For the record, I am not stopping my story "Remind Me" not remotely even thinking about doing so. However, this story idea keeps popping into my lil overactive mind late at night while I'm trying to sleep lol. Even had a dream about it..weird. Made it even worse when I woke up WITHOUT Norman Reedus. He needs to be like Freddy Kruger, if you have your hands on him in the dream..you should be able to pull him out of it when you wake LOL. This is just my take on what I would want to see happen in Season 3. Anyway, PLEASE PLEASE review guys! My very life may depend on it. ;)
Disclaimer: I do not own ANY of the songs in this story. But Laurelie, Jackson, Hardy, Boone, Missy, Jon and Posey are ALL mine MINE!
I hear that train a-comin
Comin around the bend
And I ain't seen the sunshine
Since I don't know when
I'm stuck in Folsom Prison
Time keeps draggin' on
And that train just keeps a -rollin'
On down to San Antone
When I was just a baby
My mama told me, son
Always be a good boy
Don't ever play with guns
But I shot a man in Reno
Just to watch him die
When I hear that whistle blowin'
I hang my head and cry…
…Folsom Prison Blues (performed by Everlast)
Chapter 1
Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep….
A small hand rose up slowly from the side of the bed, blindly seeking out the small button that would end the intrusive sound. Such a loud obnoxious noise for such a small alarm clock. A stream of curses erupted in whispers from under the covers of the small cot next to nightstand. It was hard enough to fall asleep on a foam mat atop a rusted up frame with pointed coils poking her in the back, but to wake up at such an ungodly hour really tested her temper. She had never been a morning person to begin with. Pushing her fingertips to her eyes, she mentally reprimanded herself for sounding like a spoiled brat. Sleeping at all was a luxury that most people weren't granted anymore. She swung her legs over the side of the bed before her eyes could convince her body to go back to sleep.
The quick clicking sound of nails against cold stone could be heard echoing down the empty hall, heading towards her cell as a small smile tugged at the corners of her lips and the curious face of her pit bull terrier rounded the cell door.
"Mornin' Jojo"
The dogs ears perked and he cocked his head to the side before sitting on the ground just outside the room and releasing his tongue to dangle loosely past it's lower jaw. The woman laughed and dropped her head down, sighing in defeat. She stood, stretching her arms to the ceiling and yawning simultaneously. The dog barked and backed out of the cell a few steps as if trying to entice her.
"Shhhh! Alright, alright I'm coming! You wanna wake everyone up?"
She walked passed the animal and gave him a pat on his brown and white snout and headed down the cell block to the showers. Jojo prancing happily at her heels.
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Laurelie Lee Daniels stepped into the drafty showers and stood for a few moments in the lukewarm water. The mixture of the drafty air and mild heat woke every cell in her body and tickled her skin with tiny goose bumps. She leaned her forearms against the closest wall and rested her head down for a moment, biting back the guilt of spending more time in the shower then what was allowed. A rule, she reminded herself, that she had insisted upon. Rules. Was there such a thing anymore? She heard Jojo whine behind her and she reached to turn the shower off, running quickly for the warmth of the thin cotton towel. She leaned against the sink and looked at herself in the mirror. The lack of sleep showed in her eyes, puffy and bloodshot. She ran her fingers through her long black hair, pausing for a moment while she debated if she would pull it up or just leave it down, deciding hairstyles were meaningless. Laurelie pulled out a duffle bag from under one of the benches and dug in for a shirt and pair of jeans that would come close to fitting. She had always been a thin woman but all her clothing had her looking like a before and after for some weight loss commercial. She pulled on pair of jeans with holes in the knees or "ventilated jeans" as her brother would say and a black and blue GSU sweatshirt. She eyed herself in the mirror, looking her image up and down with a disapproving look. Jojo watched her every movement and made a whining noise from deep in his throat. Laurelie raised an eyebrow.
"Who asked you anyway?"
She stuck her tongue out and shoved the bag back under the bench before exiting the bathroom.
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The light of day had just begun to intrude upon the cell blocks, filling the halls with an almost peach colored rays. The sound of Laurelie's boots were the only thing that echoed off the walls of the once full prison. She knew every inch of this jail like the back of her hand but still found it hard to be left to herself. It made Jojo a welcome distraction from her overactive imagination. She walked past the dividing gate and continued on her path to cell block C, the largest and oddly enough more livable cells were located there. Jojo halted and turned towards cell block A. His hair stood up on his back while he growled through gritted teeth, dropping his head down, ready to defend his master. Laurelie stopped for a moment and looked in the dogs direction. Isolation. Part of the cell blocks she had only heard stories of from her brother..till now. She saw a wave of dust come up from the ground of the last cell. Shaking her head, she patted Jojo on his back reassuringly.
"Good boy. Come on there, killer."
"Mornin' Lielee"
Laurelie nearly came out of her boots at the voice coming from the back of the cells in front of her.
"Jesus Hardy, you scared the shit out of me."
Hardy was one of the biggest men she had ever been in the presence of. Her brother jokingly referred to him as Ving, short for Ving Rhames. His Height was made even more intimidating by his muscle mass. Large arms attached to an even larger upper body. He carried himself like a Viking always ready for battle. Hardy was made to be a survivor in the apocalypse. She was just happy he was on her side.
"I'm sorry Lie. Didn't mean to startle ya." He ran a hand over his bald head, ebony skin glistening from sweat.
"Not your fault. I was just distracted." She said, looking back towards the isolation cells.
Hardy looked passed her and pressed his lips together. She noticed his muscles tense and relax a few times.
"Wait a minute. Aren't you supposed to be on watch?"
"That brother of yours came up bout' an hour ago and told me he would take over. Didn't give me much of a choice."
"He had watch right before you. He's up there again?" She asked.
"Whoa, boss! Don't shoot the messenger."
Hardy threw up his arms in mock surrender and Laurelie couldn't help but snicker. She shook her head and looked up towards the ceiling then back to man in front of her.
"Can you take Jojo for his breakfast? I didn't have a chance to and I bet he's starving."
"Sure can. Gonna go get me some food too. Wouldn't mind a breakfast date." Hardy bent down, putting his hands on his knees. "Wanna go get food boy? Come on! Come on and show me what ya got!" Hardy growled and slapped his hands on his knees making Jojo crouch low to the ground and jump up playfully in circles around the giant taunting him.
Laurelie took that as her chance to sneak away. Jojo was never to far from where she was, always keeping an eye on her. She watched the pair walk off together. The large dog looking like a puppy next to his playmate.
She crept slowly passed the other cells, trying not to wake the sleeping inhabitants inside. Just because she had to be up at the crack of dawn didn't mean everyone else did. The faint grumble of snores filled the silence and Laurelie laughed to herself. Inside one cell slept Boone and Missy. An older couple in their sixties, Boone was a prison guard here and only two weeks away from retirement. Missy was his wife who by a rather grand twist of fate, happened to be delivering the lunch he had left at home when the epidemic hit and Boone made her stay till it blew over. It didn't. The small cot directly next to theirs lay the small frame of five year old Posey and her rabbit stuffed animal she affectionately called Milo. Posey and her mother had come to get her father out when panic had struck and the inmates began a riot. The pair had gotten separated in the confusion. When next she saw her mother, she had attacked her clawing and grabbing for her till Boone put the woman down. Since then Boone and Missy took on the little girl as if she were their own. The cell next to theirs belonged to Jon. He was an inmate from the mental ward on the other side of the compound. Strong and smart despite his disability. He had the mental capacity of a six year old but was one of the sweetest and gentlest people she knew. He had proved himself when clearing out the walkers and looked after Posey like a big brother. Always by her side and always in his sight. Before allowing him to stay she had checked his file in the office. A six month stay for petty theft that she was sure was a misunderstanding. Laurelie stopped at the next cell, looking in at the empty cot and rolling her eyes.
The morning chill all but slapped Laurelie in the face as she pushed the huge steel door open leading to the roof. The sun was almost above the horizon now, looking close enough to touch and shining intrusively into her eyes. She looked across the large gravel roof, throwing a hand up, relieving her vision from the bright light and saw her brothers black hair peaking over the top of the plastic lawn chair. She cleared her throat loudly.
"Don't need no lectures Lielee"
Her brothers thick southern draw came out like a growl. His exhaustion dripping from every word. He shifted his position in the chair but didn't turn around to look at her.
"Nightmares again?" Her voice was calm and soft.
She saw his shoulders drop and his body relax back into his seat.
"Surprised you can sleep, sis. Ain't ya just a little bit on edge?"
She came around the side of the chair and looked down at her brother. Jackson Daniels. His lack of food and sleep had betrayed his once handsome features. When they were younger she would get annoyed at the giggles and stares from her girlfriends as they followed him around their house. He used to love the attention. He had been a police officer since he was twenty-four a job that made his medium size frame practically all muscle. A trait he had always been rather conceited about. People had always compared him to Mathew McConaughey with black hair. Now his dark blue eyes looked red and swollen, sunken in like black holes. His clean shaven face rough with dark stubble against tan skin. She decided not to give him a hard time though. With everything they had been through, everyone was mere ghosts of their former selves.
Laurelie say down next to his chair and pulled a bottle of water out from the small cooler. The container was merely for show and not for it's original purpose. A fact she had forgotten till she felt the stale warm water trail it's way down her throat.
"UGH! How long has this been up here?" She scrunched her face up and forced another long drink from the bottle.
"Don't chance the subject Laurelie. Ya barely been sleepin. I can hear ya stirrin round at night." He eyed her suspiciously from the corner of his eye, waiting for a reaction.
"Course I'm on edge Jax. Hell, the whole worlds on edge. If I were any closer to the edge I'd be holding myself up by my fingernails."
There was silence, broken only by the sound of crows and small birds seeking out their morning meals. They never really talked much about their feelings. Even before the world ended they had always been close but never really talked about emotional stuff. Now she wished they had.
"Did you check on him today?" Jackson's voice came out as almost a whisper but the contempt held behind it was obvious.
"No. But Jojo made it a point to make him aware of the fact he knows he's there. Wouldn't let me walk past the cell block without growling."
"Good boy" Jackson praised "Taught that dog well. Remind me to give him some extra food later. Where is he anyway?" Her brother looked around, becoming aware of her sisters missing shadow.
"Hardy took him for some breakfast." She said, stabbing a finger into the gravel.
"How bout you go wrestle us up some food to and bring it up for us. I'm still not tired and I can keep you compa…"
Jackson was interrupted by the sound of Jojo's bark and loud footsteps banging loudly off steel steps. The door to the roof flew open with a harsh bang as Jojo and Hardy both came running out to meet them.
"Guys I just checked the monitors. I think you might want to see this!"
The siblings glanced at one another quickly before jumping up and running full speed towards the door.
"We got corpses?" Jackson yelled over his shoulder in mid stride.
"Not unless they're getting smarter." Hardy shouted back in quick breaths.
The small group rounded the corner of the staircase in the jail cafeteria, and bolted upstairs to the offices above. The black and white images from the security cameras could be seen through the window of the cornered room. Jackson and Laurelie jumped into the swiveling office chairs and dove towards the screens, expecting to see the one or two "corpses" as they called them, that usually passed by without a problem. Instead, they watched as a group of people huddled at the gate. Three of the men paced the perimeter of the fence, pushing their way through the thick grass to the huge walls of the fortress. Laurelie's mouth dropped open in disbelief. It had been a long time since she had seen any living, let alone in such a large number.
"What do we do?" Hardy questioned.
There was a long moment of silence and then Laurelie felt her brothers hand on her shoulder.
"Remember what happened last time we let someone in here. You know what my vote is."
Images from the last time they found someone alive passed through her head and clouded her judgment. The woman they had found had in fact been bitten and would have killed Missy if it hadn't been for Jon being close enough to hear the screams. A small face popped out from behind one of the women at the gate and Laurelie noticed his sheriff's hat. She ran a hand down the small screen.
"They have a child with them Jax."
The thin man on the screen began shouting something and Hardy reached over to adjust the volume on the small knobs. There was moment of deafening static before the room filled with the panicked voice of the man on screen.
Zzzzzzzz"…and water. Please my name is Rick Grimes. We were forced out of our camp by walkers. We have no gas, food or water. PLEASE we have women and children and my wife is pregnant."
"Jesus" Jackson whispered in a long exhale.
Laurelie scratched the top of her head and closed her eyes for a moment to think. They had weapons and more men. More manpower was always needed especially with their exhausting watch shifts. More people meant more mouths to feed but it also meant more hands for work. Besides, this Rick Grimes, who was slowly losing his patience on screen, looked desperate to protect his people. A feeling she was familiar with.
"Alright" Laurelie clasped her hands together "Get suited up boys. Let's go get acquainted."
XXXXXXXXXXX
Jackson went to put his S.W.A.T. helmet on, a precaution taken so not to be seen if access to the compound wasn't given, when he caught his sisters serious face.
"Ya sure bout this? That's more then just a couple people out there."
She bit the inside of her lip and nodded silently. Jackson gave Hardy a nod and the two men pushed the iron door open. Laurelie stayed behind, pushing her back to the door and listening from around the corner. Everyone on the opposite side of the fence froze, either from shock of seeing people or just maybe at the sheer size of the men stalking towards them with weapons.
Rick clutched his gun at his side, ready to drawl on anyone the drew first. Hardy and Jackson stopped right outside the massive gate and were now face to face with Rick Grimes.
"Ya said ya'll were forced off your camp by..walkers. Any of ya'll been bit?"
"If we had ya think we'd be standin' here?"
Laurelie raised an eyebrow. That was a new voice. A southern accent that was as smooth as whiskey. She peeked back around the corner and noticed the tall man in the leather vest next to Rick. His chest puffed out defiantly and his chin raised in the air. He was ready to fight his way in if need be. Rick raised a hand to the man beside him, in a calming manner.
"Whoa, Daryl. They're just being thorough. No. We haven't been bit. We're just exhausted. I'm exhausted. My group and I would be at your mercy if we could just get to rest."
Her heart broke as she listened to the desperation in Rick's voice. He was practically begging and probably would if that's what got he and his group through the gate.
"Entrance fee is a full body search for bites and scratches." Laurelie walked out into the open, walking briskly to the fence. "All of you."
"Done." He said quickly.
She nodded to Hardy who hesitantly reached over and entered the code to the gate. The old devils swung open with an eerie low moan. Rick's groups all but rushed inside as if a new world existed beyond their world outside. Laurelie extended a hand out to the Rick who excepted it graciously.
"Laurelie Daniels"
"Rick Grimes" He gestured back to the group "This is my wife Lori and my son Carl. That there is Hershel and his daughters Beth and Maggie. That's Glenn, T-Dog, Carol and Daryl."
His people all made some gesture to know they acknowledged her. Except for Daryl. His eyes remained fixed on not just any person, but the largest person, Hardy. The large man removed his helmet and stared down at Daryl with a slight smirk. Laurelie rolled her eyes and waited for a her brother to remove his helmet. "This GENTLE giant is Hardy. This is my brother Jackson."
"Gentle giant huh? Guess size doesn't matter." Daryl said, stretching up to his full height.
"Why? All your boyfriends tell ya it did?" Hardy shot back.
Rick and Laurelie quickly brought the attention of the men back to the group with a simple look.
"Come on Hardy. Play nice with your friends or else they can't sleepover." Jackson joked "For now let's get ya'll inside and check ya out." He pointed towards the entrance to the massive building "Everyone keep your hands inside at all times, turn all cell phones off and please no flash photography." He threw the door open dramatically "Welcome to SSP."
"SSP?" Lori questioned, cocking her head to the side.
"Yep." Hardy laughed. "Survivors State Penitentiary"
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Ooooo is there someone else in the prison? Is Laurelie's group going to let Rick and his people stay? Are Hardy and Daryl going to throw down? Please review guys.