The sun was warming her skin and Lori took a deep breath of fresh air, thankful that it was looking to be another good day. They had gone so long through the winter without much hope at all and now it felt like a whole new world where they could really carve out a life for themselves.

The group had spent the week cleaning out the prison. She, Carol, and Beth had concentrated most of their energy on the inside, scrubbing their cell block until the place was almost… homey. Lori chuckled to herself - she never thought she would say that about a prison. They'd even had a few decent meals that she and Carol and had put together using the supplies that Rick had bartered for from the prisoners. And the yard was looking better too, thanks to the rest of the group's hard work.

Standing back a couple of steps from where Hershel was still adjusting to the crutches, she used one hand to brace her lower back while the other blocked out the sun so that she could take a good look around. The bodies had been cleared out of the main yard area along with some of the debris. The others had made a pile of the corpses that they intended on burning on the other side of the fence. She looked around for the group now, finally locating her husband on the far side of the prison near the exterior fence. She couldn't hold back the slow smile that spread across her face when his eyes met hers.

They'd been doing well in the time since their conversation on the overpass… they weren't speaking much still, but the cold shoulders and impatient sighs had stopped. She was hopeful that soon he would come to her and accept the apology that she had been of extending for months; the idea gave her a pleasant feeling. Maybe if he came around then Carl would too.

Lori glanced in her son's direction when he made a joke about Hershel being ready to race. She laughed softly. Not because she found quip particularly funny, but because it was nice to hear him loosen up a little. She missed her playful boy.

The small group stood shoulder to shoulder, Hershel between herself and Beth, Carl on the end furthest away from her. She took another deep breath and tried to relax her shoulders and the aching muscles in her back as she absorbed the sun, her eyes still trained on her husband. This pregnancy had been so different from when she was expecting Carl. She'd missed Rick: his support, his compliments… the back massages. She knew that the world was different now… and this pregnancy, well, it was not uncomplicated in so many ways.

She was alerted to a sound over her shoulder and she furrowed her brow as she turned to see what it was. She'd barely been able to process the movements in her periphery before her son's voice rang out in alarm. "Walkers!"

Lori's right hand shot instantly to the back pocket of her jeans where she kept her revolver while her left hand moved to cradle her belly. She turned around quickly with her weapon already raised, one eye closed to help her aim. She fired twice in row exploding the skulls of the two Walkers closest to her. With a little more room to breathe she looked over at her son who had stepped up onto a table. She moved towards him, firing and missing another Walker in the process.

Hershel and Beth had already made their way across the prison yard headed toward one of the gated doors. If they could secure themselves inside the small area they would be fine. Her heart picked up speed as she noted more and more Walkers piling into the yard and she closed her hand around Carl's arm, tugging him backwards, away from the closing in herd. He resisted and broke his arm free from her grasp, shooting her a warning look over his shoulder.

She faltered, but only for a second. She wouldn't be bullied this time.

"Lori!"

She and Carl both looked towards the sound of her name to Maggie who was closest to the door that would take them into the cafeteria. The oldest Greene daughter had already opened the gate and was keeping the area clear enough for Lori and Carl to make it over there.

Carl leapt down from the bench and started toward Maggie, Lori on his heels, one hand pressed against his shoulder urging him forward. She'd just pushed him through the gate when she felt something tug on her hair. Twisting around she came face to face with a Walker dressed in blue prison overalls. The thing wreaked of death as it expelled putrid air through its rotting mouth.

She cried out in a mixture of fear and surprise and yanked her head, tearing her scalp as she stumbled backwards, the gate behind her eventually breaking her fall. With the weight of her body she had slammed it closed, securing Carl and Maggie inside. The momentum was enough to free her from the Walkers grasp and she watched wide-eyed as it lashed at her, her torn out long brown hair wrapped around its fingers.

She kicked out, her foot colliding with its knee with a crunch, causing it to cave in on itself. With the thing still stumbling to get up she pushed away from the gate and stepped around the Walker, still avoiding its flailing hands. She could hear Carl and Maggie screaming for her and she looked at her boy's fearful expression.

"Go inside," she ordered, backing away from them. "I'll find another way."

She didn't have time to say anything else as more of the dead staggered toward her, blocking her path back to the prison. "Go now!" she barked whipping around and running in the opposite direction.

She spotted Carol with T-Dog draped over her shoulder as they ducked inside another door, but she couldn't get there without having to take out another half-a-dozen Walkers. Anxiety swelled through her and her stomach cramped under her hand as she realized that she was trapped between the fence and prison with nowhere to go. She pressed her hand harder to her belly to reassure her squirming baby, a feeling of nausea mixed with dread paralyzing her.

Her breaths came harder and faster as she backed up away from the closing in herd. She felt hot tears build in her eyes, her heart hammering wildly against her ribcage. Suddenly, a hand closed around her arm and she spun around, ready to fight.

"Jesus, woman, it's me," a gruff male voice grunted.

She wasn't breathing easy yet - though she was grateful that she wasn't alone. "Daryl," she cried, already being dragged behind him by her wrist. She moved as quickly as she could to keep up with his pace as he hauled her across the prison yard. She caught her foot on something and she stumbled, twisting her ankle and back painfully, but she recovered her footing quickly and forced herself to push through the pain. She looked briefly over her shoulder to see that they were still being pursued - most of the Walkers had been distracted by Rick and the others who were firing shots.

"What about -"

"Shut up and run," Daryl snapped, leading her further away from the chaos. They rounded another corner and she hoped that they would have a minute to catch their breath. With one hand still gripped almost painfully in his fist, she rested her other one on the stitch in her side, her breath coming in short painful gasps.

Daryl seemed to be looking around to form a plan, so Lori used the opportunity to peek around the corner to see how much time they had to spare. The group of Walkers following them were only a few feet away and Lori whispered, panic clear in her voice, "Daryl."

"Here," he nodded toward part of the fence that had collapsed under the pressure of a bus that had been driven through it. The building had been hit too, and one of the walls had crumbled leaving a steep incline of wreckage.

Lori eyed the pile of twisted metal and rubble nervously, but her body didn't hesitate as she began to climb, clawing her way over the shattered bricks and cement. Daryl didn't follow her up right away. Instead, he remained on the ground level, two knives raised and ready in each of his fists. Lori turned away from the scene and back toward the top of the pile, focussing her waning energy on getting to it. She made it to the top, hands scratched and raw, and pulled herself over the metal edge of the prison roof, its sharp side scraping the skin of her belly and thighs painfully. Grasping at the loose gravel, panting for breath, her body screaming in protest, she waited for Daryl to follow her over.

When Daryl didn't come, she crawled back to the edge and peered over. He was already climbing toward her, leaving a pile of Walkers that he had put down on the ground below.

He ignored her hand when she reached for him, and instead launched himself onto the roof, landing on his knees beside her. "Fuck," he breathed, turning to look at her, his face and clothes splattered with dark blood. He was the first to move when he lifted his forearm to inspect a shard of glass that was protruding from his skin. He winced as he closed his fingers around it and dislodged it with a clean yank. He dropped the bloody glass to the ground and closed his hand over the wound.

"Is it bad?" Lori asked, slowly rocking herself forward so that she could get to her knees. In her new position she crawled over to him. He looked at her sceptically when she rested her hand on top of his and tried to pry it back so that she could see the damage. One corner of her mouth turned up and she squinted her eyes at him when he didn't let go.

At her stern expression he huffed and dropped his hand, revealing a deep gash.

Lori breathed out and offered him a sympathetic look, which he shrugged off. "Ain't no big deal," he pushed her hands away. "Nothin' some duct tape and toilet paper wouldn't take care of."

Her smile widened and she rolled her eyes. "Fresh out of that, I'm afraid," she looked around the vacant rooftop. "Fresh out of everything," she sighed using both hands to brace her back. She winced and arched it a little to ease an ache and caught Daryl watching her out of the corner of his eye. "I'm fine," she assured him.

"I didn't ask," he scoffed and got to his feet. "What the hell is that sound?" He demanded, referring to the alarm that was blaring in two to three second intervals. He turned around to walk the perimeter of the roof, but not before checking her over one more time.

While he was occupied, Lori used her knee to stand up too. She tested her sore ankle by applying a little pressure. It hurt, but it wasn't unmanageable. She took a couple of steps to make sure it would hold her, and then made her way over to where Daryl was standing, looking out over the part of the yard where they had been attacked.

The other members of their group were gone, leaving behind the scattered remains of prisoners and civilians. There were still Walkers stumbling around in the other part of the yard, and she wondered if they would find their way in too. She bit her lip and felt tears build in her eyes - how had everything fallen apart so quickly?

In her periphery she could see Daryl look at her and she wiped her eyes, sniffing. "Sorry," she mumbled crossing her arms over her chest.

He shrugged and turned back to look straight ahead.

"Thanks for helping me," Lori kept her eyes forward too, knowing he wasn't one for heart-felt conversations… or any kind of conversation really. It was one of the reasons they'd never really had much to do with one-another. It wasn't that there were any ill feelings - not on her part, anyway; their ways were just too different.

The man beside her simply nodded and she was startled when his hand landed on her shoulder. "Best we find a way back inside." Releasing her, he stepped away from the edge of the roof and started toward the roof access door.

Lori uncrossed her arms and turned to follow him, but stopped short as she felt a twinge in her belly. Freezing, she rested both hands on her stomach and waited for it to pass. She'd been feeling contractions all morning, but they hadn't been doing much in terms of moving her into active labour. She took a deep breath through her nose and blew it out slowly through her mouth. Daryl had his back to her and she was grateful that he was distracted with trying to get the door open. Finally, the contraction passed and she made her way over to him, her hands still cradling her belly.

"Damn thing is jammed closed tighter than a virgin's," Daryl cut himself short and shot her a look. He cleared his throat at her blank expression and hauled on the door handle again. "It's stuck."

Lori's shoulders fell in disappointment. "So what do we do? Go back down there?" she asked, looking over her shoulder to where they had climbed up. She cringed at the thought of having to pick her way back down the pile without falling and breaking her neck.

Daryl's lip curled. "Too many Walkers in the yard," he decided. "Can't take 'em all myself and you ain't much good backup." He stepped back, ignoring the offended look on her face and jogged over towards the piled of debris that they had used as a ladder.

Too exhausted to keep chasing him around, Lori leaned against the wall next to the door and watched him crouch down beside the edge of the roof. Reaching down, he started fishing around. After a minute of yanking on something he straightened up with a metal pipe, and used the back of his hand to wipe a layer of sweat off his forehead. He held the pipe up to show her as he made his way back over.

She meant to offer him a grateful smile but she was a little distracted by the tightening of her belly again. This time, Lori held her breath and tried to keep her features neutral. Closing her eyes she pressed her hand a little harder to her abdomen. She wasn't ready to share this latest development in their crises just yet, in case it turned out to be nothing. And if she was being honest she wasn't quite ready to accept it herself; she wasn't ready for this baby to come. Physically she was; she was sick of the back aches, the pressure, the discomfort… but she and Rick were still at odds. Not to mention that she was stranded on a roof-top with Daryl Dixon while Hershel and Carol were God-only-knew where.

The loud bang of metal-on-metal startled both her and the baby and her eyes flew open. She flinched as Daryl swung the pipe back over his shoulder again and then launched it forward to collide with the door-handle.

"Is that really going to do anything?" she asked rubbing her belly to soothe the restless baby. "Ouch," she mumbled when tiny feet collided with her ribs, making her double over a little.

"What?" Daryl had turned to her, abandoning the pipe on the floor with a clang. He closed both his hands over her elbows and he shook her to get her to look at him.

Lori chuckled softly. "So that's what it takes to rattle calm, collected, Daryl Dixon," she teased. "I'm fine," she straightened up and lifted her chin. "Just got nailed in the ribs is all. You scared him with the banging…"

"Jesus H." Daryl released his hold on her and picked up his pipe again shooting her an impatient look. "Don't pull that shit again or I'm leavin' you behind," he turned back to the door, using one end of the pipe as a crowbar to pry at the handle.

Lori knew he didn't mean it, but she felt tears prick her eyes anyway at the thought. She felt another contraction begin to seize her muscles and she turned to look away into the distance.