Okay. After re-watching S1&2, I have recovered some of my Caryl feels. They so carefully paralleled the two characters in those seasons that it had to have been planned. I also made some new (to me) Cherokee Rose sightings: Carol's shirt in S1 and the lace crochet coverlet on the couch in Hershel's house in S2 (most visible in "Judge, Jury Executioner,") both had Cherokee style roses in their pattern. I also saw all the longing shy glances & Carol's tears after telling Daryl "I can't lose you too." It was a real, we weren't imagining it, no matter how they may be trying to retcon & deny the connection this season.
I still don't know if I will watch the show any more, but I do want to finish my WIPs for you. This story has been the one most requested, so I thought I'd start with it. I was pleased that it came pretty easily today, so I'm hopeful that will continue with the others,
A bit of angst ahead for our characters though...sorry!
In the Narrows
The place where the bank of the river narrows always portends treacherous rapids ahead.
"Is that the signal?" Grayson asked nervously.
"It is..." Aaron answered, his stomach somersaulting with a flip of anxiety.
"How far out are Rick and the rest?" Gray pressed.
"Probably fifteen or twenty minutes or so." Morgan said, uneasily turning the walkie over and over in his hands, "It's gonna be close."
"Let's get ready."Aaron said, unsheathing his knife, unrolling his poncho and looking grimly over at the bodies of the walkers laid out at the edges of camp.
"You really think this is goin' to work?" Gray asked, watching Aaron.
"This is the plan." Morgan shrugged, "Everything goes the way it's supposed to we got a shot."
"When has anything ever all gone the way it's supposed to..." Grayson muttered.
"We're in the narrows now..." Aaron sighed.
There was no reason to respond to the truth, so all three worked on the preparations to fulfill their part of the plan in silence.
"You've done this a lot?" Michonne asked Ezekiel, leaning forward, her eyes rising again to the rear view mirror of the big tow truck in which they rode.
"It's like the Wild West around here sometimes—if they start to bunch up around the fences it's the best way to clear them—you don't want to waste the ammo or the man power to just put them down and this way you don't have to deal with all the bodies. Usually we lead 'em over a cliff and then toss some Molotov's down to burn what ends up at the bottom."
It was ingenious really; if they'd have had this system at the prison they might've been able to give themselves enough breathing room to put up real walls instead of just wire fences.
The process was like a cattle round up. The herd was attracted by loud music and lights in several trucks like the one on which they were riding, funneled along a path created by old cars and tall metal sheeting fences that took them to the edge of an abandoned gravel quarry. People on horses rode drag, silently watching for stragglers or break-a-ways. This time however, the path they were taking was not to oblivion, but to another destination.
"The timing has to be just right on this." Michonne said, sounding edgy.
"Usually I have great timing..." Ezekiel said with a knowing smile, bringing Michonne's eyes over to him.
She raised a questioning eyebrow.
"How long you been in love with him?" the Kingdom leader asked.
Michonne's face blanked and she sat back against the bench seat staring straight ahead.
"He hooked up with someone else?" Ezekiel surmised. "One of those unrequited deals?"
When he'd claimed her this morning as his shotgun rider, Ezekiel had seen how Michonne's eyes went to Rick, looking for him to object, but the other man's face just went narrow eyed and cold before he shrugged and walked away. Rick had chosen instead to ride drag with Jesus, a more dangerous task lacking the protection of a metal cage like the vehicle in which they were riding, though both rider and horse were smeared in walker gut camo.
Michonne remained silent.
"I mean there's got to be a reason you were able to resist my charms last night." Ezekiel continued, his bass voice rumbling with self pitying amusement.
He'd left her to enjoy the luxuries of his chambers, including a hot bath, rather than the more Spartan quarters she'd been assigned, while he went to spend the night with his sometime bed partner, a discrete and accommodating widow who had no interest in anything more than an energetic fuck as often as the mood struck. She'd smiled knowingly when he'd shown up at her door, cluing him in to the way the surly visitor with Jesus had acted at dinner.
"Or does Mr. Grimes always get drunk and threaten to take out the leader of the group you're trying to negotiate with if he harms one lock on your beautiful head?" Ezekiel asked, staring at her smugly.
"Keep your eyes on the road." Michonne said in an ugly monotone, making Ezekiel laugh and turn his eyes back to the highway in front of them.
"We can't stop. The plan is in motion." Daryl said, but regret underlined his stubborn tone.
"We can't leave without her!" Tara protested, but Erin gripped her arm more tightly, holding her back and trying to quiet her.
"I'm sorry, Tara, but we don't have a choice." Erin said, "This is our only chance to get out of here."
"You know what he'll do to her when he gets back if we're not here!" Tara said, anguished.
"If I stay..." Carol began, but Daryl was shaking his head no before she got any more words out.
"We're leaving. All of us. Now. End of discussion." Daryl ordered. There was no way he was letting Carol sacrifice herself again.
"Fuck you, Dixon! You may not give a shit about Rosita, but I do!" Tara blasted him.
"We'll get her back, Tara. He'll be out on the road, cut off from his base, more vulnerable. We'll meet back up with our people and those at Hilltop and we can go after Rosita then, right?" Enid looked at Daryl for confirmation, pleading with him to give them some hope so Tara would agree to leave.
Daryl nodded curtly. It could go like that...if they were lucky...
"Dwight will protect her." Carson said, trying to be reassuring. That was how they knew Rosita was with Negan. In a panic, Dwight had left a scrawled note with Carl explaining that he was being forced to go on the run with Negan and that Rosita was being brought along as a medic.
They'd taken her from the room she shared with Tara and Enid last night claiming it was to see Carol, but when she hadn't returned when Carson and Erin had come to get them for the escape they knew something was wrong.
Negan, Wade and the others had left a few hours ago and now, at twilight, Daryl had signaled Aaron, which meant they had a half an hour to make their move.
"We don't have time for this; we need to get to the shipping container, get your boy and head for the breach." Kayla reminded them, her lack of ties to any of them making her much more pragmatic.
"She's right." Carol agreed reluctantly, lifting her Uzi and concealing it under the cloth cape she wore, "Is everyone ready?"
They were all similarly armed, the weapons an important part of their disguises, including ball caps and bulky clothing which doubled as camouflage. Tara, Enid, Erin and Kayla were dressed as men, posing as guards for Carol and Carson alongside Daryl. A few more rough looking men would draw little notice, while any women wandering around free would've brought unneeded attention to them.
Erin pulled her stocking cap down over her forehead and looked meaningfully at Tara who reluctantly adjusted her ball cap, lowering the brim to more effectively hide her features, already partially obscured behind dirt and a fake set of long sideburns fashioned from the trimmed ends of her own hair.
"Nobody talks except for Carol, Carson or me." Daryl rasped out the reminder "Stay close."
They made their way from the Infirmary as quickly as they dared, passing a few people, but they were helped by the timing; most everyone else was at supper in the communal dining rooms. Carson unlocked the shipping container and Carl was ready, passing out blankets converted to ponchos, helping them get ready for the next part of the plan.
Alexandria, Night Watch on the ramparts, eleven months ago, after Pete, but before the Wolves
"When they bunch up like that?" Carol said, indicating the main gate with a nod of her head. "Reminds me of the prison."
"Yeah. How they'd wait for it to open; like ringin' the dinner bell." Michonne said, pointing her sniper rifle at the ten or so walkers scratching at the gate below them. Both of them chuckled darkly at that.
The two women had night watch together tonight, neither of them able to sleep much. Daryl was out with Aaron on a recruiting trip and having him gone made Carol restless.
Michonne seemed out of sorts for some reason, but hadn't showed any signs of wanting to discuss why so Carol left it alone. They stood for awhile in companionable silence, Michonne using the silenced rifle to pick off the walkers one by one until Carol motioned that she wanted a go and the other woman handed over the gun to her.
"You and Daryl... it's a good thing..." Michonne finally said, breaking the silence.
"I think so." Carol said with a note of dry amusement, taking aim at a walker's head, wondering where this was coming from. She considered the swords-woman family, but they'd never really talked about anything terribly personal before.
"You're good together; I mean... you always were..." Michonne continued, "Back there, before it all fell apart." she glanced quickly at Carol, worried that reminding her of what had happened at the prison had overstepped.
"I should've talked to him about it." Carol said, taking out the walker, the recoil popping her shoulder back, the shell popping out with a clink onto the platform floor.
"Karen and David." Michonne said.
Carol took aim at another walker, carefully lining it up in her sight, breathing in before squeezing off another deadly accurate shot. The walker dropped like a stone, knocking into the only other one left who stumbled against the fence in confusion.
"He knew something was wrong; stopped in the hall after the meeting to check on me." Carol said, preparing to take the last shot, "I didn't want to... I don't want anyone else to have to bear the burden of the decision."
"You were protecting him." Michonne said, a bit of wonder in her voice. She'd though Carol hadn't told Daryl what she was planning because she'd been afraid he would try to stop her, but she'd been worried he would try to help her.
"Daryl's a good man." Carol said, watching the final walker climb back to its feet and head away from the gate, its interest caught by something down the road. She lowered the rifle and handed it back to Michonne, letting her decide whether to put it down or let it go.
Michonne took the gun and shouldered it, watching the walker wander away, down the center line.
"So's Rick." Carol said, watching to see Michonne's reaction. "When he takes his head out of his ass."
That drew a hearty chuckle from Michonne and she raised her half gloved hand to her mouth to hide her wide white smile when it threatened to bloom into an all out laugh.
"You care about him," Carol said. She knew seeing Rick's attentions to Jessie had been something they'd all had their reservations about, but she thought it had been even harder for Michonne.
"I care about Carl and Judith." Michonne said evenly, refusing to be drawn in to a discussion of her feelings one way or another about Rick Grimes.
"He cares about you, we've all seen it." Carol said quietly. "He listens to you—that's why we're here, in this place." They'd heard her insistence to Rick that they take the chance that what Aaron was telling them was the truth, that this could be a place where Carl and Judith could have a chance to grow up.
Whatever reply Michonne was going to make, it was forestalled by the distant whine of a motorcycle engine. Raising the rifle, Michonne took out the now distant walker, clearing the path home for Daryl and Aaron.
Carol lifted the walkie talkie off her belt and clicked it on.
"You comin' in hot?" she asked, wanting to be prepared if they were being pursued or had problems.
"Nah, just us." Daryl replied.
"Got it." Carol said with a relieved smile.
"You on watch?" Daryl asked
"Yep." Carol said.
"Good." Daryl said, and the rumble of anticipation in his voice gave her shivers.
Michonne looked over at Carol, meeting her eyes and seeing the blush that stained her throat and the smile she was trying hard to keep under control.
"Go ahead, I got this." Michonne said, smiling back, knowing Carol wanted to be down opening the gate when Daryl arrived.
"Thank you." Carol said, turning to go, but stopping and turning back, putting her hand tentatively on Michonne's arm, "You ever need to talk..."
Michonne's smile dimmed and faded, but she nodded.
Carol released her and then ran down the steps, there when Daryl rode his bike through. He only stopped long enough to let her jump on the back, wrapping her arms around his torso, one hand grasping onto hers to make sure she was settled and then both back on the handle bars so he could take her home.
Present Day, Sanctuary
"Don't you let go of me, you hear?" Daryl said, making sure Carol's fingers were securely gripping the rope that was tied around his waist linking her to him. He'd wanted to literally tie her to him, but worried that if he went down he'd take her along with him. This way she could release if she needed to and have her hands free for weapons. If the line went slack he'd know to turn back for her.
"When have I ever?" she said, tilting her head at him and they shared a gentle smile of understanding.
"All right. Everyone set?" Daryl asked, taking a look at the rest of the group, each of them tethered to at least one other person.
"I can see them" Carl said from his place closest to the fence, and then he took hold of Enid's hand to reassure her. The girl took a deep breath and gave him a fierce smile.
"I can't fucking believe we're doing this." Carson said, his eyes wide with apprehension.
"I've learned that nothing this group does is by half measures." Erin said, giving him a wink.
"Let's just go already." Kayla grumbled impatiently from between the doctors.
Daryl nodded and Carl peeled back the wire that Dwight had cut as his secret way in and out of the compound. It was hidden under a garage roof and opened directly onto the overgrown dirt access road behind the motor pool.
The smell reached them first; the unholy stench of a thousand or more rotting corpses on the move, being driven directly towards them to surround Sanctuary and provide them cover for their escape.
While Michonne and the people from Kingdom shut off their lights and music and peeled off and away from leading the mass of the dead, at the front entrance, Morgan and Grayson set off bottle rockets and flares, drawing the herd in. Then they blended in with the first of them, keeping plenty in front of them to deflect any sentry fire. They were on the lookout for Daryl and his people, unsure of where they'd be able to get out of the fences, and one went left and the other right as the herd broke and followed the fence line. Aaron waited at the rendezvous point in case both the other scouts missed the escapees.
Carl quickly wired the hole in the fence back up, securing it.
"Why bother?" Kayla had asked when Daryl had laid that out as part of the plan.
"Because they're not all like Negan." Daryl said, "You weren't."
The first of the herd reached them just as Carl finished.
"Anyone panics or stops and we're all dead." Carl had said as they'd continued to discuss how it would go down, the memory of his father's choice to save him when Jessie was killed still fresh.
"Don't look at them, don't talk, don't run. Just keep moving steadily ahead until we find Aaron and he'll lead us to safety." Daryl explained.
Daryl started forward, moving with the herd, matching their speed, feeling the tension on the rope at his waist and the heat of Carol's belly brushing against him. He shuffled, careful to keep his footing, fearful of falling, his crossbow bumping against his chest under his gore covered blanket cover with each step.
He heard the alarm being raised as the sentries realized they were being surrounded, heard voices raised in panic as they saw the extent of the massive herd, hoped that they'd be too busy with defending the compound that they wouldn't notice who all was missing until well after he'd gotten them all to safety.
Then he heard a gasp and the rope at his waist went slack. Whirling he saw Carol standing still, a look of horror on her face, the front of her poncho wet and dripping.
Her waters had just broken.
I know, I'm eeeevil!
Thanks for reading.
P.S. After my S2 re-watch, I also think the "R" on Carol's list was not Ryan, but Randall from S2. During the debate over the young captive's fate, Carol asks that they decide without her, she didn't sign up for these kind of life or death decisions. Then Dale basically says to her, that "doing nothing is the same as killing him yourself!" and I think that was the start of the change in Carol's way of thinking.