Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Daryl and Glenn had made their way onto the porch when they spotted them in the distance.
Glenn had gone deathly pale and had rushed back inside to inform the others, bringing everyone out of the farmhouse to see for themselves.
“Patricia, kill the lights.” Hershel prompted in a hushed whisper.
“I'll get the guns,” Andrea stated as she returned to the house, re-emerging with the gun bag and all the weapons she could carry.
Glenn stood to the side with Daryl watching wearily.
“Maybe they're just passing, like the herd on the highway. Should we just go inside?” The Asian man asked as he was feeling the panic slowly rising in his chest, it seemed they couldn’t catch a break.
“Not unless there's a tunnel downstairs I don't know about.” The younger hunter replied as he watched the approaching hoard of dead. “A herd that size would rip the house down.”
A clutter from the door had them all turning to see what had caused it.
“Carl's gone,” Lori stated in a panic, she was standing at the door with Merle close behind her.
“He... he was upstairs with the other kids. I can't find him anymore.”
“The other two were tired and I put them to bed a while ago, he left the room then not wanting to join them so early” Merle explained to the distressed woman.
“Maybe he's hiding?” Glenn asked hoping to calm the brunette down.
“He's supposed to be upstairs. I'm not leaving without my boy.” Lori stressed she was almost in full-blown panic.
“We're not, we're gonna look again, we're gonna find him,” Carol reassured the panicking mother. She grabbed Lori’s hand and began to pull the brunette back into the house. Carol knew firsthand what it felt like not knowing if your child was safe, to not know where they were, she felt panic rise in her again just thinking about another child lost while death was at their door.
“Maggie?” Glenn questioned the girl as she handed him a loaded shotgun.
“You grow up country, you pick up a thing or two.” The young brunette responded as she loaded her weapon.
“I got the number... It's no use. “Daryl pointed out as he watched the people move around him. Merle had re-entered the house, Daryl was fairly sure he was packing what he could and getting the kids up, getting them ready to flee if they had to, judging by the number of dead, it was looking like that might well be the case.
“You can go if you want,” Hershel stated, he was gearing up for the fight ahead, loading guns and collecting ammo.
Daryl thought the man was nuts.
“You gonna take 'em all on?” He asked the older man.
“We have guns. We have cars.” the vet simply responded, looking not at all worried about the approaching hoard.
“Kill as many as we can, and we'll use the cars to lead the rest of them off the farm.” Andrea chimed as she gathered her own supplies, readying for battle.
“Are you serious?” Daryl asked one last time to make sure they were doing this.
“This is my farm. I'll die here.” Hershel insisted stubbornly.
“All right. It's as good a night as any.” Was all Hunter could say as he jumped down over the railing of the porch and made himself ready, he just hoped his brother kept those kids safe, they already lost them once, and he would not allow it to happen again, he knew his brother felt the same way.
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The group members had made it to the cars, Daryl led on Merle’s bike with Glenn and Maggie in one car and Andrea and T-dog in another, Jimmy taking the RV as a higher point to shoot from.
All drove to the fence to meet the Walkers head-on, they had begun to fire on the approaching walkers, the number was numerous, they just kept coming.
Shot after shot they downed any they could, it wasn’t long before they noticed the barn on fire.
Daryl told Jimmy to circle around and see if he could find Rick at the barn just as the dead had pushed down the fence and were continuing to approach in droves.
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Back at the house, Lori was continuing to panic about Carl, she couldn’t find him anywhere.
Merle was standing by a window watching what was going on, keeping an eye out just in case they had to abandon the farm. He was impressed with the vet's shooting, the older man had a good eye for shooting, for an animal doctor.
Merle could see it was a losing battle already and he made sure he had everything he would need, having gathered up what he could.
They would have to bolt to the cars that were left, he would be making sure the two kids currently left in his care would not be left behind.
Sophia and Harry were both sat on a couch silently waiting with their bags packed and ready to head out when they had to, both looking scared and trembling slightly, but trusted Merle to look after them.
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Jimmy had made it through the walkers and came round the barn, he could see Rick and Carl on the second floor indicating to stop closer so they could use the RV to get down.
Parking the large vehicle as close as he could, Jimmy watched in fear as the dead grouped around and swarmed him, this was the most he had ever encountered since the start of the pandemic, and he was quite fearful having so many surrounding the RV.
He was making his way out of his seat to see if he could spot Rick through the crown of dead when the door to the RV opened suddenly.
The vicious Walkers were upon him faster than he could react, the pain of teeth tearing at his flesh was agonizing and he could do nothing but scream in pain as more of the Walkers tore at his body.
He couldn’t see or hear anything other than his own screams for what felt like a lifetime before he welcomed the darkness of death.
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Rick shot any walkers that got too close as he and Carl weaved between the reaching dead’s arms to avoid being caught.
The dead were everywhere and there was no way they would make it to the house through the hundreds of animated bodies littering the farm.
He could hear shots in the distance that told him the others were fighting off the dead, but Rick believed it was a lost cause.
He ushered Carl to the tree line and told him to stay close and head into the woods, the cover of the trees would be their best way to avoid the oncoming walkers.
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Hershel stood his ground, shooting any of the dead that he could as they continued to make their way toward his beloved home.
He was focused and determined but deep down he could tell they were losing the battle.
He could hear the ladies behind him, calling his name as they yelled for him to retreat and follow them.
He was a stubborn man, he refused to surrender to the likes of the dead.
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“Hershel. Hershel! Hershel, it's time to go!” The brunette woman kept screaming at the vet, but the man was unmoved at the call of his name.
“Come on! Now! Hershel! Hershel!” Merle didn’t know why the woman was trying so hard when it was clear the old man wasn’t planning on abandoning his home.
“We gotta go. We gotta get out of here.” Merle insisted on keeping the two kids close, the two blonde women kept together, and he saw Carol just behind them as the six of them made their way to the last remaining cars.
He heard a scream and chanced looking back to see the older blond had a walker attached to her neck the dead was pulling her way as she held on to the young blonde’s hand, it wasn’t long before more of the things were latching on.
The younger girl was sobbing as she held onto the woman's hand, she was shaking her head in denial at what she was witnessing, if he stayed much longer, she was risking joining the older lady in death.
The moment Merle took to stop and see what had happened caused them to get blocked off from the car, the dead were bringing to surround them, Merle fired his gun at any of the closer dead, trying his damn best to hold them off.
Behind him, he felt one grab his other arm startling him, Merle tried to dislodge it as it began to pull him towards its putrid mouth.
He was not ready to die yet, and he would be damned if he fell victim to the walkers.
A shot rang out so close he thought it might hit him, but the walker that was about to take a bite fell to the ground limply.
Turing Merle looked behind him and saw Harry on the ground laying in Sophia’s arms where the older girl had caught him, a gun raised and pointing in Merle’s direction.
The slight boy was trembling and had tears running down his face.
Launching forward Merle rushed to the little boy, being mindful of the incoming dead.
“You did good boy, you did good” Merle praised as he picked the frightened children up, both clinging to the bulkier man as he rushed to the nearest car.
Daryl’s truck was closest, and he got the kids in, quickly closing the door behind them. He was so proud of the lil bit that he didn’t even care where the gun had come from, Harry had just saved his life once more, and his debt to the small boy was adding up.
Merle stayed close to the car as he fired at any of the fuckers who got too close, Lori grabbed the younger blond, Beth, if Merle remembered and both women quickly ran to the awaiting car that Andrea had jumped out of.
Merle waited for Carol, the woman was right behind him as they approached the car, but he couldn’t see her now. The walkers were closing in and he couldn’t wait around any longer.
Cursing he made his way around the truck to the driver’s door, shooting any dead he could as he went.
“Where is mamma” Sophia yelled.
“She got separated by the dead, we got to go, but keep an eye out for her, we’ll get her safe, I promise.”
Merle replied to the distressed child.
Sophia was still crying beside him while Harry was looking out the window as instructed, keeping an eye out for the missing woman.
“Over there” the young boy exclaimed “She got on the bike with Daryl,” Merle could just make out his brother riding his bike down the long drive ahead.
“At least she is safe, good eye lil bit.”
Harry beamed at the praise, the small child had grabbed Sophia’s hand and was reassuring her that her mamma was alright with Daryl and that the hunter would keep her safe.
The pre-teen dried her eyes and smiled at the young boy’s words of comfort, knowing he was right, the Dixon brothers would keep them safe, and nothing would hurt them while they were around.
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Shot after shot, Hershel fired his gun, downing any walker that was close by.
He was soon forced to take steps back as the walkers kept coming.
He was reloading his gun when he was startled by a shot so close, turning he came face to face with Rick.
“Where's Lori? Did you see Lori?” The younger man asked as he stood close, firing his gun on any approaching dead.
“I don't know what happened, Rick, they just keep coming, it’s like a plague, they’re everywhere.” Hershel was distraught, the walkers were crawling all over his farm and he couldn’t take them all on alone, he was at the beginning of thinking this was the end.
“Lori! Did you see her?” Rick asked again with insistence.
“No!” The old man replied quickly.
“We have to go, find Mom and the others,” Rick emphasized, he was low on ammo and the walkers were too many.
“It's my farm!” Hershel insisted he had put up a good fight he was not going to let it go so easily, but the day had been long and frightful, he was an old man now and he could only fight for so long.
“Not anymore! Come on!” Rick yelled, he proceeded to drag Hershel along with him while keeping Carl close by, he would not allow the vet to die.
They made their way off the farm as fast as they could getting to the nearest car and making a quick escape.
The drive was silent as they continued away from his family farm, a place Hershel was raised, a place he raised his girls, and loved his wife.
He would forever miss the only real home he had ever known.
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Merle followed his brother through the woods, walkers were wandering the roads still and heading in the direction of the farmhouse.
“Heard mentally” he mumbled to himself.
The sun was just beginning to rise as they continued heading to the highway.
The kids were wide awake and sat silently next to him, there was no way they would be able to sleep till they were far away and safe.
“Where that gun come from lil bit? Merle asked.
“It’s been in my bag the whole time, Rick put two in there ages ago when we first met, he had only taken one out when we got to Atlanta, the other one remained” Harry responded, he had only just remembered in time, the gun had sat in his bag for so long it was no wonder he had forgotten about it.
Rick probably had forgotten as well.
“You did real good kid, you saved old Merle again, I would have been walker food if you hadn’t downed that thing” Merle stated, giving the boy praise, once more.
They continued the drive in silence after that, they were hoping the others would go to the highway as well, but if they didn’t Merle knew they could get back to the cabin and hold up, the dead hadn’t come from the direction of the cabin, but it was unknown if it would be safe to return.
They kept on driving heading to the only place the others might go to regroup.
Eventually, Merle saw another car, that he recognized from the farm, it was the Asian boy and his Farmer girlfriend.
They were all heading the same way.
Before long they spotted the blue truck being driven by T-dog who had two others with him.
It looked like Lori and the younger blond had made it out. Merle tried to see if he could spot Andrea, but it looked like the feisty blond wasn’t with any of them.
By the time, the sun was up in the sky they had made it to the highway and were zigzagging along, weaving between the abandoned cars.
A few miles down the road they spotted Officer Friendly, his son, and the old farmer.
Merle wouldn’t tell anyone, but he was kind of glad to see the ex sheriff and his kid had made it out safe, surprised the old man had left the farm, last Merle had seen him, he was determined to take the whole herd on.
As the group reunited after the ordeal of the night, asking after their friends, and loved ones, wondering if they made it out, it was a mournful group who left to make their way east in as few vehicles as possible, fuel would only get them so far and they were light on in supplies.
The list of their dead was growing, it was a fucked-up world they lived in now and they had to be as prepared for anything at any moment.
They would continue to drive on for as long as they could.
At one point Merle and Daryl swapped places, the kids were happy to have Daryl with them, Carol choosing to join them in the truck putting Harry on her lap as the slight boy didn’t weigh enough to be a bother.
Merle checked back now and then, looking over his shoulder as he rode his bike down the road leading the group east, the direction they had decided to take.
The cabin would have to be left for now, it was too dangerous with a hear of walkers between the highway and the secluded building, there was no telling how many there were, and if they had come from the city, it could be the entire population of Atlanta marching across the country, far too many to get through safely, the cabin was a lost cause.
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The road became less congested as they exited the highway and drove on, they were finding fewer abandoned cars the longer they were on the road, it was eerie how silent the world was, what once was a road that saw heavy traffic daily was now an abandoned strip of asphalt.
They had been driving for some time before the fuel became dangerously low, they weren’t going to make it much further, Rick signaled to the convoy to come to a halt when he was riding on red, he was getting increasingly more agitated by the situation they found themselves in.
No one wanted to spend the night out in the open, the temperature was dropping as winter approached and they were ill-prepared for a night in the woods, exhausted and frightened from the previous night’s events.
Rick decided that they would not split up, no one was to wander off, Glenn and Maggie had proposed they go for a run for gas but were quickly shut down by the agitated ex-sheriff. he made it clear they were going to spend the night by the riverside, Rick just hoped they made it to sunrise.
It didn’t sit well with Merle that most of the damn stupid people were following the officer with such blind faith, he hadn’t proven to old Merle that he was up to the task of protecting them all.
Sometimes you just had to save yourself, and that was something Merle had been doing his whole life, he wasn’t about to step back and let some do-gooder tell him what to do. This was a situation that required them to work together, and Rick was acting like his word was law and treating them like they couldn’t think for themselves.
The oldest hunter didn’t want to start something with the other man, they had been through enough for one night, but if the prick got too out of hand Merle would not stand by so ideally.
During the brief argument, Rick dropped a boom shell on them all.
They were all infected.
“What?” Daryl asked from his position next to Carol and his brother.
“At the CDC, Jenner told me. Whatever it is, we all carry it.” Rick confessed, a single-minded look on his face, Merle wasn’t sure what the officer was thinking but to the older hunter, it was a look that spoke of guilt.
“And you never said anything?” Carol berated pulling her daughter closer to her as if she expected to be attacked for speaking out, it made Merle stand taller, reaching out to put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, the older man thought back to the fate of her husband back at the quarry all those weeks ago, he was resolute to prove to her that nothing like that will ever happen to her again.
“Would it have made a difference?” Rick questioned them.
Glenn stepped forward in anger “You knew this whole time?” the man demanded.
Rick was feeling pressured, backed into a corner and Merle could tell it was all too much for the man, he was becoming increasingly unhinged the more people questioned him.
“How could I have known for sure? You saw how crazy that mo...” Rick shouted.
“That is not your call! Okay, when I found out about the walkers in the barn, I told, for the good of everyone.” Glenn attested, members of the group nodding their heads in agreement.
Looking at the people around him, and their responses Rick knew he had to defend himself to these people. “Well, I thought it best that people didn't know” he argued before walking away from them, not allowing further discussion on the topic.
The officer and his wife had stepped aside while the others were gathering firewood as well as checking for what supplies they had, Merle could see that it was a pretty intense discussion that left the woman looking at her man with shock and fear, pulling away from him as he tried to comfort the brunette woman.
“Merle?” Harry asked as he stepped closer to the older man.
“Yeah,” Merle replied giving the young boy his full attention.
“Sophia and I have some food from the cabin, we can share, it’s not much but it’s something” the young boy was beaming, holding his backpack out to the gruff man.
“Well why don’t we see what we got, I’m sure we can make something with it” Merle replied bending down to be level with the child.
There were three medium cans of baked beans nestled in amongst the kid’s clothes and what looked like a bag of powdered eggs, it was not much but they would have to make it last till the two hunters could go out track something to eat.
The older man was angry with himself for not making sure they had all their supplies packed and ready to go, they had lost everything they had except for a bag each containing some clothes, and what had been left in the truck bed.
It was going to be a hard winter that was for sure.
Merle approached his brother as the younger hunter was keeping a watch out for Walkers,
They might be able to find a rabbit or squirrel before nightfall, and make an actual meal for the group.
Daryl was more than happy to head deeper into the woods to hunt, being in his element amongst the tall trees.
“Where did Daryl go? I said to stay together” Rick asked the older hunter once he had noticed the bowman missing.
“Don’t get yo panties in a twist friendly, why don’t you look out for yo kin and stop worrying about mine” Merle snarked before walking away, not giving the other man a moment to reply.
Carol approached him, staying close to Daryl, Harry, and him, the thin woman was looking haggard and weary, she hadn’t left her daughter's side for longer than a moment and when she did, she always kept the pre-teen in her line of sight, they were standing in small groups, clear lines being formed.
The Greens stayed with Glenn, T-dog on the fringe of the family group. Rick kept his own family close to himself even if Lori was scared of the man after their discussion, the brunette was trying to keep her distance, unsuccessfully.
It wasn’t long before night was upon them.
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“I think we should take our chances.” Maggie cautioned she was huddled close to Glenn for warmth with her father and sister on her other side.
T-dog was on first watch as everyone sat soberly around the low burning fire, the lone squirrel Daryl had caught had been quickly divided up and devoured, everyone taking turns eating out of a can of baked beans, it wasn’t much but they were going to have to get used to it.
“Don't be foolish. There's not enough food, no fuel, no ammo.” Hershal huffed. The old man was looking tired and frustrated. A sudden noise close by had the group on edge once more.
“What was that?” Beth asked from her father’s arms.
Merle and Daryl were up with weapons drawn instantly, peering into the dark of the night to try and find the source of the noise.
“Could be anything. Could be a raccoon, could be a possum.” The usually quiet hunter remarked.
Glenn mentioned that it could be a Walker prompting more panic amongst the Greens and Carol who was on the verge of a panic attack.
“We need to leave. I mean what are we waiting for?” The widow asked frightened, her voice trembling as he pulled her daughter closer.
“Mamma?” Sophia murmured, clinging to the older woman.
Most of them wanted to take off, heading away from the direction the noise came from, Merle was watching into the darkness trying to see anything at all. If it had been a Walker, it would have been drawn right to them from the noise as well as the fire, he was fairly sure it had been something else.
“The last thing we need is for everyone to be running off in the dark. We don't have the vehicles. No one's traveling on foot.” Rick insisted, he had his gun drawn and was looking around agitated at the surrounding woods.
Merle bent down to lift Harry into his arms when the boy tugged on his pant leg, it seemed as if he was more frightened by the rising tension and harsh whispers than anything else.
“Don't panic” the old Vet advised his eldest, Maggie was nervous as she responded, “I'm not... I'm not sitting here, waiting for another herd to blow through. We need to move, now.” The farm girl insisted to everyone.
“No one is going anywhere!” Rick said in a harsh whisper that had Harry flinching and burying his head in Merle’s neck, seeking comfort.
“Do something” Carol pleaded to the younger hunter standing next to her, the ex-sheriff thought the woman was talking to him and lashed out.
“I am doing something! I'm keeping this group together, alive. I've been doing that all along, no matter what. I didn't ask for this” Rick exploded in rage, “I killed my best friend for you people, for Christ's sake!” the admission was met with looks of disbelief. Rick continued his tirade, uncaring what the others thought.
“You saw what he was like, how he pushed me, how he compromised us, how he threatened us. He staged the whole Randall thing, led me out to put a bullet in my back. He gave me no choice.” Rick paced like a caged animal, Merle wasn’t sure if the man was trying to convince them or himself.
“He was my friend, but he came after me. My hands are clean. Maybe you people are better off without me.” Everyone was looking at each other, silently questioning if they should stop him or run from the man. Merle kept close to his brother but inched closer to Carol trying to put himself in between the enraged man and the fragile woman.
“Go ahead. I say there's a place for us, but maybe... maybe it's just another pipe dream. Maybe... maybe I'm fooling myself again. Why don't you... Why don't you go and find out yourself? Send me a postcard. Go on, there's the door. You can do better? Let's see how far you get, No takers? Fine. But get one thing straight... you're staying. This isn't a democracy anymore.” Silence met the man’s outburst, The group was fractured, the weight of their shared losses pressing down on them like the black sky above. But this time, there was a new voice that broke the silence with its laughter.
Merle had put Harry down much to the young boy’s protests and had made his way around Carol and his brother till he was between them and the officer. He barked out another laugh.
“For fuck’s sake, now you want to take away our vote, Hell at least I made it seem like they had a choice when I was off my face on that roof.” Merle retorted, he was wary that Rick had a gun in his hand and had been waving it around erratically during his little speech, the man was acting way more unhinged than he was way back in Atlanta.
“Now remind me what it was you said again officer friendly? Was it ‘there’s us and the dead, we survive this by pulling together, not apart?’ was that it, boy, have you changed your tune.” Merle said snidely as he stood a few paces away.
The other had stayed back silently observing the two,
“If I remember correctly, you ain’t done squat for me or mine, now back when we were all at the quarry it wasn’t you keeping us together, naw it was your boy, your so-called best friend am I right T, China-man?” Merle looked to the other men to back him up, but neither seemed to know how to respond to someone challenging the ex-sheriff.
Merle wasn’t deterred though, he just continued to refute what the other man had to say.
“I have lived in the back woods my whole life being looked down on by people like you, me and my brother know how to survive when times get tough. I ain’t putting my life or my brother's life in your hands.” Merle said sincerely, he had backed up to his belongings, retrieving his bag as he went. He wasn’t going to stick around for the man to get them killed.
“Anyone else is free to join us, I even promise to play nice’ Merle said, his voice gruff. “This place is a dead end. It's time to move on.” The hunter added to the group as he began to make his way back to the road, being followed by his brother, Carol only hesitated a second before she followed the older hunter, holding Sophia close as she walked.
Rick had scoffed at the man’s words, but he noticed the look everyone was sharing, they were thinking about it, he couldn’t believe they were thinking about following Merle Dixon.
Harry had picked up his bag and was beginning to follow the two hunters.
“Oh no, Harry you ain’t going,” Rick said lunging forward to grab the young boy by the arm, stopping him in his tracks. Harry had flinched violently at the man’s actions and tried to pull himself free, only to find he was unable to, Rick’s grip was bruising, making Harry whimper in pain.
Merle had turned at Ricks's latest outburst and was seeing red. He stomped back raising his gun level with Rick's head.
“Let him go or I'll blast your brains out.” The hunter growled, his brother by his side, crossbow raised ready to shoot.
“He ain’t going with the likes of you Dixon” Rick shouted trying to pull Harry closer to himself. Harry was terrified, he was looking to Merle for help. As he struggled in the ex-officer’s grip.
“Rick let the boy go, You're hurting him,” Hershal said gently trying to defuse the situation. It was seriously getting out of hand now, they had been too loud and it was more than likely they had drawn unwanted attention from the dead.
“Harry is staying here with us, we can look after him better” Rick argued.
The man was not focusing on the young boy he held, he was too busy glaring at the older hunter to realize he was causing the boy pain.
Harry’s breath was coming in short bursts, he was struggling to breathe through the panic, he closed his eyes and tried to show his breathing to a more normal rhythm. Suddenly, a surge of energy coursed through his body. The air around him crackled with electricity.
With a mighty shout, Harry thrust out his free hand towards Rick. A blast of invisible force struck the ex-officer in the chest, sending him hurtling backward through the surrounding trees and shrubs.
The group gasped in fear, staring wide eyes at the frightened child.
Harry shrank back, tears falling quickly as he was overwhelmed by fear. Curing in on himself, he expected a beating, that is what he always got when he did something freaky, his relatives always punished him, even when he had no idea what happened.
Merle was the first to recover having witnessed the odd outbursts of power before.
The hunter moved forward not wanting to scare the young boy any more than he already was.
“It alright lil ’bit, you’re ok, no one is going to hurt you, I won’t let them I promise. You can trust old Merle” The soothing voice of the hunter had Harry running to the man, clinging to him as he was rocked in the man’s arms gently, Merle tried his best to soothe the frightened child.
With one final look of disdain towards the ex-sheriff, Merle turned to head back towards the road, not caring who was following this time.
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-So ends chapter 12, also finishing off season two of TWD.
The next chapter will be more Sirius and Remus, as well as season Three and continuing from there.
Let me know your thoughts,
Stay tuned xoxo