Morning broke over the camp, and within an hour it had seen them all piled back into the RV and the car, a nervous energy wavering over them all. Beth was filled with a strange sense of apprehension as they drove, this time sat in the front seat beside Daryl, his crossbow laying across her lap. She ran her fingers over it, across the smooth metal that held it all together, cool against her fingertips.

Beth was unsure as to what they were heading for. She had not seen the photos, but she knew the place had walls, and houses. She laid her hands on her stomach behind the crossbow, trying to feel whether there was any difference. It didn't really feel any different, but it was hard to tell sitting down. She prodded at her visible skin in-between the buttons of her shirt, feeling the flesh squish beneath her fingertip. It was strange to think there was a life in there, inches away from her hands.

'Y'okay?'

Beth jumped.

'What?'

Daryl was looking at her, his wrists leaning casually across the wheel like they were taking a luxury day trip for a picnic.

'Y'feel sick or somethin'?' he frowned.

'Oh, no,' Beth shook her head. 'No I'm fine.'

She turned to look eagerly out of the front window, hoping he would look away from her, and not notice the flush in her cheeks.

Large steel walls gradually came into view as the RV crowned the hill and began its descent; Beth leant forward to see, her heart in her throat. They drove down the road until the gate could be seen, a big iron structure set amongst steel plates. They passed several broken up and burnt down houses before they reached the gate, then Daryl rounded the RV until it was stopped in front. He idled the engine and looked across at Beth – she looked back at him and swallowed.

Beth watched as Rick and Michonne climbed out of the car in front, slowly rounding the car to look up at the rather impressive structure before them all. Tyreese helped Aaron lift up Eric from the bed at the back of the RV and slowly but surely, they began to exit the RV. Beth waited back for Daryl, then carefully descended the steps out into the street, the warmth of the day's sun stroking her face.

The family regrouped before the gate as it began to slide open. Beth took a deep breath. Whatever hid behind those gates was coming for them, and there was no turning back now.

Aaron led Eric to the gate as the rest of them waited, silently.

A rustling in the bushes followed by a crash against a tin trash-can caught everyone's attention. Beth drew her gun at the same time Daryl shot his crossbow – into the head of a possum. The gates opened and a young man stood there, looking out at them. His eyes roamed over them, nervous.

'We brought dinner.' Daryl said, holding up the possum as the young man's eyes landed on it, wide and fearful.

'It's okay,' Aaron said. 'Come on in guys.'

Beth slowly followed her family in through the gates, trying to keep her footing steady. It was dizzyingly overwhelming – she had barely had a second to take in the magnitude of the place when the sound of the gates drawing closed behind her forced her to turn back around.

She grabbed a hold of Daryl's arm; he swallowed, his own eyes narrowed on the gate. All of the others within their group were looking back at the gate too, all undoubtedly feeling the same worrying sense of unease and an uncomfortable claustrophobia. They were trapped.

'Before we take this any further, I need you all to turn over your weapons.' The man at the gate said. 'Stay, you hand them over.'

'We don't know if we want to stay.' Rick said, hoisting Judith higher on his hip as he casually waved the gun he was holding in his other hand at the man before them.

'It's fine, Nicholas.' Aaron said.

'If we were gonna use them, we would have started already.' Rick said coolly, and Beth couldn't help but think that the man had a penchant for provoking.

'Let them talk to Deanna first.' Aaron said to the man named Nicholas.

'Who's Deanna?' Rick asked, his voice rough.

'She knows everything you'd want to know about this place.' Aaron said. 'Rick, why don't you start?'

Rick looked about himself, around at the group, at his family. Carl stood by him, the sheriff hat secure on his head, his dark eyes tentatively watching his father. Maggie and Glen stood side by side just in front of Aaron, their own guns drawn but held low. Beth and Daryl a little further back, the dead possum hanging limp from Daryl's hand. There was a fluttering in Beth's stomach.

'Sasha.' Rick said.

Beth turned to see Sasha turn around and aim her gun; she fired a single shot through the bars of the gate and directly into the head of an approaching walker. Nicholas stepped forward to see, his face pale.

'It's a good thing we're here.' Rick said, and he walked forward to follow Aaron.

–

'Come on in, sit down.'

Beth stepped over the threshold, into the large house, and through into the open sitting room. It was bright and open – there was no dust, no rot, no broken windows. Beth stared around herself, her mouth agape. There was a slight flutter of the net curtains as a breeze blew in through an open window, and it stirred something in Beth. A large ornate fireplace took centre stage, adjacent to a big, black leather sofa. Upon that sofa sat a woman; she was smiling at Beth, her eyes wrinkled along the sides as she did. Her hair lay straight and tidy in a light brown bob, her blue shirt neat and ironed. Her hands were folded in her lap, her eyes on Beth as she slowly made her way across the wooden floor, her boots echoing against the wood.

Deanna gestured to the arm chair in front of her, a glass coffee table separating them. Gingerly, Beth lowered herself. There were ornaments around them, candles on the coffee table, a lamp beside her, books set neatly on a bookshelf. Beth frowned; it was a lot to take in.

'What is this place?' She asked, her own voice a dark, untrusting contrast to Deanna's light and cheerful response.

'This is Alexandria.' Deanna smiled.

'How – how are you here?' Beth frowned.

Deanna sat back.

'This was a planned community with its own solar grid, cisterns, eco-based sewage filtration.' Deanna said proudly. 'We're entirely self sustainable. My family and I were trying to get back to Ohio so I could help my district manage the crisis when the army stopped us on a back road and directed us here. They were supposed to come later.'

'But they didn't,' Beth said.

Deanna smiled.

'But they didn't. There were supplies here and we made the best of it. My husband put up the wall and we've thrived here ever since.'

Beth nodded slowly, her head spinning. A whole town closed off, separate, free from the death and the destruction she herself had seen and faced. Who were these people?

'But I want to know about you.' Deanna said. 'What did you do before all this?'

'Before - ' Beth frowned – she could hardly remember a before. 'I was a student. High school.'

'Did you graduate?'

Beth shook her head.

'How old are you, Beth?' Deanna asked.

'Eighteen,' Beth said.

'What did you hope to do, had you graduated?'

'I wanted to be a vet, like my daddy.' Beth said. Her voice sounded strange even to her own ears. Here she was, being interviewed by a strange, clean woman in a strange, clean house, talking about her life before as if any of it mattered.

'And your father – he isn't here with us now, is he?' Deanna asked.

Beth shook her head.

'I've got my sister.' She said.

Deanna nodded.

'I'm very sorry – what you've been through. It must have been so hard.'

Beth just looked at the woman before her.

'But I think you people, your family, will be a good fit here. Good, strong people, we need people like you.' Deanna said.

'How do you know that?' Beth asked, tilting her head to one side. 'How do you know we're good people?'

'I was a congressperson,' Deanna said slowly. 'I am very, very good at reading people. We have gotten along just fine here, but there are things we don't know. We haven't been out there, haven't see it. You have. You've looked out for one another, protected one another. There is a lot you could teach us.'

Beth swallowed.

'Would you like to stay here?'

Beth looked around her, at the wallpaper on the walls, the photographs, the art work, the cleanliness. Slowly, she nodded.

'Yeah,' she said, her voice low, 'the babies need a place to grow up safe.'

'You mean Judith?' Deanna asked, leaning forward.

'Yes,' Beth nodded. 'Judith. And Carl. Carl needs a secure home too.'

Deanna nodded.

'And what do you need?' she asked.

Beth shrugged.

'I just want to stop running.' She said with a sigh.

Deanna smiled then, showing her white teeth.

'You can. If you stay here you can stop running.'

Beth nodded; she leant back, absent-mindedly laying her hands over her stomach.

'And what is it you do for your group, Beth? What can you offer us here at Alexandria?'

Beth tilted her head, taking in the woman before her. She couldn't quite make up her mind about her – she was smiling and softly spoken, but there was an underlying sternness to her, too, a fierceness that lay behind the soft exterior, and Beth was struggling slightly to put her finger on it. She guessed it was what had helped her to survive.

'I look after the children,' Beth shrugged, 'and I sometimes offer medical assistance.'

'Is that so?' Deanna asked. 'Has there been need for a lot of medical attention?'

Beth smiled at that; there sure had.

'I've put in at least a dozen stitches in Daryl alone,' she said.

Deanna nodded slowly.

'We have a talented surgeon here - Pete. You could be an asset to him.'

Beth did not reply, only kept her blue eyes on the older woman, sat so casually upon her perfect leather sofa.

'Thank you for talking to me Beth,' Deanna smiled, leaning back and placing her hands on the leather either side of her thighs; Beth felt dismissed. 'Is there anything else you would like to add?'

Beth swallowed. She took her hands away from her belly.

'No,' she said, and offered Deanna a smile.

–

There group stood in front of two large houses, Beth standing in-between both Maggie and Daryl. The houses towered above them, two white washed fronts with small verandas and white framed windows. Each one was a little different; one was taller, staring down at them through six large shuttered windows, and the other was smaller, appearing like a renovated bungalow. But both of them were now theirs.

Rick took the first steps; he crossed the road and continued up the path, ascending the wooden steps up onto the veranda of the slightly taller house. He gingerly pushed open the door.

The door opened into an open sitting room not dissimilar to the one in Deanna's house. Ahead of them was a shiny marble counter island in the middle of an open kitchen, with chrome flourishes of refrigerator, exhaust fan and sink. The floor was a deep, grained wood, set perfectly against clear white walls. Beth followed Rick into the room, seeing the sitting room to the left of them. She wandered slowly over to it and gingerly reached out a hand to run over the fabric of the sofa. It was soft and smooth, cream in colour, and Beth saw just how filthy her hand was against it.

'This is insane,' Maggie murmured, as she rounded the sofa. She crossed the rug, the sound of her boots muffled, and stood before the fireplace opposite the sofa. Above the mantel there was a long framed artwork of what Beth knew to be the London skyline, although she had never visited Europe, and logs lay ready for burning in the grate, a black marble hearth jutting out into the wooden flooring.

'There's a TV,' Glen said, standing beside his wife and gazing at the television which sat upon a rounded wooden shelving unit next to the fireplace – this too was filled with books and photo frames and ornaments.

'Reckon we get a reception?' Michonne smiled. She was standing by the wooden dining table, her hands on the back of one of the six matching chairs, all of them which sat upon another rug, with another unit of shelving behind her.

'Dad,' Carl said.

Beth turned to the sound of running water. She stared as the clear liquid ran from the tap in the kitchen, pooling into the basin.

'Showers...' Maggie said.

Beth laughed.

The second house was decorated similarly with the dark wooden floors and white walls, but the layout was a little different; the door opened directly opposite the wooden staircase, with the lounge to the right of it. The space was smaller, but with another cream sofa and fireplace opposite, this one decked in white marble. The television set in this house was mounted onto the wall above the mantelpiece, and Beth could almost see herself on the sofa, laid out on her side, idly flicking through the channels, or watching an old black and white movie on a rainy day.

The dining table in this house was less grand, the seats less high backed, but it still sat six and boasted a decorative fruit bowl in the middle of it. The kitchen was of similar size, with another marble island and chrome features, white bricked tiles off setting everything perfectly with low hanging light features.

They were like show rooms. Untouched, unlived in. The group walked through each house as though the floors were made of ice, their big dirty boots a threat to the sparkling floor. They looked dirty and filthy and bedraggled amongst the white walls and the cream furniture, out of touch and out of place.

'What do you think?' Rick asked Carol.

'I think they want our weapons and then they're splitting us up.' She replied.

Rick nodded.

'We sleep in one house tonight.'

Beth found herself sighing in relief.

–

They spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the houses; they were huge. There were multiple bedrooms upstairs in both of the houses, including attic rooms and garages, and multiple bathrooms.

Beth wandered through the rooms of the second house. She could hear the water running in the main bathroom, and she knew Maggie was currently in there. She walked to the front of the house, wandering into the bedroom on the left. It was as white as the rest of the house, the floor carpeted, a large white sheeted bed pushed back against the far wall, opposite a large window. She felt bad for her boots, so stopped in the doorway, but the allure of the en-suite that she could see just beside the bed drew her in.

Biting her lip, she stepped into the room and over to the door, which she pulled open; there was a small en-suite equipped with a small white bath, a toilet and a sink. Beth stepped on to white tiled floor and across to the bath that was set against the wall, a perfectly smooth, curved standing bath, its silver feet sat still on the tiles floor. Beth ran her fingertips along the edge of the porcelain bath, feeling the cool surface dip down and curve into the enticing shape, offering to cradle her sore body.

It seemed every room in these houses had been furnished – for them? Or were they just always like this? and so Beth turned the tap, watching in fascination as the water came out and splashed down. She leant in and put in the plug, memorised at the way the water pooled and begun to fill, then gingerly picked up the bottle of bubble bath that sat neatly on the edge of the tub, next to the equally as unopened bottles of shampoo and conditioner. Beth gently unscrewed the lid and tipped it, watching the thick pink goo pour out and splash into the water below, instantly erupting into bubbles.

The room around her slowly began to steam as the tap heated up; not just water, but hot – and the bubble bath drifted its delightful scent all around the small room.

Beth turned to the mirror over the sink and took her first look at herself in a long time – what she saw shocked her. There were deep lacerations across both her cheek and her forehead, and her hair was lank and matted. She watched herself as she pulled it out from the ponytail and drew her fingers through it, pulling through the knots. Her eyes were ringed in dark circles and her lips were chapped; whilst she had never seen herself looking so physically awful, it was the change in her eyes that frightened her. She looked older, hardened. Gingerly, she prodded at bones beneath her eyes, watching as her face altered in the mirror.

I don't look like me

The mirror before her began to fog over. Sighing, Beth pulled her shirt off over her head, leaving it to fall on the shiny white tiles of the floor. Still looking at herself in the mirror, she kicked off her boots and unzipped her jeans, looking at her pale body as the mirror began to steam over. She unclipped her bra and allowed it to fall to the floor too, stooping to pluck out the photo of her baby before she kicked it aside; her naked body was barely visible through the steam, but she could just about make out her shape. She pressed one hand to her stomach as she looked down at the scan in her other hand.

Is this it? She thought. Are we safe?

Beth tucked the photo away in her clothes and climbed into the full tub of water and bubbles and lay back, letting the heat wash over her, covering her up to her neck. The effect was life changing, or so it felt; the warm water lapped at her sore and broken skin, the bubbles smoothing and caressing her ailments.

She sighed out a deep breath and closed her eyes, her hair pooling around her in the water, drifting over and under, floating against her skin. She allowed herself to sink down further until her head was entirely engulfed; beneath the water she could run her hands through her hair, untangle all of the knots and feel it floating around her, smooth and clean.

It would have been easy to just stay there, to keep her head under, enjoy the warmth and the caress of the water. Her heart beat in her ears and her chest began to burn, but her skin felt so smooth and her hair felt so soft that Beth almost ignored them.

Almost.

Years in the end of the world meant Beth was always alert, even when she was switched off, so she heard the footsteps enter the bedroom beyond the bathroom, even muffled through the water.

Sighing, she pushed herself up into a sitting position, gasping a little for air as the water fell from her face, and called out.

'Hello!'

'Beth?' It was Glen's voice that replied.

'I couldn't resist the bath in here,' Beth called back.

'That's okay!' Glen laughed back. 'See you downstairs!'

Beth smiled and ran her hands through her wet hair. She sighed and looked around the bath she was in – it was full of dirt. What had once been clear was now almost black, and Beth grimaced. She leant forward and pulled the plug, listening as the water gargled down. The cool air hit her naked skin as it emptied, and she grimaced at the scum that now laced the sides of the tub. She rubbed her hands over it, trying to rub it away from the white, feeling awful for dirtying such a clean tub.

She ran the water again once she felt it was clean enough, this time using it to clean herself off, remove the left over grime from herself and to shampoo and condition her long hair, even taking the time to shave her legs with the disposable razor she had found. Satisfied, she stood up and stepped out, grabbing one of the fluffy white towels that were hanging on the rack. She drew it around herself and looked down at her dirty clothes.

She looked around herself. There were probably not any clean clothes to hand, so she sighed and pulled her old jeans and white shirt back on. She pulled her fingers through her hair a few more times until she was satisfied it was tidy, and wandered back out into the bedroom beyond, smelling better than she had in weeks.

She headed for the big window at the end and looked out of it; Daryl, Rick and Carol were on the path just beyond, and from what Beth could see, their conversation was serious.

She sighed and sat back on the end of the bed, feeling weird. Everything about this felt strange. Here she was, in this big, clean, empty house, freshly washed, her hair wet, sat on a real bed.

It didn't feel real.

She lay herself back, her feet dangling from the end of the bed, and spread her arms out either side of her. A deep, soul soothing sigh escaped her lips – the comfort was unbelievable. The whole thing was unbelievable.

'Hey,'

Beth sat back up to see her sister in the doorway, her own dark hair wet. She was smiling.

'You look good,' Beth said.

'I feel good,' Maggie smiled, folding her arms across her chest.

'So is this for real?' Beth asked. 'Are we staying here?'

Maggie shrugged.

'Let's see,' Maggie said. 'Come on.'

Beth pulled herself up, somewhat reluctantly, and followed her sister back downstairs.

Glen pulled his wife into a hug as they descended into the sitting room, causing her to chuckle; it was such a wonderful sound to Beth, and she stepped out into the daylight with a smile on her face.

She wandered over to Daryl, who was still stood with Rick and Carol. He saw her coming and took a step towards her.

'Y'look wet,' he said.

'I had a bath,' she smiled. 'You could too.'

Daryl just looked at her.

'Are you okay?' Beth asked, tilting her head to look at him. She knew him well now, and he did not look comfortable.

'Mhm.'

Beth narrowed her eyes.

'You want to be here?' She asked.

Daryl sighed and shouldered his crossbow.

'Y'deserve a place t'live.' He said.

'But what about you?' Beth asked softly.

'I dunna,' he said, looking behind her at the towering houses. 'Holin' up, playin' families. Might make us weak.'

'I don't think so,' Beth smiled, but she understood what he meant.

–

The entire group spent their first night in Alexandia in the living room of the first house; they found sheets and blankets and brought them downstairs, setting up camp in this new foreign place. Deanna, who had come to visit to see how they were settling in, had expressed surprise at their arrangement, but she had smiled warmly and claimed it was a smart move.

'You're family.' She had said.

The verdict on Alexandria was still out; no one was quite sure what to make of it. Some of the group wanted to believe in it, and were willing to give it a real try. Maggie and Glen seemed to be of this group; Glen was under the impression that they had been out on the road almost too long, and a place like this was what they needed to humanise their-selves again, and Maggie seemed of a similar opinion, craving a place to stay and settle with the man she loved. Others however were not so sold, and still seemed convinced that the place hid something nasty, that shutting their-selves away from what was now the real world was a dumb and dangerous move.

Beth herself was unsure. She understood both halves of the coin. She knew what Glen meant and she too wanted to stop running, to have somewhere to not just survive – but live – and grow, as a community. But she also saw the way Daryl paced, the way he kept to himself and had barely spoken since those iron gates had closed behind him.

He had never been good in enclosed spaces; he had struggled in the prison, and there had been less rules there. Beth wasn't sure where Alexandria would take him, whether it would make him or break him.

Maggie was drumming the fingers of one hand on the wooden surface of the dining table, her other enclosed in Glen's. She was telling those around her how Deanna had asked her to join her as an assistant, help her with her governing of the place. It was a big role, but Maggie seemed up for it.

Rick approached their table and stood at one end, moving the chair aside so he could lean forward and place his hands down on the surface.

'Deanna has given you jobs?' he asked.

'It's part of this place,' Maggie said. 'She wants us to be a real part of the community.'

Rick nodded.

'You didn't get one?' Glen asked.

Rick shook his head.

'Not yet,' he said.

'I spoke to her.' Michonne said. She too was sat at the table, leaning back in her chair, one arm slung over the back of it. 'She said she's got something in mind for you and me both. Just hasn't told us yet.'

Rick narrowed his eyes at Michonne, but his face was one of amused curiosity rather than closed off uncertainty.

'Alright,' he said.

'She's closing in on Sasha,' Michonne continued, jutting her chin towards the other woman, who was sitting in the arm chair, her eyes on her brother who seemed to be dozing into sleep on the sofa, Judith on his lap. 'And she's still trying to figure Mr Dixon out.'

'Aren't we all,' Maggie said.

Beth turned slightly in her seat to look at Daryl; he was at the front of the room, gazing out through the net curtains into the dark night beyond. She didn't think he had figured himself out yet.

He will, she thought. He'll figure this out, one way or another.

Because whatever the verdict was, there was the chance that this could work, and if it did, it would be good for them.

Good for us.

Beth turned back around and smiled across at her sister. Maggie looked at her for a moment, then she smiled back. She wondered whether Maggie was thinking of the tiny life that was rapidly growing inside of her, needing her as its own protective walls - because she sure was.