Violent Silence • Rick Grimes ✓

-07-

hershel's issues

OTIS'S CEREMONY WAS VERY MOVING FOR THE GREENE FAMILY. Shane told his story of Otis's last moments. Maggie held Scarlett's hand as Carl stood on Scarlett's other side. Every person watched with wide eyes besides Rick when Carl reached to hold her hand when a tear fell from her eye. Hershel waited for Scarlett to freak out with an episode, but she only gripped Carl's hand tighter.

After the ceremony, Rick's group found a walker in one of their wells. Scarlett let them deal with it while she and Carl went to grab some of the dry laundry. Carl groaned at first, but Scarlett flicked off the sherrif's hat from his head with a glare. He groaned again, picking up the hat, and Scarlett laughed at him.

"Hey! I'm in pain. You can't laugh," he grumbled, ripping a shirt from the line of dry clothes.

She poked his side playfully. His glare faltered into a smile when she poked some more.

"All right, all right!" he laughed as she tickled him softly.

Hershel watched from afar, Rick walking toward him. Rick glanced at what Hershel was staring at. He smiled at Carl laughing as if nothing was wrong in the world.

"I've never seen her take so well to someone," Hershel admitted to Rick.

Rick glanced at him, tilting his head. "What'd'ya mean?"

"Your boy. He can touch her, she touches him. No flinching. I even heard her laughing. Scarlett had a hard life, and she don't trust easy. Your boy broke through her walls without even trying," Hershel commented.

Rick smiled. "She speaks to him."

Hershel lost his balance at the words.

He glanced at Rick with unconvincing eyes. "She doesn't talk."

"To Carl, she does."

"I've never seen her act like this," Hershel said softly, seeing Carl run away after hitting her with a towel. "It's beautiful. Her smile. Just wish she had a better childhood."

Rick nodded, calling out, "Carl! Watch your stitches!" Carl nodded, giving him a thumbs up just as Scarlett hit his hat off again. Rick chuckled. "I'm glad she's there for him through this." He paused, glancing at his boy again. "I need you to reconsider making us leave."

Scarlett calmed her laughter, sorting out the clothes into Rick's group and theirs before telling Carl softly to sort through his group's clothes and make small piles. They watched a car begin to leave after the walker in the well situation did not go as planned. Carl watched the car leave.

"Who went on a run?"

"Glenn and Maggie," Scarlett said softly.

Carl snorted. "They like each other." Scarlett nodded with a smirk. "Hey, could you train me to shoot a gun? I wanna be a brave person, like you."

Scarlett bit her lip, remembering how Shane and Rick spoke about getting their group proper gun training. "We'll see what ya Daddy says, yeah? Your Mama, too. I don' mind."

Carl grinned, finishing up his group just as his mom came over with a slight worried expression before letting it fall when Carl looked at her.

"Hey, Carl. I want you to go sit out of the sun for a bit. Work on some schoolwork 'till your Dad gets back," Lori told him.

"Where's Dad?"

"He's going out with Shane, Daryl, Andrea, and T-Dog," Lori glanced at Scarlett. "Hey, honey. You think your dad would mind letting us cook y'all supper. It's a thanks for letting us be here. That turkey Daryl caught could be real nice if we had a good kitchen."

Scarlett nodded just as Carl said, "Hershel is her Uncle, not her Dad."

Lori rose her arms in surrender. "Sorry. C'mon, we'll pick up these clothes and do some maths. Did you tell Scarlett thanks for helping with laundry?"

Carl rolled his eyes, turning to a smirking Scarlett. She tapped her ear teasingly.

"Thanks, Scar," he muttered before picking up whatever clothes his mom could not carry.

Scarlett chuckled, bringing her family's clothes in. She saw Jimmy walking over to Rick, and she wondered what he was up to. Ignoring it, because he was not her problem, she continued her chores for the day.

Lori and Carol went into the house to cook while Carl sat on the porch doing homework. Scarlett was taking care of the horses, and her eyes widened when she noticed Nelly missing.

"Shit," she let out, knowing one of the pig headed men took her. Only Shawn could control her, so she was not expecting this run in the woods to go as well as the men planned with that horse.

Feeding the others, she had to trust Nelly to come back when she was ready—rider or not.

The world had ended, but her chores didn't.

Sighing, she went out to feed the cattle. Raising her hand to block the sun, she smiled slightly when she saw Maggie walking toward her, buckets to fill up the water trough. Maggie's eyebrows were crinkled as if she was thinking hard. Wiping some sweat from her brows, she gave a slight smile to her.

When she got to the trough that Scarlett was putting food in, she blurted, "I had sex with Glenn."

Scarlett snorted.

Maggie glared before a smile formed. Then, a laugh. "It's not funny!"

Scarlett began to grin, rolling her eyes at Maggie's laughter. She jumped the fence, getting on the side with Maggie. Reaching her, she patted her on the back as if to say 'Good one.'

Maggie groaned. "Daddy knows something is up. He's pissed because Carol and Lori want to make dinner. He's pissed because you're apparently talking to Carl, which I don't believe, but if it's true, I'm concerned. He's also pissed because he caught Jimmy and Beth making out, and he hates Shane," she got all of that out without breathing. At the end she took a deep breath. Scarlett gave her a look as if to ask if she was done. She nodded. "I'm stressed."

Scarlett poured the water, giving the empty buckets back to Maggie. She shook her head at Maggie when she went to talk again. Placing a finger on Maggie's lips, she began to take deep breaths in and out. She waited until Maggie followed. Once both were breathing the same, Scarlett nodded and walked off.

Maggie laughed. "That's ridiculous that it still works!" she called, following after her while referring to Maggie and Scarlett's old way to calm down when they were younger. Scarlett only gave Maggie a wink.