I never imagined feeling so many emotions at once. My pulse was racing with adrenaline, my chest contracted at sight in front of me, and uncontrollable tears blurred my vision. Everything, from pain and happiness, excitement, disbelief, flooded my body at once, and I felt my knees buckling under me.

So I took a step forward, and then another one until I was standing across the woman who occupied the living room of this house. She looked just as I remembered her and completely different at the same time. She usually wore black suit slacks with some kind of silky shirt, so seeing her in washed denim and check flannel felt out of place. Same with knee-high brown boots, which replaced black heels she used to prefer. Black long hair transformed into the shoulder-length one, but her green eyes were the same, now shimmering with unshed tears.

"It's really you," She whispered in a shaky voice reaching out one hand towards me, and I grabbed it. Her skin was warm, a little clammy, but... it was real.

Not waiting any longer, I yanked her hand and circled my hands around her shoulders, quiet sobs escaping both of us. Michelle's hands were clenched tightly at the back of my top, and she buried her face in my curls.

Finally, I pulled away, tears still running down my face, but I could see a big grin that covered her face. "H- how are you alive? I thought-" I swallowed thickly and shook my head. "When the line went dead, I thought Bureau was overrun."

Mich nodded, but her eyes darted above my shoulders, reminding me that I didn't come here by myself. I chuckled lightly and wiped my face, turning around. Dixons were still standing in the doorway but had enough time to close doors after themselves. Merle looked utterly lost and confused, but Daryl's eyes were locked on me, and his face softened, a small smile tugging on his lips.

"Right. Guys, this is Michelle, my best friend from before," I motioned towards the woman and crossed the room standing between two men, grabbing Daryl's hand, lacing our fingers. "And this is Merle Dixon, and his brother Daryl, my husband."

I couldn't hide a giddy giggle at her expression when her forest green eyes danced between hunter and me, then quickly darting to the older male, scanning him. She paused for a moment on his knife hand and then came back to me.

"Typical," Michelle snorted and moved to sit down on the couch, gesturing for us to the same. "World goes to shit, dead pricks marching around us, and you go and get fucking married. Without me."

Merle was first to move, taking a seat on one of the brown armchairs, and Daryl reluctantly took the other. I was torn between sitting with him or next to the person I haven't seen in almost two years, but he made the decision for me. He cocked his brows and curled his lips into a slight smirk waving his hand towards the couch. Quickly, I sat down, grabbing Michelle's hand as if she was going to disappear again.

"What can I say? It hit me straight in the face out of nowhere," I teased, but Daryl snorted, placing his crossbow on his lap.

"More like ya threw yurself at me."

"El? Throwing herself at men?" Michelle turned to me, and I shrugged, feeling blush spreading over my face.

"See him without sleeves, and you'd do too. But don't! He's taken."

That caused chuckles around the room, and I felt myself relax but still couldn't believe what was happening. "Mich, tell me."

She sighed heavily and placed a sad smile on her face. "It was crazy. We were leaving when I called you. Everybody was told to evacuate, the military put camps around the city, and wanted to utilize bunkers under the city."

"Ya were there? In DC?" Merle spoke for the first time, and Michelle nodded.

"Right in the middle. Weird shit started happening on a bigger scale about a week before, but people were hospitalized, so we thought it's just some kind of rabies, you know?"

"I guess that was the official response," I said quietly, remembering news coverages that led to the doom day.

"Yeah. But when it became worse, we learned that it's not just here- We run out of time, I guess. The evacuation took too long, and we got breach. We escaped through the server room in the basement."

My heart picked up again, and I sat straighter, tugging at her hand. "We?"

"There was about twenty of us, only six made out alive." Michelle shook her head and pressed her lips into a thin line.

"What about-"

"They were in Kentucky. All teams were pulled back, but we didn't hear from them before we left," She said softly, and I breathed out shakily. Of course, they were dead. Or alive somewhere on the other side of the country. I wouldn't put it past them to survive.

"Who?" Merle asked, and I saw Daryl glaring at him.

"My team, Hook. People I worked with. So, you're not the only one?" I asked gently, and her eyes were miserable when she looked at me again.

"I am. Andy made it here with me, but he passed away last winter. Pneumonia."

I closed my eyes, remembering the wrinkled face of our Chief. "At least you weren't alone."

"And neither were you," She replied softly, brushing her thumb over my knuckles. "I saw your interview."

"Then you know almost everything that happened to me."

"Not everything!" She gasped and wiggled her brows at Daryl. I rolled my eyes but couldn't hide a grin.

"What did ya say in the interview?" Merle probed, and I shrugged, leaning a little back in the soft cushions. It seemed wrong to be sitting in a house that was not demolished, on a comfortable cushion with a light coming from above.

"Only the main shit that happened to us. Atlanta, quarry, farm, prison. Woodbury, Terminus."

"So, how did that happened? I need to know everything!" Michelle didn't let me change the subject, and Merle snorted.

"Yeah, Darlina, how did ya two happen? I still ain't have the full story."

"Pff, shut up, prick," Daryl growled at his brother and sunk deeper in his seat, clearly embarrassed. I bit down on my lower lip and tried to catch his eye.

"Can I?" I asked him quietly, and after few moments, he nodded. Michelle squealed in excitement and shot out of her seat, dropping my hand.

"Let me get us something to drink first."

She disappeared into what I assumed was the kitchen, and I narrowed my eyes, placing my elbows on my tights. "Are you sure? I can tell her to fuck off."

The hunter huffed under his nose and cleared his throat. "She's yur friend. Ya told me enough to know ya care for her."

"'S like watchin' fuckin' soap opera with ya two," Merle commented with a smug face, and I shot him a look.

"I'll harm you. And don't you fucking dare to make any moves on her!"

"Doll, ya still think so low of me. I'm a perfect gentleman, am I not?"

I snorted and shook my head, happy to be here. I had to close my eyes for a moment, to stop another wave of tears. For so long, I lost all hope and just assumed that Michelle was dead. Even after talking to Daryl and his reassurance that we could look for her, I knew that searching a state for one person without internet, satellite, among walkers was pretty much undoable. And yet here we are, Dixons meeting my best friend in a place we're still unsure of. Sitting on a soft couch after months of hard cots or sleeping on the ground.

"Here you go, guys," Michelle's voice snapped me out of my thoughts, and when I opened my eyes, I noticed her outstretched hand with red liquid in a small glass. "Not a lot, but one of the guys makes his own booze. It's not bad."

I took it and sniffed the content, a little bit like grapes and berries with a whiff of spirits. Taking a small sip, I instantly tasted sweet fruits and a heavy amount of alcohol mixed together, which spread warmth all the way down to my belly.

"Alrighty, so what do you want to know?"

"Everything, of course!"

I chuckled and shoot Daryl one more glance. "Last chance to change your mind, Big Boy."

"Just git it over with, El." His face was half-hidden under his hair and lower part behind the glass, but there was no mistaking deep red that covered his cheeks.

"Right. We met in Atlanta after napalm was dropped on it. Along with a group of people, we drove off from the interstate and settled in the quarry not too far away."

"I watched the video. I know that part," Michelle urged, and I rolled my eyes but smiled at her warmly.

"I'm getting there. I guess I was annoying Daryl at the beginning. Everybody was rather... wary of Dixons, and I was the only one who tried to make friends with them."

"Nah, Doll. He was gone the second day," Merle stated confidently, and I knitted my brows, trying to remember what happened on that day.

"What you mean?"

"Merle," Daryl drawled in a low voice, glaring at his brother, but the older Dixon just laughed and patted his knee.

"That's great. Ya 'nd Sugar Tits were talkin', and I made comment about yur ass."

I nodded, remembering my first confrontation with Merle. "And I told you to stick it and that if I catch you ogling me again, I'll cut your balls and shove them down your throat." I laughed at the memory, Michelle giggling right next to me.

"Yeah, but that ain't it. Then ya said, 'Not ya handsome, ya can look all you want' to Darlina, and he run like a pussy on fire."

Daryl stood up, obviously done with the conversation, but I quickly got to my feet, crossing the room and gripping his arm tightly.

"Did you look?" I whispered, my heart fluttering.

He stood stiffly in his spot, not looking at anyone. "Ya know I did." Just loud enough for me to hear. Of course, he did, all those hunts when I was leading, plus he already admitted that.

I stood on my tiptoes and pulled on his jacket, touching his lips gently. "I love you."

Daryl didn't pull away but also didn't really participate. With a chuckle, I pulled away and led him back to the chair, this time taking a spot on his lap, curling myself to his broad chest.

"We got close on the road after the farm. Really got to know each other as friends. And then, Daryl here, decided he's not leaving Woodbury without his brother. You know, when we were getting Maggie and Glenn back?"

Michelle nodded from her spot, nursing her drink with a broad smile on her face.

"So he's all 'I'm gonna cover ya'. And when I started protesting, he kissed me. I like to think it as finally admitting what he felt in the face of death, but now I think he just wanted me to shut up."

Even Daryl snorted at that, and his arm wrapped around my middle, pulling me closer to his chest.

"And then?"

"Oh. Then was a very awkward conversation back at the prison, when I accused him of being ashamed of me in front of Merle."

Michelle groaned and hid her face in her hand. "You didn't."

"Oh yeah, I did." I laughed, taking another sip of my drink. "Safe to say we talked and admitted that we both... would like to explore more those weird feelings we're experiencing."

"That sounds like a disease," Merle teased, finishing his own drink and placing the empty glass on the coffee table.

"Ok, so you got together. But married?!" Michelle threw her arms up. Her patience was finally gone. Some things obviously never change, and she never was one for waiting.

"Well, when prison fell, we got separated. Safe to say I was a little upset."

"More like complete fuckin' mess. Cryin' all over me until I showed ya the rings," Merle interrupted, and I sighed.

"I'm trying to make it a nice story, Hook. But yes, I got into 'everybody dies around me' mode. By that point, neither of us said... I love you, and I was terrified I won't see Daryl again," I admitted quietly, but the hunter's hand rubbed small circles over my belly, calming down the emotions I felt before Terminus.

"Darlina had rings stashed for months, just ain't had balls to say words. So I gave them to Dollface. She put them on straight away and showed me her own for my lil' brother."

"So you both had rings, wanting to make it permanent, but neither of you was even brave enough to admit you love each other?" Michelle raised her eyebrows and snorted. "Typical Elena."

"Hey! You know it was never easy for me to talk about feelings. When we blew up Terminus, and we saw each other again..., I told Daryl how I feel, showed him the rings, offered the one I had for him, and asked him. That's it, end of the story."

"Are you happy?"

When Michelle asked that question, I could feel Daryl tense under me and grabbed his hand in mine, squeezing it tightly. I knew why she asked, and she was never good at reading the room, but damn, Daryl's awkwardness should be visible even to her.

"Very," I answered with a huge smile, which she returned and nodded, relaxing in the couch's cushions. "So, we know that everyone got jobs here. What's yours?"

"I go on longer runs but try to avoid Aidan. He's a dick," Michelle pulled a face, and I laughed. "Seriously, he is. Otherwise, I take care of guns. I'm the only one with proper training, so I clean them all once a week and plan runs for more."

"You raided safe houses?" I asked her, shifting on Daryl's lap, making him groan lowly when my bottom brushed over his crotch.

"No, just some gun stores around. We never had enough people to venture back into DC. Plus, Deanna wants to expand slowly. We clear mile by mile in radius."

"I guess-"

I couldn't finish my thought because there was loud and urgent knocking on the door, and Michelle narrowed her eyes before standing up. She excused herself and crossed the room towards the doors. I looked over my shoulder at Daryl and smiled at him, slowly stroking his cheek.

"We found her," I told him quietly, new tears forming in my eyes, and he lowered his forehead to mine, closing his eyes.

"Told ya, we'll."

"Um, El... There are some people here, and the lady with a sword looks like she wants to strike me down," Michelle shouted from the entrance, and my eyes widened before I burst into laughter.

"Katana, don't kill her!" I yelled and stood up from my husband's lap, going to reassure our family that we were still alive and unharmed.

Day 522

The first day in Alexandria was interesting, to say it nicely. We spend the majority of it exploring, meeting new people, at least most of us. After Rick, Michonne, and Glenn stormed into Michelle's house on that first night, it was another long story. About how we actually knew each other before, she retold her story of escaping DC and gave a quick rundown of Alexandria.

Mich was with the community for about a year, and of course, there were things she disagreed with, like not carrying a gun around. But she justified it because not everyone knew how to use it, and Deanna didn't want to waste ammunition for training just yet. Plus, the thought of having guns around children didn't sit right with the leader.

Another thing was the security, and my friend told us that she did try to convince others to have a watch and perimeter checks, but she gave up after few months when it was clear that no one listened to her. I think that was the point when Rick's shoulders relaxed a little, and he looked at the black-haired woman in a different light. She wasn't like them, unaware and clinging to the old world. The fact that Mich knew what she was talking about and was aware of things that should be improved showed the sheriff that she can be trusted. At least a little.

So the next day, we explored, and I made a mental note of what should be done to improve the settlement. Luckily all of us were free of duty until today.

At least those who had a job. Deanna still didn't come through with what she would like me and Dixons to do, and on that second day, I was getting slightly irritated.

The second night in the cramped sitting room was becoming uncomfortable, and I really hoped that we can start sleeping in the bedrooms soon. It will be an adjustment, and I'll definitely check all the windows and doors before even thinking of sleep, but my back was sore. After all those nights on the road, sleeping on the ground, my age was showing.

So today, the second proper day of being in Alexandria, I started on a list of what to change around here. Rosita and Beth were sent to the infirmary to learn from the doctor, while Tara, Glenn, and Noah went on their first run. Apparently, Aiden, the younger son of Deanna, who also was in charge of those, wanted to know how good they are.

Oscar, Abraham, and Axel also were gone. Two former were meeting with the construction crew, while the latter went to see vehicles and what they needed. Carl was currently in the sitting room with the girls, and Rick with Katana was walking the grounds again.

Merle was called over to Deanna's house, and I was praying to all deities that could exist that he won't fuck up and say something stupid. In the meantime, I was sitting on a porch's swing of the biggest of our three houses, pen quickly scrapping over the notepad Carol found. Daryl sat on the wooden stairs to my right, once again cleaning his crossbow.

I knew he was uncomfortable here. While Merle loved all the privileges that the house provided and was more than happy to laze around, his younger brother felt like a trapped animal. I couldn't blame him; it seemed surreal to be here and act as everything was alright. There was that unease at the bottom of my stomach, yes we had walls, but they really could be easily breached, and there was no way of seeing incoming enemies.

Plus, Daryl was stuck with a bunch of new people, and from the looks of it, they mainly were goody two shoe type, who looked at Dixons as they're below them. That made me angry, and I saw how a group of women who passed our house looked at us. I barely lifted my eyes from the notepad when I heard them for the first time, giggling and whispering. They sent a smile in my direction, and I mustered my best fake one in return, but it disappeared as soon as their eyes landed on Daryl.

I could deal with jealousy if they would look at him with any kind of desire, but they looked frightened and disgusted. I scowled at them, asking if they have any business being here, making them flee, but the damage was already done. The hunter's shoulders tensed, and he was even more focused on his bow than before. Sighing heavily, I looked up at the sky, noticing how high the sun was in the sky. Today was already too late, but tomorrow we should go and try to hunt. Of course, it seemed pointless, we both knew there won't be many animals out at this time of the year, but we both needed to get out of here.

I might not feel as trapped as Daryl did, but it was definitely weird to be inside the walls again. And not like the prison, there it was open space, chain-link fence when we still could see the area around, had watchtowers. Here, with those people who didn't really know what was happening outside the walls, it was dangerous. And I was kind of waiting for another shoe to drop. After all, our luck definitely sucked marginally.

Commotion and shouts from the main gate pulled me out of my thoughts, and I stood up, letting the notepad drop to the floor. Carl poked his head out, his brows furrowed, and he looked at me questioningly.

"Locked the doors and stay with girls until one of us comes," I told him firmly and was already running after Daryl, who shot up a few seconds ago.

"You tie up walkers!" I heard Glenn's voice and pumped my legs harder, coming to a stop right behind Daryl, observing the view in front of me.

"It killed our friend!" The guy in the gray shirt shouted back, and I scrunched my face in confusion.

Noah and Tara stood near the pair, and two men were gouging each other up. Behind the Alexandrian guy was the same, lanky, rat-like-looking guy we met when we came in for the first time.

"Look, I'm not having this conversation," The man, which I was suspecting to be Aiden, scoffed. "You obey my orders out there."

"Then we're just as screwed as your last run crew," Glenn replied calmly, not bulging. I would feel proud and smile at his assertiveness if I wouldn't worry about this whole scene.

Aiden took one step closer, getting in Glenn's face with an overconfident expression on his face. "Say it again."

"No, back off, Aiden," Tara tried to calm them down, but that only resulted in Alexandrian pushing Glenn backwords with his hand.

"Come on, man. Just take a step back," Noah stepped closer, the young man moving slightly between two men, but neither took a note of him.

"Come on, tough guy," Aiden urged, shoving Glenn one more time, and I heard Daryl's low growl at the display. It won't end well.

"No one's impressed, man," Glenn, as calm as ever, didn't take his eyes of Aiden, hands by his sides with shoulders straight. "Walk away."

"Aiden!" Deanna's voice echoed in the air, and her petite frame walked briskly towards the commotion. Maggie, Rick, and Michonne quick on her heel. "What's going on?"

"This guy's got a problem with the way we do things," Her son replied, and I gritted my teeth, wanting to wipe that smug expression off his face. "Why did you let these people in?"

"Because we actually know what we're doing out there," Glenn replied, and everything happened at once.

Aiden twisted his body, his right fist swinging at Glenn, who managed to dodge it and send his own fist straight at Aiden's face. The blow sent him to the ground, and the other guy, Nicholas, dropped his weapons, ready to pounce, but was stopped when Daryl barreled into him, lifting him off by his middle and shoving him to the concrete.

"Shit," I voiced and was on Daryl in moments, blocking shouts and screams around us.

The hunter wasn't really hurting the guy. He didn't even hit him, just holding his forearm over Nicholas' throat and a knee on his chest. I grabbed Daryl's shoulders from behind, and he twitched, ready to send me flying until our eyes connected.

"Hey, it's fine. Leave him. Don't stoop to their level. Everything's under control now," I told him softly, watching his anger morph into a scowl. He pressed tighter onto the man's throat for a moment until he stood up sharply, shaking my grip of himself.

"Whatever," He mumbled and stepped away, still pacing nervously, but Rick blocked his path, holding one arm out in case he needed to intervene. I shook my head and glanced around, tunning back to what was happening.

"I want everyone to hear me!" Deanna raised her voice, looking between faces, and I realized that there was a small crowd surrounding us. "Rick and his people are part of this community now in all ways, as equals. Understood?"

Her gaze fell on her younger son, who narrowed his eyes, panting heavily but finally shrugged, looking at Glenn. "Understood."

"All of you, turn in your weapons. Then you two come to talk to me." The last words were angry and pointed at two Alexandrians, who nodded sharply and finally left.

"I told you I had a job for you," Deanna continued when they left, lifting her face towards Rick. "I'd like you to be our constable. That's what you were. That's what you are."

My heart rate picked up, and I nearly had a heart attack when her eyes landed on me, but she quickly moved on to Michonne. "You too."

I breathed out in relief and glanced at the sheriff and Katana, both looking surprised, but the woman looked happy with that appointment. It was clear that she really wanted it to work and blend in with this community.

"Will you accept?"

"Okay," Rick finally replied after a few moments of silence, looking at Michonne with a small smile.

"Yeah, I'm in," Michonne added with her own lift of her lips.

All that obviously pushed Daryl over the edge. The hunter scoffed and turned around, picking up his crossbow, marching away, back towards the house. I sighed heavily and felt Deanna's eyes on me.

"I'm sorry, he- it's harder for him to trust and get comfortable. He's very protective," I explained, then licked my lips. "I have no doubt that you'll listen to what those two have to say. But just so you know... tying walkers, the dead, only because they killed their friends - that's fucked up and dangerous for everybody else. Walkers aren't a toy. It's not a joke. They are mindless, walking killing machines, and it'd do good to your son to know that overconfidence has no place outside of these walls."

After my little speech, I nodded at her and others, walking away to find my grumpy husband.

It was evening by the time Daryl calmed down. After a quiet conversation with him and Merle, reassuring him that we won't get weak and drop our guard, he seemed better. Carol made another fantastic dinner with Oscar's help, and once more, we filled our tummies. Shortly after eating, I put Lucy to sleep on the pile of blankets in our small corner, and I knew that others will look over her.

Now I leaned on the wooden railing, enjoying an evening cigarette with Daryl, having a quiet conversation about tomorrow. When I told the hunter that we should go hunting the next day, his eyes sparkled, and his smile was genuine, nearly knocking me on my ass.

"What 'bout yur list?" Daryl asked after few minutes of silence, and I shrugged.

"Just a few points on how to make this place safer. But I think it'll take time," I told him, inhaling deeply another shot of nicotine and watching soft gray cloud escape my mouth.

"Why's that?"

"You saw it, Big Boy. I don't know if it's the location or dumb luck, but those people didn't see a proper herd before. They didn't experience strangers as we did."

"So what ya thinkin'?" I grinned at him and moved closer to him, bathing in his warmth.

"I have few ideas for the wall and how to make watches. And I also think we should scout the area properly. I doubt they looked at it like we would, you know?"

The noise of opening doors interrupted us, and I saw Rick emerge from the side, Carol quickly following from the main entrance. I snorted at the clean uniform that the sheriff was sporting, pulling at the laps of the dark jacket. I cocked my brow and looked him over.

"Just like the old days, huh?"

"Just trying it for size," He replied with a slight grin, but I knew that he enjoyed it. Don't get me wrong, that violent, raw side of him was still there, but he covered it nicely.

"We good?" Rick directed those words to Daryl, who tensed for a second by my side before nodding.

"Yeah." He puffed smoke out of his mouth and dabbed the but of cigarette on the railing, throwing extinguished part onto the grass. Carol narrowed her eyes at that, and I chuckled.

"So we're staying?" She finally asked, and that was actually a question I wanted to ask as well.

"I think we can start sleeping in our own homes," Rick replied with a small smile. I glanced up at Daryl and licked my lips, grinning when his pupils dilated just a little bit.

"I call dibs on the furthest to the right," I told them, and Rick shrugged.

"As long as you gonna take Merle."

I laughed, throwing my head back, and the hunter shook gently as well, hiding his own amusement.

"If we get comfortable here, we let our guard down- this place is gonna make us weak," Carol stated, her hand firmly over the hilt of her knife.

"Carl said that too."

"We won't," I told them quietly, my prior amusement disappearing. "We won't let that happen. We can still leave beyond the walls, and- what we've been through- Trust me, we won't."

"Those people can't see it," She continued, and I nodded.

"I know. So we show them how. It'll take time, but we'll."

"'nd if they ain't gonna see it?" Daryl interrupted, my eyes darting to Rick. His face hardened in a familiar manner, and so did mine.

"Then we'll just take this place," Rick announced, sending shivers down my spine.

That was a promise in itself, and as much as I hated the idea of becoming that kind of person, he was right. We couldn't allow ourselves to get weak, and we had to teach Alexandrians how to deal with the apocalypse. They could either accept that, or we could make them. Because turning around, leaving - that was not an option anymore.