"This way!" Ryan calls, skidding to a stop.

Sakiko bumps into him before he's pulling them down another hall. They'd made so many twists and turns at this point, Sakiko was certain she'd never been this far into the prison.

More walkers stumble from another doorway and the two trip over one another.

"Cover your ears and step back!" Ryan lightly pushes Sakiko behind him as he pulls his gun up.

Seeing the weapon in sight again, Sakiko's breathing picks up and she brings her hands to her ears.

Then, Ryan fires a shot and Sakiko flinches, knees feeling weak. He keeps one arm up, showing Sakiko when to back up as there were so many walkers.

Sakiko slaps her hand against her head, tears falling down her cheeks as she curses herself for being so useless.

More steps back and Sakiko continues slapping her own temple, sobs retching from her mouth. The gunfire, the snarling of walkers.. It was all a jumbled mix of a mess in her brain.

Another gunshot and Sakiko slaps herself once more before growling under her breath and pulling her knives out.

Flinching every time Ryan fires his gun, Sakiko forces herself to aim her knives at the walkers before throwing them.

Ryan sees a knife hit the walker he was just about to shoot, eyes widening as he looks to her. A smile graces his lips at the determination in her eyes before he's shooting more walkers down.

Sakiko kicks one back, cringing as Ryan shoots it before throwing her knife into the air to take another down.

"Come on!" Ryan pats her arm.

Breaking into a run, Sakiko picks her knives up from the walkers heads on the way through.

--

"You're back," Nanami raises his eyebrows.

"I'm back," Merle sighs, falling back into his recliner.

"No run today?" Nanami figures.

"Not today.. Maybe not tomorrow," Merle runs his hand over his face, "Helicopter crash."

At the revelation, Nanami sits straight up, "Woodbury has helicopters?"

Merle tiredly laughs, shaking his head, "National Guard. We were able to save one. He's in with Doc Stevens."

"Military and all is still around then?" Nanami asks, confused.

"Maybe. Might just be this one group. Maybe just those few guys and he's the last one now. Hard to tell."

"If there's more.. Will you go to their camp? Will things be safer?"

Merle rolls his tongue around, trying to figure out the right words, settling for a question of his own, "You got any smokes?"

Nanami reaches to his pocket, tossing the pack to Merle who lights one up and takes a long drag.

"Remember when I asked you what would you do for the ones you care for? For family?" Merle asks.

Nodding, Nanami sits upright on the couch, "Yeah.."

Merle looks down to the cigarette between his fingers, "I care for you, kid. I care for the people in this town."

Taken aback, Nanami felt any question or comment leave his mouth.

"And for y'all.. I'd do anything. You remember that quarry?"

Speechless, Nanami can only nod.

"You remember what our plan was at that quarry?"

Clearing his throat, Nanami finds his words again, "Take what we provide and go on our own."

"Son.. We were never going to take only what we provided. We were robbing that camp blind and you know it."

Nanami had the suspicions, but he never wanted to come to terms with it. He cared for a few of those people in their old group, he didn't want to think about what they were really going to do.

"And that was the right choice," Merle says as if reading Nanami's mind, "Cause we had to take care of our own. Me, you, Daryl, and Sakiko."

Merle pushes himself to sit on the edge of his seat, closer to Nanami, "And I'd do it again if I had to. Cause we gotta care for our own, right?"

If Daryl and Sakiko were here, things would be better. If they were together again, it would be easy. Nanami would do anything to get them back. Nanami would do anything to keep them safe. Now, that had to go for people like Merle and Michonne.

They took care of him- now it was his turn to care for them.

"Right," Nanami nods.

"So, let me ask you again, son," Merle leans closer, "What would you do for the people you care for?"

Locking eyes with Merle, Nanami's jaw clenches.

"Anything."

"Prove it."

--

"Are you okay?" Ryan asks, his voice a whisper.

Sakiko takes a few more deep breaths- in through her nose and out through her mouth just as Hershel had taught her. With her knees to her chest, cramped into the corner of the room they'd barricaded themselves into, she nods.

"I'm okay," she breathes.

Ryan pats her knee, "We did it. You did it. That was awesome, Kiko."

Sakiko closes her eyes, resting her head against the wall- the exhaustion setting in from the fight and attack.

She clenches the knife in her hand- the one that Daryl had given her and Nanami had matching. It was a similar feeling to the night they were attacked by that junkie and Sakiko finds more tears spilling down her cheeks. Her bottom lip trembles, remembering the night that things seemed to fall apart.

Ryan sits down beside her, tugging the crying girl into his arms. Sakiko drops her knife in favor of holding onto Ryan's shirt. To avoid the noise, she hides her face in his chest, her cries becoming muffled.

"We're okay, Kiko," Ryan whispers, "We're safe."

From the night of hell, the walkers, her fear of guns, the unknown threat that let the walkers into the prison.. Sakiko felt she'd never been safe in her entire life.

Until now, in Ryan's arms. This was safe. Sakiko was safe here.

𝒶𝓊𝓉𝒽𝑜𝓇 𝓇𝒶𝓂𝒷𝓁𝑒𝓈--

crying bc i love sakiko and her arch has been insane