Disclaimer- I do not own the Walking Dead

Alwaysand- Couldn't agree with you more.

Shadowoftheblackdeat- I know what you're saying but the reason behind some of the people not doing anything, I.E Abraham is in this chapter. He did try too but was stopped by those that have a lot of faith in Danny. I will also do my up most best to get some of the other OC's and background characters more "screen" time for a lack of a better word. But I have twenty plus characters and it's hard to give them all the time they deserve. I've made up for some of them in this chapter.

Enjoy

Danny's POV

My car's engine suddenly turns on and then the car is backing up back down the road, but before I can move Glenn comes to a sliding stop beside me with my rifle in hand.

"It's Tyreese", he shoves my rifle towards me. "Take it".

Tyreese reverses the car all the way back and then comes to a stop behind Abrahams truck, he doesn't get out.

Glenn suddenly ducks when a bullet imbeds itself into the tree behind him. I grab his arm and yank him towards me, I shove him between me and the tree I'm standing behind.

"Squirt", Merle shouts towards me from his place further along the tree line. "Ya have the gun now fuckin' shoot 'em".

I hold up the rifle but Daryl and Len are moving all over the place as they fight hand to hand. Daryl has managed to knock the machete out of Len's hand so now they're just throwing punches at each other. I can't take the shot, I can't risk hitting Daryl.

Suddenly Daryl wraps his arms around Len and yanks his head back, Daryl then looks straight at me. I don't have time to waste, Len could break free at any moment. I take the shot and hit the man straight in the neck. Daryl shoves him away from him and turns but nobody comes after him. The last two remaining members of the other group suddenly turn and hightail it back into the tree line.

Merle goes to run after them but I shout at him to stop. "Don't, Leave them."

He turns to me, "What?"

"Leave them, we have to go".

I don't think he likes it but he nods and then catches the rifle as I chuck it at him. I rush over to Daryl, my hands running over him without actually touching him. He's been beaten black and blue, his face is covered in cuts.

He lays in his hands on my shoulders, "I'm okay, let's just get out of here".

I nod and look behind me at our entire family, those that had been hiding in the cars are now stood by their open doors. I walk towards them.

"Is everyone okay?" As I walk past them they nod at me, some even offer a small smile. "Nobodies hurt? Good, we need to get out of here. Who can ride a motorbike?"

"Danny". I ignore Daryl and focus on Trevor as he raises a hand.

"I can".

"Good, you take Daryl's bike and follow behind our car".

"Sure".

"Thank you. I don't care what cars anyone gets into but we need to load up now and get out of here". People start moving to the closet vehicle but Abraham puts the butt of his gun on his hip and doesn't move.

"I can move that tree and are we just gonna brush over everything that just happened?"

I stop my advance towards my car and glare at him. "Get in the car, we are getting the fuck out of here. Now!" I've already put everyone in danger, I have to get everyone out of here in case something else happens.

He raises both eyebrows but finally nods and goes back over to his vehicle where Rosita is standing protecting Eugene who is still inside the cab.

I turn until I find Merle. "You take him", I tilt my head towards the man we rescued, "get in the back of Abraham's truck, try and help him out". I gesture at my face as I think it'd be a tad too rude to point at him and his injuries.

Tara grabs something out of the boot of a car. "I'll go with them". I nod at her and see that she's grabbed a first aid kit.

"Thanks". I reach back and grab Daryl's arm, "Let's go". I lead him all the way down the road to where Tyreese has parked our car, when we get there he's now standing by the driver's door. I rush towards him and wrap my arms right around him, he lets out a breathy chuckle at the impact but does wrap one arm behind my back. "There are no words to express how thankful I am. I owe you so much".

"Don't be silly, You protect us, I protect the little ones". I step back and he looks over my head at someone. "I better get in a car before Sasha drives off without me".

I climb into the driver's seat as Daryl slowly gets into the passenger seat. I turn in my seat to look back at Sophia and Carol in the back seats, one holding Riley and the other holding Judith.

"Are you guys okay?"

"Peachy" Sophia says with a smile.

"We're good and they're okay". Carol assures me. She looks out the window as Trevor comes towards us on the bike. "Let's get out of here".

I turn the car on, I think Daryl tried to have the engine noise cover up the sigh he does but no such luck I heard it. As I pull off I cast him a quick glance. "What?"

"Nothin', Just can't believe someone else is ridin' my bike".

I drive until I can't drive anymore. Judith is crying in the back seat and no matter what Sophia does she won't stop, she's hungry. I pull up to the warehouse that's in a locked car park. Daryl jumps out to open the gate to allow us all to filter in. When the last car pulls in he closes the gate. I climb out of the car and as soon as I've shut my door Axel comes running over.

"You are fuckin' amazing, that is why you are our leader". He basically gushes at me. Oscar comes up behind him and slaps a hand against his shoulder.

"Whoa man, she's taken. Got a pup. Ya ain't got no chance there" He teases.

Axel's cheeks actually start getting red as he blushes. "I wasn't. No…"

Oscar tightens his grip on Axel's shoulder and steers him away. "Let's go man".

"You are one," Abrahams loud voice comes from the other side of the truck, he comes mooching around wearing the biggest grin. "Badass motherfucker". He puts his hand against the bonnet of the car, ignoring the fact that it's probably hot. "I made an assumption when we met up, I saw you standing behind Daryl and Merle and assumed you were someone who needed help but you proved me wrong without even knowing you had to." I don't really know how to react to that, I didn't know he had made an assumption over me. "I've never been happier to be proved wrong. You care about every single person in this group, even someone you've never met. I would have let that man defend himself. I also knew you had some fighters in the group but nothing like anything you guys showed" He chuckles to himself. "Ya know, I had run up to join you guys but Merle forced me to stop, said that you knew how to handle it. Gotta say I didn't believe him but…" He doesn't finish that sentence instead he ends it with a one shouldered shrug.

"I will do anything and everything to protect my people and I will always help those that need it", I tell him.

"She's got a pretty good sense of good and bad", Merle says from behind me. "Ain't failed us or been wrong yet".

Carol opens up her door so I reach for her and take Riley from her. Abraham lets out a sharp breath. "You have a baby?"

Sophia appears from around the back of the truck. "We have two actually".

"Oh my god", That little whisper comes from Rosita as she lays her eyes on the two babies. "Are they yours?"

Daryl takes Riley from me so I can take Judith and feed her. "They are, This is Judith and that's Riley". I know she's not mine but until the day they come back and get her I will treat her as my own. She moves closer to Daryl and Riley, Daryl's arms definitely tighten around Riley but he doesn't pull him away as she hesitantly reaches her fingers out and brushes them against his little puffy cheek.

"I never thought I'd see a baby again, let alone two". She says but Judith starts crying again in my arms and I really can't deny her food any longer.

"I'm gonna feed her, if you all don't mind". I then climb into the back of the car. I don't shut the door behind me which makes Daryl lead the others away by using their interest for Riley.

When Judith is finished I climb back out to find Beth standing just off to the side. She looks at me with a very sombre look."I can take her if you'd like?" I don't immediately answer which makes her carry on. "I know I haven't been very welcoming to you guys but I just want you to know how sorry I am about that". I look behind her to see Herschel standing a car width away looking at the two of us. "I never got to know you and just took what Rick and Carl said on blind faith".

"I understand, don't worry. They helped you stay alive and I will never fault them for that. If you want to help I'm happy for you to do that". I hold Judith out for her.

When she takes her she looks down at the girl in her arms and smiles softly. "From the minute she was born I looked after her and I miss her." The tension suddenly leaves her body as she looks back at me. "I can see what you do for us all. Back there with that group I could see what you would do to protect us. I also saw how everyone else trusted you to deal with it. Glenn stopped a lot of the group from running over to you. Instead he made sure everyone had a weapon at hand in case you needed back up".

I look at everyone as they stand dotted around talking to each other. I didn't have any clue what was going on behind me. I trusted that no one would do anything to make it worse. Merle and Glenn made sure that was the case by what I've heard so far.

"I'm sorry that I can't help you like they do, I hid in the car with a few of the others".

I shake my head a little vigorously. "You don't need to be out there when trouble happens. There are enough people here that can handle that." I know what she's thinking without her even having to say the words. She heard what Joe said, she thinks she's weak. "You heard him, which means you heard me. Just because you can't fight doesn't mean you aren't needed. You looked after Judith when her dad couldn't, that makes you unbelievably important, okay?"

She nods her head "Okay. Dad said that that guy has got a pretty serious head wound, he's still in the back of the truck".

"Okay, thank you." I go to walk past her but stop, "You have her?" She nods, "Stay in sight of Maggie at all times". I then head over to the back of the truck. Abrahams up on the trailer leaning against the side while Daryl and Merle are stood on a bar that runs across the back.

As soon as Daryl realises I'm behind him he jerks his head towards someone. "Axel has him". I quickly scan the area to find Axel but Daryl lets out a little chuckle, "Don't worry Carol is with him". Huge relief, I love Axel. I think he's hilarious but I'm not sure I have a lot of faith in his ability to look after a new born baby.

I join them up on the bar and then Abraham holds out a hand to help me climb up. The new guy is sitting right at the back of the trailer, near the cab. He looks terrified but at least the cut on his head has been dealt with although they didn't help him clear up the dried blood on his face. I can completely see Merle not offering to do it but I'm surprised Tara didn't. Tara is crouched beside the man, her elbows on her knees and a knife dangling loosely between her fingers. She grins at me when I move closer.

"His name's Sean. He seems alright to me".

Sean sits upright. "Thank you, I owe you my life". Behind me Abraham mumbles the words Dam straight but I ignore him.

"I'm Danny, all I would want from you is a promise to never lie or steal from us. If you stay with us I will make sure you have everything you need to survive but we have to have trust here. We will help you get back to normal, after that it is up to you what you decide to do." He nods. I squat down. "Who were they?"

"They called themselves the Marauders. They had strict rules and if you didn't follow them you could and would be killed. The best punishment you could get was a good beating. They didn't like each other so if someone did something it never fazed them when they had to dish out the punishment. You had to claim things as your own before anyone else did otherwise you could have it taken away from you. The food I stole was mine, but because Len didn't hear me claim it he was able to take it as his own. They were sick, the things they have done".

The truck shakes as someone jumps up. "Like what?" Daryl asks.

"If they came across groups they would kill them, you're the first one's they've ever given an option to. The men would be dead within minutes, the woman fared a lot worse".

I take in a sharp intake of breath. "You were with them. How do I know you aren't like them?"

Panic washes over him. "I'm not. I wasn't with them for very long, I never intended to join them but I knew they would kill me if I didn't. I did what I had to do to survive. I never took part in the things they did, I think that's why Len and a couple of the others tried so hard to get me in trouble. They knew I wasn't cut out to be there".

I believe him, I do but I have to be careful. "Okay, the only way this works is if you have a chaperone. You can't be alone with anyone who isn't able to take care of themselves.". I look over my shoulder at Merle. "Will you do it?"

"I will".

I look back at Sean. "Get some rest and we'll get you some food". I stand up and head over towards the three guys at the end of the truck. Abraham holds out his arm stopping me from jumping down.

"You believe him?"

"I do, but he still has to prove himself." I tell him.

"I don't," He says.

"People will do what they have to do to survive. He thought he was better off joining them even if he didn't agree with anything they did. I'm not gonna fault him for wanting to live."

"Do you always just take in any Tom, Dick or Harry without fully assessing the situation?"

"We let you in, and with no proof that what you guys are saying is truthful. People deserve a chance. If I hadn't been given that chance right at the start then a lot of these people might not have been a part of this family and some people might not have lived to be here".

"Alright Chief, you're the boss, I was just checking." He holds up his palms and then smiles which I return to show there's no hard feelings.

Merle helps me climb down. "Merle, when we get where we're going". Wherever that is now. "Will you help some of these people like you helped me? Teach them some things".

"With pleasure as long as none of 'em hit me like you did. I won't be held responsible for hittin' them back".

I chuckle, "Maybe I'll get someone to help you. Make sure you don't punch anyone".

"Probably a good idea Squirt".