It's late and technically I missed a day...sorry. Hope you guys enjoy. There is some quality daddy/daughter time in this chapter on both fronts. Please review and let me know if you have any suggestions.

As usual...I don't own the Walking Dead...too bad though!

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Daryl's watch was uneventful. That was a good thing. Light was beginning to break against the horizon and it was still snowing. The whole area looked like a winter wonderland. It was truly beautiful. Snow had a way of making everything look fresh and pure. It hid a multitude of abominations that were truly going on in the world. He got up and headed back down into the main part of the house.

Everyone was still asleep so he went and added a few more logs to the fire and stoked the flames. It was much warmer in this part of the house and he checked on the baby to make sure she plenty warm. Just looking at her little figure tugged at Daryl's heart. He hated to admit it, but he felt like Hunter was his own daughter. It wasn't right to feel that way. The baby's daddy had died saving her and her mother, and he would never take that away from Hunter. Her father died a hero and she deserved to know that. Daryl figured he would never be able to compare to John and that he himself would just be a poor substitute.

Gus must have heard Daryl come back into the main part of the house. He woke up as Daryl had come in and added the wood to the fire. Gus was eager to get the supply run over with and get Anna back to Daryl. Daryl was a good man. Before the apocalypse he would have been skeptical of Anna being attached to someone like Daryl, but initial impressions went out the window when the world went to shit. Daryl was a good and noble man and Gus couldn't think of anyone else that he would want Anna to be with. Life had a funny way of changing people.

Anna finally woke and quickly got out of bed. She made a rushed breakfast of eggs and bacon cooked on the fire in a black iron skillet. She then fed Hunter and got dressed. She was sure to put on several layers of clothing to keep her warm in the menacing weather outside.

Daryl strapped her down with various weapons and Gus loaded up on some weapons as well. Neither one spent much time on lengthy good-byes. They all wanted to think that this would be a simple run and that they would be back early afternoon and able to eat dinner together later on. Focusing on the positive was the only way that either of them could tolerate this separation.

Daryl picked up Hunter and then headed to the SUV with Gus and Anna. He kissed Anna hard and passionately and then patted Gus on the back,

"Y'all gotta hurry back. If ya don't Hunter is gonna want me to play Barbies with her or something and Daryl Dixon don't do dolls."

They laughed at Daryl's attempt to lighten the tension. Separation in these times was a very anxious event and there was nothing any of them wanted more than to be back together.

Gus pulled Daryl to the side and whispered to him, "I got her. Don't you worry yourself OK?" He then handed Daryl a piece of paper that was actually a map of the area. The intended route that Gus was preparing to take was marked for Daryl just in case they didn't return in a timely manner.

"Hopefully you won't need this, but if we aren't back in eight hours then you might want to come look for us." It wasn't something that either wanted to think about, but it was a reality of what could possibly happen. Daryl nodded and then put the piece of paper in his pocket. He prayed that the piece of paper wouldn't be needed.

He went back inside and gathered up the baby as he lay down on the couch. He snuggled her up close to him and attempted to go to sleep. Unfortunately sleep wouldn't come as Daryl struggled with nervousness. He wished he could have at least gone along as an extra set of eyes, but that would mean that they would have to take Hunter, and if they were exposed to any danger, then Hunter's life would be put a risk, and that was not a chance that anyone would dare to take.

He lay there with her for about thirty minutes, and then she started to get fussy. He checked her over and discovered that she needed a diaper change. If anyone had said in the past that Daryl Dixon would be changing diapers, he would have laughed the loudest, but here he was babysitting a little girl and changing diapers. Merle and his father would have been relentless in their teasing because in their mind real men "don't do babies, that was women's work". True to form, Daryl's father never did anything to care for him or Merle and left them to raise themselves. They were often dirty, hungry, and left alone for days at a time. Daryl never wanted Hunter to feel those horrific feelings of neglect. He vowed to himself that he would not let it happen to her.

He figured in the world before he would have asked Anna to marry him. However, Marriage didn't seem to be a necessity these days. He knew that he was committed to her, but it would be nice to have some sort of ceremony where he could declare his love for her "in front of God and everybody" as Merle used to say. Daryl Dixon was becoming a hopeless romantic…who knew.

It took Anna and Gus about an hour to get to the town of Traphill. When they got there the town was completely untouched. Traphill normally boasted a population of around three hundred, but in the winter time the ski resorts would load up and the population could swell to over two thousand. Christmas was always magical, as the whole town would display an amazing light show. It was really an incredible sight to see. Anna had worked at one of the resorts as a maid when she was a teenager. It wasn't the most rewarding job, but she loved meeting people from other parts of the country and sharing stories about living in the mountains.

The first store they decided to hit was an overpriced Ski Shop. They made it in and out in about twenty minutes and managed to get plenty of winter clothes including baby items and a few hoodies that Anna picked up for Daryl. She couldn't imagine him wearing the colorful preppy sweaters that were available for the men. However, she did pick a few up for her father. Gus had absolutely no sense of style to him at all. Ava picked out his clothes every morning before he got dressed. The few times that Gus picked out his own clothes were nothing short of a fashion disaster.

They spent another hour going through the stores. They managed to pick up food, additional baby supplies, camping supplies, and a small jackpot of fifteen propane canisters. It was enough propane that it could last at least an additional two weeks if they were smart with managing its use.

Anna was amazed that they had not come across a single walker. She assumed that because the virus broke out in the summer time that most people were spending vacations at the beach and Disney World and not in the mountains at a Ski resort. It still seemed odd that there weren't any residents wandering around as well. Maybe they all evacuated when things started to get bad and people headed for the hills. Or maybe they all got caught up in a herd like the ones that were wandering throughout Georgia. She didn't know, but she wasn't complaining either.

Once they had everything loaded in as tightly as possible in the SUV they got ready to head back home. Anna couldn't wait to hold little Hunter and lay down with Daryl. Gus would take watch tonight and that would allow them some precious alone time once Hunter was settled down and asleep.

Anna began talking to her father as they headed home, "I will be so glad to get home to see Daryl and Hunter. I really miss being with them. Poor Daryl must be going crazy about now, but he never complains."

"I really like Daryl. He has helped us out so much since he has been here. He loves you; I can see it. I don't think there is anything he wouldn't do for you."

"I know daddy, I am really lucky to have him. He is going to be the only father that Hunter will ever know. He has protected us and put his own life at risk doing so. I don't know what I can do to repay him, but I want him to know the happiness that I always have known." She said.

Gus replied, "Yeah, I can tell he hasn't had the best upbringing. I don't know the details, but I would guess he never received much love or support, and he probably took a lot of abuse. It's a shame too, because I can tell he has a huge heart. Anyone who suffered the things that I suspect he suffered that still has the ability to care for others like he does has to have a huge heart. Lesser things have turned men into uncaring evil monsters."

"I know daddy, he can be a bit rough around the edges, but there is a tenderness to him that is absolutely amazing. I am in love him." Anna said.

"You know baby girl, you mentioned about him being a daddy to Hunter, but I don't think he knows that you would consider letting him fill that role. I think that he is afraid to overshadow John as the baby's father. He respects John's memory enough that he wouldn't want you to feel like he was trying to take on that role by overstepping his bounds. Have you let him know that you would be alright with allowing him to be Hunter's father?"

Anna thought for a second and then replied, "You know, you have a good point. I didn't even think that he would step back out of fear of intruding on John's legacy. This is something I am going to talk to him about as soon as we get back. I just assumed that Daryl knew for all intents and purposes that he would be Hunter's father. Of course we won't let her forget about John, but Daryl already loves her and he deserves to be her father if that is what he wants."

"You know how proud I am of you Anna-Maria. You have turned out to be an amazing woman and you have brought nothing but joy to me and your mama. I am so happy that she got to meet Hunter before she left us. I know that little girl made her life complete. And considering all that you suffered from with losing John, struggling on your own, and almost dying at your brothers hands, you still have a positive outlook on life." Gus told her.

"Thank you daddy, I love you so much. You have always been my greatest support. And thanks for the advice with Daryl. I am glad that God made you my father. I couldn't have picked a better one." Anna gushed.

They both enjoyed the conversation with each other. They continued on their way home to the rest of their family. Gus drove carefully as the roads were quite icy. As they headed over the bridge that forded the Roaring River a group of twenty walkers came out of nowhere. Gus swerved to avoid hitting them dead-on and the vehicle began to spin out of control. It quickly slid off the road and started down the embankment. One wheel caught on a tree and it caused the vehicle to start flipping. Gus felt the steering wheel hit his chest and felt his breath leave him. He heard Anna scream and glass break and then everything came to a stop and all went silent. Gus felt himself losing consciousness, but not before he heard Anna whisper one word… "Walkers!"