Author's Note: HAPPY EASTER LITTLE ZOMBIES :DDDDDDD Hope you all got at least a little bit of candy from somewhere this morning! And yes! An update!

*Fanfare*

Now, for those of you who noticed the little completed mark up at the corner there of my little story, I have a perfectly good explanation. It's over, at least Blame It On Bad Luck is, and it's because we're rapidly growing in chapters and length, and I feel bad for any new readers who are going to pick it up. So, once season 3 starts (I CAN'T FUCKING WAIT FOR SEASON 3 TO STARTTTTTT) there will be a whole new story, with a whole new plot, but the same, Cursin' Cali that you all know and love!

Secondly, do not miss me too much! I've got plans to renew Landing Feet First, because I've figured out where they want to go now…although I can't seem to kill anyone anymore because somebody (Kathleensmiles) keeps getting angry every time someone dies.

And of course, Cali is also currently starring in a Supernatural Fic called Prelude To The End. Hope you check it out :D

And guess what! In here, I have a theory as to why Hershel was like the fucking Candyman of magic bullets with his stupid shotgun. It took several conversations with a Redneck for me to understand what he was saying, but I think we figured it out!

Oh, and in response to the Season Two Finale…T DOG DID NOT JUST SUGGEST THAT THEY GO TO THE COAST! ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME! AMC, THIS ISN'T FUNNY ANYMORE! I'M BUSTIN' MY ASS COMING UP WITH THIS STUFF! I BETTER GET PAID OR SOMETHING!

Now finally, onto the end!

Disclaimer: I don't own The Walking Dead, and in this chapter there is swearing, duh, violence, racism, blood, death and a bunch of other fun things.

Chapter 27: Weep Little Lion Man, You're Not As Brave As You Were At The Start

The storm rolled, but it wasn't the clouds that gave way to the great force of nature. It wasn't the trees that bowed showing their submission to the power, and it wasn't the dust that was kicked into the air by its fury. The storm rolled and raged, and it all took place in the Greene's living room. Cali sat curled up as tight as she could in the corner, while Beth and Jimmy sat near her. They had tried putting on a card game, but it hadn't played out. Cali was on one hell of an edge, and Beth was picking up on the vibe. Something was wrong, every person in that room could feel it, but no one wanted to say anything, or try to break the uneasy silence.

They had been gone too long. All four of them. Randall was a bum kneed, underfed kid, and there was no way he knew the woods like the back of his hand. Not like Daryl did, and there was no way he could take down Rick, Shane, Daryl and Glenn…so what the hell was taking them so long. There was no way that Randall could've gotten far…and why would he run? He knew they weren't going to kill him right? Someone had to have told him…

She only swallowed again, and trailed her fingers along her aluminum bat, and prayed through her breathing. She hadn't really sat down and prayed for a while, so she was making sure that she was extra good about it right now. After all, she still had her hope. She still believed. This world had taken a lot from her, but she wasn't going to let it take this.

Finally, Andrea broke the silence. "I'm going after them."

"Don't." Lori immediately answered. "They could be anywhere, and if Randall comes back we're going to need you."

The screen door screeched the arrival of someone, and everyone's heads perked up like a group of Walkers who heard a noise. They all turned to the door and waited as Daryl walked in, and Glenn trailed behind him. They looked a little dirty, but no worse for the wear. Cali let out a breath she'd been choking on for the past twenty minutes as both her boys walked in. Alive, they were both alive. Daryl glanced around the room, and frowned. "Rick and Shane ain't back?"

"Nope."

"We hear' a shot."

"Maybe they found Randall?" Lori tossed out.

"We found him."

"He back in the shed?" Carol asked.

"He's a Walker." Daryl answered, and the room looked around at each other. He wasn't even gone a few hours. Cali swallowed hard, and prayed again that Dale wouldn't be just disgusted with how things turned out for him. They had tried; they seriously had, to give the kid a chance.

"Did you find the Walker that bit him?" Hershel asked.

"Yeah see, the weird thing is…he wasn't bit." Glenn sadly informed the group of people. Daryl nodded.

"His neck was broke."

"So, he fought back?" Patricia asked. Daryl shook his head.

"See, th' thing is, Shane and Randall's tracks'r right on top of each other. An' Shane ain't no tracker. Didn't come up behind him. They were together."

Okay, so Shane, plus Randall, plus broken neck…Christ. That bastard killed him. Anyone with half a brain cell could figure that out. Cali's anger followed her realization.

"Okay, will out please go back out there and find Rick and Shane and find out what's going on?" Lori implored Daryl, and Cali face palmed. Okay, maybe you need more than half a brain cell.

Daryl nodded. "You got it." Then, he turned and left the house. Cali rolled her eyes, and turned back towards Beth and Jimmy.

"So, another game?" She smiled, her fear relaxed…a little. Something still seemed to be stirring, and she really wasn't sure she wanted this storm to pass.

There was a slight gratification though. Let's see how big a fan of 'Kill Now, Question Later' Shane is when he's the one on Trial by Camp Clueless.

Then, people started to gravitate towards the windows, and Cali and Beth got tired of sitting there, and they got up too, interested at what could possibly be so interesting. The two women pushed their way to the front, and froze.

That wasn't a hoard, no way. A hoard could be considered a hunting pack, or a migrating group. That, that was a mother fucking army, a mass of Death and Decay that only had one purpose, and that was to rip anything with a heartbeat alive apart, and destroy the evidence.

Jenner looked up at them, a faraway look in his eyes. "This is our extinction event."

"Jesus Christ." Cali whispered, and she couldn't look away. There were so many of them, and they were all headed this way.

"Patricia, get the lights." Hershel whispered, and the older woman immediately went off to complete the task.

"I'll get the guns." Andrea spoke before running inside, and for the first time in a long while, Cali couldn't agree with her more.

"Maybe they'll just pass by, like the herd on the highway. Should we just wait it out inside?" Glenn asked, his stomach obviously in his feet. Daryl shook his head.

"No' unless there's a tunnel downstairs tha' I don't know about. Herd that size'll rip th' house down."

"So, what do we do?" Cali asked, dropping the million dollar question. What she hadn't intended on was the way that her voice shook when she spoke, and was the first one in the small group to show fear. Damn it, that hadn't been the plan, but it was too late now. The fear had been invited in, and there was no stopping it.

No one answered, because honestly, no one had an answer. Run? Stay? Hide? Fight? There was not fucking handbook that told them what to do, so what the hell was she supposed to do? What were any of them supposed to do?

Lori ran back outside, frantic and crying. "Carl's gone!"

"What?"

"He's supposed to be upstairs and he wasn't there!"

"Maybe he's hiding?" Glenn offered.

"He's supposed to be upstairs!" Lori cried again, "I'm not leaving without my boy!" Cali cursed inwardly and scanned the farmland quickly.

Why can't you just stay in the fucking house Carl!

"Don't worry. We're gonna look, and we're gonna find him!" Carol reassured her friend, and pulled her back inside. Andrea passed the two of them on her way out, and dropped the gun bag on the floor. She started handing out the guns they did have, and even tossed one Cali's way. The younger woman accepted it with a nod, and checked the clip. 3 shots. Okay, even if they hurt like a bitch, she was sure the adrenaline that was already buzzing in her veins would allow her to power through that fucking kick, not to mention, she didn't intend on staying in on place long enough to need a gun.

Maggie grabbed a gun, and tossed it to Glenn, and grabbed another for herself. He looked shocked. "Maggie-"

"You grow up country, you learn a thing or two." She answered. Cali nodded.

"A-fucking-men to that."

"Check ou' th' numbers, it's no use." Daryl told them, eyes taking in the impending destruction, only a few hundred yards away. Cali couldn't tear her eyes from it too, and her fingers itched, but she shoved the gun in the back of her jeans, and waited for command so she could go retrieve her still-packed shit, and get the bat. She'd feel better just to have it in her hands.

"You can go if you want." Hershel told him, and Daryl raised an eyebrow.

"Ya gonn' take 'em all on?"

"We have guns." The old man loaded a shot gun. "And we have cars."

"We'll kill as many as we can." Andrea promised him. "Then we'll use the cars to lead the rest of them off the farm." Everyone nodded in agreement, and Daryl looked at the group of them with the look he usually saved for Cali.

"Ya serious?"

"This is my farm." Hershel said, as if that explained everything. And it did, Cali understood completely. Her family's plot of land back home was something she'd fight tooth and nail for too. It was embedded in her DNA. Something her father had said all the time, every morning before a harvest. 'Tueri terram protegit vobis' Protect the land that protects you. "I'll die here." Hershel finished, challenging the Redneck to take it up with him. Daryl only shrugged.

"Alright." He looked back at Cali, and winked. "'S a good a night as any." He quipped before jumping over the railing of the porch and taking off.

"Alright." Andrea looked over at Cali. "Get the women inside going. Tell them to pack everything up, to grab food, to grab water. Anything you can get packed in less than ten minutes. Understand?"

"Got it."

"Think you can do it?"

Cali smirked in response. "Bitch please, this is what Walker Housewives do."

Can after can after can of whatever she could find got shoved into her bag. She wasn't even looking at labels at this point, and next to her Beth and Patricia worked away shoving their food into bags too. Food went in there, and Cali filled hers up the best she could while still being able to sprint, because if she couldn't get away with the food, it wouldn't do anyone any good, and dug under the sink for one of the first aid kits. She opened it up and shoved all the contents into her bag, and left the space consuming plastic case on the table. At last second, she ripped the old bandages off her hands and let them fall to the floor. She was afraid if she tried to shoot or something, those stupid things would fuck them up. Besides, her hands had pretty much healed.

"What else do we need?" Cali asked, staring at the still empty space in her bag.

"Got your clothes?"

"Yeah?"

"Did somebody get all the drugs?" Beth asked, and Cali nodded.

"Took care of it."

"Alright, we should be good then." Patricia decided. "Go run our bags, and the rest of theirs out to the cars and toss them in. We can pass them out at some point. Just in case."

"Alright." Cali went back to the living room, and grabbed Daryl's, Glenn's and Lori's family's bags, and opened the door to the farm, and looking into the yard. The Herd/Swarm/Deathtrap hadn't made its way towards the house just yet, so she sprinted to the nearest truck, and dumped all the shit in the back, and hauled ass back to the house.

She made these trips a couple more times, spreading the bags out into the different cars on the property. Finally, the bags were where they needed to go, and Cali was standing in the living room, death grip on her bat. She couldn't believe that Fate had actually sent them a 'Calm Before the Storm' moment, and it pissed her the fuck off. Her body wasn't made for anticipation. Either it was happening, or it wasn't. This waiting around bullshit was going to be the death of her. So she decided that she wouldn't wait. She walked up to the window, and saw Hershel standing there, and the first of the Walkers arrived on his property. He shot once, than twice, then three more times. Cali's jaw dropped, and the first wave of Walkers fell dead.

Where'd he get that gun? A mother fucking wizard?

"Look!" Patricia cried, coming up behind her. "The barn's on fire, it's drawing them in. Maybe Rick set it to distract them."

"Let's hope so." Cali murmured, and watched the building that had been the symbol of empty danger on the farm for so long catch fire and burn. It burned bright too. Old wood, and on hell of a dry winter had a way of working its magic with fire.

Lori bounded down the stairs, missing sets of three steps at a time. "I still can't find him!"

"Maybe he snuck outside!" Carol answered, just as panicked as the other woman. Lori whirled around and screamed.

"What do I do!"

"Maybe he just run off, looking for Rick, or maybe he went lookin' for Randall himself!"

"Maybe he set the fire!" Beth said. Cali nodded.

"That's probably it. Carl's smart, he'd know what to do." She assured Lori, who couldn't look more panicked, or scared, or fearful than she did right now. Cali needed to calm her down, after all, stress really wasn't good for a baby. "Carl doesn't stay in the fucking house, ever. We all know that, so he left, and he found Rick, because he always does. He finds Rick, or he finds Shane. And that's who's with him right now. Those two." She explained to Lori, and while it seemed to help a little, it still didn't take away the wild look in her eyes.

Cali gave one last look around the room, to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything. "Where's Jimmy?"

"He left a bit ago. Went out to help." Beth explained, and Cali nodded. Alright, all her little ducks were in their rows. However, how she ended up being the fucking den mother of everyone under the age of twenty five was fucking beyond her.

"If we find him, he's gonna need his mother! We gotta go!" Carol's voice carried from inside, and Cali's muscles responded immediately. It got that bad, they were going to have to leave.

"Alright! Beth! Patricia! It's time to go!" Cali cried up the stairs as she started towards the door herself, and passed Carol on her way out. Carol placed her hand on the younger woman's back. "Head to that truck, right there." She pointed towards their car, and she nodded, and went to grab Lori. Cali would be hard pressed to admit it, but she was rather fond of her own little den mother, and she wanted Lori with her. Just in case.

"Hershel! Come on it's time to go!"

"Gandalf! You and the magic fuckin' gun need to go! Come on!" Cali screamed and grabbed Lori's wrist. Lori looked back at the girl and nodded, so Cali let go and headed off towards the truck they had specified.

Right before she got there, a Walker jumped into her path. It was a gnarly looking thing, whit a missing left eye, entire mouth exposed, and it stumbled because it's left foot was tangled in its loose intestines. Oh fuck me. Fear paralyzed the girl for a split second, before logic came smashing back into her body and Cali slammed her bat against the damn thing's head so hard, the crack that followed dropped the monster, and left Cali's hands feeling like she'd just swung the bat into a damn mailbox.

The bat was pained in red blood that now splattered Cali's body, but she didn't care. She'd lived. Fuck if she looked like one of them. She brought the bat down on the body a second time, and made sure she'd finished the job. Once brains and blood painted the grass around her, and the Walker didn't so much as stir, she'd allowed herself a second of elation.

"Oh Hell yes!" Cali smirked to herself as she hopped in the bed of the truck, and grabbed as many of the bags as she could. "And that is how the Walker Housewives do it!"

She turned when she heard the screaming and saw Patricia go down at the last second, and her happiness was short lived. "No!" She cried before she could stop herself, and a few of the stragglers took notice of her then. Damn it, they were coming here now, what the fuck was she supposed to do?

Then her eyes began to focus on the blue truck that had just pulled up. She saw Lori push Beth in, so Cali jumped out of the bed of the truck she was in, and called "T-Dog!" He made eye contact with her, and she was relieved because now, he'd wait another second or two. One more Walker stood in her way, this one moved fucking faster than it should, it was a newer Walker, and there was more skin on the damn thing than most, and this one looked human still. Cali kept her grip on the bat, and dared a glance at T-Dog, who was pointing furiously behind her. There were more coming. There wasn't any time for this moral shit. Not now. That thing in front of her was a dead fucker, who would kill her just as quick as the rest of them. Human looking or now.

Cali waited until it got a little closer, then slammed the bat into its head. The crack was as sickening as the one before, but the Walker didn't go down, it was just thrown to the side a little bit. It made sense a little too late. It was a New Walker, it was stronger than the rest.

"Fuck me!" Cali hissed and pulled out the gun. Her 'human morals' part of her brain screamed at her to stop. That was a sick kid.

Kill it. Make it bleed, make it die, make it pay for challenging you. Somewhere in her head a voice hissed, and Cali obeyed instantly and flicked off the safety, and shot the damn thing in the head. Twice.

The blood spatter from this was much worse than with the bat, and it pretty much soaked her hands in the Walker's blood. Cali tried to ignore it, along with the searing heat in her left hand, but she couldn't. Even as she tossed the bags into the bed of the truck, and pulled herself up into the bed as well, her bloody hands stole her attention.

Well, it was about time she'd joined that club.

Immediately, Walkers swarmed the truck, all of them trying to get into the cab, or at the exposed girl in the back. "Oh fuck oh fuck!" Cali snarled as she tried swinging away at them, but found that there were too many. T-Dog couldn't get through the swarm and Cali wasn't able to hide anywhere. Desperate, she climbed on top of the cab, and threw her arms towards the windshield, and grabbed on until her knuckles turned white. She lifted her feet up, and was felt tears stream down her face when she realized that the Walkers weren't grazing the fabric of her jeans or flannel anymore.

T-Dog slammed on the gas, and the car flew foreword, and Cali's body, and gravity, worked in junction to successfully throw her off the cab of the car, and slam down into the bed of it, while sliding into the tailgate for good measure. She choked as the wind was pushed from her lungs, but the important sense, touch, was in control when she realized all she felt was the wind in her hair, and there was nothing touching her. Not decayed fingers, or the gnashing sounds of teeth. Cali was alone, and safe, in the back of a car that was rapidly leaving the danger around the area. And she was safe.

Covered in blood, in the back of that truck, leaving what little was left of her humanity and innocence to be destroyed by Walkers and fire, Cali clasped her blood covered hands together and thanked God for making her a survivor.

Working slowly, Cali stretched out her limbs, muscles stiff from cowering in the corner of the truck bed as T-Dog flew away from the farm as fast as he could. She worked out every knot she could, knowing how fucking worthless it would be to survive that attack, only to die in another one.

She couldn't die, not yet. She'd made an unofficial promise, that probably didn't count, but the least Cali could try to do was keep it.

She worked through her legs, as she sat with her back to the cab of the truck. Once they'd gotten far enough away, Lori had opened the window, and they'd exchanged information rapid fire.

No, Cali hadn't seen where anyone else went.

Yes, Cali was fine, no injuries.

Yes, Cali still had her gun, and two bullets in the clip.

Then, the drive had been nothing but silent from then on. Everyone sat in their own vigil for the peace they'd thought they'd found. Served them right, Cali supposed, for believing something as impossibly as peace and safety, when this new world demanded vigilance and attention at every passing second. They all mourned something that was obviously lost. Lori her son, Beth her friend, T-Dog his contentment, and Cali her innocence. She'd gone fucking insane there, for a second, and it scared the fuck out of her. She'd lost control.

She didn't know who the fuck she was, but it had happened that way.

Finally, someone in the cab started stirring, and she turned her attention away from herself, and back to the others. Her family, people she cared about. "Hey, we gotta turn around." Lori told T-Dog as she cradled Beth in her arms. T-Dog looked at her as if she was crazy.

"Straight back to that herd? Uh-uh. No."

"The highway's back there, that's where they'll be. Rick'll go back to where we first broke down, Glenn too-"

"No, we're headed east. Head out to the coast. We should've done that from the jump."

"What the hell's at the coast?" Cali asked. "A bunch more Waterlogged Walkers and a Cruise ship? Give me a fucking break."

"And you know that how?" He growled. "Look we have a shot to get out of here in one piece!"

"I have to find Carl, he may have escaped with somebody!"

"And Daryl's alive." Cali spoke up again, getting to her knees so she could speak with the two easier.

"Look, I hate to say it, but they're on their own." T-Dog told the two. "There's no way to even begin to start looking-"

"You're wrong!" Lori choked out.

"They're at the highway!" Cali agreed with Lori. T-Dog shook his head.

"Look, I'm sorry, but we can't go back alright? It's suicide."

"Alright. Then let me out." Lori told him, as she opened her door. And Cali grabbed her bag and got ready to jump out with her. T-Dog jumped and slammed on the breaks. "You turn around! Or you let us out right now!"

"I should do it you know! I mean, how can you possibly know huh?" He looked from Lori to Cali. "How could you possibly know that they'll be there?"

Cali looked the man right in the eyes and smiled. "Because it's Daryl."

"T-Dog, please." Lori begged. He looked from Lori, to Beth, and back to Cali.

"You out of your damn minds!" He cried, but slightly nodded. Lori slammed her door shut again, and Cali let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. T-Dog turned around, and went off road, throwing Cali around in the bed of that truck, and she was a little sure it was on purpose. When they got back on the road, and she'd composed herself once more, Cali crawled over the little window.

"Thanks T."

"You're an idiot."

"Dully noted."

"You know," T-Dog met her eyes in the rear-view mirror. "You might put a little too much faith in the guy. He's not a God you know."

"I know." Cali answered, flattening her arms against the edge of the truck bed and she rested her head on them. "He's a Titan. That's different."

When the forest thinned out, and the road took over the scenery once more, Cali finally allowed her body to relax. They got closer to the meeting point, and she, Beth and Lori were practically pressed against the windshield. "Do you see anyone?" Cali asked, and the roar of another car answered her as she saw Maggie's car ahead of them.

Her grin could've split her face. "Glenn's okay! He's okay!"

"Maggie too!" Beth smiled through her tears, and Lori and T-Dog smiled too. The closer they got to the meeting point, the more excited everyone was. Finally, T-Dog pulled in next to Maggie's car, and Cali jumped out of the trunk immediately. She scanned first, and felt a little like crying with each face she saw.

Carl, Rick, Carol, Glenn, Maggie, Hershel, and Daryl.

All safe. All back where they were supposed to be.

She tried hard, she really did, but when she saw the dusty blood covered Redneck, she really couldn't help herself; she went as fast as her body would allow her, and threw her arms around his neck. "You fucking bastard!" She mumbled into his neck, and Daryl rolled his eyes.

"Tha's all ya gotta say?"

"Shut up." She answered. "I'm trying to be happy you're alive. Don't ruin it by talking."

"Ya cryin'?" He asked, her body trembling against his. Cali snorted, but they both knew that he could feel the water on her face just as much as she could.

"Don't flatter yourself, my body's just wore out. I had a run in with gravity and a tailgate."

"Stupid Bitch." He swore at her, but eventually, his arms wrapped around her as well, and she could feel him breathe out a sigh of relief. That was probably the closest she was ever going to get to hear him say he was worried, and she would take it. After all, she back here, and he was back. And that had to fucking mean the universe was apologizing for being such a dick. After a while, Cali finally released the hunter from her grasp, and he grabbed her face in his hands, and checked her out.

She was bloody, but when he raised an eyebrow at it, she only shrugged. "Not mine."

"How many?"

"Two." She answered simply, and he nodded. There was something a little off about her. It might've been the eyes; they seemed just slightly different than they usually were. Her eyes were harder than they had been the day before.

"Kick ass?"

"Of course." She smiled up at him, and he gave a half smile back before he pressed his lips briefly against her forehead. He released her then, and she smiled once more and went back to the cluster of people and ran towards Glenn and practically knocking him over hugging him. He hugged her back.

"Thank God." He muttered and Cali nodded.

"I didn't fucking see you anywhere! Do you know how fucking scary that was!" She asked as she pulled away and punched him in the arm. He growled and looked back at her.

"What the hell!"

"Don't do that again!"

"What!"

"Scare me like that! Don't you fucking do it again!"

Glenn looked shocked. "What the hell! You didn't hit Daryl!"

Cali threw her arms in the air. "It would be pointless to hit Daryl! Daryl's definitely going to scare the fuck out of me again, hitting him would be a waste of energy! You though, you won't ever be doing that to me again! Understand?"

Glenn only rolled his eyes, and brought Cali back into the familiar circle of his arms, and she hugged him back. She wasn't kidding in the slightest. When she hadn't caught sight of him, in those fleeting seconds on the farm. She'd been terrified.

She let Glenn go then, after decided she'd been punished enough, and she looked around until her eyes landed on the next person she'd been desperate to see. He caught her eyes too, and he came up and hugged her before she could start yelling at him. So, Cali dropped down to her knees and pulled Carl in for a real hug. "You scared the everliving shi-ships out of me. Don't you ever do that again!"

"But-"

"Don't even give me one of those. Next time someone tells you to stay in the house, will you please, for the love of everything holy and healthy in this world, STAY IN THE HOUSE!" She ordered him, and he rolled his eyes under his hat, but gave her a nod. Cali shook her head. "Oh that is so not good enough." She held her pinky out to the little boy, but he scoffed at it.

"No way. But I will shake on it." He told her, and spat in his hand, then held it out to her. Cali rubbed her temples.

"You've got to be kidding me."

"It's the most honorable promise I have." He told her, and she rolled her eyes and spat in her hand, then the two of them shook on it. Once Carl let go of her hand, she wiped it on her blood spattered jeans with a grimace, and Carl took in her state. "You look gross."

"Kill a couple Walkers and tell me you don't."

"I did." Carl spat back. Cali smirked.

"Well, obviously I was closer to mine." Carl only rolled his eyes at her response.

"Cali, that's not a good thing. Don't be proud of that."

Rick smiled, and looked around, then at Glenn. "How'd you find everybody?"

Daryl smirked. "Fucker's got his taillight zig-zaggin' 'cross th' road. Figured a driver tha' bad had to be Asian." Cali rolled her eyes from where she sat on the ground next to him, and he nudged her back with his foot. She nonchalantly flipped him off, and he winked at her again.

Glenn rolled his eyes. "Ha ha. Good one."

"Where's th' rest of us?" Daryl asked. Rick sighed.

"We're the only ones who've made it so far." Rick admitted and Cali looked around. They couldn't be all that was left.

Lori stood up, and looked around. "Shane?"

Rick only shook his head in response, and Lori gasped. Cali was shocked too, Shane was untouchable. He just was, and he was tough as shit. She couldn't believe they'd lost him…but then again, they'd never faced something of that magnitude before.

Glenn frowned, and looked around himself. "Andrea?"

"She saved me, then I lost her." Carol told the group, and T-Dog spoke from where he still stood with his blue truck.

"We saw her go down."

"Patricia?"

"They got her too," Beth's quiet voice spoke. "They grabbed her…I was holding onto her Daddy, they took her right from me." She sniffed and turned away. "What about Jimmy? Did you see Jimmy?"

"He was in the RV…it got overrun." Rick explained, and Cali felt her stomach riot against her. Fuck, not Jimmy. She liked Jimmy, and Jimmy loved Beth, who needed all the love she could get. She was still lost and afraid…and now? Another chunk of her had been stripped away.

Carol sighed, and addressed the group. "You definitely saw Andrea?"

"There were Walkers everywhere." Lori answered.

"But did you see her?"

No one answered, and Cali tried wracking her brain, because she knew that her and Andrea had been in the same area, but she couldn't remember seeing the blonde woman at all. Daryl listened to the silence and shook his head. "I'm goin' back."

"No." Rick immediately shot him down.

"We can' just leave her."

"She isn't there, she isn't. She's either somewhere else, or she's dead. There's no way to find her." Rick explained.

"We're not even going to look for her?" Glenn asked. Rick nodded.

"We can't stay here. There's Walkers crawling all over the place."

"I say we head east." T-Dog said.

"Stay off th' main roads." Daryl told the group as the Hipster Walker stumbled towards them, blood painting his argyle sweater. "Bigger th' road, more assholes like this'n. I got him." One arrow later, the Hipster Walker lay dead.

"Load up people, let's get out of here." Rick ordered as he grabbed the supplies off the car that had been intended for Sophia, and tossed them into his truck. Cali got up, and Beth came over to her, and wrapped her arms around her, and Cali held onto her friend.

"Wanna ride with us?" Beth asked, her eyes swimming in unshed tears. Cali smiled and nodded, then looked over to Daryl, who eyed her, then Beth, and then saw the Glenn was getting into that car with the Gang Greene Gang, and he nodded. She smiled, and then followed Beth into the car. Once they were in, and Cali found a way to position herself for sleep that she was going to force herself into if she had too, Cali looked up at the passenger seat and spoke.

"Hey Hershel?"

"Yes?"

"Your shot gun…is it like blessed by the patron saint of magic bullets or something?" To her surprise, Hershel gave her a small smile.

"Actually, I do believe I have your Hunter friend to thank for that."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I do believe he's the only one who would know to successfully modify a shotgun to hold that many rounds…not matter how illegal that matter is."

Cali rolled her eyes skyward, and sighed. "Really?"

"I believe so."

"Yeah." Glenn nodded from the driver's seat. "When we brought the guns back to camp, he sat there and taught Rick and Shane how to modify them before he went to sulk off by himself."

"It's scary, the shit he knows."

"Oh yeah." Glenn agreed immediately. "Can modify a gun, but can't seem to call me by my name. Genius that one."

Later, somewhere in between a dream filled with blood, and listening to the conversation between Glenn, Hershel, and Maggie, Cali heard a car horn slice through both realities, and it severed her tie to the dream, as she sat up, waking Beth up in the process. The blonde girl looked out the window. "Why'd we stop?"

"Dunno." Glenn answered. "Let's go find out."

Cali pushed open her door, and stretched out her back until she heard the pop, and the feeling of rushing head to the knot between her shoulder blades. Next place they stopped to lay their weary heads had better have a hot tub, or she'd be pissed.

She looked up to see everyone had congregated around the edge of the road, so she headed over there and started massaging her left wrist on the way over. That searing heat had faded into a dull ache, and now the throbbing was back, but she didn't really regret it. Fuck a sore wrist; breathing was a little higher up on that list.

Rick came running up to the group, and Daryl leaned back on his bike. "You out?"

"Runnin' on fumes." He answered. Maggie looked around and shuddered.

"We can't stay here."

"But we can't all fit in one car either." Glenn told her.

"We'll have to make a run for some gas in the morning." Rick told them. Carol got off of Daryl's bike, and stared at him.

"Spend the night here?"

"I'm freezing." Carl mentioned, and Cali had to agree with the kid. Winter here apparently wasn't any more mild than in Wyoming. And if that were true, then they were going to have a serious problem headed their way come the cold season. She wrapped Daryl's old flannel around her tighter, and frowned. Spending the night here didn't sound desirable. At all.

"We'll build a fire. Okay?" Lori told him, and Daryl nodded.

"I'll go git som' firewood. Stay close, I only go' so many arrows. How ya doin' on ammo?" he directed towards Rick.

"Not enough." The leader answered.

"Well, we can't jus' sit here with our asses hanging out." Maggie said, and Cali nodded.

"Couldn't have said it better myself."

"Young lady watch your mouth." Hershel ordered her. "Everyone stop panicking and listen to Rick."

Rick nodded, and faced the group. "Alright, we'll set up a perimeter. Build a fire, gather up some supplies, and we'll be gone by morning."

"Glenn and I can go make a run now, try and scrounge up some gas?" Maggie suggest, and Rick held up his hand and slowly brought it down.

"No, we're gonna stay together. God forbid something happens and people get stranded without a car."

"Rick, we're stranded now." Glenn told him, and Rick took a deep breath.

"I know it looks bad, and we've been through Hell and worse but at least we found each other! I wasn't sure, I really wasn't, but we did. We're together, we keep it that way." He looked at everyone's unhopeful faces and sighed. "We'll find shelter somewhere. There's gotta be a place."

Glenn second guessed himself a few times, before he spoke up. "Rick, look around. There's Walkers everywhere. They're like, migrating or something."

"There's got to be a place, not just where we hold up, but we-we fortify! Hunker down, pull ourselves together, build a life for each other! I know it's out there, we just have to find it!" His voice dipped again, reaching that strange sexy pitch that only happened when he was in an extreme of an emotion.

Right then, Cali decided that she spent much too much time with these people.

"Even if we find a place, and we think it's safe. We can never be sure…for how long…look what happened with the farm. We fooled ourselves into thinking that was safe." Maggie told him. Hershel looked sadly towards his daughter, and shook his head.

"We won't make that mistake again."

Rick looked around the area, and pointed out an area that didn't look like much but a cheap Georgian replica of Stonehenge to Cali, but hey, if Rick thought it would work, then it probably would. Everyone moved to check it out, and Cali watched Carol lean towards Daryl. "Does this feel right to you."

He answered her with a raised eyebrow, and she looked confused. Cali shook her head, and sighed. He didn't really use words to talk, so why would he start now. Jesus, Carol had known him longer than she had known him, you think she would've picked up on that.

"What if another herd comes through here, or another group migrates?" Beth asked, and Daryl nodded at that.

"Ya know how I found Randall right? He turned, but he wudden't bit."

"How's that possible?" Beth asked him.

Lori followed her up. "What the hell happened?"

Give him five minutes to fucking breathe people. Cali ordered Camp Clueless mentally, hoping they'd pick up on the vibes. Rick was tired as hell, lost his best friend, and honestly, the guy just needed a beer. Cali knew the pickings were slim, but sometimes she believed that the last thing Rick wanted was to lead this group of people, and if that were the case, then he definitely didn't want to be the new fucking Confucius. He didn't have every Goddamn answer for them.

"Shane killed Randall." Daryl answered for Rick. "Jus' like he always wanted to."

"And then the herd got him?" Lori asked. Rick looked hard at each and every one of the people in the group before he spoke again, and this time, his voice was soft.

"We're all infected."

Cali let out a small huff of a laugh, and sat down on the barrier on the side of the road. No way, that wasn't possible. You can't get infected if you haven't been bit. That's just logic…all logic dictated that. And, although a lot of rules had changed, that logic didn't. If anything, the changed rules solidified it.

"Whut?" Daryl asked, sounding about as convinced as Cali did.

"Jenner told me. At the CDC, he told me. Whatever it is, we all carry it."

California swallowed that about the same way she'd swallow a mouthful of cotton. No, no, no. That couldn't be true, because if that were true, that would mean the damn thing was airborne. And that could not happen, that could not be the end game. She wouldn't fucking let it be the end game.

All that running, screaming and fighting. All the pain and anguish, and none of it mattered in the end. The killer was already in the house.

"And you didn't tell us?" Carol demanded, and Rick shrugged.

"It wouldn't have made a difference."

"You knew this whole time?" Glenn asked, Rick held up his hand.

"How could I have known for sure? You saw how crazy that mother fucker was."

"That was not your call!" Glenn snarled, and Cali was surprised by the amount of malice in his voice. "Okay? When I found out about the Walkers in the barn, I told, for the good of everyone."

"Well, I thought it best if people didn't know." Rick's gaze locked on the Asians, and a power struggle was instantly put into play. Rick was practiacally challenging Glenn to speak out against him. Lines were being drawn in the pines, and Cali shook her head. She knew what was going to happen, and it wasn't going to be pretty.

Daryl turned away from the group, and loaded his last arrow into the cross bow. He walked over to barrier, and looked at Cali whose face was twisted in thought. "Whut?"

"I should've majored in Bio or something." She muttered. "History's too much like seeing the future." Daryl only lifted an eyebrow, and threw his leg over the side of the barrier. "Are we all sick then?"

He froze on the other side, and then slowly ran a hand across his face. "I don't fuckin' know anymore Nia."

Cali nodded, and popped her wrist, the crack sending a rush up her arm, and allowing her to start work on the problem area. "So, can I get an opinion then?"

"Sure."

"Does that make us monsters? Like them?" She barely whispered the words, but he heard her. Cali didn't want to think like that, but it was all that was occupying her mind right then. If they had this disease then…weren't they the fucking larva stage of Walkers? Destined to become them. They had no say in the matter, they were going to become monsters.

Like a fucking puppy who gets infected with rabies. Going to be rabid, not matter how fucking harmless it is right then.

Daryl sighed, and shook his head. "We ain't monsters. Can't think like tha'. Yer a fuckin' nerd, ya know Lord Of The Flies?" Cali nodded. "They were fine, but they got all fucked when they stopped trustin' each other. Then they was monsters. Just can' let it get there. Ge' it?" He asked, and Cali did, in a weird way. Yeah, they needed their fucking Conch Shell still, and they couldn't let it go.

"Yeah I got it." She told him, and he nodded, and started heading towards the woods. The past twenty four hours rushed through her head and she frowed. "Daryl!"

"Ya don' even gotta say it. I'll be righ' back."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

It had been a while since she'd sat in front of a Campfire, and Cali was a little shocked by what had changed around it. A lot less people and a lot more sadness warmed itself by the fire now. She wrapped her arms around herself better, and drew her knees up to her chest. Daryl came up behind her, and dropped a few more stick into the wood pile, before sitting down next to her, and tossing an arm around her shoulders. She wouldn't lie, he was much warmer than she was, and it helped immensely. She leaned into him slightly, and just watched the fire burn. That was apparently the activity for the night, as everyone drowned in the silence that had overcome them since they learned that they were all Deathbringers.

"Ya know, we're not safe with him." Carol whispered over to Daryl, and Cali tried really hard not to look over. She was just going to continue to stare at the fire, and pretend everything that was happening wasn't. "Keeping something like that from us. Why do you need him? He's just going to pull you down?"

Pretend this isn't happening.

"Naw." Daryl answered her, as he stroked the fire. "Rick's done all right by me."

"You're his henchman." Carol told him. "And I'm a burden. We deserve better."

"You deserve to get smacked." Cali hissed under her breath as she watched the fire burn. Stupid woman was going to ruin what precarious peace that had going right now.

"Whudd'ya want?" Daryl asked her, and Carol looked up at him with wide eyes.

"A man of honor."

Okay, now the bitch was making a pass at Daryl. The other shit Cali was willing to chalk up to group mentality, but that? Fuck no. That was not happening.

Especially if Carol was planning to use him as her piece in this upcoming power play.

Cali sat up a little straighter, and pulled her hair to one side of her neck. One, the fire was hot, and two, the exposed skin was the side where her fucking midnight purple hickie was splayed, and Carol's eyes caught a glimpse of it, before Cali shook her hair back into place.

Sure, marking territory was a bit savage and prehistoric, but hey, like Cali's favorite cousin always used to say, if you can't beat them, fight back harder.

Daryl looked down at the abandoned mother and shook his head. "Rick has honor."

Cali went back to the fire, when she heard Maggie muttering about taking off on their own. Oh Cali wanted to rip out her hair and fucking scream at all of these people. How could they not see what they were doing? It was blatantly obvious to her, but it couldn't be just her could it? How could all these people with so much more life experience not see what she did? How could they be this stupid and have survived this long?

A rustle in the bushes brought back today's fear and paranoia, and Cali's body instantly tensed, and everyone shot up. "What was that?" Beth asked. Daryl grabbed the crossbow and peered into the woods.

"Could've been a whole bunch'a things. Could've been a raccoon, possum-"

"Walker?" Rick asked as he entered where the fire was, and oblivious to the looks of the people.

"We need to leave! I mean, what are we waiting for?" Maggie asked. Glenn grabbed her hand and tried to calm her down.

"Which way?" He asked, and she pointed outward.

"It came from over there."

"Can I got with you?" Beth asked, and Maggie nodded.

"Yeah."

Rick shook his head. "The last thing we need is people running off into the dark. We use vehicles, no one travels on foot."

"Don't panic." Hershel told his daughters. Maggie sighed.

"I'm not, I'm not sitting here, waiting for another herd to blow through. We need to move, now."

"No one is going anywhere!" Rick told the group, and Cali slid her bottom lip between her teeth.

"Do something." Carol told him, and Rick turned on her.

"I am doin' something! I'm keeping this group alive! I've been doing that all along, I didn't ask for this! I killed my best friend for you people for Christssake!"

Cali couldn't believe that, sure she knew Rick and Shane had problems, but she didn't believe that Rick could have killed him. That was too…cold, too cruel for Rick. And that's who that man up there still was! It was Rick, and Rick did everything for them, it just didn't seem possible, Rick couldn't do it. He was a good man, he was their protector, their Shepherd.

It just wasn't possible.

"You saw what he was like." Rick told them. "How he pushed me, how he compromised us, how he threatened us. He staged the whole Randall thing, lead me out to put a bullet in my back! He gave me no choice! He was my friend, but he came after me! My hands are clean." Rick declared over his son's muffled cries. "Maybe you people are better off without me, go ahead. I say there's another place for us, but maybe, maybe it's just another pipe dream. Maybe I'm fooling myself again, well, why don't you go and find out yourself?" He asked, and pointed out into the darkness of the woods. "Send me a postcard! Go on, there's the door! You can do better? Let's see how far you get!"

The only person in their group who could even hope to survive out in the woods, alone, would be Daryl, and Rick knew that. Cali shook her head as another power play was brought to the table. Dale, we need you here, and we need you now. This is wrong, so wrong, and things will not be getting better. Dale, please.

"No takers? Fine. But let's get one thing straight. If you're staying, this is no longer a democracy."

Cali wanted to laugh. She couldn't fucking believe it. That was it right there, end game and final nail in an already sealed coffin. It was over now, for all of them. Because, even though there were fucking flesh eating monsters in every dark shadow, these people were still acting like people, and they were still making the same mistakes.

She couldn't even count how many Kings fell this way. It was a simple fucking formula. King gets power, starts good. People love King. King fucks up once, people get pissy. King gets scared by pissy people, King brings down the fucking hand of God upon them. People get back up, dust themselves off, and they fucking revolt.

If she remembered correctly, it usually ends with countless deaths on both sides, and the King and his family lying under a blade as their heads get fucking chopped off.

And no one else saw it happening.

There was just no way this was happening. Cali dropped her head in her hands and tried to break out into hysterical laughing, or crying. This was beyond everything they had dealt with before. They were fighting each other now, and no one was safe, and everyone was an enemy.

Jenner was wrong, she decided, about everything. The Walkers weren't the problem, in fact, they were never the problem. They were not the extinction event.

It was fucking people.

God, this way beyond bad luck at this point, because, no matter what happens around them, people make their own messes, and destroy their own lives. Or, more popularly, they fuck up everyone else around them. People love pain, and Misery loves company.

People won't be fixed.

Smackdown.

Revolt.

War.

End game.

xXKateRydelleXx: I still mourn Dale, as I think his presence would have made everything in the finale much easier to handle, but nooooo everyone jumped on the fucking crazy train!

It's alright to cheer for Shane's death. It was high time!

I would freakin' love to own that jacket. No joke!

Thanks for the review

SaraLostInes: Of course! Sex or not, Cali and Daryl can't function without annoying the shit out of each other.

If Carol touches him, I can at least promise you here, that Cali will beat her down so hard, Ed will be impressed.

Yes, that was a terrible thing to say, I know.

Thanks!

Witchbaby300: XD Daryl wasn't gonna fuck a girl if he didn't know her last name. That whole, Southern Charm thing xD plus, if their sex wasn't like them, then it wasn't good smut, so it to be hot, but still balanced with annoyance, and pain, and a love that hurts as much as it helps. Because that's who they are.

Thanks for the review!

DFC: XD Why thank you! I'm glad you liked it xD

Willow!: I'm so glad you're back! And I miss the Walking Dead :/ I sat in front of my TV and wanted to see them play with Zombie Jesus.

Well, here's the final episode! It's long as hell, and really pretty dark xD and did I get bonus points for mentioning the cheat? :D

Janeg: Why thank you! Glad to know it went over well!

Night-Weaver369: THANK YOU! :D And yes, I do enjoy the Hunger Games, and I thought the movie was pretty awesome as well! Sorry about the typo xD I usually type these things in one sitting, and after about seven hours….some of the words blur. Anyways, your One-Shot is ready, and I'll upload it tomorrow! Sorry it took so long!

Kathleensmiles:

Well…Lori has that effect on people, but for some reason, Cali seems to like her.

I'm glad the smex went over well :D

I think Jimmy was sweet…but that was natural selection right there….

So, did Cali disappoint? Or did she do a good job?

And okay! I won't kill Dale in LFF…shit woman, you're pretty much left me with no one to kill…

BurnedOutCandle: Why thank you so much! I'm glad you liked the Hunger Games thing! I can't look at a bow and arrow without thinking of Daryl, so xD it popped up. Did this work for you? :D

CayChaotic: I'll kind of miss Shane…in a…'We need on crazy fuck to hog all the crazy from the rest of us' kinda way. I know, they needed to hook up xD and yes! LFF is coming back soon! And I love you too xD

Jasmin: Thank you for sharing your husband with Cali ;)

Sleepingthroughthestatic407: Why thank you for the high praise! I'm glad that you like it! And do tell me what you thought of this chapter, it ran long, and there were soooo many emotions to cover, lol. I'm a bit worried.

Summerlover01: Oh I don't even know how I survived without Supernatural XD and I didn't switch them out dear! Hope you enjoyed!

TripleLLL: I'm glad that you like my fucked up sense of humor xD awh, I'm sorry! Feel better! I'm glad the sex scene worked for them! Camp Dinner Bell xD I fucking love that. Thanks for reviewing and I hope you liked it!

Kitkat83: I was rereading the fic to get ready for the finale chapter, and I realized I had never given out Nia's last name xD but I've had it in my head since day one, and I figured that would be a cute little way to throw that in there.

Merle and the Governor! :O Epic.

And I loved your idea about Cali and Winchesters, so I made it happen xD it's on my page now, called Prelude To The End!

Thanks for the reviews!

Biffy: HAhahahahaha that was my favorite part :D Nia's a bitch, and Daryl kind of hates her, that's just them. In a nutshell xD Thanks for the review!

Shadowelf144: Why thank you very much!

Nelle07: I know right! If it's not Walkers, it's the damn cock-block monster xD Thanks for the reviews!

Ilovepotions: yeah! And no one told Daryl about it? He's probably freaking the fuck out, I mean, that was his gun damnit! Ah! I called Hershel out on his magic shotgun xD Thanks for the review!

Crystal Vice: Dean would make a fucking perfect Finnick. We must make that happen.

Midterms are a bitch. Here's hoping you did well!

Awh thanks for the review!

Chemical-imbalance: Awh, GED and a give'em hell attitude makes me smile everytime xD thanks for the review! And, I think Cas has beat Sam out as my favorite xD

The-Flaming-Jackalope:

Hahahah! The Daryl-Plague is contagious! Like the Walker disease apparently, except instead of flesh, you just crave Norman Reedus' hot body :D

Boondock Saints is amazing. My first story on this site is a Boondock Saints fic :D

YOU MUSTER UP THAT SHIT TON OF SWAGGER AND YOU WRITE DAMNIT! WRITE LIKE THE WIND!

Cali will end up in those pajamas.

And yeah, I knew about Reedus as Judas…I actually have a fic for that too xD Called King With No Crown.

Lucy Freebird: CONGRATS ON GETTING ENGAGED! I'm so happy for you Lucy :DDD and yes, I'm glad you liked the smut xD you have been the one pushing it since day one xD did you get to see Hunger Games yet? Thanks for the review!

Azalia Fox Knightling: I went with your idea, and I like the way it came out! Thanks!

Randfan07: :D Your review made me so happy! No joke, and seriously, I love that you put in that much time and effort for my review, it's just amazing! Thank you so much, and I'm so glad you're liking the fic and that you've stuck with us for so long! Me and Cali appreciate it, you have no idea!

J: Done and done :D

Vicky!: Yay for sexytimes! Awh, thanks for the kinds words! I was very unconfident with that piece, and I'm glad it worked! Half naked Daryl rocks…it's…fantastic XD

And decent into madness…we had plenty of that there xD Thanks Vicky! For everything!

Weibchen: Thank you so much! I'm glad you like it!

Ace Hodges: Ah! Thank you for not calling Cali a Mary-Sue! And hell yeah Daryl's a mother fucking Boondock Saint! :D That's the whole reason why I started watching TWD in the first place! I'm glad you liked the story and I cannot wait for the prison scene!

MyMissingHalo: Oh Halo, never apologize for your reviews! You have no idea how much I love them, and how amazed I am that you're willing to sit down and write out something so long, it just warms my heart! Thank you for all you've done! And seriously, AMC better start forking over some cash, or I'll be PISSED.

My-Edward-1992: We'll see if that comes back to haunt him ;) and yes! Peeta all the way!

Captain ArseBag: Here you go!

Lorelai: I considered sticking Cali with Andrea and having them both be lost…but I was afraid I'd get lynched by the rest of my readers xD

Willow the Collie: :D Willow, happy birthday!

I love the Hunger Games! And the movie was awesome!

I'm glad you loved the chapter, and I purposely left Cali's last name out so I could use it then xD I'm so bad.

Fuck Shane, I miss Randall!

Oh Collie, thank you for all your lovely reviews! Coming back to Landing Feet First? :D

Once again everyone, thank you for all the reivews! And I'll have Landing Feet First up again soon, but I'll see you when season three starts with an all new fic!

Love you my Little Zombies!

-Eris