Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones;
and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task,
go to sleep in peace.

~ Victor Hugo

My feet feel heavy. Not sure how long we've been runnin' for. Minutes. Hours. The crossbow feels heavy on my shoulder. My breaths feel strained. Thick. Like I'm breathing through a straw. Can only imagine what the girl in front of me is feeling. Fuck. Her blonde hair swings from side to side as she pushes forward. Can hear her breath, strained and forced like my own, but the girl ain't showing any signs of stopping. Good. We can't stop now.

Jesus, she watched her old man die. Would'a covered her eyes, given her that small ounce of mercy at the very least. If I'd known. Fuck, who am I kidding? I knew it was going to end badly. Beth stops. Almost run into her. Almost reprimand her but the words get caught in my throat when she dives to the side unto her knees and retches into the grass. If it's from shock or over-exhaustion, I'm not sure. Can't tell. Probably both.

Her shoulders shake. I realize she's sobbing. I swallow, trying to ignore the cold sensation that gathers in my stomach. I want to do something to make her feel better. My hands soar helplessly above her shoulders. Finally I pull her hair away from her face and decide to give her a moment. I don't know what to say.

"C'mon," I mumble after a while. When she doesn't respond I tug at her shoulders. I can't be soft. Can't be gentle and coddle her. There's no time. Have to be rough and cold, and it makes a sharp lump of guilt gather in my throat; we can't stop moving, we just can't.

"Beth, we gotta go," I grunt a little harder.

She doesn't say anything. I don't expect her to. I hear her trying to control her breathing, trying to gather herself. Her pale shoulders stop shaking, they're tense under my palms. With a trembling hand she wipes her mouth and pushes herself up on weak, shaking legs. Makes me feel like a pile of shit, but I'm proud of her.

We're running again. Beth in front of me. I remain behind her, watching, guarding, ready to take the hit of any threat that might have followed us from camp. Lost track of time, but it must be at least an hour since we last stopped. Wonder who else made it, wonder who didn't. I shake my head, snapping myself into focus. Can't think like that. Not now. Focus has to be on getting Beth to safety.

Something moves in the corner of my eye and a sharp gasp coming from the front tells me Beth's noticed it too. Walkers. Twenty something of them. Their aimless stride in the opposite direction tells me they haven't noticed us yet. I glance back at Beth, she's slowed her pace. There's too many of them. Can't ask her to fight with her bare fists. Only one option left.

"Beth," I hiss. "Get down."

She glances back at me and before I can warn her, her foot gets caught on a stone and she falls to the ground. Shit. I grab her arm to soften her fall, it brings me down with her instead. Fuck, I'm getting tired. The tall grass hides us, but I still cover Beth's mouth with my hand. Still holding her arm, my other arm serving as a cushion for Beth's head while I keep her from making any noise. We hear them in the distance, both grateful the noise is fading. Means they haven't noticed us. With relief Beth sighs against my hand. I glance down at her, almost flinching when I meet her blue eyes. She stares up at me. Something about the sad, helpless look in those eyes makes me feel like an asshole.

Not sure why.

We move on. Run through the forest. We meet a few walkers on the way, a few stragglers, nothing to worry about. I deal with them. It's getting darker, won't be just a few stray dumb dead bastards for much longer. After a while I notice Beth's forced breathing. It's different this time. Raspy. She needs water. I need a few gulps, myself.

Never believed in God none, but something must have listened to my silent prayer and decided to grant us this blessing. A small set up camp comes into view. Red tent. Remains of a campfire. It's completely silent. Deserted. I make sure, telling Beth to stay back as I secure the area. What's left is the body of the camper himself, body intruded, ripped to pieces and completely destroyed. Too little left to reanimate.

"Bingo," I say when I find a bottle of water in the backpack of the dead camper. I find other stuff in the backpack. A flashlight, some rope, two bags of beef jerky, even a neck pillow. Guy came prepared, only moved around with too much stuff for one man to carry. Part of what got him killed, I suspect.

Beth is watching the dead camper. I only notice when I turn to hand her the water. I follow her eyes. Feel like an asshole again.

"Beth."

She flinches, eyes going to mine and then down at the bottle in my hand.

"Drink," I tell her.

She does and I try not to think about how cold and commanding I am. Have to be, I tell myself. I check the tent. Completely empty, besides the one sleeping bag. I tell her we'll stay here for the night. She doesn't argue.

Can't sleep. Mind is racing with too many thoughts. Besides, much rather listen to the wind blowing through the leaves in the night than face myself in the nightmares I know will haunt me for a while from now on.

Beth whimpers beside me. She's wrapped up in the sleeping bag. She's dreaming. I see her eyeballs moving under her closed lids; can practically smell the adrenaline in the air. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to know she ain't havin' a good dream. Should I wake her? Don't need to. I can feel when she wakes up. Her whole body stiffens and she pulls in a silent sudden breath.

A moment of silence.

"Daryl?" Her voice is soft but trembling.

"Yeah?"

She sighs in relief. Her whole body relaxes. She was afraid I'd left her? Kinda surprises me. I move nearer, don't know what I'm doing. I drape an arm around her from behind and close my hand around hers. She doesn't move to reject me. Something about that makes me feel good.

"You alright?" I ask. Stupid question. I realize that all too late.

I hear her swallow. Fuck. It starts with three deep breaths before the flood gates open. Something snaps in her and Beth's shoulders shake with the sobs I know she's trying to hold in. I don't know what to say. Don't know what to do. Between the sobs I hear her mumbling something almost inaudible. After thinking about it for a few seconds I puzzle it together into Daddy and I'm sorry. I close my eyes. Something hurts inside me. It's unfair and cruel that life can treat someone like Beth this way. Sweet Beth.

"Beth," I hear myself whisper. Nothing in my life has ever prepared me for something like this. Beth turns around, my arm still around her. She presses her face under my chin, locking herself against me with an arm around my shoulder. I stiffen. Don't have the heart to push her away.

I swallow, tighten my arm around her small, thin form as the hard sobs shakes her against me. After a long time she subsides. She breathes easier, slower and deeper. Almost asleep, I think and lay down on my back, allowing her to follow. Can't risk disrupting her rest by pushing her away.

I'm sorry, I think earnestly, wishing there's a way I can say it that would make her feel better, to make it all better. I'm sorry, Beth. Kid deserves better.

I listen to her peaceful, steady breaths. Guides me. Draws me in. Doesn't take long until I slip into my own slumber.

I'm trying to decide if this is a oneshot or a story to continue. I guess that would depend on how many people appreciate this chapter, the writing style and the idea. Thank you very much for dropping in to read and please, leave a review and tell me your thoughts!

~ kaptenkramp