Chapter 10

My plan was to update after every episode but I wanted to get this part out without influence from the coming episode. I quoted some lines directly from The Walking Dead so of course I do not own those lines or any characters from the show, just my OC and plot.

Daryl watched Carol walk away, he sighed deeply, he knew he should be grateful his friends cared enough to watch out for him but he needed a break, maybe a long break. He reached out and touched Em's elbow briefly, needed her to ground him. Every time he spoke to the group he felt like he was spiraling into the past and he was trying to look to the future.

"What did Rick want?"

Em hesitated and it put him on edge. "What Em?"

"He knows about Merle and Beth."

"You told him!" he felt betrayed, betrayed by the one person he thought he could trust with his secret.

She shook her head violently back and forth, "No! No, I didn't…he..uh…well, he heard in the woods."

"What do you mean he heard, y'all can't hear them?" he was angry and confused.

"No, but, Daryl you were talking out loud. Your side of the conversation doesn't stay inside your head always. It's easy to see your hearing things."

Daryl's shoulders slumped. "So he thinks I'm crazy, doesn't trust me."

"Not exactly. He's worried, he said that he went through something similar and he's afraid this will affect how you see things and put you in danger."

"Put the group in danger, you mean."

"He didn't mention the group, he only mentioned you. I told him I would be there for you, I wouldn't let anything sneak up on you if I could help it. It made him feel better, to know I will help. Nothings really changed."

"Yeah, except now your my babysitter right!" he spat. "I thought you were helping but I'm getting worse."

"Daryl please, you just went through another trauma. Please give yourself a break and I'm NOT your babysitter, we both know I need you way more than you need me. This is just my way of giving back just a little of what you give me."

Daryl couldn't deal with this all right now, he threw down the tool he'd been using and began walking away, back into his beloved woods, muttering curses and pushing tree branches violently out of the way.

"Are you going to follow him?" Carol asked from behind her.

"Yes, but I think he needs a minute. He's leaving a hell of a track for me to follow, I'll find him." Em was surprised at how confident she was in her tracking abilities, Daryl was a damn good teacher.

"I can go if you want." The older woman offered.

"No, I'm the one he's upset at. I need to fix it."

The woman gave her a strange look.

"I'm usually the Daryl whisperer around here." She said with a small smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

Em laughed a little, "The Daryl whisperer," she looked off into the woods then shook her head. "Thank you but I'm the one that needs to do this, besides we've been doing OK up until now. A real friend doesn't hand off responsibility because the going gets tough." She looked back at Carol. "At least that's what my grandmother used to say."

Carol nodded and walked away. Em watched her go, she'd said she was the Daryl whisperer, but she hadn't seen Daryl say more than a couple of words to her. Had she been selfishly keeping her friend to herself? She blew out a big breath, one more thing Daryl and her needed to hash out, she began following Daryl's winding path through the woods.

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Daryl stomped his way through the forest making sure he hit every branch in his way, his arms were covered in scratches and cuts by the time he stopped to take a breath. "Done with yer hissy fit little brother?"

"Just shut up!" He yelled gripping his hair in his hands. "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"

"Is that what you really want Daryl?" Beth's voice was sad and low, almost a whisper. "We can go if you want."

Daryl let himself fall onto his butt, defeated. "No." he admitted. "I'm not ready." A soft sigh was Beth's only answer. "Better apologize to cutie pie then, or you're gonna have to talk to them other assholes Darylina, or worse you end up aaaalllllll alone. Ain't that what you're really afraid of, the last man standin', baby brother with no one to look out for, no one to tell him he's worth somethin'."

"Fuck you Merle, I ain't afraid of nothin'." He brought up his knee to stand when a motion caught his eye. Em came out from between the trees.

"Daryl, can we talk? Or are you still angry with me?"

"There you go Daryl, you gonna blame her for your own damn decision?" Merle's voice was taunting but Daryl could sense the seriousness behind it. Since when do you give a damn if a woman is happy or not Merle? "Death puts things into perspective bro." this time his voice was stone cold sober. "For once your brother and I agree." He closed his eyes, Beth's voice sounded so real, they both sounded so real, how could it be all in his head. He pushed himself off of the ground getting up slowly.

"I ain't mad. We can talk."