Claire woke in the armchair alone, whipping around with wild eyes until she saw Daryl peaking out through the window. She struggled to calm her racing heart and steady her breathing as her eyes glided over his muscular frame. The pounding that replaced her lightheadedness suddenly forced last night into the forefront of her brain, and she flushed as her skin started tingling at thoughts of last night.
Good Lord, she had kissed him! And it was most certainly not a playful, innocent kiss, either. Her cheeks burned as heat coiled low in her belly, and the wave of desire to kiss him again was almost overwhelming. She huffed a little laugh at herself, freezing as Daryl's head shot back to look at her on the chair. She bit her lip, her cheeks somehow feeling even redder than before at his intense stare, and at the little half smile he flipped her she felt her stomach somersault.
"All clear?" She croaked, her voice a little bit husky and a little too breathless.
He turned towards her fully, smiling so wide his teeth shown in the morning light as he nodded. "Lookin' good, princess. Let's get a move on, still gotta find some food and make our way back to the group."
She nodded, carefully dropping her eyes as she tried to compose herself while she struggled out of the chair to stand and stretch. A smile, unbidden, spread over her lips as she watched the graceful hunter pack up their few belongings and sweep open the door, gesturing broadly with his arm for her to exit ahead of him. She straightened her top as she moved past him, and she couldn't help but brush her fingers over the hard ridges of his abdomen as she passed, delighting in his sharp intake of breath at her touch. As she smiled triumphantly and moved down the steps, a strong hand caught the wrist connected to her trailing fingertips, yanking her back with such a force she turned and stumbled up into his chest, body pressed flush against his as she looked up in wide-eyed surprise to meet his smirk.
"Ya forgot somethin', girl," he growled, eyes blazing as he looked down at her.
Her eyes clouded with confusion, but before she could question his mouth closed down on hers for gentle kiss. Her hands curled into his shirt on his chest as she kissed him back, tilting her head and opening her mouth to slip her tongue out to lick his lips. With a groan, Daryl opened to her gentle exploration, sliding his tongue along hers and holding her close before suddenly pulling back, delighting at her whimper of protest when his mouth left hers.
"If I knew that's all it took to get ya outta ya shell I woulda done that awhile ago," he taunted her, smirking at the blush on her cheeks while his eyes twinkled.
She huffed and pulled away, stomping down the steps and then gesturing to him to lead the way. He passed her with a knowing wink and a smirk, heading off into the forest without waiting for her to follow. When her little hand slipped into his a few yards later and she smiled softly ahead, it occurred to Daryl that he'd had it wrong before. He wasn't bringing her out of her shell as much as she was bringing him out of his. And for the life of him, he couldn't muster enough of his old self to mind.
The pair returned, much to the bewilderment of their group members, smiling and laughing as they hauled a large buck into camp, lost in a world only the two of them could see.
"Well, seems like that was quite the trip," Rick drawled, eyes twinkling as they met Michonne's across the campfire.
The sound of Claire's twinkling laughter drifted through the camp, and Daryl's rich baritone rumbling in response caused more than a few to rise eyebrows and bite back smiles at the pair as they skinned and prepped the deer for dinner.
"Glad your back," Rick called to Daryl as Claire left to go wash up with Maggie and Michonne.
Daryl grunted and nodded, butchering the rest of the deer for the spits.
"Took you longer than we thought it might. You run into any trouble?" Rick drawled, reaching to help with the rest of the meat.
Daryl shook his head, wiping his blade off in the grass after finishing the last of it. "Nothin' we couldn't handle," he mumbled, clapping Rick on the back as he turned to go wash up while the venison cooked on the fire.
"I can only imagine," Rick called behind him, smirking as he carried the spits to Carol, who was glowering at Daryl's back as he stalked off towards the stream they'd found.
"Somethin' wrong?" Rick asked her with a questioning gaze as the venison started to sizzle over the flames.
Carol shook her head, not quite meeting Rick's gaze. "Just wondering why the two of them are so close all of a sudden, laughing and carrying on while they'd scared the rest of us half to death with how long they were gone."
Daryl watched her shrewdly, tilting his head as she spook. "The way I see it? Not a lot out there worth smiling about anymore. So the fact that they found something, even if it's just in each other? Well. That's just short of a damn miracle. And after all this group, and Daryl, has been through?" Rick shook his head, squeezing his shoulder as he turned to find Carl and Judith. "He deserves it."
Bellies full in the morning from the rest of the buck, the group packed up and started to move on down the road. Claire hung back a ways when she caught Daryl's eye and he subtly nodded his head to the woods on their left. Slowing to match his pace, Claire scanned the forest. "What is it?" She whispered out of the side of her mouth.
He shrugged, face carefully blank as his ears pricked. "Might be nothin'. But it could be somethin'."
She nodded, hesitantly reaching to twine her fingers with his before pulling her hand back, unsure. He snorted, reaching out to grasp her hand firmly in his, pulling her up to his side. He leaned down until his nose brushed the top of her hair. "I'll tell Rick we're checkin' it out. When you see me step off into the forest, count to ten then follow behind."
She nodded, confused about the second part of his request as he strolled up to Rick and then headed off the road into the woods. Dutifully, she counted to ten, then broke off to the side, noting Carol's glare as she saw Claire follow into the bushes after Daryl.
As she made her way through the brush and into the trees, a strong hand clamped over her mouth, making her tense instantly as she bucked against the chest she was pulled up against. "Easy girl, just me," Daryl whispered softly into her ear, the fight leaving her in a rush as she collapsed back against his chest.
His chuckle sent shivers down his spine as he removed his hand, his breath tickling her cheek as he whispered once again. "What do ya hear?" He asked her, gesturing in front with his crossbow.
She strained her ears and eyes in the direction he pointed, quickly frustrated as nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Just as she was about to huff over her shoulder at him, she heard it. Someone else was walking through the forest, footsteps barely rustling the leaves as they followed their group at a distance, quiet as a mouse.
Claire paled and her body tensed as her eyes shot up to Daryl's, a sick feeling sinking into her stomach when she saw his jaw tense and his eyes sharpen. He held a finger to his lips as he slipped around her, gracefully leading them further into the woods as she crept behind him towards the source of the sound. His crossbow drawn, he glanced back and nodded as he saw her raise two of her knives, one ready in each tiny, strong fist.
Daryl crouched suddenly behind a large oak tree, hand reaching to pull her behind him as they peered around the side. A man who looked about as harmless as a schoolteacher was loading gallon jugs of water into the back of a small car, recently filled from the stream next to him by the looks of it. Scanning quickly, Daryl held his fingers up, making the number two. She nodded, hairs on the back of her neck rising as she strained to hear or see the second person Daryl had identified.
Suddenly, silent steps fell out of the forest less than two yards from their right, and Claire barely muffled a gasp into Daryl's shoulder as he strolled up to the schoolteacher.
"So, what do you think of them?" The schoolteacher asked as his companion sidled up to the side of the car.
The second man shrugged, crossing his arms. "They seem harmless enough, got a kid and a baby, mostly women. Two of them, man and a woman, broke off and headed this way, but I lost them somewhere." Although his voice was firm and kind, Claire couldn't help but tighten her fingers into Daryl's bicep.
The schoolteacher shrugged, slamming the trunk shut as the both walked around to climb into the car. "Think we should invite them?" He asked his companion.
He shook his head thoughtfully, swinging into the passenger seat. "Nah, not yet. We should watch a little longer first, make sure they're really safe."
Leaves crunched as the car rumbled and pulled off down the grass, winding out of sight until Daryl heard gravel crunching in the distance.
"What the hell was that about?" Claire whispered into his shoulder, holding his arm tight.
Daryl shook his head, slowly rising from the crouch and pulling her up behind him. "No idea, but I mean to find out," he answered grimly, face hard as they turned and made their way back to the others on the main road.