SHELTER | DIXON

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MADISON HAD NOT PLANNED ON staying with the group. Her original decision had been to check out the campsite and the people there, give Shawn enough time for his curiosity to be quenched and then explain why she didn't want to stay to him.

"I know you think there is strength in numbers but at this point, numbers make you vulnerable," she had told him quietly, late into that night when most of the camp was sleeping. "This place is a bloody battle waiting to happen, Shawn. I don't want us to be here when it does."

"I know you're scared. I know you think it'll be just like what happened at the hospital," Shawn had responded to her gently. "But it won't be. Madi, you were ambushed at the hospital by the military. No one was expecting that. But here... here, it's different. People are ready for anything. They're capable of defending the camp. And I think we have a better chance with them than we do being alone."

"Shawn, we have a family to get back to. I made a promise to Dad to come home. We can't stay with this group."

"It's dangerous out there, Madi, you know that. But we're safe here," he pleaded with her. "I know you made a promise, but we both know he'd rather you break that promise and be safe instead of dying just because you tried to keep it."

And so, despite a part of her whispering deep inside of her mind that they should leave, Madison didn't. She stayed. They both did. And the happiness that began to come back to Shawn's eyes was worth it.

He had been right, about not everyone in the group being like Merle Dixon. Most of them were actually genuinely good people, like Dale, Amy, Lori and Andrea. Madison even thought Carol was a sweet woman, even though her husband controlled her as if she were his pet. And the kids, they were reminders that even in a world as shitty as this one had turned out, there was still some good in that. She took quite a liking to Carl and Sophia, and in turn they had reciprocated it. Whenever the two kids weren't with their parents, or following Shane around (in Carl's case), they were easily found somewhere near Madison. Because she was kind to them, and she was patient with all of the questions they had, and answered them as best she could.

Shane had kept his word about keeping Merle away from them. The idiot had occasionally approached Madison from time to time, making stupid comments, but each time it happened Shane intervened and told him to kick rocks. There were a few times Shane wasn't around when it happened, and to Madison's surprise Daryl had been the one to step forward and tell his brother to fuck off. She and Daryl had never really interacted before, and she didn't know why he seemed to take it upon himself to make Merle leave her and Shawn alone, but either way she was grateful for it.

One night, the group was gathered around a campfire as dinner was rationed and passed around. Madison sat on the ground in front of the log Shawn was sitting on, her knees pulled to her chest as she ate quietly. For the most part she preferred keeping to herself, for even though she liked a few of the members, she was still on-guard. Trust didn't come easily to her, not after everything she'd seen, especially with a douche like Merle Dixon still around. Shawn, on the other hand, freely went around like a social butterfly and became acquainted with mostly everyone.

"Hey, Madison," Dale spoke up suddenly. She looked over at him questioningly. "You never did tell us your story."

She swallowed her food as her eyebrows furrowed together. "My story?"

"Yeah. You know, like where did you come from? And what brought you through Atlanta?" He asked. "Were you looking for the refugee center?"

A snort escaped her before she could suppress it. "No, I wasn't looking for the refugee center." Shawn kicked her in the back lightly, a silent 'be nice' made clear with the gesture. Madison sighed. "Shawn's flight home from college got canceled when shit hit the fan. He was stranded by himself. So I decided to drive out to get him. We passed through the outskirts of Atlanta to scavenge for supplies."