This is it. The story does not deal with what did or not did not happen at the prison. Carol is not "rescued" by any one. She is not redeemed by some sacrificial act and she does not have to die to further any other character's development. She just does whatever she needs to keep the people she loves alive for as long as fate allows.

All the Way Home

It seemed to Carol that Daryl held her even closer that night. Carol was fearful about the next day; she was didn't know if she was more scared that her extended family would reject her or just afraid that none existed in this world. It was dangerous to travel that far with just the two of them but she wouldn't risk anyone else in this last step of a journey that she had been on since she was ten. She had been dragged off the mountain by her mother on the day of her father's funeral. That was over thirty years ago and she was finally going home tomorrow.

Carol and Daryl were up early the next morning. Carol had asked Morgan and Michonne to look after Lizzie and Mika for her; they were the two that she trusted the most. Carol kissed and hugged the girls goodbye and Daryl slapped them lightly on the head and told them to behave themselves.

The girls hugged him anyway. Daryl drove and Carol grabbed the map as if she needed it to find McAllister Mountain and got in the passenger seat.

They filled the compact truck up at a town on the way. It looked to be about 75 miles to Adair the town closest to McAllister Mountain so a full tank was more than enough to get there and back. Carol was nervous about the trip. She just sort of walked around while Daryl was getting the gas and he recognized that she was anxious. He had accepted that his family was gone but Carol must have some hope that some of her blood kin was there.

They stopped once and shared a canteen of water. He hugged her close and whispered, "I love you."

Carol hugged him back, "I love you, Daryl and I always will."

They got back into the truck and the foothills had grown into mountains. The road was wide and clear of traffic and they made good time. There was a road block in front of them. It was on a long straight section of the road and there was no hint of danger. Daryl and Carol walked toward the road block and a voice called out, "Voyager, what is your business here."

Carol called out, "I am Carol McAllister and I am looking for any family that I might have here".

One of the men came out from behind the concrete barrier, "Carol Ann McAllister? I haven't seen you in over thirty years." He came toward her and Daryl saw big dark haired man come toward them.

Carol stared at the big man and tried to imagine the boy that he would have been. She narrowed her eyes when she got it. "Brian McKenzie". Her tone was not particularly friendly.

The big man laughed, "You haven't forgiven me in all this time, what a hard hearted woman you turned out to be. Jesse and I are good friends; he has forgiven me at least."

Daryl got the catch in Carol's voice as she said, "Jesse, my cousin Jesse Graham is still alive".

Brian shook Daryl's hand and in a what the hell move hugged Carol, "He is alive and living in his mother's place up on the mountain. Ashton, Emily, and Patrick all live up there and now the last prodigal McAllister has come home."

Carol remembered the manners her grandmother taught her and introduced Daryl to Brian McKenzie. Brian waved them around the barriers and they were back on the road.

Carol directed them to a road headed up a mountain and they soon reached a sign that read, "McAllister Mountain, North Carolina, Population...growing". Daryl laughed and said that was a good sign.

There were farms and houses on both sides of the narrow paved road. Most of the yards around the houses had high fences. There were children playing within the fences and there were people working in gardens around the houses. Carol and Daryl exchanged glances; they were seeing a place in which people were still living like people.

Daryl kept driving and the road turned became steeper and he paid attention to the curves in the road. They were still passing houses and small farms. Carol kept motioning him upward and she asked him to stop in front of a compound. The fences were secure and strong and within the ground were three log homes built around a circular driveway. Carol said,"This was where my Uncle John lived but that isn't the house."

Daryl drove the truck on up the road and stopped when Carol told him to stop. This compound had the same kind of fencing but there was a large log house and a barn. Daryl could see storage buildings toward the back of the lot. The driveway was graveled through the property and there was a locked gate at the entrance. Carol got out and stood at the gate but this was not the same house that she remembered. It was similar but seemed larger than she remembered.

They turned and saw two men walking toward them. They were hurrying toward them and Daryl went automatically into protect mode, but Carol was walking toward them. The oldest man said, "I would recognize you anywhere Carol you look exactly like Grandma Nancy. " The other man spoke, "My Carol, can it be you?" There was a group hug and Daryl wasn't really surprised that all three of them had tears in their eyes. He looked the men over. One was a silver haired man with Carol blue eyes and the other was a mixed race man with golden skin and blue eyes. Carol introduced the silver haired man as Ashton McAllister and the younger man as Jesse Graham. The men stood on either side of Carol and held her hand.

Ashton wiped the tears from his eyes. "There is a lot to catch up on. More than you can possibly imagine Carol. Let's go into this house and I'll explain it to you."

Caro said, "I want to go up to the cemetery before I go in the house". The two men nodded and when Daryl went with her they opened the gate and walked toward the house.

Carol started toward a side road that wound around the hill toward the top. Daryl walked with her and they were soon at a family graveyard. Carol went to a gravestone and Daryl read the inscription. Captain Michael McAllister. Carol's father's grave and Daryl was shocked to know that he had died at such a young age. Carol moved to a large gravestone with two names. James McAllister and Ann McAllister. Carol's grandparents. Carol gasped and Daryl was surprised by the utter fury in her expression. He had never seen Carol look that angry.

"She told me that Grandma was dead. That nobody up here wanted me. She told me that when I was ten and I still believed in what she said. Oh, God. How could she do anything that cruel? Carol's voice was torn between pain and anger and Daryl looked at the gravestone. Ann McAllister died five years ago not more than thirty. Carol had mourned her grandmother for over three decades and she had been alive for almost all that time.

Daryl hugged Carol to him. Gradually she calmed down, and Daryl walked with her back to the house. The gate was shut but not locked. They followed the gravel road to the house and crossed the wide porch than ran the front of the house and through the open doorway.

Ashton and Jesse were making swiping motions at the dust in the house. There was a large great room with leather couches and a dining area. Ashton sat Carol and explained that the house and the farm belonged to Carol. Grandma Nancy had left it to her in her will all the time insisting that Carol would be back someday and would need a big house because she would be bringing people with her. The house had been completely remodeled years ago to survive almost anything.

Ashton showed Daryl how to turn the water on from the spring and how to light the wood burning hot water heater. Carol and Jesse walked through the house. There was a master suite at the back with a bathroom and upstairs four bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.

Carol thought the house was both beautiful and utilitarian. Both Jesse and Ashton were sure that she was going to live here but she needed to talk to Daryl. She didn't want to live anywhere unless Daryl was there. No house was worth not being with Daryl.

Ashton and Daryl came back and Ashton and Jesse left them there with keys. Daryl had told Ashton that he and Carol were going back and bring up their girls. Carol showed Daryl the basement with shelves loaded with food. Then she showed them the master bedroom with its king size bed. Daryl laughed, "That's no granny bed".

Carol went into the bathroom and found that the water was warm in the bathroom. She looked at the shower and thought of the bed. Daryl sat in the chair beside of the bed and thought this place was special. Carol had come back from the bathroom and stood there looking at him. "There is warm water in the bathroom." She looked through the linen closet in the hallway and found sheets and blankets. She came back to the bedroom with some sheets and a blanket and saw that Daryl was still sitting there.

He said, "You are mine".

Carol loved him but she couldn't stop the automatic shrinking back when he said that. Belonging to somebody had not worked well for her in the past.

Daryl continued, "Mine to love and to cherish. Mine to hunt for and protect. Mine to trust and to talk to in the middle of the night. Mine to go the distance with and mine to sit beside of on that porch and watch the sun go down with. Mine. Carol, please be mine."

Carol relaxed, "You are mine, Daryl" and she threw the blanket over the bed. Daryl stood up and smiled at her. She started taking her clothes off and Daryl kicked off his boots and his clothes.

Carol found that sex with Daryl was even better than imagining that she was having sex with Daryl. He found that he loved her more than he thought he had before. They found together all that they could want and wish for from the other. It was good from the get go and only got better.

Afterward, they took a hot shower in their bathroom and reluctantly got dressed. Daryl stood in the bedroom and said, "I know the rest of the house will be a like a hotel because we are never going to live in a house with just us. There are always going to be a bunch of people hanging around, but this room is just ours. Right?"

Carol agreed that their bedroom would be just for them.

They got back down to the farm in time to pack up the girls and all those who wanted to relocate to McAllister Mountain. Maggie, Glenn, and Beth were the first ones to decide the go. Rick, Carl, and Judith signed on too. Michonne was the last one to sign on.

Daryl took Rick aside and told him that if ever did anything to Carol again that he would kick his ass all the way from McAllister Mountain to this farm. Rick took it well.

Morgan had run into his old group that day and they were planning to move up in the mountains close to Adair. Morgan was going with them. Sasha, Tyreese, and Bob had decided to go with Morgan's group. Carol took Michonne aside and told her that Morgan was a really great guy but she had a cousin named Jesse Graham who was single and she wanted to fix her up with him.

Michonne liked Morgan but she wasn't in love with him. She was going with Carol and Daryl because she was attached to these people. She did not intend to be fixed up with Carol's cousin.

It was almost sunset when the caravan arrived on the hill. Daryl unlocked the gate and they drove their vehicles including the two cows that Daryl and Morgan how found. The house had been swept and dusted while they were gone. Someone had left a huge casserole of vegetable lasagna on the stove. The beds were made and everyone dragged their few possessions in.

Daryl sat on the front porch with Carol and watched the sun go down. They let the others settle themselves in while they sat in the rockers and talked to each other. Later Carol went in and checked on the girls who had a bedroom together upstairs. They talked for a long time about the house and the things that they would have to do make a good life there.

Daryl had walked the fence with Glenn and Rick. They checked the barn and the outbuildings. They locked the gate and the doors on the house and all of the windows. Glenn and Rick went upstairs and Daryl went into his bathroom and brushed his teeth. He looked at the bed and tried to figure which would be his side. He went with the side away from the bathroom in case Carol had to go in the night. He grabbed his few clothes and put them in the chest of drawers on his side and took out his collection of natural guide books and put them on his bedside table.

Carol walked into the bedroom and found Daryl in bed reading a book. He looked quite at home on their big bed and he smiled at her. She went into the bathroom and got ready for bed like she had done the same thing a thousand times. It was really good be home.`