We reach a ragtag little place just as the sun brushes the treetops. It doesn't look like much from the outside. There's a smattering of houses, something that looks like a gas station, and a few other buildings. Elliot moves on ahead with Lightning at his heels, scanning the area. I remain standing between Daryl, Aaron, and Eric.

My light brown eyes flicker everywhere, my hand clenched around my knife. It's been so long...far too long, I should say, since I've been in action. I'm rusty, something that I need to fix.

I glance down at myself, biting the inside of my cheek lightly. The baby weight doesn't help. This new endeavour of survival can help me get some of my old physique back.

"Hey, guys," Elliot calls, his voice low.

He gestures for us to come closer, a command that we obey. He points to one of the buildings near the gas station, where a white flag has been hung. A red cross is marked on it, seeming to have been drawn with a marker or old paint. I know what that symbol means, and Elliot must know too.

"Medical supplies," I breathe. I look to Aaron and Eric with a new hope sparking in my eyes. "We can stitch your leg up."

"Oh, good," Eric says with a flimsy smile. "I'm feeling a little tipsy."

"Let's make it quick. We don't need any more excitement tonight," Daryl says.

He shifts, one arm remaining secured around the bundle that's Theo, his other arm holding his crossbow up. I let out a small sigh. He's back to being the Daryl Dixon that I fell in love with; covered in dirt, surviving on the road, crossbow in hand. Only now, he's carrying our son.

This is turning out better than I expected.

We move towards the medical house, scanning for walkers the entire way. We seem to be luckier than most, or perhaps this is simply the calm before the storm. All the walkers are either dead, following the herd that attacked Alexandria, or somewhere else.

At the thought of Alexandria, my stomach twists. I look over my shoulder, brushing my brunette curls from my face as I gaze back down the road. My family is back there. Rick, Michonne, Maggie; for all I know, they're back in that Walker-infested town with no way out. The naïve part of me desperately hopes that they found a way out, and that part of me speaks louder than anything else.

Now that I think of it, it always has.

"Hope, I think we're clear," Daryl calls, making me snap out of my daze.

I look back at my tiny group, the setting sun leaving a reddish glow on the path before us. I smile and jog to catch up with them, seeing that they've managed to get the door to the medical house open.

Inside, it's a rather sorry sight. There's a lot of cots, which is a good thing. A few corpses lay on one or two of the said cots, obviously wounds in their temples letting us know that they won't be reanimating anytime soon. There's large cabinets lining the walls of what looks like a kitchen slash operating room, littered with pill bottles and bandages among other medical supplies. This place looks like it was recently habited, or it was just not caught by survivors that've passed through here.

"I'll clear the bodies," Elliot offers, jerking his head towards the bloodied cots. He smiles at Eric and Aaron. "You two can find a cleaner spot and settle down. I'll help you in a minute."

"I'll make a fire," Aaron says, helping Eric to a bed and settling him in. "I'm sure there's a fireplace somewhere in the house, or at least something we can use," he adds.

The curly-haired man gets up as Elliot nods to him, hurrying off to another section with his weapon at the ready. Lightning barks, trotting after her master as he moves to the bodies. I watch as the tall black man grasps one of the corpses and drags it off the bed, shuffling towards the door. The body's leg completely comes off, but Lightning snatches it in her jaws and carries it like nothing.

I can't help but chuckle as I look towards the medical stash, glad for our stroke of fortune. Daryl walks over to a nearby bed and sits down, wincing as he adjusts himself. I frown and move towards him, not liking how dark it's gotten inside the home.

"Are you alright? Did something happen on the road?" I ask, swinging my backpack off my shoulder and setting it beside him.

He sighs. "Nothin' big. Just a thin' on my shoulder."

I shuffle around to his back, checking his shoulders. A small gash on the back of his left shoulder blade comes to my attention, making my eyes widen slightly in alarm. I part his vest a little bit, noticing him flinch a tiny bit as my fingers brush the edges.

"How'd this happen?" I ask.

"Bunch of guys out on the road," he answers, his rough voice quiet. "Biker gang. Guy was tougher than he looked."

I take a few steps, positioning my body in front of him. "Alright, well you need to take your shirt off so I can clean it up. Mind letting go of mini Dixon for a moment or two?"

He looks up at me, his baby blue eyes glistening with amusement. "Yeah, just so long as you give him back."

I lean closer to him, a small smirk toying along my lips. "No promises, babe."

I peck his nose, making him chuckle before he leans up and steals another kiss. I help him remove the carrier, both of us trying to minimize the disruptive nature of our task. Theo yawns and smacks his lips together, remaining asleep for now. He'll be awake soon in need of food and a diaper change.

I place Theo back in Daryl's lap as I dig proper supplies out of my bag. I settle myself behind my husband, putting antiseptic on the wound. He doesn't move, the only indications towards discomfort being the blinking of his eyelids being harder once in a while.

Elliot makes quick work of the extra cots, him and Lightning scouting out the rest of the house. Aaron returns and tells us that, thankfully, there's a fireplace in a sitting room sort of area. He can build the fire as soon as wood is gathered.

"Break a few chairs," Daryl suggests as I stitch his injury closed. "Don't need the damn thin's anyways."

Aaron laughs at the comment. "I guess that's true." He glances towards the kitchen, where Elliot is scanning the medicinal cupboards for useful items. "Elliot, mind if I borrow your axe and some matches?"

The man turns around, nodding. "Sure, just give me a knife for backup or something."

They exchange. Elliot moves to Eric's side and starts working on the fresh wound, which is on the opposite leg of the one that Eric hurt way back when my group first came to Alexandria. He really doesn't have a whole lot of luck with things like that.

I finish helping Daryl, pressing a kiss or two to his broad shoulders before allowing him to re-clothe himself. True to my prediction, Theo wakes up in a less than happy mood. I take the opportunity to show Daryl how to change a diaper.

Things go smoothly for us, at least for a little while. Theo sleeps again, cuddled in a basket that Aaron scavenged from other areas of the house. It's as good a crib as we're going to get, but Theo doesn't seem to care either way.

Daryl and I wander outside, listening to Elliot swap jokes with Aaron and Eric, Lightning keeping constant vigilance over Theo's little crib. The night air rustles our hair as we look out at everything, feeling almost peaceful for a second.

"Weird, bein' out here again," Daryl comments, wrapping an arm around my waist.

I nod, resting my head on his shoulder. "I hope the others are okay."

"Me too."

We watch everything for a little while longer. The wind dances through the trees, throwing leaves around and sending them tumbling and turning towards the ground like strange dancers. The buildings remain still and dark, ours being the only one with any sign of life within. I gaze at the peeling paint and the rotting shutters, finding myself in a sort of awe.

Mankind used to be the most powerful species on the planet. We colonized and grew and innovated and forced nature back just to find new ways to make money, among other reasons. As soon as we're gone, nature comes back. That's evident by the plants growing all over the walls of the houses, the trees and the forests seeming to creep closer and closer without the threat of deforestation hanging over them.

We humans aren't so powerful.

"HELP! HELP!"

Daryl and I perk up at the same time, the ringing voice bringing us out of our daze. We move off the porch of the medical house, seeing the figure of a man running towards the town. There's another person, a boy, cradled in his arms as he runs. A woman runs along behind him.

Daryl and I realize who they are at the exact same time.

"Rick!" Daryl shouts. "Michonne!"

My gut lurches as my hand flies to my mouth. The boy in Rick's arms...

"Daryl, Hope...please tell me you can help him," Rick pleads, coming to a stop near us as he holds his son closer to his chest.

I stare at Carl, one of his eyes completely gone. Michonne's chest heaves as she looks between Daryl and me, her face covered in a sheen of sweat. I nod and usher them to the house, my heart pounding as I go into medical mode.

"Elliot! Emergency surgery!" I shout as I shove the door open.