witnesstoitall- Thank ya. :D I don't know if I'll write an entire chapter on it, or if I'll brush upon it in various different chapters. I haven't quite decided yet.

Supfan- Thank you so much!

bspooky3- I'm glad you're enjoying so far. :)

spygrrl99- Thank you. He seems like he wouldn't know what to do if he were to be the father of a child, but I'd like to think that everything would click at least a little bit once he held the little sucker. I don't think Merle's a bad guy entirely, and I believe he deeply cares for his brother. He'd try to help with something like that, I think. :)

crystal2817- Thank you! :)

HGRHfan35- Daryl has no idea what he does at all. ;) Carol's smitten by her boys.

veganmagase- Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying thus far. Daryl seems like one who would struggle with fatherhood, as he already struggles with having faith in himself without a child, but he's coming around, just as I think he would if he were to have a child. I see pre-Baby Dixon's birth shots are being requested. I may have to do one of those soon.

JackAndHoney- I apologize for not elaborating on Hershel's and Rick's whereabouts. I just kind of wanted to focus on the little trio, but I'll avoid forgetting about them next time. :P I got a little excited over the arrival of the baby, I think. I'm Glad you're enjoying otherwise.

Tell me you're still you- Presh was the intention. I'm glad I've succeeded!

GuiltyBystanders- Well, that may come to you in the future, my friend.

crazstiz- Thank you very much. :)

carylfan- Thank you so much. That means a lot. :D

Thank to everyone who has read and welcome if you're just starting now! I'm so glad everyone's enjoying this so far! This next bit was written more hastily so I apologize in advance if it's a bit choppy. The hopes were high for this one, but I kind of failed myself. I do hope you enjoy even if it's only slight enjoyment, though. :)

-Gabby

3. Scream

Devastation filled the air in the small town they had been living in for nearly a decade. The scent of soot and the dead wafted from the war that had raged on the previous night. There had been fire everywhere, attracting what seemed like every walker in the state to their home. Bandits from the surrounding woods attempted to climb the walls to get supplies before the town was overrun. The little boy had never been so frightened in his life. He never witnessed the living trying to kill one another. His short eight years had been lived in relative peace until that night.

When the fighting broke out, his daddy had left, running with his crossbow in hand. He told his son and woman to stay inside and not to come out until everything was settled and the commotion was over. Of course, the boy's mama had none of that. Only moments later, she was grabbing her gun and shoving extra ammo into her pockets. The child cried to her, telling her that Daddy told them to stay put while the fight was happening. She gave her son one of the small smiles both he and his daddy loved so much and replied to him: "Little man, you have to hold down the fort here. I have to go help Daddy, but we're trusting you to keep this place safe, okay? If you hear anyone out there in that hallway, you climb into that spot I the closet and get as quiet as you can. Hear me?" She rested a hand against his tear-stained cheek while she shed a few of her own. "I love you, baby. More than anything." With those words, she was gone.

He sat obediently on the bed with his legs cross in front of him and a small gun in his lap for an eternity. Time ticked on for what seemed like forever to him. Gunshots rang out in the quiet autumn air. Screams and shouts echoed in the night. The groans of a herd of walkers sounded through what should have been a calm night. Heavy footsteps came from below in his building. He took a brief moment to listen, concluding the feet did not belong to his father or his uncle. With the stealthy step his father taught him when they went hunting together, he slipped into the closet and through a crawl space that was located behind a box of old clothes. Knowing the risk of pushing the box against the wood floor and creating noise, his little arms lifted it just far enough to allow him entrance and exit to the crawl space. There, he waited for his mama, his daddy... for anyone really.

It was not until the white light of morning seeped under the bottom of the closet door that he knew it was safe to leave his hiding place. His mama never came back, and his daddy did not either. They would never leave him like that. he knew they would come back for him, but he could not keep the sick feeling out of the pit of his stomach. Each step he took felt more and more frantic until he exited the building he had grown to call his home. Outside, remains of walkers were scattered about while others were being hauled by members of the group to the far wall on the other side of their home. The farmer's daughters were holding each other, sobbing hysterically, with their elderly father grasping onto his girls as if for dear life. Sheriff Rick was with his son and daughter, a hand on each of their shoulders talking to them quietly with tears in his eyes.

Everyone had their families except for him. "Mama?" he shouted, drawing the attention of the sheriff. The boy half-expected his mother to come running out from one of the buildings to sweep him up into her arms. She did not. "Daddy?" His voice was growing panicked. Whipping his head around, he looked for any sign of them: his daddy's bow or his mama's red shirt. Once again, he came up empty handed. "Mama? Daddy?" His skinny legs, chicken legs as his Uncle Merle called them, brought him stumbling down the set of stairs that led into the building. "Mama! Daddy!" He was shrieking, not knowing what else to do. It was rare that he was without both of his parents.

Sobs wracked the little boy's body, his knees giving out underneath his weight. It was impossible. They would never leave him like that. Not without giving him the proper goodbye. They would have come back to him by now. Nothing would keep them away this long unless they were never coming back. "Cy." The sheriff's daughter was sitting next to him. "Daddy says he hasn't seen your mommy or daddy since last night. Told me not to tell you, but I thought you should know." Her hand found his and gave it a small squeeze. "I'm sorry."

As suddenly as she grabbed his hand, he snatched it back like he had been burned. "Daddy's i'vincible, though," he sniffed, bowing his head so she would not be able to see his tears. "Said no stupid geek can kill 'im, and the only thing that can kill a Dixon is a Dixon. He has to be okay. He ain't allowed t'do that t'me." Steady rivers flowed from his eyes and onto the hard dirt below him. "And Mama's always so careful 'specially when she's with Daddy. Don't ever miss a beat. Don't ever step outta line. She's good at that. Wouldn't ever let nothin' happen to Daddy. 'Sides she's a Dixon too, right? Ain't nothing can kill us but us." She let him ramble on, talking with hope that his parents were still alive. Everyone around knew that his hopes were most likely just that, but she figured it would at least be good for him to talk for a bit. "Judy, why'd they do this t'me? They ain't allowed ta' leave me all alone. They-"

"Cyrus?" His head snapped up at the sound of a familiar voice calling his name. Watering blue eyes met each other, and in an instant, he had scrambled to his feet and taken off in a sprint. The gravel beneath his feet felt like it was slowing him down no matter how fast he ran. His heart was pounding in his chest. "Baby boy!" Two bodies collided together, clinging to each other as if their lives depended the embrace. He buried his face into the woman's neck and closed his arms tightly around her trembling frame. "Oh god." She pulled back to take a look at his face while tears streamed down her own. A hand raised to his cheek, thumb pushing the tears away. "I wasn't sure if I was ever gonna see you again, bud." Once again, he was pulled into her chest, her sobs continuing.

A strong pair of arms came around them. The familiar scent of the woods and sweat filled their air. "Hell," the gruff sigh came from above as his daddy tightened the grip he had on them. "You people are gonna be the death of me." At that moment, his daddy did something he never thought he would ever see: the grown man broke into tears. Sinking to his knees, the man pulled his family close together. He held them with the same urgency the mother and son had when they first reunited. "Thank god," he whispered, voice breaking.