Walking Among Them

Tell It to the Frogs

Rick and the others were getting ready to pile into the truck to go back for Asher when a truck pulled up. Muffled yelling would be heard from inside before the passenger door swung open and Merle flew out of it and landed harshly on his side.
"Fucking dick." Merle groaned as Asher stepped out.
"Next time I'll do more than kick you out of the truck." Asher told him before the small body of his brother was hurled into him.
"Why didn't you come back!" Carl cried out as he gripped onto his brother.
"I had some things I had to do, I'm back now. I'm okay." Asher said as he crouched down to look over his brother. Carl nodded and hugged his brother close again.
"That was stupid. Don't you ever, and I mean ever do that again." Rick said as he pulled Asher back up to his feet and into a hug.
"I couldn't leave him. It was my fault he was stuck." Asher defended himself. 
"I wanted to turn around as soon as I knew you weren't with the others but they told me you were right behind us. Then you didn't show up at camp and I was ready to go back but Glenn said you've done stuff like this before, run off into the city alone. They said I had to trust you." Rick said as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"I'm more capable than you're giving me credit for. I've made it this far, if I'm going to be stuck in one place then I don't see the point in living in a world like this. Just waiting to die as others risk thier life for me. It's not who I am. You know I got half way back home one day before I got cut off by a horde. Shane was too shakey, too thrown off when he told us you were dead. It was like he was trying to convince himself more than us. I was going to find out for myself." Asher told him as he sent a glare in Shane's direction.
"What happened? You used to be on great terms and now everytime he's mentioned you get like that." Rick said as he motioned to the disgusted look on his son's face.
"So she hasn't told you?" Asher asked before huffing out a laugh as he spotted Shane and his mother walking away together.
"If I do something that I know will hurt someone, but they deserve to know the truth even if it does. Is it the right thing to do?" He asked his dad. Rick creased his brows before nodding his head.
"I guess it depends, there are a few exaples where is could be better to lie. I don't recomend it but, I think it's something only you can decide." Rick told him. Asher took a deep breath before nodding.
"What if I knew someone who was being unfaithful, and thier partner doesn't. Should I tell them then? Or would it be better to show them?" He asked his dad.
"Proof is always best, innocent until proven guity and all." Rick told him. Asher sighed before sending his dad a guilty look.
"Come with me." He said before pushing past him and started off towards the woods. Rick felt his stomach drop with anxiety as he quietly followed his son through the trees. Part due to where his son could be taking him and the other due to how quite Asher moved. It was like he was floating on the ground, not a single footstep making noise. How was he meant to be okay with the fact that his kids have to live in a world they have to learn to make no noise in if they want to survive. Rick thoughts were intrupted when Asher stopped them and the sound of low whispers could be heard.
"We can't do this anymore. Not now that Rick is back. I'll talk to Asher, he won't say anything if I just talk to him." Lori said to Shane who was pinning her to a tree and lightly kissing her neck.
"You want me, I want you. It's okay." He insisted. Asher looked back at his dad to see the hard look on his face.
"I'm sorry. Guess mom has more faith in herself than she should." Asher told him. Rick reached up and cupped the back of his son's head before shaking his own.
"You have nothing to be sorry about, you did the right thing." Rick told him before turning and walking away.

Just after lunch Rick had called the group all got together. Asher stood with Carl lightly messing with his hair as everyone huddled.
"We have to go back into Atlanta. Daryl is coming with for medical supplies for Merle." Rick told them.
"So you and Darly, that's your big plan?" Lori asked him. Rick sighed before turning around to look at Glenn.
"Oh, come on." Glenn sighed making Asher chuckle.
"You know the way. You've been there before- In and out, no problem. You said so yourself. It's not fair of me to ask- I know that- but I'd feel a lot better with you along. I know they would too." Rick said motioning to his sons.
"Wait hold on, Glenn and I are a team. That's how this works. You're not leaving me here." Asher protested.
"You just got back, you need rest." Rick told him with a shake of his head.
"News flash I don't really rest anymore. I'm not letting Glenn go alone, when we first started going into Atlanta we promised to have each other's backs. I'm not breaking that promise because you rode into town, quite literally." Asher told him and he pulled Glenn back behind him, the more timid male going along with it. Rick gave his son a hard glare as if challenging him while Asher refused to back down. Rick was the first to huff and shake his head before throwing his hands up in defeat.
"Stubborn like your damn mother." Rick's huffed making Asher look as his mom with a tilt of his head and a smirk.
"At least I'm loyal." He said to his dad while sending his mom a mocked shocked look before sarcastically smiling as walking off to grab his stuff.
"I didn't..." Lori started when she met Rick's glare.
"I saw, don't worry." Rick told her before walking off as well.
"Rick!" She shouted after him only to be ignored.

Asher was crouched by his bag when his tent door was ripped open.
"Fucking... what?!" Asher asked as his red faced mother looked down at him.
"I was going to tell him my own way. You couldn't have at least given me that?" She snapped out. Asher rolled his eyes before spinning around to face her. Lori was forced to take steps back out of the tent as her sons stepped out. His golden eyes glared down at her as he stood to full height.
"I was going to, but then while everyone else was happy I got back alive you were sneaking off for a quick fuck." Asher told her, his voice dripping in sarcastic humor. Lori opened her mouth to argue before huffing and walking away.
"He's better off without you. We all are." Asher told her causing her to pause before continuing on her way.
"That was harsh. More so on her part I think, it's just accrued to me she didn't greet you when you got back." Glenn said as he ducked into the tent for his own bag.
"She's only showed me affection when she bragged to her friends about her smart, pretty, athletic son. I was an accessory and a trophy, I was her baby sitter during summer break because she would rather get day drunk with her friends than raise her child." Asher explained as he accepted the bag Glenn was holding out for him.
"Well, at least your dad is back. You got me too, brother." Glenn said with a cheerful smile as he held out his hand to Asher.
"You got me too, brother. Now let's go get that bag full of guns. Next time I vote absolute refusal on brining others though." Asher told him with a laugh as they walked up to the cube van.
"I agree." Glenn said with a sigh and a shiver.
"About what?" Rick asked them as they loaded in.
"Everyone in this camp is officially off A and G tours of Atlanta. G and A..? Either or you're all banned." Asher told him as they started driving. Rick simply laughed and shook his head. It was good his son still had his attitude, it told him that this new world hadn't changed him completely.

Asher wasn't sure when he had fallen asleep, he was sure of the annoyance he felt towards Daryl as his door was opened and Asher tumbled out and into the ground.
"For Merle?" Asher asked squinting through the sun to look up at him. Daryl hummed in confirmation as Rick helped him up from the ground. Asher sighed as he fell into a jog with the others.
"Medical first, or guns?" Rick asked looking towards Glenn and Asher.
"Medical is closer there is an old pharmacy up the street. I stashed a bunch of stuff I couldn't carry in the ceiling tiles." Asher told them.

Once inside the chained back door Daryl took the lead.
"Damn, you are one ugly skank." He said before sending a bolt through the walkers head.
"You were real popular with the ladies huh?" Asher asked and he leaned his back against the wall and cradled his hands for Glenn.
"Watch for rats." Asher told his as he boosted Glenn up so he could look in the ceiling.
"You are so fu-" Glenn cut himself off with a yelp as a rat ran across his hand.
"Told you, now knock the panel next to you down and you should be able to push the box through." Asher instructed him before sneezing as dust filled his nose from the falling tile.
"Get ready to catch it, it's heavy the box is metal to keep the vermin out." Asher told them as Glenn shoved it down.
"How much is in here?" Rick asked as he looked through it.
"I guess Glenn and I were the first ones here, basically everything was still left, well everything that wasn't looted when the outbreak happened." Asher told them as Glenn hopped down.
"It'll be easier to take the stuff out and fill out bags." Glenn said as he crouched down and started stuff in his. Asher hummed before he and the others stated doing the same.
"Why didn't you bring all this stuff back before?" T-Dog asked him.
"The last thing I wanted was for the camp to think we had plenty of medical supplies so they start pulling a bandage out for every minor scrape." Asher to him honestly.
"Alright, let's get these guns." Ashe said with a smile before leading the way.

(Hope nobody gets too mad about how Lori is portrayed in this story. Some things will be different from the show moving forward.)