Cat in a bag | DarylxReader |

(5.0)

Commotion broke out when the children were heard calling for help. It sounded like Carl who was screaming for his parents. Needless to say Lori and her husband began running for the woods, tailed by Shane who had the better judgement to bring a shotgun.

I took a brisk walk grabbing a decent sized rock and found my way to see what caused the ruckus. And surely enough there was a clearing where a deer had fallen. There were 3 arrows sticking out of the deer - could they be his?- but what seemed to finally kill it was the man?.. no, creature... wait, walker or geek thing that was currently tearing apart the poor animal right from the throat.

The creature thing seemed to not sense us, caught up with butchering the lifeless deer. But as the men inched closer it rose from its kneeling position, growling louder and lunging at Rick. He reacted quickly using a metal pole of some sort to bat away the decaying corpse.

The other men banded together mercilessly, beating and stabbing at him with their clubs and pitchforks as the sisters beside me watched in horror.

Dale had the last strike, axing its head off in one clean cut. We all stand silently now.

"It's the first one we've had up here." He panted. "They never come this far up the mountain." "Well, they're running out of food in the city, that's what." Jim then states.

Suddenly a branch snapped and the leaves began rustling from a direction I couldn't make out. Was there another one of those god awful things?

Morales raises his bat and Shane raises his rifle. We wait, but a man hops down from behind the rock.. It's him... He looks unharmed but his eyes fall on the deer immediately.

"Son of a bitch." Yep, that was to be expected. "That's my deer!" Not anymore it isn't. "Look at it. All gnawed on by this" He continued insulting the now headless corpse. "Filthy, disease-bearing, motherless poxy bastard!" A punt from his boot was followed up with after each insult.

"Calm down son, that's not helping." Dale shifts in place.

Daryl, clearly agitated, storms his way up into the older man's personal space. "What do you know about it old man?" No way. Did I predict this?

"Why don't you take that stupid hat and go back to "On Golden Pond"? There, another movie I never got to see. He seemed to relent, "I've been tracking this deer for miles." He sighs, turning back to the deer and plucking his arrows. A tattoo peeking out from where the sleeves were presumably cut off. It was something with wings, but I couldn't really tell from that... Why am I- am I being a creep?

He finally got that third arrow, "Gonna drag it back to camp," oh no, not a good idea, "cook us up some venison." He thinks Merle's gonna be at camp... "What do you, think we can cut around this chewed up part right here?" Daryl addresses the group.

Shane responds, "I would not risk that." He sighs again, "That's a damn shame, I got some squirrel—'bout a dozen or so." He tells us confidently, lifting the rope tied around his shoulder. "That'll have to do."

There wasn't long enough to think before the biting jaws of that monster started moving again. The sisters are taken aback.

"Oh God" A horrified Amy manages to get out. She's whisked away by her older sister but Daryl wasted no time though firing an arrow piercing its brain through the eye. "It's gotta be the brain." He eyes Glenn and Rick "Don't y'all know nothing?"

Daryl still doesn't sense the heaviness of the atmosphere even as he walks back up the trail. The man is by no surprise, a fast walker. I'd assume he was trying to find his brother since that's the only plausible thing to do. "Daryl, just slow up a bit." Shane packs away his rifle, " I need to talk to you."

"About what?" He questions.

"About Merle." Shane starts pacing. "There was a uh—There was a problem in Atlanta." He turns back to face Daryl putting his hands on his hips.

By now, almost every member of our camp was present to watch. "He dead?"

"We're not sure" he states plain and simple.

Daryl raises his voice "He either is or he ain't!"

"No easy way to say this so I'll just say it." Rick walks out from the background now joining the conversation.

"Who are you?" Oh right they haven't met yet. Can't imagine a stranger cuffing your brother to a roof...

"Rick Grimes" he looks up to meet Daryl's harsh gaze.

"Rick Grimes?" he almost taunts "You got something ya wanna tell me?"

Oh god here we go "Your brother was a danger to us all," oh what a great start "so I handcuffed him on a roof, hooked him to a piece of metal. He's still there." oh my god what is he doing? You're not trying to tell a story. Jesus.

I see T walking into camp, logs of wood keeping his hands full. Daryl wipes his face, "Hold on lemme process this," he turns. "Youre saying you handcuffed my brother to a roof—-And you left him there?" He spat at the man.

"Yeah" was all Rick said.

Daryl flung the squirrels but Rick ducked, sending the poor woodland creatures flying onto the gravel road.

T-Dog drops all the firewood he's holding "Hey!"

Daryl cant see Shane running giving him the upper hand. Shame body slams Daryl knocking him on his back. Ouch. Daryl doesn't take a second of rest unsheathing the knife on his belt.

Shane is first among them to notice "Watch the knife!" he warns Rick. Daryl pushes himself up grunting and yelling as he slashes at the man who'd left his brother on a roof. Rick seems unfazed, remaining composed, blocking Daryl's attacks with ease.

The best friends subdue Daryl with seemingly no problem, each of them restraining an arm. Rick focuses on attaining the knife as Shane pulls Daryl into a choke hold. "Okay, Okay." He tries to calm Daryl.

He's forced to the ground "You best let me go!" Okay, he's still trying to tough it out. "Nah, I think it's better if I don't." Amy's hand reaches to cover her face watching the two wrestle.

"Choke hold's illegal." I almost laughed... haha

"You can file a complaint." Daryl starts spluttering as Rick kneels down to meet eye level, "Come on, man we'll keep this up all day."

"I'd like to have a calm discussion on this topic." Rick begins to reason "Do you think we can manage that?"

...

"Do you think we can manage that?" The second time he sounds more hostile. He must've agreed seeing Shane release him from his grip moments later. This time he stays on the ground. Rick stands then bends down again to speak to Daryl.

"What I did was not on a whim." Daryl gasps, still recovering from the altercation. "Your brother does not work and play well with others."

"It's not Rick's fault." Everyone listened intently, turning their heads, "I had the key. I dropped it." Sweat glistened from his whole head as he made the confession.

Dary sneered, "You couldn't pick it up?"

"Well I dropped it in a drain." He spoke this time with certainty.

Daryl scoffs then tries to compose himself, standing tall. "If it's supposed to make me feel better, it don't." He tosses a fistful of bark back to the ground.

"Well, maybe this will. Look, I chained the door to the roof so the geeks couldn't get at him with a padlock."

"It's gotta count for something." Ricks adds. Daryl's silent as the reality of the situation dawns on him. He wipes his eyes. "Hell with all y'all!" The distress is evident in his words "Just tell me where he is so's I can go get him."

"He'll show you." Lori gestures to her husband as Carl peeks out from the trailer. "Isn't that right?"

The spotlight is now turned on Rick as he takes a second or two to make up his mind, sighing.

"I'm goin' back."

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Thank you guys so much for reading! This is my first time writing anything and it would be great if you could leave any comments and suggestions you have. xx