When they were children, Merle had secretly vowed to protect Daryl from the harshness of the world. He watched his baby brother, who was brought into the world not hours before, squirming and crying in his ma's arms.
At first, Merle, who was eight at the time, had scowled at his brother. He didn't want to be a big brother and he made his mother well aware of that. When she mused about the baby and how wonderful of a big brother he would be, Merle told her that he didn't want any part of that baby. He had better things to do than be a big brother. However, seeing the distaste on her oldest son's face, made her smile. She called him over, telling him to come hold the baby. He walked slowly, suddenly scared of the bundle.
His pa lifted him onto the bed with a smile on his face. That was when Merle got a good look of his baby brother; he had soft, warm looking skin and the kindest face that Merle had seen on any human being. He heard his ma giggle as Merle smiled and touched the baby's nose.
"His name is Daryl," his ma said as she put the baby into Merle's lap, positioning his arms so that he could support Daryl's head. Merle tensed as Daryl began to squirm, but he settled when he saw his brother relax into the crook of his elbow.
After about five minutes of Merle holding Daryl, he looked up at his ma and pa, "I changed m' mind. I wanna be a big brother."
That day, Merle had secretly vowed to protect his brother from the harshness of the world.
Not very good, but I felt like doing a drabble for my first Walking Dead fic. I want to add more, and if I do, they will be considerable longer. But, tell me what you think. I love getting advice on how I can become a better writer.
I don't own The Walking Dead.