Firecracker

Daryl and Raine walked through the woods silently, looking for any signs of Sophia. Raine had tried so hard to speak to him, but he ignored her. She wasn't sure what she had done, she didn't think she did anything. As she lifted up her foot to take a step, her boot snagged on a broken branch. Before she could stop it, she hit the ground. Her hands broke most of her fall, but it still hurt.

Daryl stopped and turned to see what had happened. When he saw Raine on the forest floor, he rolled his eyes and marched over to her. He roughly grabbed her by the arm and yanked her to her feet. The moment she got her footing, she ripped herself from his grip.

"The hell is wrong with you?!" She yelled, not caring about the possibility of walkers being around. Daryl flinched at how loud her voice was and took a quick step towards her, causing her to flinch back away from him.

”What’s wrong with me?! I ain't the one yelling!”

”You’re yelling now!” She argued, flailing her arms as she yelled. Daryl clamped his mouth shut and shot her a glare, he turned his back on her and marched away from her. Raine didn't hesitate to follow him, she wasn't going to let him discourage her from looking for Sophia.

”So, are you going to tell me what I did wrong, or are you just going to ignore me?” She pressed, significantly quieter now. She knew that she wasn't going to get anywhere with him if she was yelling, a softer approach was the best way to go. Even then, sometimes it didn't work. Daryl sighed as if he was annoyed and turned to face her, gripping the strap of his crossbow tightly.

”You’re supposed to be on the farm where you’re safe. You can’t even shoot that thing, not great anyway. How are you gonna protect yourself? You’re just gettin’ in the way.”

”Daryl, I can shoot it just fine. You said so yourself.” She pointed out. She may have not been the best, but it was enough to get her by for right now. Daryl sighed and turned to walk away. She didn't say anything else about it, knowing that if she did he would really flip out. Instead, she just followed him while keeping her mouth shut. After thirty long, silent minutes, they spotted an abandoned farmhouse.

Raine looked up at Daryl, her eyebrows raised. He gave her a short nod and they walked quickly and silently up to the house. He pushed himself against the wall beside the door and turned the knob. He pushed the door open quickly, allowing Raine to raise her crossbow and slink inside. She scanned the inside quickly with Daryl right behind her. Once they were sure the house was empty, she slipped the weapon onto her back. She wandered into the kitchen and started searching the cabinets.

Her lips pressed into a tight line when she didn't find any extra food or water. A low whistle caught her attention and she looked back over at Daryl who was motioning for her.

”She could have been here. Only a kid could fit in there.” Raine noted, running a hand through her hair. When she looked back up at Daryl, he held an irritated expression. This search was driving him crazy, but he was not ready to give up. Not yet. Raine sighed and rested her hand on his upper arm.

”We’ll find her. And when we do, she’s gonna be fine. I promise.” Daryl gave her a tiny smile and gestured for her to start heading out. She felt really good about this search, it was a lead which was better than nothing. She just hoped that Sophia really would be okay, for Daryl’s sake.



Raine sat next to Carl, her fingers stroking his dark brown hair as he slept. She had lost track of how long she had been sitting in that room. Everyone had taken turns coming in to get her to leave, but she wasn't budging. A knock on the door caused her to jump slightly and she looked up to see Hershel. He walked into the room and gave Carl a quick look over and then he moved over to Raine.

”You pushed yourself hard the other day. Just want to make sure you’re okay.” He said softly, placing his fingers on the inside of her wrist to check her pulse.

”It was just a nose bleed.” She waved her hand, brushing off his concern.

”It was heat stroke. Well, you seem to be okay now. Just make sure to drink plenty of water, you’ll live.” He smiled before standing up and leaving the room. As soon as he disappeared, Rick popped around the corner. He gave his sister a warm smile and walked over, giving her a kiss on the top of her head. He was incredibly grateful for everything that she had done to help the group. He only wished that she would stop beating herself up over Sophia. It had already been established that there was nothing she could have done differently.

Sighing, he pulled her gently up from the chair and pushed her towards the door, telling her to go get some rest. She didn't bother to protest, she would only lose against her brother. So, she left the house and made her way over to her tent. Just as she was about to step inside, she saw Daryl walking up out of the corner of her eye.

”How’s he doin’?” He asked softly. Raine sighed and crossed her arms over her chest as she looked down at the ground.

”He seems to be doing okay. I just wish he was up walking around already. I can’t take this. Between him and Sophia, I feel like I’m losing my mind. Carol’s still pissed at me.”

”She ain't pissed. She’s worried.” He reassured, but Raine didn't believe him. Every time Carol looked at her, it was a look of loathing and she was growing really tired of it. Hadn't she already made up for it by putting herself in harm’s way to find that little girl? Daryl saw the frustration on Raine’s face and before he could stop himself, he raised his hand and brushed some of her hair back. Her brown eyes drifted up to stare into his blue ones and her heart started pounding against her chest. The feeling was new for her and overwhelming, but she didn't want it to go away. Until this point, the two of them had always been just close friends, sure they hooked up once but as far as she knew, it didn't mean anything. They always argued over stupid things and they were both too hardheaded to allow themselves to care more than they did. This was all new territory for her and she wasn't sure how it was going to work out. Sometimes she wished that they hadn't hooked up, it would have made things so much easier. They would just still be friends and not in this awkward situation.
Raine grasped the front of his shirt and pulled him roughly down to crash their lips together. It took him a moment to respond, but then he didn't hesitate. For him, this was strange. No girl had ever really wanted him, he had dated a few times but never anything serious. Raine, she was different, she actually cared about him. Even if it was just as friends. The sex was just to work out their frustrations, at least, that’s what he assumed.

Without breaking the kiss, they both stumbled back into Raine’s tent and fell onto the sleeping bag.