Ever the Survivor

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Tayler Snape13 & PrincessPipi: Thank you both and here you are :) Enjoy the next chapter! xo

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Lori awoke the next day to the noise of activity buzzing around the camp, noting several people must've already been awake, if not all of them. She leaned over the cot to grab the clock, seeing it was late in the morning. She laid back on her pillow, putting her hands in her hair, wishing last night had been a bad dream. She rolled out of bed and slipped out of her night clothes, into something suitable for the day. When she was changed she walked outside and found herself sitting on the plastic tub of belongings by the Grimes' tent to put her boots on. She'd managed to keep the same 'house-rules' in their humble abode, even when they'd switched to living in tents. No shoes in the house.

"Morning." Dale gave her a smile as he walked by.

"Good mornin." She smiled back at him. She was a little embarrassed she had slept in.

She stood up after slipping her other boot on, a hand going to her lower back as she tried to rub the ache that was there, away. She walked over to the clothes line where she could already see Carol hanging up the damp garments. Dale was still keeping track of the days on his calendar, and they'd declared Wednesday's 'Laundry Day'.

"Can't believe I slept in." Lori said, touching Carol on the back apologetically as she past her.

"Well." Carol mumbled. "You must've needed it. Feelin all right?" Carol turned around to look at Lori after she'd hung up another shirt.

Lori was pulling clothes out of the basket to hang up. "Next time wake me, all right? Especially on laundry day." She said as she hung a shirt over her shoulder, filling her hands with more clothes. She felt bad knowing Carol had done all these by herself.

"I can manage." Carol said as she held up one of Dale's shirts to the clothesline. She didn't mind doing it herself. It had kept her working and her mind busy for a good while. "I had an idea I wanted to run by you."

"And what's that?" Lori asked, clipping one of Carl's shirts up on the other side of the clothesline.

"That big kitchen of theirs got me thinkin. I wouldn't mind cookin in a real kitchen again." Carol smiled, thinking back to the Greene's house she'd been in the day before when they'd arrived. "Maybe we all pitch in and cook dinner for Hershel and his family tonight...Kinda lookin for things to keep my mind occupied."

"Well, after everything they've done for us, seems like the least we could do."

"You mind extendin the invitation?" Carol said. Lori walked under the hanging clothes and over to the basket that was sitting on the picnic table. She looked at Carol, confused, as she went to grab more clothes. "Would just feel more right comin from you." Carol explained.

"How so?" Lori asked as she turned around, walking to the second clothes line, as they had filled the first one. The women were quickly realizing how many clothes you could fit in a dryer before all of this, compared to a clothesline between a couple of trees.

"Your Rick's wife..It sort of makes you our unofficial First Lady." Carol smiled.

"Mornin, guys. Let's get goin. We've got a lot of ground to cover." Lori looked over her shoulder at the sound of Rick's voice. He walked past the group members, map in hand, as Shane followed behind him. Lori turned back around with a smile on her face as she and Carol continued hanging clothes.

Today they planned on starting the search for Sophia. Andrea and T-Dog were sitting in the middle of camp, sorting through all the pieces of red, blue and yellow fabric they had cut into squares about the size of a bandana. Dale's wife had loved to sew, so she had plenty of spare fabric stocked in the RV. To untrained eyes, the forest could look the same everywhere you looked. They were going to use the colored fabric as markers for areas they had searched, as not to go through the same area twice.

"All right, everyone's getting new search grids today." Rick said as he laid the map out on the hood of Carol's Cherokee. He put a couple sticks on the top corners to hold it in place as the group that was going out, gathered around.

Andrea and T-Dog set the different colors of fabric in three different piles as Rick addressed the search group.

Kat watched as Daryl emerged from his tent in a, dirty, wife beater and carried a button up flannel in his hands towards the car. She gave him a smile as he got closer. He threw the shirt on the hood of the car as he bent over to put his crossbow down, leaning it against the front tire. He grabbed for his shirt as he straightened up. Kat took his distraction as a moment to glance at the skin she could see. His cut off flannels covered more of his upper body than the flimsy tank top he had on now. She pulled her eyebrows together, seeing several scars peeking out on his chest where his shirt dipped down. One stretched a few inches from above his arm pit to the middle of his chest, below his collarbone, on the right side of him. On the left, she could see a smaller one in about the same place..And those were just the ones she could see. She plastered a blank look on her face by the time he'd looked at her again.

"If she made it as far as the farmhouse Daryl and Kat found, she mighta gone further east than we've been so far." Rick said as he put his hands on the map.

Shane shook his head as he opened the passenger door of Carol's car and took a seat.

Daryl took the shirt in his hands and brought it behind him as he slipped one of his arms through the holes. He stretched his clothed arm in Kat's direction as he searched for the other sleeve behind him with his other arm. Kat tugged on the cuff of his outstretched wrist. "So you do still have a shirt with sleeves." She smiled at him.

"Got a couple." He smirked.

"I'd like to help." Beth's boyfriend, Jimmy, said as he walked up to them. Kat wasn't really sure of the story behind them from what she'd gotten from Dylan and Dylan sure as hell didn't care. Jimmy had his hands in his pockets as he looked at Rick.

"I know the area pretty well and stuff." Jimmy said when he got closer, the group looking at him.

"Hershel's okay with this?" Rick asked.

"Yeah, yeah." Jimmy said quickly. "Uh, he said I should ask you."

"All right then." Rick nodded. "Thanks."

Kat looked back at Daryl as he started buttoning his shirt, leaving the first couple undone, before rolling her eyes once Shane started talking.

"Nothin about what Daryl found screams Sophia to me." He said from his seat in the car. He wasn't even facing them. "Anyone coulda been holed up in that farmhouse."

Andrea saw Kat roll her eyes at him. "Anybody includes her, right?" The blond said, making Shane look at her.

Daryl scratched his nose as he looked from Shane to Andrea. "Well, whoever slept in that cupboard was no bigger than yay-high." He said, holding his hand out a few inches below Kat's head, before he went back to finish buttoning his shirt. He glanced over at her as he did the last few buttons. She was a few inches shy of being a whole foot shorter than him, coming up to his shoulders. He didn't think he'd ever get used to how tiny she was. She was the shortest person he knew aside from the kids they had had in camp. But she ain't no kid. He thought as his eyes traveled down, seeing her black t-shirt hugging her body. Quite nicely.

"Good lead." Andrea nodded at him.

"Maybe we'll pick up her trail again." Rick said.

"No maybe about it." Daryl said as he leaned over the map, pointing. "I'm gonna borrow a horse, head up to this ridge right here, get a bird's-eye view of the whole grid. If she's up there, I'll spot her." Kat nodded at him as her eyes zoned in on his chest again, although she couldn't see the scars anymore, covered by his flannel. She couldn't stop. She knew they were there. And she wanted to know who did that to him.

He hadn't seen her eying him before, but he'd caught her this time. The way her eyes fell right where he knew they were under his shirt, no doubt she'd seen them. He knew he should've just put his shirt on in the damn tent. He was in a rush to get out there and see her though, before everyone went their separate ways. His hands went to the few buttons at the top of his shirt he'd left undone as he tried to nonchalantly, button them.

Dale put himself between Kat and Daryl as he put the gun bag down on the hood of the car.

"Good idea." T-Dog said as he looked at Daryl from his spot between he and Rick. "Maybe you'll see your Chupacabra up there, too."

"Chupacabra?" Risk raised his eyebrows as Jimmy smiled. Kat pulled her eyebrows together, bringing her lips into her mouth as she held them shut, trying not to giggle. She'd loved watching shows about cryptozoology or the paranormal, her friends would tease her about it. But she'd even heard Jase talking about something strange he'd seen in the woods or around the house a few times. It made her want to laugh thinking back to all of that and hearing the same from Daryl.

"What, you never heard this?" Dale said, looking at Rick as he started unzipping the bag. Daryl looked at the old man, fidgeting, before glancing at Kat, though she was obstructed by Dale. Thankfully. She thought. "Our first night in camp, Daryl tells us that the whole thing reminds him of a time when he went squirrel hunting and he saw a Chupacabra." Dale raised his eyebrows as he put one of the shotguns on the car hood. Daryl nodded.

Jimmy laughed and Kat knew the corners of her mouth were curling up as she bit her lips together, so she rested her fingers over her mouth.

"What are you brayin at, jackass?" Daryl said as he looked at Jimmy. Yep. Kat thought. Thank you, Dale.

"So you believe in a blood-sucking dog?" Jimmy asked with a smile.

"Do you believe dead people walkin around?" Daryl countered.

"He's got a point." Kat smiled as she crossed her arms over her chest and shrugged her shoulders.

Rick just glanced between the two with a bewildered look on his face as Jimmy reached forward for the shotgun Dale had placed on the car.

"Hey, hey." Rick grabbed the gun from him. "Ever fire one before?"

"Well, if I'm goin out, I want one." Jimmy said as he looked from Rick to the gun.

Daryl leaned down, picking his Horton up and swinging it over his shoulder. "Yeah, and people in hell want Slurpees." He said, hearing Kat chuckle before he walked away and towards the stables. Jimmy turned to go back to the house.

"Why don't you come train tomorrow?" Shane said as he got up from his seat in Carol's car, once again donning his 'Police' cap. "If you're serious, I'm a certified instructor."

"For now he can come with us." Andrea turned to look at the young man before looking at Shane.

"He's yours to babysit then." Shane watched her walk around the car to grab her gun out of the bag. Dylan and Kat already had theirs as the rest of them got their weapons.

"All right, Andrea, T-Dog, I want you here and going in this direction." Rick pointed at the map and ran his finger in a sweeping motion over the grid he'd drawn out last night. "Shane and I will go here. Dylan and Kat, I want you two over here." Rick looked around after he pointed out where they would start. Everyone nodded. "Grab what you need and meet back here in 10. We'll head out."

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Glenn sat in one of the rocking chairs on the front porch of the Greene's house, lightly strumming the guitar Dale had brought back from the highway when the front screen door opened. He looked up when Maggie came outside. She looked over at him, giving him a smile as she closed the door. Glenn stood up and walked closer to her with a smile as she leaned against the siding of the house.

"Nice guitar." She said, resting her hands on the back of her hips.

He looked down at it, patting the wooden body of it with his hand that wasn't holding the neck. "Dale found it on the highway." Glenn said. Maggie gave him a nod as she looked down at it. He looked over his shoulder over at the camp before turning back to her. "You know, we uh, still have 11 condoms." He raised his eyebrows.

Maggie smiled at him. "Yeah, you see 11 condoms, I see 11 minutes of my life I'm never gettin back." She glanced down at him before reaching his eyes again.

He chuckled a little though his smile fell. "It wasn't that bad, was it?"

"Look, I don't even know if I like you." She shook her head.

"But you're thinkin about it." Glenn said as he leaned up against the house next to her. "You should." He raised his eyebrows.

Maggie just smiled as she leaned off the house and walked down the stairs. She looked back at him over her shoulder as she walked away.

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Kat watched Daryl as he lifted the saddle onto the rack before he unlatched the door of the stall in front of him. He hadn't heard her walk to the stables and still hadn't realized she was there. She walked into the building, knocking on the wooden wall of one of the stalls she passed as she got closer. He looked up at her as he led the horse from it's enclosure and tied it to the wooden post.

She gave him a smile as she leaned her shoulder against the stall, crossing her arms over her chest as the the horse's head came between then. She pet it's nose as she looked at Daryl. "Going out by yourself?" She asked. She already knew the answer. He didn't talk to many other people in the group. She'd figured that much out in the week she'd been with them. And what an eventful week it'd been.

He nodded his head as he turned around and lifted the saddle from the rack, coming back to put it on the horse. He bent down and reached under the horse to grab the strap before standing up again. He didn't know what to say to her. Should he say something about the scars? Because there was no doubt she'd seen them. It'd only been the two he had on his chest that were visible because of his tank top, not enough to warrant an explanation, he thought. Those could be from anythin... Still, he felt a little uneasy about her seeing them. Even though the couple she'd seen, were nothing compared to what he was actually hiding. She wasn't going to ask was she? Is that why she's here? He didn't want her to know how fucked up his past was just yet.

"I'd go with you, but..Rick wants me and Dylan out in the woods with em." She said as she ran her hand down the horse's muscular neck.

"Who's all goin?" He asked, more to keep the conversation going than anything as he tied the reins onto the horse's halter. He wanted to talk to her a little bit before they parted ways.

"Well, me, Dylan. Rick and Shane. Then Andrea and T-Dog. Those are the groups he's got us in..Oh, and, uh, Jimmy. He's going with Andrea and Dog, I guess." Kat said, going from leaning on her shoulder against the stall to her back, putting her arms behind her and linking her fingers together.

Daryl scoffed a little with a smirk. "He was shootin daggers at Dylan."

Kat chuckled. "Yeah, I don't think he likes him all too well. Guess Beth was paying a little more attention to him than Jimmy liked." Kat shook her head.

Daryl walked around the horse to tie the reins to the other side of the halter as Kat stepped out of his way.

"Well, I better go. Rick said 10 minutes." Kat said from behind him.

Daryl turned his head to look at her over his shoulder. "All right." He mumbled as he turned back to the horse.

"Be careful out there." She said, she put her hand on his tense shoulder and gave it a squeeze as she turned and walked away.

He looked down at her hand when she touched him, but it was gone as fast as it appeared. By the time he turned around and looked at her, she was by the door. He looked from her to the reins in his hand. "Yeah, you too."

"See you later." She nodded before she turned and walked out of the stables and back towards the camp. He pulled the side of his mouth up as he started untying the horse from the post. No one ever cared for his well-being.

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Shane was nailing a piece of red fabric to the tree in front of him as Rick looked around the area they were in with the Remington 870 Wingmaster in his hands. Shane hung the hatchet off his belt as Rick walked past him. He picked up his Mossberg he had leaning against the tree and started following after him.

They continued the next few minutes, neither of them saying anything. Rick could just feel the tension coming off of Shane and he didn't like it. "You remember the name of that waitress at the Dairy Queen when we were in high school?" Rick asked, looking back at him as they kept walking. Shane just looked at him for a second before Rick chuckled a bit. "I know you, Shane, well enough to know that there is only one sure-fire way of engagin you in a conversation, and that is to start askin you about girls you did in high school. I don't want to, but I'm willin to do it if that's what it takes." Rick looked back at him again as they continued.

Shane smirked as he looked around the forest. "Maryanne..I told you about her?"

"Oh, in excruciatin detail."

"Excruciatin, my ass..You used to live for those details back in the day." Shane said as he walked several feet to Rick's side. Widening their search area a bit.

"Yeah, I was impressionable." Rick smiled towards him as Shane laughed. "And I may have been livin vicariously through you."

"Why wouldn't you, with my impressive list of accomplishments? I was an artist in his prime. A protégé."

"You mean prodigy."

"Maybe." Shane shrugged his shoulders. "Is prodigy what you call a young high school stud that bangs 30-year-olds on the regular?" He smiled.

"What 30-year-old were you bangin in high school?" Rick laughed.

Shane took his hat off as he followed Rick, with a smug look on his face. "The PE Teacher."

"Mr. Daniel?" Rick turned to look at him as he pulled his eyebrows together before turning back around with a smile.

"Mrs. Kelly." Shane raised his eyebrows.

Rick chuckled as he turned back to look at his friend. "The girls' volleyball coach? Wasn't she married?"

"C'mon." Shane laughed with him.

"You know what I just remembered? Why I never ask you about this stuff."

"Why don't we talk about your high school love life then, huh?" Shane said as he stopped on a small rise to look out over the forest in front of them.

"Well, that's a short conversation. It may even already be over."

"That right?" Shane chuckled as he walked by him. "There was Holly, right?...Nope, that was me, too." He chuckled as he put his hat back on. Rick shook his head with a smile. "Then there was Sheila. That's the one you lied to me about."

Rick turned around to look at Shane briefly, defending himself, before walking again. "I never lied about Sheila. I just- I just got mixed up about what the bases meant."

Shane laughed. "Ah well, just so you know, a home run, that usually means a sexual act." He said, banging his hand on the stock of his gun as he made grunting sounds. "Like, that's intercourse. You know what I'm sayin?"

Rick chuckled. "Yeah, I-I realize that now."

"I think what you did was more like a ground rule double or somethin."

"I'm aware of the judge's ruling." Rick said as they quieted down.

Shane sighed as he looked around them, all traces of the fun, light-hearted, teasing conversation they'd been having, gone. "Shouldn't be talkin about this stuff." He said as Rick slowed down, letting Shane walk past him. "That life, it's gone and everyone in it...Sheila..Maryanne. Mrs. Kelly..It's like we're old folk. All the people in our stories are all dead."

"We can't just forget em." Rick said as he walked behind him.

"The hell we can't...It's hard enough acceptin what's happened without diggin up the past." Shane took off his hat again as they walked. "I'll tell ya what it is. It's a nostalgia. It's- It's like a drug. Keeps you from seein things the way they are. And that's a danger. You got people dependin on you."

"You think I don't know that?" Rick asked as they both stopped.

Shane turned and looked at him, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know..What are we doin?" Shane held his hands out at his sides, looking around them, his shotgun and hat in either hand. "You got every able body at your disposal out scouring these woods for a little girl we both know is likely dead."

"You think we should abandon the search?"

"It's not my call, is it?" Shane said as he put his hat back on his head and started walking away.

"I'm asking." Rick said. "I'm asking." He repeated when Shane said nothing, as he followed him.

"Survival, Rick. It means makin hard decisions. But you've- you've got this knack, man. You spread us thinner and thinner. I'm tryin to save lives here and you're out savin cats from trees." Shane said as he raised his voice.

"Is that what you think Sophia is, a cat in a tree?" Rick pulled his eyebrows together as he quickly caught up with Shane, who stopped, turning around to look at him, removing his cap once again. A nervous habit.

"Don't do that, man. Don't twist my words." He raised his eyebrows. "How many times we get called up to look for a missin child, man? You got 72 hours. 72 hours, and after that you're lookin for a body. And that was before." Rick nodded his head slightly. Shane put a mocking smile on his face. "I mean you honestly think we just gonna find Sophia alive?"

"Are you that sure we wont?" Rick asked, taking a couple steps closer to him.

Shane put his weight on his other leg as his ankle started to hurt. "We bein completely honest?"

"Well, I'm countin on you to be." Rick nodded with a furrowed brow.

Shane raised his eyebrows. "It's math, man." He shook his head as he looked around the trees surrounding them. "Alive or not, Sophia, she only matters to the degree in which she don't drag the rest of us down." Shane chuckled when Rick stepped back, an annoyed look on his face. "Thought you wanted honest." He turned and took a few steps away as Rick watched him. He swung his shotgun at a bush in front of him out of frustration before turning back to Rick. "If we'd just moved on, man, we'd be halfway to Fort Benning right now and Carl wouldn't have gotten shot." He shouted as Rick got uneasy, realizing he was right. "You said so yourself. But we're out here, we're riskin lives. Your own son almost died, man. Otis, he paid that bill. What the hell are we still doin this for?!"

Rick walked up to him, gesturing to himself. "I had her in my hands, Shane. She looked in my eyes and trusted me. I- I failed her. If I hadn't, she wouldn't be out here. I think she's still alive and I'm not gonna- I'm not just gonna write her off."

Shane looked away, towards the tree a few feet ahead of them as he scoffed at it, causing Rick to turn and look. "It's blue." Shane said, as they looked at the fabric nailed to the tree. "It's Andrea and T-Dog..Looks like we wandered into their grid." He said, then walked away. Leaving Rick to look at the fabric before following after him.

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In another part of the forest, far away from the others, the woods were quiet other than the sounds of the leaves being swayed by the wind, the cicadas and birds. And the sound Daryl's arrow made as it pinned a squirrel to a tree, killing it instantly.

He put his crossbow back behind him, the strap coming across his chest as he steered the horse closer to the tree. He grabbed his arrow, pulling it from the bark with the squirrel on the end as the horse walked by. He held his arrow in the hand he had the reins in as he pulled the dead squirrel from it's tip. The horse continued walking as Daryl reached behind him, trying to push the squirrel through the space between his belt and pants to hold it there. He reached behind him and put his last arrow back in the crossbow's quiver as they kept walking.

He led the horse down a slight hill that would overlook the creek. "Whoa." He said as he pulled back on the reins, seeing something that didn't belong.

He got down from the horse, tying the rope he had around the saddle's horn to a tree when they came to a stop. He walked further down the hill by himself to get a better look at the object. t was too steep for the large horse to walk here. A doll. Sophia's doll. It was lying in the middle of the shallow creek, resting against a fallen log in the mud. Daryl lifted the strap from his crossbow over his head, bringing the Horton around to the front of him before he made his way down the steep embankment.

Water splashed up his calves as he drug his feet through the shallow water of the creek, over to the doll. His eyes searched the wet ground around it, looking for footprints but not seeing any. His brain started sifting through how the doll could have gotten there. She might have dropped it further down the creek, the current washing it up this way and it got stuck when the shallow water met the log. Secondly, it could've been there for awhile and the flowing creek water washed the footprints away. Either way, he leaned over and picked it up once he was close enough, water dripping from the soaked yarn that made up it's brown hair. Daryl looked down at the weathered toy in his hands before looking all around him.

He took a few steps back toward the embankment. "Sophia!" He shouted as he stood in the middle of the creek. He waited a few seconds, looking around, listening, for any sort of reply. But when nothing but the sound of flowing water, birds and frogs played back to him, he started up the embankment again. He shoved the doll under his belt, next to the squirrel, before he got back on the horse at the top.

Daryl was steering the horse further along the path he'd been on, his eyes constantly searching the creek below for any signs of Sophia. They came to a small opening where several crows were feasting on a dead rabbit. At the sight of the horse they screeched and flew away, making Daryl's horse a little jumpy as she scooted back and started to fidget beneath him.

"Whoa. Easy, easy." He said in a low voice as he pulled her reins a little to steady her. He looked around them, seeing the birds had perched themselves in a tree not far from them, waiting for them to leave so they could continue their meal. "Come on." Daryl looked down towards the horse, giving her a gentle kick to get her moving as he made a kissing sound.

They continued walking above the embankment, the horse turning her head at every sound, Daryl having to coax her to keep going several times. They came up to an area that was slightly more clear of trees while Daryl kept his eyes on the creek. Neither of them saw rattlesnake in the middle of their path. As they got closer the snake hissed, quickly slithering past them from it's resting spot. The quick movement and noise from the other animal, once again, spooked the horse, causing her to get more and more frightened as the snake came closer to them on it's way back into the forest. She whinnied and reared up as the snake went past them. Daryl quickly grabbed at the reins with both his hands as he had his other one lying leisurely on his thigh, before.

"Whoa, whoa!" He raised his voice as he tried to calm her down, though she was having none of it. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa." Daryl said again as she reared up higher, throwing him from her back. He let out a groan when he hit the hard ground, the air being pushed out of his lungs as he landed on his crossbow. He'd landed on a slope and starting falling down the embankment as the horse that had thrown him ran back the way they came. The metal of his crossbow dug into his back as it worked itself off of him as his body tumbled down the steep land. He stopped rolling as he got to the smooth, wet rocks the upper part of the creek was flowing down, into the shallow pond. The Horton fell into the water ahead of him as he slid down the rocks on his side, landing on his back with a huff when his body came off the lip of the rocks and landed in the water. His head smacking the edge of the slope before he came to rest at the bottom. He let out another groan and tried to catch his breath when a searing pain went through his side, making him forget about the blood he could feel starting to trickle down the side of his head.

"Son of a bitch." He moaned as he grabbed for his side with his hand. His arrow that had been in the crossbow's quiver had come loose during the fall and pierced his side, going right through. He looked down at the tip, sticking up from his side as the water around him started turning red with his own blood. He groaned as he laid his head back down in the water, swaying his leg back and forth as he tried to breath through the pain.

He was on his back and the angle the arrow had went through wasn't getting any better with him laying there, putting more pressure on the end sticking out from behind. He rolled over to his other side, lessening the pain slightly, but not by much. He made his way through the water as he scooted himself towards the bank of the creek. He got to his hands and knees as he got closer, trying to get himself onto land again, his soaked clothes making it that much harder. He brought one of his hands back to put pressure on his side when the pain got worse as he moved. Once on the soft, sandy bank, he sat back on his legs and looked down at himself, bringing his hand back to try and cover the still bleeding wound as best he could with the arrow still stuck in him. He knew he had to get the bleeding from his side to slow down. The bleeding from the gash on the side of his forehead was an after thought. It could wait.

Daryl grabbed his Busse from it's sheath as he pierced the top of his sleeve with the blade, making a hole, much like he had over the last few weeks with most of his shirts. He threw his knife on the ground as he grabbed for the hole and ripped the fabric, pulling the sleeve from his arm. His picked his Team Gemini back up and did the same with his other sleeve. He tied the two pieces of fabric together as he wrapped the makeshift rope around his mid-section. He tied the ends together, using the arrow as an anchor, as he tied a knot around it. He let out another pained moan as he pulled the fabric tight to his skin, causing the arrow to move a little. He picked his Busse up off the ground and put it back in his sheath as he took quick, deep breaths.

He leaned forward a bit, one hand resting on the sand in front of him while his other hand went back to his aching side. He looked up the steep embankment, wondering how the hell he was going to get back up. He sat there for a couple seconds before he tried to get to his feet, the movement pulling the arrow more as his muscles stretched. He stood up with a huff, his hand firming planted on his side, trying to get the pain to go away. He walked a couple steps a head of him and bent over to grab a large stick. He figured he would use it to help him climb back up the steep land. He pushed against it, leaning on it to make sure it would support his weight when he heard a rustling in the bushes across the water.

He turned around and looked in the direction of the noise, the heavy breaths he'd been taking abruptly stopped as he got silent. His blue eyes searched the brush, trying to see anything, and hoping it was just an animal. Doubt that. He absently reached behind him where his crossbow should be before he remembered it'd come off during his tumble down the embankment.

He looked around and made his way back to the wet rocks. He waded into the slightly deeper water when he didn't see his Horton in the shallow area he'd fallen. He used the stick to poke at the bottom of the creek bed, waiting for the end to hit his crossbow. The water was murky here as it got deeper, so he was relying on the branch to help him find what he was looking for. A few seconds passed, Daryl poking and prodding every inch of the water in front of him before the branch knocked into something metal. He reached down and found purchase on the fore-grip of his Horton. He lifted it out of the water with his other hand as he made his way out of the water again.

The rustling had quieted down, so he walked along the embankment a couple seconds before finding a spot that wasn't quite as steep. He hung the strap of his crossbow on his arm as started climbing. As he got higher, the steeper it got. He took the stick in both hands, putting it in front of him and using it as leverage as he pulled himself up. The strain from hoisting his own body weight up the cliff, pulled pained groans from him the higher he got, the muscles the arrow was still sticking through, trying to work around the foreign object. He stopped to catch his breath for a few seconds as he looked up the cliff, griping the stick with one hand as he rested his other on the ground. He pushed farther, working himself up a few feet. He stuck the stick into the ground again as he pulled himself up, whimpering when a shooting pain went through his side. He threw the stick up the tiny ledge he was at and grabbed onto the small tree that was there as he tried to pull himself up over the ledge, grunting and whimpering with his efforts. He took short deep breaths as he stopped again, waiting for the pain to ease down. The more he worked, the worse it was getting.

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It was late in the afternoon by now. Kat, Dylan, Andrea and T-Dog were back from their searches. Both groups had gotten through the areas of their grids for the day with no sign of the little girl. They were waiting in the RV for Rick and Shane to come back to see what the next move would be.

Lori had went to get a bucket of water from the well to wash their dishes with and was walking back into camp when she passed Glenn, who was sitting outside his tent reading a book. He quickly got up and fell in step behind her as she walked to their fire pit.

"Mind your own business, Glenn." She said without even turning around.

"You're pregnant." Glenn whispered.

Lori set the bucket of water down next to a metal tub they had their dishes in and turned around to look at him. She took a breath and brought her hands together in front of her in a pleading manner. "You can't tell anybody, okay?" She whispered to him while she brought her eyebrows together, a worried look on her face.

Glenn glanced behind her, seeing Shane and Rick walking up the gravel driveway, causing Lori to turn and look. She turned back to Glenn with the same look on her face.

He widened his eyes as he understood what she meant. "You haven't told him yet?"

Lori just looked away from him as she picked the bucket of water up and emptied it into the tub of dishes. She put her hands in her hair as turned around and walked towards Rick, scratching at her head.

Rick held his hand that held the shotgun out to his side towards Shane as he walked to Lori. Shane snatched it from him without a word as he walked away.

Lori, noted the exchange between the two and the pissed off look on Rick's face. "Somethin wrong?" She asked as she rested a hand on Carol's Cherokee and leaned against it. Rick did the same as he came up to her. He waited for Shane to walk past them and towards the RV before he said anything. His eyes followed Shane until he walked into the Winnebago to put the guns away.

"I just had a long talk with Shane." Rick said as he looked back at her face.

Lori swallowed as she stared back at him. Her heart started to race as she thought of what they could've been talking about to have Rick so mad...

He looked at her for another second. "He wants to call off the search."

Her eyes drifted from him for a second while she internally sighed as he said the words, thanking God it wasn't what she thought was going to come out of his mouth. "What do you think?" She asked as she looked back at him.

Rick looked at the ground for a second and raised his eyebrows. "What if it was Carl?..Would you want us to keep lookin?"

"If it was Carl, yes I'd wanna know one way or another." Lori answered.

"Shane says my good intentions are makin us weaker, that I can't make the hard decisions for the good of the group."

Lori brought her eyebrows together, annoyed, as she looked towards the RV Shane was occupying before she looked back to the man in front of her. "They're all hard decisions."

"But maybe I'm holdin on to a way thinkin that doesn't make sense anymore." Rick said as he furrowed his brow. "He says it's math, basic survival- how much fuel, how much food, how much ammo. Not much room in that equation for being soft." He raised his eyebrows and looked away before his eyes found hers again. "It's pretty simple when you start thinkin of life like that." He shrugged his shoulders.

Lori put her hands on either side of his face. "Hey." She said as she looked at him. "None of us were prepared to be livin life this way. You are makin the best decisions you can with the information you have. I don't see soft in that."

"Mr. Grimes." Beth, the youngest Greene daughter, said from behind them. Lori dropped her hands from his face as they both looked at her. "My dad wants to talk to you."

Rick nodded as he started to walk past Lori. She reached for his arm, giving it a squeeze before he walked away, following Beth. The young girl told him he was in the generator shed behind the house before they parted ways.

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Daryl had made it a little less than halfway up the embankment by now as he stuck the stick into the ground beside him again. He went to put his weight on the branch when the dry ground fell away beneath it, as it had the last couple times he'd tried to find a place that would help him hoist himself up. He watched the clump of dirt roll down the cliff as he readjusted his leg. It was too dry here and the stick wasn't doing much good anymore. He looked at it before he tossed it down the cliff. He listened to it and the rocks it hit, sliding down the cliff as he looked back above him, seeing how much farther he had to go by himself now. He stretched, reaching above him for a small tree trunk when the pain shot through his side again.

"Ah." He breathed as brought his arm back down and held his side. "Oh, come on..You've done half. Stop bein such a pussy." He said to himself as he grabbed onto a tree at his side to steady himself again. "Come on." He took a couple deep breaths, mentally preparing himself for the searing pain that would no doubt hit him in a few seconds, and pushed himself up the cliff a few feet, grabbing onto the branch that was there. He tried not to yell as the sharpness in his side reached him again. The angle he'd put himself in was too steep and he slipped back down to his previous spot as he took deep breaths through his mouth.

He couldn't get in a good position with his feet and didn't have a good grip on the branches around him as his own weight started pulling him backwards. Gravity was not Daryl Dixon's friend today as he fell and started rolling down the cliff, again. The arrow was jolted and moved back and forth with every tumble his body took as he made his way down. All the work and pain he'd gone through for the last hour and thirty minutes making it half way up that cliff, gone to waste, as he let out another groan when he landed hard on his injured side on the ground below. He let out a pained breath as he grabbed for his wound, feeling blood flowing again. He didn't have the strength to get up this time.

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Rick had made his way to the shed behind the house. He looked inside, not seeing Hershel anywhere and made his way to the back, seeing the old man pouring gasoline into a funnel he had sticking out of the generator's fuel tank. Rick walked closer to him.

"One of my horses is missin." Hershel said as he looked up at him, emptying the can of gas into the generator. "Did one of your people take it?" He asked as he put the can down.

"I was given the impression you knew about that." Rick said.

"I did not." Hershel looked at him as he took the funnel from the fuel tank and set it on top of the empty can.

Rick gave him a nod, bring his eyebrows together and glanced at the ground before looking back at Hershel. "I'll have a word with Daryl." Rick titled his head.

"And Jimmy?" Hershel said as he put the cap back over the fuel tank. "You took him out today. Did he also give you the impression of my consent?" He asked as he grabbed a screwdriver and leaned over to work on the generator.

"No, he said it outright. I took the boy at his word." Rick said as he stepped closer to Hershel.

"Jimmy is 17. He's not my kin, but I am responsible for him. These things need to be cleared with me." Hershel stood up.

"Sounds like we need to work on our communication..What do you suggest?" Rick asked as Hershel walked towards him.

"Keep it simple. I'll control my people, you control yours."

Rick nodded at him before walking away. Hershel flipped the switch, turning the generator back on as he watched the young sheriff walk back towards his camp.

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Daryl lay on his back in the same place he'd fallen to at the bottom of the cliff several minutes earlier. His vision faded in and out as he stared at the trees above him, which began to spin. He closed his eyes again to stop the dizziness when he was vaguely aware of footsteps coming towards him. They didn't sound like the shuffling of a Walker, it was someone walking with a purpose. Living. Hopefully it'd be someone that would get him out of this mess and get him back to camp.

Daryl did his best to open his eyes and try to focus on the form that was standing over him as his vision blurred again. The person knelt down next to him as an all too familiar face came into focus and the sound of his voice rang through his ears.

"Why don'tcha pull that arrow out, dummy? You could bind your wound better."

"Merle." Daryl smiled and closed his eyes again.

Merle chuckled a little and smiled down at the mangled mess that was his baby brother. He brought his eyebrows together. "What's goin on here?" Merle asked as Daryl tried to focus on his face again. "You takin a siesta or somethin?"

"A shitty day, bro." Daryl said as he looked at his big brother.

"Like me ta get ya pillow? Maybe rub your feet?"

"Sscrew you." Daryl slurred as he tried to stay 'awake.'

Merle chuckled. "You're the one screwed from the looks of it. All them years I spent tryin to make a man of you, this is what I get? Look at ya. Lyin in the dirt like a used rubber. You're gonna die out here, little brother. And for what?"

"A girl." Daryl tried to open his eyes, but shut them quickly when the world started to spin again. "They lost a little girl." He whispered. Speaking any louder, himself, was making his head hurt again.

"So you got a thing for little girls now?"

"Shut up." Daryl opened his eyes to little slits to look at him.

"Cause I noticed you ain't out lookin for old Merle no more." Merle shook his head.

"Tried like hell to find you, bro." Daryl opened his eyes.

"Like hell you did. You split, man. Lit out first chance you got."

"You lit out. All you had to do was wait. We went back for you. Rick and I, mmm, we did right by you." Daryl slightly nodded his head.

"This the same Rick that cuffed me to the rooftop in the first place?" Merle said as Daryl looked up at him again, this time with wider eyes as he tried hard to focus on his brother's image. "Forced me to cut off my own hand?"

Daryl looked down. His right hand. The hand he'd cut off. He had his right arm resting over his knee as he knelt down next to Daryl. And his hand was still very much attached to his wrist. Not real..He's not there. Daryl tried to tell himself. He needed to snap out of it.

"This him we're talkin bout here?" Merle asked. "You his bitch now?"

"I ain't nobody's bitch." Daryl said as his eyelids felt heavy again.

"You're a joke is what ya are, playin errand boy to a bunch of pansy-asses, niggers, and democrats." Merle chuckled as he smiled. "You're nothin but a freak to them. Redneck trash. That's all ya are. Yeah, they're laughin at ya behind your back. You know that dontcha? I got a little news for ya, son. One of these days, they're gonna scrape you off theirs heels like you was dog shit."

"Kat.."

"What about 'er? The hell would a girl like that want with ya?"

Daryl let his eyes fall shut again. No shit.

"Hey." Merle slapped his hand on Daryl's chest and shook his arm, making him open his eyes again. "They ain't your kin..your blood. Hell, you had any damn nuts in that sack a yours, you'd go back there and shoot your pal Rick in the face for me...Now you listen to me." Merle said as he lightly grabbed Daryl's face with his hand. He leaned closer to him, turning Daryl's face so he would look at him. "Ain't nobody ever gonna care about you except me, little brother." Merle patted the side of Daryl's face with his fingers. "Ain't nobody ever will." Merle nodded as Daryl looked up at him under heavy eyelids. Merle let his face go. "Come on," Merle patted Daryl's chest, "get up on ya feet 'fore I have to kick ya teeth in." Merle said as he stood up.

He took a couple steps back and kicked at Daryl's legs a couple times. "Let's go." He said as he bent down and grabbed Daryl's leg, shaking it. "Come on." He said as he moved Daryl's leg with enough force to shake Daryl's whole, limp body.

Daryl slowly started to come to as Merle was shaking him..But the snarling sound coming from his lower half woke him up real quick. Daryl opened his eyes and looked down, seeing a Walker on it's knees with a grip on his foot, biting at his heavy work boots. It sat up and looked at Daryl with a growl when it saw him wake up. Daryl whimpered as he tried to push himself back, away from the Walker. He pulled his leg back and kicked at it's face, sending it flying onto it's side as Daryl tried to scoot away from it, the Walker crawling towards him as it tried to get to it's feet.

He reached out to his right for his Horton, but it was a few inches out of reach. The Walker was on top of him now, climbing over his legs as Daryl grabbed it's arm, trying to hold it away from his body with his left arm as it grabbed at his shirt. Daryl grabbed his Busse from it's sheath with the hand he'd been using to reach for his crossbow and jammed it into the Walker's upper arm, distracting it for just a second. Daryl let go of the Walker with his left hand, bringing his arm back and punching it across the face a couple times before he grabbed it by the throat and flipped them over. He was hovering over the Walker as it reached up and took a fist full of Daryl's hair at the back of his head. Daryl pulled the Walker up, loosening it's grip on his hair, and rolled them over again, this time with enough force that sent the Walker's body flying a few feet away from him.

Out of the brush came another Walker, what once used to be a black man, and started making its way over towards Daryl across the creek.

Daryl picked up a large branch on the ground near him as the Walker he'd thrown, got back to it's feet. He brought the branch back like a baseball bat and swung at the Walker's legs as hard as he could, sending it to the ground as it snarled at him. It turned onto it's back as it started to sit up again. Daryl launched himself at it, putting the long branch against it's chest and pushing it back to the ground as he straddled it. The Walker reached up and grabbed at his chest as Daryl sat straight up and brought the branch above his head. He brought it back down onto the Walker's skull with as much force as he muster, smashing it's face in a couple times before he turned the branch and jammed it through what was left of it's eye-socket, sticking it into the ground beneath the Walker's head.

Daryl looked up, seeing the black Walker quickly coming towards him. He threw himself off the Walker he was on top of and laid down on his back next to his Horton, pushing the arrow further into his side, only the fletchings sticking from his back now. He looked down at the arrow sticking up from him and took a hold of it with both hands. He groaned as he started pulling the arrow from himself, the plastic fletchings tearing through the skin like razors as he ripped it from his body. He turned himself onto his other side with the force he was pulling and with another jerk, he pulled the arrow all the way through him just as the Walker coming towards him made it's way to the large log that separated them. Daryl held the arrow between his teeth as he brought himself into a sitting position, grabbing his Horton. He put the crossbow between his legs as he stuck his foot in the stirrup and grabbed for the drawstring. The Horton was lighter than most crossbows but the pain emanating from his side made the 125 pound draw weight twice as hard to pull back as he grunted and strained against the string.

The Walker made it's way around the log as he pulled the drawstring into the latch and quickly took the arrow from his mouth and loaded it into the bow. The Walker was right over him now, as Daryl fell to his back and looked through the scope up at the corpse that was mere feet from him. He pulled the trigger as the Walker took another step towards him, sending the arrow through it's skull right above it's eye at an upward angle. The tip of the arrow coming through the top of it's head as it fell face first to the ground next to Daryl.

Daryl laid his head down on the ground beneath him while he let the crossbow rest over his chest as he looked at the Walker next to him. He turned his face to the trees above him as he lay there, panting, while the pain in his side caught up to him. He closed his eyes while he waited for it to pass and slowly drifted off again.

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Kat walked out of the Winnebago shortly after Shane walked in. She was about to make a joke about how the tension he was giving off in the small space was making it hard to breath, but the look on his face made her think it was a bad idea, so she simply opted for walking out the door, quietly.

She got outside and looked around the camp, looking for the one face that was still missing. She looked towards his tent but it didn't look as if anything had been moved. She took a few steps back and looked on top of the RV at Dale as she brought her hand to her eyes, making a visor from the sun as she looked up at him.

"Daryl back yet, Dale?"

Dale was looking out over the land with one of the pairs of binoculars in his hands. "No, dear..Not yet."

Kat smiled at him a little as she looked up at him. His mouth was slightly opened as he peered through the binoculars, focused on the view inside them as he watched over the land surrounding them. He reminded her of her grandfather. Right down to the "dear".

She turned her head and looked over the fields around the property, hoping he'd come riding out of the woods on that horse any second. It was even later in the afternoon by now, the sun creeping ever lower in the sky.

"Where the hell is he?" Kat said to herself. She shook her head and walked to the Carsen's cluster of tents. She and the boys hadn't given Carol their clothes this morning to wash. Kat said she and Dylan would do them later. No time like the present. That would keep her busy for awhile.

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Daryl started to wake up again, the warm sun shining on his face. He looked around him, remembering where he was as he let out a sigh. He groaned as he pulled himself into a sitting position and looked at the two dead, dead Walkers laying around him.

He got to his feet and sat on some large rocks that jutted out from the rocky cliff next to him, laying his Horton down beside him. He loosened the makeshift rope he'd made from the shirt's sleeves as he started to undo the buttons of his flannel before he pulled it off his shoulders and shrugged out of the shirt. The dirty tank top he'd had on underneath was even more filthy now and was sporting a large blood stain, accompanied by two holes on the front and back of his left side. He rolled the flannel into a ball and put it over the still bleeding wound on the front as he tightened the rope around him to hold it in place again.

"Son of a bitch was right." He said as he picked up his Horton and slid from the rocks he was sitting on.

Daryl picked up his Busse that was lying in the dirt and walked to the edge of the water while he grabbed his handkerchief. He cleaned the Walkers blood from the knife before he tucked the red handkerchief back in his pocket and grabbed the squirrel that was still tucked under his belt behind him. He walked over to the fallen tree that was half on the creek bank and half in the water. He got on top of it as he leaned his crossbow against it. He sat down, putting a leg on either side of the log as he laid the squirrel out in front of him. He put his knife into the water again, waving it around one more time before he brought it in front of him again and began slicing the squirrel's gut open. He jammed his Busse into the log above the squirrel's head as he picked through the entrails, pushing them aside as he searched for what he was looking for. He pulled out the heart and liver, eating them raw. Blood dribbled from the corners of his mouth as he chewed the heart. He stuck his middle and index finger in his mouth, one at a time, sucking some of the blood off before he wiped his hands on his pants.

He got up off the log and grabbed his knife before he walked to the rocks and picked up Sophia's doll that had slipped from his pants. He slipped it's head under the sleeve-rope tied around him and walked over to the dead Walkers. The one that had been trying to chew through his boot had it's own boots on. He knelt down next to it, sticking his knife in the ground next to it's leg as he started to undo the laces. He held the shoelace in his hand as he grabbed his knife and knelt next to the Walker's head. He grabbed it's ear and began slicing the appendage from its head before doing the same on the other side and to the other Walker. He slipped the knife back in it's sheath as he stood up.

He slipped the ears onto the shoelace, sliding it into the holes that were left in the middle when he cut them from the Walkers. He tied the ends of the lace into a knot as he held up the Walker Ear Necklace he'd just made. Zombie apocalypse or not, Daryl was still a hunter through and through. Trophies. He put the necklace on as he looked up the cliff he was going to tackle again.

He tied the strap of his crossbow around his upper arm before he started climbing, once again using a stick as leverage to pull himself up. The pain in his side wasn't as sharp as it was before now that the arrow wasn't stuck in him, but it was by no means gone, as he pushed himself farther and farther. He found himself halfway up the cliff in less time than it had taken him before. He threw the stick down the cliff as he panted and reached for the roots of the tree he was holding onto with his other hand and pulled, a whimper escaping from his lips as felt his side bleeding again while he continued to strain. He turned and stopped while he rested against the steep land as he pushed the Horton out of the way. He looked into the sky above him when he heard crows calling, circling over head while the sweat dripped down his face and body.

"Please, don't feed the birds." That voice called.

Daryl looked behind him, up at the top of the cliff's ledge he was trying to get to as he saw Merle walk to it's edge. He smiled down at his little brother. Daryl turned his face away as he looked down the cliff, at what he'd managed to climb so far.

Merle laughed as he bent over, placing his hands on his knees while he leaned against them. "Well what's the matter, Darylina? That all ya got in ya?"

Daryl moaned again as he pushed himself up a little farther with his arms.

"Throw away that purse and climb." Merle taunted him as he stood back up.

Daryl turned around, grabbing onto the roots behind him before he turned back around. "I liked it better when you was missin." He said as he scooted over into a better position. His hand went to his side for a minute as it ached again. He turned around looking for something else to grab onto next.

Merle laughed as he leaned over again. "Now, come on, don't be like that. I'm on your side."

"Yeah? Since when?" Daryl panted as he turned around, looking at the thin branches of the tree next to him.

"Hell, since the day you were born, baby brother. Somebody had to look after your worthless ass." Merle stood back up.

Daryl glanced up at him before looking away again. He still had his back to the cliff, a hand wrapped around the thin branches and his other on the roots of another tree as he gave them a pull, seeing if they'd hold his weight. "You never took care of me. You talk a big game, but you was never there." Daryl said as he pulled himself higher.

Merle looked down at him. "Mhm."

"Hell, you ain't here now. Some things never change."

"Well, I'll tell you what...I'm as real as your Chupacabra." Merle said in a mocking tone.

"I know what I saw." Daryl said as he looked below him again, grunting as he pushed himself up. He turned back around so he was facing Merle as he started to climb.

Merle chuckled. "And I'm sure them shrooms you ate had nothin to do with it, right?"

Daryl looked up at him as he grabbed onto the ground. "You best shut the hell up." He raised his voice.

Merle leaned over again. "Or what?" Merle mocked him. "You gonna come up here an shut my mouth for me?" Merle held his arms out to his sides, watching Daryl pull himself further up. "Well, come on and do it then, if ya think you're man enough." Merle laughed as Daryl grabbed onto another tree and pulled. "Hey, kick off them damn high heels and climb, son." He laughed again.

Daryl shook his head as he tried to hold himself up, another pained whimper slipping from his mouth. He grabbed onto the trunks of a couple more thin trees as he pulled himself further up the cliff.

"You know what? If I were you, I'd take a pause for the cause, brother. Cause I just don't think you're gonna make it to the top." Merle shook his head. Every put down, making Daryl work that much harder.

Daryl grunted as he grabbed onto the trunk of a small tree, swinging his body around it and further up the cliff before he grabbed for another branch, higher up.

"Come on." Merle said as he held out his right hand with a 'come here' motion. "Come on, little brother." He laughed. "Grab your friend Rick's hand."

Daryl reached up, his hand grasping the edge of the cliff. He dug his fingernails into the dirt, ensuring a good grip as breathed heavily. He brought his other arm up and planted it on the ground as he lifted himself up with another pained groan. He lifted himself up enough to get his foot on the ledge. He grabbed for the large tree's trunk at the top, pulling against it as he lifted his other leg over the ledge. He dropped to his knees at the top, for a second before he quickly got into a kneeling position. The younger Daryl inside of him almost afraid Merle was still there and would knock him back down. He looked ahead of him seeing nothing but the trees as he stood up, panting.

"Yeah, you'd better run!" Daryl shouted into the forest before him as he swayed a little. He started walking on unsteady feet as he made his way back through the forest.

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"It's nice to be cookin in a real kitchen again." Hershel heard Lori say as he walked back into his house. He walked towards the kitchen, hearing all of the activity coming from it. He stood in the doorway of the dining room, across from the kitchen.

"Yeah? I never thought I'd be so happy to see a potato peeler." Carol smiled.

"Yeah." Beth giggled as she and Patricia helped the women prepare supper.

"I'm just glad we're not roastin squirrels over a fire in the woods." Lori said.

"Thank you, Patricia, so much for just letting us into your house." Carol said.

Hershel turned around when he heard Maggie behind him. She had went to get a fold up table from the shed since they decided they were all going to eat in the house tonight.

"What's this?" He asked Maggie.

"Lori and Carol are cookin dinner for us all tonight." Maggie said as she looked up at him.

"That's the first I've heard of it." Hershel held his arms out to his sides before letting them come down again as he stepped closer to her.

"Well, I didn't think it was that big a deal. They wanna thank us for helpin them."

"We need to be settin clear boundaries with these people. They're getting a little too comfortable." Hershel said as she started to unfold the table, he bent over to help her with the other side.

"It's just dinner."

Hershel stood back up. "What's going on with you and the Asian boy?"

Damn it. "Glenn..He's a friend."

"I'd rather he wasn't." Hershel raised his eyebrows. "Bad enough I have to chase Beth and Jimmy around."

"Well, you don't have to chase me around. I'm not 16." Maggie reminded him, she was several years older than her younger sister.

"I know you're not. That's why I'm countin on you to be the mature one."

"Mm." Maggie mumbled as she looked away from him and into the kitchen, seeing Lori and Carol smiling and talking with Patricia and Beth.

"You know how I feel. Please don't make things harder than they need to be."

Maggie looked back at him. "I'm a little old for us to be havin this conversation." She said as she walked away to go get the chairs that went with the table.

"Don't get close to them." Hershel said, making her stop and turn to him in the doorway. "They're not going to be around forever."

Maggie looked at him for a second before turning her eyes to the ground and leaving the room.

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Dale had left Dylan on watch while he went to fill a bucket with water, so he looked to the top of the RV slightly confused when he saw Andrea standing on top with a cowboy hat on and his rifle in her hands. "What's with the Annie Oakley routine?" He asked with a smile as he got closer.

She stopped looking through the scope and brought the rifle down in front of her as she turned to look at him. "I don't wanna wash clothes anymore, Dale. I wanna help keep the camp safe. Is that all right with you?"

Dale's smile faded as he walked closer to the RV with his bucket of water. Andrea sighed as she rested the rifle's stock on the roof of the RV and held the barrel with her hand, looking out over the area. Dale got to the RV's door, looking up a little startled at seeing Glenn sitting at the table. He wasn't expecting him to be there.

"Sorry." Glenn said, waving the book he had in his hands. "Just-Just returning your book." He tapped on the cover as Dale stepped closer to him. Glenn set the book down on the table.

Dale put the bucket of water next to the other seat on the ground "Oh, no, I'm sorry." He said, picking the book up off the table and looking at the cover. "If I'd known the world was ending I'd have brought better books." He said as he tossed the book on the other seat.

Glenn smiled, thinking back to the horrible story plot. He picked up his baseball cap he had laid on the table and began fiddling with it as Dale picked up the bucket of water and walked it into the back room. Glenn set the hat down and stood up in the small walk way next to the table. He faced Dale as he turned back around.

"Dale, do you think Andrea's on her period?" He asked. Dale looked up at the roof of the RV and held his hands up to Glenn, a quiet down motion as he stepped closer to the boy, reminding him the woman in question was right above them. "I-I'm only asking cause it's like all the women are acting really weird. And-and I read somewhere that when women spend a lot of time together their cycles line up and they all get super crazy hormonal at the same time." Glenn raised his eyebrows as Dale nodded his head.

Dale held his hand up to Glenn, stopping him. "I'm-I'm gonna advise you..to keep that theory to yourself." Dale said in a quiet voice as he smiled at Glenn.

Glenn returned it as nodded. "Yeah."

"Who else is actin weird?" Dale smiled as he leaned his arm against the counter in the kitchenette.

Glenn sat back down on the seat at the table behind him. He rested his elbow on the table and brought his fist to his mouth and held it there for a brief moment before he pointed in the direction of the Greene's house. "Maggie." He said as he let his arm lay on the table.

"Ahh, Maggie." Dale raised his eyebrows as he smiled. He took a few steps further into the small area. He'd seen the boy ogling at her.

"She started off being mean to me. Then she wanted to have sex with me. And now she's being mean to me again. And I-I don't even wanna know what's going on with Lori." Glenn shook his head as he held his hand toward the tents before returning it to his lap.

"What's goin on with Lori?"

Glenn looked back up at him. Dale was so easy to talk to. He'd almost let it slip. Glenn shook his head. "Nothing. I don't know."

Dale smiled at him again as he nodded his head. "All right, let's-lets take this back a step." Dale walked further into the room and stood in front of Glenn. "How do you know that Maggie wanted to have sex with you?"

Glenn bent his arm again and brought his fist to his mouth as looked up at Dale with raised eyebrows.

The smile fell from Dale's face as he realized what Glenn was telling him. He brought his eyebrows together."Oh, son, you didn't."

Glenn was wearing the same wide grin he had when he came back from the pharmacy with Maggie the day before as he let his arm rest on the table again. He chuckled a bit.

"Did it ever occur to you how her father might feel about this?" Dale asked as he held his hand out.

The smile fell as Glenn shrugged his shoulders. "She's 22."

"And he is our host." Dale waved his hand at him as Glenn looked away.

Glenn nodded, understanding, before looking back at Dale. He raised his eyebrows. "He doesn't know."

"Well, see that it stays that way." Dale said as he leaned back against the counter behind him. He looked out the front window of the RV and shook his head before he looked back at the young man. "Jesus, Glenn, what were you thinking?" He held his hands out to his sides and brought his eyebrows together.

"I was thinking that I might be dead tomorrow." Glenn calmly said as he looked up at Dale, who's face softened as he remembered the world they were being forced to live in now. You couldn't take each day for granted anymore. Glenn grabbed his hat and stood up from the table. "Thanks for the book." He said as he scooted past Dale and went for the door. Dale held up his hand to put it on Glenn's shoulder and opened his mouth to say something but he let him go. "You're right, it sucks." Glenn said as he exited the RV. He walked the few feet into camp, seeing T-Dog sitting on the picnic table, drinking from a jug of water and Rick kneeling down next to the fire looking over the map with Kat and Dylan.

Andrea, sitting in a camping chair up on the RV, glanced down at him as he walked towards the tents. She turned her eyes ahead of her, back onto the open land surrounding Hershel's house. She uncrossed her legs and quickly stood up as she saw a figure shambling out of the forest on the other side of the property. "Walker. Walker!" She yelled. T-Dog got up from his seat as Glenn ran to his tent.

Rick, Kat and Dylan stood up and walked the few feet to the RV, looking out over the land where her eyes were. "Just the one?" Rick asked as they got to the RV. He and Kat both shielded their eyes from the sun as they looked out into the distance at the figure. You couldn't see any features with it's position across the field, but it was slowly making it's way out of the trees and towards the direction of camp.

Andrea picked up the binoculars on top of the RV and looked through them. The position of the sun, low in the sky now that it was early evening, was casting a glare on the image, making it hard to see. But through the magnified lens, she could see a dirty figure of a being, swaying and limping as it walked closer. She brought the binoculars away from her face as she looked down at Rick with a smile. "I bet I can nail it from here." She threw the binoculars in her seat and grabbed the rifle she had leaned against air vent on the top of the RV.

"No, no, Andrea. Put the gun down." Rick said. Kat unclipped her combat knife from her shoulder holster and held it in her right hand as Dylan ran into the RV, almost knocking into Dale, and grabbed the hatchet from the closet. Glenn was at his tent and reached into his bag for the machete inside as T-Dog grabbed the aluminum baseball bat they had leaned against a cooler by the fire.

Shane quickly pulled his boots back on as he heard the words coming from outside. He came out of his tent, his shirt undone, as he was resting in his tent after the hot day in the forest they had. He grabbed the pickaxe by the tree outside his tent as he made his way over to the group gathering at the RV. Andrea brought the rifle away from her shoulder at Rick's words and looked down at them.

"You'd best let us handle this." Shane said as he limped closer. All the walking they'd done today had put a lot of strain on his ankle and it was acting up.

"Shane, hold up. Hershel wants to deal with Walkers." Rick held his hand up as he walked a few steps towards him. Dale had came out of the RV and climbed a few steps up the back ladder to get a better view.

Shane put his blue Police cap on his head as he kept walking towards the field, Glenn and T-Dog following him. "What for, man? We got it covered." Shane said. Hershel was letting them stay on his land, the least they could do was take out a measly Walker and keep the area safe.

"Damn it." Rick said as he turned and ran to the RV's door, reaching into the closet and pulling his Colt Python from the gun bag before running back out.

Kat and Dylan followed Shane and the others as they started jogging across the field, Rick quickly running up behind them to catch up.

Andrea stood on top of the RV, the rifle resting in her hands in front of her as she watched the slow moving Walker limp closer. She could take it out with no problem from here, she thought, as she watched the others in the group make their way across the large field. She looked down at the rifle in her hands with a smirk. She flipped the safety off and brought the stock to her shoulder again as she looked through the scope.

Rick had managed to get in front of everyone as they ran across the open field towards the Walker, Shane grunting with every step from the pain in his ankle.

Andrea looked through the rifle's scope, not being able to see for the same reason she couldn't in the binoculars. The sun was shining against the lens, causing a bright glare over the center of the scope. She let out an exasperated sigh and decided to lay on her stomach on top of the RV, hoping the new angle would lessen the glare that was blocking her shot.

"Andrea, don't." Dale shook his head as he looked out over the field, seeing the group getting closer and closer to the Walker. He didn't want her to hit one of them if they got there before she pulled the trigger. That rifle had more kickback that the handguns she'd practiced with.

"Back off, Dale." She said as she looked through the scope. Damn it! The glare was still as bad as it was before.

Rick and the group slowed down as they got closer to the Walker. It was dragging a...crossbow.

Kat's mouth fell open as she looked at Daryl. He was dragging his Horton along the ground behind him from it's strap as he limped closer. Rick held his gun up at him as he brought his eyebrows together, unsure of just what he was looking at. Everyone took a step back and looked at him as he stood there, swaying back and forth slightly.

"Is that Daryl?" Glenn asked, the same bewildered look on his face, Kat had.

"That's the third time you've pointed that thing at my head." Daryl said as he took a few small steps towards them. "You gonna pull the trigger or what?" Kat let out the breath she was holding and put her knife away as Glenn bent over, putting his hands on his knees. Shane took his hat off as he rested the pickaxe on the ground and leaned against it while Rick lowered his gun. Daryl panted as he stood there.

It was no wonder Andrea thought he was a Walker from the distance he'd been at. He looked like one this close. Daryl's skin was pale from the blood loss as he stood there, swaying, and stared at them. He was covered in dirt from head to toe. He had blood around his mouth, dripping down his chest, staining the front of his shirt. His hands were bloody. There was a gash on his right temple, and the left bottom half of his tank top was soaked with blood and had also flowed down the left side of his pants, towards his thigh. But because of the glare in the scope and not being able to see properly, Andrea still didn't know it was Daryl. She took aim at what she could make out as it's head through the bright glare and pulled the trigger, the gunshot echoing across the property.

No, no, no. "Daryl!" Kat yelled as she saw him fall to the ground.

Rick and Kat took a few running steps towards him before Rick turned around towards the camp. "No!" Rick yelled, waving his hands in the air at Andrea. The rest of the group with them looked from Daryl towards the RV.

"Yeah." Andrea breathed with smile as she saw the Walker fall to the ground. The smile quickly faded as Rick's voice reached her. "No! Stop!" She heard him scream across the field.

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"Rick!" Lori screamed as she and everyone in the house ran towards the RV where the gunshot had come from.

Andrea got to her knees on top of the RV as she looked out at the group in the field. Dale started climbing down the ladder as he saw Andrea reach for it.

"What on earth's going on out here?" Hershel yelled towards them. Lori looked out in the direction the two of them had been facing on the RV, seeing the others out in the field.

Kat raced around Rick and quickly knelt down by Daryl's head. His eyes were closed and he wasn't moving. She brushed the hair away from where he'd taken the shot. Oh my fucking God. She thought while she let out a sigh of relief. The bullet had just grazed him. Too close. "Daryl?" She breathed as put her hands on either side of his face as she leaned over him. "Come on." She said as she put her hands on his shoulders.

Rick and Shane both knelt down on either side of him, looking at the wound. Daryl opened his eyes and looked up at Kat before he squeezed them shut tighter as the new pain, now in his head, hit him. He brought his hand up and ran his fingers along the side of his head where it was burning. He opened his eyes as he looked at the blood on his finger tips.

Shane grabbed his arm, not wanting him to touch the new wound and get dirt and whatever the hell else was on his hands, in it. He pulled the part of the shoelace-necklace out of Daryl's mouth that had slipped between his lips as he fell to the ground. He and Rick each grabbed an arm as they pulled him into a sitting position. Kat put her hands back on his shoulders as she got to her feet.

"Oh, God." Rick breathed as he saw that Daryl was awake and alive.

"Come on." Shane said as they pulled Daryl up more.

Daryl rested his head on his outstretched arm as his head started to spin. "I was kidding." He said as Rick and Shane hauled him up. Dylan, the only one that cracked a smile.

"Come on." Shane said again, trying to get Daryl to at least help them a little bit as they tried to get him to his feet.

Rick grunted as they pulled him up the rest of the way, draping his arms over their shoulders. Kat walked around to Rick's side, coming in front of Daryl as he hung his head. She could see him fighting to stay awake, but was losing the battle. She walked slightly backwards as Rick and Shane started walking towards camp with him, Daryl dragging his feet as they pulled his limp body along. He wasn't even trying anymore.

T-Dog picked up Shane's pickaxe as Glenn grabbed Daryl's Horton and fell in step next to them.

"Oh my God." Andrea shouted in a panicked voice as she ran across the field to the group with Dale, finally realizing who it was. "Oh, my God, is he dead?"

Kat saw red as soon as she heard the blond's voice. Rick fucking told her to put the gun down.

"Unconscious. You just grazed him." Rick said as the group continued to drag Daryl back towards camp.

Daryl was still hanging on to the last bit of consciousness he had as he leaned his head against Rick's shoulder. But he didn't have anymore strength in him to move or say he was still awake.

If looks could kill, Andrea would've dropped dead when Kat saw her put her hand over her chest and take deeps breaths, relieved he was okay. She turned and faced the blond from her position in front of Rick. "You never pull the trigger unless you see what you're shooting at." Kat tried to say without yelling, though the words practically oozed with the venom in her voice.

Shane opened his mouth to say something, but stopped when the gun trainer in him knew how correct she was.

"I-I thought he was a Walker. I couldn't see him. The-There was a glare in the scope." Andrea tried to cover up her mistake as Kat started walking towards her. Rick and Shane stopped walking, as did Glenn and T-Dog, on either side of them. Dylan followed his sister though. Welp. Kat's outta the bag. He thought as he reached for her shoulder, but she launched out of his grasp.

"What did I just fucking say you stupid cunt?!" Kat yelled as she went for Andrea. The little resolve she had, snapped. She brought her fist back, ready to knock her pretty little teeth out until Dylan grabbed her arm. Daryl smirked before he let the darkness take him.

"Kat!" Dylan yelled, grabbing his sister around her waist, holding her to his chest and spinning in the other direction so she wasn't facing Andrea anymore. Kat grabbed at her brother's arms, trying to push and kick away from him as he lifted her off the ground and started walking back towards the house, the group resuming it's pace behind them. "Relax! He's gonna be fine." Dylan said as he walked her to the rest of the group, waiting by the fence that led to the field.

Everyone looked from Dylan's back, seeing him struggle to contain his sister as he walked away, back to Andrea's shocked face. She really had no clue how close she just came to the wrath that was an angry Kat. Andrea would've needed more than a dentist to put her back together after Kat was done with her, had they just let her go.

Glenn looked back at Daryl as they started walking again. "But look at him." Glenn pointed at Daryl with the machete in his hand. "What they hell happened? Lo-He's wearing ears."

Rick grabbed at the necklace, pulling it from Daryl's neck and shoved it into the front pocket of his shirt. "Let's keep that to ourselves."

"Daryl's hurt bad." Dylan said as Kat stopped struggling as much when he got to the group at the edge of the fence.

"Is he okay?" Sam asked, pulling his eyebrows together as he and Kaleb looked towards the mess of a person between Rick and Shane, still in the middle of the field. Daryl and the younger Carsen boys hadn't interacted much, but Daryl was more familiar to them than all of these people were, and Sam thought Daryl was "cool". Kat thought it mostly had to do with the crossbow that was always at his side, Sam had always wanted one.

"He'd better be." Kat said through gritted teeth.

Hershel looked at Dylan, seeing the vice he had Kat in. He looked at the young man with a confused look.

Dylan pulled his eyebrows together and forced a smile. "I think it's best she stay like this for a few minutes..She doesn't need to be around Andrea for awhile either." he nodded.

"Take her with him when they get here. First bedroom on the right by the side door." Hershel nodded.

T-Dog stopped when he saw something slip from Daryl's pants. He turned around and grabbed the doll turning it over. He widened his eyes as he stood up. "Guys, isn't this Sophia's?" He held the doll up for them to see.

Rick and the group stopped and turning around, looking at the familiar doll that had been glued to Sophia's side.

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Rick and Shane had managed to pull Daryl up the stairs on the side of the Greene's house and plop him down on the bed Hershel had told them to bring him to, with Kat right behind them. Rick and Shane had went downstairs to calm everyone down and talk to Andrea as Hershel went to gather the medical supplies, water and towels he would need. They were all in the bedroom Carl was occupying since he wouldn't think they would need them again. He told Kat to get Daryl's shirt off and he would be back in a few minutes.

Kat walked to the bathroom connected to the room they were in and filled a bowl with warm water as she grabbed the small hand towel that was hanging on a metal ring on the wall. She walked back into the room and set them down next to the bed an unconscious Daryl was lying on.

Kay unclipped her combat knife and cut the loops of the filthy tank top before she sliced the fabric on either of his sides. She grabbed the front of the shirt, that was now just laying across his chest and threw it on the ground. She held onto the fabric of the shirt sticking out from under his back and pulled it out from under him as gently as she could. She threw it on the ground with the rest of the shirt and his bloody flannel he'd used as a bandage.

She sat on the edge of the bed and looked down at his chest. Though he was still covered in dirt and blood, she could see the scars more clearly without being obstructed, noting several others she hadn't been able to see before down his chest and stomach.

She leaned over and reached for the towel in the bowl of warm water. She squeezed the water out and lightly dabbed at the area around the wound on his side, clearing most of the dirt and blood away for Hershel. When she was finished with the front, she scooted herself closer to him, in order to hold his weight up as she turned him to clean the wound on his back. She grabbed his shoulder and pushed him so he was lying half on his back, half on his side and started cleaning the area, seeing the large bruises that were starting to form on his back where he must've landed on something. Probably that damn crossbow. She looked around the rest of his back as she worked, seeing all of the scars. More than what were on his chest. And bigger.

Kat didn't know what she was feeling in her chest right now but it felt like someone took her heart and squeezed it. She closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath. She wanted to beat the living shit out of whoever left these all over his body. She opened her eyes when she regained herself and finished cleaning the area around the wound. She let him lay on his back again as she scooted to the edge of the bed.

She leaned over, dipping the towel into the bowl of water and squeezed it before she let it sit on the edge of the bowl. She sat up as she draped her left arm over his stomach and let it rest against his side. She leaned closer to him, her right hand cupping his cheek as she looked at his face, sweeping her thumb lightly over his cheekbone. "What happened to you?" She whispered.

Hershel opened the door and stepped into the room, seeing Kat in her position leaning over Daryl, a look of what he thought was sadness on her face. He gave her a small smile as she took her hand away from Daryl's cheek. She stood up and walked to the other side of the bed to sit down so he would have more room to work on Daryl's other side with the majority of the injuries.

Kat watched Hershel inspect the wounds to Daryl's abdomen. He glanced up, seeing her nervously biting on her nail. "Word is you knew him before?" He said, trying to distract her.

Kat brought her thumb away from her mouth as she looked from Hershel back to Daryl. She nodded her head with a small smile. "Yeah..We were, friends, before this..Not close or anything. But, we knew each other..He knew my family." She nodded her head again.

"And you came upon Rick's group together?"

"No. We, uh, ran into each other in the woods..just outside of Atlanta."

"That's lucky." Hershel looked up at her with raised eyebrows. Rick had told him they all met each other in Atlanta, that not many of them were actually from around here.

"He's lucky." Kat looked down at Daryl again.

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"I found it washed up on the creek bed right there." Daryl said to Rick as he pointed to the creek. He was lying on his uninjured side and propping his head up with his hand.

Kat had gotten up and was leaning against the wall next to Shane, who was sitting in a chair next to her as Rick knelt down by the bed with the map and laid it out on the bed next to Daryl. Rick leaned onto the bed as he looked at the area Daryl was pointing to.

"She musta dropped it crossin there somewhere." Daryl said as he held paper towels to the wound on his head, as instructed by Hershel, to stop the bleeding.

Rick turned behind him to look at Shane and Kat. "Cuts the grid almost in half."

Shane raised his eyebrows as he looked from the map to Rick. He had his hand resting over his mouth as he leaned forward against his knees.

"Yeah, you're welcome." Daryl said as he watched Hershel pull the last stitch through his side.

"How's he lookin?" Rick said to Hershel as he turned back to look at him.

Hershel turned to grab the scalpel from the end table next to the bed to cut the excess from the sutures away from Daryl's side before he would be finished. "I had no idea we'd be going through the antibiotics so quickly." Hershel brought the scalpel to Daryl's side as he pulled at the sutures a bit to cut what he needed to, off, causing Daryl to pull away slightly.

Rick looked up at him before he glanced back down at the map. Hershel stood up and put the scalpel into the small surgical pan he had on the end table.

"Any idea what happened to my horse?" Hershel asked as he walked to the bowl of water by the dresser to wash off his hands.

Daryl looked down at his side before laying back against the bed. "Yeah, the one who almost killed me? If it's smart, it left the country." He looked up at Rick who stood up and started to roll up the map.

"We call that one Nelly," Hershel said, "as in nervous Nelly." He dried his hands off as Daryl laid his head down against the pillow when he started feeling dizzy again. Rick started walking to the foot of the bed. "I coulda told you she'd throw you if you'd bothered to ask." Hershel said as he walked to Rick. "It's a wonder you people have survived this long."

Kat looked at Daryl as he closed his eyes, still holding the paper towels to his head, turning them every now and then, each spot showing less and less blood. Shit, if he isn't right. First T-Dog cuts his arm, then Carl get's shot, Shane hurts his ankle. Now Daryl almost kills himself. Jesus Christ. She shook her head.

"With the blood he's lost from his side and the dizziness..I'm sure he's got a mild concussion, too."

"I'll stay with him tonight." Kat said as Hershel started getting the antiseptic and bandages from the kit on the dresser. Daryl opened his eyes and looked at her before he looked at the ceiling again.

Of course. Shane thought as he sat back in the chair he was still in.

Hershel nodded his head, before turning to Daryl and Kat. "No sleep for at least a few hours. Just to be safe." He said before he zipped his bag shut and walked back over to Daryl. Kat yawned at the thought of sleep, she was already tired.

Everything had happened so fast when he woke up, between Hershel telling him to hold the paper towels to his head to stop the bleeding, to feeling Kat sitting on the bed next to him, then Rick asking him where he'd found the doll at and shoving a map in his face. Now that he had time to breath, Daryl was aware that his shirt had been off the entire time, leaving his scars for the world to see. At least, the world in the room.

Kat could tell the moment he realized it as he shrunk into the bed farther, his eyes quickly looking around the room at the different people. He wouldn't meet her eyes anymore. She pulled her eyebrows together. He's embarrassed. She'd seen him blush a few times when he'd said something he didn't mean to let slip out or if she was teasing him, but this wasn't that kind of embarrassment at all. The want to hurt whoever it was that made him feel this way reared it's head again. She'd do anything to take that look off his face.

Everyone walked out of the room, including Kat as Hershel began wiping at Daryl's head, clearing some of the blood away. Kat was going straight for her tent to grab her Walden book before she went back into that room, luckily not running into Andrea. She'd cooled off but didn't want to see her face again yet.

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Lori was sitting on the floor in the hall outside of the room, picking the stray strings away from the washcloth she had in her hands when she was in the kitchen not so long ago. She quickly got to her feet when the three of them had come out.

"He'll be all right." Rick said as he came up to Lori, putting a hand on her waist and giving her a quick hug before he pulled away as Kat walked past them. Shane shut the door behind them as Rick started following Kat down the hallway but he was stopped at Shane's voice.

"I hate to say it, but I'm with Hershel on this one..Can't keep goin out there, not after this." Shane said as he held his hat in his hands in front of him.

"You'd quit now?" Rick said quiet, but sternly. He turned and walked over to Shane. "Daryl just risked his life to bring back the first hard evidence we've had."

"That is one way to look at it." Shane said as he leaned his shoulder against the door frame. "The way I see it, Daryl almost died today for a doll."

"Yeah, I know how you see it." Rick said. He'd had about enough of Shane's attitude with this whole Sophia situation.

Rick turned and looked at Lori before walking past her. She patted his chest as he walked by, leaving her there with Shane.

"I'm not out to be a hard case. Just bein realistic." Shane said when Rick turned the corner down the hall and headed outside.

Lori scoffed as she smiled down at the washcloth in her hands before she looked up at him from her positing leaning her back against the wall, opposite of the one he was in front of.

"He's just gotta start makin the tough calls." Shane said as he started to walk past her. "You know I'm right."

Lori leaned off the wall and took a few steps towards him, making him stop and turn around. "I may not agree with all of his choices," Lori pointed her hand she held the washcloth in, in the direction Rick had gone, "but I respect him." She said in a low voice. "I know yours and mine..and your way isn't harder." She shook her head. "It's the easiest thing in the world to cut our losses and to not help. You keep tellin yourself you're makin the tough calls. You're really just tryin to justify-"

"The only thing I care about now in this world is you and Carl." Shane cut her off. Lori looked away from him. This again. "So I apologize if I appear to be insensitive to the needs of others, but you see, I'll do whatever it takes to keep the two of you safe."

Hmm. The best friend and the Sheriff's wife, huh? Kat thought as she leaned against the wall of the room she'd ducked into down the hall on her way back, listening to their conversation. Half of her, just not wanting to interrupt by walking back into Daryl's room, half of her wanting to hear what they were talking about. Kat wasn't always one for eavesdropping, but she believed the more information one had about any given situation, the better equipped you could be. She just didn't think she'd catch the aftermath of an affair, however fleeting it may have been.

Lori walked up to Shane, patting his chest for a second. "Even abandoning a lost child?" She whispered. "Really?" Shane just looked at her. Lori took her hand away as she turned her eyes down to the washcloth. "My son and I are not your problem anymore, or your excuse." She said as she walked away, past the room Kat was in, leaning behind the door.

Shane watched Lori take off before he walked out of the side door that led outside next to the room Daryl was in.

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Dylan wished he had a cigarette as he walked out from the kitchen onto the front porch when Rick had told everyone that gathered in the living room that Daryl was okay. He saw Andrea, sitting on the brick steps that led up to the porch, sulking, as he shut the screen door behind him. She turned and looked at him but didn't say anything as her lips twitched a little, not fully forming a smile. He gave her a small half smile before she turned around as he leaned against the siding next to the door as it opened again a few seconds later.

Dale walked out, Andrea turning around again. "How's he doing?" She asked Dale as he stood above her.

"He'll be fine." Dale said, shaking his head with a slight shrug of his shoulders. He nodded his head towards her. "What about you?"

Andrea looked down before finding his eyes again. "I shot Daryl."

Dale walked down a few steps to sit down beside her. They both looked out over the land together as they both leaned forward, onto their knees. Dale turned his head towards her. "Don't be too hard on yourself." He nodded before looking out over the fields again. "We've all wanted to shoot Daryl." He raised his eyebrows.

Dylan chuckled from behind them as Andrea's lips pulled into a small smile. She turned to look at Dale, causing him to do the same. His face softened when he saw a smile, finally, back on her face. It'd been awhile since she looked happy.

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"Remember, no sleep for a few hours." Hershel said as he packed the last of his supplies into his kit before he walked out of the room, leaving Kat and Daryl alone. He'd told Daryl he could clean up as long as he didn't get his bandages wet.

Daryl sighed as he stared at the ceiling before rubbing his eyes. "The hell're we supposed to do for a few hours?"

Kat leaned over and reached for her book she'd laid next to the chair. I could think of a few things. She tilted her head.

He was kicking himself for thinking the same thing until he looked over at her and saw the smirk on her face.

Kat bit her lip before looking away and smiling. "Well, uh, for starters you could take that shower?" She looked back at him after she'd looked at the other door that was attached to the room.

Daryl looked towards the cracked door of the small bathroom before he looked down at himself. Still covered in dirt and bits of blood. "Yeah..Might be nice."

"Duh." Kat shook her head. "A hot shower..Hot water here, remember?" Kat raised her eyebrows, thinking back to the wonderful feelings the hot water at the CDC gave her as it ran down her body. Maybe she'd be able to sneak one in sometime soon while they were here.

Daryl nodded his head as he looked at her. She looked down and opened her book before he decided to get out of the bed, forgetting the stitches in his side. He felt a sharp pain and stopped with a groan as he felt them pull at his skin.

"You okay?" Kat looked up and leaned forward.

"Yeah." Daryl breathed, remembering he had to take it slow. He made his way to the bathroom, leaving the door cracked behind him as Kat sat in the chair. She heard him undo his belt and his pants fall to the floor.

Not wearin those back to bed. He thought as he looked at the dirt covered, blood stained pants and kicked them from his feet, only then realizing he'd have to walk back in there in just his black boxers when he was done. Damn it.

"Need some help?" Kat smiled at the partially closed bathroom door as she innocently asked from her seat.

Daryl scoffed with a smirk as he leaned into the shower and turned on the water. "Think I got it." He shouted back towards the door over the sound of the running water.

"Just thought I'd offer." Kat smiled, raising her voice a little bit so he could hear her.

"Uh-huh." He smiled as he stripped his boxers and socks off and laid them on the lid of the closed toilet.

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It had been over an hour and the sun was about to hide itself under the horizon as Carol and Patricia got the last preparations for the meal ready.

Lori was in Carl's room, sound asleep from the medication Hershel had him on. She was sitting in the chair next to the bed as she cried, her legs to her chest while she looked at Carl. "Baby, what do I do?" She whispered. She straightened in her seat when a small knock came to the door. Carol opened the door and walked in as Lori patted her face dry with the washcloth in her hands.

"Dinner's ready. You comin?" Carol asked in a small voice.

"Mm-hmm." Lori nodded her head as she bent over to put her boots back on.

Carol glanced to Carl before looking at Lori again. "You need anything?"

"Huh-uh." Lori shook her head and forced a smile. "I'll be right there."

Carol nodded and walked out of the room, quietly shutting the door behind her.

Lori patted her face again, looking back at Carl as she tried to compose herself. She grabbed for his hand and squeezed it before she got up and headed for the kitchen to help prepare everyones plates.

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Maggie, Glenn, Beth and Jimmy were sitting at one of the tables Maggie had set up, the Carsen boys occupying another, while everyone else sat at the large dining table, enjoying their meal.

The room was filled with an awkward silence, the only sound being the clinking of metal silverware on the glass plates as everyone ate their food. For the Survivors it was the first thing close to a big meal they'd had in a long time. Patricia had even made a small chocolate cake for dessert.

Lori scooped another spoonful of mashed potatoes on her plate before setting the bowl back down in front of Rick. He and Shane, shooting daggers at each other from across the table, looks that Hershel didn't miss.

"Does anybody know how to play guitar?" Glenn turned around in his seat and looked at the larger table with a smile. Everyone looked at him. "Dale found a cool one..Somebody's gotta know how to play." He shrugged as he smiled, looking at everyone while Dale nodded.

A few seconds passed, Glenn's smile fading as the Greene's looked at Patricia. "Otis did." She said, nodding.

"Yes, and he was very good, too." Hershel looked at her, before picking his fork and knife back up.

Rick looked back at Shane again as Glenn slowly turned around. Maggie lightly tapped at his shoe with her's, getting his attention. He looked over at her as she slid a pen with a paper folded around it onto his thigh. He grabbed it from her, smiling a bit. He felt like he was back in middle school or something, passing notes to each other. He unfolded the paper.



He looked back up at her, not believing what he read for a second. Wasn't she being mean to him again earlier today? She gave him a tiny small as she looked down at the paper before back to his eyes. He smiled as he thought for a second. He grabbed the pen and scribbled his answer down before folding the paper back up.

Dale, who was sitting at the large table, next to Hershel, glanced across the room at the two, furrowing his brow, wondering what they were doing. He caught the eyes of Hershel, who was looking around at everybody, and followed Dale's gaze to his daughter and Glenn. Maggie's smile fell when she caught her father watching her before she turned her eyes back to the table. Glenn smiled, remembering juuust where he put the condoms. He smiled as he slid the paper onto Maggie's knee, giving it a little squeeze.

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Daryl had been laying on his back for an hour if not longer, not saying another word after he'd gotten out of the shower. He couldn't stop thinking about the fact she'd seen them. She hadn't shown any distaste when she looked down his body after he'd walked out of the bathroom in just his boxers. "Much better." She said with a smile as his cleaned figure walked towards the bed. But he was still uncomfortable. He'd tried his whole life to keep his body covered up and he'd been successful so far. She acted like she didn't care about them, but she had to, right? He had the urge to tell her. But couldn't tell if the feeling was out of want or need. To tell her why he was so fucked up. Emotionally and physically. He didn't want her to look at him any differently because she'd seen the things he'd been trying to hide from her. Her, and everyone else.

Kat was distracted. Reading one of the parts in her book that almost reminded her of herself in a way whenever she came across it in her re-readings, wondering just how many other people on this property had their own secrets.

In any weather, at any hour of the day or night, I have been anxious to improve the nick of time, and notch it on my stick too; to stand on the meeting of two eternities, the past and future, which is precisely the present moment; to toe that line. You will pardon some obscurities, for there are more secrets in my trade than in most men's, and yet not voluntarily kept, but inseparable from its very nature. I would gladly tell all that I know about it, and never paint "No Admittance" on my gate.

"The scars.." Daryl said, waiting for Kat to look at him. It didn't take long. She looked up from her book at him. It was the first thing he'd said in the last hour. "Happened when I was younger."

Kat watched his face, seeing him struggle with telling her about this. His eyes kept looking around the room, finding her, then quickly looking away again."Daryl, you don't have to exp-"

"He didn't start hittin us 'til after my mom died...We were both young." He said as he stared at the bathroom door. "When Merle left, he started on me..Merle didn't know about it though..Still don't. He always thought it was dad beatin on him for all the shit he'd do." He took a longer pause, finding Kat's eyes again before he looked at the ceiling. "I got it worse than him..Always said I looked more like my ma than Merle did."

Kat let this new piece of him sink in as she thought back to all the times she'd come close enough to touch the man laying a few feet from her. He'd either flinched the moment her skin touched his or he would tense up, even before all of this. Makes sense now. Why he was unsure when it came to any kind of physical contact, the good or the bad.

Kat leaned forward in her chair, leaning against her arms as her elbows came to her knees."We're friends right?" She gave him a small smile. He looked back at her face, slowly nodding his head as her face fell again. "Why didn't you say something before I saw them?" She asked in a soft voice.

He thought about lying. Saying because he just didn't want to, which was partially true..But she never lied to him when he asked her anything. So he went for the truth. He shrugged."Never the time..And didn't want ya..feelin different..about me cause of em." He said as he looked down at the sheet he had over his lower half and started playing with it. She'd already seen them, no point in covering up now. "Do things for me outta pity. Just cause you feel bad." He turned and laid on his uninjured side, facing her as he put his arms under the two pillows beneath his head.

She gave him a reassuring smile, even though not so deep down, she did feel bad. A father should never beat their children, and she hated all the marks on Daryl. Not for their appearance, like he thought anyone would, but because he had no say in it. And the pain he had to have endured at a young age to show for all of the old scars on his body. She wanted to do all the things that were done to him, to his father, the man that put them there in the first place."Well..if you don't want me showing sympathy over them, I won't give you any, then." She shrugged as she sat back in her seat.

There it was. That smirk she loved. Her smile widened at the sight of it.

Kat looked over him as the door behind him opened. Carol walked in, her hands very much full with trays of food and drinks. At least she had a reason for not knocking. Kat quickly got up and walked around the bed to help her.

Daryl glanced behind him, seeing who she was walking for before he quickly grabbed the sheet that was resting at his waist and pulled it up over his body. Kat reached Carol, taking what was to be her plate of food and a glass of grape juice before she walked back to her seat, seeing a, yet again, very uncomfortable looking Daryl as he tried to cover himself with the sheet as best he could, but Carol caught a glimpse.

"How're ya feelin?" Carol asked as she set Daryl's tray of food and the pill for pain Hershel said to take on the end table next to the bed.

He pushed the sheet up behind him over his back as much as he could before he laid back down on his side, facing Kat, and pulled the sheet to his chest. "Bout as good as I look." He said as he settled back down into the mattress.

Not all that bad, then. Kat tilted her head as she picked up her fork.

Carol glanced at his upper back before she looked down at the tray she still had her hands on. "I brought you some dinner. You must be starvin."

Daryl turned, slightly on his back to look behind him, glancing between her and the plate of food. Carol gave him a brief smile before she leaned over him. He flinched away from her as she got closer, almost conditioned to react that way from a parental figure, but all she did was give him a light kiss below the bandage around his head.

A pang of anger went through Kat, again, as she saw him flinch away from the kind woman. All the years of abuse had damaged him.

Daryl looked up at Carol, unsure what to say. He hadn't grown up in a loving family household, he didn't know how to react to the thank you she'd just given him. "Watch out, I got stitches." He said as he looked at the bed, playing with the sheet with his hand what wasn't under his pillow. Kat smiled as she looked back down at her plate.

Carol looked away before she turned towards him. He was now facing Kat again, as he lay there. "You need to know somethin." Carol said, making Daryl look back at her. "You did more for my little girl today than her own daddy ever did in his whole life." She raised her eyebrows.

"I didn't..do anything Rick or Shane wouldnta done." He said, glancing at her a couple times before finding Kat's legs easier to look at while he spoke.

"I know."Carol smiled down at him. "You're every bit as good as them." She said, looking between his upper back that was unveiled, to the back of his head a few times. If his life had been anything like hers, he needed to hear it from someone. Needed the reassurance that he was worth something. "Every bit."

Kat smiled at Carol as she walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her. She looked back at Daryl, curled up into the bed again, grabbing the sheets and pulling them under his chin as he rested it on top of his hand.

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Maggie and Beth were in the kitchen, downstairs, as they finished cleaning up from the dinner. The Survivors, all for Kat and Rick, since he was staying in the room with Carl tonight, had returned to their tents.

Maggie picked up one of the stacks of dried dishes as she walked into the dining room to the China cabinet. She set the dishes down on the shelf as she looked around, seeing Beth still busy drying off plates at the sink. She smiled as she reached into her pocket and pulled out the note Glenn had wrote. She hadn't been able to read it until now.



The smile faded from Maggie's face as she read the words on the note. Oh, no.

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Glenn had a flashlight in his hand and was walking to the barn that was some 40 yards or so from the house, with a blanket under his arm and a condom in his pocket. He got to the big double doors at the front, seeing the padlock and wooden board making them unable to open. He pulled on the padlock a couple times. Well, what the hell? He walked around to the side of the barn, remembering seeing a ladder that led up to the second floor. He threw the blanket up on the platform the ladder led to before he starting climbing.

Maggie burst out one of the side doors of the house, seeing the flashlight's beam of light swaying back and forth as Glenn climbed up the ladder. She ran as fast as she could towards the barn.

Glenn smiled as he picked up the blanket and walked into the barn once he got to the top. It looked just as he imagined a hayloft would look like. There were bails of straw everywhere. He shined his light around as he walked forward, the boards creaking under his feet as he looked for a good place with enough room to spread the blanket out on.

That was when the smell reached him. That smell. He brought the blanket that was draped over his other arm up to his nose and breathed in it's scent as he kept walking. He could hear them, now. The growling and moaning that was becoming an all too familiar sound to the group. He brought the blanket away from his nose as he looked over the edge of the loft, onto the barn's floor below. His eyes widened as all the Walkers looked up at him, coming towards the direction of the light. There had to have been 20 down there, give or take. Glenn ran to the platform where the ladder led to back outside when Maggie quickly came around the corner.

He stopped in front of her, his eyes wide with fear, her's with panic. "You weren't supposed to see this." She panted. Glenn just stared at her as they both heard the Walkers trying to push at the locked doors.

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Daryl reached for his glass on the end table again before he remembered it was empty. He felt like he hadn't drank anything for days even though he and Kat had just finished their meals and drinks. He scooted down in the bed from his sitting position as he laid back down, pulling the sheet above his belly button.

"Did you call Andrea a cunt?"

Kat looked at him for a second. She thought he was passed out when all that happened. He had a blank look on his face as he laid his head down on the pillow. He was staring at the ceiling for a few seconds before looking at her from under his partially closed eyelids. He looked so tired. He lifted his head to look at her when she didn't answer right away.

Kat looked down at her hands in her lap and chuckled a bit as she shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe." She looked up at his face again.

Daryl's lips pulled up into a smile as he let out a laugh. "Ow." He said as he laid his head back down on the pillow, the pill he'd taken was making him drowsy, but hadn't started taking the pain away yet.

Kat smiled at him. "You want more water?" She asked, looking at his empty glass.

Daryl nodded as he closed his eyes. He hoped the pill Hershel sent up with his dinner would kick in soon. His side was aching. It hurt to breath. Kat stood up, walking to the bedside table to grab the glass. She brushed the hair away from his face before she walked to the bathroom to fill up his cup at the sink. Daryl opened his eyes as soon he heard her open the door. He stared at her as she stood in front of the sink. He'd never had someone show him the attention Kat had. Never had someone to take care of him. Anyone to want to. And he didn't entirely hate it.

She handed him the glass as she came back into the room. Daryl downed it quickly while he watched her slip her boots off as she settled into the plush chair. She turned herself sideways, hanging her legs over one of the arms while she used the corner of the chair as a pillow.

"You can..sleep here..if you want." The words flowed from his lips before he even thought about it.

She turned to look at him, but he was messing with the sheet again. "Are you inviting me to bed, Dixon?" She smirked.

Daryl quickly looked up at her, his cheeks changing color before he looked back down and played with the sheet some more. "Chair can't be comfortable."

She smiled as he blushed, but swung her legs to the front of the chair before she stood up. She shrugged her shoulders. "I've slept in worse places. Taking advantage of an actual bed would be nice, though."

He gave her a quick smile before he let it fall again. He scooted back a little on the bed, pulling the sheets back. She didn't need much room to lay down beside him, he was twice her size.

Second thought, maybe this was a bad idea, Daryl thought while she laid there next to him under the covers, he in just his boxers even though she was fully clothed. Don't you dare. He thought when he felt a certain part of him twitch under the sheets.

He watched her turn onto her side. They weren't touching, but her back was to his front as they lay a few inches apart. Daryl was nervous just laying next to her, just like he had been on that stupid car. Why was this so nerve-wracking? All the tiredness he'd been feeling just a minute ago was gone, he was wide awake now. He'd never slept with a woman before her; on the hood of the car, by each other on the floor of the RV, and now in an actual bed? It was uncomfortable because it was new, but he wasn't averted by her closeness to him. He kind of...liked it? He watched her shoulders gently rise and fall with her breathing as she slowly fell asleep. Daryl laid there awhile longer before he scooted closer to her and closed his eyes.