Here we go again... Jupiter thought to herself as she climbed off the back of Daryl's bike outside of the house they would hopefully get some rest in that day.

Daryl got off after her, grabbing his crossbow and then looking to Rick, Carl and T-Dog, nodding once before the five of them headed towards the front of the house. Jupiter moved quickly to the windows and peered in, seeing two walkers in the hall, their backs to the door. She held two fingers up to Rick, and he nodded, taking a deep breath and then kicking the doors in, taking out the first walker while T-Dog moved past him, impaling the other in the head.

Carl and Daryl followed after, so Jupiter joined them, saying nothing as she started moving quietly up the stairs, knife in hand- and wishing again that she hadn't left her bat on the farm. You'd think she'd be over it after seven months, but Jupiter was holding a grudge. Walking up into the dark hallway would have felt better if she'd had a bat instead of a hunting knife... Still, she had to clear upstairs, so she proceeded slowly, her knife up in case any walkers were up there. She started at the back and worked her way back to the stairs, but but the time she'd cleared the first two rooms, T-Dog and Daryl were doing the others.

She was just walking back down the hall when she heard the sound of a bolt firing from Daryl's crossbow and ran towards it, busting into the first bedroom to see Daryl picking up an owl from the ground, his bolt in it. She breathed a sigh of relief and put her knife away, turning from the room and heading back downstairs. She nodded at Rick to show that upstairs was clear, and he turned back to the outside and whistled, signalling for the others to come inside.

It was the same routine they'd been doing almost daily for seven months. Go in, clear a house, settle down for a while and try to scrounge up some food, the walkers come, the group runs. It was hard. Food was very scarce and that only put pressure on Rick and Daryl, who both felt responsible if the others went hungry.

Jupiter knew everyone was feeling the weight of the situation, all wanting to help however they could, but none of them knew anything about hunting, though Daryl had taught Jupiter a few things over the winter months. Mainly snares as rabbits were the only creatures that there was a lot of. But with Lori eating for two, and everyone using so much energy up constantly on the run or fighting walkers, there was never enough food, and hunger was a constant pain in their stomachs.

When everyone was in the house, they all sat in the living room while Daryl prepared the owl and quickly cooked it, sharing it out between the group. It was barely more than a mouthful each, but better than nothing. 

Jupiter couldn't bring herself to eat her own portion, not when Carl was sitting beside her after wolfing down his own. She'd find food later, she promised herself as she handed Carl hers with a small smile. He took it without complaint, for which she was thankful. Daryl got pissy if she didn't eat, even if he was a hypocrite and always made sure everyone had food before thinking about getting his own. Carl was a growing kid and needed it more than she did, was Juniper's logic. If Carl had enough, she'd give it to Lori next, but Rick usually beat her to it, offering his own food and making sure Lori ate it, even if she didn't want to. She had to keep her strength up for the baby.

Speaking of the baby... Lori's so huge, she had to be about to drop, at which point they were in some real trouble if they didn't find somewhere to make safe for a few weeks, until the baby was born. Though Jupiter knew it would be hard even then. Every time the baby cried, it'd be ringing the damn dinner bell for any walkers near by.

Not that they needed a bell. T-Dog whistled and nodded at the window, signalling walkers outside, so Jupiter sighed and got to her feet, going with the others to lead the way out, silently jogging back to the vehicles and climbing in. As usual, Jupiter got on the bike with Daryl, and the group was gone again, driving away from the house in under a minute.

As the house got further away, Jupiter felt the fatigue in her bones grow. They'd been on the run for so long, and it was exhausting and wearing them all down. Jupiter hadn't seen any of them smile in weeks. They had nothing to smile about. Every time they let their guard down for a second, walkers came. They couldn't stop moving, but at the same time they couldn't keep going... Not like they had been. All winter they'd been going in circles, barely scraping by on what little food they could find, and never settling long enough to feel safe. They had to find somewhere safe, and soon.

A few hours after leaving the house, it was like Jupiter's pleas had been answered, as she went hunting with Rick and Daryl, walking along the traintracks until they saw a prison, overrun with walkers. Daryl didn't think anything of it, but Jupiter shared a look with Rick and finally the hint of a smile ghosted on Rick's face. They might have just found their place.

They didn't bother hunting anything else before returning to the others and telling them about the prison. If they could clear it of walkers, they might have a new home. Everyone was so tired of running that they would have agreed on a summer vacation to Hell at that point, so they grabbed weapons and Rick led the way, talking through the plan in the woods, and then when they were ready, they moved as one.

Rick charged ahead, cutting a hole in the outermost fence while the others stayed around him, keeping walkers away while they waited. Carl and Lori went through first and the others followed soon after, Jupiter just climbing through before Rick. As planned, Glenn quickly used some wire to close the hole up again, and Jupiter held her breath as a walker charged at it, barging into the fence directly over the wire. But it held.

On the other side of the inner fence, other walkers had noticed the group and started snarling and throwing themselves at it, trying to get to them, but they were already moving, running towards the main gate quickly, wanting to make sure they hadn't just trapped themselves in a tunnel for the walkers to come at them. Jupiter and Glenn were the fastest and led the way, reaching the gate and sighing in relief when they saw that it was shut. Walkers were on either side of the fences, but they still had the patrol areas between. Of course, they weren't going to stop there, and soon enough Rick had come up with a pan and was rattling off orders to the others.

They needed to close the gate, but it was through a field full of walkers.

Glenn volunteered to run for it, but Rick shook his head, saying he would go. Knowing she was the fastest, Jupiter spoke up.

"I'll go. I'm the fastest..." She could tell Rick was going to start shaking his head, so she blushed and added the other truth. "And the worst shot. We need as many guns here, and if you're covering me, none of us are gonna end up killed. My aim is terrible and I'd rather not risk it... Let me do this."

Rick sighed but agreed, handing her the chain to close the gate at the other end. Maggie had already said it was a suicide run, so Jupiter wasn't surprised to find Daryl watching her, looking conflicted. He knew she could take care of herself, but at the same time, it didn't feel right letting her run into a cage full of walkers alone. Jupiter gave him a small smile, not letting her fear show. She was going to be fine. She knew she could run circles around the walkers all day if she had to, but Daryl's face showed that he might argue.

Instead of letting him, Jupiter quickly walked over to him and kissed him on the mouth, squeezing his hand as she pulled back. "I'll be fine, Dixon. Just make sure you shoot any that get too close," She ordered, and he nodded, stepping back and then running back to the first guard tower with Carol. Hershel and Carl would take the one above her now, and the others would distract the walkers so she could slip through the gate unnoticed. Lori stayed to open and close the gate, giving Jupiter a weak smile as she got ready to open the gate.

"Be careful, honey," she whispered, but Jupiter heard what she didn't say. Thank you for saving Rick. Even if Lori did like Jupiter, she'd still rather see her torn to pieces that her husband, even though they'd been having problems since they left the farm. Jupiter nodded and pulled out her knife, taking one final breath before Lori opened the gate enough so she could squeeze through. Then she ran.

God there was a lot of walkers, and as the gate closed behind her, Jupiter couldn't help the slight panic as she felt like she'd just been trapped in the lions den. She didn't have time to panic though, she was already half way to the gate. The walkers had noticed her, and she heard as the others shouted warnings, but she couldn't allow herself to look and see them coming at her, not before she closed the gate, or she might panic and lose her nerve.

So she ran at the gate, flying kicking a walker back through it before she slammed it shut, quickly getting the chain in place and then turning to see a whole herd of walkers coming for her. A handful of them were already too close, so she drove her knife into the skulls of the closest three and then ran for the door of the watch tower beside her, praying it was open. Her breath was impossibly loud in her ears, almost enough that she couldn't hear the snarls of the walkers.

She'd just grabbed the door handle when her arm was grabbed by a cold hand, and she knew she was done. She didn't have time to stab the walker before it bit her and infected her... But then there was a whistle followed by a thunk, and her arm was suddenly released as the walker fell to the ground, an arrow through it's head.

She didn't bother looking up to thank Daryl as she yanked open the tower door and ran inside, slamming it behind her and immediately jumping at the walker in front of her, slamming her knife into it's skull before it even knew what was happening. The other one saw her coming and snarled, but she was faster, and killed it as the sound of gunfire started outside.

Her heart was already racing but she didn't allow herself to stop, and took a final breath before shoving off from the cold wall, towards the light from the balcony above.

Sprinting up the stairs, Jupiter encountered no other walkers, but when she reached the balcony, she found a rifle with a scope and smirked as she picked the heavy weapon up, joining the others in shooting the walkers in the field. She had to remind herself to be calm and take a deep breath before she lifted the weapon and took aim, allowing herself to exhale steadily, just like Daryl had shown her with his crossbow, before she pulled the trigger.

The shot was loud. Louder than any of the guns, but she didn't care as she saw the walker go down from the head shot. She was amazed, but didn't let her self celebrate, and instead took aim again, taking down another two walkers before Rick killed the last walker and she slowly lowered the rifle.

Grinning from ear to ear at how well the plan had actually worked, Jupiter ran back down the stairs with the rifle and tried to open the door.

Only it wouldn't budge, and she knew why. There was undoubtedly a pile of walker bodies on the other side of it, so she put the rifle down and started shoving against the door, grunting with the effort as the door edged a little further open with each barge. After a minute her shoulder was aching, but she was pretty sure she'd only need to open it a little further before she could squeeze out, so she braced herself and then barged it one final time. She cried out as the door gave way, hitting something solid, but she couldn't see what as she was already falling, hitting the ground hard and swearing loudly.

She looked up as someone cussed and saw Daryl behind the door, smirking at Jupiter as she lay on the floor. Clearly he'd moved the body in her way and had been what the door hit when she fell out of it. "Cheers," she thanked him, slightly sarcastically as she held up a hand so he could pull her to her feet, smirking at him when he did.

Before she could say anything undoubtedly hilarious, Daryl was pulling her towards him, his face concerned. "You hurt?" He asked, running his hands over her bare shoulders and checking for bites or scratches, his blue eyes bright and piercing as they briefly met her gaze before returning to her body, following his own hands as he gently checked her. But she was fine and shook her head.

"I'm fine... Daryl look at this place!" She beamed, unable to contain her excitement at the thought of not having to worry about walkers getting them in their sleep, and actually getting some proper rest. Even Daryl was excited, though he didn't show it as much and instead just took her hand, interlocking their fingers as they headed back to the others. Rick put a hand on Jupiter's shoulder and smiled- a genuine smile that Jupiter was happy to see.

"Good job, Jupe... And good shooting!" He complemented her and she laughed, gesturing back to the guard tower she'd been in.

"There was a rifle in there, and it had a scope, so I don't know it it counts as good shooting, but it was actually pretty sweet!" She nerded out a little, and some of the others laughed, Rick included. He patted her on the back before stepping away.

None of them had been that happy in a while, and once some of them had gone back for the vehicles and parked them inside the gates, the mood only brightened further, despite the walkers surrounding them at every fence. They were safe for now and could rest, which was exactly what most of them did as the skies started to darken.

Daryl and Jupiter decided to take watch, climbing on top of the over turned bus and watching the woods in the darkness, hardly saying anything. For once, it was a nice silence though, and not because they were both too tired to talk, even though they were. It was comfortable, and when Jupiter sat down on the edge, her legs dangling, Daryl joined her, putting his arm around her.

"What you thinking about?" He asked, leaning towards her so his lips brushed her cheek when he spoke, making her smile as she turned to him, gently brushing his lips with her own before resting her forehead against his and answering with a smile.

"This place... It's good. I was just thinking how nice it'd be to stop running all the time and actually have a dependable base."

Daryl nodded, his fingertips tracing patterns into her side beneath her shirt, giving her goosebumps where he touched. He said nothing, and Jupiter knew that he agreed and was thinking about it himself. The winter had been hard, and they were lucky that they hadn't lost anyone despite everything. The prison, once cleared, could be their safe harbour and place to start fresh.

They were still sitting like that when Carol joined them, handing them a bowl of food before excusing herself and walking back to the others.

The three of them had spent a lot of time together over the last 7 months, and Jupiter considered Carol to be her friend then. More so than the others, except for maybe Rick, who she'd taken upon herself to attempt to cheer up during their time outside.

Daryl picked up the bowl but didn't take any before offering it to Jupiter. She took a tiny bit but Daryl growled and shook the bowl at her.

"I saw you give your food to Carl again, Jupe. When's the last time you ate?" He asked with a growl, and she didn't bother lying, knowing he'd know anyway.

"Four days," she whispered, taking more food. Daryl grunted in disapproval but didn't say anything else as he knew she was too stubborn to listen. She was a protector of their group, and she'd do what she thought was needed to keep them all safe. He couldn't fault her for that, even though he'd do everything he could to keep her safe. Even if that meant just being near her and offering her whatever protection he could.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

The next day, he did just that. Half of the group would be moving further into the prison to clear the walkers out. Naturally Jupiter had volunteered to be a part of it, so Daryl made sure they would be together. He knew she could protect herself, but that didn't stop his heart from stuttering every time she was too close to a walker, their snapping jaws inches away from taking away the only thing he had left fighting for.

She was good for him, and the two of them were two sides of the same coin. Where he was the cold, strong and silent type, she was a fire given life, her fierce temper burning in her every move. Apart, they were two wild forces, fighting against the world alone, but together, they balanced and their tempers were calmed some. Though when they fought as one, their fierce need to protect and save made them an unbreakable team. Something just worked there, and the others in the group had also noticed, regularly complementing them on it.

As they all started gearing up to go past the gate, Jupiter looked up from tying up her boots and grinned at Daryl, surprising him again, just like she did every day. After all they'd seen and been through, how she could still wake up and smile before throwing herself into a situation she might not walk away from. It amazed him, and more than once had managed to pull him from his own dark thoughts. Jupiter laughed in the face of danger every day, literally, and Daryl couldn't help but wonder how? How could she manage to smile, laugh and joke every day, when a single slip up could be the end.

Still, he understood that sometimes you couldn't become numb to the world, no matter how much you wanted to. The way his heart swelled every time he saw Jupiter smile was proof of that, and the way she'd turned his world upside down was never something he'd regret, even if he knew that one day he might lose her, and that was a loss he wasn't sure he'd come back from.

He shook his head to clear those thoughts- not wanting to be paranoid right before they went into a walker infested cage together. She was going to be fine, so was everyone else. The group was unified again, not broken like they'd been on the farm, and they'd face whatever was behind those gates and survive. Just like they always did.

"You ready?" Rick asked, and Jupiter stood up straight beside Daryl, rolling her shoulders and readjusting her grip on her loaned machete, nodding her head the same as Daryl. Rick took a deep breath and unclipped one of the carabiners, sliding the gate open and letting everyone in. 

They moved quickly, staying together as they gradually moved further up, meeting barely any problems until the walkers in riot gear game out, their heads protected by helmets. Maggie was the first to kill one of them, and the others quickly followed her lead, pulling the helmets up and stabbing them through the jaw.

There was more walkers around the corner, but Rick and Daryl managed to lock them behind a gate, securing another section of the prison. Once the final walker on their side of the gate was killed, Jupiter caught her breath, wiping the blood from her hands onto her trousers before looking to the others. Everyone was ok, so it was ok to go on, inside the prison.

That was the part Jupiter wasn't so fond of, knowing that it was going to be dark, probably full of walkers, and cold. That was not how she wanted to die, but if they didn't go in, they'd be sleeping outside again, and Lori needed a bed. So she took a breath and then followed Rick, Daryl close behind her, his breathing almost silent as they walked up some steps and to the first door. Edging passed her, Daryl lifted his crossbow, ready for when Rick opened the door. Jupiter held her breath, as Rick slid the door open and lunged inside, his knife raised. But his shoulders relaxed as he came face to face with a metal caged door, and no visible walkers on the other side of it.

Just as she'd expected, it was cold and dark inside, not to mention messy, but there was no walkers in sight. Still, she remained quiet as she leaned forward and handed Rick her torch so he could check the shadows before opening the door. She couldn't see much, leaning around Daryl, but no sound came from inside, so they slowly walked in.

The first thing Jupiter saw was the blood staining the glass of the warden's office, and the outline of a body. Knowing what was likely up there, she shivered and looked away, seeing the locked doors on all the entrances and feeling a little better. No one had probably been in there since the outbreak started, walker or human. Still, they all kept their voices down, knowing it probably wasn't the case for the whole prison, and beyond any of the doors could be hoards of walkers, waiting on their next meal.

Rick headed up to check the warden for keys and to see if he was likely to come after them, so Jupiter walked to the cell block to peer through the bars and see if anyone was inside. She couldn't hear anything, but there was a faint smell of rot, so she wasn't ruling anything out yet. She couldn't see around the side of the door, even when she grabbed the cold metal between her hands and leaned forward. Her head was too big, and she didn't want to risk sticking her arm through to feel for anything... Not when something with teeth might be lurking just out of sight.

She saw what was inside soon enough, as Rick returned with the keys in hand and carefully unlocked the door, allowing them through. They quickly and silently moved into the room, backs to the wall and facing the cells, ready should something come at them. Jupiter noticed the body against the wall and relaxed some, figuring she'd found the source of the rotting smell.

She moved on, heading up to the next level, Daryl already up there, clearing the far cells when she joined him, heading back on herself towards the door they'd came through. The smell of rot was stronger up there, she noticed, moving slowly further down the row. There was a bang from one of the cells and Jupiter froze, her eyes moving to the source of the sound and narrowing as she failed to see anything. The doors were closed, so whatever was inside was trapped. Still, she moved carefully, feeling Daryl was close behind her, his crossbow undoubtedly aimed over her shoulder in case the door should open and a walker charge out.

She was at the second to last cell when the walker stepped into the light, snarling and reaching for her through the bars. She dodged back, her back flat against the railings behind her as she flung her arm out to stop Daryl from getting grabbed. He had seen them too, so she lowered her arm and moved on, seeing a similar case in the last cell, the walker reaching for her again. She shared a look with Daryl and then the two of them stabbed the two walkers in the brain, killing them.

"Clear," Jupiter called, receiving echoes from the others in reply. They'd cleared the cell block, and no one was hurt again, so far the prison had been the best thing they'd done in a while, and Jupiter could only hope their luck held.

Rick stepped away from the cells so everyone could see him and nodded, looking around in satisfaction as what they'd achieved. "OK, lets go get the others and our things..." Everyone started moving, but Rick held up his hand to Daryl and Jupiter. "Not you two. You two and T-Dog, start clearing bodies out of the cells. Drag them out into the yard and we'll deal with them tomorrow..."

They nodded and Rick threw Daryl a set of keys to open the doors, keeping the other set on his belt. 

Despite the hard work they were doing, and the disgusting smell, Jupiter couldn't help but smile as they worked, lifting the walker bodies up and throwing them over the railings to T-Dog, who dragged them outside. When Daryl saw the smile, he couldn't help his own.

"What're you grinning at?" He asked. 

Jupiter raised her eyes to his and chuckled a little. "It's just good. Here. Now. After so long out there... I don't know... This just feels right." She didn't say safe, and nor would she. If they thought they were safe, they'd let their guard down, and that was one sure fire way to get yourself killed. Daryl understood, looking like he was about to say something back to her when they threw the last body over, but then the others arrived and he shut his mouth, leaving it left unsaid.

Jupiter wasn't that bothered. Daryl had opened up to her somewhat, but she knew it was unlikely for him to do so to the others for a while. He was always more quiet around them, more of a listener than a talker. He'd changed a lot since she'd first met him-they all had- but Daryl the most. He wasn't the angry, rude redneck any more... He was a valued member of the group, and Rick's second in command. Jupiter was proud of him, and just smiled at him again as they leaned over the railings to watch the others come in.

Rick welcomed them and explained that they'd find the infirmary and cafeteria in the morning and to get some rest in the mean time. When he said they'd be sleeping in the cells, Daryl froze up a little and shook his head. "I ain't sleeping in no cage... I'll take the perch," he declared, walking towards the space at the top of the stairs. Jupiter watched him go and rolled her eyes, following behind him and taking a seat with her back against the wall, watching the others pick cells. It didn't take long, and after a few minutes, everyone was settling in for the night. Daryl had pulled a mattress from one of the cells and got comfortable, looking up at Jupiter and moving up to make room for her beside him. "You gonna lie down?" He asked.

Jupiter shot him a crooked smile, running her fingers through his hair for a second before looking down to where Rick was sitting against a wall, quiet and clearly thinking hard about something. He was troubled, and Jupiter was gonna wait for him to get into a cell before she went to sleep. "No. Not yet. But you go ahead... I'm gonna keep watch for a while."

She half expected Daryl to volunteer to stay up with her, but she was glad to see that he just shrugged and lay on his back, closing his eyes as he mumbled for her to not be too long. Smiling down at him, she leaned over and quickly kissed his lips. "Goodnight, Dixon."

He smiled and put his hands behind his head. "Goodnight, Princess." For the first time, Jupiter didn't object to the nickname he'd given her, and instead just chuckled and returned to playing with his hair, thinking about the nickname and why he'd given it to her. Apparently her accent made her sound like a princess, and as her hair was all the way down to her butt now, she could be Rapunzel. Of course, she hated the nickname at first, and so naturally Daryl had called her it teasingly, but after getting used to it, she realised it wasn't so bad. She still sometimes complained about it, but not as much.

When she come back to herself, Jupiter realised it was getting dark out and Rick was still sitting by himself. She sighed quietly and got to her feet, careful not to disturb Daryl or make too much noise as she moved down the stairs and come to a stop beside Rick. He looked up at her with tired eyes and she held out a hand. "Come on," she whispered. "Let's go for a walk?"

At first she thought Rick was going to tell her to leave him alone, but then he sighed and took her hand, getting to his feet. The two of them silently headed out, locking the door after them, just in case. When they got outside, a cool wind brushed Jupiter's skin and she couldn't help but gasp a little. She ignored Rick's look and led him out further, sitting on the bleachers by the basketball court with him. There, she waited for him to say something, but he remained silent, staring out into the woods with the same look on his face. Taking a deep breath, Jupiter decided to start.

"You've done a great job, Rick." He turned to look at her, so she continued. "Getting us this far... We survived seven months on the road because of you... We found this place because of you, and your children will have an actual future because of you... You're a brilliant leader, and no one could do a better job than you have, and I just want to make sure that you know that?"

Rick exhaled sharply, almost like he laughed, as he looked down and started playing with his wedding ring. 

"I'm not sure Shane, Andrea, Jimmy or Patricia would agree with you there Jupe... They died because of-"

"Shane!" She cut in, refusing to even let him finish his thought. "They died because of Shane. He changed, and this world was clearly too much for him... He lost it, and you protected us from him. Those deaths are on his hands and no one elses..." Rick looked away, his fists clenching, so Jupiter reached over and put her hand on top of his, making him look at her so he'd understand what she was saying to him.

"Any one of us would have done the same thing, Rick... I know it's not something I should admit to, but until Dale, I'd been planning on killing Shane myself..." Rick tilted his head in surprise, but Jupiter didn't let herself stop, and instead confessed the whole truth to her friend. "The difference between you and me though? You acted in self defence... I was going to kill Shane when he didn't see it coming. He was a risk to the group and I would have had no problem with killing him to protect everyone else. You think that makes me a monster?"

Rick stayed silent for a few seconds, and she half expected him to say yes, but then he sighed again and dropped his head. "No... It means you had the strength to do something I couldn't until I had no other choice... You acted like a leader..."

Jupiter laughed, the sound drawing the attention of walkers outside the fence and they started pushing against it again, snarling. Jupiter ignored them and addressed Rick again. "Not a good leader! I was gonna kill one of our own and then leave... Not to sound too full of myself, but I'd have killed one of our best fighters and made you lose another one when I left... The group would have been weak, and I'd have made it so... You tried to keep us together, make us strong. That's why we survived the winter. Because you are a good leader."

Rick said nothing again, so Jupiter got to her feet and Rick copied her movement, slightly surprised when Jupiter acted out of character and moved forward to give Rick a hug, holding onto him tightly until he unfroze and put his arms around her too. They stayed that way for a few minutes, saying nothing. Jupiter knew that Rick wasn't going to believe what she said unless he wanted to, so she didn't waste any more of her breath, but when they walked back inside together, she noticed happily that he walked into an empty cell instead of returning to the floor by the wall.

Happy that her work was done, Jupiter checked the two doors were locked before walking back up the stairs and carefully lying down beside Daryl. He'd either heard her come back or hadn't been sleeping as he shifted a little and then his arms were around her, pulling her closer to him.

"You're freezing," he mumbled quietly, his voice heavy with sleep. Jupiter hummed in reply, but closed her eyes, snuggling into Daryl's chest as he rubbed up and down her bare arms, trying to warm her up. After a moment, he reached behind his head and pulled out his poncho, wrapping it around her before holding her close again, his chin resting on the top of her head as he sighed, slipping back into sleep, Jupiter not far behind.