The first "Meanwhile Moment"! Lets see how these things work out...
DISCLAIMER: The Walking Dead IS NOT MINE! Daryl should be, but he's not. He's just not. Marlie, on the other hand, is of my own creation.
Necessary Nouns to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse
Meanwhile Moment One
A miniature flock of tiny sparrows took flight from a nearby maple tree, each bird chirping delicately. They caught the sunlight, feeling the heat warm the tiny down feathers found beneath their wings.
They momentarily distracted Marlie from her current job of dragging the buck corpse back to camp in the silent presence of Daryl beside her. "Are you always this talkative," Marlie muttered sarcastically, panting slightly under the strain of the two-hundred-and-fifty-pound stag. She was tall, thin, and tough, but even she grew tired sometimes.
"Yes," was Daryl's humorless reply.
"Hey!" cheered Marlie, using her shoulder to nudge back some curls that had escaped from their hair tie prison. "So you do speak!"
"Ha-fuckin'-ha."
Marlie wasn't affected by his response. "Your humor's not so great, though."
"I ain't tryin' to be funny." He pulled the rope he was gripping further up his back in an attempt to make dragging the buck a little easier. It was futile.
Purposefully immature, Marlie wrinkled her nose mockingly at the muscular man and pulled a childish face.
"Listen, I ain't use to girls taggin' along during hunts, so why don't you - " He had planned on shushing Marlie, but was interrupted by her instead.
"Girl? Oh, I can see we're going to get along great!" she joked, rolling her eyes.
"Then lets hope you don't stick around long."
"I won't be." The young woman had plans of eating a good meal tonight, sleeping well and in the morning, she'd be gone before sunrise. After all, she couldn't just abandon the black Dodge Challenger that she stole after the world fell to shit. That was her last best friend.
Daryl scoffed. "Haven't even said hello and you're already plannin' your goodbyes."
"Is that a problem?"
"Why would it be?" Daryl asked irritatingly.
Marlie looked away from him and back up to the sky. The birds were no longer in sight, could no longer distract her.
"Do you always go off on your own?"
"Always," she replied immediately. "People slow me down." Memories of a life before the outbreak flooded her brain, but she shoved them back behind heavy doors in her mind, locking them up tightly and throwing away the figurative key.
"Do I?"
Blinking, surprised by the question, Marlie answered honestly. "No."
"Good, 'cuz I ain't movin' any faster."
Marlie couldn't keep herself from letting out a pleasant laugh at his comment. Stubborn, she giggled in her head.
"You laughin' at me?" Darly asked angrily, obviously not the kind to take being made fun of lightly. He eyed the woman beside him.
Once her breath was back and the laughing had ceased, Marlie said, "No." There was a smile plastered on her face, though.
One that lit up her eyes and captured Daryl's attention. He quickly looked forward when he realized that he was staring. "Well it sure sounded like it."
"Wow," Marlie began, her smile fading. "I finally get you talking and everything you say is sassy."
"Then I'll shut up, princess!"
There was an uncomfortable silence spread between the two and made one angry towards the other. They sighed simultaneously, exasperated.
"Sorry," Marlie said eventually, her voice quiet and spiteful. She always hated apologizing, especially when it wasn't really her fault. But maybe she had a right to apologize this time. Daryl wasn't the only one with an attitude, she mused to herself.
When he didn't respond, Marlie continued. "It's actually…it's sorta nice when you talk. I mean, it's just that you're the first person I've really talked to in a month."
Daryl's brows wrinkled. "You never talked to other survivors?"
"There weren't any." Or at least, she'd never made it in time to save any of them. "You're the first."
He sighed again, suddenly not feeling so angry towards the incessant female beside him. "So, 'Marlie'. What kind a name is that?"
She snorted at the unexpected comment. "Excuse me? 'Marlie' happens to be a very cool name. 'Daryl', on the other hand…"
"Hey, now that's mean," he said with half-hearted annoyance. The mood around the two was already lightening and he could see it in Marlie's relaxed features.
"What? You started this, so you must have known how it was gonna end."
Laughing slightly, much to his own surprise, Daryl shook his head. Damn, he couldn't recall the last time he'd smiled. And this woman had done more than that - she'd made him laugh. In a moment of truth, he asked seriously, "Do you really plan on leavin' so soon?"
Marlie shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know." When Daryl didn't say anything more, she asked, "Do you think I should stay?"
Daryl frowned. "Well it don't matter what I think."
"But I'm asking you. Should I stay?"
"I think you'd be helpful." He shrugged. "With hunting, maybe."
"Maybe? No, if I stay, I'll be hunting. No maybes."
"Whatever," Daryl remarked, his smile gone from his lips.
Smirking, Marlie added, "I could hunt with you. We'd make a good team. You fuck shit up; I go in for the kill."
"God, not this again." He looked up at the sky, silently praying to the gods to stop this woman from bringing up the deer subject again and how he hadn't managed to kill it.
Marlie laughed. "But seriously."
"I hunt alone."
"Oh." For some reason, Marlie found herself rather disappointed at that answer. She frowned.
"But I guess…I don't know. I wasn't expectin' no girl - "
Marlie glared at him.
"Woman to come running out of the forest like Tarzan's wife or some shit, going after my buck. It's all a little confusing."
She nodded and pressed her lips together tightly, thinking for a moment. When the moment was over, Marlie said, "Well, you think about it."
"And you think about stayin'."
She nodded again and said, "Deal."
They paused their travelling and shook hands.
Marlie noted the strength and warmth coming from Daryl's and she made a mental note to make more deals with him in the future, if only to be able to hold his hand.