Chapter Six: Settling In

The sun slowly rose, unfurling like a flower. Pure scattered light; swirls of orange, yellow, and white, illuminated each crevice of her new room. Sparrows chirped their melodies in the high trees that surrounded her new home breaking the silence of a new day.

Carol slowly breathed in the cold air that leaked into her room. In and out. In and out. Letting the cool clean country air suffuse her, felt like it would never get tiring.

She felt the warm rays of sunlight dance across her closed eyelids and sighed. Her bed hugged her in its warm embrace and, for now, it felt too cozy to leave. These were the kinds of moments that she loved. The little moments that she could never enjoy when she was just trying to survive from day to day back in her last life.

Prying open her eyes, she blinked against the splotches of light that blinded her for a moment. Scrubbing her eyes, letting the last vestiges of sleep fall away, she yawned before stretching out. Pops and cracks ran up her back, causing a satisfied moan to escape past her parted lips. Letting her head loll to the side, she squinted at the the alarm clock that sat on her nightstand. It's bright blue numbers blinked at her. 6 AM.

Well damn. This wasn't exactly the time I wanted to wake up. Oh well. At least this means I have more time to do what I need to do.

Pulling herself up into a sitting position, she blinked and hummed. Her blankets slipped down, pooling around her waist. She shivered as the cool air tickled her exposed neck. This just reinforced the fact that going to sleep in flannel pajamas had been a good choice.

She cracked her neck, relishing the popping sensation. Carol was wholly unconcerned about her rumpled mop of hair, or how unpolished she looked right now. It was one of the things that the old Carol would've bemoaned. Sure, she liked looking pretty, just as much as the next girl, but why should she care right now?

Glaring down at the hardwood floor below her, she pried herself away from the warm confines of her bed. The cold floor made her flinch as she stood up. It was as though pinpricks of ice had gripped at her previously warm feet. Hugging her arms closer to her body, she grumbled to herself under her breath, "I need to charm the goddamn floors. Jesus, it's cold."

Shuffling about her bedroom, she finally found some house slippers and a housecoat. With a happy hum of triumph, Carol slipped on her housecoat and slippers. Now feeling a new source of warmth, softened her nerves as she exited her room to check up on her baby and her house guest.

Tiptoeing down the cold hallway, Carol noted that she should've probably left the heat on throughout the house and not just in the guest room and her daughter's room. A little magic would probably do away with the problem without eating away at any electricity or propane. She inwardly noted that down onto her mental to-do list.

Silently slipping into Sophia's room, she peered down at her snoozing daughter with a soft smile. She looked so cute and sweet. Too adorable to wake up right now. Exiting just as stealthily as she came in, she walked over to the guest room.

Carol chewed on the bottom of her lip, her nerves felt strained as her heart thudded in her ears. Clenching her fist and relaxing it a couple times, she contemplated knocking on the door. Before she could gather up her courage to knock, the guest bedroom door quietly swung open.

Daryl paused and shot her a curious look. His hair was wet. The faint smell of Irish Spring soap wafted off of him. He still wore his clothes from last night, but that was to be expected. He didn't really take a suitcase up with him last night. She idly wondered if he needed some basic necessities.

He shifted his weight from one foot to the next, "Mornin' Carol."

A hot flush painted her cheeks as she coughed into her hand, "Good morning, Daryl. Coffee?"

His eyes twinkled at the mention of coffee, nodding he gestured to the hallway, "Thank you. After you."

Carol robotically nodded and gathered up her embarrassment as she steadily strode down the hallway, down the stairs towards the kitchen. Daryl trailed behind her, a lopsided grin grew on his face. He found it cute at how awkward she was being right now. No one really got flustered like this because of him. It was a nice feeling.

Moving up to match her pace, Daryl matched her footsteps. He rose a brow, a curious look flickered onto his face, "You up this early all the time?"

She blinked rapidly before shaking her head. A sheepish grin tugged at her lip, "Oh! Yes and no. Sophia used to always wake up at 4 am for a couple months there. Plus, I'm used to waking up earlier in the morning. My daddy used to have me help work at his butcher's shop before... Well, before when he and my momma were alive, and I hadn't gotten myself in some trouble. How about you?"

Carol flushed as she finished off rambling. It felt as though she'd said all that in one breath, but Daryl seemed to understand her. He also didn't seem to mind it too much when she did start rambling. It was definitely more proof that she'd made the right choice in hiring him.

Daryl's eyes crinkled, "Yeah. 'M used to it. Hunting's better when there's first light out. Even in the winter. There's ice fisihin', sometimes rabbits, and deer now and again. If I'm lucky that is."

By now they'd made it down to the kitchen, but their conversation continued to flow between them. Carol placed in a filter, some ground coffee, and flicked on the coffee maker. It gurgled and cachunked to life filling the silence around them.

She pursed her lips in thought before tilting her head, "Have you always hunted? Milk and sugar?"

She glanced at the pantry and fridge. There was definitely milk and sugar in the house. Oh, she was definitely glad she'd gone grocery shopping before hiring him.

He cleared his throat, before giving her a short nod, "Yup. Dixon tradition. One of the few good uns. Just sugar, please. You?"

Absently nodding she grabbed the milk and sugar before returning back to the coffee maker. Gently placing everything onto a nearby tray she ambled back over to him, "Mhmm. Here you are. Careful, it's still piping hot." She slid over a hot mug along with a spoon and the sugar jar.

Absentmindedly stirring milk and sugar into her coffee, Carol continued, "While I was still little my daddy started taking me hunting. About around when I was around 8. It was a tradition between me and him. Stopped recently, but I'm planning on remedying that. You mentioned hunting in the winter. Do you think you could show me sometime during this winter season?"

Daryl had a thoughtful look on his face before blowing into his mug. He stirred in a good couple dollops of sugar before he took a tentative sip. A satisfied hum reverberated in his chest, "Good coffee. Thanks. Ehh... I could, but... S'not something you can really do with a little one in tow. Guns spook young uns."

She furrowed her forehead as she raised a brow at that thought, "Oh, I don't have to use a gun. I have some cross bows and plenty of arrows. Don't know how to use them, mind you. I just really need to get back into the swing of hunting." Carol shrugged and let out a sheepish chortle. Better to know how to hunt and forage in case... Well, just in case.

He gave her a considering look before slowly nodding, "Huh. Well, if yah'r so insistent... Sure. Speakin' of teaching. Whatcha want me to do around here?" Taking another gulp of his cooling coffee, Daryl took another cursory look around him. The farmhouse didn't really look like it needed work in or out on the property. Appearances could be deceiving though.

Finishing off the last gulp of coffee in her mug, a bright grin spread across her face, "That's a very good question. Well, I was thinking-"

A miserable cry sounded out through the kitchen. The baby monitor on the counter flashed red. She bit her lower lip and scratched at the back of her neck, "Oh! That's Sophia. I'm sorry, I'll be right back."

He shook his head. A look of understanding softened his eyes, "Nah, don't worry 'bout it none. You go on. Yah'r girl needs you." He didn't ever want to get in the way of a mother and her child. Daryl'd never want to be anything like his old man. Never.

She shot him a beaming grin before jetting off towards her crying daughter. Carol hurried up through her house towards the sounds of her daughter's wailing cries. Finding her little girl sitting up and scrubbing her eyes as tears streamed down her chubby cheeks, pinched her heart in half. Shushing her daughter, Carol picked her up and cuddled her into her chest. Cooing into her curling hair, she murmured sweet reassurances as she slowly walked back to the kitchen.

Sophia's cries dwindled down into whines as she pressed her face into her mother's chest. Hiccups escaped her now and again, but she didn't care. Her mother's scent surrounded her, and her dreams faded away from behind her eyes. She blinked her big blue eyes up at her, happy that the promise of food would probably be coming soon. After all, her mother always made sure to feed her, unlike the angry man in her hazy memories.

Bouncing her baby in her arms, she shot him a curious look, "So... Hey. You ever been around kids?" Sure, he was great around her, but she didn't exactly know how he'd be around her baby girl. She wasn't even too sure how'd Sophia would react to another male. The only other male she'd had contact with was someone who abused her. Carol inwardly flinched at that thought.

Daryl finished off his drink and gathered her empty cup with his. Gently placing them into the empty sink, he pursed his lips in thought, "No, not really. Not even when I was a kid. Them folks around my town, didn't want their kids associatin' with 'no good' Dixons." Shame danced on his face before a neutral expression shaded his thoughts.

Carol bit her inner cheek and snorted as she walked over to stand by him, "Well, they were obviously wrong. This is Sophia, my daughter. Sweetie, this is Daryl. He'll be helping us settle into our new lives." She turned her baby towards him, and Sophia peeked up her darling blue eyes at him. She shot him a half gummy smile, letting her head turn slightly on her mother's chest to get a better look at this new person. A couple beats of silence passed between all of them before she started making grabbing motions at him.

An uncomfortable and cautions look spread across his face as he muttered, "Uh. Why's she doin' that?"

She glanced down at her wriggling daughter, "Ya know, I'm not sure. I kind of thought that she would be skittish around other people. Mind you, other people were just her no good sperm donor. He was piece of work. This little lady knew it too. And the people in town didn't really spend more than a minute near her to make an impression, really. Sweet girl, what do you want?"

Sophia whined at her mother and made the grabbing motions towards Daryl even harder. Her wiggles were making it hard for her mother to hold her securely.

Concern replaced the caution on his face, Daryl stared at the baby trying to grab at him, "Huh. I think I know what you might mean. Too well. Umm... Do yah want a hand?"

Blowing away a stray hair that had gotten into her face, she let out a deep irritated sigh. She didn't know why her daughter was acting this way, but it wasn't something that she was currently enjoying, "Oh, ahh. Sure. If you want. She can hold her head up on her own, so you just have to hold her kind of like this."

Letting her daughter fall into his open arms, Sophia wiggled her tiny tush and made herself comfortable in Daryl's arms. She let her little head fall onto his shoulder as she clutched at him, her adorable little baby hands fisting his shirt.

A bemused look flitted onto his face, his eyes softened, "She's huggin' me." Nothing this tiny and innocent had ever immediately hugged and trusted like this. His heart started to swell for these new people. Sure he'd only known them for less than 24 hours, but they'd been nicer than 90% of the people that he'd had the unfortunate chance of meeting throughout his life. Was it because Merle wasn't here? Maybe. Was it just luck being on his side this time? Also a distinct possibility. In either case, a soft smile pulled up his lips.

Carol grin so wide her dimples pinched her cheeks, "Yeah. Yeah she is." She inwardly did a little happy jig. It was a good sign that her daughter liked this man as well. Did she have a good feeling about him too?

Moving his weight from one foot to the next he murmured, "Closest thing I've ever held like this were pups." Flashes of big brown puppy eyes streamed behind his eyes before fading away.

She tilted her head and did the best to imprint the two of them into her head before humming, "Did they like you just as much as my little girl?" Being liked by animals and small children was a sign of a good person, right?

He nodded and gently bounced Sophia in his arms, "Yeah. After a little while. Had to coax em', but they warmed right up ta me. A'fore my pa got to em anyways." Their drowning whines haunted him sometimes when he thought about getting close to people. They didn't take to his pa, and he made it so that they didn't take to anyone. That memory made him cautions to become close to anyone else, person or animal.

Sophia nuzzled this new man and gnawed at him with her gums and two sprouting teeth. Drool started coating his shoulder, but neither adult seemed to be aware of what she was doing right now.

Carol leaned against the kitchen counter, a curious grin lifted her lips, "Were you always an odd jobs guy?

Daryl blinked repeated for a moment, slightly caught off guard at her change in topic. A deep hum reverberated through his chest before he replied, "Had to be. Only really graduated high school and then Merle came back for me. We kept bouncin' around so much that I didn't really have the chance to do somethin' about it. Plus, more people know about Dixons then I would want. Like a black shadow clingin' to me. Makes it hard for steady work."

She shot him a friendly wink, as a chortle escaped her before she could help it, "Well, consider this your big break. And, if you did want to learn something for the future... I wouldn't be adverse to you doing what you need to do."

He raised a brow, his throat suddenly felt thick, "Wow. That's mighty kind of you, Carol. I don't think I could do that though. I just met yah. And yeah, yer girl does have a seem to have taken a shine to me, but that don't make takin' advantage of yer kindness any better."

His accent came out more when he was anxious, and he was well aware of it. This sort of kindness made Daryl wait for some other shoe to drop. Life was never this kind to him. How'd he managed to get with people this kind, was beyond him.

A teasing grin wound it's way onto Carol's face as she wiggled her brows, "So you do have an inkling."

The drool had finally soaked his shoulder through. Blinking repeatedly, he glanced down at him and stared at Sophia, "She's gnawing on me." It didn't hurt, but it was surprising.

An embarrassed smile crossed her face as she gently and hurriedly took her daughter back into her arms, "Oh, I'm sorry. Here. I can get her some food. There you are, sweet girl. You wanna sit on the couch before I make us some breakfast? I want to get her settled and happy before I have to putt about."

With the red flush slowly ebbing away from her face, Carol settled her daughter into her arms while she grabbed a pre-made bottle from the fridge. Falling into remembered motions, she flitted about her new kitchen heating up the bottle cradling her daughter in one hand.

He grunted and motioned for her to go ahead of him with a gesture of his head. Daryl didn't mind not being the center of attention. It didn't really sit well with him in any case. Being the center of attention usually meant danger anyways.

As Sophia greedily drunk down her milk, Carol glanced at Daryl's thoughtful expression with a curious glint, "Sooo?"

His attention verred back at her, his throat suddenly dry for some reason. Shaking off the strange sensation, he coughed and raised a brow, "So, what?"

Smiling softly at him, Carol tilted her head, "If you had the opportunity to learn some sort of skill you didn't already have, what would it be?"

He bit the inside of his cheek, "Ehh..." That wasn't something he really shared with anyone.

Her grin widened, as her eyes danced, "I promise that I won't think none of it. Tell you what. I'll expose my secret ambitions when I was little girl, if it'll help. I used to be want to be a ballerina as a little girl. Can't now, but a girl can dream." She didn't really know what this previous body's owner dreamed of when she was little, but she'd always wanted to be a dancer in her last life. It never panned out. She didn't think it would really pan out in this life either, if she was being honest with herself.

Daryl smirked, giving her body a once over. Inwardly, he chuckled. He didn't really think she looked much like a ballerina dancer. With a huff and a shrug of his shoulders, he gave her a bone, "Huh. Didn't think yah were the type to want to dance those fancy things."

Letting Sophia finish off her bottle, Carol gently turned her daughter in her arms so she was situated stomach facing her chest over her shoulder. Bouncing from one foot to the other, she pursed her lips in thought, "Yeah, I'm too...much of many things now. Plus, I figure that having a kid would make it harder. Anyways, enough about me."

He let out an exasperated laugh, she really wouldn't quit it with this line of questioning, "You sure are persistent. Fine. After bouncing around and not really findin' steady work...Well, I'd want to be something that I could always do. No matter where life takes me, yah know. Like maybe a journeyman of some sort. I hear places always need iron workers. Maybe an electrician or a plumber. People love their lights and love takin' shits indoors. I am also pretty good with cars. Wouldn't mind too much with the thought of becoming some sort of mechanic."

Carol hummed long in the back of her throat before, raising a brow, "I thought you might want to do something with hunting." He certainly had the silent gait of a person that was very used to hunting. Knowing that he wanted something stable and useful made him look even better in her eyes. She had an inkling he'd certainly be more reliable than Ed, at the very least.

He chortled and combed a hand through his hair, "Nah. Mixing work with somethin' you love don't work out." He'd never done that personally, but he'd seen Merle try to mix it enough times to just not want any of those problems.

Sophia let out a loud baby burp that cause both adults to look at her with a bemused expression. Sophia didn't really care though as she snuggled into her mother's shoulder. Both Carol and Daryl looked up at the same time, catching each other's eyes, making an amused smile pull at their lips. Babies were funny sometimes.

Clearing her throat, she gently rubbed Sophia's back, "Well this one is done. Would you like some breakfast?" Her stomach gurgled at the mere mention of food. She inwardly cringed and hoped that he hadn't heard that.

He rose a brow, a smirk inching up his face, "Umm... Sure. Anything I can do to help?" He totally heard her stomach grumble. It wasn't like he wasn't hungry either, but he'd gotten used to those sorts of pains and didn't mind it too much.

With a pep in her step, Carol hurried towards the living room, calling out over her shoulder, "Certainly! Let me just put Sophia down in tah her play pen. What kind of eggs do you like?" She settled her daughter down into a nearby play pen filled with soft toys. Not soon after being put down, Sophia crawl wiggled away, giggling all the while.

As she came back into the kitchen, Daryl hummed out his answer, "Sunny side up."

She hurried about the kitchen and pulled out eggs, bacon, frozen hash browns, fruits, vegetables, and frozen bread in a large basket, "Can you pop these into a bowl over there?" Carol inwardly noted that she needed to also charm the pantry and the fridge, definitely when no one was looking.

Nodding, he helped her place the bread into a nearby pyrex bowl, "Sure. Yer girl sure likes her play pen." Daryl peered over at Sophia giggling and rolling around her playpen. He'd never seen such a happy baby like that. Well, not from his neighborhood, and definitely not from anyone in his childhood.

Carol threw a grin over her shoulder at him, "I know, right? It's a life saver. Alrighty. I just need to fry up these eggs and the bacon. Please pop the bread and hash browns into the oven, so they can be ready in a bit." Picking up a large frying pan with a flourish, she laid down large slabs of bacon before cracking open a couple eggs.

Following her instructions without a question, Daryl did what he could to help. It felt nice being asked to help like this without someone expecting him to screw up. Being actually needed and being thought of as competent enough to do so... This was a new experience that he really liked.

The eggs and bacon sizzled and sputtered on her large frying pan. The bread and hash browns baked away in the oven, their warm hearty scents flowed throughout the house.

His mouth watered as he inhaled the scents of the spread Carol was in the process of making.

An enormous platter of sunny side up eggs, fried ham, piles of hash brown potatoes were soon served up. A tureen of fresh fruit and veggies sat in ice to keep them chilled. A warm basket of bread was set before Daryl. One big enough that it would've kept his family going for a week back when he was little. An elegant pitcher of orange juice sat near him.

Seeing this amount of food in front of him made tears blur at the corners of his eyes. Sniffing slightly and blinking away feelings he didn't want to acknowledge, Daryl inhaled the scents before him. Taking a piece of warm bread from the basket, he served himself a couple slabs of shinning crisp bacon, along with some eggs and fruit. He felt no need for pretentious manners and ripped a chunk off with his teeth. His eyes lit up as the taste hit his tongue, edging him into wolfing down his meal.

Daryl hadn't eaten this well in a row, in years. Living a nomadic life with Merle, wasn't exactly a good way to ensure a person had 3 meals a day, least of all consistently.

Carol shot him a bright grin, as he wolfed down his food. She brought the fresh, warm bread to her nose, inhaling deeply. It smelled rich and slightly sweet, promising a delightful taste. Picking up a spoon, she slid on copious amounts of thick, oily slabs of bacon onto her thick slice of bread. Grease coated her fingers. She served herself some eggs and spooned out the gooey egg yolks. Carol slathered the savory runny mixture onto the spongy toasted white bread.

She chomped off a chunk, stuffing an overly large piece into her mouth. It was soft and warm. The bacon broke over her tongue, perfectly crisp, perfectly salty. The flavor exploded in her mouth, in all the right ways. It reminded her of the breakfasts she used to have in her last life before the world went to shit. Maybe she'd have more breakfasts like this. The pleasant smoothness of the egg yolk blended perfectly with the salty taste of the bacon. She popped a cherry tomato in her mouth after swallowing her mouthful, savoring the cool sweet flavor in her mouth.

A thick yellow egg yolk dripped down his hand, licking up the excess liquid, Daryl darted his eyes up at Carol and murmured, "Thanks for the food. S'good."

Carol's eyes sparkled as she sliced into another piece of bacon, "You're very welcome. I'm glad that you liked it." It was nice cooking for someone else again. She hadn't done that in years, and she was glad that her cooking skills hadn't gotten too rusty.

As they kept munching down their delectable breakfast, the only sounds that could be heard were the scraping of cutlery against porcelain and the sound of Sophia's laughter now and again. It turned out to be the best breakfast Carol and Daryl had recently experienced so far. They didn't know that it would become just one of many of their many happy moments together.

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AN: Thank you to everyone that followed, favorited, read and reviewed this story still especially since the updates aren't as consistent as I'd like them to be. A triple thank you to those that reviewed. You guys are beyond amazing.

Kikari no segaiu: I'm so glad that you liked the previous chapter. I hope that you like this one too. Thank you! I'm not sure when updates will become as regular as I want them to be, but I'm glad that you don't mind that I'm taking forever between chapters.

owlzilla: I'm happy you're enjoying the story so far. Don't be too bummed out. Sure, she wants to use magic less, much like Samantha from bewitched, but she probably won't be able to keep to that promise. It's just way too tantalizing to use magic, no matter how much she wants to conserve her energy. We'll get a peek into that and why that might not be such a good idea in the next chapter.

He's definitely going to be a big help in getting the farm up and running especially since it is quite a large plot of land. And in turn they're going to help him soften his edges, by just being themselves and sincerely kind, which isn't something that he's used to, unfortunately.

In regards as to the enchanted wall, she'll be checking on that in the next chapter. She did make it quite a bit taller, thicker, and made it so that it affected the entire wall surrounding her property.

I'm glad that you're liking the layout and extra tidbits to their new home. That'll definitely be coming up later on in the story. I love the idea of her having a water filtration system along with chickens. Both are definitely going to become helpful in the future.

That is so true! Nothing is more awesome than someone prepared for the worst before it's already too late.

Luthien Faye: Thank you so much! I'm glad you really liked the last chapter. I was nervous about his introduction not quite fitting well enough, or their that their interactions wouldn't be quite right. I hoped you liked this chapter and their interactions thus far.

You're very welcome, and I'm sorry this update took forever.

celia azul: Yeah, I'm really fond of what she did with Ed too.

Evangleline: I'm glad that you really like my stories. I hope that I can keep writing up stories that you like.

Futago no Akuma Shimai: I'm so happy that you love this! I hope that you liked this chapter too.

Guest A: I'm sorry that this update took forever, it was both a really bad bout of writer's block in combination with life and depression that made it really hard to write. Which is kind of sad, because I normally love writing. Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying my other stories too.

Guest B: I hope you liked this story. I'm sorry it took so long.