Newly Revised

Ani woke up with a sigh, running her fingers sleepily through Daryl's hair as the man stirred himself and lazily opened an eye to look at her, "Mornin'."

He didn't respond right away with words, instead shifting to where he could give her a kiss as he ground into her. "Mm-hmm."

Ani chuckled at his morning antics as he nuzzled into her neck, spreading light kisses across her clavicle while she ran her fingers through his hair. Rick cleared his throat from next to the bassinet which caused them both to look at him, though Daryl with only one eye as Ani stifled a yawn. He just gave them a look as he bent to pick up a fussing Judith as if he was a parent catching his kid doing something bad. She'd managed to talk to him about what she was doing with Beth the night before, quietly informing him of her plan to gain as much information as she could about this place. Apparently, Carol had had a similar idea and had decided by herself to act like the same little mouse she'd been back at the quarry, but with a spin. She didn't have a kid, her husband was a dork of a man that was loving and kind, and she knew nothing about how to fight. Ani scowled so deep it wasn't funny; what was the purpose of outright lying when all they needed was information? Yes, her little act could get them some information, but what Ani was doing with Beth would provide more than a fake pretense in order to gain trust. Beth's wouldn't be an outright lie, though, as the girl only knew the basics of the basics of self-defense and no one but Beth and Ani herself knew anything of what she'd been teaching the teen as far as psychology went.

The girl had a knack for picking up on the subtle cues of others and getting them to open up with minimal effort because she was just so kind and innocent looking. It was a far better gamble than what Carol was trying to pull, because while she and Beth could easily write the things off that didn't make sense, Carol's lie would out on its own. The minute they were forced to fight, anyone would be able to tell that Carol had been making the entire community out to be a fool, and things could go very wrong from there. Rick was fine with it until Ani had posed her concerns about Carol's plan and laid down the framework of her own. In the end, he told her that they would just have to watch and wait; if the time came to fight, they'd deal with everything afterwards. Ani didn't like it, but if it came back to bite Carol in the ass, it wasn't on her because it wasn't her plan, it was Carol's. And she did not hesitate to make it known to Rick that if it went bottoms up like she expected, she was not taking any blame. The man had agreed that he and Carol would be the only ones at fault for whatever the aftermath of that happened.

"Shut it," Ani told him before groaning at the loss of Daryl's heat and weight when he roll onto his back. She quickly rolled on top of him, throwing her arms over him while childishly saying, "Five more minutes!"

Rick couldn't help but chuckle at them as Daryl's arms wrapped around her as he yawned himself. They ended up falling back asleep as everyone else began to rise and get ready. It wasn't until Merle went over and kicked their feet, startling them both awake at the same time as the man went down from a well placed kick to the balls, that they actually got up. They listened to the others talk about what they had going on that day as they got their shoes on and grabbed some water. Neither really cared to go exploring the town nor did they have jobs to attend to, preferring instead to keep to themselves for the day. Daryl dragged Ani out onto the porch where they sat with their backs to the yellow house as Daryl smoked. She sat next to him, playing with the kittens with a piece of string tied to a piece of fabric and trying to teach them a bit about hunting even though they were clearly too young.

"How old you think they are?" she asked him.

"Four, maybe five months, tops. Still got a lot of growin' to do," Daryl told her. "Should get about triple what they are now."

"That big?"

"Between twenty and forty pounds about."

"Damn."

"Mm-hmm. Want one?" he asked, offering her a smoke.

"Nah, I'm good. Heard they have hemp, though," she said with a devilish smile. "Might see if I can' nick some buds."

Daryl chuckled and nudged her with his shoulder, "Don't need none of that."

"And ya don' need that, but ya still puffin' away," she said with her own chuckle, laying her head on his shoulder and just enjoying the feel of him being next to her.

They sat silently as he smoked, watching as the others left the house followed by Rick, "They said explore. Let's explore."

Daryl felt Ani tense beside him before saying, "Naw, we'll stay."

Rick side-eyed them, realizing neither of them particularly liked it here, "Alright." He took a few steps before stopping to watch a woman with her dog walk by, saying, "Lori and me. We used to drive through neighborhoods like this. Thinkin' one day..."

"Well, here we are," Daryl said, a chuckle escaping Ani as Rick sent them a short glare.

"We'll be back."

"We'll be waitin'," Ani said jokingly before turning to Daryl. "What ya want ta do?"

Daryl gave her a pointed look that made her blush. "Nuh-uh. Nah nookie 'til ya get ya filthy ass in the showa!"

"We'll see about that."

~x~

Merle was walking behind the kids, just thinking about what the community could be for the group, when someone called out if they could see the baby. He'd seen the way Daryl and Ani were being and knew they just needed some time alone to work out their stress. Ani in particular was still looking a little sick to the stomach when he'd left the house, both of his siblings sitting on the porch. If his younger siblings would just give this place a chance, it might be what they needed, even if it was similar to Ani's upbringing. Even if Daryl didn't want to admit it, he had never really had a stable home since their mom's house had burned down. He'd been raised in various houses and mobile homes ever since, never staying in one place more than a year before they were kicked out due to their dad's excessive drinking and temper. In the end, they had to move into their dad's danky old hunting cabin that didn't even have any heat or electricity and the only food they had was what they could hunt. Even after he'd moved out of his dad's cabin, the boy had pretty much had his ass in a truck or on a bike following him along like a lost dog. Well, the lost dog had a proper master now, so it was time for him to go home and make his bed. Merle couldn't even be angry about who the master was, or the fact that Daryl was truly and rightfully whipped by the girl. Ani was every bit the stubborn jackass their mother had been and just as feisty; Daryl didn't remember much about the woman, mostly that she was sweet on him and a drunken smoker.

Merle knew, though, what the woman had really been like when shit hit the fan and their father had become more and more unstable. She would have loved Ani, Merle was sure of it, especially since Ani was like her; Daryl thought it had been a one way street when it came to their dad's beatings, but no sir, not their ma. That woman used her weight against the man that was as sickly thin as he was strong and more than once had knocked him on his ass. She had tried to protect Merle, and had done so a lot when he was younger, but a diagnosis of kidney failure when he was eight ended that streak. Daryl had been a surprise to the couple that were already struggling with him, but that woman fought heart and soul to keep him. She managed to hold on for six more years fighting failure until there was no point in fighting. While she might not have planned to burn the house down, Merle had known she had given up the fight long before that incident. He'd already known that she was in a lot of pain and ready to go, which was why he started acting out; getting into trouble seemed to be the only way to get away from his father's fist with his mother sick. And Daryl, he'd taken the brunt of Merle just wanting to be gone in any way, shape, or form, even before his mother had died. Somehow the boy still ended up a mighty decent man more than worthy of a woman like Ani. Hell, Merle was still wondering how he'd ended up with such a sweet little girl calling him Pops like he actually meant something. If they let themselves relax a bit, they could really make this place a home, Merle thought to himself as he wandered around, catching sight of the priest standing in front of the town's abandoned church and Abraham walking with Sasha, Eugene and Rosita trailing behind. This'll be good for 'em.

~x~

"We're almost always here after school, so you can come by any time," Ron told Sophia and Carl as he lead them through his house and up to his room.

"You go to school?" Carl asked.

Chuckling nervously, Ron replied, "It's in a garage. Little kids go in the morning, than it's us in the afternoon. Probably the two of you, too, right?"

"Probably," Carl replied, looking behind him at Sophia.

Giving her a questioning look, she just shrugged and said, "Might not. Ani might want to keep training us."

"Ani?"

"She's my...sister," Sophia said after a moment, thinking about how Ani said she was her kid, too.

"She's kind of our teacher," Carl added sheepishly.

"Cool," Ron said. "What does she teach you? We learn all the basics here."

"That's what she's taught us. The basics," Sophia told him a little haughtily; something about the kid was just off to her. "Though, I doubt our basics are the same. Taught us hunting, fighting, healing, and weapons."

The teen boy looked shocked by this information before clearing his throat and introducing them to his friends, "Guys, this is Carl and Sophia. Guys, this is Mikey and Enid."

"Hey," Mikey told them, getting up from his seat.

"Hi," Enid said quietly while not even looking up from her comic.

"Enid's from outside, too," Ron told them, putting his hand on the girl's shoulder as she finally looked at them.

"She just came eight months ago," Mikey explained while Sophia noticed how Carl was staring at the girl's face.

"Oh, um," Carl said, pulling out the comic book from his back pocket. "Is this yours?"

Ron sighed a scoff, "Sorry. We didn't know you guys got that house."

"We mostly just hang up there and listen to music. That's Enid's," Mikey told them as the girl rudely snatched the comic out of his hand.

"Wanna play some video games?" Ron offered. "Or Mikey's house has a pool table, but his dad's kinda strict about it, so..."

"It's okay," Mikey said, smiling at Sophia. "He's at work."

Sophia blushed and averted her eyes at Mikey's smile, not really getting why he'd smile at her as Carl went silent. Neither really knew the answer to that question now that they'd been living life on the run for so long that the only music they'd heard was Beth's singing and video games were a thing of the past. They'd gone from being eleven and twelve year old normal kids to teenagers that knew nothing about being teenagers but were well trained warriors. Giving each other the same troubled sideways glance, not knowing what to say, they remained silent, Carl looking more sad than anything while Sophia just looked confused. After being away from any form of civilization for so long, the thought of being able to play video games overwhelmed Carl while Sophia never had done so to begin with.

"Sorry," Mikey told them. "I guess we come on kind of strong."

"We can just hang out," Ron suggested.

"You don't even have to talk if you don't wanna," Mikey said.

"Yeah, it took Enid three weeks to say something," Ron said.

Enid, glancing over for all of a second, said, "Pull it together, sport."

That caused Carl to snap out of it and say, "Let's, um—let's play some video games."

"Cool, yeah," Ron said.

It was different, that was for sure, sitting around playing video games with the others like they were normal kids. That thought though, of being normal kids, had both Carl and Sophia questioning staying here themselves. If they became normal kids, they'd be weak and defenseless, just like those kids that they'd been introduced to. Even Enid, for having been out, wasn't a fighter. It ended up being too stifling for them and they left only after an hour or so, saying that they'd told his Dad and her Pops they'd be back by certain time. They went to the blue house and walked up to the room Carl had claimed; Merle, Carl, Sophia, Michonne, Rick, and Ani and Daryl had lain claim to the bedrooms in this house, though Deanna had assured them that they would have another house or two opened up within a few weeks. Like the blue house, several of the homes were unfinished and the construction crew was working on expanding the wall as well as the houses. It would take time, but they'd each be able to have their own homes within time. They laid on the bed not even talking, just staring at the ceiling laying shoulder to shoulder before Rick came in and started talking to them.

"How was Ron's house?"

"What do you think of this place?" Carl asked his dad.

"Well, I think it seems...nice," Rick said.

"Yeah. I like it here. I like the people. But they're weak," Carl told him.

"We don't want to get weak, too," Sophia informed the older man.

"It'd be easy to if we let our guard down," Carl said.

"Hmm," was all he got as a response. "Come downstairs. We'll have some dinner."

~x~

They'd all slept in the living room again the next night, Daryl and Ani in their claimed spot while the kittens curled up between their entwined legs. Daryl woke up first and just watched his wife sleeping in his arms. She was curled up into his chest, laying on her side, one arm loosely wrapped around the arm he had holding her to him, hand resting on his shoulder. He'd done the same thing last night as he had the night before, whispering sweet nothings to her, telling her he was always going to love her and that one day they'd have a kid just as quirky as she was and he'd love them too. It was all to cover up those damn voices she always heard when shit went down, give her new ones to listen to, and it was at least working to help her relax. A smile was playing on her lips as a tear slid down her nose while he watched her sleeping, wondering what she could be dreaming about as he wiped the tear from her face, her eyes flitting open slowly.

"Mornin'," she told him, that smile growing softly as she looked at him.

"What were you dreaming about?" he asked softly, watching as a blush stained her cheeks. "Know you weren't dreamin' about me, girl," he said with a smirk.

"Always dream a ya," she told him, leaning up and giving him a soft kiss. "Dreamed a a baby. Little boy, blue eyes like ya's, but my crazy locks. I want that so bad," she admitted when she pulled away and turned over.

"I know, baby girl," he said with a sigh as he pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her. "I want it too."

They redressed and headed outside, neither really wanting to be in the house any more than they had to after not being in one for so long. Daryl wanted to go hunting, and Ani was more than happy to get out of the fences and away from the town. They weren't planning on leaving until the next day, though, as both their bows needed a good cleaning and tuning and Ani wanted to sharpen the knives. They were both lost in their own little worlds working on their separate tasks, enjoying the silent peace they'd managed to get. Ani thought that that was the only good thing about Alexandria after being in the community a couple days. It was silent; there were no walkers clinging to a fence, no growling and snarling and groaning, not a single decomposing corpse walking around anywhere near them. She leaned her head against his leg as she continued sharpening the knife she'd given him until she heard Daryl say 'ow,' looking up to see him putting his thumb in his mouth.

"Ya ok?" Ani asked, standing up and taking his hand to check the offended appendage, nothing more than a pinprick on it. "Ya'll live."

"Gee, thanks."

"Time to punch the clock and make the casseroles," Carol's sing-songy voice rang out from behind Ani.

"What?" she and Daryl asked in unison before Ani turned around and Daryl leaned to have a look.

Ani burst out laughing when she saw Carol just because of the ridiculousness of what she was wearing on top of her fake-ass attitude of being happy to help. A pale yellow button shirt with a sky blue cardigan adorned her top while a nice pair of grey slacks she wore for her bottoms, complete with a pair of flats! If the woman had to run, she was going to end up having very sore feet and at some point be unable to continue due to that. Ani rolled her eyes hard, although she couldn't stop from laughing hard enough to almost knock Daryl off the banister. After a couple moments of unamused glaring from Carol and Daryl just staring at the older woman horrified, not even caring that Ani had laughed at her, she finally calmed down.

"Oh gods, Cars," Ani said still chuckling. "The hell? Ya dressed up like ya a propa granny!"

"I'm making dinner for the older people," Carol answered, slightly offended that Daryl would just stare and definitely offended at Ani calling her a granny; even Merle had commented that she looked good. "Moms who need a break. People who can't cook. Get to meet a lot of neighbors that way. Have either of you taken a shower yet?"

"Mm-hmm," came Daryl's response, even though he hadn't; he'd chased Ani through the house and pinned her to the bed instead.

"Take a shower and I'm gonna wash those vests. We need to keep up appearances, even the two of you."

"Hey, I ain't startin' now," Daryl told her.

"What appearance I got ta keep up otha than bein' 'is wife?" Ani asked.

"I'm gonna hose the two of you down in your sleep," Carol told them as she walked away.

"Fuckin' try it and ya'll be dead!" Ani told her.

"You look ridiculous!" Daryl shouted as she left.

"Ya know, everyone else is gone ta their jobs," Ani said, moving to press against Daryl's leg.

"So?"

"So, take a showa with me," she said with a seductive grin and her come hither eyes, Daryl just staring at her for a moment. "I didn' make ya yestaday and ya still got what ya wanted. I want a showa taday, especially one with ya company. Eitha way, I'm goin' ta go get wet."

She left him sitting on the porch and went into the house and up into the master suite, leaving the door slightly ajar while leaving the door to the connected bathroom wide open. Taking her time to adjust the temperature until it was the perfect amount of heat, Ani stripped out of her clothes and stepped into the shower, hissing and then moaning at the feel of the hot water. Daryl must have followed faster than she thought and heard her, because the slam of the bedroom door was loud enough that she heard it over the water. Ani was already excited to know he was in the room, her breathing ragged by the time she felt him step up behind her, turning her around and pinning her to the wall. He kissed her senseless before moving to her neck, running his hands through her wet hair, his lips moving up her jaw and to her ear, making her whole body shudder against him.

"You said you wanted a shower," his gravelly voice whispered. "Let's shower," he said before pulling away from her completely.

Ani just stood there in shock for a moment while Daryl went to grab a wash clothe and the soap; this was the first time he had ever started it and left her hanging. When the shock wore off, though, she gave him a dirty look before grabbing his arm and turning him around herself, kissing him and using his own shock to back him up to a wall. Her hand went to his hardened shaft and began stroking him as she pulled away, that damn smirk gracing her lips as she slowly fell to her knees. The water was running down her back as he watched her, blue and green locked as she took his head into her mouth. He moved her wet locks away from her face as she swallowed him down, his hand holding her head still as he began to fuck her mouth rather than let her blow him. Daryl hit the back of her throat with every thrust, barely giving her time to catch her breath before making her swallow him down again. It was such a different feeling, controlling even this aspect of their intimacy when he usually gave her control. He could tell it was turning her on, too, her pupils blown and her nails digging into his thighs while she opened her throat for him as much as she could.

Daryl didn't let her go until he was close to exploding, having other things in mind than a quick release. He pulled her hair just hard enough to where she would feel slight discomfort as he guided her to her feet. He bent down to kiss her passionately before turning her back to him and bringing her hand up to his neck, telling her to hold on. His hands went to her thighs and picked her up, her back to him, one arm wrapping around her waist as he guided her feet back to hook his own hips, aligning himself and thrusting into her. Ani cried out at the sudden intrusion, the position new to her and allowing him to hit deep into her core. The hand that wasn't holding her up moved between her legs to start teasing her clit, making her arch her back and push her head into his shoulder as her breathing came out in short pants.

Ani was lost in the sensation of it all, the heat of his body, the steam from the water, the coolness from the air outside the shower randomly crossing her skin. His hands on her skin were maddening as her own hand gripped the hair at the base of his neck, his teeth returning to his mark before his tongue soothed the skin. Her other hand was on his wrist as his fingers worked her sensitive nub in rhythm with his thrusts, her keening getting higher and louder. Daryl turned them around and pressed her front into the shower's wall, one hand pressing against the wall right above her shoulder as he pounded into her. The force of his thrusts had her jamming into his arm, unable to escape or get breathing room as his thrusts became more and more harsh, more erratic in pace. His breathing in her ear and the feel of him right up against her while being so rough inside her and her entire body trembling as her walls clamped down around him, pulling his own orgasm from him. His head fell to her shoulder as he slowed, both panting and light-headed when he finally pulled out and set her down.

"Thought you wanted a shower," he quipped.

"I wanted ta get wet," Ani chuckled turning in his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down for a kiss. "I did."

Daryl just snorted and smacked her hip lightly before reaching behind her and grabbing a bottle of soap, or rather, shampoo. He was thankful it wasn't a girly scent like flowers or fruit, but he still wasn't too thrilled with having coconut smelling hair. Rolling his eyes, he poured some into his hand and pulled Ani to him, earning a questioning gaze before he started washing her hair. His fingers on her scalp and the lazy way he moved through her locks was so relaxing and sensual that she sighed a moan at the feeling. He repeated the process with the conditioner before grabbing a washcloth and the bar of soap and lathered it up. Ani couldn't help but giggle when he started washing her body, too, the love and devotion he was showing touching her more than she would ever be able to express in words. When he was finished, he pulled her back into his chest and just stood there with her under the water, both of them enjoying the feeling now that Daryl stopped fighting her about it.

"I could get used ta that," she sighed.

"Maybe I'll let you."

~x~

Daryl and Ani had finally left the house, deciding to explore for a change now that they were both pretty damn well relaxed. Ani was going stir crazy because every time they went outside, she had to see that yellow house, and all but pulled the man down the steps of the porch. As it was, she wanted to know where Merle and Sophia had gone, the two disappearing before Carol had come out. While she remembered Sophia had gone with Carl to Ron's house, she wanted to see where this house was. She talked to Daryl about how he really felt being within the walls and admitted that it might not be such a bad thing to fall back on, but she still wasn't sure that she wanted to stay permanently. Daryl pulled her under his arm and whispered in her ear about how it'd be a safe place for a baby, the suggestion barely concealed within his eyes. Ani had laughed and was about to respond to him as they were walking along the wall when Glenn's voice carried over to them.

"You tied up walkers!" he told someone.

"It killed our friend!" the dark haired dude said; Ani didn't hear what he said next so much as read his lips when he decided to not explain himself. "You obey my orders out there."

"Oh, then we're just as screwed as your last run crew," Glenn responded, prompting Ani to take a few steps forward out from under Daryl's arm.

Glenn could handle the asshole in his face; she wanted the one who tried to take their guns as soon as they even got to Alexandria. It was stupid, foolish, and petty, and she knew it, but gods she wanted to kick his ass for making her family even more wary of a place they already weren't set on trusting. Not only had he asked for their weapons, but if she got the gist of the conversation correct, they actively tied walkers up; walkers, former human beings. Sure, they might be some kind of monster now, but they were once people with family, family who would be devastated to see a member of theirs tied up as a walker. There was no reason to tie walkers up aside from being some kind of sick in the head that made it to where they saw nothing wrong with tying a walker up. She could end the entire thing in one or two moves, but the more logical, rational part of her mind was looking for a non-violent solution. Something that involved words instead of fists would be better than essentially showing off the threat these people had let in.

"Say that again," dark hair repeated.

"Back off, Aiden," Tara stated.

"Come on, man," Noah tried. "Just take a step back."

"Come on, tough guy," Aiden, apparently, said while pushing Glenn's shoulder like a schoolyard bully.

"No one's impressed, man," Glenn said.

"Ain' that the truth," Ani chimed in, drawing attention to herself intentionally this time. "Those walkas were once human bein's. How would ya like it if it was a family memba ya found chained up out there? How 'bout if it was ya? Ya been inside these walls the entire time. Ya ain' shite compared ta what we've faced and the fact that ya'd tie up a walka jus' goes ta show it."

"Yeah? And who cares about what you think, shrimpy?" Aiden asked her snidely, making Glenn, Noah, and Tara's eyebrows hit their foreheads and several mouths to drop in shock, Ani's face going dark. "I was ROTC. I kn-"

"Ooo, Reserve Offica Training Corp. Not even a part a the actual military! That's the only reason ya still standin' while they've been wiped out. 'Cause ya didn' have ta report for duty! Funny thing, we actually have not one, but two military veterans in our group. So, again, not a single one a us thinks anythin' a ya. Ya ain' impressive. Ya ain' shite. Ya a walkin' dickface with an ass full of dirt. And that's why ya keep killin' ya crews."

Aiden drew a sharp breath that had Glenn pushing Ani out of the way as the man reared back, the punch he'd thrown Ani's way hitting Glenn instead, who promptly laid Aiden on his ass. Nicholas went to move but was met with a kick in the stomach by Ani as she spun on her heel, regaining her balance in the process, before she grabbed his hair and brought his face into her knee. The four of them tussled for a few minutes as they gathered a crowd that included Deanna, their group, and several citizens from Alexandria. To say Aiden and Nicholas were thoroughly put in their place by Ani and Glenn would have been an understatement as Glenn and Ani simply dodged or easily blocked their counterattack. She hadn't wanted to show the citizens of Alexandria just what she could do, but that didn't mean she was going to let people get away with using walkers as a toy. Yes, she had suggested using walkers along the fence line at the prison, but that had been more for a camouflage affect; the walkers on the fence would have covered the sight and smell of their group. It could have also deterred the Governor from trying to steal their home away, which wasn't even what the attack had been about. If it had, they wouldn't have gone through the fence or blown the prison all to hell; he wanted to destroy them, plain and simple. Ani would be damned if she would let these two idiots make such an immature, childish, and frankly character-telling decision as to chain a walker to a tree. It all came to a close when Ani was bear hugged by someone from the back, crying ringing in her ears as her eyes went wide and her body began to shake.

"Oh my baby!" a tall, dark-haired woman with green eyes cried as she held onto Ani. "My precious baby girl! I thought I'd never see you again! Thank you, Jesus! Praise the Lord! My baby girl is finally back with us!"

"Thank God you're safe!" the even taller blonde man said, his tight bear-hug making it difficult for her to breathe, a sign of what was to come, always a sign of what would happen if she didn't do as expected. "We've been trying to find you! Where have you been?"

"Can you tell us, sweetie pea? Are you...Are you still alright? Is your mind okay? Have you been hurt? How did you find us?" her mother fired off, not really wanting answers, but playing the part she always had. "Your anemia! Have you been eating enough? Are...Your neck...How did you get that bruise on your neck?! Is someone abusing you?! Taking advantage?! Honey, tell us, what happened?"

"Have you seen your sister? Did she make it to Georgia? Is that how you got out?" her father continued the line of questioning, several of Alexandria's citizens smiling at the reunion while most of her group was confused as to what was going on.

Ani wasn't entirely sure what possessed her to speak to them how she did, knowing what would come after, but at the moment, her head was far too overwhelmed to think about the repercussions of her words. She was being hugged by her parents, her fucking parents, who lived in Alexandria and they hadn't even known it. The problem was that Ani only had herself to blame for not telling anyone about what her parents looked like, only how they acted. She had always emphasized their ability to manipulate, their ability to look like they were one thing outwardly while inwardly they were always plotting to get their way. There was no escaping them, not when she was a kid, not when she was a teen, and now it wasn't even when the world had stopped progressing that she could run. She was always going to be found by them and would always be tortured by them, never gaining freedom for too long before they sunk their teeth back into her. She couldn't move as she was being suffocated by the two taller people hugging her so tightly, her mother whispering in her ear to behave or else they'd make a new room for her.

That was the straw that broke the camel's back and had Ani smiling smugly at them, "I killed the bitch seven months ago."

All the words the pair had been saying died in her ears before her feet were removed from the ground and she was sent flying through the air. Her back hit the metal wall hard, taking away her breath, numbing her back as she slid down it. She couldn't even get into a proper defensive stance before they were on her and started beating her, their punches and kicks so much harder than she remembered. Ani managed to block a punch from him, but in doing so left herself open to her mother's claw grabbing the side of her head by the hair and slamming it against the wall before raking it against a rough edge, making Ani tumble as blood started falling down her face. Her vision was blurry as she managed to block her father's kick to her stomach, but not his punch to the clavicle that made her entire arm go numb. She curled in on herself, trying to at least protect her head and organs, bringing her knees up to her chest and her arms above her head as the two continued beating her and throwing insults her way about Chrystal not being there and how she didn't deserve to be. How she had always been a murderer and should have never been born, her father going so far as to say he should have never let such a stain on the family exist in the first place. At the moment, Ani wished she would have, because she was right back in that house, right back in that basement, and she just knew no one was coming to help.

"Get the fuck away from her!" Daryl shouted as he ran for the man, his voice sounding far away in Ani's ringing ears.

It was shock that had everyone just standing there in a daze before most of her group moved to run towards the two. Abraham and Sasha had been the closest aside from Daryl, as they had come back through the gate as Glenn and Ani were dealing with Aiden and Nicholas, the three of them running in unison. The taller military man wrapped his arms around the guy beating on Tiny and literally picked him up and body slammed him into the dirt with all his brute strength. Sasha used a standing arm triangle choke Ani had taught her on the woman, refusing to let up until she was on the ground, not even letting go when her face started turning blue until Michonne told her to. When the man stood up, Daryl charged him and tackled him right back onto the ground, choking and punching him wildly as Rick tried to intervene. Ani was still in shock at what had just transpired, her eyes glazed over and her head feeling fuzzy. In shock and anger, Merle looked at Deanna who's expression was extremely grim as Rick finally managed to pry Daryl off her father. Rosita was even staring in shock; they'd started out so nice and loving that she was sure the girl was lying, but after seeing that, she didn't know what to think. They had literally gone from being a loving family to vicious beasts that had attacked their own child; though, Ani did tell them she'd killed their other daughter. It didn't matter in the end, because every single one of their group members present ended up in a scuffle with the two before forming a line between Ani and her parents as Deanna walked up.

"That's enough!" she shouted. "Thomas, Eileen! Explain yourselves!"

"She killed my daughter!" Thomas roared. "That bitch doesn't deserve to li-"

Whatever he was about to say was interrupted by Daryl's fist connecting with his jaw, "You son of a bitch! I'll kill ya!"

"Daryl, not now," Merle said as he grabbed his brother under the arms from the back. "Ani's bleedin' like a damn waterfall."

Deanna had gone back over some of the videos she'd taken for the people here until she'd found the video for the Parkers. In it, they'd said they'd had two children, both girls, though the youngest had been an extremely difficult child they had, at the age of fourteen, sent to a group home. Titania Marie Parker, the name Ani gave her as her own, was the bane of their existence according to them. She had been a troubled child that would have violent outbursts and could not be reasoned with, especially when it came to being jealous of her sister's accomplishments. They had said that their youngest self-harmed and blamed them, causing investigations from CPS during a time when he was trying to get elected Mayor. She had become increasingly violent towards her older sister, Chrystal, who they had gotten separated from at the beginning of everything. Chrystal was said to be the genius, the psychologist; it had been Chrystal that had been praised with all the things that Ani's group had praised the small girl herself for.

The couple had seemed off after a while living within the walls, but they had never given Deanna a reason to do anything about the pair. They seemed sincere enough, but she could just tell; she was exceptionally good at reading people and they were definitely hiding something. While they never openly did anything, they were close friends with Pete, whom had his own issues she was trying to look into. They were also very cruel to Aaron and Eric, which was the actual reason they went out recruiting people; they simply wanted to avoid the homophobic couple. Both had come to her more than once feeling unsafe living near the couple when they'd first moved in, which was why their house had been traded out for one on the other side of the town, closer to the unfinished houses. When the young lady had come in and started having a panic attack over her parents' treatment of her, Deanna had pieced it together pretty easily. In fact, she had been looking for Ani to warn her and ask her a few more questions about the pair in order to know what she needed to do about the situation.

Having been given quite the well rounded picture of Ani with only Rosita saying anything bad about her attitude and mental state and Eugene saying she was scarily smart and kickass to boot, Deanna knew that Thomas and Eileen had lied. The woman had not only defended her group not once, but twice, from larger enemies with minimal casualties considering but had also built a system to train all those that fell into her family, which was essentially everyone they accepted. She did not tolerate any form of abuse, had turned the group's hardened criminal and druggie into a decent grandfather-figure for the girl she adopted after her father died and her mother abandoned her. It seemed like she had single handedly prepared the larger group they were with at the prison with medicine to combat the illness that took hold before it was destroyed. There was no way the woman was disturbed when she was able to do all that and have the favor of her people.

"I thought I recognized her name," Deanna said, stunning everyone as Merle and Daryl cussed and moved over to Ani. "Everything you told me in your interview was a lie, and you are no longer welcome within this community. You will check your gear and leave, immediately."

"You can't do that to us! We've been here since almost the beginning! We've helped make this place! You owe us!" Thomas shouted.

"She had it comin', Deanna," Eileen said in her light Irish drawl; Ani's speech impediment when it came to words ending in 'er' combined with her pick up of her mother's accent had made Eileen practice harder at hiding her own. "She killed our daugher! She killed Chrystal!"

"In self-defense, asswipe!" Sophia shouted, Abraham smirking over at the little girl standing up for Tiny.

As soon as Daryl was by her side, she had her arms up over her head and curled into herself all over again, a wave of sorrow rolling through him as he realized what she was doing. She thought she was going to be attacked again, not realizing it was him that was kneeling next to her. Ani was so traumatized by what had just happened that the only instinct she had was to protect herself and it had him ready to go after the asshole all over again. The entire left side of her head was gaping open to the point he could see her skull, Daryl and Merle both cussing as Merle walked over to Thomas himself. The man was knocked right to the ground again by the force of Merle's punch, spitting out blood and a tooth, as Sophia ran over to Ani's side as well. Ani couldn't tell what was happening anymore; confusion set in as her head began to throb and her breathing came out erratic. She could barely make out voices around her as arms wrapped around her, her body shaking as she tried to figure out who's they were. Daryl picked Ani up bridal style and told her he had her, Ani finally reacting when her arms latched around his neck and her body shook even more, making to go to the infirmary as Thomas stood up again.

"Stay, she needs to hear this," she told him, making Ani's hold around Daryl tighter.

"She's got a bleedin' gash on her damn head! It can fuckin' wait!" he spat at her, Merle following close behind as Abraham stopped the man from trying to go after them.

"Try it, shit stain," he said to the man, looking down into his eyes as Abraham stood a couple inches taller than him.

The hold she had on Daryl was painful but she had no control over her strength right now and a bruised neck would be a small price to pay for not getting to her faster. Daryl couldn't even see her face, but they were both covered in blood as they entered the infirmary where the doctor was. Taking one look at her, he had them lay her on one of the beds, calling for his assistant to bring him gauze, sutures, and a needle. Ani's wild eyes were looking everywhere and nowhere at the same time, almost crazed with her pupils blown and her head on a swivel as the doctor came to check her. She was having a hard time seeing where she was, she couldn't hear anything clearly, her heartbeat throbbing in her ears. She was terrified and confused and didn't know who was in the room with her, only that someone was coming towards her. As soon as she saw the hands reaching for her face, she attacked, knocking the doctor right onto the floor and making to grab a knife.

"No, Ania!" Daryl said, lunging forward and grabbing her around the middle before she could fully pull one out, though she fought against him as well. "Merle! Go get Maggie and Phia! Now!"

"They ain't doctors," he cautioned, watching as Ani struggled even in Daryl's arms as he tried desperately to hold onto her to keep her from running or attacking. "Shit, you sure you don't need help?"

"She ain't gonna let no one else look at 'er! I got 'er! Just go!" he yelled at Merle as he struggled to keep Ani in his arms and from going for the knife. "Ania, baby girl, it's me! You gotta calm down!" he shouted, trying and succeeding at getting Ani bent over the bed, laying his full weight on top of her as she struggled to get out of his hold. "Baby girl, come back. You gotta come back. You ain't there. Ain't nothin' to fight. I need you to come back," he started whispering in her ear. "You know I love you, I'm here. You just gotta come back to me. Come on, baby girl. I don't wanna see you like this. Come back. Gotta come back, Ania."

"D...Daryl?" her own broken whisper sounded out.

"I got you, girl, I got you."

"Where?" she looked around as Daryl slowly stood up with her, turning her around to see her look of confusion.

"We're in the infirmary. We have to look at that gash."

"What?" she asked, seemingly confused as to everything that had happened not long ago as she reached her hand up and felt her wet hair, bringing it back down and seeing it covered in blood, her voice hitching up in pitch. "What—We...we were walkin'..."

"She's got a concussion," the doctor told him. "I can tell that even from here. Her hair's going to need to be shaved to get a look at the wound. Most likely will need stitches."

"Shave?" she repeated, looking even more horrified and starting to panic. "Nah, D, nah! Tell 'im! Nah one's shavin' my head!"

"Ania, baby girl, we gotta shave that side. We gotta get that looked at and you're bleedin' real bad. I'm sorry, baby girl, but we gotta," Daryl told her, moving as much hair as he could to the right side. "Only gotta shave this part. We can cover it after it heals, let it grow back. It's not forever."

"Nah! Nah, D! Ya can'!" she cried as he held her close, knowing this was a lot to ask. "Ya can' take my hair away! It's the only thing that's always been mine! Ya can' take it! Ya can' take my hair!"

"Ania, look at me," he said as she began to have a panic attack on top of sobbing, making her hyperventilate. "I know, I know it's the only thing you've had control of. I get it. I know. I don't want it touched either, but we have to clean and stitch that gash. It's still bleedin', baby girl. I know, but it's gotta be done."

He was still wrapped around her when practically their entire group either walked into the infirmary or went to stand on the porch. Sophia, Merle, Abraham, Beth, and Rick were visibly seething while the rest had various looks of upset and concern etched across their faces. Rosita was waiting on the porch with Eugene, Tara, and Noah, quietly discussing what had happened and how people could be like that. No one could believe Ani had been attacked in broad daylight, especially since it came out of no where and they had seemed so worried about her, so loving. The minute she'd said that Chrystal, her sister, was dead, they had attacked when right before that they were crying and hugging her and saying just how happy they were she was there. If their group hadn't have heard her stories, if they hadn't have seen her scars or witnessed Chrystal's behavior, they might have thought that she had been lying about how they acted. So many people had seen them crying in joy over Ani's appearance, telling her how much they loved her as she stood there stiff as a board. It had taken all of their group a moment to realize what was going on and then everything changed in an instant when the man threw her into the wall and they started wailing on her.

"Why would they do that? Didn't you say they kept it in the dark?" Daryl growled at Merle.

"Apparently, they didn't care this time around. From the hootin' and hollerin' that damn shrew was doin', as long as Ani's dead, it don't matter," he answered. "Don't like how she killed Chrystal, their 'true daughter,' whatever the hell that means."

"The hell are they?"

"Gone," Rick said. "They were exiled."

"Exiled?" Ani repeated, going right back into the panicked state she had been in before Daryl had her in his arms. "Nah! They got ta die! They got ta...they'll come back! Don' she know! They'll jus' come back! Always come back! They got ta die! They got ta! They...they...the..."

"Ania?" Daryl shouted as she went limp in his arms. "Ania?!"

"Lay her on the table. She's out. I can look at her without getting attacked now," the doctor told him before looking at his assistant, Denise. "You need to help me shave around the wound as best as possible. The whole side needs to be shaved to make sure her hair doesn't get caught in the wound while it's healing. And I need one of you to prepare to give her a blood transfusion."

"Right here," Daryl said, moving to Ani's right side, clasping her hand in what would soon be his free hand, as the wound was on the left. "You give her my blood."

"Might not be the same blood type," the doctor, Pete, told him.

"Universal donor," Daryl said, thankful for the second time, for all the time he'd spent giving blood and platelets for cash.

"Alright," Pete said as he got to work setting up the transfusion.

The buzz of the razor was the only other sound in the room as they watched the doctor and his nurse working. Long tresses of blood-soaked hair fell to the ground, Daryl watching it fall as tears began to sting his eyes. He tried, he really did, not to let them fall, but holding her hand and watching her lose the locks she had spent years growing, and let grow as wild and free as her spirit was, they slipped down his cheeks. Bending over and bringing his other hand to hers, he openly wept at what she was losing, even if it was a small part, and what it represented. He didn't even notice as Denise finished and bent over, carefully picking up the strands and taking them with her rather than throwing them in the trash. Merle wasn't doing much better, though he wasn't bawling like a baby, seeing the smallest woman bleeding so badly and his brother a mess. Ani had told him when she was sick how important her hair was to her and how much she had done to keep it. To her, it was her trophy, her reminder that life wasn't all about pain and suffering, but beauty, that she was beautiful. It hadn't been until she started growing it out that she had even begun to gain confidence in herself.

Ani woke up roughly an hour later, the long, deep gash along her skull throbbing and stitched by the doctor, bandaged by Sophia using herbs rather than the cream the doctor wanted to use. Daryl was right there for her as she gingerly felt the area and the entire side of her head missing hair. She couldn't help the tears that poured from her eyes as she realized what she'd lost. From cutting to dying, her hair had been the one act of rebellion she'd always been able to maintain even before she ran. She'd kept it short when she was younger because it was easier to grab, but when she was fourteen, when she'd finally left home, she'd quit cutting it. She'd let it grow and it really had come to symbolize how strong she was to herself, how much she had fought for her life and her freedom. They've taken from me again and got away with it, she thought, thinking of everything those people had put her through and how many sacrifices she'd been forced to make or were taken from her.

"Oh good, you're awake," Pete said as he walked over, putting his hands up and stopping a foot from the end of the bed. "I'm going to come closer to look at the wound and change the bandage, then you can go home. Don't attack me this time. How are you feeling?" he asked, only for her to remain quiet, staring at the ceiling. "While normally I'd admit you to the hospital with a severe concussion, you've already woken up from passing out, so I think it's safe enough," he joked, receiving a blank stare in return before he moved to change the bandage. "So, the bandage needs to be changed every morning and night," he told Daryl. "I'll give you some medicine for the pain."

"Save it. She won't take it," Daryl told the doctor for her, realizing she was in no shape to be able to talk. "Prefers this tea made of herbs she has in her pack. Don't like pills."

"Alright. This is going to be one gnarly scar when it heals. You'll probably be able to feel on the skull where the metal bit into the bone. You said Tom and Ellie did this?"

Ani pulled away from him so fast she literally fell into Daryl's lap, her legs still up on the table as her butt hung off his knees. Her face had gone white as a ghost and her breathing started becoming erratic all over again. If Daryl hadn't have been where he was, she would have fallen right onto the ground and reopened her stitches, losing even more blood than she already had. She had deep purple bruises up and down her arms and legs, another on her shoulder along with a cut. She was in no condition to even be moving and the bastard had made her tax herself all over again when her mind was in no condition to be able to deal with it. If she hadn't fallen onto him, he would have been stomping the doctor's ass for even saying those names in front of her. Daryl's arms wrapped around her protectively as he shifted her so that she was sitting fully in his lap, turning her to tuck her head under his chin as she had a death grip on his shirt, while he glared at the doctor. Told the asshole not to say a damn thing about them, he thought to himself while trying to get her to calm down all over again.

"Why don't you call that assistant of yours in here to finish up, hmm?" he growled at the man with a cold stare, not planning on letting the asshole come anywhere near Ani again.

"Denise!" Pete said with a scoff and a roll of his eyes. "Pretty messed up she's afraid of her own parents' names."

"You see what they did to her?!" Daryl roared causing Merle to come back in from smoking on the porch.

"What's goin' on in here?"

"Asshole don't know how to keep his damn trap shut," Daryl answered.

"You better get to steppin' if you know what's good for ya, then," Merle threatened, coming to stand in between Daryl and Pete while Abraham, Rick, Sasha, and Michonne came in.

"You called?" Denise said as she came in. "Oh, uh, hello."

Ani didn't say anything, just held onto Daryl as the woman came up and cleaned the wound as best she could from the position they were in. At the very least, Ani did shift her head so the woman had a better go of it. She was trying to form words, but she was locked inside her own body and mind right now, unable to open her mouth to speak as tears slid down her cheeks. The memories that had been blank and confused after it first happened had come pouring back when Pete had mentioned their names. The way they'd held her so close and claimed they were happy she was alive, the way they tried to play like they used to, and the way she'd riled them up with a single sentence to be beaten as badly as she had. She couldn't believe she had been so stupid; what had she been thinking opening her mouth like that?! She should have stayed silent, should have just stayed still, not reacted at all to the sight of them. She should have resumed her role as the quiet, obedient child that had always been expected of her. She could have escaped; she'd already done it once and it wouldn't be hard this time. She could escape using a walker if need be, and hen they would never be able to hurt her again. The others might have helped her, but then again, would they really? Rick hadn't been so open to believing her once upon a time and who knew if the rest would believe her after seeing their behavior, their acting. She didn't even realize she was mumbling it all in a hushed whisper by Daryl's ear until he blew up at her.

"Stop fuckin' sayin' that shit! You know damn well this ain't your fault so just stop!" he yelled, even though she was sitting in his lap, his arms tightening around her. "You ain't fuckin' leavin' and you ain't lettin' yourself get bit just to escape 'em. So just shut the fuck up with that shit!" he shouted, his anger making her whimper and fold into herself and him before falling silent as the doctor's assistant finished her work.

"Um...I know it's not my place," Denise said as she finished up. "But, your hair? It seemed like something really important to you. It's so long and strong, and, well, I made these," she said, pulling out identical braided bracelets made from the locks she'd lost. "They won't last forever, but they should last long enough for your hair to grow back. I know it's not much, no where near enough, to cover your loss. But, I just thought you might like to have something back."

Ani's hand was at her mouth looking at the gift as fresh tears fell from her eyes, the gift meaning more to her than the woman would ever know. When Denise handed her the bracelets, Ani wrapped her hand around the woman's, the only way she could convey how much it felt as she cried. Bringing the bracelets to her heart, she turned to Daryl and just sobbed. He held onto her, picking her up and carrying her out of the infirmary and all the way to their home. It was only midday, but he was done with the town for the time being, possibly for good if he could get Merle and Sophia to go with them. He and his girl needed to recover, and that wasn't going to happen around everyone else right now, especially when she had just been trying to say it was her own fault for being beat. Taking her right up to the master suite, he took the plain shirt she'd been changed into at the infirmary off, followed by her pants, both bloodied beyond repair, before tucking her into the untouched bed. Removing his own clothes, he climbed in with her, pulling her to him as she cried herself to sleep.