3—Welcome to Hilltop pt. 3


I'm only human,

I've got a skeleton in me,

But I'm not the villain,

Despite what you're always preaching,

Call me a traitor,

I'm just collecting your victims,

And they're getting stronger,

I hear them calling...

~Monster; by Paramore


By the time nightfall came around, Daryl and Rick had returned from their run, with enough essentials to last them a little while longer. Needless to say, Alexandria was running smoothly. There were no problems, no need for anyone to worry. Everything was the way it should be.

But when Daryl had gone into the house he and Aibileen shared, he noticed something he found to be a little odd. Normally, Aibileen would still be up and about, having just put Francesca to bed but still finishing up little things before she called it a night. The moment he stepped into their home, the lights were out and the house was quiet. He figured Francesca would long be asleep, but when he went into the bedroom he shared with Aibileen, he saw her curled under the covers fast asleep.

Daryl's eyes narrowed slightly.

Aibileen's behavior had subtly been changing. She got tired easier but tried hiding it under a façade, as if to reassure herself more than the huntsman. She'd become more anxious when it came to doing certain things. Since she started working with the construction crew, Daryl would occasionally see the way she'd always do a little less compared to the others. When it came to the heavy lifting that is.

Sighing, Daryl shrugged off his jacket and pulled off his shoes before climbing into bed beside Aibileen.


The next day seemed to slowly drawl on without much happening. Construction into the neighboring area continued; watches were kept; people went on with their every day routine.

"You want me to do what?" Selena hissed. Even though Denise had stepped up as Alexandria's doctor-like figure, Selena helped out when she was needed. In this case, she was needed.

"Just go into Denise's house and take a pregnancy test," Aibileen said, giving her cousin a pointed look.

Selena's brows furrowed, an unsettling frown on her face. "I can't..."

Aibileen turned and looked at her cousin head-on, a seriousness glittering in her brown eyes. "Selena, this is important," she muttered, making sure none of the others heard her. "If ya can just sneak in and grab one test—maybe two—I'd appreciate it."

The two stared at each other for a moment before Selena let out a defeated sigh.


Merle had been watching over Aibileen for the past couple days. Mostly out of curiosity and partly out of his brother's request. Daryl had expressed concern over how Aibileen suddenly started acting strangely, and the older Dixon couldn't help but agree. While Aibileen tried helping the best she could with the expansion, she wasn't doing a lot. Still, it was better than nothing.

Once construction had come to a stop by early afternoon, the crew decided to take a bit of a break. They'd been working since early morning with little time to have a break. Rick wanted to get into the next neighborhood as quickly as possible.

"Merle?" Aibileen called. "Would ya watch Francesca for a little bit? Carl's been lookin' after her most of the day with Judith. I think he could use a break."

A look swept across Merle's face.

Aibileen sighed. "I know ya don't really do that sorta thing," she said. "If ya wanna get Daryl, go ahead. It'll only be for a little bit, though."

"Fine, lil lady," he grunted.

"Thank you."

Merle watched as Aibileen walked off with her cousin. He'd seen them talking for a little bit, he just didn't know what they were talking about. But he knew she'd get upset if he didn't go and check on the baby, and soon. Letting out a grunt, he grudgingly started walked to Aibileen's house.

Even though Daryl considered Francesca to be his own, there was a part of Merle that was still finding it hard to believe. His little brother somehow managed to start a family in the damned zombie apocalypse. If anyone had told either of them that, they would've laughed their asses off. Before the outbreak, the Dixon brothers wouldn't even give a woman a second-glance if they could help it. Merle had told Daryl all his life that women were conniving snakes only after one thing. But when he saw how Aibileen and Daryl acted together, he knew there was some flaws in his previous logic.

When he made it to Aibileen's, he opened the front door and walked in. He could hear Carl's voice in the living room and the amused sounds of Judith and Francesca. When Merle stepped into the living room, he saw Judith and Francesca sitting on the ground, smiling up at the young boy in front of them. It was in that moment Carl looked like he was genuinely happy. Since the incident where Carl lost his eye, he'd become withdrawn and bitter—Merle felt something close to sympathy for the boy.

Francesca was the first one to notice Merle's presence. Her face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Moo!" she cried. "Moo!"

A perplexed look swept across Carl's face before he turned to see what Francesca was talking about. A look of surprise swept across his face at the sight of the older Dixon, then he stood up to grab Judith.

"I was told to come check on the kid." Merle nodded to Francesca. "Lil lady said to give ya a break from watchin' her."

Carl studied Merle carefully, as if checking to see if he were lying. He nodded. "Need to change my bandage anyway," he muttered before walking out the door. When the door shut behind the young Grimes boy, Merle let out a sigh and looked at Francesca. She was still smiling brightly, her brown eyes looking up at him with so much innocent excitement.

Merle had only watched over Francesca a very small handful of times, most of which involved his brother being with him, and during those times he still had no idea what to do with the infant. Daryl had adapted quickly to taking care of Francesca, trying to tell his older brother what to do just in case Merle got left alone with Francesca for some reason.

Maybe he should've listened.

"What'chu call me?" he muttered, sitting on the couch while Francesca beamed up at him.

"Moo!" she squealed happily.

Something stirred inside the older Dixon at that—it wasn't anything bad, something he couldn't quite put a finger on. While she was in that stage where she was learning how to talk, she couldn't quite get the basics of walking down—probably because Aibileen and Daryl were busy—so she was still crawling a lot. Francesca knew how to stand, she had that down, she just had no one around to help her walk. But when Merle saw the infant crawling toward him, he stiffened ever so slightly when he felt her hands gripping the legs of his pants to pull herself up. She still had that innocent excitement on her face, and he felt that unnamed something continue to stir in him.

"Moo, huh?" He regarded Francesca carefully. He knew how much she meant to Daryl—he had accepted her as Daryl's daughter. Merle just felt like he needed a little more time adjusting to having a niece.

He let out a laugh he didn't even know he was holding.

Maybe it wouldn't take long for him to adjust.


Author's Note:

Sorry if this chapter was sloppy; I'm a bit sleep deprived, so if it felt like this chapter made little sense, I suppose that could be one reason why. But if you liked the chapter, I thank you and please, leave a review.

I own nothing in TWD. All I own are my characters and the coffee I drink.

The whole Francesca-calling-Merle-"Moo"-thing was a suggestion a kind reviewer mentioned back in 'Silhouette', I thought the idea was too adorable to leave out. Should the next chapter be just entirely of Merle watching over Francesca? Tell me what you think!

What about Aibileen? She thinks she might be pregnant, and I know I mentioned it a lot back in 'Silhouette', too, but should she or should she not be pregnant? With Maggie being pregnant at this point, and with there already being Francesca and Judith, would it be OK to add one more baby?

Tell me what you think.

Leave a kind and helpful review, please.

Thank you.

Susan strong