Disclaimer: Buffy The Vampire Slayer was Created by Joss Whedon and is property of many companies but not me. The Walking Dead was created by Robert Kirkman and the show, which is the world I am referencing in this, is shared with Production Creators Frank Darabont and Angela Kang.

Arthur's Note: Shorter chapter, preparing for a mini-jump in the next one.

[10]

Two stories of aged wood siding, the house stood tall in knee high grass looking every bit of abandoned as could be as two figures broke through the trees boarding the front of the property it sat on. Of the two the man seemed to be faring better, though both were flushed from the heat the woman's shirt was heavier with sweat then the plaid design of the man's vest. Shaking droplets free with a shake of his collar, Daryl swung the crossbow down from his shoulder, nocking the arrow in its flight groove and gestured to Dawn to stay close. Moving as his shadow, Dawn tried to see the tracks that had lead him in this direction but couldn't make out much difference in the areas of crushed grass for human or animal prints.

Moving up the steps, Daryl paused long enough to pass her his pistol and waited until she had it gripped in both hands in front of her at the ready. The double doors were kicked inward, the tracker moving in quickly to pass one room before entering the next, Dawn taking over the first room so that when they met in the hall again, she caught his look towards the door closed by the side of the stairs. Standing to the side of the door, Dawn twisted the knob and pushed it inwards, Daryl at the ready.

There was a sound close the ceiling, and a pair of boots swung out of the dark entryway at an angle, one catching Daryl high in the shoulder and the other along his opposite arm so his grip shifted and changed his aim. The arrow released into the trim of the door as he flew back into the wall behind him, grip unrelenting on the weapon itself. Before he could shake himself to stand up Dawn was moving in between the unknown and her partner when she recognized the outline as her eyes adjusted, "Spike!"

Out of reach of the light from the front door, the man's silhouette straightened, the offending boots facing their victim, "Hell, could've announced yourselves. Didn't know who was traipsing in here like that."

Rolling his shoulder from impact, Daryl glowered at the blonde, clearer now that he wasn't under attack, "I'm not the asshole swinging around like Indiana Jones." Crossbow hanging at his side, he tried looking beyond him into the dimly lit room, "You alone in there?"

Dawn could read the irritation in Spike's face, saw the comment form on his lips before the shuffling of small feet melted the snark away. Amiable, Spike's face turned into shadow, and he reached an arm out, "It's alright."

Shoulders curled in, the thin girl raised her hand against the light as she made her way closer, uncertainty sweeping away as she spotted Daryl and Dawn, smile wide.

[Break]

The quiet in the RV was broken by shouting outside, voices raised in excitement. Thin hands stilling, Carol shifted in her seat to peer out the window, project forgotten. By the time the knocking on the side of the RV begged her to come out, she was past attempting to quell her fluster. Thin screen door between herself and her huddling group, Carol stared at her friends as the shifted around someone in the center, catching sight of Daryl's head in the movement she swallowed past the lump in her throat and stepped out, "Sophia?"

Dale, Andrea, T-Dog, Glenn, Lori and a few of the farm's inhabitants turned at her appearance and, in the center, her little girl. Hands raising to her mouth in disbelief they met, running the short distance between the RV and the front yard where they'd been gathered. Arms as slight around as the young girl she held, Carol crushed her to her chest as she'd thought she may not be able to again. Wet lashes fluttered over her cheeks, both of their noses running when they finally parted, and Carol wiped Sophia's face clean before her own.

Emotional display unfolding in the front lawn, Shane stood staring from the front porch after calling Rick out. Shane could practically feel the "I told you," in the air after a few seconds of Rick standing behind him, "Go on, you can say it."

Grin stretching from ear to ear, the leaner man shook his head, arms crossing in front of him, "What? I wasn't thinking anything."

"Yeah, yeah you were. You know it, I know it, you can say it." Shane found himself smiling a little as his friend laughed, the mood catching with the sudden swing of positivity after a hard day, "I was wrong, she was out there."

Rick shrugged, the nonchalance exaggerated, and hit Shane's chest before moving down the steps, "Can you stay with Carl? I'll just be a second." Knowing his partner would, the man headed for the group to check on their returned member for himself.

[Break]

Walking back in the evening, Dawn led the way to the Greene farm, careful to move quickly in the fading light before the path could disappear. Behind her, Spike kept silent, not brooding but talked out after spending the day since Robin Hood and the Miniature left, filling Dawn in on their adventure. As they neared the property, the vampire moved ahead of Dawn, shoulders tense with agitation,

"Spike?"

The man took a deep breath, nose twitching in repulsion as he hesitated from crossing out the woods, "Bunch of dead'ns." He could hear Dawn's heartbeat pick up, moving even with him as he prevented her from stepping out into the open, eyes scanning to spot the source, "There been any here before?"

Dawn shook her head, not seeing any cause for her friend's concern though she knew his senses exceeded her own, "Doesn't mean there hasn't been though." Lights on at the house and RV, Dawn gave him another moment more before gently pushing his arm down, "Whatever it is isn't here now, come on."

Head still on a swivel as they broke into the yard, Spike took deep breaths trying to determine what direction the smell was coming from. Hay and manure, his gaze found the outline of the barn as an old man's voice called out from above the camper, "We were wondering when y'all would get back, everything okay?"

Dawn waived up at Dale from his usual post, "Just enjoying the walk. Did they make it back ok?"

Climbing down, the gentleman adjusted his cap, his usual grin at capacity with the joyous news of the day, "Yeah, yes. She and Carol are inside, Herschel gave her a look over but says she's fine. She wanted to see Carl, ended up passing out on the bed beside him." One hand stretching to take Spike's before he could object, the other hand clasped on his shoulder, "Thank you for keeping her safe. Daryl said you weren't about to let anything get to her when he found you."

A small laugh, smothered by mock coughing, Dawn turned studied the ground while her friend fought the accept the praise, "Wasn't any trouble."

Releasing the blonde's cool hand, Dale gestured behind him into the RV, "Andrea and T-Dog are asleep but you're welcome to get something to eat, cooked up a little something earlier." On que, Dawn's stomach tightened at the mention of food and she looked over at Spike tilting her head in indication before she disappeared inside with a thanks leaving the two men to themselves.

Not having arrived with the rest of the group or seeing it in the daylight, Spike looked around the area the group had set up camp noticing how close it was to the house, "So what are the Greene's like?"

Dale nodded, leaning back against the vehicle frame, watchful of any wandering bodies but not expecting to be snuck up on with so much land between the fences and themselves, "They seem like good people. Wary but they've given us shelter for now, hard not to be thankful for that."

"Any reason we can't set up inside somewhere? Seems like the barn would be big enough for everyone. They have cows? Horses?" Already knowing the answer to his own questions Spike wondered what the land owners had said to keep them out of the building.

Dale shook his head, white hair brushing the back of his neck in need of a cut, "Didn't ask, they said to keep out of it. Place is there's." The younger of the two nodded in response, patting himself down for his smoke's out of habit though he knew where they were,

"Well, think I'll have a look around, let you get back to it."

[Break]

The dead swarmed the debris left behind in the wake of the CDC's demolition; cement chunks puckering the streets for several blocks radiating from the blast zone, a million tiny pebbles of what had been bullet proof glass on the ground around the miniature crater. Tara's grip was tight around Willow's remaining arm, blue eyes wide at the destruction they could make out in the dim light of the stars, "Willow…"

Arm bending to take her lover's hand, Willow squeezed it, "It's ok. She's – we'll find them." Below them, the mass of figures shuffled around the mess, unaware of the two women who had appeared on one of the rooftops in a flash of light as the sun had disappeared. Though they had been sent across North Atlantic by the Coven to preserve their own magic, both women still found themselves tired after the constant stress of the past few days. They'd stayed for the trial, making sure Analise was held responsible for her actions by their peers, but had only requested they be sent on to find their friends. Determining if they should journey to the Hellmouth, Watcher's Headquarters or CDC had been decided long before.

As the youngest of the group, and possibly alone without being able to determine Spike's status, the girl's former guardians had been clear on where they'd needed to go. Unfortunately, it looked like they were too late to meet up. Given the lack of smoke the building had been destroyed more than a day ago. Nudging Tara to action, Willow shifted the pack on her shoulder, "Check to see if you can find her."

Moving quickly, Tara pulled the bag down, setting her own things to the side and crouched on the roof top to unfold the map they'd one used to monitor demon movement. Unfurling it, a second smaller map of the United States was stored inside it and the brunette held it down with an assortment of sized crystals, pinching a few fingers from a bag to sprinkle over the paper. Murmuring, the crystals glowed, powder fanning away from Atlanta and drawing down the map to, "close to Senoia."

With relief, the color returned to her face, smiling up at the red head beside her as she packed their things safely away again as they began talking about the morning's plans for finding vehicle and getting on the road. Already equipped with supplies for a few days' worth of food and the number of dead below they didn't entertain the idea of scavenging but knew it was likely in their future. "It's going to be different with it just being us."

"We'll manage."