The Vows

What's this title? Oh, well isn't that interesting. Yes indeed, wonder what all it refers to. Could it be interesting? Could it be fun? We shall see!

Bo kicked over a body and raised an eyebrow before looking over at Daryl as he rammed his knife through the head of another body. She knew the people, recognized them from Woodbury again. She took a deep breath then let it out with a slight growl. Her crossbow went over her shoulder as she walked over to the hunter and carefully ran her hand up his back to draw his attention silently. He looked at her, his expression dark and angry. Her eyes shifted around their surroundings and he gave a slight nod before they went off on foot, leaving the motorcycle behind with the trucks.

Wherever he had gone, he had gone by foot, and so would they.

Daryl didn't say anything, didn't have to, and neither did Bo. They walked quietly, no weapons drawn. The setting sun caused long shadows from the trees and plenty of dark spaces to hide. The duo looked around carefully, taking in the surroundings with quiet observation. His eyes fell over broken twigs and pierced wood, the signs of a struggle involving gun shots.

They found blood.

Spots here and there, littering the trees and grass. The spots got bigger, turned into puddles. Smears from red coated hands ran across tree bark. Splashes covered the ground and marks faded into the wood. Something injured clearly stumbled through here. Or, more likely, someone.

They found a gun.

And then a second one.

A little further away, they found fingers.

They heard the soft mumbling before they found the final scene.

Several bodies, fresh and decomposing alike, littered the ground. Bo looked over Martinez, crumbled on the grass, his stomach ripped completely through, a second body lying motionless almost on top of him, and felt nothing for the man. Her eyes drifted up, coursing over the other bodies, then stopping at the person kneeling in the middle of the massacre, covered in blood, laughing softly as he spoke under his breath to himself. Daryl nudged something on the ground and Bo glanced over, eyes following the eye patch as it shifted over the grass. Neither of them raised their crossbows, neither of them made a step towards the man who had tormented their group. They just stood and watched him as he seemed to carry on a conversation with himself. His head tilted to the side as if there was someone or something next to him that had his attention.

And then suddenly he stopped.

His head turned slowly, his face gradually becoming visible as he looked at them. Several long scratches ran down his face, the empty eye socket bleeding out once more.

"There she is." The Governor whispered, a smile crossing his face. With the surrounding silence, they heard him clearly. Neither of them reacted. "There's my girl. My little...Isabeau. So smart, so pretty. Apple of my FUCKING EYE!" His voice rose up drastically as he started laughing. Bo's hand flinched for her knife but she made no other reaction. "Bye baby bunting...daddy's gone a-hunting, right? RIGHT?" He stumbled up to his feet, wavering slightly. Their eyes shot down to his side where a hole was torn clean through his shirt and they could see blood pouring from the wound. "That's the song, ain't it sweetheart? Your momma...she used to sing that to you every night. Even when you were grown. Never once sang to Penny. Guess that made you special."

He looked like he was going to try and walk to them but changed his mind. His foot lifted and he wavered slightly before planting it firmly back down. Bo tilted her head up, calmly observing the final break down of her father. A snarl came from their side but Daryl had instantly lifted and shot free a bolt from his crossbow into the head of a walker coming their way, halting the interruption.

"You know, the day she died, your momma laughed." The Governor stated. He clenched his hands into fists, frowning finally. "The bitch laid there, Penny standing over her, and fucking laughed. She thinks she won, thinks she got the last laugh. But she was wrong." He looked up at the sky and lifted his arms up, fists aimed upwards. "YOU HEAR THAT! YOU WERE WRONG! NOBODY WINS! NOBODY GETS THE LAST LAUGH!" He paused, his whole body going motionless. Bo gripped her knife and prepared herself to use it as the Governor slowly lowered his head, his eye focusing on her. "Because you either kill or die...or die then kill."

His arms fell to his sides as his body crumbled to the ground. The last rays of the sun drifted across the grass over his prone figure.

Everything was silent again.

***TWD***TWD***TWD***TWD***TWD***

They had stayed there, watching and waiting, until he rose again. They waited until he caught sight of them, until he made his stumbling path towards them. Just when he was finally upon them, they simultaneously rammed their knives through either ear, putting the monster down for good.

Although it didn't feel to be enough.

But what could they do?

They kept a firm grasp of each others hands as they moved back through the darkened forest. They'd burn up everything in the day time, no use causing attention with a flame in the dark. Making their way to where the trucks and bike were parked, they decided that one of the trucks would do for resting in. Bo shifted around until her back was against Daryl's side, his arm looping loosely across her chest. They held their crossbows on their laps, eyes gazing sleepily out the windows.

"That make you feel any better?" Daryl asked quietly. They had been silent for so long that his voice sounded rougher than usual. Bo tilted her head back to look up at him. Sighing, she lifted a hand to hold onto his arm and tilted her head back down, lips brushing across his skin.

"No." Bo whispered. She shifted again, turning slightly and burying her face in his neck. "Should have. But...didn't seem good enough."

"We can beat up the body when we go back." Daryl remarked. Bo laughed lightly and kissed over his pulse. He made a grunting noise and tightened his arm on her when she bit softly. "Think they notice we're gone yet?"

"Possibly." Bo muttered, curling against him. He glanced down at her and kissed the top of her head before leaning his head against her hair. "Least we got that threat dealt with."

"Yeah...least that's something." Daryl agreed, blinking slowly.

He swears he only closed his eyes for a few seconds but when he opened them again, his side was cold and Bo was outside, stabbing a few staggering walkers as they came to feast on the dead bodies. Daryl yawned and stretched, listening to the crack of his bones before he slid out of the truck.

"Hey there sleeping beauty." Bo greeted cheerfully. Daryl raised an eyebrow, curious about the happy mood. He watched her take down the last walker before she turned to him and then he realized what it was.

She got to kill things.

It was a twisted day when killing something brought joy to a person who was going to take that doctor's oath to save lives.

Of course, these things were already dead.

"You get them all?" Daryl asked, looking around.

"Yep." Bo replied, sliding her knife back away. He looked her over carefully. She looked happy, calm, a little dirty but otherwise fine. Maybe it wasn't just killing the walkers. He thought it over as they headed back off to take care of the Governor's body. He'd never really seen her this way. Judging by the sun in the sky, it was just after daybreak. She couldn't have slept too long. Obviously walkers pawing at the truck hadn't been what woke her because it would have gotten him as well. And the sun was blocked from them by the trees.

He realized he hadn't felt her twisting and turning over the course of their sleeping but then that had been the first time they had slept in a vehicle that close together. There had been a few times over the eight months of running but they hadn't been right up against each other like they were.

And then the answer just came to him.

Her father was dead.

Whatever the man had done to her, been like over the whatever amount of years she had stayed with him, it was enough to bother her for the rest of the years that she had been gone. The days between her return to the prison and the previous day, she barely seemed to sleep at all.

The way he had died may not have been justice enough for either of them but it was enough to settle whatever damage he had caused to the woman.

***TWD***TWD***TWD***TWD***TWD***

"We were just about to come looking for you guys." Anna greeted as she opened the gate up for the bike. "Where the hell did you two go?"

"Taking care of business." Bo explained. The group gathered around them and Bo tossed the Governor's eye patch to the ground.

"That mean he's..." Andrea muttered, holding her breath on the answer.

"Dead, dead and burned." Bo answered, smiling.

"Good riddance to that." Michonne remarked.

"It's a good thing you're back." Glenn spoke up. Bo looked at him and tilted her head. "Me and Maggie are getting married."

"Way to go, China man." Daryl joked, grinning. Bo smiled happily and hugged her friend, kissing his cheek. "So how's that supposed to work anyways?"

"Dad's going to do it." Beth answered.

"Just a small thing...real casual." Maggie teased. The group smiled, sharing laughs. The weight was lifted off their shoulders for the time being and they grasped at the feeling with both hands.

It clearly was small and casual as they did it just there, gathered in the court yard of the prison. They ventured out into the grassy area, killing the walkers that were inside and putting up a barricade at the broken gate finally. Bo got to stand as the Best Man, something Daryl teased her about until she put him in a headlock and forced him onto his knees. That couple disappeared almost as fast as the newlyweds and then everyone else wandered off to do their own things. Rick travelled around the fence, looking out at the walkers on the outside.

"So we're safe." Anna remarked, coming up on his side with her hands behind her back and a smile on her face. Rick looked at her and grinned. He put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against his side, kissing her forehead as her arm went around his waist and they walked.

"For now, yeah." Rick agreed, looking around. "It's a good feeling. Besides that we're living in a prison...it's almost...normal."

"I like seeing you at ease like this." Anna mused, smiling. She turned slightly, stopping their steps as she ran a hand across his scruffy chin. "Makes you seem...younger. Like how you were at the start of all this."

"Lot of things have changed since then." Rick muttered. "Realizing people are...just as dangerous as those things. Maybe sometimes worse." Anna sighed and leaned her head on his chest. She felt his hand running up and down her back and for a moment, neither of them spoke. She listened to his heartbeat, letting it drown out the groans of the walkers just outside the fence. "Anna..."

"Yeah?" Anna questioned as her head lifted up to look at him.

"You know I...that I...uh..." Rick frowned slightly as the words didn't come. Anna raised an eyebrow and then she grinned, watching him stumble over what he was trying to say. She leaned closer and kissed him softly.

"I know." Anna muttered against his lips. He sighed and smiled, pulling her closer. Somewhere from within the prison, they could hear the sounds of Amy starting to cry, reminding them that there was other people and things that had to be done to ensure they all continued to survive.

So this took me some time. I blame work and having next to no time anymore now that I'm going to it all the time. I've been getting an idea lately for another Walking Dead fic. I know I have a few stories that I need to get back to, one of which I'm taking down because I just can't do it anymore. I should have just stopped it a while back, gave it an ending but I just kept going. I may or may not do the new Walking Dead one and I also may or may not do a Boondock Saints one because I finally got to watch both movies and there's been an idea floating around my head ever since lol.