You have waited long enough! Here is a long overdue update. Life has been crazy, and I am so thankful that I am able to post this today!

And seriously- I am humbled by you guys. The outpouring of love I received after my work was stolen by another "author" on this site has been incredible. I am honored. I don't know that the issue will ever be resolved. It's far more in- depth that I desire to go on a simple fan fiction site where things are supposed to be happy and fun. I come here to relax and "get away" from it all. I don't want to get highly involved in the drama- I have enough of that in real life! I have come to terms with the fact that the issue will most likely be on going and that I can only do so much. You can't change people's characters over the internet. I can only ask politely (hopefully!) that my work be taken down when I see it being used other places. I have blocked the user who was stealing, but she has so many other usernames that it is somewhat ridiculous. Oh well. It is what it is.

The most important part is that I am SO THANKFUL for you all. My loyal readers and reviewers!

Chapter 20

Daryl was up before the sun the next morning. His heavy eyelids cracked open to the moonlit outline of Leah beside him. A half smile found its way to his tired face as he replayed the scene from last night over in his head.

Whisking a lock of thick hair off her cheek, he watched as she breathed deeply. Damn, he loved this girl. When his lips dropped a small kiss onto her bare shoulder, Leah stirred and her eyes fluttered open.

"Is it morning already?" Her voice was rough.

"Almost," Daryl whispered, loving the sound of her sleep heavy voice.

Leah rolled and molded her body into his, chest to chest. She buried her face in the space between his shoulder and neck and yawned deeply. "Mmmkay. Just let me sleep then."

Instinctually, Daryl ran his fingers through Leah's sex mussed hair while chuckling lowly in this throat. In return, Leah wound her arm tightly across his middle and ghosted her lips over his neck before the state between sleep and wake found her.

Daryl was more than happy to hold her quietly as she drifted back into sleep and her deep breaths hit his skin. Let her sleep. It was the only place where he could protect her from the harsh reality of what was coming down the pike. His chin rested on top of her head as he cradled her tightly. As his own eyes closed again, his thoughts rested on the woman in his arms.

Sweet, caring, vibrant, beautiful, playful, and a fighter. Supportive, but challenging. He was so damn lucky. He still wondered, even after months of saying 'I love you', how he ever managed to win her over. And even more so, how she had managed to crack his shell wide open?

It was a damn mystery.

Fate wasn't something Daryl Dixon really put much weight into, but with Leah there was no other explanation. She was his only constant.

An hour later, when the sun finally crested and filled the cellblock, Leah stirred inside his arms. Moaning, she buried her face deeper into his chest. "Not even the damn apocalypse can make me like mornings. "

Despite the small smile that hit the corners of his lips, Daryl nudged her. They couldn't afford the luxury of any frivolous extra sleep today. "Gotta get up, babe."

"Five more minutes." She pleaded. As Leah let her eyes close again, Judith's cries echoed off the concrete walls. With a sigh, she rolled out of Daryl's arms. "Just kiddin'."

She stood up, stretching before reaching in the corner for her haphazardly thrown shirt. Daryl pulled himself off the bed, looking for his own shirt as well. Leah always made sure their little cell was tidy and organized, but their intense tryst from the night before had left both their clothes scattered haphazardly across the floor. He located his denim button up and threw it on as Leah bent down to pull on her boots.

An appreciative smile crossed his face as her ass came into full view.

Leah finished tying her shoes and scooted past Daryl in the cell. "I'm coming, sweetie." She mumbled quietly to the still crying baby as she stuffed her gun in the back of her jeans.

"Thought Beth was watchin' her." Daryl observed as Leah tried to scurry out. He hated hearing the little girl cry as much as she did, but had been wishing for just a few more uninterrupted moments with Leah before the busyness of the day settled on them.

Leah gave him a small smile. "Yeah, but she was up doing feedings at two am while you and I had a little fun. It only seems fair that I take the morning shift, yeah?"

With an embarrassed grin, Daryl nodded and leaned down to briefly press his lips to hers before she left the cell. "Hey," he whispered as she turned the corner.

Leah popped her head back into the doorway. "Yeah?"

He snapped the last button on his shirt closed. "I love ya."

A wide grin spread across Leah's face. "Love you too. See ya down there."

Downstairs in the common area, no one was talking and the tension was thick in the air. They all knew the day ahead of them would be big. They had to finish fortifying the prison and plan their strategy of defense. As Leah paced around the room, feeding Judith, she observed everyone's facial expressions.

They were all exhausted. Weary to the bone. Yet, Glenn had a look of fresh determination on his face. Maggie's eyes were contemplative as she picked at her oatmeal and Michonne's normal hard look had slipped away to something a little softer and more vulnerable.

Leah was sure her own expression was one of fear. She was scared to death.

Merle sauntered into the room, followed by Daryl who briefly lifted his head to find Leah's location.

"Where's Rick?" He asked the group as a whole.

Glenn looked up from his breakfast and nodded his chin towards the door. "Outside. Taking watch."

Daryl gave a little nod of thanks before making eye contact with Merle.

Leah wasn't sure what type of brotherly communication they had going on, but Daryl didn't even have to ask a question before Merle shook his head. "You go on. I got something more important to do."

The brother's kept their eyes locked for a moment in a silent conversation, before Daryl gave a light shake of his head and walked outside.

Leah watched Merle as he moved around the room, his eyes looking dull and face long. He looked preoccupied, as well as a look Leah couldn't place. As she watched him something pulled at her heart. She needed to talk to Daryl's brother. Before she could pull him aside, Merle disappeared into another cellblock.

Slowly, the rest of the group dispersed as everyone went about their own chores for the day. Leah stayed in the common area, trying to distract herself from her thoughts. Nothing was working. Merle was itching away inside her brain, refusing to be left alone.

Unable to fight the urge any longer, Leah set out to find him. She didn't have to look far. He was in the next cellblock, surrounded by mattress stuffing. Seeing the man completely focused on the work in front of him, Leah paused and wondered briefly if this was a good time. Merle was hastily tearing the limp mattresses off the metal beds and tearing into them as if his own life depended on it. A man on a mission. Unfortunately, she had an inkling of what his mission was.

Leah took a step forward, hoping to catch his eye. When movement didn't work, she hugged her arms tightly around her waist and waited. She wanted to turn back around and just forget the whole blasted idea, but something about the way Merle was pulling the mattress stuffing apart with such desperation made her stay.

"Merle?" she said tentatively, trying to get his attention.

Freezing mid motion, he looked up and caught Leah's eye. "What?"

She stared back, a hint of heartbreak seeping into her eyes. "Let's talk."

Merle rocked back on his heels and laughed a little. "I got a choice?"

Shaking her head, Leah slid down onto the concrete and took a seat on the ground. Merle just grunted and went back to digging through the stuffing. "Fine."

She remained silent for a moment, tilting her head and watching his pursuit; almost positive he was searching for hidden drugs.

Finally tired of her muteness, Merle looked back up. "Say whatcha came to say, sugar."

"Sorry. I'm just thinking." She blinked her eyes up to him.

Exasperated, Merle sighed. "'Bout?"

Taking in a deep breath, she mustered up the courage. This was proving to be a lot harder than she expected. "How much Daryl loves you. You know he would stick by you through anything, right?"

She had his attention now, but this conversation still wasn't going to be easy. "Whatcha sayin'?"

Leah picked at her fingernails, feeling suddenly shy and unsure. "Merle. I love your brother. He's my family. That makes you family too."

Merle breathed heavily out his nose. "These people- your people- look at me like I'm a damn snake. I ain't part of the family."

"You're part of mine."

Merle laughed. "He left you for me. 'Member that?"

Leah cringed. It was a low blow, but she was unwilling to show weakness and kept her tone soft. "He came back, Merle. He wants to make this work. So do I."

Merle shook his head. "Naw." He drew out the word, before sucking on his teeth. "Daryl moved on when I left. Started his own family with you, and then that little baby. Yer like a mama to her. The three of you got a nice little thing going. I see it. They all see it. It's too late for me."

Leah's heart broke at the depth of sadness in his voice. Just because Merle was the king of making bad choices, didn't mean that he didn't deserve to feel like he was a part of their family. He was Daryl's brother, and by association her family. It had take awhile for her to accept this truth. However, she knew- in this new world you need people. Family was no longer purely blood related. "I learned a long time ago that family is what you make it. And when you get the privilege of having your actual family still alive, you hold onto that with everything you have."

"Don't give me a lesson on family, girl."

Leah paused, her mind drifting back to Asher. It was a risk, but she had to take it. If it helped Merle realize his place in this group, it was worth it.

She took in a deep, shuddering breath. Talking about him was always so hard. "You know. I had a family once. A sweet, precious little boy and he was ripped away from me. I was broken and desperate. I didn't think I would ever get a second chance; a chance to be happy and to have another family. Then I did. And despite all this," Leah waved her hand around, sweeping the room. "I am happy. I got a second chance at family. You can have that too, Merle."

"That's a real nice story, sugar."

His indifference to her biggest heartache cut deep. Vigorously blinking back tears, she opened her mouth to protest, when Merle cut her off.

"My brother ever tell ya why we was at that camp in the quarry in the first place?"

Leah shook her head. "What do you mean? We were all on the highway and decided together to go to the quarry."

Merle gave a soft chuckle and frowned. "Guess it don't matter none now. That was ages ago."

Leah watched Merle as he seemingly got lost in his thoughts. "Why were you two at the quarry, Merle?" She pressed him.

Running his hand over his mouth, Merle frowned. He let out a large breath and a frown deepened the lines around his mouth. "We were planning on taking ya'll fer everything you were worth."

Leah's eyebrow shot up. "Robbing us?" It made sense, but Merle was right- it was ages ago. Everything was different now.

"Yep. Till I lost my damn hand and my little brother fell in love."

For some reason, his admission didn't bother Leah. She tilted her head, searching for words but came up empty. She didn't even wonder why Daryl had never told her. The answer to that was obvious. Daryl had put that part of him behind, moved on. He didn't like to talk about the past.

Merle filled the silence. His eyes flicked to her face and in one of the softest tones Leah had ever heard Merle's voice he said, "You changed my brother. Yer good for him. Hardly even recognize him anymore. He's respected. Honorable."

Leah nodded. "Yeah. He is. You can have a second chance too, Merle."

Again, Merle shook his head. "Nope. I've always been a fuck up and always will be."

"Merle." Leah said in gentle disappointment.

He interrupted her again with a loud boom. "You don't know shit about me!"

Startled, Leah curled into herself at his quick change in tone and the intensity of his voice. "I'm sorry." She quickly mumbled out in an attempt to calm things before Merle escalated.

It worked. Merle rubbed at his eyes with his good hand. "Never thought I'd see the day when Daryl would commit to someone." He gave a slight chuckle. "Women always scared the hell outta him."

Despite her fright from his earlier outburst, Leah smiled. "I think I still do sometimes."

Merle smiled and his entire row of yellow teeth showed. He imagined that she was probably right. "Been meaning to ask ya, girl. How'd ya reel my brother in?"

Leah rolled her eyes. "I didn't."

Merle raised an eyebrow.

She teased him lightly. "He reeled me in."

Merle howled with laughter. "Daryl ain't got game."

Leah found herself laughing along with him. He was right, flirting never came naturally to her lover. "It just happened. We work well together." She gave him a small shrug of her shoulders. She knew why she loved Daryl, but doubted Merle wanted the full run down.

"Daryl's a good kid."

She nodded. "He is. A good man. A good man who loves you and wants the best for his big brother."

"Yeah." Merle drawled before standing abruptly. "Now get outta here, suga. I'm busy."

Leah frowned, but stood and brushed the dirt off her backside. "You're family, Merle." She said as she left him to his hopeless mission with a feeling that just maybe she and Merle could make things work.

A few minutes later in the courtyard, Daryl worked on the skin around his thumb as he listened to Leah quietly recount her earlier moments with Merle. He was already preoccupied with Rick's decision about handing Michonne over to the Governor. That wasn't no peace treaty; it was cold blooded murder. Michonne was alright by him and Rick's decision was sitting heavy in his stomach. As Leah talked, sharing her earlier conversation with Merle, he hoped that things hadn't gone south between the two of them. That would be just what they needed, more ammunition against the group in Merle's belt. The more torqued up his brother's emotions got, the more unpredictable he became. Right now all Daryl needed was to deal with Merle's shit.

A sigh of relief almost escaped his lips as Leah told him that she seemed to have connected with Merle. Her story, and the fact that she was trying to make peace with his brother, touched a soft place in his heart.

Her eyes looked over his shoulder while she wrapped up her story, as if she was searching for the perfect words to say. "Daryl, I love you and I really want this to work with him. I know it's not going to be easy having him around, but I want to try my hardest. Life is too short these days for people to walk around feeling unwanted and unloved."

Quickly, he pulled her in and placed a rough kiss on the top of her hair. "Thank you," he whispered after letting her go.

Looking up, she locked eyes with him and nodded. "You're welcome. You should really go talk to him too."

Shuffling his feet, Daryl looked down at the blacktop and gave a soft nod. "Yeah. Yeah, I should."

Before turning to leave, Leah squeezed his hand softly. "You can do it. Don't let him get to you. Don't back down."

He felt her soft hand drop his and watched as she walked away from him towards the rest of the group. Rubbing at his eyes, he gave his head a vigorous shake to clear the stress and marched off to find his brother. He had learned a lot of lessons in this new world, but the most important one was that nothing was possible without people. The ones you loved weren't guaranteed to be around the next day. This was his second chance with Merle. Not many people got that luxury and he wasn't going to screw this opportunity up.