Give Me This Day

Michonne woke the smell of coffee and something involving apples and cinnamon. She crawled out of bed to check out the view. It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood, the sun was chasing the morning mists off of the mountains, and she could almost see the Von Trapp family dancing through the field singing "the hills are alive with the sound of music". She had a sudden mental image of the Von Trapps being chased across the hills a herd of walkers. Michonne decided to drown that thought with all the coffee she could find.

Carol had gotten up earlier to find a restless Daryl roaming around the house. They opened the shutters and let in the morning light. It was too beautiful to stay indoors and they went outside with a sword and a crossbow to check out the fenced in area. The grass needed cut but there were all sorts of berry bushes, a grape arbor, and few dwarf fruit trees. Carol gathered some apples. There was a locked storage building at the back of the lot and they could see the fenced in solar array area.

Daryl seemed steadier and Carol could see the I wanta go huntin look in his eye. She figured that she better find something useful for him to do or he would be sneaking off to the woods. Daryl could see the Daryl is still too weak look in Carol's eyes and thought he better find something useful for her to do or he was going to be housebound the whole day.

They returned to the house and Daryl opened all the windows in the living room, kitchen, and bedroom. There were photographs on the dresser and he found himself looking at an eight year Carol and a 50 year old Carol. This must be Carol and Nancy McAllister; actually the 50 year old Carol was pretty hot. Her silver hair was a little longer than Carol wore hers and she wasn't quite as skinny but the resemblance was amazing. There was a photograph of a man in uniform that looked a lot like Ashton. That was probably Carol's father. Daryl was struck by the strength and character in the young face. There were other photographs but no more of Carol so he lost interest and returned to the kitchen. Carol busied herself in the kitchen making coffee and fried apple pies. Daryl went upstairs and helped Tyreese down the stairs. They let Michonne sleep because she had had such a long day yesterday and because Tyreese warned him that Michonne was not a morning person.

Downstairs Carol had assembled her ingredients, got the apples ready, and was working on the pie dough. The coffee was ready and Daryl and Tyreese drank a cup while Carol began frying the pies. Michonne came down the stairs singing "The hills are alive with the sound of music" and she made a beeline to the coffee pot. Daryl had never had a fried apple pie but they looked pretty good. Michonne nudged Tyreese to see how intently Daryl was watching Carol make fried apple pies. "That boy must really like him some fried apple pies," Tyreese whispered to Michonne who laughed so hard that coffee came out her nose. Everybody laughed at Michonne and then Carol dusted some sort of powder on the first pie. "Who wants the first one?" Carol looked at the hungry trio waiting at the kitchen bar. She gave Daryl the first one, and answered the complaints from the other two by reminding them that Daryl had helped gather the apples.

Daryl bit cautiously into the pie thinking that it might burn his tongue. The first bite was so delicious that he decided the pain would be worth it. He took his time eating the pie; he wanted to enjoy every bite. He wondered if anyone ever got an erection from eating fried apple pies or from staring at Carol cooking. Hell, he must have scrambled brain syndrome because now he was wondering what it would be like to eat fried apple pies in bed with Carol. And he found out that it is possible to get an erection from eating fried apple pies.

Carol was making herself a fried apple pie when they heard the sound of an approaching car. Daryl went to the door to check it out. It was Ashton and some guy in army fatigues. Daryl opened the gate and Ashton introduced him to Major Joaquin Castillo. The major asked just to be called Joaquin and they went into the house.

Ashton greeted everyone and introduced Joaquin to each of them. Carol and Michonne had taken one look at Joaquin and wished they had taken more time getting ready for the day. He was immaculate, clean shaven and closely shorn, the fatigues looked as if they had been pressed this morning, and the boots were spit shined. He wasn't young; his black hair was going gray and a few lines in his tanned face just added to his appeal. Joaquin shook hands with everyone and repeated their name as the introductions were made. Carol was last and he held her hand a little longer than Daryl thought was necessary.

This was not just a social call, the good major had command of a small force of soldiers and the local militia and wanted information about conditions in Georgia. Michonne studied him intently and not just because he looked so good in his fatigues. She had recognized snake in the Governor right off but not with this guy. He was genuinely curious about the amount of survivors still in Georgia and how they were surviving. Michonne did most of the talking; she described the prison and how they had fortified it from walkers. They were barely surviving the dangers from walkers and disease when they found out that the Governor was close by. Michonne knew she had hit a nerve in Joaquin when she said "Governor"; something in his face seemed to harden into an expression of hate. She went on to say that they had been separated from their group and could not locate them.

Joaquin hesitated a minute, but began to tell them what he knew about the Governor. There had been radio communication between this outpost in the mountain and a military enclave in Savannah. The commander of Fort Savannah was Joaquin's friend; they talked almost every day sharing ideas and discussing problems. Savannah had survived Sherman's March to the Sea and the Zombie Apocalypse and his friend was determined to hold that city from whatever came their way. The army had built up a line of fortifications in the city and survivors who made it there were protected by the soldiers and the fences. Survivors trickled in from other places and they had been able to expand their fortified area to take care of them. Armed patrols went out periodically to gather supplies and look for survivors. A patrol had picked up three men about nine months ago and brought them back to Fort Savannah. One of the men told them that they were the survivors of a fortified town called Woodbury. Their town was a haven for survivors and every one worked together for the good of all. Then, suddenly Woodbury had been attacked by a group squatting in a nearby prison. Woodbury was sacked, the men killed, and the women and children were taken hostage. The three men had escaped but vowed that they would find a way to rescue the innocent women and children of Woodbury. The man who told the story had been the leader of Woodbury. He had lost an eye defending Woodbury and he still wanted to called "Governor".

The story did not end there; the Governor was soon a respected member of the inner circle. He was given command of a large section of the fortifications. He was popular with his men and freely welcomed soldiers who didn't seem to fit in with the other sections. The Governor soon had many men in his command that no one else had wanted. Joaquin had warned his friend that allowing all the bad apples to congregate together might be a bad idea and he had replied that he was planning to shake up all the assignments and move the Governor out of a field position to a staff position. He was getting an uneasy feeling about the Governor and wanted to keep a closer eye on him.

Walker herds were always a problem. There thousands of walkers left in Savannah and they often grouped up around the fortifications. The Governor had come up with a scheme to rid the city of many of the walkers in one sweep. The other commanders thought it was a good plan and his friend reluctantly agreed. The plan was to allow walkers to gather there and then use their fire power to kill thousands at one time. The plan went in motion, Joaquin was in communication with his friend and it seemed to be working. Then all at once the section under the Governor command blew up allowing the herd inside the perimeter. The herd swept through the soldiers and the survivors like a tsunami. The command center was the last to fall and his friend described watching the Governor and a convoy escape in a line of Humvees. Everything had been staged, the explosion opened up the wall for the herd to come in at the breach, the ensuing chaos had created an opportunity to allow the Governor to escape with soldiers loyal to him and probably lots of supplies. Joaquin promised his friend that he would find the Governor and kill him and every soldier under his command. He listened as the men in the command center took their service pistol and killed themselves. His friend said goodbye and he heard a pistol shot over the moans of the approaching walkers.

Ashton felt the cold wave of hate emanate from every person in the room. The Governor was an evil man who must be stopped. He hated him as much or more than anyone else: Joaquin's good friend was Patrick McAllister, his and Carol's uncle. The head of the clan, the last of his generation of McAllister brothers, and Ashton had sworn a blood oath to avenge his uncle's death.

Carol walked to the window and looked out at some of God's best work, the North Carolina Mountains in their summer glory. The joyful mood of the morning gone; it seemed that they good not outrun the Governor. They would never be fully free until he was dead.

Michonne said, "He might be at the prison, and I can take you there". Joaquin agreed that it needed to be checked out, but no assault would be planned until they had real intelligence about the enemy. He would get back with her today, but he needed to get back to the camp to make preparations.

Michonne was ready to go right now but knew that she had to be fully rested and ready before going back to the prison. She did not underestimate the Governor; he would be prepared to fight.

Tyreese thought about his leg; he was still hobbling around. He couldn't go tomorrow and Michonne would go if she had to walk every step.

Daryl was determined to be part of the scouting party, Michonne was a warrior, but not particularly quiet and stealthy. He was much better today and would be ready to go tomorrow. He was sure of it. Daryl watched Carol; she had that I am going to battle look but that wasn't happening. She and Tyreese needed to stay here. He and Michonne needed them safe; Carol was not going. Carol wanted to hang onto them and refuse to let them go. They were going and if Daryl and Michonne were going then she would go too. The decision made; she slowed her breathing and determined to enjoy the rest of this day She was going to rejoice and be glad in it.

Carol made some bread; kneading dough was a good way to work out some tension. She thought a nice dinner was in order. Sam and Dave, the local scotch whiskey distillers showed up to show the men how to keep the water, heat, and electricity going. They had brought some venison with them and she and Daryl worked on dinner.

Michonne washed all the dusty bedclothes and hung them out in the mountain air to dry. The electric washer worked but they were worried that there wasn't enough juice for the electric dryer.

Ashton came back with his wife and sister. His wife was carrying some vegetables and the sister a bundle of fur. His wife's name was Jo and she was friendly and personable. The sister was skinny, blue eyed and named Emily. The small bundle of fur was to be their guard dog. She was all of ten pounds, a poodle terrier mix, mostly black with a white chest and white feet. She looked nothing like any guard dog Daryl had ever seen.

Tyreese thought it must be a puppy and asked how old it was. "She is nine months old and fully trained." Emily answered. He thought it was good that this mongrel went doo doo outside but what in the world could it be trained to do? Shake hands on command? Roll over?

Michonne thought the dog would keep Tyreese occupied while she was away, and she was adorable.

Carol was imagining Judith with the puppy. She fell in love with it, but couldn't see how it could be anything but a play toy. She held out her arms anyway and the dog cuddled close to her; she was used to being hugged and petted and fell back asleep immediately.

Emily went on to explain that the dog was a good watch dog. She was smart and she would warn them if any walkers were around. She would run to them and hide behind them if there were any around. Daryl didn't see how that was much help, but Emily went on. She could smell walkers before they would see them. She hid behind them because she was afraid; that meant that they should get ready to defend themselves and the dog. If the dog wanted to run, then by golly you better run too. That meant a herd was around. It made sense when Daryl thought about it. This dog was like the canary in the coal mines; its job was to warn you of danger, not save you from it.

They didn't stay long, but their visit solidified their acceptance within the clan. Their acceptance of the dog seemed to be part of it. Sam and Dave had given eggs and venison. Carol figured that they needed to be sharing things as well.

Joaquin came back late in the afternoon. He was sending only one man, himself. He had a very capable lieutenant to run things while he was gone. Michonne and Daryl were going and no one was surprised when Carol said that she was going. She had medical training that they might need. Joaquin left, telling them that he would be here tomorrow before dawn to pick them up.

They had a wonderful dinner, and afterwards Carol and Daryl took Canary for a long walk. Carol figured that this fight was inevitable and at least Michonne and Tyreese would be out of earshot. They took a long walk; Canary peed and pooped until Daryl said that he was going to check to see if she now weighed two pounds. Daryl was desperate to keep her here, but he didn't want to start a fight that he wasn't going to win. He let the tranquility of a summer evening falling to dusk fill him with acceptance that he could not dictate what Carol would do or not do tomorrow.

They reluctantly turned back, Daryl finally said what was in his heart, "You mean too much to me, please stay here and be safe". She answered simply, "You should stay here, you are the only one who can bring the rest of us home. I need to go to keep you alive so that we can all be together again. You mean too much to me and to the whole group for me to let you go without me". Daryl let it be; sometimes you just have to enjoy the here and now.

That evening they sat up late, laughing and talking, Canary asleep on Michonne's lap. They made plans where they were going to put everyone when the rest of the group got here. Tyreese said that Sam and Dave had some idea about building another cabin and they had the equipment to dig the foundation. Michonne and Tyreese went upstairs, Carol kissing him goodnight on the cheek and Daryl hugging him. Daryl took a shower and went to bed on the couch. Carol took a shower, and went in to get Daryl.

She didn't say anything to him, just held out her hand, and he stayed still for seconds. Finally, he reached out his hand and she pulled him up. They walked down the hall to their bedroom. Daryl didn't know what the hell he was doing, but he was knew he wanted to go down the hall with Carol. She smiled at him and squeezed his hand. The door was open and she had lit a candle. They stepped inside and shut the door. No one is promised a tomorrow so they would just take whatever tonight would bring.

Canary slept on her bed in front of the door. She knew that there were no walkers around. She knew that her people were safe and where they were supposed to be this night.