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Summary: When the world ended the only thing Birdie Grimes wanted to do was to get home to her family.  When she finds her sister-in-law and best friend on the outskirts of Atlanta, will she finally get the chance to tell him how she really feels?  Will love blossom?  *No evil Shane* 

Warning:  This fan-fiction is rated Mature for Language, Gore and Adult Situations.  Readers under the age of 18 are strongly discouraged from reading.

Pairing: Shane Walsh x Birdie Grimes

Chapter Eleven

 

By the time I had made it back to camp—after a little detour to calm my temper—my brother was already redressed in his uniform and arguing with Shane about him going back.  Daryl was watching all of like a hawk, sizing us up as he carefully went about wiping down his crossbow.  Even I could appreciate his Horton, though, with my how much weight I’ve lost in recent months, I knew I could never hope to string it. 

“So that’s it, huh,” Shane said following my brother as he tried to gather himself.  “You’re just gonna walk off, to Hell with everybody else?” 

Ricky shook his head, trying to find the words to explain why he had to do this.  Oh, I knew why of course, it was my brother’s huge heart that usually led him to disaster—but even I had to stop and marvel at this new idiocy. 

“I’m not sayin’ to Hell with anybody.  Not you, Shane.  Lori, least of all.”

“Yeah,” Shane spat, nearly trembling with nervous energy.  “And what about Birdie?  Man, she fought her way here from Tampa so she could find you and Carl…and what, her sacrifice means nothing to you?” 

“Shane,” Rick sighed, looking to me for help.  Sorry brother dear, you are so on your own with this one.  I just couldn’t justify him sacrificing his life for a man who would sooner kill him than speak to him—he was leaving Carl behind for this. 

“Tell her that.”

“She knows.”  Rick said lightly.

“No, Ricky, I don’t know.  I don’t think any of us do.  So explain to me why you’re gonna leave Carl without a father and Lori without a husband, again?” 

He winced, and I think I may have finally hit a small sore spot with him.  He had no idea what we had all been going through in the time he was in that coma, both before and after the outbreak. 

“Ricky, you just woke up the other day, we’ve had to live this for month…months Ricky!  The whole time we spent thinking you were never gonna wake up! That you were one of those things!  So you tell me why this is more important than taking care of your family!”  I knew I would be yelling by the end of that, but I didn’t expect the hot sting of tears that accompanied it. 

Shane growled next to me.  “Why risk your life for a douche-bag like Merle Dixon?”

“Shane,” I hissed at the same time Daryl pointed a bolt in our direction and said, “Hey, choose your words more carefully.” 

Shane shook his head and leveled Daryl with a glare that sent shivers down my spine.  “No, I did.  Douche-bag’s what I meant…Merle Dixon, guy wouldn’t give you a glass of water if you were dyin’ of thirst.” 

Of course my tenderhearted brother couldn’t even begin to see Shane’s logic—he’s just too good of a man, too sweet. 

“So you and Daryl, that’s your big plan,” Lori said, crossing her arms over her chest, trying her best to make Rick feel guilty—it was too bad for her that I just wasn’t in the mood to hear her lip either.

“You,” I pointed in her direction and her eyes went wide.  “shut your mouth, it was you that put your husband up to this… you might as well have served him to the walkers on a silver serving tray.”

Daryl snickered from across the fire but Rick gave me “that look” and I growled and bit the inside of my cheek to keep from lashing out any further.  I loved Lori, and I was probably a lot harsher than I meant to be…but why did she have to say anything.  She probably knew Ricky as good as anybody and telling him to do “the right thing” set the Hero fire under his ass.  I could smack the shit out of her right now.

“It’s not just four.  You’re putting everyone at risk.  Just know that, Rick.  Come on, you saw that walker.  It was here, it was in Camp.  They’re movin’ out of the cities.  They come back, we need every able body we’ve got.  We need’em to protect camp.” 

“Shane’s right,” I said speaking up again.  “Let me go in your place.” 

That suggestion was met by a strong chorus of “No.” 

“Why not, I know my way around the city, I’m just as good a shot as Rick and I’m just as fast as Glenn.”  I defended; making sure that Ricky knew how serious I was about this. 

“No way in Hell, Birdie,” Shane snapped at the same time Daryl yelled, “Hell no. I’d take the coon before I’d take a woman!” 

“It seems to me what you really need most here are more guns.”  Ricky spoke up in his calm voice, immediately drawing everyone’s attention away from the argument I had inadvertently started. 

“Right, the guns,” Glenn said looking thoughtful. 

“Wait, what guns?”  Shane asked, walking around behind me and pulling my back to his chest.  I guess I really upset him by wanting to go.  He needed to understand.  I don’t have a husband or a child that needed me…

“Six shotguns, two high-powered rifles and over a dozen handguns; I cleaned out the cage back at the station before I left.  I dropped the bag in Atlanta when I got swarmed. 

“Ammo?”  Shane asked, but I just growled and walked away. 

It was obvious that Ricky had made up his mind about this and clearly he had Shane all aboard this crazy train now, too.  Well, I wasn’t going to stand around and watch it.  If Rick seriously wanted to risk his life for a bunch of guns that aren’t even that useful…well, he could do it without me there to see him off.  There was no way I could watch the heartbreak on my nephews face and not clock Ricky one in the jaw…possibly Lori, too.