"Jesus, I could hear the yelling in the guard tower all the way across the yard," Glenn commented. "Have they ever yelled at each other before?" He glanced around and no one seemed to be able to recall an incident before that day.

"Kit said she wasn't mad at Daryl for what happened," Carol said. "So I honestly can't think of what they would be arguing about."

"I can think of a few things," Merle said seriously, which earned him strange looks. Merle was rarely so humorless. He noticed the geezer shooting him a sharp look, so maybe the old man was in the know, too, even if the rest of Sheriff Rick's stupid cronies weren't.

"Do you know somethin' we don't?" Rick asked him severely.

"Uh, uh, uh, Sheriff. This is 'tween ma brother an' Petite so I don't intend ta be spillin' their personal lives ta everyone here at the round table. Yer jus' gonna have ta wait fer him an' Petite ta tell ya, though I don't see her blabbin'." He smirked at the looks of irritation he had caused to roll through the group and at the itch of curiosity he had undoubtedly created.

After a while, Kit and Daryl returned from the guard tower and it was clear to everyone there by the looks on the couple's faces that the experience had been emotionally taxing for both of them – a testament to the gravity of their conversation. "We should all get some sleep," Herschel advised. "Most of you haven't had nearly enough of it in the past few days."

Kit didn't have to be told twice. She was completely exhausted. During this time, the group began to shuffle back to the matters they had been attending before their gossip session regarding Daryl and Kit. Rick quickly locked Merle in a cell and Daryl chose an empty cell to repair a few of his arrows in privacy before trying unsuccessfully to sleep; he had too much to think about. "It's a lot to take in, isn't it?"

He turned to see Herschel entering. "I don't even know what ta think. Jesus, how could I have been so stupid?"

"She had one or two convincing excuses and from what I've gathered, you've never had any reason to believe that she could get pregnant."

Daryl stared at Herschel for a long time before saying one of the most difficult things of his life. "If we don't get those supplies and Kit has to go through with this, what are the chances she an' the baby get make it? 'Cause if Kit don't make it then I jus' ain't gonna know what ta do."

Herschel considered the matter, though he had certainly given it a lot of thought since she had first come to him to discuss her options. "She has better chances than Lori did."

"That ain't saying much so if it's supposed ta make me feel better, yer doin' a shitty job."

"I suppose what I was trying to say is that Kit has quite a few advantages. She isn't nearly as thin as Lori was and her build is a lot more suitable. Kit is also within what is considered to be the optimal biological range for childbirth which is from eighteen to twenty-two years old. In my own personal opinion – though this has very little to do with medical fact – Kit is scrappier than Lori was, too."

"So ya think her chances are good?" The list that Herschel had given him was promising. If Kit had so many advantages, then maybe they wouldn't have so much to worry about medically, even if it wasn't her first choice.

"She has only one thing working against her and that is her size. Her build may be suitable but she is still a very small woman and that can complicate things." Daryl had always considered Kit's small stature to be funny and even endearing because he felt as if her personality belonged to someone much larger. Now it could be the death of her.

"Jus' do whatever ya gotta do ta keep her alive, Herschel. An' of course all this happens once we go ta war with the Governor – leavin' us with no choices. I feel like I don't got no control over anythin' an' there's nothin' I can do ta help her. Hell, I'm scared, too, but she's terrified an' it ain't like I can blame her. I know she don't want this."

Herschel nodded knowingly. "More than anything she has to stop pushing herself so hard. She shouldn't be going more than twenty-four hours without sleep or ignoring meals. I suggest you keep her stress as low as is possible. The Governor ain't somethin' we can control but we gotta do what we can here so we don't add to it. If Rick tries to send Merle off again or we have to leave the prison, it will only make things worse."

"Well, then I ain't gonna let either of those things happen."

Herschel let his curiosity get the better of him. "What do you think? About an abortion, I mean."

Daryl looked up from his work. "Whenever I've thought 'bout kids, I never imagined it like this. There are just so many risks. If things were less dangerous and I had to choose, I wouldn't want her to have an abortion. But the way things are right now, I understand why she don't wanna have a baby. I don't think she really wants to have an abortion, either, but like I said, there are a lotta risks. 'Course, it don't help that Kit was terrified of havin' kids, anyway. She would take some convincin' even if the world went right back to the way it was."

"I've been trying to convince her not to have the procedure. It may be unprofessional – and I do understand her feelings on the matter – but I have my own personal beliefs."

"If this whole thing with the Governor clears up in time, assumin' it does at all, I'm goin' ta go on runs with Kit to try an' find what ya need fer it. I ain't gonna make her do something she don't wanna do if I can help it. 'Specially 'cause she's got some damn good reasons fer it."

Daryl had finished with the arrows now and climbed up to the perch to toss and turn with everything that could change in the coming months. Kit was still awake and petting Bernie but he pulled her under the blankets with him, needing her as much as she needed him. (He wasn't eager to have the cat sleeping with them again, but if it made Kit feel better he could tolerate the damn furball.)

The following morning was, unsurprisingly, difficult. Merle was pissed because he was locked up, a bunch of people were pissed because Rick wanted to stay and Rick and Glenn were pissed because people weren't listening to Rick. Daryl and Kit, on the other hand, sat in silence just as they had at breakfast, each lost in their own thoughts. Kit was too emotionally exhausted to add her own two cents into the mix – ignoring even the stupidest of suggestions made.

That is, until Rick was about to walk out and Herschel yelled at Rick. Kit had never heard him so pissed before and it brought both her and Daryl back into the conversation. "You're slipping Rick," the older man accused. "We've all seen it and we all understand why but now is not the time. Get your head clear and do something."

After that showdown, Kit and Daryl were approached by Glenn. "What's going on with you two? Yesterday you were fighting, which you never do, and now today you both stay silent while things are falling apart; that isn't like either of you but especially you, Kit." Grey eyes were lowered but Kit didn't respond to Glenn's interrogation and neither did Daryl. "Look, I'm sorry for being an ass, okay? Will you just talk to me?" Glenn was still pissed about Merle and he knew that Kit was still pissed at him, but it didn't take a genius to see that his best friend was falling apart with Daryl right alongside her.

"This ain't about you," Daryl assured him. "Now just ain't a good time for talkin'." Neither he nor Kit had the ability or desire to hold a real conversation right now.

Rick returned from watch and began giving orders, actually standing up in his position as leader of the group, when the Merle conversation came up again.

"We barely have any food or ammo," Glenn reminded them.

"We've been here before," Daryl said quietly, trying to contribute despite his distraction.

"That was before we had a snake in the nest."

"Merle's staying," Daryl growled before heading to the upper level. Kit wanted to follow him and hide from the rest of the world but there was shit to be done.

"I don't think Merle staying here is gonna fly."

"So far, you're one of the only people who seems to have any major objections." Kit was not in the mood to be arguing with people. "Merle is an asset."

"He does have military experience," Herschel offered. "He may be erratic but don't underestimate his loyalty to his brother." He glanced at the blonde woman. "Or, by extension, Kit."

"We could use him as a bargaining chip," Glenn suggested. "We give him his traitor and we may be able to call a truce."

"Over my dead body," Kit hissed.

"I doubt it will come to that," Herschel said quickly, trying his best to diffuse the tension in the room. "Can we try to keep things civil, please?"

Kit turned to Glenn, dark purple still under her eyes from lack of sleep. "The fact that you're threatening my brother-in-law aside, I refuse to bargain with a man like the Governor. That sick fuck is going to get what's coming to him if it's the last thing I do."

Herschel sat with Merle after bonding over the bible. "So I take it you're aware of Daryl and Kit's situation, then?"

"You mean the fact that my brother knocked her up? Yep, I'm aware." Merle, as observant as ever, took one look at Herschel's face and gleaned some very important information. "Petite don't want it, do she? Nah, she ain't the type to have a baby in a shithole world like this. Lemme guess, yer the one tha' has ta do it, ain't ya? That bein' the case, I only got one thing ta tell you: you better damn well take care of her." Kit wasn't the only one who had decided to let someone into her family. Merle was equally willing to accept Kit into his. As far as he was concerned, he now had a sister to look out for as well as a brother.

"I intend to take care of Kit as best I can," Herschel replied. "I also intend to get you out of here as soon as possible."

One level up, Daryl and Kit sat together in a cell. He was taking care of his arrows and she was taking care of her gun, but neither spoke to the other. At this point, neither knew exactly what to say so Kit opted to talk about anything other than the fact that she was pregnant. "How long do you think before the Governor attacks us again?"

Daryl looked up, having expected a different conversation, but was relieved to be talking about something they wouldn't argue over. "Dunno. Maybe a couple of days, if we're lucky."

Before they could get any further, Rick was standing in the doorway. "I don't suppose either of you is going to tell me what happened last night? You were shoutin' pretty loud."

"Nope," Daryl replied tersely.

"Alright, then you have to tell me something else. Is whatever's going on between you two going to get in the way of the group? Adversely affect us?"

"That would depend," Kit said slowly. "No matter what, it can wait until after we've finished with this government shit."

The leader nodded in what looked like understanding. "You do realize you two can talk with us about anything, right?" He sighed irritably when he received no reply from either of them but the conversation was interrupted when Carol came in and told them that Andrea was there.

Kit was with the group that 'greeted' Andrea as she arrived. She hated to see Andrea treated as roughly and as angrily as Rick did, but she had to acknowledge the necessity of it. After all, no matter how much Kit liked the other woman, Andrea was still living in Woodbury, the home of their enemy. They had no way of knowing the extent to which she was involved with the Governor's plans.

"Welcome back," Rick told her gruffly before leading her into the prison, the rest of them trailing not far behind.

Immediately upon arriving inside, the hugs began – Kit and Andrea being the first. "I missed you," Kit told her. "I wanted to go looking for you, but…"

"I understand," Andrea said, a genuine smile on her face.

"We thought you were dead," Carol tried to explain.

Andrea looked around, taking in Herschel's leg, the newcomers – Tyreese and Sasha – among other things. "Kit, you and Daryl?" Andrea nodded to the rings the couple was wearing.

"It's been almost six months now," Kit said, a smile splitting onto her face – the first one in days.

There were a few people missing that Andrea was looking for. "Shane? Lori? T-Dog?" All eyes were immediately on the floor as the group remembered their dead. "Is this where you live?" she asked, gesturing to the cell block. When all she got were a few half-hearted nods she asked, "Can I go in?"

"I won't allow that," Rick put himself in her way.

"I'm not an enemy, Rick."

"Maybe," Kit allowed. "But you live with the enemy. If Merle's testimony is true – and I have no reason to disbelieve it – then you're more than a little friendly with our neighbor, the Governor." Kit wasn't usually very quick to come to Rick's defense, but these were special circumstances. She really liked Andrea and desperately wanted her to be innocent of whatever fucked up shit happened at Woodbury, but until then they had to err on the side of caution.

"We had that field and courtyard," Rick further explained. "Until your boyfriend tore down the fence and shot us up."

"He said you fired first," Andrea breathed.

"Well he's lyin'," Rick informed her.

"He killed an inmate who survived here," Herschel continued.

"We liked him." Daryl glanced up at her from his crossbow. He wouldn't be as quick to accept Andrea as the others if she was going to side with this Governor guy. "He was one of us."

Andrea, for her part, looked sick from the information she heard. "I didn't know anything about that. As soon as I found out, I came. I didn't even know you were in Woodbury until after the shootout! I came as soon as I could." It killed Kit to see Andrea treated like this, but she had to keep her personal feelings out of it until Andrea could be trusted. "What about Merle?" she cried. "Isn't he the one who kidnapped you, who beat you?"

She was clearly addressing Glenn and Maggie, but Kit had to come to Merle's defense. "He also saved me," Kit said quietly. "He didn't have to do that."

"Look, I'm trying to excuse or explain Phillip's actions but I am trying to bring us together."

"I'm willing to give you a chance," Kit said earnestly. "But that Governor asshole is an entirely different matter. I don't even want to be forced to breathe the same air as him."

"We're not trying to work this out. We're going to kill him. I don't know how or when, but we will." Kit agreed with Rick, but she wished he didn't have to look so crazy when he was threatening the Governor.

"We can settle this," Andrea insisted. "For all of you."

Merle scoffed. "You know better than that."

"What makes you think he wants to negotiate?" Herschel asked. "Did he say that?"

"And what if we don't want to live in Woodbury?" Kit added.

"No, and I don't know," Andrea admitted to Herschel and Kit's questions.

"Then why did you come here?" Rick demanded.

"Because he's preparing for war!" Andrea told them irritably. "People are terrified; they see you as killers. They're training to attack."

Kit's blood ran cold. It wasn't as if she would have expected anything less from the man who had nearly killed Daryl, but the idea terrified her all the same. She was about to say something before Glenn said exactly what she was thinking. "We've taken too much shit for too long. If he wants a war, he's got one." It was funny how a common enemy – the Governor – could unite a group in the ways it did. They no longer felt the same division they'd had only hours earlier. Now the only question what whether Andrea was with them or against them.

"Rick, if you don't sit down and try to work this out, I don't know what's going to happen. He has a whole town! You've lost so much already," Andrea reminded them.

Rick was done listening, though, and stormed off, making his decision on pretty damn clear.

Andrea was allowed to stay a while and after she had seen Judith, she approached Kit – Daryl keeping an eye on them from a distance. "He's even more protective than on the farm," Andrea commented.

"Yes, even though I've never needed it."

"I heard what happened with you and Shane."

Kit stiffened, causing Daryl to shift as if he was going to walk over and kick Andrea's ass just for making her uncomfortable. "It had to be done."

"Yeah, I know. I'm so sorry, Kit. God, I just didn't see it when I was with him. I didn't think he'd be capable of…"

She pulled Kit into a hug before the shorter woman replied. "Shane was complicated. I think even after he'd gone off the deep end there will still good parts of him left. I'm just not sure whether or not those parts of him would have come back."

"You look like hell."

"You don't look so great yourself."

Andrea smiled at Kit's retort. "I've missed you, too. I've missed having someone reasonable with a backbone around. Those people are few and far between – seems most people only have one or the other."

"You were always a diplomatic one. I'm just not sure if it's going to work this time," Kit sighed. "I don't want to have war, but you have to understand by now that the governor isn't giving us much of a choice. I wish you would stay with us. You belong here."

"The people at Woodbury need me. I can't abandon them."

Andrea left shortly afterward, leaving most the group contemplating what to do next. "What do you all think we should do?" Rick asked.

"Well, it's a Cold War type situation," Kit sighed. "If we actually do go to war, the losses on both sides would enormous – mutually assured destruction. The only difference is, no leader during the Cold War was actually crazy enough to want to start a war like that and unfortunately for us, the Governor is that crazy. But when you have a leader that crazy, people are bound to notice eventually and even if they don't, crazy leaders tend to lead to the fall of a state – the state in this case being Woodbury. We have to wait them out." Even Kit knew it wasn't the best idea but good ideas were not easy to find in the apocalypse.

"That would take too long," Maggie argued.

"Do we have another choice? We fortify the prison against attack and kick their asses if they come anywhere near us."

The rest of the group turned to Rick expectantly, thinking he would turn Kit's idea down outright the way he always did. Instead, he said, "A meeting with the Governor could buy us some time."

This earned him a number of raised eyebrows but a smirk from Kit. "That's not a terrible idea. We pretend we're there to negotiate but in reality we buy ourselves some time. I like it."