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          CRUSHES ARE APART OF being a teenager. They make your chest swell, butterflies flutter and make you brush your hair two extra times.

       Koa does not feel like a teenager, therefore, a crush is not plausible. No, not while they're preparing for war is she allowed to stare at Beth as she just simply gathers ammo together with saucers for pupils.

           "I'm sure he'll be okay, Koa. It's Carl. Toughest little guy I know," Beth giggles with an adorable scrunch of her nose. Koa sighs, slumping in her hair, legs manspread, "He'd cry if you heard him call him a little guy." Beth looks up from the ammo boxes, "Why's that?" She asks with an innocent smile. Koa can't tell if she's playing dumb or the blonde really doesn't realize the Grimes boy and his hearts for eyes whenever she's around.

       Koa leans forward, a smirk playing on her lips as she looks up at Beth, "You know he's got a crush on you, Greene. It's obvious. He's smitten." Beth tilts her head to the head, an innocent grin now matching Koa's smirk, "Really? Couldn't tell when he tried to share a cell wit' me."

   Koa scoffs, a blush crawling from her fingertips to her neck. Pink tries to dust her cheeks. She refuses. Koa Finch refuses to let this feeling evolve anymore. She steps back, hands in her pockets, "He's got no skills," Koa shrugs—as if she has any herself.

Sadie was always the one racking up crushes, she was always the one coming home with a bunch of Valentines on the dreaded holiday. Not Koa.

Koa has no idea what to do even if she wanted to entertain these feelings.

             Beth chuckles, "Yeah, clearly—"

               She's cut off by a mix of screaming and grunting from the room next to them. "That sounds like Glenn," Koa says, words barely out of her mouth before she's running towards the source, Beth on her tail. They run into Merle and Glenn wrestling each other on the cold floor of the prison. They're throwing punches, grunting in pain.

        Emity cycles through her Koa's veins. Merle has Glenn against the ground, hand to his throat. "You bastard!" Koa curses, kicking Merle right in the ribs. He doesn't move though, he just lets out a groan of pain, choking Glenn harder. By now Sadie has run in, eyes wide when her sister goes to throw another kick at the man only for him to grab her ankle, twist it and toss her to the side. All while he still has Glenn on the ground.

       Koa hisses in pain. Concrete floor has scraped her skin, cuts marking her skin. Despite her fear of being near Merle, Sadie runs over to Koa, her back to Merle so she can protect herself and her little sister. "You alright?" She asks, examining Koa.

      When Koa looks over Sadie's shoulder, Merle's blade is dangerously close to Glenn's neck. She's about ready to throw herself at him again until Michonne grabs the redneck by the back, putting him in a headlock.

         BOOM

   A gunshot goes off right next to the Finch sisters. Ears ringing, crumbs of concrete falling on them, they look to the side to see Beth Greene of all people with a gun to the air.

     It gets the job done. Merle is pulled off of Glenn, held back by Maggie and Michonne. This is the maddest Koa's ever seen Beth. Her jaw is clenched, blue eyes darker.

      "Let me go! Let me go!" Merle repeats, wiggling under their grip. Michonne backs up from him. Merle's face is beat red, anger visible all over. Sadie's chest is heaving, protective arms on either side of Koa.

          "Glenn?" Koa calls out breathlessly. "I'm fine. Lock him up. Something," Glenn rises to his feet, "You're not going anywhere," He sternly points at Merle. The nearly bald man scoffs angrily at him, trying to lunge at him but he's met with a side swipe from Michonne. His body bounces off the floor, grunting.

      She stands over him, "Don't you ever touch one of these girls again, got it? Or next time I'll crack your head against the ground." Both adults are livid, breathing rapid as anger courses through them. Her eyes meet Sadie's, a glint of thankfulness passes through the younger's eyes.

    Koa pulls herself up, dusting off her clothing, "You're a manic," She mutters to Merle, walking away as pain flows through her body with a small limp. Sadie's fists clench and unclench, back still to him, "Don't touch my sister ever again," She seethes, just barely glancing over her shoulder at the sick man. In that moment, Sadie no longer looks like the little girl that needed saving in that gas station.

     The girl before him reminds Merle of Shane and the glares he'd pass around. Glares that didn't need words to be said. You had seconds to comply before you'd meet Shane Walsh's wrath.

       "You really are a Walsh, huh?" He quirks. It takes everything in Sadie for her not to spin around and clock him, keeping him on the ground. She takes the higher ground, walking away to find her sister and Nellie.

  THE GREEN HONDA ROLLS into the prison, Daryl and his motorcycle closely behind.

          A few hours, that's seemingly all it took for Rick and The Governor to come to an agreement.

         The three girl's share a quick concerned look as they're all gathered around as a group to discuss the deal. Rick won't make eye contact with Sadie. The blonde's gut hurts. The Governor brought her up, tried to make her a part of the deal. She knows it. She knows going back to Woodbury at least fixes something about this war.

      Rick holds his head up high, standing by the stairs, "So, I met this Governor. Sat with him for quite a while."

       "Just the two of ya?" Merle questions. Rick nods a quick yes. Merle clicks his tongue, "Should have gone when we had the chance, bro," He says, moving past Glenn and Michonne. Their glares follow him, as well as Nellie's.

        "He wants the prison," Rick continues, "He wants us gone. Dead. He wants us dead for what we did to Woodbury," His eyes finally fall on Sadie but so does silence. Her gut twists even more. She's the one that has to look away or else she might throw up in the middle of this prison.

         "We're goin' to war," Rick announces. A tension that runs deep falls on the group. They all knew it would end up like this. It was a matter of time before it was going to happen.

      A hand wraps around Sadie's shaking one. It's Koa. The younger girl holds Sadie close, as scared as they were when their mom dropped them off, never to be seen again.

        Sadie exhales sharply, landing a kiss to Koa's temple. The younger sighs, closing her eyes and hoping not to lose her sister again. 

"YOU'RE THINKIN' OFFLY HARD over there, Sadie," Nellie says, narrowing her eyes on the girl.

       Sadie blinks, "Hm?" She hums, "Just—we're at war, y'know, normal things a teenage girl needs to worry about." Nellie scoots closer to her on the bed, trying her best at comforting her new found friend. Words don't fall out of her mouth, just puffed up nervous cheeks and the tapping of her boot.

          Instead, Sadie decides to talk. "I think The Governor wanted me to come back as part of the deal. Rick couldn't even look at me when he came back yesterday. And you're gonna say no, I know it but I can't help but think all this shit would be settled if I went back to him." Nellie's foot stops tapping, body rigid.

         "He'd kill you," She whispers. Sadie looks over at Nellie, a defeated expression on her face, "It would be the end to all of this. War. We don't need a war. We have a baby, an old disabled man and a bunch of kids. If one sacrifice—"

        "You're not getting killed for the sake of ending a war like this is the medieval times, Sadie. Rick didn't tell us if he wanted you back for a reason. He's not lettin' you go back there and—neither is Koa, or Carl or—me," Nellie hesitates to be vulnerable. Sadie's eyes light up, giggling at how annoyed Nellie looks with herself.

   She nudges her with her shoulder, "Oh, you care?" She drags out the word like an immature schoolgirl. Nellie scoffs, nudging her right back, "Stop it. Don't make me regret it, Finch."

         Sadie grins at her, as big as it can be given the circumstances, "I'll try my best, Hawthorne."

FOOTSTEPS THUD ALONG THE watchtower as Koa makes her way up it. There's a slight chill in the air, a heavy hoodie in her frame. One that's probably four sizes too big but Maggie found it for her on a run so she'll cherish it.

      Once she reaches the top Koa lets out a dramatic huff, hands on her hips. Rick swiftly turns to face her, "What are you doin' up here?" His rifle is tucked under his arm, a small grin on his face as the teen approaches him. Koa practically skips over to him then leans her body against the rails, "Missed ya. That's all."

A lie. Double lie. Kinda. She missed the man yes but Judith has been incessantly crying, something Koa sucks at curing apparently. Which makes her chest constrict because God, does it feel like she's failing miserably at this big sister thing.

   Also, she can tell Rick was holding something back yesterday. The way his eyes flickered sadly, the way he paused every so often. She has known the man her whole life, Koa knows when Rick is not telling her something. Rick raises a suspicious eyebrow, "I heard Judith is bein' fussy today. That's why you're up here?"

    Koa playfully rolls her eyes, pushing herself up from the railing, "Just seems like I can't—make her stop cryin'. Beth and Sadie do it so easily and Carl ran from me yesterday. I don't know," She looks down at her beat up red Converses, "Feels like I'm not cut out for this."

     "For what?" Rick questions. Koa sighs, hands running through her dark hair, "Being a big sister," She whispers. Rick chuckles, like he can't believe what Koa is saying. She snaps her neck up at him, "Why are you laughin'?" She asks with her own nervous chuckle. A large hand falls to her shoulder, rubbing circles into the skin with his thumb.

Rick looks down at her with the most sincere gaze, "You're doin' great. You've been Carl's older sister long before this. And—Judith is a baby. Babies tend to be difficult," He cups the right side of her face, "Don't fret."

     "All I do is fret!" Koa exclaims, throwing her hands in the air. Rick giggles again at her theater act. After a second, she joins him in the fit of giggles. But as quick as it happens, the quicker the smile is wiped off Rick's face. He walks forward, pointing his rifle towards the forest and looking through the scope.

     "What? What happened?" Koa frantically asks, narrowing her eyes but all she sees is walkers. Her sight peers up at him concerningly, asking herself, 'Is he seeing things again?'

       He's gone silent, still looking into the woods. After a moment, he puts the gun down, shaking his head at his own antics. Rick chuckles, "Uh, nothin'. Why don't you go back into the prison?"

Koa blinks a few times, trying to hide her hurt but Rick watches it flash across her face. He doesn't stop her though from leaving the watchtower and going back into the safety of the prison.

KOA DIDN'T EVEN GET to ask Rick what he held back at the meeting. She's barely seen the former Sheriff since the watchtower the day before.

            She's standing by the fence, making as much noise as possible to attract the walkers along with Maggie, Carl and Sadie to keep them away from the others in the field. The four are shouting different things. Koa is mostly cursing at the creatures, making Sadie giggle every so often. She's taking it in. The new memories she'll take her with her once The Governor has her back in his clunges.

   It's the only way to ensure her family's safety, the only way to ensure the safety of those who blindly took her in. She's had her mind made up since Rick wouldn't look at her. No words from Nellie or Koa can stop her. Rick or Carl can't either. She's used to sacrifices. It's the burden that comes with being the oldest.

      Sadie sacrificed her own safety all the time as a child, letting herself get hit if it meant Koa wouldn't.

       Her eyes shift to Nellie, Daryl, Michonne and Glenn in the pickup truck. Michonne flawlessly swipes the heads off of some walkers while Nellie swings her cleaver into their heads, kicking their bodies away once it's dead.

       So easily they can survive this world. The apocalypse sucks, of course but Sadie felt like it was the first time she'd have someone to protect her. She can't survive this. She's a nuisance. She sucks at shooting guns, her melee isn't all too great and it's kind of hard to punch a walker in the face with their rotten teeth chomping at you.

        Sadie believes if she leaves, it's just overall better for everyone. Koa got over it once, hopefully she can do it twice.

     The pickup truck strolls through the yard and back to the prison. Nellie jumps out of the bed of the vehicle, wiping the blood off her blade on her dirtied jeans. "They try to drive up to the gate again, maybe some blown tires will stop them," Glenn says, referring to the barbed wire they just placed down.

           "That's a good idea," Rick praises. "It was Michonne's," Daryl quickly adds. Nellie watches the two men carefully, noticing the almost annoyed look Rick sends the crossbow wielder.

     "We don't have to win," Michonne speaks, "We just have to make their getting at us more trouble than it's worth."

        "Eh, I'd prefer if we killed the one eyed bastard," Nellie shrugs, glancing over at Daryl, "And someone else," She mumbles so that only her mother hears it. Nellie hates to admit but not everyone in the Dixon family seems to be a dickhead. Daryl is good. He's a good person unlike his older brother.

    The gate closes behind them as the other four walk towards them. They're all smiles carrying the pots and pans back over. "Hey," Maggie calls out. "Sup, bitches," Koa greets, dragging out the curse word. Low giggles fall the others but Rick and Daryl stay stoic. Koa's shoulders drop as she notices their faces.

                       "Let's go," Rick tells them. They all come together, walking back into the prison. Nellie keeps her eyes on Rick, the stiffness of his body and the way he and Daryl keep making quick glances at each other.

                   Something is wrong. Nellie feels it in her gut. It's nagging her to no end. But with no evidence, she keeps her mouth shut, jaw clenched.

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