Characters are from TWD. I am just writing for fun :)

Making Plans

"So, how long have you been camping out here?" Alice asked Shane and T-Dog as she opened the passenger door and got into the car.

The two men had generously offered her a ride back to camp. That was good because in all honesty, Alice knew for a fact that she would have gotten lost in the woods. She had an abysmal sense of direction. Now, without GPS on her phone, her incapability was only exacerbated. So, she readily accepted Shane's offer, thankful that Daryl wouldn't have to track her down, only to find her stumbling through the forest aimlessly. That would have been embarrassing.

"We haven't really been keeping track. Concept of time doesn't mean nothin' nowadays," T-Dog lamented with a shrug, "maybe a few weeks?"

"You planning on staying here long?"

"I don't think it's as safe as we originally thought. There's more walkers here than we expected." Shane answered her as he started up the engine.

"It's safe to assume that there's very few, if any, safe places left." Alice told him, raising an eyebrow.

Shane shrugged at her response, "I heard Fort Benning could be safe, maybe the CDC."

Alice contemplated telling Shane about the CDC, wondering if their group would consider traveling with her, Glenn, and the Dixons. They were well armed and had cars—there was safety in numbers. But she decided she would wait to confer with Daryl and Glenn before she said anything.

"So, who are we gonna meet?" T-Dog asked her.

"Glenn. Merle and Daryl Dixon," Alice replied, "Merle and Daryl hunt. And they are really good with weapons." She figured she might as well start hyping the two brothers up. She wasn't planning on staying at the campsite without them, so it would be ideal if Shane and T-Dog didn't discount the brothers because of their rough exteriors.

"Well, we are very grateful for what you did for Sophia and Carl," Shane said. Alice smiled and directed Shane where to drive. When Shane stopped the car, the sun had already set and the only source of light was the car's headlights and a small fire near Merle's truck. She saw Merle by the fire, sitting near what seemed like a deer's carcass. Score, Alice thought. That was surely going to earn him brownie points from Shane.

"Uh, I should go talk to Merle first," Alice stuttered out when she saw Merle grab his shotgun from the ground and begin to meander his way over the car, waving his free arm wildly in greeting.

She saw T-Dog and Shane exchange a worried glance as she got out of the car.

"Merle!" she called quietly, "it's Alice. I ran into another group. They invited us to stay with them."

"WELCOME BACK!" She heard Merle holler.

"Jesus, Merle be quiet! Where are Daryl and Glenn?" she shushed him, quickly walking up to him. Alice's heart sank when she realized that Merle was high. Even in the dark, she could see his dilated pupils. He was sweating and breathing heavily. "You're high Merle? What the hell?!" Alice hissed. She reached for his arm to feel his pulse, but he batted her hand away.

"Aw, don't be like that, Doc." Merle cackled.

"Everything alright there?" she heard Shane call from the car.

"FINE! Merle is telling me about the deer he bagged! He's really excited!" Alice called back. She blanched, realizing how high pitched her voice turned when she became nervous.

She whipped her head back to Merle and repeated, "Where are Daryl and Glenn?"

"Lookin' for your sorry ass!" Merle replied. "Those idiots decided to go track ya down in the dark. Now, who the fuck's the man with his nigg—

"Merle!" Alice squeaked. "PLEASE! Don't insult them. They have a camp up here and they offered us a spot."

"We ain't a charity," Merle scoffed, "I already took you n' the Chink in."

"There are woman and kids there. And they have a lot of supplies. I think we'll be safer," Alice begged him to see reason.

Merle seemed to consider what she was telling him. "They really got supplies? And woman?" he finally asked her, eyes squinted in suspicion. Alice realized he looked like Daryl when he did that.

"Pardon?" Alice blinked at him, confused at his change in behavior, "sure…but I'm going to need you to pull yourself together."

"Well, alright then!" Merle exclaimed and began to strut towards the car.

"Wait, Merle!" she hissed, grabbing the back of his vest, attempting to haul him back to her, "you bagged a deer, right?" Alice asked him, gesturing at the dead animal near the fire. "The uh, woman, would probably appreciate the food you caught. But you're going to have to be on your best behavior…just until they agree to let us stay," Alice coaxed him, hoping he would get the hint not to call T-Dog or any of the others any derogatory names.

Merle eyed her with a suspicious glare and then sent her a toothy grin, "Darlin', I'll be a fuckin' boy scout if it means I'll score me some tail."

Alice stayed rooted to the ground, watching in surprise as Merle approached the car and knocked on the window with the butt of his riffle.

"Welcome to this here fine establishment," Merle sang out as Shane and T-Dog got out of the car, gesturing to their campsite and then thumped each man on the shoulder, a little too enthusiastically.

"You caught that deer?" Shane asked him, eying the gutted animal with interest.

"Caught the bitch 'bout half a mile west," Merle told Shane as he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. He was sweating and his hand was slightly twitching, but thankfully Shane didn't notice that Merle was high. Or if he did, the sight of fresh meat deterred him from making any comments.

"Merle and Daryl set up traps around the area. And Daryl caught a couple of squirrels earlier… Merle offered to share the meat with your group," Alice added.

T-Dog whistled out in appreciation and then glanced around the camp, "so, where are the other two?" he asked

"Trackin' her down with a flashlight. Dumbasses!" Merle grunted as he gestured to her to follow him.

It suddenly dawned on Alice that Glenn and Daryl were probably headed to the other group's campsite if they weren't already there by now. She assumed Daryl had managed to locate her and the kids' tracks…his inevitable arrival to the camp only depended on how quickly he found the footsteps.

Shane seemed to realize the same thing. "We should head back so that the others don't get alarmed," he told her.

Merle and Shane hauled the deer into the back of his truck while Alice and T-Dog quickly disassembled the tents. It took them only a couple of minutes to throw everything in the car before she was clambering into the truck besides Merle. Everything considered, this was good—Merle was accepted into the group and she had complete faith that Daryl and Glenn would arrive at the camp soon (if they weren't already there). Alice decided she would deal with his drug habit another day.

"You think Daryl and Glenn are alright?" she asked Merle hesitantly.

The man snorted in derision, "us Dixons ain't pussies."

She nodded her head, reassured that they were fine—she figured that Daryl and Glenn knew what they were doing.

"You blind?!" Daryl snarled at Glenn as he felt the young Asian man bump into him.

"Sorry! I can't see a thing," Glenn apologized as he tripped backwards over yet another branch.

It was pitch black in the woods and him and Glenn had yet to find Alice's tracks.

"Son of a bitch!" Daryl cursed when he also almost stumbled over a rock.

When he had walked back to the camp a few hours earlier, Merle was already there—a queasy looking Glenn sitting near him, watching warily as Merle skinned and gutted the deer he had caught. Alice was nowhere in sight.

Immediately, he became alarmed. He wasn't necessarily worried for her yet, after all he had seen her decapitate a man by bashing his skull in, but judging by the way she stumbled alongside him in the woods, she probably also had no idea how to navigate the forest, especially in the dark. So, he chose to assume that she was lost somewhere. Nevertheless, that didn't stop him from striding right back into the woods when he realized she was missing.

After all, it was probably his fault she was lost. She had wandered alongside him as he walked deeper into the woods and he hadn't bothered walking her back, too pissed off at his own behavior around her to pay any attention to the fact that she didn't know her way around the wilderness. He had offered her his hand to help her stand up…he couldn't remember the last time he had done that for someone. And then he had rushed off, not wanting her to think he would walk her back to camp like a prepubescent schoolboy.

He felt almost uneasy around her—he wasn't used to women like Alice paying him any attention. Woman like Alice had a fancy college education, a rich daddy, wore expensive clothes, drove nice cars, and knew exactly how good they looked. He hadn't even graduated high-school and she was a fucking doctor. Woman like her didn't need or care for dirty rednecks like him. Someone like her would have passed him and Merle on the street without a second glance or would maybe have even crossed the street to avoid them. But here she was… complimenting his tracking and hunting knowledge, shooting him smiles, joking around, and teasing him as if she actually liked him.

"This is definitely where you left her?" Glenn asked him, wrenching him from his thoughts.

Daryl didn't dignify his question with a response. Instead, he walked a few meters and crouched down, trying to locate a footprint with his flashlight. Suddenly, in the distance he heard a faint moaning.

"A-Alice?!" Glenn hissed, worry causing his voice to falter.

Daryl waved him away, signaling him to be quiet. He followed the moaning sound, shining his flashlight towards the source of the noise. He found a walker twitching helplessly on the ground.

"She's one sick bastard," Daryl snorted, kicking the walker away. Its face was bashed in and it was immobile, only slightly able to jerk its head towards Daryl and Glenn.

"Phew," Glenn sighed as he took in the site. "It's definitely her. I've been telling her she needs to find a knife or something."

Daryl nodded in agreement as he squatted closer to the ground. Thankfully, he was able to locate her tracks relatively quickly.

"There's smaller track near 'ers" he told Glenn, looking up from the footprints, "probably kids."

"That's a good thing, right?" Glenn asked him, hope lacing his voice.

Daryl shrugged, not knowing what they would find. Mentally, he began to prepare himself for having to accept two new members into their group. Merle would probably veto that proposal though—he would think that the children would only be a burden, and Daryl wouldn't argue with that logic.

Merle had only offered Alice a spot with them because she provided something that neither Daryl or Merle could offer—medical experience.

According to Merle she was also easy on the eyes and if shit really hit the fan, he told Daryl that they could trade her for supplies. He was only half-joking. When Daryl had scowled at the suggestion, Merle had called him a pussy and thumped him on the back, telling him not to let some bitch cloud his judgment.

On the other hand, it did seem that Merle had taken a liking to the young doctor with the impressive bat swing. He had even offered to go into the woods to look for her, but Glenn had insisted on going.

As Daryl and Glenn made their way through the woods, he began to make out a number of different voices. He gestured for Glenn to stay behind, removed his crossbow, and crept towards the noise. He saw a couple of people sitting around a small fire, but he quickly noticed that Alice was not one of them. He snuck closer to the camp and then he heard his brother's familiar voice.

"What the fuck…" he muttered, lowering his crossbow. Even in the dim light, he could see Merle talking to two women. Merle was gesturing at his belt, which had all four of Daryl's squirrels attached to it…squirrels that he, and not Merle, had caught. Both the brunette and the blonde were giving Merle a looked Daryl himself was used to receiving, a mixture of apprehension, distain, and indifference.

"Merle!" Daryl called to him, pushing through the shrubbery to meet his brother. Glenn followed after him, shining the flashlight at the group.

"Oh-ho! Welcome to your new home, baby-brother," Merle called back, swatting away Glenn's flashlight as he walked past him.

"She here?" Daryl asked his brother in an undertone, feeling uncomfortable due to the number of eyes on him.

"Ain't it sweet?" Merle mocked, turning to address the bystanders, "He's worried his school-girl cru—

"Hey, is she here?" Glenn interrupted Merle, glancing desperately around the camp. He looked just as awkward as Daryl felt.

"Yeah, she's here. Don't get your panties in a twist now." Merle finally acknowledged.

Daryl let out a deep breath he didn't know he'd been holding and tried to not let his relief show. "Fuckin' Christ, your high?" he rounded on his brother, realizing the tell-tell signs all too quickly.

Merle cackled at Daryl's question, "Yeah, so what? 'round 'er—

His full response was cut short by a female voice. "Glenn!"

Daryl lifted his eyes from his brother's face to see Alice striding towards Glenn. She gave him a one-armed hug, her other hand still gripping the bat. He heard her explaining to Glenn what had happened, and Daryl was tempted to yell at her for being so stupid. This group seemed alright, but she couldn't have known that at the time. And, by walking into this camp and not letting them know, she had put him and Glenn in danger. But you didn't have to look for her… Glenn could have gone alone, a voice inside his head told him.

"Hi Daryl," she said once she was done greeting Glenn. She didn't lean to hug him, but she smiled slowly, as if in spite of herself and tilted her head slightly upwards to look at him. He only now realized that he had a good three feet on her. "Thanks for finding me," she told him. The curve of her mouth softened her face, somehow making her look even younger… less determined and more at ease. It was slightly disconcerting and left him wondering how she could smile so easily.

She rocked back on her heels, her hands in her back pockets and in an undertone added, "I'm sorry I didn't find you before following the kids back to camp. That was dumb." It felt strange to see her smiling up at him, but it was strange in a good way.

"Should get ya a knife," Daryl muttered, staring at her feet, "S' quicker. More efficient."

"Pardon?" Alice asked him, obviously not understanding what he was referring to.

"We found the walker you killed," Glenn explained for him.

"Bat gets the job done, and besides I used to play softball in high-school. I was very good," Alice told them, "now, let's introduce you to everyone."

"It sure will be nice to have more men to guard the campsite," a black man by the name of T-Dog told him and Glenn. "Um, no offense," he added, looking sheepishly at Alice.

Alice shrugged, "It's fine. My talents lie elsewhere."

Merle let out a sharp whistle, "well, I'd sure like to witness 'em talents."

Immediately, an image of Alice on her knees in front of him, demonstrating some of those talents, popped into his head. He shook the thought away and was temporarily distracted by her laugh. Her cheeks flushed red as she chuckled, "Alright, Merle. If you ever want to witness me perform brain surgery, I'll call you over, because that is the only one of my "talents" that I will show you," she told him, gently bumping Merle with her shoulder as she walked passed him. Merle scoffed and was about to say something else but she just continued the introductions, oblivious to the numerous male eyes that were now trained on her, his included.

"Maybe I should check on Merle," Alice leaned over to whisper in his ear as she sat down next to him. The proximity startled Daryl and he jumped slightly when he felt her breath on his ear.

He had found a spot next to the fire that was slightly isolated from the rest of the group, allowing him to avoid unwanted attention. Alice and Glenn had been talking animatedly for the past half-hour with the rest of the group, obviously excited to have other people to talk to.

Now, he found himself sitting by Alice, her knee occasionally knocking into his.

Daryl recovered quickly and he leaned away before he scoffed, "this ain't Merle's first rodeo."

"I just don't want him to choke on his own vomit. Is he sleeping on his back? Or his stomach?" Alice asked to him.

He shrugged, not particularly concerned with Merle. "His drunken ass ain't gonna be taken out by his own vomit."

"I'll still check up on him after dinner. Maybe bring him some food…he's the one who actually caught the deer," Alice told him, gesturing at her plate.

He was about to snap at her, telling her he didn't want her to check on Merle when Alice spoke again.

"We should get bikes," Alice told him looking up from her plate to stare at him, "what do you think about getting bikes?"

He was getting used to her random outburst of ideas and conversation starters but he gave her a blank stare, so she quickly explained, "I know you have Merle's motorcycle, but it's probably loud…Cars are going to start being less and less reliable since there's the issue of finding gas. So, I'm thinking that bikes might be a good option. I'm not suggesting we bike to the CDC…but…it might be a nice option to have."

He nodded slowly, surprised that no one else seemed to have thought about using bikes as transportation. "S' a good idea," he acknowledged.

She nodded and then suddenly cleared her throat, turning her head to look directly at him, "that is if you still want to go together to the CDC."

He turned his head sharply to look at her through squinted eyes, trying to figure out what she was getting at. When he didn't answer, she blushed slightly and continued, lowering her voice to a whisper, "I just don't know what you and Merle are going to do now that we found this camp. I'm not staying here. I need to go to the CDC…because of my sister. And I think if there's research going on there, I can help."

He was about to speak when she interrupted him, talking at a very fast pace now. "I've spoken to Glenn and he thinks we should invite the others along. Form one big group, that sort of deal. I know it's too early to tell, but it might be a good idea…but I wanted to speak to you first...I mean, they might say no and then you would have the option to stay here with them…without Glenn and I." She trailed off, now looking everywhere but at him.

He gave a noncommittal grunt. He was used to following Merle around. He'd go where his brother would go. Daryl wondered with a bit of hope if Merle would consider continuing following Alice to the CDC despite the fact that they had found this new camp.

When he didn't reply, she fidgeted slightly, "I guess what I'm saying is that I, uh, Glenn and I, would want you to go with us. Merle too."

"Alice, my college roommate went to Johns Hopkins for medical school. Maybe you knew her? She graduated around a few years back. Does Becky Ruben ring a bell?" Andrea asked suddenly.

Alice sat back down and Daryl felt relieved he wouldn't have to say anything back. "I don't think so. Sorry." Alice told her, "I was an MD-PhD student so I didn't really get to know the graduating MD class that well."

"You have a PhD? In what?" Dale asked her.

"I wrote my thesis on neoclassical architecture in the Philippines," Alice said seriously, taking a bite out of her food. Judging by the disappointed, shocked expressions around him, the others weren't sure if she was serious. Daryl shook his head at her. "You gotta be shittin' me," he muttered.

"Wow, tough crowd today," Alice announced awkwardly, shooting Glenn a helpless look. "I earned a PhD in Immunology," Alice clarified, "just don't ask me to talk about my research projects, I'll never be able to shut up," she added, grinning.

Shane let out a sharp whistle, "so you're a scientist too? And a doctor?"

"Yup! I was in a funded program where I got paid to conduct research and I earned a medical degree while I was at it. It took an average of eight years to complete though." Alice told him as she swallowed a piece of meat, "I probably prefer biomedical research to actual clinical medicine. I just finished my first year of my neurosurgery residency, but I always wanted to have my own lab and conduct research relating to immunology…that was the plan in the long run."

"From your professional standpoint, what do you think these walkers are?" Shane asked her, "they were saying over the news that it might be a virus."

The individual conversations around Daryl died down immediately as everyone turned to Alice. Suddenly, it seemed like a flip was switched on inside of her. She sat up straighter, cleared her throat and began to speak, as if she were lecturing to a group of students, all previous humor gone from her face.

"In medical school, I was taught to be honest and told not to offer false hope, so that's what I'm going to do. I can honestly tell you that I don't know what is causing this epidemic. It could be any sort of pathogen—a virus, a parasite, bacteria, etcetera."

At her words, everyone's excitement dwindled…as if she had single handedly extinguished their hope.

"Any sorta virus or bacteria? You can't even try n' narrow it down?" Ed asked sarcastically.

Daryl scowled at Ed. The mere sound of his voice caused Daryl's lip to curl up in a slight snarl.

Alice probably sensed this shift in the mood of the group because she ignored Ed's comment and continued, her tone remaining respectful and professional. "I'm one person who hasn't been able to fully evaluate the situation. There are people working to understand what is going on, I am sure."

She paused before continuing, her voice slightly faltering. "I knew someone who was an expert in infectious diseases and he wasn't sure either. He had a couple of ideas, but nothing concrete. At the CDC—

She stopped talking suddenly, obviously unsure if she should say anything about her ties to the CDC. Before he could stop himself, he spoke up, breaking the silence.

"We're headin' to the CDC," he muttered, not believing his own words and suddenly hoping that no one had heard him.

Oh-ho, baby-brother… Doc has got you by the balls, he heard Merle's voice in his head. He didn't look at Alice, aware of her eyes on him. He took a large bite of the meat and began to chew it thoroughly, preventing him from saying anything else

"Maybe you want to go with us," he heard Glenn say, addressing the group.

"You don't have to decide now," Alice spoke up, "but it's an option."

Shane was the first to speak, "thank you for the offer. We will consider it."

Alice happily nodded at Shane. The individual conversations around the campfire resumed and Alice then peered at Daryl curiously.

"I'm glad we're going to the CDC together," she told him, a large grin creeping onto her face. There was a certain coyness to her words and he realized that she was teasing him. Daryl found that her attention was slightly disconcerting, but he grunted in affirmation, turning his head slightly to nod at her. Merle'd beat my ass and call me a soft pussy for lettin' her decide what we do, thought Daryl. For once, he was glad his brother wasn't sitting by his side. But, it was a real possibility that the CDC could provide safety and answers. Besides... he owed her. She helped stitch him up and found him and Merle this camp, Daryl reasoned

"Daryl? You got any plans for tomorrow? I want to go somewhere," Alice asked as he stood up, ready to walk back to his tent.

"Somewhere?" Daryl asked, suspicion in his narrow-eyed gaze as he stopped in front of his tent.

"The zoo," she told him, "I want to go to the zoo."

"S' a joke to you?" Daryl scowled, suddenly fed up with the casual way she approached everything. He stopped walking and turned abruptly to face her, "this all a game? Another joke? Ya wanna see how much the world's fucked up so ya can laugh 'bout it? This ain't a fuckin' tourist attraction."

Her face flushed red and she scowled back at him, "I know that. I had to kill my own…" she didn't finish her sentence, pausing suddenly before continuing.

"I killed a m-man. I would do anything to find my sister. This is not a joke to me," she snapped. Her brown eyes were blazing with fury. Daryl was temporarily distracted by the eyes that were glaring at him. They were as brown as the whiskey him and Merle had been so fond of drinking.

He felt a twinge of guilt, realizing that Alice was not naïve. She was not taking the situation lightly. Before he could say anything…or even try to apologize, she continued.

"Ed's comment about not being able to narrow down what was infecting us got me thinking. I wanted to see if non-human primates can be infected…if they turn into walkers. There's some viruses that can kill humans but will only slightly affect monkeys. There's this virus—herpes B—that will kill a large percentage of humans if they become infected…but the virus won't kill the monkeys. I thought going to the zoo would clue us into what is occurring…we were planning on staying in the area for a little while anyways before we head to the CDC," she told him in one breath, her voice harsh. "So that's why I want to go to the zoo. And screw you, Daryl!" she finally finished.

He felt a pang of shame as he observed her. She was breathing heavily, her chest rising and falling rapidly. She looked like she wanted to say something else, but she didn't. Instead, she moved past him towards the entrance of his tent.

"Where ya going?" he barked. He stopped her from entering by wrapping his hand firmly around her upper arm.

"I'm going to check up on your brother," she told him, trying to twist her arm out of his grip. Her first instinct was to bring her arm to her side, but he didn't release his grip, causing the back of his fingers to brush against the side of her breast. He immediately released her, taking several steps backwards away from her. His fingers felt like they had been branded.

"I'll take ya to the fuckin' zoo if ya think s' gonna help sort this out," he told her, looking down at her feet, refusing to meet her eyes and inadvertently flexing the hand that had touched her.

He didn't apologize though, but she seemed to accept his peace offering because when he looked up, she was nodding her head slightly.

"But I thought ya said I was meant to rest my leg," Daryl added, knowing how petulant he sounded, "I got shot."

"If I recall, you were the one who said I ain't a bitch," Alice told him, but there was no anger, no mockery behind her words, "but we can wait before we go."

Daryl scoffed, but lifted the tent flap open for her, allowing her to pass so that she could look at Merle.

"I'll take ya soon," he added before she entered the tent.

"You better," she grumbled, purposefully giving him a hip to hip bump as she walked past him.

I am so excited that you guys are liking Alice and the story! Thank you!

I am thinking of changing the rating to M as the story progresses, so please let me know if you are for/against this. Also, is there any preference for a slow or fast beginning to the romance? What did you think about Daryl's POV? Let me know :)