I own nothing!

"Them guns are worth more than gold. Gold won't protect your family or put food on the table." Daryl paced in front of Rick as he sorted through the bag of weapons sitting on the table in between himself and Daryl, "You willing to give that up for that kid?"

"If I knew we'd get Glenn back, I might agree. But you think that vato across the way is just gonna hand him over?" T-Dog said.

"You calling G a liar?" Miguel accused.

"Are you a part of this? You wanna hold onto your teeth?" Daryl slapped him on the side of his head.

"Oh, Daryl, stop it!" Rose pulled him back by his arm. He swung his arm back, pushing her away, ready to start an argument. But when he looked at her eyes he couldn't bring himself to do it. She was so angry she was shaking. But at the same time it seemed like she was going to break down at any second. He wondered if anybody else saw the battles she was fighting inside her head. He couldn't possibly be the only one seeing it. He saw so much of himself in her, his younger self. The one that was trying so hard to be strong but wanting so much just to break. It was all he could do to stand there and watch her, but he tried to ignore it. Eventually someone would help her and keep her sane. He would not get close to any of these people. The people that chained his only family left to the roof of a building and left him there to die and was now missing. These people didn't care about him or wanted him there, he was sure of it, especially this stupid girl. She looked as if she wanted to throw him out there on a street full of walkers and leave.

It was silent a moment and the air was tense as they stood there staring at each other. One thing Daryl did notice was that she looked him straight in the eye and didn't waver at all. Not many would do that even before the world ended. But T-Dog spoke, slicing the air like a knife through warm butter.

"Question is, do you trust that man's word?"

"No, question is," Daryl held eye contact with Rose for a few more seconds before tearing his eyes away, "What are you willing to bet on it? Could be more than them guns. Could be your life. Glenn worth that to you?"

"What life Rose or I have we owe to him." Said Rick, "We were nobodies to Glenn, just a couple of idiots stuck in a tank. He could've walked away, but he didn't. Neither will I."

"And neither will I." Daryl turned to Rose when she spoke and looked her up and down. She was determined and she would not leave this city without Glenn.

Daryl turned back to Rick, "So you're gonna hand the guns over?"

Rick looked at him, "I didn't say that. There's nothing keeping you here. You should get out, head back to camp."

"And tell your family what?" T-Dog said. They all shared a knowing look and reached for a gun, including Rose, but Daryl stepped in front of her. She called out in protest.

"I don't think so." He said.

"Why not?"

"Do you even know how to shoot? Have you ever shot before?"

She simply glared at him, but he stared right back at her.

"I have to agree with Daryl on this one, Rosie." Rick said. Rose tried to argue but couldn't find words in her favor. Daryl looked at her and grabbed one of the rifles when Miguel stood up, but Daryl simply pointed to the chair and he sat back down.

"Just do like G says." He tried to persuade them, but the boys ignored him, loading multiple guns. When they finished, they tied Miguel's hands behind his back and a bandana over his mouth. Daryl kept a gun pointed at his back the whole way back to Guillermo's hide out. The door creaked open and Daryl pushed the boy inside. Rick and T-Dog followed but Daryl let Rose go in front of him. She eyes him but said nothing, returning her attention to the men that surrounded them. Guillermo approached them.

"I see my guns but they're not all in the bag." He said, eying the bag over Rick's shoulder.

"That's because they're not yours. I thought I mentioned that last time." Rose said. She felt awkward with nothing but her backpack over her shoulders, but she stood her ground. She was not weak and she was still out to prove that, weapon or no weapon. She didn't need it, she was a survivor. After all this, she wouldn't give up now.

"Let's just shoot these fools right now, ese. All right?" the man who tried to strangle her stepped up and she sucked in a breath, but she said nothing.

"I don't think you fully appreciate the gravity of the situation." Guillermo told Rick.

"No, I'm pretty clear." Rick pulled a knife out and cut the rope holding Miguel's hands together, pushing him towards his survival group, "You have your man. I want mine."

Guillermo was silent a moment. The next words that came out of his mouth were as if a walker was going right at Rose's heart.

"I'm gonna chop up your boy. I'm gonna feed him to my dogs. They're the evilest, nastiest man-eating bitches you ever saw. I picked them up from Satan at a yard sale." He paused and nobody moved. Rose was unsure what to think. Surely he was joking. Or maybe she was just telling herself that to keep herself from getting any angrier and ruining their plan. You couldn't be too careful these days.

"I told you how it has to be." He continued, "Are you woefully deaf?"

"No, my hearings fine." Rick took a step closer to him, "You said come locked and loaded. Okay then, we're here."

Everyone in the immediate area cocked their guns and Rose suddenly felt awkward standing there with no weapon but she tried not to show it, staring Guillermo down. They were so close to getting Glenn back there was no way she was gonna stand down now. She'd lost control before and she was beating herself up about it now but she felt she knew she could do this. Nonetheless, she took a step to stand behind Daryl. She wasn't stupid, there were a lot of guns pointed at them and her standing there defenseless out in the open was simply careless. Daryl didn't even seem to notice save for shuffling over so she was more behind him. Rick and Guillermo were staring each other down and it was as if two gangs were ready to go at each other's throats. But a small old lady's voice broke through the silence, calling out to Felipe, the man who had Rose by the neck in the alley. His eyes flickered to the old lady whom Rose was now blatantly staring at.

"Abuela," he said, "go back with the others—now."

"Get that old lady out of the line of fire!" said Daryl.

"Abuela, listen to your m'hijo, okay?" Guillermo said to the old lady, "This is not the place for you right now."

"Mr. Gilbert is having trouble breathing." She continued on, ignoring the two boys, "He needs his asthma stuff. Carlito didn't find it. He needs his medicine."

Guillermo looked at Rick and it seemed as if he was torn. Rick lowered his weapon.

"Felipe go take care of it, okay?" Guillermo ordered, "And take your grandmother with you."

"Abuela, ven conmigo por favor." Felipe tried to guide his grandmother in the other direction but she had already noticed the Rick, T-Dog, Rose, and Daryl, their weapons still raised. She approached Rick, ignoring her grandson's pleas.

"Who are these men? And the girl?" she asked, "Don't you take him. Felipe's a good boy. He have his trouble but he pull himself together. We need him here."

"Ma'am, I'm not here to arrest your grandson." Rick said, lowering his gun.

"Then what do you want him for?" She looked at Rose peeking out from behind Daryl and took a step towards her as Rick answered.

"He's," he paused, "helping us find a missing person. Fella named Glenn."

She turned to him, "The Asian boy?"

"You've seen him?" Rose stepped out next to Daryl who didn't take his aim off the man who he'd shot in the ass earlier in the alley.

"He's with Mr. Gilbert." she said to Rose, "He is nice boy."

"Please, ma'am. May we see him?" Rose pleaded, "I just want to see him alive."

"He's with Mr. Gilbert. I take you to him." She took Rose's tiny hand in her own and led her through the crowd of people and guns, back the direction she'd come from. Guillermo let them pass and the boys followed them down a back alley and into a somewhat nice looking building. They passed several rooms and Rose didn't really have a lot of time to look around from being dragged by the old lady but she could see that all the windows had been boarded up. Most of the furniture was still really nice, a lot nicer than what they had seen in the past. They down one of the main hallways with several rooms on each side that reminded Rose of a small hospital. A nursing home, maybe. Rick took off his hat and Rose stopped when the old lady let go of her hand, not seeming to notice she'd stopped following her, the rest of the group on her heels. Rose stared after them for a moment before peeking into one of the rooms. An old man sat on the bed in a robe and a younger woman was sitting in a chair reading to him a few feet from the bed. An old magazine perhaps. There wasn't a lot of space in the room and the window was covered by several two-by-fours, only letting in small bits of light. The lady smiled at her and Rose was taken off guard, but smiled back nonetheless. The lady continued reading and Rose turned and leaned on the wall just outside the doorframe. The fact that that lady still had a twinkle in her eye when she smiled in these dark times really hit a soft spot in Rose. Yeah, she was one to always keep upbeat and keep people as happy as she could but she was unsure if she still had that happy, giddy twinkle in her hazel eyes. That's when she wondered how long it had been since she last looked in a mirror. Looks weren't much of a concern for her, but now she was curious. Was she still the happy-go-lucky girl that everyone knew back home? Her old high school friends? Hell, even the few college kids she'd known in her short time on campus? Then it hit her that they were probably all dead. Every single one of them. She slid down to the floor with her knees at her chest. She took a few deep breaths and tried to return to the task at hand. She tried to force her friends and family back in her mind and focus. Glenn was here; probably up ahead with Rick and the others. She took a steady breath and stood, dusting herself off when she heard her name. She stopped and looked up with a smile on her face. She knew that voice.

"Glenn!" she ran down the hall into his open arms, a matching smile played on his lips. They stayed like that for a bit, Glenn's eyes closed as he breathed a sigh of relief that she was still alive.

"I was afraid I might never see you again." Rose confessed, taking a step back with her hands resting around his waist. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." He had a relaxed grip on her shoulders and looked her straight in the eye, "Are you okay? You're not bit?"

"No, just a few cuts and bruises." She smiled at him.

They met up with Rick and Guillermo and the others in one of the spare rooms off a large open cafeteria type space where sever elderly looking people were gathered around groups of tables. None of them looked as if they had been infected, sick maybe, but not infected. Rose stayed close to Glenn looking around at all of the people gathered around as he led her behind T-Dog. Once they were all settled in Rick began to ask Guillermo a series of questions but Rose wasn't paying much attention. Her focus was on all the people in large room she was staring at through the doorway. These people were surviving right here in the city and she was so scared for them, thinking of all the walkers that she and Rick had encountered their first day in Atlanta and then the ones earlier today. There was no telling if or when those things would come wandering into this place and all these people would die. All the elderly with their wisdom and vast knowledge of the past, who knows what kind of things they knew. Sure, you might be able to find it in a history book or two, but they were actually there. They could tell you more than any couple of pages worth of reading ever could. And coming from her was definitely saying something. Rose was an avid reader but the thought of all that knowledge, these people's history, their memories and hopes and dreams no matter how small or unattainable due to age or sickness was now gone forever. It made her sick to her stomach and she took a deep breath. She noticed that things had gotten quiet and she turned around. Everyone looked awfully serious about something she had missed and finally Rick spoke.

"Because they can."