Quick note up here, kiddos, very important! Apparently the beautiful temptress who does the cover art for Graveyard Dirt & Salt and this very story you're about to read has made a trailer for Graveyard Dirt & Salt and it is so good! Follow the link on my profile to her art blog, like her original work, but also enjoy the video!

Also, also, there's apparently a fan blog for my works over on tumblr now...kind of worried that my silly fanfictions aren't good enough to hold up a fan blog, but thanks to those who made it. I'm honoured. Anyways, I think you can find it by searching graveyarddirtandsalt...I believe that's right. There's fan art and links to a playlist for your enjoyment while reading these stories.

Alright, on with the story!

Chapter 15: Agau

**Merle**

When he came back to the convent, he felt like he was walking into a WWE ring, filled with fighting and arguing and onlookers and Merle knew he should have felt at home among the chaos, but with his hand filled with fat rabbits, all he could do was stand around dripping rabbit blood on the grass and scowling.

Moving to stand beside the Lieutenant, who was watching the fighting with Annie attached to his leg, Merle eased against the truck they stood beside and watched the chaos.

"What's going on?"

The Cajun quirked a brow. "Well, from what I gather from the shouting. Rick hates the new guy and wants to either kill him or kick his ass out."

"And what's with the McNugget?"

"Carl's yelling at Glenn and Daryl because they were trying to stop Rick from killing the new guy."

"And the woman and kid?"

"They came with the new guy. They don't seem to want him to get hurt, though personally I'm pulling for Rick to knock some teeth out. Father O'Rourke is taking some verbal abuse in Farsi, because he touched the woman and apparently the kid doesn't like that and that's pretty much when you came in."

"Why are you just standing around?"

Turning from the action, the Lieutenant tilted his head. "I have broken ribs, grande beede, plus I'm not sure which fight I want to jump in on."

"Fair enough." Merle watched as Rick pinned the new guy on the grass with his knee between his shoulder blades. "Should I…maybe do something?"

"Hm, well see I'm torn, the new guy has information on this new group that's roaming the area could be useful to us alive, but he's also a…if I say salaud will you just take my word that he's a major one?"

"Asshole, huh?"

"That'll work too."

"What's a salaud?" Annie chirped.

"It's French for salad, sugar boo, but don't ever repeat it in front of Mother Mena, yeah?"

"Okay!"

"Rick we need him here!" Daryl growled as he grabbed hold of Rick by the arms and held the ex-cop back from kicking the new guy in the face.

"We don't need anyone, everyone who comes near us dies, no more mercy," Rick stated. "It's too dangerous. We need to let people know that this is our territory and they'll face consequences for trespassing on our land!"

"My dad is right!" Carl argued. "We've lost too many people! We can't trust anyone!"

"Carl, we're not killing people without provocation," Glenn snarled, helping Daryl restrain Rick.

"Glenn you of all people should know how dangerous strangers can be roaming this area!" Rick shouted.

"But killing everyone who comes near can't make sense!" Glenn argued. "We could use allies, Rick! I'm sick of fighting our own kind when there's a bigger threat out there in a much larger number!"

Merle sneered at Carl as the others fought, he didn't like how he kept his hand so close to the 9mm at his side. Somebody was going to have to take that boy in hand and slap some sense into him before people got seriously hurt.

He spied Sister Joan approaching from her spot at the front gate.

The woman mounted the truck they stood beside, climbing onto the roof.

"Enough!" She shouted, her voice ringing off the trees surrounding the convent.

Everyone stopped what they were doing, Rick pulling out of Daryl's grip and moving off to stand by himself.

"This is still our convent!" She shouted. "And we will not put up with violence! We're not animals!"

"You tell that pack of rabid wolves, sister." Merle cheered with a small grin.

"Shut your face, Merle!" She snapped.

With wide eyes and a jerk of his chin, Merle fell silent, impressed by the woman's nerve.

At his side the Cajun snorted.

"Now someone please get this poor man back into the infirmary?" She pleaded.

"Look, Sister," Rick began. "I'm still in charge of this group and I'm telling you it's dangerous to trust anyone outside our people."

"As far as I'm concerned, Mr. Grimes, with Mother Superior gone, the Lieutenant is in charge of us here at the convent, at least until you regain some of your sanity."

"I'm very sane!" Rick snarled darkly, turning almost animalistic in his intensity. "I'm probably the only sane one here! This man will only bring us more death and loss!"

"Not me you should worry about, killer," the new guy said from the ground. "I just want to be on my way as much as you want me to be."

Marching forward, Rick lunged at the man but was cut off by Glenn and Daryl grabbing him again.

Spying Carl taking too much of an interest in the exchange, Merle handed off the rabbits to the Cajun and moved forward, shoving the little shit on the ground just as he went for his gun.

"Get off my son!" Rick growled.

Taking Carl's gun, Merle sneered at the ex-cop who had suddenly turned his rage on him. "I'm trying to prevent the little asshole from murdering someone, Officer Friendly! Maybe if you took charge of him, he wouldn't be pulling his piece on anyone who pisses him off! I'd sooner trust Annie with a gun then your little shit of an offspring!"

"The boy has a right to defend himself!" Rick growled.

"Your son is a psychopath on his way to being full blown nutty! Remember how unstable I was with a gun? Remember what you did to me? Should we handcuff him to a roof? See if he cools down some?"

"That was different," Rick argued. "You were hopped up on uppers."

"And he's losing his grip! Take your boy in hand or I swear to God one of these days he's going to kill one of us because we said the wrong thing to him!"

"Rick," Daryl stepped in quietly, hesitant. "Merle's right. Carl's been making people uncomfortable with how he handles that gun."

"My son handles it fine," Rick said. "He knows it's not a toy."

"Of course he does," Glenn broke in. "But that's what scares us."

Merle could see the muscle in Rick's jaw twitched as the man soaked in the information given to him.

"Carl," he said finally. "Go wait for me in the church."

"No." The boy stated.

Rick angled his head to face the boy. "Carl?"

The boy eyed his father quietly, before stalking off in the opposite direction of the church, heading towards the rectory to skulk behind the small house.

Dragging a hand over his face, Rick looked like he wasn't ready to stop fighting, but had finally accepted a few things.

"May I borrow your peach box, Sister?" The Lieutenant asked, moving to stand beside Sister Joan on the top of the truck.

She hopped down for him.

"Okay," he began simply, drawing attention from the onlookers, still clutching the hunted rabbits in his sling hand. "It's apparent to me that we need a little structure and while I'm not fond of pulling rank – call it a military thing – I think for now we can safely assume Rick needs rest, the new guy needs space and everyone else needs to feel safe and secure."

"You're in no condition to lead either," Rick growled.

"No," the Cajun admitted, angling his head. "Believe me, I'm in so much pain right now I think I'm going to pass out, but if I'm willing to admit that, are you?"

Rick pondered this.

"For now, let's just all take a day or two, calm ourselves, recuperate and then we can decide whether we want to work together or fall apart."

"I want this man watched," Rick conceded defeat with a parting condition.

"Believe me, he'll be watched," the Lieutenant said, "if there's anything I can offer you right now, it's peace of mind. But please, for the sake of the troops, get some rest, yeah? We're stronger when you're stronger."

He nodded after a moment, it was barely perceivable, but it was better than nothing.

Offering Rick Carl's piece, Merle murmured. "Maybe you best think before you give it back to him."

Quietly Rick handed the gun back to Merle. "You'd better hold on to it for a while."

Eyeing the man suspiciously, Merle shoved the weapon into his belt and sniffed. "Well, whatever, just stop acting like a nutbar and get some sleep, huh?"

Watching Rick walk off, Merle almost felt bad for the man. Hell, if it wasn't for the dangerous bladed stump where his right hand used to be, Merle would feel full out sorry for him.

Sniffing in mild contempt, he turned back to get his rabbits from the Cajun, who was descending the truck with the help of Merle's brother.

"Never thought I'd live to see the day when you're the one restraining someone, baby bro," Merle teased, taking his kills from the Cajun.

Daryl scowled. "Yeah, well, this place is going to shit."

"Yeah, I know."

"Rick needs some honest rest," the Lieutenant added eyeing the direction the man had gone, Annie moving to cling to his leg again. "I've seen stress take a man down, put him scrubs and padded rooms."

"What should we do?" Daryl asked.

The Cajun shifted on his bare feet, raking the tall blades of grass with his feet. "Tranq him."

Merle's eyes darted over to his brother and held his gaze for a moment.

"You serious?" Daryl asked softly.

"Naw, Cajun's got a point," Merle said. "Rick's unstable right now, the last thing we need with this group of Tyreese's is for Rick to go into their camp angry. We could make powerful allies there or let Rick make some nasty enemies."

"Why, Merle," the Lieutenant teased, "that sounds almost diplomatic of you."

Merle scoffed. "I'm getting too old to play war games with Officer Friendly at my back, don't think I give one good goddamn about your soldier boy and his friends. So what's with this new asshole, anyways?"

"Says there's a group out there," Daryl said, casting a wary glance at Annie.

The Lieutenant peered down at the girl. "Ear muffs, boo."

Eyeing them quickly, she clamped her hands over her ears and began to sing 'This Little Light of Mine'.

"Rapists, murderers, general assholes," Daryl went on.

"And the guy?"

"Fuck him, he's unstable too," the Lieutenant stated. "But for now he's important, he knows how these men work, how they run things. If we want to feel them out, we'll need him for details."

"How unstable?" Merle demanded.

"Well for one, he doesn't know when to shut his mouth."

"Asshole has a beak on him like a pelican," Daryl added.

Merle frowned, before nodding. "Okay, fine. For now we'll give this guy the infirmary, you two set up in your own beds. I'll put Sister Joan on guard duty. The woman's a spitfire, so no one'll get past her. Until then, you two keep an eye out, but stay out of trouble, the women come back, they'll kick my ass up and down the lawns if they know you were loose."

"Excuse me?"

The three men glanced over to find the boy with the big brown eyes watching them calmly, behind him stood his mother, who watched them nervously.

"We would like to take Cash and go now, please?" He said in a thickly accented voice.

Merle blinked at the kid, before turning back to his brother and the Lieutenant. "Who's this little asshole now?"

"Kid came with the man," Daryl said.

"Jesus, they didn't tell me about a kid…or did they? Christ, I can't remember, well stuff him in a closet or something."

"We just want to go in peace," the boy insisted.

Merle quirked a brow at the kid. "Yeah, well, tough shit you're going nowhere until I give the go ahead."

"You cannot keep us here."

"Look, kid, sorry but that guy you came with is important to us right now. Just sit tight, alright?" Daryl asked.

"Hi!" Annie chirped from the Lieutenant's leg, peeking around Merle at the new kid with hopeful eyes.

The boy blinked at her.

"I'm Annie!"

"Why do you need Cash?" The boy asked, ignoring Annie, eyes on Merle. "He doesn't want to be here."

"Look, we just need him to give us more information about these men after him. They could hurt our people and we want to figure out a way to defend ourselves from them." Daryl said.

The boy blinked at them again, eyes unreadable.

"We promise Rick won't hurt Cash again," the Lieutenant added. "Merle's putting a guard on the infirmary."

Pondering this, the boy glanced at his mother, before frowning. "Is my mother safe here?"

"No one will hurt you or your ma, kid," Merle said.

Staring them all down, the kid seemed to be weighing his options, before he quietly moved off, his mother lingering long enough to offer them a worried look, before following.

Annie sniffed, dragging her hand across her teary eyes.

"Aw, boo," the Lieutenant crooned.

"I said 'hi'," she sobbed.

Scowling, Merle glared in the direction of the little snot nosed brat who seemed to think he could boss people around and break little girls' hearts with his rude behaviour. Little shit better watch himself.

"Hey," he said, turning back to Annie who was clinging hard to the Cajun's leg. "Why don't you forget about that little shit and come clean rabbits with old Merle."

Wiping snot on her arm, Annie sniffled and blinked her watery eyes. "Can I keep their feet?"

"Jesus, kid," Merle exclaimed.

"For luck!" She chirped, suddenly over her tears, as the Lieutenant used a worn rag from his back pocket to wipe the snot off her arm and the tears off her face.

"Yes, fucksakes, I guess. Come on, turkey squirt," he urged.

Annie beamed and grabbed hold of his pocket, following Merle across the lawns to help him clean his kills.

The Voodoo Dialect

Agau – Agau is a very violent god. Earth tremors and the frightening sounds associated with storms are because of Agau. The trances induced by his mounting are so violent there have been deaths associated with his brutality. When one is mounted one attempts to imitate the sounds of thunder and tremors, if they are strong enough to utter sounds under the possession. The possessed person keeps repeating, "It is I who am the gunner of god; when I roar the earth trembles."

It is said that when the earth tremors, Agau is angry. Those who are strong enough to keep him in their bodies are puffing with all their strength and sputtering like seals. One has to be very strong to harbor this spirit.

The Cajun Dialect (A Reminder)

Salaud – Bastard

DarylDixon'sLover - Damn, I was planning to, but since you asked so nicely...maybe...

Jodie Kay - I'm hoping Milton evolves too.

Merle's Right Hand - Yikes. Don't piss yourself, dude.

Surplus Imagination - It's a funny thing about long jumps, all it takes is one little falter and you can wind up like Milton...I'm not at all recommending you try it with a rooftop, but on the ground if you get the chance, let me know. ^_^

peonies01 - You and me both. I'm quite fond of the She-Wolves.

basically-a-fangirl - As much as I enjoy the idea of nuns kicking walker ass in full regalia, it's very impractical, I'm glad you recognized this and appreciated it.

HGRHfan35 - Well, babies can still come as long as the lady still menstruates doesn't matter how old she is. The shit you learn watching The View...I need to get out more...

Brazen Hussy - Neo-samurai is my goal in life. Thanks. ^_^

itsi3 - XD

Yazzy x - I agree. Stupid move on Grace's part, though I suppose she had a point about people feeling safer with nuns who weren't packing heat.

shelly2 - Oh God, that's probably one of the best compliment's I could get about Merle and how I write him. Thank you so much.

GG - I'm almost tempted to write in a baby walker somewhere...like a tiny toddler walker...hrmm...

Jack And Honey - Uncle Daryl feels, hopefully some Uncle Merle feels after this chapter...God help the kid who tries to call him Uncle Merle...can't see him being as casual about it as Daryl...though a part of me feels like he'd be touched, his reaction would be to put up those defenses of his again.

Happy Blue Ink - Hey, look at you reviewing this silly story! ^_^ My goal, to get every single man in that infirmary until it's packed with whiny male babies.