The burial was small, quiet. Not even Carol cried. Beth had stood silently at the back of the crowd, watching how everyone just stared at the little pile of upturned dirt. She'd watched as one by one the group trickled away until it was just her and Carol. Beth moved slowly forward, studying the woman's worn and tired face. "I'm sorry," she started, reaching out but withdrawing quickly when the woman shrunk in on herself, "I'm sorry for your loss." Carol just nodded. "I know I never met her, but I can tell you loved your daughter very much, and she was somethin' special."

"I did. She was something special." Carol rasped out.

"You'll always have a place to visit her now." Beth tried. "I know it's not the same -"

"No." Carol cut her off. "No, that thing wasn't my little girl." She took a steadying breath. "My Sophia was alone in the woods. All this time I thought...I hoped. She didn't cry herself to sleep at night. She didn't go hungry. She didn't try to find her way back. No, my Sophia died a long time ago. That's just some other thing." And with that Beth watched as Carol turned sharply on her heel and marched away from the little gravesite. She couldn't help the choked up breath that caught in her throat at the idea of so much pain. Losing a family member was never easy or painless, but losing a child...now that was a pain so deep Beth couldn't even fathom it.

Beth meandered her way back to the farmhouse, watching as people moved listlessly around, offering comfort where they could. This was a hard blow to the group, and she hadn't a clue how to handle it. Her eyes landed on Rick and Lori, hugging and comforting each other, and she was only mildly surprised to find that she wasn't being eaten alive by jealousy. Her eyes watched as they hugged each other close, whispering words of comfort into each others ear. Rick's hand went to Lori's still flat stomach and Beth averted her eyes.

Her stomach churned and she swallowed before moving quickly to the house to go inside. She needed to think. She needed to clear her head. So much had happened the past few days, and Beth needed to process. The squealing of the screen door signaled her entrance into the house, but she ducked her head and dashed upstairs to her bedroom, avoiding Maggie when she heard her calling her from the back of the house. She didn't want to see her sister right now. She didn't want to see her daddy right now. She didn't want to see anyone right now. Silently she shut her bedroom door, before climbing up on her bed to sit cross-legged on top of her bedspread.

Her eyes landed on the fabric, fingers gently dancing along that patterns of the quilt, as she got lost in her thoughts. Her mind floated back to the image of Rick and Lori together. Beth sighed. Something was clawing away at her insides but she couldn't put her finger on it. All she knew was that she didn't want to wait for Rick. Rick was going to be a daddy...again. Even if he was the one that triggered her colors, she would never do anything to put herself in the middle of that family. There was so much love there, she couldn't bare to watch it fall apart.

Beth sighed. She couldn't even say for sure if he was her soulmate. If he was, he sure didn't give any hints about it. Not that she was expecting him to profess his love or just come out and say it for all to hear, but the man didn't even make mention of colors, ever. And, if he suddenly started seeing color, after being with his wife for that long, wouldn't that cause a little bit of a surprise? Wouldn't he even try to figure out where the colors came from? The more Beth thought about it, the more she really doubted he was her forever.

That left just one other person. Daryl. Beth contemplated him. He was quiet, and sometimes seemed protective of her (but honestly he was protective of pretty much everyone in his little group), but other than that…he seemed like he couldn't be bothered with her. He seemed more likely to spend time with her sister than with her. Beth nibbled on her lip before letting out a sigh.

She was a right selfish little kid. She flopped back onto her pillow, staring up at the ceiling. This group had lost Shane (thank goodness), and Carol's child Sophia, and they'd almost lost Carl. They were reeling from so much loss, and she was up here sulking and worrying about her damn colors, rather than being down there trying to comfort others. Her head jerked as a knock sounded on her door. She sat up, watching as her father poked his head into her room. "Hey Doodlebug, you alright?" She smiled at Hershel Greene.

"Yeah, Daddy. Just doin' a little growin' up, I think." He gave her a confused look and she smiled.

"I can't be worryin' 'bout my colors right now. Daddy, they've gone through so much, and I'm over here worryin' 'bout why I get to see all these pinks and blues, and greens, and who caused 'em." She shook her head. "That's just so selfish right now." Hershel looked like he wanted to interrupt but she stopped him. "My colors aren't goin' anywhere right now. I gotta help them. I gotta learn how to take care of myself. I got bigger things to worry about." Hershel gave a nod. "I'd like to learn how to defend myself." Her mind floated back to the incident in the barn with Shane. "I'd like to learn how to fight, and take down walkers." Hershel's face suddenly turned thunderous. "I know, you don't want me to, but I could wind up like that little girl. All this," she motioned to her room, "could go away, and if I can't defend myself, I will wind up like that little girl." She swallowed. "I'm big enough, I'm old enough, I need to learn, Daddy." She studied her dad for a heartbeat before she heard him sigh.

"I know, you're right, Bethy. But that don't mean I'm not afraid of you gettin' hurt." He looked down before he made his way to her bed and sat down beside her. "You're all I got left of your mama, and I wanna keep you safe." He smiled at her, "But I've crippled you. Tryin' to keep you safe, I kept you from being able to care of your own." He stroked her cheek gently. "You're right. You do need to learn. You and your sister. I'll talk to Rick and see if he has anyone willin' to work with us, to teach us." Beth beamed at her dad before flinging her arms around him.

"Thank you daddy." She breathed into his shoulder. She felt him nod before he released her gently. "I should get downstairs and start putting something together for dinner. I don't think many people are goin' to be too hungry, but we should still have somethin' ready." Hershel patted her cheek.

"You are so much like your mother. Always worrying about others and tryin' to take care of them." She grinned as she stood up. "Not much of that left in the world."

"I know. That's why it's so important for me to keep on keepin' on." He nodded his agreement before he stood.

"You are right, Doodlebug, you are very very right."

Beth groaned as she washed up for dinner. Her arms were sore, she was tired, but she was so elated. True to his word her daddy had talked to Rick about training the lot of them to defend themselves. Everyday for the past few months she'd woken up early and trained, first on how to use a gun properly, and now she was working with a knife. It was clear she needed to build more muscle, but never as clear to her as when she came home aching and dirty from training. She wasn't even really fighting or taking down walkers, just practicing on things here and there, but she still came back aching and sore every day. It was so sad, but she was glad for the training.

Rick and Glenn both said she was coming along and pretty soon would be able to handle herself out there. She knew they were lying and just trying to be nice, but she appreciated it all the same. Daryl, never said much, but today as she'd walked away he'd mumbled out a "Doin' good, girl." and she'd just about broke her face with how big her smile was. Praise from Rick, Glenn, and even her daddy, was common, but to hear the ever silent Daryl mumble a word or two of praise really must have meant she was doing something right.

She washed the last of the sweat and grime from her arms and face before she dried off and made her way to the kitchen. Lori was there, peeling the last few potatoes they'd gathered from the garden, her tummy just starting to show signs of the growing baby inside. "Hello, Beth." Lori chimed. "How was training? I hear you're really comin' into your own." Beth beamed at her.

"I'm tryin'. Daddy and Rick both say I'm doing a great job, but Maggie still thinks I'm more likely to stab myself than any walkers I come across." Beth shrugged at the thought of her sister. "I just gotta keep workin' at it." Beth joined her at the sink to finish peeling the potatoes so they could start making dinner. Beth watched Lori as she worked and smiled. Since Sophia's funeral she and Lori had become quite close, laughing and talking. Lori was one of the biggest sources of her confidence when they first began this whole training situation. When they'd begun working with the guns, Lori had insisted she learn how to shoot as well, and was honestly only a touch better at it than Beth herself. They'd both laughed (because what else could you do really) when they'd started at how utterly horrible they were at shooting a target. Together they'd grown and gotten stronger until Rick had declared he didn't want Lori working with blades and hand to hand combat given her 'delicate' state. Lori had snorted and torn off in a mad fury, but ultimately he had been right and Lori had taken up the household duties that Beth was doing when they'd first arrived.

"Daryl says you've gotten stronger." Lori mentioned casually and Beth's heart hammered a little faster in her chest at the idea that she impressed someone enough that they'd praise her when she wasn't even around.

"Really?"

"Yeah." Lori nodded, "To get a compliment from him is like moving the heavens themselves, so you must be doin' something right." Beth laughed.

"Well, I haven't stabbed myself or anyone else...so I guess that's progress right?" Lori shook her head and nudged her elbow gently.

"You don't give yourself enough credit."

"No, she doesn't." Rick added as he moved into the kitchen. Beth looked down into the sink, fumbling with the slippery potato in her hand. It wasn't that Rick made her nervous or uncomfortable, but since Beth had decided she didn't need to be worrying about her colors anymore, her interest and attention to Rick had dropped off drastically. It had even prompted him to ask her if everything was alright or if he'd done something to upset her. After putting his fears to rest and assuring him there was nothing wrong, he'd taken her change in attention in stride and just assumed that now that Carl was awake and moving around, and given all the time she spent training, she was just too busy to pay him any attention anymore, which was perfectly fine.

"Oh, hush you two." Beth mumbled with a soft laugh. She scooped up the potatoes and started cutting them up to boil for dinner. "You just notice how much I've grown because I was so helpless beforehand."

"Just because you know how to shoot and hold a knife without cutting yourself doesn't make you any less helpless than before." Maggie's harsh voice cut in. "When it comes to fighting real walkers you still have no clue. This whole thing is just a waste of time." Beth rounded on her sister, fury burning in her veins and causing her to see red. She wanted to open up and give her sister a good what for, but bit her cheek and kept it to herself. Her blue eyes landed on Daryl silently leaning against the doorframe behind her sister, quietly surveying the room.

"Now, Maggie, knowing the basics will help if she ever comes up on a walker." Rick countered, "She is at least a little more prepared now." Maggie gave a snort and Beth shoved past her. She was done trying to prove herself to her sister for today. She didn't think anything she did, short of taking down an entire herd of walkers, would change her sister's mind, and she wasn't going to listen to her sister's harsh remarks anymore. She heard Lori call after her, but kept walking, shoving open the squeaky screen door and stomping down the porch into the field. She stomped her way into the nature until she was securely in the forest and let out a frustrated scream.

Taking a few calming breaths she stared around her at the forest, soaking in all her secret colors. When she was training and busy with household chores she could almost forget her world was spilling over with vibrant colors that tickled her brain and made her stare in wonder. Almost. When she had a free minute, she'd taken to hiding in different parts of the forest, just staring, examining, and soaking in all the colors that she loved. She loved the greens of the kudzu leaves, the browns of the trees, the golden colors of the dead leaves underfoot, the pinks and yellows of the natural wild flowers around her. It was when she was alone, and it was quiet, that she was truly able to take in the beauty of the colors around her. Sometimes she'd spend many moments stroking the leaves as if to make sure it wasn't a sort of paint that could be removed. When the green stayed in place a bright smile would take over her face and she'd move on to marvel at the next piece of nature.

Her favorite thing, which was the hardest to explain, was watching the sunset. All the reds, pinks, and oranges that slowly faded into the purples and blacks of night. Glenn had caught her one time and asked her if she was trying to go blind staring at the sun like that. She laughed and teased him, claiming she was trying to see who would win a staring contest, her or the sun. Glenn had laughed and ruffled her hair before telling her to be careful or the sun would melt her brain. She'd nodded before following him inside for dinner.

Beth sighed as she touched a kudzu leaf growing on a nearby tree. She smiled to herself. Watching her colors always calmed her down and made her feel better. Suddenly a twig snapped behind her. She whirled around, grabbing the knife from her belt and held it poised above her head to face the person sneaking up behind her.

She stared at Daryl as he stood there, a single hand up, the other poised on his crossbow, more out of habit than actual intent to use it. "Jesus, girl, what are you doin' sneakin' off to the middle of the forest. You tryin' to get yourself killed?" He narrowed his eyes at her as he watched her put her blade away.

"No, I was lookin' at the trees and leaves. Takin' in the colors." She said without a thinking.

"What?" Daryl watched her as her eyes snapped up to him and she paled. Did she really just say she was seeing colors?