As Kate and Daryl began to make their way further from Sunny Side she started to process the events of the past few days. The two men that had picked her off the street as if she was no more than a can of beans. The way the scar faced man had leered at her and the stench of his rotten breath was etched on her brain. To those men she was just an object to snatch up and do with as they pleased. And now they were gone and she didn't feel any regret for what she had done.

Then Kate looked over to Daryl who caught her eye and gave a shy smile. He was a man who had heard a stranger cry for help and risked his own life. Just like that, like it was the most normal thing in the world. Her heart began to beat a little faster as she realised that this man had spent the last two days by her side with no other thought than protecting her. She watched the subtle movements his body made as he drove the truck. The way his hands glided over the wheel, and she found her breath caught in her throat.

Kate looked out the passenger side window to regain her composure. Stop acting ridiculous she told herself. She was not the type of woman to have this sort of reaction over a man but she had never met a man Daryl Dixon before. A good ol' fashioned southern boy.

Eventually the truck ran out of fuel and they had no option but to walk the rest of the way. Kate sat on the hood of the vehicle and watched Daryl as he studied the map they had found the day before. He ran his fingers through his hair and scrunched his face a little "reckon it's gonna be a 3 or 4 hour hike".

"Best get our walking boots on then Mr Dixon," she smiled as she hopped down from her seat. As she started to pull her belongings out of the car Daryl took the big holdall from her grasp and slung it on his shoulder easily. The perfect gentleman she thought admiringly.


"So where'd you get the sword?" Daryl asked as he watched Kate secure the weapon to her waist.

"It's from a museum collection… medieval weaponry," she spoke in her clipped English tones. "When the outbreaks started I had never even held a gun before let alone used one. But with this..." she gestured to the weapon that was trailing her leg "you just stick them with the pointy end". Daryl laughed at the joke but more at the fact that Miss Uppity was the kind of person who had looted her weaponry from a museum.

They began their hike back to the prison with success. As there were just two of them it was easy to avoid walkers by staying away from main roads and towns. They ate the snacks and drank the water from Kate's holdall and made excellent time. Conversation with the little brunette was easy and when they weren't talking the silence was comfortable. He stole glances when he could and offered his assistance readily when they had to do any sort of climbing. A leg up, a steady hand and every time they touched his heart beat a little faster. He felt like a parched man brought to water and he lapped it up.

Eventually they entered into a wooded area that Daryl recognised. He figured they were "just a 20 minute walk to the camp now". As he scanned the surroundings he crouched down to examine some fresh deer tracks. Coming home with a deer would sure make up for being missing for 2 nights. He was lost in thought when Kate crouched down alongside him and whispered "What is it? What are we hiding from?"

He shook his head and laughed while pointing to the ground. "Fancy doin' some huntin' city girl?" he grinned at her with a cocked eyebrow.

"I thought you'd seen something serious!" Kate scolded him playfully while punching his shoulder with a smile. Daryl stood up and held out his hand to the little brunette. She took it and he pulled her up forcefully, the momentum made her stumble a few steps into his chest. Kate tilted her head to look at him and they held each other's gaze for an indeterminate amount of time. Daryl gazed at her bright eyes and slightly parted pink lips and thought he might kiss her but then she broke the reverie and stepped away.

"If you want to hunt… lead on mountain man" she said teasing him as he reluctantly released her hand from his grasp but their eyes remained locked on each other. Kate bit her bottom lip seductively and he thought about pulling her into his arms and stealing the kiss that had almost been his. But he wavered and cleared his throat to distract himself. Dropping the bag he was carrying he advised "we er… hunt light… leave everythin' here but our weapons".

When they set off to track the deer Kate followed him from a distance, telling him she would let him 'do his thing'. He glanced back at her frequently and noticed she was always intently watching him, encouraging him with her shy smiles and the faintest trace of a blush. His bravado made Daryl feel like he needed to impress her, show her what a real southern man could do. He could tell by the way Kate spoke and acted that she was probably used to being surrounded by what his mama had called "book learnin'folks" but daryl was thinking of the "book learnin' men" and snorted. He was going to track and kill this deer no matter what it took.


Kate was waiting about 20 feet back from where Daryl was standing so that she wouldn't disturb him or scare the animal he was hunting. But more than anything she was trying to distance herself for the way Daryl was making her feel, she couldn't deny that she was attracted to him. There was a rugged magnetism that she was finding almost irresistible. But Kate was so used to putting up a wall to people she wasn't sure she could let it down, no matter how much Daryl fractured it.

She held her breath as Daryl readied his crossbow, she could tell he was lining up the shot. The bolt sprung from the weapon and she was in no doubt that it would hit its target. "Woo wee right 'tween the eyes," he called triumphantly and turned to her while running his fingers through his unruly hair and smirking gleefully. She let out her breath and began to approach him as he beckoned. "Very impressive Mr Dixon" she complimented.

"Weren't nothin' really" he rasped as he lit up his last cigarette. They made their way to where the deer was and he made sure that it was dead and removed the bolt. "You wait here an guard this from any geeks" he said gesturing with the bloody bolt. "I'll go back for the bags".

Kate sat on a rock near the animal and thought briefly of Bambi, that film had always made her cry. Especially since… She felt a tight knot in her stomach and from her pocket she pulled the leather wallet which she had rescued from her car. When they had left the bags to hunt Kate had made sure to bring the item with her and not risk losing it again.

She opened the folds and her eyes met the familiar photograph which always broke her heart a little bit. She traced her finger over the lovable face of the boy smiling back at her. I love you sweet boy she tried to blink back the tears that were threatening her eyes. Then like she always did she began to carefully look through and examine all six of the photos. As usual the ritual soothed and saddened her at the same time, reminding her of the old wound that would never heal. It had been three years since she had held her little boy in her arms, seen his happy face or heard him say I love you.

Kate reluctantly put the wallet back in her pocket so she could compose herself before Daryl returned. She wiped her nose and eyes with the back of her hand and fiddled with her hair trying to focus on anything but her inner turmoil. She heard a twig snap and looked over expecting to see the familiar redneck. But instead it was the half decayed face of a dead man.

The walker lunged for her and she scrambled backwards off the rock she was sitting on. As Kate fell down hard she felt a sharp stab of pain in her arm. She glanced briefly at it and noticed a large gash where it had cut on a sharp edge, the blood was trickling down her wrist but she had no time to tend to it.

Before she could stand up the walker was grabbing violently at her legs so she kicked wildly thrusting herself backwards while trying to draw her sword from her belt. There wasn't enough room to pull the weapon free as the walker attacked hungrily again. Kate grabbed its face in her hands and felt the mottled flesh tear as the creature forced its snapping jaws forward towards her torso. She pulled her knee up and used it to thrust the monster off her.

As it tumbled away she rolled the opposite direction and clambered to her feet. This time she unsheathed her sword quickly and easily and brought it down on the dead man's neck severing his head. Kate's heart was racing from the experience and she began to cradle her injured arm.


Daryl heard the sounds of a struggle where he had left Kate he started to race towards her urgently. When he reached the clearing where he had left the brunette his eyes flicked from a dead walker and her bleeding arm. She's been bit he concluded and he felt like he'd been winded. He held back the bile that was rising in his throat and ran over to her grabbing her by the shoulders. He looked into those big doe eyes and she gave a weary smile. "That a bite?" he managed

"No… I cut myself on a bloody rock" she laughed a little. Daryl felt the relief flood his body and he gently took hold of her slim arm and inspected the wound. "We got a couple doc's back at the prison that'll fix this up real nice" he smiled warmly as he took a stray strand of her hair between his fingers and then tucked it gently behind her ear.