Getting the machines loaded up took quite some time, and getting them back to the prison took an unnecessary amount. The road to the prison is all muddy from the amount of rain we've had lately, so it was a bit of a pain to deal with. The heavy semi and trailer kept getting stuck in the mud, causing us to have to spend precious little time stuffing blocks of wood underneath them just to get the same thing to move another ten feet before having to repeat the process.

Thankfully, we still managed to get the semi there before the day ended. We had to have a team of six people come out because a small horde of about twenty walkers showed up out of the woods, evidently having heard the loud semi engine. The group of Daryl, Shane, Rick, Andrea, Morales, and Gerard easily take care of this horde, though.

The whizzing of bullets tearing through the air echoes out as the small horde is cut down like grass in a lawn mower's path. The group's coordination has gotten so good over the past three months that they dispatch the walkers with such efficiency that it's as if the threat had never even been there to begin with.

We hurriedly drive the semi into the safety of the prison's chain link fence, before doing a quick sweep around the exterior, checking for any other stragglers. Finding none, we go ahead and start winding down for the night. As I walk into the gates, the first person to meet me is, of course, Clem. I see the little bundle of energy running towards me, nearly falling down the hill as she runs and jumps up into my arms. I chuckle at her, taking a few steps back to avoid falling over. I hold her tightly before putting her down,

"Oh jeez, someone missed me, huh?"

She nods her head and reaches into her pocket, bringing out a little necklace made of string with the spent casing of a 7.62 round as the focus point. She puts it over into my hands and says,

"We made necklaces today in Ms. Carol's class!"

I kneel down and give her a smile, seeing her looking away shyly. I bring her in for a hug and say,

"It's so pretty! Everyone's gonna be so jealous!"

She wraps her arms around me once more as I feel a great amount of joy begin welling up inside me. I did it. I finally gave her a place where she can start acting like a kid again. A place where she can go to school without the fear of death creeping down her neck.

I'm brought out of my reverie by the sound of the excavator powering up. I give Clem a pat on the back and say,

"So, we're watching Star Wars tonight, huh? You mind going and saving a seat for me with Amy?"

She nods her head and watches as I tie the string necklace around my neck, giving me a big smile before running off back up into the prison. I watch her go for a second before turning around and seeing Dale, Glen, and Shane working together to carefully guide the excavator down the ramp. I see Rick standing off to the side, watching them from afar. I walk over to him, each of us exchanging a nod of acknowledgment. He looks at me with exhaustion and satisfaction, weariness coming from his day of work bearing down as the sun hides itself beyond the horizon. I give him a pat on the shoulder,

"Good work out there."

Rick wipes his forehead with the back of his hand, leaving a streak of dirt,

"Yep. Another day, another walker. How's the machinery lookin'?"

I put my hands on my sides and lean back, stretching as I answer,

"Seems to be in decent shape. They kept them in a warehouse, so they didn't get wet, and nothing grew inside of them. Once we get these things to work, the wall should be up in no time."

Rick glances at the compact excavator, its tracks leaving a line in the mud. His eyes narrow in thought as he says,

"It's a smart move Penny. We need every advantage we can get. With stuff like this, I'm starting to think we may just make something out here. Something more than a prison, at least."

I nod in agreement. As the group finishes offloading the excavator, they drive it under one of the tarps we have set up to protect it from the rain. They then move on to the skidsteer. I turn to Rick, telling him my thoughts on recruitment.

"I was thinking about recruiting more people soon. We're gonna need more manpower if we wanna stay safe out here. We could always be attacked by a bigger group, or overrun by a horde of walkers that we can't take care of. We'll need to be cautious, and do thorough checks of people, but expanding our group is essential."

Rick looks contemplatively before agreeing with me,

"Yeah. We'll need a good way of screening people, checking them for bites, and everything else. It's risky, but you're right. The more hands around, the better off we'll be. With the amount of seeds we got around, we should be able to have more than enough food for everyone."

I give him another pat on the shoulder and begin to walk away,

"We'll think about this stuff later with the group. For now, I think I've got a seat being held for me. We're watching The Phantom Menace today."

Rick shakes his head and says,

"Oh god, the prequels?"

I mock being offended and say,

"Hey, I'll have you know the prequels are incredible movies, thank you very much! I mean, it coulda been worse. We could've had sequels that completely undid everything set in the first movies and killed off Han Solo in a stupid way!"

Rick shakes his head,

"Nah, that'd never happen."

I can't help but shake my head. Honestly, the best thing to come out of the apocalypse is the fact that the sequels were never a thing.

After seeing the guys safely offload the skidsteer, I head on inside to join the rest of the people. I walk into the front door of the prison, being greeted by the warm glow of fairy lights, and newly painted walls of the prison. Gone are the grey, depressing walls of the past. Now they have murals painted on them, along with brighter colors that open the place up, getting rid of the pressure it previously exuded.

I see a bunch of people gathered around in front of a white screen, playing a bunch of pre-movie ads. I spot the back of Amy and Clem's heads and start walking over to them as the iconic theme of the Star Wars movies suddenly starts playing, jumpscaring a couple people.

I reach the two, cozied up under a blanket on a loveseat, and pat Clem on the shoulder so she'll stand up. As she does so, I sit down in her place and let her sit on my lap. Amy shifts the bowl of popcorn to the side to avoid it spilling as I reach my hand around her shoulder. I let out a sigh as I sit, feeling the exhaustion of the day fade away.

Amy readjusts and leans on my shoulder, causing me to feel a slight bit flustered. I chuckle to myself, causing Amy to joke with me,

"What's got you all giddy?"

I just smile at her voice and say,

"Nothing. Just happy to be surrounded by the two girls I care about the most."

Amy nuzzles in a little closer and says,

"Me too."

Clem chimes in with a mouth full of popcorn,

"Meh fhree!"

I chuckle at the girl while admonishing her,

"Good girls don't talk with their mouths full!"

She takes a big gulp and leans forward, grabbing her drink from the small table in front of us and taking a sip before saying,

"I'm sorry."

I rustle her hair a little bit as she puts down her drink and cozies back up into my lap, pulling the blanket tight around her.

As the movie goes on, I find myself leaning my head on Amy's. Clem watches in awe as Obi-wan and Qui-gon duel with Darth Maul. Amy looks up at me, causing me to look back down at her. I look into her eyes, and feel myself get lost in them. Those beautiful, blue eyes. I feel something welling up inside me again. And realize what, exactly I'd been feeling. We both slowly lean forwards, our eyes slowly closing, before our lips meet.

Briefly, the image of someone floats into my head. I know she's familiar, but I can't quite remember her name. As I lean into the kiss, the image of the person seems to wave at me, before turning around and walking away.

Slowly, we pull away. My heart beats in my chest at a million miles a second as I open my eyes and see her looking back at me. I can't help but mutter something to her,

"I… I love you…"

A few tears begin to paint the edges of her eyes as she answers me,

"I love you too."

I feel at peace, finally letting her love me. I wrap my arm around her and pull her in tighter, holding her against my body in a warm hug.

"Nooooo!"

Just in time for Clem to yell in sadness as Qui-gon is stabbed through the stomach. Her sudden yell causes Amy and I to jump, nearly knocking the girl off my lap. I have to reach forward and grab her to keep her from falling. I hear another kid yell out,

"Get him Obi-wan!"

I can't help but chuckle as all the tension between Amy and I is replaced by laughter, at a pouting Clem's expense.

---