Here We Are, Come Join Us (The Walking Dead FanFiction)

Chapter 17

Allison fingered the charm on her new necklace gently and then asked Daryl, "Did you find any ammo or weapons while you were in town?"

"Didn't have much of a selection at the pawn shop...couple of boxes of shotgun shells, but that won't replace the handgun bullets Shane's usin' up on his practice range. Did pick up a nice Old West-style Bowie knife, though. "

"That will definitely come in handy," Allison commented. "If we ever get ourselves a raccoon, I could tan the hide and sew you a nice sheath for that knife."

Daryl looked at her skeptically. "You know how to tan 'coon hide?"

Allison stood up straight in a defensive posture. "I'll have you know that when I was a kid we always had roast raccoon for Christmas Eve dinner, and my daddy let me watch while he fleshed it and then 'brained' it."

"Well then maybe I'll have to catch a 'coon just so you can prove yourself," he replied with a slight grin.

The pair stopped talking and simultaneously turned to the direction of the sound of approaching footsteps. It was Beth.

"Hey, Allison?" she said questioningly as she got closer to them.

"Yes?"

"Um," Beth seemed hesitant, as if she hadn't planned to encounter Daryl. "Maggie and I were thinking...and Patricia and Lori and Carol agreed...well...we were thinking of having a girls' night tonight – a slumber party in the living room of the house."

"Oh," Allison was caught by surprise. "Well, thanks for the invite, but I don't think – "

"But it'll be so much fun! We'll bring sleeping bags and have snacks and..." she paused. "And it will be like old times...y'know, before all this..."

"Gee, I dunno – "

"Oh, go ahead, you know you want to," Daryl unexpectedly chimed in.

"Great!" Beth almost clapped her hands in excitement. "Now we'll all be there, and it will be so much fun...." She dashed off, probably to consult with Andrea, the last female holdout.

Allison turned to Daryl, disappointed. Since he was not only still speaking to her, but also presenting her with gifts, she was hoping that she just might spend the night in his arms once again. "What the heck was that?" she asked him.

He ruffled her hair with one hand and then pulled her face close for a quick kiss. "Obviously one of the members of the Claw and Cackle Club saw me come out of your tent this morning and wants to press you for details."

"But no one said anything this morning – "

He placed a hand under her chin and tilted her head up so that her eyes met his. "I guess this is why I'm the better tracker between us two. I can read things and I can read people. Just 'cause no one said anything doesn't mean that one Miss Nosy-Ass or another didn't notice."

Allison sighed. "But a 'slumber party'? For heaven's sake, I thought I was long past that age....besides, what the heck can we do? Usually a slumber party means styling each other's hair and doing nails and applying facials and goofy crap like that, and we certainly don't have...." She stopped when Daryl started chuckling.

"That explains it," he said.

"Explains what?"

"Explains all the shi - - er, stuff Short Round was picking off the shelves at the Golden Pantry. Nail polish, make-up, I dunno what else...all kinds of weird girly stuff. If I didn't know that he was makin' time with the farmer's daughter I'd have sworn he was some kind of faggot the way he was stuffin' all that woman crap into his backpack. I guess Maggie must've given him some kinda list..."