A/N: Yet another chapter if anyone is still reading this. I thought I had it planned out, I did, but decided to flush out the story a little more. Not fillery, per se, but expanded. When I originally completed this it felt choppy, so I'm trying to fix it.

Daryl looked up from his bowl when he heard someone tappin' the side of a glass and saw Rand standin' at the head of the table. She cleared her throat. "I'd like to thank everyone for their hard work on the fence posts. The next few days we'll get the fencing and barbed wire up then we can tear down the fencing near the moat. I figure we'll sharpen those rebar spikes while we settle in for the winter."

"What month is it?" Janet asked.

"According to the laptop it's November. Is it? I don't know."

"Sounds about right," Bradford confirmed.

"November it is. While there's not a lot to celebrate, I figure we should celebrate the small victories we have." She shrugged and raised her glass. "To us. And the small victories."

Daryl raised his and took a drink. He saw 'Chonne do the same. Small victories.

Three days later him, 'Chonne, Jake and Steve were headed to Assateague Island to see if there was any horses left. He looked at the brochure Rand had given him. He'd had one, Michonne gave it to him before he left the first time, but he'd thrown it on the ground outside Alexandria's gate. This was just a scoutin' trip. He looked in the rear view mirror to see Steve lookin' at the map, then lookin' up. "We need to get on state route sixty four. From what I remember there weren't a lot of cars until Tuckahoe."

"Why'd you leave?" Jake asked.

"Janet. She had some family in New Market. They told her to go there. We were the only ones that made it out of our dorm. We were in Charlottesville. Jamal had some crazy idea to head to DC. You know? Where the government was? We got to Tuckahoe, it was bad so we headed to New Market. You know the rest. You found us in that construction trailer."

That brought back memories of Eugene and his lyin' ass. He shared a look with 'Chonne.

"If the government came back they'd find us," Steve huffed. "They aren't coming back."

"No, they ain't."

He nodded in agreement.

"You should mark down on the map where the biggest car wrecks are," Michonne suggested.

"That's a good idea."

It took most of the day and they had to stop near Williamsburg, the cars were so bad.

"Williamsburg is a good idea. Working farm, like the old days," Jake sighed.

"Why we have a castle," Michonne reminded him.

"I'd take the castle over any other place," Steve scoffed.

Daryl would, too. Steve and Jake took first watch. They were campin' on top of a semi after eatin' the jerky he'd brought. Waya was a good guy. Damn good hunter. Better than him.

He heard Michonne settle down. He could hear Steve and Jake at either end of the trailer, leavin' him and 'Chonne in the middle. No walkers he'd ever seen could climb that good, even new ones.

"Why'd you kiss me?" he surprised himself when he asked.

"What?" He could see the shock on her face in the fadin' light.

"Nothin'. Forget it," he hissed and laid down, his back to her.

Michonne raised her eyebrows at Daryl's back. The question had come from nowhere. She supposed she was pleased he felt he could ask her. It had taken a while for her to trust him again. They were better, better than they'd been at the prison. Sure as hell better than when they were on the road from Terminus or in Alexandria.

She scooted closer to him, so her voice wouldn't carry. "I was kissing you goodbye, Daryl. You'd been an important part of my life and I was kissing you goodbye. And wishing you luck."

He didn't acknowledge her but he seemed to lose some of the tension in his back. She wondered why it was important for him to know. They'd fallen back into the routine they'd had at the prison, somewhat. Now they stayed in more and Michonne, instead of feeling shut in, felt good not going out there all the time. She clutched the katana in her hand. She hoped she'd be able to put it down soon.

The next morning before Daryl climbed off the trailer, after making sure they'd grabbed everything, she kissed him again. "Hello. Welcome back," she whispered. He blushed a little and shrugged.

"Best welcome I ever got," he said in a low voice.

She pushed his head. "We need to go."

Daryl wasn't stupid. He knew women got periods and had babies. He knew how they got pregnant. He hadn't been with many women but the ones he'd been with he'd used condoms. He figured he'd find one he could kinda stand and have a few kids. He didn't know why, just it was the thing to do. Later. Then this shit and he'd put thoughts of sex and kids to the side. None of the women he'd met since this started interested him except Michonne. She could take of herself. Like Carol now, Maggie, Sasha, Rosita. None of them women in Alexandria looked at him except with fear or like he was somethin' they'd scrape off their shoes. Not Michonne. She didn't look at him like he was a lowlife criminal. They were all prisses anyway. Couldn't kill walkers. Maggie was with Glenn. Abraham with Rosita. Sasha? She'd been a little out there when they'd got to Alexandria.

He didn't blame her. Deanna and them were idiots. He thought Michonne would end up with Rick. He'd seen Rick checkin' her out when they was at the prison. He'd mope almost every time she left and perked right up when she came back. It made him pissy when he saw it, after he stopped goin' out with her. He'd spent more time with her than Rick.

He figured he'd lost his chance when he found them together after the prison. Him? Or Rick? Rick. He was the leader. A good man when he wasn't fuckin' crazy, cared about his kids. Daryl guessed Rick was good lookin'. He didn't look at guys that way. Jessie Anderson did. The few days he was there he'd seen them as they talked in her garage. Daryl thought Rick was a damn idiot, interested in someone like her when he had 'Chonne. Not that 'Chonne sat around and waited for his crazy ass. She didn't. She left.

He watched her from the corner of his eye as they drove down sixty-four, markin' places on the map that had bad roadblocks. Maybe he'd have a chance again. He wasn't fuckin' it up. 'Cept he didn't know how to do it. He'd never been smooth with the ladies. Why he didn't try when they was out lookin' for the Governor. His back. He didn't like people touchin' him or his back. Michonne would want to. He'd seen her with Carl, smoothin' his hair and shit. Carl and Judith were the only ones he'd seen her touch. This wasn't high school.

"You alright?" she whispered. He looked at his hands and saw he'd been gripping his crossbow hard.

"Yeah. Fine," he huffed and relaxed his grip.

"Here," she gave him the map, leaned against the window and closed her eyes.

"Shit," Michonne breathed out as they sat in front of the tunnel to the island. She'd heard from Glenn about his and Tara's little excursion before they'd been rescued by Abraham, Rosita and Eugene. Even if he hadn't told her she for damn sure wouldn't want to chance going in that tunnel.

"Well?" Jake turned in the passenger seat and looked at them.

Daryl sighed. "Could be blocked. We got no way of knowin'. Stay here, on top of another semi. We'll check it out tomorrow."

"Sounds like a plan," Steve said.

"Come back with Rand," Daryl told her.

"The other three, too," Michonne added.

"Yeah."

"Shit," Rand huffed as she walked inside the tunnel with a flash light. She didn't see much but cars. She heard the groaning and figured the walkers must be inside. Some of the cars anyway. "I didn't think this out well."

"You always gonna say that, Rand?" Daryl questioned her.

"Of course. If I don't think things out well," she frowned, not that he could see it as she was facing the cars. "I guess I should have gotten a better map."

"You can't tell it's a tunnel on the map, Rand," Waya noted as he looked up from the map in his hands.

"Yeah, I thought it was an open bridge. Okay. If I was by myself and heading for this place I would have climbed the tunnel and walked on it. I'm hesitant to try and put a car up there."

"Probably not a good idea," Seth chimed in. "I'm sure it was built to withstand a car but who knows now."

"True. Maybe a boat?"

"We could sail up to the entrance," Adrian told them. "I've sailed in the past."

"Really?" Daryl snorted.

"I'm a man of many talents, Daryl," Adrian laughed as he pulled out his sword and cut off the heads of two walkers that came from the tunnel.

"Well, what do you guys think?" she asked her group.

"I think we should do it. We're here. At the very least we'd know if there are horses. We could find another trailer. There are probably some on the island," Seth voted.

"I'm thinkin' the horses is dead. We only saw two walkers. It don't look like there was an accident but people woulda headed for the island. If they turned? They'd eat the horses. If someone made it they probably wouldn't try and get through that tunnel again. They'd eat the horses. Seen 'em eat a horse before. A group of 'em," Daryl muttered with disgust.

"We should check the literature again. I'm sure some place along the Trail offered horseback riding," Michonne suggested.

Rand sighed. "This was a complete waste of gas and time."

"Not really, Rand. Daryl made some good points. Now we know we couldn't use this as a backup place," Seth tried to console her.

"I guess."

"And we got to spend some quality time with each other," Adrian snickered.

"Right. We don't spend nearly enough time with each other," she commented in a wry tone.

"What are you trying to say, Rand? You don't like us?"

She could hear the laughter in Waya's voice. "I like you." She turned and faced her group. "I'm glad we found each other, but let's go home."

Michonne found herself with Rand for the drive back. She didn't know how it happened and she felt weird. She'd gotten used to having Daryl with her when they did runs.

"He'll be alright," Rand said from the passenger seat.

Michonne flashed her a look. "Daryl. He'll be alright. He needs to…branch out maybe. He needs to trust us."

"He does."

She sighed. "For killing walkers, sure. From what I've observed, you and Daryl have been together for a while. You're a good team and I value your advice."

"Daryl and I aren't together in a romantic sense, Rand."

"I didn't mean it any way, Michonne, other than you're a good team. A good team that's been together for a while. What I'm clumsily trying to convey is I think Daryl is a good man who doesn't seem like he had a lot good people in his life. I'm not sure what happened when he left and came back and it's not my business, but he needs other people to trust."

"Are you interested in Daryl? In a romantic sense?"

Rand coughed. "No I'm not. Are you?" After a few minutes of silence Rand crawled in the back seat. "Wake me when you're tired. I don't want to be away for too long."

Michonne glared at the sleeping woman through the rearview mirror as they drove back to the castle. She let out a breath and concentrated on the car in front of them. She was happy Rand was smart enough not to get involved with Daryl. Unlike Rand Michonne knew, somewhat, he'd had a bad childhood. Rand messing around with Daryl would end badly. For him.

They were friends, good friends, she liked to think. Daryl was a big boy and could take care of himself. At one time. She frowned. She should stay out of his love life.

"Why'd you back me?" he asked Seth. Waya was drivin' and Adrian was in the passenger seat, head against the window, eyes closed.

"What?" Seth turned to him with a frown.

"Why'd you back me?"

The man raised his eyebrows. "You made some good points. The sound of your voice when you said you'd seen walkers take down a horse? It was disgusted. So, not on my list of top ten things to see."

"Get some sleep, Daryl," Waya advised. "One of us may have to switch out for Rand or Michonne. Like Rand, I want to get home."

"Ooh rah," Seth nodded before he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

Daryl did the same. He was livin' in a nice ass place, not strugglin' to survive. He had good people. Yeah. He wanted to get home.

He wasn't gonna fuck up his chance.

He watched Michonne over the next two months, he kept track by the moon. He coulda asked Rand or Tom, but wanted to save himself the embarrassment. Rand woulda just told him. Tom, nosy bastard, would've wanted to know why.

It was gettin' colder and they'd seen some snow. He was goin' stir crazy. 'Chonne didn't seem like she was goin' stir crazy, which shocked him. He noticed when they'd planned the run to get horses and they'd ended up with a tradin' partner, she didn't seem into it.

He couldn't explain what he wanted to himself, let alone ask for someone for advice.

He didn't know why, but he remembered the last time he'd seen 'Chonne without her katana. Even in the keep she still wore it all the time. Everyone wore somethin'. After Bradford and his family came they'd enforced the no guns rule. It worked out good. Sometimes he'd heard Graciela let loose in Spanish, makin' Seth laugh, but no so much the rest of 'em. Even them four idiots wore their swords.

He'd admitted to himself this was home. It was. They were doin' good. They got a horse, they had animals, they had food and they had fences. Come spring they'd have spiked pits. This was as good a life as they'd get now. Rand yelled at Helen this was their life. Jenny's life. Walkers and dicks. Michonne had wanted a life, why she yelled at Rick they should keep goin' when they was at Noah's.

She put it up, at Rick's, when she thought they'd have a life. A home. They had one. Not what they thought they'd have, but somethin' better. He wanted her to feel like they had a life now, with good people, not just walkers and dicks. They had a home.

Michonne sighed with tiredness as she walked into her room. She stripped and went into the bathroom. She moaned when the hot water hit her back. She was glad Rand had been OCD about the water. They hadn't been eating or drinking walker infested water. Or showering in it. They'd found the wells and capped them off. It did have a filtration system, yeah Daryl, then she had them out looking for filters. A review of the invoices found the warehouse they'd been ordered from. Her and Daryl had gone out the next day, filled the truck and came back home.

She dried off and found more clothes to change into. Home. It really struck her when Rand said she wanted to go home. This was as good of a home as she was going to get with walkers and dicks. She could live with it. She looked at her bedside clock and decided to skip dinner. She didn't have it in her to play nice with anyone right now. She'd spent part of the day with Rand going over the pits. The other part she'd wandered the castle. She couldn't wait until it had thawed enough for them to get outside the walls.

She didn't mind going on runs. When it was cold outside like this, she'd rather stay inside. She didn't really do anything all day. Found a few DVD's of a show she used to watch. Like Rand, she didn't give a fuck. It was nice they could do it. The walls and the fences were good. The pits would be better.

She laid down on her bed and looked at the fireplace. Maybe she'd use it. Daryl had taught them all what to look for and chimney sweep equipment was on the list. Lists. They were getting smaller. Actually, after the pits, there wasn't anything else they needed but people.

Michonne narrowed her eyes and got out of bed. She smiled as she picked up one of the plate holders on the mantle. Looking around she saw her katana by her night table. She put the plate holder down, picked up her katana and placed it in the holders. Michonne stepped back and tilted her head then she moved the holders so the katana was in the center and stepped back again. Perfect.

There was only one person that knew.

Daryl was outside on the bench, head back, ready to fall asleep after Janet and Thomas had made hamburgers, green beans and mashed potatoes for dinner. Damn, every time he ate good, he snorted, he was gettin' spoiled livin' here 'cause he ate good all the time now it seemed like, he wanted to sleep. It was cold outside, but he didn't feel like movin'.

"Why?"

Daryl looked up to see Michonne standin' over him, but she didn't have her katana.

"Why what?"

She gave him a look and sat down. "Don't play dumb, Daryl. Why?"

He shrugged. She nudged his arm. "You wanted a chance. A life. We got one. We got a home." He glanced at her to see her rolling her hand. "Damn, woman," he muttered, leaned his head back and closed his eyes. "Heard what you yelled at Rick when we was at Noah's. We were doin' good at the prison. We found each other after. Then Aaron and Alexandria. Noticed you put your katana up over the fireplace when we was there. We had a home, a life, shitty as it was."

She choked. "It wasn't that bad, Daryl," she contradicted.

"It was and it wasn't. We got another chance, 'Chonne. We found good people. We're makin' this a better place. Better than the prison. Sure as hell better than Alexandria. Thought you'd wanna try it again."

He heard her stand up. "Come on," she said.

He opened his eyes to see her holding out her hand. She wiggled her fingers in his face.

"What now?"

"I want to show you."

He sighed and stood up, ignoring her hand, and followed her back to her room. She stood in front of the fireplace, like Vanna White, as she framed the katana in the center of the mantle with her arms. He nodded.

"Thank you," she leaned up and into him, kissing him. When she pulled away she had a smile. "Thank you, Daryl Dixon. We do. We found good people. We have a good home and a good life. Will you share it with me?"

"What'cha mean? I am. I live here, too."

She kissed him again. "No. Will you share it with me?"

It was his turn to kiss her. "Yeah."

Michonne moaned and opened her eyes. Her body was sore. In a good way this time. She smiled when she saw Daryl watching her. "What?"

"Nothin'."

"It's not nothing. What?"

Last night had been…interesting. After the first time. She wouldn't lie. They'd both been eager. It had been a lot of fumbling from both of them and frustration on Daryl's end. She'd been more realistic. Both of them hadn't had a lot of sex since this started. She hadn't had any since before this started. Daryl almost left when she'd teased him about having condoms in his wallet. If she hadn't tackled him, her knee near his dick, he would have.

"I think you're pretty."

"I think you're handsome," she kissed him on the lips.

"Am not, 'Chonne," he protested.

"You are. Thank you for not getting me kicked out of here."

He lowered his eyebrows. "For fightin'?"

It was the only 'your ass is out of here' rule they had; no fighting.

"If you had paraded your naked ass to the kitchen for a condom, Daryl, I might have had to fight. No one sees your naked ass but me," she laid down the law. She laughed when he blushed.

"Shit. None of the women here look at me," he scoffed.

"Rand thinks you're good looking," she recalled.

"She does?" he sounded skeptical.

"She does."

"Huh," he frowned then shrugged. "Whatever. Ain't interested in her. Only interested in you."

Michonne pushed Daryl to his back and curled up next to him. He stiffened at first but relaxed quickly. "Hmm," she sighed in contentment. "Do you think we could spend today in bed?"

"Can do what we want. Nothin' to really do until it thaws. Then we'll be bustin' ass diggin' that pit around the fencin' and puttin' in the spikes."

"I can't wait," she murmured.

"You mean that?"

"I do. We're setting up. I'm not sure what she has in mind after the pits."

"Could use some more fencin' around what we got already," he mused.

"We could. You should suggest it."

"Maybe walls, like Alexandria."

"Better."

Michonne didn't think Daryl realized he was running his hand up and down her back, the action seemed almost absentminded. She kissed his chest. "Like the idea of bustin' our asses with more walls, 'Chonne?" he teased. "Shit. Won't be able to walk we keep buildin' all this shit."

She lightly slapped his chest. "It's a good idea."

"Got it from her. Her and her damn invisible wall," he laughed.

Daryl laughing. It was a nice sound. She enjoyed it for most of the day, as they laid in bed, occasionally talking about the castle, Rand and the others. She felt like she was skipping school when she and Daryl snuck down to the kitchen and grabbed some food before going back to her room. Then she felt like she'd called off work as they ate in the sitting area, reading. She was going to enjoy this for as long as she could.