No one stopped to see if all of the monstrous humans had been removed from existence they just ran. Quickly, they unearthed the bag Rick had buried before entering Terminus so they wouldn't be unarmed, and ran into the trees for cover. As they passed signs directing other survivors to Terminus, a few people would slow down to remove them in an effort to prevent others from certain death if there was anyone left at the compound.
Carol lead the way for her family as they hurried through the trees bordering the abandoned railroad tracks. Insisting that she had to show something to both of the Grimes men, she waved Carl up to walk with her. She knew Rick well enough by now to know that he would stay close to his son making it the easiest way to get him up front as well.
It was odd to her, calling Carl a man, but he was now. This world had changed him, caused him to grow up far quicker than any mother would like. He had faced some horrific events already, the worst of which Carol didn't even know about yet, but if you looked close enough, you could still see a little bit of the boy she met at the quarry. She put her arm around his shoulder and pulled him into her side.
"She's proud of you. Always watching you, supporting you. She never fully left you," Carol said, smiling at the young man. Eyes the same chocolate brown as his mother's looked back at her.
"She's proud of you too, you know," replied Carl. Neither one of them needed to pick at the scab and say a name, they just knew who the other meant.
Carol let go of Carl's shoulder when they came across a group of about 20 walkers gathered at the base of a tree. It was nothing more than practice for this group. They now knew the real threat wasn't the walkers, it was the living.
The sound of a baby crying from above got their attention. Metal hinges squealed and Tyreese appeared in the doorway of a long since forgotten about hunting blind. He defended the half broken ladder and turned to face everyone revealing the source of the crying.
"Judith!" Carl ran up to the man, reaching for the sister he thought he had lost. Rick fell to his knees at their feet, overcome with disbelief. Sasha had caught up and hugged her brother, almost laughing at the entire situation.
"Thank you! How did you do it?" Rick asked the man in front of him. "We saw her car seat. It was- It was covered in-". Rick stopped, unable to continue.
"The blood was mine.". Tyreese looked for Carol, nodding for her to come stand with him. She took his hand, offering what little support she could in her exhaustion. Stretching up, she whispered something I'm his ear before he continued.
"I got Jude out of the prison. I had some help for a little while before Carol showed up. She's really the one that saved her."
"Ty, do you know about what happened?" Rick didn't want to ask the question. He just wanted to hug his sweet little girl, but it was an urgent issue he felt needed to be addressed.
"She told me everything," replied Tyreese. "Let's just get somewhere safe and we'll talk about it more."
Sasha ran along side of Tyreese who still had Judith tucked against his chest sound asleep, and Glenn and Maggie were always just an arm's reach apart. Even Daryl had shouldered his crossbow so his hand was free to hold Carol's tightly, never wanting to release the woman he thought had lost again. Rick noticed, and for the first time since he abandoned her, he realized the gravity of his mistakes.
"Aren't peas supposed to be good for your eyes?" A mischievous smile danced across Michonne's face as she walked alongside the former sheriff.
"No, I bet you're thinking of carrots. Peas are good for your bones though," Rick responded in all seriousness. He wasn't sure what he was thinking either. All he could focus on was the fact that he received one of the incredibly rare smiles from the ninja.
"No wonder you missed that. If you would have grown carrots, maybe you wouldn't have been the last to figure out about those two," Michonne teased. "Glenn and I had a bet going. He said you would see their connection before they did. I won myself a delicious chocolate bar."
They found a small farmhouse tucked deep in the trees and made quick work of the two walkers outside. The inside was untouched, including the pantry. Rick decided now would be as good a time as any to let it be known that Tara was at the prison that day. She was standing on the same side as the madman who so viciously took the life of their patriarch as nothing more than a warning or a scolding for not following directions. He addressed his concerns to the group, but was met with a united front in the woman's defense.
"Rick, she's one of us," Glenn said, placing a hand on Tara's shoulder.
"She is," Maggie insisted. "She could have kept moving. She could have killed Glenn. Instead, she tells him the truth, who she is, and what she did. She apologized, provided protection, worked as a team with Glenn to help him find us." Maggie said as she stepped forward. She placed her hand on Tara's other shoulder in support.
Trusting Glenn's judgement, Rick accepted Tara's apology and welcomed her to their group.
They settled into the house for the night with Tyreese and Sasha taking the first watch in order to make up for lost time. The others scattered about the house. Michonne put Carl and Judith in a room together, pushing the twin bed up against the wall to keep Judith from falling off the bed. Maggie and Glenn disappeared into an upstairs bedroom shortly after dinner. Eugene, Tara, and Rosita made camp on the couches in the living room, while Rick and Abraham sat up at the kitchen table discussing their plans.
Daryl let Rick know they would be having a talk later, just the three of them, before he climbed the stairs, Carol's hand in his. He wouldn't let Rick's wrongdoing go without a discussion. He would insist that he apologize to Carol. Rick should be kissing her boots for saving them all. He shut the door behind him and turned his attention fully to the angel who had come to his rescue for the remainder of the night.
Apparently, someone in the group thought it would be funny to leave the master bedroom for them, but Daryl wasn't mad. It was the room with a queen sized bed, giving them both room to sleep in the bed together comfortably. Sure of who's idea it was, he made a mental note to thank Glenn in the morning.
"Beats the hell out of the two of us sharing that cot in the prison," Daryl said as he climbed into the bed. Carol chuckled, rolling onto her side so she could look at him, grateful for a chance to spend one more night with him. WIth his head propped up on his hand, he traced small circles up and down her back. There were a number of things they still needed to talk about, but this time with her would take precedence.