"Dale could get under your skin. He sure got under mine, because he wasn't afraid to say exactly what everyone thought. How he felt. That kind of honesty is rare... and brave. Whenever I'd make a decision  I'd look at Dale and he'd be looking back at me with that look he had. We've all seen it at one time or another.

He saw people for who they were. He knew things about us. The truth. Who we really are. In the end he was talking about losing our humanity. We're gonna prove him wrong. That is how we honor Dale." Rick concluded as he placed a stone on the grave the group had placed Dale into.

It had been a late night for the group. Sophia had been heart broken when Carol had come to Y/N's room in tears, explaining to the trio that Dale had been killed.

She sat on one of the chairs as her daughter hugged her. Sophia was distraught which was to be expected and although she hadn't known him well, Beth was also upset and hugged into Y/N in tears.

He gently hugged her back, continuing to hold her gently after Carol and Sophia had left and Beth had fallen asleep in his arms. They were still in the same position when Hershel called in to check on the pair.

"Is she ok?" he asked quietly. Y/N was sat leaning against the bed's headboard, his arm around Beth's back as she slept peacefully leaning back onto his shoulder.

Y/N nodded and whispered back:

"She fell asleep about twenty minutes ago. Didn't have the heart to wake her. Are you ok? I'm sorry about your friend."

Hershel smiled sadly.

"Thank you, Y/N. I'm fine, selfishly I'm just relieved my daughters are ok. Speaking of, let's wake this one and get her into bed."

—~—

"It'll be tight, 15 people in one house" Rick said as he stood next to the blue pick up, Glenn and R-Dog loading the last of their belongings into its tray.

Rick was stood with Lori, Hershel and Maggie. Following Dale's funeral the group had packed up their tents and gear, Hershel inviting them to stay in the house, permanently.

"Don't worry about that. With the swamp hardening, the creek drying up..." Hershel smiled.

"With 50 head of cattle on the property, we might as well be ringing a damn dinner bell" Maggie added.

"She's right. We should've moved you in a while ago" Hershel nodded. Rick smiled graciously and looked around.

"All right, let's move the vehicles near each of the doors facing out toward the road. We'll build a lookout in the windmill,
another in the barn loft. That should give us sightlines both sides of the property.
T-Dog, you take the perimeter around the house. Keep track of everyone coming and going" Rick said to the others who nodded at his orders.

"What about standing guard?" Andrea asked. She had taken to guard duty on top of the RV, helped the men to protect the property. It had caused a lot of tension with the other women though, particularly Lori, who felt she should be helping them with the 'women's chores' while leaving the men to worry about defence. Rick though smiled:

"I need you and Daryl on double duty."

"Gotcha" Andrea smiled, happy to be taken seriously.

"I'll stock the basement with food and water, enough that we can all survive there a few days if need be" Hershel added as they walked towards the farmhouse, following the blue pick up T-Dog drove.

"What about patrols?" Glenn asked.

"Let's get this area locked down first.
After that, Shane'll assign shifts while me and Daryl..."

Rick cut himself off, looking around. He caught sight of Beth who was helping Lori with a bag.

"... hey Beth, where's Y/N?"

Beth smiled at the former Sheriff's Deputy.

"He's inside, practicing walking without the crutches I think. He seems a lot better today."

Rick smiled and nodded, turning back to the others:

"Daryl and I will take Randall offsite and cut him loose."

"We're back to that now?" Shane asked derisively.

"His group's dead and with his leg the way it is, it's a small mercy, Shane. It was the right plan first time around. Poor execution."

"That's a slight understatement" Shane muttered.

"You don't agree, but this what's happening. Swallow it. Move on" Rick replied.

"You know that Dale's death and the prisoner, that's two separate things, right? You wanna take Daryl as your wingman, be my guest" Shane added snarkily.

"Thank you"

"You got it."

Shane walked off following the pair's mutually sarcastic end to their conversation, and as Rick and Hershel walked back to the farmhouse, Hershel spoke.

"I see why you're not taking Shane with you. Just know I've got no more patience where he's concerned. He and Y/N almost got into it yesterday, you should speak to Y/N about it."

"I will, but Shane he's... turning over a new leaf. Andrea!" Rick called to the blonde who stopped and waited.

"When I'm out with Daryl, help Hershel keep an eye on things around here."

"Me?" Andrea asked in surprise.

"Shane's got a way of letting things get out of hand, especially when he's all torqued up" Rick explained.

"I think we're all a bit torqued up at this point" Andrea replied in an attempt to calm everything. Hershel stated calmly:

"If you're staying here permanently, he's got to understand that it's what Rick and I say, not whatever he wants."

"You've become close" Rick continued.

"We talk."

"Then you know he's not a bad guy. He's just his own worst enemy."

"You want me to babysit Shane?" Andrea asked scornfully, understanding now what Rick was actually after. Rick smiled.

"I need to make sure every time I leave the farm all hell doesn't break loose."

"Then maybe you should stop leaving" Andrea replied before she herself left.

"Will you keep an eye on things?" Rick called to her retreating form.

"Of course" She called out without looking back.

—~—

Y/N was in his room, feeling relieved to be finally properly dressed. He had a shirt, a sleeveless hunter's vest and cargo pants on, the only issue he was having was his inability to bend over to place shoes and socks on, given his hip injury. He was trying to work out the specifics of how to successfully get them on when there was a knock at his door.

"Come in" Y/N called out, smiling when Beth entered.

"Wow. Just wanted to see how you were, you look really really good" Beth smiled as she took Y/N's form in.

Following Dale's funeral, Y/N had returned to the farmhouse and showered quickly, taking the chance to shave off the month's worth of stubble that had adorned his face. It had been midway between stubble and a beard, the result of being out in the wasteland for two months. Beth had liked the look on Y/N, but when she looked at his clean shaven face she felt herself swoon. He was even more handsome.

"Thanks" Y/N smiled obliviously. "They're a little tight, Jimmy RIP must have been a really skinny dude, but I appreciate the clothes, don't worry about that. Just trying to figure out how to get shoes and socks on" he said with a chuckle.

"Sit down on the bed. I'll help" Beth said happily.

"Thanks" Y/N said as he took a seat on the edge of the bed. Beth took a pair of socks out of a drawer, and the shoes that had been in the wardrobe, and lowered herself down to her knees in front of Y/N. She looked up at him momentarily, the pair making eye contact before she looked away, down at his feet as her mind went places that made her instantly light up.

"You have very large feet" she said as she tried to make conversation. Unfortunately for Beth her choice of words made her light up even more as the possible double entendres entered her mind. Y/N was fortunately still completely oblivious and simply replied:

"Yeah mine were bigger than all my brothers. I'm a size fifteen. Joel my oldest brother used to say I didn't need a surfboard when I went out, I had two attached to me."

He smiled at the memory of his family, Beth replying as she finished with his socks:

"Well Jimmy was a twelve, and I'm not sure of the size difference between here and Australia, but these aren't going to- oh wait, I've got an idea."

She was quickly off, up and out the door in an instant, Y/N chuckling as she left. A moment later Carl was at his door and knocked.

"G'day mate" Y/N smiled, it faded as he saw the look on the boy's face.

"Hey, Y/N, if I um... if I tell you something, will you promise not to tell my parents?"

Y/N was instantly alarmed. He held his hand out to one of the seats across from him.

"That... that sounds really worrying, mate. Is everything ok? You can talk to me little man."

Carl nodded and pulled out a handgun from behind his back. It had been tucked into his pants and hidden by his jacket.

"Carl where did you get that bud?"

"Have you met Daryl?" Carl asked. When Y/N nodded he explained:

"I took it from Daryl's motorcycle. If he found out I took it, he'd kill me."

"He wouldn't kill you, Carl. You think your Dad, or Mum, or Hershel, or hell even me would let that happen?"

Carl shook his head and Y/N sighed.

"Still it's dangerous to walk around with a gun, bud. Have you been trained?"

"A little" Carl replied.

"Ok good. I'm not trying to tell you off mate, just don't want you to get hurt. I'll see his gun back to him. I won't tell anyone how I got it."

Carl nodded and stood, still not looking into Y/N's eyes. He began to walk out but stopped when Y/N called out:

"Carl, is there something else mate? You seem really upset. Is there anything you want to talk about?"

Carl stood momentarily before turning and sitting again. He spoke without looking up:

"Dale. It's my fault that he died."

Carl's voice broke as he spoke, a tear trailing down his cheek. Y/N reached out and patted the boy's shoulder gently.

"Carl, why would you say that, mate? He got bit by a walker. It wasn't your fault."

Carl broke down and quickly rushed to Y/N. Y/N wrapped his arms around the boy and hugged him as he cried. Just at that moment Beth got to the door with a pair of boots in her hands but stopped at the sight and sound of Carl's tears. She stepped back, letting the two males talk in privacy.

"I saw that walker yesterday. I was gonna shoot it, when he was stuck in the mud. I was... I was throwing rocks at him and stuff. But I was gonna do it, shoot it right in the head."

Y/N didn't speak, comforting the boy with the gentle embrace and rubbing his back, letting him vent and cry. Carl continued:

"And it- it got free, came after me and... I ran away. If I had killed it, Dale would still be here."

"Oh Carl mate, I'm so sorry little bud. But this isn't your fault. You didn't know what was going to happen. You didn't want Dale to get hurt did you?"

Carl looked up and shook his head.

"I understand why you feel the way you do, but if you start on that path, blaming yourself, you'll never get over it mate. You saw that walker and got away from it, thank Christ... but you didn't know what was going to happen. All we can do is learn from this horrible accident. If you ever see a walker that close to home again, promise me you'll tell someone. Your Mum, your Dad, me, Beth... we just gotta learn from this, mate."

Carl nodded and wiped his eyes.

"But Dale's dead."

"He is mate, and I'm sorry for that. All we can do is try to make sure we keep everyone else as safe as possible. Ok?"

Carl nodded.

"We're all moving in the house today, so that will help."

Y/N was surprised but nodded. Carl thanked him and ran out the room. A moment later Beth entered with a smile and a large pair of hunting boots in her hands.

"Carl ok now?" She asked happily.

"Yeah. Did you hear that?" Y/N asked.

"Most of it. Poor Carl" Beth nodded. Y/N replied "yeah" and pulled the handgun from under the pillow, placing it on the drawers next to the bed.

"I've got to sneak this to Daryl, then talk to Rick. I think it would be good for him to know, what Carl's bottling up. Poor kid."

Beth nodded and reached out, squeezing Y/N's hand.

"You're such a nice person, you know?"

Y/N chuckled, the part of the Australian psyche that didn't like praise rising up as he tried to brush off her words.

"Well, I try."

"No I mean it, Y/N. Like, you're so good with Carl and Sophia, not a lot of guys can make kids, gir-people feel so comfortable around them so quickly."

Y/N didn't pick up on Beth's faux pas, turning to that good old Aussie tried and true art form, self-deprecation.

"Well the secret is I try not to be a dickhead. Works most of the time."

Beth smiled at his words before remembering her reason for leaving.

"So I found Patricia and asked her and she didn't mind, her husband Otis had really big feet, a size sixteen. Maybe these will fit?" She asked as she held up a large pair of hunting boots.

"Thanks Beth. You sure Patricia didn't mind?"

"No" Beth smiled as she knelt again, briefly looking up into Y/N's eyes before placing the boots on for him and tying the laces.

"Near enough a perfect fit. Thanks Beth" Y/N smiled. "So Carl said everyone's moving in?"

"Mmhmm" Beth smiled and tried to suppress a blush as Y/N held his hands out and helped her up.

"After poor Dale... Daddy thinks it's for the best."

"Well let's see if we can help, hey?" Y/N smiled as he stood and tucked Daryl's stolen gun behind his back. He gingerly walked across the room and turned with a smile:

"Look at that, no crutches needed" he chuckled.

The two walked downstairs, slowly, as most of the group were in and out.

"The men are in this room..." Carol motioned to Sophia with her head, towards the lounge "...so we'll go in here" she smiled, leading her daughter towards the dining room. She had a big crate in her arms, with her and Sophia's belongings that looked heavy. Y/N walked over as quick as he could.

"Let me take that" he said to Carol with a smile. As she handed it over Sophia rushed to Y/N and hugged his midsection.

"Hello Sweetheart" Y/N chuckled as he held the heavy crate up, Beth and Carol smiling at the sight.

"You're walking without crutches!" Sophia said happily. Y/N nodded:

"I am, and I've got a surprise for you and your Mum, but you have to follow me!"

He turned and walked slowly towards the stairs, taking them very slowly as he tried to keep his balance with his hip and the heavy crate in his arms. Carol asked from behind:

"What are you talking about Y/N?"

"You'll see" Y/N chuckled as he got to the top of the stairs.

"Could you please open my door?" he asked Sophia who ran forward and did so.

"Y/N, no" Carol said in realisation.

"Carol, yes" Y/N smiled as he placed the crate on the bed. He turned to the two women and a girl standing in the doorway.

"Y/N, you were shot, you need to rest and-"

"And if you think for a moment I'm sleeping in a bed while a mother and her daughter sleep on the floor you're crazy, Carol. My mother didn't raise me to be no bloody drongo. I'll let you two settle in."

He walked out the room with a smile, Beth following as Carol called out:

"Thank you, Y/N."

"Welcome" Y/N chuckled back as he slowly walked down the stairs again.

"That was really nice of you" Beth smiled next to Y/N.

"Nah, just common decency. Let's see if I can find a spare sleeping bag somewhere though" he chuckled back.

They got down the stairs in time to hear Maggie say to Glenn:

"You can put your stuff upstairs in my room."

"With your dad in the house? I just... I'm just gonna put my stuff over there."

He walked over to the lounge room, Maggie turning away as a smile faded from her face and she walked off.

"I'll leave you to it" Y/N said. Beth sighed and nodded, following her sister.

—~—

Lori was at the blue pick up, lifting a container from the tray.

"Whoa don't strain yourself" T-Dog said as he rushed over and grabbed it from her.

"Thank you" Lori smiled as Hershel walked over and called out:

"You can put that in my room. You'll be more comfortable there."

"We can't do that" Lori said shaking her head.

"A pregnant woman and child sleeping on the floor while I've got a bed to myself?" Hershel smiled.

"This is still your house."

"It's our home. I'll take the couch downstairs. On nights when I came home reeking of bourbon, my wife would lock the bedroom door. I'm sad to say that couch and I become old friends" Hershel said warmly. T-Dog arrived and smirked:

"Look, if you two can't decide, I'll take it" with a cheeky grin. Lori broke and chuckled, patting T-Dog on the shoulder and thanking Hershel.

"The couch is mine" Hershel called out to T-Dog as he got to the porch.

"It's gonna get real cozy real fast in here" T-Dog chuckled as Y/N got to the door and held it open for him.

—~—

Lori had spotted Shane halfway up the windmill, which itself sat about 100 yards from the house. She walked over and looked up at him as he was building a lookout platform onto the windmill's metal frame.

"Wouldn't that be easier if you waited for some help?" she asked.

"Ain't no use waiting for something that ain't gonna come. No, I'll just do it all myself" he replied.

"Yeah, you always do, just like that time you showed up Rick fixing our sink."

Shane laughed.

"Yeah. Just so you know, that's not the reason your basement flooded. You can thank Rick for that, using rubber washers with a metal pipe."

"Please come down" Lori asked. Shane looked down at her and a minute later he climbed down and stood in front of her. She began to talk somewhat awkwardly:

"So after we got Sophia back, I, uh... I thought we'll figure this out, you and I. You know, we'll heal somehow. After Dale?"

Shane looked down as Lori shrugged her shoulders.

"This is real, and we can't keep it at bay. It's already got us. And it just keeps coming, doesn't it?"

Shane listened but didn't reply. Lori sighed.

"I made a mess of things. I put you and Rick at odds. I don't even know whose baby this is."

Shane's head shot up. He suppressed a smile. She was saying this baby was his. Shane was going to be a father. The thought kept rolling around his head as Lori continued her apology:

"I can't imagine how hard that is on you. You led us out of Atlanta with no thought for yourself. Do you remember that night? The flames, the... and I'm sitting in our car thinking 'We're gonna be all right. He's gonna make it all right. We'll get out of here.' And I never thanked you for that. Even though things got... Confused between us, you were there for me. You were there for me. Thank you."

Shane looked at Lori with genuine shock and emotion. He replied gently:

"You don't need to thank me for that."

"Of course I do. Of course I do."

"No, you-"

"Shane, look... whatever happened between us, whatever the hell we thought it was, and not just you, but... I'm sorry, Shane. Please believe me. I am so sorry."

—~—

Rick and Daryl were on the patio at the rear of the house, discussing the plan for Randall as they looked at a map.

"Take him out to Senoia, hour there, hour back, give or take. We may lose the light, but we'll be halfway home by then. This little pain in the ass will be a distant memory."

"Good riddance" Daryl chuckled.

"Carol's putting together some provisions for him, enough to last a few days."

Daryl nodded as they looked up to see Y/N walking slowly to the orange tree that grew just behind the Greene house. Rick smiled at the young man before looking back to Daryl.

"That uh... that thing you did last night..."

Daryl nodded again and explained:

"Ain't no reason you should do all the heavy lifting."

Rick nodded appreciatively and asked:

"So are you good with all this?"

Daryl chuckled.

"I don't see you and I trading haymakers
on the side of the road. Nobody'd win that fight."

He looked up as he saw Y/N walking over and nodded at the young Australian.

"How you feeling?" Rick asked smiling.

"A lot better, thanks, Rick" Y/N replied. He looked at Daryl.

"Hey man, I was asked to give this to you."

Y/N pulled the gun from behind his back and gripped its chamber, holding it out to the biker.

"I promised the person I wouldn't say who gave it to me, but they are very apologetic and won't do it again."

Daryl looked at Rick and both men read between the lines it was one of the kids. Daryl reached out and took the gun from Y/N, but as he did he suddenly stopped in thought:

"Thanks man. Do you have a gun?"

"I uh, I did, when I tried to kill Rick, but I'm not sure where..."

"In all the confusion I think it's still in that parking lot. I don't think we picked it up" Rick sighed.

"Keep it" Daryl said, holding it out to the young Australian.

"You... are you sure man?" Y/N asked. Daryl nodded.

"I grabbed a spare from the RV yesterday. Keep it, man."

"Thanks, mate" Y/N replied with a smile before looking to Rick.

"Could uh, could I have a chat with you, Rick... alone?"

Rick looked at Y/N puzzled but nodded, Daryl saying "I'm gonna take a piss" before he walked off.

Y/N looked at Rick apprehensively, asking:

"Have you seen Carl lately?"

"He's inside with Lori, is this about the gun?"

Y/N shook his head as he leant on the balustrade from the ground, Rick leaning down on it next to him but on the porch side.

"No it's, he came to me before for a chat, he uh, he was out in the swamps yesterday and he came across a walker stuck in the mud. He got scared, ran off."

"The same walker that killed Dale?" Rick asked with a sense of unease. Y/N sighed:

"Yeah, that's the one."

"Thanks for letting me know. I'll have Lori talk to him."

"Rick, I'm not trying to talk out of place here mate, but he came to me, not his mother. I think he wants to talk to his father. Like I said I'm not trying to step out of line, but he's blaming himself for Dale's death. I know what it's like walking around knowing someone's dead because of you and I don't want that pressure on him, mate. It wasn't his fault. He didn't know what would happen but-"

Rick had got agitated as Y/N spoke, and blurted out:

"Look, I need this Randall thing done already, okay?"

He instantly realised his mistake. Y/N looked at him puzzled:

"Who's Randall? What Randall thing?"