Rick had decided to go back to Atlanta to get Merle Dixon. Shane and I agreed that this was a bad idea. I now had brand new stitches in my arm no thanks to Daryl. Shane and I were standing together when Rick came out of his tent still buttoning up his shirt.

"So that's it, huh? You're just gonna walk off? Just to hell with everybody else?" Shane asked Rick as we walked with him over to the van. Rick shook his head,

"I'm not saying to hell with anybody not you Shane, not you Raven, Lori least of all."

"You tell her that?" I asked him.

"She knows." Was all he said. These boys frustrated me to the point of no return but they were my family.

"Well look, I...I don't okay Rick? So could you just. Could you throw me a bone here, Man?" Shane said with worry in his voice. He knew that if Rick went back there would be a possibility that he wouldn't come back. And his family had just gotten him back.

"Could you just tell us why?" Shane said, gesturing to me and him.

"Why would you risk your life for a douche bag like Merle Dixon?" Shane asked again. I saw Daryl standing not 3 feet away from us so I knew he heard that.

"Hey, choose your words more carefully." Daryl said to Shane, almost threatening him.

"No, I did. Douche bag's what I meant." Shane said in response.

I mean he wasn't wrong Merle Dixon was a douche bag. I hadn't known him for long but Shane was right.

"Merle Dixon, the guy wouldn't give you a glass of water if you were dying of thirst."

"What he would or wouldn't do doesn't interest me. I cannot let a man die of thirst, Me. Thirst and Exposure." Rick said looking at Shane, then he directed his attention to me.

"We left him like an animal caught in a trap. That's no way for anyone to die. Let alone a human being." I knew at that moment he was right. Which also meant that I was going with him.

"So you and Daryl, that's your big plan?" Lori said from over by the campfire. Then Rick turned to Glenn with a 'You're coming with me whether you like it or not' look. I also knew that look well. I would always get it in high school when I refused to go to a dance all dressed up in a bright colored dress and my hair full of hair spray. Ew just grosses me out thinking about it. But Rick and Shane always dragged me out of the house.

"Oh come on." I heard Glenn say. He did not want to go and I honestly didn't really blame him. But I also knew where Rick was coming from.

"You know the way. You've been there before, in and out, no problem. You said so yourself." Glenn took his hat off, ran his fingers through his hair and put his hat back on.

"It's not fair of me to ask. I know that, but I'd feel a lot better with you along. I know she would too." Rick said, gesturing to Lori.

"That's just great now you're gonna risk three men?" Shane said.

"Four." T-dog said and Daryl scoffed.

"My day just gets better and better, don't it?" I sighed.

"And one woman. I'm going with you." I said pulling my crossbow over my shoulder. Shane looked at me and I could tell he was mad at what I said.

"Like hell you are. I did not just get my sister, my only family, back just to lose you all over again. No."

"Shane I'm not asking. I'm telling you I'm going. Rick is right we cannot leave a man to die on a rooftop. Whether or not said man is a disgusting pig."

"Raven I'm not letting you go. You're staying here." Shane and I argued for a minute till I looked over at Rick mentally pleading him to help me. He just put his hands up and shook his head at me.

"You see anybody else here stepping up to save your brother's cracker ass?" T-dog said, defending me. I gave him a Thank you smile. Shane started to get frustrated. I watched him cross his fingers behind his head.

"Why you?" Rick asked T-dog.

"You wouldn't even begin to understand. You don't speak my language." He said in response.

"That's five." Dale said.

"It's not just five. You're putting every single one of us at risk. Just know that, Rick." Shane said I knew he just wanted to protect that group.

"Come on, you saw that walker! It was here. It was in camp. They're moving out of the cities. They come back, we need every able body we've got. We need 'em here. We need 'em to protect camp."

"It seems to me what you really need most here are more guns." I looked at Rick, crossed my arms and popped my hip.

"So that's what you were carrying." He smiled and nodded at me.

"Right, the guns." Glenn said apparently he knew exactly what Rick was talking about.

"Wait. What guns?" Shane asked us.

"Six shotguns, two high-powered rifles, over a dozen handguns. I cleaned out the cage back at the station before I left. I dropped the bag at Atlanta when I got swarmed. It's just sitting there on the street waiting to be picked up." Rick explained to Shane.

"Ammo?"

"700 Rounds, Assorted." He answered. This seemed to give Shane some hope.

"You went through hell to find us. You just got here and you're gonna turn around and leave?" Lori spoke up. She was right to a point. But Rick also said she would understand and now I'm thinking that wasn't so true.

"Dad, I don't want you to go." Carl said, looking at his dad. He had grown up so much from the last time I saw him. He looked just like his mom, that's for sure. But he had Rick's eyes. He seemed worried about his dad but more about his mom. Rick looked at his son with a bit of sadness in his eyes. I knew he should stay, he really should, but I also know that Rick wouldn't just sit by.

"To hell with the guns. Shane is right. Merle Dixon? He's not worth one of your lives, even with guns thrown in." Rick was starting to get frustrated with his wife and started to walk away but Lori just started to follow him.

"Tell me. Make me understand." Rick walked over to her.

"I owe a debt to a man I met and his little boy." Rick started to tell Lori.

I just walked over to my truck and grabbed some weapons. I decided that I was going to leave my crossbow behind. I pulled my hand gun out and strapped it to my thigh, slung my rifle so it was sitting across my back at an angle. I stared off in the distance pulling my mind away from everything that was till I heard Shane say something about their shit walkies they had back at the station.

"These are our walkies?" I heard Shane say. I turned around and walked over to sit next to Shane.

"What, the relics you guys used at the station?"

"Yeah." Rick responded. Those things were crap us three knew that.

"So use the C.B. What's wrong with that?" Andrea said. That girl had no clue what she was talking about. But I'm pretty sure she had a thing for Shane.

"The C.B.'s fine." Shane responded

"It's the walking that sucks to crap." I added.

"Date back to the '70s, don't match any other bandwidth, not even the scanners in our cars." Shane finished.

"I need that bag." Rick said to Lori. He leaned down to Carl.

"Okay?" Carl nodded in agreement. Rick ruffled the kids hair and Glenn backed the van up to the rest of us. Shane walked over to me.

"Raven, please don't go." I looked at him with a small smirk on my face.

"Shane you know I'm going. I've been in and out of that city more times than I can count looking for you guys. I know I can help." He sighed and pulled me into a tight hug, I hugged him back.

"Hey, I'll be fine." Shane sighed

"I know you will." I smiled at him then walked over to the van. Rick walked over to Dale and asked to borrow some bolt cutters.

I was leaning against the door and Daryl was inside pacing.

"Do you ever not pace or look pissed off?" I asked Daryl. He looked down at me.

"Do you ever mind your own business?" I put up my head in defense and shook my head.

"Fuck, sorry for trying to make conversation." He huffed and walked to the back of the truck. I watched as Carl and Sophia played around. Reminds me about when we were all kids. I was pulled out of my trance by the honk of the horn on the truck and Daryl yelling.

"Hey come on, let's go!" Before I could get in Rick hollered for me and stopped me.

"Raven. You're staying here." I looked at Rick with my mouth hung open.

"What are you fucking kidding me? No I'm going with you." He sighed.

"No you're not. I need you here. Shane is right if more walkers come there needs to be someone here who knows what they are doing." I looked at him like a 5 year old throwing a temper.

"Ugh, fine. But I'm not doing it for you." Rick just laughed at me.

"Okay, sure you're not." I was watching them all load up into the truck till I felt a tug on my hand, I looked down and saw Carl.

"Hey Aunt Raven."

"Hey buddy." I said squatting down to his level.

"Can you come play with me down at the quarry?" I giggled.

"I don't know bud, have you asked your mom?" I looked up at Lori.

"Hold on I'll go ask." He ran off towards his mom. I chuckled. Honestly I thought he didn't even recognize me.

Shane walked over to Rick with a black duffle bag. I used to call it his 'Mary Poppins' bag. I swear anything you needed he had it all stashed into that bag.

"Hey, Rick, Got any rounds in the python?"

"No," Rick answered, shaking his head.

"Last time we were on the gun range, I'm sure I wound up with a few loose rounds of yours. Rick laughed and shook his head.

"You and that bag, like the bottom of an old lady's purse." I laughed.

"Is he being Mary Poppins again?" I asked. Rick laughed and Shane scowled at both of us.

"I hate that you're doing this, man. I think that it's foolish and reckless. But if you're gonna go, you're taking bullets."

"I'm not sure I'd want to fire a shot in the city, not after what happened last time."

"He's right Shane. His precious python brought over 4 dozen walkers on our asses." Shane looked at me with his normal big brother look and I backed off.

"That's up to you if you wanna use them. Well, Four men, Four Rounds. Too bad you don't got an extra for this pain in the ass." Shane said, looking at me.

"Actually Shane, I'm not going. I changed my mind and decided I'd be of more use here." Shane smiled at me and nodded. Then he handed the rounds to Rick.

"Well then, what are the odds? Well, let's just hope that. Let's just hope four is your lucky number, okay?" I could tell Shane was worried about Rick going but who knows maybe they will all make it back alive. And well. With that we watched them all drive off.