Hi guys! Sorry for not updating for so long! I was really busy and injured my leg on top of that so I didn't have as much time for writing as I would have wished.
I won't be able to watch the final episode today, I'll watch it tomorrow and I really really hope it won't be as heartbreaking as the last one. They can't kill off everybody Daryl has ever grown attached to, right? Carol, please be strong.
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Carol was up early. Judith was fussy, so she took her from Rick's cell to give him a bit longer sleep. She was feeding a baby, sitting on the stairs leading to Daryl's perch, smiling to herself. She knew she shouldn't have been so content, the world had gone to hell and the Governor could attack anytime, but she couldn't help it. The weight of squirming, healthy baby in her arms and her yesterday's night talk with Daryl simply made her feel that way and she decided to steal every moment of happiness she had left.
Her smile even widened when she heard the light steps behind her.
"Too early for hunting, isn't it?" she asked, not turning. She would recognize those footsteps anywhere.
"Too early for this lil' monster to scream her head off, huh?" Daryl sat down next to her, examining Judith, "is she all right?"
"Yeah, just a tummy ache and she was hungry, so I took her from Rick before she could wake everybody up."
Daryl nodded and slightly touched her arm before he got up.
"I'll be back around lunchtime. Try not to run into any troubles till then."
She smiled and watched him leave. The day had started so peacefully.
Unfortunately, the peace was not supposed to last long. Maggie was outside with Beth hanging out the washing, when three figures emerged from the wood. Beth ran inside to get Rick and Maggie sprinted to the guard tower, where Glenn was having a watch.
They all calmed down a little when they recognized Daryl's unmistakable crossbow. He was walking a few steps behind the other two, obviously protecting them, watching out for walkers.
"It's Andrea and Michonne," said Rick, finally taking the binoculars off his eyes, "Andrea is hurt."
They opened the gate and let them in. Daryl was now also supporting Andrea, who could barely walk. Her face was all swollen, covered in blood and bruises. She was limping on one leg and left side of her blouse was soaking in blood. Carol gasped when she saw the state she was in. They didn't waste the time talking. Rick replaced Michonne and together with Daryl they half dragged half carried Andrea into the prison.
They all silently stood there, when Hershel was checking on Andrea. They all knew what it meant. No matter if she'd run away or was set free, this was the message from the Governor.
"I cannot say if she's got any internal injuries," Hershel sighed and ran a hand over his tired face, "but if she doesn't, she should make it. Somebody has beaten the hell out of her, but she doesn't have any broken bones and the stab wound in her side is not too deep either."
He didn't waste a time and started treating his wounds, Carol helping him.
"Was it the Governor?" Maggie's voice was no louder than a whisper.
Daryl nodded.
"He would have killed her if that geek Milton, or whatever his fuckin'name is, didn't help her. Andrea tried to get to the prison and bumped into Michonne in the woods. Fuckin' coincidence but it saved her life. I found them this morning about five miles west from the prison. They were making so much noise I was surprised they didn't have the herd of walkers behind their ass."
Rick turned to Michonne: "We're glad to have you back."
"Yeah, you'd better be," Daryl's voice lowered as he looked around the group, "that bastard with his army is comin' tomorrow."
They all fell silent. They knew it was coming, but having a firm date was like feeling a guillotine already scraping their necks. Glenn hugged Maggie and Rick instinctively pulled Carl closer to him. Beth turned to her father with desperate look on her face. Carol suddenly felt nauseous. This is it then, they would probably die tomorrow, defending what they believed was their home.
Her eyes found Daryl's. He was looking directly at her, thoughtfully chewing on his thumb. Although he was trying to cover it up, she saw the doubts and uncertainty in his eyes. She felt her stomach drop. If Daryl Dixon doubted they could make it, they were screwed. She swallowed the panic rising in her throat and glared at Rick. He'd designated himself as the leader and now was the time to prove it.
The tasks Rick assigned were simple. Men went outside to make sure the prison is as fortified as it can get. They built small barricades around each shooting post and made sure it was well equipped with guns and ammo. Women in the prison were checking that all weapons are fully loaded and working.
It was late in the afternoon when Rick had their little group gathered in the eating area inside the prison. He sighed when he looked around their glowering and serious faces. He'd given them a choice. None of them wanted to flee, all voted to fight for the prison they considered their home. They could die tomorrow, but hitting a road with one-legged man and small baby would mean a death sentence sooner or later. They decided to take their chances but when the day was coming to an end, the mettle and fighting spirit seemed to be fading away. He saw fear and exhaustion; he felt the uneasiness and tension.
But despite their desperate situation, he felt blessed to be in the company of these people. Apart from the family bonds, each of them was ready to catch a bullet for their loved ones. He knew that Glenn wouldn't hesitate a second to lay down his life for Maggie or her sister and Hershel would do the same for any of them. And he would be blind not to notice how overprotective over Carol Daryl had become. When he'd told her that Daryl had decided to leave with his brother, Rick hadn't seen Carol so shattered since Sophia's death. It made a favor he wanted to ask her even more difficult, but he saw no other choice.
He turned directly to Carol, who was humming to Judith in her arms. Daryl was standing next to her, watching Rick and waiting for him to speak.
"Carol," Rick cleared his throat, "if things get out of control tomorrow, I want you to take Judith, Carl, Beth and Andrea and get out of here."
She looked at him with her blue eyes wide open and didn't say a word.
"We have the car ready for you out back. It is loaded with petrol, supplies and guns. The Governor and his men will come from the other side and won't see it."
Carol shook her head and before she could say anything, suddenly Carl stepped in front of his father.
"Dad, I'm not going anywhere. I have become a great shot, Carol's good too and Beth will stay with Judith in the back. You cannot afford to lose two people."
Rick sighed, kneeled in front of his son and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Carl…I didn't manage to save your mother and I didn't manage to save you from the horrors of this world. But you have become a strong young man and God help me if I don't try to save your life no matter what it takes."
Rick squeezed his eyes shut when he remembered Lori and for a thousand times pictured his son putting down his own mother before she'd turned.
"Carl, I love you. You, Carol and Beth will be the last ones to defend Judith if we get outnumbered tomorrow. Andrea is hurt, she can't fight now, but she will get better soon. You need to trust me with this and you need to do as asked. You must make sure that your sister will get a chance to grow up."
The tears were now running down Carl's cheeks but he nodded and hugged his father tightly.
"But hey, don't give up. Where there's life there's hope," Rick whispered into his son's ear before getting up.
He turned to Carol again. She still seemed to be in shock.
"You want me to leave you all behind?" she asked in disbelief, "I thought we are a family. We go or we stay, live or die, but all of us. We are not separating."
"Carol please," Rick's voice was trembling, "I ahve no idea what happens tomorrow. You are the only one who can save them if we don't make it."
Carol looked at Hershel and his expression was as pleading as Rick's: "We put the lives of our youngest ones in your hands Carol."
Carol turned to Daryl.
"You agree with this?"
He looked into her eyes and then looked away.
"I loaded the car."
Something in Carol broke. She knew they were being reasonable. But staying alive and knowing that most of her loved ones were gone was too much to ask. She looked down at Judith, tears running down her face. She knew she had no choice.
"Carol?" Rick was now standing in front of her, both hands on her shoulders.
Her eyes were teary and she looked down at Judith again. Baby was awake, smiling at her and stretching her little arms.
Carol swallowed a sob and nodded.
There was not much else to say. Rick wanted to encourage them, wanted to ensure them they were going to be all right but the words weren't coming. They seemed to understand. One by one they slowly disappeared into their cells, knowing the sleep would not come.
No one could call Daryl Dixon a coward, but it was the middle of night and prison was already quiet when he decided he was ready to face Carol Peletier. He was watching her from his perch. He saw her pacing in her cell, packing and unpacking her stuff, kicking the bars and finally collapsing on the bed, crying her eyes out.
He wished he would know what to say, what to do. He didn't allow himself to think about tomorrow. He'd seen Rick losing his cool when talking to Carol about Carl and Lil'Asskicker, and didn't want the same happen to him.
When Rick had asked him, Daryl had agreed with his plan immediately. Getting Carol out of the way if the situation went adrift, was the most reasonable solution he could think of. Just an idea of Carol getting hurt or even killed made him nauseous.
Daryl looked over to her cell again. She was already tugged in her bed, rolling around restlessly. Daryl had never had many people in his miserable life who would have cared for him and vice versa. Nonetheless, he'd realized a long time ago that he did care for Carol much more than he should have and it'd scared the hell out of him when it seemed she cared about him too. He had no freaking idea how it'd happened but it had. He wished he could somehow tell her how special she was to him, without looking like a dumbass and screwing things up.
He sighed and went to her cell. Whether he liked it or not, it really could be the last chance to talk to her. He didn't want to miss it and he wanted to double check she wouldn't do anything stupid tomorrow.
By the way she jumped out of her bed when she heard his footsteps; he knew she was waiting for him. But he was taken aback by the hurt he saw in her eyes.
She jabbed her finger into his chest.
"You knew! You knew about Rick's plan and didn't tell me anything! How could you!"
"Cause I knew ya would go into frenzy like this and wanna to avoid it as long as possible," he snapped back at her.
Well, it'd started really well, Daryl thought angrily. But he cooled down quickly when he noticed she was shivering. He wanted to take a step closer, he wanted to hug her and make her feel better but he felt so awkward that he just stayed rooted to the spot.
"Ya know that it's the right thing to do, don't ya?" Daryl asked softly.
She looked at him and he saw the single tear running down her cheek. Carol nodded. Daryl reached out and wiped the tear away. He shuddered at the feel of her skin, it was soft like a velvet.
"We'll be all right."
She leaned into his palm and closed her eyes.
"You don't believe it Daryl, I can see it in your face."
Once again he was surprised how well she can read him. She opened her eyes and looked at him.
"This is my family Daryl. When I lost Sophia, I would never think I could feel anything like this again. Feel loved, needed, feel that I belong somewhere…," her voice broke and Carol paused to take a shaky breath, "and now you're asking me to give it all up all again, asking me to let you die here. Does any of you realize what it will do to me?"
Her blue eyes were radiating such agony that Daryl could swear it physically hurt him too. She tried to hold the tears back and reached out for his hand.
"Come back to me," she whispered.
Before he could realize what he was doing, he bent down and pressed his lips to hers. He was so shocked by his action that he wanted to pull away immediately but his body didn't seem to care at all, what his dazed brain wanted. He could say he completely surprised her as well because he felt her stiffen. But it took only couple of seconds before she relaxed and leaned into his kiss. His tongue was hesitantly asking for entrance and his self-control went to hell in the speed of light, when she parted her lips and moaned into his mouth. She tasted like heaven and Daryl felt his knees buckling. He cupped her face and Carol wrapped her arms around his neck, crushing her body into his. The blood was roaring in her ears and she felt goose bumps all over her body. She had never felt so alive and the irony of the moment brought fresh tears into her eyes. Daryl was fiercely kissing her with a longing he'd never experienced before and he was desperately trying to burn into his brain every single detail about the woman he held in his arms. When they finally broke their kiss, both of them were breathing heavily, looking at each other in disbelief.
Daryl reached for her again when Glenn's shout resounded in the prison.
"They're coming!"
Daryl groaned and cursed. Carol's hear sank, instinctively reaching for Daryl.
"Stay safe woman."