LIAM WAS ASLEEP IN THE BACK SEAT AS VIVIAN PULLED UP TO THE FARM, WITH THE CHEROKEE BEHIND HER,

It was now pitch black. The only reason why Vivian knew she was in the right place was because the lights in the house were still on.

The farm seemed untouched. Electricity, maybe even water.

These people were lucky.

Vivian got out of the car quietly, not wanting to wake the toddler. T-Dog and Glenn joined her, looking around the quiet place.

"So do we ring the bell?" Glenn asked, "I mean it looks like people live here."  

"We're past this kind of stuff, aren't we? Having to be considerate." T-Dog replied,

"I wouldn't go that far." Vivian said,

"Did you close the gate up the road when you drove in?" They all turned to see a brunette woman around Vivian's age standing on the porch, in an area where the light didn't reach,

"Uh, hi. Yes, we closed it. Did the latch and everything." Glenn cleared his throat, "Hello. Nice to see you again. We met before briefly."

Vivian smirked at Glenn's nervousness. So this was the Zorro woman from before that came to get Lori.

"Look, we came to help." Vivian stated, "There anything we can do?"

They noticed her eyes going to T-Dog's arm, where the gauze was taped to his wound, "It's not a bite. I cut myself pretty bad though."

"We'll have it looked at. I'll tell them you're here." The woman replied,

Glenn reached into his bag, "We have some painkillers and antibiotics." He grabbed the bottles that Daryl gave him, "I already gave him some. If Carl needs any."

"Come on inside. I'll make you something to eat." She opened the door and Glenn glanced back at Vivian.

Vivian went back to the car to grab Liam while the others waited on the porch, "Oh, I didn't know you had a-"

"He isn't mine. Well... I guess now he is." Vivian mumbled the last part before Glenn held the door open for her.

The woman, who they learned was Maggie, let Vivian set Liam down on the couch before leading them towards the stairs to the room Carl was in.

Carl was laying on the bed, shirtless and pale. He had a large bandage on his side that leaked red. Next to him was an older man, while Rick, Lori, and another woman sat nearby.

Vivian's heart broke for the Grimes family. If that was Liam, she would be in hysterics.

Carl Grimes was a strong boy.

"Hey." Vivian whispered in the doorway, noticing a bandage on Rick's arm as well,

"Hey." He looked up at her, his eyes rimmed with red.

Lori stood up and Vivian quickly went over to hug the mother and turned to look at Rick. Tears ran down his cheeks and she wrapped her arms around him. Rick cried into her shoulder, holding her tight.

Glenn took off his hat, "Um, we're here, okay?"

The mother glanced over at them as she sat down again, "Thank you."

Rick separated from Vivian and she squeezed his arm before he went to sit by Carl once again.

"Whatever you need." T-Dog stated before Maggie led them out of the room,

Back on the highway, Marcie sat on top of the RV with Dale, helping him keep watch. She didn't want to be inside, listening to Carol cry or Andrea trying to put her gun back together.

"You know, you never told us how you met Rick." Dale commented, fiddling with the rifle in his hand,

Marcie played with the butterfly knife she found, "I was looking for my parents. I was in the outskirts of Atlanta, trying to figure out a way in. And there he was, laying in his front yard wearing a hospital gown. We both decided to go to Atlanta together, to look for our families. And that's when we ran into Glenn."

"You think your parents are still alive?"

Marcie shrugged, "One could hope."

Dale nodded, "One could hope."

The door to the RV opened and Daryl stepped out, his crossbow strapped to his back and flashlight in hand. "'m goin' for a walk." He said, looking up at the two, "Shine some light in the forest. If she's out there, give her somethin' to look at."

"I'll come, too." Marcie moved down the ladder, 

Daryl waited for her to stand next to him before handing Marcie her own flashlight and grabbing another, "Le's go."

Marcie gave a salute to Dale before following Daryl down the highway.

They were silent as they went into the woods, following a trail. They shined the light around, making sure there wasn't a silent predator nearby or hoping that Sophia would catch the beam.

"You really think we're gonna find Sophia?" Marcie asked, glancing down at the ground to make sure she didn't trip over anything,

Daryl glanced over at her before scoffing and shaking his head,

"What?" Marcie questioned,

"You got that look on your face, same as everybody else. What the hell's wrong with you people? We just started lookin'."

Marcie looked over at him, "You didn't answer my question."

"It ain't the mountains of Tibet. It's Georgia. She could be holed up in a farmhouse somewhere. People get lost and they survive. It happens all the time." Daryl stated,

Marcie was nervous to say anything. She didn't want to say her opinion and get Daryl mad. When people got lost before, you call the police and there's a giant man hunt. Not to mention, there's not man-eating monsters after them,

"She's only twelve." She whispered, 

"Hell, I was younger than her and I got lost. Nine days in the woods eating berries, wiping my ass with poison oak." He told her,

"And they found you?"

He shook his head, "My old man was off on a bender with some waitress. Merle was doing 'nother stint in juvie. Didn' even know I was gone. I made my way back though. Went straight into the kitchen and made myself a sandwich. No worse for wear. 'xcept my ass itched somethin' awful."

Marcie snorted and tried to cover it up, but he narrowed his eyes at her, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, that is a terrible story."

"Only difference is Sophia's got people lookin' for her. I call that an advantage."

Marcie paused, "Daryl." He stopped and turned towards her, "I'm sorry no one looked for you."

"Even if they were there, doubt they would've noticed I was gone." He shrugged, "Think I turned out okay."

She moved to catch up with him, "Yeah... I think you did." Marcie nudged him before they continued their search, "So how long did it take for that itch to go away?"

Daryl scoffed and pushed her gently, hiding his smirk as he walked ahead, "Shut up."

Marcie smiled at him before sighing, looking out into the woods. It was quiet, which made her nervous.

"Wha' about you?" Daryl asked, looking over at her,

"What about me?"

"You think we'll find the girl?" He questioned,

Marcie bit her lip, "You won't get mad?"

"Why would I get mad?" Daryl grunted, 

"Because my opinion might not be the same as yours." She replied.

Daryl paused for a moment before responding, "Shoot."

She let out a small, nervous breath, "You're right. She could've only gotten so far into these woods, but she's a little girl who's only response it to run. And that will keep her alive for a little while, but she'll get tired. And what then? What happens when she can't run anymore?" She stared at him for a moment, "You were a kid who had already learned to survive. You had to. But Sophia? She doesn't know how to yet."

Daryl stared at her, taking in what she said before continuing down the path, "C'mon."

At the farmhouse, Vivian woke Liam up, giving him her portion of food that Maggie made for them. The brunette agreed to watch him as Vivian grabbed a plate and headed towards Carl's room.

Rick sat outside, his head in his hand. Lori was inside, holding Carl's hand. Vivian sat down next to Rick and handed him the plate of food, "Eat. Keep your strength up."

"Thanks." He mumbled, taking a bite of the potatoes. Once he swallowed, he looked over at her, "Lori doesn't think kids are meant for this world." Vivian hummed and leaned her head against the wall, "You think she's wrong?"

Vivian looked over at him, meeting his bright blue eyes, "You know what they say... kids are the future." She stated, "We have to raise them strong, so they can survive this world. We weren't prepared, but they will be. We have to make sure of that." Vivian reached over and squeezed knee, "Carl's strong. He'll make it. You did."

"But I had doctors to look after me. And a hospital."

"You were in a coma when the world went to shit. You should've died when the power went out, but you fought. You might not have realised it at the time, but your body fought for you. And you made it back to your family. And Carl will do the same."

They heard coughing come from the bedroom and Lori called out Rick's name. Rick handed her the plate of food before rushing into the room.

Vivian set the plate on the ground before standing in the doorway, watching,

"Where are we?" Carl asked, shaking, as he looked up at his parents,

"Hey, little man." Rick smiled, holding Lori's hand tightly as she stroked her son's hair, "That's Hershel." Rick said, motioning to the older man who sat on the bed, "We're in his house. You had an accident. Alright?"

"It hurts, a lot." Carl whimpered and Vivian's heart broke further,

"Oh baby, I know. I know." Lori whispered, trying to keep her sobs in,

Carl smiled u-p at his mom, "You should have seen it."

"What?"

"The deer. It was so pretty, mom. It was so close. I've never been..." Carl's smile faded and his face turned neutral, his eyes staring at the wall past his mother's face,

"Carl?" Rick asked, his own smile turning into a concerned frown, 

Lori looked over at Hershel, "What's happening?"

Carl began to shake uncontrollably and Hershel moved to remove the pillows, giving Carl a flat surface to seize on. Rick and Lori reached for their son but the older man stopped them, "Don't. It's a seizure. If you hold him down, you could hurt him."

Vivian brought a hand to her mouth, covering her sobs. Carl wasn't her son, but she's spent the last few months in a camp with him. He's a good kid, he didn't deserve this.

"You can't stop it?" Lori sobbed, clutching onto her husband,

"He has to just go through it. His brain isn't getting enough blood." Carl stilled and Hershel went to check his vitals, "His pressure is bottoming. He needs another transfusion."

"Okay, I'm ready." Rick stated, holding out his bandaged arm,

"If I take any more out of you your body could shut down. You could go into a coma. Or cardiac arrest." Hershel reasoned with him,

"What's his blood type?" Vivian asked from the doorway and they all turned to look at him,

"A." Rick answered,

Vivian stepped into the room and held out her arm, "So am I."

Lori shook her head, "I can't ask you to do that."

"Good thing you're not asking." Vivian replied, "I'm offering." She turned to Hershel, "You're wasting time."

In the forest, the hair on Marcie's arms stood up as she heard the growling of a biter. She looked around, shining her light, but she couldn't see it.

Rustling came from their left and Daryl stood in front of her, aiming his crossbow. She placed on hand on his back so he knew where she was while she used the flash light to guide him.

The duo came to a stop when they reached a camp, with a large tent and table set up. The tree next to the them shook and they used their flash light to look into the leaves, spotting a walker hanging from a rope tied to a branch,

The flesh from its' legs were torn off, leaving bones and ligaments. Marcie didn't know whether to feel bad for the dead man or think he's an idiot. She was just glad she skipped dinner.

"What the hell?" Daryl found a piece of paper pinned to the trunk,  "'Got bit. Fever hit. World gone to shit. Might as well quit'." 

"A real Shakespeare original." Marcie mumbled, staring up at the corpse.

"Dumbass didn't know enough to shoot himself in the head. Turned himself into a big swingin' piece of bait. And a mess." Daryl commented, "I guess it's the closest he's been to food since he turned. Hangin' up there like a big piñata. The other geeks came and ate all the flesh off his legs."

Marcie stepped around Daryl and grabbed the knife from the trunk, "Poor dude."

"Asked for it, hangin' himself like that." He watched her for a moment, "Let's head back."

She paused, turning to him, "Aren't you gonna..." She motioned towards the walker,

"No. He ain't hurtin' nobody. Ain't gonna waste an arrow either. He made his choice. Opted out. Let him hang." He stated,

"We can't just leave him like that." Marcie stated, staring up at the walker dangling from the tree branch,

"Be a waste of an arrow."

Daryl began to walk away and Marcie rolled her eyes before going over to the tree trunk. She stuck the handle of the knife she took between teeth before she grabbed the lowest branch and began to climb.

The hunter turned to see her in the tree, "Whatcha doin' girl?"

"You won't have to waste an arrow." She grunted around the knife, grabbing the branch above her and placing her feet on a lower, sturdy branch and began shuffling towards the walker,

It tried to reach for her as she grabbed the knife from between her teeth. The branch kept shaking as the walker struggled and stilled once she stabbed it in the head, "See? Problem solved."

Her foot slipped and Marcie gasped as she fell backwards. Daryl reached out to grab her before she hit the ground, "Thanks." She grinned, wrapping an arm around his neck,

Daryl grunted, setting her down before walking off, "Dumb girl."

She watched him walk away, "Daryl..." He stopped and turned towards her, "as long as someone believes she's out there, I'll keep looking."

On the Greene farm, Vivian sat on the porch steps, staring at the blue truck that sat in front of the house.

Shane had made it back. The other man hadn't.

The door opened behind her and Rick shuffled out. He sat down next to her, running his hands over his face,

"Hershel said he's going to make it." Rick whispered,

Vivian looked over at him, "Oh, Rick." She wrapped her arms around him, "That's great."

"Thank you." Rick muttered into her shoulder and she pulled away, "For the transfusion, for everything."

Vivian reached over and squeezed his forearm, "Rick, I did what any of us would do. I just happened to know my blood type." She looked over his face, noticing how pale he was, "You should get some rest."

He shook his head, "I... I need to be there when Carl wakes up." He moved to stand and she helped,

"Carl won't be up for a while. C'mon." She guided him back into the house and to the bedroom his son was in. Lori was already asleep on one of the chairs and Vivian sat Rick down in the other one, "Sleep, Rick. You need it."

She grabbed a blanket from the dresser in the room and put it over him. Rick grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently, "Thank you."

"No problem." She whispered, patting his shoulder before leaving the room,