Notes: AN: Not quite the same waiting period as the last two Monster Chapters, but this one still clocks in at over 8K words, making it a large chapter.
Alright, so there have been questions/concerns about the WD timeline, and believe it or not the timeline has been worked out. According to Movie Pilot the Mid Season of season 5 is Day 514 of the outbreak. In my story Rick and Daryl last well beyond this. Currently my story is at day 2 of Rick's return in season one which is Day 62 of the outbreak. Yes I am weird because when I write I tend to research a lot. Such as Lori's Pregnancy, I searched high and low for any information on it's timeline before I added the possibility of Judy being conceived before Rick's Coma. From the given timeline and an interview conducted with the actress who played Lori there is a slim possibility of it being true and since if it was that would mean that Lori would have given birth to Judy at full to just slightly late term, but it's a possibility all the same and I'm running with it. Since Season 3- the Season of Judy's birth ends on Day 322 we'll leave it at that. After all I've known people who've been pregnant and haven't really shown at 2 months+. Thus I don't have to have Rick fall into bed with her for her to dramatize him leaving her pregnant. I have ranted enough, Clearly So I'll Shut up and let you lot enjoy this chapter yeah?
New Notes: The Above Notes are from my AO3 account. That being said with this post this story is caught up with AO3. No Edits have been made, but as time passes any Smut will be taken out and if I find the smut missing makes a chapter crap this story may end abruptly while my AO3 version continues on. I would also like to point out that this site sucks when it comes to people IDK actually reviewing things. *Shakes her head* This is why I like A03 so much more. When you consider how long this site had been around you'd think we'd actually have some mature members here that know the value of feedback. I've been a member here since 2004 at least, but maybe I'm just being too damn picky.
And Now to the Story
Rick woke up to the dulled sun shining through the back of his tent and shout that instantly had him on edge. As he scrambled up and got his boots on he made note someone had laid a blanket over the top of his tent- blocking the sun out. Which is why he had slept in so long. He'd bet that the culprit had been one of the camps mother hens- Shane, Dale, Morgan or Daryl. He exited the tent with his gun out, ready for a fight only to see his son glaring at Lori, looking like he was going to lash out at her any second now.
The cop held himself still as Lori snorted at whatever thier son had yelled at her, waving towards where he could see Daryl cleaning a deer just inside the woods with a careless flick of her wrist and a sneer gracing her face. Fuck, how long had he been out exactly? Why hadn't anyone woken him up? And just what had crawled up Lori's craw now and why was she involving their son in it? He had too many questions right now and not enough answers to them. That would have to change soon.
"Just listen to me! That man over there is nothing more than a fag Carl, and he's trying to turn your father into one too. I know that because I saw him coming out of the tent you and your father slept in this morning. I don't want you around him. If I could I'd keep him away from your father, but that man doesn't seem to realize just because he made a mistake when he was a teen doesn't mean he has ta make one now." Lori spat at his son in a shrill rant, then she yelped almost as shrilly when Carl stomped her foot as hard as he could in response to her words. The kid didn't even look sorry as he watched her reaction.
Rick bit his lip to keep from laughing at the scene his ex-wife made hopping around as Carl snarled at her. But at this moment it was a choice between focusing on his amusement or doing something that would shut his ex-wife up. And he couldn't afford to give into that urge no matter how insulting Lori got.
"You're just being homophobic mom! Daryl keeps this camp alive with his hunting and go and you say things like that about him? Are you stupid or something? So what if he likes guys? And so what if dad does too? You might think I'm stupid, but I'm not. You and dad? You were fighting long before the walkers came and neither of you were happy together no matter how hard he tried to hide it from me. If dad can be happy with Daryl then more power to him. The guy was always funny when he'd Skype dad from Atlanta, and he hasn't been anything but nice no matter how you guys treated him since he and Merle joined up with the group." Carl spat out and Rick was left with wondering just how his son knew that they were playing the angle that he'd known Daryl before the world had been taken over by the walking dead.
Lori stopped her sputtering and hopping abruptly as thier son's words sank in, her eyes narrowing on the 10 year old boy in a dangerous way. Rick tensed where he stood, wondering what she was going to do and how he was going to handle it if she got violent with his son. Rick could see Daryl wiping his hands off out of the corner of his eye and knew that the hunter would be right there the moment anything happened. That eased Rick's mind only a little bit as the cop realized that this was going to be one long pregnancy at this rate. Not if Lori was going to be spewing homophobic nonsense and acting like this at every turn.
"Your father Skyped with that man before all of this Carl? And you knew about him? Why didn't you say anything when he and his brother came into camp then?" She asked stiffly, a note of accusation in her voice as she spoke. It was like she was blaming thier son for all of this now and that was just freaking insane. Carl shrugged off his mother's tone of voice though and Rick could see a hint of a grin on his face. He didn't have a good feeling about where this was going, considering what he knew of his son.
"You were already with Shane by the time they joined the camp, and I didn't see the point in saying anything about dad's friend to be honest with ya. So what if Dad knew him before the world ended- you two told me Dad was dead and Daryl didn't want Shane anywhere near him then because of the fact you roped him into betraying dad's memory and he didn't want ta have to deal with trying not to punch him. So I kept quiet about knowing him and Daryl is teaching me things about hunting and tracking while you are 'busy' and when he has free time. It's as simple as that." He replied, a snarky note in his voice as he glared at his mother. Rick's lips twitched at the reply Carl had come up with and he saw Daryl coming closer with a shit eating grin on his face. His lover was enjoying Carl's response completely.
The teen was ignoring Shane, who was pale a couple feet from Lori as the preteen cleverly worked out a way to spend some more time with his second father. The other cop was near the tent that Lori had been using as her own since she'd gotten to camp and Rick had a feeling his brother hadn't escaped his ex-wife's clutches the night before, he'd have to check in on him later to see how he was handling everything. Lori reddened as Carl's reply clicked in her mind and she actually raised a hand, and Rick got ready to move because it looked like she was going to slap the teen. Rick could see Daryl start to move faster too, so he knew that he wasn't alone in that estimation. Hell even Shane looked ready to jump in.
"Don't you dare talk to me like that Carl Michael Grimes! I am your mother, and you will respect me. If I say I don't want you sleeping in your father's tent while he's still making the mistake of thinking he's like that redneck who claims to be a cop too over there, then you will not sleep in his tent. Do you understand me? I'm the one who kept you safe while your father was in a coma, not him. He's the one that got shot and left us on our own while the world fell apart!" She shrieked in outrage, drawing her hand back as she spoke and saw that her words didn't mean a thing to the preteen. Rick felt his face harden as rage tried taking over. But he stamped that feeling down. He had to remember Judith. They only needed Lori to carry her healthily and after that? Well Lori could take a permanent walk then for all he cared.
"It's nice to know what you really think of Daryl and I Lori." He rumbled from his spot, unable to stay quiet when she was threatening their child and insulting both Daryl and him like she was. Carl would only provoke her more if he didn't step in, and he didn't wan to to know what he would do if her hand actually connected to Carl's face. His son didn't need to know what Lori slapping him was like, the young boy may be disillusioned with his mother, but Lori had never raised her hand in anger to him before and Rick wasn't about to let him have that memory now. Lori red face paled quickly, like all of the blood had been drained from her and her eyes wandered to him when his voice registered in her mind.
The pregnant woman looked scared of him as she realized what she had been about to do, and that Rick had seen it all, not to mention the rest of the camp was now staring at her. The pale woman's hand dropped like it was made of lead as she started backing towards her tent, and Andrea's sister Amy rushed over from where she had been frozen in shock and ushered Carl away from the scene as Rick moved forward in long strides. He spared the female teen and his son a nod, before looking at Lori with cold eyes as Daryl came to a stop next to Shane. She stopped her retreat, her shoulder's stiffening as she looked back.
"Rick, I. Rick... I wouldn't have hit him. Why the hell did you have to come back Rick? I was getting over you. Carl was being such a good boy and Shane. Shane was being a better father to our son than you are. I hope to god that this child is his, because now that you're back everything is going to hell. Carl's talking back to me and acting like I've committed the worst sins imaginable by not letting you go and you. You've given up on us just like I knew you would. I said it before, that I wondered if you ever loved us? I'm thinking I was right to wonder. Ya'd rather be with that redneck than actually be a man and take care of yer family fer once. Shane's a better man then you will ever be." She snarled at him hatefully, going from meek and afraid to full on offense in a heartbeat as she tried to blame him for her actions. And she didn't pull any punches as she strung together a rant that was tailored to hurt him the most and put him in the position of the asshole when he blew up and yelled at her. That wasn't going to happen..
Hell if she had said any of this to him the first time around he would have seen red and gone after Shane in a heartbeat, to angry with the fact that his wife knew Shane that way. Now all he felt was pity for her though. He'd been in camp less than a full day, and he hadn't done anything more than end things with the woman. Rick hadn't been rude or insulting to her, he hadn't flaunted that he had moved on, or left her high and dry on supplies either so she had no reason to be like this other than pure vindictiveness. He could tell that her words were making the others unhappy as he saw them shifting from the corners of his eyes.
Most of them were the ones that he had labeled his people in his mind, the ones who had made his family up before in the other time line. The would be core of his group were gathered around Lori and him, watching horrified and Andrea's eyes were flashing as Glen shifted nervously where he stood. Both of the people he'd gotten out of the store looked ready to speak up in his defense, or just against Lori and her behavior in general since they really didn't know him beyond the rescue.
"Aw come off yer high horse Queen Lori. The man aint done nothing ta ya expect fer telling ya he aint going ta rock yer crotch anymore. Hell bells lady. Yer acting like he had a choice in leaving before this shit broke out and I know that aint true. That fucker got shot in the line of duty, protecting little shits like you from the kinda people who'd tear ya apart in a heartbeat." Merle spoke up loudly from behind Rick, who barely resisted the urge to jump in surprise at the loud, sarcastic tone the other man was using. He wasn't used to Merle defending him in any way, and from the looks that some of his people shot the redneck his behavior was shocking them too. Lori gaped at him, looking at the gruff man like he was an alien.
"Excuse me. Who said you could say anything about this? And as for Rick not having done anything to me? Bullshit. I'm probably pregnant, it might be his, and he's walking away just like I always knew that he would. At least before he could blame his distance on the job. Now I'm wondering if he wasn't fucking yer brother the whole time. He made sure to mention we'd been having problems before, and he introduced that fag to our son back then. Maybe that's why we were having issues." She spat at him. Rick stumbled slightly as Merle stalked forward, his shoulder brushing him hard and the cop sent up a prayer that Merle didn't do anything stupid at the insult that Lori was throwing in his brother's direction. Merle was like Daryl when it came to family and Lori insulting his family wasn't something he would tolerate.
"Ya leave my brother out of yer little story making ya cunt. Darylenna never touched Grimes while he was yer man, the little fucks smart enough not ta go pissing in someone else's yard- unlike yer new hero Shane over there. If he decides ta come sniffing now that Friendly's tossed yer ass to tha curb? Well that's none of yer damn business now is it? Now if yer done being a psycho cunt over nothing some of us around here actually have work ta do ta make sure one of those walkers doesn't come in and decide ta make a snack outta ya. Yer drama isn't welcome here and if I ever see ya raising a hand ta ya boy in anger again ya won't be either. Pregnant or not, child beating isn't something I'll stand by and watch." Merle growled at the woman in response. He didn't raise his voice or threaten Lori, which was surprising in itself. Lori's fist clenched tightly as the other hunter spoke though, and his words were clearly making her angry. Shane stepped forward, touching her arm gently and she looked at him in surprise.
"Just let it go for now Lori. It aint worth getting this worked up over, think about the baby. All this stress aint good for either one of ya." The other cop murmured huskily under his breath. Lori's fist trembled, but she nodded in agreement, one of her hands going to her stomach as she let Shane lead her back to her tent. Shane looked back at Rick for a second, before following Lori into the tent. Rick sighed, frustrated as hell with his ex-wife and the situation in general. Merle snorted, looking over at his brother, then the rest of the people gathered before he whistled, high and sharp to draw their attention to him.
"Tha crazy show's over folks. There aint nothing more here ta see. We all have better things to do than stand around gawking like idiots now don't we? Well get to it! It's not going ta be light forever ya know and shit needs ta get done before night comes." Merle announced loudly in their direction. Andrea snorted, her stance becoming more relaxed now that Lori wasn't there. She looked over to where her sister was sitting with Grimes' boy before looking back at Rick and the Dixon brothers with a grimace.
"That level of unreasonable ex isn't just going to go away Grimes. I can't blame ya for running the other way from it, but she's going ta keep hounding at ya. Lord knows we've seen enough of her grudges since we all joined up and all." She informed the other man grimly, before a grin passed over her lips.
"I gotta say you've got an impressive backing though. Those two over there mostly stick to themselves, but I think I've heard Merle speak more today than I ever have. And he was actually being nice in his own twisted way by defending you and his brother. I smell change in the air boys, and it is sweet. Amy's good ta keep an eye on yer boy for a while if ya have something ta do. In fact I don't think the brat's going to let him out of her eyesight even if you don't. Not after what we just saw. Lori's insane if she thinks everyone's just going ta bend ta her way of thinking cause she wants us ta. You saved a good number of us yesterday and we know what she's like. Just remember that Kay?" She added, before starting to turn.
"Wait up a second, Andrea was it? The four mother bears of the apocalypse have me on a kinda restricted activity order, but if ya can will ya gather up as many people as ya can? This place is too exposed and I wanna make sure that y'all have the basics in hand ta hand down. If for nothing else than for my own peace of mind. A herd of those things could come sweeping by anytime and I'd rather know that most of ya could try and hold yer own till someone could help. We'll start fire arm training once we're somewhere more stable." Rick spoke up, the knowledge that tonight was when the walker's had overran this camp still strong in his mind. Andrea turned and raised an eye brow at him, grinning.
"Now yer speaking my language. My daddy always told me that a little precaution never hurt no one and hand ta hand can be used in more situations then just fighting off walkers off. I'll see who I can gather, but we do have some rather unfriendly members around here. And then we have some jackasses who won't do a damned thing no matter what. I knew I'd like ya when you pulled that stunt ta save us." The blonde replied with a large grin. Rick ducked his head, feeling slightly embarrassed. It was surprising what being the person who saved a person rather than had to be saved did to people's perception of ya.
After Andrea had walked off Daryl started chuckling as he moved closer to Rick, that shy little grin holding the cop's attention without the hunter having to try. That was Daryl's relaxed, happy grin. One that Rick hadn't gotten to enjoy a lot of in a long while. Daryl bumped his shoulder with his and shook his head.
"Less than a day here and ya've already gotten a little fan club Grimes. It was a smart move slipping the training suggestion in like that though. We've got a coupla good fighters already but if that hoard blows through we're gonna need them to be able to fight them off some, or we're gonna lose a lot of people." Daryl murmured under his breath. Rick grinned at him slightly as the feeling of being in a strategy meeting with him washed over the cop. This was how he knew he could actually keep his people alive this time. Then the cop's min drifted to more unpleasant things. Like death, mostly who had died tonight before, and who should die again.
"If Ed don't get bit make him have an accident. He aint welcome here, and there's no way ta drive him away without him dragging Carol and Sophia along with him. Make it a fatal wound, but leave a corpse for Carol to bash in, that was one of her turning points and ya know it." Rick suddenly muttered under his breath as his mind wandered back to the abusive asshole that one of his dearest friends was married to.
Part of him wished Carol had remembered the future too, but most of him was glad that she hadn't. The Carol that had died had lost hope in there being a future after the plague in the prison, Lizzie and her sister, and Beth's death. This Carol had the chance to grow into the woman that they remembered and not have to experience those things if he could help it. As Daryl grunted his agreement to the plan Rick wondered if he should be worried that he had just planned a man's death and all he felt was satisfaction.
"I was planning on that asshole dying already Friendly, it's nice ta know that we're on the same page though considering yer a man of the law and all. Daryleena's always been flexible, but from my experience ya had a doozy of a complex when it came ta rules. The years after I got myself killed must have been one hell of a shit storm if yer thinking like me." Merle pipped up, reminding the two men that he was there still. Rick raised an eyebrow at the gruff looking older man and Merle snorted, tossing a look at where Carol was sitting mending something and keeping her head down.
"That old girl's one hell of a spitfire, or she was when I last saw her. It aint right seeing her get beat down by that asshole. He's lucky I aint killed him yet. Woman beating, Children beating? I saw enough of that crap when I was on the road on my own to last a aint gonna happen in this camp." Merle responded gruffly and Rick's lip's twitched, So the onrey bastard really did have a heart hidden somewhere.
"She had a long road ta get ta being that spitfire, I hope ya know that. Ending Ed's second life was just the start of her journey." Daryl grunted out, following his brother's gaze with a tender look. Merle snorted.
"I understand that Daryleena. That woman over there has been abused and beaten down fer years. After Ed had his accident or is bit and she beats the crap out of him ta end him, we're just gonna have ta give her a reason to become that bad ass now won't we. Buck up. She'll become a right momma lion if we keep her little girl alive this time around and ya know it." Merle shot back with a lazy grin before motioning to Daryl's kill, the deer was still hanging from a tree half butchered.
"I'll finish up with that so ya can put yer head together with yer boyfriend there and come up with a plan fer training these wimps up. Good luck with it, considering most of these people haven't seen a fight yet." He announced walking away as he did. Daryl snorted under his breath as he watched his brother.
"He never stops fucking surprising me Rick. But he's right about these guys. We have a hell of a lot of work ta do with them before that herd come in. Our best bet is to try and have some of them in safe spots when it happens and focus on training up the ones who have some experience. The worst part of that plan is we can't exactly post any of the ones we train as guards around the ones we don't without giving them one hell of a reason. Somehow I don't think that telling them we know an attack is coming will convince them." He murmured under his breath. Rick sighed, thinking back to that night that seemed like forever ago.
"Amy was coming out of the RV because they were out of toilet paper when she got bit if I remember what Andrea told me back at the CDC when she was drunk correctly. If everything plays out the same we might be able to have Carl in the RV doing something and have him distract her when the fighting starts. Without her dying Andrea won't take the trip to suicidal land and if things on the farm are the same she won't encourage Beth's little suicidal trip. Speaking of toilet paper I stocked up on that and a couple different female products so I should take some of it over to the RV since the girls tend to use the bathroom there." Rick proposed softly. His lover snorted, looking at him with amused blue eyes that were sparkling.
"Look at you, all domesticated for the camps woman and all. Hell even our resident raider Glen still had trouble when the ladies needed him to pick up personal hygiene products for them. Yer gonna be their personal hero once they get wind of it." Daryl chortled. Rick blushed, ducking his head. When he was gathering supplies he hadn't even thought twice about picking those things up because they used to be on most every list that was given to Glen or whoever was supply hunting.
"Shut up Daryl. We'll see what you automatically grab when you do a supply run and then we'll see if ya can tease me." He muttered, making his way to the cruiser to get what he had mentioned. The cop tried to ignore the sound of his lover laughing behind him as he did. He grabbed a four pack of toilet paper and stuffed a couple boxes of tampons and pads into a bag before heading over the the RV. Amy was watching as Carl tossed a ball around, but she looked at him when he got close, her eyes widening at the visible toilet paper. She stood up as he got to her and reached for the supplies he held.
"No way. You actually brought toilet paper with you? Glen hasn't been able to find a lot of this stuff when he goes on runs lately, and it gets used pretty quick around here. Is there more in that bag?" She chirped, taking the package of toilet paper excitedly and reaching for the bag. Rick shifted, looking down.
"It's not toilet paper exactly, but it goes in the bathroom. It's. Er It's for the females in camp. When I was grabbing up supplies on my way here I grabbed up those too. Ya know, just in case wherever I ended up had a need for them and all." He muttered in a low voice, embarrassment clear in it. Amy's eyes went wide as she took the bag and looked into it before she yelped and closed the bag again, blushing brightly.
"Well we certainly have a need for that too, and asking Glen ta get them is embarrassing as heck so thank you. I um. I'll just go and put these away now, before any of the guys see them and all." She whispered, dashing into the RV. Rick almost jumped as he heard his son start to snicker. When he turned Carl was watching him with a huge smile on his face. The preteen nodded to the RV where Amy had gone.
"Did ya really just give her a bag full of that time of the month supplies dad?" He asked, already knowing the answer to his question. Rick gave a short nod and Carl laughed outright.
"Daryl had better watch out for the ladies then. We all saw how popular Glen was even though those things embarrassed the hell out of him." the little punk whispered when he calmed his laugh to a giggle. Before Rick could respond Amy was coming out of the RV again. She paused for a second before hugging Rick and kissing his cheek, blushing bright red again as she pulled away and shifted back on her heels.
"Yer a good man Rick Grimes. Don't let yer ex-wife tell ya anything different, cause a bad guy? They wouldn't have thought a thing about getting supplies for the opposite sex with intention of getting anything in return. We're doubly lucky that ya the one that answered the call for help Glen and my sister sent out. Ya saved them and yer going to help keep us alive. I just know it." She got out, her voice a little squeaky before she turned to look at Carl, a more natural smile on her face.
"Come on little guy. Let's go see if we can kidnap Sophia and recruit the Moralas girls into playing a game. Yer daddy's got some plans with my sister and some of the others." The pretty young woman asked. Carl shot Rick an exasperated look quickly, then covered it with a grin and nodded. Rick snickered under his breath. Acting his age was going to get old for his headstrong son quickly and the cop knew that.
Hopefully he was able to work a way out to include Carl and Sophia in his training sessions soon. Well after the attack he could insist on training his child, and Carol might be talked into letting Sophia join in once ed was out of the picture. He started whistling just to annoy his son in retaliation for his earlier teasing Rick made his way back to the waiting hunter. He still had a long day ahead of him after all.
T-Dog picked up the basics of hand to hand fairly quickly, which didn't surprise either of the impromptu teachers considering the large man had been pretty decent with it before. Andrea also had some skills, but she had to work a little harder to keep up because she hadn't been a fighter when the world was normal, besides recreational kick boxing- which helped her style but did nothing for her aim with a blunt object. So while Daryl kept working with the more advanced members of the five people who had volunteered for this lesson Rick worked with the lesser advanced ones- which ended up being most of the group to be honest. Andrea and T-Dog stayed with his lover, while he had Jacqui, Moralas and Glen.
While five more fighters who could do reasonable hand to hand fighting was obviously good, every time Rick looked at Jacqui he remembered the day that she had committed suicide by the CDC. Even now he could see the desolation that had lead to her decision there in her eyes. He still did his best to train her, even when both Moralas and Glen joined Daryl's group. It was Morgan that shut down the training session, some three hours after it began. The doctor did not look amused as he took in Rick's sweating form.
"I thought I told ya ta take it easy for a while longer Rick. Yer burning more calories than ya putting on at this rate. Enough's enough fer today and I'm betting yer little solder's agree with me on that. And you Biker, I thought we had an agreement that ya'd keep an eye on this stubborn ingrate." Morgan's loud voice broke everyone's concentration. Daryl snickered as Rick blushed brightly at being called out.
"I am taking it easy Morgan. No need ta get yer panties in a twist. We needed ta get some of the basics down as soon as possible though." The cop replied, sounding a little annoyed. Morgan rolled his eyes.
"And that needed you to happen why? Yer friend there's pretty damn good, and I aint half bad at it myself given my history. Ya could have asked me ta help out with this little lesson." He replied. Rick paused. He hadn't thought of that to be completely honest. He was still in the mindset of being his groups leader. When things needed to be done he was a part of organizing and enacting it every step of the way. And Daryl was the only other constant in that equation. Everyone else had died over the years. He needed to adjust his mindset obviously, because Morgan wasn't the type to just sit back and enjoy the ride.
"Yer Right. I need ta see just who here can help prepare the others instead of just assuming things and not asking fer help. We plan on having another lesson tommorrow, if our conditions are favorable here. I'd appreciate it if you'd be willing ta help. And yer right that I need a rest. If ya wouldn't mind it could ya go around and see what everyone else here did before this happened? I know Merle's one hell of a fighter, but someone had to finish dressing the deer since Daryl was helping me." The embarrassed cop murmured.
Morgan grinned wildly, nudging Rick with his shoulder as he looked over the tired group that had been training. After a couple moments his eyes trailed to the other survivors. Shane was sitting in front of Lori's tent, watching Rick intently but he didn't make a move to get up and come over to talk with him.
Not like the day before where he'd been waiting for Rick at every turn. Morgan wasn't stupid, he'd heard the she-demon that his friend had been married to last night, and he'd seen Shane lead her away from Rick several times now. The other man was distracting the woman Rick had been married to and part of that being successful was staying away from the man he had a thing for. Morgan had to respect the man for doing what he was even though he knew the woman was off her rocker. Rick had really dodged a bullet in finding those papers. Other than that lone watcher there were a couple other lookie-loos, but most everyone else was going about their own business. He looked back at Rick and shrugged.
"I don't mind asking around about people's histories, but as long as we're taling about yer leading abilities i'd like ta point ou that I was right. Yer already whipping this place inta shape and ya've been here a day, they're lucky as hell ta have ya. I have a feeling I should be running some basic first aid lessons myself though so we can keep up with any injuries that may happen during training and asking people's histories will help me to see who will be best suited in learning. When ya say Merle's one hell of a fighter what do ya mean? He seemed pretty damn crude when he spoke up for ya." He replied cheerfully. Rick looked over to where Merle was cleaning Daryl and his hunting gear.
"Merle was military for a time before all of this. He did well, exceedingly so but he's also got one hell of a temper on him and he punched a CO so he got himself a discharge. No matter what it seems like he's a good man. Keep that in mind if he ever insults ya. He used to be a lot worse, but he seems to have finally gotten around ta getting a mental filter of his own since the last time I saw him." He replied under his breath, ignoring the leadership taunt Morgan threw out. Morgan chuckled, shaking his head before looking up when there was a high pitched cry. Rick felt his own eyes widen as he remembered the walker that the children had encountered before. That had happened today.
The cop grabbed a spike from where his trainees had laid their makeshift weapons down and bolted, hearing Morgan close behind him and seeing Daryl and Merle following his lead. When he found Duane, Carl, Sophia and the two Morales kids they were by the river with Carl and Duane standing in front of the two girls and other boy. Carl had a rock in his hand and Rick cursed himself for not arming his son.
"What happened?" Morgan demanded sounding worried as hell, reading their body language and knowing that there was a clear danger close by. Carl glanced at him, before looking at Rick and pointing with a shaking arm towards the woods. Merle cursed loudly and Rick felt more than a little confused. Before the walker had been munching on Daryl's kill, but Daryl had gotten the deer this time, early in the day in fact.
"There's a walker over there. It was gnawing on a deer body, it didn't even look up when Sophia screamed, but Duane and I got them out of there fast." Carl informed his father, his voice only cracking slightly. Merle cursed again and Rick looked at him finally. The older man looked guilty for some reason. Then it clicked in the cops head. Unless the walker brought down another deer in an area where the wildlife was getting scarce then the corpse had to have come from here in camp. The one Merle had worked on.
"Merle, what happened to the carcass of the deer ya were cleaning up?" He asked, a bit of steel in his voice. Merle glared at him, then growled, drawing his machete and walking off without replying. Rick sighed, closing his eyes for a moment and following while Morgan stayed with the children, his gun drawn just in case there were more walkers. As he caught up with Daryl, who had followed his brother, he noticed that most of the others had reached the children and Morgan. Daryl was cursing under his breath.
"Fucking hell Rick. I thought I took care of this by getting that damn deer before the sun was fully up. That idiot didn't bury the damn carcass when he was done cleaning it and those kids could have gotten bit. There's no way in hell it would have stayed gnawing on bones and whatever Merle didn't cut off for long. Hell they're lucky Sophia's scream didn't make it come after them. I'm going to kill that asshole." Daryl growled as they tramped into the forest. Rick reached out and grabbed his hand, squeezing it.
"Calm down Daryl. Merle wasn't here in camp the last time, he didn't know that a walker had gotten so close to camp today. He probably thought he had the time to take care of yer weapons before he buried it. From the way he reacted to what Carl said he's kicking himself for this already." He whispered, trying to calm the other man down before they got to the older man. Daryl's shoulder's fell and he shook his head.
"He still should known better Grimes. He aint new to hunting man. Ya always take care of the remains as soon as yer done getting what ya need from them." Daryl hissed. "That was our son with those children, our son who was unarmed and while he remembers how to fight he hasn't been trained ta yet so he doesn't have the muscle memory or coordination ta really defend himself. He had a damn rock to defend them with by that river. A damned rock Rick. I don't care what kind of hissy fit Lori throws, he's getting a weapon and training today." the hunter added, distress clear in his voice. Rick tugged him to a stop.
"Carl's a smart kid Daryl. He didn't stick around the walker once they saw it and he got those other kids away from it. He wasn't going to have to use that rock because once they saw it coming he would have gotten them to camp. We'll use this ta make sure all the kids get training yeah?" He hummed, trying to ease Daryl's mind. He understood where the hunter was coming from, they had just found out that Carl had died in the future last night and now they were faced with the fact that even though Daryl had tried to prevent this event it had still happened. Carl had still been faced with a walker that was eating Daryl's kill unarmed.
"Let's just get ta Merle and that damn walker okay? I promise I aint gonna punch him or anything, but I aint happy with him either." The other man murmured, dragging a hand through his hair and tugging on it. Rick sighed before nodding and moving forward with his lover. When they got to Merle the older man was sitting under a tree, the walker already dead by the remains of a deer. Merle was looking at the corpses helplessly. It took a couple moments for him to realize that they were there, but when he looked up there was guilt written clearly over his face. That was a new expression for Rick to see on the other man.
"I coulda gotten those kids killed by being a lazy fuck. We haven't seen any walkers this far out yet damn it. I thought what the hell, if I take it far enough outta camp I have time to take a break, clean the weapons, then come back an take core of the remains. Easy as fucking pie. Except this damn thing came out and those kids stumbled onto them both. If they hadn't run. Fuck Daryl, I saw how ya was with Grimes boy yesterday. If ya both here ta kick my ass fer being an idiot then get it over with. I almost got yer boy killed today." Merle muttered, his eyes hardening as he spoke and his posture stiffening like he was getting ready for a blow. Rick stared at him wide eyed as Daryl scoffed, sitting next to his brother.
"We aint gonna do anything like that Merle. Those kids had Carl with them, and Carl has a good head on his shoulders this time around. He got them away from here instead of the lot of them huddling in a a bush and screaming their heads off like last time." The hunter said gruffly. Merle looked at him sharply as he spoke, his eyes narrowing suspiciously on his brother as the words clicked.
"This shit happened the last time too? And why the hell would having the Grimes boy with them change the brat's behavior?" Merle demanded, his voice rough. Rick shifted where he stood, he hadn't known Carl remembered when he's spoken to to the older man the day before, so Merle wouldn't know.
"Our son remembers too. It's what's been causing his night terrors and why the children were by the river instead of here with the walker and it's chew toy." The cop responded, before Daryl could. Merle's lips twisted into a sort of grin and he leaned back against the tree and he shook his head.
"Hell. That's a stroke of luck considering Lori aint gonna be too happy when ya decide to train him up. Now what was this about this happening last time?" He replied, a wry note in his voice as he looked at his brother. Daryl scowled at him, looking over at the mutilated deer remains and the walker that had been gnawing in it's bones and the bits of meat left on it. The hunter looked back at his brother sharply.
"It sure as hell didn't happen like this. I'd been out hunting when ya went into Atlanta with tha group, ya know that. I was tracking this fucker after I'd shot it so it took longer ta get it. A walker got to it before I did, and then the kids found tha two of them. When I got to them the group hadn't smashed the head in yet, idiots. I snagged the deer early today cause we need the meat and I was hoping not ta repeat this experience." He explained plainly, with a hint of resentment in his voice. Merle snorted his head thumping back into the tree hard.
"Fucking hell Daryl. The thing would have wandered inta camp without something ta munch on, then where would we be? And ya know as well as I do that where there's one of them there's more following. The food supply is ran dry over in Atlanta. So there's bound ta be more looking for something ta eat." He scolded, sounding exhausted. Rick and Daryl shared a look. Neither of them had thought to inform the other man of what might happen tonight if history repeated itself. Sure they had mentioned a hoard blowing through and Rick had planned Ed's death if he didn't get bit and Merle had agreed, but they hadn't mentioned a time line had they?
"That hoard Rick mentioned might blow through camp earlier? When we got back from Atlanta after trying ta get ya off that damned roof it was attacking camp. We lost a coupla people and decided ta move on after we fought them off." The Hunter informed his brother. Merle closed his eyes tightly rubbing his forehead. Rick sighed and eased himself down next to Daryl, waiting for Merle to respond. It took a couple of moments, but then the other man's hand came down from his head and he looked at both of them hard.
"When the hell were the two of ya going ta tell me that we might be facing a hoard of these fuckers tonight? It woulda been great ta know about earlier, so I coulda actually fucking prepared for a fight. Shit now I know why tha two of you were training the lot of them. Well let's get our asses back ta camp, we're running out of daylight and there's shit ta do." He spat at them, sounding angry as hell. Daryl sighed, getting up and reaching his hand out to help his brother up Merle batted it away with a glare as Rick stood.
"I'm pissed as hell with tha both of ya right now. That hoard coming affects me too. What if I was out there taking a piss and one took a bite outta me cause I didn't know ta expect it?" Merle hissed, getting up himself. Daryl flinched at that and Rick resisted the urge to hug him. Daryl wouldn't take comfort right now, and Merle was right to be angry with them. He was the only other adult that remembered the future in their group, but he didn't know what had happened to them before they met up again in Woodbury and they needed to remember that. Merle needed to be kept informed of those events for him to be able to help.
"We should have mentioned it, I'm sorry that we didn't. The attack didn't happen till nightfall before so we still have time ta prepare more. After tonight we'll get together and fill you in on anything else that might happen so ya don't get surprised like this again." Rick said after a couple moments, the apology clear in his voice as he spoke. Merle tilted his head as he looked at him, before grunting and walking back towards camp without another word. Daryl watched him walk off and then sighed.
"It's fucking hard to be angry at him when we were the dumb asses who hadn't given him all the information he should known. Fuck Rick, this coulda been prevented if I had told him about what happened the first time around, but I didn't think about it. Hell I thought I had it handled, and it woulda been if I had kept on cleaning the deer and told him ta do the training." Daryl muttered. Rick didn't resist the urge to hug him this time. If he was learning one thing, it was that they needed to rely on the others more. They wern't in this situation alone anymore- not like they had been when they had finally died, or when everyone was depending on them to know everything. They had plenty of help out here they just needed to use it.
"Morgan gave me a lecture for not asking him to do the training too. He's going to be seeing just what everyone did before because he wants to start teaching some basic first aid ta whoever he can. We gotta remember we have some pretty strong support here between Merle and Morgan alone and that they can only help if we let um." He murmured. Daryl snorted, hugging him back and rubbing his face into his neck.
"We're two stubborn asses used ta handling things our way Rick. I have a feeling we're gonna have ta start getting used to those kinda talks." The hunter whispered, before pressing a small kiss to his neck and pulling away. He motioned to the camp with a wry grin. "I think we should head back ourselves and check in on Carl. I know he's done this before but he looked a little shaken up." He added. Rick nodded, tangling his fingers with Daryl's again. He honestly couldn't get enough of touching him still, and he didn't think he ever would. Daryl smiled that half smile before tugging Rick back towards camp.