Author's Note: I know! I know! It's been freakin' WEEKS. I AM SO SORRY MY LITTLE ZOMBIES! My computer has finally been returned to me, all fixed and working properly once more :D And I promise I didn't forget about you all in the slightest! In fact, the first half of this chapter was copy/pasted from my iPod's notes section. I was working to get this out to you guys from day freakin' one! I'm so sorry!
Also, because I had excess time to actually plan and consider how the plot will play out, I do have a few little things. First off, this chapter's gonna start up right at Judge Jury Executioner, because as hard as I tried, I couldn't really fit Cali into the first two episodes that followed the previous chapter. So yes, I have cheated, and I've cheated pretty bad.
But, I am hellbent on making it up to you guys! And I will! I started with this chapter, for one, the ending is for the wait! But, I'm also willing to become a OneShot Bitch, seriously, I will pretty much do anything you guys want me to do. There is nothing I won't do. I have to redeem myself!
The other thing is, and one of the reason I was so late in the first place, was I had discovered Supernatural, and couldn't fucking believe how amazing it was. I watched every episode over my winter break, and because of that, and by the time you all read this, I'll have a Supernatural fic out :D so if there's any Supernatural fans out there, please, do take a look :D and, of course, SAM FUCKING WINCHESTER FOR LIFE.
Anyways, ramblings aside, here you go my friends! A brand spankin' new chapter. An once again, I AM SO FUCKING SORRY!
Last thing! Anyone else like how Daryl's got SS on his bike? Really classy xD
Disclaimer: I don't own TWD, and in the following chapter we have language, violence, death, and of course, your make up present!
Chapter 25: Let The Dead Bury Their Dead, They Will Come Out In Droves
"The fact that we're even still arguing this is stupid. We gotta kill the kid." T-Dog sighed once more, and held up his hands. "If we let him go, he could bring his group back here."
"Really? He's just going to hop on up on his little bum leg and go sprinting back towards his group? He'll never be able to find this place again." Dale shook his head.
Cali continued to watch the exchange between Camp Clueless grow in animosity towards each other. They weren't getting along in the best of days, but now? With Rick's little wayward gimp, things had gotten downright biblical. It was a wreck, but she couldn't exactly deny that she'd stayed out of it. After all, Cali had spent a good hour chewing out Lori's dumb ass after Shane had brought her back from the car accident she'd gotten into. Carl had been terrified, no one had known where Lori was, and Cali had been seething. After all, if a twenty year old college student knew how to raise a kid better than an experienced, expecting mother, then there was something very wrong with that situation.
Things were only getting worse between everyone. Glenn and Maggie were fighting, and no one in the group was willing to see eye to eye. Even now, as they argued about the prisoner that Rick and Shane had brought back again, no one was on the same page. Dale wouldn't let them kill him; he couldn't be more against it.
And apparently the kid was against it too, with all the effort he'd put into not dying to far. Cali had seen him once, when Rick and Shane had ripped her iPod out of his ears, and tossed it back to her before he was dragged back into the barn. He was young, probably around her age, and he couldn't even walk on the one leg he had. He hadn't seemed dangerous to her, just scared. And Cali honestly didn't know what the right call here was.
"So, what's the plan then?" Lori asked, looking up towards Rick. "I think we'd all feel a little bit better if we knew what was going on."
"Is there a plan?" Andrea asked, and Glenn nodded.
"Are we keeping him here.
Rick glanced up, and nodded as Daryl returned towards the camp. Cali looked him over, and winced when she saw the state of his hand. Both sets of knuckles busted open, and still bleeding. Rick sighed. "We'll know soon enough."
The Redneck's face was set in a grim line. "Our boy's gotta gang. About thirty of them, with heavy artillery, and they ain't lookin' to make friends. They roll through here, our boys are dead. An' our women're gonna wish they were." The implication of his words echoed through the camp, and everyone tensed up. Cali's stomach clenched. She'd forgotten about that…the men in her group were a rare breed. Most men out there, they would just take what they wanted, and leave the rest of them for dead…if they were lucky. The idea of that…it made her shiver, even in the heat of the day. Rape…who could forget rape.
"What did you do?" Carol asked, looking at Daryl.
"Had a chat." Was his curt reply before heading away from the camp, and back towards his antisocial little area. Cali raked her teeth across her lip before turning her attention back towards Rick and co. Daryl's hand would need wrapped up, but she wanted to figure out what they were going to do with the kid first.
"No one goes near this kid." Rick ordered the group, and Lori walked in front of her husband.
"Rick, what are you going to do?"
"We have no choice. He's a threat. We have to eliminate the threat."
"You're just going to kill him?" Dale asked, and Cali felt herself siding with the elderly peacekeeper. She didn't see why the kid had to just die. And she wasn't too crazy on the whole 'murder' thing. It was basically the death penalty, just with no judge, and a pretty biased jury. Murder by Camp Clueless…she thought that only applied to walkers. She didn't like the way that everyone seemed okay with just…letting this kid die only a few feet away from them. It just…didn't sit well with her.
"It's settled." Rick's voice was deep. "We'll do it today." He left after he spoke, with Dale hot on his tail. Cali shook her head and went towards her and Glenn's tent, where she fished out some of her leftover bandages, and what was left of her burn medicine. Medicine was medicine, and she'd take what she could get when it came to that.
She heard feet behind her, and Cali turned to look at Glenn. She gave him a smile, which he halfheartedly returned, before he tossed his hat on his bed. "So, what do you think?" He asked her, and she sighed.
"About what? You and Maggie?"
"What do you mean, 'me and Maggie'?"
"Well, I can kinda see you're having a little spat…yet you haven't come talk to me about it. I'm not impressed Glenny."
"Well sorry, but it seemed like there were bigger problems than my love life."
"There is never anything more important than your love life." Cali immediately responded. She turned around so that she was comfortable, and looked at him expectantly. "Talk to me."
Glenn frowned, and mumbled "Maggie told me she loved me."
"…That's a bad thing?"
"It is when it makes me choke up when I'm out with Rick. I couldn't-I can't-focus when I know that I have someone who needs me back here. I need…I don't know…it's weird. I'm scared to die now, and I really wasn't before. I don't choke up, you know?" He looked at her, and she nodded. "I can't do that Cali. I can't just choke up! Because if that happens, someone could die, and I don't want to do that. I don't want to be the reason one of us dies-"
"Hey, hey. Calm down for a second okay?" Cali smiled, and grabbed the Asian boy's hand. "You aren't going to kill any of us. And you know what?"
"What?"
"Be in love Glenn. Seriously, it's the least the world could do for you, giving you a chance to be in love. And it's not like anyone else at the camp is trying to deny themselves that."
Glenn frowned, and then waved his hand. "You know what, forget it. I didn't come in here to talk about this anyways. I wanted to know what you think."
"About what?"
"The kid."
Cali frowned now. "What about him?"
"What do you think about him?"
Cali stood up, and gathered up the things she came into the tent for in the first place. She looked at Glenn and shook her head. "I think that he could be us. If we made one wrong move. He could so easily be us."
Cali shifted the basket full of clothes to her other hip, and continued her trek up to where Dixon was hiding out, his wet laundry making the trip with her. A lot of things had changed, but somehow, Cali kept up doing his washing. She still would've been happy to do Glenn's, but it seemed Maggie had taken that chore off her hands for the time being.
Daryl was sitting down on a stump, and looked up when she got within range. He gave her a nod. "Hey."
"Delivery." She smiled. "From the anti-feminist club."
"'Ppreciate it." He smirked as she walked up next to him and sat down. She sighed and looked down at his clothes.
"I wasn't going to say anything…"
"Then ya prolly shouldn't."
"You got all these shirts…and they all got sleeves." Cali told him. Daryl looked half confused for a second, before he sent his eyes skyward.
"Are ya fuckin'-"
"Last time you wore sleeves, you got shot!"
"Technically, I didn't have no sleeves when I go' shot."
"Yeah, yeah. Not my point." She rolled her eyes. "Don't wear sleeves."
"Don' tell me what to do." He spat back.
"Don't act like a child."
"Don' be mothering me."
Cali cut her eyes to him. "You think I mother you?"
"A lil."
"That's bullshit." She dispelled the idea with a wave of her hand. "Now give me the hand that you busted up on that kid's face." With a raised eyebrow, the hunter handed over his right hand. Cali uncapped the bottle of water, and poured it over the open skin. He hissed, but didn't try to move away. She gently washed the dried blood off, until the hand was clean again. Setting down the water bottle, she reached for the medicine, and Daryl stiffened up a little. Cali glanced up at him. "What?"
"Nuthin'."
"Okay then." She shrugged and grabbed the medicine, bringing the bottle up, she uncapped it and Daryl flinched. Cali stared at him. "Seriously, what?" She was answered with a grunt, then mutter, before Daryl looked away. "Yo. Daryl, in English please."
He looked annoyed, and growled. "Tha' shit stings."
"Seriously?"
"I don't like tha' shit alright?"
"You don't like…plain old medicine?"
"Shu'ddup Nia."
"Look, I really don't care if you want it or not, you really busted up your hand, and I don't want it to get infected with something nasty alright? So just grin and bear it boyo." Cali informed him, and she squeezed a little of the medicine out, and rubbed it over part of Daryl's cuts. Sure enough, the hunter jumped slightly and growled. Cali only shook her head. "If you didn't want to deal with this, maybe you should've put a little less effort into beating the shit out of that kid."
"Wasn't talking."
"Why does it matter where his people are huh? They've already written him off, and if he came back happy and healthy…ish, why would they care where he was?" Cali asked, rubbing more medicine into Daryl's hand. He shook his head.
"It ain't him they want, they want a place. And we ain't got the firepower tuh stand up to them. An' if they show…"
"Who says they'll bring they violence? Maybe Hershel could just send them to one of the other hundred abandoned farms around here. I mean, it's not like there's a shortage of farms around here, why don't they just get another one. Who even says we'd need some kind of standoff. I mean, the kid hasn't done anything has he? Except save Shane's ass when Rick needed him to. I mean, those two looked beat to shit, who knows what those walkers did to them."
Daryl snorted, and rolled his eyes. "Don't much think Walkers were th' problem there." He muttered before shaking his head. "It ain't very likely they gonn' show up an' then walk away. Kid's a danger, and there's no way tha' it'd be safe to let him stay."
"He hasn't done anything though-"
"Whut? Ya wanna sit aroun' and wait fer him to do somthin'? Tha's damn stupid an' ya gotta know that."
"He's human-"
"He's a problem."
Cali grit her teeth. "How could you even say that huh? Shit, not even three months ago we were having this same conversation about your brother! And you know what? You all went back for him! So what's so different now! You all were hell bent on not letting Merle die, so you all travel, into a Walker ridden city to get him! So why doesn't Randall get the same chance!" Her hand gripped his tighter, and he pulled it away. "Well!"
"If we brought Merle back, he sure as fuck wouldn't be bringing in thirty more people with him-"
"Why would they bring in thirty people! That'd just be fucking stupid of them-"
"Those men raped two lil girls right in'front of their Ol' Man!" Daryl snarled, and it was the most emotion he'd shown in a long time. He grabbed the front of Cali's shirt and pulled her closer. "Ya fuckin' understand yet? If they come in, ain't nothing we can do fer you women! They'll take what they fuckin' want Nia, and I ain't willing to roll th' dice…not with that…not with you."
Cali closed her eyes and exhaled a breath she hadn't realized had been trapped in her lungs. Damn it, damn it damn it damn it. "Okay." She whispered, and Daryl let go of her shirt. "Okay. I hear you."
"Ya sure?" He asked, but his voice wasn't as deadly this time. It was back down to normal. She opened her eyes again, and he was staring at her. "I mean it Nia, I don't want ya petitionin' to save this kid. He won't do th' same fer ya."
"I'll back down."
"'M sorry tha' he's gotta die. Really, but I ain't willin' to put ya'll in harm's way on th' off chance the kid ends up being a good guy. That ain't happenin'." He scrubbed a hand over his face. "'S just gotta happen this way-"
Cali grabbed his free hand and nodded. "I know, I get it now. Everyone's just scared, and I guess they have a right to be. Besides, there's too many women here. Me, Maggie, Andrea, Beth, Lori, Carol, Patricia…we're a mess waiting to happen. I understand, and I won't go raising a revolution against this. I get it." Cali shook her head. "The kid is off limits. Got it."
Daryl looked at her for a second, before swearing under his breath, and he pulled his hand from hers, and held out his pinky. Cali looked at it confused for a second, before looking back up to him. "Com'n girl."
"Seriously?"
"I've kept every promise I've made ya girl, I expect ya to do th' same for me." He answered simply. Cali nodded and wrapped her little finger around his. He gave her a small smile. "Promise."
"God, seriously?"
"Com'n girl."
"Fine, I promise."
"Promise whut?"
"Jesus…I'm annoying as shit, aren't I?" She rolled her eyes. "I promise to not try and do anything to let the kid live. I'll go with whatever Rick's decision on the subject is. Happy?"
Daryl shrugged, and he dropped his hand. Cali stood up then, and brought the basket of laundry with her, and started handing it up of the little concrete building he kept all his shit by, careful to avoid the arrows that littered her feet. She hung up the still drying clothes, and just shook her head. "Is it difficult to never have a break? You're always worried about something."
"If I don', who's gonna?"
"I don't know, but you could always take a break or something, you know? You never seem chill." She hung up the last jacket, some frayed old thing with angel wings on the back. She smiled at it. "Even Guardian Angels need a break sometimes dude."
"I'll rest when 'm dead."
"One man can't carry the world on his shoulders."
"Bull shit, Atlas fuckin' did it." Daryl argued. Cali turned to look at him, incredulous look etched on her face. Daryl only smirked at her. "Whut? Figgured since I'm Grade A White Trash, 'M dumb as shit too?"
"No! I just-"
"Everyone loves the Greeks Nia."
With another heave, Cali had pulled another load of clothes out from where she had been washing them, and sighed. She really did miss washing machines, and she didn't give a mother fucking shit how far back that sent her quest for rights. Hell, she might as well give up on that, this place couldn't be more misogynistic…
Actually, it's not so woman-hating, as woman protecting. She decided as she wrung out the clothes she had in the bucket, before she'd pin them on up. This job, like so many others, was completely monotonous, and she found herself just staring into space as she worked. It was her quiet time, and it was slowly becoming her favorite part of the day. It was the only time she was ever really alone.
A rustle, and the snap of a twig brought her attention away from her chore, and over to the woods. She froze, wondering what that could be. Her first thought was Walker, and her when her logic caught up with her, it was an animal most likely, but it was still something she should probably go check out. So, she traded in her laundry for her bat, and started heading over to the edge of the woods. Normally, she wouldn't go on her own, but everyone else was doing something, and if it was a Walker, well, she had a bat. And if it was more than one, well, she could scream.
She didn't have to get to close though, because before she could get there, Carl came walking out of the woods. Cali had never been so relived, and then so angry, so quickly before. "CARL!" She screamed and the boy jumped six feet in the air. "Get over here!"
"What?" He asked when he got close enough. Cali had just enough sense not to hit him.
"What were you doing in the woods?"
"Nothing!"
"Wrong answer boy. Your correct answer is, 'I wasn't in the woods, and you've just got heatstroke again'. Goddamn it boy! Are you trying to give us all heart attacks! You don't go out into the woods by yourself! What the hell was in the woods that's so important!" Cali chastised the boy until she turned blue in the face, and Carl had just enough sense to look ashamed. She squeezed the bridge of her nose, before she looked back at him. "Please, please Carl, can you please just stay in the house like everyone keeps telling you to do?"
Carl mumbled something that might've been a yes, and he looked up at Cali. "Hey, I got a question for you."
"Alright?"
"What's this?" He asked, then grabbed a stick and drew it out in the dirt for her. Cali watched him, and her eyes narrowed when she realized what it was.
"Where'd you see that?" She asked. Carl shrugged.
"Some old graffiti in the woods. What's it mean?"
"It's the sign for the SS. They were Hitler's secret police during the Nazi regime in Germany. Kind of a big deal around here still. A lot of these hicks are Aryan wannabes." Cali smiled and pushed Carl towards the house. "Now, let's go back to the house now, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah. Alright." Carl sighed, and the two of them began their trek back towards Hershel's house, sassing each other the entire way there. Carl seemed to get back to his old self for a little bit, and it was nice, because that hardly ever happened anymore.
"Nia!"
Cali flinched. Fuck, he sounded pissed, and she couldn't possibly think of a reason why. She'd been good all fucking day, and kept her promise, and kept her nose out of the damn Randall thing. Why could possibly be pissed off? She turned around and saw him coming after her with a purpose. "Yeah?"
"Where the fuck is it!"
"Carl, go on up to the house, okay?" Cali told him, and the kid was more than happy to listen now. He hauled ass faster than a bat out of hell. Daryl finally caught up with her and she looked at him. "Where is what!"
"Knock it off, and jus' give it back."
"Give what back?"
"Mah fuckin' gun Nia! Now!"
"What? Why the hell would I have your gun? Maybe you forgot, but I'm kind of a shitty shot." She reminded him, and rolled her eyes. "Besides, I don't even know where you keep the damn thing. I had actually thought you just never took it off your person."
Daryl narrowed his eyes. "Ya don't have it?"
"No…I mean, why would I take it? That'd be shooting myself in the foot, no pun intended." Cali shook her head. "Honestly, I don't have it though."
Daryl scrubbed a hand over his face. "Then who th' fuck would…" He shook his head. "Fergit it, I musta put it somewhere else then."
"Yeah, no problem." Cali smiled, then looked up at the sky. "It's sunset. Time to go listen to the appeal."
"Fuckin' joy."
Camp Clueless and the Gang Greene Gang gathered in Hershel's living room in silence, as they waited for Rick to start talking. Cali sat curled up on the pink sofa, away from where Rick was supporting himself, and she saw a lot of unhappy faces around her. Conflicting emotions, and a hell of a lot stony faces. No one seemed to want to be here, and she really couldn't blame a damn one of them. She didn't really want to be here either. Finally, the silence was broken.
"So, how do we do this?" Glenn asked. "Do we just, take a vote?"
"Does it have to be unanimous?" Andrea followed up.
"No, majority rules." Lori answered. Rick sighed and tried to bring them to focus.
"Let-let's just see where everybody stands, and we'll talk through the options."
"Well," Shane drawled. "The way I see it, there's only one way to move forward."
"Killing him." Dale spat. "I mean, why even take a vote, it's clear where the wind blows."
"If anyone wants to spare him, I want to know." Rick responded, looking around the room. Dale sighed and his shoulders slumped.
"Well, I can tell you it's a small group." Dale answered. "Probably just me and Glenn."
Cali glanced over at her Asian Amigo, and he looked up at Dale. Glenn gave a sigh and ran his hand through his hair. "Look, I think you're pretty much right about everything, all the time but-"
"They've got you scared!"
"He's not one of us!" Glenn answered. And that really about summed it up for everyone else involved. Randall wasn't one of them, and that was going to put the noose around his neck. "And…we've…we've lost too many people already."
"What about you? Do you agree with this?" Dale asked Maggie, who looked down before looking back up.
"Couldn't we just continue keeping him prisoner?"
"Jus' another mouth to feed." Daryl answered.
"Could be a lean winter." Hershel spoke up.
"We could ration better." Lori agreed.
"He could be an asset! Give him a chance to prove himself!"
"We could put him to work." Glenn suggested.
"He's not walking around." Rick shut that door before it had even opened.
"We could put an escort on him." Maggie offered her solution.
Shane snorted. "Who'd want to volunteer for that duty?"
"I will!" Dale answered immediately.
"No. I don't want anyone walking around with this guy." Rick basically repeated himself.
"I agree, I wouldn't feel safe unless he was tied up." Lori sided with her husband.
"Well, we can't exactly put chains around his ankle and sentence him to hard labor." Andrea added. Cali frowned. This was becoming a mess and a half, and they hadn't really gotten where they needed to get. What were they going to do about this kid?
"Alright, say we let him join us. Maybe he's helpful, you know, maybe he's nice. Then we let our guard down and he leaves and comes on back with his thirty men, well, then what?"
"So the answer is to kill him for a crime he may never even attempt?" Dale asked, looking appalled at the group. "If we do this, we're saying that there's no hope. That Rule of Law is dead, that there is now civilization!"
"Oh my God." Shane muttered, and Andrea's eyes went wide.
"Could you drive him further out?" Hershel asked. "Leave him out there like you planned?"
"You barely made it back this time." Lori shook her head. "You could find Walkers, you could break down, you could get lost-"
"Could get ambushed." Daryl supplied.
"They're right, we should not risk our own people." Glenn agreed. Dale looked around, and finally his eyes landed on Cali.
"What about you California? You've been uncharacteristically quiet since this whole thing began." Cali swallowed her pain before she answered.
"The risk outweighs the benefit…I'm sorry." She looked down so she wouldn't have to see the disappointment in the older man's eyes.
"How would you do it?" Patricia asked. "Would he suffer?"
"We could hang him," Shane suggested. "Snap his neck."
"Yeah, I thought about that." Rick nodded. "Figured it'd be more humane to just shoot him." Cali shook her head.
"No, that's painful, scary, and a waste of ammo. Look, I have a shit ton of painkillers. How about you just mix him up a cocktail? He goes to sleep, and just doesn't wake up. You don't even have to tell him, just give him water bottle." She explained. "No pain, no fear, just sleep."
"Sure, but whut happen's when yer insomnia plagued ass can't fuckin' sleep. Then yer out an ace in th' hole." Daryl argued.
"Not to mention that painkillers might be more valuable than the one bullet." Shane argued. "How many pills would it take to kill him?"
"'Bout twenty." Daryl answered.
"Exactly. That's too much of a good thing right there." Shane argued. "I think we're just gonna have to shoot him."
"Well…what do we do with the body?" T-Dogs asked.
"You're talking about this like it's already decided!"
"You been talkin' all day, just goin' in circles, ya wanna go in circles again?" Daryl asked, pushing off the wall he was leaning on. Cali pressed the heel of her palms into her eyes. God, this was going on much too long. The kid was dead, why were they stretching it out like this?
"This is a young man's life! And it is worth more than a five minute conversation!" Dale spat back in his face. "Is this what it's come to? We kill someone because we can't decide what else to do with him? You saved him, and now look. He's been tortured, he's going to be executed…how are we any better than those people we're so afraid of?"
Damn Dale and his words. Cali's heart was screaming at her to side with Dale, that he was right, and that this could easily be overruled. But her head was telling her no, that'd be a damn fool thing to do, and she just wasn't able to handle this anymore. She was going to lose it, if she didn't do something soon.
"We all know what needs to be done." Shane declared.
Then they all just started screaming at each other at that point, and Cali couldn't take it anymore, she stood up, and faced them all. "Look, everyone just knock this shit off. The kids dead, it's done. No matter what any of us say, it's what we all want. Dale's right, that does make us just like those other people, but hell. They're obviously thriving. It's time to let of go of what we thought we knew, and accept what we know now. It's Cowboys and Indians again, and the Indians never did get along with neighboring tribes alright? Let's…let's just fucking be done with it. Please." She shook her head, and headed for the door. She had cast her vote, and she was just done. So fucking done.
She sat far away, in Daryl's little hideaway. She dug through his shit until she found what she was looking for, a squished pack of stale cigarettes, and a lighter. Praise God for that man. She pulled one out and stuck it in her mouth, and she flicked the lighter until the flame caught, and she brought it to the smoke. Cali took a deep breath, and tried to pretend she was home again.
"Didn't peg ya as a smoker."
Cali jumped slightly. "Fuck you're quiet." She mumbled. "By the way, I'm barrowing a smoke."
"I'll be pissed at ya tomorrow." He waved his hand, and plopped down next to her. She took a few more drags before she passed it to him. She blew out her smoke and watched it float towards the sky. Daryl took a drag himself, and blew out, but he was able to blow out a perfect smoke ring. Cali gave a small smile.
"Now, that was damn impressive."
"Years a' practice kid."
"So," Cali reached for the stick. "They kill him yet?"
"Naw, not yet. Gonn' wait till later. When it's dark I guess. Gonna go with." He answered.
"Why you?"
"In case the kid flips or something, he's already fuckin' terrified of me. Dunno." Daryl grabbed the smoke and put it back in his mouth. "Jus' gonna do it fast and quick, and be done with the damn thing. I'm getting sick of this."
"Yeah, me too." She nodded. "We're not who we were anymore, are we?"
"Naw…" Daryl answered. "For better or worse, this is who we are now."
"Oh yeah, and what is that?" Cali asked, grabbing the smoke from him. Daryl smirked at the girl again.
"Survivors Nia. We survivin'." He stood up, and brushed himself off. "Gotta go take care of th' kid. I'll be back soon."
"Gotta say, it's kinda weird." Cali mentioned. Daryl glanced at her.
"Whut?"
"Watchin' a pair of wings fly off to murder some kid." She answered. "Ironic I guess." Daryl looked at her for a second, before kneeling back down next to her, and pulling her towards him. His mouth was on hers, and it burned like fire, and tasted like smoke. He pressed against her bruising force, and she was almost frozen in surprise. He pulled away from her, and pressed another kiss against her forehead.
"Every angel's got a sin Nia, don't hate me fer this one." He ordered before he got up and headed back towards the barn. Cali brought a hand up to her lips, and smiled.
Mother fucker stole my smoke.
"We're going to be keeping him prisoner for now." Rick announced as he walked back up to the group that sat around the fire. Cali's jaw was on the ground. After that, after all of that…and they decided to keep him prisoner a little while longer? What the hell?
Actually, maybe that wasn't such a bad thing after all, Cali hadn't really felt right about killing the kid anyways, and maybe with some more time, well, they could find something else for the kid to do. Rather than sit chained up like a dog in a dark musty barn. He'd probably prove his worth or something, but honestly, all of that didn't matter, because they needed to close their eyes and calm down. Deep breath and walk away from the situation. It was time to heal.
"I'm going to go find Dale." Andrea smiled and got up from around the fire where they all sat. Cali smiled too as she gazed into the flames. Some humanity won out, and good fucking thing too.
Then the screaming started.
Everyone scrambled, and no one really knew what was going on. Cali jumped up with the rest of them and followed Rick and his sheep, bat in hand. They were running in the dark, and not really sure where they were going.
"Hey! Over here!" Daryl's voice cut through the night. Cali's heart stopped. Shit…no, it wasn't him, couldn't be him who got hurt, right? "Help!"
Finally they zeroed in on Daryl's screaming, and Cali could smell blood. It disgusted her how she was able to identify that now, without a shadow of a doubt. They ran in a little closer, and she saw Dale, lying on his back while blood sprayed the area around him, his stomach ripped open, and intestines threatening to fall out if he so much as inhaled all the way. The man was gasping and choking, and the pain was palpable from where she was standing. Cali took a step back, and turned around to puke. The little she'd managed to eat today came flying up for an encore performance. Oh God, Dale.
"You'll have to do the operation here!" Rick ordered Hershel, but the older man merely grabbed his shoulder and shook his head. Camp Clueless erupted into a fit of tears and screaming, Cali being no exception. Tears bubbled up around her eyes, and it took everything she had not to let them fall. She wasn't ready to say goodbye to him. Not this time.
Dale continued to moan and choke, and finally, Andrea said what they were all thinking. "He's suffering." She sobbed. "Do something!"
Rick stood tall again; ready to take this burden once more. He pulled out his gun and cocked it, and he took Dale in his sights this time and he aimed. But this time, pulling the trigger was just too damn hard. Sophia had been dead, Dale was still human. And Rick was his friend, and he wanted to protect him, not kill him. Dale continued to suffer while Rick tried to get his finger to pull the trigger.
Cali watched as Daryl walked up to Rick, and took the gun. He only gave a nod before he knelt down, and aimed the gun at Dale's head once more. "I'm sorry brother."
The shot that Cali had been waiting all night to hear rang out, and the painful gasping was silenced.
They sat in the same place they had only hours earlier, but this time, there was no smoking, no banter, and barely any breathing. The two of them just sat there, trying to make sense of the last two hours. Cali was doing what she could, but her brain could only supply bits and pieces that barely made any sense.
Walker.
Dale.
Pain.
Blood.
Dead.
Shot.
Daryl.
She shook her head, and Daryl dropped his into his hands. "Fuck." He hissed into the silence, and Cali had to agree with him. Just…fuck.
"Everything's fucked."
"Goddamn it. Why th' fuck did it have to be him?" Daryl snarled. "The only fucking decent person we had left, and he's the one who gets fucking killed.
"You know you'll just drive yourself crazy asking those questions right?" Cali spoke softly, and Daryl didn't answer. He just shook his head.
"Fuckin' shit." He lifted his head, and stared into the darkenss. "I didn't wanna fuckin' shoot him."
"You did the right thing you know." She nodded. "He was hurting, and he was hurting bad."
"Still, I didn't want to fucking kill him."
Cali reached over then, and grabbed his shirt, the exact same way that he did to her. "You fucking listen to me. You did not kill Dale. You saved Dale from dying a horrible, painful death caused by some Godforsaken Walker that stumbled its way onto the farm alright? You did not kill that man, and let's get this straight now, you saved Dale. You did what no one else was brave enough to do. Understand?"
Daryl only glared at her, and Cali felt her hackles rising. She reached out with her other hand and wound her fingers through Daryl's hair and pulled him towards her. His mouth met hers, and hands soon followed. She was knocked onto her back by the man, who slid his arms under her to keep her off the ground. They weren't talking anymore, they weren't thinking anymore. They were just going to feel their way through this, because right now, that's what they both needed.
After all, one man can't carry the world on his shoulders.
Thank yous!:
Lucy Freebird: Lucy! Guess what! You know that thing you've been pushing for? Next chapter, for sure :D it would have been this one, but I'll be honest, it's already fifteen pages in word, and I have school tomorrow xD hope you enjoyed it!
Doll-Fin-Chick: That's the thing with Cali, she's always either on the smart end of the spectrum, or the stupid end of the spectrum.
ISolemnlySwearIAmUpToNoGood: Seriously, the Carol thing hasn't toned down, and I'll be honest, she's pissing me off more than Andrea is at this point. Carol just needs to back off of Daryl, and there won't be any problems…Cali's not afraid to fight a dead girl's mom.
LillianaKay2011: It seemed like the thing to do at the time! Thanks for reviewing :DD
Kathleensmiles: Well! If it isn't my favorite review bomber! Yes! I would totally make it rain acorns if I was trapped in a tree. No question about it. And I don't know girl…Carol seems to be makin' her moves lately….
Acoustix: I know it was about fucking time I updated! Then I took for fucking ever to do it again! I'm so sorry, I had to get my computer back, and I literally just got it back two days ago. Then I had to crank out this mother fucker, and I honestly don't feel like it's the best I've ever spat out :/
Bloodrope: This damn computer has been a bigger pain in my ass then you could believe. I'm soo sorry this took for fucking ever! And yes, Cali would love to climb down the tree…however, that would involve looking down, and looking down means acknowledging that she's up high. Not a Cali thing xD
Azalia Fox Knightling: Oh don't lie, you know you love the storm cussing uping XD
Night-Weaver369: Yes! I have added Pride to their cockblocking list! And that tension release scene you wanted. It's coming right up, and this time, I might not even cock block them ;) and I'll be honest! At this point, I like Andrea more than I like Carol…
: Awh! Thank you! And yeah, the very idea of Daryl/Carol is enough for me to give Cali some kind of mental breakdown where she beats the shit out of Carol. I'm not above beating up a dead girl's mom…I'm really not. And believe you me, I wish Cali was in the show too xD
TripleLLL: Who doesn't love the hardcore swearing xD and hell yeah! If I was in the middle of the end of the world, I'd probably be dropping fuck every other word. It would just help me feel better, is all. Thanks for the wishes! And Hugs right back to you! and yes, the plan is to go back to Landing Feet First once I finish with this season!
Nelle07: I'm happy you're back too! And I have to agree, I think they should add Cali!
Viktorskrumpet: Ah Vicky! Thank you so much for the kind words, and the encouragement during the off season, so to speak. I hope the humor and darkness in this chapter was balanced out correctly. To be honest, I'm not really sure how I feel about this chapter right now, so I'd love to have your feedback again!
Anea the Morwinyon: Ah thank you so much! I'm glad the chapter could make your day :D
Willow: I'm sure you've just been raging your ass off huh xP I'm so so so sorry! And I hope this makes it up to you! and I feel like, after this long, Cali's supposed to nag the shit out of Daryl, to get him to talk about how he's feeling, and, after this long, it's okay for Daryl to talk about his feelings, just a little, with the girl. Those two deserve that right?
And Jimmy! D: I miss Jimmy
NekoEars: XD I'm glad you liked that part, because that was seriously my favorite line from the last chapter, and I use it daily now xD Nothing like mustering up a shit ton of swagger!
Summerlover-1: You rock too! Thanks for reading! :D
Take Life's Chances: Awh, I loved Jimmy too :/ I'm very upset by what happened to him. It's was gruesome, and apparently the actor that played Jimmy was actually terrified in that scene! But I don't blame him. It was scary as all hell. And healthy relationships are for squares ;)
Batman: I know…I'm a terrible tease, and I truly hope that you don't hate me!
Willow the Collie: Willow! :D I'm glad to see you're back! Oh! I know who you're talking about! It's freaking crazy!
The-Flaming-Jackalope: Thank you for understanding about the computer problem xD you're the only one that did! And I so agree with you! I'm pissed! THEY DROPPED A WALKER ON HIS ASS! WHAT THE FUCK! I liked Randall too…Goddamn Walking Dead…killing everyone I care about.
Thanks for understanding! And I was just glad Daryl wore sleeves and didn't fucking get shot.
Caroline: I'm back :DDDD
Biffy: I know! I'm so sorry xD really I am! I hope this makes it up to you!
Eloquent Dreams: Yeah, their relationship was definitely gradual, even if there was something there that whole time :D Thanks for the review!
Now remember my little zombies, keep the hate mail classy xD and if any of you like Supernatural, please check out my new fic, and maybe drop a line! :D
I love you all!
-Eris