Hope y'all enjoy this one and how I'm changing canon slightly...

Patricia was the one they ended up telling. She wasn't happy at all and made sure that Shane had not managed to do anything more than hit her and get his lips on hers. However, when Tea said that the man might be dead, she blanched and then shook her head, saying that that might be for the best. Tea could tell the older woman didn't like the thought of killing anybody, but she believed that what had been done was in self defense. Asking if she could check on Beth, Tea walked into the room and talked to Maggie, letting her know what had happened as well. She went back downstairs and told Patricia that a sedative might be needed for Beth's body to stop overworking itself while her mind recovered. They were offered a spot at the table for dinner, but declined adamantly. The few members of the group in the house were already looking at Tea's state of dishevel and the bruises on her face questioningly. The last thing the pair wanted or needed was others asking questions about what had happened; they wouldn't be so understanding as Hershel's people. Quickly leaving the farmhouse, Daryl led her to where he had set up his tent.

A couple hours later, Tea was watching Daryl 'tend' to the fire, or more like play with it, the pyromaniac he was. It was roaring just fine, but every few seconds it seemed the man was taking his stick and poking around in it. He was the one sporting fresh marks in inappropriate places this time. High up on his neck, just under his jaw, was a dark purple splotch, and the claw marks she'd left on the backs of his biceps would take a few days to heal. She was sporting a few new bruises of her own, but they weren't in places anyone else would see. As he looked up at her smirking, she blushed and averted her eyes. That was one thing she had yet to be able to do afterwards, look him in the eye while he had that stupid proud smirk. She was about to say something when she noticed Carol walking up.

"We can't find Lori," she told Daryl, doing her best to act like Tea wasn't even sitting next to him.

"What about it?" Tea asked her, the tone in her voice clearly meant to get others to go away.

"The others aren't back yet either," the woman continued, ignoring Tea, who was adamantly reminding herself that the woman was Sophia's biological mother.

"Yeah, that dumb bitch must've gone off lookin' for 'em," Daryl said, once again playing with the fire, much to Tea's amusement.

"What?" Carol asked quietly, seeing the mark on his neck as he moved and grimacing.

"Yeah, she asked me to go," Daryl said. "Told her I was done being an errand boy."

"Good on you," Tea said as Carol scowled at her and looked at Daryl like she was disappointed.

"And you didn't say anything?"

"Got busy with somethin' else," he said as he damn near threw the stick in his hand in the flames; he was still angry about Shane even after everything he had done with Ania to work it out.

Carol rolled her eyes and walked away, noticing the tent that was behind the brick wall they were currently sitting at. "Don't do this," she begged the man, not even bothering to look at Tea who was watching her every move. "Please. I've already started losing my girl to her," leaving the rest of the words she wanted to say unheard but obvious.

"Yeah, that ain't my problem, neither," Daryl said as he got up and pulled Ania with him past the woman.

"Ya know, it ain' me fault ya didn' look for her. Me fault for gettin' 'er hopes up that ya were, but not for ya not lookin'," Tea told the woman, fed up with how she was acting. "Ya pissed at me, fine, but quit takin' it out on 'er. She ain' done a damn thing wrong but come back ta ya stronga than eva. She did damn good in those woods and made me fuckin' proud ta have 'er with me. Get off ya high horse and start actin' like 'er motha again, else ya really will lose her."

Carol didn't say anything. She didn't know what to say. The only thing she could do was walk away, leaving the hunters to themselves.

"Ya know, I think I might have some competition," Tea said warily, watching the woman go back to camp.

"What?"

"Yeah, she cringed when she saw the hicky, acts like I'm not in the room but sings ya praises for lookin' for Sophia," she told him

"I was lookin' for you, mostly. Only lookin' for the little girl 'cause I knew that's what you would do," Daryl answered.

"Bullshite. Ya didn' do it 'cause that's what I would do, it's 'cause ya know it's what ya wanted as a kid same as me," she countered.

"Maybe," he looked at her. "Listen, there ain't no damn competition for you. I promise you. Even if," he stopped and took a deep breath. "Even if I lost you, you're it. Don't matter about anythin' else. I ain't gonna touch or even look at another woman after you."

She crashed into his chest and kissed him then, hard and full of need. How could she convey the emotions she was feeling when she wasn't sure what it was herself? Pride? Love? Being cherished or cherishing? All she knew was that her heart felt like it was going to explode and that she never wanted to let this man go. For the first time in her life, she felt as if she was just another person. She wasn't a freak. She wasn't a genius. She was just her. Titania Marie Parker, being held by the man she loved more than life itself. The man who seemed to love her just as much. They barely made it into the tent before tearing at each other's clothes for the second time that day.

Afterwards he took her into the woods. He knew where there was a stream they could wash up at. She loved fresh water and it was rare that they got to be alone like that around the group, so he indulged her. While they were in the water, they apologized to each other about how they had acted during the day. Daryl ended up kissing her after she apologized for the tenth time and started explaining herself for the fifth just to shut her up. It was late in the night when they made it back to their camp, only to find Carol snooping around again.

Daryl stormed up to the woman, purposely stepping on a branch right behind her and drawing her attention, Tea walking up behind him, "What are you doin'?"

She said, startled, "Keeping an eye on you."

"Ain't you a peach?" Daryl replied, stalking her.

"I'm not gonna let you pull away," Carol insisted. "You've earned your place. You don't need to be on the outskirts just because Tea can't keep her head straight."

"The fuck did ya jus' say?" Tea spun on the woman quickly.

"If you spent half your time mindin' your daughter's business instead of stickin' your nose in everybody else's, she wouldn't have gotten lost in the woods in the first place," Daryl scorned her. Tea was fuming beside him as she watched the woman act as if she wasn't even there.

"Go ahead," Carol told Daryl, willing to put up with whatever he had to say just to try to get him to realize that Tea was no good for him.

He'd started becoming part of the group only to pull away as soon as the woman came back and now he had put himself in danger for her. Being so far away from camp was a bad idea that could land the hunter into a world of trouble before they could help him. Daryl was a good man, too good to be saddled with the burden Tea obvious was to him. The girl had been a whiplash all day and yet here it was at night and Daryl had a hicky on his neck and marks down his arms. How could a man like him, let alone anyone, keep up with what a woman like that would do? If Carol could convince Daryl to leave Tea to herself and come back to camp, it would be for the better for him. Tea might be able to hunt, but her mind would be her downfall as well as Daryl's.

She knew she should be grateful to Tea for bringing her daughter back, but she hadn't really. She brought back a version of Sophia that Carol didn't recognize, let alone like. Gone was the girl who would cling to her mother when voices were raised. The girl who would smile making daisy chains and clutched a doll for comfort. The Sophia in the group now had numerous times over the last couple of days stood up for the huntress when anyone made an ill comment about her, even after today. She had packed her doll away and instead carried a huge buck knife Tea had given her around on her waist, one hand on the hilt at all times when she was standing. Carol had taken the smaller knife away from her the day she got back only for Tea to turn around and give her the larger one. She'd told Carol if she tried to take it again, she'd make Carol go on a run to find the replacement. Sophia walked like she owned the place, much like Tea did, and had even been proudly telling Carl about her time in the woods and just how many walkers she'd killed. Carol knew that it was for the better for her daughter, but she was having trouble accepting who her daughter had become and how independent she was. The most troubling thing to her was how much Sophia looked up to Tea when Tea was crazy.

"Go ahead and what? I mean, just go! We don't want you here!" Daryl spat in her face and walked off a few steps, Ania still watching the woman who was standing stock still. Marching back to get in her face, Daryl told her, "You're a real piece of work, lady."

"Ain' fit ta be a motha, eitha," Tea spat finally, anger taking over her mouth as her mind was tattered with the many scenarios that could have happened to Sophia thanks to Carol. "Couldn' even look for ya little girl and now lookin' at 'er like she's possessed. She grew a backbone and became a fighta, Carol. She didn' fuckin' die!"

"What do you know about being a mother?" Carol asked the woman venomously.

"More than ya'd think! I treated Sophia jus' like I would me own! I taught 'er jus' like I would me own! Praised 'er and cut 'er down when I needed ta like me own! Been doin' it since the quarry when I started teachin' 'er the knives! I've always wanted ta be a ma jus' so I could do it right 'stead a what I got! So I look at that little girl as if she was mine! I did right by that little girl jus' so ya could turn around and blame me for 'er growin' inta her britches! For teachin' 'er ta be a warrior and not a pushova like ya were with Ed! How many times he hit that little girl while ya jus' cried in the corna, huh? She told me all 'bout it when we were in the woods!" Tea yelled at her, her heart clenching remembering that particular conversation in the woods. After the turn, though, things got better for Sophia at least. Too many people in the quarry would stand up for an injured little girl.

"What did you just say to me?" Carol asked unable to believe her ears.

"Ya heard me!"

"Girl's right," Daryl stated.

"You can't believe that!" the hurt in Carol's voice was obvious.

"You're afraid," Daryl told her angrily. "You're afraid 'cause you're all alone. You got no husband, losin' your daughter. You don't know what to do with yourself." Daryl started yelling in her face, "You ain' my problem! Sophia ain' ours! All you had to do keep an eye on her!"

"And now she's back, ya still ain' botherin' with it!" Tea roared as she stepped up to Carol, making the woman flinch.

Both Tea and Daryl scoffed at her, Tea taking a step back before Daryl asked, "What? Think she's gonna hit you just 'cause you piss her off?"

"That's how she is with Shane!"

The mention of the name froze the air around the trio, Tea responding to the woman, "He fuckin' puts 'is hands on me, bitch. Jus' fuckin' go! Get ya fuckin' head on straight and treat ya kid right, or I'll gladly take ova for ya."

Both she and Daryl turned their backs on the woman and walked away. Daryl brought his arm up over her shoulders and held her close to his side while planting a kiss in her hair. He wasn't doing it for show for the woman behind them, although that's what Carol thought; Ania was silently crying and needed his comfort. Carol's behavior towards her daughter was reminding Ania of her own mother's harsh treatment towards her because she was different than her mother expected. She'd told him earlier when he'd asked if she was actually jealous of Carol. If she wasn't being beat for doing anything contrary to what the woman wanted, she was being criticized or straight up ignored. While Carol wasn't beating Sophia, she hadn't stopped nagging at her for the changes she'd made for the better or ignoring her with a scowl when she was with Tea. That combined with the lack of effort to find Sophia was putting stress on the little woman during a time she really didn't need any more stress on her mind. As they sat back down by the fire, Daryl bringing her back into his chest, they noticed that Carol had walked away.

~x~

In the morning, Tea walked back up to the house. She wanted to check on Beth and see if the girl had gotten out of her state yet. Unfortunately, she hadn't, and there was little she could do for her. When Patricia came in and smiled at her, she suggested the woman start an IV for the Beth. Any longer and they were risking the girl becoming dehydrated and malnourished.

"How is she?" Andrea asked from the doorway as Tea, Maggie, and Patricia fussed over the girl.

"Dehydrated," Patricia told her. "I'll set up an IV like Tea suggested. Best I can do without Hershel."

She and Tea left the room, Tea grabbing her herbs and taking them to the kitchen. She'd already asked Patricia for permission to make a tea for Maggie that could help with easing her mental stress a bit. The woman had been sat vigilant by her sister's side all night, and a little bit of relaxing tea would do wonders. Mixing ginseng from the Greene house with some lemon balm, rose hips, and chamomile from her pack, she boiled the herbs for five minutes. Carefully removing the herbs from the tea, she added a touch of honey as she poured it into two mugs; one was for Patricia who hadn't been sleeping well since Otis's passing. She took the cups back up to Beth's room a few minutes later, standing at the door listening to Maggie as she recalls when Beth had found out about Maggie's birth control.

"Rick and Glenn will get your dad back," Andrea told the grieving woman.

Maggie nodded as Tea brought the tea in and set it beside her, "Glenn's a good guy."

"Yeah. He is," Andrea told her.

"One a the best," Tea agreed, adding on with a wink and a smile, "Jus' not me type."

After handing the other cup off to Patricia when she entered the room, Tea left the farmhouse. She, Daryl, T-Dog, and Andrea were going to town to try and find Hershel and the others. After learning of Lori's accident, Daryl felt like an ass, even more so after learning of the pregnancy. Tea and Daryl were loading one of the cars, Shane's ironically, with some of the things they thought they might need when Tea saw Andrea leave the RV, followed closely by Dale.

Dale kept his voice down as he followed behind Andrea, "Are you sure you wanna risk it. You might not make it back."

"I'll be fine," Andrea said back with a sigh.

"And with Tea at the helm, I wouldn't be too sure. She's been odder than normal lately."

"And she's got every reason to be. What are you insinuating?"

"You really think she wants Rick back? Or Hershel? With them gone, she's the only one left for people to really look to aside from Daryl, and he'd look to her anyway."

"She's not like that. Tea has done more to keep this group alive than anybody, including Rick and Shane," Andrea defended thinking about her conversation with Tea from the day before. "She could take over even with them here with that mind of hers."

"You can't possibly believe that," Dale said before he even realized it.

"I do," Andrea gave him with a roll of her eyes. "If you talked to her, you would too. Should see what she's taught the kids to do with a knife."

"Is that what you did? Talked to her?"

"Yeah, and so you know, it's all horror stories with her," Andrea said, giving the old man a pointed look before walking over to the hunters, handing them her pack.

Daryl was taking a drink of water when he noticed Tea's ears prick up; her sensitive hearing and smell could sometimes be a godsend. He paused in his motions and listened himself and sure enough, the sound of an engine was getting closer. Hershel's red truck came into view, flying like a bat out of hell, tearing up the driveway. Tea drew a breath of relief as she began chasing after the truck to make sure everyone was okay, noticing the blood on Hershel's shirt. She watched as Lori and Carl came up and hugged Rick and Maggie run past Hershel for Glenn, who brushed her off. Trouble in paradise. I'll talk ta 'em lata, she thought to herself.

"Patricia, prepare the shed for surgery," he told the woman. "Tea, I'm gonna need you to make that poultice of yours. And prepare lots of it."

"Are you hurt?" she heard Lori ask Rick and Rick's reply of wondering what happened to Lori. "I was in a car accident," she admitted.

"Accident? How?"

"I went looking for you," she said sheepishly.

"Snuck out on her own," T-Dog said. "Me and Andrea convinced her to come back."

"Are you crazy?" he started, but Tea noticed they had another passenger and cut off any further questioning, "The fuck is that?!"

"That's Randall," Glenn answered, referring to the young man sitting in the back seat with a blindfold over his eyes.

Tea and Daryl simultaneously moved to get a better look, noticing the bandaged leg that showed signs of still bleeding. They shared a look before Daryl nodded his head towards the farmhouse and they went in. All of her medicines had been brought into the farmhouse where illnesses were treated for easier access. She'd written numerous recipes down, including the tea she had made earlier in the day at Maggie's request. Everything had been written in parts rather than measurements, because it honestly mattered more about how much of what to put in, not how much in general. The balance in the herbs was maintained through keeping the equation in balance, no matter the numbers added to it.

She was happy she had found a nice patch of dry red clay in the fields; it would be the perfect addition to the poultice for a wound like this. Pulling a good amount of the stuff out to be worked into water, she would use it over the wound over the poultice itself to seal the wound from infection and allow the clay to help with the pain and act as antiseptic. It also had astringent properties that would promote healing, hopefully allowing them to be graced by the unwelcome guest for less time.

Walking into the dining room where everyone had gathered, she listened as Rick told everyone what had happened in the town the night before. Tea began making a large amount of her poultice while sitting on the floor next to Maggie; Hershel having taken the last of what they'd stored to the shed with him. Apparently some bad guys had rolled through and Rick had had to kill two of them, leading to a shoot out. When walkers started coming in droves to the town, the other guys had bailed, but not before Randall had gotten stuck on a fence and left behind.

"We couldn't just leave him behind," Rick told the group. "He would've bled out, if he lived that long."

"It's gotten bad in town," Glenn quietly said.

"What do we do with him?" Andrea asked.

"I repaired his calf muscle as best I can, but he'll probably have nerve damage," Hershel said as he walked in, nodding with a smile to Tea who gave a small smile in return. "He won't be on his feet for at least a week."

"When he is, we give him a canteen, take him out to the main road, send him on his way," Rick stated as Daryl walked in, noticing Carol looking at him with a small smile he just scowled at before looking over at Tea.

"Isn't that the same as leaving him for the walkers?" Andrea asked.

"He'll have a fighting chance," Rick argued.

"Jus' gonna let 'im go?" Tea asked. "He could know the area or recognize someone."

"He was blindfolded the whole way here," was her counter. "He's not a threat."

"Neva said he was," she gave the man. "Jus' sayin' that ya killed some a their men, far as they know ya could a taken Randall hostage. How do we know no one went back for 'im?"

"They left him for dead," Rick intensely stated. "No one is looking."

"We should still post a guard," T-Dog said.

"He's out cold right now, will be for hours," Hershel guaranteed. "I put the poultice on and the clay over top, no bandages until the clay dries out a bit like you said. Was the clay really necessary?" he asked Tea.

"Well, no, but it has the potential ta help heal the wound fasta and definitely will help with the swellin' and risk a infection," she told the man with a respectful tone.

She and Hershel waited as everyone left. Tea noticed how Carol went and stood in front of Daryl, effectively cutting him off from coming to her. She looked up and smiled softly while the redneck just scoffed and rolled his eyes. He gave Tea a look over the woman's shoulder, silently telling her he'd be at the tent with a nod of his head. She in turn nodded back towards the house, letting him know she was going to check on Beth now that Hershel was back and then she'd be back to him with another nod. His eyes inadvertently flitted to Carol, who still had that stupid smile, and then scoffed once more and left the farmhouse, slamming the screen door shut in the woman's face.

As Hershel walked past Rick, Tea stood up and asked if she could go with him. He agreed and began asking her about how she learned to make medicine like she did. She explained how her papa had been a man of many talents, but the one nobody in their town save her knew was that he had once been an actual apothecary. He knew natural medicines and could even perform minor medical procedures when he was in his early thirties. Too bad that his wife had died roughly a decade later and the man turned to the bottle to cope.

"Must be an Irish thing," she quipped, making Hershel smile.

"I was wondering with how you talk," Hershel admitted.

"Yeah, half. Me name's actually Titania, afta the queen a the Fae."

"You should call yourself that more often. It's a very pretty name," he said, watching as the woman bristled as they stepped into Beth's room.

"Pretty names can hide ugly scars," she said quietly. "I told Patricia that a sedative might help, but neitha a us knew what kind. I made her some tea and she was spoon fed it by Maggie, but it ain' no sedative."

"I thank you for looking after her."

"Don' thank me yet. Maggie's gonna be hella pissed at ya. She was scared shiteless, more so afta I told her what happened with Shane."

"What happened with him?" Hershel asked, suddenly very aware of the girl's actions.

"Let's jus' say he prolly won' be much a a problem anymore. He ain' in camp, and I don' think 'e's comin' back."

"What happened?"

Tea took a deep breath, knowing she'd rather tell the old man, and that she'd need to have this conversation with one more person. Launching into it head first, she recounted, in detail, everything that happened the previous night and how she did not know if Shane was even alive still. The man did not move nor say anything the entire time, intently watching her as her eyes never wavered in their conviction. When she was done, she simply waited for him to answer.

"You did what you had to do. You stayed safe. That's all that matters," he said seriously. "You kept this farm safe given how that man was acting."

"I'm glad ya see it that way."

Maggie walked into the doorway then, looking at her dad expectantly.

"Has she eaten?" he asked her, not getting a reply as the woman stared at her sister. "I'll give her a sedative. Stop her body from working too hard. Again, thank you Tea for keeping an eye on her."

"Ya did for me first night I was here, least I could do."

"You were drinking," Maggie accused him, breaking her silence finally.

"That was the least of my worries," Hershel told her.

"You left and I didn't know what to do!" she yelled at him. When he didn't say anything, she left the room. Tea followed after only a minute, catching up to the other young woman easily.

"Maggie," Tea said, making the woman look at her with pain in her eyes. "Hershel was going through shock, too. Everyone grieves differently. Ya told me ya had a close call with a walka at the pharmacy with Glenn, right? Ya already knew, even if ya didn' realize it then, that ya momma and brotha were dead. Ya knew, where these two didn'. Be angry all ya want, but ya gotta know, he wasn' thinkin' straight at all when 'e left."

"I get it, I do," she said through her tears, "but it doesn't change the fact that he left us here by ourselves when we needed him."

"I know. Nothin' will. Y'all have ta grieve in ya own way. Is there anythin' I can do for ya in the mean time?"

"No, thank you," Maggie said, giving the woman a hug that had her completely stiffen, but she raised one arm and patted her back; apparently she was going to have to get used to this eventually.

Tea went outside after that, walking over to the shed when Andrea walked up, asking if she could help with watch. "Why ya askin' me that? Shouldn' ya ask Rick?"

"Rick's talking to Lori and then going to look for Shane, said to ask you if anything popped up."

"Did he now? Huh, I'll be damned. Yeah, relieve T-Dog in a few hours. I'll switch off graveyard shift with Glenn," Tea told her.

"And then what? We just send him on his merry way?" the woman said a little defiantly.

"If that's what the group wants," Tea said seriously.

"If he finds his people and leads them here, we'll have a war on our hands."

"I know, but ya think the others are gonna listen? And 'sides that, I don' agree with takin' a life unless ya absolutely have ta. The risks have ta far outweigh the gains ta give me reason ta take a life."

"That why you might have killed Shane," Andrea deadpanned, pinning the girl with her gaze.

"Ya heard?"

"I overheard when you were talking to Maggie last night," she admitted.

"I didn' have a choice, Andrea. I really didn'. I wasn' even trigga'd or nothin' like back at the quarry. I knew 'xactly what I was doin' and where I was aimin'. I was in the damn moment. It ain' no picture in me damn head this time. It's a full fuckin' memory through me eyes, not someone else's. I was jus' not gonna let him take me like that," Tea said as her voice began to crack, her face falling from stoic to troubled in seconds.

"I believe you, I do. I saw it myself a few times around camp," Andrea said, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder and squeezing it for just a second before removing it. "Hope that was okay? I'm not exactly sure if touching is okay for comfort."

"No, it's fine. Thanks for makin' sure, though. Little, friendly touches like that are good," she said as she sniffled once before getting a serious look on her face. "Ya think ya can help me with some stuff around camp?"

"Like what?"

"If a war is comin' we should set traps, rig up a couple early alarm systems somehow. Maybe rig up some traps on the road ta take out cars. We gotta prepare," Tea said.

"Sounds good," Andrea agreed.

"Tea?" She turned around and saw Rick coming at her from the tents. "Hold up a minute, I need to talk to you about something."

Andrea nodded at her before walking towards the shed where Randall was being kept. Tea looked at Rick, sizing up the tension on his face and wondering if he'd already been told about what happened with Shane. As he approached her slowly, she decided to speed things along and take the remaining five steps to stand in front of him.

"What's up?" she opened.

"About Jesse," Rick started.

"I get it, I do. But next time ya hear me beggin' ya ta let me do somethin' like that, jus' trust me ta have me reasons and that they're damn good ones," she told him, holding up a hand.

"I need you to help me keep an eye out for Shane, and then on him when we find him," he said, noticing how stiff she went. "Lori thinks he's dangerous. He's threatened Dale and Hershel, seems to think Lori and the baby are his. She said he's got his sights set on you, too."

"Shane isn't a problem anymore," she said quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"He ain' 'round, is he?"

"What happened?" he asked, nodding his head.

"I might have killed him," she said plainly, looking Rick in the eye with a blank face, eyes hard with conviction.

"Might have?"

"Stabbed him in the thigh while he was tryin' ta rape me. Might a nicked the artery. He ain' here, ain' been since last night," she told the cop honestly.

"He tried to rape you?!" Rick asked as if he didn't believe her.

Her voice waivered, but her eyes remained true, as she recounted, "Called me a psycho bitch through and through and said I must like it rough bein' with a man like Daryl 'cause I told him ta fuck off. Gave me these," she pointed to the bruises on her face, "and this," lifting her shirt, there was a large black bruise in the middle of her stomach. "Ripped my favorite fuckin' t-shirt; I can show it ta ya if ya want more proof," she spat.

"No, sorry Tea. It's just," Rick was at a loss. His best friend had gotten his wife knocked up and then tried to rape the girl he had promised Daryl he'd look after. "I knew he was slippin'. I could see it that day at the quarry. How he was always houndin' you and treatin' you like crap just 'cause you were with Daryl. Went out of his way to piss Daryl off a lot too."

"I didn' wanna. I was lookin' for Daryl and he jumped me," Tea told him honestly, her shoulders slumped completely. "I knew I could nick the femoral artery how I aimed. I don' got no excuse. I aimed knowin' what could happen. And I ain' sorry. I'm sorry ya lost ya friend, I really am, but I'm not sorry for doin' what I did."

"I killed three men because it was them or us. It was you or him. We keep this to ourselves though. Who else knows?"

"Hershel, Maggie, Patricia, and Andrea. Told Patricia and Maggie, Andrea ovaheard. Jus' told Hershel 'cause I wanted him ta hear it from me."

"I'll take the graveyard watch tonight. Go get some rest."

Tea all but ran all the way to her tent. Daryl was sitting by the fire cooking some squirrel when he saw her run up. He knew that look and stood up, catching her as she threw herself into her safety net. Sophia wandered over at some point, the handle of her buck knife safely under her palm like Tea had taught her. The three sat together for a long time, Tea and Sophia chatting about a few things while Daryl offered a few words here and there. All in all, it ended up being a peaceful afternoon.

Updated 9/7/21