Embers ( Daryl Dixon x OC )

Chapter 6

  It was early morning when I started to wake up. I had fallen asleep on the ground next to Rick who still sitting up against the car. I go to sit up but then I hear Daryl walk up and sit down next to Rick to start up a conversation so I just laid there to listen.

"Ey, she awake?" He nods his head towards me lying on the ground.

"Nah, she fell out a little while ago after I took over watch from last night." Rick says with a tired grumble to his voice.

Daryl sits up and wets a cloth to hand to Rick to wipe his face.

"We should save it to drink." Rick suggests.

Daryl looks over at him while handing him the damp cloth.

"You can't see ya self but he can."

He nods his head towards the car where Michonne has Carl sleeping in her lap.
Rick takes the cloth an starts wiping his face with it to get the access blood off of him.

Even though I had killed those men dead last night Rick still went after them with his axe. By the time he was done he looked worse than Carrie on her prom night.
Even though I just met Rick I can tell he's been through a lot, even more so to get where he is today. So don't get me wrong I understand completely why he did it. If my son were still here an someone even remotely looked at him the wrong way I'd kill them dead 100 times over to.

I turn my head a bit to the side some more so that I can better hear their conversation.

"I didn't know what they were."

Daryl says with what I can only describe as a remorseful approach.

"How'd you wind up with them?" Rick asks.

Daryl looks down an fiddles with the rag that's in his hand.
"I was with Beth. We got out together. I was with 'er for a while."

Rick chokes up a bit before he speaks.
"Is she dead?"

Daryl looks back down at the ground careful to avoid any type of eye contact.

"She's just gone. After that, that's when they found me. I knew they were bad, but they had a code. It was simple. Stupid, but it was something. It was enough."

Rick glanced over to Daryl.
"And you were alone."

Daryl looks up from the ground and looks Rick in his eyes.

"No,no I had her."
He looked behind Rick an pointed at me.

"After a couple of days Anna came across us and those guys started making comments about 'er an how they wanted to have their way with 'er I didn't like it, so I tried to lay claim on her to abide by their code and protect her at the same time, yeah I didn't know 'er from no where but the moment I saw 'er I knew she was different, and I didn't want 'em to hurt 'er, but I was to late. He touched an grabbed her so when Joe told me they were looking for some guy, an last night they said they spotted him.
I tried to get Anna to stay back with me because I was gonna get us away, leave. When she saw Carl about to get attacked she sprung into action without hesitation an no concern for her own safety. So when I came around the car an saw it was you three, right when you saw me. I didn't know what they could do."

Rick shakes his head in understanding and looks at Daryl.
"It's not on you Daryl, what happened last night, what happened to Anna. It's not on you. You being back here with us now, that's everything. You're my brother."

I'm not gonna lie to you I was sniffling, more an likely from the cold, but also because that had to be the sweetest fucking thing I've heard this early in the morning.

—

We were walking down the tracks, leaves crunching under our feet. Rick is leading our small group so I just decided to hang in the back near Daryl.

I've come to the conclusion that none of them will kill me, but as we all know trust is something that is earned. I'm still rolling around what Rick told me last night "welcome to the family".

I don't know how to feel about it, I mean I haven't had a family in a long time. Everyone I ever knew before the outbreak is gone, everyone I ever loved, trusted, cared for. They are just gone like the wind, never to be heard from again.

I look over to Daryl an notice his eye. I nudge his arm and pointed to his eye.

" 'm ok"
I give him a stern look, then I reach into my pack an pull out an Instant Icepack. I squeeze it an run it together through my hands before handing it over to Daryl.

"What I need this for?" He questions as he looks at the object in my hands like it's some sort for venereal disease.

I snorted. I pointed to his eye and put the ice pack in his hands.
He rolls his eyes and holds the icepack to his face.
This singular moment caused Carl to snicker, making Rick turn around towards us. The look on Ricks face was priceless which made Daryl take the Ice pack off his face and put it in his pack.

—
Rick decided for us to go through the woods and to stay way from the tracks as we approach Terminus.

It's smart given the fact we have no idea who these people are or what they are capable of doing. I personally have a terrible gut feeling about this. Call it what you want, but my Spidey senses are tingling.

We are truckin through the woods when we come across these large fences. Rick told us to stick close and walk the wall, so that's what we did.

As we were split up walking the fence towards the entrance,Carl went with Michonne and I followed Daryl. While Rick stayed in the back.

We gathered back up and decided it was best to leave what weapons we could outside before going in.

Which isn't a terrible idea I just don't like the fact that I have to leave my bow. Then again it's smart.

I walk over to a thick bush an I slip my bow inside along with my arrows, I use the shrub around the area to conceal my weapon the best I can.

We walk over to the large fence, and Rick climbs over an hopped down on the other side.
Once we are all over Rick pulls out his gun and starts checking the area.
Just as I'm about to follow Rick, Daryl grabs my upper arm pulls me close to him until we're inches apart.

I look up at him with a "the fuck" look an he snorts an says.

"Ya ain't got no weapon, stay 'ere if anythin happens , ya run ya hear?"

I was gonna agure but figured what the hell and started to climb back over the fence, damn if I was just gonna stay here anyway why the hell did they make me jump over the fence like a crazed monkey in the first place.
After I'm safely on the other side of the fence I dunk down between two bushes and watched as the small group walked the area. I see them run up beside the building an barge into a room.

This isn't gonna end well.

I'm still watching to see if I can see anything, but it's been quiet.
Out of no where I see a guy leading the small group into an open area, a couple of minutes go by and I see Rick lunge for the guy who was leading them. An everyone in the small group plus the people of the Terminus community had their guns raised.

Oh for fucks sake.

Word count:1348