Dear Readers,

This is my new "canon" bit I'm working on alongside of Respectfully, CMC Dixon. While I love that story, I need something to keep my brain moving and not stuck in one story. It's a Methyl- Daryl, Merle and Beth. And no, it's not a three way, it's just they are the main characters. Merle is back, survived the Gov and has both his hands. This takes place after the fall of the prison, meaning the last half of season 4. You'll see some things familiar from the episodes, and other stories of mine.

Please by all means, check out my other works and let me know what you think of them.

A few of my fave reads right now:

Revel in Flesh by Halohunter89

Beside the Dying Fire by JerikaTaryn

and

Their Second Chance by Slytherin-Princess10

As always leave me a note on your way out to the lobby, it's much appreciated!

Without further ado, I give you "Watch Over You."

Daryl heard the unmistakable sound of the Triumph's bored out engine. He'd know that sound anywhere, he'd built the fucking thing with his brother Merle. A tight grimace pulled across his face, sliding the beat up Jeep to a stop at the side of the road. When the prison fell, Daryl had grabbed Beth and high tailed it for the woods. They had been lucky to run up on the Jeep Daryl usually took hunting. Michonne and Hershel had used it earlier that day to haul out bodies for the burial detail before the Governor nabbed them.

Daryl's hand fell to the hilt of his hunting knife, fingers ready for the pull. Beth watched out the windshield of the Jeep, her face screwed up in pain for the slice across her ribs from catching it on the fence they squeezed through back at the prison escaping the chaos.

"It might be him Daryl. He might have made it out." Beth hissed between stabs of pain, studying Daryl's hard features. She kept her hand pressed against her ribs, the pressure not only staunched the flow of blood, but helped with the pain as well.

He nodded, "Mhm, might be some asshole on his bike too." While it was unlikely that one of the Governor's men got the drop on Merle and ran off with his bike, it wasn't ruled out yet. Merle was a helluva fighter, but with the way things had went to shit during the attack, nothing was for certain. Last Daryl had seen of Merle he was on a roof top sniping the Governor's men when shit hit the fan.

Daryl watched as Beth's breathing hitched, he knew she was hurting and needed the wound closed before long. He'd known wounds like that, after Merle left Daryl's girlfriend at the time's father had sewn him up and took care of him. Will Dixon had been known to take his rage out on his youngest son. Thank God Daryl had been engaged to the country doctor's daughter during those days. Daryl's mind wandered back to Natalie and her father, he knew their farm wasn't that far from the prison. Daryl was sure Roy would patch Beth up if he was still around. Natalie though, he wasn't too sure about.

Daryl visibly relaxed when he caught sight of his brother's weathered scowl cutting through the wind in his face. Merle pulled up next to the Jeep, looking in at the red stain blooming under the slender blonde's fingers.

Daryl nodded to his older brother, the engine of the Triumph dying out. Merle stepped off the bike, his rifle strapped across his back, knife at his hip and pistol strapped to his thigh. Merle was every bit the mercenary, he and Daryl were made for how the world was now.

Cold blue eyes fell on Beth's ashen features as Merle's hands unceremoniously jerked up her shirt to look at her wound. Beth hissed in pain, weakly pushing against Merle's chest.

Merle grimaced, this wasn't something to be fucking around about, the edges were angry red, streaks were starting to run out from the wound. Blood poisoning would set in by morning.

"Well sweet thing, you've got yourself a serious wound there. If we don't get it cared for soon you're going to be dead from blood poisoning. Baby brother what's your plan?" Merle's eyes darted over to Daryl, seeing his brother chewing on his thumb. It was his nervous habit that he never could break.

"Thinking we ain't far from Doc Kendall. Could take her over there and see if they'd fix her." It was at least a plan, Daryl thought it better than nothing.

"Ehhh... I don't know Darylina, don't think your ex fiancée would be keen on you bringing another woman home for fixing. We could see if the McCaffrey place is safe, then I could run over to Doc's and get supplies and fix her myself. I fucking fixed you before I got locked up." Merle knew Natalie would probably shoot him on sight, but it was better than nothing.

"Suppose that's what we're going to do. Better than the plan I had." Daryl agreed, stealing a glance at Beth staring Merle down. "Think you can make it another twenty miles?"

Beth gritted her teeth, pulling her shirt back down. "I can make it. Just get me fixed." If Beth was anything, she was stubborn in the face of two Dixon's. She knew these men were tough, they were born for this life, this life in hell. She had to be tough if she was going to run with them now.

"Well then follow me, I know the way to Jenny's place." Merle slung a leg over the Triumph's gas tank, the bike roaring to life with the bite of gas in the air. Daryl pulled in behind the bike, cruising down the road at a fast clip.

"Ex fiancee' huh Daryl? She a doctor?" Beth tried to make conversation, seeing the tension on his face. He was a ticking time bomb ready to explode, and when he did finally explode it would be messy.

"Yeah, something like that. Her daddy was the local doctor and she took off for the military and became a nurse. We didn't split on the best terms when we was kids. Probably ain't seen her in eight years or so." Daryl glanced over at Beth, watching her breathe carefully. He was uncomfortable with Beth asking him about Natalie, but he knew she wouldn't quit until he answered her.

"I'm sorry." Beth didn't know what else to say, emotions and things tied to emotions were not Daryl's strong suit. Beth clamped her mouth shut at the non-committal grunt that came out of Daryl. It was best to just leave it be for now.

Beth woke up to being set down on a bed, the pillow soft under her head. Opening her eyes she saw Daryl was looking down at her, his face expressionless. But his eyes told another story, Beth couldn't help but start the questions.

"Where are we? How long was I out?" She tried sitting up, Daryl's hand shot out, pushing on her belly to lay her back down. Beth bit back the stab of pain from the warm pressure of his hand on her skin. The infection was getting worse, she could feel the heat around the wound.

"We're at the McCaffrey farm, Merle took off for Doc's on his bike. He should be back soon. I'm gonna go get you something to drink. Just lay back and take it easy." Daryl's voice was softer when Merle wasn't around, Beth liked him better without Merle around.

"Are we gonna stay here for the night?" Beth could feel the headache coming on that would force her to lay back down. She hoped Merle would be back soon with pain killers, she was almost sick with the pain.

"Gonna have to. You ain't gonna want to move when Merle's done putting the stitches in." Daryl smirked, leaving Beth to think about what he said. He knew all too well how much stitches hurt, and hoped to hell that Merle brought back a pain killer. Beth wouldn't be able to handle the pain without something to take the edge off.

Merle couldn't forget the way from the McCaffrey place to Doc Kendall's. When Jenny's boy Danny took a fall out of the barn loft, it was Merle Jenny had called to run the boy to see Roy Kendall. He'd always had a sneaking suspicion Danny was his, which was why until Daryl and Merle went on that hunting trip before the dead rose, Merle made sure to keep an eye on Jenny and Danny.

Merle pulled up outside the front door of the Kendall house, cutting the bike's engine. He pulled the .45 from his thigh holster, snapping the slide as he stalked towards the house. Casing the windows he could see the faint glow of a lantern on the dining room table. Slinking around the back side of the house, Merle's instincts kicked in when the shot rang out and the dirt at his feet kicked up. It was a high caliber rifle, and whomever was shooting had a helluva aim. Merle scanned the area around him, looking for the barrel of the rifle. Looking up into the bedroom window he caught sight of the shooter looking down the sights at him.

"I oughta fucking drop you right where you stand Merle Dixon. What are you doing here?" Merle cackled when he realized who the voice belonged to, instantly dropping his guard and putting the gun away. He knew Natalie wouldn't shoot him, she might be pissed at him, but she wouldn't shoot him.

"Aw Natty that ain't no way to talk to an old friend now is it? Daryl needs your help." Merle saw the rifle disappear as the kitchen door opened. Merle stepped inside the door, seeing a young girl with brown hair and piercing blue eyes eyeballing him from the table, a pistol on the table between them.

"Easy babygirl, I ain't gonna hurt you. I just need to talk to your mama." Merle put his hands back up just to prove his point. He wasn't up to hurting women or kids, unless they were already dead.

"Mom said to let you in, and to not steal nothing." The girl's eyes stayed trained on Merle; something about them made him get an uneasy feeling in his gut, they crept him out a bit. He breathed out a sigh of relief when Natalie appeared in the kitchen, dark hair pulled back, green eyes full of fire. She was not happy to have Merle Dixon standing in her kitchen, but it could always be worse—it could be Daryl standing in her kitchen.

Natalie crossed her arms over her chest, sneering at Merle. "So talk, you said Daryl needed my help. What makes you think I'm gonna help him after he ran out on me? And why isn't he here himself? You doing his dirty work now Merle?" Natalie almost laughed at her own joke, usually Daryl was the one following after Merle like a puppy on a string.

"Daryl ain't here 'cause he's protecting a friend of ours that got hurt. We're holed up over at the McCaffrey place and I need meds and supplies to suture and fight off infection. You're the only person we know who's got access to that kinda stuff. Girl's gonna die if you don't help Natty." Merle knew she would never go for him begging, that wasn't his way. Merle never begged anyone for anything, even when things were at the worst.

Natalie ran her hand over the young girl's hair, "Allie I need you to go out and make sure the horses have water and food ok? I need to talk to Merle. Go on."

Merle watched as Allie's eyes pinned him once more, huffing at her reluctance to leave her mother with this man she didn't know.

"Go on sugar, I ain't gonna hurt your mama. Do what she says." Merle smiled at Allie as she darted around him out the door. "Cute kid Natty. Looks just like you."

Natalie snorted, "She acts just like her Daddy. Allie's very mature for her age, absolutely brilliant. But she's still my baby. I guess I'll help you. It's a favor for old times, for Daryl. Not you. If I didn't help I'd be going against everything I oathed. Come on down to Dad's office and we'll figure out what you need."

Merle went downstairs to the basement that served as Roy Kendall's offices for many years, he could remember being here with Jenny and Danny. He even remembered bringing Daryl here a few times when the wounds looked to be more than he felt comfortable dealing with. Roy never charged anyone for his care, most people usually brought him things in exchange. Daryl and Merle worked their bill off for Roy; baling hay or doing chores, anything they could do to help.

Natalie turned a light on to an office, peering into the cabinets on the walls. "So what's your girl got going on? Shot? Stabbed? How old is she and what do you think she weighs?" Natalie ran her fingers through her hair, thinking about what she would do if it was Allie needing her help.

"She's got a slice on her ribs here," Merle motioned to his own ribs, spanning with a meaty hand. "Probably eight inches long, quarter inch wide and deep. She caught it squeezing through a fence getting away from the biters." He saw Natalie nod, thinking on what Beth needed to get her healing.

"Uh huh. Suppose you don't know anything about her allergies do you? Weight and age." Natalie was nothing but professional. These were things she needed to know, especially when setting up a drug plan.

"Eighteen, probably nineteen. Hell, I don't know how much she weighs. Maybe a buck twenty soaking wet with her clothes on." Merle was a bit irritated that he didn't know the exact answers Natalie wanted. He watched as Natalie filled a bag with supplies, an IV kit, suture kits and bags of fluid.

Natalie locked eyes with Merle, her tone serious and threatening. "You got any of your Doxoral left Dad prescribed you by chance? What I'm giving you is for her, not you. Can you still run a mainline?"

Merle's eyes popped at the unspoken threat, Natalie knew Merle had a problem with drugs. She wouldn't help him if she even had a thought that he was coming to her for a fix. Little did she know he'd been clean for the better part of a year and a half.

"They ain't for me honey. I've been clean almost two years now, swear that to you. Nah, I used the Doxy like I was supposed to, and yeah I can still run a mainline. Gotta be the one stitching her up too. Daryl's gonna have to hold her down, she ain't gonna last long getting stitches in without something though. She's just a little thing." Merle felt for Beth, she wasn't tough like he and Daryl, she'd need something for the pain.

Natalie drew up a cocktail into a syringe, capping it before handing it to Merle. "Inject this as close as you can to the wound. It's just a local with epinephrine tag on. Mainline her with the saline after you do it and piggy back the Toradol and Zofran in. She'll be out most of the night, but you should be okay over at the McCaffrey's."

Merle grinned wolfishly, "Thanks Natty, I knew you would be the one to come to. I'll check back with you in a couple of days if that's okay? I owe ya big for this one."

"No, you don't owe me. Daryl does. I'd appreciate you checking in with me in case there's anything else she needs or she takes a turn for the worse. Tell your pain in my ass brother he owes me one, and I said to kiss my ass." Natalie chuckled at her won joke, seeing the storm in Merle's eyes.

"I'll do just that. Thanks Natalie." Merle took off out of the offices, heading for his bike. He needed to get back to work on Beth, he'd already spent too much time gone as it was getting what he needed to patch her up. Merle hoped he wasn't too late when he arrived, but he knew Daryl would take care of Beth if he was too late. Daryl may have always been the sweet one, but Merle knew when the shit hit the fan, baby brother was the one he could always count on.