𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐄𝐍
𝐔𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐆𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐒
︶꒦꒷★꒷꒦︶

Claire's eyes widened, peeling her eyes away from Hershel's leg to look ahead, five men in inmate uniforms standing behind a a gated off window. "Who the hell are you?" Daryl huffed, keeping his crossbow drawn.

"Who the hell are you?" One of the men quipped back, Rick shaking his head at the wound. "He's bleeding out, we gotta go back." Claire kept her hand against the wound as Glenn handed her a dirty rag. "Keep pressure on the knee, Claire." Claire nodded, replacing her hand with the rag. She watched with chocked back cries as the rag quickly began to soak with blood, her eyes trailing up her arms, which were covered in the sticky red substance up to her wrists. "Here, give it to me." Maggie mumbled, grasping the bloody rag in Claire's hand. The blonde nodded weakly, passing the rag off to Maggie, "Keep it tight." She muttered, standing to her feet and backing away from the bloody scene.

"Why don't you come on out of there? Slow and steady." Claire looked up at Daryl, who was keeping his crossbow locked on the men as they stepped into the room.

"What happened to him?" A man with the arms of his blue jumpsuit tied around his waist asked, Daryl not taking his eyes off him, "He got bit."

"Bit?"

The man grabbed a gun from the front of his jumpsuit, T-Dog pointing his gun at him as Claire pulled her own gun from her pocket. "Woah, woah, woah. Easy now. Nobody needs to get hurt." Daryl adjusted his grip on the crossbow, the man now pointing his gun at T-Dog.

Claire's heart thumped in her ears, shaky fingers holding the gun at her side tightly. Glenn rushed forwards, asking about medical supplies as he slipped into the room the men were just in. The man moved his gun over to Glenn, "Woah, where do you think you're going?" Claire instinctively lifted her gun, laying her finger against the trigger and pointing it at him.

The man noticed this, spinning back towards the blonde with his gun now pointed at her. In her peripheral, she saw Roman lurch forward with his own pistol aimed at the guy, glaring pointedly at him with a raised brow.

The walkers outside the door snarled against the metal, Claire dragging her eyes away from the prisoners to glance at the door, then at Hershel as Rick attempted to sit the unconscious man up.

"Who the hell are you people, anyway?" The man with the gun questioned, the man beside him looking around at each of them, "Don't look like no rescue team."

"If a rescue team is what you're waiting for—" Rick grunted, "Don't." Clattering came from the back room, Glenn rushing back in seconds later with a metal rolling table. "C'mon, we gotta go!" Rick shouted, him and Glenn hoisting Hershel up on the table. Claire swallowed thickly as the man kept his gun aimed in her direction, her view of the prisoners being cut off as Roman stepped in front of her.

"C'mon T!" Rock shouted, pushing the table Hershel was on towards the door. "Are you crazy? Don't open that!" One of the prisoners shouted, T-Dog yanking the crowbar from the door and kicking it open, "We got it!" A walker in riot gear tumbled in, T-Dog quickly kicking it and shoving the crowbar up its neck under the mask.

Rick and Maggie pushed the table out, Roman reaching his free hand back to gently push Claire in the direction of the door. She rushed over to the others, Roman and Daryl keeping their weapons aimed at the prisoners, walking backwards as they exited the room.

Claire's vision went dark again, adjusting slowly to the lack of light in the hallways. They hastily made their way through the halls, Claire yanking her flashlight out as she followed close behind Maggie. "This way! No this way!" Rick shouted, the group following the spray painted arrows as walkers rounded a corner.

Claire attempted to swallow her fear and panic, Daryl killing the stray walkers while Rick ushered them down the halls.

Claire paused at the sound of a door opening and muffled talking, Rick stopping the movements of the table as they each looked back behind them. Seconds later, the prisoners emerged around the dark corner, Rick rushing them back down the hallways towards their safe haven. "Go, go, go, go!" Daryl whispered, Roman keeping his back towards them and eyes on the prisoners, the group pushing the table towards the gate.

Daryl hastily opened it with his keys, allowing Maggie and Rick to push Hershel in. "He's losing too much blood!" Maggie cried, Rick shouting out for Carl. "Open the door! It's Hershel! Carl, c'mon!"

Claire looked back as Daryl perched himself at a table, his crossbow on the entrance, T-Dog preparing to attack on the side. Roman paused beside Daryl, drawing his gun and aiming it at the doorway as well. He gestured for her to follow the others into the cell block, the blonde nodding and spinning around to rush in. She grabbed the keys from Carl, the young boy running back to his dad as Claire slammed the gate shut and locked it.

She swallowed nervously, shaking hands staring into the room the men were in before spinning around to go into Hershel's cell.

"Think you can stabilize him?"

Claire skidded to a stop outside the cell, glancing down at the caked up and dried blood on her hands. "I need to keep his leg elevated." Carol panicked, Kira rushing down the stairs with rags in hand. Kira's eyes met Claire's for a moment as she rushed into the cell to give the rags to Carol.

Marcus exited his cell sleepily, eyes widening at the blood on Claire's hands. "What happened?" He panicked, running over to her. "It's-it's not mine." She mumbled, pointing to the cell. He glanced inside, face falling as he stepped in and fell against the cell doorway, "What happened?"

Claire's hands went numb, ears ringing loudly as she took a couple steps away, pressing her back against the wall. If Hershel turned, everything would change. He's their doctor, their word of wisdom. If Hershel died, Maggie and Beth would be lost, Loris birth would be harder than it already was going to be.

Claire snapped from her disassociation at the sounds of shouting from the outer room, looking up as Rick rushed towards the gate. She swallowed thickly, stumbling over to the gate and shoving the key in, opening it for him. She went to follow, but Rick stopped her, "No, stay here. We need all hands on deck for this."

She looked past him, "Romans out there-"

"And you're in here. Those prisoners don't stand a chance against us. Lock it behind me." Claire sighed, nodding and locking the gate behind him. Carl appeared at her side as she gripped the bars, pressing her burning forehead against the cold metal. "Is Hershel gonna die?"

She looked down at the boy, who looked up at her through the sheriffs hat on his head. She shook her head, "I sure hope not." She didn't want to sugar coat it. You couldn't sugar coat things in this world, it protected you from nothing but the harsh reality.

Hershel's bleeding had slowed, but so had his breathing. Carol was mumbling about antibiotics and bandages, Glenn and Maggie standing outside the cell whispering to each other.

Claire rubbed her hands together from her spot on the bottom steps, watching the blood ball up and flake away onto the floor. The blood had fully dried on her hands, as well as the blood and tears on her cheeks, leaving her skin sticky and taut. Hershel wasn't doing good, and Claire knew well of the harsh reality that would more than likely befall them within the next hour.

"Foods here!"

Claire looked up, watching as Carl opened the gate and T-Dog, Rick and Roman entered, carrying boxes and bags of food. She stood to her feet, Carl smiling up at his dad, "What you got?"

"Canned beef, canned corn, canned...cans." T-Dog joked, "There's a lot more where this came from."

T-Dog and Roman walked over to the storage cell on the other side of the cell block, Claire following after Roman as he set the food down inside. "What happened?"

Roman turned back to her, placing his hands on his hips as Carl smiled brightly at the cans of food. He grasped her arm, pulling her over to the side where Carl couldn't hear. "Rick made a deal with them."

"A deal?"

"Yeah—" He sighed, "We help them clear out a cell block to live in, we get half the food." Claire scoffed, "They're gonna live here? With us? Roman, they're criminals."

Roman nodded, "I know, but the deal was that they stay the fuck away from us—or Rick puts a bullet in their brains." Claire chuckled sarcastically, clapping her hands together, "Great. I've always wanted to be neighbors with 5 murders."

Romans eyes locked on her bloody hands, registering the blood caked on her face as well. His face fell, reaching a hand up to rub his clean thumb against the dried blood on her cheek. She peeled her eyes off the table of food at the skin contact, looking up at him with a staggered breath. "Wash that off. You look terrifying."

Claire blinked, before a chuckle escaped her, "Fuck you."

★

Claire bit her lip, peering inside Hershel's cell, where Maggie was crying into his chest. "Mags?" She whispered, stepping inside and kneeling down beside her. T-Dog, Roman, Rick Daryl and Marcus had left to clear a cell block with the prisoners, leaving the rest of them behind to worry about Hershel and settle food schedules.

"I can't lose him." Maggie cried, clutching his shirt tightly. Claire frowned, eyes flooding with tears as she placed a now clean hand on Maggie's back, "I'm so sorry, Mags."

Maggie pulled back from Hershel, turning towards Claire and wrapping her arms around her. Claire hugged her back, a lump forming in her throat as Maggie cried into her shoulder for a while, releasing the built up emotions she had been holding in.

The others piled into the cell, Claire helping Maggie to her feet as Carol and Lori bent down to check his vitals.

Maggie clung to Claire as she grabbed Beth's hand, tears clearing as attempted to appear strong for her little sister.

Claire pulled away from Maggie to peer out of the cell, watching as the other gate closed and Carl emerged with a duffel bag in hand. "I thought you were organizing the food, stink." Carl smiled up at the girl, stepping past her and dropping the duffel bag beside Carol, "Even better. Check it out."

Beth and Maggie dropped beside it, Glenn looking over Claire's shoulder as Kira gaped at the medical supplies. The lump that had been sitting in Claire's throat for hours slowly disappeared at the sight of gauze, bandage and hydrogen peroxide.

"Where did you get this?" Carol gasped, Carl shrugging, "From the infirmary. Wasn't much left but I cleared it out."

"You went by yourself?" Loris voice was shocked and disappointed, but Carl thought nothing of it, "Yeah."

Claire frowned down at the boy, "Are you crazy?" Her and Lori spoke at the same time, Carl looking up at Claire and shaking his head defensively, "No big deal. I killed two walkers."

Lori gaped at her son, gesturing to Hershel, "Alright do—do you see this? This was with a whole group." "We needed supplies so I got them-"

"I appreciate that but-"

"Then get off my back!" Carl shouted, Beth cutting him off quickly, "Carl! She's your mother. You can't talk to her like that."

Lori went to speak, but Carl took off out of the cell with a huff. Claire inhaled deeply, nodding at Lori, "I got it." Lori smiled at the blonde in appreciation as Claire rushed after him.

She stopped at his cell, eyes softening at the sight of him laying on his bed, back to the door and Sheriffs hat on the floor beside the bed, "Hey, stink."

"I was just trying to help."

Claire sighed, walking over and sitting on the bed behind him, looking back at him, "And you did. You helped more than you can imagine. It was incredibly brave and selfless of you to go off and find the infirmary." Carl turned slowly, adjusting on his other side to look at her. She smiled at him, reaching up and brushing his brown hair from his face.

"But we can't go out there alone. We always need to be with someone. What would've happened if there were more than two walkers? And you couldn't fight them off? Or you got stuck? We wouldn't have known where you were. Your mother only worries about your safety." Carl sighed, looking away from Claire, "I'm not a baby."

Claire smiled and shook her head, "No. You're not a baby—but you're still her son. She's stressed out about Hershel, she's stressed about the baby, and she's stressed about your dad. Let's try not to add stressing about her son to that list right now, okay?"

Carl huffed, before nodding, "You can go back to being stressful after the baby. Okay?" Carls lips tugged with a smile, before he shrugged, "Fine."

Claire stood from the bed, Carl following behind her, "Now—" She bent down and grabbed the hat, placing it crookedly on top of Carls head, "Next time you want to explore, ask me and I'll come with you. 'Kay?"

Carl chuckled, adjusting the hat to sit properly on his head, opening his mouth to speak before clamping it shut at the sounds of crying echoing around the cell block.

They rushed towards Hershel's cell, where Maggie and Beth hovered over their father. Beth cried out, grasping her fathers unmoving body, "Do something! Somebody help! Somebody!"

Claires eyes flooded with tears, gripping Carls shoulder to turn him away from the scene, but he resisted against her. Lori rushed in, beginning mouth to mouth and CPR, muttering under breath.

Hershel lurched forward, grabbing Lori by the neck. Claire gasped, Maggie and Beth yawning Lori away from a gasping Hershel. Claire wrapped her arms around Carls chest, pointing her gun at the man and stepping backwards as Hershel came back to life. But he was back out in a second, soft snores escaping him as Maggie and Beth cried in shock.

★

Claire watched Hershel tiredly, leaning her head back against the cell wall. Her ears perked up at the sound of the gate opening, peering up from her place on the floor as Rick appeared. "Hershel stopped breathing. Mom saved him."

"It's true." Glenn mumbled, Ricks eyes landing on the blonde as he placed a hand on Beth's back. "Still no fever." Lori muttered, Rick nodding as he looked down at a sleeping Hershel.

Claire looked away from Rick and up at Roman, who leaned against the cell doorway. He had blood splatter on his face, a tired look in his eyes as he watched.

She stood to her feet, brushing the dust off her stained black cargo jeans. She gave him a questioning look, stepping out of the cell with him following. "The long haired guy, with the gun—Thomas— he tried to kill Rick." He whispered, looking up the stairs where Kira and Marcus now sat at the top whispering to each other, Kira's face falling as Marcus told her the events of what happened.

Claire's face fell, furrowing her brows and looking up at him. "And he killed one of the other guys, Tiny. And then Rick killed him, and then he killed the other one—Andre, who also tried to kill him. It was a stick up."

"Jesus Christ." Claire muttered, pressing her fingers against her lips, "And the other two?" Roman sighed, placing his hands on his hips, "Petty criminals. Didn't have anything to do with it, Rick stuck 'em in cell block D."

Claire sighed, eyes scanning his dirty face, biting the dry skin on her bottom lip. She lifted her hand to his cheek, wiping the still fresh blood splatter from his cheek, "Who's terrifying now?"

Roman rolled his eyes, pushing her hand from his cheek. "Hershel basically died, thank God Lori knows CPR. Carl went off on his own; found the infirmary-"

She paused, looking past Roman at Hershel's cell, where everyone had gathered around. She furrowed her brows in confusion, slowly waking over and stepping beside Carl. Roman followed, standing behind Claire as the group fell into silence.

This was it. Claire thought, It's happening now.

Hershel's breathing was so shallow she couldn't see his chest move, and she took prolonged blinks to prevent more tears. And then, Hershel opened his eyes, blinking softly as he looked around at his daughters.

"Daddy?" Maggie and Beth lurched forward, Rick smiling and unlocking the handcuff from Hershel's wrist.

Claire smiled, a relieved breath she didn't know she was holding escaping her as she pressed her hand to her chest; heart beating rapidly under her fingertips.

Hershel reached up from Rick, Beth moving out of the way so Rick could kneel beside him and take the man's hand. Rick looked around at the group with a relieved look, smiling at his son before back at Hershel, who had fallen back asleep.

Rick rushed out of the room, Claire stepping back to take a deep breath of relief.

Thank god. She smiled, a relieved chuckle escaping her as she sat on the steps. Kira exited the room next, taking the spot beside Claire with a smile. "Well, saved us a little trauma, I suppose."

"Shut up."