I figured since we are getting closer to the end that I would post another chapter today. Like old times ;) Hope you enjoy this one! Thanks for the reviews! There were some new faces! That's always exciting! Have a good night my friends. I'll post another in the A.m. =)

Chapter Eighty Five

They had all been woken up pretty early, which wasn't something any of them wanted to do since the night had been long, drawn out and pretty dramatic. No one had gotten enough sleep. Carol figured that it was a good thing that being deprived of sleep was something they were all pretty used too.

Rick was forcing Carl to go to the school where there were about six other children around his age, plus plenty of others a little older and a little younger. Sophia had gotten up on her own, showered, dressed and was ready before Carol had even risen.

"I'm going to this stupid school." She had announced, waking her and Daryl both up.

She had came back to their room with them and slept on the couch. Daryl had sat up then and squinted at the girl. "School sucks. The fuck ya gonna do that for? School don't make any sense anymore."

Carol had laughed into her pillow. "Daryl, really?"

He looked over at her and snorted. "Yeah, really. What the fuck they gonna teach her? The different stages of Walker decay. Fuckin' bunch of idiots." He looked back up at her. "I done told'em you wasn't goin'. You ain't gotta go if you don't want too."

Sophia's annoyed look dropped from her face and she grinned at him. "We fit in for now, remember? That's what we do. I go to school and you two go on to whatever idiot job they have in store for you."

He growled and dropped back down onto his pillow. "This is bullshit."

She leaned down and kissed his forehead. "And no fighting, Daryl. If you and Merle are beating the crap out of everybody then we'll never blend in."

"Yes ma'am."

Shortly after Sophia had left they got a wake up call from Martinez, of all people. Not that they even needed it. They had been up for a while. When Carol had opened the door the man looked awful. His jaw was so swollen it made his face look almost deformed, both eyes were black and his nose was now setting a bit askew on his face. He was glaring at her.

"The Governor wants to see your group in thirty minutes. Don't be late." He growled before turning and walking away.

Carol shut the door and leaned against it right as Daryl came out of the bathroom, wearing nothing but a low slung pair of pants, still unbuttoned and rubbing his damp hair vigorously with a towel. She felt herself flush. Not just her face either, but her entire body seemed to heat up.

"Who the fuck was that?" He mumbled.

She cleared her throat and forced herself to look at his face, it was having the same effect on her. More so than usual. "Martinez." She said and instantly a muscle in his jaw started twitching.

"Fuckin' asshole." He grumbled as he buttoned up his shirt. It was black. He looked really good in black. He threw on the vest, scowling.

"I know, but Merle and Sophia are right. We have to just endure it for a little while." There was a breathy note to her voice that she tried to mask as she watched him but there was nothing she could do about it.

He looked up, still angry, but then he smirked. "You really thinkin' bout that now, woman?"

She groaned. How did he just know?

The anger left his eyes when he approached her. She was still standing with her back pressed to the door. Her hands instantly went to his shoulders as his eyes met hers. The smirk faded.

"How much time?" He asked, voice husky and low.

"Thirty minutes." She whispered, wandering how he could have such an effect on her still, like she hadn't been with him yet, anticipation turning her insides to fire. She didn't even realize what she was doing until she had his shirt unbuttoned and then was pushing it off his shoulders. His eyes stayed locked on hers.

"Thirty minutes." He repeated.

She nodded and then sucked in a sharp breath when his hands went to the button of her jeans and then pulled her with him as he walked backwards towards the bed. "He said to not be late." She whispered.

"Mmm hmm. And I say he can go fuck himself." he growled as he hooked his thumbs into her waistband and pushed the jeans down her hips, never breaking that intense gaze he had on her eyes.

"We're suppose to be good for now." She breathed as his lips met that spot below her ear that always caused her to melt, not that she wasn't doing enough of that already.

"It'll be good, woman." He whispered right before his teeth grazed her earlobe. His hands slid up her back, his fingers rough and familiar.

She didn't see any point in stopping. Her lips met his damp shoulder as her hands found his pants already undone even though she couldn't recall his hands ever leaving her. He didn't need much urging to lose the pants. For two people pressed for time he didn't seem to be in much of a hurry as he sat down on the edge of the bed, pulling her down with him as soon as she had her jeans kicked off. She didn't much care at the moment as she pushed him down onto his back. It wasn't often he gave up any kind of control, so when he did it was a treat. He didn't give it up lightly.

She raised her hips and finally he broke his gaze and looked down just as she lowered herself onto him. His eyes widened, pupils darkening, breath coming out in a low hiss between parted lips. she couldn't take her eyes off his face as she moved, slow and easy, over him. He folded his arms under his head and watched. This was a surprise. Even the few times she was in control he still kept his hands on her, like he couldn't completely let go. He kept his eyes downcast and there was something about him watching that was driving her crazy. Something about him handing over that power that had her nearly gasping for breath already. She watched his face, he bit his lip, and just the sight of his teeth sinking lightly into that soft flesh had her reeling. She hated to admit it. She really did, but she needed him. He knew her like a book, knew every little move to make to get the greatest reaction from her. She didn't want control anymore, she wanted him to take it back, and bring her to that place only he could take her.

His eyes shot up and met hers and then he grinned. He knew exactly what she needed. She would gladly give up that little bit of control. He raised up faster than she expected, that grin still in place as he rolled her onto her back. As soon as she felt his hot tongue slide lazily against hers she nearly cried out and then he was moving, his mouth never leaving hers. He started out slow and easy and then increased his speed at that crucial moment. She heard him chuckle low in his throat as her body started building up for the release that she knew was so close. He always knew when she was close, and this time was no different. His mouth left hers as soon as she was about to go over that edge that she was now so familiar with, although it was different every time.

He moved his lips next to her ear. "Come on woman, clocks tickin'."

That low smooth voice was always what undid her. Every single time and he knew it. As soon as her legs locked around his waist she heard him chuckle low in his throat.

"That's my girl." he crooned right before his teeth sank into her neck, causing her to gasp again as she was swept away on the tide, that sweet intensity that was bordering on pain. The only indication that he was joining her was the heat that seemed to be filling her and the quickening of his breath on her neck.

He kissed his way back up to her mouth before moving away from her. She hated that they had to leave. She could have stayed with him like that for the rest of her life and wouldn't have cared a bit. But they had things to do and places to be. She grudgingly watched him get dressed again as she did the same. Later. There was always later.

He kissed her one more time before they left their room, then he put on his take no shit, scowl.

Now, standing in front of Philip she could still taste him on her lips but all thoughts of sex were completely gone. Morgan was there, but she expected that. The rest of her group were there also, which made her feel a little better. Apparently the men would be trained on the wall. Like they needed to be trained how to stand there and wait for something to come along to shoot. She thought this was all a little ridiculous.

Hershel and Milton were actually excited about their job. Or at least were really good at pretending to be excited. They had the task of organizing and cataloging all of the medical supplies so they could start running a real medical facility for the town.

Dale was to meet with a few other men that no one else in the group had met yet to see about helping tend to the greenhouse. He seemed to warm up to the idea pretty quickly.

They had other things in mind for the women. Carol, Andrea and Maggie were to help out where they prepared food to freeze in the walk in freezers in what had been a large diner towards the center of town. Beth and Amy were to go help out at the school.

"Where is the other one. That older boy that was with you last night?" Philip finally asked as he came around his desk.

Everyone looked around. "Haven't seen him." Daryl spoke before any of the others could. "He ain't much a member of this group. He was just a tag along. He should be here somewhere though." He shrugged.

"Martinez?" Didn't you wake them up this morning? Did you see him?" Philip asked.

"I figured he was bunking with someone else." He shrugged.

Philip's cool facade faltered a bit. His eyes grew hard, his smile stilled on his lips. Carol unconsciously took Daryl's hand. He used it to pull her closer and put an arm around her.

"I saw him last night, but I haven't seen'em this mornin'." Maggie was the one that spoke up this time. Philip fixed that warm smile as soon as he glanced at her. His gaze lingered for far too long before he spoke and Carol could see the waves of tension radiating off of Merle. This was hard for him. Very hard. She just had to hope he would take his own advice and not try to kill the man right here on the spot.

"Well," Philip said as he cleared his throat, still never taking his eyes off Maggie, "I'm sure it isn't something we need to worry about just yet."

Maggie wasn't blind to the way the man looked at her and she pressed herself further into Merle's side. Merle kept his mouth shut but that angry muscle in his jaw was clenching much like Daryl's did when he was really angry about something.

"Well, now that you all know what's expected of you today I hope you enjoy yourselves out there. And let me know if your friend shows up." Philip sat back down behind his desk, dismissing everyone.

When they walked out Carol finally let go of Daryl's hand and cupped the side of his face. He was tense as he looked at her. "Remember, Daryl." She said quietly. "Whatever happens, do not act normal. What passes for normal for you anyway." She winked.

He tried but he couldn't fight the smile. "You're an asshole."

"I learned from the master." She said right before she kissed him and then pushed him away. "Go to work, Dixon." She called over her shoulder as she fell in step with Maggie and Andrea.

~H~

Sophia sat there with her elbows propped up on the desk and her chin resting on her hands. She wanted to leave. She had always liked school before. This wasn't like before. There was no Ed to avoid, her mom had no bruises that she didn't want to look at. She wanted to be with Daryl and Merle, plotting some sort of crusade to save their group from that creepy bastard. But no. instead she had to act like she was interested in this no nothing asshole that was making absolutely no sense.

She glanced over at Carl. He was scribbling in a notebook. When he glanced over at her he sat up straighter and turned the notebook so she could see the page he had been working on. In big bubble letters he had written, 'THIS SUCKS...'

She had to stifle a laugh. When she glanced at the seat to her other side she wasn't surprised to see Duane with his head down on his desk, eyes closed, mouth partially open, sound asleep.

The lady, Sophia had forgotten her name as soon as she was introduced, who was suppose to be teaching them cleared her throat loudly. "Would you mind waking your friend up?" She snapped, looking right at Sophia.

Sophia nodded and then slapped him hard in the back of the head. He shot up in his seat, wiping the drool off the corner of his mouth with his shirt sleeve.

There were six other kids in the class and they were all staring at the three of them now. It had been like that since they entered the room this morning. The woman, Sophia refused to call her a teacher since she looked to be no older than Beth, had been flashing them dirty looks. They hadn't done anything to deserve the scrutiny so it was getting really irritating. She was surprised to see that most of the dirty looks weren't really directed towards all three of them, only her. She had always done good in school. Never got in trouble and always kept her grades up. But she couldn't take this seriously. Even though she basically hated it, she still tried to pay attention to the crap that was coming out of the woman's mouth.

Carl and Duane were the two that weren't even trying to even seem interested. But still the narrowed eyes landed on her. She rolled her own eyes and settled down further into her seat. This was such crap. This lady didn't know what the hell she was talking about anyway. She was just playing her role in trying to make this creepy town seem more normal.

"Is there some sort of problem, Miss Dixon?" The woman snapped.

There it was. She said the name Dixon like it was a dirty word. She thought Sophia was Daryl's daughter and she had probably been informed about the way Merle and Daryl had acted since coming here. She probably figured the apple didn't fall far from the tree. In this case, she was right. But Sophia had to keep herself in check. She noticed Carl and Duane glancing at one another over her head.

"No, ma'am." Sophia said after several deep calming breaths.

"That's good to hear. I've been told about the stunts you like to pull. I wont be having any of that in this classroom. We aren't a bunch of savages here. We are human beings and this is a real community. You should be ashamed of yourself for the way you acted towards the Governor. You're lucky he took you people in at all."

"Breath!" Carl whispered. "Just breath and nod."

Sophia nodded after taking another deep breath. She had to do this for her group. She didn't have a choice but to pretend to fit in here. Soon she could leave and wouldn't have to worry about it until tomorrow.

The look the woman gave her then was a smug one. She was baiting her and Sophia knew it. She wasn't going to let up on her at all.

"Well, it's good to see that you have less fight in you than your father has." The woman smiled and turned back to the dry erase board she had been writing on before she saw that Duane was taking a mid morning nap.

Sophia could feel that everyone in the room was looking at her. She could feel the blood pounding in her ears and she could feel that her hands were shaking on the desk top. She pulled them away and put them in her lap.

She let the storm rage on inside as the woman droned on and on. She wasn't even sure what she was saying. She could have been talking to her but she couldn't hear her words. This was how Daryl and Merle felt. Getting judged by others when the person doing the judging didn't even know them. When she looked over at Carl he was glaring at the woman. Duane too was eying her with narrowed eyes. At least she had them. It gave her a little comfort.

~H~

Merle watched the men carefully. This all seemed like a real waste of time to him. They weren't given guns, which he wasn't surprised, but they still had to stand around and act like they were making themselves useful. They all stood on the wall like a bunch of morons doing absolutely nothing. And just his luck, all four men that him and his brother had been forced to fight last night were there. They all looked pretty bad except for the one that Daryl had nailed in the dick. He looked fine until he started walking.

They explained to them what they were suppose to do. Which was basically stand there and wait for something to happen.

"What happens when a live one wonders up?" Merle asked casually. He still wanted to know how the hell that woman that the kids found last night had managed to get herself shot. Morgan said the only thing he was told was that she was a danger to the town and needed to be 'taken care of'.

Martinez, who looked about as bad as a man could look, had glared at him. "We get the Governor. That's what." His speech wasn't what it had been. That jaw must have been bothering him something awful.

Merle just nodded, like that was a fine idea. What he wanted to do was ask the bunch of pussies if any of them took a piss without asking the Governor if they were allowed to go. But he didn't. If there was any time for self control it was now.

"Ya'll see a lot of people stumblin' onto this place?" Daryl asked as he adjusted his bow. He had at least been able to keep that. Merle figured it was because it would take Daryl longer to load it than it would take someone else to shoot him.

Martinez was really glaring now, but it was the big guy with the bruised dick who answered. He didn't seem to have held a grudge like his friend did. "Nah. Usually when we do it's just some loner lookin' for shelter for a night or so." The men shared a few small smiles.

It was enough for Merle and Daryl to confirm what they suspected. Those men probably didn't live long enough to spin any tails of Woodbury. Merle shared a look with Rick and his brother. T-dog and Glen had been taken to do patrols around the perimeter. No one else brought up Randal so that was a good thing.

"You folks ready for some lunch?"

Merle looked down and saw Philip standing there with his hands on his hips looking up at them. At least they got lunch breaks. That was a plus. Merle and Daryl were the first two that jumped down from the wall. Philip approached them with a wide smile.

"How do you boys like it here so far?" He asked as he clapped Merle on the shoulder.

Merle nodded appreciatively and then rolled his shoulders, muscles flexing under the mans hand. He removed the hand but kept the smile in place. "You know, after last night I think I get you a little better, Governor. I think my brother and I are gonna get along in this place just fine." He smirked.

Philip's grin widened. "That's real good to here, Merle. I've been hopin' all mornin' that the two of you would come around. I need men like you and him. The others, they serve a purpose and all, good strong men. But men like you and Daryl here, you're the type of men I need." the three of them were walking apart from the rest of them so the other men couldn't hear what was being said. That was probably a good thing.

"You got some sort of plan for me and my brother here, Governor?" Merle asked sounding like he was really interested in what this freak had to say. He had to admit to himself that he was happy with the way this was going. It was happening faster than he thought it would. Ol' Philip must be pretty desperate.

"Don't get me wrong, all of my men are good at what they do. But as you can see they're lacking in some aspects. I can't watch them all the time. I need someone that can lead them. Keep them in line. You understand what I mean? I saw something in you yesterday. Something that could prove to be very valuable here."

"Is that right?" Merle asked as the diner that Carol and Maggie were working in came into view.

"Yes. You can get certain things done that I can't trust the others to do."

"The fuck kinda things you talkin' about?" Daryl asked, looking like he was having a rougher time than Merle at playing his role as a calm man accepting these new developments.

Merle shot him a look that Daryl ignored.

Philip shrugged. "For now, I just need a few good men that I can trust to keep an eye on the others. But that doesn't just mean my own men, that means yours as well. They seem to be a lot better today. Less suspicious, but I'd still like someone to watch them. Make sure they don't do anything stupid that gets the rest of you hurt."

Merle shrugged. "Sounds pretty easy if you ask me."

Philip grinned. "Not just easy Merle. I think you two are going to end up enjoying what I have in store for you. I'm a pretty good judge of character, you two are the men I need."

Merle and Daryl shared one more meaningful look and before they entered the diner.

~H~

Carol had actually been enjoying herself all morning. She got to work right along with Andrea and Maggie up until about fifteen minutes ago when the other two had been sent down the street to deliver food to the school. She was worried how Sophia and the boys would handle that. It did seem a little silly to be teaching them history and math and English in the middle of an apocalypse, but they had agreed to play their part to fit in. She hoped they were okay.

She looked up from a pot she was stirring and couldn't keep from grinning when she spotted Daryl. His eyes locked on hers and he smiled back but he didn't look happy. She hadn't expected him too, but she hadn't seen him in hours and as pathetic as it sounded she couldn't stand to be away from him. Maggie and Andrea had been feeling the same way. What a strange world. So many odd couples in one group, it made her laugh a little.

He sat down with Merle at one of the far tables as Philip stood next to them, talking for a few more minutes. When he turned to leave he looked up and his eyes met hers. She smiled and gave the son of a bitch a small wave. She really didn't like that man. But they all had a part to play. He walked out and the tension in the room dispersed a bit.

The temperature was still cold outside but in here it was nearly sweltering. They prepared a lot of food to freeze and the steam from the stoves and ovens were burning her up. She had lost her sweater, but even in the tank top she felt sweaty.

"How about I take over for a few minutes. You can go feed your people." An older woman offered with a smile.

Carol gladly handed her the ladle she had been stirring the pot with and thanked her. Merle and Daryl were deep in conversation and didn't notice her coming when she felt a gentle hand on her arm. She almost expected to see Rick or Dale, someone from her own group. She dropped the smile as soon as she saw that it was Martinez.

He glanced towards the table to make sure neither Dixon had noticed him with her and then he was eying her once more.

"What can I do for you?" She asked brusquely.

"Didn't think you'd ever ask sweetheart. Where should I start?" He smirked and it looked almost painful. His grip tightened on her arm.

She glared at him, which only caused his smile to broaden. "He notices that hand and he's going to do a lot more to you than mess that face of yours up, Martinez." She growled.

He narrowed his eyes. "You just remember, honey. There are a lot more ways of getting back at that man of yours than just fighting him." He swept his gaze once more down to her damp shirt front. "Ways you might find out you like."

Carol understood that they had to blend in. She understood that they had to keep themselves from sticking out like sore thumbs. She also understood that if they messed up too much then their chances of getting out, or taking the town, would be slim. But she also, in that moment, understood her daughter. She felt anger come alive inside her chest like a serpent. Her whole life she had been weak. She had been a victim. She had bowed down to men like this. And then Daryl changed that. Showed her that she was worth so much more than that. Showed her what it meant to mean everything to another person. And this man was a threat to her new found freedom and suddenly she saw red. Literally, there was a haze around her vision as the man smirked at her, looking down on her as if she was nothing but a means for revenge.

She didn't think. She simply acted and then she got it. Sophia, Daryl, Merle, even the boys. She knew why they did this impulsive stuff. It felt good. She wretched her arm away from him, not even feeling the pain as his fingers dug into her skin, and then her knee came up swiftly, landing solidly into his groin. As soon as her knee made contact she shoved him away from her. He hit the floor hard, clutching himself. And she wasn't finished. She stormed towards him until she felt a strong arm go around her waist. She knew he had came in with his men and instantly figured that one of them had grabbed her. She spun around and was about to try to hit the man that grabbed her when she found herself looking into familiar blue eyes.

"Merle, let me go." She growled as she turned back around to go after Martinez once more.

His grip around her waist however was unbreakable. Merle was bigger than Daryl, and he wasn't prone to putting up with her shit. When she tried to break away from him he simply stood up taller, lifting her so her feet were dangling a few inches off the floor.

"Calm, your ass down, darlin'." He hissed into her ear before he sat her down, his arm was still holding her against him though, he wasn't letting go.

It didn't matter anymore. That anger had vanished just as quick as it had appeared. She actually leaned against him as she watched Daryl standing over Martinez, hands on his hips, scowl on his face. Merle loosened his grip but kept his arm around her.

"The fuck did you do to her, you piece of shit?" Daryl asked between clenched teeth.

"Daryl." She said, her voice steady.

He glanced up, his hard eyes meeting hers. "What'd he do?" He asked angrily.

She sighed. She wasn't about to tell him what the man had said. She knew that he was holding on by a thin thread and he would lose it if she told him that he had basically threatened her. So she gave an excuse that any true Dixon would understand. "He pissed me off." She said, raising her chin.

She felt Merle's hard chest rumble against her back with a quiet laugh and even Daryl blinked a few times as he registered what she had said. He had used the same excuse a million times and it seemed to pacify him for now. She figured he'd have a million questions later but later she would have time to calm him down.

"When is your stupid ass gonna learn, Martinez?" Merle said suddenly. "You fuck with my family and your ass either gets a gun pulled on ya or ya get that ass kicked." He laughed as he let her go. "You're about a dumb son of a bitch, aint'cha?"

Daryl just shook his head and gave a hard look to the men that had been standing around watching. "Ya'll got a fuckin' problem?" He asked.

To Carol's surprise the men shook their heads and walked away, some of them, however, gave her a few approving looks.

She walked with Merle and Daryl back to their table. "I'll bring you guys some food." She muttered as she leaned against Daryl's side.

Merle was grinning. "You're the one that snapped?" He said in a low voice as he shook his head. "Out of all of us, you are the one that lost your cool. I'm impressed. I really am."

Carol gave him a dry smile. "Figured it was about time to embrace your name sake Merle. Can't be having people wondering whether or not I'm worthy of a Dixon. You boys have a reputation to uphold." She winked as Merle's rumbling laugh filled the room.

And Carol goes Dixon on his ass! I loved that part ;)