I don't think this has been done before and this particular story has been in my documents waiting for me to finish it for a LONG time! I'm glad I finally got around to it! I hope you all enjoy!

I wish Merle and Sophia were alive! :(

Heaven

Who woulda thought he'd make it to Heaven? He thought he would have been greeted somewhere with more heat the moment his soul left his disfigured body. Glancing down at his right arm, he was shocked to see a hand there. Bringing it up to his face, he clenched it in a fist repeatedly, to make sure it was really there. Maybe memorizing all those damn-darn scriptures had paid off.

The fu-freak?

What was happening? He couldn't cuss? Not even in his own head?

As-butt.

Fuc-freak

Dam-darn.

Well, this was new. Maybe Heaven wasn't so great after all. How was he going to go all of eternity without saying a curse word? He was Merle Dixon, after all!

And why was everything white? Where were the angels playing their harps? Where were the people? All he could see were trees, bushes, grass, a stone path and benches. It looked like someone had painted a park all in white

Maybe this was Hell. He was going to go freakin' insane here! Glancing down, he found himself standing on the stone path and figured he didn't have anything better to do but follow it, only slightly feeling like Dorothy.

"I don' think we're in Georgia anymore, Dixon." He muttered to himself.

It felt like he had been walking for hours, when really it probably had only been a couple minutes. He looked up from the path and was surprised to see a bench in the distance with someone sitting on it.

Thank God ("You're welcome."), he wasn't the only one here.

Approaching the bench, he was startled to find that it was a little girl sitting there. This little girl looked familiar. Her blond hair was concealing her face and she was humming a tune to herself.

Suddenly, she turned and faced him. A bright smile graced her delicate features, while her freckles popped out on her pale skin and her brown eyes shown when she looked at him.

"Hi, Merle!"

He narrowed his eyes at her. How did she know who he was? Then, it all came to him. This was Carol's little girl. Sophie? No, Sophia. That was it!

Daryl had told him about her when he had asked what had happened to the little Peletier girl. His brother had seemed very uncomfortable and only muttered a "She's dead." before he walked off.

"Are you going to sit down?" She patted the bench beside her and the smile remained on her face.

"Uh, sure, kid." He took the offered seat and didn't take his eyes of her, even when she focused her own attention elsewhere.

"You know, your brother was awful sad when he found out you were dead." She spoke suddenly. "He cried and everything. I did, too." She looked up at him then.

"Why?" He blurted out. He barely knew this girl. The only images he could recall of her were fuzzy and disorientated because he had been high most of the time at the quarry. He did remember her daddy though. The pig of a man. He had wanted to beat his ass on many occasions, but the drugs always got in the way and he was on his high.

"Why what?" She blinked her eyes innocently at him.

"Why did ya cry when I died and how the heck did ya know when I did?"

"I saw it happen and I cried because your brother was so sad. I knew he was going to miss you."

He was still confused. "How did you see me die?"

"Easy." She waved a hand and the ground below her seemed to open and he was instantly looking at a prison cell. "There's my mom." She pointed to the woman sitting on the bottom bunk, mending something.

It was Carol.

"I watch my mom sometimes. To make sure she's doing okay and stuff." She looked up at him and smiled. "You can watch Daryl, if you want."

He did want to see Daryl again, to see how his little brother was faring in the shitt-stinky world he was living in. Now, that censor had been embarrassing.

"Okay, how do I see him?"

"Easy." She said again. "All you have to do is wave your hand like this." She waved her hand to demonstrate. "And you'll see where he's at and what's he doing. Sometimes, you can even hear what he says."

"Alright." Merle followed her instruction and was about to wave his hand, but stopped when he saw his little brother walk into Carol's cell. He didn't need to do anything; instead, he could just watch him over the little girl's shoulder.

"I've been watching them for awhile." She looked up at him. "Your brother and my mom. I think they love each other and not in a sister-brother way either. I think they're in love." She went back to watching.

Merle watched Daryl as he took a seat next to Carol, so close that they their shoulders were touching. This was a first. Daryl hated being touched by anyone; he was always flinching away from any kind of contact.

"I'm waiting for him to kiss her." Her elbows went to her knees and she perched her face in her hands. "They were close the other day, but Glenn interrupted them. You could tell that Daryl wasn't happy."

Daryl kissing a woman? He had never seen that happen before. He scooted closer to Sophia, to get a better view.

"Do ya sit here and watch your mama all day?" He asked.

"No." She shook her head. "Sometimes, I walk around and play with other kids." Her eyes never left the space below her.

"So, there's more than jus' you and me, here?"

"Of course!" She giggled. "This is Heaven! There are lots of people here; sometimes you don't see them all the time. But if you want to see them, all you have to do is ask and then they'll come."

Merle nodded and filed that information away for later. He didn't think he knew anyone from his old life had made it to heaven. Definitely not his daddy. Maybe his momma? He'd have to find out later.

"Carol?" Suddenly he heard his brother's voice and he looked down. Shocked, he found out that he had missed a lot. Daryl had his hand on Carol's face and they were looking at each other.

"Yay!" Sophia squealed. "We can hear them and it looks like he's going to kiss her!" She wrapped her skinny little arms around his large bicep, leaned her head on it and watched the hopefully romantic scene below her unfold.

"I care about ya." His brother continued and brought his other hand up to Carol's cheek. Carol had dropped the socks she had been mending and was now smiling brightly at the younger Dixon.

"I care about you too." She said and this caused Sophia to squeal again.

"I ain't any good at this. What I know about women is what I saw when Merle brought 'em home and I don't think he was the greatest example."

"Hey!" Merle protested.

"Shh!" Sophia shushed him with a glare.

"Sorry." He mumbled.

"I think you're doing just fine now, Daryl." Carol brought up one hand to his cheek.

"Ya know, I was gonna kiss ya the other day but Glenn's stupid ass had to walk in and ruin it." He grumbled. "I don't do that shit to him and Maggie. Maybe I should."

Carol laughed. "I'm surprised none of us have walked in on them yet, at the rate they go at it."

Merle felt the urge to cover the girl's ears, but knew that would guarantee another glare from her.

Daryl shuddered slightly. "Let's not talk about them anymore. It's bad enough we can hear them."

Carol giggled. "Okay."

Then, suddenly, Daryl was kissing her.

"Yay!" This time Sophia jumped out of her seat. "Finally!" She turned to Merle. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for that to happen."

"How long?" Merle kept glancing down. He-Heck, he didn't even know that his brother knew how to kiss and by the looks of things down there, it was clear he could.

"Eight months!" She cried. "Merle, you're brother is so slow. It was clear that my mom had feelings for him, I mean they even flirted on top of that bus, but he hasn't done anything until now about it."

"Yep, that's my brother for ya." He smirked.

"I'm glad he finally got it together though." She took her seat back next to Merle.

Merle looked down again and his eyes widened.

"Hey!" Sophia cried when he suddenly covered her eyes with one hand. "What are you doing, Merle?"

"How do you make this go away, girl?" Thank the Lord ("You're welcome, again, Merle.") they couldn't hear what was going on down there.

"Just wave your hand again. Why? What's going on?" she struggled a little bit. Merle quickly waved his hand and the image of Carol and Daryl together...on the bed, was gone. He lifted his hand away from her eyes and sat back in his seat.

I'm proud of ya, little brother.

"Why did you cover my eyes?" Sophia pouted with her arms crossed over her chest. "I wanted to see him kiss her more."

"Uh, no ya didn't, girlie. Things were getting kind of 'R' rated down there."

"Oh." Realization dawned on her young face.

"Yep."

Sophia gripped the edge of the bench. "Merle, I'm glad my momma found your brother. He makes her happy." Sophia looked down at her knobby knees, as she swung her legs back and forth.

Merle watched her, a slight smile on his face. "I'm glad my brother found yer momma, kid. She's good for his stubborn as- butt!" He bit back a groan as the Man Upstairs censored him again.

Sophia giggled and glanced up at him, brown eyes sparkling. "You know you can't cuss in Heaven!"

"Don' I fuc-freakin' know it, kid. I found tha' out pretty early on."

She giggled again and then they sat in silence. Looking around at the white trees and the white grass, he figured he could get use to it. Not that he had a choice. But if he had this little girl with him, at least he had someone to talk too.

Suddenly she asked, "Can I call you, Uncle Merle?" She rose up on her knees, so that she could be eye level with him. Her big brown eyes, looking hopeful and a tad bit scared.

Like she thought, he was going to reject her.

"Sure, kid." He agreed, allowing himself a small smile. He'd never had a niece before and to think, he had to die to finally get one.

"Yay!" She exclaimed, lunging at him and wrapping her arms around his neck. "I never had an uncle before." Her voice was slightly mumbled as she buried her face in his shoulder.

Finally, after being shocked into total silence by the young girl hanging from his neck, he brought both arms and wrapped them around her. He had never held such a small thing before and it felt nice.

Maybe Heaven wasn't so bad after all.

This is my headcannon. Merle and Sophia are in heaven together and rooting for the day Daryl and Carol FINALLY get together!

Thanks for reading!