Savage World •••Daryl Dixon•••

Dixie

"Hey, Asher! Come 'ere!" The wiry female slipped quietly through the brush to Daryl's side and quickly dropped low, her hand braced against the ground to help her keep her balance. He motioned with his crossbow at the small chittering raccoon scavenging through the foliage.

"It's a raccoon." Daryl drew back the bowstring and readied an arrow.

"It's dinner now." He took aim and fired, hitting his mark with perfect precision and a small squeak. She stood and darted forward to fetch the carcass, unaware of the few walkers that had been chasing the animal through the woods. She lifted the animal by its tail and turned in time to come face to face with the gnashing teeth of the closest walker.

"Asher!" She dropped the raccoon and stumbled away in terror. Her heel caught an upturned root and both of them dropped to the ground. The walker snarled hungrily and snapped a few centimeters from her nose.

"Dixie!" She shoved the beast upright and heaved a sigh of relief when an arrow pierced through its skull. Daryl shoved the walker off the girl and ensured both were dead before turning to the frozen girl.

"Were you bit? Asher? Are you alright?!" She mutely nodded to tell him that she was alright and he sighed before leaning down and scooping her angrily off the ground. "Have you got no sense, Asher?! Always check for walkers! Always!" Asher's body tensed and she ducked her head low until her chin touched her chest.

"I'm sorry I wasn't thinking."

"Damn right you weren't! Of all the stupid things!" She expected some sort of physical punishment- like Joshua did- but instead she felt tough arms wrap around her shoulders and gently squeeze.

"Don't ever do that again, for God's sake at least be vigilant." Asher nodded silently and gently hugged him back. "And don't you ever call me Dixie again." They both bust out laughing together after he finished his demand.

"Why not?"

"It's a girl's name, obviously. It's like me calling you Ash." Asher laughed into his chest and the two pulled away from each other.

"Then what should I call you?" He shrugs and scoops up the raccoon she dropped earlier and stuck it through the tail to his backpack.

"Daryl works good with me." Asher trailed him through the trunks back to the small camp that the three of them made.

"What works good with you, baby brother?" The younger Dixon chose not to answer and simply went about skinning the raccoon to prep for the dinner. "Awe c'mon don't go leaving poor ol Merle out of the loop now!"

"Asher almost got attacked by walkers." The oldest whirled to face her, eyes brimming of concern and chiding. "She's fine, Merle, I already scared the shit out of her for it." The said man snapped his mouth closed and eyes Asher to tell her that she was lucky that it was Daryl and not him.

"And I accidentally called him Dixie." This made Merle explode with laughter, Daryl grinding his teeth and rolling his eyes at the sound.

"You've gotta be shittin' me! You called that old bag of grump Dixie?!" A liver flew and splat against Merle's cheek with the wet sound of fresh blood and tissue. The duo looked over at the nonchalant Daryl Dixon who was still slicing out intestines.

"I ain't 'bout to hear it from you, Merle. At least it was cute when Asher said it. You just sound like a perverted jockey." Merle lurched forward and took a swing at his brother, who dodged his blow and took one of his own. They ended up rolling through the dirt with low grunts of cuss words and insults. Asher simply sighed and watched them roll, boredom flattening her eyes and a smirk curling her lips as she dropped her chin on her knuckles.

"Why do you guys always fight?" They paused for a small moment, Daryl's head wedged between Merle's arm and chest in an expert headlock- the younger Dixon growling angrily.

"It's just how we show affection to each other, sweetheart, ain't it little Dixie?" Daryl roared in protest and jabbed his brother in the ribs in retaliation. A branch snapped behind her, catching all three of their attentions.

"Asher down. Now." She instantly ducked low and both brothers lurched up to meet with whatever was behind her. Their arrows clinking against the barrels of handguns from a burly man with a flat nose and a stockier black man. Hammers cocked and arrows grew taut as tensions skyrocketed and silence ruled king.

"You'd best put those arrows down unless you want a bullet to the brain." The flat nosed man demanded with a deep and gruff tone of authority.

"And you'd best stop pointing them guns in the direction of my family or I'll make you wish you shot me." Daryl growled back and none of them moved an inch. Pain blossomed in Asher's abdomen, the girl pressing her palms to the skin like she used to do to help release the screaming spasms of pain. But unlike those times before, when she pulled her hands back they were slick with crimson. Sitting up a few inches, she found the source- when she ducked like Daryl told her she had accidentally impaled herself on one of the makeshift arrows that the brothers were making before the hunt.

"Da..." Her words died in her throat, the spreading pain clotting her windpipe.

"I said drop your bows. Now." She reaches over to brace herself against the log seat and prepared to stand up.

"And I said don't you point them guns in my face." Her arms shook, but she pushed away the creeping fatigue and slowly struggled to heave herself up. "Sweetheart I said duck-" Asher turned towards him, hands outstretched and arrow fletchings brushing against the pointed tip of his own aimed at the strangers behind her.

"Oh shit." This came from all four men and she forced her hazed brain to focus on Daryl a few feet away.

"Dixie?"