MARCELLA DIDN'T LEAVE THE BED FOR TWO DAYS.

She didn't eat, didn't drink. She wouldn't even speak to anyone, not even Maggie or Daryl.

Carol told everyone she had the stomach flu, but everyone close to her or the group knew it wasn't that, it was more. 

Glenn came and visited her, not believing in the whole flu story. He crouched down next to her, making sure she could see him,

"Hey." He whispered, 

"Hi..." Marcie searched his face for any sign of anger or sadness, only to find a look of gratitude, "How's Maggie?"

"She's good. She's fine." Glenn gave her a soft smile, "She told me what you did for her. You protected her. I just wanted to thank you for looking out for her."

"We're family." Marcie whispered, reaching out from the comfort and warmth of her comforter and squeezing his shoulder, "That's what we do. I'll always look out for her."

Glenn nodded, "Thank you." He squeezed her wrist before standing up, "Get some rest." He told her before leaving the room.

She woke up the second morning to the sounds of whispering coming from the bedroom door. Marcie kept her eyes closed, but listened to Michonne and Daryl as they discussed her,

"Carol and Maggie said they took her to another room."

"Didn' see any marks on her." Daryl mumbled, biting at the skin around his thumbnail, "They say anythin' else?"

Michonne shook her head, "No. They're shook up too, but not bed bound."

"Thanks." Daryl gave her a nod before shutting the door,

Marcie opened her eyes as he sat down on the edge of the bed, "They didn't touch me." She mumbled and he quickly turned at the sound of her voice,

"Then... what did they do?"

"Nothing. We just talked." Marcie answered truthfully,

"Talked?" He was looking for more,

"At first, she questioned me. She didn't get anything out of me, but then it turned into me questioning her. And it just led to more questions." She finally turned to him, making eye contact, "How do we know that they're really the bad guys?"

"What do ya mean?"

"They're just like us, they have family and loved ones. They're having babies just like us. And we're the ones killing fathers and boyfriends. Just like the Governor. Just like all the other people we thought were bad guys." Marcie whispered, "What makes them so different from us?"

"We're doin' what we have to do."

"And what if they are too?" Daryl stood up and left the room,

Marcie watched him go, waiting for the sound of the door slamming shut before she got out of bed with a sigh. She couldn't just lay there until the end of time, she knew that.

They were going to war. And her wavering mind wasn't going to help her or her people.

She quickly changed into her jeans and layered on a long sleeve shirt with her jacket before heading out the door.

Daryl and Carol were sitting down on the front steps, smoking a cigarette and talking. Something inside Marcie get triggered and she quickly came to a stop behind them, "Put that out."

They both looked over their shoulders at her, "Wha'?"

"I said put that out." Marcie reached over and plucked them from their fingers, "Those things will kill, ya know." She threw them onto the concrete and stomped them out, "I'm serious, Daryl, no more of this shit."

Carol stood, "Marcie-"

"Don't even start, Carol." She hissed at the older woman, "I'm not gonna let him smoke his way to lung cancer, where we don't have doctors or equipment, and he's coughing up blood until either his body gives out or someone else gets to him first." Marcie began to walk away but stopped and stomped back towards Carol, "I thought you knew better. You were there, too."

The two watched her walk away before Daryl turned to the older woman, "What happened out there?"

"Nothing." Carol tried to walk away but Daryl followed,

"Nah, don' say that ta me. Clearly somethin' happened, none of ya are talkin'. That wasn' Marcie right there, we both know that!" He exclaimed out of frustration.

"They didn't do anything, Daryl." She narrowed her eyes at him, "Just... we learned something in there."

"Wha?"

"They're just people. Not monsters in the woods. They're people. And we had to kill them."

Daryl watched her walk away before sighing and heading back towards his bike. Not understanding why it was affecting the girls so much.

They keep giving the same answer. Nothing happened. But he knew it wasn't the truth.

Marcie was gone all day. She jumped the wall, heading into the woods to clear her head. She knew it wasn't a good idea, not with the Saviors lurking around, but she couldn't be trapped in those walls at that moment. 

Not with everyone watching her every move.

Every walker she passed, she took down brutally. Black blood eventually soaked through her clothes and stained her skin.

She tried to solve her dilemma physically, but no matter how many she took down, it didn't make her feel better mentally.

"Fuck." Marcie sighed, staring up at blue sky between the branches of the trees around her.

Her thoughts wouldn't quiet down. It was making her head spin. She collapsed onto the forest floor, the leaves crunching under her weight, and her brain didn't stop.

When did it get so bad? When did their biggest enemy become people? Back at the farm when they got ambushed at the bar while getting Hershel? Or when the Governor kidnapped their people?

They've become so untrusting of others, that they can't fathom that some people aren't out to get them. They've painted this picture, us vs. them. Yes, the Saviors have killed people, but so have they.

Everyone's a murderer in this world, in their own way.

They're all monsters.

Marcie didn't shake from her thoughts until the sound of growling pulled her away. She gripped her knife tightly, her knuckles turning white, and she kicked the walker's knee, sending it to the ground. Marcie quickly climbed on top of the corpse and stabbed it in the brain repeatedly, its' blood splattering onto her skin.

She sighed, wiping the blood from her face before standing up and making her way back to the metal walls.

People stared as she walked the streets but she ignored them, walking up the steps of her home.

Marcie stood in the shower, letting the hot water wash the blood and her thoughts away. She barely heard the bathroom door open as Daryl stepped in.

She waited for a moment, listening to the metal buttons popping and his belt buckle clanking.

Cold air hit her as Daryl moved the shower curtain aside. Tears filled her eyes and he quickly stepped under the warm stream, cupping her face, "'M here."

Marcie reached up to push his wet hair away from his face before leaning up and kissing him.

"So am I." She whispered against his lips,

Daryl helped Marcie scrub the blood from her skin and washed her hair before guiding her out of the shower. Stepping out of the bathroom, away from the warmth and comfort it was bringing her, was like having ice water being poured over her.

Reality hit.

The archer led her into their basement bedroom and grabbed her pyjamas while she sat on their bed, clutching the towel to her chest.

She stared up at him, her large doe eyes breaking his heart just a little bit.

He placed her t-shirt over her head and helped her arms through the sleeves before doing the same with her boxer shorts. Daryl leaned down and kissed her softly, letting her take the lead.

"'m sorry." Marcie whispered, "I've been..."

"No need ta apologise." He told her, moving his lips to connect with the top of her head, "Ya went through somethin'."

Marcie had never been more grateful to have Daryl Dixon in her life.

"I love you."

The next morning, Marcie was woken up by fingers brushing her hair away from her face. She opened her eyes to see Daryl kneeling beside the bed,

"Hey," He grunted, his voice rough, "How ya feelin'?"

"Fine." She mumbled, sitting up and noticing the bag near the door, "Where you goin'?"

"Denise, Rosita, and I are headin' out on a run." Daryl answered, "Should be back tonight."

"I wanna go with." Marcie began to pull the covers back but Daryl stopped her, "Daryl."

"Nah, want you ta stay." He kissed her quickly, "Rest."

Marcie watched him go, he gave her one last look before closing the bedroom door and heading upstairs. She waited five minutes before getting out of bed and quickly dressing before heading out the door.

She double checked both her guns, making sure she had enough ammo, before heading out with a pair of sedan car keys.

Marcie pulled up to the gate, putting the car into park and rolling down the window. Sasha was on top of the wall, keeping watch, "Where'd they go?!" Marcie called up to her friend, who was pacing on the scaffolding, while she got out and headed over to the gate,

"Marce-"

"I know you know. Where'd they go, Sasha?"

"Some strip mall on 236." She sighed, heading down the ladder, "They said they'd be back by nightfall."

"Yeah, yeah." Marcie mumbled before getting back into the car and driving over the perimeter of Alexandria.

The map sat on the passenger seat, with Marcie glancing over every few moments until she spotted her destination, 'Alexandria Commons'.

She was only a few miles down the road when she hit her first roadblock. A tree sat in the middle of the road, crossing over the train tracks. It was too large to move, proven by the empty truck that sat cold in the road.

They were on foot.

Marcie took the tracks, knowing it would lead her to the intersection where the mall was. It didn't take her too long as she jogged some of the way, eager to get back to her partner and friends.

Rotten bodies littered the parking lot and bloodied handprints stained the wooden planks outside the store windows. However, the very lively body of Denise sat outside the store they were raiding.

"Hey." Marcie greeted, walking up to the blonde that was gripping something in her hand,

"What are you doing here?" Denise questioned,

"Needed some air." She moved over and sat down next to the community's doctor, "Where's Daryl and Rosita."

"Inside." Her gaze turned back to the keychain in her hand,

"I thought your name was Denise." Marcie joked, reading the keychain that read 'Dennis'.

"My brother's name." She stated,

"Wow." Marcie held back from making a funny comment, figuring Denise wasn't in the mood, "So was he older or younger?"

"Older." Denise answered, "By six minutes. My parents came up with the Dennis/Denise thing on one of their benders. Hilarious, right?" She smiled over at Marcie, 

"Extremely." 

"Nothing scared him." She told Marcie, "He was brave. He was angry, too. It's kind of a dangerous combination."

"Yeah... I've known a few people like that." Marcie's thoughts went to the Dixon brothers, both of them. Daryl doesn't show much of his angry side anymore, but many years ago, his outbursts had people running in fear.

But now, he just stews. And Marcie didn't know which version of him was worse.

The door to their right opened and Rosita and Daryl stepped out,

"Oh." Rosita stared at her in shock,

Daryl paused, his eyes narrowing, "Told ya I'd be back round dark."

"Got bored." Marcie gave him a tight smile before standing, "You guys find some stuff?"

The archer nodded, his gaze moving to a teary Denise, "Hey. You did good finding this place."

Denise stood, wiping her tears and gripping her machete.

"Tried to tell you you weren't ready." Rosita stated, "We both did."

"I know." She mumbled, her voice soft and quiet.

Marcie felt bad for the woman. It wasn't her fault she was trapped behind those walls, unable to learn to exist in this new world,

She wanted to learn. And they should help Denise with that.

Rosita began walking down the road and Denise followed. Marcie went to follow when Daryl reached for her hand. 

Marcie paused and looked back at her partner. She knew what he wanted to ask and answered it before he got the chance to speak, "I'm good." Marcie gave him a small smile, "We're good, right?"

He nodded before placing a hand on her lower back, leading her back to the other two.

Marcie caught up to Denise, "No one's ever ready, not really." She glanced over at the woman, "Well, except maybe Daryl." The blonde smiled slightly, "You never know what's going to happen out here. I could've died on my way here, or been kidnapped. I know how to fight, but I never know what I'm gonna be up against when I come out here."

Denise stared at Marcie for a moment before speaking, "In the back room, there was... this rotter. It had been there for a while, too weak to really move."

Marcie waited for her to speak, waiting to see where she was going with the story,

"There was a crib and words written on the wall. 'Hush'." Denise sniffled, "Then there was this sink, full of dirty water... with... with a little leg sticking out. The shoe was so small."

Young walkers were always the hardest. Marcie remembered seeing Sophia emerge from the barn and while they knew the girl, no one was able to hold back tears.

"It never gets easier. That feeling inside you, it doesn't go away. But it gets easier to hide it."

Denise nodded, coming to a pause as they watched Daryl heading towards the train tracks. Marcie watched in confusion as he looked back at them, "This way's faster, right?" He grunted.

They were mostly silent as they wandered the tracks back to their cars. Marcie made her way back up to Daryl, who had his hand in his pocket,

"Got ya somethin'." He mumbled, trying not to draw attention from Denise and Rosita,

"What?"

"It was a... clothing store or somethin'. Had a pharmacy in there, too. But I saw this thing, thought ya'd like it." Daryl took his hand out of his pocket and held out a necklace.

It was beautiful. A silver, dainty necklace with a small star pendant hanging from the chain.

"Oh, Daryl." She took the necklace and unclasped it. He helped her fastened it around her neck, moving her hair out of the way.

Marcie turned back to him, a large smile on her face, "I love it." She went up on her toes and kissed him gently, "Thank you." She mumbled against his lips.

He was glad she liked it. To him, it was just a necklace, but he wanted to see her smile again. Ever since she was kidnapped, she lost that sparkle in her eyes.

And now she was starting to get it back.

"Excuse me." Rosita called out to them, "Can we get on with it?"

Marcie pulled away, spotting the redness in Daryl's cheeks. Her fingers reached up to fiddle with the little star around her neck before going to catch up with the other women. 

Denise began to lag behind, getting distracted by a few random cars that was parked on the side of the tracks.

Marcie paused and turned to her, "Denise, what's going on?"

"There's a cooler in there!" She stated, pointing at the middle car that had a walker pawing at the window, trying to get to her, "Might be something we can use inside."

Rosita cocked her hips to the side, "We got what we came for."

"Nah, ain't worth the trouble, come on."

The two began walking again and Marcie rolled her eyes. It would only take a minute or two to search the cars, what was the harm?

Marcie took out her knife and approached the car, "Go on. I'm here." She encouraged the blonde,

Denise went over to the passenger side and opened it, reaching for the cooler. The walker reached for her and fell towards the blonde.

She fell to the ground, the walker quickly following behind. Marcie was quick to kick the walker away from Denise and pinned it to the ground with her boot, "Get it!" She encouraged Denise, who looked up at her like she was crazy, "Do it."

Denise gulped nervously, gripping her knife tightly before stabbing the walker through the brain, killing it effectively.

Marcie sighed, removing her boot from the body. Denise stood up and sheathed her knife while panting heavily. Marcie went to ask if she was okay, but was interrupted by the blonde leaning over and puking.

She stepped back, trying to avoiding the splatter.

"Oh, man. I threw up on my glasses." Denise mumbled, before going over to the cooler to collect her prize. She opened it to reveal a pack of pop, "Hot damn."

"Wha the hell was tha?!" Daryl exploded on her, "You could've died right there, you know tha?"

"Yeah, I do." Denise panted,

"Are you hearin' me?!"

"Who gives a shit?!" Denise snapped, "You could've died killing those Saviors, all three of you, but you didn't. You wanna live, you take chances. That's how it works. That's what I did."

"For a couple of damn sodas?" Daryl asked,

"Nope." She held up the orange soda, Tara's favourite, "Just this one." Denise walked past, making her way back to the tracks.

"Guys, it's fine." Marcie insisted, "She needed that."

Rosita shook her head before heading towards Denise, "Are you seriously that stupid?" She spat,

Denise paused and turned to her, "Are you?" She asked, and they all stood there, not knowing how to respond, "I mean it. Are you? Do you have any clue what that was to me, what this whole thing is to me? See, I have training in this shit. I'm not making it up as I go along, like with the stitches and the surgery and the..." She trailed off for a moment before pointing at Daryl, "I asked you to come with me because you're brave like my brother and sometimes you actually make me feel safe." She turned to Rosita, "And I wanted you here because you're alone. Probably for the first time in your life. And because you're stronger than you think you are, which gives me hope that maybe I can be, too. And Marcie, I know I didn't ask you along but you came after Daryl, because you guys  can't be apart, not in a cringy way, but in a way that proves that you really love each other and want to keep each other safe."

Marcie glanced over at Daryl, sharing a look with him as Denise continued her rant, which they knew she needed to get out, "I could've gone with Tara. I could've told her I loved her, but I didn't because I was afraid. That's what's stupid. Not coming out here, not facing my shit. And it makes me sick that you guys aren't even trying because you're strong and you're smart and you're really good people, and if you don't wake-"

Marcie's eyes widened as a bolt pierced Denise's skull and came out through her eye. Her scream got caught in her throat as Denise didn't even seem to be phased by the fatal injury,

"... up... and face your..."

She began to collapse and Marcie reached out for her as Daryl and Rosita raised her guns towards the enemy.

"Denise...." Marcie's voice broke as she bunched the blonde's hair behind her ear,

But her remaining eye was staring off into space, all signs of life gone.

Their last remaining doctor was dead.

Denise was gone.