[Outfit Above]
S6 Ep: 5 "Now"

The teams that went out to control the herd including Rick, Michonne, Daryl, Sasha, Abraham, and Glenn had started to return in pieces. Daryl, Sasha, Abraham, and Rick were still somewhere out there but Michonne and Heath came back with one more of their team, the other three didn't make it.

Tara, Maggie, and I stood across from the pond as we listened to Michonne explain what happened out there. "The town was overrun. He split off with Nicholas." I anxiously crossed my right arm over my chest and rested my left on top while holding my first to my mouth. "He had this idea that... if he lit a fire, it would stop the walkers from coming here. I tried to go instead. I wanted to." Michonne sighed heavily and regretfully. "The fire never got lit. We had to keep going. I'm sorry."

Michonne pursed her lips at my worried expression. "He said if he got stuck, he would find a way to send us a signal." I breathed out a small laugh. "A signal?" Maggie asked and I nodded without thinking. "We always told each other that if we got caught while on a run wed find a way to send the other a signal that was okay." Before any of them could respond to my memory shouting from outside the walls could be heard. "Open the gate!"

Michonne and I ran towards the gate and pulled it open while Rick ran through the incoming walkers and past the line. Tara and I slammed the gate shut behind him as he leaned down against his knees to catch his breath. Everyone in the community started to gather by the walls just staring into them while listening to the snarling and growling of the dead beyond them. "You can hear it. Some of you saw it."

Rick started to say as he walked through the people to the front. "They got back here, half of them. Still enough to surround us 20 deep." Looking over the fear-filled people Rick sighed. "Look, I know you're scared. You haven't seen anything like this. You haven't been through anything like this. But we're safe for now. The panel the truck hit seems intact. We reinforced it just in case. Either way, the wall's gonna hold together. Can you?" I noticed Denise, the other doctor in training looking around anxiously.

"The others, they're gonna be back." Rosita nodded and stomped her foot against the asphalt. "They're gonna be back." She repeated though I knew she was saying it more for herself than anyone else. "Daryl, Abraham, Sasha, they have vehicles." I looked down when I realized Rick didn't include Glenn. "They're gonna lead 'em away, just like the others. And Glenn and Nicholas are gonna walk back through the front gate after." Rick looked over at me as he said that. I released a heavy breath silently and nodded.

"They know what they're doing, and we know what we need to do. We keep noise to a minimum. Pull our blinds at night. Even better, keep the lights out. We'll try to make this place as quiet as a graveyard, see if they move on." One of the other women from the community spoke up bluntly. "This place is a graveyard." Everyone was silent after her words knowing she was right. Alexandria had become a graveyard, not just with the dead but the people we have lost inside.

I watched as Rick sighed and nodded slowly at her not having anything else to counter her words. "The quarry broke open and those walkers were heading this way." Aaron jumped in as he stepped into the semi-circle the whole group of us formed. "All of them. The plan that Rick put into place stopped that from happening. He got half of them away." He swallowed thickly. "I was out there recruiting with Daryl. I wanted to try to get into a cannery and scavenge, and Daryl wanted to keep looking for people. We did what I wanted...and we wound up in a trap set by those people. And I lost my pack."

Maggie and I glanced at each other both understanding where this was going. "They must've followed our tracks. Those people who attacked us...they found their way back here because of me." Deanna shook her head tiredly at Aaron's words before slowly wandering off. "There'll be more to talk about." Rick finalized with a curt nod. "Deanna?" Tobin called out causing all of us to follow his eyes and watch Deanna walk away from our meeting. "Deanna?" He tried again but the woman ignored him and continued on.

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When Maggie and Tara weren't watching me I broke off from everyone after getting a small backpack ready. I walked down the road but stopped in my tracks when I saw a few of the people painting names on the wall in memory. I sucked in a wavering breathe and continued down the road towards the armory. I got in and started to fill an extra magazine for my gun. "You're going out?" I didn't spare Aaron a glance and continued filling the clip as he stepped into the small room. "The flashlights, the rebar, the rope. You lower them off the wall a good distance apart, maybe spin them."

I slip the extra mag into my other gun and start to put the ammo away. "That way, the walkers are drawn to each one and you open up a path. Now you're gearing up. Just waiting for dark, right?" I continued to ignore him and started to put my guns in my bag. "What happens when you twist an ankle jumping down?" I purse my lips and refuse to answer. "Hmm?" He continued. "Or you just get slowed down by one of them and then you have to deal with all of them? What happens when Maggie and Tara notice you're gone? Your parents?" He sighed. "I can't let you do this."

I finally turned towards him with a straight determined look as I slipped my bag on my shoulders. "You can't stop me. I'm going out there. I need to know. I need to see if for myself." I took a step to walk past him when he grabbed my arm gently. "I'm going to help you. And I know a safer way out." He grabbed a gun and led me out of the armory and through the grounds towards the back, I frowned in confusion. "I thought you said we weren't going over."

"We're not. We're going under." Aaron bent down and started to fiddle with a lock on a metal panel. "This leads to a sewer that was part of the old neighborhood that was here before they built this up. It'll take us under the wall-" He pulled it up with a grunt. "-and hopefully past the walkers." I looked down the small shaft and nodded with tight lips as he stood up. "Thanks for the help but, I'm going on my own from here." I set my makeshift distractions down on the ground as I readied myself.

"Aubree..."

"No." I cut him off shortly. "Please." He practically begged. "I can't--I can't watch more names go up on that wall." I sighed heavily and only nodded. Aaron smiled slightly happy that I had given in and let him come with me though I don't think I really had a choice. I climbed down after him and we walked side by side through the dark tunnel. Thank god I wore taller boots today or else my legs would be completely soaked as we trudged through the dirty water.

"I heard from Michonne that Glenn said he would give a signal if he got out." I nodded at his words and kept going only looking forward. "It's something we've always done when we go out on a run...in case anything happens and we get separated." Aaron seemed to struggle with his words. "Have you seen any signals?"

"No." I answered quietly. "It's been a few days Aubree.." I shook my head not caring if he could see me or not. "Everyone is starting to think he's dead but he's not. He's not dead until I see him." I insisted stubbornly before suddenly stopping and turning towards him. "I need to do this but you don't. None of this is your fault."

"People are dead. I was a part of that. And I have to live with that." He walked past me and kept going until we were stopped by a broken ladder. "I haven't been down here since the beginning. Ah. Oh. This ladder must've fallen a long time ago." I moved my flashlight around before sticking it in my belt. "Let's try and get it out of here." Aaron nodded in response and grabbed on to the ladder. "On three, ready? One, two, three." The two of us grunted as we tried to pull it back out of the way.

It didn't budge. "One, two, three." We pulled on it again and Aaron got knocked back by being hit with the force of it. "Aaron!" The brunette winced as he leaned back against the wall and pushed himself into a sitting position. "Ah. I'm okay. The ladder caught me." He lifted his flashlight to the sound of growling, I looked down at the ladder as a walker lifted its head up, barely anything on the corpse besides rotted and soggy flesh. I pulled out my knife ready to stab it when another came out from beside it and straight towards me.

I stumbled back against the wall and held it back with my left hand on its shoulder and attempted to stab it but my right hand went through its bony chest. I struggled to hold it back until Aaron got up and managed to take it out. I watched as he pushed the walker to the ground and it fell on top of the other dead one. "You okay?" I nodded through my heavy breaths. "Yeah. Thank you." From his flashlight, I could see the damage to the side of his forehead. "Aaron... your head. Come here."

I slipped my bag around my shoulders and pulled out a small gauze pad and pressed it against his head to stop the bleeding. He winced as I applied the pressure before looking at it and going back to pushing on it. "You might need stitches. Aaron, just go back." Aaron took over holding the pad to his head. "No."

"Yes." I argued. "I was just there for you." He stated and I shook my head slightly. "I could have done it." Aaron bent down and picked up his bag and gestured towards the now clear tunnel. "Just lead the way. Please?"

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The water splashed as we walked closer to the end of the tunnel, I walked towards the gate quietly and looked out seeing we were still around the herd. "We're still too close." Aaron looked back at me after looking out the metal gate. "We just have to get through a few of them, then we're gone." I shook my head. "No." I mustered out. "You ready?" I grabbed his arm stopping him from pulling metal. "No, we can't."

Aaron looked at me for a moment before deciding. "You can stay. I'll go." I shook my head again. "No." A few walkers came over and reached through the gate due to my arguing. I blinked back tears and clutched onto my locket. "These are the only pictures I have of him. When we found each other again..I said I was never gonna be away from him again." The walkers snarled louder and I couldn't help but let one tear slip down my cheek as I looked at Aaron.

"I'm pregnant." Aaron looked back at me shocked by the news. "He didn't want me to go out there and I agreed. I agreed and now he's out there, without me. If I went... if I was with him, maybe I could've helped him." I swallowed more tears. "I don't know if he's alive. He would've shown me by now. I just want to see him. I can't." I choked back a sob. "I don't get to know what will happen. I won't get to know why it happened, what I did right or wrong. Not now. I have to live with that. You do, too." Aaron instantly wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug as I cried into his shoulder.

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Aaron and I stood on top of the makeshift tower watching guard in case anyone made it back or sent a signal. Thinking back to the names that were on the wall I slipped the rifle strap off of my shoulder and leaned it against the railing. "I'll be right back." I climbed down the ladder and pulled out my water bottle, placing my finger over the opening just enough I splashed some water over Glenn's name and started to wipe it off with my sleeve.

Aaron had come down and started to do the same to Nicholas's name. "When he gets back, it's worth mentioning that Aaron, Erin, works for a boy or a girl, depending on the spelling." I grinned at his words and continued whipping the letters away as he grinned back. "Just saying."

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This chapter hurt me to write but there's gonna be worse ones coming up this part.
Who would you guys like to see more of?

Until next time - A