rag doll | TWD

[47] heads up

free bird --- lynyrd skynyrd

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[JJ]

I stood watch with Maggie. The number of walkers lining the fence was discouraging. The fact that Daryl, Glenn, Sasha and Abraham hadn't returned was discouraging. The attack that Alexandria had just endured was discouraging. But Maggie. Her hope that Glenn was still out there was all the encouragement I needed.

"He's still out there. I just know it." Maggie assured with a smile. I remained silent but nodded in agreement. "And so is Daryl. And Sasha and Abraham. They're coming back."

"They are." I echoed, looking down to see my brother climbing up the tower ladder.

"You don't have to be up here so much." He told Maggie.

She continued to stare out into the distance, "I won't be. This is the direction he'd come in. If he sends up a signal, it'll be from out there. Or...it won't be."

"When we go out there, it's never easy. It's never simple. It's always a fight. But we've come back from harder things. From further away. Glenn, Daryl, Abraham and Sasha, they will too." Rick paused, looking around. "Maybe we don't wait for them to be back. We should start figuring out how to draw the walkers away. We have some food and water to last us a while and the walls are holding. We can take our time, really think this through. Do it right. Clear it so they can walk right in."

Maggie gave a half-hearted smile, "I saw Judith in the house the other day. She's starting to- she's starting to look like Lori. Made me happy."

I grinned as my brother agreed. There's no way to ever know for sure if Judith was my brother or Shane's, but I remembered looking back at pictures from when Rick and I were little. Judith had the Grimes' bright curly hair. My brother and I both had it at that age. Our dad and aunt did too.

Maggie and I watched as Rick climbed down and went about other business in the community.

"Does he know?" She nudged me.

My face twisted. "Know what?"

"You know what I'm talking about."

"You're asking if I told my brother about how I had sex with Daryl?"

"Well, not when you put it like that..." She rolled her eyes.

I huffed, returning her tone, "did you tell Glenn?"

"About you and Daryl? No, that didn't happen to come up in conversation."

"You know what I mean." I rolled my eyes.

Maggie smirked, "Actually, I did."

I proudly looked to her, "And?"

"And...he seems really excited about it."

"I figured he would."

"JJ." Deanna called from the bottom of the tower. "Can I speak with you?"

I turned to Maggie, silently making sure she would be all right.

"Go. I'm good."

After I climbed down, I was met with an exhilarated tone. "Come with. I want to show this to Rick and Michonne as well."

"What is it?" My curiosity was piqued. How could she be so encouraged at a time like this.

"Plans." She shook the rolled, thin paper. "Our future."

"That sounds important." I commented, "Rick and Michonne, yes. Me? No."

"You...yes." Deanna slowed down to turn towards me. "I told you one day you would be a leader. So, I'm going to treat you like the leader you're going to be."