A Forever Home

Everyone met on the deck after dinner; it was time to discuss their future. Merle, Michonne, Maggie, Beth, and Hershel had gone on a run today to the Greene farm. Merle had wanted to settle there and he wanted Hershel to see it and decide if it was doable. Merle had noticed that the road was clearer of debris and a spot where a tree had fallen almost in the road had been cleared. He directed Michonne to turn the vehicle around and find a hidden spot. They parked close to a place that Hershel knew overlooked the farm. They all stood on the hill and watched as a large group plowed, cut back brush, built fences, and generally showed no signs to leaving soon.

They had walked back to the suv mindful of how difficult a walk it was for Hershel in so many different ways. He moved slowly with his crutches and Merle and Michonne walked on either side letting him set the pace.

Merle felt bad that they hadn't claimed the farm right off, but he wasn't sure that they could have kept it. He had counted eleven men out working and there were women working in the fields and in the house. Children were working alongside the adults. There were probably others on runs for materials. The farm was lost to them now.

Maggie and Beth held hands as they walked. The farm had been home to Greenes for generations but they had been through too much in the last year to let this devastate them. There were other places and other farms.

Dinner had been quiet and nothing was said until the table was cleared and the washing up was done. They gradually assembled on the front deck and into their favorite spots. Carol, Daryl, Merle, Michonne, Jesse, Andrea, and Christie formed a group. Hershel, Maggie, Glenn, Beth, and Caleb sat together. Rick was in the rocker with Judith and Carl sat at his feet.

Merle stood up and wished he could find some words of wisdom but figured he would go with honest truth. "I think that you are the best warriors I have ever served with in any fight, and we might be able to take that farm back but it isn't worth any of your lives. I love every inch of this house, but it doesn't have enough farmland to support us forever and I am looking for a forever home. What do you want to do?" He sat back down and grabbed Christie's hand.

Hershel stood up, "I looked out at my family farm today and it hurt to see others plowing and putting it back to use. I wanted to be the one doing that, but then I understood. That land is going to support many families and they were making it a farm again. We need to find our own place and start our own farm. There is land enough, but is this the right place? The climate is so warm here that the walkers last too long. Georgia has too many big cities and that causes more walkers. Don't stay here because of me. I can limp along anywhere we go."

Jesse stood up, "I taught agricultural science at Virginia Tech so I am an overeducated farmer. I have seeds and Daryl and I took some to Woodbury. I would like to take some to that farm and leave them where they can find them. Just call me Jesse Appleseed, but I want humanity to go back to providing for themselves. I want you to think about relocating farther north. It's colder in the winter and that might knock back the walkers a bit." He sat back down.

Christie stood up. "Jesse and I are from Virginia and grew up on a farm close to the West Virginia line. That feels like home to me. West Virginia is hilly but there are farms there. Not a lot of people and cold weather in the winter. Lots of wildlife for hunting too." She sat back down.

Merle said, "We don't have to make any rash decisions. Going north would be a risk. There are lots of empty farms here. Why don't we think about it tonight and talk again in the morning."

The group began to split itself off into splinter groups. Jesse turned to Michonne, "Would you go with me to Virginia and West Virginia? I want to know if there is a place for us there. I know that it's dangerous to travel but it is dangerous to stay put too. Marauders could find this place at any time and I don't see how we could defend it. We only made it this far because we just hunkered down and stayed put. We were out of food when you all showed up."

Michonne took his hand, "Jesse, I'll go with you. This place was a godsend and a small group might survive here for a long time, but it's a death trap if another group wants it."

Daryl and Carol looked at each other, he nodded at her, and "Daryl and I will go with you. We will be ready in the morning "Carol said. She wasn't afraid to go anywhere as long as she could go with Daryl.

Andrea said, "I want to go too. I am better and I don't want to be left behind again".

Michonne shook her head, "You aren't completely well; you need to be somewhere safe."

Andrea said, "That is why I am going with you. You and Carol will protect me. Jesse and Daryl will protect you."

Rick had been listening. "I have traveled through there on the way to Pennsylvania to visit Lori's grandparents. Let me go with you".

Caleb wanted to go but he knew that too many men couldn't go. "I'll take care of Carl and Beth and I will look after Judith. We need to have some way to communicate."

Glenn said, "There is a short wave in the basement and we found another one on a run. We can configure them to hit each other's signal and use those solar panels to keep enough power to transmit."

The next morning, one loaded down suv left the compound headed north toward hills of West Virginia. They would be searching all the way for a place and maybe they would wind up in the Carolinas, Tennessee, or Virginia.

TWD TWD TWD

Daryl and Carol had talked the night before in their tent as they packed to leave. Daryl said, "I have never been out of Georgia or had a vacation, but this is my year to try new things". He picked up her nightgown which was a long t shirt and waved it at her.

Carol laughed, "Some part of me knows that we should settle down here in Georgia, but another part wants to start over in a new place. I am glad that Andrea is going with us but I was surprised that Rick jumped in."

Daryl said, "Rick wants to try new things too, and I think he wants Andrea."

Carol was horrified, "Lori just died. He is devastated. How can you say that?"

Daryl knew that Carol had loved Lori like a sister, "Rick loved Lori but he was so busy taking care of the group that he never took the time to forgive her and get their marriage back on track. They didn't have sex and they didn't talk to each other. Lori dies and Rick starts losing his marbles. Then Merle and Michonne blew in and changed everything. Rick gets relocated to here and there isn't anything here that haunts him. I know that it is too soon for him to be with anyone else and Big Rick knows that, but little Rick wants Andrea. His dick is talking to Rick and sometimes it has a way of making itself heard.'

Carol thought about those long lonely nights when they had been on the run. Maggie and Glenn would take watch together for some private time. Lori and Rick had slept apart and the distance between them had grown longer every day. She decided to concentrate on enjoying their last night in the tent. Privacy would probably be impossible on this trip. "What did little Daryl say to Big Daryl to put you in my bunk that night?"

Daryl threw a few more things in his pack. "Little Daryl really hates to be called little by the way. Little Daryl wanted you from the quarry. He would make Big Daryl know that at the most inconvenient times. Big Daryl isn't very smart. He was afraid that he would hurt you and that he wouldn't know how to be with a good woman. Little Daryl kept telling him to just let him take care of that part, but Big Daryl wouldn't listen. I thought that I had lost you in the tombs and even then I would have stayed away. Hershel came to tell me that you were doing fine and he told me that life was precious and not to waste any more of it. I heard everything he said and I stayed that night in your cell because I wanted to be the one you saw when you woke up and to be honest I stayed because I wanted to have sex with you. I wanted to feel you alive and warm in my arms and I did."

Carol didn't want to think about the tombs." Let's take a walk around the compound. It has been a wonderful place to shelter and I want to see it all before we go. I think we are going to find what we are looking for somewhere out there. I want to watch the sunset from the deck with the others and then I want to come back here and let little Daryl and little Carol have their way with each other."

Daryl thought about trying to talk her out of the walk and the sunset visit but knew it wasn't happening, even little Daryl knew it was a lost cause. He was fine with waiting. A long walk with Carol and spending a little time with the ones they were leaving behind was alright too. "Okay, but you are giving little Daryl time to think ways to explore you."

Carol said, "I think I am up to the challenge."

TWDTWD

Andrea was at cross purposes. She had volunteered to go with the others because she realized that she was beginning to care too much for Rick. She needed some space from him; he was still grieving Lori. She hated to leave Judith but she was getting too attached to her too. Now Rick was going and that would defeat her purpose to stay away from him. She had been relieved to know that she wasn't pregnant from being with the Governor, and she must be the only woman in the world who got raped and still wanted sex. Andrea thought that what she really wanted was sex with a gentle man who cared about her. She knew Rick wanted her and this trip would put them on a collision course with each other.

TWD

Michonne was lying in Jesse's arms, "Jesse Appleseed? Are we going to travel around and plant apple orchards?"

Jesse traced a line from her forehead to her lips. "A strong woman like you can dig big holes and carry lots of water." He kissed the line that he had made and kissed her lips over and over until she opened her mouth to him.

Michonne gave a low moan and he began tracing that line to her breast and she knew that she was going to always love Jesse Appleseed". She did smack his ass for his smart ass comment but that was partly because she liked doing that. His lips left hers and began tracing that line to the breast while his hand began tracing a line to between her legs. She loved the feel of his smooth skin against hers and she gasped with pleasure as his hand slid between her legs.

TWD TWD TWD

Merle and Christie were standing by the suv when they left the next day. Merle hugged Daryl hard and said, "I love you, Little Brother". He kissed Michonne on the cheek and said, "Little Sister, take care of yourself out there." Merle looked at her again, "You make a hell of a sister. Don't fuck up out there". Merle hugged Carol, "Take care of these two losers, Sissy". She nodded blinking back tears.

Christie had hugged everybody goodbye. The others all hugged everyone goodbye and in an instant they were going out the gates and out into a world of danger and of endless possibilities.

AN

I know that Andrea and Rick have no business being on this trip, but the muse said that they were going. Andrea belongs with Carol and Michonne and Rick was always running off and leaving his kids behind. Animal shelter try to find "forever homes" for their animals and I have always liked the phrase.