Chapter 48: Sins


KPOV

~2 years ago~

Aiming at a tree at the farm, I shot and used a wooden board as a target, it was thin, but it wouldn't do any damage to the arrows I had. Focused on my target, I let go of the string and watched as the arrow flew to where I was aiming. "Hey," mom startled me, making me jump and aim my bow at her her, almost firing, I shut my eyes and steadied my breathing. "Sorry for startling you like that," she smiled as she watched me lower my aim on her.

Taking a deep breath, I felt at ease and smiled at her. Happy to see her better, she had been a mess since Carl had been hit and I almost got both raped and killed in the woods. It was early and almost no-one was awake at this early light. "It's okay," I assured her. "What's wrong mom?" I asked as I slipped my bow around me, placing my arrow back in my quiver behind my back.

Taking a seat on a cut down tree, she smiled and offered a seat beside her. "Nothing, just checking up on you," she sniffed and looked up at me. "You know, I used to hate the fact you were learning how to use weapons," she began to tell me as I sat down beside her. "Guns, bows..." she listed the things I knew how to use. "Didn't know what to think," she shrugged as she looked down.

Laughing to herself, she looked up at me and her eyes were bright as they connected with mine. "All I knew, was that I hated it," she told me. "But now, I see how good you are with what you've learned," she continued and spoke in a tone that made me believe she was proud. "How you can now use it to hunt, to protect us and yourself," she listed the things I used my bow and guns for. "But most of all, you can survive with those skills I always hated," she laughed and her smile was wide, happy and a proud look was in her eyes.

Wrapping my arm around her shoulder, I felt happy being with her and I sensed her pride. I knew she meant what she was saying, taking everything in what she was saying. "Things are going to get better mom," I assured her. "Trust me," I encouraged her as I smiled and stared into her eyes, giving her shoulder a small squeeze, using my fingers.

Her smile was bright, eyes shone in the morning sunlight and her shoulders shook as she laughed. "You're right," she agreed with me, tears forming in her eyes. "My baby girl," she said as she moved out of my hold, lifting her hands, she cupped my face and pressed a kiss to my forehead. "When did you grow up to be such a remarkable woman?" she asked me, a small giggle escaping her as wrinkles formed around her eyes, her smile genuine and beautiful.


Present day...MPOV

After we left, we all wandered towards a road, staying close and keep quiet. Kat was happy to finally be with her sister, but also pleased that her family were safe, including all of us, who were her family too. Staying close to the group, I saw a walker make her way towards us. "I got it," I told them as I walked towards her.

Kat looked over her shoulder at me, a small smile on her lips and a raised eyebrow as she watched me. "You always do," she teased and giggled when she saw me reach for my sword. Touching thin air, I remembered the people at Terminus had my sword, so I smacked the walker in the face with the gun. Taking off my gun that was strapped along my body, I smashed the butt of the gun repeatedly into her face. Until she no longer gurgled and was no longer moving. "Missing your sword, huh?" Kat asked playfully.

Catching up to her, I laughed and blushed at the embaressment. Truthfully, I felt naked without my sword, but it wasn't something I missed. "Shut up," I nudged her gently, noting that Judith was in her arms and I didn't want to hurt either of them. "Hey Judith," I whispered with a wide smile as I let her little hand wrap around my finger. What a sweet, innocent child.


RPOV

We had stopped close to the road, but far enough from it at the same time. We were finding things to make a fire and were deciding who would take shifts at certain times. Picking through food, I was eating while Carl and Kat were looking after Judith. "You didn't want to be there," I said to Tara, as she looked around and stood beside us awkwardly. "That's why I tried to talk to you," I stated. "Glenn told me you saved his life," I spoke to her.

Tara was looking to the ground awkwardly, with a small smile and scoffed to herself. "He saved mine," she replied, telling me how it was and how they both saved each other. Somehow, between all of us, we all saved each other in some way.

Chuckling, I remembered the time everyone in our group saved us. How Glenn saved me that day in the tank, how Daryl saved me with Joe and many others, how Kat saved me at the prison and after. The list was endless. "That's how it works with us, right?" I asked her with a small smirk.

Smiling, I could sense she was starting to relax and enjoy her time with us. How she was starting to feel like a part of our family, which she was. Seeing as she didn't want to be there with the Governor, how he was the evil behind the plan. "Right," she agreed. "Hey," she said as she offered me her fist, wanting me to bump hers with mine.

I couldn't help but chuckle as I stared at her fist, raising my arm and clenching my hand into a fist, I bumped our fists together. Knowing that she was a good person, I wasn't going to make the Governor's influence portray the way she was to be treated. It wasn't her fault we lost our home and Hershel. "Get something to eat," I encouraged her. "We'll start back at sun-up," I informed her as I walked away from her.

Darkness soon fell over us, the only light we had was the fire and we all sat around it. People were either sleeping, eating or keeping to themselves. Getting up, I saw Carol was preparing for her watch and knew I needed to talk to her. "I owe you everything," I told her as I stared directly into her eyes, guilt flowing through my veins and pumping my heart faster.

Truthfully, I hated how I treated her, I hated how I had left her back there and didn't think twice about it. "You owe Tyreese," Carol said as she shook her head, referring to my daughter Judith, rather than everything else she had done for us. "He was at the prison," she stated what Tyreese had done, taking my daughter away from the prison and to safety.

Listening to her words, I realized that Carol had gone in search for us, possibly to ask for forgiveness, or to see what happened to us. The only logical explanation, was the fact there was a fire coming from the tank that Daryl had blown up. "You got back there," I mumbled with a nod of my head.

Blinking rapidly, she looked down at her small pouch and opened it. Pulling out something that shone in the darkness, I could see it was the watch I had given Sam a few weeks ago. "It was in one of their storerooms," Carol told me as she offered it back to me.

Taking a shaky breath, I remembered how Sam was murdered and how his blood spilled out of his neck. All of it happened in front of me. "I saw them kill him," I mumbled as I glanced between Carol and my watch. "That kid," I reminded her, taking mine gently from her, I pulled out Carol's watch and offered it back to her. Humming, she shook her head and awkwardly declined. "I still don't know about what you did...but I know you knew some things I didn't," I tried to excuse myself. "I sent you away to this-" I snarled at myself as I looked around us, back in the woods and back into open danger.

She cut me off, before I could continue my sentence, a sentance of self-loathing for what I did to her. It wasn't right what I did, but I didn't think things through and went against the council. "You said I could survive," she reminded me of my words. "You were right," she spoke in a cheerful tone.

There wasn't any way to go back in time, but I was thankful that Carol had been there to save my daughter and save us from those in Terminus. "I sent you away to this and now we're joining you," I spat with a shake of my head, lowering my head and looking down at the ground. "Will you have us?" I asked her as I looked up and met her eyes. "Thank you," I whispered as she gave me a shy smile and quick, small nod.


DPOV

We were sat, watching for if anyone was out there, or if there were any walkers nearby our camp. Myself and Carol were on watch, my crossbow pointing to the ground as I sat against a tree. "I don't want to talk about it," Carol said when she noticed me staring at her longer than she may have wanted. "I can't," she spoke with a sad tone, her eyes gazing into the distance, never meeting mine. "I just need to forget it," she told me, warning me not to ask her anything or force her into talking.

Knowing it was best for me not to ask questions, I knew it was better if I was to keep quiet and let her tell me when the time was right. "A'ight," I agreed, knowing it was best that way and that it would make her feel comfortable again. The sudden sound of leaves rustling and twig snaping made me jump up, onto my feet. Carol too got to her feet, but I grumbled and looked into the distance. Glancing around, I saw that it wasn't a walker, the feeling of eyes staring at us made my spine shiver. "It's nothing," I concluded, knowing that if there was someone, either they would come out, or run away and return to wherever they came from.


KPOV

Wandering closely, we were all armed and wandering through the woods. Daryl was out hunting, searching for food and keeping away from us. Holding Judith in my arms, I stayed close behind Carl and dad, while Michonne stayed close beside my side. A rustle in the bushes made us all stop, raise our guns and aim towards where the noise came from. With one hand holding Judith to me, I pulled out my gun from my holster, took the safety off, cocked my gun and aimed at whatever was coming our way.

Stepping out from the bushes, it was Daryl and he had finished his hunting trip. Spotting us holding up our guns, he raised the squirrels he had on a string and had his arms splayed out in surrender. "We surrender," he teased, making me giggle and lower my gun. Everyone else smiled at Daryl, lowering their guns and allowing him to make his way towards us. Daryl stayed close to my dad, but I turned my attention back to Judith, a wide smile on my face at Daryl's stupid joke.


RPOV

Lowering my gun when I saw it was Daryl, we continued to walk, but I slowed my pace a little, so that Daryl could catch up and talk to me. Secretly, he had gone to see if there were any tracks of anyone who could have been watching us, but also to catch some food that we could eat later. "No tracks. No nothing," he updated me on what he found and what he didn't find.

Surprised to hear that his suspicions on what he believed to be someone watching us, was a false alarm. Except, something in me told me we needed to be cautious, that it was possible people escaped from Terminus and found us. "So whatever you heard last night..." I went to conclude, but he cut me off quickly.

His pace was close to mine, all of us walking as quickly as we could, far away from Terminus and closer to Washington. "It's more what I felt," he began to explain. "If someone was watching us, there would have been something," he told me, which made me worry for if it was nothing, or if those who were following us were better than what we could imagine.

Whistling, I let Daryl lead the way and began to fall back. Seeing Judith in Kat's arms once again, felt like a dream come true. "Keep close," I ordered of everyone as we all walked in a line and close together. People carrying guns, sacks and other things that needed to be carried with us along the journey.

Abraham began walking closer to me, following my side closely and keeping the bag of guns thrown over his shoulder. "Ready to get some concrete under your feet?" he asked me, already asking me questions about Washington DC and his mission.

Knowing that sooner or later, we needed to find a car and keep driving until we found a safe spot. I didn't want Judith or any of my kids stuck out in the woods, more than they needed to be. "I think it's time," I agreed with a nod and a long enough thought about it.

Chuckling sofly, he looked ahead and we kept walking. Following the line, I knew that Tara, Rosita, Eugene, Maggie and Glenn were close behind us. "That is sweet music to my ears, Officer," he teased, reminding me of the time I called myself Officer Friendly to Merle. "Take the next road we come to, try to get back to going north till we find a vehicle," he suggested a plan. "Good?" he asked me for my agreement on the plan he had for us.

Listening to his plan, it didn't sound too bad than I had expected. "Good," I agreed with a nod, turning around, I saw that the others were falling behind a little. "Tighten it up," I ordered as we all tried to keep in a close, tight formation, that way all of us could be safe and we could all work together if there was a small herd coming our way.


KPOV

Walking behind Daryl and the others that began to walk ahead of me, Michonne went to walk beside Daryl and I saw Carl slow down to stand beside me. "Hey," he greeted me, to which I replied with my own 'Hey.' The pair of us stayed silent and continued to walk behind those, following closely. "Have you ever thought about teaching me how to use a bow?" Carl asked me out of the blue.

Turning my head to look at him, I hoisted Judith a little, because she was slipping and I had noticed Carl was looking at my bow curiously. As though he may want to give it a try in that very moment. "Why are you asking me this?" I questioned him, my eyebrows furrowing and eyes glued to his face.

Carl looked like he was trapped, caught in a web that he didn't know how to get out. "Because, I'm curious," he said as he looked away and shrugged, his head bowing and then he looked up at me once more. Somehow, he gained strength quickly and some sort of courage. "Can you answer my question, please?" he pleaded of me.

Taking a quick breath, I let it go equally as rapid as I took it in. "Never really thought about it," I answered quickly, knowing there was no other way around saying what I thought. "Mom didn't like it all that much when I was learning, at first, I took lessons and eventually, I picked up my own skills after using it myself," I revealed to him. "She told me that she was thankful I knew how to use it, along with guns, but she never thought we'd be in a situation like this," I shrugged.

My young brother's eyebrows furrowed and his eyes squinted at me curiously, as though he was trying to figure out what I was saying. Trying to find out what I meant and what I was saying to him. "So...does that mean you'll teach me?" he asked me, curious and trying to figure out if it meant yes, or no.

Knowing that he was a quick learner, I knew that sometimes, he could be too confident when it came to weapons. But, I knew he needed to learn and it would be another way to use a silent weapon against walkers and people. "Maybe, we'll see how enthusiastic you'll be," I said as I looked down at him. "Just, make sure when and if I teach you, you listen to everything I tell you," I gave him my conditions. "Okay?" I asked him, raising my eyebrows and staring down at him. Nodding, he smiled up at me and we continued to walk silently.


CPOV

Talking with Kat, we had a small and calm conversation, while Bob and Sasha were talking behind us, about the good that came out of the bad. When it all turned silent, we could all hear a scream in the distance. "Help! Help, anybody! Help!" the man was screaming, pleading for help and I could feel my heart pounding.

I knew instantly what I had to do, I had to help them, not only for myself, but because it was the right thing to do. Kat didn't seem to do anything, but she stopped the moment she heard the scream. Dad stopped us all in our tracks, but listened to the scream and possibly tried to guess how far away it was. "Dad, come on," I told him as we kept hearing the man scream. "Come on! Come on," I encouraged everyone as I moved forward, towards the direction of the sound.


NPOV

Hesitant, Rick didn't know what to do, but he knew that the right thing was to do what his son said. Kat was weary after everything that happened to them, but she knew that help was something she needed to do whenever there was someone in need of assistance. Running, the entire group rushed towards the screams, finding a small man climbing above a rock and pleading for help.

Seven walkers surrounded the man, as they all reached up and tried to get a hold of his feet. Raising her gun as her sister was cradled against her in the other, Kat was one of the first to shoot and lowered her gun as the others ran. At the same time, her brother ran towards the man and shot one of the walkers that had hold of the man's foot. Rick slammed the walker's head against the rock, grabbing it by its hair and effectively killed it. Michonne slapped it using the butt of her gun and kept hitting it until it no longer moved. Carol pushed a walker back and stabbed it with her knife.

A single walker wandered around from behind the rock, this was the seventh walker. One that was hidden from everyone's sight, closing in on Carol, raising his crossbow, Daryl killed it and everything became calm once more. "We're clear," Rick spoke to everyone, knowing that it seemed that was the last of the walkers. "Keep watch," he ordered as the small man was panting above the rock. When the coast seemed clear, Rick looked up and saw the shivering man. "Come on down," he said commands to the man. "You okay?" he asked once the man's feet touched the ground.

From the fear and adrenalin of almost losing his life, the priest curled over and spilled the contents from his stomach. Rick looked away, Carl looked at him surprised, Kat looked at him disgusted, Daryl was confused by his reaction and Rosita looked at him like he was pathetic. "Sorry," the priest apologized as he wiped the sick from his mouth. "Yes, thank you," he answered Rick's question. "I'm Gabriel," the priest introduced himself.

Kat kept her sister close, everyone else either kept their eyes on anything that could harm them, or on the priest. Kat, Carol, Michonne, Carl, Tyreese, Abraham, Rick, Eugene and Rosita kept their eyes on the priest. "Do you have any weapons on you?" Rick asked him.

Chuckling the priest seemed amused by the insinuation that a preacher of God would carry a weapon with him. "Do I look like I would have any weapons?" he asked them, as though looks was ever a cover to judge, especially in this world that they lived in now. Because kind figures, didn't last in this world anymore. The people they had met, either survived because they were smart with skills, they were lucky, or they had done something very bad in order to survive.

Abraham wasn't convinced. None of them were. Rick was skeptical of what to believe, as was Kat, especially after all she had been through over the matter of a few years, she doubted there were good people in the world. "We don't give two short and curlies what it looks like," Abraham replied, no one in the group seemed to be convinced by looks anymore, as they had been decived one too many times.

Everyone had slowly made their way to see the priest, knowing that they were in the clear for a while, the chose to all judge if the priest was genuine or false. "I have no weapons of any kind," Gabriel replied to Rick's question. "The word of God is the only protection I need," he said in his holy tone, praising God and for all the things he had done. Everyone around him thought it was a joke, especially Daryl and Carol.

The pair had been decieved by God too many times, for Daryl, it was since childhood and for Carol, it was the loss of her daughter in an important time of her life. "Sure didn't look like it," Daryl snarled as the others grouped up, forming a small crowd around Father Gabriel. The preist had many thoughts on his mind, but what the group were capable of, wasn't one of them.

Father Gabriel was nervous, but more for what the survivors around him were looking for, if they were going to harm him, or do any evil to him, in any form. "I called for help," he chuckled, hopeful that the group surrounding him were good people. "Help came," he smiled awkwardly to those arround him. "Do you have-have any food?" he stuttered as he looked at each face. "Whatever I-I had left, it just hit the ground," he informed them as he glanced down at the sick mountain of food, that had been digested but came out from the rush of fear.

Carl was hopeful that this man was good, while Kat was weary, after all she had been through, it seemed like most of the good people had either changed into bad people, or were in her group. Kat didn't know what to think, but she had hope that there was still good in people, that she only needed to dig deeper than before. "We've got some pecans," Carl said as he dug into his pocket and handed the priest the food he had.

With a glance at Carl's hands, he saw the food that was being offered to him, despite all the bad he had done for others in need. Gabriel took the food and smiled at the young, kind boy. "Thank you," he spoke to Carl. Judith began cooing, saying 'Mama' to Kat as she reached up to touch Kat's cheek, making Kat giggle and kiss the palm of Judith's hand. "That's a beautiful child," Gabriel commented as he caught sight of Kat and Judith together. "Do you have a camp?" Gabriel asked as he looked back to Rick.

Everyone glanced at Gabriel with a speculated look in their eyes, seeing how he looked at Judith, made most of the group's skin crawl. "No," Rick answered as quick as a shot, truthfully, he didn't believe that Gabriel was being honest enough with them. The way Father Gabriel asked questioned and seemed nervous, he knew that the priest was keeping a secret. "Do you?" Rick asked back in return.

"I have a church," Gabriel replied with a few nervous blinks.

Something about him wasn't right, something that Rick didn't like much about him. He was too nervous, to jittery and he didn't like the sense that the priest gave him. "Hold your hands above your head," Rick ordered, not taking the chance of Gabriel being the opposite of what he looked. "How many walkers have you killed?" Rick asked him as he began to frisk the priest.

The priest raised his hands above his head and listened to Rick's question. Truthfully, he was surprised by the name they had given the people that once lived. "Not any, actually," the priest replied as he looked towards Rick and looked down nervously.

Rick wasn't convinced, he listened and chose to keep an open mind. Somehow, he was keeping a secret and Rick knew it, but Rick simply wasn't sure of what it could be. "Turn around," Rick ordered of the nervous priest. "How many people have you killed?" Rick asked the priest, following the same three questions that he would ask back at the prison.

Searching for weapons, Rick descovered eventually that what Gabriel had said was true. That he hadn't been using any weapons, neither did he carry. "None," Gabriel spoke as he furrowed his eyebrows and twisted his torso, all so he could look over his shoulder at Rick and answer him truthfully. Although, he knew that he may not of physically killed anyone, but he did by a simple action out of cowardice.

Finishing his frisking search, Rick looked to Gabriel and straightened up on his feet. "Why?" he asked Gabriel as they kept eye-contact. Something in Rick, knew that what Gabriel was saying was true, but that the truth could be twisted in ways to benefit the person. He's keeping something from us. Rick had mused in his thoughts.

Everyone else watched the conversation play out, listening to the answers being given and making their own judgements of the man stood before them. "Because the Lord abhors violence," Gabriel replied simply, quoting what was the norm for priests to answer with.

Rick was convinced that there was something Gabriel was hiding from them, so what he did was take a step closer and stare at Gabriel directly in the eye. "What have you done?" Rick asked him, a look in his eyes that knew he caught Gabriel in his trap. "We've all done something," he stated, knowing that to survive, they all had to do something to keep themselves alive.

Pressured, Gabriel panted and shivered at the intensity of Rick's glare. Looking away, he didn't know how to answer him without telling them his sins. "I'm a sinner," he agreed as he looked to Rick. "I sin almost every day," he confessed subtly. "But those sins, I confess them to God, not strangers," he said as he insulted the others blatantly.

Michonne knew there was no way of getting the truth out of him, especially without him knowing them. So, she chose to let it slide and went to talk to Gabriel on behalf of those who were too busy judging him. "You said you had a church?" she asked him, to which he looked over his shoulder and towards Michonne with a small smile and nod.


RPOV

Deciding we'd give the church a look, I knew we needed shelter, supplies and ammunition if we wanted to make it anywhere. It didn't matter if it'd be DC or anywhere, we needed rest and other things. "Hey, earlier, were you watching us?" I asked Gabriel as we followed him closely. He had been nervous, too nervous for comfort and I wasn't sure about where he stood.

Gabriel lead the way as we all walked close, Kat kept hold of Judith and kept her quiet. "I keep to myself," Gabriel answered my question in a strange way, it was as though he wasn't answering me fully. "Nowadays, people are just as dangerous as the dead, don't you think?" he asked me.

"No, people are worse," Daryl corrected him as he walked beside me, Gabriel walked ahead and stayed ahead of us.

Gabriel would glance at us over his shoulder as he walked along the path freely, without a care or worry in the world. "Well, I wasn't watching you," he answered. "I haven't been beyond the stream near my church more than a few times since it all started. That was the furthest I've gone before today," he informed us. "Or maybe I'm lying. Maybe I'm lying about everything and there's no church ahead at all," he said, which made us all either stop or look at him funny. Is he leading us into a trap? "Maybe I'm leading you into a trap so I can steal all your squirrels," he laughed.

Noticing us all freeze, he stopped and looked to us. Gulping, he realized that he had done wrong and spoke a joke which wasn't funny. At all. "Members of my flock had often told me that my sense of humor leaves much to be desired," he spoke nervously, which was the truth as his jokes and teasing wasn't the best for any of us.

Daryl didn't find any humor in Gabriel's words, none of us found what he said funny. It only lead us to believe that there really wasn't any good left in the world. "Yeah, it does," Daryl growled as he kept close to me and kept his eyes on Gabriel. That wasn't funny, at all.

Seeing the small church ahead, it seemed big enough to hold us and more, but something about it seemed lonely, like there was a story behind it that explained why it was silent. "Hold up," I told everyone and the priest as I went to the door. "Can we take a look around first?" I asked the priest. "We just want to hold on to our squirrels," I joked in return sarcastically, using the keys, myself, Michonne, Daryl, Carol and Glenn wandered into the church. Finding it was clear, the others checked the rooms as I stepped towards the alter and saw a stack of canned food piled neatly around the alter, laid out on the ground. Whistling, to let the others know it was clear, we all walked back towards the front door of the church.


KPOV

Seeing the priest act so weirdly, his joke wasn't funny and it was proven by our reactions. He had been nervous and there was something about him I wasn't sure about. I somehow thought he was more of a coward than a preacher. Dad stepped out, along did the others and they gave us a nod, telling us it was safe. For now. "I spent months here without stepping out the front door," the priest began to tell us. "If you found someone inside, well, it would have been surprising," Gabriel laughed to himself as he looked at my dad, who was unamused.

Carl had wanted to take hold of Judith, while I had taken watch for any walkers. After hearing the whistle, I wandered back to Carl and saw him smiling up at the priest, Judith looking sweet and innocent in his arms. "Thanks for this," Carl thanked the priest as he would bounce Judith in his arms gently.

Dad was staring down at Judith, his eyes bright and hopeful, as though he had a meaning to his life. His children. His family. I had realized. "We found a short bus out back. It don't run, but I bet we could fix that in less than a day or two," Abraham informed my dad of what we found. "Father here says he doesn't want it. Looks like we found ourselves some transport," he continued to tell my dad as Judith's head was being caressed by her father. "You understand what's at stake here, right?" Abraham asked him, unsure if my dad was listening to him or not.

Leaning in, I was resting my hand on Carl's shoulder, pressing a kiss to both Carl and Judith's cheeks, I smiled up at dad and realized I had slowly been taking over my mother's role. I don't know how I feel about that. "Yes, I do," dad said as he looked directly into my eyes, as though he too had realized what I had seconds ago.

Knowing that we needed to rest and catch our breath after all the shit we had gone through. I knew that others may have disagreed, but those that did, would know why. "Now that we can take a breath-" I went to finish and was cut off by Abraham.

Somehow, Abraham was anxious and desperate to keep moving. To never stop. But, I had always remembered what people would say. We need to stop for a while, smell the roses for a little bit and recover from the hell we lived through back in Terminus. "We take a breath, we slow down, shit inevitably goes down," he spoke quickly, ready to leave and fight with me about it.

Keeping calm, I knew that I needed to be reasonable and keep a level head. Especially with Abraham, who was proving to be a bossy, single-minded man. "We need supplies no matter what we do next," I stated, knowing that we needed to find the supplies and recover from the long journey we've all had so far.

Dad's eyes never wavered from my face, his eyes glued to me and his expression relaxed. There was a glint in his eyes, one that made me think he was proud of me, that he agreed with me. "That's right," he agreed with a single, firm clench of his jaw. "Water, food, ammunition," he listed the supplies I had yet to say, making me smile at him and look towards Abraham.

Offering him a small smile, I moved away and continued my journey into the church. Leading Carl in after dad, I looked over at Daryl and saw him glance at me before staring down at Abraham. "Short bus ain't going nowhere," he told Abraham. "Bring you back some baked beans," Daryl joked teasingly, being sarcastic like he usually was.


RPOV

When we all got in, I took Judith from Carl and wandered into the building, Kat was helping Carl fix up a spot for us to sleep. "How'd you survive here for so long?" I asked the priest while we all began to settle in. "Where did your supplies come from?" I threw all these questions at him, not giving him much time to answer.

The priest was a strange man, the way he was nervous made me question if he was good or not. Because all of us had to survive by doing something bad in a time of need. "Luck," Gabriel replied. "Our annual canned food drive," he stated to us. "Things fell apart right after we finished it," he explained. "It was just me," he informed us as we were all glancing to one another.

Kat was finished doing our corner, Michonne helping Carl with his things as Kat made her way towards me. "Come here, Judith," she said as she took Judith gently from me, placing Judith into her arms and offering me a small smile. She reminds me of Lori sometimes, especially the wrinkle around her eyes.

Walking away, Kat went to give Judith some food and looked towards myself and the priest. "The food lasted a long time," Gabriel told us. "And then I started scavenging," he informed us of what he had done, as to why he was still alive and fed. "I've cleaned out every place nearby," he stated. "Except for one," Gabriel added shyly.

Kat had left to a quieter room, where Carol, Daryl, Glenn, Maggie, Tara, Eugene, Abraham and Rosita were. "What kept you from it?" I asked him, curious to know what would make him not want to go to that specific place. Gabriel had then stated that it was overrun. "How many?" I questioned, cautious and speculative that what he was saying was the truth.

Glancing at the priest, I noticed he was too uncomfortable to be completely honest with us. "A dozen or so," Gabriel shrugged. "Maybe more," he spoke, unsure of how many walkers were in the specific place that he hadn't gone into. I wonder what the real reason is for him not wanting to go to the place where there is food.

Nodding, I took in his information and knew we could handle it. Looking up at Michonne, I gave her a nod and she gave me a nod in agreement. We can do this. "We can handle a dozen," I spoke confidently, knowingly and I didn't need to overthink it. We had been in worse situations and with a wider sum of walkers than a dozen before. We could handle a dozen and more.

Sasha moved towards me, sighing loudly she looked like she was ready to leave and join us. "Bob and I will go with you," Sasha said with a small smile as she stood beside me, glancing at Gabriel and then looking back to me and Bob. "Tyreese should stay here, help keep Judith safe," she encouraged her brother with a duty to my daughter.

Truthfully, I knew I could trust Tyreese with Judith as he had been caring for her since the prison was overrun. "That'll be okay?" I asked him, curious as to what my daughter and son would be doing. I knew Carl would be staying here, but I was unsure what Kat was doing and if she was fit enough to go out and fight.

Tyreese looked to me, a smile on his face and his eyes glancing to Judith as Kat wandered in with Judith in her arms. She had been leaning against the doorway, listening to what was happening. "Sure," Tyreese agreed with a nod. "You ever need me to watch her, need anything for her," he spoke as he stared adoringly at my baby Judith. "I'm right here," he assured us, offering his services to protect Judith.

Wandering over to him, I knew he was a good man and I had a lot of respect and love for him. He had cared for Judith, forgave Carol and saved Judith from one of those cannibal freaks. "I'm grateful for it," I told him truthfully. "And everything else," I added with a small nod.

"I'll draw you a map," Gabriel said out of the blue as he went to walk away.

Surprised by Gabriel deciding he wasn't going to join us, I didn't think this was right and I knew that I had to bring him along. "You don't need to," I stated. "You're coming with us," I informed him, telling him what was going to happen and not letting him decide what he was going to do for himself. I'm the one who decides.

Gabriel began to laugh, as though it was all a big joke. Except, he soon realized that it wasn't a joke and that it was very real. "I'm not gonna be of any help," he said after his laughter died down. "You saw me," he reminded me. "I'm no good around those things," he stated, but I wasn't going to let him slip through the cracks.

Not allowing Gabriel to stay with Carl, Judith and possibly Kat. I knew in my stomach that something was wrong, that he was avoiding something or leading us into a trap. Either someone is where he didn't go, or it's something else. All I know, is he's keeping something from us. "You're coming with us," I repeated firmly, not letting him try and convince me further.

Kat handed Judith slowly to Carl and walked closer to me, stopping in front of me, she slid her hands into her back pockets, much like how her mother used to stand. "I'm going with Carol and Daryl, find some food and water," she informed me of what she was doing. "Maggie, Tara and Glenn are going to look for ammunition and silencers," she stated what the others were going to do.

Nodding, I knew that this was a good idea, seeing as Kat was a good hunter, as was Daryl, so if we didn't get anything, they'd hopefully catch something. Along with water, which was much needed and with what Glenn was going to look for too. Everything was a necessity now, once again. "Sounds good," I agreed with a nod of my head, deciding to let Kat do what she had to and not argue or question her. She's a full grown woman, and I trust her.


CPOV

We were all ready to leave, I had everything I needed on me and all I needed to do now, was leave. Except, dad looked around and then towards me, Kat and Judith. Taking Judith gently from me, he walked over and gave Judith to Tyreese. "Could you guys give me a few minutes alone with my kids?" he asked and eventually, everyone left the room and allowed me, Kat and dad time alone. "Listen, I don't trust this guy," dad said as I took a sat, while Kat stood and dad crouched in-front of us.

Confused, I was unsure why dad could hate Gabriel or distrust him. He had given us shelter, he didn't seem like a bad person to me. Even if he was, it wasn't like we couldn't handle a small man like him. "Why?" I asked him, Kat stayed silent beside me.

Dad's eyebrows furrowed as he shuffled closer to me, his eyes glued to mine and a questioning look was on his face. "Why do you trust him?" he asked me in return, not answering my question, but I knew he was only curious as to why I was putting faith to a priest. That sounded a little funny.

Shrugging, I knew what mom would want from me. I knew that Kat kept trying to keep hope alive, after seeing Judith alive, I knew I had to have hope. Hope that everything was going to be okay and that we were going to beat this world, that not everyone is evil in this world. "Everybody can't be bad," I spoke to dad hopefully.

Kat giggled softly, her eyes bright as they looked down at me and dad chuckled along with her. "Well...I don't trust this guy," dad repeated. "And that's why I'm bringing him with me," he informed me. "But he could have friends. So I need you to stay alert and help Tyreese protect Judith, okay?" he warned and added a question at the end. Nodding, I knew I needed to be there for Judith, especially since Kat was going to find water, while dad was looking for food. "Now...I need both of you to hear what I'm about to say," dad said as he looked directly into our eyes.

Staring into dad's eyes, I could tell he was serious as he glanced between me and Kat. "Okay," me and Kat agreed at the same time, making me glance to her for a second, sharing a small smile between the pair of us.

Returning our gazes back to dad, he then began to tell us the small speech he had probably been dying to tell us. "You are not safe," he began slowly, pronouncing each word with emphasis. "No matter how many people are around or how clear the area looks, no matter what anyone says, no matter what you think, you are not safe," he listed all the things that could make us believe we were safe. "It only takes one second. One second and it's over," he stated. "Never let your guard down, ever," he ordered. "I want you two to promise me," he finished, his eyebrows raised and eyes glancing between the pair of us.

Both myself and Kat promised him at the same time. Mumbling an 'Okay,' dad went to get up and leave us. "Dad," I found my guts and got up out of my seat. "You're right," I sighed when he turned around to look at me. "I am strong. We all are," I said as I gestured to the three of us. "But, we're strong enough that we can still help people," I tried to encourage him. "And we can handle ourselves if things go wrong. And we're strong enough that we don't have to be afraid, and we don't have to hide," I listed the things that we no longer needed to do and what we were capable of doing.

Dad gulped, nodding and taking in my words. Kat was staring at me with pure awe, adoration and pride. It was something I had rarely seen in her eyes, but when I did, it was always a good feeling that it sent to my soul. "Well, he's hiding something," dad said as I kept my eyes on him.

Taking gentle hold of my shoulder, Kat's arm wrapped around my back and her eyes were glued to dads. "We'll stay safe, dad," she assured him with a small smile and nod. Mumbling a yeah, dad left and walked out the door to join the others. Smiling down at me, I was growing taller with each day and I was already slightly below her shoulder. "When did you get so hopeful, so...positive?" she asked me as she bumped her hip with mine. "Hmm?" she teasingly hummed with a wide, tight-lipped smile.

Chuckling, I looked to Kat and saw how she resembled more dad than mom, but in this moment, she reminded me of mom. "I have you and Judith didn't die back at the prison," I told her with a small shrug and a blush began to form on my cheeks. "I guess it's my wonderful sisters that gave me hope," I complimented my sisters and gave a good enough reason to stay hopeful. Making her snicker, she took off my hat and messed up my hair a little. I love my sisters.


RPOV

We were all heading towards where Father Gabriel was leading us. But, as I was focused, Bob decided now was a good time to distract me with conversation. "Hey," he said as he caught up next to me. "When you said they don't get to live, you weren't wrong," he agreed with me. "We push ourselves and let things go. Then we let some more go and some more. And pretty soon, there's things we can't get back," he began to talk about the people back at Terminus. "Things we couldn't hold on to even if we tried," he stated the hard truths about this world. "Washington's gonna happen, Rick," he told me confidently, certain that this was going to happen.

Pondering in my thoughts, I kept a look out for any walkers and people. Knowing that Washington was a possibility, I wasn't certain that Washington was going to be for us. "I haven't decided if we're going," I told him, knowing that I would make the decision for most of us.

Bob didn't want to give up. "Yeah, I know, and that's cool," he agreed once more. "But you've seen Abraham in action. He's gonna get there and Eugene's gonna cure all this and you're gonna find yourself in a place where it's like how it used to be," he spoke confidently. "And if you've let too much go along the way, that's not gonna work," he shook his head a he kept talking. "'Cause you're gonna be back in the real world," he said in a confident, hopeful tone, more hopeful to the future than what Kat was.

Certain about one thing, this world was real and it was in the present. It was something that wouldn't change quickly, but I wasn't sure it would ever change in the end. "This is the real world, Bob," I corrected him as I kept a look out and followed Gabriel closely, never letting him leave my sight.

Somehow, Bob still didn't want to agree with me completely. "Naw," he disagreed. "This is a nightmare, and nightmares end," he informed me. "I'm sorry. I'm calling it. Washington's gonna happen. You're gonna say yes," he predicted. "Already too much momentum," he told me. "You can't fight city hall," he stated. "Maybe that's just one of those parts of not letting go," he teased a little as we kept walking.


DPOV

Wandering closely together, myself and Carol went to find water together, while Kat went hunting for anything we could eat. "Hey, I get it," I began as myself and Carol walked side by side, bottles of water in hand, the pair of us holding two plastic bottles full of water. "You don't want to talk about it," I stated, knowing that talking about things were difficult for Carol sometimes. "You okay?" I asked her.

Neither of us looked the other in the eye, but when I went to ask her how she was, I looked over my shoulder and at her beside me. When I asked her how she was, she too looked to me and gave me a small, sad smile. "Gotta be," she repeated the words I said to her back in the prison when the people we cared for were sick.

Keeping close and quiet, I could hear the sounds of animals in the distance and knew that there would possibly be enough to hunt for us. Hopeful that Kat caught something. "We get to start over," I told Carol honestly. "All of us with each other," I added, knowing that each of us had changed in some way during the journey to Terminus. "You saved us all by yourself," I stated.

Truthfully, I was proud of what Carol did, surprised she had the balls, strength and smarts to do what she had. But, I always knew that Carol was destined for great things, thankfully, that was one of them. "We got lucky," she disagreed. "We all should be dead," she told us, which was more than likely true. Coming across a car, we saw it looked abandoned and in good enough shape. "I'll check it," Carol said as we headed closer towards the car.

Not wanting to tell her I would, I knew she could do it and allowed her to do as she pleased. I knew she was close to leaving, even Kat could sense that Carol was creating a small plan for herself. Where she'd disappear and leave us again, especially after what Rick had done to her. "All right," I agreed as I glanced at the car, which was in good enough shape to use. As Carol went to get in the car, there was the sound of rustling bushes, making us freeze, lower the bottles of water and raise our weapons in the direction of the sound.


KPOV

Finding Carol and Daryl by an abandoned car, I stepped out of the bushes and they raised their weapons at me. Glancing between the pair of them, I was surprised they had been this jumpy, but I didn't blame them for it either. We had all been through so much over the past couple of weeks, between the infection, the Governor, the seperation, the people met and lost, the people at Terminus. It was one hell of a bumpy road. "Got us some rabbits," I said as I raised the string Daryl had given me to place the rabbits on.

The pair gave me a nod before they went back to their searchings. "Hey," Daryl said, lately he was silent and would never look me in the eyes. I felt as though he was trying to distance himself from me. "We ain't dead," he told myself and Carol, including himself in his statement. "And whatever happened, happened," he shrugged. "Let's start over," he suggested.

Truthfully, I stayed silent and didn't know how to answer, although myself and Daryl had noticed how Carol looked like she always wanted to run away from us. Like she no longer wanted to be around us, which was worrying and sad to think about. "I want to," Carol answered, which made me think the same. The things I would change, it could be an endless list.

Daryl had always cared for Carol, but it seemed as though Daryl kept maturing with every passing event. He had changed through this hell, since we had first met and became a man we all loved. But that was what he was now, a man. "Well, you can," he encouraged of Carol. "We all can," he spoke as his eyes flashed towards me.

Humming, Carol had opened the boot of the car and turned something on, I wasn't sure what it was and I couldn't make the shape of what it could be. "We should leave this here for backup, in case things go south at the church," she suggested as she shut the boot and turned to the bottles of water she had left on the ground.

The man I thought highly about too was carrying bottles of water, but he went to raise the bottle and I reached to take the bottles from Carol. She gave me a sweet smile, but a look telling me that she got it, that she could handle it. "Want me to carry one of those?" Daryl asked as a bottle of the water he held flew and splashed a little of its contents out.

Stiffling a giggle, Daryl blushed and couldn't look to either myself or Carol. Carol was pursing her lips, trying hard not to laugh as she looked to Daryl and then to the bottle that laid on the ground. Wiping his mouth, Daryl looked as though he wanted to dig himself a hole and crawl into it. "No," Carol rejected his offer, after a small humming noise and made me laugh loudly. Poor Daryl, but he's so sweet. Gathering up the bottle, he checked the amount that fell and if there was any dirt contaminating the water, thankfully it was perfectly fine and almost full. Making our way back, we either kept quiet or spoke softly with one another and kept close.


RPOV

Gabriel kept leading the way, leading us to a small town and it looked abandoned. No dead ones walked, neither did they crawl and it was quiet. Too quiet. "We're here," he told us as we stopped by a small store. "This was the food bank," he informed us. "It served the whole county," he gave us this piece of information. "All the cans at my church were gonna end up here," he explained why he wanted to come here, seeing as this was the place to go to get the cans that the church was going to send to.

Entering, slowly, we found ourselves with a whole. Walkers splashing and snarling as they wandered in the water. Going in first, I checked to see if this was a trap and found myself surrounded by clothes and when I looked down the hole, I saw a few walkers wandering around aimlessly. Signaling the others to wait, I then noticed the walkers and told them to follow. "If a sewer could puke, this is what it'd smell like," Bob said as he stared down at the walkers that roamed in the water.

Leaves, shit and other things were floating or mixed with the water. The stench was one that made me want to puke, but I had a strong enough gut to hold it back in. "The water's been coming down that hole for a while," Michonne informed us as she looked up at the roof, following her gaze, we all saw the hole she spoke of. "Slimed this place up good," she commented as she looked down at the walkers and hole where the floor boards used to be.

Sasha had stood closer a little, everyone peering down at the walkers that walked and snarled at nothing. Some caught sight of us, but they couldn't do anything to get us. Nor did some of them attempt to attack us. "We can use the shelves to block them," Sasha suggested to me as she glanced at the things we could use to keep us safe, while using ways of killing them too and being sucessful in our mission.

Staring down at the walkers, I looked up at Sasha and realized it was the perfect plan. "Yeah, that's it, Sasha," I agreed. "There's our way," I spoke as I moved the gun to sit on the floor boards. "Down those shelves," I ordered as I figured out a way to get down there. Everyone followed my lead, keeping weapons that were quiet and ones that wouldn't get wet or damaged from the water.

Glancing to the side, I saw how Gabriel was stood there, frozen on the spot. He didn't want to move, he also looked like he was having a case of high anxiety. "Hey. I said you're coming with us," I reminded Gabriel. The sound of snarling came from below as we made our way down, using the shelves as a ladder and splashed into the water. "Go! Go!" I shouted as we all were dunked into the water, the stinky and slimey liquid floating a little below my chest, almost to my waist. "Here they come," I warned them.

Forcing the shelves together, we formed a shield and kept the walkers behind it. "You take right," I told Sasha and Bob as they forced the shelves together with myself and Michonne. "I see three here," I informed them as I saw a few walkers wander out from the shadows and make their way towards us. Slicing their brians, I watched as they fell and no longer snarled or stood. Killing off the walkers, I saw a female walker in old looking attire wander towards me and then spot Father Gabriel.

The priest had stood behind us, but didn't kill any walkers. Instead, when I turned to look at him, I saw him running away, the sound of wooden stairs snapping caught my attention. When I looked at him, I saw the female walker making her way towards him, as though by recognition, I felt like they once knew one another. Father Gabriel was clutching at the wall, fighting against the water and trying to get out. His chest puffed out, his back pressed to the wall and I could tell his heart was pounding erratically. "We have to get Gabriel," I shouted to the others.

Everyone then glanced towards where I was looking, killing a final walker, I heard Bob shout and ask me what happened. "I don't know," I replied to him, unsure what had gotten into the priest so suddenly. "All right, we'll push down the shelves on the ones in front of us," I began to instruct them on what to do. "We'll fight through and I'll grab him," I told them their objective. "Go!" I shouted over the snarls and all of us grunting and groaning as we shoved the shelves to push the walkers down.

Following after the walker, the others began to fight against the ones that got back to their feet. Seeing one walker coming too close to me, I stabbed him with the end of my machete and rushed closer to the one that was getting closer to Gabriel. He was shutting his eyes, his chest rising and falling quickly. Taking hold of the walker by the head, I slammed her head against a shelf next to him, smashing her head until she no longer moved or made a sound. Dropping her, I looked to Gabriel and saw he was whimpering, either of relief or the fear that had run through his veins, I knew he was in some type of shock.

Suddenly, everything calmed down and there weren't any walkers around. Gabriel had sank into the water, but everyone else began searching for food to take with us. "Yeah," I heard Bob mumble as I went back towards the others. "I know which way it's gonna break," he commented as he shuffled closer to a green box and went to take hold of it. Hands grabbed hold of him, pulled him down into the water and Sasha screamed his name. All of us shuffled in the water, as quickly as we could to get to Bob as fast as possible. Jolting to the surface, Bob was wrestling with a walker as they held onto one another.

Shoving the walker into a wooden leg of something, the walker was stuck and could no longer move. We had attempted to reach him quickly, but Sasha had tried to pull him away from the walker. When the walker was stuck, Sasha picked up the green box Bob was going to pick up and smashed it against the walker's skull. When it no longer moved or made a noise, she turned her attention to Bob and asked him if he was okay. The pair of them panting from the shocking event that had happened. "I'm fine now," he replied to her.

Checking to see if there were any more walekrs, thankfully the one that grabbed hold of Bob was the last one. So, we searched for food and packed them up in as many carts as possible. Leaving the food bank, we pushed the carts and I wiped away a spot of blood I had on my forehead. "I'm sorry. I, uh, I panicked," Gabriel apologized as he walked beside us. "I told you I-" he went to make up an excuse or 'I told you so' bullshit move.

Not listening to him, something clicked to me when I realized why he would freak out over a specific walker, the way he did. Only one thing came to mind and it came in a memory. Of the woman who I found half torn on the ground, beside a bycicle. "You knew her when she was alive?" I asked him, but he stayed silent and wouldn't look me in the eye. "Yeah, I get it," I grumbled after a few seconds of silence. "You only tell your sins to God," I spat, angered that he couldn't answer a simple question and one that clearly was a sore subject to him.


MPOV

Making our way back, it was a long and heavy walk. Pushing carts back filled with food, was one way of surviving and it wasn't one that was entirely easy. We had a scare back in the food bank, but thankfully, Bob was all right. "Do you miss the sword?" Rick asked me out of the blue, the pair of us shoving a cart back to the church.

Smiling, I was waiting for someone to ask me this question, but it wasn't a question to feel down about. It wasn't something I missed. "Wasn't really mine in the first place," I informed him sheepishly, but not hiding secrets from him because there were no secrets between myself or the Grimes family. "Found it in the very beginning," I confessed to him, knowing that I had already told Katherine this story, but she never believed me when I told her.

Rick was surprised by this, but he couldn't help but smile back and look at me curiously. "How'd you get so good?" he asked me, making me giggle as this was the same thing Kat had asked me when I revealed it to her. The Grimes family were like my own, I felt like I belonged with them. Kat was the sister she never had, Carl was like a little brother, or a son, Judith was a treasure they all needed to protect and Rick was a friend she had always wanted. He was someone she could relate to.

Forcing myself to remember, it was as if it was all a numb and blurred picture. One that, I didn't know if I wanted to remember or not. "It was just me and them out here all day, every day, a good long time," I informed him, feeling my heart sink as I knew it wasn't normal. I had morphed myself into a monster as I roamed the earth with dead loved ones behind my back. "I don't know what that was, but it wasn't a life," I frownd at the memory.

Knowing that Kat would hit me, not only for my thoughts, but for my negativity, I decided to change. I needed to change the mood and put a smile on his face again, along with my own. "Not like today," I spoke a little more positively. "Stumbling around in three feet of slime for some peas and carrots, that's living," I teased in a happy tone, making Rick chuckle and flash me a smile. "I miss Andrea. I miss Hershel," I revealed to him as their faces popped into my head.

Rick seemed upset, possibly remembering the time that we lost those people we all loved. Hershel was like the grandfather of the group, but Andrea was the third musketeer to myself and Kat. "Yeah," he agreed quietly. "We all do too," he looked to me with a sad glance in his eye. "But Andrea, it really hurt Kat, losing her the way we did," he sighed as he looked down and shook his head. The look that crossed his face, I knew it was the pain of a father of seeing his child hurt and in pain from the loss.

Remembering how Kat had broke down, I knew that everyone had lost loved ones. Except, Kat had lost two women and believed she had lost her entire family at different points. Her father, mother and brother at the farm. Her mom when she found the prison and then Andrea to the Governor's evil plans. "I don't miss what was before," I informed him. "I don't miss that sword," I told him truthfully with a shake of my head that he didn't see.


CPOV

When Kat returned from the hunt and water run, she wandered into the church and told me to go outside, but to stay close. Wandering outside, I had been looking at the church, keeping watch and discovering things, whilst Abraham was fixing the bus and Daryl was preparing the rabbits. "Hey," dad said as he wandered over to me. "Kat said you were out back," he told me where he got his intel from. "Come on in," he gestured for me to go back inside. "We found food. A lot of it," he informed me of how sucessfull his run was.

I was stood, staring at the church shutters and I had noticed that the scratching looked strange. "Good," I agreed and smiled at him. "Kat got us some rabbits too," I informed him as I glanced to Daryl, who was sat, secretly watching me and peeling the skin off the rabbit's corpses. Dad glanced towards Daryl and quickly, Daryl looked away and back at his work.

Looking back at the window shutters, dad followed my gaze as my hands were resting on my hips. "What is it?" he asked me curiously, wondering what had my attention and what I could be staring at. Taking a few steps closer, I knew I couldn't keep secrets from him anymore and I wouldn't keep it from him.

Raising my arm, I began to indicate what I was staring at. "Those scratches," I pointed at the markings on the window shutters. "They're deep. Like knives or something," I guessed what it could be. "Someone was trying to get in," I knew this was certain. "I found something else," I told him as he finished investigating the marks for himself. Leading him further around the back, I looked to the markings that were on the wooden walls. "I don't know what happened, but whatever it is, we can handle it," I assured him as he stared at the marking.

What was written on the wall, was a threat to the priest and to what he had possibly done. Thinking of his past, I was curious as to what he had done and felt myself become a little uncertain if he was good or not. "Doesn't mean Gabriel is a bad guy for sure, but it means something," I stated, knowing that it could have been marked a long time ago, or it could have happened during all hell broke loose. Whatever it was, I was sure we could handle it. You'll burn for this.


RPOV

We were all talking, laughing and Judith picked up some of my food. Convincing her to feed it to me, I heard Kat giggle as she chewed some of her food. Both herself and Carl sat close, while they played a game together. "I'd like to propose a toast," Abraham declared as he got to his feet and made all the chatter stop.

Awaiting what he was going to say, I could already feel myself tense up at what could be coming. "I look around this room...and I see survivors," he told us. "Each and every one of you has earned that title," he spoke honourably. "To the survivors!" he cheered and made everyone repeat the word 'survivors', cheer and clap. "Is that all you want to be?" he asked us. "Wake up in the morning, fight the undead pricks, forage for food, go to sleep at night with two eyes open, rinse and repeat?" he questioned our way of surviving. "'Cause you can do that. I mean, you got the strength. You got the skill," he listed the things we had.

Abraham seemed determined to make us seem weak for how strong we really were. "Thing is, for you people, for what you can do, that's just surrender," he said a little insultingly. "Now, we get Eugene to Washington and he will make the dead die and the living will have this world again," he told us of his plan once again. "And that is not a bad takeaway for a little road trip," he commented. Everyone was silent, but Judith began cooing, causing me to shush her quietly. "Eugene, what's in DC?" Abraham asked as he turned to look at the scientist we had with us.

Eugene looked like he was placed on the spot, but there was something about him I wasn't all that sure about. Like he too was hiding something from us, but it could have simply been the cure's secret he was keeping from us. "Infrastructure constructed to withstand pandemics even of this fubar magnitude," he used a bunch of words that I didn't quite understand. "That means food, fuel, refuge. Restart," he informed us.

Making Abraham smile and hum happily, it was as though this was the only thing that put a smile on his face. "However this plays out, however long it takes for the reset button to kick in, you can be safe there," he assured us. "Safer than you've been since this whole thing started," he continued to talk to us. "Come with us," he encouraged us. "Save the world for that little one," he tried to convince us as he pointed towards Judith, making us all look at her. "Save it for yourselves. Save it for the people out there...who don't got nothing left to do except survive," he convinced us to try and make a better life for ourselves, a life where we no longer had to fear everything.

Deep in thought, I was convinced the moment he told us to save it for Judith, along with my children and the family that surrounded me. Glancing around me, I saw all the faces I had grown to love. Maggie, Sasha, Bob, Tara, Glenn, Daryl, Carol, Tyreese, Michonne, Eugene, Rosita, Abraham. Then to my children, first to Kat, the strong and smart women myself and Lori raised her to be. Carl, the confident, reassured and level-headed boy that was becoming a man his mother would be proud of. And lastly, Judith, the gift Lori left behind, the child that gave us hope when we saw her survive the attack on the prison.

Chuckling, I knew my answer and I knew what it would be. In that instant, I would save my family and those that needed the world to change the most. Judith cooed, which made me look at her curiously and with a smile on my face. "What was that?" I asked her, causing the room to be filled with laughter. "I think she knows what I'm about to say," I told everyone who surrounded me. "She's in. If she's in, I'm in," I agreed to join Abraham, making everyone around me smile and cheer at her.

A bright and elegant smile illuminated Kat's face, I knew she was proud of me and I could sense it in her eyes. The wrinkles that formed around her eyes was indication enough, proving that what I was doing was right. "We're in," she agreed with a giggle, hugging Carl to her and kissing the top of his head. Everyone cheered, clapped and smiled, happy to know that we'd be fighting for a better future.


KPOV

Everyone was talking, drinking, eating and going about their night. Smiling, I could see the happiness in my father's eyes as he stared between me, Carl and Judith. We were a family. A family that my mother would of loved to see. Feeling my heart clench at the thought, I knew that there were many more people that were part of our family, but this was what was left, and it was good enough for me.

Glancing to the door, I saw Carol glance around before she took her things and left. Knowing she had been distancing herself from the group as much as possible, I got up, took my things with me and followed after her. Seeing Daryl get up too, I realized he had noticed her leaving as-well. Silently, we rushed towards the door and he gestured for us to go into the shadows. Keeping my knife, bow and arrows close, I kept moving and stayed close to him. Since the moment we saw each other once again, we were slightly distant, awkward. But I knew it was just adjusting to all the shit that had gone on since the prison's destruction.

Hearing the chatter of the group inside the church, we kept close to one another and followed after Carol. Hopeful that she wasn't going to run away from us, I didn't want her to leave us. She was like an aunt for me, an aunt I had never had and I loved her like she was blood. Loved everyone in the church, except the priest, as my own blood. We were family, and I wasn't going to allow Carol to run away from that fact. Neither was Daryl.


RPOV

Getting up, I placed Judith in her small basket and saw Kat leave with Daryl closely following behind her. I didn't question her, nor did I need to follow them myself. For I knew that she was old enough to know what she was doing, and that Daryl was going to protect her as best as he could. Making my way to Father Gabriel, he had sat all the way in the back and alone. "Thanks for the hospitality," I thanked him in a civil manner. "I'm surprised you let us drink your communion wine," I commented.

The priest was getting himself drunk as we all shared whatever was left of the wine he had for communion. "There isn't anyone left to take communion," he told me truthfully, as everyone was either dead, walkers or people who no longer had faith in the church. "The wine's just wine until it's blessed," he mumbled as he took a long gulp of the wine he had in the bottle.

Not wanting to waste any more time, I knew I needed to be blunt and threatening. We had lost too many people already and I wasn't ready to lose anyone else. "You're hiding something," I growled. "And it's pretty obvious it's something you can't hide from," I analyized him earlier today. "That's your business," I agreed with privacy. "But these people, these people are my family," I told him as I looked at each individual person. "And if what you're hiding somehow hurts them in any way, I'll kill you," I threatened him bluntly as I stared into his eyes, seeing him gulp from the fear I had caused him.


KPOV

Wandering in the woods, we stayed close and near the road. We knew that Carol would go towards the car, finding the easy way to run from us and our family. We could hear the engine idling, a walker snarling as he came closer to her. Gripping my knife tightly, I saw Carol make her way to the walker and pull out her knife. Stabbing the walker in the head, it fell to the ground and Carol stumbled back. Rustling the leaves, Carol looked towards us and heard the twig snap beneath my foot. "What are you doing?" Daryl asked her as he took the lead ahead of me.

He was holding onto the strap of his crossbow and Carol was wide eyed, as though she was more afraid of us than the walkers that surrounded us. When her eyes caught ours, we could see tears start to build in the light of the moon. "I don't know," she shook her head as she answered Daryl's question, I didn't know what to say, but I felt an overwhelming sadness that she'd want to leave us. Without a single goodbye.

Taking a few steps closer, I brushed past Daryl gently and slipped my knife back into the holster it was in. Pursing my lips, I offered her a sad smile and kept my eyes on hers. Raising my arm, I held out my hand for her and flashed her a wider smile. "Come on," I encouraged her to make her way back to the church with us, where she belonged.

The sound of a car approaching had us all duck behind the car boot, staring at the car as it whirred past. Daryl placed his crossbow on the ground and ran towards the car. Staring as it drove off, he then ran back towards us and began to smash the rearview lights. "Whoa, whoa!" Carol shouted. "What are you doing?" she questioned.

My eyes widened, seeing how frantic Daryl had become as he smashed the lights and rushed to get into the front seat. "What are you doing?" I asked him as I myself and Carol wandered around, confused and arms raised at Daryl's crazy reaction.

Daryl had been using the butt of his crossbow, smashing in the lights and ran towards the front seat. Jumping into the driver's seat, he was ready to drive off and didn't buckle himself in. "They got Beth," he informed us as he ran to the driver's seat. "Come on. Come on, get in," he shouted at us. "Where are you going?!" Daryl questioned me as I went to turn back.

My heart was thundering inside my chest, I could feel the blood rush to my head and the shock run through my body. Something told me I couldn't go, not without telling my family where I was going and I knew we all couldn't go, without giving my father an answer to where we were. "I have to go tell my dad!" I shouted back.

"We ain't got the time!" Daryl growled, not liking how I had ignored his instruction to get in and chose to return to those in the church. Carol was stood too, not moving and still on her feet.

I went to turn and run, but Carol's hands grabbed hold of my shoulders and turned me to face her. "Go!" she spun us so that I was closer to the car, while she was closer to the direction back to the church. "I'll go back and tell them where you're going," she assured me and gave me a single nod.

Knowing this was the best option, she'd then look after my family and keep the others safe. All while staying with them and not running like she had planned to with the car. "Run! And don't stop," I ordered as I nod in return. "And look out for our family, please," I pleaded as I took hold of her arms. "We'll be back soon," I assured her as I jumped into the car and quickly fastened my belt.

Tires squealing as Daryl drove, leading us to speed closer to the car that had taken Beth. The car with a white cross on the back. Curious as to where it would lead, but I knew that wherever it would go, Beth would be there and we'd get her back. Looking in the side mirror for a split second, I saw Carol sprint back towards the direction of the church and she hadn't stopped. It was as though she was racing against the time, against us as we zoomed past trees and was enveloped in darkness.


Hope you enjoyed this chapter! I hope you're also loving the 6th season as I am. It is fantastic so far, but I'm worried as to where they're going with Daryl's arch. Especially with rumours of a certain comic book character's appearance coming soon, because it could lead to someone's fate. Which, *SPOILER* could lead to Kat's possible fate instead! As she, the only way I could see her dying, is if she sacraficed herself for the ones she loved. And that death, seems like the perfect one for her.


P.S PLEASE DON'T REPEAT YOURSELF IN A REVIEW, BUT AS ANOTHER NAME. I'M NOT STUPID, OKAY? I KNOW WHEN PEOPLE ARE JUST ANXIOUS TO SEE ANOTHER CHAPTER, BUT YOU DON'T GIVE ME ANY CRITISISM TO FEED OFF OF! WHICH ISN'T FAIR ON MY PART. DON'T TREAT ME LIKE I'M STUPID, BECAUSE I'M NOT. But, if I'm wrong, I am very sorry but every time I post a chapter, I get the same exact response but with a different wording or assemble of words.

For example:

Review 1: (Name: Beth) "Awesome chapter! Update soon! :D"

Review 2: (Name: Louise) "Awesome chapter! Please update soon! :D"

P.S.S. Sorry, I just needed to get that off my chest. So, don't play me, because it will only make me not write up chapters as frequently. Especially if it gives me no insight on what you liked and would like to happen. I need critisism, not encouragement.


So, questions and then replies! Also, 5 REVIEWS PLEASE! THAT AREN'T REPEATS OF WHAT YOU SAID AS ANOTHER PERSON! IT PISSES ME OFF TO NO EXTENT AND IS A DISAPPOINTMENT FOR ME.

1) Do you think Daryl is going to leave the group or die soon? (In the show so far)

2) If I changed my 'Love In Two Worlds' story to Kat's actress and Norman instead, would you read it?

3) What do you think will happen to Kat through this season? Will she stay the same? Or do you think she'll...clash/crash?

4) What job do you picture Kat to have in Alexandria?


Now, replies!


psychovampgurl: I know, Kat and Daryl are my only and real OTP. So, if I placed Daryl with someone else, it wouldn't feel right. Especially if they wanted them to be together right off the bat, or in a strange sudden way. It doesn't seem right and it's not what Daryl is like. Thanks for respecting my decision with that issue.


EastDenise: Thanks dear, I hope you're enjoying this new season of TWD! I'm absolutely loving it!


guest, mystic twilight princess, Hannah, Anna and Rebecca: I get it. I know and thank for repeating the same thing.


Hannah and Guest: I can tell you're acting like a baby. So, here. ~~HK**


Hanna West: Here you go dear, hope you enjoy this crazy ride, because it's only going to get crazier! Thank you for the compliments, they mean a lot.


celia azul: Honestly, if I was in the same cart as him, I wouldn't believe any of the bullshit he was telling them. Fire with fire? That seems like the dumbest thing, but it was dumb but smart enough to convince the others what he was saying was the gospel truth! Yes, the kiss is very soon! Sooner than you expect dear, so buckle up because this journey isn't over!


Lyla: 1) Glad you did! 2) More Michonne in this chapter, as you've seen! 3) Neither can I, truth be told! 4) It wouldn't surprise me, but we'll see! 5) I guess...here? I'm not so sure, but in the next chapter, it's Rick VS Gareth, but next time it's Karyl time!


galwidanatitud: Oh, they will. Rome wasn't built in a day and this story is a slow burn. Like Norman wants, because it's unlike Daryl to be in a relationship so quickly and without warning. It's slow and she's got more than Daryl on her mind! She has a sister, a brother, a father, a family! So, it's not always the male species on her mind.


Until next chapter and the 5 reviews,

Much love!

HeroJustInTime90 xxx