The Greatest Sacrifice - Daryl Dixon

Destroying An Outpost

Ally and Daryl arrived back to the Safe Zone before nightfall and she had been shown a room in one of the houses by Carol, it was hers now. The shower was like something she ought to praise religiously, the hot water cascading down her skin to remove the dirt and blood also worked to soothe bloody chaffing left behind by her brace. She was sitting in her sports bra and jeans trying to convince herself to put the brace back on when a knock came softly on her door, she opened it a crack and saw Daryl on the other side. “Do ya mind if we talk a bit?” he asked and she opened the door to let him in and he stepped in quickly and shut the door behind him. “What did that?” he asked in horror as he spotted the angry weeping marks that she had just cleaned up ready to put the brace back on. “The brace digs in a bit” she said lamely and he nodded as he picked up the metal contraption to study it, “You need to pad it out at the base and sides, until those marks are healed up you should bandage the lot so it don't get infected” he said mater of factly as he strode to the door and exited leaving the door open again. Ally was confused until he returned with a roll of bandage and a handful of rags. “Stand straight and  arms up or as up as you can get them, the bandage needs to be like a second skin” he said as he shut the door, she complied wincing as she moved her shoulder up. Daryl's hands were rough and calloused and she felt her skin tingle when he touched her ribs and chest to wrap the bandage tight over the worst areas. This was so innocent, so helpful but for Ally all she could feel was touch and she wanted more. “Turn around now, real slow, this is the last and I'll need to pin it” he said and she spun slowly until she faced him, he was inches from her and she could feel his warm breath on her naked shoulder as he used a pin and some tape to secure the bandage in place. Daryl could sense her breathing change, feel her eyes on him but he tried to concentrate and was failing. “Best be going now, tomorrow when you put on the brace shove the rags under it where it hurts and you'll be good” he said hurriedly leaving her alone again to shut the door. She leant against the door, what was she doing? She had to focus, she had promised these people the downfall of her Father not to screw one of them silly. She needed to think and sleep, by first light she would be at work.

Her dreams were vivid, her mother's face flashing in and out of focus as she died again and again in her arms and then she woke with a sharp pain twisting her shoulder, she needed the brace and today she stuffed it with the rags as recommended. “There's an outpost not thirty miles from here, I could take one man and clear it by tonight” she said as she drew the red dot on the map she'd been presented at breakfast. “Alright, take Daryl with you, I need everyone else here” Rick said and she nodded as she began to figure out each step of the plan leaving nothing to question. They opted to take one of the cars, less inconspicuous if the daughter of Negan arrived in a car than on a motorcycle. The outpost was small and Daryl didn't even need to go in, Ally and gone in first making him wait outside and when he had heard gunfire and had come in ready to defend Ally, he had found all the occupants dead and Ally sitting down on the floor panting heavily. It was too much too soon but what they had found was good enough to consider the risk worth it. They took every thing they could and loaded it up into the two trucks they'd found in the garages before Ally set the place on fire so that no-one might use it again. Rick was beside himself when he saw their haul but Daryl's concern lie with Ally for when she got out of the truck she nearly fell clean over from exhaustion. He grabbed her good arm and slung it over his shoulders and helped her back to the house where he pulled off her shirt and unbuckled the shoulder brace to see blood had come through the bandages, the pressure of fighting off those in the outpost had made the brace slice into her skin like butter. “Come on now, sit up and I'll get this off you” he said as he helped her sit upright and he began to unwind the bandage, the wounds needed antiseptic and clean gauze to even look decent again and so he left her propped against the pillows while he went to grab the supply from the kitchen, when he had returned Ally was almost asleep and he had to shake her gently to wake her up. She sat on the bed and faced him, leaning her head into his shoulder hile he cleaned the bloody mess on her ribs and back before laying on the clean bandage, he'd just pinned it nice and tight when he realised she was asleep. He moved her gently off him and immediately felt himself grow agitated at having to put her back on the pillow when she was so very comfortable lying on him but he lay her down straight and covered her up with the sheet, her sleeping face was so peaceful that he dared give her a little kiss on her dark hair. This was his little secret now although he cursed at himself later telling himself it was damned creepy what he had done. Later when Ally woke she remembered falling asleep on Daryl, his scent like a soothing balm and she had drifted right off to sleep lulled by his even breaths. She searched for her brace but it wasn't there's she panicked and then saw it. The whole lower section had been covered in thick foam sections cut to fit against the metal and her skin and it screamed Daryl as she put it on feeling the foam press gently against her body, he really was something else.