Please know now that this chapter may be a trigger. It does contain minor abuse. Please stay with me until the end of this chapter. I'm a bit worried about it (some of you will not like it), but I promise I'm going somewhere with this. Trust me!

P.S. I'm sorry for the ridiculous long wait! I am raising a one year old and just had my first teaching evaluation! Thank you for staying loyal to this story!

P.P.S Also, I'm terrible at replying to reviews on this site. Actually, I hate the way this site sets up reviews. It makes it difficult to reply to all of you, but know that I see your comments and definitely appreciate them!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

"Hell, Beth, you're going to break it!" Beth rolled her eyes as Daryl pulled his bow out of her grasp, holding it close to his chest, like a lion ready to fight for its cub.

"You are the one who wanted me to learn!" Beth fired back, even as she heard Merle chuckling by the campfire. This was not a new situation. Beth and Daryl had been training for what Beth assumed had been two weeks now and more often than not an argument occurred. Either Daryl thought that Beth wasn't trying hard enough or Beth thought Daryl was being mean on purpose or, in this case, an overgrown child.

"Sticking my bow in the ground to pull back the bowstring is not learning, woman!" Daryl yelled back, stepping up to her.

"Oh, you...you buffoon!" Beth exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. A snort from the direction where Merle was sitting made Beth smile ever so slightly. She knew how ridiculous they looked when they got like this and even though Daryl frustrated her on a daily basis, Beth wouldn't be honest if she were to say their interactions didn't secretly amuse her.

"Why you smiling, sweetheart?" Daryl mumbled, still miffed about his precious bow. "Aint nothing funny!"

"Then you're blind, my brother!" Merle shouted, as the rest of the group made their way out of their tents. Beth and Daryl's yelling had woken them up, but the men had smiles on their faces as they walked towards the amusement.

"Hush, Merle." Carol said, plopping down beside her lover. Merle kissed the top of her head before standing and walking their way. Bending down to Beth's ear, he whispered, "Woman thinks she's got me broke."

"I do." Carol called back as she poured herself a cup of coffee. Beth thought that was a fabulous idea. She had never been introduced to the beverage until recently. It had always been tea in her father's house. Beth wrinkled her nose at the thought. Tea had a bitterness she could just never learn to appreciate. She adored the little spikes of energy coffee gave her though.

"Like hell," Merle shouted towards Carol, but Beth noticed how he maneuvered himself ever so slightly behind Beth as he spoke.

"Why you hiding then, big brother?" Clearly, the movement had not escaped Daryl's notice either. But, nothing much ever did escape Daryl Dixon's notice. Since they had both confessed their secrets to one another, Daryl had made good on his promise to train her in the ways of his life. She knows realized just how keen the man's scents were. When they were walking the woods, his eyes would stray in the direction of a sound that Beth wouldn't hear for minutes later. His precision with his precious bow was incredible. Beth had yet to see him miss a target he aimed for. She was certain she never would.

Beth giggled to herself as Merle mumbled grumpily to himself as he walked in the direction that would lead him to the lake. She looked at Carol, who was still smirking in her triumph. The man mustn't have beaten enough sense into the bitch. Shane's cruel words came flying back into her mind and she realized she hadn't even had the chance to talk to Carol-not that she was certain she even should, not after what had transpired when Daryl and herself had returned to the camp a few weeks back.

Beth had been shocked to see that Merle was only a few yards away from them as they neared the camp. It had seemed as if she and Daryl had been talking for hours, and Beth wondered if Merle had purposefully slowed his stride, just in case Shane came back. By the time the three of them had reached the outskirts of the camp, Beth knew that the Merle in front of her was not the Merle she had come to know. His steps were heavy, as if he were being weighed down with stones strapped to his ankles and his facial expression was like stone, not moving from its grimace. Beth remembered looking up to Daryl in inquiry. He had been staring just as intently at his older brother, brow furrowed in what Beth recognized as worry. When he finally noticed her gaze, he just simply shook his head at her, as if to tell her to leave the situation alone.

The camp and its inhabitants were as she had left them the night before, quiet and forlorn. Each of the men were stationed at the fire, except for Aaron who was patrolling the edge of the camp, looking out for would-be enemies. Beth had seen that Carol was standing just outside the tent she shared with Merle, her hands clenched at her sides and her fingers rubbing their tips as she looked in the opposite direction. When she saw the three returning, she immediately smiled at the sight of Beth, but expression changed quickly from one pure joy to anxiety when she saw Merle rushing towards her, his footsteps pounding into the soft dirt with ferocious purpose.

Before Carol could speak, Merle had hauled her to him roughly and kissed her with a passion that made Beth turn away, her face scarlet in her embarrassment. The kiss lingered and Beth kept her eyes down as she walked with Daryl over to Aaron. As Daryl spoke, making sure all had gone well in his absence, Beth chanced a glance in the older lovers' direction. The kiss had ended and Merle was resting his forehead against Carol's. Their eyes were shut, but the moment still had a power that even the one preceding it hadn't. With excruciating slowness, the two unlatched themselves from each other, Carol bringing her hand up to Merle's rough, stubbly cheek. Merle held her gaze for a moment longer, nodded and walked slowly towards their tent.

Unaware of what she was even doing, Beth walked towards Carol. When Carol saw her, the worry came back into her eyes and she rushed for herself, crushing the younger woman to her. Beth held on tightly. In the time that she known Carol, she had become like a second mother to Beth. She clung to her comfort and her wisdom. Shane's words roared in her head as Carol rubbed her back and suddenly, Beth needed to know. First though, she needed to explain.

Taking a small step back, Beth looked directly at Carol. "Shane almost found me today." Beth expected to see shock in Carol eyes, but there wasn't any. "He was on his way back from the village on the road. I hid, and then Merle and Daryl came crashing through the woods onto the road." Beth stopped for a moment, remembering the cruelty of her would-be fiance. "He said the most terrible things, Carol." Carol looked down at that. "He was trying to push Merle into a fight. He used you. He said you were-"

"That's enough." Both women turned sharply. Merle was standing behind them, just having walked out of the his and Carol's tent.

"Merle," Carol began, stepping towards him. "It's okay."

"No, it ain't," He said, shaking her hand off and walking towards Beth. For the first time since she had met the man, Beth felt a trickle of fear strike through her as he came up level to her. "You're done speaking, missie." Now, Beth looked back and kicked herself for what she did next.

Looking under Merle, Beth met Carol's eyes. "Carol.."

"Leave her be, Beth." Merle said, stepping into her line of sight. He took a breath to calm himself, Beth would presume. His face was reddening in his apparent anger. "She ain't talking about it."

"Talking about what?" Beth persisted. "Carol, what happened to you? Shane said you were married, that your husband...he-"

"Damn it, girl!" Merle suddenly roared, pushing Beth away. "I told you to shut that mouth of yours!" Beth had not been prepared for the blow and fell onto the forest floor, just as Daryl flew past her out of nowhere, colliding with his brother. The two men rolled in the dirt, fists swinging.

"Stop it!" Carol yelled, and Beth screamed when Merle's fist connected with Daryl's jaw. He was now on top of his sibling, punching at anything he could find. Daryl was blocking the blows as best he could, but Merle seemed to know just when and where to target his punches. Carol was pulling on her lover's arms, screaming at him to stop this. Mitchell and Aaron rushed towards the dueling siblings, pushing Merle off Daryl. Abraham came up from behind her, lifting her to her feet gently. The other two were still struggling with Merle, but had effectively pulled him off Daryl. Of course, they didn't plan on Daryl rushing back towards his brother as he quickly got to his feet. Abraham placed her behind him, as she looked on in terror.

This was a side she had never seen of Daryl. His face was contorted in pure rage, and he showed no mercy as his fist collided with Merle's nose. Beth heard a sickening snap and Merle tumbled out of Aaron and Mitchell's grasp, falling toward the fire. Now, it was Daryl's turn. He jumped forward onto his brother's stomach, pinning him with his thighs. Daryl hit him twice more, before rising, leaving his brother in the dirt. "You ever touch her again, and I'll kill you. So help me God, Merle, I will put you in the ground." Merle wiped the blood from his nose and stood, gently pushing Carol away as she tried to help him up with shaking hands. Merle had walked out of camp after that. Carol had sunk to the ground, her head in her hands.

When Daryl looked up at Beth, Beth saw his rage was still there. She stepped away from Abraham, who rolled his eyes and walked away as Daryl moved towards them. "Stay away Merle. He won't hurt you again, but stay away from him all the same." She had not even looked at him though, staring instead at the blood running from his knuckles. She couldn't bring herself to do anything else, and Daryl walked away.

Beth had not asked Carol about Shane's words since that day. She had done as she was told and kept her distance from Merle. One night though, he had come to stand in front of her as she sat by the fire. Daryl had been sitting next to her, and rose quickly. It was unnecessary though as Merle had simply sunk to his knees in front of Beth and begged her forgiveness in a way that was unlike him that Beth couldn't him deny his request. He had kissed her hand gently and assured her he never wanted to hurt her and never would again, before walking back to his spot next to Carol on the other side of the fire.

Now though, Merle was not around and Beth thought it might be safe to actually talk to Carol about her past and how she had come to be with Dixon brothers. Walking towards the older woman, who showed no left-over anxiety from the events weeks before. She smiled as Beth approached her.

"Can we talk?" Beth asked, quietly. Carol looked directly at her and smiled the saddest, most resigned smile Beth had ever seen.

"I think we ought to, huh."

Up until this point, I have been writing the Dixon brothers as very tame versions of the their show counterparts, but I want to stay true to the beauty that is found in these two characters' flaws. You cannot live the lives they did without lasting personality consequences.

I looked at this chapter as Merle snapping back to the past. Did he really mean to hurt Beth? Absolutely not, but he snapped and Daryl did as well. This is all they have ever known. Those demons are not dead; they are still there. I needed to show that in both of them.