Rick's eyes flashed open and all he could see was the white wall.

He clenched his eyes shut and reopened them, this time, staring at the closed curtains that masked the window. He had to make sure he was in the right place and everything wasn't a dream from last night. Feeling the soft sheets over his body, he turned his head but his eyes only met the empty half of the bed he lied in. Knitting his eyebrows, he leaned up and stared around the plain room, not seeing Lori or Carl anywhere. Rick pulled on a pair of pants and opened the door to his bedroom, looking up and down the hallway, but seeing no one. The soft carpet supported Rick's feet as he moved down the hallway to the top of the stairs, looking down and hearing soft voices. Descending the carpeted steps, his feet met with the cool wooden floor of the kitchen and he saw Maggie, Carol, and Lori talking to each other while preparing plates. Narrowing his eyes, he stepped in even further and Lori finally took notice to his appearance, "Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

"What's goin' on?" Rick asked and looked over the counter, seeing Carl and Hershel sitting at the table.

"We're making breakfast. Why don't you sit down and I'll fix you up a plate?" Lori nodded towards the table and Rick's blue eyes stared at her, ignoring her question,

"Have you seen Reagan?" Rick asked and Lori shook her head,

"Not yet... Glenn was the first to wake up and when he said he came to the kitchen there was a big bowl full of fruits and vegetables on the dining table." Lori looked past Rick to the stairs, "I knocked on her door but there was no answer."

"I'll go see if she's in there." Rick said and turned around on his heel back towards the stairs. Lori attempted to stop him,

"She might still be sleeping. You shouldn't wake her."

Rick strode up the stairs and moved down the long hallway of the second floor, stopping at the end and turning to the right. He stared at the door for a moment and lifted his fist, knocking on it, "Reagan?" He asked softly, but heard no answer from the inside. After another couple knocks, there still was no answer and Rick rested his hand on the doorknob. But as he tried to turn it, it didn't budge and he pulled his hand off, knowing she had locked it after leaving to wherever she went.

"Rick?" A sleepy, raspy voice called his name questioningly and Rick turned his head to see Daryl leaning out of his bedroom, "What's goin' on?"

"Nothin'..." Rick was quick to reply and shook his head, "Need to talk to Reagan... but she doesn't seem to be here."

"Where'd she go?"

"I don't know..." Rick said unsure to himself and he trudged past Daryl back down the stairs. As he stopped, he heard the fresh smell of eggs being cooked, staring into the kitchen to see Carol cooking the fluffy concoctions. Maggie cut up some potatoes on the counter and Lori cut up whatever fruit there was in a bowl. Looking over, Rick saw Hershel, Beth, Glenn, and Carl playing a game of cards at the dining room table.

"Alright everyone... the food is ready!" Carol called and those who occupied the dining room, including a fully dressed Daryl who finally descended down the stairs, all took a seat. Rick hesitated, torn between letting them all eat while he keeps watch and joining them in their family-like setting.

"T-Dog really must be taking all his time sleeping." Glenn voiced as Maggie brought him a plate. Lori shook her head,

"Who can blame him? He's always the one that volunteers to keep the night watches wherever we stay." Lori sat down with a plop on a wooden chair next to Carol, rubbing her belly, "We should let him sleep and I'll make him a big plate in a bit."

"It's like this is all too good to be true..." Glenn mumbled to himself while staring down at his food, Carl already digging into his plate. Glenn's mouth watered and he followed Carl's lead, scarfing down his food but trying his best to pace himself to enjoy the savory flavor of good food. Finally, Rick moved over towards the table, sitting down at the lonely plate of food that was waiting for him. He stared down at it, not knowing exactly what to dig into first. After a few long moments, he plucked a few powdered eggs up in his fork, sighing in bliss at the warm food.

The group all took their time eating, taking in their food and living up the moment the best they could. It was the first time in months they sat down together and felt like they barely had a care in the world. But of course, the world outside the safe haven didn't escape the darkest corners of their minds. Rick and Daryl were still skeptical; they thought the farm was safe and secure and there was no way a single house with a brick wall perimeter could keep out what they feared every waking moment.

"Can I have some seconds?" Carl asked while looking at Lori. Lori looked to the food on the counter, wanting to save some for T-Dog, and Reagan, wherever she was. But Lori nodded, not wanting to keep her son from having an empty stomach, "Yes... just don't eat it all!" She laughed and Carl jumped up from his seat to retrieve more food.

A shiver rolled up Rick's spine upon hearing a crash coming from the garage, his legs immediately hoisting his body to his feet. Everyone turned to look at the garage door, their jaws halting with mouthfuls of food. Rick looked to Daryl, who was quick on his own feet and already had his knife gripped tightly in is hand. Rick slid his Python from its holster and pointed it at the door, him and Daryl slowly stepping forward as they heard a loud slam, not knowing if it were the garage door or not. Footsteps jumped up from behind the door and the handle turned, the door swinging open and Rick's pistol freezing. Reagan stared down the barrel of his gun, unfazed by his stand off, "You sure like to point that thing at me, don't you?"

Rick let out his held breath and Daryl narrowed his eyes, "What the hell happened to you?" He took notice to her bloody hands and she pushed past Rick, turning on the kitchen sink and scrubbing her hands clean,

"Ran into a little trouble... no big deal."

"No big deal?" Rick slid his pistol back into its holster and turned back to face her doubtful, "That's a lot of blood; what happened?"

"Let's just say I like to get up close and personal with the Biters." She grabbed a hand towel and dapped the water off her skin while whirling herself around to face Rick's condemning stare. Reagan looked past him towards everyone else with a charming smile, "I see you all took it upon yourselves to make this place your home."

"I hope you don't mind..." Lori stood up to take the brunt of Reagan's words, "I thought the girls and I could make everyone breakfast. We left plenty for you, too."

"I don't. Thank you, but I already ate." Reagan put her hand up and shook her head. Daryl looked back to the blonde,

"What were you doin' out there?"

"Plowing a path out of here." Reagan's light brown eyes turned to him, "The four-wheeler was almost out of gas so I had to find a car to siphon. Someone has to keep up the maintenance around here."

"What's the snow like out there?" T-Dog's voice echoed through the room, making everyone turn around to see him taking a seat. Reagan smiled,

"I guess it's Q and A time now that everyone's gathere, huh?" Reagan moved around towards the table and pulled a chair out, sitting down and leaning back, "I'm in a better mood today so ask all the questions you can while you have the chance." Her eyes moved around the group as they all stared at her and Reagan's gaze, once again, fell on Maggie, "There's about half a foot of snow... nothing too big."

"How long have you been here?" Hershel asked with a stack of cards in his hands. Reagan held her tongue for a few moments, estimating the time she had been dwelling in the double-decker house,

"Going on about... 5 months."

"Five months?" Glenn voiced in surprise, "All by yourself?" Reagan nodded to him and Lori shook her head,

"There hasn't been anyone else? Just you?"

"I found this house by myself... I used to be in a group like yours before this." Reagan said and Maggie's eyes continued to stay glued to the blonde female,

"Why aren't you with them now?" Reagan's eyes dropped to the table and her fingers began tapping on the arm of the chair,

"They're all dead." Reagan looked to the stares of the group surrounding her, seeing the questioning look in their eyes. They all wanted to ask the question, but none of them could muscle up the courage, "All seven of us were close, as all you are to each other. We struggled and survived, day by day, week by week, a couple of us almost starved to death. One day we ran into another group of people; wannabe militia men. They gunned everyone down... I tried to fight back, but got this pretty little number." Reagan's hand yanked the zipper of her jacket down her chest and hooked her fingers on the collar of her shirt, pulling it down her shoulder. She smiled in amusement at the group's curious reactions to the small contortions in her skin, "Shotgun blast to the shoulder. I don't know how I survived but I ended up passing out. Woke up to see everyone dead; all my gear gone... as well as the men who attacked us. The only thing they didn't take was my scythe."

"I'm sorry..." Lori apologized and Reagan shook her head,

"Don't be."

"So you've never ran into anyone in the five months you've been here?" T-Dog asked and Reagan stared into his dark eyes,

"I've had many people stay here with me. But eventually, they move on." She couldn't help but smile, "Always have to save their asses one way or another..."

"They never caused problems?" Glenn asked and Reagan continued to tap her fingers on the arm of the chair,

"There was one group... attacked me when I brought them back here. I took it more as a jealousy thing."

"Did you kick them out?" Glenn asked again and Reagan huffed with a smile,

"I guess you could say that..."

She killed each and every one of them.

"I like to think of this house more as a bed and breakfast." Reagan laughed under her breath and Rick rested his hand on the countertop as she looked at him, "That reminds me. I still don't know all your names. If ya'll are goin' to be staying here... I'd like to have some idea of what they are. I can give some pretty cruel nicknames."

"Rick Grimes..." Rick was the first to voice and he motioned towards Lori, then Carl, "That's my wife Lori and my son Carl."

"Daryl Dixon."

"Glenn..."

"Maggie."

"I'm Hershel and this is my daughter, Beth."

"Carol Peletier."

"And I'm T-Dog." He finished and Reagan stood to her feet, looking at them all,

"Officially... It's nice to meet you all."

.:o:.

Reagan rummaged around in the dark garage, the large room only occupied by a couple burning lanterns in each corner. The burning pain from the wound in her back annoyed her till no end and she grunted with dissatisfaction. Sitting on a chair, she sharpened the blade of her reaping scythe, pushing down with the grinding stone and scraping it across the sharp edge. Old, dry blood scraped off on grinding stone as it went along, Reagan treating it hospitably like a human being. She heard the door open to the garage and looked over her shoulder, seeing Daryl and Rick walking down the small set of wooden stairs. Her eyes drifted back to her work at hand and heard Rick's southern voice break the verbal silence,

"Are you busy?"

"Does it look like it?" Reagan asked while keeping her gold eyes on the grinding stone.

"Enough of your sarcasm." Rick put his foot down and Reagan sighed, her eye twitching from the annoying pain in her ribs,

"What do you boys want?"

"We want to know more about this place and what the hell we're dealin' with." Daryl's raspy voice echoed and Reagan looked over her shoulder,

"I'll tell you whatever you want to know."

"Show us." Rick said stepping forward, "If we're goin' to be living here, together, we want to examine all perimeters, know where everything is, and what we can do to reinforce this place."

"It's already reinforced..." Reagan stood to her feet, gripping the wooden handle of her reaping scythe, "The damn border is made of brick, what more do you want?"

"Listen," Daryl stepped forward and glared over at her, "We ain't gonna sit here and argue bout this mindless shit."

"You haven't been out there..." Rick voiced after Daryl, "You've been cooped up here, somewhat safe from the outside for months on end. We had a secure place, a farm, and it got taken down by a herd in an instant! Nowhere is safe and secure."

"I can assure you... I've had my fair share of difficult times..." Reagan leaned in forward challengingly, "I've taken the time I had living here to make sure this place is secure from both people and the Eaters. Don't let your paranoia eat your sanity away."

"Can we cut the pissin' contest?" Daryl scoffed and shook his head, "We ain't here to spit in each other's faces."

"I never took you as the reasoning type of man." Reagan smirked at Daryl and his jaw tightened as he leaned in towards Reagan. Rick tossed his hand out and pushed Daryl back,

"Daryl's right." Rick's blue eyes moved back to Reagan, "We're here to stay and you've got to accept that." Reagan narrowed her eyes at Rick and he continued, "I can see the look in your eyes... that you're just waitin' for us to get our fill and move on. It ain't gonna happen and if you don't accept that... then I will make you."

Rick challenged and Reagan only stared into his surprisingly intimidating eyes. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, she nodded at the two men, "We'll see when we come to cross that bridge." Reagan turned and flipped her black cloak over her shoulders, grabbing her scythe and resting the makeshift strap over her shoulder, "Come with me."

Rick and Daryl followed her to the garage door as she tore it open, the rollers sucking it up into the rafters above them. Daryl and Rick's eyes narrowed as their pupils tried to acclimate to the brightness of the snow; grey clouds hovering in the sky above and threatening to rain more snow down upon them. Reagan stepped out onto the plowed concrete of the driveway, taking in a deep breath of the fresh, cold air. Looking over her shoulder, she nodded at them, "I'll show you how to work the generators and where the firewood is."

Rick and Daryl followed her around the side of the house towards the back, staring at the brick perimeter as they passed by. In the backyard of the establishment lied a giant shed and a lean-to clasping onto the back of the house. Rick eyed the two large generators hooked to the house and Reagan slapped her hand down on one, "Here they are..." Reagan quickly demonstrated, "The canisters of diesel are in the shed over there, along with the firewood to the fireplace. The gas goes in here, the buttons to turn them on and off are here, and it's wise not use both of them at the same time or for too long... diesel is hard to come by these days. I'm gone a lot... so you should all know how to use these."

"Gone a lot, huh?" Daryl asked and Reagan nodded,

"I scavenge as much as I can. You can never have too much of one thing and getting it before everyone else definitely has its benefits."

"What about this wall?" Rick turned around and walked towards the wall, staring at the eight foot brick structure. Reagan walked towards him,

"You're welcome to walk with me and inspect it. I know this yard like the back of my hand, along with these walls... I've made sure no one can get in uninvited and they most surely won't get out... alive that is." She made a point as the three began to walk the perimeter of the two story house. Daryl eyed the scythe on her back, remembering the swift carnage it inflicted on all the Walkers the night before. Curiously, he nodded towards it,

"That thing as easy to swing around as you make it seem?"

"This old thing?" Reagan motioned towards the scythe, "It can be... took me a lot of practice to use it the way I do now. It's quite the handy tool."

"Never seen anybody use a weapon like that before, let alone, take down as many Walkers as you did in one fell swoop." Daryl admitted and Reagan smiled while looking over at him,

"Walkers? Is that what you call them?" Daryl nodded at her and Reagan's gaze fell on Rick briefly and saw his observing eyes glued to the wall. She huffed and stared back forward, trudging through the snow, "Surprised you didn't turn tail and run when you saw me. But seeing as the condition you were in, I can't really say you had the choice."

"I tried but you had my crossbow. Thought the damn Grim Reaper was comin' to take all our souls." Reagan couldn't help but laugh at Daryl's words,

"You're not the first person who's said that to me. Some people I save just run away and that's the last time I see them."

"I don't blame 'em."

"All I can do is thank the woman that helped train me." Reagan caught both of the men's curious glances as they made way towards the front gate, "It was about a month after the outbreak occurred... I partnered up with a woman, who brandished a katana, for quite some time. I liked the fact that she could take out so many so quietly... so I found this thing, fixed it up, and we were unstoppable together."

"Did she get killed, too?" Rick asked while looking over at her and Reagan sighed,

"I sure hope not... we ended up getting separated." Reagan stopped and stared through the slots of the front gate, "I wonder about her everyday..."

Rick stopped next to Reagan and stared out through the gate, seeing a few Walkers trying to walk through the snow. He looked over to Reagan, "I thought you said they don't come out here?"

"I said none of them have ever made it past the gates. I never said anything about them not being able to find this place. You have to remember, the wind has been strong these past couple days." Reagan explained and she nodded over towards the rope to pull up the gate, "You boys pull up the gate, I'll take care of them outside."

Rick and Daryl looked at the rope tied to the top of the gate, following it over to a pulley on the second half of the house. The rope ended next to the garage door and the two men exchanged quick glances before moving back towards the garage. They took the rope in both of their hands and hoisted the rope up, watching the end of the gate rise from the wall. Reagan yanked the scythe off her back and brandished the handle loosely in her fingers. The handful of Walkers stared at her ravenously and the snarls reached her ears tediously. With one sharp swing, she took down two in one, the heads sliding clean off their bodies and rolling across the ground. With the stained handle in her palms, she marched through the snow and kicked up the powder as she went about. The blade of the scythe swiped across the face of yet another Walker, Reagan watching solemnly as its body fell to the ground with a muted thud. Her golden eyes glared up at the sky as small snowflakes began to fall and a fresh wind kicked up into the air.

Quickly, she pulled the Walkers bodies out of the somewhat plowed road and returned behind the thick, safe gates of her establishment. Rick and Daryl released the rope in their hands and it landed with a loud crash, Reagan and the boys retreating into the garage. Reagan grabbed a towel and wiped the blade of her scythe as swiftly as she swung it, "Looks like another storms comin' in."

"Sure hope this weather doesn't get too bad." Rick stepped up the wooden stairs to the door, Daryl behind him and soon to join, Reagan. The three walked inside to see a few of their group scattered about the house, some disappeared into their rooms and others were playing board games.

"I wouldn't play with those if I were you." Reagan warned as she saw Glenn messing with her collection of explosives. Glenn quickly put one of them down,

"What are these things?" He asked curiously and stepped away from the bookshelf. Reagan smiled,

"I duct taped flares to aerosol cans, preferably deodorant or air fresheners, and use them as mini grenades."

"Is that what you used last night?" Daryl asked while eyeballing them, "When those Walkers were comin' at me?"

"Yeah. The flare provides a good enough distraction to draw them in and by the time they all crowd around it the thing will explode." Reagan rested her scythe against the wall next to the garage door, "Not only does it explode but it sends shrapnel out and kills whatever the blast didn't." Daryl quickly remembered how she crouched over him after sending out the flare bomb and the laceration in her cloak he found the night before.

"How did you light the ground on fire last night?" T-Dog asked from the kitchen table, "Been wonderin' that ever since we showed up here."

"Molotov's..."

"As in like... shoving cloth in a half filled liquor bottle and lighting it on fire?" Glenn asked and Reagan nodded her head amusingly,

"The towns closest to this house; I set up traps I guess you could say." Reagan leaned on the kitchen counter, "I used motor oil to set up boundaries. Me being by myself... if I ever ran into trouble I could always rely on them to give me distance to escape."

"That's smart." Rick admitted and Reagan nodded at him,

"I've had plenty of time to think up these things... as you know."

"What'd you do before all this?" Glenn asked curiously, "Were you like, some type of survivalist or something?"

"Far from it." Reagan laughed more to herself than around everyone, "I was in the practice of becoming a registered nurse."

"A nurse?" Rick asked skeptically and Reagan looked to him,

"Hard to imagine, I know." Reagan smiled and Daryl sighed, turning the conversation in a different direction,

"I'm gonna go out." Daryl said and threw his crossbow's strap over his head, "Go try to find us some good venison."

"Are you sure?" Rick asked and looked to one of the boarded up windows, "It's starting to snow outside. Like Reagan said, a storm could be comin' in."

"I'll be fine. Just gonna hit up the forest behind the house over here. I ain't gonna be lookin' for somethin' big, maybe a couple rabbits; some squirrels if I can." Daryl moved towards the garage door, "Everything's goin' into hibernation. Not much to choose from."

"Before you decide to take off..." Reagan said as she turned and walked towards a closet. Daryl watched her as she opened the door and pulled out a long, thick cloth before turning and tossing it to him. The crossbow-wielder caught it swiftly, "That'll give you extra protection from the wind and keep you nice and toasty. I used to use it back in the day before I found my black cloak."

Daryl looked back down at the colors cluttering the poncho and ran his fingers across the thick fibers. With a nod, he looked back up at her, "Thanks."

"Just don't make me have to come save your ass again. Everybody only gets one."

.:o:.

Reagan sat on a lounging chair by the fire, comfortable with her belly content from a wonderfully cooked meal. Even though it had started snowing bad outside, Daryl managed to come back with a couple rabbits and even a possum. Reagan didn't like the idea of eating such a nasty, oversized rodent. But the way it was prepared, along with some canned vegetables and baked potatoes, she just couldn't say no. She had to admit, the people in Rick's group sure knew what they were doing when it came down to the wire. Reagan wanted to retreat to her room for the night to eat by herself, but the group insisted she stay and eat with them. For the time being, she was one of them. For being by herself for so long she was so used to being by herself, doing everything by herself, and even talking to herself at times. It was nice having company while it lasted. She just hoped that they weren't putting on an act; she would've had to hate killing them all.

Reagan stared into the dancing flames as they warmed the house and were kept at bay in the fireplace. Her eyes flickered along with the inferno and her wet hair cooled her face from becoming too hot. Everyone else had retired for the night, in what she assumed because she was by herself curled up in the lounging chair. Her eyes continued to glare into the fiery abyss, her chin resting on her hand, and her teeth chewing on her pinky nail. Her mind wandered elsewhere,

"Thought you'd be headin' to bed along with everyone else." Slightly startled, her eyes turned to Rick as his grizzly face became illuminated by the fire through the houses darkness.

"Sometimes I just like to sit up and think." Reagan shifted in her chair and rested her head against her knuckles, "Besides, it gives me my moments to reconcile the day's events."

"Nothing really occurred today."

"A lot did... a lot that you and I may not know about." She said and Rick narrowed his eyes, sitting down on the couch next to her chair. He rested his elbows on his knees and stared into the fire as well, getting lost in its fiery depths. Reagan stared over at him amusingly,

"You and your group have quite the mix of personalities. I've never met any like yours so far..."

"We had more..." Rick voiced and looked over at her briefly, "A lot more..."

"That's always the story." Reagan said with a small smile, "Everyone has their fair share of losses these days. Sometimes you've just got to grin and bear it."

"Is that what you did?" Rick asked, "With your group? The people you've lost dear to you?" Reagan lost his smile and twiddled with her wet blonde hair, staring back into the fire,

"I never got too close to anyone in my group... sure I was pretty messed up about them being slaughtered mercilessly in front of me. I got over it eventually. But now, there's no time for mourning. It'll only hinder you and get you killed." Reagan sighed and shook her head, "I've already been through so much that nothing really bothers me anymore."

"You're outlook on this life of yours..." Rick looked over at her curiously, "You don't see anything wrong with it?"

"There's plenty wrong with it... but I don't let it hold me back anymore." Reagan was quick to admit, "I welcome death and I'm sure he welcomes me with open arms.

"I don't understand..." Rick shook his head, "How can you go about like this and not fear dying? It doesn't make sense how you're still alive."

"There are things in this world that we will never understand... people in our lives that we try to protect; but ultimately our efforts are in vain and they die." Reagan tore her eyes from the dwindling fire and stared into Rick's burning blue eyes, "We kill to survive and we survive to kill; a vicious and endless cycle. Eventually we succumb to this evil and I've accepted that as a part of my daily life. I'm not afraid of death anymore, nor will I ever be. We must pray for the best, prepare for the worst, and expect the unexpected; a standard philosophy I solemnly live by. Adopt these standards, Mr. Rick Grimes, and then maybe you'll be able to see this world through my eyes."

Rick only stared back at her, trying to soak in all her philosophical words like a sponge. Reagan stood to her feet and tossed one last glance at the spellbinding fire, stretching her legs and looking back at Rick, "I must be getting off to bed right about now. I'll have a long day ahead of me."

"What do you mean?" Rick followed her shadow as she moved behind the couch towards the stairs, "Where are you goin' tomorrow?" He watched Reagan stop, but she didn't turn around to face him. She was almost hesitant to say,

"I'm going out to scavenge." She admitted and barely looked at him over her shoulder, "I never got a chance to finish out that town before I found you guys."

"Take some of us with you." Rick stepped forward, "We can help. You just have to give us a chance."

"Maybe some other time." She shook her head, "I work better alone, anyways. You should stay here and get as much rest as you can and spend as much time with your family as it allots. You were a lot like me before... running on fumes and wringing yourself dry for the sake of the group. But trust me... you're no better to them as a dead man is in that condition."