Broken Wings (Daryl dixon x Reader)

Chapt 11: Chupacabra

The sun hadn't even risen when I woke up. Austin was still asleep with an arm draped over me since we were sharing a cot. I slowly moved his arm aside and sat up on the cot putting my shoes on and quietly leaving out the tent zipping it up behind me. I wasn't expecting anyone to be up this early, but Daryl was sitting on a chair right by the dimly lit fire, sharpening one of his crossbow bolts. He looked up noticing me exiting my tent. He raised an eyebrow, silently asking if everything was okay I guessed. I just nodded my head and sat down on the other side of the fire from him. Poking the ashey fire with a stick.

We sat there in silence for a while before he surprisingly began to talk to me quietly.

"You're up early. Why?"

I just shrugged. He nodded his head in understanding as he continued to sharpen the bolts.

"You and Austin huh?" I nodded keeping quiet.

"Something goin' on between you two?" He asked looking at me. I shrugged. He nodded and began to clean his crossbow now. We sat there in silence for a while as the sun began to rise, welcoming a new day.

I thought about the times I headed back to the funeral home when the world was still together. I thought about the times when I had been called in to pick up descendants early in the morning. At times it was before sunrise and on the way back after making the removal the sun was rising. The world seemed at peace then and I felt the same now as I watched the sunrise even though the world wasn't at peace, in fact, it was anything but peace.

"Goin' out later. If your boyfriend will let you. Can come with me, help look for her" Daryl spoke up after a while.

"Thank you"

"Mhm"

Carol exited the RV after that smiling at me holding pots and pans to cook with. Let the day begin I guess.

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"All right everyone's getting new search grids today," Rick said to us, as, Andrea, T-dog, Daryl, Shane, Austin, and I crowded around the hood of the car that had the map of the area laid out.

"If she made it as far as the farmhouse Daryl found, she might have gone further east than we've been so far," Rick said. Daryl had found a farmhouse that looked like a young child had been hiding out in it. I just hoped it was our Sophia.

"I'd like to help," Jimmy, Beth's boyfriend said walking up to us. "I know the area pretty well and stuff"

"Hershel's okay with this?" Rick asked

"Yeah! Yeah. He said I should ask you"

"All right then. Thanks." Rick said turning back to the map

"Nothing about what Daryl found screams Sophia to me" Shane commented from where he was sitting in the passenger seat with the door open. "Anyone could have been holed up in that farmhouse"

"Anybody includes her, right?" Andrea said

"Whoever slept in that cupboard was no bigger than yay-high" Daryl explained demonstrating the height of a child with his hand

"It's a good lead" I commented

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

"No maybe about it, I'm gonna borrow a horse head up to this ridge right here," Daryl explained pointing at the map. "Take a bird's-eye view of the whole grid, if she's up there I'll spot her"

"Good idea, we will join you," Austin said from behind me. He had his hands on my shoulders.

"Maybe you'll see your chupacabra up there too," T-dog said as Dale put the bag of guns on the hood.

"Chupacabra?" Rick questioned. I, myself was wondering the same.

"You never heard this? Our first night in camp, Daryl tells us that the whole thing reminds him of the time he went squirrel hunting and he saw a Chupacabra." Dale explained making Jimmy and Austin snicker a bit.

"What ya braying at jackasses?" Daryl asked in a dangerous tone mostly to Austin.

"So you believe in a blood-sucking dog?" Rick asked.

"You believe in dead people walking around?" The question silencing us. Guess he was right anything could be real now maybe even unicorns. Jimmy reached for a gun picking it up but Rick stopped him, "Hey, Hey. Every fire one before?"

"Well, if I'm going out I want one."

"Yeah, and people in hell want slurpies." Daryl comminted throwing his crossbow over his back and nodding his head at us a signal for us to follow if we wanted to come. Austin and I followed behind him towards the stables where the horses were.

"If you two are coming with me you gotta keep quiet and not be on my ass got me?" Daryl asked not even looking at us.

"Understood," Austin said.

We entered the stables grabbed two of the horses and began to tack them up. I thought back to when I was a young girl and went to horse camp. I missed being young and not knowing what my life might turn into. I always wanted to ride a horse again since, looks like I'm finally getting that chance.

I sat behind Austin on the horse and we followed behind Daryl on his. I wondered what the names of the horses were, Daryl's was a chestnut-colored girl, and ours was a black and white gelding. I loved animals and always have.

We went on through the woods the sound of Daryl hitting something with his crossbow snapped me out of my thoughts. I watched as he took both the arrow and squirrel out of the tree continuing on like it was normal. Guess for him it was.

"You always hunting like that?" Austin asked

"Guess so," Daryl said as we came across a creek he slowed his horse down and we did to.

"You see that?" He asked pointing down to the creek, our eyes followed what he was pointing at it looked like Sophia's doll. Daryl hopped off his horse and I hopped off ours. I went to hold his horse so he could go down and investigate. I heard Austin get down as well.

I watched as Daryl carefully made his way down to the creek and to the doll, picking it up.

"Sophia!" He yelled looking around for the little girl. I looked around too, but nothing answered.

Daryl sighed defeated and went back up the creek bed.

"Face it, it's a lost cause it has been days since we saw her last, she might be dead or a walker by now," Austin said climbing back on our horse. I handed the reigns back to Daryl or at least tried to.

"You know what man shut up, she is still out there, if you think it's a lost cause go back home."

Austin scoffed. "Come on, y/n, let's leave this fucker to chase daydreams." I sighed disappointed and started walking towards Austin.

"She can stay if she wants to." Daryl said, "Least she still has hope" Austin hesitated for a minute.

"That what you want? Stay with the redneck trash? Look for the lost little girl. The dead little girl? You both are nuts." He said before riding off with his horse.

"I'm sorry about him," I said to Daryl as he climbed onto the horse reaching a hand out to me to help me up.

"Not your place to apologize for him." He said gruffly continuing down the ridge and looking into the creek. I watched as the drop-down got steeper and steeper.

Suddenly birds went flying by in front of us scared of something, making the horse grunt and turn his back to the ridge nervous. "Woah. Easy, Easy" Daryl said calming her down.

After a minute Daryl urged her on gently. I wondered silently to myself how someone so rough and mean could be so gentle. Guess we all have a soft side for animals and kids.

Suddenly I heard a hiss and a rattle, scaring the horse and making her rear back. Daryl tried to calm her, but it was no use, we both fell off down the steep ridge to the creekbed below.

I felt the pain of something entering my ankle, then the cold water around me, and then I saw darkness.

Why did I want to ride a horse again?