The World We Live In

by eventualprocrastination

Georgie Brant is a survivor of the outbreak who has suffered her fair share of loss, but to an utterly heartbreaking degree. She tries not to let it get the better of her, because she lost someone that might still be alive, out there in the world and she won't give up on looking for them. In joining Rick's group, she might gain more than just hope. [Rick/OC]

43. In Tandem

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." — Helen Keller

---

The ride back to Hilltop was relatively quiet and thankfully nowhere near as tense as the prior days had been. Unlike their last visit, which saw them beaten down and broken as they brought their fallen friends there with them to be buried and leaving behind Maggie and Sasha, this visit was one of renewed hope and for a reunion with their two female friends that they all so very much needed right now. Rick sat at the driver's seat of their Chevy Suburban, occasionally glancing at Georgie; throwing her a smile here and there when she realized he was staring. Behind them sat Michonne, Tara, Carl and Rosita; all staring out their respective windows at the scenery flying by.

When they arrived, Rick parked where they had the first time they'd ever come to Hilltop with the RV, almost three weeks before. Quietly, they hopped out of the vehicle and made their trek up the winding pathway up the hill, spying Maggie atop the wall and waving at them with a smile before she turned around toward the direction of Barrington House.

"Sasha! Enid!" she called out.

As they reached the gate, Rick took Georgie's hand in his and they all simply waited until the wooden doors opened up with a creaking noise and they were greeted, face to face, by Maggie on the other side. Walking forward, Rick gradually let his hand slip from Georgie's so that he could properly greet Maggie with a hug while the others followed behind him.

"You're okay?" he asked, his voice low.

"I'm okay," Maggie replied before pulling back and looking him in the eye. "The baby's okay—all of us."

"You were right…right from the start. You told us to get ready to fight. I didn't listen, and I couldn't. I can now."

Movement drew their attention to the right and all eyes were suddenly taking in the sight of Daryl and Jesus walking out from behind a wooden stall of sorts. Rick wasted no time; walking forward to greet his best friend with a touching embrace while everyone else exchanged their own hugs (or nods of acknowledgment in Sasha and Rosita's case) with each other.

After the touching reunion among friends boiled down to a simmer, Daryl reached behind him and revealed Rick's Colt Python and handed it over. For Rick, it was like he had lost a hand and then suddenly it had grown back. He was a bit dumbfounded, holding it again, and like that it felt like coming home; like it had never been lost to him. He checked the cylinder, closed it and then looked back up at Daryl as he holstered it. The familiar weight of it at his side was like a jolt of adrenaline, causing him to turn around and look at the others with a smile of hope upon his face that was mirrored back to him in the faces of his friends, his woman, and his son.

Without a word, Rick turned again; this time toward the house. He didn't pause in his step, he kept walking and everyone followed behind him; Jesus included. They walked up the front steps and through the front door and into the grand foyer before turning and approaching Gregory's office. None seemed surprised to find him there. His presence almost felt like he was expecting him, though his expression and body language said the exact opposite. Gregory was immediately wide eyed, nervous and jerky but tried playing it cool like the big man on campus he was supposed to be, or, at the very least, how he saw himself. Enid, however, chose to hang back while everyone else stood around the office.

Rick was the one who stepped forward and began to speak about what had been transpiring back at Alexandria and how it was time to fight the Saviors now; that they couldn't just sit idly by anymore. Enough was enough. But Alexandria needed the Hilltop's help.

"No! No way in hell," Gregory barked, pacing behind his desk. "That was not the deal. You people swore you could take the Saviors out and you failed. So any arrangement we had is now done—null and void. We aren't trade partners, we aren't friends, and we never met. Hmm? We don't know each other." Placing his fingertips upon his desk, he backed up slightly and sat down in his chair. He turned and eyed up both Maggie and Jesus. "I owe you nothing. In fact, you owe me for taking in the refugees, at great personal risk."

"Oh, you were very brave staying in here while Maggie and Sasha saved this place," Jesus retorted sarcastically. "Your courage was inspiring."

"Hey, don't you work for me? Aren't we friends?"

Rick walked up to the desk to implore the older man further. "Gregory, we already started this."

"You started it."

"We did," Rick contended. "And we're gonna win."

Gregory turned to give Rick more of his attention. "These are killers."

"Is this how you want to live? Under their thumb, killing your people?"

"Sometimes we don't get to choose what our life looks like. Sometimes, Ricky, you have to count the blessings you have."

Maggie grabbed the back of the chair nearest to her and leaned forward slightly. "How many people can we spare? How many people here can fight?"

"We?" Gregory scoffed. "I don't even know how many people we have, Margaret. And does it even matter? I mean…" he trailed for a moment, seeming rather flustered. "W-w-what are you gonna do? Start a platoon of sorghum farmers? 'Cause that's what we got. They grow things. They're not gonna want to fight."

"You're wrong," Tara asserted. "When people have the chance to do the right thing, they usually step up. I mean, people just—"

"Let me stop you before you break into song, okay?" Gregory interrupted, and cleared his throat. "And, by the way, who would train all this cannon fodder?

"I will," Sasha replied.

At the same time, Rosita answered, too. "Give me a week."

"Rhetorical, okay?" Gregory blurted in an obnoxiously sing-song voice. "I don't want to know. I never want to hear another word about any of it, ever."

Completely fed up with the older man, Rick gestured to him and barked out in an equally loud voice, causing Georgie to take half a step forward in case she need to keep him from going over the desk and attacking Gregory. "Would we be better off without the Saviors, yes or no?"

Gregory rolled his eyes, giving attitude akin to an aloof, petulant teenager. "Yeah. Sure. Okay."

Placing a hand on Rick's shoulder, Georgie stepped forward and made eye contact with the man at the desk. "So, what will you do to fix the problem?"

"I didn't say we had a problem. You did," he retorted, pointing at her. "And what happens outside of my purview is outside of my purview."

"What the hell, man?" Daryl grunted, placing his hands on his hips and taking a firmer stance where he stood beside Tara. "You're either with us or you ain't," he continued, raising his voice angrily. "You're sitting over there talking out of both sides of your mouth."

Standing up, Gregory adjusted the ends of the sleeves of his suit coat. "I—I think I've made my position very clear," he commented in a calm and steady voice. "And I want to thank all of you for not being here today and not having this meeting with me or—or being seen on your way out. In other words, go out the back."

Turning and looking at his people, Rick gave them a nod and gestured toward the opened office doors. Stalking out, Rosita and Sasha both began to grumble angrily.

"Walking ballsack."

"Wanna knock that idiot's teeth out."

"Yeah, well, we don't need him anyway," Daryl muttered as they congregated in the grand foyer.

"Yeah, that's right," Rick agreed. "'Cause we have Maggie and Sasha and Jesus here."

"And…" Maggie began to speak as the front door clicked open. "Enid."

The teen girl entered into the house, seemingly a bit flustered about something. "Hey, um—"

"What's wrong?" Georgie inquired, folding her hands across her chest.

"Nothing. Just…" Enid chuckled. "Come outside."

One by one they all followed the girl out the front door and were immediately greeted by several Hilltop residents waiting for them at the base of the front steps.

"What's going on?" Maggie asked of them.

A woman stepped forward and spoke up. "Hey. So, if you don't remember—I'm Bertie. And I owe my life to you all, twice over. A bunch of us do. Enid says that you want Gregory to get us to fight the Saviors with you. Is that true?"

"Yes."

"Do you think we can win, that we really could beat them? Us?"

"I do."

Bertie sighed. "Well, Enid says you could show us the way," she responded. "I'm ready."

"Me too," a man added, followed by a cacophony of multiple voices agreeing to the same thing.

Rick turned and looked at Georgie. Smiling lovingly, he took her hand into his once again and gave it a firm squeeze as she smiled back. He then turned to the Hilltoppers and made it clear that they didn't have a solid plan yet, but that they would teach them how to fight, how to properly use guns and even hand to hand combat if needed; how to defend themselves. Daryl, who had been kept hostage at the Sanctuary and had become familiar with its inner workings, gave a brief rundown of what it was like and what kind of people where there; what they could expect should they ever take the fight there.

While Jesus stayed back for a few moments to discuss things with his own people, Rick and his group began to head back toward the gate.

They'd done what they'd come there for; to rally help to fight the Saviors.

"It's a start," Michonne declared.

"We'll get more," Sasha added. "It still won't be enough."

Rosita agreed. "No, it won't."

"Well, we find the right stuff, then maybe we don't need the numbers," Daryl spoke as they all continued to saunter forward. "Blow 'em up, burn 'em to the ground."

"You said there weren't just soldiers with the Saviors, that there were workers there. People didn't have a choice."

"We gotta win."

"We need more hands, another group," Rick insisted. "Negan has outposts. The geography, the distance works against us. We gotta get back. If they come looking for Daryl, we need to be there."

"You don't have to get back."

Everyone stopped just outside the wooden doors to the gate and turned to look at Jesus who had hurried up to rejoin them.

"Not yet," he continued. Pulling a walkie-talkie from his side, he held it up for all to see. "It's one of theirs, long range. We can listen in, keep track of them.

"So, if we're not going back, what are we doing, then?" Michonne asked.

"I think it's time we introduced you to Ezekiel." Jesus smiled. "King Ezekiel."

Rick just stared, a bit confused by what they'd all just heard. "King?"

---

"It's called the Kingdom?" Rick questioned after they reached their next destination and began filing out of the Chevy Suburban.

"Yeah," Jesus replied, climbing out from the passenger seat from where he'd been navigating for Rick. "I didn't name it."

Rick looked around at where they'd parked, noting there was nothing about the area they were in that seemed worth writing home about. "How much farther?"

"Well, technically, we're already here. I mean, we're always here, but here we are—at the Kingdom. Well, it's outer edge."

Daryl stood up within the vehicle but propped himself up by resting on arm atop the roof and the other atop the door. "Hey, what the hell we waitin' on?"

"Waiting for them." Pointing away from them, Jesus gestured to the two men in riot gear, approaching on horseback.

One of them men aimed a sword in their direction. "Who dares to trespass on the sovereign land of the—oh, shit." Like that, the man quickly dropped the theatrics and lowered his blade. "Jesus, is that you?"

In response, Jesus merely smiled and waved.

"Who are all these people, Paul?" the second man questioned; more guarded.

"Hi, Richard. Nice to see you," Jesus greeted, walking over.

"It's good to see you, too." Richard cast his eyes upon everyone. "Your friends, who are they?"

"This is Rick Grimes," Jesus answered, pointing to him. "He's the leader of a like-minded community. These are some of his people. We would like to request an audience with King Ezekiel."

Richard climbed down from his horse; holding a gun he kept down at his side as he approached. Craning his head, he looked into the Chevy Suburban at those still inside. "Get out of the car," he ordered, before bringing his attention back to Jesus. "You say they're a like-minded community. Like-minded how?"

"We live, we trade, we fight the dead. Sometimes others."

Richard gave Jesus a knowing nod, looked briefly at Rick and then gestured to Rick's group. "Line up."

"Okay. This is a waste of time. Come on. Let's go," Daryl grunted, turning to head back to the vehicle.

"Maybe you're right. The King is a busy man. And it's a dangerous world," Richard retorted. "We don't usually allow a pack of strangers to waltz through our door."

"We want to make the world less dangerous, and we are all here to show the King how serious we are about that," Michonne spoke up.

Richard nodded again. "The car stays outside. You gotta hand over your guns."

"We only have two," Rick remarked. Removing his Colt, which he'd only just got back, he nodded at Carl to do the same, and both men held their respective guns out in front of them.

Richard took both and nodded appreciatively. "Okay. Follow me."

With a look at Georgie that was a mix between seriousness and amusement, Rick led his group behind Jesus and the Kingdomers.

"Well, this should be interesting," he spoke quietly, leaning into her slightly.

"No shit," Georgie smirked. "I've always wanted to me a real live King before."

Quietly chuckling under his breath, Rick grinned and looked ahead toward the gate they were approaching. "Do you think pulling a sword from a stone was involved, for this Ezekiel to become a king?"

Georgie cast a brief look Rick and couldn't help but smile a bit more at the image. "Now I'm kinda hoping that's how it went down."

With little incentive, Rick held his hand out to the side and slipped it easily into Georgie's again. It was almost out of habit by this point. Heading into new territory, literally and figuratively, he enjoyed the contact of her hand in his; their fingers entwined. It was comforting.

As the gate was pulled open for them, they all continued to follow Richard and the other one inside of the Kingdom. Immediately they were greeted by the sight of large brick buildings, fruit and vegetable gardens all over the place and, most importantly, a lot of people.

"They have the numbers," Michonne stated happily.

"But can they fight?" Rosita questioned, sounding doubtful.

"Oh, they can fight," Jesus assured; a smile upon his face.

"Maybe." Daryl, like Rosita, didn't seem to be getting his hopes up.

"Morgan?"

The each heard Tara speak and turned around, finding the man approaching with a pleasantly surprised smile.

"Hey," he greeted, stepped forward and hugging the younger woman whose own smile was so happy and bright. Once Tara stepped aside, Sasha stepped up next to get her own hug in. "Hi."

"How do you know each other?" Richard inquired.

"We go back to the start," Rick replied.

"Well, the King is ready to see you."

As everyone began to follow Richard into the building before them, they took their turns giving Morgan a nod of greeting or a touch to his arm with a smile. Rick slipped his hand from Georgie's then to place his hand upon Morgan's arm as well while Georgie and Daryl hung back for a moment with both men outside.

"Did you find Carol?" Rick asked.

"I did, yeah," Morgan nodded.

"Where is she?" Daryl immediately seemed agitated.

Georgie, on the other hand, felt some relief. "Is she okay?"

"She was here, and then she left." Morgan frowned. "You know, she wasn't too happy, me following her. She wanted to get away from us, from everyone. But when I found her, she was shot. It was just a graze. I got her back here. They got doctors. They're good."

"Was it them?" Daryl pressed, meaning the Saviors.

Morgan nodded. "It was. She had crossed with some of them, and one of them tried to follow her, tried to kill her, but I stopped him." He looked like there was a bad taste in his mouth he couldn't get rid of. "I killed him. I had to. Carol was here. She got help. Now she's gone."

Daryl looked the most saddened by this, while Rick and Georgie had come to terms with Carol's choice to leave. They would not seek her out and force her to come back. If she wanted to see them again, and be part of their lives again, then so be it. They would welcome her home with open arms. At least they knew she was okay, or at least she had been when she left the Kingdom. That was enough for them to hear. At the moment, though, they had an audience with a King and didn't want to keep his majesty waiting.

Placing his hand upon the small of Georgie's back, he led her in with him while Daryl and Morgan took a much slower approach behind them. They slipped inside the building where they found the others waiting before Richard pushed open a set of doors into what appeared to be a theater of sorts; or, rather, a school auditorium.

Straight ahead, upon the stage, there was a backdrop painted with a castle and other scenery on it and in front of the backdrop was a wooden throne of sorts. There sat a man with a long, leather brown jacket, a full greying beard and a headful of greying dreadlocks, holding a staff in his right hand. Two the man's right stood two other men; one a large, smiling Samoan and the other a boy no older than eighteen, most likely. What was most unnerving about the entire scene was preceded by the sound of clinking chains and growling before the sight of a living, breathing tiger came stalking from around the throne.

"What the fuck," Georgie muttered under her breath. Her hand went straight to Rick's again; this time out of unease.

"Jesus!" King Ezekiel bellowed cheerfully, as the tiger came to rest beside him. "It pleases me to see you, old friend!"

"It pleases him, indeed!" the Samoan echoed with a grin.

"Jerry." King Ezekiel subtly rolled his eyes, but kept his sight upon Jesus and Rick's group. "Tell me, what news do you bring good King Ezekiel? Are these new allies you brought me?"

While the others hovered in the doorway, at what they felt a safe distance, Jesus stood about halfway down the aisle. "Indeed they are, Your Majesty. This is—" As he turned, his smile faded when he saw the looks of fear, uncertainty and confusion upon the faces of Rick's group. "Oh, right," he muttered, approaching them. "I forgot to mention that—"

"Yeah, a tiger," Rick muttered, trying to play it off as nonplussed as possible. His eyes said otherwise, however.

The tiger roaring did little to help.

Jesus smirked and turned back around to walk forward toward the stage. Slowly, the others began to follow him down the aisle. "This is Rick Grimes, the leader of Alexandria, and these are some of his people."

"I welcome you all to the Kingdom, good travelers," King Ezekiel greeted. "Now, what brings you to our fair land? Why do you seek an audience with the King?"

Rick stepped forward, wondering if this was real life and that he wasn't just dreaming, because all of this just seemed so…absurd. While the others spread out, standing among the rows of seats, Michonne and Georgie remained in the aisle as Rick took another few steps closer. "Ezekiel—King…Ezekiel," Rick spoke, feeling ridiculous to refer to someone in such a way. "Alexandria, the Hilltop, and the Kingdom—all three of our communities have something in common. We all serve the Saviors."

Georgie looked away from the stage and up at the back of Rick's head. The venom with which he said the Saviors' name was not lost on her, as she was sure it wasn't lost on anyone else.

"Alexandria already fought them once, and we won," Rick continued. "We thought we took out the threat, but we didn't know then what we know now. We only beat one outpost. We've been told you have a deal with them, that you know them. Then you know they rule through violence and fear."

King Ezekiel turned his gaze from Rick to Jesus and stared rather pointedly, as if he'd been betrayed.

Jesus stared back. "Your Majesty, I only told them of the—"

"Our deal with the Saviors is not known among my people—for good cause," King Ezekiel stated. "We made you a party to that secret when you told us of the Hilltop's own travails, but we did not expect you to share—"

"We can help each other!"

"Don't interrupt the King," Jerry warned.

"We brought you into our confidence. Why did you break it?" King Ezekiel questioned.

"Because I want you to hear Rick's plans."

The King turned his attention back to Rick. "And what plans have you, Rick Grimes of Alexandria?"

"We came to ask the Kingdom, to ask you, to join us in fighting the Saviors, fighting for freedom for all of us," Rick replied with conviction.

"What you are asking is very serious."

"Several of our people—good people—were killed by the Saviors, brutally," Georgie spoke up, stepping forward and coming to stand at Rick's side.

"Who?" Morgan asked.

"Abraham. Glenn," Rosita replied. "Spencer, Olivia. Eugene was taken."

"Denise, too," Georgie added. She didn't want her left off the list.

"They took Daryl. He escaped. Every second he's out here, he's a target," Rosita continued, her tone completely bitter. "You gonna say you were right?"

"No," Morgan shook his head, trying to process this news. "I'm…I'm just real sorry they're gone."

"Negan murdered Glenn and Abraham; beat 'em to death," Rick informed.

"Terrorized the Hilltop," Sasha offered up. "Set loose walkers just to make a point."

Jesus frowned. "I used to think the deal was something we could live with. A lot of us did. But that's changing. So let's change the world, Your Majesty."

Rick spoke up again. "I want to be honest about what we're asking. My people are strong, but there's not enough of us. We don't have guns—not enough, at least. Not a lot of weapons, period."

"We have people," Richard remarked, looking at the King and then to Rick. He seemed very motivated to join Alexandria's cause. "And weapons. If we strike first, together, we can beat them." He turned once more to the King and implored him. "Your Majesty, no more waiting for things to get worse, beyond what we can handle. We set things right." Once more he looked back toward Rick. "The time is now."

"Morgan." King Ezekiel looked to the other man. "What say you?"

"Me?" Morgan questioned, looking between Rick and the King.

"Speak."

No, don't let him speak, Georgie thought, already rolling her eyes.

"People will die. A lot of people and not just the Saviors. It…" he trailed off, trying to formulate his thoughts, unaware of the choice words Georgie had for him in her own thoughts. "If we can find another way, we have to. Maybe it's just about Negan—just capturing him, holding him. Maybe…I—"

Any further words were lost on Morgan.

King Ezekiel stood up with his staff in his right hand and the chain acting as the tiger's leash in his left. "The hour grows late," he announced, followed by a low growl from his tiger. "Rick Grimes of Alexandria, you have given the King much to ponder."

"Well, when I was a kid, my mother told me a story," Rick began, trying to think of anything he could say to convince the King to agree with them; anything that could have sway. "There was a road to a kingdom, and there was a rock in the road. And people would just avoid it, but horses would break their legs on it and die, wagon wheels would come off. People would lose the goods they'd be coming to sell. That's what happened to a little girl. The cask of beer her family brewed fell right off. It broke. Dirt soaked it all up, and it was gone. That was her family's last chance. They were hungry. They didn't have any money. She just…sat there and cried, but…she wondered why it was still there…for it to hurt someone else. So she dug at that rock in the road with her hands till they bled, used everything she had to pull it out. It took hours. And then, when she was gonna fill it up, she saw something in it. It was a bag of gold."

"Alright," Jerry grinned, enjoying the story while the kid beside him rolled his eyes at him.

Rick smirked very faintly at the jovial Samoan's reaction. "The king had put that rock in the road because he knew the person who dug it out, who did something, they deserved a reward. They deserved to have their life changed for the good…forever."

King Ezekiel look away from Rick and around to the others. "I invite you all to sup with us and stay till the morrow."

Rick wasn't all that keen on the offer. He wanted an answer now. "Yeah, we need to get back home."

"I shall deliver my decree in the morn," the King maintained.

With two bangs of his staff to the stage floor, King Ezekiel took his leave with his tiger, exiting behind him through the curtain at the center of the castle backdrop. Jerry turned and went stage right while the kid jumped down from the stage and went over toward Morgan. Richard was the one who stepped down from the stage to show Rick's group out after that.

And Rick was none too happy.

With a deep scowl he followed behind Richard. His eyes squinted upon stepping back outside; having to readjust to the sunlight, no matter how much lower it was in the sky now.

"We have extra space to put you all up for the night," Richard informed. "After dinner, I'll show you where. I'm sorry you didn't get the answer you wanted tonight. But I want you to know I am more than ready to help when the time comes. And I'm saying when, not if, because the time will come."

Rick shook his head. "The time is already here."

"For now, though, I'll show you to where we all gather for large meals."

As Richard nodded at them all and began to walk off, the others began to follow behind at a slower pace. They were feeling just as frustrated now as Rick was, and seemingly Richard, too. Rick and Georgie brought of the tail end of their group, linking hands and looking around at the Kingdomers milling about, going about their lives, blissfully unaware that the real threat outside their walls was no longer just the dead.

"If Richard was the leader here, you can bet your ass we'd have received an answer tonight, and it would've been the one we wanted," Georgie whispered.

"Yeah, but he's not, and we didn't."

"Let's just hope sleeping on it makes His Majesty see things our way."

Rick gave her a sideway glance, noting the sarcasm in her voice at the way she said 'his majesty' and found he was able to smile a little at it. He knew his group was likely in agreement that the Kingdom and King Ezekiel was quite over the top with their pomp and circumstance way of life, despite how idyllic it was. But hearing it reflected in Georgie's voice was reassuring in a way. Even though he knew his group's reactions to everything was about the same as his, it was nice to have that vocal affirmation that he wasn't alone in it.

---

The meal was uneventful. Very few Kingdomers came over to the Alexandrians to say hello, let alone gave them much attention. For whatever reason they didn't seem bothered by these guests, even after King Ezekiel acknowledged them during the meal. Rick's group ate in silence for the most part, as well. What little conversation they shared between one another was mostly to remark on the Kingdom's way of life or to just rehash their meeting with the King.

When they were more or less finished eating, Richard came over to take them to their temporary lodging. As they left the cafeteria, Rick noted that King Ezekiel watched with a thoughtful eye as they left. That look alone gave Rick a bit of hope that the other man would come around and agree to join the fight.

One by one each member of Rick's group was shown to their own—albeit small—room until Rick and Georgie were last. Richard opened the door and stepped aside, revealing the room to be slightly bigger and that it contained a full-sized bed, unlike the other rooms with their twin beds.

"The hand holding wasn't lost on me," Richard remarked, gesturing down at both Rick's and Georgie's hand, which weren't entwined at the moment. "I assumed the two of you were together, so that you'd want to share a room."

Rick nodded appreciatively. "Thank you."

Richard hesitated before leaving the pair alone. He looked like he wanted to say something, likely about earlier in the theater again, but then his pressed his lips firmly together and gave them a nod. "Well, goodnight."

Turning away, he walked off down the hallway; leaving Rick and Georgie to look between one another and then shrug it off. Inside their room, it was simple; with little in the way of furnishings. But that didn't matter. They weren't there to stay indefinitely. It was just a place to sleep for the night. Atop a small bedside table, there was a single tapered candle with a box of matches beside it. On the opposite wall were a single chair and a narrow dresser with two water bottles and a small bowl filled with both pomegranates and apples. The floor was carpeted with a simple throw rug, likely to help keep the room warm during the colder months.

"It's like a little hotel," Georgie remarked as Rick shut the door behind them. "All that's missing is the mints on the pillow."

With a smirk, Rick stepped up behind her and placed both hands on her hips and then brought his lips down to her shoulder. When he felt her relax up against him, he turned to nuzzle his nose against the skin of her neck and inhaled her scent. "What do you think Ezekiel will decide?" he inquired, letting his lips linger upon her neck as well. "Do you think this trip has been pointless?"

"Nothing is pointless," she assured. Turning around to face him, the fact that his hands moved with her and managed to replant themselves upon her hips was not lost to her. "Even if they don't fight, we've just met a new community that could help us in other ways. We don't have much, but there has to be something we can do for them in exchange for food, of which they have plenty while we're running dangerously low. I mean," she gestured over her shoulder with her thumb, "they have pomegranates. I think the last time I ever saw one of those in person was in a Food Lion back in Georgia before the fall."

Rick cast his eyes over to the bowl of fruit. "Speaking of lions, what about that tiger?"

Georgie snickered. "I think it goes without saying that none of us were expecting that. I mean, who keeps a tiger as a pet? How has it not lashed out and tried eating him?"

Rick shrugged. "He must be some kind of cat whisperer."

Slowly, a smile spread to Georgie's lips and a twinkle appeared in her eyes.

Narrowing his gaze, Rick looked back at her with a questioning, though amused, expression. "What?"

"I was just thinking that you're a sort of cat whisperer, too, if you catch my meaning."

Rick thought on what she said and then, like a flash, he realized the innuendo she was trying to get across to him. "Oh, I get it." Off her chuckle, Rick began to walk her backwards toward the bed and sat her down on the edge.

The window had both blinds and curtains and, while the curtains were open, the blinds were drawn shut. Not that it mattered; it was already dark out by that point, so there was no light to make its way inside the room so they could see what they were doing. Instead, Rick turned away from Georgie and pulled a match out from the box. Striking the head against the coarse strip along the side of the box, Rick brought the suddenly alight match to the candle's wick and then shook the match to extinguish the little flame once the room was very slightly aglow with candlelight. As the flame flickered, their shadows danced on the wall. While she moved further up onto the mattress and began to remove her boots from her feet, Rick turned and stepped over to the window, pulling down a few of the blinds with his fingers and peering outside to see what he could see from where they were.

There were a few people hanging around outside still, gathered together and talking. Whatever work was seen to over the course of the day seemed to have been put to rest. It seemed that once dinner was served, that was the end of the work day and the residents of the Kingdom had the rest of the evening after dinner to do with it what they pleased. Most seemed to just enjoy sitting around, socializing.

Rick felt a pang of jealously; wishing Alexandria could have a set up like this. If only they could have gardens that produced the amount of food the Kingdom did with little worry about needing to rely on supply runs or just going outside the walls in general, Rick was almost certain he might be able to see things from King Ezekiel's point of view. If only he and a few close to him had to know the extent of the deal with the Saviors and if they hadn't had to lose any lives over it like that had, he might've agreed to the same thing as the King. For one, the Saviors never stepped foot inside the Kingdom. The people inside stayed protected and oblivious, but they weren't helpless.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Georgie asked.

Rick stepped away from the window, letting the blinds return to normal, and looked back at her; watching the way her thick hair fell behind her shoulders and down her back as she leaned back on the bed with her hands propping herself up on the mattress. "Just thinking about how this place runs," he replied. "All things considered, they got it pretty good here. I'm kinda jealous. I wish we had something like this."

As Rick kicked off his boots and began to undo his utility belt, Georgie shrugged. "You know what would make it better everywhere? Bashing in Negan's head with his own bat. Poetic justice, don't you think?"

"Believe me; the image has been occupying my mind quite a bit all this week."

Sitting up, Georgie reached forward and curled a finger through one of his belt loops. "So, what exactly will we do if Ezekiel says no?"

Rick sighed, looking down and watching as she began to undo his belt for him. He ran a hand down his face and shrugged. "There's gotta be other communities out there. Maybe Jesus might know of a few more, even if he's only seen them from afar. At the very least, we need to find weapons. We can't fight the Saviors with our good looks alone."

Georgie smirked, pulling the belt free from the loops and letting it drop to the floor with his utility belt. "I dunno," she muttered, unzipping his pants. "You're pretty damn good at those 'if looks could kill' looks. Not to mention you're quite the lady killer."

"Wow," Rick remarked sarcastically. "That was quite the pun."

Smacking her lips, Georgie slapped his chest and then watched as he smiled down at her. Letting his hands drift to her shoulders and then migrate up to the sides of her face, he leaned down and pressed his lips easily upon hers. Like clockwork, he climbed up onto the bed over her; pushing her back against the mattress in the process.

"If you like puns," she muttered, taking a momentary break from the kissing and heavy petting with him, "I've got another one for ya."

"Oh?" Rick began to leave a trail of kisses away from her lips and down to her neck; slowly migrating lower down her body.

"Yeah," Georgie replied with a nod and a smile. She shifted on the mattress so that she was no longer laying sideways across it; causing Rick to pause and adjust on the bed with her before resuming what he was doing. She smiled a bit more at the feel of him beginning to unzip her pants for her this time and shimmy them down from her waist. "Ezekiel might be a king here, but he's not the one about to be royally fucked."

Rick lifted his head and stared back at her. A couple of curls flopped forward at the sides of his head as he raised an eyebrow at her. "That was just terrible."

"No, it wasn't," she chuckled. "I thought I was pretty funny."

"Yeah, well, eye of the beholder and whatnot…"

Once Georgie's pants were off, she pulled her legs up to her chest and pushed her feet against Rick's thighs to push him away from her slightly, but only far back enough to give her the room to hook her toes into the tops of his jeans and push them down off his hips. Rick grinned back at her and then climbed off the bed to remove his pants completely along with his shirt; which he seemed unable to unbutton fast enough. Once undressed, he climbed back onto the bed while Georgie kicked her pants off from where they were pooled around her ankles. Rick leaned forward and the two of them worked in tandem to get her underwear and her bra off at the same time. Just as Rick went to hover over her, she pushed him aside so that he was lying upon his back, allowing her to get on top.

Slowly, she ran her fingers up and down his chest while hunching forward to place a kiss upon his lips.

"King me," she whispered with a small laugh.

Rick snickered, placing his hands upon her hips as he guided her down onto him. A small groan that escaped his throat was unavoidable and it seemed to please Georgie and she began riding him at a slow pace that was already starting to drive him nuts. Neither of them spoke anymore as they proceeded in making love. Rick just laid there, letting her do most of the work and was happy to oblige to get her where she needed to be while she got him where he needed to be. It was just one of many ways they seemed to be working in tandem tonight.

As they both drew near to their peaks, their groans got louder, their movements quicker, their breathing shorter and their grips upon each other much tighter. When Rick came first, he went rigid and sat up slightly; throwing his arms around Georgie's waist to pull her down to him, chest to chest. He then slipped a hand between their bodies and resumed helping her out while she continued to ride out his orgasm with him. When she finally came as well, she released a single, guttural whimper and then collapsed her full weight upon him; both of their bodies twitching and shuddering in the afterglow of release.

Slowly, their breathing began to settle. Rick kept his arms wrapped around her but moved them higher, from her waist to her back, to hold her in place. Georgie turned her face to rest it against his shoulder while her nose brushed against the underside of his chin as he attempted to glance down at her as she lay upon him.

Rick smiled. "Checkmate," he whispered, mirroring her earlier checkers reference with a chess reference instead.

Georgie understood and laughed softly. Lifting her head, she rested her chin upon his chest and watched the way his eyelids began to droop. "Now, now, don't go falling asleep just yet. Your Queen demands it."

"She does, does she?" Rick asked with his eyes closed and a smirk upon his lips.

"She does."

"Well, this king needs a few minutes to let the royal staff and jewels recover from that battle."

Georgie snorted. "Who's punning now?"

"Shh, let your King rest his eyes."

"No. I can't allow that," she insisted. "I know you. If you merely 'rest your eyes' for even a little bit, you're gonna fall asleep."

"Then do something to keep that from happening."

"Like what? You want me to sing you a song?" Georgie teased.

"No, but I can think of a few things you can do to help me out."

Georgie lifted her head and propped herself up to look down at him a bit more. Sensing she was staring, he opened on eye and stared back at her with it. With a roll of her eyes and a smile, she released a huff of breath and sat up. Sliding off of him, she then sank down beside him on the bed, causing him to watch her with both eyes open. After a brief moment to see what she'd do, Rick followed her left hand as she reached it across his chest and then promptly pinched his nipple.

"Ow," he grimaced.

Georgie chuckled and bit her bottom lip. "There, I did something. Now get on top of me already."

Smacking his own lips this time, Rick shook his head and slowly sat up. Watching her lay back upon the mattress, with her ginger locks splayed out around her head, Rick smiled and just enjoyed how beautiful she was, especially in that very moment; naked and inviting. Thinking on that alone was enough to help him get back on the horse, so to speak.

"Alright," Rick muttered. "Let's get this done."

"Wow, so romantic," Georgie teased as he got up onto his knees and knelt between her legs.

"Don Juan, at your service, milady."

Georgie placed her hands on either side of her face and looked him in the eye. "What happened to my king?"

"Shh," he whispered, pressing his lips to hers and slipping his tongue in a little. "We gotta be quiet so he doesn't find us out. It'll be the tower for us both."

Smiling at this game they were playing with each other, Georgie and Rick both found it to be a welcomed way to get out of their heads for a while and not have to think about anything else but each other and how their bodies made each other feel. And, if Georgie had anything to say about it, she'd get a round three out of him.

---

Bright and early the next morning, Rick and Georgie were woken by a knock at their door. Jerking his head upward, Rick blinked and looked around, trying to remember where he was for a moment. Looking toward the door, Rick then looked down at his wrist to check the time on his watch and saw it was barely seven in the morning. He wasn't sure what time he and Georgie had finally gotten to sleep but it felt like not too long ago. Calling out to whoever was on the other side of the door, which woke Georgie, he would be right there; code for "don't come in, I'm not in a position to receive company."

"Most of us are up already." It was Daryl. "Carl's out like a light still. We'll let you wake him up. Rest of us will be waiting outside."

"Yeah, okay," Rick called back from his side of the door. Looking to his left, he glanced down upon Georgie who had rolled over onto her back and was rubbing her eyes. "Morning," he greeted before casting a glance down at both their naked bodies, which were barely covered by their blanket. "If we didn't have anywhere else to be, if we didn't have to see what Ezekiel's decision is and get home, I'd wanna take the time and enjoy you some more."

Georgie smiled. "We'll make time when we get home."

"I'll hold you to that."

"Funny how I had to convince you to go more than with me last night, and now, here you are talking about doing it again. Where was this energy last night?"

Sitting up and swinging his legs off the edge of the bed, Rick stood with a stretch of his arms toward the ceiling. "For one, you didn't have to convince me of anything. Two, this energy is what happens when you let me rest my eyes," he replied teasingly.

"And three?"

Rick looked over his shoulder at her. "There is no three. I just woke up. I can't formulate any more thoughts right now."

Bending down he began to pick up their clothes; holding onto his and handing hers over so they could get dressed. Once they were both fully clothed again, Rick watched Georgie run her fingers through her hair in the absence of a brush while he pulled his utility belt on. As they left the room, Rick placed a hand upon her elbow and leaned in to kiss the corner of her mouth before they headed down the hall to the room he remembered Carl being shown to.

With a gentle knock, Rick leaned his head against the door. "Carl, it's time to get moving."

After a moment, he knocked again and repeated the same words.

"I need help with my bandage," came the teen's voice from inside the room.

With a smirk, Rick turned the handle to the door and pushed it open. He and Georgie found Carl sitting on the twin bed he'd slept on; his hat beside him while he fumbled with trying to get his bandage to stay wrapped around his head, but it kept slipping down his face. It wasn't easy to do by himself and with no mirror in the room to see what he was doing.

Rick stepped inside and pushed his old hat away to sit down next to his son. Georgie just stood there; leaning against the door frame, watching as Rick undid the bandaging and then began to wrap it a little tighter around his son's head, but not too tight as to make it uncomfortable. He kept it all in place with the small metal bandage clip and then reached for the hat, which he handed to his son to put back on.

"Sleep well?" Rick asked.

Carl nodded. "Yeah. It was nice to sleep on an actual bed again since the Saviors took our mattresses."

"Better for my back, too." Rick smirked and stood up.

Without another word, Rick led both Georgie and Carl out of the building and found the others standing around just outside the main door. Richard was also present already, greeting the tardy trio with nods as they arrived.

"Alright, you're all awake," he muttered, and taking the time to hand Rick and Carl their guns back. "Ezekiel is waiting with his decree."

Rick nodded. "Okay then." With a gesture, he let Richard lead the way and the group quickly began to follow.

The sun was still generally low in the sky but life within the Kingdom was already abuzz. Kingdom soldiers were jogging past in a group, children were practicing archery, and residents were already tending to the communal gardens.

When the group approached an expectant King Ezekiel, he was standing with his back to them. "This is life here. Every day. But it came at a cost," he remarked, before turning around to face them while holding his staff. Slowly he walked forward. "And I wanted more of this. I wanted to expand. To create more places like this. Men and women lost their limbs." He looked directly at Rick. "Children lost their parents, because I sent them into battle against the wasted when I did not need to."

Rick stepped forward, meeting the King halfway. "This is different."

"It isn't."

"It is," Rick nodded. "The dead don't rule us. The world doesn't look like this outside your walls. People don't have it as good. Some people don't have it good at all."

"I have to worry about my people."

Rick looked away in disbelief. This was what he had dreaded happening, even though he had mentally prepared himself for its likelihood; of the Kingdom not standing with Alexandria and the Hilltop.

"You call yourself a damn King," Daryl grumbled. "You sure as hell don't act like one."

King Ezekiel stalked forward to him. "All of this…came at a cost. It was lives, arms, legs." He pointed in the direction of those practicing their archery. A young man missing an arm but wearing a prosthetic was guiding students and a young woman missing a leg was sitting upon a stool while instructing a young girl beside her. The King turned and walked back over to Rick. "The peace we have with the Saviors is uneasy, but it is peace. I have to hold on to it. I have to try."

Rick turned, reeling in his anger remarkably well as he turned and shared a mutually aggravated look with Richard while King Ezekiel continued to speak, although to Rick's group as a whole.

"Although the Kingdom cannot grant you the aid you desire, the King is sympathetic to your plight. I offer our friend Daryl asylum for as long as he requires it. He will be safe here. The Saviors do not set foot inside our walls."

"How long do you think that's gonna last?" Daryl questioned bitterly before storming away.

Rick followed after and, just like that, each person did the same.

There was no point in staying any longer. They had their answer, and it wasn't the one they wanted or needed.

The group made their way to the main gate, from where they'd come in the day before; passing by life going on as usual for the Kingdomers around them.

"You can change his mind, but you won't," Rick remarked, looking at Morgan.

"Then you can stay. We can talk."

Georgie's own anger began to bubble beneath the surface. She just couldn't see the allure in the friendship Rick still chose to maintain with the man. Morgan just couldn't understand how the world worked. Even after hearing about what was done recently to all the friends they'd lost, especially the brutal ends Glenn and Abraham received, he still couldn't face facts. She wanted to scratch his eyes out, truly she did. At the very least, cuss him out. But, like Rick, she reeled it in and gave him serious stank eye instead.

"How many people do we have? To fight?" Richard asked. "I'll go with you."

Georgie was starting to really like this guy. She'd much rather trade him for Morgan.

"We don't even have enough to take on one outpost face-to-face yet," Rick replied.

"So the Kingdom has to get involved, or the Saviors will always be in charge," Richard deduced. "It isn't about soldiers. We're making them stronger. The more food we give them, the more arms, the more everything, every day any of us give them something, they become harder and harder to beat."

"All right, open it up. We're gone," Daryl announced to the guards on the gate.

The metal doors creaked and opened up and the group filed out. When Georgie realized Rick wasn't behind her anymore, she slowed down and looked back to see Rick talking to Daryl. When he finally began to head out, Daryl remained on the other side of the wall, just staring back. Georgie turned around and continued walking, unaware if Rick looked back or waved goodbye or anything like that. Soon enough, though, he had caught up to her and was at her side.

"Daryl staying?" she asked.

"I told him to. Rosita was right yesterday when she said he was a moving target the longer he's out here," Rick replied, his voice low. "If the Saviors can't go inside the Kingdom, they can't look for Daryl inside. He'll be safe there. We'll be back for him soon enough, when we can. He won't be alone."

"I'd hardly consider Morgan to be great company," Georgie muttered, no longer bothering to hide her disdain with the other man not that they were separated from him again. "He said he killed a man trying to kill Carol. That's great, I'm glad he did. But he's clearly back to his 'all life is precious' bullshit ways. His complacency is gonna get us killed if he doesn't find his balls and step the fuck up."

Rick shrugged. After a few moments, he looked at Georgie's profile and smirked faintly. "Have I ever told you how much I admire that ginger fire of yours?"

"Save the sweet talk for the bedroom, Grimes." With a smile, Georgie looked back at him.

Rick simply smiled back and responded by placing a hand gently upon her elbow as they approached their Chevy Suburban with the others.

---

"For anyone out there who loved the obese bastard as much as I did, I just want to say a few words. Fat Joey was not the most badass sonofabitch, but he was loyal. He had a great sense of humor. In fact, we were just joking about oral sex with Lucille the other day. Things will not be the same now that he's dead. Without Fat Joey, Skinny Joey is just…Joey. So it's a goddamn tragedy. So, let's have a moment of silence."

Negan's voice faded over the Jesus handheld radio as the Chevy Suburban approached a large roadblock on the abandoned highway they were traveling on. And it wasn't just any roadblock; it was too perfectly staged. These weren't vehicles that had been randomly left behind. They were parked, side by side, about three rows deep and all facing the same direction.

As Rick brought their vehicle to a stop, the brakes squealed.

"Someone's trying to block the way. Gotta be the Saviors," Jesus presumed.

"Look," Carl spoke up, gesturing out the right side of the vehicle at a large building in the distance that could be easily seen above the tree tops. "I think that's their base over there."

"Yeah, that's it," Jesus confirmed. "Must be trying to make it hard to get to them."

Rick sighed slightly, considering their only option. "We gotta keep going. We'll move 'em, and then we'll move 'em back. They don't need to know we were here."

Without another word, Rick turned the ignition off and everyone began to pile out of the vehicle. Slowly, but surely, they began to arduous process of moving the abandoned cars. Those without keys inside were pushed with the vehicle behind it, with someone steering and then putting on the brake to keep from crashing loudly into the side rails. They were trying to be as quiet and as discreet as they could.

"Rick," Michonne called out, holding a pair of binoculars out to him. "Come take a look at this."

Rick walked over and took the binoculars, holding them up to his eyes to see whatever it was Michonne was referring to. The others began to join the pair, curious to know what was up. What it was, specifically, was a tripwire rigged across the road. When they all made their way over to it, they could carefully inspect how a steel cable was stretched between two cars on opposite sides of the road, explosives carefully strung along the cable.

"What's all this for?" Georgie wondered.

"Wait," Carl muttered. "When I was hiding in the back of the truck, I heard a couple of them talking about this. This is for a herd."

"That's why it's a steel cable," Rosita remarked. "It's not just for one walker. It's for a lot."

"We need these explosives." Sasha insisted.

"Yeah," Rick agreed with a uneasy nod. "But we have to figure out how to disarm it first."

With little hesitation, Rosita crouched down to a grate in the grass and very slowly and carefully lifted it up to revealing a bunch of plastic explosives and wiring.

"Uh…okay," Tara muttered nervously as she took a few steps backward.

"Backing up is not gonna make a difference if this thing goes off," Rosita practically growled.

"We got ourselves a red situation," Negan's voice once more came across Jesus' handheld radio. "I need a search party. See if Daryl ran home like the dumb animal that he is."

"On it," another voice, which sounded like Simon, spoke up. "Be there in time for lunch."

"Turn that sleepy little burg upside down."

Rick began to seethe with a mix of anger and fear.

"We gotta go. We gotta get there before them, but we need these," Michonne stated. "We need to clear a path anyway."

Rick nodded. "Yeah. Rosita?"

After a few moments, Rosita pulled a black device out of the box and held it up. "First part's done."

"What now?" Georgie asked.

Rosita stood up and gestured along the cable wire. "We gotta unwrap the secondary explosives—the dynamite, the RPGs. Make sure these casings are not messed up, and do not mess them up, either. This thing could still blow."

"You all heard her," Rick announced. "Let's go."

And like that, they all went to their own explosives, removed the knives they had on them and began the precarious task of dismantling the trip wire. They had to be quick, but they couldn't rush either. One false move and it could literally blow up in their faces.

"You can load the explosives into the trunk as long as they're in good shape," Rosita dictated to the group. "No dents, no tears. They're not live. They still need to be triggered to be set off."

"Dad. Look."

Rick looked firstly at Carl and then followed behind him to where his son was pointing. Standing up, Rick looked up the road at the first trickling of the herd beginning to approach. "Okay. There they are. But they're far." Crouching back down to resume dismantling of the next set of explosives, Rick assured the group. "We still have time."

"You sure?" Sasha questioned.

"We need these. And we need to get the cars back in front of the on-ramp."

"They'll know we took their explosives, so does it matter?" Jesus wondered.

"We want that herd to stay on the highway."

Tara seemed confused. "Why?"

"We may need it."

"Okay. Tara, Georgie, Carl, c'mon," Rosita called out.

The foursome closed the trunk to the Chevy Suburban. Tara jumped into the driver's seat and the other two climbed in after her. The engine started and off down the road it went, tires squealing, before coming to a stop at the on-ramp. Rosita jumped out first and began to run for the first available car. Climbing in the others helped push the car backward into position while she steered. In the meantime, the others continued to remove the last few explosives from the trip wire. All the while, the herd was getting nearer.

Just as the foursome on the on-ramp had finished up, they noticed the walker herd was right on them.

"Damn it!" Carl grumbled.

"We'll figure it out!" Rosita called out.

"Get in the car!" Georgie bellowed.

She gave Carl a slight shove forward; him being her first priority at the moment. Thankful they'd left the Suburban's doors open, it was easy to usher the teen inside of the vehicle and then quickly climb in after him as Rosita and Tara did the same. While Carl climbed over the back of the middle row to sit upon the back row to make sure the explosives and RPGs were still intact, the women began rolling the windows up as the walkers began to clamber at the vehicle, growling and dragging their decaying hands along the windows.

Once they were safely inside, but almost completely surrounded, Georgie turned around in her seat to look toward the direction of where they'd left Rick and the others, but couldn't see them.

"Do you see your father?" Georgie asked of the teen.

"No," Carl shook his head.

Moments later, the sounds of engines revving and car horns blaring began to draw the attentions of the walkers and they began to move away from the Suburban to follow where the noises were coming from. When the numbers began to thin around them Georgie leaned across the middle seat and looked out the window to see Rick and Michonne speeding up the road on opposite side of the grassy median in the two cars that the explosives had been attached to. There was no hesitation on either's part as they used the dismantled trip wire to act as a sort of clothesline and literally cut the herd in half.

"Well, that's damn effective," Georgie muttered.

Tara chuckled. "Totally badass."

When both cars reached the on-ramp, Rick and Michonne jumped out of their respective cars, with Michonne having to make more of a run for it since she was in the car furthest away. It began to look like they were getting surrounded and they would have no way out, and it put everyone inside the Suburban on the edge of their seat with worry.

"I wish this vehicle had a sunroof," Georgie grumbled.

"Why?" Carl asked.

"I could stand up through it and take out a few walkers, help your dad and Michonne."

"You would just draw the walkers back to us," Rosita remarked.

"They're already surrounding us anyway," Georgie retorted. "At least it would thin the numbers a little."

After losing sight of Rick and Michonne in the throngs of undead, suddenly Michonne appeared. She slipped around the back of the Suburban where the number of walkers seemed less and whipped the back passenger door open and practically threw herself inside. Rick appeared a moment or two later, trying to shove walkers off him.

"Carl, give me your gun," Georgie ordered.

Without hesitation, Carl handed his weapon over. When Rick got nearer to the Suburban, Georgie shoved the door on her side open and leaned out. She aimed the gun and fired two shots into two walkers too close to the door that would've prevented Rick getting to it. With her free hand, she held it out to Rick. When he was close enough, she grabbed his arm and helped yank him inside as he practically toppled onto her before closing the door behind him. The door wasn't even shut all the way when Tara shoved the gas pedal down and floored it.

As the Suburban sped away, Georgie put the safety onto the gun and handed back over the middle seat to Carl before pulling Rick against her. He leaned into her and then looked over the seat, out the back window of the vehicle, in the direction of the rapidly decreasing view of the herd they'd left behind. After a few moments, an explosion was set off, followed by a mushroom-style cloud of fire set among a plume a black smoke.

Rick let out a shaky sigh and turned to press his head against Georgie's while Michonne, on the other side of Georgie, began to chuckle with relief.

"Yeah, I didn't like the look of that shit at all," Rosita remarked.

"I pushed it, I pushed it," Rick panted, trying to catch his breath, the same as Michonne.

Georgie nodded and placed her hands upon either side of his sweaty face. "I know. You did, and you're here. We're all here. We made it," she assured; her voice barely above a whisper. "We can all make it. We can."

Rick began to calm down, looking her in the eye and finding comfort in how she held onto his face and rubbed circles upon his temples.

Leaning in closer to him, Georgie brought her lips to his and left a lingering kiss there before moving them to his ear to whisper. "Ride or die, remember?"

Rick smirked and nodded; turning his face to meet hers again for another kiss. "Ride or die," he repeated.