Disclaimer: I do not own Walking Dead or anything mentioned in this fic. None of it belongs to me besides my OC, Danielle. I created her with the image of Kiesha Castle-Hughes in mind, the actress that played Gaia in the show "The Almighty Johnsons", with dark hair and dark brown eyes.

AN: Wow so many people have favorited and followed this story. Thank you so much for that. Two people even reviewed, which just made my day so special thank you to Lucinda Silver and skye-speedy. I appreciate it. Just wanted to say thank you to everyone for putting in the effort of reading this story. Hopefully, it won't disappoint you. Enjoy!

As a small side note, I just wanted to let you know that yes, the hospital that Danielle keeps mentioning is in fact the Grady Memorial Hospital used in the future seasons. At this point, the police officers haven't taken over the hospital yet so it's still abandoned and free game for people to scavenge supplies from. You'll be seeing characters from future seasons in this chapter as well because I wanted to give some conflict, to start off Merle and Danielle's partnership. I hope you enjoy it.

\Line} Line {Line/

Chapter 2: Maybe

\Line} Line {Line/

After their brief snack, Danielle handed Merle a bottle of aloe to use for the blisters and left him to tend to it himself. She grabbed her bag and made sure all her stuff was inside. It was her takeaway bag, the one she carried constantly. There wasn't much in it, just a few throwing knives, a roll of bandages, a bottle of pain medication, a small set of bolt cutters, a half full water bottle, and a bag of crackers.

Grabbing her spear, she glanced over at Merle, hesitating. She had to at least say goodbye to the Vatos. But she didn't want to leave Merle here alone, in her shelter. She had to start trusting him somehow, Danielle reasoned to herself with a shake of her head, throwing her bag over her head so it was strapped diagonally across her body.

"I have a few errands to run before we leave. I'll be back soon," Danielle told the Dixon as she moved over to the window, hearing him grunt in response, acknowledging her words.

Slipping out of the window, she made her way up the fire escape to the rooftops, taking off towards the Vatos hideout. It only took about ten minutes of traveling across the rooftops before she landed on the roof of the warehouse the Vatos used as a hideout. There was a small broken window in the left side that she slipped inside, carefully avoiding the broken pieces of glass around the rim.

Inside, the warehouse was quiet but warm. Several Hispanic men were scattered around, tinkering with cars. Guillermo, the leader of the group, was talking with Miguel and Felipe. His back was turned to her, unaware of her presence.

Moving further into the building, she navigated through the metal rafters until she was just above the three men. Danielle launched herself forward, hearing startled shouts, and landed lightly on the floor next to Guillermo, using her hands to brace herself. Guillermo had spun around at Felipe and Miguel's shouts, backing up. All three looked like they'd had a mini heart attack.

Realizing it was just her, Guillermo glared, rolling his eyes. "Will you stop doing that, Dani? You look like one of those flying squirrels, little evil devils."

"The dead is walking around, munching on our flesh like candy bars and you're still scared of flying squirrels? Really, G?" Danielle snickered, shaking her head. "That's sad, just sad."

"She got you there, G," Miguel laughed.

"Shut up," he scoffed. "What are you doing here anyway? You just gave us those hospital supplies yesterday."

"How's that going? Did everyone get what they needed?" she asked, concerned for the sicker elderly patients. "I grabbed as much as I could but I only had about an hour before the walkers smelled me and came running. Sorry."

"It's fine, Dani," Guillermo waved off her apology, smiling. "We're grateful for what you got. Everyone has what they need, medicine wise. Well, besides Mr. Gilbert. He still needs his asthma medicine."

"I think I did get some of that. It should be somewhere in that bag," Danielle snapped her fingers, trying to remember. "I hope it helps. Anyway, I'm here to say my goodbyes. I'm leaving today, headed for D.C."

Guillermo nodded, his expression dropping into one of resignation. "I knew you'd be off sooner or later. You gonna say goodbye to Abuela and the others?"

"Best not," she shook her head, giving him a soft smile as she tucked her hands into her jean pockets. "If I did, she'd start crying and I'd never leave."

"That's understandable," Guillermo agreed, reaching out to hug her briefly. "Thank you, Dani, for helping us. Without you, I'm sure we would have lost more people by now. Good luck out there. I hope you find your Dad. Be safe."

Wrapping her arms around him, Danielle returned the hug, smiling. "No thanks needed, Guillermo. Thank you. Stay safe please."

"You got it."

The two separated, stepping back. Turning to Miguel and Felipe, Danielle smiled wider when Miguel rushed towards her, hugging her tightly around the waist. Her arms wrapped around him and she pressed a kiss to the teenager's head. The boy hadn't trusted her in the beginning, until she saved him from one of the undead. Since then, he'd clung to her, looked up to her sort of like an older sister figure. Danielle was pretty sure he'd hoped she'd get together with Guillermo so she'd stay.

"You'll be okay, bud. Listen to G and stay safe," she whispered into his ear, feeling him nod against her shoulder.

"You too, D," he stepped back, wiping his face.

Danielle gave Felipe a brief hug and a warm goodbye before she left, knowing if she lingered there, she'd end up staying. The Vatos were good guys. They looked like a gang but they weren't, not really. They were just a group of guys trying to protect the elderly.

Lost in thought, it didn't take long for Danielle to make it back to the apartment. She slipped inside through the window, closing it behind her. Merle was still on the couch. He'd finished rubbing aloe on his burns so he was stretched across the couch, relaxing. His eyes flicked to her when she came in, watching as she unwound her scarf from around her face and unzipped her leather jacket, feeling a little hot from running across the rooftops.

"Ya got anythin' else to eat, sugar?" he asked, sitting up.

"A couple crackers," Danielle answered, rummaging around in her bag to pull out the bag of crackers and tossing it over to him. Merle ripped open the bag and started chomping down on the crackers.

Moving over to the beanbag, Danielle slipped her bag over her head and set it down on the floor, along with her spear. She dropped down onto the bean bag, sighing as she sank into the comfy chair. Her gaze drifted towards the closed window. The sky outside was darkening fast. It was too late to leave the city. Her exhaustion from using her magic to save Merle and the supply runs she'd made beforehand made her sleep into the late afternoon. Luckily, Merle seemed to have woken up only a few minutes before she did.

She planned to wake up early enough to search the city for a car and make a few last-minute supply runs. A lot of the stores had been picked clean but there were a few places that hadn't been scavenged. The hospital, for one, was a place many avoided. Danielle had only made one trip there for medical supplies for the Vatos. She figured she'd make another run there and pick up some more medical supplies.

"What are ya thinkin' so hard about, sugar? I can see the steam comin' out yer ears from 'ere," Merle asked, breaking her train of thought. He was watching her curiously, having finished half the bag of crackers.

"Just making a plan for tomorrow. If you want to find your brother fast, we need to leave soon. Tomorrow, I'll make a few runs and see if I can find a car with enough gas to get out of the city," Danielle answered, deciding to include him in the plan.

"Ya want my help findin' a car? I can do that while ya find some supplies," he offered, surprising her with how willing he was to help. Then again, he probably wanted to get back to his brother as soon as possible. Something told her sitting in the apartment doing nothing while she searched wouldn't sit well with the Dixon. Danielle completely understood that feeling.

"Sure, thanks," she nodded, accepting it.

She played with her gloves absently, trying to think what else they needed to do the next day. Not paying attention, she leaned back reflexively when she saw something flying toward her face. Her hand came up and caught it, fumbling with it for a second. Danielle glanced down at it to see the bag of crackers, still half full. She looked at Merle questioningly, wondering why he hadn't eaten all of it.

"Noticed ya haven't eaten anythin' and figured I'd share," Merle shrugged like it was nothing. Turning away from her, he laid down and stretched out across the couch, laying on his back with his arms crossed behind his head. He closed his eyes and breathed in deep, relaxing.

"Thanks," Danielle whispered quietly, not really knowing what else to say but grateful nonetheless. He didn't make any sign that he heard her thanks but she figured he did. No one fell asleep that fast.

Slumping back in her chair, she slowly munched on her crackers, her thoughts rolling around. She soon finished the rest of the crackers off and set the empty bag to the side. Leaning back, she stretched out her legs and crossed her arms over her chest, resting her head against the back of the beanbag chair. Her eyes closed and she followed Merle into sleep.

\Line} Line {Line/

The next morning, Danielle woke up early morning, around nine or so. Merle woke up only a few minutes after her as she stood up and stretched, wincing when her back ached from sleeping in the bean bag chair. She picked up her scarf and wrapped it around the lower half of her face once more, zipping up her leather jacket. Leaning down to pick up her spear and bag, she slipped her bag over her head and looked over at Merle. He was standing, stretching out his back. There was a loud crack as he stretched, his back popping, and he grinned in relief.

Shaking her head, Danielle's lip twitched up into a smile. "Morning, Dixon."

"Mornin', sugar," Merle replied, cracking his neck. "I was wonderin' yesterday but I forgot to ask. How are ya gettin' around without bein' noticed? More of yer witchy stuff?"

"Nope, no magic involved whatsoever," Danielle snickered, finding it funny that he would automatically think she was getting around with magic. It was possible but it would exhaust her faster. "I just use the rooftops. It's safer than the streets."

Merle furrowed his eyebrows, confused. "Wait, so lemme get this straight. Ya use the rooftops to get around? Ya part monkey or somethin'?"

Danielle snorted, shaking her head. "No, just a habit of mine. I got into it back home out of boredom and I just never stopped."

"Interestin' habit," Merle noted, curious. "Ya got a gun I can use?"

"No guns. Sound draws them and it'll be like ringing the dinner bell," Danielle shook her head. "Knives are much better if you have one."

Patting himself down, Merle smirked as he pulled out a long hunting knife from inside his vest. "Got it."

"Alright, I'm off. I should be back in a few hours," Danielle gripped her spear as she moved towards the window, pulling it open and slipping outside, closing it behind her. Merle waved to her from inside, showing he heard her, and headed further into the apartment, probably choosing to go through the actual door. Climbing up the fire escape, Danielle took off across the rooftops, moving towards the hospital. Might as well start there, she figured.

\Line} Line {Line/

Grady Memorial Hospital, one of Atlanta's only hospitals. The place was a gold mine of medical supplies, if anyone was brave enough to sneak inside. There were twenty-one floors, 1,100 beds for patients, and seventeen operating rooms. Danielle only knew because she'd raided the files in the main office and found general information on how the building was structured. It was one of Atlanta's largest hospitals before the outbreak. Now, it was one of many abandoned buildings.

A few of the windows had shattered in the bombings but other than that, the building looked virtually untouched from the outside. There was a building next to it, a parking garage. The roof of the parking garage aligned directly with a set of windows on the tenth floor. One of the windows was broken and Danielle used that as both her entry way point and her exit.

After half an hour of wandering the halls, she found a supply closet on the eleventh floor and loaded up her bag with bandages, rolls of gauze, rolls of adhesive tape, bandage scissors, and tweezers. Her bag was on the floor, half way filled with medical supplies. She was looking over the other supplies and wondering what would be considered necessities when she heard voices. Freezing in place, Danielle strained her ears to listen. She didn't make a sound, even controlling her breathing so it didn't make noise.

"Are you sure no one is here?" An unfamiliar voice rang out. It was deep, male, and alarmingly close to where she was. Danielle would estimate that the voice's owner was only down the hall from the supply closet she was currently hiding inside. Her hands gripped her spear tightly, ready to defend herself if she had to.

"Positive. With how many geeks are outside, I doubt anyone even thought to come near this place," another voice, also male, answered confidently. This one had a distinct accent, an accent she recognized from listening to the Vatos speak. He must have been Hispanic, whoever he was. There was a third pair of footsteps, indicating someone was with them that hadn't spoken yet.

Danielle remained completely still as she heard them walk down the hallway, moving closer and closer to the supply closet. Raising the spear, she waited, all her muscles tensed for a fight.

"You go on. I'll check out this closet, see if there's anything good," the third voice finally spoke and the other two kept walking down the hallway as the third stopped in front of the supply closet.

As the door opened, the man's eyes widened as he stared at her, his hand moving for the gun strapped to his waist. She moved quickly, launching herself forward and aiming her spear towards his throat. The tip of the spear pierced through the bottom of his throat and shoved upwards, coming out through the top of his head. Blood started to pour out as she ripped her spear back. She was already moving before the body hit the floor, flying through the open door and sprinting down the hallway.

Hearing shouts behind her as the other two saw her, Danielle ran faster, her heart picking up pace as she realized she had to get to the tenth floor. She realized in her rush out of the closet, she'd forgotten her bag back in the closet and cursed. Frustrated but knowing she couldn't go back for it, she sprinted around the corner of the hallway, making a sharp left turn into the stairs. Taking them two at a time, she heard the door slam open behind her as she reached the tenth floor, shoving the door open. She ran towards the broken window she'd used as an entry point, jumping through it.

Landing on her feet, Danielle kept running, knowing they were only seconds behind her. Loud footsteps thudded in her ears and she didn't dare glance back. She ran for the edge of the roof and leapt off it, her muscles bunching before springing forward. There was a loud crack and Danielle fell onto the next roof, rolling. She rolled to a stop, hidden from the view of the two men under the ledge. Her side ached and burned like someone had thrown a lit match at her. Looking down, Danielle cursed quietly, noticing the small spot of blood on her right side that was quickly growing.

He freakin' shot me. That was uncalled for.

Gritting her teeth, Danielle pushed herself up to her feet, looking back at the hospital. The men had left, apparently satisfied that she was injured at the very least. She used her spear to prop herself up until she forced herself to ignore the pain. For now, it was a bearable ache. Taking off at a run, she continued jumping across the rooftops, trying to get back to the apartment as fast she could.

Fortunately, luck was on her side. Danielle made it to the fire escape of the apartment building just in time. She didn't think her legs would support her for another jump. The right side of her jacket was soaked in blood and she knew her shirt had to be covered in it underneath. Her fingers fumbled with the window before finally shoving it open and she slipped inside. As soon as her legs touched the floor, her knees buckled and she collapsed, falling on her back.

Danielle lay there, winded, her side burning.

"Sugar, did ya-? Dani!" Merle's voice rang in her ears, starting off easygoing before shifting to alarmed when he saw her. He hurried over to her, kneeling next to her. "What happened?"

"Three men, one shot me," Danielle managed to answer, her voice raspy as she struggled to speak. She felt light-headed, like she couldn't form words.

"Alright, alright, stay with me, sugar," Merle commanded, seeing the way her eyes drifted around. The dark brown irises focused on him at his words, watching as he pressed his hands to her side, trying to put pressure on the wound.

Her eyes started to flutter, her grasp on consciousness slipping as the blood loss finally kicked in. The adrenaline from escaping the men and jumping across the rooftops was gone, replaced by exhaustion. It was a deep tiredness that she could feel in her bones and tried to drag her eyes closed.

"Dani, you gotta stay awake for me okay? Keep those pretty little eyes open for me, sugar? Dani!"

The last thing Danielle heard was Merle's voice, gruff but clearly worried. Her dark brown eyes closed, the last thing she saw being pale blue eyes, thinly veiled worry in their depths.

Huh. Maybe he does have a bit of a heart to him after all. Maybe I really can trust him.

With that sudden revelation, Danielle slipped into unconsciousness.