AN: Well, I gauge a lot by reviews, but since everyone is on hiatus, I'm on my own here. I love character development, so that's where I'm going for a while. That means there's some Dixonne, surely, but there is other stuff too. I hope you enjoy, since there's no indication you'll have any problem with that!
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Daryl had already informed Michonne that he was going hunting, and his goal was to slip out of the community unnoticed. He didn't intend to go far, but he did intend to go alone. He wanted a little time out in the woods by himself, and he was feeling confident knowing that there was less of a threat in the area. He'd go out, find a little something to add to their smokehouses, and spend a little time alone with his thoughts, which were mostly pleasant these days and circled around his growing family and the fact that he was fairly certain they were safe for quite a while.
Carl caught him before he could slip out though, and drew attention to the scene by not only asking Daryl where he was going, but insisting that he go with him.
"Look, Carl, I'm sure you good enough to go out now, but I ain't even takin' Beau with me. I'm goin' out alone 'cause I wanta be alone, ain't got nothin' to do with you, why don'tcha go find Beau an' see what he's doin'?" Daryl tried to explain.
The requests from the boy had already gained the attention of Carol of Sadie both, who had joined them near the gates.
"I thought you said we shouldn't be going out there alone?" Carl questioned.
"Y'all shouldn't be goin' out there alone, but I'm used to this stuff. I ain't gon' be gone long and I ain't gon' be goin' far. I'll be back in just a little bit. You run on now, I ain't got time for this," Daryl argued, essentially dismissing Carl. He started out the gates, throwing back the promise that the next time he went out, he would take Carl with him.
When Daryl left, Sadie could see Carl's face sink. She hadn't entirely understood what the problem was, but whatever it was, Carl was disappointed. He turned and started down the street in the direction of where his house was located, and also in the direction of Sadie's house. She didn't say anything to Carol, but she followed not far behind him.
Sadie finally called to Carl as they got farther down the street and the boy turned around to see what she wanted. She jogged over to catch up with him.
"Hey," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder, "what's wrong?"
"Daryl won't take me hunting with him," Carl explained. "He said I could go if I got good at using the bow, and I'm real good at it now, even Beau said so."
Sadie stood there a moment, thinking.
"Hey, would you like if I taught you something that could help you hunting? Something Daryl and Beau don't know? You could teach them," she offered to Carl.
"What do you know about hunting?" Carl asked.
"A little bit," Sadie offered. "I can teach you to talk to people without making any noise."
Carl looked at her a minute.
"Sign language," she said, smiling. Carl responded with a smile of his own.
"OK," he said.
"You want to learn?" She asked.
"Sure!" Carl said.
"Come on, we'll go sit on my porch. I will teach you the alphabet first. Then you can spell what you can't say," Sadie said.
Carl seemed excited and went with her eagerly to get started on their lesson. Sadie paused a moment, but decided that the baby would be fine with Carol and the others. She'd know where to find her, it wasn't like they had all that far to wander around here.
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Rick was wandering back through the part of the community that they occupied, meaning to check up on Carl, when he saw that he was thoroughly entertained by Sadie. He stopped a moment, a little down the street, and watched the two. From a distance he could tell that Sadie was apparently trying to teach the boy sign language, and from the grin on his face he found it preferable to any of the reading or math lessons that Rick subjected him to from time to time, considering both skills that everyone needed to know, at least in their most basic forms, regardless of the fact that it was the end of the world.
He continued on after a minute, considering some of the possible ways that he'd constructed to breach a conversation with Rachel that would leave him both single, and without any hard feelings from the woman that he felt had little more interest in him than he had in her. They'd just sort of ended up together, not so much out of desire as out of the obviousness of the situation. He was single, she was single, and they both had certain needs and desires that the other could fulfill. At first she had been clingy to him, but he had since realized it had more to do with the fact that he was something new to her and with the fact that there were still single women sauntering around than it had to with any real affection. Lately their relationship had become even less interesting than something mechanical. Still, it was a difficult topic to bring up.
Rick was also starting to realize how little he knew about Sadie. Most of the things he knew about her wouldn't be enough to fill even a half a piece of paper if he were to make a list. He knew she was deaf, had travelled with Mark for some time, had some beef with a few other groups that had passed through their camp, including the one that his group had annihilated, and that she wasn't the victim that he'd once thought she would be. He could also tell that she had some interest in Carl, but that didn't take him very far.
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Beau slipped around, watching and waiting for Sadie's little interaction with Carl to be over. He had decided that he could wait patiently enough, knowing that the woman would eventually end whatever it was she was doing with the boy and wander unoccupied back toward headquarters looking for something new to occupy her time and attention. That was the moment that he was waiting for.
Finally, after some time, Carl had bounded off the porch of Sadie's house. Beau watched her a few minutes. She rocked back in the rocker that she was sitting in, and ran her fingers through her hair, tugging at her curls. She didn't look like she was going anywhere immediately, so Beau thought he might catch her attention there.
Sadie was a little surprised when Beau dropped over the side of her porch. He was always sneaking up on her, and she wondered if it was a matter of her not being able to hear him, or if he was in general just one of those people that seemed to magically appear when you weren't suspecting it at all.
"Hi," she said, smiling at him. Beau dropped into the seat next to her.
"Hi," he responded.
Sadie wondered for a moment if he wanted anything in particular, but he didn't offer any explanation at all for his presence.
"Slow day?" She asked, finally.
"There all slow when we ain't got that much ta do," Beau said.
"You need a hobby," Sadie offered.
"What you do when there ain't nothin' ta get done?" Beau asked.
Sadie thought about it a minute and shrugged. She had to admit that to her it seemed like there was always something to do, if you wanted to do it. Granted, in the few days since the battle, the tasks were easier and less challenging, but there were still things to be done. Some people did them, others did what they wanted to do, but if you were bored you just had to find Carol or Daryl and you would immediately know something that could use your attention.
"Don't know, I haven't run out of things to do," she replied.
Beau didn't respond to her immediately. He sat there, in the chair beside her, staring out at nothing. After a few minutes he turned and tapped her on the arm, his finger lingering there a second.
"What?" She asked.
"Nothin'," Beau said after a minute. "It's silly."
"What is it?" Sadie asked.
Beau seemed to consider her question for a minute. He seemed to be chewing it over.
"Well, I was wonderin' if I could ask ya for some advice," he started, "but it's about girls."
Sadie smiled, regarding him for a minute. Beau was a cute young man with a very gentle nature about him. Sadie liked him a lot. She didn't know much of his story, but she felt like he had travelled a long, and probably hard, road to get there. She could understand that. It made her feel a little sorry for him, since the blush of youth was still clearly to be found on the boy, despite the fact that he tried hard to hide it at times.
"What is it?" She asked.
"Well, I don't know much about 'em, but sayin' I was tryin' ta get the attention of one of 'em, how do you reckon I oughtta go about it?" He asked.
Sadie sat back, trying to figure out the best way to answer the boy. In the community she knew that both Chelsea and Stella were without anyone to call their own. She hated to admit that these days it seemed that all you needed to do to get the attention of someone else was to be single and interested, but that's about what it boiled down to. Both girls were lovely, and she could see where Beau, given his age and the calm that surrounded them these last few days, would be thinking about engaging in some sort of relationship with one or the other.
"Talk to her," Sadie offered.
"Yeah," Beau said, "but what am I gonna talk 'bout?"
Sadie smiled. Beau was chatty, she'd learned that much, but being chatty and understanding the art of conversation were two entirely different things.
"Try to find something that she's interested in," Sadie said. "Something that she likes. Talk about that. Ask her questions."
Beau smiled and nodded.
"You know, maybe you're right, now I just gotta figure out what she wants ta talk 'bout," Beau said.
"Who is it?" Sadie asked.
Beau regarded her for a moment.
"What?" He asked.
Sadie decided that he hadn't understood her well.
"Who is it? Chelsea or Stella?" She asked.
Beau blushed a little.
"Of the two," he said, "I reckon I like Stella more. She ain't been the same since Dominique died, but she's a smiley kinda gal an' I like the smiley kind."
Sadie smiled at him.
"Talk to her, see if you can get her chatting. Don't push it too much, though," she said.
"What'cha mean?" Beau asked.
"Take your time," Sadie explained. "Too much, too fast can push girls away. Don't get in a hurry."
Beau smiled back at Sadie, thanked her, and vaulted over the side of the porch the way that he'd come, ignoring completely that they had steps. Sadie smiled after him as he trotted away.
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Daryl was in a great mood. He'd gotten a deer, and a nice one. Carol had cooked up a real fine dinner for everyone, and he was in the mood to celebrate, at least to a degree. He'd slipped off to the storage house, not explaining himself to anyone, and had invited Sadie and Mark to join them for a little after hours fun at his house. No one had questioned him, though Michonne and Carol both had shot him questioning looks.
"Drink up," Daryl said, refilling Carol's glass. Everyone but Michonne was drinking, and Daryl worried from time to time that she wouldn't be happy with that, but she seemed more than amused. She'd gladly put all the babies to bed, offering Sadie the option of letting Paul sleep in the bassinet that they'd wrangled up for when she was occupying the bedroom floors upstairs.
Carol took the glass, too far gone to refuse the refill offered to her entirely.
"I think," she stammered, "that you're just trying to get me drunk. I think you're just trying to take advantage of me."
Carol was sitting between Tyreese's legs, leaned against him, and he was using a chair for support. Daryl, Michonne, and Sadie were occupying the couch, and Mark had laid claim to the other chair.
"I promise I won't take advantage of you," Tyreese said, tipping Carol's face towards his for a moment, "unless you ask me to." He planted a kiss on her lips for a second.
Carol laughed at him and snuggled back into him. Daryl smiled and refilled the other glasses around him.
"So, Sadie," Michonne said, enjoying very much the loose tongued friends she had around her, "how are things with Beau?"
Mark tapped Sadie and she drew to attention.
"What?" She asked.
"How are things with Beau?" Michonne asked again. Sadie looked confused for a second.
"He likes you," Mark said after drawing her attention.
"No, he likes Stella," Sadie said, obviously almost too far gone to continue any sort of conversation.
"No," Michonne said, waving her hand and drawing Sadie back to her. "He likes you and you just don't know it."
Sadie laughed. Her laugh was apparently contagious because Carol caught it and Tyreese put his hand up to steady her glass.
"Beau likes Sadie, and Rick likes Sadie," Carol said, swaying the glass that Tyreese was trying to hold steady. "Everyone likes Sadie and Sadie doesn't know it!"
Sadie turned to Mark and he did his best to slow things down and interpret the slurred words of Carol.
"No," she protested. "He likes Stella. He told me," Sadie said.
Everyone laughed at that.
"He's a baby," Sadie protested.
"Not really," Mark said. "He's cute, and he's well over age. I would say Beau is stalking his cougar right now." He made sure that Sadie caught his words. She blushed.
"Stop! No he isn't!" She protested.
A few minutes of drinking later, and a few filled glasses, and Sadie finally piped up again, catching everyone's attention.
"And?" She asked. "If he is? Does it matter?"
Everyone agreed that it really didn't. Michonne sat back in the couch, hugging her legs up onto the cushion and smiling at those around her. It didn't matter. Nothing like that which would once have been scandalous seemed to matter anymore. She was only amused by knowing that Rick was also interested in the woman who was, at this moment, drunk enough to look like she would soon be offering her a pillow.
"No, Sadie, it doesn't matter," Mark offered, making sure she was looking at him. She smiled at him. "We get it where we can, am I right?" He asked, offering up his glass as though he were making a toast and then drinking down the contents.
Everyone laughed, and a few downed their drinks. Daryl, being the host that he was, quickly refilled them.
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When the evening was through, Michonne had ushered Daryl upstairs. He'd been too far gone to notice her even undressing him and putting him to bed. She'd come out of the bedroom to find Tyreese attempting to get an only half conscious Carol up the stairs.
"Do you need help?" Michonne asked, noticing that he was struggling a little just because of her general unresponsive nature.
"No," Tyreese said. "We'll be fine. She just thinks she's more mobile than she is," he offered. "If it takes too much longer I'm picking her up. She doesn't weigh more than a decent bag of potatoes."
Michonne smiled and slipped past them, letting the couple battle it out on the stairs. Carol was as drunk as she'd ever seen her, and probably more drunk than she'd ever been in her life. Though Tyreese had consumed a few drinks, he seemed the most level headed of the group next to Michonne. She knew they'd be fine, but they had to do things their way.
Downstairs Michonne tucked in Mark, who had made a bed from nothing on the floor. She brought him a blanket and a pillow and he responded best to the pillow, thanking her as though she'd given him the greatest gift known to man. He buried his face in it and she covered him, smoothing his hair absentmindedly with her hand.
She offered Sadie a pillow as well, and found her unresponsive. She'd gently lifted her head, putting the pillow beneath her as she lie on the couch, leaving Mark the floor, and then she'd covered her with the blanket.
Finally Michonne had made her way to bed, thinking that everyone would be fine until morning, and then they'd really regret the night they'd shared. She undressed in the room and slipped into bed. Daryl, in an almost unconscious state, made a few grabs at her, insisting in some slurred words that he could do something for her, but she'd kissed him and dismissed him, knowing that his concerns only stemmed from his earlier worries that she'd been mad she hadn't been able to drink anything.
"Go to sleep, baby," Michonne said, rolling over and running her hands through Daryl's hair. "It's all good, I promise."
Daryl mumbled something in response that was unintelligible.
"I love you," Michonne said, rolling over and snuggling against him. "Sleep well and know I love you. It's all OK, Daryl."
When he mumbled again she smiled to herself in the darkness. She couldn't understand his words, but she knew him well enough to know he was still probably apologizing for something.
"It's OK, baby, it's all OK. I promise, no matter what," she said, hoping he'd drift off soon and stop mumbling. She reached around her and found his arm. She pulled it around her and snuggled back into his body. "I promise, it's all OK," she said, one last time. He was quiet afterwards and she drifted off to sleep, promising herself that she'd wake up early enough to keep everyone from wondering why Carol hadn't been there to get breakfast started.