"We need to save them! Most of those people didn't even know what Philip was or what he'd done." Her argument is met with a scoff from Maggie. The farmer's daughter is on her feet, glaring down at the blonde.

"Their militia sure knew enough! They participated in our torture. You saw the wounds they left on Glenn and they seemed to have no problem when I was brought out half naked! I say leave them to rot." Maggie's tone is cold and her words sharp, the idea of taking in the Woodbury people again seeming to set her off in a rage. Rick gets it. Those people were soft and time has taught them that you can't be soft and survive in this world.

"Those people are not our problem. They would be a drain on resources to keep them alive. Let them stay in their little town. Either they'll survive or they won't but it's not our problem to try and help them this time." Michonne speaks up from her place beside Rick, her words calm and measured. Andrea shoots her friend a betrayed look. Not unlike the one she gave other woman when she showed up to the prison before.

"They have things we might need. They have people we might need, like Doctor Stevens. We have plenty of medical supplies and we even have a nurse, but a doctor would go a long way in keeping us alive wherever we decide to settle." Hershel says, one hand clasped with his wife's and the other on Maggie's shoulder.

Rick nods at this, as it makes sense. He'd also like to try and find Doctor S. The man was valuable in the pandemic that hit the prison. He clears his throat, once again silencing all other conversations, and turns his attention to the people from Woodbury.

"You were there, in the town. You know these people better than we do. What do you suggest?" He asks them, curious to know what they think. Karen hums from her place leaned back against Tyreese and Martinez just shakes his head, running a hand through his short hair. It's Ryan that speaks up.

"I think Hershel is right, we need Doctor Stevens. If what Karen tells me is true, we may need her experience with the sickness that will hit the prison. She may be able to keep people from dying from it." The large man says, his hands petting anxiously at the tablecloth and eyes glancing out the front door where his daughter plays outside.

Rick badly wants to know what happened to his other daughter, curiosity burning in his chest, but he dares not ask. No use ripping open barely healed wounds. The former deputy sighs and takes a long sip of his now cold coffee, leaning forward so he's slightly hunched over the mug in his hands.

"So do we go to Woodbury and take the doctor, praying she remembers? Or do we wait and see if she does, see if she comes to us on her own?" He voices the question, leaving the decision up to his people. Ricktatorship, as he once heard Maggie call it, is long over. He needs his family to help him make the right choices.

Conversations and debates break out as the group weighs the pros and cons of each choice. The benefits of having an actual doctor versus the risk of attacking a heavily armed town with more people than they have by over half. Rick has to stop himself from rolling his eyes as Andrea once again makes herself heard above the noise. She's advocating to once more bring all of the Woodbury people into the fold. His lips twitch when Michonne slaps that idea down again, citing their need to be able to look after themselves first.

"Having to babysit those bastards would just get one of our people killed." That's Glenn. He's no doubt remembering Tara nearly dying, and Noah actually dying, thanks to Nicholas and Aiden's cowardice and refusal to listen. 'Ah hell, Noah.' He scolds himself. 'Can't believe I forgot about him. Tara and Glenn will most likely bring up his rescue soon and we'll have another debate about it, most likely.'

After more than an hour of arguing and going in circles, it's decided that they'll scout Woodbury and that Merle will sneak into the town to see if the doctor remembers. If she does, they'll help her move to the farm. If she doesn't then Merle will attempt to talk her into joining them without getting caught in the town which would then more than likely lead to his death at the hands of the militia. With that settled, Rick turns the topic to something they seemed to have overlooked.

"And now an easier question. What should we do about Terminus?" He asks and sees the immediate hardening of the faces of all those who experienced Gareth's 'hospitality'.

Chapter 24: Exterminating Termites

Summary:

Rick and co take on Terminus

It was decided that taking down Terminus was higher on the agenda then collecting the doctor from Woodbury. Gareth and his people are a much bigger threat than the town without their sociopathic leader. So now, two days after the meeting where it was all decided, Rick is leading a group of their people to the railyard to scope out the cannibals' home base.

Rick, Michonne, Carol, Daryl, Merle, and Martinez are in the woods surrounding Terminus, where Rick buried the bag of weapons the last time. They're all armed to the teeth and Carol has a rocket launcher clutched in her slim hands. 'Worked last time', she'd joked when questioned about it. They've watched the larger group come and go for over a day now, and what they've witnessed has not been promising.

"They have hostages, are we really just going to blow this place up again?" Michonne asks, a concerned crease between her brows that Rick desperately wants to reach over and soothe but this is not the time.

"We was in there last time and Carol blew it up. Ain't hurt us none." Darly responds, defensive of his...whatever he and Carol are. The dark skinned woman nods, seeing the truth in Daryl's words, but her frown stays in place. Rick sighs, knowing the decision is going to come down to him.

"We blow it, then we go in. They need to be worried about their walls coming down and letting walkers in, scrambling to make sure their people are okay. We don't need them discovering we're there until it's too late." He gives the order while checking the ammo in his Python and the automatic rifle strapped across his chest. Michonne shoots him a look, the same one she gave him after he knocked Aaron out the last time.

"Fine, but we still free the people they have trapped. As Glenn said, we're still those people. We have to be." She says, her dark eyes locked on Rick's. The man nods, as that's something he was already planning to do. All but that first train car as he remembers the deranged, tattooed man inside.

"We do this quick and quiet. They don't get to live." Rick says as Carol loads the rocket launcher and carefully takes aim. Just as she's about to pull the trigger, Merle lays one of his large hands on her upper arm.

"We take what supplies we can get from 'em too. No sense leavin' it ta sit there an' rot." The redneck says, his slate blue eyes squinting at the railyard camp through the fading sunlight. Rick hums, seeing the value in his words. Terminus will cease to exist after today, so there really is no sense in leaving the supplies they have behind for corpses. Carol shakes his hand off her arm, Rick is surprised to note a faint blush on her cheeks from the older man's touch, and takes aim again.

She squeezes the trigger and Rick catches her as the kickback nearly knocks the slight woman over. The execution group watches as the rocket flies towards Terminus and strikes at a large propane tank. The explosion is immediate and strong enough to shake the ground where they're standing. As Rick regains his balance, he turns to look at what has become of the cannibal camp.

The railyard is on fire; a section of the fence having gone down from the force of the blast. He can hear the screams of Terminus residents and the moans of walkers as they are drawn to the noise. Rick turns to look at his people and takes a deep breath while tightening his hold on the rifle in his hands.

"Let's do this." Is all he says. It's all that needs to be said. His people are well trained and combat ready, they move like a well oiled machine out of the cover of the trees and through the downed section of the fence. All of them have walker guts smeared onto their clothing and exposed skin, blending in with the herd that's now flooding into the railyard.

"Michonne, and Martinez you free the people trapped in the rail cars. Merle, and Carol you're in charge of gathering what supplies you can. Daryl, you're with me. We'll go for Gareth. If you come across these people, put them down. Don't hesitate, they won't." Rick quietly tells the group, voice no more than a whisper to not attract the attention of the dead walking all around them.

Without a sound, the group splits from each other in different directions to carry out their self-appointed missions. The gun in Rick's hands cracks twice, taking out two of the men he remembers from last time. The two who were in charge of 'bleeding the cattle'. They drop like stones, bullets through the chest, but Rick feels no remorse for this. To him, it's like putting down walkers. These men are barely even human anymore.

He can hear the twang of Daryl's bow mixed in with the deafening cracks of their guns, showing he's also taking out enemies while they make a dash through the burning camp towards the radio room. The place where Mary was using the radio to lure people to them last time. If Gareth and his family are anywhere, it's there. They burst into the room, guns drawn and looking for threats. Only to find the room empty.

Daryl glances at Rick, his eyes narrowed in suspicion and bow still at the ready. The blue eyed man empathizes with that feeling. He was so sure that the leader of Terminus would be here. An uneasy feeling begins to fill his stomach as he and Daryl push deeper into the room. The two men are rounding a corner when a shot rings out and Daryl grunts in pain.

Both men duck behind a desk as more shots sound. Rick glances over to the archer to find him clutching his right upper arm with the opposite hand. The worry must have shown on his face cause Daryl grunts at him.

"S'justa graze. Burns like hell though." Something tight in Rick's chest eases at the redneck's words. A sigh escaping his lips as he tears the end of his shirt and ties it tightly around the other man's wound. Daryl hisses at him from the pain but otherwise stays quiet.

The shots have stopped but neither of them dare to leave the cover of the desk. They have no way of knowing just how many people are in here or how armed they are. 'Stupid! I should have known they'd be ready. Cunning bastards.' Rick scolds himself mentally as the sound of footsteps draws closer to their hiding spot.

"Rick, that you? Or maybe it's the samurai, the archer?" Gareth's smooth voice sounds as he and one other person stalk toward them like predators circling prey. Rick's heart plummets at the knowledge that this man remembers. He's probably not the only one either.

"I should have known you'd remember. Though, I didn't think you'd be here quite this soon or I would have had a more...stellar welcome for you." The other man continues speaking, getting closer and closer to them. Rick carefully swings the rifle onto his back and pulls his hunting knife, sharing a look with Daryl as they both get ready to pounce. They nod to each other, a silent 'good luck' between them as their opponents round the edge of the desk on opposite directions.

There isn't time to check on the hunter as Rick lunges for Gareth. The crack of a gun rings in his ears at the same time a burning, searing pain shoots through his outer thigh. Rick grits his teeth from the pain and blindly lashes out with the blade in his hand, a flash of vindication ripping through him when it sinks solidly into Gareth's shoulder and the man lets out a cry of pain.

Letting go of the knife as the slighter man begins to back up, Rick instead focuses on getting the handgun out of Gareth's hand. Rather than grapple for it and take a chance on getting shot, again, he instead slams his fist into the other's wrist, making his grip weaken and the gun drop to the ground. All of this happens nearly too fast for Rick's mind to process, only seconds have gone by since he first attacked the taller man.

Rick has tunnel vision, all other sounds and sights fade from his mind, his eyes lock on Gareth as the man swings at him. The blow lands against his jaw and rattles him to the core from the force behind it but Rick doesn't let it stop him as he slams his own fist into his attacker's gut, knocking the air from him and making him retreat even more.

Rick presses the advantage, advancing on Gareth as he coughs and wheezes for breath. The other man proves his cunning, despite barely being able to breathe, and swings at Rick with his other hand. He hisses, feeling the stinging as the knife in Gareth's hand slices through his shirt and gets his side. He has to back up a step or two to avoid the wild slashes the clearly desperate man is making. This is a fight for their lives, each man is giving their all. It doesn't matter that Rick is barely standing steady with a gunshot wound in his leg, or that Gareth has a twelve-inch hunting knife sticking out of his left shoulder. Both are desperate to win, everything depends on it.

Gareth lunges for him and his weight combined with the unsteady leg pushes Rick onto his back. Both of Rick's hands are on the other man's wrists as he frantically tries to stop the pocket knife from being driven into his chest or throat. Rick's only saving grace is that Gareth isn't nearly as strong as Morgan was that day that they tussled. He lifts one of his hands up and drives a balled fist into Gareth's crotch as hard as he possibly can.

The other man let's out a strangled scream and hunches forward suddenly. The knife changes course from Rick's chest to slash a thin, long gash over his left cheek. The distraction is all Rick needs to roll them over and wrap his hands around Gareth's throat. He's squeezing hard, ignoring the burning pain from his wounds and the blood seeping into his clothes. His grip doesn't loosen until the taller man goes still, his struggles dying off as frantic eyes roll back into his head.

Just to make sure, Rick pulls the knife from Gareth's shoulder and drives it through his temple. Maybe a little rougher than needed but Rick wants this over with. He stands slowly, a hand clutching the bullet wound on his thigh and looks over to where he last saw Daryl. He is panting softly, leaned back on his hands with his legs stretched out, and Martin's body lays still a foot away. A gruesome cut on his throat showing how the arrogant man died.

"You good?" Rick asks as he limps over to his brother. Daryl just grunts and forces himself to his feet, his face a mess of bruises and a handprint on his neck showing that the archer fought hard for his life as well.

"Let's get the rest of our people and get out of here." The two pick through the building, stuffing anything that might be useful into Daryl's backpack before they leave. Daryl supporting Rick with his belt tied tightly around the other man's upper thigh.

Chapter 25: Aftermath

Summary:

The group make it home, though not unscathed, and new faces appear

It takes longer than it should for Rick and Daryl to make it out of Terminus and back to the safety of the woods where the group is set to meet back up. Both men are constantly having to put walkers down that are drawn to the scent of fresh blood coming from Rick's injuries. By the time Daryl is leaning Rick up against the trunk of a tree, the ex-cop is barely conscious from the amount of blood he's lost.

Michonne is instantly by his side, digging in a bag for a first aid kit they packed before leaving the farm. Worry fills Rick's foggy mind as her beautiful face swims in and out of focus before his eyes. She's speaking but Rick can't hear the words, it's like his ears are stuffed full of cotton. Glazed over blue eyes catch sight of Merle, and Carol running up to them with several bags loading them down before a sudden, stinging pain in his injured leg snaps him back into reality.

"-may sting a little, I'm sorry, but it's best to stitch this up now rather than wait for Lily or Hershel to do it. You won't make it to the farm bleeding like this." Michonne is saying, her steady hands working to stitch the gunshot wound on his thigh.

"What the hell happened in there? He looks like he went rounds with Mike Tyson. You both do." Carol's cool voice sounds, though Rick can tell the question is not aimed at himself. He's thankful for that as right now, he's simply struggling to stay awake. Talking is beyond his capabilities.

"We found Gareth, sumbitch surprised us. He-" Daryl begins to explain, but Rick stops paying attention as someone moves in Martinez's shadow. A new person. Black spots are beginning to cloud his vison as Rick strains to make out the person's features. The figure moves closer but before Rick can even make out if it's male or female, the world goes black, and he slips into unconsciousness.

 

Pale eyes hazily open as awareness begins to fill his mind. The former deputy is half expecting to be back in the hospital again as he looks at the white walls surrounding him and the feel of an IV needle in his arm. The blanks begin to fill as Rick recognizes Hershel's guest room. 'Why am I in the main house?', he wonders to himself. Suddenly, the memories of what happened at Terminus flood into his mind. The fight with Gareth, the wounds he sustained, and the new person he saw.

Rick tosses back the blanket covering him and attempts to leap to his feet..only to collapse back onto the bed with a strangled scream of pain as his thigh flares with agony. The bedroom door bursts open and Hershel, Michonne, and Daryl rush into the room and straight to Rick's side. Hershel puts a hand on Rick's chest and gently pushes him back down onto the bed.

"Hold on, son, don't need you tearing your stitches trying to jump back into things." The vet's calm voice soothes some of Rick's worries. His mentor wouldn't be so collected if they'd lost one of their own in the attack. Just to be sure, he glances at his partner and brother.

Michonne's face is stoic, though her brows are creased with worry, as she holds his hand gently. There's a healing cut over her left eyebrow that has a butterfly bandage on it and Rick wonders how she got it. Daryl still looks like he was in a bar brawl, but the bruises are yellow tinged showing they're healing. The hunter's slate colored eyes are narrowed with concern as he watches Rick.

"H-how long?" His voice cracks, coming out raspy from disuse. Hershel pours him a paper dixie cup full of water from a pitcher on the bedside table and helps him hold it to his lips. Rick drinks greedily, barely having the presence of mind to remind himself to slow down.

"It's been a week." The farmer says as he goes back to bandaging Rick's thigh, seemingly pleased that the stitches haven't torn. Rick is floored. 'A week? I've been out for a full week? Jesus, Michonne must have been losing her mind...and what about Carl?' Rick internally worries, his right hand flexing on the bed as he actively resists the urge to reach up and run it through his hair.

"Is everyone back safe?" Rick is pleased to find his voice stronger this time. Relief floods through him when Michonne nods.

"Everyone is fine, though Martinez is recovering from a broken wrist since one of those bastards got the drop on him." She informs him, making a knot of tension deflate in his chest.

"Thank god. I worried when I woke up and no one else was in here." He informs them, eyes flitting from face to face. There's a tension in their shoulders all of a sudden that makes the ex-cop nervous. A face flashes in his memory, foggy though it is, that prompts him to ask what's on his mind.

"There was someone else with us, when we all met up. Who was that?" Daryl appears to tense even more, his jaw setting unhappily. Michonne sighs at the redneck before turning to look at Rick with a slight smile.

"A guy that Terminus held prisoner in the rail car. Along with his girlfriend. She has a messed up leg, we couldn't very well leave them to their own devices." Something about that niggles at Rick's memory but he just can't place it. He suddenly has a flash of a young woman with a leg that didn't heal right, but he can't put a name to her face in his mind.

"I need to speak to them." He decides. Something about the look on his face prevents the others from arguing, even Hershel, though the man does look at Rick with disapproval clear on his aged face. The curly haired man just grins at his mentor as he heaves himself into a sitting position again.

The older man shakes his head and stands, leaving the room after taking out the IV. Presumably to tell the rest of their family about his condition. Rick tries not to let it affect his pride that Michonne has to help him from the bed and then she and Daryl have to half support him the few steps to the door. They continue to guide him down the hallway to the stairs, where Daryl has to half carry him to the bottom.

"Yer gettin' fat." The redneck jokes when he sets Rick back onto his feet, making the other man snort and push at him playfully. Michonne just rolls her eyes and slips Rick's arm around her shoulders again, taking most of his weight. They slowly make their way into the kitchen where their family has gathered for lunch.

"Dad!" Carl calls out, leaping from his chair and running over to them. He skids to a stop in front of the pair, seemingly just remembering that his father is injured. Rick carefully wraps his free arm around his son, holding in a hiss when the young boy returns the hug and one of his skinny arms presses on the cut along his side.

"Did you really get shot again, Dad? Daryl said you did." Carl tells him as the hug ends. Wide blue eyes, a mirror to Rick's own, stare up at him in concern and joy that he's still here. Rick sighs softly, enjoying the blissful innocence in his son's expression and wishing it would last longer then it needs to.

"Yes, I got shot again but I'm alright. Michonne did a good job patching me up before we got home. Hershel, and Lily, have done a very good job of looking after me since then." He tells his son, and the people not so subtly listening in a few feet away. Rick then gently nudges Carl back to his place at the table.

"Finish eating, son. Then I want you to take the other kids outside to play while the adults talk." Carl looks visibly unhappy with this decision but doesn't protest like Rick thought he would. Which is a relief to a weary father as he slowly settles himself down at one end of the table. Annette is quick to bring him a plate and something cold to drink, breezing over to him almost before he'd even got sat down properly.

The former deputy spends his meal looking over his people as they sit around the large dining table. The group he took with him to put an end to Terminus are all whole, even if most of them are banged up and looking a little worse for wear. Martinez seems to have the most serious injury besides his and Daryl's own, having his right wrist wrapped in a plaster cast. The Latino man notices his look and shoots him a smile.

"A clean break, Doc says. Got it 'cause one of them assholes slammed my arm in a door. It'll heal." Martinez tells him with a light tone, soothing some of Rick's worry. Merle's lip is busted but he's grinning in a way that says he gave more than he got. Carol only has minor scrapes on her hands and a slight bruise on her left cheek. Minor injuries that work to ease the rest of Rick's worry.

It's the two new faces on the opposite end of the table that draw Rick up short. A blonde man in his early twenties that looks like a he's tweaking on something, though Rick knows it's just his nerves, and a brunette woman in her mid-twenties with a bum leg. Recognition floods his mind. He knows these two, the couple that Carol and Rick found just before he banished Carol from the prison. Sam and Ana.

Rick's pale eyes shoot to Carol, who's already looking at him, and she shakes her head. They don't remember. He sighs softly, partially relieved they don't remember the horrific ways they died, and partially because this will make integrating them into the group more difficult. After lunch the kids are shooed outside, Lori following to keep an eye on them and most likely to be out of Rick's presence. Amy goes with them, not having the stomach for the conversation that's about to happen.

"What happened while Daryl and I were searching for Gareth?" He asks the group at large, knowing that within the week he's been unconscious the hunting party has more than likely told the rest what went down. it's Carol that answers him first.

"Merle and I went raiding for supplies. We found the same room I'd found last time, full of weapons and artifacts from their victims. We also found that bitch, Mary, and her bodyguards. They were laying in wait, took us by surprise. Mary remembered. Once they were down, we started packing up everything that we could-" She's interrupted by Merle.

"Lots a' weapons. 'nother crossbow fer Darylina an' other pretty toys fer us." The redneck loudly calls from where he's leaned his chair back on the back two legs. Rick has to hide a snort as Annette reaches over and smacks him on the back of the head lightly in admonishment. He's very surprised when Merle merely puts his chair back onto all four legs and mutters an apology with a grin.

"Martinez and I started opening rail cars, freeing anyone inside. That's where we found Sam, and Ana. They were locked up in the last one and Sam's shoulder was dislocated. They were the only two that decided to stay with us, the rest were obviously worried about another large group offering sanctuary so they took off." Michonne picks up where Merle had stopped, explaining what they were doing while Rick and Daryl were taking out the main threats.

Martinez clears his throat before starting his report. "We picked off every one of those fuckers that we came across, didn't seem like none of the ones we took out remembered anything. Though one car we opened had several crazy bastards in it. Michonne ran the leader through with her sword when he had his hands 'round my throat."

Rick looks to Michonne, worry on his face. She hadn't told him they'd let out the men who'd originally attacked Terminus and turned Gareth and his people into what they were. The samurai smiles at him, giving a reassuring nod and Rick sighs. They'll be talking about this later.

Notes:

So...I lied. There will be OCs in this fic but they won't have a large part in the story. Sort of like fillers. You'll meet them in chapters 37 and 44. I wrote them into the story without fully realizing it lol

Chapter 26: New Normal and Abduction

Summary:

Everything settles down....until Merle does what Merle does

It took a further two weeks before Hershel would let Rick walk around without the cane that someone had found for him or supervision. The blue eyed man tried not to let the constant hovering of his family rankle his temper, knowing they were just trying to help. The rest of the group healed from their injuries in that time, though Martinez would need another month or so for his wrist to get back into working order, and Rick was very grateful that there wasn't any lasting damage.

The knowledge that he could have lost people that night still wakes him in a cold sweat some nights. Only the sight of Michonne sleeping peacefully beside him is able to soothe his frazzled mind. Sometimes Rick even had to go down the hall to peek into the boys' rooms and check on them before he could calm himself down. At times, he'd just stand in the doorway of Carl's room and watch his boy sleep. Seeing this younger version of his son, with both eyes and that innocent smile, is like a balm to his worn and weary soul.

Everything has settled on the farm as winter truly faded away and spring began to move in. Rick's people have eased into a steady routine of watch shifts, farm chores, runs, household chores, and child minding. Everyone pitches in, it's not all left to the women to do the typical 'feminine' chores or the men to do all the runs and watches. Sam and Ana had fit in seamlessly, with Ana helping Beth with watching the children when the older women were busy and Sam preferring watch shifts.

They've moved a good bit of their animals, all but the cows and bison, over to the prison. Merle was very handy when it came to knowing how to work the machines it took to clear a lot of the trees back behind the prison. Hershel then helped them build pens and pole barns for animals in the cleared and fenced in space. The garden planted in late winter is doing very well, the crops flourishing.

Worry has eased off Rick's mind near entirely, his people won't go hungry and two major threats have been neutralized. Both the Governor, and Terminus will never hurt anyone ever again. Now, the only thing on the ex-cop's mind was getting his daughter here safely. Lori is getting closer to her due date, from what they can gather, by the day. Which is why Rick is where he is today.

He, and Michonne, are parked in a truck about a mile from Woodbury. Glenn, and Maggie, are in another car a little further back. Providing backup in case a herd blows through, or Woodbury decides to attack. Merle is inside the town itself, looking for the doctor. Daryl is with him since the redneck wouldn't be parted from his brother on 'a damn suicide mission' as he'd called it.

They've been sitting here, twiddling their thumbs, for the better part of two hours. Boredom was definitely kicking in when Merle comes tearing down the street with an unconscious woman in a white lab coat thrown over his shoulder, Daryl right behind him. They clamber into the backseat of the truck and Merle slams the door.

"Drive! Go, 'fore theys know she's missin'!" The redneck orders, his face flushed red and a wild glint in his eyes. Rick doesn't think, he just throws the truck into drive and presses his foot down on the gas. Daryl is on the walkie, letting Glenn know it's time to go, as the truck peels out of the alley it was parked in.

"What did you do?! Why is she knocked out?" Michonne asks the brothers, her dark eyes narrowed angrily. Merle scoffs.

"Bitch ain't wanna come willin'ly. Knew we'd need 'er fer Queenie when lil bit is ready ta come." The older Dixon spits out, though he repositions the unconscious doctor to a more comfortable spot on the two men's laps. Michonne gives Merle the look she does when she thinks someone is being completely stupid, making Rick have to hold in a laugh, lest that look be turned on him.

"And you. You didn't stop him?" She questions of Daryl, the younger redneck grumbling under his breath before his slate blue eyes meet hers.

"Ya think I coulda stopped him? If he hadn't knocked her out after she saw us, she'da raised the alarm. I did tell him ta leave her there, asshole ain't listen." Daryl defends himself, chewing on his thumb as he stares out the window.

"There are going to be repercussions from this. You can't just kidnap a person from somewhere they feel safe. No matter how much we need her." The dark skinned woman insists, trying to make the brothers see the bigger picture here.

"She was already out. What was I supposed ta do...leave 'er there ta be found so's we coulda been caught? No siree, ol' Merle ain't plannin' on gamblin' wit' his life taday." Merle grunts out, leaning back against the bench seat with an arm tossed casually out the window to rest against the side of the truck.

Michonne just throws her hands up and spins around to look out the front windshield, completely ignoring the brothers. Rick sighs to himself and shakes his head.

"While I am certainly not happy that you kidnapped a person, specifically from a place we just avoided a war with, what's done is done. There is no changing it now and we can't take her back without getting caught and potentially killed. You two aren't to go near her when she wakes up, we don't need her anymore scared than she already will be." He says firmly, lips set in a frown as he glances through the rearview mirror at the pair in the backseat.

Both men nod, though Merle seems to want to say more in his defense, and the rest of the ride back to the farm is silent. Rick directs Daryl to carry the doctor to the guest room he woke up in a few weeks ago. The former deputy reluctantly cuffs one of the woman's wrists to the bedframe just as a precaution before he steps from the room to find Hershel.

He finds the vet at the kitchen table, making plans for breeding the animals in a notebook. Rick sighs as he sinks heavily into a chair across from the white haired man. Hershel looks up from his work and raises a brow, Rick shakes his head as he tries to organize his thoughts.

"This is a mess. Merle, and Daryl by proxy, took that woman from Woodbury after knocking her out." He tells his mentor, running a hand through his hair as stress weighs his shoulders down again. Hershel's brows raise up, apparently the older redneck hadn't told anyone else of what he'd done. Rick nods at the look he's now being given.

"Yeah, I know. This is gonna be a shit storm when she wakes up. Merle claims that we'll need her when Lori goes into labor." The older man brings a hand up to rub across his face as he leans back, blue eyes glancing up at Rick. It takes a while for Hershel to speak, the man obviously weighing his words.

"Merle isn't wrong. We will need this Doctor Stevens if Lori is going to have a chance to survive giving birth to Judith this time. While his methods may be a little....extreme, you can't deny that his heart was in the right place."

Rick just blinks at the farmer, not really believing what he just heard. Did Hershel really just say that Merle was in the right for stealing that woman? The older man can obviously see the incredulous expression covering Rick's face as he shakes his own head and sighs.

"I am not condoning what he did. Just saying that he was, in fact, trying to help. Merle Dixon, in his own way, has just given your daughter the best chance she has of actually knowing her mother." Hershel informs him before standing from the table and patting Rick on the shoulder as he walks away. Leaving the blue eyed man to his thoughts.

Chapter 27: Doctor Ramona Stevens

Summary:

Rick talks to the new doctor and Lori is put in her place

To say that Doctor Stevens was not happy to find herself cuffed to a bed in a strange house when she woke would be an understatement. The entire house could hear her swearing as the bedframe rattled with her trying to pull the cuff loose. This happened while the group was sitting down to dinner later that night. Rick sighed to himself and shot Merle a dirty look as he heard the scared woman panicking and attempting to escape from the other room.

"Michonne, Carol, go check on her. I don't think we should send a man in until she's calmed down enough to realize she's not in any danger." He tells the two women, smiling at Annette when the woman hands Michonne a foil wrapped plate for the doctor. From the corner of his eye, Rick sees Lori open her mouth. She's speaking before he can turn and stop her.

"Shouldn't I do that? After all, I will be her main patient. I mean, those two aren't exactly the picture of 'non-threatening'. If I saw either of them when I was in a new place, I'd try even harder to get away." The brunette says, nose firmly in the air with her holier than thou attitude.

Rick sighs internally, having thought they were past this, but doesn't get in the middle of it. Both Michonne and Carol are capable of putting his ex back in her place. Michonne just rolled her eyes and huffed before taking the plate of food into the sick room to the struggling woman. Carol's glacial blue eyes swept up and down Lori before she laughed. It was not a nice sound.

"You? Miss 'I'm better than you just because I was a well-off housewife'? Your bitchy attitude would see that woman WANTING to leave the first chance she got. As for us being threatening, we're supposed to be! If you spent as long as we did living in this world and didn't turn out threatening, you know what happened? You turned out dead! So do us all a favor and sit down, shut up, and mind your business." With that said, Carol spun on her heel and followed Michonne into Doctor Stevens' room.

The dining room was dead quiet after she left, no one daring to speak. As if that would bring the gray haired woman's ire down on them. Lori was left sitting in her chair, a dumbfounded look on her face. She glanced around the table, looking for support, only to huff and storm from the room when none was forth coming.

As the noise in the other room dulls to murmured voices, Stevens' voice having stopped its loud cussing, Annette brings a large cake from the kitchen. Relief fills Rick's chest as the sweet woman unintentionally breaks the awkward atmosphere that Lori left behind.

"Did I miss something?" She asks, causing Merle to snort out a laugh. Everyone knows full well she could hear everything that was said. The kitchen is only ten steps away.

Slices of cake were cut and passed out but no one other than the children were truly relaxed, all of the adults keeping an ear on the sick room. Two of their own were with a stranger, it didn't matter that said stranger was cuffed and weaponless. Rick's group knew just how dangerous someone could be when desperate.

A long while passes, dinner having long since been cleaned away, and Rick is starting to get antsy. The woman who might as well be his wife now is out of his sight with a stranger, along with a good friend. Just as he's about to get up and check on them, Carol's voice calls from the room.

"Rick, you can come in now. Bring Hershel, and Lily, with you." She says as the door swings open just enough for the former cop to see Doctor Stevens sitting up in bed and rubbing her previously cuffed wrist.

Rick glances back at the table, seeing the vet and nurse already getting to their feet. He meets Tara's eyes and nods to her and a sense of peace fills his chest at the trust she shows when she simply nods back. Knowing he'll protect her sister if things go pear shaped. The trio walk slowly into the room, hoping not to frighten the woman on the bed even more than she clearly is. Despite trying to hide it.

The curly haired man lets Hershel take the lead on this. His grandfatherly appearance putting most people at ease even before he begins speaking in that soothing voice of his. The vet settles into a chair beside the doctor's bed and smiles softly, his blue eyes lightening.

"Hello there. I apologize for the way you were brought here; Merle got a little overzealous in his approach." He starts off, drawing a snort from the woman.

"A little?" She grumbles, a bruise faintly showing up on the dark skin of her temple. Must be where Merle had hit her.

Hershel laughs softly in response. "He's not the gentlest of creatures, and I'm afraid he took your rejection of coming here personally. Did he explain why we need your expertise?"

"Mentioned something about a pregnant woman. Though he was a little more derogatory in the words used." Stevens finally says after a long minute of just staring at the older man. Rick steps forward a little and clears his throat to get her to look at him.

"My ex-wife is pregnant with my daughter, due soon. We were hoping for a doctor since she had to have a C-section with our son. They both nearly died and we're desperate to prevent that this time." He explains, face clouding over as he remembers the panic of being told by the doctor that his wife and unborn son could both die before they could deliver him. Doctor Stevens sighs softly, leaning back to get a better look at Rick's face.

"I'm sorry, but I doubt I'll be much help to her. I wasn't an obstetrician or even a surgeon. I was a family practice physician." Those words nearly crush the hearts of everyone else in the room. Rick hangs his head, struggling to hold back the tears suddenly blurring his vision. The thought that his daughter may never know her mother, again, being a hard pill to swallow after having such high hopes.

Soft but muscular arms wrap around his waist, the familiar smell of Michonne filling his nose as he breathes her in. She places a kiss on his stubbled jaw and he breaks down, sobbing against her shoulder. Despite not liking Lori very much at the moment, he still loves her for the twelve years they spent together and her giving him their beautiful son. Losing her again would hurt, nearly as badly as the first time.

The entire room is silent, giving the pair an illusion of privacy as Rick struggles to pull himself together. After what feels like an eternity, he leans back from the comfort Michonne provides and wipes his eyes on the sleeve of the tattered shirt he's wearing. The lithe woman smiles at him and Rick can't help but lean in and kiss her softly, thanking her without words. A soft sigh is heard from the direction of the bed.

"I may not be able to help, but I will surely try." Doctor Stevens says, voice firm with conviction after what she just witnessed. Rick turns his watery eyes on her and gives a grimace of a smile before moving to kneel at her bedside. He offers a hand.

"Thank you. That's all we can ask, especially considering how you got here. I'm Rick Grimes." The older woman shakes his hand, a barely there smile curving her thin lips.

"Doctor Ramona Stevens."

Notes:

Does anyone know how to use italics and bold on this website?! I write on Wattpad, and my italics and bold do not transfer over when I post a chapter here

Chapter 28: Judith

Summary:

Judith is born and history repeats

The weeks after Ramona arrived flew by in the blink of an eye and it was late spring before anyone realized. Lori was days away from her due date and everyone was on edge. All were praying that both mother and baby would make it through the delivery alive. None were more tightly wound than Rick, and surprisingly Maggie. Though it shouldn't be too surprising, seeing how the farm girl was the one to deliver Judith the first time around.

Despite that, Rick was leading a group on a run to the prison. They were taking a shipment of food and hygiene supplies to the former inmates that were looking after their bolt hole. Rick was leading a group of six that included Daryl, Maggie, Glenn, Andrea, and Michonne. That put half their fighters with him and left half to defend the farm in case something happened while they were away.

Carol had plans to teach the children to handle knives and how to throw them accurately to hit their targets. Merle was going to be working with the older teens, teaching them to hunt and track. So at least the kids would be out of the way in case Lori went into labor. The brunette had been near silent since Carol had put her down at supper, she'd stuck very close to Ramona after that.

They'd been gone a day and a half, and currently the group of six were stopped about a mile from the prison by a small herd of walkers in the road. It's as they were debating whether or not to put the corpses down or go around them that Andrea spotted something that had everyone freezing in their tracks. A tiny figure within the herd, a child walker of no older than five or six.

Beside him, Michonne sucks in a sharp breath. Rick blindly reaches out to lay a comforting hand on her thigh, his eyes never leaving the tiny body. She held onto his arm like a lifeline, her entire body trembling. It's not that his group hadn't come across child walkers before, they had, but no one was ever prepared for the sight. It never got any easier.

The memory of Sophia's body walking out of the barn fills his mind before he forcefully pushes it away. Now was not the time to dwell on the past. She was alive again and Rick was going to make damn sure she stayed that way.

"We...we have to put it down. Can't leave it like that." Maggie speaks up, her voice breaking with suppressed tears. Glenn pulls her into his arms, offering what comfort he can while trembling himself. The rest of the group is quick to voice their agreements, with even Daryl nodding along though the archer doesn't put words to his action.

"Let's do this, then. Everyone stay in formation and watch each other's backs." Rick says, though he doesn't have to, this group is well trained together. As one, they climb out of the truck and circle around to form a ring. Protecting each other's backs and blind spots. They wade into the mass of snarling, walking dead with weapons drawn and ready, putting down every single one in their path.

The child walker turns, a gaping wound on its throat showing the group exactly how it died, and lunges for a frozen Andrea. The blonde has gone rigid in shock at the horrific sight before them and just stands there as the tiny creature shuffles towards her. Rick is quick to step between them before the walker gets close enough to do any damage, his hunting knife sinking into the side of its head.

As the rest of the walkers have already been put down, it's safe for Rick as he carefully lowers the small body to the ground. Treating what was once a much loved child with the care and respect it deserves. A grief fills his chest, the kind only a parent can truly know. He hopes to god that this little creature's parents were already gone, simply so they wouldn't have to feel the pain of its loss. Mechanically, Rick stands and checks on Andrea. The blonde woman hugging him gently.

"Thank you, I'm...I'm not sure I could have done that myself." She whispers against the collar of his shirt. The blue eyed man gently squeezes her before stepping back, accepting the soft kiss Michonne offers.

"We needa go, standin' 'round like this is jus' gonna bring more o' 'em outta the woodwork." Daryl grunts, wiping the blade of his knife on one of the walker's shirts. Rick nods and they quickly climb back into the truck and resume their journey to the prison.

They're just pulling through the gates, with Axel smiling as he shuts them, when Rick's walkie crackles to life.

"Rick, it's Lori. She's in labor." Tara's voice warbles through the tiny speaker. It takes a long moment for those words to fully register in his brain, and even longer before he can figure out how to make his suddenly stiff jaw work enough to speak.

"Rick?! Are you there? Lori is in labor." Tara calls again, her voice slightly more panicked.

"I'm here. I'm...how is she? Is Ramona with her?" The ex-cop breathes out, his voice trembling as his heart pounds loudly in his ears. The entire little group at the prison surrounds him, offering comfort and eagerly listening for any news.

"Her water broke earlier today, but she didn't see fit to tell anyone. Apparently not wanting to distract you from your run. Her contractions are about ten minutes apart and she's only four centimeters dilated. The baby is a ways away yet." Hershel's calm voice rings through the walkie, almost instantly soothing Rick's rapidly fraying nerves.

"You finish what you've got to do and get on home, son. Doctor Stevens will do all she can to ensure Judith arrives safely and Lori survives to hold her daughter." The farmer reassures him, causing Rick to smile faintly at just how well his mentor knows him.

"Thank you, Hershel. I know she's in good hands with you there." The former deputy says, emotion threatening to choke him. Relief that their medical professionals are there with Lori this time instead of a terrified college girl.

"I'll see you all when you arrive. Be safe and take care of yourselves." Hershel replies before the walkie goes silent, the connection having been cut. Rick finally raises his head from staring at the device in his hands, meeting the eyes of his family as they stand around him.

"Let's get this finished up as quickly as we can. No offense, y'all." That last bit is directed to the former prisoners, causing Oscar to let out a short laugh.

"None taken, man. I remember how it was when my wife was having our babies. We'll be quick and you can head home." The large man rumbles in his deep baritone voice. Rick holds back a wince, the whole group does really. They all know that they won't make it home before Judith is born, being nearly two days from the farm with the way the world is now.

It's hours later, when they've long since left the prison behind and are making camp for the night, that the walkie crackles to life again.

"Rick? There's been a problem." Doctor Stevens' voice comes through, sounding solemn. Rick's heart drops to the pit of his stomach.

"Lori delivered Judith relatively easily, despite having to do a C-section in the end, and got to meet her daughter before things took a bad turn. She began hemorrhaging. I tried to stop the bleeding but, as I've said, I'm not a surgeon and Hershel was out tending to an injury that someone sustained from one of the cows. He didn't get here in time. I'm so sorry, Rick, but Lori's gone."

Rick barely hears the doctor's words, his mind spinning and world crumbling. He'd thought he'd prepared himself for this outcome, thought he could handle it, but this hurts nearly as bad as losing her that first time did. Once again Lori had died and Rick wasn't with her, wasn't by her side as he'd once promised to always be.

Rick didn't regret ending their marriage, it was the right thing to do, but he did fully regret all the hurt he'd caused that woman. To not even be there as she died, when he knew it a was huge possibility, was unforgivable in his mind.

A warm hand cups the side of Rick's face, drawing his eyes to a pair of dark brown ones that he loves so much. Michonne is speaking but Rick can't hear a thing over the sound of his pulse racing in his ears. The curly haired man can feel his own lips moving but has no clue what he's saying. All of a sudden, Rick's word goes black as his eyes roll up into his head and he passes out. Mind unable to take the stress of losing her a second time.

Chapter 29: Surprise!

Summary:

The group book it home to Judith, and run into familiar faces far from their home

Rick has pushed the group hard to get home from the moment he woke that morning, embarrassment at passing out and the strong desire to see his children being the driving force. The rest of the group shared his desperation, so no one complained too much about the brutal pace of their journey. The loss of Lori weighed heavily on Rick's mind but was somewhat overshadowed by the knowledge that their son had lost his mother, again.

Right now the group was on high alert as they passed through the picked over town of Cranwall. Towns were a magnet for other groups, not all of them friendly, so Rick's team of six were on edge as always when they had to drive through one. The sight of an unfamiliar RV pulling a twenty foot, loaded down trailer was always going to draw their attention.

It was too late to try to find a way around the other vehicle, their truck had been driving right down the middle of the road towards the exit of town. They'd surely already been spotted.

"Should we see if they need help?" Glenn asks. Rick turns to look at the backseat where the young Asian is sitting with Maggie held close to his side.

"We don't know them. What if they're a part of Randall's group?" Maggie cautions, a shiver of fear running through her body at the memories of being trapped in that pharmacy by them. Glenn pulls her closer and Daryl reaches over from the side and lays a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"They ain't ours. Ain't our problem." The hunter says, squinting out the window at the RV that's still parked innocently on the side of the street. Rick chews on his lip, seeing Daryl and Maggie's point but he can also see the near desperate need in Glenn's eyes. The younger man is trying so hard to hold onto his humanity in a world that's trying to tear it from him every chance it gets.

In the end, the decision is taken from their hands as the door to the RV swings open and two men come out with their weapons in hand. Two very familiar men to most of their group. Rick relaxes back into his seat, laughing loudly. Daryl huffs out what could be a laugh as Glenn joins Rick in his laughter.

"Will someone tell me what's going on? Why are you laughing?" Andrea's confused and chagrined voice rises over the sound of the men's laughter. It's Michonne that answers her, as the three men are too relieved to speak still.

"We know those men. Aaron, and his partner Eric. They're from a settlement called Alexandria from up in Virginia." She tells the former lawyer, making realization dawn on Andrea's face. Before more can be said, Glenn is clambering out of the car and hollering across the street to the pair. Rick just shakes his head, sharing a laugh with Maggie, and follows after him.

"We were hoping we'd find you around here. Daryl mentioned the farm you had holed up in while we were on a run once." Aaron speaks, having just passed Glenn off to his partner's arms in time to receive the hug Maggie wraps him in.

"Didn't think we'd see y'all down here. We figured we'd come find you when we headed up north in a few months." Rick responds, clapping Aaron on the back once Maggie releases him.

"I remembered when Reg started putting up the walls in Alexandria, and Eric remembered a couple months after that. We collected supplies, told Deana that we were going scouting, and lit out for Georgia. Brought some friends with us." The slightly shorter man responds, grinning as he turns to face the RV.

"You can come out now, it's safe." He calls. Rick tenses up as the RV door opens. As much as he trusts Aaron Rileigh, he hasn't made it this far by being naive about how dangerous people are. Even people you trust. Around him, Rick notices the rest of his group tightening their grip on weapons and squaring their stances.

Everyone relaxes when Denise is the first person out. The psychiatrist is smiling shyly at the group, a tiny dark haired child clutching onto the back of her shirt. Rick can see in her eyes that Denise doesn't remember but that's okay, Tara will ease her into their group once again. 'Damn, she's gonna be over the moon when we get back home.' Rick thinks to himself, smiling at the mental image of Tara bouncing around like she does when she's excited.

"Who's the kid?" Daryl asks, eyes narrowed at the frightened child that's sticking close to the blonde's side.

"That's Lydia. We came across her and two others a few weeks back. Her mom was a real piece of work, abused the little girl. So we took her one night and left them in camp." Eric explains, shooting a fond look at the small girl. No one can miss the look that passes between the copper haired man and the hunter, a look of shared pain. Daryl nods, ending the line of questioning.

Rick runs a hand through his hair, eyeing Lydia as she tries to hide behind Denise's legs. "We need to get moving. I gotta check on Carl and Judith."

"Judith's been born?" Eric asks, his eyes lighting up at the thought of the infant. Rick is already walking back to the truck so it's Michonne that answers.

"She was born yesterday. Her mom didn't make it....it's hitting Rick pretty hard." She tells them, her full lips turned down in a frown. Sympathy covers the faces of their friends as they glance at the retreating figure of their leader.

"We should get going then, no sense in making him wait any longer to see to his babies." The thin man says, turning to head back into the RV. Aaron nods to the group and goes to join his partner as the rest of the small group files into the truck with Rick. Soon they're back on the road towards the farm.

It doesn't take but about fifteen minutes for them to arrive at the farm, another five or so for the gate watcher to open it up for them. Rick is out of the truck almost before it's fully parked in the driveway, tearing towards the house in a dead sprint.

"Carl?" He calls out as he bursts through the front door of the large house, running for the kitchen. With Rick and Michonne gone, and Lori...Carl and Andre would have stayed at the big house with the Greenes so Beth could look after them when Carol couldn't. At mid-day, it's most likely that they're in the kitchen for lunch.

"Carl?!" This call is more desperate, as he finds the kitchen empty.

"Dad!" Rick nearly sobs in relief, hearing his son's voice call from the backyard. Stepping out the door, he spots Carl sitting with the other kids around his age learning to do something with yarn from Ana. Beth is sitting at a picnic table, a pink wrapped bundle in her arms that she's feeding a bottle too. The petite blonde smiles at Rick shyly as he approaches.

Rick stops beside Carl and kneels down, intent on comforting his son after the loss of his mother, only to stop short when his boy's eyes meet his own. The innocence that had been in Carl's pale blue eyes the last time he'd seen the eleven-year-old was gone, leaving the hardened gaze of the fourteen-year-old boy that Rick had known before waking back up in the hospital a second time.

Carl remembered. That he remembered because he'd traumatically loss his mother once more is something that tears at Rick's heart.

Chapter 30: A Last Goodbye

Summary:

Rick grieves for Lori and makes her spirit a promise

Rick stood on the front porch of the Greenes' house, holding his tiny daughter as he watched their family dig her mother's grave. He felt strangely numb, once the anger at Lori once again not even being able to know their little girl wore off. A hollow feeling had taken root in the ex-cop's chest, making everything else seem muted.

Judith cooed against his chest, drawing her daddy's attention down to her tiny, cherub face. Hazy, baby gray eyes look up at him as the tiny being in his arms wiggles and makes noises. Rick leans in and places a kiss on her forehead softly. Silently, he apologizes, as he's done at least a thousand times in the hours since he arrived, for not being there when she was born. For the second time.

His eyes shift to where Carl is sitting at a picnic table, cleaning his gun. Daryl had given it back the moment they realized Carl remembered. Relief and sadness war within Rick as he watches his son. Sadness for the loss of innocence in his little boy, again far too soon. Part of the former deputy hates that Carl has all of the memories of before, every bad thing that happened to them on the way to Alexandria and the lineup from the Saviors.

It had taken hours for the boy to let Rick go earlier, Carl kept whispering how sorry he was that he didn't do more to stop Negan. Rick's heart broke at hearing that, and he was quick to reassure his son that there was nothing he could have done. Negan would have killed him too. Or worse. Another part of Rick was relieved that his son was once more the boy who had lived through those horrible experiences and came out the other side, stronger and more knowledgeable. The one that knew how to survive in this world.

Rick thanked every deity that would listen that it wasn't his son that had to put Lori down this time. Duane, Sophia, and surprisingly Lydia, are right by the young boy's side as he coped with his losses. The front door of the house opening drew his attention away from the children that were growing up far sooner than they should have to. Hershel steps up beside him at the railing, holding two mugs of something that steams and smells sweet.

"Thought you could use a pick me up. Nonalcoholic of course." The older man says, his voice solemn as he too turns his attention to the kids. Rick shifts a now dozing Judith into one arm and nods gratefully, taking the cup and bringing it to his lips. Hot chocolate. Despite it being late spring in Georgia, so far too hot for a warm drink, it comforts him.

"She's just as beautiful as she was last time. Seems just as healthy too." Hershel tells him, though he's not looking at the baby. Rick says nothing, just taking another drink from his cup.

"I know what you're feeling, Rick. You know that I lost Josephine, and Annette last time around. Whatever this is that brought us back, it spared my Annette and I'm grateful, but I know how you're feeling. I also know how precious that little girl is to you, every father feels that way. Lori may be gone but Judith is alive. Carl is alive. They'll need you, son. We all need you. It can't be like last time." His words finally get through to Rick, causing him to turn his head to look at the farmer. Hershel gives him a sad smile.

"You can't lose yourself again, Rick. We all need you, need your guidance."

Rick takes a deep breath, draining his mug.

"I don't know how to do this anymore. I tried everything, everything I could think of to keep her alive, an-and she still died. How can I lead the group if I...if I couldn't even keep my children's mother alive?" He asks, voice breaking several times as he pleads for his mentor to help him find a way.

"Look at your son, Rick, and the baby girl in your arms. That's how you keep doing this. They need you, need a safer world. Keep striving to make that world for them. You'll do the best you can, I know you will. Lori's death was God's plan. Her dying wasn't your fault." Hershel tells him, resting a weathered hand on his shoulder in comfort.

Rick takes a deep breath, drawing physical comfort from the warmth of his hand. Feeling just how alive the older man is, something he never thought he'd feel or see again. Then he follows the advice and glances up to watch Carl, the boy has put his gun away and is now teaching little Lydia how to tie knots with a shoestring. The sight warms Rick to the core, seeing his son teaching and helping those younger than him.

The blue eyed man then turns his attention to the sleeping infant in his arms, her delicate features a miniature of Lori's, and promises silently that he won't lose himself this time. There are too many people counting on him now and he won't lose out on precious days of watching his daughter grow. Carl. Judith. Michonne. Daryl. Carol. Hershel. So many more of their family. They all need him to be strong, not to drown in his guilt and self-loathing this time. 'I'll keep it together this time. They need a present father.' He vows to himself, smiling as Beth comes out with a tray of hot chocolate for each of the kids.

Soon the kids are sitting on the steps, drinking mugs of the sweet concoction as three tired, dirty men trudge up and lay their shovels against the side of the house. Rick sighs softly, correctly guessing that the grave is finished. A glance at the sky shows its nearing sunset which Rick finds fitting. It was Lori's favorite time of day. She used to go on about how pretty the colors were.

"Come on, Carl. Let's get Mom in her resting place." He tells his boy, heart aching when Carl's face hardens a little and he nods. They make their way to the shed, where Lori's body is wrapped in a floral-patterned sheet. The group had waited until Rick had arrived home before holding the funeral.

Between the two of them, they manage to get her body carefully into the three-foot hole in the ground under the willow tree beside the other graves. The rest of their family surrounds them as Rick and Carl both take up a shovel and begin filling the grave in, covering Lori's body. Hershel is reading a verse from his bible as Beth sings Amazing Grace softly.

Eventually the service ends as it gets fully dark out, the rest of the group wandering back to the house for dinner. Rick remains on his knees in front of Lori's grave long after everyone else has left. Tears are rolling down his cheeks but he's paying them no mind, talking without noticing when he started. Just needing to get things off his chest.

"I'm so sorry, Lori. So sorry. I tried...I tried to keep you alive this time. I so wanted our little girl to meet you, for you to know her. Lori, I'm so thankful for you, for the children you've given me. They're beautiful. Carl is amazing and so smart. I wish you could see him, Lor. He's a survivor, I know he'll make it long after I leave this world. And Judith...she looks like you. I'll protect them, I swear to you. I'll keep them alive." Rick promises before slowly standing from his kneeling position and turning to walk away from her grave, back to the rest of his family.

Chapter 31: Hunting Expedition

Summary:

Plans are made and Rick takes a team hunting for the claimers

Time, as it always does, had flown by and summer was now well and truly upon the group. Judith was two months old and growing so fast it made Rick's head spin. He'd been so focused on hunting the Governor and keeping the expanding group fed that he hadn't really noticed his daughter's development the first time around. Now the group was settled, better prepared, and most of the threats had been wiped out so Rick had more time to focus on the little girl.

Currently Rick is sitting on the front porch of his cabin, having just finished a shift on watch, playing with a sleepy Judith as they both watch Carl laughing with Sophia while they pull laundry off the line for Carol to fold. A whistle cuts through the air and icy blue eyes look up to see Daryl's broad figure approaching the cabin. Rick raises a hand in greeting, smiling when Judith coos at the familiar face as the hunter gets closer.

Daryl sits next to him, running a hand lightly over Judith's soft fuzz of hair. "I been thinkin' 'bout somethin' I wanted ta run by ya."

Rick raises a brow, turning to give the younger man his full attention. "Yeah?"

"Them claimer assholes are still alive this time 'round. We gotta do somethin' 'bout 'em." Daryl says, chewing on the edge of his thumb. The former cop hums in thought as he leans back, gently shifting his daughter into Daryl's arms. A smile forms on his lips when the redneck automatically repositions his arms to cradle her.

"What do you think we should do about them?" Rick asks him, already knowing what he'll say.

"We gotta kill 'em. S'the only way they ever gonna stop. Ya know it." The archer spits, anger clouding his face. Rick's own anger is surging through him, remembering what those bastards had nearly done. A flash of Carl's terrified face as he fought against that fat fucker fills Rick's mind for a moment, nearly making him reach for his gun on instinct, before he can shake it away.

"Yeah, I know. How were you planning on doing it? Or even finding them?" He questions; brows raised. Rick isn't trying to mock or demean his friend, he genuinely wants to know. Thankfully, Daryl seems to get that.

"Figured ya, me, 'Chonne, an' Carol would go an' hunt 'em down." Slate blue eyes meet his own as Daryl explains his plan. A plan that has Rick weighing the pros and cons.

"Just us four against all the claimers? What if they remember?" The ex-deputy points out, wondering if his friend has a solution to that too. Daryl pauses, thinking it over. Rick smiles softly, letting the hunter know he's not poking holes in his plans to be a jackass.

"We'll take Sasha, Merle, and Maggie with us." He tells the other man, a note of finality in his voice. Daryl opens his mouth to speak before shutting it, his face contemplative. Finally, he just nods.

"We'll go tomorrow. Give me a chance to talk to Carl." Daryl nods again, passing Judith back before standing and walking down the steps. Most likely heading back to the cabin he shares with his brother, and Carol. Rick sighs softly and heads into the cabin as Judith begins to fuss for her bottle. Another thing on his to do list, another stress on his shoulders, but Daryl is right. They can't just leave the claimers roaming about, free to hurt more people. Especially if one, or more, of them remember.

Later that night, over dinner, Rick looks across the table at his son and Michonne and clears his throat softly to get their attention. Two sets of eyes look up from their plates to meet his and Rick takes a deep breath.

"Daryl brought something to my attention earlier. He said the claimers are still roaming and that we need to put them down." The blue eyed man tells his family, carefully watching their reactions. His heart breaks a little at the fearful anger that flashes across Carl's face at the mention of those men.

"How did he say he wanted to do that?" Michonne asks. The voice of reason, as usual. Carl just glares at the table, his hand gripping his fork in a white knuckled hold.

"He wants to take a group out to hunt them down. We agreed on us, you, Sasha, Merle, Carol, and Maggie. The assholes will underestimate the women." Rick answers her, finishing the last of his dinner in a mechanical way. It's been a long time since he thought of those men but now they're all he can think about.

Michonne nods, seeing the merits of that group and that they'll need strong fighters if they want to bring this group down. Carl, on the other hand, only seems to get angrier.

"I should go too! I was the one they tried to...I need to go. I need to be a part of this!" The boy's voice breaks when he mentions what almost happened, fear competing with anger in his pale eyes. Rick's chest constricts, making it suddenly hard to breathe. Here was his son, his little boy, advocating why he should be allowed to kill someone.

The last time Carl had gotten like this; it was about the Governor, and it was simply anger that Rick hadn't killed the man sooner. He'd never seen Carl so adamant that he should be the cause of someone else's death. It shook something in Rick, shook him to the core. As Rick is struggling to even form words to tell Carl no, Michonne is already on it.

"Carl, you can't. I know why you want to, believe me I do, but you're in a smaller body than you were before. This body is weaker, more vulnerable. You wouldn't be able to stop a grown man if one of those pricks got their hands on you. So, you're staying here, you'll be able to look after and comfort the kids whose parents are going out." Her soothing voice fills the room and Rick's chest loosens, warmth spreading through him.

Michonne had never treated Carl like a child, even when he was. She'd always spoken to him as an equal, an adult, and it's something Rick had always admired about the woman. She had a way of making Carl open up to her when he wouldn't speak to anyone else and getting him to understand things he'd argue about with other people. Rick witnesses that again at this moment, watching all the fight drain out of Carl as the boy huffs and flops back into his chair. Deflated of all his righteous anger and fight.

Rick gives her hand a soft squeeze in thanks, as that could have turned into an ugly argument between father and son. Michonne smiles softly at him, though there is still anger present in her eyes directed at the claimers.

Later that night, after a long session of loving each other, Rick watches Michonne sleep peacefully against his chest with awe. He's still amazed by this woman every time he looks at her, the strength and grace she has are things to marvel at. Given his way, Rick would rather leave her at home for this expedition, but he knows she'd tear into him for even suggesting it. Rage fills his chest at the mere memory of what those sick fuckers wanted to do to her, to Carl. With those thoughts in mind, the former cop falls into an uneasy sleep.

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

Rick is up before dawn the next morning, getting his and Michonne's gear together for what could be up to a week long manhunt. The dark skinned woman is up as well, carrying a still sleeping Andre up to the Greenes' house for Annette or Beth to watch while they're away. Carl was deemed old enough to sleep at the cabin by himself with one of the adults checking in on him.

Maggie and Glenn are having a goodbye by the cars, meaning they're trying to eat each other's face. Merle stands there, a puckered look on his face while Carol fusses at Daryl about his lack of real gear as she rechecks her bag for what Rick is sure is the dozenth time. Sasha and Tyreese are talking softly as he loads a heavy looking duffle bag into the back of one of the trucks for her.

By the time the sun is in the sky, the group is loaded up into two cars and headed away from the farm. Rick is driving the leading car, heading towards the neighborhood where he had first encountered the rough men.

It takes them a full five days to get to the outskirts of the neighborhood, by that time the entire little group is on edge as they've run into two huge herds that they've had to skirt around.

The cars are parked at a house on at the end of the neighborhood and the group slips out on foot. They're all armed to the teeth as they creep around, carefully checking each house for the claimers. Splitting up wouldn't be a good idea, knowing how ruthless these pricks are, so they don't. Moving as one unit from house to house as they search.

A short, high whistle from Rick's left turns his attention to where Daryl is peering into the back window of a large, white house with a wide front porch. The one Rick, Michonne, and Carl had holed up in last time.

"They in there?" The ex-deputy asks, getting a nod from Daryl in return.

Rick carefully creeps onto the porch and looks through the front windows, a dark grin curling his lips when he sees Joe and company sprawled out in the living room without a care in the world.

Chapter 32: Claimed

Summary:

The team confront the claimers

"So how are we gonna do this?" Sasha asks as the group stand in a semi-circle a couple houses down from the one the pack of men have taken up in. They're split in two, with half of them facing the front door and half facing the back. Covering both entrances so the assholes don't have a chance to slip away without them noticing.

"I'll draw them out-"

"No!"

"Absolutely not!"

"Like hell!"

"You can't!"

Rick starts, only to be cut off by Maggie, Michonne, Daryl, and Sasha speaking in unison. He can't help the smile that curls his lips at the forcefulness in their protests, with Daryl giving him a look like he's questioning Rick's intelligence. Merle is giving him a hard, searching look.

"Look, these assholes might remember. If they do, then I'm the best one to draw their fire while you cover me." He explains, meeting the eyes of every one of his people. Michonne snorts, rolling her dark brown eyes.

"And if one of them shoots you in the head before we can take them out?" She asks, voice sarcastic and biting. Rick winces, knowing she's pissed at him for suggesting himself as bait.

"Let's hope that y'all finish them off quickly then." Rick responds, trying for a joke. From the looks on their faces, it falls flat. Carol shifts on her feet, her blue eyes narrowing.

"What if we used one of us? You said they're a band of rapists. They won't shoot a woman automatically, they'll underestimate us." The gray haired woman explains her reasoning. Rick can't fault it, but he sure as hell doesn't like it.

"Jus' who do ya suggest take tha' job then, Mouse?" Merle rumbles, leaning back against the siding of the house with his eyes glued to the front door of the one they're watching. Carol rolls her eyes at him but glances at the other three women in their group with a raised brow. They seem to be holding a private conversation without speaking, something that a glance at the other men confirms to Rick that none of the ones with a Y chromosome can understand.

Maggie steps forward. "I'll do it."

"Hell fuckin' no. Glenn'd skin us an' so'd yer daddy." Darly immediately protests, with Rick right there with him. Unwilling to send the young woman into those men's line of sight.

"I'm the only one who can. Sasha has never been in a situation like this, Carol is.." Here she glances at the other woman in apology before plowing on. "-too old for their tastes, and Michonne may trigger one of them to remember if they don't already. They've never seen me, I can easily play the sweet, naive farm girl and throw them off their game."

There are grumbles in the group, and it looks like Daryl is going to explode, but everyone knows she's right so no one can really protest too much. Merle pushes off the side of the house and strides towards Maggie, unsheathing his huge hunting knife and affixing it to her belt without saying a word. The brunette just stares at him, a brow raised calmly, and Merle grunts at her and glances towards Daryl. The younger Dixon brother is trembling finely, his expression stormy.

Maggie's expression softens and she steps up to hug Daryl, ignoring his flinch.

"I'll be okay, Daryl. You guys will be right there, they won't touch me." She promises him softly, though the rest of the group can still hear.

"Ya don't know what they's capable o', what they's can do..." The redneck responds, his voice cracking at the end. The younger woman just smiles at him sweetly and gives his middle a squeeze before stepping back. She takes off her gun, handing it off to Carol.

"Whatever you do, just hurry." Is all Maggie says before she's striding confidently away from them. Rick watches as her confidence fades and her body hunches in on itself the closer she gets to the large, white house. He doesn't know how much is an act or how much is actual fear of the men they're hunting.

The group watches as Maggie opens the front door of the house one down from the one they're huddled against, releasing two walkers that were inside. They follow after her, though she's careful to stay just ahead of them. Rick's entire body tenses at the sight, though he knows Maggie could easily take the two down with just the knives she's got.

"Help! Please help me! Someone!" Maggie calls, her voice loud and desperate. Her southern twang is thicker, drawing the words out and making it seem like she's actually afraid of the corpses on her tail.

The front door on the house swings open and a line of men pour out, all with weapons raised. Rick does a head count and cusses viciously in his mind, there are more than he expected. A glance at Daryl tells him there are more than he remembers as well.

"Claimed." Len calls, firing one of his arrows through the walker closest to Maggie. His beady eyes raking over her body in way that makes even Rick's skin crawl. There are groans of disappointment as one of the others puts a knife in the skull of the second walker. Rick recognizes Joe as he saunters up to Maggie, circling her as she, hopefully, pretends to cower.

"Well now, who do we have here?" His cocky voice rings out as he looks Maggie up and down from all angles. Rick has to grab Daryl's arm, actually needing Merle's help, to hold him back as the archer growls under his breath and lunges forward.

"Not yet, we need them to drop their guard." The former deputy hisses at his brother. Daryl grunts unhappily and shifts his stance, crossbow raised and aimed right at Len's head. Rick can't fault him for that, his Python is pointed at Joe's.

"Thank you! Thank you for savin' me. I'm Maggie Rhee." Maggie's voice is higher than normal, innocence injected into it that hasn't been there since the farm on their first go round in this life. Grins appear on the faces of the men now surrounding her, lecherous and dirty grins.

"I'm Joe. This here's Len, Tony, Dan, Lou, Conner, James, Vinny, Tyler, and Ray. You alone, sweetheart? Got a group somewhere?" Joe asks her after introducing himself and his gang. Rick grits his teeth, having not expected the last three men to be with them. Ten against seven are not exactly odds in their favor.

"No, I'm alone. I was on my family's farm, but it got overrun a week or so ago. Its...its just me now." The trembling brunette tells the gang, her voice shaking just as bad as the rest of her. Rick has to applaud her acting; she's really selling it now. Len has crept up so he's standing too close to Maggie for Rick's, or Daryl's, comfort. Maggie's too by the way she's leaning back and away from him.

"Easy now, honey. Ain't gonna hurt ya if ya behave. Don't fight me. We got rules in this group. All ya gotta do is claim somethin' and it's yours. I claimed ya so ya belong to me." His words are obviously meant to be a crooned order, but they come out like cheap pickup line mixed with a creepy command. Rick can't see Maggie's face but he's sure she's portraying the same disgust and anger that's painting the faces of the other women in their group. Laughter ripples through the claimers as they begin to crowd closer to Maggie, something Rick can't allow to happen.

"Let's move. We can't let them get their hands on her." Rick gives the go ahead as his group fan out and begin to move forward with weapons at the ready. A loud, low whistle rings out as the group step into view of the claimers, all of their guns, or crossbow, aimed at heads.

"Put your guns on the floor and kneel." Rick orders, his Python never wavering from where it's aimed directly between Joe's eyes. Said man is watching Rick's people appraisingly but he doesn't look afraid. No, he looks amused.

"Well, Sport, what are you gonna do about it with your-" Joe's cut off from what is most likely a mocking retort by another voice.

"You!" The guy called Tony screams, lunging forward to grab Maggie by the hair as he holds his gun to her temple. His eyes, though, are locked on Rick. Daryl and Rick both step forward, their weapons shifting to point at his head.

"You ain't killin' me again! Take one more step and I'll blow her brains out all over the pavement!"

Notes:

If y'all haven't noticed....I really like cliff hangers. Makes sure people will come back next week to find out how it goes lol

Chapter 33: Best Laid Plans....

Summary:

The confrontation with the claimers doesn't go as planned...

Rick's entire group was tense and coiled like a spring as they kept their weapons on the group of men in front of them. Daryl's face looked like it was carved from stone as he stared Tony down, anger darkening his slate blue eyes. Rick wasn't far behind him. Even the claimers looked surprised by what their comrade was doing.

"You're gonna let her go. Right now." Rick orders, blue eyes hardened like ice chips as he stares holes into the man currently holding a gun against Maggie's head. His gun never wavers from pointing at Joe though, as he's still the biggest threat in Rick's mind.

"Stay the fuck back!" Tony shouts, his grip on Maggie growing tighter and causing the woman to cry out. That instantly sets Rick's people off, shouting and screaming for him to let her go. The claimers react to a threat to one of their own by raising their own weapons higher and crowding closer to the struggling pair.

Rick's head tilts as he assesses the terrible situation they've somehow found themselves in. This was supposed to be an easy hunting expedition, wiping out awful people....but things don't always go to plan even in the Before world. His training as a cop and all the experience he gained in this hell from the Other, as he's taken to calling it, has him rapidly taking in the threat. Joe is still the most dangerous to the blue eyed man's mind, obviously followed by Tony who has Maggie captive, then Len who has his bow trained right on Daryl.

"Let her go. Ain't nobody gotta die today, just let her go." Rick uses his most soothing 'cop voice' as Glenn calls it as he tries to talk Tony down. The olive skinned man just sneers at him, obviously not fazed by his attempt at soothing.

"Now, just hold up there, Tony. What are ya even talkin' 'bout? Sayin' he killed ya when you're standin' right here like some kinda nut case." Joe's voice breaks the tense silence left by Rick's words.

"This bastard killed me! We found em, we did, camped on the side of the road. You had this one here and his black bitch on their knees, Dan had the boy, and the rest of us were teaching the archer all the way 'cause he done broke the rules. Next I know, he's done bit your throat out, the bitch has Vinny's gun, and the head asshole here puts a bullet in my chest. That's the last thing I remember before wakin' up in our camp outside Savanah." Tony explains, his angry eyes locked on Rick as he shoves the gun harder against the side of Maggie's head.

Rick sees the look on Joe's face change from confused and annoyed to realization as the older man's entire body goes rigid. It feels like time has slowed down for Rick, he can clearly see Joe's expression cloud over in rage as it appears he remembers the Other. A glance at Maggie shows the farmer's daughter is pale in fright, trembling in Tony's grasp.

The sight of tears in her gray eyes and the view of her hand clamped protectively over her middle fills Rick with even more rage than he was currently feeling. All of this happens in a couple of seconds but feels like it takes an eternity. As time snaps back into reality for him, Rick is pulling the trigger before he even registers what he's doing.

The gun in Joe's hand goes off as he drops, a neat hole in his throat. A shout behind Rick signals that the bullet hit someone, but Rick can't spare the time to stop and check on them as bullets begin to whiz by his head. Some missing by a hair's breadth. There's no place to duck for cover, not if he wants to avoid Maggie being stolen or killed, so the former cop just stands there in the open as he shoots another of those fuckers.

All of his instincts are screaming for him to find a place to hide, a vantage point, but he can't leave his family. From the corner of his eye, Rick watches Len hit the ground clutching at the arrow buried in his chest and doesn't even try to fight the savage grin taking over his face.

That grin disappears when a bullet whips past and leaves a long, burning graze on his cheek. The pain only focuses him more on the task at hand though. The report of the Python, and the echos of the other guns, rings in Rick's ears as he repeatedly squeezes the trigger. The whole fire fight takes less than five minutes, though it seems as if it lasts forever. Eventually it's just Tony left, half hidden behind Maggie so he's not an easy target. It's the only reason he's still alive.

Rick isn't able to tear his eyes away from the trembling man hiding behind the woman in his grasp like a coward, not even to make sure the rest of his family is still standing. The barrel of the Python is held steady even in Rick's shaky hands as he points it at Tony's head and he knows without looking that every weapon in his people's hands is doing the same.

"Let her go. This is your last chance." He orders, voice hard and cold. He's tired of dealing with this asshole.

"I let her go, I'm dead anyway." The other man spits, slowly backing away from the group and pulling Maggie with him. The brunette stumbles and he yanks her along viciously by her upper arm, making her cry out again. This sees Rick cocking the gun in his hands and he hears Daryl's growl of anger from somewhere beside him.

The sounds of walker moans have everyone on high alert as they spot the shambling corpses drawing nearer from behind Tony, most likely drawn by the gunfire and shouting. The other man whips his head around, spying the five walkers heading their way, and cusses loudly as he spins around to face them. Dragging Maggie with him. He lifts the gun away from her temple and points it at the closest walker, shooting it in the head.

While he's distracted, Maggie twists herself around quickly and sinks her teeth into the upper arm of the one holding onto her own as she brings a booted heel down as hard as she can onto the top of his foot.

"Ah! Fuckin' bitch!" He screams, using the hand attached to the arm she'd just bitten to backhand her across the face. Watching her fall to the ground makes Rick see red and he fires at the back of Tony's head, he's clearly not the only one as at least two other shots ring out along with the twang of Daryl's bow. They drop the asshole several times over before quickly dispatching the four walkers ambling in their direction.

Michonne rushes over, though she's limping heavily, and helps Maggie up off the ground. Fresh rage fills Rick as he sees her split lip. With the threats taken care of for the time being, he can finally take stock of his own group. An uninjured Merle is leaning over Sasha, who's on the ground with what looks like a small head wound, Daryl is pacing and angry looking but otherwise unharmed, and Carol is already rolling the claimer's bodies for their weapons while also delivering headshots to make sure they don't reanimate.

The weary leader lets out a breath he didn't even know he was holding. His group is a little shaky and a little injured, but they're alive. That's what matters most in his eyes.

Chapter 34: Spoils of War

Summary:

The team take the supplies from the assholes and raid the neighborhood

Rick stares out of the window of the house they're holed up in for the night, keeping watch while the rest of his family sleeps. They'd retreated to the house's safety to treat their wounds after taking the claimers' weapons and gear. Sasha and Michonne ended up being the worst wounded, with Michonne having been shot in the calf and Sasha taking a bullet graze across her temple. It was a wound reminiscent of Daryl's on the farm in the Other.

The gash on Rick's cheek from a bullet ended up being more superficial than he'd thought, nowhere near as deep as the scar just under it from Gareth's knife. Tomorrow will bring a new day and a new set of problems for the group as they strip the neighborhood of anything useful. A box sits on the table beside him- full of food, nearly expired medicine, and a couple of blankets that were found in this house.

Rick had looked over the weapons they took off the claimers when they first got medically cleared by Maggie. Several automatic guns, most likely raided from military camps, ten handguns of various brands and types, many knives and machetes, and Len's compound bow. A very good haul, all in all.

He's twirling the red handled machete in his hands as the sun begins to rise, bathing the sky in soft oranges and yellows as the light begins to illuminate the darkness. Revealing the bodies of the men they killed yesterday still laying on the pavement, exactly where they'd fallen. Rustling from behind him doesn't even make the former deputy twitch as Daryl settles onto the sofa beside him.

"Anythin'?" The archer grunts, his voice roughened with sleep. Rick shakes his head.

"Nah, it's been quiet. Barely seen one or two wandering about." He responds, glancing away from the window to study Daryl's face. The younger man is playing idly with the compound bow, tightening something on it.

"We're gonna clear the houses, see what we can find. Then we'll head for home." Rick tells him, eyes drifting back to the window again. From the edge of his vision, he sees Daryl nod. Movement from behind them tells the two men that the rest of their family is awake so Rick leaves Daryl to his watch as he goes to help with getting their meager breakfast prepared.

Once everyone had bowls of watery oatmeal, Rick laid out the plan for the day, getting nods and hums of agreement from everyone. After the food is eaten and their gear packed into bags, the group files out of the house to begin scouring the other houses in the suburb. They split up into teams to cover more ground. Rick, and Michonne. Daryl, Merle, and Carol. Maggie, and Sasha.

Rick's duo tromps into the house the claimers had been staying in, the that they had cleared the last time around. The gang had obviously been busy, as bags of things were scattered around the living room and food was piled up on the kitchen table. Rick whistles softly at the sight of it all, beginning to look through the bags with eagerness. Inside he finds first aid supplies, liquor, drugs, snack food items, butchered animals, weapons, and rolls of blankets.

With a snort, Rick tosses the drugs across the room. They aren't useful to them. Who in the world wanted to be high on meth, cocaine, or other such substances that Rick can't even recognize, when the dead were walking? He debates internally on the liquor, not knowing what proof it is, but eventually decides to bring it. If not for disinfecting wounds, they could use it to help take the edge off pain. The bags of supplies are collected up and stashed by the front door before he goes looking for Michonne.

The lithe woman is in the kitchen, digging through the pantry where she pulls out a box and a half of stale cereal, a few canned goods, and a half pack of bottled water to go with the food already piled on the table. He huffs out a laugh when she holds up a bottle of spray cheese triumphantly.

"You gonna share that with Carl?" The ex-cop jokes, beginning to pack the food into a large box.

"Of course. Kid'd never let me eat it in peace." She laughs right back, leaning over to steal a kiss when he walks by her. Their similar heights making the action easy, something Rick likes.

"Come on, let's check upstairs. See if those guys were as stupid as they look and left something useful behind." He tells her, already turning to head upstairs. He keeps his gun drawn, though doubts anything might be lurking around the corners. If those men intended to sleep here, they'd have cleared the house. Better safe than sorry though.

"Clear." He calls as he checks the master bedroom and in-suit, hearing Michonne's steady tone as she calls the same for the other rooms. A grin lights the blue eyed deputy's face when he spots the soaps, whole tubes of toothpaste, three towels, and a package of toilet paper.

"Fuckin' idiots." Rick snorts, shaking his head at those men's stupidity, as he begins shoving the supplies into his bag. Coming back out into the bedroom, he starts ripping open the drawers of the dresser and looking through the closet. There he finds sturdy clothing that looks like it'll fit most of the men on the farm, and a few things for the women as well. He rolls the clothing and pillows from the bed up in the thick, soft comforter and heads off to find Michonne.

Rick finds her packing kid's clothes into her bag, things that look as if they'll fit Andre and maybe Judith when she gets older. Rick adds the pillows and blanket from the twin bed to the load he's got before stepping up behind her, arms wrapping around her muscled stomach as he nuzzles her neck. A smile curls his lips when she leans back into him.

"Let's go see what the other houses have to offer." She says as she turns in his arms, planting a kiss on his lips. Rick nods, grabbing his comforter sack and following her downstairs. They divide the supplies in front of the door between themselves before leaving the house. Adding their things to a pile of goods sitting by the claimers' bodies lying on the road before heading off to another house to continue their search.

Its hours later, when the pair are searching their final house of the day, that they find it. An extremely disturbing scene, even with everything they've seen and done in this world. In the living room of the house lies two tiny bodies with holes in the backs of their heads, laid out on a now molded and bloodstained, white sheet. In the chair sits what was once a woman, her throat slashed wide open from ear to ear and a hole in her forehead. Hanging from a noose hooked over a rafter is the snarling walker of a man, his rotted hands reaching for them as they walked by him into the kitchen.

Rick and Michonne share a look, both silently agreeing not to put the walker down. Let him rot for what he's done. The pair make short work of clearing the house, wanting to leave the horrifying sights behind. It's getting dark by the time the group has cleared every house in the posh neighborhood, taking anything and everything they can possibly use.

The group ended up with the guns from the claimers, their supplies, over thirty blankets for next winter, clothes for summer and winter that would fit most of the group, twenty boxes of food from the pantries and kitchens of the houses, six more shotguns, a dozen or so handguns, and four bags of medicine and first aid supplies. A very good haul, even if it is just a bonus to ridding the world of a group like the claimers.

Chapter 35: Plans for Grady

Summary:

The team are on the way home when Rick brings up the hospital. They confront a couple of familiar people

The group has been on the road for around a week on their way back, stopping and raiding anywhere they could find. This included neighborhoods, stores, and abandoned cars. They'd had to pick up a third vehicle just to cart their supplies in. 'Should have brought the box truck.' Rick grouses to himself as he shoves a duffle bag of powdered milk, canned food, and juice bottles into the back of the SUV that Merle is now driving.

They're just outside Atlanta right now, having raided a convivence store a few miles outside of the city. Gazing at the burned out city, Rick is struck by the desire to see if the people at Grady Memorial are around this time. Anger coats the memory of Dawn Lerner's face as it pops into his mind but he quickly shoves that way. She hasn't harmed Beth this time around. She won't ever get the chance if he has his say about it.

Still, it can't be allowed to continue. The way she was running the hospital was a travesty. Making people indebted to them so they'd work as slaves, allowing her officers to rape the female victims, and beating on anyone who disagrees with them. That is a place that Rick can't allow to stand. Plus, having Noah back would make Glenn, and Tara happy. Might trigger Beth's memories as well.

An unbidden smile curls his lips as he remembers Tara's overjoyed reaction to seeing Denise again and how everyone celebrated when the psychiatrist remembered upon meeting her eyes. As happy as Rick is that those two are reunited, he's even more happy to have Denise's expertise. She trained to be a surgeon so she can do more than Ramona or Lily. On top of that, having her mental health knowledge is a boon with all the people remembering suddenly...and the ones that don't that now have to deal with loved ones suddenly behaving totally different.

Shaking those thoughts away, the curly haired man turns to look out at the city again. Their people could use the supplies from the hospital, the equipment...and Doctor Edwards. Rick tries not to let self loathing drag him under as he thinks about going to Grady before Lori gave birth and how she might still be alive if he had. He's so into wrestling with those thoughts that he doesn't hear the footsteps behind him, so the hand on his shoulder makes him jump and draw his gun.

"Woah.." Michonne says, her hands up but her face flat with an unamused expression. Rick sheepishly puts his gun back in the holster.

"Sorry." He apologizes awkwardly, a faint blush tinging his cheeks.

"What were you thinking so hard about?" She asks, expression softening as she steps closer to him.

Rick sighs, looking at the city buildings backdropped by the slowly setting sun. "Was thinking 'bout Grady. The supplies there, the doctor..."

"Ah." Michonne hums, looking at him with a searching expression as she asks. "And you want to get them?"

"I do. We could use them." Rick nods, shifting on his feet as plans begin to form and take shape in his mind. Plans on how to even get into the hospital without being eaten by the dead or gunned down by the Grady cops.

"How are you planning on getting in? We don't have Noah to use to lure officers out into the city." Michonne pokes at his plans, wanting to make sure he actually has a plan rather than going off halfcocked.

"Was hopin' you'd help me with that part." He grins at her, the smile only getting wider as she rolls her eyes at him. She props herself against the car and stares out at the city with Rick, seemingly thinking out loud.

"We could fire off shots in the city like Noah did. Use the cops' curiosity to lure them right to us and grab them like we did last time. We'd just have to hope none of them remembered." She muses, glancing at Rick to see what he thinks.

"Could work. Let's see what the rest think." Rick replies, whistling for the rest of their group. Once everyone is gathered around the car, he lays out their tentative plan. Only to pause as he sees Merle scoff and shake his head.

"It could work, could give us a chance to take that place without losing anyone." Rick tells him, trying to make him see the merit of this plan.

"Could also backfire on our asses an' end up wit' us bitin' a bullet." Merle scoffs at him, spitting on the ground as the larger man shifts his weight from foot to foot. Both Dixon brothers are exuding a nervous sort of anticipation, though Daryl has that caged tiger look about him at the thought of going anywhere near Grady again.

"The hell ya wanna go back ta tha' place fer?! Tha' bitch, Dawn, 's only gonna try an' kill us 'gain! Ya know wha' she did ta Beth!" Daryl rages, his face going red as he paces back and forth in front of them. His accent thicker with his anger.

"I know. I know, but she hasn't done that this time. We need that doctor and could definitely use the medical supplies in the hospital." Rick tries to placate him, taking a step forward to try and get the hunter to meet his eyes. Once he manages that, he starts talking.

"Think of that girl that Noah told us about. Joan? She was only a couple of years older than Beth and you know what those cops are doing to her. Do you really wanna leave her to that?" He asks the redneck, knowing Daryl has a soft spot for women and children, along with an intense hatred for rapists. He won't leave that little girl there to be abused.

The archer still looks very unhappy as he continues to pace, almost growling in his simmering anger but he's no longer protesting. Rick took that as his agreement, the only one they were likely to get. A glance at Maggie showed her stone faced but with anger in her gray eyes. He figured what she was going to say before she even opened her mouth, and what's more? He agreed with her.

"I get to be the one to put Dawn down." The brunette says, her tone firm and unyielding. It's a fact, not a question or seeking permission.

"Nah-" Daryl starts before Rick holds up his hand to quiet him. The leader looks at Maggie, really looks at her. She has her memories, is the Maggie they know, but Rick isn't sure how much death she can take on her conscience. Maggie meets his look head on, firm resolve in her eyes that sways Rick's decision even more.

"Alright. We'll deal with the cops after we've rounded everyone up and taken the hospital. Some of the officers will be on our side." Rick tells them, running a hand through his hair. The rest of the group agrees, though some more reluctant than others.

"For now, let's find somewhere to hole up for the night since we won't be heading back to the farm." Michonne says, using a pair of binoculars to scan the city for a safe place to spend the night. Thankfully, over the year most of the herds had moved on from their inhabitation of the city.

The group ended up securing themselves in an abandoned dentist's office just as the sun was completely disappearing for the night.

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

The next morning, they are up just as the sun is beginning to rise and making their way deeper into the city. Everyone had their weapons at the ready and head on a swivel despite the streets being relatively clear of walkers. Once they were a just a couple blocks from Grady, Rick pulled them to a halt in a semi-secluded alley.

"We need to fire shots into the air, get the officers to come looking for us. Then we ambush them. So fan out, we need to surround them like last time." The blue eyed man tells his people, voice soft so as not to draw unwanted attention from the dead.

The group spreads out around a block radius, keeping out of sight of the road, and raise their guns towards the sky. Everyone fires off a single shot, the air filled with seven consecutive shots as if someone was shooting at someone. After that, they wait.

It takes about twenty minutes for a squad car to pull up, two officers exit the car with guns drawn and begin looking around. Rick can hear them talking quietly to each other as they begin checking alleys and open doorways into buildings. A sharp whistle from the ex-deputy sees all seven of Rick's people surrounding the two stunned and more than slightly afraid cops.

Rick sighs softly in relief as he sees the familiar faces of officers Amanda Shepherd, and Bob Lamson. He can reason with these two, mostly. Lamson tried to escape last time, it ended with Rick hitting him with a car and then shooting him in the head....the blue eyed man hopes it doesn't have to come to that this time. If all goes well, these two will be coming back to the farm with Rick's people.

"Put your weapons on the hood of the car and get on your knees." Rick calmly tells them, his gun aimed at Lamson's head unwaveringly.

"Look, whatever you're trying to accomplish here, it isn't going to work." Lamson tells them as both cops slowly put their side arms on the hood of the squad car before sinking onto their knees on the blacktop. Rick nods towards the pair and the Dixon brothers move up behind them to slip on zip ties. Daryl doing it more roughly than is strictly necessary.

Maggie collects their guns, slipping them into her pack as she stares at the officers stonily. Sasha is glaring unhappily right at Lamson. She's most likely remembering his cowardly attack that knocked her out in the Other. Rick lays a comforting, and restraining, hand on her shoulder as he moves to stand in front of the cops. Visibly and obviously holstering the Python.

"You're going to take us to your camp, we know you're set up in the hospital so don't even try to lie, and you're going to let us in. No one has to get hurt, we just need what you have." Rick tells him, laying his charisma on thick. He's lying to them, and, by the looks on their faces, they know it too. The curly haired man fully intends for Dawn, and the rapist cops to never leave those walls alive again.

"You're going to show us how to get in without being killed, and we'll let you live. This isn't personal and we don't want to hurt more people than necessary. Having you will mean we get in and out, easy. They won't risk hurting two of their own, it'll work." Michonne tells the trembling cops. Whether they're shaking from anger, fear, adrenaline, or a mix of all three...Rick doesn't know. He doubts even they do.

"That's what we tried to tell you! It would work if you had different cops. Dawn, our leader, knows most of us want her out, pretty sure she knows we want Lamson to replace her too." Shepherd says, all of her muscles tensed as she clearly fights the urge to yank herself away from Merle.

"Nah, she doesn't know that." Lamson denies, shaking his head seemingly fighting a wince as Daryl's grip tightens with a growl from the hunter.

Before more can be said, another squad car comes squealing around the corner and nearly plows right into the group. Would have if they hadn't all scattered backwards. Rick recovers quickly and rips the Python from the holster at his hip, aiming it at the driver's head. Trusting his people to secure the captured officers without sustaining injury or having to harm them.

"Come out!" He calls, moving closer to the car where the cop is just sitting in the driver's seat and staring at them.

"Alright, asshole!" The man behind the tinted windows calls as the door opens and he slowly steps out. Rick isn't surprised to see Gil Licari, as he is who arrived last time...and nearly killed Daryl after a brawl.

"Hands up, don't try anything!" Rick orders, walking over to him with his gun pointed right between the taller man's eyes. Licari sneers but puts his hands up, seeing the guns to the heads of his companions. Rick carefully removes his service weapon and hands it behind him to Carol before passing his own weapon to Michonne and moving behind the bald cop to zip tie his hands together.

"Now, let's go see the hospital and talk to Dawn." He says, loading all three bound officers into the back of one of the squad cars.

Chapter 36: Justice Done

Summary:

Rick leads the group into ending Grady. Maggie gets her revenge

Getting into Grady Memorial isn't hard at all, not with three cops showing them exactly how to enter. Of course, Rick and his people already knew this, but they didn't tell the officers that. They all slip into the dimly lit hallway by a shattered second floor window that's only accessible by the ladder that's been anchored into place under it. In the Other, Rick was too focused on getting Beth, and Carol back to really pay attention to their surroundings other than to watch for other cops.

This time, he carefully checks the rooms in the hallways they walk through for supplies that will be usable after they've taken this place. Another thing that rankles Rick is that they left the surviving cops and patients still living in the hospital last time, so didn't raid it. Those supplies could have come in handy at Alexandria later. This time, he intends to leave no stone unturned.

They make it to the fourth floor, where the group mainly lives, without being spotted by anyone. That in itself is a small miracle, but their luck doesn't last. A cop comes out of what looks to be a break room, his eyes widening when he sees the blood spattered group following closely behind his three compatriots. Rick instantly has his gun pointed at the man's head.

"Hand over your weapon, nice and slow." He orders, cold blue eyes locking onto the man's increasingly fearful ones. The cop nods like a bobble head and unholsters his service weapon with his off hand and slowly passes it to Maggie who's standing closest.

"What's your name?" Rick demands as Maggie checks the gun over and slips it into her waistband. The officer stammers and shakes his head, attempting to step back away from them both. Rick sighs and turns to the three cops under his control already.

"What's his name?" His voice is only slightly less hostile when asking it of the three that are cooperating.

"That's O'Donnell. He's one of the bad ones." It's Shepherd who answers him, her voice like steel as she glares at the other cop. Rick nods at Daryl and the redneck doesn't need to be told twice. He strides forward and swipes his hunting knife across the cop's throat in a wide arch, sending blood spraying over his face and the wall beside them both.

O'Donnell crumples to the ground where Daryl drives his blade through the corpse's temple, preventing him from reanimating and becoming another threat. Rick nods to Daryl and carefully shuts the break room door before latching it from the outside and moving on deeper into the hospital. Resolutely ignoring the blank looks of horror on Shepherd, Licari, and Lamson's faces.

It's only a few doors down that the heavily armed group run into another familiar face. Noah comes out of a linen closet, a stack of towels in his arms. The teenage boy drops the towels at his feet when he sees them, dark skin going pale in fear. Rick holds his gun up, pointed at the ceiling, in one hand to show he's not a threat.

"Hey, easy. We're not gonna hurt you, okay? Just don't scream." The ex-cop's voice is low and soothing as he slowly moves towards the trembling boy. Rick gets within touching distance of the teen, Noah not moving in his fading panic.

"We're here to get you out of this place. Can you help us?" He waits until Noah slowly nods, the fear in his eyes dimming as he really looks over the group. Seeing the three cops in zip ties.

"Yeah...yeah, I can do that." Noah stammers, his eyes pausing on Daryl with a look of almost recognition. Though, not fully.

"Can you tell us where Dawn is?" Rick asks, his voice still soothing as he holsters the Python to appear even less threatening.

The teenager points down the hallway with a trembling hand. "She's in her office, down that way. Second door on the left."

Rick nods his thanks and sends the boy back into the room he came out of with orders to stay there. Then he leads his group down the hall towards Lerner's office, taking their three cop hostages with them. It doesn't take them long to reach the only closed door in the hall, which Rick figures must be her office. Daryl and Merle flank the sides of the door as Rick stands directly in front of it with Maggie on one side of him and Sasha on the other, both just a step behind him and ready to defend his sides if more cops appear. Carol stands behind all of them with her gun raised and aimed down the hallway to their left.

Rick holds up three fingers, slowly putting them down until he gets to one and then kicks open the door. A short, dark haired woman, that Rick recognizes as Dawn, shoots up from the seat behind the desk, clearly startled. Maggie and Sasha have filed in behind the blue eyed deputy, all three of their weapons aimed at the Lieutenant's head. She hasn't even had the time to draw her service weapon.

"Hand over your gun. Right now." Maggie orders, her voice glacial cold and her gray eyes staring straight through the other woman. Dawn's face hardens, barely any fear detectable despite all the guns pointed at her and the angry faces of the people holding them.

"And if I don't?" The cop asks, her voice having that smug tone that Shane's always did. Like having a badge somehow makes them better than everyone else. Maggie doesn't rise to the obvious bait; she just shifts the aim of her gun and pulls the trigger. A bullet impacting the wall inches from the older woman's head. Dawn flinches hard, obviously not expecting that.

"Hand over your gun. I won't ask again, nor will I miss the next time." Maggie tells her, anger flashing in her eyes. Dawn gets the message this time and unholsters her gun, laying it on the desk where Rick steps forward to pick it up.

"Knife too." He tells her, seeing the handle of it on her belt. Brown eyes gaze at him intensely, angrily, but she pulls the blade from it's sheath and lays it on the desk as well. Rick takes that too before he backs up to stand behind Maggie. This is her show at the moment, he's just here to make sure she doesn't go too far and start shooting the good cops as well.

"Come on, you're comin' with us." Maggie orders, the hand on her gun steady and grip never wavering. She's fully prepared to shoot the older woman, something Dawn must realize as well since she walks around the desk towards them with her hands up in surrender.

Maggie marches Dawn down the hallway they came from towards the break room where four other cops are. Rick and the Dixon brothers right behind her, their weapons covering the armed officers. Said arms are quickly turned over at Merle's gruff order. Maggie binds Dawn's hands with zip ties and puts her on her knees beside the other officers. The only ones still on their feet are Rick's group and the three cops they caught outside.

Rick watches as the farmer's daughter paces slowly in front of the line of cops sitting on their knees, her icy gray eyes radiating anger.

"We know what goes on here. How you steal people, sometimes runnin' them over with your cars, only to make them feel indebted to you so they work...you turn people into slaves. We also know about the male cops raping the female prisoners here, and yes they are prisoners. You're holding them against their will. You call yourself officers of the law? Protect and serve, huh?" Maggie rants at them as she paces, meeting the eyes of every cop in the room.

A darked haired man spits at Maggie's feet, his face defiant and eyes angry. "Those bitches owe us. We took them in, kept them safe and fed. Its-"

His words are cut off in a gurgle as the crack of a gun rings through the room, blood beginning to spurt wildly from a hole in his throat. Everyone looks at Maggie, but she looks just as stunned as anyone else. Rick slowly turns his head from staring at the dying man on the floor to look to where the shot came from. Carol stands towards the back of the room, arm still extended, and hand clenched around the gun so tightly that her knuckles are white. Her blue eyes shine with pure rage as she trembles a little.

"Shut up." Is all the gray haired woman says as she slowly lowers the gun, rage not fading from her expression. The room is deathly silent except for the soft sobbing coming from a female officer and Dawn's ragged breathing as she stares at the now lifeless body of, what Licari reveals, used to be officer Gorman.

"Maggie, let's get this done so we can begin packing up the supplies. Sasha, Carol will you bring the...prisoners in so they can identify the officers needing culled?" Rick's smooth, authoritative voice rings through the thick silence hanging in the air. The two women nod to their leader and slip quietly from the room, returning a few minutes later with around a dozen people that look half terrified and half vindicated.

Rick raises a brow at Maggie and tilts his head towards the patients. This is her show, after all. He watches the brunette take a deep breath and readjust the grip on the gun in her slim hands before she turns to face the people crowding just in front of Rick's group.

"My name is Maggie Rhee. These are Rick Grimes, Sasha Williams, Carol, Michonne, and Daryl and Merle Dixon. We ain't here to hurt you, we just need the supplies the hospital has. When we learned what the cops were doin', we knew we couldn't leave you guys here. You're welcome to come with us, if you like, when we leave this place."

An emotion rises in Rick's chest, and it takes him a moment to place it. Pride. He's proud of Maggie, of the leader she's blossomed into. The curly haired man didn't miss her deliberately not using a last name for Carol, despite knowing it. All of them know that Carol wouldn't want to use Ed's name. Not ever again. None of them, except him and maybe Carl, know Michonne's surname...something he's sure is purposefully on her part. Rick is drawn from his thoughts when Maggie begins speaking again.

"Right now, we need your help. I know that Dawn is a horrible person, as were Gorman and O'Donnell but we need to know if there are more. We don't want to bring anyone who would condone rape and forced slavery home with us." Maggie says, her voice soft and imploring as she meets everyone's eyes. A dark haired woman in her early to mid-twenties with haunted brown eyes steps forward and points at a pale looking male officer.

"That one. The son of a bitch was just as bad as O'Donnell and Gorman. Used to laugh with them when they were...done with me." Her voice shakes a little at the end, but her words are full of venom as she glares at the now trembling man. Maggie nods, stepping back to stand next to the girl but not touching her.

"Anyone else?" She asks, her voice impossibly soft now. It suddenly hits Rick that Maggie has been in this girl's shoes. The Governor may not have actually raped her, but he sure molested and traumatized her. Everyone watches as Noah steps up, wrapping one of his skinny arms around the young woman's shoulders and pulling her close in comfort.

She seems to take the comfort as it was meant as she squares herself up and points to a stone faced woman. "Her too. She used to hold us down for them, saying it was better us then her."

Rage fills Rick's chest all over again, and a growl behind him says that he's not alone in his feelings. A glance at Maggie is all it takes for her to nod and Rick steps forward with Dawn's gun in his hands. Three seconds and two cracks of the weapon later and the two cops indicated are laying face down on the carpeted floor in rapidly spreading pools of blood with holes in their foreheads.

A rasping sound is heard as the girl in Noah's arms breaks down in what seem to be relieved, and grief filled sobs as she buries his face against his slim chest. All eyes snap towards Gorman's corpse as the rasping gets louder and sure enough, the body is starting to rise from its sprawled position. Dawn, the closest person to the walker now looking around, lets out a gasp of fearful surprise and disgust. Unfortunately for her, the noise draws the creature's attention.

Her screams ring out as the walker shuffles its bound form over to her own and sinks its teeth into her shoulder. Everyone watches as the walking corpse begins to rip her open, but no one attempts to do anything to stop it.

"Help! Help me! Please, someone help me!" Dawn screams out her pleas, her voice wet and breaking as the walker literally eats her alive right in front of them. Her begging doesn't tug at Rick's heart like he knows it should. She was a terrible person so he can't find it in himself to feel even an ounce of pity for her.

It's Maggie, as it should be in Rick's mind, that eventually breaks from the stupor that seems to have fallen over the crowd of people watching. She marches forward and drives her knife into the back of the walker's head before shoving the now truly dead corpse to the floor. Cold gray meet pained, fearful brown as Maggie stares down at the older woman for a long moment before she aims her gun and fires a single time. Just like that, the life of Lieutenant Dawn Lerner comes to an end.

Chapter 37: The End of Grady

Summary:

The hospital is done and Rick brings back new people to the farm

Notes:

You'll meet some OC's this chapter

By the time everything was said and done, there were six cops, plus Dawn, lying dead on the floor. The young woman who'd identified most of the bad cops was still sobbing in Noah's arms, though her tears seemed to be relief that this nightmare was finally over.

Four cops, the doctor, and six residents chose to return to the farm with Rick's group. So the group had now gained eleven new members in the form of Gil Licari, Amanda Shepherd, Bob Lamson, Joy Bello, Steven Edwards, Noah James, Joan Cameron, Percy Milo, Lyla Jacobs, Emily Kane, and her sister, Jasmine Kane.

The cops were in their early to mid thirties, with the doctor in his early forties. Noah is currently eighteen, he thinks. Joan and Lyla are both twenty four. Percy is in his sixties. Emily is sixteen, with Jasmine being just ten.

The bodies of the dead officers were left where they'd fallen as Rick directed their new additions to go pack up their personal belongings. The rest of their group split up to begin stripping this floor of anything of value. 'This should go a lot faster, now that I'm not alone' Rick thinks to himself as he grabs a laundry bag out of a patient room and begins stuffing food from the kitchen and pantry into it.

That takes around two hours, according to his watch, and by the time the blue eyed man has finished, he has two laundry bags of nonperishable goods, a large cooler full of cuts of meat, and several containers of live guinea pigs. That baffles him but he doesn't comment on it.

He meets up with the rest of the group at the door to the exit. Daryl cleaned out every weapon he could get his hands on. The dead cops' service weapons, extra guns they'd gathered, knives, bats, machetes, and even IV poles for spears. Merle had set about stuffing all the bedding he could get his hands on into bags.

Blankets, pillows, sheets, and cloth pads, used for patients who had bathroom troubles, were all grabbed from every room on the floor. He'd also grabbed any clothes from the nurse's station, either someone would be able to wear it, or they'd cut it up and use the pieces to make new clothes.

Carol and Maggie had assisted Edwards in cleaning out the medical supplies on this floor. Any medications, syringes, bandages, suture kits, IV supplies, blood bags, vaccines that need refrigeration, and super sized first aid kits. Those are just the things Rick knows about, for all he knows they could have cleaned out the entire floor. Sasha was charged with looking after their new additions, making sure no one who wasn't coming with them stuck around for very long.

A grin curls Rick's lips when he sees the haul they've all collected, and just from the one floor they've searched so far. These supplies will more than make up for bringing back eleven more mouths to feed. 'Well, these and the doctor.' Rick mentally amends.

It takes the group all of the rest of the day to finish clearing the hospital floors of anything of value. Medications, bedding, any form of clothing, food, any type of weapon they can find, and small medical equipment that won't be too difficult to transport. By the time they've finished all four floors, plus the rooftop garden, having cleared the walkers from the ground floor, it's well past dark out.

Rick would like to stay in the hospital where he knows it's safe and relatively walker free, but he can't ask the victims found here to stay in the place their abuse happened even for one more night. So, with that in mind, he gathers the now larger group in the empty and gore spattered waiting room/lobby on the ground floor and addresses them.

"I know we're all exhausted from the work we've done today but we need to find somewhere safe to spend the night at." He starts, seeing the hope on the former patient's faces at finally getting to leave this place.

"Yes, I know the hospital is secure, but I think this place holds too many bad memories for most of you to want to stay here even a moment longer." Rick cuts across Edwards when the man goes to speak, dislike for the doctor beginning to curl in his stomach. The man is a coward of the highest degree and Rick hates that.

'At least Eugene was beginning to get better towards the end.' The former deputy muses to himself with an internal snort. That thought has him thinking of the Texan trio they'd met at Terminus, and he wonders how they're making it along on their journey east. Rick is shaken from his thoughts by Joan, the girl who'd identified the cops.

"If we're not staying here, which I'm very thankful for, then where will we stay? The city is no doubt crawling with those...things!" She says, a look of distaste on her bruised face when she mentions the walkers.

Rick is thinking it over, weighing the pros and cons of different places, when Daryl speaks up.

"We could try the dentist's 'gain...it was secure las' night at leas'..." The archer's voice trails off, slate blue eyes meeting Rick's. The leader hums as he rolls the idea around in his mind, it has merit. The dentist's office was secure and easily defendable last night. Though, it will be tight this time with eleven more people with them.

"Can't we stay in an apartment building? The dentist place was creepy!" Sasha cuts in, a joking quality to her voice though her face says she's more than half serious. Rick pauses, thinking on that option as well. Wondering how he's going to fit seventeen people into one little apartment.

"No, we know the office is safe. We have no idea what could be lurking in an apartment building. These people don't know how to fight walkers, or people. I wouldn't feel comfortable with them at our backs, or left somewhere to wait, while we cleared the place." Maggie pipes up, her intense eyes focused on Rick.

"She's right. These people are untrained, and it wouldn't be wise to move them across the city so far. The nearest apartment building is nearly six blocks away." Rick tells them, mind made up.

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

It turns out that Rick was right, moving that many untrained people across a walker infested city was extremely difficult. Made only a little easier by the cops knowing how to handle themselves, even if they didn't know how Rick's group operates. It took them nearly all day to reach the deemed safe house with all the doubling back to avoid herds they had to do, on top of trying to keep their group together and quiet. Quelling the panic in the patients was not an easy thing.

After a long and restless night spent on the office floor, the group was ready to move out once again. This time with their loaded down vehicles. The people from Grady were excited by the prospect of the farm, a safe haven with plenty of food that no one has to 'work' for. Rick and his people were just eager to see their families after well over a week away from them.

Rick was desperate to see Carl, and Judith. Even having Michonne at his side was barely enough to stave off the urgency. He can't imagine how Maggie feels, leaving her whole family and her husband behind for so long.

All in all, it's a very tired but satisfied group that makes it back to the farm a day later, their mystified charges in tow with their heads on a swivel as they eagerly take in the sights of the Greene farm. Rick is just relieved to have his children wrapped in his arms again, and he includes Andre in that. After months with the boy, he already loves him like his own. Something Michonne is thrilled about.

Chapter 38: Blown Away

Summary:

Tragedy strikes the group

A few more months had gone by peacefully on the farm and now it was early fall. The group had spent a full year, and some change, on the farm. A very eventful year. The Grady group had settled right into place once they'd been brought home, with the cops joining the usual run group rosters. Beth had remembered upon seeing Noah and the rest of the former captives. She'd run to hug Noah but Daryl had held her back, even as she fought him.

Noah didn't remember, it was obvious by the way he'd looked at Beth as if she were insane as she called to him and struggled in Daryl's arms. There was a look of....something in his eyes though. Things had gotten a little dicey again when it was discovered that Joan, the woman who'd been abused so horribly by the officers, was pregnant.

The choice was offered for her to have an herb induced abortion, but she outright denied that with the fact that it wasn't the baby's fault its daddy was a monster. Rick admired her strength. It was decided that she would have the baby and someone else on the farm would adopt it once it was born, though they were still trying to decide who would do it.

Maggie had announced her own pregnancy in early September, something Rick had already suspected about after their encounter with the claimers. She and Glenn were over the moon about it, Maggie's family as well at actually being able to witness it this time. Safe to say, the entire group were praying she had an easier time of it this go round.

Rick should be relaxed at the moment, all of the known 'big bads' in Georgia had been removed from the equation, and they hadn't gone anywhere near Virginia to run into Negan and his saviors, but he couldn't. It was getting close to winter, which meant currently it was storm season. They had gotten lucky last time in that no real damage had been done but the ex-cop wondered how long their luck would hold.

Already there had been a tornado that ripped through several houses across town from where they were holed up. Aaron had taken a group scouting once the worst of the weather had cleared up, salvaging anything they possibly could. Wood, and scrap metal mostly. Everything had a use these days, couldn't afford to waste anything that might be useful.

A touch on his back startles Rick from his thoughts, head turning to meet Michonne's concerned eyes as she hangs up another piece of clothing on the laundry line. Rick smiles at her softly, still amazed at her warrior like beauty every day that passes.

"You alright? Kinda spaced out there." Michonne asks, her tone purposefully light. She knows, as does everyone, what's been weighing on his mind lately. Same thing that's been weighing on everyone's.

Rick sighs out a breath before answering her. "Yeah, just worried."

"As always." She responds, bumping her shoulder against his.

"I'm in charge, it's my job to worry." Rick snarks back, a smile tilting the corners of his lips.

They finish the rest of the laundry hanging in companionable silence. Rick glances at the sky as they're gathering up the laundry baskets, his previous worry returning. The sky is black and overcast, thick clouds hanging low over the earth. The very air is heavy with moisture. A storm is coming, a bad one by the looks of it. The former deputy sighs again and sends up a prayer that it won't be nearly as bad as the one from a week ago.

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

It's later that evening as the group as just finishing up dinner, which they still eat squeezed into Hershel's dining and living rooms, that the sky opens up and rain begins pouring down. No one really thinks much of it, the sky had been dark all day, until the light show begins. Lightning lighting up the sky so brightly it looks like daytime and striking so close that the thunder happens nearly in unison.

Rick meets Merle's eyes from across the table, seeing his own worry reflected back in those slate blues. The two share a nod before standing nearly as one and beginning to herd their family towards the basement door.

"Go, move it! We's need ta get undagroun' now 'fore that storm gets real bad." Merle barks at the group of confused, and now scared, people.

"Come on, we need to get to the basement." Rick murmurs to Carl and Michonne as he hefts Judith onto his hip, guiding people towards the door on the opposite side of the kitchen. Michonne pauses just long enough to snatch Andre up from his highchair.

No one protests much, even less so when thunder booms so loudly overhead that pictures fall off the walls and shatter on the wooden floor. It was a tight squeeze, all those people into the Greene's modest basement, but they made it work, and no one complained. Hershel lit a few oil lamps so they weren't all sitting in the dark, and Carl led the rest of the kids in games of cards so they wouldn't start whining.

As they sat there, holding their loved ones and praying, the sound of the storm got louder as it raged on harder than ever. Rick watched as Annette jumped and held onto Hershel tighter as the sound of shattering glass rang out from behind the basement door, the howling wind now even more audible.

No one spoke, other than Hershel's soothing murmurs of prayer in his wife's ear, as they all sat and waited out the storm. Water began to leak slowly but steadily through the cracks in the metal door that accessed the cellar from outside. Daryl pulled a couple of the younger children away from it, as they wanted to play in the water. Lydia is pushed into Eric's arms, and Mika pressed tightly against Ryan's side to hide from the loud booms of thunder.

Rick sits against a wall, knees bent uncomfortably in the small space available, with Michonne pressed tightly on one side and Carl on the other as he tries to calm Judith who's crying from the loud noises and the tension in the room. Andre clings to his mother, his tiny face hidden against her chest as he too sobs softly.

Hours pass this way and eventually the kids at least manage to fall asleep, shielded by their parents or guardians from the worst of it. Rick stays awake through it all, listening to the screaming wind and booms of thunder as he rocks a dozing Judith in his arms. Carl is also in a doze, head leaned back against the wall and mouth open as he snores, though his hand stays gripped tightly around the holstered gun at his hip. The sight makes something in Rick's chest tighten.

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

Eventually the storm begins to die down, light beginning to peek through the cracks around the metal door. Just in time too, as Daryl is twitching so hard he's nearly vibrating in place. 'I had almost forgotten that he doesn't like being confined.' The blue eyed man thinks to himself, remembering the early days at the prison when Daryl refused to sleep in a cell, or 'cage' as he called it.

Rick nudges Carl awake and hands Judith off to him as he slowly unfolds himself from the wall. A groan forces past his lips at the stiffness in his hips and knees from being in one position for so long. Carefully, so as not to step on anyone else, he makes his way to the door that leads up from the basement into the rest of the house and turns the knob...but the door won't open. Now very worried, Rick pushes his full weight against the door as he tries to open it again but the door still won't budge.

"Somethin' is blockin' it." He calls back to the group behind him, voice rougher in his panic.

"No, no, no." Rick hears before Daryl is pushing past him roughly to bang on the door. He's kicking, pushing, and punching at the door as he tries to get it open.

"Fuck!" The hunter hollers as he slams his boot against the door as hard as he can, fighting against Rick's hold when he attempts to drag him back. Merle makes his way through the crowd to help hold his brother down, which does nothing for Daryl's state of panic induced rage.

"Listen to me, listen to me!" Rick murmurs in his ear, keeping his voice low so he's only talking to Daryl...but everyone hears anyway with how silent the basement is otherwise.

"We're gonna get out, but we can't do that if we're panicking. We need clear heads. Can you do that?" A flash of something warms Rick's chest at once again asking that of Daryl, remembering the rooftop in Atlanta. The archer grunts but stops struggling, going limp in Merle's hold. The elder Dixon is quick to release him.

"I'm gonna try the other door." Rick says as he picks his way through the basement to the metal door covering the way to outside instead of inside the house. He knows it's not locked, as they come down here regularly and they trust everyone on the property, but it is secured.

It ends up taking Rick, Merle, and Daryl pushing on the door to get it open, light spilling into the dimly lit concrete room making them all squint at the brightness. The former cop climbs out of the basement and slowly looks around at the farm...and is shocked and horrified at what he sees.

The house is completely gone.

Notes:

This chapter was heavily inspired by Redneck Takes A Wife by JCS Writer. It's on Fanfiction.net and if you haven't read it yet...I suggest you do. It's one of my favorite walking dead fics

Chapter 39: Salvaging

Summary:

The group save what they can and talk about moving. It doesn't go over well with some

Devastation. That's all Rick can see and it's all that fills his chest. The Greene's home is gone, nothing but splintered wood and the concrete foundation left. The cabins where most of their family has lived for the last year are mostly destroyed, piles of wood and debris. The barns had been spared, on either side of the path the tornado had obviously chewed through the property, as had the metal storehouse right behind the now totaled farmhouse. 'At least most of our supplies are still secure', Rick muses numbly as he stares at the destruction.

As the rest of the group begins to spill from the basement into the chilly morning air, gasps and cries fill the silence as they take in the scene. Rick can hear Annette and Beth sobbing loudly as they cling to Hershel, Maggie crying silently in Glenn's arms to his right.

"My family has lived on this property for generations, that house has stood for a hundred and fifty years. Now it's gone. Gone, just like that..." Hershel mutters, his voice raspy as the man fights back tears. Clearly trying to be strong for his wife and daughters.

"Let's uh...Let's start looking through the wreckage, see if we can salvage anything." Rick tells them, his voice breaking.

"We need ta hurry. The fence is down." Daryl informs everyone, his eyes trained towards the edge of the property where the fence that kept them safe had once stood.

"Oh god, Percy!" Noah gasps.

Before Rick's mind can even process what he means, a portion of their group is running for the destroyed fence. The blue eyed man follows them numbly. The scene they find is heart breaking. The watch post had collapsed with the fence, burying Percy under the rubble.

Noah frantically digs at the mess, tearing his hands up but seemingly not caring. Tears pour down the boy's face as he tries to find his friend. Rick, Daryl, Merle, Martinez, and several others kneel down to help him. Eventually they move enough of the rubble to reveal Percy. His eyes are open and sightless, a large piece of the metal fencing impaled through his chest.

Rick bows his head in respect for the loss of the old man, catching sight of Merle reaching out to close Percy's eyes.

"We need ta move 'im. Get 'im someplace else 'fore the lil ones see." Merle murmurs, his voice solemn.

Joan reaches out, carefully tugging the metal shard from Percy's chest, using a torn scrap of Noah's shirt to cover the wound from sight as the rest of the men lift the body from the rubble. They carry Percy over to where the other graves are placed under the willow tree, laying him down gently on the damp ground.

Rick straightens up and wipes his hands on his jeans, sighing tiredly as he looks around at the downtrodden faces surrounding him. The former deputy takes a moment to fall back on his police training and his time in the Other, compartmentalizing. Pushing the grief, anger, and hopelessness away to focus on the task at hand.

"We'll bury him soon but for now we need to see what survived the wreckage. Those supplies could mean the difference between life and death in the future." He tells the group, his voice rasping but steady.

Noah opens his mouth as if to protest but quickly closes it when Joan elbows him as she holds Emily and Jasmine comfortingly. He scowls a little and turns away, joining the rest of the group as they move to what's left of the farmhouse where the Greene's are already picking through the wreckage of their home.

Annette's cast iron kitchen ware survived, sitting untouched amidst the splinters that used to be cabinets. The china dishes are in pieces, their hand-crafted cabinet, that Hershel had apparently carved for Annette as a wedding gift, lay in splinters mixed in with the pale blue and white ceramic shards. The Greene matriarch barely spares the mess a few tears, though it's clear the loss devastates her, before she's moving further into the wreckage to hopefully find more that managed to survive.

Thankfully, most of the clothes of those who lived in the house are located. Dirty and wet but intact, only needing a good cleaning. Rick helps Hershel dig through the rubble for hours, finding several things of the Greene's. Maggie had a trunk in her room, it had fallen to the ground floor when the house collapsed but it landed on its front, preserving the things inside neatly. She didn't have much in there, a few changes of summer clothes, a couple of blankets, a first aid kit, and a pair of sneakers.

Rick lays a hand on Hershel's shoulder, supporting his mentor when the older man finds his family bible in the mess. The pages are damp and stained but the book is intact. Eventually, the former cop leaves Hershel in the hands of his family and retreats to what used to be the cabin he shared with his own family. There he meets up with Carl, the boy just staring at the mess of wood and glass that used to be their home.

"Hey." His son grates out, voice scratchy with tears.

"We'll rebuild." Rick tells him, drawing the older than his years boy into a comforting hug. For once, Carl doesn't fight it and instead leans into his father's arms.

"Yeah." Is the only reply given.

Together, the two begin to dig through what's left of the cabin to find anything salvageable. Rick found his spare boots tucked into a five-gallon bucket that had been turned upside down, preserving them, along with the duffle bag full of extra guns, ammo, and MREs that he'd stashed under the bed in the master bedroom. He could hear Carl laughing before he stood up, holding the plastic wrapped comic books that he'd spent the last year collecting from every raid.

Rick just smiles at him, finding Michonne's signature white gripped sword under a pile of roof shingles. He lays that with his boots, their filthy but mostly okay clothes, Judith's diaper bag, and the duffle. It takes just a couple of hours for the two to find anything that can be saved from the wreckage of the cabin. Carrying those things, they make their way back to what's left of the farmhouse to meet up with Michonne who's got the younger two children.

While they'd been digging through the mess, others had dug a grave for Percy. By late afternoon, they have him buried and a small service has been held. Beth sings for him, joined by the warbling voices of Emily, Jasmine, and Lyla. Joan clings to Noah, hiding her tear-stained face against his thin chest as he cries unashamedly for the loss of their friend. The cops are stone faced, though their eyes glisten with unshed tears.

Everyone is saddened by their first loss in months. Percy was a sweet old man, always having a kind word or joke to cheer someone up. He was great with his hands too, helping many of them learn to make better fishing nets, poles, and traps for animals that would capture but not kill or harm.

Night begins to fall as they drift away from the graves over to where the cars are circled...well the cars that weren't tossed about during the storm. The Dixon's pickup truck is upside down in a tree, something that had Merle cussing up a storm when he first saw it. A quick dinner is served, MREs passed out along with bottles of water before everyone ushers the small children back into the cellar with a few adults to watch over them. No one taking a chance with it getting dark and the fences being down.

Andre, Judith, Mika, Lydia, Jasmine, Patrick, the younger Noah, Jody, Meghan, Sophia, and Duane are ushered below ground. Karen, Tyreese, Beth, Ana, Sam, Emily, Lyla, Lily, and Annette going down with them to supervise. Everyone else stay above to keep watch and plan on what to do next. Ryan, Martinez, Eric, Maggie, and Noah are sent to patrol the barns to make sure no walker gets in to the cattle or bison. Leaving the rest of the group to keep watch and plan.

"We need to start loading the cattle and remaining chickens up first thing in the morning, get them ready to go." Hershel tells them, running a hand almost reflexively over his right leg. The leg he still has in this timeline.

"And go where?!" A panicked Joan demands, a hand resting on her barely there baby bump.

"Calm down, stressing out ain't good for the baby." Dr Stevens tells her, with Edwards nodding along. Joan takes a deep breath, clutching her middle tightly.

"We'll go to the prison. It's not too far from here and already fortified and ready to live in. Axel, Oscar, and Tiny are keeping it running for us." Rick tells them all, running a hand over his beard as the stress of this begins to weigh on his shoulders.

"You want us to live in...in cells inside a prison?" Licari demands, a sneer on his face. The other officers don't look too pleased about it either.

Rick growls under his breath and gives his full attention to Gil. "It's either live in the prison, which is already safe and secure, or take our chances attempting to find shelter elsewhere with two pregnant women, a whole host of kids, and too many people to house. Not to mention our supplies." Rick informs the man, his voice flat even as his icy blue eyes blaze in anger.

"Can't we just stay here? We could rebuild..." Joy Bello says, her voice trailing off as everyone turns to look at her.

"We wouldn't get proper housing built again before winter truly set in, we'd freeze." Aaron informs her kindly, giving the woman a smile.

"He's right. We can rebuild in the spring when it's warm enough to sleep in tents while we build more housing but for now, we need to find shelter elsewhere. The prison is already set up for our use, Rick made sure of that." Hershel takes over again, laying a calming and restraining hand on their leader's shoulder.

Rick forces himself to take deep breathes and count to ten. These people are frightened, they're not deserving of his misplaced anger. He's not even really angry at them, just at the situation at hand. There were no precautions they could have taken to avoid the storm, even if he'd thought to try. It just is what it is and now he has to accept that. The group talk it over some more, even though all the ones from Rick's original group know they're going to the prison whether they like it or not, before they reach a 'decision' finally.

Afterwards, everyone not on watch crawls into a car and attempts to get some sleep. Tomorrow will arrive before they know it and it's going to be a long day.

Chapter 40: Moving Base

Summary:

Rick leads his people to the prison

Dawn had just barely broken over the horizon when the group was up and about, loading cattle into transport trailers hooked to the back of the trucks. It was a long process, with stops for water and a meal between labor, but Rick and his team had managed to get all the cows, bison, and chickens loaded up by early afternoon.

After the loading was done, Rick wanted to mobilize immediately but Annette made them all settle for a light lunch before they could begin loading the people up into cars. The meal wasn't a fancy thing, just some canned chicken soup, but it did quell the hunger gnawing in his belly. After eating, Rick went to make sure everyone had packed up what had survived the storm and gotten it loaded into a truck bed or car trunk.

Once it was determined that everything of value or sentiment was packed away, he let Merle begin giving out seating arrangements for the ride. It would likely take a day or two to get to the prison. Maybe more if the storm had knocked trees or telephone poles down into the road.

It was late afternoon by the time the caravan started heading out of the Greene's property towards the highway, something the ex-cop was anxious about. He didn't like having his entire group along with noisy animals in an unsecured place with night approaching.

Rick, Michonne, Carl, Andre in his car seat, and Daryl rode together in the first vehicle in the long line of trucks, cars, and RVs. They'd tried to squeeze as many people into as few cars as possible, so they used several RVs to house the younger children and their guardians. Daryl's, well really Merle's, Triumph was tied down in the bed of the truck Merle was driving right behind them, with Carol, Sophia, Ryan, and Mika as his passengers.

They aren't driving long, about twenty minutes, when they come to the first, of many surely, block in the road. A huge pine tree has been ripped up by the roots from the ground and knocked clear across the highway. Rick stops the SUV about three feet from the tree and climbs out, cussing under his breath. Michonne, Daryl, Merle, Carol, Martinez, Aaron, Glenn, Maggie, Morgan, and Sasha join him.

"How are we going to move this? Damn thing is massive." Aaron grouses, eyeing the tree unhappily.

"Yeah, it's not like we have chainsaws or log trucks to pull it out of the way." Martinez remarks, spitting on the ground by the tree in his agitation.

"We'll have to cut it up manually..." Rick muses, more thinking out loud as he turns to eye the caravan of vehicles not so patiently waiting.

"With what, one of them saws like on the old cartoons?" Sasha asks. Her face contorted as she tries to mentally picture them using a hand saw to cut the tree up.

Maggie snorts at her, shaking her head as Michonne answers. "We've got some axes in the truck. Will take a while but we'll get it done."

No one looks really happy with that, but they don't have any other options so Merle dashes back to the truck to grab the axes. He comes back with four of them and lays them against the downed tree. Rick sighed and grabbed one up, getting into position and swinging it roughly down at the tree at his feet. Absently, he could hear the rest of them doing so as well. Between the eleven of them doing the cutting, it still took over two hours to chop the large tree into moveable pieces and then drag those pieces off the road. Just as they're finishing up, a call comes in from someone keeping watch on the top of a car.

"Walkers! There are walkers coming!"

The group spins around, looking in all directions, until they spot the shambling corpses coming out of the trees. A few seconds later and they can hear the moans. Rick tightens his grip on the axe in his hand and lunges forward towards the nearest one, sinking the blade deep into its skull. As he goes to pull it out...it sticks. Rick barely has time to think to cuss mentally before another walker is on him.

Letting go of the axe handle, he puts up a hand to grab the shambling thing's throat, keeping it from getting close enough to bite him. Trying to avoid getting scratched in the process isn't easy as the blue eyed man slams the walker into the ground and begins stomping on its head until it stops growling. Panting, he straightens up and looks around. All of the walkers have been dispatched, and it doesn't look like anyone's hurt.

Everyone is sore, tired, and sweaty when it's done, and they can get back in the cars. Within minutes the caravan is chugging along once again. Sadly, it didn't last long. Much to Rick's frustration. They hadn't made it even twenty miles down the road when they had to stop again. Everyone climbed out of their cars, keeping the children safely within the metal walls, and came to stand in front of the blockage.

"What in the fuck?" Merle grunts, head cocked to the side.

"Storm musta picked it up when it blew through and then dropped it in the road." Morgan tells him, looking just as confused as the redneck.

Sitting in the road is a bright yellow Lamborghini, upside down and crushed all over from being tossed around. Rick had to hold in a smile as Glenn began to whine and grumble about a 'work of art' being destroyed by the 'careless' storm.

"How we gonna move it?" Daryl asks, his slate colored eyes flitting to Rick's face as he chews on his thumb.

"We'll have to use the tow truck that Sam's driving. It's the only one that's got a line strong enough to pull this wreck out of our way." The former cop tells them, running a hand through his shaggy hair.

"I'll go tell him." Sasha says, turning and jogging back to the line of cars. She pauses at a light gray tow truck about halfway down the line and talks to the driver for a moment before she climbs into the back of it as the truck pulls away from the caravan, having to drive on the shoulder, to stop right in front of the turned over car.

Sasha hops out of the back as Morgan and Merle go up to the truck. It ends up with Sam climbing out of the driver's side and Merle taking his place, expertly spinning the truck around so the tow line is facing the obstacle in the road. Morgan, with help, hooks the line to the Lambo and Daryl signals Merle.

The truck begins to move forward, slower now due to the weight attached to it. Slowly, inch by inch, the smashed-up car begins to slide out of the way. Rick resists the urge to cover his ears at the awful screeching noise of metal on concrete as its frame drags along the road. All in all, it took about half an hour to clear the way forward and it was somewhat cheerful people who climbed back into their cars to continue the journey.

Thankfully, the roads were clear after that. The storming seeming to have missed the area completely. The group made good time for such a large caravan, but they were still only a little over halfway to the prison when dusk began to set in. No one wanted to set up a camp on the side of the road, with all the animals and people it would be a nightmare, but they had little choices in the matter. It is unsafe to drive after dark.

A makeshift camp was created by wagon circling the vehicles so the ones transporting livestock were on the inner side closest to where people would be. A triple watch shift was assigned, with people on three different points atop cars to keep a lookout for walkers or other people. The evening was tense, everyone on guard for an attack. Dinner was, again, MREs because they were quick. They fed the animals but didn't dare let them out and the children were kept safely inside the RVs.

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

The first rays of morning light were just barely lighting up the sky the next morning when the group was breaking camp and getting back on the road. Hershel had warned that the animals couldn't take much more of this so Rick was near desperate to get to the prison. He set a brutal pace. What should have taken all day, took half of that.

They reached the prison gates by mid-afternoon, being greeted by Axel and Tiny- who opened them up for everyone to make their way inside. Everyone's shoulders slowly relaxed once they'd all made it inside and the gate had been shut and locked behind them. Rick climbed out of the SUV with Judith on his hip to greet the two men.

"Oscar inside?" He asks, noticing the third man isn't outside to greet them. The two former convicts share a look before Axel nervously answers him.

"Nobody told ya? Oscar went to find his family 'bout a month ago." The squirrely man tells him.

That threw Rick for a loop. Nobody had mentioned the large man leaving the prison to find his family. Idly, the leader wonders why he wasn't told, but at the moment he's just too damn tired to really give it thought. So instead, he just nods.

"The cell blocks set up for us?" He asks instead. Feeling satisfaction bloom in his chest when both men nod in response.

Axel and Tiny join the crew helping to unload the animals and get them into their pens as Rick hands Judith off to Carl and sets about bringing luggage into the prison.

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

It's late afternoon by the time everyone has brought their things in, chosen a cell for themselves, and all the animals had been properly placed so they couldn't escape. Annette immediately got started cooking a large meal for everyone. She seemed grateful for the work and Rick figured it was probably keeping her mind off the loss of her home.

He bows his head and murmurs along with the prayer that Hershel leads the large group through before hungrily digging into the wonderful meal prepared for them all. After eating, he takes Judith to their cell and carefully tucks the little girl into a play pen tucked against the wall. The only difference between this cell and the one from The Other is the presence of Michonne on the mattress bed they've made on the floor.

'We'll take the bunks apart tomorrow, give us an actual double bed,' he thinks to himself as he sinks down next to her with a deep groan. Pausing only long enough to kick his boots off. Michonne laughs and reaches over to undo his gun belt, laying it on the bare bedframe above them. Rick just smiles and pulls her close to his chest, breathing in her scent. Although it's barely dark out, they both settle down for the night with the intent to get some sleep. It's been a hell of a couple of days.

Chapter 41: Domestic Bliss

Summary:

Rick has a happy day in the prison with his family

It took a full two days for everyone to get settled fully in at the prison, routines established and such. Not much had changed, minus the accommodations. Watch shifts, hunting, laundry, animal chores, gardening, and childcare still needed doing. The usual routine helped relax everyone, once they got used to the concrete and bars around them instead of wood.

Currently Rick is on a watch shift, posted up in one of the guard towers. He'd left Michonne and the kids sleeping in the cell when he'd slipped out for his midnight shift. In the time they'd been here, their cell had transformed. They'd made a double bed for themselves, with Judith's playpen on one side and Andre's on the other. Carl slept in the cell next to theirs, sharing with Patrick.

The former deputy shifts his weight, glancing through binoculars around the darkened road and woods around the prison. They have enough people now that watch shifts were just three hours, a lot less than the six to eight hours they'd had when they took the prison last time. Rick's chest felt light, despite the sadness of losing the farm temporarily, his preparedness meant his family had a safe place to run to when things went pear shaped. They weren't left scrambling without direction, not this time.

Despite that though, he still worries. Both about the people under his care currently and the members of their family still missing. The Texan trio should be getting close by now and Rick ponders how to run into them and how to convince Abraham to come to the prison if they somehow don't remember. Thinking about them makes him think about Bob, wondering where the army medic is currently and how to get him sober if they do manage to find him.

This prompts worries and thoughts about Doctor S., the Indian doctor did a lot of good in the prison before he succumbed to the influenza, as Hershel calls it. They could use his skills now, even with all the other doctors they've collected....more could never hurt. He's so deep into his own thoughts as he scans the dark horizon that he almost doesn't hear footsteps on the stairs. Rick's head turns towards the door even as he glances down at his watch, surprised to find that the three hours has flown by.

Carol walks through the door, a rifle slung over her shoulder and a bottle of water clutched in her left hand. She smiles slightly at Rick when she catches his eyes with her own.

"How do things look?" She asks, gently taking the binoculars from him. Rick shrugs.

"Quiet. Been that way since we got here." He tells her as he stands from the comfortable camp chair they'd moved up here, offering the seat to her as his southern gentleman morals, that he still has, demands.

"Quiet is good." Carol responds, shooting him a smile as she settles into the chair.

Rick shrugs again, running a hand tiredly through his curly hair. It's getting a little long, he idly notes. "It can be, or it can be the calm before the storm."

The gray haired woman levels him a look. "Still paranoid, huh?"

"Is it paranoia if they're actually out to get you?" He shoots back, a snarky bite to his tone.

"Fair. Your paranoia has kept us alive this long, for sure." She concedes, laying a hand on his arm. Rick clears his throat, purposefully changing the subject even though he's not one for gossip.

"So....what's goin' on between you and Merle?" He asks her, grinning when the normally stone cold woman actually blushes.

"Wh-what makes you think there's anything going on between us?" Carol tries to bluff, stuttering slightly at the unexpectedness of his question.

"Oh the fact that you're sleepin' in his cell? Or that you've been near glued to him when not on duty since back at the farm?" Rick teases, enjoying getting a rise out of her.

"Oh..! Go to bed, Rick!" Carol fusses, a deep blush staining her cheeks from his teasing. Rick presses a kiss to her flaming cheek and dances out of reach as she swats at him. Leaving the tower still laughing.

He makes his way back to the inner prison. Checking in on Carl and snorting softly as he sees the boy sprawled out on his bunk snoring away, before making his way to the cell he shares with his family, the thought still makes him smile, and kicking off his boots and gun belt before sliding into bed beside Michonne. A wider, softer smile lighting his face when she rolls to curl against his chest in her sleep.

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

It's just a couple hours later, according to his watch, when Rick is awoken by Judith's fussing. She's quiet, almost unnaturally so. Just as she was in The Other. Like some instinct is telling her not to cry too loudly. For whatever reason, Rick is grateful for it. He slips out of bed, noticing that the other side is empty, and grabs Judith from her play pen before she can wake Andre.

Walking into the main kitchen slash living room of their cell block, he sees Michonne at one of the little tables nursing what looks like a strong cup of coffee. Rick slides up next to her, placing a kiss on her cheek and grinning when she automatically takes the baby from his arms so he can get to the important task of making her a bottle.

"And how's my little princess today?" The dark skinned woman coos at the infant, getting a toothless smile in return as Judith giggles at her. Rick's heart swells, warmth filling his chest. Michonne may not have given birth to that little girl, but she is most definitely loves her as a mother would.

The former deputy passes the warmed bottle over and Michonne begins feeding the now content baby. They both laugh as a still mostly asleep Glenn stumbles out of his cell, grabs a meal bar, and shuffles outside for his watch shift.

"You goin' on the run Daryl has planned for later?" He asks, worry filling his chest despite knowing the woman can take care of herself.

She nods. "Yeah, figure he could use an extra set of hands. We're going to hit what Daryl refers to as 'the big spot'. It was nearly untouched last time, we're hoping we can get there before water damage makes the roof with the helicopter crash cave in."

Rick hums thoughtfully, watching as Annette arrives and begins making oatmeal for breakfast, joined by a sleepy Beth a few minutes later.

"Who's all goin'?"

"Daryl said something about bringing Sasha, Maggie, Tyreese, and Martinez with us. Sasha wants to look for Bob." Michonne responds, shifting Judith to her shoulder to burp.

"Alright. I hope y'all find him. We could use his medical experience." Rick tells her, accepting his own mug of coffee from Beth with a nod. "I'll be workin' in the garden today, weedin'. Want me to take Andre or are you gonna leave him with Beth?"

Carol wanders through, smiling sleepily at them and retreating to Merle's cell instead of her own. Rick and Michonne exchange a smirking look but keep quiet. Before the swordswoman can answer, a little voice calls out.

"I'll get him." Rick tells her, since she's got her hands full with Judith, and goes back to their cell. Andre is awake, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. His little face lights up in a smile when he sees Rick, arms reaching in the universal way toddlers have of asking to be picked up. Rick scoops the little boy up, letting him attend to morning business in the tiny metal toilet in the cell, before carrying him out to the table where his momma waits.

Michonne smiles brightly at her son, a small glass of some kind of juice already waiting for him as the blue eyed man sets him down beside her. Rick settles beside them both and takes Judith from her so she can tend to Andre demanding a cuddle. He's slightly jealous of the baby girl, which both adults find adorable.

"You can take him with you; I think he'd love to play in the dirt and spend some time with you." Michonne tells him with a soft smile, running a hand through the boy's tight curls. Rick grins and leans in to kiss her, both of them laughing as Andre pushes him away with a pout. So the man simply turns to tickling and nuzzling the toddler, making him squeal with laughter.

From the corner of his eye, he catches Annette's wistful smile as she places filled bowls of oatmeal on the table that Beth has already set with silverware. It's about this time that nearly everyone begins to wander from their beds, drawn by the smell of warm food. Rick has to hide his laugh behind the coffee cup as Carl, doing a fair impression of a walker, drops into a seat and lays his head down on the table.

"You were up half the night readin' comic books again, weren't you?" Rick teases his son, a grin on his lips.

The boy just groans, burying his face against his arms. This makes Andre giggle, which in turn makes Judith laugh as well. That makes the little boy pause, looking at the baby in Rick's arms with a pout that has both adults, and nearly everyone else, trying not to laugh along with the baby.

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

Once breakfast is over, Daryl stands and looks at the other five meant to go on the run. "If yer goin', be at the truck in fifteen."

"Duty calls." Michonne sighs, placing Andre on Carl's lap and leaning over to give Rick a kiss before she goes back to their cell to get her gear. Rick chuckles and hands Judith over to Beth when the petite blonde comes to collect her for the day.

"Have a good watch shift, son." Rick tells Carl, knowing the boy is set to relieve Glenn in a few hours so the man can organize his own, smaller run.

"C'mon, Andre. Let's go outside and play in the garden." He tells the little boy, scooping him up and heading outside to the 'garden' which is really more of a crop field sectioned off. Too big to be called just a garden.

Andre seems very content to play in the dirt with a small, plastic shovel someone found on a run while Rick weeds and waters the crops along with Karen, Sam, and Hershel. They watch through the fence as Michonne's team heads out for their run, Rick sending up a silent prayer that they all come back safely.

Chapter 42: Situations

Summary:

Rick spends some one on one time with his stepson, has a serious discussion, Noah makes a request, and Carl gets in a fight

It's late afternoon by the time Rick, with his little tagalong of more children than just Andre, are finished with their chores for the day. After the garden work, he'd volunteered for a laundry shift and found himself scrubbing clothes on a washboard in what used to be the prison cafeteria. At least he wasn't alone. Duane, Mika, Sophia, Patrick, the younger Noah, Jody, and Meghan had joined him and Andre after their morning lessons of whatever Carol, Lily, and Ana had kept them busy with.

The children giggled as they drug baskets of wet laundry over to where Tara, Denise, and Eric, with Lydia close to his side, used table gripped wringers to wring the water from the garments. By the time they were all finished with that, and the laundry had been handed off to Ryan and his team to hang outside, it had been about supper time, so he'd told the kids to go clean up while he did the same.

"You need a bath, little man." Rick chuckles, looking at the dirt and laundry soap smeared into Andre's clothes. The little boy giggles and nods eagerly.

"Alright, let's go get you clean. Wanna wear your spiderman shirt?" He asks the toddler, looking through the clean stack of folded clothes by his play pen.

"Yeah! Spider!" Andre agrees, nodding seriously as he points to the red and blue shirt in Rick's hand. This makes the man laugh and nod as he collects the shirt, a pair of tiny sweatpants, and a clean diaper for the boy before heading down to the shower room that Merle had managed to rig up to have actual hot water.

After a quick scrub down for both of them, Rick carries the wiggling and impatient toddler to the common area and has a seat beside Michonne. Seems the run crews have returned. The samurai grins and steals a kiss off his lips before eagerly accepting Andre into her lap as the little boy babbles about his day in rapid toddler speak. Rick accepts a sleepy-eyed Judith from Maggie and tucks into dinner. Some kind of casserole dish made with rabbit, green beans, and corn. Whatever it is, it tastes great.

"Run go okay?" He asks between bites.

Michonne nods, cutting Andre's portion into tiny bites for him. "Yeah, the place was as untouched as last time. We rigged the boom box and cleared the walkers before going in. Got a good haul from it. Enough food to last us a couple more months. Daryl was real happy about the cigarettes and booze."

Rick snorts, knowing the hunter chain smokes like a damn chimney. "Yeah, I bet he was."

After dinner, he lays Judith down in her play pen before snagging Glenn as the man is on his way to his and Maggie's cell.

"Hold up, I wanna talk to you about your run today."

The Asian man pauses, sending Maggie on with a nod and a pat to the hand. "Yeah?"

"How'd everythin' go?" Rick asks, having no idea who he even took with him or where they went since he spent his day doing domestic chores.

"Everything went okay. Took Morgan, Shawn, and Andrea with me. We hit a couple of gas stations, got some diesel since Merle says the ethanol blended isn't good anymore. Hit a slight snag when we stopped to check out the...the shopping center." Glenn tells him, his words stuttering when he mentions the center, where Rick knows he and Maggie were abducted by Merle.

"What kinda snag?" The blue eyed man asks, looking the younger man over worriedly.

"Nothing major, just more walkers than we were expecting. Had to get out of there quick and Andrea dropped her rifle. We'll go back and get it in a day or so. Also, we found evidence of a camp near by...the fire pit looked fresh." He explains, rolling his eyes at the mention of the blonde dropping her weapon.

"Wonder if it was one of ours and they're lookin' for the prison..." Rick wonders aloud. Glenn just shrugs so Rick waves him on to head to bed, knowing he wants to spend some time with Maggie.

Putting it out of his mind for now, Rick wanders over to Carl's cell to check on the boy. Finding him and Patrick deep in a discussion as they bend their heads over a comic book. The sight makes Rick smile as he backs out of the cell without disturbing them, glad his boy is putting more effort into actually being a kid and making friends this time around rather than insisting he grow up too quickly.

He makes it to his own cell as Michonne is laying Andre down for the night, Judith still fast asleep in her own bed. The little boy insists that Rick tuck him in as his mother reads a bedtime story. The ex-cop gets ready for bed, listening to his partner's soothing voice as she tells Andre the Lion King plot as a bedtime story. Once the boy's finally asleep, Rick gets to watch as she disrobes for bed and slides in next to him. The lights go out and they have a quick but no less passionate session of loving each other before sleep claims them entirely.

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

The next morning is a flurry of activity as everyone works on getting the cars unloaded and things put away since it was too dark by the time the run crews returned last night to bother. Their larders were getting rather full, nearly bursting. It takes a weight off Rick's chest, but at the same time adds another on the matter of storage space. Currently, they're using cell blocks A, and B as storage facilities and they're nearly full up from everything they've collected on runs and everything they had at Hershel's farm.

What weighs on Rick's mind is how they're going to house more people, if they indeed find the rest of their family, if all the cells are taken up with storing their goods. Sighing softly, he mentally adds that to his 'to do' list of things to bring up with the council.

Everyone is tired and sweaty as they settle in for a late lunch of some kind of stew with biscuits. Rick glances around, spotting Judith in Lily's arms as the nurse chats with Ramona and Hershel. Carl is, of course, with the little group of boys at a separate table with Andre perched on his mother's lap as usual. Everyone looks at the boy when Noah nervously stands up and walks over to Rick.

"Rick? I know last time didn't go well but...I-I want to go home. I have to know." He says, fingers nervously twisting the edge of his shirt.

Rick pauses and sets down his spoon, really giving it some thought as he eyes the nervous teenager in front of him.

"Are you sure?" The older man finally asks, icy blue eyes meeting warm brown. Noah nods.

"Alright, I'll bring it up with the council. You're right, you deserve to know one way or the other and it is earlier this time by about a year and a half....they might still be alive." Rick speculates out loud, trying not to give the boy too much hope but knowing they have a small possibility of getting there before those people attack.

Noah's smile is brilliant as he nods, stumbling out a 'thank you' before nearly running back over to Beth and the Grady ladies. Michonne reaches over and takes his hand.

"Are you sure we can do this? You know what's up north." She cautions him, thumb rubbing over the back of his hand.

Rick lets out a long sigh and turns to face her. "I know that doing this could mean running into Negan before we're ready, but the boy wants to go home. He wants to see his family, specially as they might still be alive this time around. I'm sure you remember after the prison last time, the desperate need to find someone, anyone, from our family?"

"Of course I remember. I was so damn happy when I found you and Carl in that house...but are you sure we can go? We have two pregnant women with us now, on top of an infant and many more small children than we had before. I'm not sure they can handle that kind of journey." Michonne sighs, her eyes straying to Andre as he sleepily snuggles a stuffed lion plushy that Daryl had picked up on a run.

"I don't know. We'll bring it up to the council tonight and let everyone get a say." Rick tells her, giving a strained smile when she nods and goes to lay Andre down for his nap.

Rick stands from his seat, putting his dirty dishes in a bin by the sink for dish crew to wash, and goes to collect Judith from Lily so she too can go down for a nap. Hell, he might take one with her. Daryl has plans to hunt today, with Glenn taking a crew back to the shopping center to clear more of it out but they're leaving enough people here that he can take a couple hours without the place falling apart.

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

He's awaked sometime later by loud, raised voices and Judith crying. Without thinking, Rick jumps out of bed and grabs his Python before running out into the common area. Only to be met with a sight that gives him pause from sheer bafflement. Jody and Carl are chest to chest, well...face to chest, screaming at one another while Patrick stands behind Carl with Beth held behind him. Rick gives a sharp whistle, cutting over their noise.

"Someone wanna tell me what the hell is goin' on out here?" He asks, voice icily polite as he looks back and forth between his son and the former Woodbury boy.

Carl roughly shoves the taller boy away, face set in an angry scowl. "He's the problem! He was grabbin' on Beth!"

"Bullshit! I was just talking to her!" Jody cries out, pushing Carl back. His larger size making Rick's son stagger back a few steps.

"Enough!" Rick orders, glaring at both boys. "The two of you, on opposite sides of the cell block. Now."

Both boys look murderous but they do as told, Carl going to soothe his squalling sister as Jody stomps over to one of the tables. Rick shakes his head and calmly approaches Beth, her face tucked against Patrick's back.

"I've got her from here, thank you." He tells the nervous looking boy as he reaches out to gently pull the trembling blonde into his arms.

"Are you okay, honey?" The curly haired man's voice is soft as he murmurs in her ear, relieved when she nods. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"I was mixing a bottle for when Judith woke up when he, Jody, came up behind me. We were chattin', everythin' seemed normal...then he got real close. He grabbed my arm and wouldn't let go even after I pushed him." She mumbles against his chest, her shaking getting harder. Rick holds her tighter, trying to soothe the girl who might as well be another daughter to him.

A small noise in front of them makes Rick look up, very relieved to see Maggie standing there. He gently nudges Beth over to her sister's waiting arms with a kiss on her forehead and a nod to the brunette. Once Maggie has led her into a cell far away from the table where Jody sits, Rick squares his shoulders and goes to speak to the boy.

'Damn boy better be glad Daryl is hunting today.' He thinks to himself.

Chapter 43: Council Discussions and Decisions

Summary:

The council talks and decides the fate of a few things

Rick sighs to himself as he paces around the emptied-out office that the group has taken to using for council meetings. His talks with Beth, Carl, and Jody running around in his mind on top of the request Noah posed earlier. In front of him sit Hershel, Daryl, Michonne, Sasha, Glenn, Maggie, Merle, and Carol. They make up the council, though the final say normally lies with Rick. Especially if those eight can't come to a unanimous decision.

"Before we get started, how is Beth?" He poses this question to her family members in the room. Maggie clenches her fists, jaw going taut as Glenn lays a hand on her thigh to soothe his wife. It's Hershel that answers.

"She's a little shaken, but apparently it's not the first time she's been in a situation like this. Annette is with her now." The older man tells everyone, how own face clouding in anger.

"From what Carl told me; he didn't get further than grabbing her arm. The question now is, what are we going to do with him?" Rick poses the question, turning it over to the council to be discussed.

"Get rid o' him." Daryl grunts, standing from his chair and pacing back and forth on the opposite side of the room from Rick. His face a mask of anger.

"Now, son, I know what he did was wrong. He knows it too, but he's just a kid. How old did you say he was, Rick?" Hershel interjects, his morals seemingly outweighing his anger once again.

"He's sixteen. A year younger than Beth." The blue eyed man answers his mentor, eyes meeting Hershel's.

"Sixteen is old enough to know better!" Maggie objects, shooting to her feet with a glare. Glenn stands with her and draws the brunette into a comforting embrace.

"I hate to agree, but they're right. He's old enough to know better and did so anyway. That doesn't mean I'm okay with just throwing a teenager out on his own though. I say we give him some rations and lock him in a different cell block, away from Beth." The young Asian gives his piece before turning his attention to the shaking Maggie in his arms.

Rick sighs and runs a hand through his wild curls before turning to face the rest of the council. "Michonne, you got anythin' to add? Sasha? Merle? What about you, Carol?"

"I's 'gree wit' Daryl. Kid knew what 'e was doin' when 'e started grabbin' on 'er. Kill 'im or send 'im off." Merle grunts, every line in his body tense at the topic of conversation. Rick doesn't know if it's from old memories, Daryl's affection for the blonde teen, or simply the older man's moral code.

"He's a boy, a kid. Kids make mistakes. Doesn't mean they should be murdered or thrown to walkers for said mistakes. Rick said that the kid didn't get far, so why don't we just keep him away from Beth?" Sasha chimes in, looking back and forth between Rick and Merle.

Carol glances at Merle before she sighs softly. "You exiled me from the prison for killing Karen and David. How is this any different? He may not have gotten far, but that's only because Carl stopped him. Who knows what he would have done if Carl hadn't been there? How can we trust that he won't try again with Beth, or a younger girl? He can't stay."

Rick sighs, knowing she's thinking of Sophia. Or Mika. Both of those girls are blonde and blue eyed, just like Beth. From the corner of his eye, he catches the thunderous look on Merle's face and knows he's thinking the same. The redneck has all but adopted Sophia, spending time teaching her how to do the things he can. Rick shakes those thoughts away, turning to face Michonne.

"Your thoughts, 'Chonne?" He asks, fighting the urge to take her hand. Michonne lets out a deep sigh and meets the eyes of everyone in the room before she stands and moves to the small, barred window. Her arms coming to rest behind her back like a soldier.

"Rape is horrible thing. We can all agree on that, but who's to say he was actually going to rape her? Carl said that he was grabbing on her, Beth said the same. Was there evidence he was actually attempting it? Was he undressing her or himself?" The woman says, her face still towards the window.

Rick suppresses a smile at seeing her lawyer side come out as he answers. "No, there wasn't."

Michonne nods, finally turning to face them all. "Then has he really done a serious offense? He's still a kid, kids are dumb at times."

With that, she returns to her seat, ignoring the looks on everyone's faces in response to her mini speech. Rick sighs for what feels like the millionth time as he runs a hand through his hair, absently noting he needs to let Beth trim his curls at some point soon.

"We'll put it to a vote, as we always do. All those for sending him away?" He asks, looking at the hands raising. "And those for warning him and putting him in a different cell block?"

Once again he counts the hands, sighing softly in relief. Hershel, Glenn, Michonne, Sasha, and a reluctant Maggie voted for him to stay. Merle, Carol, and Daryl voted for his exile or death.

"So we have it, the boy stays. We'll put him in a different cell block and warn him to stay far away from Beth. Along with the consequences should he try anything like that again." Rick concludes, wincing slightly at the look on Daryl's face when the vote doesn't sway in favor of getting rid of the boy.

Hershel clears his throat, once the matter of Jody is settled, and rises to his feet. The older man moves to take Rick's place in front of the group as Rick takes a seat. Hershel looks at Daryl for a long moment before he begins to speak, and once he does it's clear exactly why.

"I would like a run to be scheduled for the vet college at West Peachtree. While we don't specifically need those medications and supplies this time, it won't hurt to have them. Better than letting them rot there...and this time, I'd like to be on the run." The farmer tells them, dropping a bomb that, honestly, shouldn't be all that unexpected since he wanted to go the first time but couldn't due to his leg. He doesn't have that problem this time.

"Daddy, no. It's not safe out there." Maggie instantly protests, Glenn nodding along with her.

"Maggie, I can run now. I've been on the farm, or at the prison, since this whole thing started. I'd like to get out, and without Bob, y'all will need me." Hershel explains, patting Maggie's hand softly.

"We's do need him. I can't pronounce half the shit...uh...stuff, he wrote on that lis'." Daryl says, arms crossed over his chest and a look on his face that says he'd much prefer the older man stay safely at the prison despite their need.

"There, it's settled. I'll go with whoever goes on the run." Hershel proclaims, meeting the eyes of every council member as if daring them to argue.

"Put it to a vote." Maggie nearly growls out.

The vote is called, though it doesn't go the way Maggie wants. Only she and Glenn vote no. The farm girl leans back in her chair with a mulish expression, both her father and husband simply letting her be rather than risk her ire exploding in the middle of a meeting.

"Alright, we'll schedule the run. Daryl, you'll run point again. Get your crew together and go over it with Hershel." Rick takes charge again, looking to Daryl as he gives the order. The archer nods silently.

"The last thing I have to bring up is...delicate." The leader starts, fiddling nervously with the end of his shirt. He's unsure how this news is going to go over with everyone. Icy blue eyes catch dark brown as he looks over at Michonne, seeking her reassuring presence.

"Noah approached me at lunch today. He wants to go home." He blurts out, tensing unconsciously.

Silence.

That's all Rick hears, it doesn't even sound like anyone is breathing. Daryl is shaking so hard he's nearly vibrating as he paces faster, face a stony mask. Everyone else isn't doing much better.

"Absolutely not! Tyreese died there!" Sasha cries out, shooting from her chair. Panic, grief, and pain painting her face. Rick can see her pulse becoming erratic on her neck.

"Noah thinks that because it's earlier this time that his family might still be alive. Wouldn't you want to know if Tyreese was out there?" Rick asks back challengingly, eyes darkening as he pushes away the feeling of desperation to find his family he felt the first time around.

"That's...I..." Sasha stumbles before her mouth snaps shut with an audible click. Pain and anger warring on her face. Rick feels for her; he really does but he can't deny Noah. He'd gone through hell to find his family and the teenager actually might have a chance to save them this time.

"Obviously, the entire group can't go. Not with two pregnant women and many more children than we had last time." Michonne's steady voice rings through the suddenly silent room. Her words have Maggie placing a protective hand on her small bump, Glenn's overlapping hers.

"So what are we gonna do?" Carol asks, also looking at Maggie in concern.

Rick sighs softly, finding a seat and leaning back in it exhaustedly as he admits. "I have no idea. That's somethin' I was hopin' y'all would help me with."

"Maybe put a team together and escort Noah up there?" Glenn suggests, face pensive as he cradles Maggie's bump protectively.

"But who would go? That trip took us a month last time and that was with the entire group for protection." Carol cuts in, worry shining in her eyes.

"I don't know if I'd feel comfortable with people leaving for so long with no way of knowing if they're alive or dead." Hershel speaks, frowning as he glances at his son in law.

That makes Rick stop and think. They had the radios at Alexandria....maybe they can have them again? Where would they even find them down here in Georgia? Ones that would reach that far at least. The former deputy sits quietly as the council debates the pros and cons, planning and pondering.

"Rick?" His name being called and a shake on his arm draws the man from his thoughts. Looking up, he sees his family looking at him in concern.

"You okay? I called your name twice." Michonne asks.

It takes Rick a moment to find his words, putting his thoughts in order. "Yeah, was just thinkin' 'bout usin' the CBs in the big trucks. They'd work, wouldn't they?"

"If the antennas still up...yeah, that'd work." Merle says, his eyes narrowing in thought.

"How do we check if they're still up all the way in Virginia?" Maggie questions, leaning forward in her seat to get a better look at Merle's face.

"The only way to do so would be to go and check." Hershel says, sighing softly.

Everyone goes silent at that, grim expressions on their faces. Going into the unknown is something the group is very familiar with, but it's never easy. It's a bitter pill to swallow now. The idea of not knowing if they'll be able to keep in contact with their people for however long the journey takes them after being mostly prepared and very lucky this time around. Hershel calls for the vote and it's near thing with Michonne, Sasha, Glenn, and Carol voting no and Hershel, Daryl, Merle, and Maggie voting yes. It'll come down to Rick's vote to decide it.

"Yes. The boy wants to go home and we could raid for a lot of supplies on the trip." He explains himself, cinching it. The trip will go ahead, much to Sasha's anger.

"Uh...I hate to be 'that' guy but...what if we encounter the self proclaimed wolves while we're there? We know they attacked the settlement." Glenn points out, though he doesn't really look worried.

Daryl's face hardens and Rick wonders what he's thinking about before the hunter speaks. "Then whoeva's on the run don't hesitate. Those guys were fucked up. Tied a girl ta a tree an' let walkers eat her up."

Everyone pulls faces at that, anger and disgust clouding their features.

"How'd you know it was them?" Sasha asks, her head tilting towards Daryl.

"They'd carved a W inta her head. Body hadn't yet turned when Aaron and I found her." The younger Dixon replies, anger coating his words. Rick looks around at this group of people, part of his family, and meets everyone's eyes.

"You come across these people, you put them down. Don't hesitate. Tell the run team that when everyone is informed of what's gonna happen." He orders, getting nods from all around.

Chapter 44: Worry and a Return

Summary:

Rick worries and a piece of the family returns....with extras

Rick paced the guard tower, rifle in hand and binoculars hanging around his neck. He's supposed to be on watch but he's only half paying attention, too busy worrying about the missing members of his family. Daryl had taken Sasha, Glenn, Morgan, Hershel, Tyreese, and Martinez out to the vet college to collect the medicine. That was a week and a half ago.

He tries to tell himself that they are just delayed, clearing houses and things...but it's difficult. They left before a team was sent out to find long distance radios so there's not even a way to contact them. The group just has to hope and pray they make it back safely. The only upside of this last week is that they do now have radios. Michonne, Tara, T-Dog, and Aaron had spent three days on a run to collect handheld sets and CBs from trucks so they were now prepared for the eventual run up north to take Noah home.

Rick sighs as he thinks back to the other problem weighing on his mind. Jody. The boy had been put in a separate cell block from any women or girls. Licari and Lamson had volunteered to house in the same block to keep an eye on the teen but they'd had a problem. No one counted on Shawn Greene's temper. With his father on a run and Maggie too busy worrying over Beth and fretting about the run, no one noticed Shawn's rapidly growing anger over the situation until it was too late.

Shawn had caught Jody coming out of the showers the day after the run crew had left and had beaten him badly before Merle had found them and pulled him off. Lily and Edwards, the only ones of their medical staff who'd worked in an ER, had done their best in setting the broken bones, but Jody wasn't going to be on work detail any time soon with a broken orbital socket, fractured cheek bone, fractured ribs, and a busted-up nose.

No one blamed the young man, that was his baby sister that the younger boy had put his hands on, but they couldn't let it stand. There were rules on violence on their own group for a reason. So what's left of the council had come together to decide his punishment. Shawn will be on laundry duty every single day for the next two months, along with spending his afternoons helping put up the steel plating and lumber layer walls around the fences.

Rick has spent plenty of time kicking himself for his oversight. He hadn't thought of reenforcing the prison fences until Eric had said something, despite having them cave in last time. It had completely slipped his mind. Merle, with Ryan's help, had designed a double layer wall system around the existing chain link fencing. Morgan had been helping them do the welding on the steel plating before joining the crew for the college run, deciding they needed his combat medic knowledge more since they don't have Bob this time around.

Movement towards the front of the prison draws Rick from his musings, making him raise the rifle up to use the scope. A bright blue pickup truck smeared in mud was trundling down the dirt and gravel pathway towards the prison, towing a large camper behind it. Rick is instantly on alert, tense and wary of an attack. He presses the button on his radio three times in rapid succession. An SOS alert that they'd come up with.

Within minutes, most of the adults flood the prison yard with weapons drawn and aimed at the truck. Said truck stops at the gates, not making an attempt to ram through them like Rick half expected it to.

"Get out! Keep your hands where I can see them!" Rick calls down from his position in the guard tower. A pair of large, dark hands are poked through the rolled down window on the side before the driver's side door is opened from the outside and a large man steps out. A familiar man.

"That how you treat friends, Sheriff?" Oscar calls back, a teasing tone in his voice.

This prompts people to laugh and guns are lowered, though not put away. It's clear that Oscar isn't traveling alone and while it's a good sign that he found his family alive.... they don't know these people. Rick glances back at the crowd of people on the inside of the fences, noting that Big Tiny and Axel look relieved and joyous.

"Who else is in the truck?" Rick calls out, wary of who the man might have brought to their home. Oscar, thankfully, seems to understand as he turns to the vehicle and waves someone inside forward.

The first to step out is a curvy, dark skinned woman that looks to be in her early forties. With her are three children. On her hip is a toddler boy, looking a couple years older than Andre. A lanky, teenage boy follows right behind what has to be his mother, holding the hand of a girl that looks to be around Sophia's age. The last to leave the truck is someone that knocks the breath from Rick, and most likely the rest of the people behind him as well.

It's Bob.

He's so out of it that he nearly misses when Oscar begins speaking again, waving a hand at the group he's brought with him.

"My ole lady, Keysha, and our kids. My oldest boy, Xavier, our daughter, Alexis, and our younger boy, Lionel. This here is Bob. Says he knows y'all." The large man finishes, his entire body tensing obviously at having his family out in the open outside the gates.

"Yeah, we know him. Sasha will be really happy to see you when she gets back, Bob." Rick tells him before signaling Axel to open the gate. The timid man does so happily, tugging the now heavier metal gate open wide enough to let Oscar, who'd herded his family and Bob back into the vehicle, drive on through towards the inner yard of the prison.

The former cop makes his way down from the guard tower in time to catch Maggie wrapping Bob in a tight hug as the ex-cons envelop Oscar in a hug. All of them glad to see the two men alive and whole. Rick clasps hands with Bob once Maggie finally releases him, nodding with a grin.

"I'm happy you're here. Sasha has been goin' out of her mind lookin' for you." The curly haired man informs the medic with a laugh. Noting how Bob's smile grows softer at the mention of the woman.

"I've missed her too. Woke up, hungover, on the rail tracks four months ago. Saw a sign for Terminus and it's like everything came flooding back all at once. I remembered who you were, who Sasha was, and that I had to find you." Bob explains, looking around the prison yard and the people already gathered in it.

"You've been busy." He comments with a grin. Rick nods, knowing they didn't have even half of this at this point last time.

"We have. C'mon, lets go inside and get you folks fed." Rick replies, waving Oscar's family along with them as he leads Bob into the prison. Annette is more than happy to serve everyone a hot meal, something that Keysha looks about ready to cry over.

"We didn't get hot food like this on the road." She explains when questioned about it. "What hot meals we did get were cans of stuff heated over a campfire."

Rick winces in sympathy, noting many of the group around them do as well. That was a way of eating they were all familiar with during the leaner times or on the run between safe havens. The blue eyed man can honestly say he doesn't miss it. A tug on the end of his t-shirt makes Rick glances down to find Andre standing there with a toothy grin.

At the same time, little Lionel exclaims. "Look, Momma! They got a baby like us."

Rick fights a laugh, seeing Michonne doing the same, as Keysha embarrassedly shushes her child. He's grinning as he lifts Andre up onto his lap, the toddler grinning at the little boy across the table from himself.

"He's okay, Miss." The leader tells the poor woman, still fighting a laugh, before turning his attention to her son. "Lionel, this is Andre. Andre, this is Lionel. He's gonna live with us from now on."

"Really?" Lionel asks, his little face lighting up and eyes going wide.

"Really really." Carl chimes in from where he's rocking Judith a few spaces down. Rick raises a brow and gives a look at his boy for the Shrek reference. The teen in a child's body just shoots him a grin, reminding him that the animated film was his absolute favorite before the world went to hell.