Here we go, season 2! I might have left out a few things and changed a bit so my OC would fit in or it would make more sense. I hope you like it :)

Daryl looked to his right again while following Carol's Cherokee on the road away from Atlanta. Rachel hadn't stirred once since they left the ruins of the C.D.C. behind. She was still fast asleep in the passenger's seat, curled up into herself and leaning as far away from him as possible.
He hadn't given it much thought when he heard her scream of pain and saw her caught up in the shattered glass, unable to get free on her own. He had just dropped Adam, not that he was sorry that idiot fell on his stupid face. Served him right after slapping his own sister.
When he reached her, it was clear that there was nothing to be done about her shirt, he just pulled out his knife to cut her out of the fabric and get her loose. He froze for a second when she dropped to her knees and he caught a glimpse at what had been mostly hidden by her bra but was now partially visible. Scars. Five long and deep scars. He shook his head and ushered her forward when she didn't move, basically dragging her along out of harm's way.
His car was the closest, so he just shoved her inside before jumping in himself. Only seconds later, the explosion that destroyed the compound behind them drowned out every other noise. He leaned over Rachel to keep her down and his own head protected. When the heat of the flames faded he scrambled into the driver's seat, slammed his foot down on the gas and sped after the rest of the convoy.

"What the hell?!" he yelled at the woman beside him, not understanding why she froze up instead of getting out of there. One look at her and he remembered the scars when she just sat there, arms wrapped around her torso in a protective manner. He let out a sigh and reached out to her, wanting to give her some form of comfort, only she seemed to be in a completely different place as she screamed at him not to touch her. The panic in her eyes almost killed him. He slowly started to form an idea of what must have happened to her. That would explain why she froze up under Shane, why she panicked when he cut the shirt off and why she lashed out when her brother mentioned that guy. And why she stopped talking last night.
He had told her to put on the old button up in the back seat, to give her some form of control. To make her feel safe for now. He wasn't sure why he cared so much. He just knew he did. Even when she didn't say anything, her reactions told him everything he needed to know. She had lived through some form of abuse or trauma, otherwise the tough woman wouldn't just tear up and stop fighting.
He looked back at the car in front of them. He hadn't planned on letting anybody get close; Merle was his priority. Talking to Rachel had done something to him. He had been angry at first that she had the balls to tell him what she saw in him, that she saw right through him. Mulling over her words for some hours, he couldn't help but see how much she was like him in some ways. An older brother that abandoned her time after time, she was hot-headed and would rather spring into action than be a nuisance, and she carried along some trauma that she'd rather hide from the world than let anyone see her as weak.
Oh, look at that. You found another broken toy, little D! He shook his head. Even when he wasn't here, Merle still messed with his head and fed him his bullshit. No, even on her worst day, Rachel was better than him. She was part of the group, he wasn't. And no matter what she had said in her drunken state, he wasn't any better than his brother.
He slowed down when the vehicles in front of them started to slow down and slowly came to a halt. He pulled over as well and killed the engine. With a sigh he looked at the woman next to him and knew he had to wake her up.

"Hey, wake up."
I shot up, totally disoriented and flinched back when a hand softly touched my shoulder.
"Easy. Nobody ain't gonna hurt you. Promise."
My vision cleared up and my memories slowly came back as I looked up at Daryl. "How long was I out?" He scratched his neck and looked at the steering wheel.
"Couple hours. Thought you could use the sleep," he finally answered. I nodded and tried to sit up straight, my bones hurting from the position I had slept in. Looking down I frowned. Almost forgot he gave me his shirt when… I stopped myself and bit my lip hard to keep in the emerging sob. He had seen the scars. He had seen me at my worst and most pathetic.
"Daryl, I am so…" he shook his head and held up both hands.
"Don't do this. You don't apologize for shit someone else did to you," Daryl interrupted me and I looked at him with wide and fearful eyes.
"What are you gonna do?" I asked with a low voice.
"Nothin'. Ain't my place to say anythin'. Some shit makes ya stronger or breaks ya. No shame in it catchin' up with ya ev'ry once in a while," he shrugged. His accent was thick, a hint for me he was upset. When his eyes met mine they gave him away. There was no pity, just understanding, a silent promise nobody would ever know what he probably already knew. "A'right. Should get out with the others, see what's wrong."
I nodded and opened my door after he got out. I slowly slid out of the truck and felt the world spin around me.
"Woah! What's wrong?" Against his usual hesitation regarding physical contact, the hunter caught me before I could do some damage to my head.
"Just a little dizzy. It's okay. Get that often after I have an episode. Just need some water and maybe some chocolate." I felt him chuckle slightly as he put my arm over his shoulder to steady me.
"Sure. Want some steak with that?" With blurry vision I looked at him.
"Did you just make a joke?" I teasingly asked.
"Shut up." he hummed and the soft smile instantly faded from his lips. He helped me walk towards the others and Carol came towards us with a worried expression.

"Are you alright? What happened to her?" I was at a loss as to what I should tell her.
"Dehydrated, s'all.", Daryl answered in my stead and leaned me against Lori's car. Someone held out a bottle of water to me and I thankfully gulped down the fluid, already feeling a little better.
"Something wrong?" I asked Rick who was whispering with Shane a little off to the side.
"Okay, everyone. We are running a little low on fuel. I think it's best to lose some of the cars, drain the gas from them and leave them behind. Travel a little lighter and save some fuel," Rick explained and everyone nodded.
"Which cars do we keep?" I asked, still leaning against Lori's car.
"We definitely should keep the RV and Carol's car. Maybe Shane's jeep," Rick suggested.
"Okay, let's move your stuff and drain the fuel," Shane ordered and got out some canisters to collect the gas still in the cars.
"You gonna be okay?" I nodded at Daryl and told him that I'd be fine on my own. He walked over to his truck and started clearing his and the rest of Merle's stuff out and moved it into the Cherokee before he got his brother's motorcycle down from the truck bed.
"Hey. Are you okay?" The car moved a little beneath me when Adam leaned against it next to me.
"Yeah, just a little dizzy," I murmured back.
"Look… I am sorry for what happened at the C.D.C." He looked at his feet and kicked at some little stones.
"Yeah, sure." I let out a sigh.
"No! I mean it this time. I am really sorry for what I put you through. You were right. I didn't want to hear or see it, but you were right. I was a selfish asshole and I am sorry. I'll try to make it right by being the brother you deserved all along." His green eyes bore into mine and I knew he was honest, that he really meant what he was saying this time. I nodded at him and he embraced me tightly.
"Thank you. I won't disappoint you this time. Promise." I patted his back and he let go of me. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Daryl awkwardly trying to get my attention.
"Seems like someone's trying to talk to you…" I jabbed Adam's ribs and he instantly dropped the smirk. He left for the RV and once he was out of earshot, the hunter sauntered over to me.

"Gonna keep my brother's bike. Who're you ridin' with?" I looked at him, partially surprised by the amount of words that had left his mouth since we left Atlanta. I was used to him rarely talking, but liked it that he seemed to be a little more open with me.
"She can ride with us. We got room for one more person if you like," Carol chirped and I sent her a smile.
"I'd like that. Maybe I can get some more sleep in the backseat." She smiled at me and turned to help put away the rest of the other's belongings. I looked over at the Cherokee and decided to get inside since the others were almost done packing and I couldn't help while I was still weak on my legs. I hated how panic attacks seemed to drain all strength from me.
Without exchanging words, I pushed off the car behind me and started walking towards Carol's car. Daryl still stayed by my side, one hand on my back, just in case he had to break my fall again. Once I sat down in the back seat, I felt exhausted again.
"Sorry for being a burden today," I mumbled.
The hunter shook his head and frowned at me. "You're not a burden. Everyone's allowed a bad day now an' then. Ya can't be strong all the time." I hummed and played with a stray thread on the sleeve of the blue button up.
"Need me to take a look at yer shoulder? Hasn't bled through yet but could catch an infection." I shook my head and told him that maybe Carol could take a look at it later.
"Ahm, once I am able to change into my own clothes, I'll make sure to wash the shirt and give it back." I looked up and met Daryl's blue eyes.
"Keep it. Doesn't fit anymore. And 's gettin' colder soon. Ya'll be needin' it more than I." I gave him a small smile. He carefully closed the door and walked over to Merle's motorcycle. A second later the other backdoor opened and Carol slid in with Carl and Sophia. Since the Cherokee was pretty spacious, it was cramped but not uncomfortable with us four in the back.
"This isn't your shirt," Carol whispered with the hint of a smirk on her lips and without reason I blushed a little.
"Ahm, no. It's actually Daryl's. He had to cut me out of my shirt at the C.D.C..." I mumbled as an answer and felt the heat creep up into my cheeks.
"Oh, thought I knew this from somewhere. You two seem to get along pretty well."
I slowly nodded. "He's a good guy. He just doesn't know it yet," I answered and leaned against the window as Lori and Rick got into the front seats.
"Are you feeling a little better?" Lori had turned a little in her seat and was now looking at me.
"Yes, a little better. I might sleep a little more back here. Wake me if anything comes up?" Instead of his wife, Rick answered that I should rest and they would wake me in any case. With half-lidded eyes, I watched Daryl push the motorcycle past our car and start the engine to take the lead, since he would drive up ahead in case he could make out any trouble before we ran into it.

I had dozed off a little, not really asleep or awake, just somewhere in between. I could distantly hear the purring of Merle's motorcycle up front and the kids playing some game next to Carol. I lifted my head off the window and rubbed my eyes.
"Sleep well?" I looked at Carol and shrugged my shoulders, feeling the pull on my skin where the glass had cut me. I scrunched up my face and tried to suppress a pained hiss.
"What's wrong, sweetie?"
I shook my head. "It's nothing. Just a scratch from the window we went through. Maybe you can help me clean it up when we make a stop." The older woman next to me nodded. I noticed the car was slowing down, same as the RV in front of us.
"What's wrong, Rick?" I asked and leaned forward between the front seats to get a better look through the windshield. The highway we were on was packed with abandoned cars. Most had been pushed aside, probably by other survivors, and created some sort of pathway between the vehicles. A few moments later we continued, following Daryl through the maze between the cars at a slow pace until steam started coming from under the RV's hood.
Everyone slowly got out of their vehicles and gathered up at the RV's front. I followed at a slower pace, not really comfortable to be crowded in between so many people right now, despite sitting in one car with five other people for the last few hours.
"You look better, sis."
I gave Adam a forced smile. "Slept some more. You know how drained I get sometimes when I… You know?" He just nodded and pulled me into his side.
"So what's the deal?" I asked while leaning against my brother.
"Think it's the hose again. But with all the car wrecks around we should be able to find a better replacement this time around," Adam answered and looked a little bored.
"Come on, y'all. Just look around, gather what you can," T-Dog spoke up and gave everyone a look that basically said that there was a bunch of stuff to be found here. I pulled away from Adam. T was right. I walked over into the RV to find my stuff on the back in the bed and got my bow. Getting out, some members of the group had already started to spread throughout the abandoned cars. Glenn was scavenging the cars for parts we could use or might need in the future since Dale had started to show him a thing or two about fixing cars. Shane was meandering between the car wrecks with his shotgun. Adam pushed off a blue sports car and walked over to me. I just nodded for him to grab a bag so we could put what we found inside.

"We want to help." I looked down when Carl grabbed my hand, Sophia in tow. I looked over until I found Lori and Carol a few cars over. The brunette looked between me and the kids with an unreadable expression.
"Fine. But you stay with Adam and Rachel and within sight. You hear me?" The kids nodded eagerly and we made our way between the car wrecks. The first few were a dead end, save for some extra blankets. I had the kids stay back a little when movement in one of the cars caught my eye. I motioned for Adam that there was a walker and he moved closer. At my nod he ripped open the door and I shot an arrow through its skull before it hit the ground.
"That was badass! I wish I could do that." I turned and looked at the excited boy and raised an eyebrow at him.
"Jackpot!" Adam exclaimed and opened the back of the small van. It was stuffed full of crates. Some had already been emptied, while others held contents that were damaged or spoiled, but there was still enough to keep us fed for at least a week. I smiled and turned to the kids.
"I think we will need some more bags to carry all that." Sophia expressed that she wanted to go with me and get some more bags when Rick came rushing towards us, crouching low and hissing to get down. I turned around a little confused while Adam had already pulled Sophia down and got her under a car with him while Rick and Carl dove underneath another.
Walkers! A herd of walkers, probably fifty or sixty of them scrambling between the cars and towards our group.
"Damn it, girl!" I was roughly pushed down and shoved under the vehicle we had started to clear out. A heavy weight pushed me down when the person came down almost on top of me. My initial reflex was to fight back, which was immediately subdued by the large body on top of me.
"Get the fuck off me, asshole!" I hissed, only to have a large hand clamp down over my mouth.
"Keep that mouth of yours shut for once in your life, princess," Shane snapped right next to my ear and stayed right where he was. Halfway draped over my back, his right hand keeping mine down and his left hand still over my mouth. In any other situation I probably would have started to fight my way out of his hold, but every sense of struggle left me when the first feet shuffled into my line of sight. I tried to relax and even out my breathing, which was hard with the extra weight and how unbearably close Shane was. I tried to swallow down the rising panic that had nothing to do with the dead passing by.
I looked to our right and could make out Adam and Sophia a few feet away. The poor girl looked spooked and my brother was trying his best to calm her down. His eyes drifted over to mine and he signaled if I was alright. I nodded as best as I could with Shane's hand still over my mouth and Adam relaxed a little. I fought the urge to call out for Sophia to just look at me until it was over. Despite his faults, my brother had always been good with kids and I hoped he'd be able to calm the girl down.
"Stop squirming for fuck's sake!" I hadn't even noticed my unconscious movements until the man next to me snapped at me with a lowered voice. I winced when he pushed me down a little harder and I had to close my eyes in order to not squeal when something hard that clearly wasn't a gun pressed into me. I bit my lip hard enough to draw blood and breathed through my nose as the panic started to rise. This isn't right. This can't be happening. Fuck, snap out of it already! You're stronger than that, Rachel Thompson! Just a few more moments and they'll be gone and he has to let you go. The kids! You can't draw attention. Think about the kids. You need to keep the kids safe.
I repeated it over and over in my head, my eyes glued on the feet passing by until no more came into view. I waited a little longer just to be sure.
Just as I was ready to wriggle free of Shane's heavy form, I heard a high pitched scream. Snapping my head to the side I saw a stray walker drop down and scramble underneath the car with my brother and Sophia. I had to watch Adam push the girl out from under the car on the other side, away from us and closer to the tree lines, before he went after her. I couldn't do anything but watch since Shane tightened his hold on me to prevent me from rushing out without a second thought. For a second, Sophia's feet disappeared and then she was on the other side of the guardrail when a second and a third walker caught sight of her. She started stumbling down the hill and I saw my brother and the walkers follow close behind the screaming girl.

I shook my head in horror and finally found the strength to elbow the cop atop of me so he had to let go long enough for me to get free. Most of the others had already ran over to the guardrail where Rick had just jumped over in pursuit of my brother and Sophia and a wailing Carol was held back by Lori. I made it to my feet and started sprinting forward, my feet already leaving the ground to follow into the woods as well when I was caught around the waist. I felt like a ragdoll with the force I was yanked back and collided with a massive chest, the hold on me never breaking.
"No! Let me go! I need to…! Let go of me or I will rip your balls off with my bare hands!" I screamed and cursed and kicked without any care for the herd that had just passed through. Again, Shane's massive hand clamped down over my mouth but this time I was so pent up on adrenaline and furious beyond belief that I bit down on his hand until I tasted blood.
"Bitch!" he yelled and threw me to the ground away from the guardrail and held his hand. I yelped when I landed as my head collided with the harsh tarmac and glared at the ex-cop. Everyone was staring at us and I struggled a little to get back to my feet. I let out an annoyed growl when the bulky man blocked my way again.
"Okay, slow down. Let's talk about this." He held his bleeding hand out in front of him and reached for his gun with the other.
"I'm done talking! Get out of my fucking way, Walsh!" I snapped back and pulled my Glock the moment he reached his own gun and switched off the safety. Every second he wasted with keeping me here on the highway was a second I couldn't go after my brother and Sophia.
"The fuck's goin' on 'ere?!" I had been too focused on Shane to hear Daryl approach.
"Your bitch bit me!" Shane growled and I felt my blood boil while the hunter gave the man a scrutinizing look.
"I only bit you, because you weren't letting go of me, asshole! Get out of my way already!" It came at no surprise that he didn't budge. I didn't care for the whispering around us and Carol's whining, I only wanted to get off the highway.
"Put the gun down, Shane!" I flinched when Daryl's fingers locked around mine and tried to push my hands down and get me to lower my own gun. Reluctantly I moved my eyes from the former cop to the hunter, now standing at my side and immediately back.
"Rachel…" his grip on my hands tightened.
"I can't… I need to go after them…" I whispered.
"Look at me." Those three simple words broke the spell. I turned my head towards Daryl and felt the tension leave my body. With little effort he pushed my hands down and took my gun to stuff it into his waistband before carefully taking a hold of my face.
"Yer blood or 'is?"
"Both," I answered him. I wanted to pull away from his touch, the same second I had the urge to seek comfort in his arms, although I knew Daryl Dixon didn't do hugs. With a grunt, he pulled out the red rag he always kept in his backpocket and started cleaning off my face from the combined blood.
"Ya need to patch up T-Dog," he grumbled. I shook my head, looking at him as if he grew a second head.
"I need to be out there. My brother and that girl are all alone out there with those walkers." I let out a gasp when Daryl stepped closer, his chest almost touching mine and looked down at me while grabbing a hold of my neck and leaning his forehead against mine.
"Rick went after 'em. Ya'll only get yerself lost out there. What ya need ta do is patch up T b'fore he bleeds out. I get it, but I ain't lettin' ya get yerself killed." I stood there for what felt like an eternity, unable to process Daryl going out of his way and ignoring my and his personal space. I let him turn me around and push me towards the RV with his hand on my lower back.

T-Dog was sitting there, his right arm hanging almost limp over his lap and pressing a soaked towel to his bleeding forearm. A belt was wrapped tightly around his upper arm, obviously the reason why he hadn't bled out yet.
"Hey, doc." The black man smiled at me but it turned out more as a grimace than anything else.
"What happened?" I asked and took in his condition while I discarded my bow.
"Caught my arm on a wrecked car door. Cut it pretty bad. Hurts worse than my mama's singing." I crouched down and carefully removed the towel which had already started to stick to the edges of the wound. It was a deep gash, bleeding profusely. From what I could see before the cut filled up with blood again, the blood vessels had just been nicked, not severed.
"Okay, the upside is that there are no severed blood vessels. I'll still need to stitch that up. This is going to hurt, T. A lot." He gave me a firm nod and I stepped around him and into the RV, searching the cupboards with all of our medical supplies.
"Well, shit…" I muttered.
"What's wrong?" I looked up and noticed that Daryl had followed me inside.
"We got no surgical needles or thread. I'll need to find some thin yarn and a sewing needle. If I can't, I'll need to find a way to clip the wound over with some tape and some gauze and something to wrap it up to prevent dirt from getting inside. I worked in the field with more supplies… Let me just think for a moment…" The hunter leaned against the counter with crossed arms and watched me ramble on and rummage through the cupboards in search for something to fix that cut.
"What would ya do if ya were in the field?" he suddenly interrupted me and I stopped what I was doing.
"Hell, I have no idea. We had better medical supply out there than most hospitals!" I retorted.
"Walk me through the steps."
I leaned back against the wall while he stayed leaning across from me and gave me an expectant look. I let out a groan and rubbed a hand over my face, wincing when I remembered my bruised lip.
"Okay. I don't see the point, but okay. First, I need to stop the bleeding, or at least slow it down so I can see what I am dealing with. The belt as a tourniquet worked great so far, maybe if we tighten it a little more, the bleeding will slow to a minimum. When I can see what shape the vessels are in, I'll know if I need to do something about them or if his body can deal with that on its own. After that, I need to close the wound, maybe put in a drainage stent so any accumulating fluid can get out. Normally, I would stitch up the subcutaneous tissue to reduce the pull on the main stitches but I can't do that without needle and thread. Or, I don't need to do that! I just need some tape! That's it. You're brilliant, Dixon!" I pushed off the wall with a triumphant grin and kissed his cheek before jumping out of the RV, leaving behind a baffled Daryl.
After I had talked some tape out of Dale, I got to work. The bleeding wasn't too bad after we tightened the belt on T-Dog's upper arm, so I cleaned out the wound as gently and thoroughly as possible, then put some gauze over it and tightened the tape in five stripes on the wound. I just did what I had told Daryl previously. I was quite content with how well it worked in the end, and put some foil over everything just to be sure. Once I loosened the belt, we waited for a few minutes but no blood seeped through.
"You're amazing, doc!" T beamed and I smiled at his new nickname for me.
"Don't thank me. If it hadn't been for Daryl, I wouldn't have known what to do," I responded with a soft smile.
"Don't sell yerself short. Just helped ya focus," the hunter fended off the compliment.
"Thank you both. You for patching me up, and you for not letting me bleed out. I think I'm gonna lie down for a while, I feel like I was run over by a truck." I nodded and helped T-Dog up the steps so he could lay down in the back of the RV.

"Why'd ya do it?" I gave Daryl a confused look when I exited the RV and closed the door behind me. Instead of an answer the hunter just tapped his cheek and I could have sworn that he turned pink just the slightest bit.
"Don't know. Heat of the moment?" I tried to explain. Looking back, I was a little embarrassed that I kissed him, even though it hadn't been a real kiss after all. "Sorry about that. I know you value your personal space," I mumbled.
"Ya do that a lot."
"Do what?" I asked and gave him a sideways glance.
"Apologize." I looked at the ground and felt stupid for doing that. In fact I rarely apologized for anything, except when it came to the hunter. It seemed like he wanted to say something else when Rick emerged from the tree line. I walked over to the guardrail and waited for the other two to come out as well but nobody else showed up.
"Sophia?" Carol whispered and Rick looked at a loss.
"They aren't back?"
I shook my head. "Rick, where are my brother and Sophia?"