When they meet up with Glenn and Michonne, it was dawn. The pair was on the ground outside the car both exhausted. Rick shouted for Glenn who stood up and ran as fast as he could towards them but Rick tried to hold him back and keep him calm because they still had Merle, the man who tortured him and Maggie.

"What's he doing here, have you forgotten what he did to us?" Glenn shouted his face turning red with rage. He had his gun pointed up while Michonne had her sword out as well. Daryl and Rick jumped in front of Merle, Daryl facing Glenn's gun, Rick Michonne's sword.

"Hey, get that thing out of my face!" Daryl bellowed at Glenn.

"Ha, hey look like you gone native, my brotha." Merle laughed as he heard his brother almost growl at the Korean boy. That's when Daryl turned facing Merle he scrounged his face up and hissed.

"No more than you hangin' out with that psycho back there!" Merle lost the smile on his face.

"Oh, ye man he's a charmer I got to tell ye that, been putting the wood to your girlfriend Andrea big time baby." Merles not looking at Daryl anymore but to Rick who looks surprised that he's just mentioned Andrea. They thought she hadn't made it off the farm. It was most defiantly a day for waking the dead.

"Andrea's alive?" Glenn asks to Daryl not trusting a word that comes out of the older Dixon brothers' mouth.

"Ye right next to the Governor." Daryl confirms. He looks past Merle towards the trees scanning for walkers or Woodbury soldiers. Merle's still chatting on and on annoying everyone, until Rick knocks him out.


The group wouldn't let Merle go back to the prison, no matter what Daryl said they refused. He tried explaining, apologising and guilt tripping them. None of them worked so he was stuck with two options. Either dump Merle or dump the group. He had to choose his blood over his family. He had too. Grabbing his bag from the trunk, he headed into the woods where Merle was waiting. Rick was again tried to convince him to choose them over Merle but his mind was made up.

"So baby brotha, what's the plan, ain't sheriff friendly offering us his hospitality?" Merle chuckled to himself.

"Ya, not welcome after what ya did, Merle." Daryl glared at his brother and stomped on ahead.

The pair had made camp for the night just before dusk, when they heard the snapping of branches and groaning. Daryl grabbed his crossbow and headed towards the noise. Merle heard a thud and Daryl walking back to the camp.

"Just a geek." Daryl shrugged, Merle nodded. "I'll take first watch." Daryl said as he sat back down on a log wrapping his jacket round himself tighter to ward off the cold he felt. His fingers moved to the silver chain that was passed to him by their saviour in Woodbury, the girl he remembered with long dark hair and dresses to go with every day of the week. She was still as beautiful maybe even more so now with her shoulder length locks and her tight jeans. Daryl's hated that he'd not dragged her out of the hell hole that was Woodbury, like he hadn't dragged her away from her father, when he first found out about him beating her.

Daryl's watch went by peacefully not a walker or soldier in sight but he was ready for sleep so as soon as merle was awake. He drifted straight into sleep, when his head touched his backpack/pillow.


Daryl was woken by a knock on the door. He groggily got up of the sofa that he'd fallen asleep on the night before. Answering the door he was greeted by a sobbing girl on the other side of the door. Her hands cradled her ribs her dress dirty and blooded. Her voice was raspy when she spoke.

"I'm sor…sorry for waking you but…but I need a lift to the hospital." She struggled to breath. She tried to calm herself but it wasn't happening more tears streamed down her face as what little composer she had brock. She fell to the floor in a heap her legs giving out under her. Daryl picked her up then bringing her into the house, he shared with his brother. Siting her on the sofa he grabbed the shirt he'd pulled off the night before, then patted his jeans looking for his truck keys finding them in his right pocket he turned his attention back to the girl. Her face had turned the most unnatural shade of white he'd ever seen and he hurried to get her into the truck. She still couldn't stand and her breathing was worse. Picking her up bridle style her carried her to the truck opened the door and belted her into the passage seat. Before shutting the house door and hopping into the driver's seat, thankfully he hadn't drunk anything the night before. He pulled out of the drive when he saw the girl's father leaving for work. Why hadn't her father taken her? Daryl looked over to the girl then she'd sung down in the seat so her father couldn't see her. Was he the reason she was hurt and bloody? He'd find out soon enough when they got her to the hospital. She was rushed straight into surgery as soon as the nurses pulled her unconscious body onto a gurney. They asked Daryl every question under the sun at least three times. He even had to lie and say she was his girlfriend because he wouldn't be able to stay if he'd said she was just his neighbour. Then the police arrived grabbing Daryl they dragged him to the nearest conference room and integrated him for two hours straight but he knew nothing other than she'd turned up at his door this morning hurting, covered in blood and dirt ,eventually after the hours of false accusations. The girl was put in to a ward conscious and asking for him. She looked worse than before even though the crying had stopped which he was glad of he hated when girls cried. She already had a chair set up next to her with two officers standing next to it. She smiled at one of them, the kind of false one you give to be polite and they left, still eyeing Daryl as they brushed pasted him. He sat in the chair next to her. The swelling in her face had gone down but her breathing was still harsh and ragged.

"I'm sorry, Daryl I didn't know they'd think ya done it." She wouldn't meet his eye, so we went to put his hand on her chin to turn her head, but she flinched away from his touch a horrified look came to her face until she realised what he was trying to do. She looked ashamed then, a look he never wanted to see again.

"What, bastard did this ta ya, I'll kill him?" Daryl was itching to know and he would kill whoever laid their hands on her and caused her to be scared of him.

"Daryl, ya can't it... it was my par but ya can't hurt him, Daryl he don't mean it not really." She was getting upset again and Daryl was getting angrier.

"Your pars do this to ya and ya want him ta get away with it, are ya stupid girl?" Daryl's shouting now the whole hospital is watching him. So he leaves, storming out before he can think about it. Once outside the hospital he punches the closest wall taking comfort in the pain coursing through his hand. He feels his jean pockets and lets out a sigh as he realises he'd left his cigarettes at home. Grumbling he got into his truck and drove home, the girl was in capable hands he didn't need to be here.


The sun was starting to rise when Daryl finally stirred from his sleep. He felt worse than he had before going to sleep. Bad memories kept cycling in his head as he wet his parched lips.

"I see Princess Daryl's finally graced us with 'is presence, what had you so wound up ya nearly dislocated ya fingers?" Merle stood over him concern hidden somewhere in his eyes. Daryl realised then that his hand hurt like hell.

"Don't know whatcha talkin' 'bout man?" Daryl denied he didn't need Merle on his back.

"Ha, my baby brotha, 'ere was up to somethin' in his head last night, cookin' up a way to get that girly of ya's outa Woodbury, ain't gonna be easy, tell ya that now?" Merle smirked.

"What eva, man we're we heading?" Daryl had to change the topic he was already sick of his brother and he had only been awake two minutes. It was going to be a long day he knew it.


They'd been traveling up river for most of the day now, all the while arguing over whether the river was the yellow jacket creek or the slow arch creek when Daryl hear a sound. One he wasn't unused too the sound of a baby crying. Merle was convinced it was just two racoons getting it on but Daryl knew. As they reached a bridge, that's when they saw the walkers attacking a family. Daryl ran to help but Merle tried to get him to stop telling him they shouldn't waste their bullets on people they've never meet. Daryl ignores him and starts shooting his arrows at the walkers. Merle only fires his gun once and only because there was a walker creeping up on his brother. Once Daryl had put down most of them. Merle headed to the families car routing through it for anything useful. Daryl saw what his brother was doing and it disgusts him. What the hell is he doing, he wouldn't go scavenging in empty houses but a family's car was fine. Had Merle always been that way or had he changed? Daryl didn't know but when he realised he had his crossbow pointed on his own brothers back he knew he'd changed too. He wasn't just Merles loner little brother anymore he was a survivor with a family and no they weren't blood but they were a better family then he'd ever had. He never should have left the prison. Merle left the families car and let them drive away before he started his argument with Daryl.

"What the hell, ya just pointed that thing at ya own brother, is that whatcha do now, protect the useless, don't worry 'bout blood?" Merle shouted as he followed after Daryl back into the woods.

"I ain't lettin' a steal from 'em, they were scared!" Daryl shouted back. He had had enough so while walking away Merle grabbed his shirt and by the time, he felt the water soaking through his pants it was too late. The scars he'd hide from everyone were visible to the one person he never wanted to see them, his brother. "Ya, happy now?" Daryl felt ashamed as he tried to cover his back up.

"I...I didn't know, I swear." That's what Merle has to say, after everything Daryl had been through. He knew that their alcoholic for a father tortured his youngest son when his eldest left. Merle left him to that fate. A little boy didn't have the option of running away from his parents, his tormentors as the older boy did.

"You left Merle." Daryl carried on walking away.

"I had to, I'd have killed him otherwise… don't ya think I don't know where ya goin'. Headin' back to that prison and I can't go with ya I damn near killed that Chinese kid." Merle voice broke then as he realised he was out of options.

"He's Korean and I might be the one goin' but you're the one that's leavin' again." Daryl didn't care anymore he was heading back to the prison with or without Merle.