ꜰᴏᴏʟ'ꜱ ᴍᴀᴛᴇ || ᴛᴡᴅ

091: ʀᴀᴄʜᴇʟ ᴅɪxᴏɴ

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Rachel walked with Lydia, down the street in Alexandria.

"I'm not sure Laurie and Amy are a great match." Rachel was saying, holding the book open in her hand. "I feel like they would be if they weren't both longing for home. And for love and adoration. I mean, it says right here. 'He rather enjoyed the 'petting' he used to receive, and enjoyed the taste of it again'. That's a horrible start to a relationship, is it not?"

Lydia didn't answer.

"Lydia?" Rachel looked up, seeing her looking at the group being trained by Aaron. "Oh."

"Remember, these people took our friends." Aaron was saying to the group by the windmill. "They took our land. They must be stopped, again."

"Hey, Lydia!" Gage put a bag on his head, grinning. "Think Mommy will take me in? Oh, right. No. She - she kicked your ass out. Now you're just a freak."

"Get the hell out of-" Margo started.

They were interrupted by Gage yelling, as Rachel's fist collided with his nose.

"Rachel!" Aaron grabbed her arm, pulling her away from Gage, as he held his bloody nose.

"He was being a bitch." Rachel argued.

"Go talk to your Dad."

"He doesn't-"

"Rachel."

Her shoulders dropped. She looked at Lydia, who was watching, but not saying anything, then found satisfaction in Gage's blood covered hand.

"Fine. It's not gonna change that I got what I wanted." She stormed back to the house, looking for Daryl.

Why was she in trouble? She saw Aaron looking over before, why was she in trouble? Gage started it. 

She found him walking down the street, and he walked over to her.

"Wh-" He started.

"I punched Gage in the face because he was being an absolute dick hole to Lydia, and Aaron saw but then for some reason I got in trouble for punching him, but Aaron was watching the whole time, so he saw Gage being a shit bucket and I just don't understand it but I also don't care if I'm in trouble because I already did what I wanted to do and it had the desired affect so it's all okay."

Daryl looked at her for a moment, then to the blood on her hand. "so, that's not your blood?"

"No, it's Gage's. He called her a freak, so I gave him a broken nose and maybe a weird voice, if I did it right. I hope I did it right."

Daryl sighed. "You can't let them get to ya-"

"I know. They don't get to me. But they were getting to Lydia."

"So, she can handle it on her own."

"Not when a grown woman joins in."

"So, it wasn't just Gage?"

"It was Gage, that girl who was going crazy at the meeting the other day, and some guy I don't know. Both of the others were adults, Gage was just the one to start it."

Daryl would be pissed off at her, but Rachel never hit anyone, really. Yeah, she'd punch trees and kick logs, but she never hurt anyone. Aside from teasing Danny. She had a huge thing with it. Not wanting to become her parents makes her scared to show the slightest bit of aggression, but it grows to such a degree in her she can't stop it from spilling out.

He also knew Gage was a prick, so didn't mind her punching him. 

But the main thing was the way she was talking. Tone was gone, just the words, and she wasn't looking at him. He didn't know what it was, exactly, but it tended to be the start of a spiral of just bad feelings and outbursts. It hadn't happened her in a few years, so he was more worried than mad.