⌜ chapter five ⌟

"What are you doing?" Jessica asks with a furrowed brow as she watches MJ in her room.

"What does it look like I'm doing?"

"Making yet another mistake." She says, and the older girl smiles as she turns to look at her.

"Oh, the worried expression." MJ chuckles. "I'll be fine, Jess."

"You only met this guy a couple days ago, and he almost got you arrested yesterday." She argues, shaking her head. "I really don't think you should be going out with him again."

"Jessica, my sweet and innocent friend... I almost got me arrested last night, alright? Don't give this guy more credit than he deserves."

"Why don't you just stay in with me tonight instead?" The curly-haired blonde asks. "We can have a movie night. I'm already baking cookies for when Sam gets home."

"I love how much you love my brother." She smiles. "I'll be back early tonight, alright? And I won't get into any trouble, I promise."

"I've heard that before." Jess sighs, and the older girl chuckles.

"Take a walk on the wild side every now and then, huh?" MJ teases. "It keeps things so much more entertaining."

The promise that she made to Jess that night was only half true. While MJ didn't get into trouble, she didn't exactly get home early. And that conversation was the last time she ever saw her brother's girlfriend. The fire had already broken out in the apartment complex and was roaring high by the time she got home, and it took all of Dean's strength and training to keep his little sister from running in to try and save her.

Jessica Moore is the first person that MJ can remember losing in such a tragic manner. And she was only the first in a rather long line. Instances like this are the reason MJ decided to stop letting people in, to stop caring for anyone new. Of course, that never really went according to plan, and Rick is only the most recent example.

If she's being entirely honest, she's cared a little too much whether he'd live or die before he even woke up from his coma. And now he's capable of making stupid decisions that land him in situations like the one he's in now.

Rick thought of a way to get them all back to the group's camp. So now he and Glenn are in the streets covered in walker guts. It's like camouflage so that the dead won't think they're food and try to eat them.

Rick wanted MJ to go with them, but she refuses to leave Jack. And no way in hell was she going to let him back out there with the walkers like that. So the two of them are back on the roof of the warehouse with Andrea, T-Dog, Morales — their leader — and Jacqui — the skinny black woman who said that Rick hallucinated the helicopter.

Morales is watching them through the binoculars, and T-Dog's trying to get through to someone on the radio, but he isn't having much luck. Merle's still handcuffed.

"That asshole's out on the street with the handcuff keys?" Merle questions, and T-Dog pulls it out of his front pocket and waves it in front of him. "Hey, sugar tits, get your boyfriend's key and let me out of these damn things!" He yells at MJ.

"Don't call her that!" Jack snaps, and she grabs his arm.

"Just ignore him." She tells Jack and then looks over at Merle as thunder claps in the sky above them. "Screw you, asshole. I have no patience for racists or bigots."

MJ walks away from them, and Jack follows after her. T-Dog starts talking to someone on the radio — their camp — but she doesn't pay them any attention.

"Are we gonna stay with these people?" Jack asks, and MJ looks at him. "I don't like him."

"I don't think anybody likes Merle." She says as she looks over at the others. "Do you want to stay with them?"

"I want to stay with Rick." He tells her. "And I like Glenn."

"I don't think the others like me much."

"Well, you had a knife in their face. And you called one of them a bitch." He reminds her, and she sighs. "Maybe you should apologize."

She chuckles. "I'm not really good at that sort of thing." The blonde tells him. "The touchy-feely, playing nice..." She shakes her head.

"Sam would do it." He says, knowing how much she always admired the way that the people they came across took to Sam. He didn't even have to try, and people just liked him — they trusted him.

MJ sighs as she looks at him. He's still scared — he's been scared since all of this started — and he doesn't want to be alone again.

"You've been different." Jack says. "Ever since—"

"Don't." She closes her eyes and lets her head hang. "Just don't. Please."

"I think we should stay with Rick." He tells her, and she nods. "And I think he wants to stay with these people."

"He wants to find his family."

"M..." He's pleading with her, and she takes a deep breath as she looks at him.

"We'll stay with Rick." She says. "Where he goes, we go. I promise. Even if that means I have to make nice with these people."

"Thank you." He says, and she nods.

"Anything for you." She kisses his cheek and then walks over to the others again. "How are they doing?" She asks Morales.

"So far, so good." He tells her, and she looks at the two women.

"So, listen, uh... I'm sorry for putting a knife in your face, and for calling you a bitch." She looks from Andrea to Jacqui.

"And for threatening to kill me?" Andrea asks, and MJ sighs.

"No, not that." She says. "I'll admit that it was a bit excessive, but you had a gun in Jack's face, and... I won't apologize for protecting him. I just won't."

The blonde nods. "I respect that." She says, and then there's more thunder.

"You gonna apologize to me?" Merle asks.

"When hell freezes over." MJ mutters absentmindedly as she then looks up at the gray clouds overhead. "Son of a bitch." She takes a deep breath when a raindrop lands on her cheek.

"What?" Jack asks.

"The rain could wash away the smell." She tells him as she looks back at Rick and Glenn. "Expose them."

"It's just a cloudburst. We get 'em all the time. It'll pass real quick." Morales says as it starts pouring rain.

They all watch as the walkers​ start to move closer to Rick and Glenn. Rick kills one of them with an ax, and then the two men take off running.

"Not quick enough." MJ mutters.

Jack turns away and grabs ahold of MJ's arm. He doesn't like seeing so much death, and he's afraid that all of the walkers will get Rick and Glenn. He's afraid of losing more people than he already has.

The two men hop over a tall fence, and MJ sighs in relief. "They're okay." She tells Jack, and he leans into her. He turns around when they hear gunshots. Rick's killing the ones that are climbing over the gate.

They get into what looks like a moving truck, and Rick starts driving. The gate keeping all of the walkers back goes down, and they run after the truck. He speeds away from them.

The rain's starting to clear up, but the group is already soaking wet. Morales lowers the binoculars, and Andrea starts to panic.

"They're leaving us." The blonde says.

"What? What?" Merle questions. He can't see what's going on from where he's handcuffed.

"Where are they going?" Morales asks.

"Come back. Come back."

"Have a little faith." MJ says, and they all look at her. She doesn't look slightest bit worried by what she just saw. "They couldn't drive back the way they came, the street's flooded with walkers."

And she really does believe that they'll come back for them. Glenn wouldn't risk his life to save a few strangers, just to turn around and leave the group he came here with for dead. And even though she hasn't known Rick for long, she can tell that he's not the type to abandon people.

They're waiting less than ten minutes when a familiar voice comes through the radio that T-Dog has. "Those roll-up doors at the front of the store facing the street — meet us there, and be ready." Glenn tells them.

"Come on! Let's go, let's go!" Morales yells as everyone grabs their stuff.

"T-Dog, uncuff Merle." MJ tells him as she grabs Jack. "And then both of you move your asses!" She runs for the door that they came through earlier.

The rest of the group runs down the stairs and then through the department store. MJ and Jack are following behind Jacqui, and they have Andrea right behind them, with Morales at the back of the group.

They get to the roll-up doors that Glenn told them to be at, and Jacqui and MJ quickly grab the chains. They hear a car alarm blaring outside, and T-Dog runs over to them soon after. They hear three bangs and then the two women start pulling the chains, opening up the door. Rick's there, and they immediately start loading their things into the truck that he's in.

Once they're all in, Rick starts driving​, getting them away from the walkers. Morales closes the back door, and MJ looks around at each of them. One person is missing from their group that was on the roof just now.

"Where's Merle?" She asks, now sitting in the passenger seat next to Rick.

"I dropped the damn key." T-Dog says, obvious remorse in his voice and on his face.

"Where's Glenn?" Andrea asks as Jack sits on the small ledge between the two seats in the front of the truck. She's got Jacqui right next to her, and T-Dog and Morales are leaning against the opposite wall.

"He's in another car." Rick tells them. "He was the distraction so I could get to you."

"The car alarm." MJ says, and he nods.

She sits facing Rick so that Jack can lean against her legs. He's got his arm across her knees as he rests his head on it.

Rick keeps driving, and MJ smooths out the back of Jack's hair. He closes his eyes as the adrenaline starts to slow and his breathing evens out. They're all a lot calmer now.

"Best not to dwell on it — Merle getting left behind." Morales says, looking at the identical expressions on both MJ and Rick's faces. "Nobody's gonna be sad he didn't come back... Except maybe Daryl."

"Who's Daryl?" MJ asks as she looks at him.

"His brother." He tells her, and she sighs.

"Why does it seem to bother you so much exactly?" Andrea asks, curiosity getting the better of her. MJ didn't even know Merle, and it's not like he treated her kindly in the short time that she spent around him.

"I don't leave people behind." Is all MJ says.

They hear a car alarm blaring as it races up beside them. Glenn's cheering as he speeds by Rick's side of the car, waving his hand out the driver's side window.

"At least somebody's having a good day." Morales says.

MJ leans down so that her head is closer to Jack's. "Hey, are you doing okay?" She asks, and he nods. "Yeah? Can I hear you say it?"

"I'm okay." He tells her, and she takes a deep breath. "Are you?"

"Me? I'm perfect." She says as she rubs his shoulder. "So long as I got you."

"You don't look old enough to be his mom. I mean, unless you had him when you were a teenager." Jacqui says. "Siblings?"

"We're not related." MJ tells her. "But that doesn't mean we're not family."

"And you two?" Andrea motions between her and Rick. "Married?"

"No." She shakes her head as Rick chuckles, keeping his eyes on the road. "Neither of us have much in the way of family right now, so... You keep close who you do have."

"She saved my life." Rick tells them. "I didn't know about what was going on out here. So she took me in, took care of me, taught me. I owe these two everything."

They all nod, and it's silent among them for awhile. Morales gives Rick what little directions are necessary as he drives.

"How much farther to your camp?" MJ asks.

"Not much." He tells her. "We're just outside the city. We'll be there soon."

Eventually Morales tells them to pull off on a small access road, and Rick does exactly that. MJ sighs as she looks outside the front window, and Morales then pats both hers and Rick's shoulders. "Come meet everybody." He tells the three newcomers to the group.

They all spill out of the car, and Andrea immediately runs over to her sister. The others head back over to their loved ones as well, and MJ looks at Rick, both still in the truck.

"What are you thinkin'?" She asks him.

"I need to find my family." He says, and she nods.

"We will. I promise." She reaches over and rests her hand on his arm. "Now get your ass out of the car."

He smirks as the last three climb out. "I guess you're the only family I got for now." Rick says as he looks at MJ. They're walking side-by-side, and Jack's just behind them.

"I thought we had lost you folks for sure." A man with white hair is saying to Morales.

"Could be worse." MJ says as she looks up at Rick. "I could be useless."

He laughs at that. "You are far from it." He tells her, and she smiles up at him.

"How'd y'all get out of there anyway?" A different guy asks.

"Come on." Rick wraps his arm around MJ's shoulders, and she sighs as she reaches her hand back to Jack. The younger boy takes her hand in his as her other arm wraps around Rick's torso.

"New people — he got us out, and she kept everyone from losing their shit." Glenn tells their group. "She actually kept Merle and T-Dog from getting into it."

"New people?"

"Yeah, crazy vato and his friends just got into town." Morales tells him. "Hey, helicopter boy! Bring your girl and the kid to come say hello." He calls to Rick, MJ, and Jack. "The guy's a cop like you. And the girl's badass, a little scary though."

"I take that as a compliment." MJ says, a small smile on her face as they make their way over to the others. Rick slows, and she looks up at him. "You okay?"

"Aren't those the two from the picture? The one from the police car?" Jack asks as he points to a woman and a younger boy.

"Oh my God." MJ removes her arm from around Rick as she looks at them.

He lets go of MJ and starts walking toward the two of them. The little boy starts running over now, screaming, "Dad! Dad!" His mom stands up straight, too shocked to follow after him.

The kid — Carl — hugs Rick, and they fall to the ground, but it's not long before he picks up his son and walks over to his wife. Lori hugs him as soon as he's close enough for her to touch.

"I should open a table. I'm like a fortune teller." MJ smiles, and Jack looks at her.

"You didn't make a prediction. You were just being nice." He argues.

"Hey, I'm magic." She looks at him. "Don't argue or I'll ground you."

"To what? We don't have a house."

"I will chain your ass to that tree." She points to the side, and he laughs as she pulls him to her.

MJ and Jack look back at Rick and his family then. She notices the way that Lori's looking at another member of the group, and the way that he's looking back at her.

The older man who was talking to Morales walks over to MJ and holds his hand out to her, gaining her attention. "I'm Dale. It's nice to meet other survivors." He says as she shakes his hand.

"I'm MJ, and this is Jack." She introduces them, and he shakes Jack's hand next.

"We don't have an extra tent, but we'll work something out for the two of you." He tells her. "I'll make up some room in the RV. I'm on watch tonight, so I won't be in there long."

"You don't have to do that. We've slept outside without a tent before."

"No, no. I insist." He shakes his head. "I can't have you two out here when there's an empty space inside."

"Thank you." She smiles. "We really appreciate that."

"Thank you." Jack says, and Dale nods.

"MJ?"

She turns and sees a familiar blonde woman standing a few feet away. The entire group watches in confusion as the new girl tenses up and her hand moves for the blade on her hip. She's got confusion and anger twisted together on her face as she looks at the girl.

"J-Jessica?" MJ questions as tears fill her eyes.

"M?" Jack looks at her, obviously confused. "What's wrong?" The concern and fear in his voice catches Rick's attention.

"I think we should talk." Jessica says, and she shakes her head.

"No. You- You were..." MJ glanced around, trying to determine if there really is a threat here or not. All she sees are confused people watching the two women.

Jess died five years ago. She was killed by a demon, the same way that MJ's mother was killed in 1983. Sam and Dean saw her body on the ceiling as the fire engulfed her and the apartment that she had shared with MJ's younger brother. Dean had to drag him out of the building.

"MJ?" Rick gets her attention, and her dark eyes snap to him. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah." She chokes out and then clears her throat. "Yeah, it's fine. Will you keep an eye on Jack for me?"

"'Course." He nods, and MJ walks over toward Jessica. The two blondes make their way away from the group, MJ's hand never leaves the angel blade.

"You were dead." MJ whispers when they're far enough away from the others.

"I talked to a man named Chuck, he claimed that he was—"

"Yeah, I know who Chuck is." She nods, cutting her off. "What did he say exactly?"

"Something about this being a new world and...bringing back everyone that the Winchesters have considered family." She tells her. "He said you need special motivation to keep fighting the good fight."

"Everyone that we've ever..." She shakes her head. "No. No way."

"I don't know. I don't completely understand any of what he said." Jess shrugs. "He told me that you guys are hunters — that you kill monsters. I didn't believe that monsters were real until I saw the geeks for the first time."

"Yeah, they're new." MJ sighs as she looks at her. "How do I know that you're really you?"

"Who else would I be?"

"Shapeshifter — skinwalker. Demon. Hell, I don't know." But she wants so badly to believe that this is real.

MJ and Jess were good friends before she died. She didn't always listen to her father, and she kept in contact with Sam after he went off to college. She visited him when she could, not that either Dean and their dad knew that at the time.

"Okay... How do we— How do we test it?" Jess asks.

"Silver hurts skinwalkers. Holy water burns demons." MJ tells her.

"Do you have that?"

The hunter pulls the angel blade out of its sheath on her hip. "This is pure silver, along with a few other things." She says, and Jess holds her hand out toward it.

MJ hands it to her, and she pricks the tip of her finger. She bleeds, but her skin doesn't burn like it would a skinwalker. She then takes out the holy water that she keeps in her weapons bag. Jess drinks some and nothing happens. She doesn't choke on it.

She's real.

"Oh... Thank God." MJ says, tears filling her eyes. "Literally, I guess."

"Who's the kid?" Jess asks. "Where are the others? Where's Sam? And Matty?"

She shakes her head. "They didn't... They're gone." She says, and Jess' eyes fill with tears. "I don't think Chuck brought Sam back too, I'm not sure that he even could." She tells her. "And Ma—" She starts crying, and Jess wraps her arms around her.