Ani stretched in the hallway outside of Maggie's office after they had finished their talk and made a rough draft as far as the laws of Hilltop went. Jesus had been a godsend during the meeting as the person best able to mediate between Ani and Rick during the most heated parts. It was mostly when they were discussing death penalties versus life in prison, but he had really been needed at other times, too, to keep the two from arguing more. Maggie had been the ever stoic leader that she had become over the last couple years. She'd listened to all the points Ani and Rick had made and paid attention to Jesus's words the entire time, asking questions to clear up things she didn't quite understand. They had spent the better part of three hours talking and coming up with a basic list of rules from minor to major and what an appropriate response would be for breaking them. Rick wasn't happy with how harsh the worst of the punishments were, nor the fact that the Hilltop had a death penalty, but everyone else thought it was fair. The fact that Jesus had been so level headed and argued for some of Rick's points had silenced the other man in the end when he agreed with the women. It would be an evolving process, but the backbone of their growing settlement had been firmly established and Ani couldn't have been happier. She turned to walk towards the stairs when a hand on her wrist had her whipping around and turning that grab into a wrist bar on Rick, who, promptly, surrendered.

"I forgot you have a thing about bein' touched like that," he said as he rubbed his wrist and then shoulder.

"Been a while since I was grabbed like that, bein' honest. Well, by anyone that wasn' D. Merle and Phia learned ta call out ta me, less we're in the wild, and then a quick poke'll do it. Some a the Saviors thought it was a good idea the first few weeks we were there and learned quick not ta do shite like that. I react stronga when I don' see it comin', and I wasn' takin' any chances back then," she told him with a shrug.

"Yeah, that was one of the number one complaints I got at the start. That you were bein' mean," Rick said sarcastically while smiling, causing both of them to smile a bit. "You were harsh after the war, though."

"And ya were too easy on 'em. Ya took away their guns and made 'em give back some a the shite they were hoardin' away. But ya didn' do nothin' else ta 'em. Ya didn' make 'em pay back the settlements through labor. Ya didn' make 'em do nothin' but give up their guns! And ya wonda why nothin's gettin' betta."

"It...i-it is getting better," he told her. "It's a process. It's...it's a process. It takes time. The bridge could...it could help mend things. Get everyone workin' together properly for once."

"I ain' sayin' it won', but it won' work for everyone. Some will prove 'emselves one way or anotha and the rest'll be apathetic and go with the majority a their settlement as far as the Saviors go. As for the rest, I don' know how they'll react. Kingdom'll prolly be the most on board afta Alexandria, who'll follow ya lead. Oceanside is iffy. There's a reason they send the least, and it ain' 'cause they have the least. They savive off the sea. 'Tween the fish and seaweed they can get and the fact they live in the undabrush, they've got the most naturally refreshin' resources that need the least amount a help flourishin'. Trust me when I say, if Oceanside had wanted ta help the Sanctuary more, they would have."

"You think they're holdin' out on purpose?"

"I know they are. Rick, do ya think fish jus' disappear in the winta? Hell, they live on the ocean! They have two fishin' boats. Boats with nets! They can catch more fish'n they can eat, that's for sure. I don' think they held out ta the otha communities when they asked for help, but when ya asked for the Sanctuary? How could ya expect 'em not ta afta what happened?"

"That was before Negan," Rick defended, only for Ani to make a face.

"Ya know a lot a the Saviors that took part in that are still alive, right? Saviors that killed little kids right in front a their mothas. Do ya really think ya could forgive that easily if Negan and 'is men had killed Carl or Judith?" Ani asked before sighing and shaking her head. "Look, I ain' sayin' we can' figya something out ta make things work out the way ya want 'em ta, but ya didn' do it the right way from the get go."

"And what would have been the right way?" he asked her. "Killing Negan? Putting them all in shackles? I did what I thought was best..."

"That's exactly right, Rick," Ani shot, cutting him off without a care to finally have her say. "Ya did what you thought was best. Not what was best. We should've all had a say in it. Not jus' ya. It should've been ya, Micchie, Mags, Cars, Zeke, D, Cindy, and me. It should've been all a us. D and me 'cause a what we saw and went through at the hands a the Saviors; we could speak for the side a the workas. Mags and Cindy ta speak for those who lost their loved ones at the hands a the Saviors. Cars and Zeke as the peacekeepers like Jesus was jus' a bit ago, seein' as Zeke had a peace with the Saviors for the longest time and lost the least 'fore the war. And then ya and Micchie with ya goodie two-shoes acts a wantin' everyone ta sing Kumbaya tagetha. Ya shouldn' a made that decision on ya own, and ya shouldn' a made it for the communities ya had nah part a."

Ani had tried to talk to Rick about how he'd unjustly ended the war several times the first few months of the takeover from Negan, but the man hadn't wanted to listen. She had also tried to figure out how to get everyone on board with his way of thinking, but the pain and anger ran too deep through many of the communities. How he had simply imprisoned Negan and given the Saviors no real punishment for their crimes sat badly in the mouths of many. Many felt as if their torture at the hands of the Saviors and everything they had lost had been brushed under the rug. Things had slowly started to shift in peoples' perspectives when she last spoke to others from the settlements, but it was in the form of not hating the people who were in just as tight a spot as they, themselves, had been. Nothing had changed their minds about the soldiers that had taken part in the worst of the conflict, though, and Ani feared it never would, especially for Oceanside and Maggie. As she had told Rick way back when the war was freshly over, some things were just too harsh, too difficult, and too painful to overcome. Had the war ended in a way that had given everyone a voice as to how it ended, the situation might have been different.

By and far, the Kingdom and Alexandria had suffered the least at the hands of the Saviors and she knew that Ezekiel would have been willing to talk on behalf of the Saviors that hadn't made things worse. She knew that as much as she knew that Maggie and Cindy would have definitely wanted the fullest of punishments due to everything they had lost. She and Daryl would be two sides of the same coin, and she knew it; Daryl arguing against the soldiers while Ani argued for the workers. He had suffered at the hands of the soldiers the same way she had seen the workers suffer. Neither of them wanted anything to happen to the innocent people, which was a big part of why they'd reluctantly agreed to lead the Sanctuary in the first place. It was the only way they felt that they could make up for their decision to ram a hole in the Sanctuary during the war. That choice had cost many lives at the Sanctuary, over half of which had been workers, and the guilt had weighed heavily on the Dixons ever since. Leading the Sanctuary hadn't helped lessen that guilt, however, and it had become a part of the rift between Daryl, Ani, and Rick ever since.

Rick had the decency to at least look ashamed before replying, though it wasn't without a dramatic sigh, "Things could've been handled better, but it was what we needed to do. We had to give the Sanctuary a chance."

"Nah, we had ta give the people a chance. All a the people. The people that were hurt by the Saviors' actions both in and out a the Sanctuary. Everyone should a had a say, or at least had a voice ta represent 'em 'fore ya made the choice for everyone. Even then, tryin' ta make the otha settlements jus' go 'long without makin' things right did more harm than good."

"They wanted time. They needed it. To heal and repair."

"And yet we didn' give 'em time. We went from war ta askin' 'em ta help the Sanctuary all ova again without gettin' anythin' in return. We failed the entire system ya were tryin' ta build 'cause we weren' workin' tagetha from the start. Might a been travelin' the same direction, but we remained separated. We could a worked tagetha as a council or senate or somethin', somethin' where all the communities had a say in how we moved forward. But it's too late for that, now. Now," Ani said, looking for the right words to say before she sighed, "now, we get ta scramble and hope we can make shite work right."

"And if we can't?" Rick asked.

"Then don' expect things ta work the way ya want 'em ta. I should a fought ya harda back then."

"You were a bit busy with bein' pregnant and all," he said with a kind smile. "How's it goin' this time?"

"What?" she asked in confusion.

"The pregnancy?"

"Oh. Right," Ani chuckled. "It's rough. Differen'. I've been cravin' oranges like crazy and I can' even smell eggs 'fore I start gaggin'."

"How far along are you?"

"Carson says they're 'bout thirteen weeks, jus' like D and I thought."

"They're?"

"We're havin' twins this time 'round."

"Really? That probably wasn't what you were expecting."

"I don' think anyone expects twins 'less they're twins 'emselves or have a family history a 'em. Merle says 'e doesn' know a any in the Dixon line and there weren' any in mine, eitha, so this was out a the blue."

"I take it that means you won't be able to help me keep peace at the bridge."

"I think ya know I'll try, but 'til these babies come out in 'bout six months, my hands are tied. 'Sides, Carson doesn' want me ta stress too much 'bout nothin'. I got ta go back in a few days for anotha scan," Ani told him.

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, but it's twins, and I had problems with blood pressure with Lou. He jus' wants ta make sure everythin' stays good, and I'm all for it," she said with a shrug before giving Rick a hard look and sighing. "Look, I'll do what I can. When I can. I ain' stressin' myself out this time 'round."

"I appreciate it," he told her.

"What?" she asked, the look on his face clearly showing he had something else he wanted to talk to her about.

"The bridge. I need your help gettin' Maggie on board with it."

"How so?"

"She wants nothin' to do with it," Rick said while looking down. "We need to get Hilltop on board or else it won't work."

"It won' work, anyways, 'less we have the manpowa," she stated, her arms folded in front of her as she started thinking about the bridge. "How do ya plan on rebuildin' it anyway? We need lumba, and we need woodworkas ta turn trees inta boards. Got ta get at least two blacksmiths workin' on metal supports and nails and shite 'fore we can even start buildin'. On top a that, ya got ta leave 'nough people at the settlements ta allow 'em ta grow their food and work on their own projects. Ya said ya hadn' finished the windmill in Alexandria and they're still workin' on the barn 'ere. Kingdom's the only settlement that doesn' really need ta build anythin', but they still need people ta defend against walkas. Hilltop, especially, can' afford a huge cut in manpowa 'ere when they're still tryin' ta get their crops up and runnin'."

"What do you suggest?"

"Gettin' all a the leadas tagetha and figya out who can help with what and how they can help. I think it's time ta relook usin' the Saviors as a labor force. They've got the most people and the least shite ta do, strategically speakin'. The farmin' ain' good, but if they work on the bridge in return for food, it might work."

"You think Maggie will go for it?" he asked.

"I think it's a betta option than jus' expectin' everyone ta work on it in a more friendly manna," she admitted. "Betta ta not make the same mistakes ova again by dictatin' everythin'. Betta ta give everyone a voice propaly ta avoid a situation where the fightin' starts back up."

"And if it does?"

"Guess that'll be that. 'Cause if the fightin' starts back up, that'll be it for the Sanctuary. Best case scenario, the Saviors disperse ta differen' settlements and the bad seeds weed 'emselves out. Worst case? They got the numbas even if we got the guns. They'll go for Negan and the war starts all ova again."

~x~

"Knocked out five of the asshole's teeth, that's what I did," Merle told Abraham and Sasha.

They were sitting outside of the trailers at the Hilltop, waiting for word on what was going to happen with the bridge and when and where they were going to start working on the rebuild. Merle and Abraham had been exchanging stories from their time in the military and all the shenanigans they had gotten into. Abraham had retold his story about the key-eating camel for the thousandth time and Merle brought up knocking out his superior officer yet again. Sasha was just smiling softly while listening to them talk, having heard basically every story the two old soldiers had to offer. In the last two years, the men had sat around the fire several times talking about their time spent abroad. Considering the way Merle had acted back then, it was no surprise that many of his stories ended in fights. Abraham's stories were much more comical and proved just how much of an idiot the man could be. Both of their tales could show just how ingenious a couple of hooligans with hardly a formal education under their belts could be at times. Merle had once created a shrapnel bomb out of nails, a softball, and some gasoline for shits and giggles while Abraham had managed to jury-rig a catapult style contraption for flinging dung across enemy lines. Sasha wasn't sure how she had managed to get mixed up with a couple of idiots like the Dixon and Ford, but she couldn't imagine her life without them anymore.

"And then you got locked up," Sasha finished the story, earning a scowl from the older redneck. "It's not the first time we've heard it."

"Yeah, well, don't mean you gotta be a smartass," he shot back, pouting for a moment before he changed the subject. "You heard 'bout Ani yet?"

"I don't think there's anyone left who hasn't," she told him. "It's nice, though. More babies being born."

"You two ever think of havin' a mutt?"

"What?" Sasha asked incredulously.

"What?" he asked back, recognizing the look of offense on her face and rolling his eyes. "You gonna tell me that your man can call any kid he sees a pup, but I can't call 'em a mutt? Fuck that shit, man."

"Do you call Lou a mutt?"

"Hell yeah! That little fucker keeps tryin' to eat my stump!" Merle said heatedly, making both Abraham and Sasha laugh out loud. "Every fuckin' time he comes near me, he's grabbin' at it and tryin' to stick it in 'is mouth. Fucker's got teeth, too."

The look on Sasha's face gave him a laugh as she said, "God, the thought of breastfeeding a baby with teeth. I don't know how Ani and Maggie have managed it."

"Oh, Ani cusses like crazy and then sticks a piece of aloe to each tit."

"Ain't it kinda weird how you know that?" Abraham commented.

"It'd be weird if they still gave me a hard on knowin' she's bangin' my baby brother and knocked up with his kids," Merle said with a shrug.

"That's gross," Sasha stated.

"What? Ain't like they were together when we all met. Hell, I was lookin' at 'er the minute she jumped outta her car with them tits and that ass. And who could blame me? You can't tell me you didn't do your fair share of starin' back when we all first grouped up," he shot at Abraham, who just chuckled and nodded his head.

"Yeah, they're a hard act to miss," he admitted, earning him a glare from Sasha. "Come on, we've all stared at Ani's body at one point or another. You'd have to be blind not to."

"Oh, so you think she's hotter, huh?"

"Never said that. I got the hottest, most badass bitch out there to call mine," Abraham said as he reached over and pulled her from her chair onto his lap. "That's all I need."

"Get a room," Merle groaned, the three chuckling for a minute before quieting down. "Seriously, though. You two gettin' hitched? Gonna have a couple cubs runnin' 'round 'causin' chaos?"

He watched as the pair glanced at each other as if they were having a discussion without actually acknowledging his questions. It was a look that he'd grown to know through Ani and Daryl as them being on the same page while still contemplating something. It was also a look that he'd come to realize meant there was a secret being kept. Merle groaned inwardly when he thought about what they could be hiding, not wanting to deal with a dual pregnancy again. While he had been traveling back and forth between the communities, he had been subjected to both Ani and Maggie's requests. Squirrels, sweets, honey, things for the babies, all the emotions that were thrown his way whether or not he found what they wanted. It had been so difficult, dealing with both the women's hormones and everything that went with it. Ani was already pregnant again and it was as if he was seeing all of those trials and tribulations happening all over again. The only other option for Sasha and Abraham to share that look was that they had already tied the knot, and he doubted they'd do something like that silently. Especially when there was a legitimate priest who could wed them while having everyone celebrating their marriage. A part of him wanted to ask the questions running through his mind, but he was too scared of the answer to actually do it. Instead, he simply cleared his throat, took out a cigarette, and lit it while adjusting in his seat to try and ease the tension building in his head.

"How the hell you keep findin' cigarettes?" Abraham asked.

"It's pot," he said, earning a scoff from Sasha. "What? They grow it for medicinal reasons. Shit ain't good enough for a good high, but it's somethin'. Daryl might be fine with stale ass tobacco right now, but I sure as hell ain't. No, sir-y. Ain't that why you quit smokin' cigars?"

"Yeah," Abraham sighed. "After a while, they started tastin' like a rotter's ass-crack."

"And how would you know what that tastes like?" Sasha asked with a laugh.

"Don't gotta know what it tastes like to know what it tastes like, darlin'," he told her. "Just know, ain't nothin' tastes quite as sweet as you."

"Oh, gross. Get a fuckin' room, you perverts."

"You know you've seen worse," Sasha pointed out.

"Yeah, but that don't mean I wanna keep seein' it if I don't gotta! Deal with enough of that shit between the kids and the lovebirds."

"How's that going?" she asked him. "Carl and Sophia? I haven't had a chance to talk to them for a while."

"It's goin' about as well as a teenage romance can go," Merle sighed. "Hell, it's healthier than any relationship I've ever been in. That boy's sweet on the girl." He chuckled and shook his head as he took in another drag before telling them, "I swear, Phia's got more handwritten love-letters than braincells sometimes. Always has somethin' in his hands to give her the minute he sees her and follows 'er around like a damn lost dog. It's fuckin' sickenin'."

"I remember a time when you said something similar about Ani and Daryl," Sasha pointed out.

"Yeah? And I'll prolly say it again! Those two are the worst."

"Who's the worst?" Ani's voice rang out from behind them, making them all look back to see her tucked under Daryl's arm with Lou in hers.

"You two, apparently," Sasha said bluntly with a small smile. "We were just talking about Carl and Sophia and how they act like you two."

"How so?" Daryl asked.

"Apparently, they're about as attached as a two-headed snake," Abraham told her.

"Nah, not that attached. They jus' haven' been able ta be 'round each otha as much as the two a ya and us have," Ani said. "I'm sure they'll get sick a each otha ta an extent while they're livin' 'ere. Teen romances don' usually work if the teens are up each otha's ass constantly."

"You're not worried about them sneakin' off, tryin' things they shouldn't?" Abraham asked.

"Like what? Moonshine? Already done that with Merle and D. Sex? I mean, when did you first have sex? Doubt ya waited 'til ya were an adult."

"You did, though," Sasha commented.

"Yeah, but I'm a special case," Ani plainly stated. "I was a little kid surrounded by adults. The only people who wanted ta date me were pedophiles. I mean, I started college at fourteen. Closest people ta my age were the early graduates at seventeen. And teens that age definitely don' like it when a kid younga than 'em is smarta than 'em. So, I didn' really do datin'," she said as she crouched down and let Lou crawl on the grass, sitting down herself.

"You find anythin' out about the bridge?" Abraham asked her.

"Rick's still talkin' to Mags and gettin' 'er on board with everythin'," she informed him as Daryl took a drag from Merle's smoke himself. "She's not too keen givin' up anythin' from the Hilltop without gettin' somethin' in return. Can' say I blame 'er for wantin' that, though. Afta what jus' happened with Ken, I doubt she'd have the Hilltop's trust. And she needs their trust now more'n eva."

"True. Well, whatever happens, it'll be better than sittin' around suckin' our dicks like this."

"I don' think it's possible ta suck ya own dick. There was a cartoon once that talked 'bout it."

"What kind of cartoon talks about suckin' dick?!" Merle asked incredulously.

"Well, there's a few kinds, but I think the one I'm rememb'rin' was called Metaloclypse," Ani said. "It was on really late at night, on Adult Swim from Cartoon Network. Betta than hentai."

"What the fuck is hentai?"

"Cartoon porn."

"What the fuck?!" came a chorus from the Dixon brothers and Abraham.

"What?" Ani asked, her voice hitching up an octave as she shrugged her shoulders. "Like I said, I didn' date! I was still a horny fuckin' teen, though."

"So you watched cartoon porn?" Sasha asked.

"We all have fuckin' kinks, alright?!" she shouted, her cheeks ruby red in embarrassment; thankfully, she'd already had this talk with Daryl, so he wasn't hazing her, too.

"I thought your kink was callin' Daryl 'daddy,'" Merle teased.

"Better than fuckin' anythin' with a hole in it," Daryl shot at him as he settled down next to Ani while watching Lou crawling around.

"Oh, yeah, baby," he said in humor. "I've had a few one-nighters with more'n questionable women. Hell, Chrystal's a good example."

Ani froze upon hearing her sister's name after so long, though it only lasted for a second before Abraham was asking about her. She gave him a basic rundown of who she was and how she'd died, only for him to comment how it was a good thing she was gone. It brought up a round of memories from before, with everyone sharing stories of their families and friends, though they were rough in the beginning. Ani was surprised to find that it wasn't as hard for her to talk about her family anymore, let alone felt the same dread. It almost felt as if she was talking about any other day in her life and she fell silent as the others started telling their tales. She reflected on how she was feeling and how she had healed so much since the world as they'd known it had ended. Before, she had felt inadequate in every way; she thought of herself as a freak who was too loud for an even louder world. Now, though, it felt as if she had found her place and forged her way through life. She knew she finally had her family unit that she had dreamed of, with more members on the way, and that she had finally been accepted by people. She had done so many things she never imagined she would do, from getting married to booby trapping the Governor like she was in some kind of war film. Everything from before, the busy day running from the campus to the precinct and everywhere in between, the constant need to have the TV and radio on at the same time, the need for stability and reluctance to change, it all felt like a fading dream. Coming back into the conversation to hear Abraham talking about a time when he'd gotten cherry-red tomato sunburn on his butt, she laughed with the others before relaxing into Daryl's side with a sigh. Her origins might have come close to ruining her, but she had been slowly pieced back together and was thoroughly content with her life. She could only hope that such peaceful times would last and their need to fight for survival against others would remain a thing of the past.

Sorry this took so long. I couldn't get the conversation between Ani and Rick right and kept restarting the chapter over again trying to. It took a minute, but I got it to where I'm happy with it. Thank you for your patience.