A/N - I'm impatient for the new season to start, so I decided to write a follow-up. The 'chapter titles' are actually linked verses from a song I heard recently that reminded me of all the love-relucant fictional men I seem to gravitate toward - Murphy came to mind.

This update features jealous!Murphy, swearing and mentions sexual themes, you've been warned!

Murphy could recall at least two gun-enthusiasts from his prison stint, who would've gladly sold their wife and children for the monstrosity Leonard had created. Leonard, if that was in fact his name, had rigged a sniper rifle with the barrel of a tommy-gun. Unless Murph was mistaken, a similar gun existed, but it was military grade and likely hard to come by in the middle of a city. This contraption of a weapon was crude-looking, but judging from the way 10K was continuously pawing it, the gun appeared to be in working order.

10K glanced eagerly from the pioneered gun, to the man who pioneered it. "Shit Leonard.." he murmured in awe, glancing respectfully at the Z swinging from the rafters who wore a sky-blue mechanic shirt with the name 'Leonard' stitched into the breast pocket.

Leonard gargled a response, his rotted jaw clacking open and shut accordingly, as his lifeless eyes stared down at Dana sitting cross-legged in front of him with a sketchbook in her lap. Her head was bent in concentration, loose strands of her hair sprayed across the gaping bitemark at the impasse of her collarbone and her neck. Murphy also lowered his gaze to the brunette female, trying to repress his irritated impatience as he watched her draw Leonard with minimal effort. Murphy could command her to stop of course, he had before, but Murph had done it so often, that 10K had finally noticed and guilted him for it. In fairness, the trio had mostly kept to themselves since separating from Dana's crew, but occasionally a passerby, alive or undead, would catch Dana's attention and inspire her to whip out her sketchbook. Leonard was merely the latest fascination and perhaps the most credible, if he had in fact engineered the gun 10K was fussing over.

"Tommy-Go-Sniping?" Murphy read aloud as Dana scribbled the words above a rough sketch of the gun she had imposed into the corner of her drawing.

"What would you call it?" Dana taunted, flipping her sketchbook shut.

Murphy eyed 10K with a glowering grimace. "I'd call it 10K's New Girlfriend..." he retorted with a smirk.

Already smirking, 10K barely glanced up from his half-open duffelbag. "Well there's sure enough ammo to keep her and me together for a while.."

"And what a perfect match you are - 10K and Tammy..." Dana mused to herself, blindly zipping up her own bag after storing her prized sketchbook inside. She and 10K shared a laugh, while Murphy rolled his eyes and freed Leonard from his noose.

The first breathes of winter frost had begun to coat the grass, the abandoned cars, the toppled streetlights and even the Zs. In the interest of practicality, the trio had decided a cremation facility on the outskirts of town would be the ideal place to hole up for a while. Inconveniently, a hoard of Zs the length of a football field were baring the way. However, such a large congregation of Zs was both a blessing and a curse - assuming Dana, Murph and 10K were able to reach the facility and become settled safely within, no outsiders would be tempted to steal their idea.

"No-no, you aren't playing Z-Herder this time.." Dana told Murphy flatly. "Where's your holiday spirit Murph? We can't knowingly deny 10K and Tammy such a joyous opportunity for reconciliation.." she tutted, her deep blue eyes alight with cheer. "Although I would be wasting a perfectly good chance to smuggle and snuggle 10K through a mob of Zs...hm maybe on second thought, forget I said anything!" Dana teased, a wicked grin pasted atop her scarred chin. A hooded 10K snickered beside her, his bare hands interlocked, fingers fluxing against one another to maintain warmth.

Resting his weight against the chainlink fence, Murphy scowled a bit while surveying Dana. The grey pea-coat Dana had found, was a size too small, and hugged her womanly form tightly. "Tell me how we're supposed to get to our new safe-house then? You know that gun is loud.." he responded stubbornly.

"Well...we could set up 10K in a sniper perch, on the third floor of that building," Dana pointed to a structure not far from where the trio stood. "While you and I create a diversion over..there..to keep the majority of the Zs focused on us, while 10K racks up his killcount.." Dana deduced pointing openly to one section of the area several yards ahead of the group.

"A diversion?" 10K and Murphy echoed in unison.

Dana nodded with an apt smirk. "Me. I've had plenty of chances to draw, but not one excuse to dance. Don't think I'll ever come across a better one than this.."

Murphy snorted a bit. "You're a dancer too, Dainty?"

"Ballet through high school, then..well..not much after, but...I always wanted...why the hell are you snickering 10?" Dana responded, interrupting herself at the sight of 10K's bobbing shoulders.

"Nothin'..just..never would've pictured you in a tutu.." 10K retorted evenly.

Murphy eyed the kid, without looking fully at him. "How do you usually picture her?" he asked, the undertone of his words jagged with jealousy. The smile slipped from 10K's mouth.

"Awe, that's sweet, you made him blush.." Dana cooed stringently, wrapping her arms around Murphy's waist and resting her head against his shoulder. "I don't plan on dancing ballet, not traditionally anyhow. Couldn't in this weather, even if I had the proper shoes for it. But I'm sure I can manage something, all we need is to get one of these cars working, and find some CDs..."

"Music won't be enough?" 10K wondered.

"It might, might not be, didn't really want to chance it honestly. Murph is right, the reverb of that gun draws a lot of attention.." Dana replied.

Murphy cocked his head downward where Dana was still coiled around his midriff. "So what you're saying is you'd rather play the part of attention-whore..." he spat.

Dana separated herself from Murphy with a minor glower. "It's for a good cause Murph. 10K hasn't been able to do much killing lately, and for all we know Christmas has already passed."

If Murphy weren't so bored, he would've compelled Dana to forget these shenanigans. But he was bored, and the thought of Dana prowling atop an 18-wheeler trailer to the rhythm of music, did sound like fun.

Clearing the building for 10K's sniper perch was tedious, Dana hated to admit, but thankfully it didn't take much time. 10K bustled down the seemingly empty hallways, whistling a tune, with Dana covering his back. By the time the four-story building was secure, 10K had only accrued a meager 14 kills. Would've been 18, but Dana had to have her kicks too. Afterward, she and 10K began to barricade a manager's room, in what had clearly been an office space once upon a time.

"Not leaving me a lot of space.." 10K noted.

"Think of it, not as me boxing you in, but as me keeping the Zs boxed out.." Dana said, shifting a bulletin-board closer to the wall.

10K retreated from the window. "Dana.."

"Look, I know this is kinda idiotic, and I don't want it backfiring alright?" Dana admitted, resting her weight against the desk while plucking a strand of hair from the crevice of her lips. "I just want you to be safe."

10K nodded a bit, then shook his head. "You don't have to worry so much. It'll be fine." he assured her with a slight smile.

Dana exhaled her anxiety. "Well I can think of one sure-fire-way to ensure that..." Dana mused to herself, retracting her knife from its sheathe.

"What're you...?" 10K trailed off, watching awe-struck as Dana sliced the underside of her forearm.

"Making you invisible best I can.." Dana explained, dabbing her fingertips into the cut then smearing the blood randomly around the surrounding area. "This should deter the Zs from scrambling toward your hidey-hole..."

10K watched her for several seconds, before tearing the lining of his right sleeve off. He gently grabbed her by the elbow, halting her from further blood-smearing and laced the torn fabric around her bleeding arm, tying it tightly. "Go have some fun..Dainty..." he ordered with a wry grin.

Dana tilted her head, placing her hands on her hips. "I'll go when I'm ready.." she told him plainly. A moment of silence instilled, during which Dana observed 10K with her nose turned up and 10K merely stared at her with an eyebrow crooked. Dana pretended to check her watch, then patted 10K on the jaw. "Mercy the night away 10K..." she said in farewell. Dana heard him smirk as she exited, inspiring a smirk of her own. Dana hadn't walked more than eight feet from 10K's enclosure, when she spotted Murphy lurking in a doorway. "Hey, find what we need?" she asked, crossing her arms.

Murphy didn't respond immediately, merely studying her beneath his furrowed brow. "Took your sweet time...Y'done fondling 10K?" he replied.

"Mmm you caught me." Dana murmured, with a teasing grimace. "I secretly prefer gangly to girth.." she whispered, briefly resting her hands on his chest then running them upward to interlock around his neck.

Dana began to lean in for a kiss, but Murphy waylaid her. "Not telling me anything I couldn't already guess Dainty. Pretty young thing like you, never would've looked twice at me if it weren't for the apocalypse.."

"I don't know about that..." Dana purred, hovering her mouth near his while pressing her body against him. "We artists have unusual taste.."

343 dead Zs later, the trio were safely nestled within the crematory. With Dana in the middle, they sat with their backs to a roaring fire, their feet propped against overturned gurneys, their attention fixated onto a television/vhs combination unit showcasing porn. It was one without a storyline, just pure adultery.

"Everything you hoped it would be, kid?" Murphy asked, resting his cheek against his fist. 10K shrugged mutely in response, his eyes remaining stationary on the screen. "Have you ever even...slept with anyone, before all this?" Murph blurted as an afterthought.

"Why, you offering?" 10K jeered in response, with a look on his face that equally amused and annoyed.

Dana giggled cordially, shifting her weight slightly, the better to see 10K. "I don't think he's a virgin." she declared forthright.

"He never saw porn before Dainty!" Murphy argued.

"Doesn't mean he's a stranger to the act itself...or acts, as the case may be.." Dana countered. "Maybe he was just a wholesome boy once. Before the Zs happened, and he decided to kill ten thousand of 'em..." 10K's mouth flexed into a smile, reverting his focus onto Dana as she gently touched his arm. "But you have seen a Playboy right? Because if not, something really oughta be done about that. I could even draw a pin-up for you...when is your birthday? Roughly, anyway?"

Noticing Dana's eagerness, Murphy felt a belligerent wave of resentment flare within his mind. "Funny, I don't remember you ever making me an offer like that, Dainty..." he stated.

Dana glanced over her shoulder casually. "That's because you have me, you dolt.."

"Or maybe you just wanted to do something naughty for 10K..." Murphy accused.

"I've always been naughty and nice Murph, that's why I never believed in Santa Claus. I knew he wouldn't know what to do with a anomaly like me..." Dana replied shrewdly. Dana's deep blue eyes scrutinized Murphy more closely, though her body remained pivoted in 10K's direction. "C'mon you aren't serious..." she murmured in disbelief.

"I think maybe you should just get him out of your system..." Murphy responded coldly.

"Oh is that what you want?" Dana challenged, with an annoyed tick of her neck. As only an ex-ballerina could, Dana swiveled her legs from their perch against the gurney, and slipped her socked feet into 10K's lap. The motion startled 10K, causing his relaxed shoulders to hunch rigidly in a half-hearted recoil. Dana however, had kept her gaze on Murphy the entire time, gauging his reaction. Murphy's jaw had jutted open in surprise, then seared itself shut in a grueling grimace. "That's what I thought.." Dana hummed knowingly, retracting her feet from 10K's lap, and propelling herself into a standing position. "I'm allowed to flirt with him Murph, if I didn't he'd feel like a third wheel and things would be awkward. But you need to stow the jealousy, here and now..." Dana announced, starting to exit the room.

"I don't take orders from you Dainty..." Murphy replied, his marbled eyes watching Dana's movement. He allowed her to scoff inwardly, and toss her hair like an annoyed mare, then Murphy compelled her to stop walking. Slowly, Dana turned around, and planted herself in Murphy's lap, straddling him with a glazed look. Murphy glanced sideways at 10K. "Get lost kid." he ordered.