Amy was starting to understand why villains had a hierarchy. Glenn had been bending over backwards since the farm to prove himself trustworthy. He had won over Maggie, if Jean's worrying notice about the lack of condoms was any indication. At least they were being safe and away from the children, that was all she cared about. Carol had been growing bold since she had made her routine of laundry, reading, and sitting with her daughter. The blonde didn't go out of her way to interact with the older woman but she got regular updates from everyone since Carol had been begging for self defense and weapon lessons. Okay, it was mostly Daryl since he felt guilty for snapping at the woman. He was such a softy sometimes but he had been shifty and on edge the last couple of days.

However, keeping prisoners was a new kind of pain Amy was rethinking her view on shooting first and getting answers later. Yes, they were able bodies that could benefit the group but they were some of the whiniest little bitches she had ever met. After two days of being locked up in the new cells/nursery wing, they figured that she wouldn't just kill them so they started asking for things. More clothes and toiletries, more outdoors time. If Michelle dared ask if she would be able to continue her role as a counselor, Amy would be going on a run to find some old chains so she could understand her new position in life.

"You were right." Edwin nodded along, his gaze focused on the subdued group who were working under Sam's meticulous orders in the barren greenhouse. They still needed to make a run through the local farms but the botanist wanted the space cleaned and sanitized. "It would be a waste just to kill them for doing their jobs and not answering questions."

"How many people worked under skeevy organizations before the fall?" She asked pointedly, looking him up and down with a wry smirk. Amy waved at Billy who was at the opposite side of the greenhouse learning from Tater about plant cycles with the rest of the kids. "It's the end of the world, hopefully they will adapt but I don't think they will have much freedom any time soon."

"Are you sending them to the farm with the others?" Edwin asked, ignoring her jab by turning to Wade who would be leading the farm runs.

"I won't take them all, just one of the den mothers." Wade shuddered visibly, blanching at the thought of having so many inexperienced people out on a run. "The girl was itching to learn."

"I'm sure it will be fine, there are only around a dozen private farms in the county." Miranda had a forced smile on her face that turned a touch genuine when she smoothed down Braden's wild curls. The only time the woman looked somewhat content was when she was with the children, Amy's youngest had been turned into a permanent accessory.

"So you think we'll find everything?" Amy glanced down at the list that Wade and Sam made, she was excited at the thought of making their own food. Perhaps it was paranoid of her that she would like to know where it came from.

After searching through so many houses, she came to the conclusion that people were absolute freaks. Amy would not put it past some disgruntled survivor to tamper with supplies just for the chance to fuck with others. After all, she had made plans to bury supplies she couldn't carry and wasn't that such a survivor mindset? If she couldn't have it, neither could anyone else. It would be simple enough to contaminate a pallet of water without anyone even noticing. She needed a fucking vacation.

"Sam's going to start small since he'll be using most of the greenhouse for lessons on the first harvest." Wade explained, not taking his eyes off Brian who was wiping sweat from his forehead. "I'm having second thoughts about bringing any of them with us. What if she tries to run?"

"You're the one that volunteered to watch her." Amy looked up in confusion, she wanted to continue locking them in the basement. She had enough on her mind without worrying about idiots running around getting themselves turned or worse.

"We should keep them in isolation longer before allowing them outside of the school." Edwin nodded, not taking his eyes away from his notes. The man had been obsessed with remembering everything from his time at the CDC. Ever since the Rossi kid turned, the doctor had a new determination. Edwin wanted to continue his testing now that he had power and a stable place to do it.

"I just feel bad for them." Wade muttered, smacking his Clemson hat against his knee. "Keepin' 'em locked up like work mules. It ain't right."

"What other option do we have for them?" Amy asked, shrugging her shoulders to try and appear indifferent. "We all agreed killing them for not asking questions before the apocalypse was too much and we can't let them leave. They have comfortable rooms in what could be the safest part of the school and food. They've just got more supervision than the rest of us."

"I still think you should chain them together." Miranda commented, her soft gaze focused on the baby in her arms.

"Miranda, no chain gangs." Amy chuckled despite having the same thought then turned her arms out. "Now, give me my son, I need snuggle time before the kids get bored of playing in the dirt."

"Mom!" Too late.

Carl didn't miss his parents.

Chuck had taken him and Duane on a real run but when they ran into walkers, the older man dragged them into the woods to escape. Neither of the boys had seen the dead but had experienced enough of the world to know that when an adult told them to run, they did. For the first couple of weeks, they both begged to go back to their parents. The old man kept insisting that he was trying but Carl didn't believe him.

Not until they finally did get back to the cul de sac.

His comics were still sitting in his bag, abandoned just like him. Morgan must have taken all of his son's things because they were gone, just like his mom and dad. His new friend cried a lot when Chuck admitted that he had no idea where they would have gone. It was hard to tell how long they had been gone but why had they left? Why didn't they wait? Was he just another lost kid, like Sofia at the farm?

He remembered Shane complaining about how much resources they were wasting by looking for her. At the time, he wanted to be the one to find her. Carl thought that if only they let him, he would have found her in no time since she was his friend. That's how all the movies and stories go. It felt like so long ago that he had to shoot Shane, he felt like an old man in a child's body. Too bad for him no one else could see it.

"Daddy says they completed the north wall." Penny was telling them with a happy smile that he couldn't return.

They had been with a new group for a couple of weeks and the only other child besides Duane was the leader's kid, Penny. She wasn't like Sofia or any of Amy's kids, the girl was constantly cheerful and talkative. Duane gravitated towards her more than him, making something sour in his stomach.

"Walls won't help when they come in a herd." Carl muttered lowly, not taking his eyes away from the comic book in his lap.

"Don't worry, Carl." Panny smiled brightly, ignoring his reddening face when she hugged him tightly. "Daddy has a plan for Woodbury where we can be safe and just like it was before! Mr. Mamet is super smart and he says that they'll have a perimeter by the end of the year!"

"You don't-" He sputtered, pushing her away when he noticed the petulant glare on Duane's face. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"No, but Daddy does." She said simply, moving back to her place beside the pleased Duane. Carl ignored the other boy's superior look, as if she chose him. As if he would want her hanging all over him.

"Penny!" Mr. Blake walked into the room with a few silent men following him closely like bodyguards. Chuck was always busy in the infirmary and chapel so Carl was never introduced to the other adults once they stuck them in with Penny. "How's my little girl?"

"Daddy!" If he thought her smile was too wide before, it was nothing in the face of seeing her dad. For a moment, his stomach cramped. Carl had to look away when the man lifted his daughter up in a bear hug, just like his dad used to do.

He did not miss his parents.

"How would you kids like to meet the new kids?" Mr. Blake asked while the other adults chuckled like he told a joke. All three of them rushed forward but Duane took Penny's hand in his own to keep her beside him.

The adults had marked off three blocks and called it Woodbury. The streets were clean and broken windows were replaced. Carl wasn't allowed near the adults when they were planning but they didn't pay enough attention to him to notice if he eavesdropped. They were all excited to have some semblance of normalcy again. It was mostly men in the group and they were busy all day with five women working in doors. Ms. Sam was responsible for looking out for them but she was also doing most of the cooking and other chores. So, Carl spent a lot of time in an old daycare with Penny and Duane.

It was fine at first, until they realized that they were locked in the room only to be let out when Penny's dad, Chuck or Ms. Sam came to get them. They even had to use a potty training toilet while the adults were busy. It was nothing like at the quarry or the farm where his mom would make him do homework or he could explore the woods. It wasn't fair, he wished that Chuck had never stopped when they saw someone's car had broken down. The man, Martinez, brought them back to Woodbury where they only had main street blocked off.

"Kids, meet the kids." Mr. Blake led them to an empty lot where they kept the chickens. Carl was confused when all the adults laughed at the sight of three goats.

"There was a frost last night." Mr. Mamet was a weird man who always had lots of books with him. He never had a weapon on him like the other adults and avoided Carl and the other kids like they were infectious. "It had-"

"Milton." Mr. Blake cut him off, throwing a harsh glare towards Carl who looked like a deer in headlights at being caught trying to eavesdrop while Penny and Duane pet the goats. "Not in front of the children."

Carl took a couple steps away, looking around to see that he wasn't being watched. Even the armed men that followed Mr. Blake around were distracted by Penny and Duane making up stories and voices for the goats. Since it was just after lunch, all the adults were busy with their jobs. Most of the men were assembling the giant gates that were placed at the end of the streets so they didn't have time to wonder what he was doing.

Mr. Blake explained that most of the houses were locked up tight since he didn't want to have any accidents with walkers. It didn't make sense to Carl but it was the first time he had a chance to explore by himself. The houses all looked perfectly normal, even if their insides were a mess. There was a lady cleaning blood stains on the wall when he glanced in the window. It must have smelled awful. He ducked down when she turned towards him suddenly. With confidence he walked down the sidewalk like he belonged there. Shane always said fake it till you make it.

"Mom." Carl whispered when he noticed a skinny woman with long hair walking further ahead of him. She was pushing a cart stacked with tires and he didn't even realize he was running until his arms were around her waist.

"There are kids here?" The woman, who definitely wasn't his mother, muttered in shock. He looked up and felt his eyes water when he saw she had her arms raised above her head, her face scrunched up in confusion. "Hey, where are your parents? It's still dangerous out here."

It wasn't his mother.

Definitely not Lori Grimes.

Not that he missed his parents.

Carl ran, tears streaming down his cheeks. The woman called out to him, shouting that it was dangerous but she wasn't his mom. She had no right to tell him what to do and all he wanted was to be away. Briefly he thought of his mom's hugs, of how he always squirmed away and how much he wished he had hugged her before leaving with Chuck that morning. His parents were still asleep and not arguing for once so he wanted to surprise them with something good. Carl was sure that he would find food or medicine or weapons or something that would stop the constant fights between them.

Before he knew it, Carl found himself in one of the empty parking lots in the back of Woodbury. They drove past when they first came but Martinez had mentioned to Chuck to not let him or Duane wander too close. The fences were still being placed but Carl was sure it was fine. Mr. Blake wouldn't have brought Penny outside if it wasn't safe. The man was worse than his mom back at the farm. Every time the trio tried to sneak out or do anything fun, he would show up and lecture them about safety.

Carl scuffed his shoe against the asphalt and a groan caught his attention. Three trailers were parked in a group with a covered horse trailer. They were all swaying ominous and the closer he got, the louder the noises became. He knew he had heard the sounds the dead made but that didn't stop his curiosity. Why would they have walkers trapped in the town? All the adults talked about how the only way to deal with them was to put them down. Ms. Amy had said it was kinder rather than let people go on like that after death. He didn't understand and Jamie called him an idiot for not having the emotional capacity for mercy.

"What does she know?" Carl grumbled to himself, edging around the white trailers towards the one covered in a tarp. "She's probably dead anyway."

Jamie got him in trouble, it was her fault for following him. The adults were all mad at him because of her, his mother was disappointed and didn't believe him when he said that they were all lying. They were probably still driving in circles since they made them leave. His dad-

"You're not supposed to be back here." Martinez clapped a heavy hand on his shoulder just as the boy was reaching for the tarp.

"Don't touch me." Carl scowled when he heard his own voice crack, glaring harder when the man just smiled in amusement.

"Alright, killer." Martinez raised his empty hand in mock surrender, the other still clutching a rifle loosely. "Still, let's go find Chuck. You shouldn't be back here."

"Why do you have walkers locked up?" Carl demanded, placing his hands on his hips like he had seen his dad do when he got a lecture. "Don't you know that those things will kill you?"

"Gov wants entertainment." Martinez offered freely, waving his hand to shoo him along as if he were a cat. "C'mon, there are no fences on this side and I need to be back at my post."

"What do you mean entertainment?"

"Exactly what I said." The man said firmly, giving him a look Carl was all too familiar with. "Let's go, Chico." (boy)

"Do you have kids?" Carl asked, completely forgetting about the dead for a moment and following after the man when he walked away. "Where are they? How come th-"

"My kids didn't make it." Martinez cut him off but didn't stop walking so Carl couldn't see his face.

"Oh, I'm sorry." And he meant it, he didn't think about kids when he saw walkers. Even Sofia lived and everyone thought she was dead. Kids were safe or so he thought.

"Thanks." The man said shortly, reaching out to pat his shoulder and push him to walk faster. "Don't need another dead kid so how about we get you back where you're supposed to be."

"How did they die?" He asked curiously, glancing around at the empty streets.

"My wife and children were at the in-laws when all this went down." Martinez's voice was strange, slightly raspy and the boy turned to him curiously. "I went AWOL but I didn't get there in time. My girl was about your age."

"Did you know Mr. Blake before?"

"No, we found each other at the refugee center."

"What was that like?" Carl continued on, a skip in his step since the man was answering his questions. Ever since the dead started walking, adults didn't like answering his questions anymore. "We never made it to Atlanta before the bombs."

"Bombs?" The man paused in his steps, turning to face him.

"Yeah! Glenn said the streets melted because the fire burned so hot!" He remembered eagerly listening in on the asian man telling Shane and the others what he found in Atlanta. Glenn looked exhausted and was crying but Carl didn't get it since it sounded like something out of a movie. So cool.

"I didn't go to Atlanta, we went to the camp FEMA set up at the Millennium High School. Where did your family end up?"

"Well, Shane got me and my mom to this big lake outside the city. It was just like camping but…then the walkers came and we went to the f-no, we went to the…CDC 'cause dad thought they would have a cure for Jim."

"The CDC? No shit?" Martinez looked impressed and Carl felt pride fill him, his grin widening.

"Yeah, but all the other doctors left! Jenner stayed but he didn't find the cure." He babbled, eager to impress his new friend. "He even showed us a brain after it turned! It was so cool…then he blew it up but they had hot showers and spaghetti!"

"No way, you know who would want to know more about your visit to the CDC?" Martinez smiled back at him, his brown eyes were bright and for a moment Carl was back at the lake with Shane. The illusion was shattered when the man continued walking, throwing an arm around his shoulder. "Milton, big brain guy, he's been trying to figure out a cure to all this while keeping the lights on."

"But the lights aren't on."

"Well, in the gen pop boarding house, maybe. Storage and the gov's building are running on a gas generator until Milton cooks something else up." The man said dismissively. "What about after the CDC, where did you go?"

Carl liked that someone was actually listening to his stories, Marttinez didn't lecture him when he talked about hunting walkers or the days he spent exploring. He was sympathetic when he complained about Jamie getting him in trouble and laughed when he described the Glenn lassoing a walker in a well. Their good mood was ruined when they got to the area where they kept the animals.

"Get inside, Chico!" Martinez harshly pushed him along with the crowd who were fleeing towards the apartment building most of them lived in. The doors had been reinforced and windows boarded up but Carl was stubborn.

"I can help!" He might not have had a weapon but he was brave enough to face the danger. Fortunately, the man was already running and had not heard him over the screams.

The chicken wire was down and the animals were running with the people but they quickly found a small group of walkers eating one of the new goats messily. Carl cringed but Martinez didn't flinch when he fired four shots, killing them all. Before they could continue, the boy was noticed and Carl didn't think he had ever seen anyone so angry before, not even Mr. Merle.

"What the hell are you doing?" The man shouted, shuffling a little before grabbing him by the collar of his shirt to pull him closer. "I told you to get to safety!"

"I can-" A scream killed his voice in his throat, he would recognize Duane's scream anywhere. Somehow, he got out of the man's grip to run for his friend.

"Kill it!" Penny was shouting, her face red and puffy from crying. Her father was on the ground, not moving but Duane stood over his body, using a rifle as a club to keep the corpse away from them.

"What the fuck?" Martinez exclaimed after he shot the walker, numbly watching it fall forward onto Duane who screamed again. "How did this happen?"

"What the fuck are you doing here?" One of the soldiers demanded, covered in brown sticky blood, making Carl curl into the other man for safety. "Martinez, why the fuck aren't you at your post?"

"We didn't mean to!" Penny cried out from her place beside her father where she pressed her hands against the large gash on his forehead.

"Duane!" Carl didn't care about them, he rushed to his friend who was still struggling under a twice dead walker. He whimpered when he rolled it off his friend who had gone silent. "Are you okay?"

"It burns." His friend whispered, clutching at his ankle.