Hey guys! Here's a new chapter of "The Book on Pain"! In case ya'll didn't know, the title of this story comes from the Shinedown song "Sound of Madness"; it's a pretty good representation of Merle, and it just fit for the story, ya know?
Anyways, thanks to: what evil lurks, NightlyOwl103, Brazen Hussy, and my two guest reviewers for all the wonderful feedback last chapter!
I own nothing, here's the third installment.
The Book on Pain- Chapter Three: Between The Raindrops
When I get me a plan, I can guaran-damn-tee ya that I'll get it done. As far as the others: Martinez, Crowley, Tim, an good ol' Neil are concerned, I'm gonna be killin' Michonne today. All o' us, except for Brownie, 'cause he's too busy with his head shoved up the Governor's ass, will be leaving Woodbury. We'll tell Michonne that she's free to go, an' even give her that damn sword back. The boys seem to think that we're gonna go after her an' kill 'er after she's had a few minutes to herself. Sure, we're gonna go after her, but they ain't ever comin' back from it. My Nubian Queen and I'll make sure o' that.
"Surely, you know that the Governor will start searching for us when none of his men come back from this mission," Michonne deadpanned, just staring back at me. We were leanin' against my kitchen counter, discussing jus' what was gonna go down tomorrow.
I laughed at that. Hard. "Girl, if he's that determined to come find us an' kill us, we'll know it," my laughter subsided, and I just lean over the counter, that much closer to the dark beauty in front of me. "Shit, we might even have to pay him a visit sometime soon. Depends on how well he wants to play."
This woman surely knows how to get under my skin. She hopped up on the counter, peering over that slender, bare shoulder o' hers. Guess she don't know what kinda effect she has on a ol' bastard like me.
"Fine," she finally agreed. I heard her sigh, an' I couldn't help but watch that damn sexy bust rise and fall as she released that deep breath o' air. "I'll go along with your plan, Merle, but that doesn't mean we're bosom buds, or anythin' like that."
"Sure thang, sweetheart," I make sure to give 'er my best smug grin. "Not like we like each other or nothin', right?
Michonne tenses those shoulders before glancin' o'er at me again. I'll admit, I may like this one a li'l more'n I should. It's just so damn fun when she gives me that look, like she'll rip me a new one if I cross her the wrong way. Scratch that, actually, it's not just fun—it's damn sexy, too. This one is oozin' with the sex appeal, an' I bet ya she does it on purpose. Tryin' to pull a fast one on' ol' Merle. Well, I gots her a thing or two…
The girl never said another word, she jus' stared at me. Hell, I think I may have made my point, huh? To break the ice, I jus' came around the counter an' nodded my head towards her. "C'mon, then, let's get ya settled in for the night. We'll leave first thing in the mornin' to get ya good an' killed."
She gave me a strange look, but before I knew it, she was standin' right in front o' me again. We were so damn close. Fuck, I could jus' pull her o'er and kiss her here an' now. She would never know what hit her…
I couldn't do it, though. Not now. There's a time an' place for everythin', ain't there? Because I'm such a nice guy, I let Michonne have my bed for the night an' I take the couch. I'd much rather be in the bed with this beauty, but I can wait. Soon enough, she'll be beggin' for me to take her.
Michonne leaves Woodbury at about nine the next mornin', and I'm sure as hell happy to watch that ass sway as I let her out of the front gate. We've got our game plan all squared away; my Nubian Queen ain't gonna get too far away. And when she sees us, well, the rest of the boys are as good as dead.
I hang back for a few minutes, explainin' to Crowley, Tim, an' Neil that we're gonna go out, do the deed, an' come back for a li'l fiesta. O' course, what I'm really talkin' about is gettin' Michonne alone, but they ain't gotta know that, now do they?
We head out an' I pretend to have my gun ready. My Nubian Queen dropped down like a damn wild cat and went shogun on all of their asses. All that was left standing was that damn beaner boy. He stood there with his mouth wide fuckin' open. Be a man and fight back, boy! It was almost too easy to shoot him right between the eyes.
Michonne stared at me awful strange as I stabbed the boys' heads, puttin' 'em out of their undead misery.
"What's on yer mind, Mute?" I asked her, givin' 'er my best grin.
"Nothing," she told me, which I knew was bullshit. I let it slide, though, an' I just laughed it off.
"Suit yourself, but don't come bellyachin' to me when ya finally want to talk about it—"
"I still don't understand why Andrea couldn't have gone with us," Michonne frowned. She wouldn't look at me, but I knew that her damn feelings were hurt. All Blondie cared about lately was gettin' a piece o' ass.
"Don't worry 'bout her none, sweetheart," I stepped closer to my Nubian Queen, but she took a quick step back. Okay, so this was gonna be more o' a chase than I thought it was gonna be. I stared down into her dark eyes, right in time for the damn bottom to fall out o' the sky.
Hell, maybe this was gonna end up being interesting after all.
o—o—o
Me and Michonne found a place to lay low while the storm of the century was goin' on outside. We had barely made it past the herd of biters. Shit, if it hadn't been for her havin' my back, my ass would have been long dead. I ain't even tryin' to lie about that. Michonne knows what she's doin'; that is one badass woman. Personally, I'd never met a woman quite like her before. She intimidates me an' fascinates me at the same time. What a fuckin' combo, huh?
I'm steadily starin' at Michonne, 'cause after a while she finally asked me what I was lookin' at. I coulda made some smartass remark about watching the sexy ass woman in front of me, but I didn't. Nah. I did continue to look at the dark beauty. That's when it occurred to me that she was wearing a necklace with an "A" charm laced through the chain.
"Hey, darlin', there somethin' ya ain't tellin' us about your real name?" I asked her, motioning to the chain wrapped around her neck. Couldn't help but notice as she grabbed it and gave me the saddest look I believed I had ever seen.
"That's way more than you need to know, redneck," she sighed heavily and was quick to turn away from me. Damn. Just when I was thinkin' things were lookin' up.
"Maybe one day you'll tell me everythin', huh? Ya know, we need to get along for the trip. Might as well start somewhere," I reasoned. Could easily tell that she was wary to open up about her past. So what that she had a shitty backstory? Mine ain't much better, darlin'. Michonne jus' peered over her shoulder again and I held her gaze for what felt like fuckin' ever. Now that, that was somethin'.
After a while, the storm finally died down. It was about damn time; we head out, hoping to find where my baby brother had run off to. I keep myself trailing behind Michonne and damn if I wasn't enjoyin' the view. She didn't really seem to care, either. The hell was up with her?
"Girl, what's the matter? Ya ain't sayin' much," I catch up with her so that we were walkin' side-by-side now.
"Didn't know that I was such a chatterbox before…" Michonne whispered, lookin' over at me real quick like.
Just as I realized that the woman may have had a point, about half a dozen fuckin' biters start lurching our way. My woman doesn't waste any time going after them with her katana, sliding their heads off one by one. Damn if that wasn't sexy…
I had gotten a bit distracted, I reckon, 'cause before I know it, I'm tackled down by a lone biter. If it hadn't been for quick reflexes, I never woulda been able to stab that fucker through the eye. Michonne held her hand out for me, as a sort of peace treaty. We needed to trust each other from here on out, and watch each other's backs. I think my woman was finally starting to understand that.
I take Michonne's hand and hoisted myself back off from the ground. We continue on for another mile or so, and it takes us to a stream. In the apocalypse, unless yer completely well off, yer damn happy to see water. It means actually gettin' remotely clean and I'll be happy to fill a couple o' canteens with water for later on. Me and Michonne hear have no damn clue where we're going. We're jus' walking; in all honesty, my baby brother could be anywhere right about now.
"Well," I cluck my tongue, clappin' my hands together soundly. "Lookie what we got here!"
I was damn happy to see it. This was gonna be fun, though. Would my Nubian Queen wash up in the stream with me? Now, ya'll know that I ain't afraid to get undressed in front of no woman. Guess we'll have ta wait an' see what'll happen. I glance over at Michonne again, an' she's still lookin' at me a might strange. With a shrug, I kick off my boots an' socks.
She stood still, jus' watchin' me. Hell, maybe she was likin' what she was seein'. It's been a good, long, while since I've had me a woman. I won't mind a piece o' that dark meat over there.
My shirt is the next to go. I pull it over my head and toss it to the side. I take pride in my body; even if the world went to shit, I still worked out every damn day. When I glance over at my Nubian Queen again, her eyebrows were quirked up, but she still had that blank expression in place. Have I mentioned lately how much I'd love to just pull her over to me and jus' have my fuckin' way with her however I damn please in this stream?
Because damn. I'll give her somethin' ta look at.
"Come on, now," I teased. "Don't be shy now, woman. We're all friends here, right?"
"Yeah," she snorted, rollin' those deep brown eyes o' hers. "But friends don't bathe together, either."
"Well, we're more like friends wit' benefits," I kept my eyes glued on hers as I single-handedly unzipped my pants and did away with those as well. Funny thing about having one hand: you adapt to doing things with that one hand, quicker than you would think, too.
Michonne laughed at me, "friends with benefits, really? Redneck, I hardly even know you." I could tell that she was havin' ta restrain herself, especially when I stripped down completely. So, I thought with a grin, even my Nubian Queen has her weaknesses. And, apparently, I was one o' 'em.
"Oh, come on, mute. Join me for a li'l swim, huh?" I asked her, stalking past and submerging myself in the stream. "I don't bite!" Well, okay, we all know that that much was a lie, but she ain't gotta know that.
Michonne finally admitted defeat an' came up to the stream. I reckon she noticed the scars on my back, 'cause she just stood there for a second or two, before she started to take off her vest an' jerk at the hem on her tank top that hardly left any damn thing to the imagination.
I glanced over my shoulder when I heard the slosh of her finally stepping into the water. When I did, though, I had to do a fuckin' double take. Our scars were practically identical, only difference being that hers looked a whole hell of a lotta newer than mine was.
"Damn, woman, who did that shit to you?" I asked, more harshly than intended. Whoever hurt her was liable to get their faces beat in.
She went to turn away from me, but my quick reflexes spun her around to face me. She watched me pretty damn closely, her arms covering up her chest. I surprised her by tipping her chin up slightly. Michonne didn't move an inch, but she kept her eyes glued on mine.
"It doesn't matter who did that to me—" my Nubian Queen thickly added. I wasn't buying that shit; not for one minute.
"You're out of your damn mind if I'm gonna let this go!" I told her, nudging towards the necklace that she had yet to take off. "Bad ex or somethin'?"
Michonne wouldn't look me in the eye anymore, and somehow I knew that I had probably fucking severed a nerve or two. I sighed and let her go. Eventually, though, I would find out, God dammit.
o—o—o
There was still plenty of daylight left out there when we left the stream. We made sure to fill a couple o' canteens up for later use after the two of us washed up the best that we could. Woulda been nice if we had some soap or some shit, but canteens an' weapons sounded much more important than damn soap when we were packing in Woodbury.
Michonne was still keepin' to herself, an' I reckon I couldn't blame her. Besides, I had to focus on finding my baby brother, first and foremost. (Just the fact that I'm slowin' down to check on how she's doin', though, I know that I'm surely and thoroughly fucked.) I ain't good at elaboratin' on my feelings. Never have been. I thought I'd be able to keep my thoughts to myself, maybe get a fuck in, but now shit has gotten serious. She was more than attractive, more'n mysterious, an' I wanted her in every shape, way, or form that I could have her.
"We should scavenge for supplies," Michonne reminded me, finally knocking me out of my train of thought. "Before we get any farther. We have no idea where we're going to be lead to, right?"
"Yeah," I grin, tryin' to shake off all of my thoughts o' her. "Good thinkin', mute."
We rounded the back corner of a building leading out of the woods. So far, we hadn't seen very many more biters since we found the stream. I snuck around to the front of the strip buildings, payin' special attention to the parking spots still occupied with vacant cars. Maybe they had something good in 'em. Wasn't like they were gonna use 'em again. The bodies that were in the vehicles were all fucking attacked by biters.
Michonne brushed past me and went to head into one of the shops. I heard her take a sharp breath, like somethin' had just scared the shit outta her. When I went to see what she had found, even I had to do a double take. There standin' before my woman was two survivors. And not just any survivors, neither.
There was my fuckin' baby brother, and mousy housewife Carol Peletier.
My plot bunnies don't seem to want to work until early, early in the morning. It is now five AM. Dear God, how much do ya'll love me for this?
Reviews would be loved! How are you guys liking the progression of Merle and Michonne's relationship? Too fast, too slow, just right, or it's not going at all. Let me know!