He was an idiot.

This was a stupid idea, bound to get them killed.

But he was in love and love, sometimes, made you want to do stupid things.

Like go to Disney World. In the middle of the apocalypse.

It all started because of a coloring book.

Daryl had grabbed it, almost as an afterthought and only because of the sparkly castle on the cover and the included stickers within its pages. Sophia would love it. Or, he hoped she would.

Glenn gave him an odd look before smirking, and opened his mouth to say something supposedly funny, but Daryl shot him a deadly glare that shut him up quick. He brushed past him and stuffed the coloring book into his pack. Crayons were the next thing needed and Daryl grabbed enough to entertain an army.

"Hobby?" Glenn asked, unable to keep his mouth shut for long on the drive back to the farm. "Or are you just that bored?"

"They're for Sophia," he mumbled, fingers tapping on the steering wheel.

"Oh."

Glenn was one of the most innovative of the group, was quick on his feet and quick with the plans, but for some reason the fact that they had a twelve year old girl back at camp seemed to have slipped his mind. Who else would Daryl have gotten a princess coloring book for?

"You should have grabbed Carl one of the superhero ones. Think they had an Iron Man one. More of a Captain America man, myself. I wi-"

"Carl's a little shit," Daryl cut Glenn off before he started a lengthy conversation on which superhero was better. "Probably would have started throwing crayons at the walkers just cuz he got bored."

The younger man didn't say anything, his silence letting Daryl know he agreed with him. Carl was a little shit. Lori struggled to keep him in line, and with the death of Shane (by Rick), he pretty much ignored everything Rick told him.

"Probably," Glenn muttered. "But, hey, it's nice that you got something for Sophia."

"Saved her life. Might as well make sure she's entertained, too."

If Daryl hadn't been so near that day on the highway, Sophia would have been lost in those woods. He had stuck close to the women (Carol) all because a feeling he had in his gut.

His gut had been right.

A herd plowed through the cars. Everyone dove under the vehicles and out of sight, but Sophia had been so scared and wanted her mother so badly that she hadn't looked before scooting her small body from underneath a car.

Walkers had spotted Sophia and Daryl had spotted the walkers.

The moment her little blonde head disappeared into the woods, Daryl was leaping over the guardrail and Carol was screaming at him to bring back her baby.

And he did.

With his crossbow, he had made short work of the two walkers following the girl. Sophia had been quick, though. After pulling out the bolt from the second walker, Daryl had looked around the trees to find her gone.

Cursing, he searched around for her footprints. It took a little bit, but he finally found her small prints. They led him to a river, the mud leading into the water told him that she had waded in. He cursed when he realized that he could have possibly lost her tracks, especially if she hadn't gotten out right at the other side.

He was about to wade through the water, when he heard a noise. Whipping around, he lifted his bow.

"Daryl?"

The small, little girl voice was coming from an overhanging tree on the edge of the bank. Through the branches and leaves, a blonde head poked out and Sophia stood there, doll in hand and trembling.

Daryl had expected the girl to smile at being saved. What he didn't expect for her to fly at him and wrap her skinny little arms around his waist. "Thank you," she said, voice muffled with sobs and his shirt. "For saving me."

A little uncomfortable at the gesture, he patted her shoulder. "Uh, welcome." He stepped back. "Now, let's get you back to your mama."

Carol climbed over the railing at the sight of her daughter and Daryl stepped back, allowing the pair to reunite without hovering near. The woman, finally let go of her daughter and looked up at him. "Thank you," she repeated the words Sophia had said earlier. "Thank you so much, for finding her." (For a brief moment, Daryl wished she had given him a hug, as well).

Once things were settled on the highway, night watch was established and the group slept in various cars. The next morning, Rick had wanted to take a walk with Carl in the woods. Probably for some father-son time, Daryl didn't know. However, when Shane joined without a word, the purpose of the trip was lost.

Daryl should have listened to his gut this time, too.

A gunshot echoed through the trees some time later. Everyone was worried, Lori especially, yet no one went to investigate. Daryl itched to, but did not want to leave the rest of the group unguarded.

An hour went by before a stranger burst through the tree line on a horse. A woman with a baseball cap and strong southern accent. "Lori?" She called to the line of faces now looking down at her. "Lori Grimes?"

The woman stepped forward. "That's me."

"Your son, Carl, has been shot. My daddy is taking care of him, now, but you need to come with me."

Lori didn't hesitate.

After that, things went fast. The woman told them where to find their farm and Dale led the way with his RV. The man fixing up Carl was Hershel Greene. He had been a vet before the Turn, but in the end he had been able to save Carl's life.

There were many ups and downs during those first few weeks. Glenn had found love in the stranger on the horse, Maggie Greene. Hershel's eldest daughter. Then, they found out there were walkers in the barn.

Everything had moved so quickly and strongly within those weeks. It was a miracle the group had lasted that long. Especially with the tension between Rick and Shane. Then, they had found Randall in their search for Hershel, who had run off after the slaughter of his walking dead family in the barn. This had been the final straw in their relationship.

Dale died.

Shane took Randall and killed him. Then, had tried to do the same with Rick and was killed.

A herd threatened to tear the Greene farm apart.

Fortunately, it had been spotted earlier and everyone was ushered into the Greene's shelter under the house. If the walkers didn't see any potential food, there was a chance they would keep on walking. The group's camp would be torn apart, but at least they would be safe.

They stayed in the cellar for a full day. It had been cramped and they were all practically on top of one another, but no dared to voice a complaint. Without this place, they would have all been on the run...or dead.

"All clear," Rick had been the one to leave and check the surroundings.

The herd had done considerable damage to the land, but the house was still intact and the RV still standing.

"We'll just have rebuild," Hershel said, surveying his land.

That had all been months ago.

The farm had been made safer with fences surrounding the area. Runs had returned with guns, one for everyone, and ammo to last them for awhile. With not having to feed the walkers in the barn, the chickens were used for human consumption. Hershel, also, had a few dairy cows, so milk was also supplied.

There hadn't been enough room in the house for everyone to stay, so on another run, T-Dog had come driving up in another RV, broad smile on his face. "Now, I don't have to sleep on the hard ground."

Carol, Sophia and Andrea had taken Dale's RV, which had been moved closer to the house. With the addition to the new RV, T-Dog now had a place to stay and so did Daryl, who was a little reluctant to share his space with someone else. Everyone else had a room in the house. Jimmy had even offered to share his room with Carl, which had excited the younger boy.

Things had been good since the herd.

The number of walkers spotted on the land only amounted to be a handful, and runs to nearby towns had been fruitful.

During that time, Daryl had also gotten close to Carol and Sophia. The young girl had stuck by him ever since he had saved her life and Carol wasn't far. She was really the only one, besides Rick on occasion and T-Dog, that Daryl didn't mind talking with.

She had been his first real friend.

Now, he wanted her to be something more.

"Do you ever wonder how things would have turned out if Sophia hadn't been found?"

Daryl had almost forgotten that he was in the truck with Glenn, until he asked that question. This had been a question that Daryl thought about often, as well. What would have happened if Sophia had not been found, if someone else had gotten after her in the woods.

"No," he growled, lying. "Why worry about shit that ain't goin' to happen now?"

Glenn was unfazed by his rough tone, like most times. "I wonder about it all the time. Not just about Sophia, but about other things. What if their had been no herd on the road that day? What if Carl hadn't gotten shot?"

"None of that and there would have been no farm," Daryl answered.

"And no Maggie," Glenn almost whispered. "If I tell you that I'm glad Carl was shot, will you tell Rick or Lori?"

"No."

"Well, I am. Maggie is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I couldn't imagine just driving by her farm without ever knowing her."

Daryl didn't say anything. It was getting a little too mushy for his liking.

When Glenn noticed he was losing his audience, he asked a different question. "What about you and Carol?"

"What about us?" Daryl didn't mean for those words to come out so harsh.

"You've been spending a lot of time together."

"And? She asked me to teach her how to use weapons."

"She must be some warrior goddess by now, with all the time you've spent in each other's company." Glenn smirked, goading him a little.

"Shut up," he mumbled, unable to think of anything else to say.

Glenn settled in his seat, a smug grin on his face. "You know, if you need help making a move, just let me know."

"What? You some Don Juan now that you got the farmer's daughter?" He tightened his grip in the steering wheel. "And no thanks. We ain't like that, anyway."

"Uh huh. Whatever you say."

Before he could reply, the gravel road leading to the farm came into view. If Daryl pushed harder on the gas pedal, Glenn didn't say a word. They didn't mind going on runs, but were always eager to make it back to the farm, back to the people they loved.

Sophia ran up to him several minutes later as he was unpacking the supplies he had gathered. Carol wasn't far behind, a smile on her face letting him know she was glad he was back safe. It felt good to have someone care if he made it back or not.

"Got something for you, Soph," he said to little girl.

"Really?" Sophia bounced on her toes, excited. Rick always tried to bring something back for Carl whenever he went out. Since Carol hadn't gone on a run, yet, she hadn't been able to get her daughter anything.

"Yep. Hope you like it." He reached in his pack and took out the coloring book and crayons. "Here." He handed them to her and watched her reaction.

Sophia took one look at the cover of the book...and burst into tears.