CHAPTER TWELVE,
we keep shrinking.

Aiden sat with baby Judith in her lap. "You know Jude, one day you're gonna be all grown up and you'll be such a little badass."

The baby stared up at Aiden and she could only see her brother and Lori. She looked like Lori in the face but her eyes were Shane's. "You look like your mama, but your eyes- your eyes are just like your dads."

Judith small little arm lifted and grabbed a piece of Aiden's hair. Aiden laughed and scrunched up her nose as Judith yanked on it.

"Hey." Aiden jumped at the new voice and turned around to see Daryl. "Rick plans on taking Michonne today."

"He's an idiot for this. The Governor isn't going to let him live." Aiden mumbled. "Do you agree with it?"

"Nah. Michonne is helpful to have around. She's smart, brave." Daryl said.

"I agree." Aiden spoke, her eyes going back to Judith.

Daryl thought process in that moment only revolves around Aiden. I don't think I'll ever find a woman like this again and she probably still hates me. I love her. I should tell her before we go to war.

"I love you." Daryl said quickly.

Aiden stopped breathing for a moment before looking up at him, "what?"

Daryl took a deep breath, "I love you."

His eyes watched her closely for any type of reaction or tick but she stayed blank faced for a couple seconds too long.

"I love you too." She replied with a gentle smile. Daryl's eyes brightened up at the response.

He quickly pulled her up and kissed her, pressing poor Judith against the two. The two pulled back and laid their foreheads against each other. "That was nice." Aiden laughed.

»

"It's off. We'll take our chances." Rick walked up to Aiden and Daryl.

"I'm not saying it was the wrong call, but this is definitely the right on." Daryl said.

"What's wrong?" Aiden asked after seeing the look on Rick's face.

"I can't find Merle or Michonne. They've gone." Rick said.

"Come on." Daryl said and the three started running. They entered a room. "He was in here. Said he was looking for drugs. Said a lot of things, actually."

"Like what?"

"Said you were gonna change your mind. Here we go." Daryl picked up a pillow case. "Yeah, he took her here. They mixed it up."

"Damn it!" Rick shouted. "I'm going after him."

"You can't track for shit."

"Then the both of us."

"No, just me." Daryl said.

"I'll go with you." Aiden piped.

"Nah, you gotta stay here." Daryl said to her.

"I'm coming with you." She said.

»

Daryl and Aiden were running when they saw Michonne. "Hey!" Aiden yelled out to her.

"Where's my brother?" Daryl asked her. "You kill him?"

She shook her head. "He let me go."

"Don't let anyone come after me." Daryl said and took off.

Aiden rolled her eyes, "don't let anyone come after us." Before running after him.

The two ran to where they met up with the Governor the first time, after hearing gunshots from that direction.

Walkers and dead bodies were scattered all over the place until the two stopped in front of one of the walkers.

The walker looked up at the two and Aiden gasped. "Merle?"

A cry left Daryl's throat as he dropped his crossbow. The walker approached the two but Daryl pushed him away, "no!" He pushed him again and again before taking him to the ground and stabbing him in the face multiple times.

Daryl fell back onto his back and Aiden quickly fell beside him. "I'm sorry, Dare. I'm so sorry." Daryl grabbed onto her waist and laid his head on her chest, listening to his own cries and her speeding heart beat, "I'm here, I'm right here." She whispered into his ear as he gripped her tightly.

Daryl now understood Aiden's pain when she lost Shane.

Why she screamed when she found out.

Because now all he wanted to do was scream.

»

The two made their way back to the prison. Daryl's hand held Aiden's so tightly she couldn't feel it anymore.  

Carol opened the gate for them and looked at them expectingly. "Merle didn't make it." Aiden said plainly. "It's time to get ready."

»

Aiden could hear the explosions and gunshots from outside.

The group of morons soon entered the tombs only to be ran out into gunfire.

Maggie and Aiden stood side by side, firing their guns down at the small "army" below them.

A bullet grazed Aiden's uncovered arm as she allowed Maggie to wear the swat gear while Aiden only wore a helmet and bulletproof vest. "Shit!"

"You hit?" Maggie yelled to her.

"Just grazed."

The Governor and his people ran like dogs with their tails between their legs. "Bunch of pussies." Aiden said as they drove off.

"We did it?" Maggie asked.

"We did it. Come on down." Glenn said to the two most important women in his life.

The two got down and the group met up at the front. "We did it. We drove them out."

"We should go after them. We should finish it." Daryl said.

"It is finished. Didn't you see them hightail it out of here?" Maggie countered.

"They could regroup." Michonne said.

"We can't take the chance. He's not gonna stop." Glenn said.

"They're right. We can't keep living like this." Carol cut in.

"So we take the fight back to Woodbury. We barley made it back last time." Maggie argued.

"I don't care." Daryl said.

"Let's check on the others. Come on."

The group entered the prison and minutes later Carl, Beth who was holding Judith, and Hershel walked in.

Aiden walked into her cell and took her shirt off. "You good?" She jumped and turned around.

Daryl couldn't help but let his eyes shot down to her chest. "Eyes up, Dixon." She smirked.

"Sorry." He shook his head, "what happened?" He asked her worriedly.

"Bullet grazed my arm." She said.

"You should let Hershel patch you up before we leave." He told her.

"Yeah, okay."

»

The group pulled up behind a parked truck. One of the Governors trucks. Aiden got off the motorcycles and stabbed a walker with her machete.

"He killed all his people." Aiden said. Daryl stood beside a truck and suddenly heard a bang. A woman could be seen in the window.  She held up her hands once Rick turned her gun on her. Daryl opened the truck door and helped her out.

That night the group of five walked in the dark towards Woodbury. A gunshot hit the ground right beside them causing Aiden to curse loudly, "motherfucker!"

The four shot at the two people shooting at them. "Karen!" Someone yelled.

"Is that Tyreese?" Aiden asked Daryl, her eyebrows furrowed. Daryl glanced out from their hiding spot before he looked back at her and nodded.

"It's me! Don't-"

"Get down!" Rick pulled her down.

"Karen! Karen, are you okay?" Tyreese called down to her.

"I'm fine!" Karen popped up with her hands raised.

"Where's the Governor?" He asked her.

"He fired on everyone. He killed them all." Karen explained.

"Why are you with them?" Tyreese asked her.

"They saved me."

"We're coming out!" Rick yelled. "We're coming out." Aiden was the only one to stubborn to not raise her arms.

"Raise your hands, you idiot." Michonne hissed to her. Aiden scoffed and raised them. Tyreese opened the gate for the group.

"What are you doing here?" Tyreese asked them.

"We were coming to finish this until we saw what the Governor did." Rick replied.

"He- he killed them?" Tyreese asked. Rick nodded.

"Yeah. Karen told us Andrea hopped the wall going for the prison. She never made it. She might be here."

»

"This is where he had Glenn, Maggie, and Aiden." Rick stated.

"He held people here?"

"He did more than hold them." Aiden replied as they rounded a corner with their guns raised.

They heard thumping and saw a metal door with blood pooled underneath it. "Will you open it?"

"One, two..." Rick kicked it open and they saw Milton's dead body.

"Andrea!" Michonne said before moving to her friend.

"I tried to stop them." She spoke.

"You're burning up." Michonne said. Andrea pulled her jacket aside to reveal a walker bite. Aiden closed her eyes and took a shaky breath.

"Judith, Carl, the rest of them..."

"Us. The rest of us." Rick corrected her.

"Are they alive?" Andrea asked.

"Yeah, they're alive." Rick replied.

"It's good you found them." Andrea said to Michonne. "No one can make it alone now, all expect Aiden." Andrea said to Aiden, a grin picking up on her face. She was remembering their conversation at the prison.

"I never could." Daryl stated and grabbed Aiden's hand.

"I just didn't want anyone to die. I can do it myself." Andrea said.

"No." Michonne argued.

"I have to. While I still can. Please?" Andrea begged. "I know how the safety works." She recited the words she once spoke to Rick back in Atlanta.

Rick handed the blonde his gun. "Well, I'm not going anywhere." Michonne said.

Andrea looked at Aiden. Aiden nodded at her. "I'm sorry. Ya know, for beatin' the shit outta you back at the farm." Aiden apologized.

"It's okay." Andrea said. "I tried."

"Yeah. You did. You did."

The three left the room and joined Tyreese outside.

No one flinched at the sound of the gunshot.

»

A bus pulled up with Aiden and the rest when they returned to the prison. Her group, the people she'd been with since the start of near the start gathered around and watched as Woodbury citizens filed off of the buss.

"They're with us now." Aiden said to her family.

______________________________

word count: 1,632
episodes: this sorrowful life & welcome to the tombs

and i'm finished editing act one! it's currently 3am so i'm going to bed soon but once i wake up, i'll start editing act two ;).

and that's a wrap on season three and act one! i'm super excited from this point on because this is when the walking dead started to get really action packed.

but two deaths in one chapter :(. two of the biggest deaths in my opinion. (outside of dale, hershel, beth, tyreese, glenn, abe, sasha, carl, jesus, the pike victims, & siddiq).

anyway. we may or may not meet a couple new original characters in act two.

okay we are. there's going to be three of them ;).