Disclaimer- I do not own the Walking dead.

Alwaysand- you'll just have to wait and see won't you.

Shadowoftheblackdeat- Thank you, yeah that's what I was sorting of going towards, they've had it easy at Woodbury and they don't really know what it's like to survive.

OldLonBird- It was always everyone else who had to pay for his manipulative moves, he always just seemed to get away with it while everyone else had to suffer. He's extremely pissed that he's found an "evil witch" that doesn't fall for his ways and has managed to stop others from falling for them to, who knows what he'll do.

From this chapter onwards any timelines to do with the show and when the prison lot meet some of the others characters will all change. If I don't change it, we won't get to meet some of our beloved characters.

Enjoy.

Danny's POV

It's been a whole day since Martinez came and gave us the bad news and it's all I can think about. We were supposed to hide out in the prison for a while until Andrea came and told us things were okay but that's backfired.

Merle is lounging in the back seat of the truck, his feet up against the other door. Maggie is in the passenger seat holding a map and giving me directions. We need Nappy's as I gave more than half of what we had to the Sheriff, to get them requires us to go a really long way out because we don't want to run into anyone from Woodbury.

Maggie lays the map down in her lap, "You haven't really spoken much since Martinez left, are you alright?"

I look at Merle in the rearview mirror but his eyes are still closed, he doesn't seem to have heard.

"Yeah I… He's just given me a lot to think about I guess."

"Like what?" She asks.

"How to keep you all safe, I feel like the prison isn't working out for us very well and I have Riley to think about. I just don't like that place for him. And our group is just getting bigger and bigger and I want us to all work well together but Heather and Sarah have me thinking they don't know how to survive, they have lived in comfort at Woodbury and I'm worried they will accidentally get someone hurt; And I can't stop thinking about Judith and Carl out there and about the Sheriff, always wondering what he's going to do next". I cast another glance into the rearview mirror but Merle still hasn't moved or opened his eyes. He must be asleep.

"You haven't got to take on the responsibility of us all, we can all look out for each other. Do it together. I'll help you, I won't let anyone try and walk over you and I'll help make sure everyone pulls their own weight".

I let out a breathy chuckle, "Thanks".

"Have you come up with anything just yet?"

I don't answer straight away, I take a long few seconds to think. "Not yet but whatever it is I'm worried it will split people. I don't want us to split up".

"Whatever you decide, Glenn and I have your back. Dad and Beth too. Next left". I follow her direction and that's when I see the shopping centre coming up on the right. It's an outdoor mall which is a lot better than an indoor mall, that would be way too dark. The only way I'd be caught going into one is if we had a huge team and very powerful lights.

I bypass the carpark and head straight towards the bollards that tell cars that this is a pedestrian zone. "Do you think we'll fit through there?"

Maggie leans forwards like she's trying to work out the size of our vehicle against the barriers.

The back of my seat is jolted as Merle uses it to pull himself forward, his head appears between our seats. "Go up the curb a little and you'll fit. Just don't scratch the paint work".

I cast him a quick glance in the rearview mirror, I thought he was asleep. For a brief second our eyes meet and I swear the look he gives me is one full of knowing. I ignore the look and instead roll my eyes at his words, "I'll try not to scratch your precious car, because we all know that's the most important thing."

I finally stop the car and turn the engine off, leaving the three of us in eerie silence, scanning everywhere we can see for any sort of trouble. When we don't see anything we slowly open our doors and get out.

We congregate at the very front of the car, Maggie holds my bat and bag out for me which is when I notice the ring on her finger, the same ring Glenn showed me.

I take the bag from her, "Congratulations".

She looks at me a little confused before she follows my gaze down to her hand. "Oh, Thank you." She chuckles, "Of course you knew".

I sling my bag onto my back, "Of course. I'm happy for both of you".

"He took me by surprise, I didn't think that he even thought about things like this", she holds her fist up as she admires the ring on her finger.

"I dunno, to me he seems like the type of guy to think about it", I smile at her. "I mean he's absolutely obsessed with you so it's the only logical next step."

A light pink blush works its way onto her cheeks, "He is not".

I just raise an eyebrow at her. He definitely is. "Okay, Merle, you're on watch. Maggie and I will go into the stores".

"Alrigh' Squirt. Don't dilly dally though".

"We won't".

Maggie takes another full bag over to Merle and drops it at his feet as I stand facing a window. The Window is covered in flyers advertising houses for sale but only one has my attention. It's huge, a mansion. It has a wall surrounding the perimeter but not just that, it's one of four houses that are all inside a bigger wall. A tiny community for the extremely rich. If that place is still standing and free then it would be an amazing place to live. The windows at the top would be perfect advantage points.

The house advertises that it has its own generator, generated by the solar panels dotted around the property. The previous owner seemed to like growing their own food as one of the pictures shows all sorts of vegetables growing. There's even its own well water supply.

The only downside is how far away it is from here, it's in Washington DC; But then again with it being so far from here it will mean we won't have to worry about Woodbury anymore.

Our family could live in ease, actually managing to sleep comfortably on soft beds instead of prison mattresses. We'd get proper daylight instead of the constant darkness we get now. I'm dreading the winter inside the prison, that place will get cold, it'll be hard to warm those big empty spaces we have. Riley would be a lot more comfortable living there than where we are now.

"What you looking at?" Maggie's voice breaks me out of my mind. I avert my eyes and turn round to face her.

"Nothing, sorry I was lost in my own thoughts. Just thinking about being away from Riley."

She looks at me with sympathy, "must be hard being away from him. I've heard it was hard for mothers to leave their babies back in the old world, this must be ten times worse".

"I trust my life with Carol, Glenn and even you but Riley… Without this meaning to sound horrible. I just can't seem to trust him with anyone except Daryl. It's why we don't go out together any more. Daryl doesn't want me out here without him but we'd both go crazy if we stayed locked up in there everyday so we take it in turns."

Maggie nods, "I get it. I'm not offended. I know if I had a child I'd probably be the exact same. I like having a place we can live but I can't stay locked in there everyday, not after spending the Winter out on the road, makes me feel like I'll forget how to survive".

She gets it. I feel a little bad, none of that was a lie but I wasn't actually thinking about it when she came up to me, I'm just not ready to talk about what's going through my mind just yet. I need to talk to Daryl first. I need to know that what I'm thinking isn't just some pipe dream but actually something we can do.

"You guys 'ave gotta stop with the chattin'', Merle's sudden loud voice makes the both of us jump a little, "ya live together twenty four hours a day. What the fuck is there to talk about?"

Maggie rolls her eyes at me as I bang on the doorway to the shop.

Maggie drives back, there's too much on my mind for me to be able to concentrate fully on the road.

I want to keep everyone, I don't want any of us to split up but staying at that prison isn't an option for me or my family. I won't force anyone to do anything but I will do my hardest to convince them.

I'm sitting in the back seat while Merle is up front and every now and then he turns his head to the side a little and I know he's looking at me in his peripheral vision. He knows I'm in my own head and he hates it.

When the prison gates come into view I grab the strap of my bag, and as soon as we pull through them Maggie stops the car and I'm jumping out. This time Daryl has Riley with him. I drop my bags at his feet and immediately take him from Daryl's arms. I hold him close as Daryl does his usual home greeting of looking me up and down before pulling me in for a gentle hug.

"I'm good", I say before he can ask.

He lets me step back. "Ya get everythin' ya needed?"

"It was a decent haul".

He raises an eyebrow like he's expecting me to say something else, and I want to, I just don't know how. We continue to stare at each other until he lets out a little sigh and grabs my hand. "Come with me".

As Daryl leads me away Merle shouts from behind us. "What the fuck? We just got home too, brother". Daryl ignores him as Merle continues to mumble as we walk away from him.

When we're far enough away to be able to speak freely Daryl stops walking. "Tell me. What's happened?"

"Nothing happened, I promise everything is good, it's just…." Should I just be straight to the point. Be as blunt as I can possibly get. "We can't stay here". His face doesn't change and he doesn't say anything, he just waits. "It's a long shot but I saw an advertisement for this house for sale and if it's still there and empty it would be amazing. It has so much of what we need. It has two layers of wall, solid brick just like that house back at the start of Winter."

I grip Riley a little tighter with one hand as I reach into the back pocket of my shorts with the other. I yanked the listing off the window while Maggie was checking the back room. I hand him the folded and crumbled paper and wait with baited breath as he unfolds it. I watch his eyes scan the page as he takes in every last bit of information there, he folds it back up before looking back at me; And then he nods.

He gives the paper a little wiggle in the air, "This what you want?"

"Yes".

"Then we do it", he shoves the paper into his back pocket.

"But do you think it's a good idea, a good place? We don't do this just so you can appease me".

"I want to make you happy but your safety comes before your happiness. I want to find somewhere for you and Riley and this could be it. The only way to know is to go".

I let out a little chuckle. He amazes me sometimes and constantly reminds me why I love him. "I thought you'd need a little convincing".

He rubs his fingers gently against Riley's hair. "You're in charge, remember. You have an idea then I listen".

"When do we tell the others?"

"Now, ain't no point in waitin'".

Daryl immediately called a group meeting, so here we are, all standing around. Twenty one pairs of eyes are all on me, waiting to hear what I have to say. I take in a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"I promised you all that I would keep you safe. Downed walls, breaches and weak fences are not going to help me do that. Andrea says we have peace but they aren't willing to accept us being here and if we happen to run into any of them out there we have no idea what they'll do. Outside of those walls Andrea doesn't have control." I hold my hand out towards Daryl, he grabs the paper and hands it to me. I pass it onto Merle who opens it a tad roughly and ends up ripping it slightly. He lets out a low whistle before passing it on to Glenn. The paper makes its way around everyone causing everyone to look seriously confused. "I think we should leave here and try and head for this place".

"What if it isn't there anymore", Sasha asks.

"Then we find another one just like it. There are plenty of places out there with actual walls a lot more stable than the wire ones we have now".

"Are you asking us or telling us", Heather remarks.

Daryl lets out a puff of air but doesn't say anything, he lets me answer. "I'm going and I want every single one of you to come with us but if you aren't up for the trip then I'm not going to make you come".

"We're coming", Sophia says for both her and her mum. I offer her a small smile and mouth a thank you at her.

"We'll follow you anywhere". Glenn says as he grabs Maggie's hand. Axel, Oscar, Herschel and Beth are the next to agree to the move, followed by Tyreese, Sasha and Karen. Sam and Trevor say they're coming to but they're the last ones to speak.

I look at Michonne, Sarah, Fred and George in turn. "Think about. Take the night".