EM: So this has been on my mind for a long time. Just wasn't sure how to approach it. Now, after two outside fics with plenty of Merle and Daryl, I think I can handle it. The only question is, can you?

Disclaimer: The Walking Dead belongs to Kirkman and AMC.

Lost

He had nothing left. Nothing but a world full of emptiness, and bullshit, and nothing.

"Daryl?" There weren't nothing left for him here. Nothing left for him to fight for. Nothing left for him to die for. Nothing left for him to live for.

"Daryl?" A hand clasped his shoulder, but he didn't even notice. He didn't even know where he was.

Coz none a it mattered.

Rick contemplated his options for a moment, while he had it. Daryl was a fucking mess. Bloodied, bruised, and gone. He kept calling out his name, but Daryl's eyes were just empty. He was a shell. If Rick hadn't of seen him clearly, he would have thought that Daryl was one of the dead walking.

He didn't know what the hell had happened. One minute he's walking the perimeter outside the gate, collecting some firewood, thinking about what they were gonna do about Woodbury. Making sure walkers hadn't come too close, or the living either. And the next he's stumbling over Daryl, who doesn't even know that Rick's there.

He had his knife clutched in one hand, the crossbow dangling from the other, useless. Just staring.

Rick didn't know whether to call out for Glenn or not.

He didn't know what to do.

Because he'd never seen Daryl like this.

"Fuckin' run Daryl!"He didn't know where to go though. It was too fuckin' dark, there were too many shadows that he didn't trust, and he kept lookin' back to check on him. He wasn't gonna lose Merle this time.

Not again.

And then he tripped, fallin' face first into the fuckin' dirt. Merle didn't even spare a laugh. That's how he knew it was serious. He just hauled him up by the arm and kept pushin' him forward, runnin' hard. He don't think he'd never seen Merle run so hard, so fast before.

"Quit yur fuckin' gagglin' brother. Ain't got time to be carryin' yur ass." Fuck did he miss his brother. He couldn't remember the last time he'd seen his face. Even if they'd started fightin' over some stupid shit and Merle clocked him, it didn't matter. He was here now, he was alive.

Bang

He didn't even know, couldn't even tell where it had come from. But he did know that it'd missed him. And then Merle was down, on the ground faster than Daryl could blink.

"Merle!" He fell to the ground beside him, hands runnin' all over his body, checkin' places Merle woulda smacked him over the head for touchin'.

And then Merle did smack him over the head. "Fuck you touchin' me fer Daryl?" And Daryl froze, heart thuddin' in his chest and couldn't help the relieved chuckle that broke free. Didn't matter that Merle had just smacked him.

"Git the fuck outta my way. We gotta go." Daryl helped him up off the ground and they turned to run again.

Stopping only to find a gun pointed in their direction.

"Rick?" Rick turned to find Glenn coming through the trees, following his trail.

"What's the hold-" He stopped, eyes landing on Daryl.

"What the hell?" He ran forward, pipe hanging at his side, forgotten.

"What the fuck is Daryl doing here?" He approached Daryl, ignoring Rick's warning gesture, his hand going to Daryl's shoulder. And this time, Daryl flinched; smacking his hand off and running in the opposite direction he had come.

Rick and Glenn watched him go for a stunned second before Rick took off after him. "Daryl!" He whisper-yelled, trying not to draw any attention to them. He didn't know if any walkers were in the area, but he didn't want to chance it.

"Rick!" Glenn came rushing up on his tail. He didn't bother answering. He needed to conserve his energy trying to keep up with Daryl. He was like a demon, zigzagging through the trees as if he were made to do it. And if he thought about it, he probably had been. Daryl was always the one traipsing around the woods as if they were his natural home.

But Daryl didn't hear him, or ignored him, whichever.

And then, they lost him.

They came to a stop, panting.

"What…the hell…was that?" Rick shook his head, unable to explain.

"I don't know."

"Fight! Make them fight!" It was Merle. He couldn't fuckin' believe it. All this time, he didn't know whether Merle was alive or dead, when he wanted to go out lookin' for him, when he wanted to just leave the group, Merle'd been right here all this time. He couldn't fuckin' believe it.

"Merle-" Somebody clipped him over the head with the butt of a rifle. His head swam for a minute but then it cleared. And Merle, he didn't do nothin'. Just kept lookin' at him, lookin' round at the crowd assembled around them. Lookin' like he didn't know what the fuck he was gonna do. Lookin' as if he didn't believe that Daryl was right there in front a him.

"You want them to fight?!" It was that fuckin' Gov'ner. Stalkin' round them both like they were some prized pigs set out to slaughter, and he was happy bout it.

He didn't like that Governor. Didn't like the way he looked. Didn't like the way he kept on lookin' at him like he wanted to come over and take his head off himself. There was something personal there. He wondered if it had to do with that one eye a his.

And then there was Andrea, watchin' it all with that dumbass look of horror on her face, like she never knew this was comin'. He shoulda known she was a fuckin' puppet in all this. Shoulda known she would a been no help if she'd been involved. Girl always was gettin' her ass into the wrong pants.

Chants were going up, all around them, yellin' 'fight' like it was some sort of cult. He couldn't do nothin' but watch, hands tied behind his back.

And he knew, knew they were in fuckin' trouble.

"Then it's decided." That Governor approached them both, lockin' eyes with Merle, his one carryin' a hate Daryl hadn't seen in a long time. Not since they'd lost their Ma and the ol' man had blamed it on them.

"You'll fight," he said. He signaled to someone behind him and Daryl's bonds were cut. He rubbed his wrists, the feelin' of freedom bittersweet. He kept lookin' at Merle but Merle didn't look away from the Governor.

"A battle to the death!" He announced arms spread wide. A cheer went up around them, the crowd of people goin' wild. All their faces split into these crazy grins, people whoopin' and hollerin' and fist pumpin'. What the hell did they want him 'n Merle ta do? Fight some fuckin' geeks?

Hell, he 'n Merle could take on a whole herd of geeks and still come out cleaner than Merle's bike wiped down to the spittin' shine. Daryl thought he was in the wrong fuckin' place. Weren't no fuckin' battle arena.

But lookin' round, that's exactly how this was set up.

The Governor pointed to them both.

"You fight till one of you is dead."

"Come on baby brother."

Daryl kept runnin', not knowin' where he was goin', not lookin' back. Didn't matter if he recognized those people, didn't matter if for a moment, he had felt safe. All he knew was that he had heard him.

"Whatchu waitin' fer?"

He weren't. That was the problem. The moment he'd heard his voice, he'd took off. Didn't matter where, all that mattered was that he found him. He had to find him.

"Can't find what's lost baby brother."

"You ain't lost brother." He turned left, and then right, scannin' the trees, the shadows, everything for where the voice was comin' from. That voice was everywhere.

"Can't be found. Just like your Chupacabra," and Merle laughed, sarcasm drippin' from it. He hated it when Merle did that. Treated him like he were some fuckin' kid again. Like he couldn't take care a nothin'. Like he were always tellin' lies coz he didn't know any fuckin' better.

"I'll fuckin' find ya Merle," he growled, whipping around, knife gripped tight in his hand. He slung the crossbow over his shoulder, the last arrow used on…

"That's right. You know why I can't be found. Gotta let me-"

"Fuck you Merle! Always tellin' me what to do. Fuck you!" He started runnin', didn't know where, just kept pushin' forward. He would find him again. He found him once, he could do it again. He and Merle, they always came back together.

"Heh. It was always you 'n me, baby brother."

Daryl stopped, frozen. It had always been him 'n Merle, no matter what. Even when shit had been bad. When Ma had burned herself and the house down in that fire. When the ol' man had nearly killed'em both. When the world had gone to hell in a hand basket bringin' the fuckin' dead walkin the earth. Even when Merle was the one givin' him go round, rippin' him a new one.

It was always him 'n his brother.

"You can't tell me what to do no more, Merle. Not this time." He kept pushin' through the foliage, past the branches, over the roots and tangle below. Nothin' was familiar, everything was hollow. Nothin' felt right no more.

"Coz you's a man now, that it?" Anger flared through him, like it always did when Merle didn't take him seriously, tauntin' him.

"I came back for you!" He stumbled, pitched forward and fell into a walker, it's back turned to him luckily.

"Better watch where yur goin' baby brother." He heard laughter behind him.

That laughter pissed him off, the same as it used to. Merle was always laughin' at him. Always makin' fun a him.

He knifed it through the skull, blood squirtin' in his eye, sight goin' hazy and red on one side. And then he saw it; the flash of silver, the shape of a man, the white hair.

"Merle!"

And he ran.

Reviews mean a lot.

A/N: So this is primarily a Derle. Maybe some Caryl later on. Takes place directly after Made to Suffer. Tell me what you think. I always love it when ya'll talk to me.

Thanks for being here, with Derle and I.