A/N- Few things to go over, bare with me.
Sorry the update is late.. I tend to nit pick and this chapter is kind of a biggie
for bethyl so I wanted to get it right.
Huge thank you to everyone who reviewed, my jaw was on the floor when I woke to see
all the love. :)) Im totally sorry for all the grammar mistaskes, I have no beta so all screw ups are down to me.
I check a gazillion times but I always miss something, not good when you remember 4oclock in the morning and
cant sleep until its fixed! ( lie and lye will forever haunt me ) :)) k.. on with the story..
Chapter 4-
Things with Rick have been strained, she has no clue why he's being so
distant and just downright grouchy. Maybe Carl's been on his case again about going
on a run, or maybe its the mystery of who's been feeding the walkers mice and opened the fence, maybe its because she nearly had her face
chewed off by one of them.
Whatever the reason, he's been taking it out on her.
When she was led back to the prison after the attack she was in shock, who knew dead corpses could be
so strong!? When the rotting thing was on top of her she couldn't breath it was so heavy, she could do nothing
but try and hold it off for as long as possible.
She thought she was going to die, she knew she would die eventually, it is inevitable when you're
as weak as she is, living in a world where the dead and the living want to kill you.
She was surprised when the searing pain of a bite never came,
even more surprised when Daryl manhandled her from the ground, looking
her over frantically.
Was Daryl Dixon worried about her?
Carol stood feet away looking worried, yet Daryl still clutched at her as though she might
suddenly disappear.
Then all too soon Rick pulled her from Daryls grasp and she felt bereft of his comforting presence,
shouldn't she feel as safe and comforted with Rick as she felt with Daryl?
She had some time in her cell to think before Rick came back, he immediately took her into his arm and
kissed her head lovingly.
"Judith is with Michonne so I wan' ye to rest and don' worry bout a thang, imma make sure that never happens again.
Rick whispers into her hair while rubbing circles on her back soothingly.
Beth lift her head from his chest, looking up at the serious expression on Ricks face.
"I do worry Rick, I almost died today because I wasn' strong enough to protect myself,
'm not Michonne, 'm not Maggie or Carol, their strong." She says, feeling her eyes brim with tears.
Taking a steady breath to control her emotions, she straightens her back and holds her head up high,
knowing what she'll say next needed to sound confident.
"But I wanna be, I need to be... so I wan' you to train me, teach me how to be strong Rick."
"Ye are strong, ye keep this prison together, that's your job, mine is to keep you safe and
that's wha' i'm gonna do." he says looking slightly annoyed."Ye don' need any training Beth, ye got safe walls inside the prison, ye got strong fences,
ye got me, I told ye what happened today won' happen again." he tells her, running his hands up to cup her face.
"Ye can' be there for me all the time! what if we have to leave the prison!? What if we get separated!?
I'll be alone and defenceless, I wont make it on my own Rick!" She yells, frustrated.
"That's a whole lotta what ifs Beth, stuff ye shouldn' worry bout, stuff that ain't gonna
happen, I'll always be there to protect you." he exclaims.
"Ye weren't there today." she says, immediately regretting it.
He drops his hands from her face, furrowing his brow at her.
"One time... one time i'm not there and you're gonna put it all on me!?
" 'm not!, I..." Beth was getting angry, why was he twisting things?
Rick cut her off, pointing a finger in her face " Yes ye are! you're sayin' I can' protect my prison,
can' protect you.. Judith.. Carl! you're sayin' I can' do my job right!" he yells, pacing the cell.
"I never said that, why are ye putting words in my mouth!?" she hollers, furious. " I need to know that
when you can' be there, I'll be able to protect myself, is that too much to ask!?"
Rick stopped pacing looking like she slapped him across the face.
"You know somethin' I don'? cause ye seem to know I won' be round much longer, ye gonna call it
quits on us or somethin'?" Rick looked expectantly at her.
"What!? Where is this coming from, of course 'm not callin' it quits, I love you! Why are
you being like this, you've been acting like a dick to me lately."
Ignoring her last remark, Rick walks past her to leave their cell.
"Fine.. ye wanna train, go 'head, but I won' be the one doin it." Rick says, leaving their cell.
What just happened? How did asking to be trained turn into such a big fight?
When Daryl agreed to talk to Rick she felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders,
she knew it was a long shot but she was desperate. If Rick sill didn't agree then maybe Daryl would
change his mind and train her against Ricks wishes. Another long shot.
The next day Rick sat next to her while she fed Judy in the cafeteria with his tail between his legs,
he apologises to her for his behaviour recently and tells her he talked to Daryl.
This was it.. make or break. Rick gave her a small smile before jumping into his explanation.
" You start tomorrow, muscle and stamina build up with Michonne two days a week,
two days hand to hand with Daryl and two days weapons training with me, you asked for it,
its gonna be tough Beth so you better be ready.
Daryl, you amazingly wonderful persuader of stubborn men, she mused to herself.
Beth was bouncing excitedly in her seat, throwing her arms around Rick, kissing all over his face.
"'M ready Rick, I swear I'll work so hard, thank ye for doin this." she says in between kisses.
" Does that mean 'm forgiven?" he laughs lightly at her.
"Yes.. but ye still have some makin up to do later." she whispers, waggling her brows suggestively.
Grabbing the back of her head, Rick brings her into a passionate kiss, "Oh.. I intend to make it up to ye
all...night...long, he mummers kissing up her neck, dragging the last few words out to make his point.
Beth giggles, playfully pushing him away.
" Go protect and serve officer, I gotta feed Judy the rest or she'll get fussy."
Standing to leave, Rick tips his imaginary hat at her and walks away calling over his shoulder
" T'morrow at dawn, first lessons with Daryl."
As Rick made his way out, Maggie and her daddy entered, hearing the end of Ricks comment
Maggie is throwing questions at her before she even reaches her table.
"What lessons with Daryl?" "Who's getting lessons with Daryl?"
" I am, Beth says happily. I'm gonna be trainin' with Mich, Daryl and Rick, I need to be able to
protect myself."
"Yeah.. I think that's a good idea" Maggie says, surprising her.
"Ye do?" Beth says, with a bewildered look on her face.
" Yeah I do.. after what happened the other day, I think you should be more prepared."
Hershel was nodding his head in agreement "I think you are already strong Bethy, but if
you think its best then I wont stand in your way." he finishes, reaching across the table to pat her hand.
"'M not physically strong daddy, I wanna be able to shoot like sasha, fight like Daryl and kill walkers
like Carol."
She thought back to when she was attacked with Carol, seeing Carol take out those walkers
like it was a stroll in the park made her envious.
Daryl was lucky to have such a strong, capable woman.
That just made her more envious, she couldn't understand why, or maybe she did and couldn't
admit it to herself.
"You will Bethy, you will." Hershel assures her, smiling proudly at her.
Three weeks later-
On her way to meet Daryl for her next gruelling throw down, Beth hears laughing from the tower she's passing.
Looking up, she sees Michonne smiling down at her.
She has never been in so much pain in her life, her body feels stiff, making her walk like a
plank across the yard.
" You feelin' those squats yet Greene!?" Michonne shouts, laughing from the tower above.
" I hate you!" Beth yells back, scowling not so seriously at the her.
"You love me, tell Dixon to take it easy this time!." Michonne hollers back.
Beth waved her off, like Daryl could ever 'take it easy' on her.
When Beth started training she was nervous to be so close to Daryl, three weeks
later and nothing has changed, its unnerving to say the least.
The first week he had left bruising around her wrists, legs, shoulders, nearly every part of her
body was peppered with multi coloured markings.
He was what she expected him to be, aggressive... and she liked it.
She liked seeing the marks he leaves on her creamy skin, and she definitely likes how her body aches after
their sparring matches, knowing it was his handy work, she couldn't seem to mind at all.
When she whined he would tell her to suck it up, not knowing that her whining was out of pleasure and not
pain. She secretly loved that he could hold both her wrists down with his one big hand, loved when he would pin her to the ground
with his hips and tell her to try and escape, which was the perfect opportunity for her to buck her own
hips up against his, creating a delicious friction, making her all sorts of hot.
Lost in her muddled mind, Beth doesn't hear or see Daryl come up behind her.
He uses one arm to grip around her neck in a choke hold while the other drapes across
her chest, holding her firmly against him.
"Snapped your neck Greene, now you're dead." he whispers into her ear.
"How does this count as training?" she sputters, struggling to breath.
"Told ye I'd teach ye how to be sneaky, lesson learned." he smiles against her ear, loosening his grip.
She turns red, not from being choked but from remembering her spying incident in the kitchen.
"This doesn't help anything, jus' gives me a soar neck." she muses.
Taking advantage of his slacking arms, Beth turns a fraction to jab her elbow sharply back into his gut, knocking the
air from his lungs, freeing herself in the process.
He takes a second to catch his breath, looking at her amused.
"It was more of a wha' not to do... don' walk with your head in the clouds, don' walk like ye got clogs on,
ye can' hear your attacker comin' if all your hearin' is your own damn shoes, and don' hum.. i know ye don' realise you're
doin' it sometimes but that's the biggest problem, gotta kick the habit."
"I was hummin'?" she enquires, walking backwards as he followes her.
"Mmhm... damn loud too." he jokes, looking her over as she nears the grassy area where they train.
She feels licks of heat where his eyes touch her body, she needs to stop this silly flirtatious game they
play before it goes too far she thinks sadly.
Shes interrupted from her thoughts when Daryl speaks in an almost excited voice.
"Todays lesson is called cat an mouse, you're the mouse, 'm the cat... now run." he says with a predatory look
in his eyes.
"What! Daryl no, 'm soar from the cardio Mich had me do yesterday, I can'..."
"Don' make this worse on yourself Greene," Daryl interrupted, "Name o' the game... you try escape, I try catch you."
He steps right up to her menacingly growling "Run... now!"
She was scared but also really excited, this was gonna be fun she thought.
Beth smirks mischievously at him before running off toward a secluded part of the prison, heart beating
out of her chest.
He's on her tail, she can hear his feet hit the pavement with every step he took, he is fast.
She feels his large hand land on her shoulder, trying to yank her back, she shakes him off ducking under
his arm.
All her time training with Mich and Daryl has made her stronger than she ever thought possible,
Daryl wasn' gettin' her that easy, not without a damn good fight.
As she starts off to run away again, she feels Daryls hand tug harshly at the back pocket of her shorts, trying
to drag her back,ripping the pocket clean off in the process.
She squeals with shock and excitement, smiling at how much fun she's having, but when she turns around her
smile instantly falls.
Daryl was kneeling on the ground, looking at something in his hand... it was the green gemstone. Shit.
Since finding the stone, Beth has kept it safely in her back pocket, taking it with her wherever she goes.
He looked up at her with a mixture of hurt and anger written on his face, he stands abruptly. She doesn't
know what to say.
"Tell me ye didn' have this all along." he asks, eerily calm.
She looks at him guiltily, she could never lie, was never any good at it.
Daryl starts to stalk towards her, getting right up in her face.
"Ye stood there when I asked Carol, when I lost my head over it, ye lied to my face
when I asked ye in the tower, like it was fuckin nuthn!" he was screaming, shaking with rage.
Beth was trembling, not scared that he would hurt her but scared that she would loose his friendship,
a friendship which has grown everyday since their first session.
"Daryl, 'm so sor..." she couldn't finish because Daryl was barrelling his way past her, heading towards
the fence with the gap.
No... he couldn't leave without talking to her first.
She was desperately running to catch up with him, tears rolling down her face.
"Daryl! please wait.. let me explain." she was yelling so he would hear her.
"Stay the fuck away from me Beth, ain't nuthn ye can say to fix this. " Daryl called over his shoulder
while yanking the cables free.
He stepped through and started closing them back up as Beth stepped up to the fence, clinging onto the wire mesh.
"Daryl don't leave it like this.. please jus' come back in and I'll explain... 'm sorry." she sobbed through the fence.
He looked at her with such hatred now that it broke her heart, before he turned to walk into the trees, disappearing from her view.
She clung to the fence calling after him "Daryl please don' go!, please don' go!."
Beth repeated those words over and over, slowing sinking to the ground, her cries died down to a whisper,
"Please don' leave me."
:(
