Ch. 9 The Storm

That morning was not a great one. Michael woke up before the twins and was covered in sweat. He sat at the fire pit and just sat there. Eventually the twins woke up and wanted to play. He let them run around and saw Maggie flag him over. She gave him fruit and jerky to try and buy his silence. She also said that they would be making that run he talked about later and to be ready. Michael wanted to talk more but she just walked away. Michael watched her leave and hated it. But he enjoyed the great view she had for him though.

He brought the fruit around camp for breakfast and they all enjoyed it. The twins were excited to help out and wanted to play with Carl as well since he would be able to be up and about.

Michael watched as they fed the chickens. He didn't want the seeds in his bandages. But the twins enjoyed it.

He heard Carl say something about everything being food for something else and had to side with the look Lori gave him. That was very cold of him to say, but it wasn't wrong so he didn't butt in.

The kids enjoyed playing together. The twins couldn't run around with Carl yet because he was still recovering but they still whittled sticks with adult supervision. And yes, Michael was that adult.

There was talk about training people to shoot guns and Michael can already hear the twins in his head.

Just like he predicted all three kids asked. Michael offered to help guide in the shooting lessons. Lori was against it but eventually gave in. Carl did pretty good. The twins struggled a bit. Paul did better overall but Briana was more accurate in hitting it dead on.

Michael was made fun of that he was only watching by someone. So he grabbed a pistol in one hand and hit 5 bottles along the fence in a few second shocking everyone. He handed the gun back to the smartmouth whatever his name is that tried shooting like a gangster in the movies at first.

They had a good time back at base camp talking about the kids shooting. Carl seemed happier having friends around.

Dale was cooking luch over the fire. And then Lori walked away. Michael overheard Dale talk with the pregnant Lori. Apparently the baby could be Shane's. Bloody Shane's. Michael nearly fell to his knee remembering what he did to him. And thinking that he killed the man who may have been the father. He doesn't regret it but it does mess with him.

Sometime later Glenn tagged along for the supply run and it was a quiet one again. Patently Glenn found out about the walkers and told Dale who told Hershel. Now Maggie is pissed at Michael.

Michael decided to keep quiet after that was said.

They arrived at the store and Glenn handed a list to Maggie. She didn't seem too happy about whatever was on the list. She stormed off to the back as Michael and Glenn talked and grabbed a few miscellaneous things.

Then they heard Maggie screaming for help.

Michael nearly teleported from Glenn's side to Maggie's. He whipped his head around and saw that Maggie's arm was grabbed by a walker. She beefed for it to let go and for Michael to get it off of her.

Michael sprinted over to Maggie and used his bo staff to whack the zombie head back. It let go and Michael used this opportunity to hit its ankle and sweep it to the ground. That's when he used his heel to finish it off. Michael was surprised it didn't go down with the first head swing but left it to him being worried about Maggie and not following through properly.

Maggie was a mess. Michael was checking Maggie's arms and face. He had a concerned look on his face while Maggie was crying. After seeing the she was ok he brought Maggie into a tight hug.

He looked at Glenn who was holding a freaking shelf from one of the isles. Michael looked at Glenn's eyes and looked to the back of the store. He was trying to get Glenn to make sure the store is secure which he picked up and and moved to the back.

Michael kissed Maggie's forehead. Then the thing started moving again. It's face has kicked off and split open but it tried grabbing Maggie's foot. Maggie freaked out again and Michael grabbed its feet and dragged it away from her. Michael stood above it as it reached towards the scared woman. He brought his heel down on the things head four or five times for good measure.

Then he went back over to Maggie to hug her and comfort her.

Glenn came back after he checked out the rest of the place. He saw that the walker had moved and that Michael's boot was covered in blood. It didn't take a genius to put it together.

"So you two….." Glenn asked.

"Yeah….." Michael responded not looking at Glenn.

"Since when…."

"Officially? Last night"

"That's good…. I'm just gonna get the things so we can get the hell outta here"

Glenn got the things together relatively quickly. Maggie got herself together with the help of Michael. He let her cry on his shoulder and rubbed her back, just like what he would do for his brother and sister. He wouldn't say that though.

After Maggie felt better came the anger. She wanted to be pissed at Lori but Michael calmed her down saying that they also got the last of the antibiotics since they were running low anyway. But it didn't help that much.

The rode back to camp and Maggie started throwing thing on the ground in front of Lori. Michael wanted to intervene but knew it was best if he didn't. Especially when Lori asked for abortion pills.

Michael walked with Maggie as she stormed away. She walked to the end of the row of trees. She turned to Michael expecting him to start the conversation. Michael knew he was in a minefield and had to defuse a few or else it would all blow up in his face.

"That was a thing…." Not his best work but he needed to let Maggie vent a little bit and he is a big boy, he can take a little bit of pressure. "Which part? The part where that bit** almost got us killed?"

"I'm not going to brush past the part where she almost got you killed. I would have ripped her a new one if you hadn't. And if you had gotten.... If you didn't make it back I would never be able to forgive myself or her, ever" Maggie looked furious as she approached Michael. "This is the part where I sh-" Maggie grabs his collar and makes him lean forward and kisses him. It lasted a few second.

"Still trying to learn that one" Michael tries to joke.

"I've already lost three of the people I care about most in the world. I can't bare to lose you either. Just as much as you couldn't bare to lose me probably, I hope. You may not know it now. But you are smart, brave, calculative, annoyingly funny, adorable, and a good leader. You just don't know it yet"

"You think I'm adorable?" Michael asks as he puts on his old puppy dog eyes that he hasn't used in over a decade or so.

"I think I also said annoyingly funny" and laughed a little.

"You know what, I'll take what I can get" And he sealed her lips again.

Then she gets pissed again. "I can't take you becoming one of them…..them walkers!"

Michael realized that Maggie called it a walker and now knows they aren't the people they look like. He feels sad that she lost some of her innocence but is happy that she will be stronger and safer moving on.

He let her go back to the house and went back to Lori. Glenn was already talking to her. Glenn handed her premarital supplements. And he told her to not make the choice alone. She watched as Glenn left and saw Michael standing there. He just nodded and walked away. It wasn't his place to say anything to her. Not three minutes later she ran out of her tent and threw up.

Five minutes later he sees Rick go into the tent and probably sees the pill box. He doesn't look the most pleased as he walks to Lori.

It looks very dramatic when you watch from afar without sound. They have exaggerated motions and keep moving.

They eventually come back to camp and Michael makes himself look busy. And hour later and everybody is doing their own thing but everyone is at base camp outside their tents. Mostly people are eating.

Michael looks over and sees Dale nod to Glenn.

"Oh boy, this can't be good" Michael whispers beneath his breath. He couldn't even hear himself.

He watches as Glenn gets up and tells everyone that there are walkers in the barn.

"Of course you would Glenn. Things are about to go from 20 to 100 real quick" Michael again whispered to himself.

Everybody stops what they were doing and looks at Glenn. Everyone gets up and goes to the barn. Rick takes a look inside and walks away pissed. Andrea then goes and takes a look. They debate about what they will do. But Rick puts his foot down. Dale and Rick go at it. Things get pretty loud and then the walkers start banging against the doors of the barn.

Michael wonders what would have happened that night if Maggie was a minute late. If he heard the walkers on the other side before he had the chance to actually know Maggie.

And hour later and Andrea is messing with the locks on the barn. Lori is teaching Carl, Paul and Briana as they write in a book.

Michael is standing in the middle between the kids and the barn. He's ready to move at a moments notice. He even got a pistol from Dale. But he only has one magazine.

He saw Carol follow Daryl to the barn. They both returned to camp but at diferent time.

Michael is lost in his thought about Maggie and the twins and thinking of the future.

The next thing he knows Hershel is taking Rick somewhere. Andrea comes storming through the rv and is looking for the guns. Daryl takes Carol to look at flowers.

Eventually Rick and Hershel are bringing two walkers through the farm. Dale brings back the guns at the same time.

Everyone gathers around them. Even the kids.

Andrea unloads bullet after bullet into the walker Hershel has on a leash at the end of a stick. Maggie is holding onto Michael. Andrea is freaking out and trying to get Hershel to see they aren't people. It seems she snapped. When Rick says enough is enough Andrea shoots the walker in the head.

Andrea starts handing out guns and runs to the barn and breaks the locks.

The walkers start pouring out of the barn.

Michael moves Maggie behind him as he takes out his pistol. Everyone starts shooting at the walkers. Maggie then runs to Hershel and Michael joins them. He has his pistol pointed incase any of them might get back up. Even after they are all down and laying on the ground.

But then they hear one more in the barn. It slowly walks out and reveals itself to be Sophia, Carols little girl. Daryl has to stop Carol from running to it.

Michael still has his barrel pointed at the little girl. He only lowers it when Rick walks forward and unholsters his revolver and shoots it between the eyes.

Michael brings his gun back up since he sees someone run towards the bodies. He doesn't leave Maggie's or Hershels side.

Beth goes over to her moms dead body and moves a walker that was laying onto of it. She gets down on her knees and strokes the face of the dead woman, dead walker.

Then as of to punch everyone in the gut the walker grabs her arms and hair, anything to get Beth closer to its mouth. It played dead or something and just sprung to life. Are some smarter than others? But how?

As Michael thought this he blew the zombies elbow out with one well placed shot. Everyone scrambled to save Beth. Tdog tried kicking its face in but he got crowddd by everyone and only got two kicks in. Glenn grabbed its arms and everyone was trying to pull the girl away.

Once Beth was away Andrea used a sickle for cutting crops to stab the walker through the face.

Everyone wasn't happy that Sophia, the little girl they had been looking for, had been in the barn so close to them without them even knowing it.

Hershel said he wanted Andrea off his land and he meant it. She kept trying to ask why until she took it too far. Rick tried to stand between Andrea and Hershel but Andrea kept pushing. Hershel tried talking it out.

Maggie had to slap Andrea before she could touch Hershel.

Hershel explained that it might have been Otis that put her in there and that they honestly didnt know. Michael felt like it may have been his fault they were chasing ghosts out there.

Michael walked in and heard Glenn talking to Maggie. Glenn talked about moving on and burying the dead.

Michael walked to Maggie who gave him a hug. "What will you guys be doing after you bury the bodies. Where will you go?" She asked concerned.

"I don't know right now. But I believe fate brought us together. And it will keep us together somehow" Michael said and hugged Maggie into his chest.

Dale brought Carl to the house to rest. The twins had followed Michael and saw him hugging Maggie and did so as well.

Soon Michael had to leave. He wanted to help dig graves but knew he couldn't unless he wanted his hands to get worse. He only had a day or so left until they would have healed, but he kept putting strain on them and has to wait a little longer. The gun kick also seemed to have hurt but not made it worse at least.

The group buried the bodies and Michael hadn't heard a word.

Now it was time to burn the others. There was argument between what was right and what was wrong.

Michael didn't want Paul or Briana to see the burning. He went back to the house and was greeted by Maggie. "So if your group leaves, you wouldn't stay?"

"I…I mean, I want to stay. But I want Ricks group to also. Is this the time for this conversation" He looked at his siblings not wanting them to hear this.

"Well I feel like there really isn't a lot of time for anything" Michael understood that Maggie was scared and shaken by what happened at the barn.

"There's plenty of time, but right now isn't rea-"

Beth collapsed in the other room and the four ran to her side. Michael and Maggie made sure she was alright and Michael took her upstairs to her room to lay her down in bed. He and the twins went to get Lori at Maggie's request after not being able to find Hershel anywhere.

Eventually the group deduces that Hershel went into town to drink. Michael didn't like the sound of that. He told the twins to stay in the house.

"Me and Glenn know where the bar is, we saw it in town. We can take you"

Glenn agreed. But Maggie was trying to come up with reason for Michael not to go. Rick gave her some words of comfort but it didn't do much as he left, and Glenn went with him.

"I'll be safe. I'll be double careful. And if you're afraid of me going how do you feel about Hershel being out there? We will go and grab him real quick. Nice and easy"

Maggie didn't want to agree, but Michael had a point. She wouldn't admit it. Michael had higher chances of surviving than her dad. She wanted everyone to be safe but knew that things wouldn't stay peaceful.

Lori tried to stop Rick but he was adamant about going after Hershel. Michael and Maggie listened to them in the hall.

Eventually Rick and Glenn were near the car. Maggie walked outside with Michael while the twins stayed inside. Maggie kissed Michael and made him promise to come back safe. He was about to respond but shut his mouth and kissed her back and smiled at her and put his sunglasses on and popped his collar. This earned a giggle from Maggie as he walked to the car.

The car ride was awkward and quiet until halfway.