A/N: Thanks for the support again! Enjoy!

"C'mon, Girl, we ain't got all day," Daryl called out, giving Beth a cross glance over his shoulder as he climbed down into the boat.

She was unimpressed by his irritation as she strode down the dock. In fact, she smiled down at him as she reached the boat. Daryl shifted to the seat at the rear to control the motor he had gotten working earlier that morning. He looked up at her as she stood there smiling. Her wispy blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail, set low on head and draping over a shoulder. The sun was rising higher in the sky and was beaming light from behind her, giving her an angelic glow look to her. He looked away quickly, not offering a hand as he should have as she climbed into the boat. He was worried, looking too long might blind him, like looking at the sun. Daryl had thought his trek into the woods a week ago had solved his problem but over the past couple of days it was creeping up on him again.

When their blow out and aftermath were done, they had spent the next couple of days working closely together to secure more of the surrounding area. They stringed more empty cans, glass and other metal pieces into chimes for an early sound notification system. Daryl was working on cutting down several saplings, creating a sort of fencing in the crooks and breaks of the other trees. It wasn't perfect but it would help to keep a walker or two out if they happened to wander by. Luckily for them, in the past seven days at the cabin, they had only one rotting corpse find them. While working in the brisk afternoon yesterday, a decaying figure stumbled out of the woodland, brought close by the sound of the chopping axe undoubtedly. It was so far gone, Daryl couldn't tell what it was anymore, a man or a woman, old or young. The figure of decaying flesh, which was sloughing off, had a mostly exposed skull bone, ribcage and missing its left arm. It was easily put down.

It troubled him, this lull in the chaos. He and Beth had spent the past months in such a heightened state, he was worried this break was dangerous for them. It was making them too relaxed and relaxed made him feel good. He felt better than he had in months, calmer and lighter, a pressure lifted from him two nights ago. This… this good feeling was dangerous for another reason and that reason was sitting at the bow of the boat, still smiling gently back at him.

Perplexed by her cheery disposition, he finally asked, "Why you got that goofy smile plastered all over your face?

That caused her smile to spread into a grin. "I love boat rides."

Daryl rolled his eyes. "We're not going boating. We're gonna use it to go search them three cabins across the lake." He turned and pulled the cord, starting the engine easily. He raised his voice slightly to be heard over the motor. " 'Sides, it's too damn cold out to enjoy this." He started them forward at a slow but steady pace. The lake was not large but the chilly wind was causing a small chop on the pristine waters. They could easily see the three other cabins spread out across the lake. They were heading for the furthest one first, the largest one was two stories with a giant deck and huge open windows for views of the lake. Daryl was a little concerned about the noise from the motor but the boat was much quieter than his bike had been. Plus, he decided it would at least draw out any walkers that might be close by so they would know what was in the area.

Beth just went on smiling, not a goofy grin anymore but a simple and calm one. She switched her gaze out over the water, brushing her blonde hair from her face from time to time, as they crossed the lake. Her sapphire eyes sparkled as she took in the beauty of nature. Daryl tried his best not to look at her but she was there, in front of him. The coat she had on was a bit too large for her, making her small frame seem even more diminished. Her cheeks were turning a rosy pink from the frosty wind nipping at them.

As he turned the boat into the wind more, aiming for a more direct approach of the large cabin, the boat gave a small bounce against the choppy waves of the lake. "Hey," he nodded, jutting his chin forward. "Move up further in the bow. It'll help balance the ride out. Or at least try since you're nothin' but a wisp of a thing."

Keeping her smile, she maneuvered to the next seat carefully. "Thought we discussed this already? I'm not so tiny that you couldn't carry me for very long," she teased, settling into the bench seat.

Daryl scoffed. "Carried you far enough, didna I?"

Her smile saddened. "Yes… yes, you did." She met his eyes and held his gaze for a moment.

Daryl looked away, over at their destination, after an uncomfortable moment locked with her eyes. He could tell she was still looking at him, not breaking to look at the scenery as she did before. It was unsettling him. Why was it so uncomfortable to be under her gaze? She was just a damn girl.

They reached the dock after a couple more minutes spent in silence. Daryl tied off the boat securely to the dock. He climbed out first, scanning the surround area. Nothing, as far as he could tell, had been drawn out of the forest by boat motor. He offered Beth a hand, helping her out of the boat.

Slowly, they walked the path up to the cabin. Daryl took point, his bow ready in his hands. Beth followed closely behind, their newly acquired hatchet ready in hers. The entry point was off an expansive deck, now littered heavily with leaves and twigs from the surrounding oaks, was a glass sliding door. Daryl rapped his knuckles loudly on the glass. Beth peered in by placing her hands on either side of her facing, trying to block out the bright winter sun. Moments passed and nothing came out of the darkness. Beth looked over at Daryl and shook her head.

He reached for the handle of the sliding glass door and gave it a tug. It was locked. He looked down at the base track and found no stop bar. He took a better grip on the handle and yanked with more forceful might. It amazed Daryl how easy these doors were to opened when only a singular latch secured them, a skill he had learned during the first winter on the road. The door jerked open. He waited a moment, allowing the sound of the opening to echo through the house. Better safe than sorry.

Beth and Daryl entered the large open room. There was no furniture, no couches, no tables, nothing. They made their way quietly to the next room, into what looked like a kitchen. There were cupboards but no appliances. Beth took a pamphlet off counter top and turned it over in her hand.

"Real estate brochure. Looks like this place was for sale," she told Daryl, showing the pamphlet to him. "It's probably completely empty."

He gave a nod of agreement but answered, "Probably. Should still search it, just in case. I'll take upstairs. You see if there is anything down here we can use."

She nodded back as he turn and bounded up the staircase. "Be careful," she called out after him.

Ten minutes later, they were exiting the cabin with packs as empty as when they had arrived.

As they reached the edge of the dock, Beth asked, squinting up from the sun to look at him, "You wanna just walk to the next cabin? It's not far along the shore here?"

"Sure," he agreed and started along the shore. The next cabin was about two hundred feet north of them, not too far to walk. Daryl kept his bow poised as the trekked the shore, parts littered with old logs. His readiness paid off when a small grey creature scurried along the edge of one such log, leaping for a nearby tree. His arrow flew true, pinning and killing the squirrel to a small oak tree.

He walked over to the tree, pulling the bolt from the animal. "Dinner," he said triumphantly. They had been out of fresh meat since the last of the stew was gone three days ago. He had been too busy to go hunting with the work they had been doing.

Beth sneered. "Squirrel. I don't know if I can go back to squirrel after that wonderful venison."

Daryl snorted as he secured the animal a loop he kept on his belt. "Meat is meat."

She shook her head. "No. There is a definite difference between rodent and a good steak." She walked past him and continued to the next cabin.

This one had a similar small rustic feel as the one they were currently residing in but look a bit bigger with probably two or three rooms compared to their one roomed cabin. Once again, Daryl rapped his knuckles loudly against the door and they waited. A minute passed with no sound of movement within. The curtains were pulled shut, not letting Beth look inside to confirm. Daryl tugged against the door handle, it jiggled unresponsively. The hard way it was. Daryl took a step back and punched his foot at the door as hard as possible. It shook and the frame splintered. He took aim again with his foot and let it fly, the door bursting open.

They entered slowly, more unsure than with the previous place. It was dark in there. As soon as the immediate area looked secured, Beth threw the curtains open of the closest window, sending rays of light into the cabin. There was a couch, a recliner and a couple of small tables filling the room. Close by seemed to the kitchen with an island, some appliances and cabinetry. It was obvious that this side of the lake had some better amenities. Ones that would matter if there was any way for them to get electricity or gas.

Daryl walked into the kitchen, reaching for the lace edge curtains covering the one window in there. As he did, a loud crash and hiss came from behind him. He whipped around, bracing his body against the sink counter as Beth screamed his name…