Apocalyptic Love

Chapter 23 Aftermath

Carl held onto Rick as he mourned the loss of his mother. Rick looked up at Kagome; he had tears in his eyes. Rick may not have loved Lori anymore, but he didn't want her to die and certainly not the way she did. Kagome kneeled next to Carl, and the little boy latched onto the woman that had always treated him like her own. She held Carl tightly and rocked him back and forth, whispering comforting words in his ear. Kirara, who had been watching from Glenn's shoulder, jumped down and squeezed in between Kagome and Carl. She licked his face and started to purr. Carl looked down at the Neko and smiled. He recognized her from the story that Kagome had told him, and he hugged the little two-tailed cat to him. Kirara continued to mew and purr, trying to comfort Carl.

After a while, Carl had cried himself to sleep. Rick picked up his son and carried him inside the cellblock. Kirara perched herself on Rick's shoulder and went inside with them. The others went inside as well, and Maggie handed the baby to Kagome. Kagome smiled down at the beautiful little girl and cuddled her to her chest. When they got inside, Rick put Carl to bed, and Kirara laid down on his chest to guard him. Rick nodded and left the cell.

He found Kagome examining the baby that Daryl had dubbed Lil' Ass Kicker. He frowned at Daryl, “We are not naming my daughter that,” Rick said.

“Well, we've got to call her something until you decide on a name,” Daryl said.

Rick shook his head, “Fine. How's she doing, Kagome?”

“She perfect, Rick, she healthy and happy, though we do need to get some supplies for her.”

“Right, I can't believe we didn't think of it sooner; I'll head out and see what I can find.”

“No, you stay, Daryl, and I will go,” Maggie said.

“Okay.”

With that, Maggie and Daryl left the prison and headed to the closest town to get some baby supplies and formula. While they were gone, Carol and Sophia found a mailing crate and lined it with towels to serve as a makeshift crib until one could be found for the newborn. They placed the sleeping babe in the box and covered her up.

Meanwhile, Maggie and Daryl arrived at a daycare center and looked for formula and diapers for the baby. They were able to find an adequate supply of bottles and clothes along with several cans of formula and a case of diapers. After making sure the streets were clear, they loaded Daryl's saddlebags and the backpack that Maggie brought and made their way back to the prison.

When Maggie and Daryl arrived, Kagome met them at the gate, took the bottles and formula from them, and rushed inside. She quickly made a bottle of baby formula for the baby and gave it to Rick, who was trying to calm the wailing infant. The little girl quieted down once the baby started nursing. Once she finished her bottle, Rick burped her then changed the cloth diaper for the disposable one that the others had brought. Once she was changed and dressed, Carol took the baby from Rick and put her in the basket to nap.

Now that Rick had fed the baby and Kagome made sure Beth and Sophia were looking after her, Kagome led Rick to the showers so that he could get cleaned up and get some rest. The poor man was still in shock over Lori's death and was trying to put on a brave face for everyone, but Kagome knew Rick needed some time to himself.

Kagome grabbed some clean clothes and a towel for Rick; then she took him to the shower room. Kagome turned on the water and adjusted the temperature; then, she helped Rick get undressed. Kagome was about to leave the stall when Rick grabbed her hand.

“Please, stay.”

Kagome nodded, and Rick helped her get undressed. He took her hand and led her into the shower stall. Kagome started washing the sweat and dirt off of Rick's tired body while he stood there with his eyes closed, enjoying Kagome's pampering. She reached up and washed his hair, then tilted his head back to rinse it out. When Kagome finished, Rick returned the favor. After that, they stood in the shower, letting the warm water pelt their bodies while Rick held onto Kagome. Rick hugged her tightly as if he was afraid she would disappear.

When the water started getting cold, Rick turned off the water, and they got out of the shower stall. Kagome dried Rick off then herself. Since she didn't bring any clothes, Rick gave her his shirt, which reached her knees. They walked back to their cell, and Kagome quickly changed and gave Rick a dry shirt.

After that, Kagome put Rick to bed and covered him up, “I'll be right back. I'm going to go check on Carl.”

Kagome walked to the cell a few doors down and peeked in on Carl. He was still fast asleep, hugging Kirara to himself. The little kitten looked up at Kagome and mewed, “Please look after him, Kirara.”

The Neko mewed and nodded. Kagome patted her on the head then kissed Carl's forehead. She then returned to Rick and found that he had fallen asleep. Kagome sat down next to him and ran her fingers through his hair. Rick sighed and settled more into a restful sleep. She smiled and laid down next to him; Rick rolled over and wrapped his arms securely around Kagome's midsection. She sighed and went to rest for a while.

While Rick, Carl, and Kagome rested, Dale asked Oscar and Axel where the morgue was so that they could get a body bag to put Lori's body in. Axel led T-Dog, Daryl, and Glen to the morgue, while Axle and Hershel dug the grave for Lori. When the men got the body bag, they made their way into the tombs to retrieve whatever was left of Lori's body. They had to kill several Walkers along the way; unfortunately, what they found was several Walkers gorging themselves on the remains of Lori's body. Daryl, Glen, and T-Dog beat the Walkers to a bloody pulp taking out their anger and sadness on the wrath of the Walkers.

“We can't let Rick and Carl see this,” T-Dog said.

“No, we can't. We need to bury her before Rick and Carl wake up,” Daryl said, “It's going to be too much for Rick and Carl to see that practically nothing left of Lori.”

The guys nod. Daryl and T-Dog lay the body bag next to Lori's remains and put them in the bag while Glen stands guard. Once they have her body in the bag, they make their way outside. Maggie is outside with Carol and Amy; they gasp when they see how small the body bag looks. Carol covers her mouth, “What happened?”

“The Walkers were still feeding on her,” Glen said as they walked by.

“Oh my god.”

“Is the grave ready,” Daryl asked.

“Yeah, Axel and Dale finished a while ago.”

“Good when need to bury her as quickly as possible.”

Everyone went down to the gravesite, and the men place the body bag into the grave. Oscar and Axel shovel the dirt back into the grave, and Hershel said a prayer of Lori's grave, and they place a marker marking Lori's grave, “We'll let Rick know that we took care of Lori when he wakes up,” Hershel said.

“Should we tell him how we found her,” Glen asked.

“Not unless he asks. Let's try to spare him that pain.”

Everyone agrees and headed back into the prison to get cleaned up and go to bed. It had been a long and exhausting day for everyone.

SORRY, IT'S SO SHORT. THAT'S ALL I COULD THINK OF FOR NOW. HOPEFULLY, THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE LONGER.