A little intro before the story:
I was so hooked to Sons of anarchy that I forgot about my other favorite show - The Walking Dead and one drop dead gorgeous redneck. I just finished the last season of TWD and decided to give the SOA a rest (I think I've pretty much written what I could, although I'll try to finish the "Son and the maiden" story) and try my hand with Daryl and OC. Its AU, not very light and there will be smut, of course, since I a) love reading/writing that stuff b) its Daryl Dixon we're talking about here.
First chapter is a bit long, sorry.
I don't own TWD and I'm not a native speaker so I apologize for any rough patches that might appear.
I hope you'll find the time to read it and let me know what you think. Thanks!
They saw her move across the field. Cutting through the walkers with two small hatchets she had in her hands. She didn't zig zag nor stop for too long. She was just moving in a straight line, through the bodies, cutting them down until she reached the outer fence. She jumper on a group of walkers and using them as support grabbed the fence. It looked like something out of kung fu movies, her jumping like that, but it was obvious she did it before. She climbed the fence and jumped down moving to tower two.
The woman was tired. It was evident in the way she was moving, but still kept going. She had a bow and arrows strapped to her back but didn't use them at all, steadily opening the path to the gates with her hatchets.
Another heard surrounded her and Rick ran to open the gate, shouting at Daryl to help her. He raised his crossbow and saw it wasn't necessary. She took care of all of them but Daryl wanted to let her know they saw her, so he shot him in the eye. The woman turned just in time, nodded gratitude in his direction and took the arrow from the walker's eye, sliding through the cracked door.
She put the hatchets in the loops hanging from her belt and raised her hands palms up, gasping for air, carefully eyeing the group surrounding her.
The guy who opened the door for her was tall, with a scruffy beard and kind and sad eyes. Despite the shabby appearance he was good looking and with an aura of a leader although she saw he was trying not to be that. Next to him was a short haired woman, with a gun in her hand, carefully observing her and an old man without a leg.
The crossbow guy approached her. He saw squinting at her, sizing her up, head tilted to a side. She handed him back the arrow. "Shame to lose it". Her voice was hoarse and broken, like it wan't used in a while. He took it, nodding.
Daryl saw the woman tremble a bit, like her muscles were relaxing after some mayor strain. She was wet and tired, clothes dirty and torn, hair, that might have been red, tied in a braid. He saw her scan the group. When she looked at him he saw she had grey eyes, that stood large on her white face, staring at him coldly. He shifted uneasily, mesmerized by the misty colour of her irises.
She turned Rick.
"Rick Grimes?"
Her voice was still hoarse and shaky. She spoke slowly, like she was remembering the words.
He nodded. "How do you know who I am?"
She twitched her mouth a bit into something that resembled a ghost of a smile. She was swaying on her feet, tired to the bone.
"Andrea told me, weeks ago", she was shaking now uncontrollably, muscles twitching.
Rick grabbed her arm just in time to catch her before she fell. She was so thin and almost weightless in his arms. He saw her hip bones under her shirt and parts of a tattoo. How long was she on the road? How did she know Andrea? What happened to her?
Hershel was the first to react
"Let's get her inside Rick", he said. " We'll talk when she wakes up"
"Put her with me. I'll keep an eye on her", the archer cut in surprising them all.
"You?" Carol asked him amused and puzzled.
Daryl shrugged his shoulders and took the backpack the woman was carrying, with bow and arrows strapped to it. Maybe the woman was filthy, but her gear was spotless. He followed Rick to the prison and into the cell block he was sleeping in. Alone. Until now. He wasn't sure why he volunteered to watch her. Maybe because of the bow she was carrying, he ain't never seen a woman carrying a fricking bow. And she handled those walkers all by herself. She was something, he thought intrigued.
Rick put her in one of the beds and let Carol enter with a cloth and a bowl of water. The rest waited outside.
"She's sleeping", CArol informed them. "Needs a bath, but more than that she needs rest. So I guess, you'll be fine tonight Daryl". She smiled at the archer who grunted one "whatever" while the rest laughed.
"Bring her to us when she wakes up, ok?" Hershel told him and went outside.
...
She didn't wake up until late the next day. He heard her move in her bunk a few times, breathing fast, like she was running, but never waking up. It was the first night in a while he spent with someone else sleeping near him. It felt weird not being alone anymore in the block, but he offered to keep an eye on her.
"Hey", he looked up and saw her standing in front of his cell door.
"Hey", he said back not sure what to do.
"Is there some water so I could wash up before our talk?" She pointed to her clothes. Beth took off her leather jacket leaving her in some thin, torn sleeveless shirt and dirty pair of jeans.
"Aham", he got up and went to get her some water, bar of soap and a rag. "Here. I'll wait there", he said and picking up his crossbow went to the stairs and sat.
He heard her move, clothes falling on the floor. He peeked over his shoulder and saw her wash her leg,hair falling over her face. Daryl quickly turned his head, embarrassed he watched, but unable to stop. He turned again, watching her wash her arm,water and soap dripping. He swallowed hard, confused for watching and liking it.
She didn;t take long. He almost didn't recognize her when when sat next to him. She changed her clothes, washed the dirt, combed and braided her hair - it was red - and even smelled slightly of soap. Her eyes were bright and piercing and DAryl saw something cold deep inside them that made him shift nervously. She reminded him of an animal caught in a trap, aware it'll die but not willing to give up just yet.
"We should go. They're waiting for us"
The woman nodded. She took the backpack with her weapons and turned to Daryl extending her hand. It was small, nicely shaped and callused and it got lost in his big paw.
"I;m Sky"
"Daryl" he said shortly, shaking hands with her shyly and led her to meet the rest.
...
The same people Sky saw yesterday, waited for her in a room that was once, maybe, an showed her the chair at the side of the table and leaned on the wall behind nodded to Rick and then turned to Carol and the elderly man sitting next to her.
"I'm Sky", she said and waited until they introduced themselves - Carol and Hershel.
"You said you met Andrea. When? How", Rick asked her and she turned to him.
"I met her weeks ago in the woods near Woodbury. Maybe even longer. She helped me out. I was feverish and alone. She told me about this place. Said you were good people".
Sky looked at her hands and Rick followed her gaze, registering the cuts and scars on them, cuts that spread to her forearms and looked like ligature marks.
"The plan was to meet and come here together. I got held up..." She looked Rick in the eyes and he saw the coldness in them turn into white rage and hate. "When I finally reached Woodbury, it was gone, no one was left. I thought she came here. Did she?"
Rick shook his head. "No. Andrea's dead. Its men two months now"
They saw confusion and fear move across her face and then Sky pressed her lips tighter and nodded. She cleared her throat and looked up at Rick.
"I need a place to stay. I can't be alone anymore. I;ll earn my keep".
She didn't plea or cry or beg. She just asked. Rick liked that. He looked ad Daryl who, to his surprise, nodded his accord. "Ok Sky", Rick said.
"What can you do Sky", Hershel asked clearing his throat. He saw the exchange between Daryl and Rick and was amused. The girl will surely shake up things in the camp.
"Hunt... and kill".
The way she said it, the coldness of her voice made Hershel twitch uncomfortably. Something happened to her, something horrible. He too saw the scars on her arms.
Daryl leaned closer. "Are you any good with those", he pointed to her bow and arrows.
Sky looked up. "I survived"
"Mhm", Daryl grunted. "Come on", he called her moving his head.
...
She was good. Not as good as Daryl but pretty good. She was a city girl, it showed in the way she moved around the woods, but she adapted. They tracked down a deer and he let her take him down, watching her aim, calm and composed, looking like some forest warrior. She hit the animal in the eye. It was a clean shot and a fast death. She carefully approached the animal, taking her knife out.
"Whole or in pieces?"
"Pieces", he mumbled and began helping her.
They were working in silence, side bu side. He'd occasionally check out her progress. He saw her skin and cut the meat, the movement of her hands decisive and swift, without hesitation or disgust. Sky looked up and saw him looking at her. Daryl shifted embarrassed and went back to work, eyes locked on the meat and knife, aware she was looking at him.
"What?!" he finally asked annoyed.
"Nothing" she grinned.
"Ahm", Daryl grunted. He looked at her again, biting his lips. "How'd you learn to use that", he pointed to the bow. It was a sports bow, light and with a shorter range than his crossbow, but adjusted to kill, not hit marks.
Sky finished packing the meat. He saw smile a bit and look up at him, amused. "Well, I loved playing cowboys and Indians". Then the smile disappeared and he saw the coldness creep back in her eyes. "It was learn or die, you know. And, its not like I had a choice - it was either bow or a knife and I can't very well hunt with a knife".
He nodded wordlessly. He wanted to ask her why was she alone on the road but then they heard the walkers.
"We need to go"
Sky was already on her feet, bag on her back, lifting her weapons and moving away from the sound. Daryl followed but soon took the lead. It was strange being in the woods with someone he could communicate without words. Somehow, he and Sky clicked. It took only a look or a movement of hand for her to adjust her pace, movement, breathing. Like they were doing this for ages and not just a day.
He could hear her behind him, breathing, treading carefully on the leaves and branches and felt, for the first time in a long time, ever since Rick checked out, someone had his back. He shot one of the walkers, hitting the other with his crossbow. With the corner of an eye he saw Sky bury the hatched in the head of one of them. She turned to him and he saw her aim at him. Daryl ducked confused and heard the bow hit something behind him. She hit the walker that was just about to bite him. He pulled the arrow from the walker's hear and handed it to Sky who took it.
"Now we're square", she murmured and picking up the bag she dropped headed for the camp leaving him behind puzzled and confused.
"I see you were successful today", CArol asked Sky, taking the meat from her and Daryl. "Any trouble".
"No", Daryl was short. He went to his cell.
CArol saw Sky look after him and smiled, a bit sourly. She was jealous of this girl. Sky could hunt, take care of herself and she got Daryl intrigued. It wasn't like Daryl to warm up to strangers but somehow he clicked with Sky. They got along immediately. It took her months and a dead child to connect with Daryl.
"Come, lets find a cell for you"
"I'm ok where you've put me, if thats ok?" Sky looked at Carol. She sensed that somehow the woman didn;t like her but wasn;t sure why. She didn't particularly cared but she wanted to stay here, surrounded with people that looked like a decent group and she didn;t want any complications. "Am I stepping on anybody toes Carol?"
"What do you mean?"
"You and Daryl" she pointed to Daryl who stopped to talk to Rick and a boy whom, she figured, was Rick's son.
"Don't be absurd", Carol denied, flushing a bit. "We're a family"
Sky smiled a bit, getting the hint. They were a family. She was an outsider. Fair enough.
"So, who's the kid? Rick's son?"
"Yes, that's Carl", Carol answered. "Over there are Hershel's girls - Maggie and Beth". Sky saw two women, a dark haired and a blond washing something in a barrel, a baby near them. "That's Judith, Rick's child", Carol added with a gentile, soft voice. She cared about that child, like she was her daughter.
"Michonne and Glenn are on the run and you'll meet the rest at dinner", she finished, seeing again how Daryl looked at Sky's direction, calling her with a movement of his head. Sky looked at her and nodded, suddenly reminding Carol so of Daryl, with her non verbal communication, quietness and the way she looked at all of them.
"Is it OK if I stay with you in that block", Sky asked Daryl when she approached him and Rick. She held out a hand to Carl. "Hi, I'm Sky".The boy shook hands, watching her carefully. Sky forced herself not to run her hand through his hair sensing that would piss him off.
DAryl grunted something incoherent, making Rick smile and Carl chuckle. Sky smiled back. "I guess that's a yes, then"
"Aham", he nodded, playfully pushing Carl and exchanging a look with Rick.
He wasn;t sure why he said yes. He hated sleeping close to anyone. He wanted space for himself. And sharing that part of the jail with another one, a woman no less, isn't something he wanted. But he was strangely ok with her being close. After all, he reasoned, they should get to know each other if they're going to hunt together.
She followed him to their block. "Thanky you for letting me stay", she said softly. He turned and saw her look at at him. "I meant both in the camp and with you".Daryl mumbled one of his "whatevers" uncomfortable under her gaze and at the same time happy she gave him credit.
...