I hope you all enjoyed the Rick and Andrea interaction. No, they haven't hired Daryl to do their wedding yet, but I think he could come with something they might like. Rick and Andrea may not be the only ones to thinking on what it means to belong with someone. Please read and review, I would appreciate it.

Laying Claim

Carol had gotten home in time to make dinner, spaghetti with marinara sauce and plenty of vegetables. She had baked bread this morning before she left, but dessert was going to be thin. She wished Andrea was here to whip up something; she wished they were all back. Maggie and Beth had brought Judith home and were hanging around the kitchen. Carl had been here when she got home. The house wasn't empty but the circle was broken. Maggie and Beth decided to make brownies; they were starved for chocolate. She gave them the kitchen and let the sauce simmer. She wanted to wait until they got home before she cooked the pasta anyway.

Carol, Carl, and Judith waited on the porch. Carol could tell Carl wanted to talk; he always waited until she was by herself and he was squirming in the rocker. She waited and finally Carl told her that tomorrow was Arya's birthday, she would be thirteen, Carol could tell that Carl thought thirteen meant that Arya was growing up, not a little girl anymore. She had noticed that the girl was filling out a little. She wondered how much Carl was noticing. Carl had gotten presents for her on the run; he wanted just to give her one present and hold the others until Christmas. Carol realized as he talked that Carl was in love, puppy love maybe, but in love nevertheless. He had given up his crush on Beth, then Ariel, but this one on Arya seemed to be the real deal. Carol decided to treat him like a young man and not a kid; he had left kid a long time ago. Carol ventured, "Thirteen is an important birthday, so why don't you give her a couple of presents? What do you think she would like the best?" Carl replied, "I got her a laptop and a digital camera. I found some digital imagining software on the run. She likes to take photographs and she is really good at it."

Carol thought that sounded like a darn good present, "Carl that was really thoughtful of you. She will love those things." Carl was still squirming a bit, "I wanted to give her something more personal, you know like when Daryl gave you the blue diamonds to wear to the wedding at the prison." Carol had a quick flashback of that night, the diamonds, Daryl's pride when she wore them at the prison wedding, and their being together for the first time that night. The sex that everybody in the prison knew about. The sex that Carl knew about. What was this scamp up to? Ashton would have a shotgun after him if knew Carl was lusting after his baby girl. How would she feel if Carl fancied himself in love with Sophia? She looked at him; he had come to her because he trusted her, loved her, and wanted the love that she had with Daryl. She thought back to what Carl had said at her wedding. Together they can show us how to love someone with our whole heart and soul. They make me want to have that in my life when I grow up. Carl had left his childhood behind when Sophia came out of the barn as a walker. He thought of himself as a young man not a boy. "Give her the laptop and the camera, you can start looking around on runs to find something right for her," she recommended. She hoped Ashton never found out that she had not discouraged Carl: he would have a shotgun after her too.

Carl seemed in no hurry to leave and they sat for a while talking about his upcoming enrollment in home school with Arya and Ariel. Emily kept them in class for a half day and they were expected to do homework and assignments. Rick wanted him to go and Carl was less enthusiastic. Carol just let him talk; she realized that he was making plans for a future life and not just trying to survive one more day.

Then, the convoy was back and she went to meet Daryl as he came through the gate. He kissed her and she thought of Carl. This is what he wants, someone to meet him at the gate or to go with him. He wants someone to love. By then everyone was back, and Carol asked Daryl to invite everyone for dinner. She went back in the house to get the pasta water boiling.

Carol looked up as Andrea and Michonne came through the front door and made a beeline to the bathroom. They came back through the hall to the kitchen together and grabbed Carol by each arm and moved her to her bedroom. Once inside Carol looked at a stern Andrea, "Carol, you have been playing matchmaker, you knew I was seeing Joaquin and Rick was starting something with Emily but you butted in and made poor Daryl set us up. Can you imagine how embarrassing that was? Don't ever do that again," Andrea went on to say, "Because from now on I am laying claim to Rick and you better not set him up with anybody else." Andrea laughed and hugged Carol. Michonne hugged her too. "Carol, those two were making out in the truck by noon, they do not get to ride together anymore. There could have been a herd of walkers and they were too busy playing tonsil hockey to notice". Carol wanted details but they would have to wait until after dinner. She shooed Andrea and Michonne upstairs to get cleaned up for dinner.

Maggie and Beth had heard the news from Glenn by the time Carol got back to the kitchen. Maggie had never been close to Andrea. Maggie had not liked the way Andrea had dealt with Beth's suicidal episode back at the farm. Maggie was smiling though, and she seemed pleased about the news. Beth the incurable romantic thought that it was a good match. Maggie and Beth set the table and when everyone was cleaned up, they sat down to eat. Sam and Dave had gone home to shower and brought back some red wine to go with the meal. Dave gave the toast, "I memorized this traditional Scottish blessing for my grandfather's birthday. I still remember it and I wish this for all of you, my good friends". He recited,"

May the blessing of light be on you, light without and light within. May the blessed sunlight shine on you like a great peat fire, so that stranger and friend may come and warm himself at it. And may light shine out of the two eyes of you, like a candle set in the window of a house, bidding the wanderer come in out of the storm. And may the blessing of the rain be on you, may it beat upon your Spirit and wash it fair and clean, and leave there a shining pool where the blue of Heaven shines, and sometimes a star. And may the blessing of the earth be on you, soft under your feet as you pass along the roads, soft under you as you lie out on it, tired at the end of day; and may it rest easy over you when, at last, you lie out under it. May it rest so lightly over you that your soul may be out from under it quickly; up and off and on its way to God. And now may the Lord bless you, and bless you kindly. Amen."

They drank to Dave and his blessing and everyone dug in. Daryl looked around at everyone eating and drinking and enjoying life. He had spent so much of his life being hurt by his family in one way or the other, and now he was part of a new family that loved and cherished him. He looked at Carol's hand with the wedding rings shining in the evening light and knew that he would choose to endure it all again if it meant that he would have this place at this table. He raised his glass to Carol and she smiled at him.

The mountain of pasta and vegetables melted away. The brownies were finished. Sam and Dave thanked everyone and they went on around the hill before it got too dark. Michonne and Tyreese said they would clean up and the group began to go their own ways.

Daryl and Carol took their evening walk with Canary. Carol talked to Daryl about Carl and how he wanted to give Arya something special for her birthday. Daryl laughed and told her that he had seen Carl loading up on condoms at the pharmacy when they were on a run. They watched Rick and Andrea leave the house and go down the hill toward town; they had gone Carol supposed to tell Joaquin that Andrea had chosen to be with Rick. The days were getting shorter and they had to turn back too soon.

The house was quieter when they went back. Tyreese and Michonne were playing chess; it drove her crazy that she usually lost to him. Carl was rocking Judith; Carol thought he might be a mass of raging hormones but he watches over the ones he loves. Judith was ready for bed and she put her to bed in her room tonight. Judith didn't wake up when she put her in bed.

Carol thought about her grandmother and the message that she had left for her. She would look for it tomorrow. She went to the bathroom and brushed her teeth; they had gotten up early this morning and it had been a long day. She went to bed to read; she heard Rick and Andrea come in. She knew that Rick and Daryl would check everything around the house and fence before they went to bed.

Later, Daryl came in, stripped off his clothes, and crawled in bed. He was wearing his wedding ring Carol noticed. He never wore it during the day when he was working, or hunting, or on a run. He waited until he came in and took a shower to put it on. He kept it in a little box on his dresser. He took it off before he left the house the next morning.

Daryl took the book out of Carol's hands and kissed her. She turned the light out and leaned into the kiss. She had been lonely for him all day and for this little while she would enjoy being with the kind one. Daryl wanted to go to sleep afterward, but she nudged him awake. "Why do you think that Carl wants to give Arya jewelry?" He sat up in bed and thought about it. He went with what he believed to be true. "He wants to lay claim to her; he wants everybody to know that she is his, that they better stay away from her. What they see, he gets". Carol protested, "They are just kids, why would he think that he can claim her?"

Daryl said, "Because that is how men think. We want to keep what we have; we don't trust other men not to try to take it away. We would probably piss on you women to mark our territory if you would let us. God made men first, improved the process and then made women. We can't help ourselves"

"So you are saying that he wants to give her jewelry because she won't let him pee on her," Carol said doubtfully. "Why did you give me the diamonds before we were together?" She sounded a little pissed so Daryl took his time to reply.

"I wanted you to have something beautiful, something that matched your eyes, something special. I wanted you to know that I recognized that you were beautiful and special to me. And I wanted those horny sons of bitches to know that you belonged with me. "

Carol thought the first part was sweet and true; she figured the last part was also true. "Any other reason?" she asked. Daryl replied, "Hell, I was hoping that the diamonds would help me slide my way into your bed that night and it worked like a charm." She smacked him gently over the head, "You could have wrapped dead squirrels up in that notebook page and I would have let you in my bed that night."

"Diamonds don't start stinking the next day," Daryl laughed. "And I was pretty sure that you wouldn't let me pee on you."

Carol thought about Daryl's wedding ring and how she could feel the ring when Daryl made love to her on their wedding night and after a few days she had stopped noticing it. She picked up his hand and kissed his ring finger. She loved him and that was the tie that bound her to him.