A/N: Trying to make my chapters longer and more detailed. Now that I have free time and all.

Chapter Three

Silence and Thoughts & Jumping Bridges

Duo pulled the flap of the tent door open and stepped out. The sky was just starting to turn from black to a dull pink. He looked over his shoulder at the sleeping form curled up in the sleeping bag and smiled.

Letting the flap fall back into place he stretched his arms out above him, bones cracking. A few yards away another form emerged from another tent. Duo nodded as they met up walking towards a dying fire.

"Morning Dixon."

"What? No good mornin'?" Daryl Dixon teased as he tossed some liter knot into the smoldering coals. He bent down and blew for a second. A moment later the fire was blazing.

Duo grabbed a kettle and filled it with water from a large plastic barrel sitting on the back of a flatbed truck and hung it from a peace of rebar they'd bent for just that reason.

Daryl moaned as he held an empty cup.

"Member em' days when all you had to do was push a button, go take a leak and coffee was ready?"

Daryl's southern drawl was lick with sleep as he stared at the kettle, willing it to be ready.

"Oh those were the days," A female's voice broke in.

Carol came to a stop next to Daryl and wrapped a thin blanket around herself as she sank down next to him. Daryl turned his upper body towards Carol then pulled off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. She smiled up at him. He gave her a weak smile in return then faced back towards Duo who was trying to ignore them and give them a private moment. He knew Daryl and Carol had a thing going, but respected their wish about no one knowing just yet.

Duo wrapped a hand towel around his hand and reach for the kettle, pulling it free from the fire and pouring the hot water into their cups. He refilled the kettle and replaced it back on the rebar. They each took their turn making coffee from a can of instant coffee Heero had brought back the day before. And for once there was sugar and creamer. Heero knew he needed essentials and sugar and creamer wasn't a necessity, but it was a luxury he wasn't gonna pass up. He shoved it into his backpack right before they returned to meet up with Duo and the others when they were in the city.

The three of them sat in silence for a moment until the distant sounds of the dead city reached their ears. Carol shivered and began to fill the silence with idle chatter.

Neither Duo nor Daryl really wanted to talk or listen, but they let Carol babble on. If it made her feel better than they'd both deal. She went on about being grateful for the Gain they'd brought back and how nice it was going to be to wash clothes and them actually feeling clean instead of just scrubbing them in plain water or using a bar of ivory soap that left the clothes stiff feeling once they were dry. She was looking forward to it. She ordered them both to gather their dirty laundry which was nothing more than a change of clothes and leave it by the barrel she's claimed as the washer. She'd strung a rope from one propane tank to the other and was using it to hang the clean laundry to dry. The smile on her face at the idea of having clean laundry left a smile on Daryl's face. Duo noticed. Daryl noticed Duo noticing and he turned his head away, but the smile never left his face.

Later the rest of the camp was up and moving. Kyle relieved his brother, Derrick from watch duty and he tiredly made his way to his tent to crash for a few hours.

The compound was nothing more than an old military weigh station. Three stone walls butted up to a cliff with a large metal gate. Two huge tanks of propane lined the back wall, both empty.

The vehicles lined up facing the gate just in case they had to bail in a hurry.

Half the group was gone leaving a handful of people worrying and stressing about the void in the group.

They'd left to scout further to the north. They figured going north would be best. The cold seemed to slow the walkers down. Their bodies didn't run as hot as live humans. They weren't cold either. The friction of their moving limbs caused heat but it didn't keep them warm enough and their bodies froze much faster, slowing them. At the very least winters would be safer, if only for a few months out of the year. And further north people went, the lower population was.

It seemed like a good idea. So the unofficial leader of the group, Rick, his son Carl, Andrea, Glenn and Maggie left three days before the run to the city, leaving Duo in charge of the remaining group, which had grown. Before Rick and his group, it was just Duo, his boyfriend Heero, Kyle, his brother Derrick, Gavin, Jackson, his wife, Lexy and their seven year old daughter, Heather.

Now the only people in the camp were them and a couple of guys that joined Rick's group a few months before joining with Duo and his people.

Rick and the others had only planed on being gone for five days. If they weren't back by then, than something was wrong and Duo was to pull everybody out and move on.

Something caught Duo's attention; Judy the smallest member of the group was running across the front area. Each pass brought her closer to the gate. She'd only just recently found her running legs. She wasn't even walking when the groups got together. She was a little piece of heaven to everybody, hope. She was happy all the time; always laughing and playing. She hardly showed any fear in the scary world around her. She'd look at a walker like it was nothing more than an everyday annoyance. She knew not to go towards one; she knew to instead run to one of the grownups. She was brave and was going to grow up strong in this world. Duo swore the kids in the group would grow old. It was his mission to keep them alive and he strived to give them some sense of normal.

Judy's path was closer to the gate than Duo liked. Just as he was about to call out to her to move away, Beth swooped in and pulled Judy into her arms. She must have felt the same uneasiness of the small child so close to the gate. Beth spun about for a second and Judy let out a laugh.

Beth put Judy down, next to Heather, and sat down on the tailgate of the truck and watched the girls play.

Duo noticed the volleyball, Heather was rolling towards Judy, was going flat and made a mental note to pick up more stuff for the kids next run to the city.

Heero stepped up next to Duo and wrapped his arm around his waist and pulled Duo tight up against him. Duo breathed in Heero's scent, his body relaxing a bit.

"I want to make another run, to the city or the small town a few miles east of here."

Heero looked down at Duo.

"Why? We just made a run yesterday. We shouldn't have to make another run 'till after Rick and them get back."

"Yeah, I know, but we didn't get anything for the kids and the only ball they have is going flat. I want to get some more stuff for them to play with,"

Duo's face was stern. He pulled away from Heero and took his hand as they made their way towards the kids.

"See what I mean?"

Heero looked at the nearly flat volleyball and nodded.

"Guess we'll get together with Daryl and come up with a 'Toys for Tots' mission."

Duo smiled and nodded his head in agreement.

Daryl's crossbow bounced on his backside as he climbed a cell tower, his breath heavy. He stopped just under half way up the tower and pulled a pair of binoculars up to his face.

"Well damn it to hell."

The bridge they used to cross into the city was crawling with walkers. Not crawling, more like a mob rush of walkers trying to get at something.

Daryl scanned the bridge trying to find what had the walkers all worked up. His eyes stopped on a car that was trying to weave in and around the abandoned cars on the bridge. If they'd used the other side of the bridge they would have been able to cross without the hassle; his group had already cleared it so they could get over and back without worry.

Daryl watched as the car wedged itself between a SUV and a truck and got stuck. The driver tried to back out, but it was useless. As the walkers got closer Daryl could see three people jump out of the car and make a mad dash towards the end of the bridge, running, jumping over debris. Daryl found himself rooting like a football fan.

"Come on...Come on...Go!"

As far as he was able to tell it was two men and a woman. They were moving fast, but the walkers were just as fast.

The woman stumbled and almost fell. The men kept going, the distance between them and her grew, and Daryl found himself getting angry.

"Leave a woman behind like that…What in the hell is wrong with them?"

She stooped on top of the trunk of a car and spun to look behind her, then back around towards the men, who were pretty far ahead of her by then. She glanced back towards the walkers then to the side of the bridge. It took Daryl all of two seconds to realize what she was thinking.

"Jump woman," Daryl nearly shouted.

Sweat began to form on his brow. It was starting to annoy him, but he couldn't wipe it away without putting the binoculars down or letting his death grip on the tower go.

He ignored it.

She stood on the trunk bouncing a little, trying to work up the nerve. The walkers were about fifty feet from her. She spun on her heels and jumped down from the trunk. She pulled herself up onto the side of the bridge and looked over her shoulder at the walkers who were almost close enough to touch.

Daryl held his breath as he watched. She let go of the wire and jumped.

The walkers rushed the side grabbing at the empty space she'd just left.

Daryl couldn't see her anymore; the other side of the bridge blocked his view of her fall.

He dropped the binoculars and started back down the tower. Before he was completely down from the tower he was barking to leave.

"We gotta get a move on. Let's go!"

He jumped into the driver's seat of the jeep him, Duo, and Heero had taken out.

Heero and Duo jumped in looking at Daryl for an explanation.

"Bridge ain't no good. People dragged a bunch of walkers on it."

Daryl threw the jeep in reverse and slammed on the gas, spinning the jeep back towards the road.

"Then why the hell are we rushing towards it?"

Heero had to grab the roll bar to steady himself.

"Them people left a woman behind. Sumbitches. She jumped off the bridge to get away."

The jeep's brakes barked as Daryl slammed them. It was barely in park when Daryl jumped out, Heero and Duo right behind him. A walker stumbled in front of Daryl just before he made it to the water's edge. He lifted his crossbow and the bolt buried into its head. It fell limp; Daryl ignored it.

At the edge, a few feet between the water and the lip, a small wooden dock was below and on it was the girl from the bridge trying to pull herself up.

All three men jumped down and reached for her. She screamed at first and pulled away, almost spiraling backwards into the freezing water. Heero got ahold of her arm and pulled her up out of the water.

Duo and Daryl talked at once, trying to show her they weren't walkers.

She settled after a second.

"Well damn woman, you've got balls."

Heero and Duo both nodded in agreement.

A/N: Don't forget to review! thanks ^_^ Next Chapter will be up by this weekend maybe two chapter's Huge Thanks to Whywewashthewindows. I have more free time now that winter break is over.