Ephemeral - Alia Dixon

4

I watch as Rick and Morgan put the body of Ron's dad inside the car before driving off. I also notice Ron sneaking off over the gate when no one's looking and since that guy has no clue what's going on out there, I'm going to follow. I take my knives and the gun, Rick secretely gave me before following Ron.
I walk after him slowly and carefully for him not to notice me as he romages through the forest without any care in the world that anyone could hear him. I stay behind trees when he looks around and watch out for him and any walkers. Just as I see four approaching him, I also spot two coming my way. Quickly, they each have a knife in their heads which I quickly retreave again. I groan though as I've lost Ron. I look around for any signs of him and find his footprints not too far off. What I don't expect though, is having a gun pointed at my face when I walk out of a bush, finding Rick and Ron lying there on the floor.
"Woah, it's just me" I say, holding my hands up in defence before helping Ron up as Morgan helps Rick up. I hold my hand out for Ron which he seems to debate at first, wheter he should or shouldn't take it. After some time he grabs it though and I pull him up before I get distracted by the walkers infront of us. Hundreds of them just chilling inside that large hole. Their exits blocked by a few trucks. 
"Shit" I breathe out, my lips parting in shock at my sight. We all stare forward for a bit before Rick turns towards us.
"What are you doing out here, Ron?" Rick asks.
"I wanted to know where my dad was buried" he says quietly and I frown. Slowly, I slip my hand into his. Our heads turn to look at eachother and I give him a short supportive smile before we both turn forward again.
"And what are you doing here, Alia?" Rick asks a little calmer though.
"Saw him sneaking out and couldn't let him go alone" I say, Rick saying nothing further.
"This is how" Rick says.
"How what?" Morgan asks confusedly.
"How the community's still here. They've had walkers at their walls, but a lot of them, maybe most of them, they wound up here" Rick says as we watch the walkers down there. 

I turn my head when Ron lets go of my hand and starts walking away.
"Ron" I say but he doesn't listen.
"Ron" Rick says louder, now walking after him.
"I'm going back" Ron says calmly, as if he's done it a hundred times so far.
"Hey" Rick says, now jogging.
"I'm fine" Ron exclaims.
"You shouldn't be out here" Rick says in a low voice, holding Ron back as he steps infront of him.
"I don't care what you think" Ron says. Morgan and I stand a bit further back, letting this happen, whatever it is that this is.
"It's not what I think. It's what I know. You can't protect yourself. I'll show you how, but right now you have no idea what you're doing. And if you come out here, you're gonna die. And it won't be quick and it won't ever be over, cause you'll be one of them. That's what's gonna happen. You're coming back with us now. The both of you," Rick says before looking at me. I nod and he turns back to Ron. "Don't make it hard"
Ron doesn't say anything. He just stares at Rick with a clenched jaw, not taking his eyes off of him. Not even when we arrive back at his dad's body.
Rick and Morgan start shoveling up his grave and we watch for a few moments before a walker starts approaching Rick. He turns around but before he can even get his gun out I've already pierced it's head with a knife. Rick nods at me thankfully before I go to retrieve it. When I walk back, Ron's still standing there. I look at him, a frown forming on my face before I sit down on a log behind him. I clean up my knife until he suddenly turns around and walks over to where I'm sitting. He doesn't even look at me as he sits down and burries his head in his hands.
"Do you wanna talk about it?" I ask him but he shakes his head.
"Rather not" he says before leaning his head onto my shoulder. I don't move, letting him be as I feel his tears starting to stain my shirt. He just lost his father, whom Rick killed. If I were Ron, I'd be hella mad right now. I'm not even sure myself if Rick has done the right thing. I mean, we could've just sent him away or made a cell for him. Something. We could've done something else than killing him. Though, maybe we did him a favor. He wouldn't have survived a minute outside. 

When we arrive back at Alexandria Ron immediately gets out of the car and starts walking away. Without even thinking I bolt out after him and jogg up to him. I start walking at his side and he looks at me confused.
"What are you doing?" he asks and I shrug.
"Dunno. I'm taking you home" I say and he chuckles angrily.
"I don't need someone to take me home" 
"I know. I want to" I say as he looks at me. I softly smile at him before he looks away again. We walk up to his house in silence and he nods at me shortly before walking inside. I take that as my que to leave and go back home also.
Home.
What a weird word to say again. Is this really what Alexandria has become to me, to us? Home? 
I shake my head as I walk inside, Rick already standing there with my father.
"Do you need help? With the walkers?" I ask and they both shake their hands.
"We can do it" dad says and I softly smile at him.
"I know you can" I say before stalking up the stairs.

The next few days have been horror for everyone in here. They were shocked to find Rick talking about so many walkers so near them. One of them stood out to me. Carter is his name. Always whispering when Rick orders something and always looking around when he talks to other people, as if he wants to hide something. It's been suspicious as of late but I hadn't said anything yet. 
Ron wasn't talking to any of us at the moment, same for Sam. Hiding in their house or sneaking around the houses. He doesn't realize that I've already spotted him following me or Rick sometimes. He thinks we're stupid. Maybe Rick doesn't hear him but I do for sure. I've learned that from my dad when we used to go hunting. 
So, when I walk inside Olivia's house to go to the pantry, I'm not surprised to find a few people standing there and discussing something. Eugene gives me a short smile which I return. It fades though as I start listening to their conversation.
"This is not taking out a wife-beater" Carter says.
"He was a murderer" Tobin says, and I hide behind one of the walls leaving Eugene to whatever he's doing.
"What Rick wants to do is suicide. I'm sorry, Spencer, but Deanna is asleep at the wheel. So it's on us. We have got to stop him. What the priest said about him, about these people, he was right. Now, how many more of us have to die before we do something? 'Cause pretty soon it's gonna be too late" Carter says and I quietly take out my gun, holding it out incase something goes sideways with Eugene there. There is no way he hasn't listened in, too and he's the clumsiest person who's walking earth. 
"Carter, you need to be really careful here" Olivia says. "You're talking about us going to Deanna and telling her-"
"No, I'm not talking about talking some more. About meetings. I'm not talking about that. Plain and simple, we kill him before he kills us" Carter says.
I squeeze my eyes together tightly and press my lips together as Eugene does indeed let something fall. He even manages to run into a shelf, too, which results in him making even more noise. The others have probably seen him now and he got scared.
I take a deep breath, trying to calm myself.
"Hello" Eugene says and I have to supress the urge to actually facepalm myself.
"Carter" Tobin says warningly.
"He heard" Carter says.
"I didn't. I mean, I didn't..." Eugene says.
"He heard" Carter says again, the tone in his voice alerting me before the gun clock sound even does. Quickly I step forward behind the wall and point my gun at him.
"Take it down" I say warningly, clenching my jaw.
"Carter, don't" Olivia says as Carter seems to decide whom he should point the gun at.
We stare at eachother a few moments, him seeming to slowly back down but not entirely. I can see it in his eyes that he's debating if he stands a chance. 
"What are you doing?" Rick asks as he opens the door, anger and confusion lingering in his voice.
"I'm taking this place back from you" Carter says before pointing the gun at me now.
"I wouldn't shoot if I were you" I say calmly and see him visually swallow. My dad and Sasha are ready, just in case things are about to take an abrupt turn. 
Rick turns around to face the others. "That's what you were talking about in here?"
Tobin shakes his head. "That's what he was talking about"
"See, I would have set up some lookouts. That would have been the smart thing" Rick says.
"Take the gun down" I say again and he chuckles.
"What if I don't?" he asks mockingly but fearing.
"Belive me, you would rather get shot by Daryl than take his daughter on" Rick says before he chuckles. "Do you really-" he starts but jumps Carter, putting him to the ground easily before pointing his gun at him and I take mine down. "You really think you're gonna take this community from us? From Glenn? From Michonne? From Daryl? From me? Do you have any idea who you are talking to?"
"It was just me" Carter whispers.
"What?" Rick asks loudly.
"It was just me. Just- Just kill me" Carter says and we all look at Rick. He seems to be thinking about something before he takes the gun back and unloads it and handing it to my dad.
"You can try and work with us. You can try to survive. Would you do that?" Rick asks a panting Carter, who clearly has no clue what he should say right now.
"Yes. Yes, I would do that" he says and Rick chuckles.
"Wasn't too hard after all, huh?" he asks before leaving. I quickly help Eugene up and help him gather his things before leaving to our house.

I chuckle as I spot Ron sitting on our front porch. "What are you doing here?" I ask him and he looks up with a surprised face.
"Uhm, I wanted to see you" he says and I chuckle.
"You've seen me" I say, a smile forming on my face. He chuckles.
"You know that's not what I meant" he says and we both laugh a bit before I sit down next to him.
"What do you want to do?" I ask him as he fidgets with his hands.
"Can we just stay quiet some time?" he asks quietly.
"Of course" I say before taking a deep breath.