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Sombre

Rick leaned against the perimeter wall with his hands in the pockets of his windbreaker. He watched as Daryl loaded up his crossbow and made sure he had everything he needed. He would soon be leaving with Aaron to scout for more survivors to bring back to the community so he had to be ready for anything. Walkers were a constant threat, especially herds and people were an even bigger threat.

"Just so you know, after what happened with Jason we may need to take this place while you're gone." Rick told the archer. "You okay with that?"

"You said we should give them a chance." Daryl reminded the constable.

"That was before they almost killed one of our own." Rick retorted sternly.

"Do what you gotta do." Daryl replied, zipping up his leather jacket. "Whatever happens, I've got your back."

Rick nodded. He knew he could always count on Daryl for support. "Be careful out there."

Daryl nodded before heading over to his bike to give it a check-up before the trip. It would be difficult to repair out on the road if something went wrong. Rick left his friend to it and continued his patrol of the community.

Jason inserted the red key into the lock and turned it, unlocking the thick wooden door he was standing in front of. He turned to Kellin with a grin and nodded his head in the direction of the door as he turned the handle and opened it. Kellin excitedly entered the large wooden house while Jason followed behind, closing the door behind him and pocketing the key.

"Are you sure it's okay to bring me in here?" Kellin questioned, slightly nervous.

Jason nodded. "Of course it is."

Kellin stared back at his boyfriend, subconsciously admiring his smile as he consciously worried about negative consequences. He was broken from his thoughts when Jason skipped a step to close the distance between them and give him a peck on the lips.

"I promise, poppet." Jason assured him, earning a smile from his blonde lover.

Jason flicked the light switch on and led him over to a metal gate with a padlock on it. He took out a silver key and unlocked the padlock, hanging it on the metal rails of the gate before opening the gate and stepping inside. Kellin nervously followed him inside, feeling something soft under his feet which he realised was hay.

"Close the gate and stay there, okay?" Jason instructed his lover.

Kellin nodded and shut the gate behind him, pushing the latch through the slot to keep it shut. He turned back to watch Jason open the gate of the dividing fence in the middle of the room before making an odd noise with his mouth. Suddenly, a similar but stronger sound answered Jason's call followed by a high pitched roar. Jason smiled up at Kellin as three small tiger cubs stepped into their side of the room, still a little clumsy on their feet.

Kellin dropped to his knees in awe at the cute little orange balls of fluff that were wandering around curiously. Their black stripes were deeply pronounced against their brighter fur and white underside. The little cubs either let out soft but high pitched cries or made similar sounds to the one Jason made. One of the cubs spotted Kellin and froze in place for a moment, its bright blue eyes unwavering as they studied the blonde teen.

To Kellin's amazement, the little cub started to waddle towards him. He was unsure of what to do so he lowered his body so that he was lying on his side and held out one of his hands tentatively as the tiger cub approached. The cub sniffed at his hand before biting it gently, which didn't hurt Kellin but did make him giggle joyfully.