Rise Up

Chapter 15

The next morning, I woke up before Daryl. I quietly got dressed and looked over at him before leaving the trailer. He needed his sleep and there was no way that I was going to interrupt it. I tied up my hair then made my way to the gate. Just like yesterday, Maggie was seated at Glenn's grave. I wish he was here. He'd be so proud of how strong Maggie had become. But then again, I think he knew just how strong she was capable of being. He would know better than anyone. She got up and climbed the ladder of the guard post. I followed her.

"Morning," she said when she saw me.

"Morning," I said as I climbed the ladder.

"How'd Daryl sleep?" she asked.

"I think he was actually able to get some in. He told me that back at Negan's place, he hardly got any. They wouldn't let him," I said.

I rested my arms over the railing and looked at the area of forest that was outside of the walls.

"I'm glad he's back. With family," she said coming over and doing the same.

"That's what Sasha said last night. Did you get to eat some sandwiches?" I asked.

"Yeah. They were my breakfast. Thanks for leaving them," she said.

"Gotta make sure you're getting your fuel. Especially now," I said.

"Listen, Amelia, I was thinking last night and there's something you need to promise me," she said.

"Should I be scared?" I retorted.

She chuckled.

"No. I want you to promise that you will go wherever Daryl goes. He needs you and you need him. You both are strong and capable of handling yourselves. But when you're together, there's nothing that can stand in your way. You're good together," she said.

I looked at her.

"What about you? I'd feel guilty if I left you. It would be really hard to do so," I said.

"Don't. Having you here has made everything...bearable. Having Sasha and Enid here has. But Daryl needs you. And I need you to be with him. You're his anchor. I don't want anything happening to either one of you. Which is why I'm asking you to do this for me. To promise me," she said.

I reached for her hand and squeezed it gently.

"I promise," I said.

She hugged me.

"Keep each other safe," she whispered.

We parted then looked back to the forest.

"Have you seen Gregory?" I asked.

"No why? Did he do something?" she retorted.

"No. Just, I think we should be keeping a watchful eye on him. He obviously is threatened by you being here. He may want to do something stupid," I said.

"Yeah. We will start keeping an eye on him. I wouldn't want putting any of these people at risk," she said.

"Yeah. These are good people. Real good people," I said.

"Yeah. They are aren't they?" Maggie said looking over at me.

I nodded. We went back to keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. A few minutes passed before we saw a group of people making their way to the gates. I chuckled and Maggie exhaled in relief.

"It's them," I said with a grin.

Maggie nodded. She turned around.

"Sasha! Enid!" she called.

I stared to get choked up. I cleared my throat as we made our way down. We waited for the gates to open.

"What's going on?" Sasha asked when she and Enid reached us.

"You'll see," I said.

The gates opened and Rick, Carl, Michonne, Tara and Rosita made their way inside. Tara was back. She was okay. I inhaled and exhaled at the sight of them all. Rick picked up the pace and went up to Maggie. He hugged her.

"You're okay?" Rick asked.

"I'm okay. The baby's okay. All of us," Maggie said.

"You were right...the both of you. Right from the start. You told us to get ready to fight. I didn't listen and I couldn't. I can now," he said.

He then came up to me and held me tightly. Tears were streaming down both our faces. I kissed his cheek when we parted.

"It's good to see you," he said.

"Back at you," I said.

We parted. He then froze in place. I turned and saw that Daryl had made his way over. Rick looked back at me. I nodded.

"He's okay," I whispered.

He made his way over to him. Carl came up and hugged me.

"I missed you, bud," I said.

"I missed you too," he said.

I kissed his forehead. We all made our way to Rick and Daryl. Rick stopped in front of him. Daryl nodded at him trying to keep up a tough exterior. He then let out a few tears of his own. The both of them hugged. The brothers had finally reunited again. I smiled at them both. I looked over at Tara. She came over and hugged me.

"I'm sorry....I'm so sorry. I should have been able to do more," I managed to get out.

"Shh. It's not on you. It's not on you. I'm just happy to see you," she said tightening her hold on me.

I sniffled once we parted. I then hugged Michonne.

"You all okay?" I asked.

"Yeah. We are," she replied.

I hugged her once more. I then went up and hugged Rosita. Rick and Daryl had parted. Tara went up and hugged him. He wiped away some of his tears as he greeted everyone else. Michonne hugged him next. I went and stood next to him. Daryl pulled out a gun he had tucked away. I looked closely at it and it wasn't just any gun. It was Rick's colt python. He handed it to him. Rick was taken aback. He took it from Daryl and checked the barrel. It was full. He turned to look at the rest of us. We were all together. We were all united. And we were ready to do this. It was time.

"Let's fucking do this," I said.

Rick looked over at me. He smiled and nodded. He turned and made his way to the house. Daryl grabbed my hand and we all followed him.