Settle in, it's a long one! There's just so much for them to do together up at the cabin...

Chapter 15 - The cabin

The next morning, Daryl arrived at the apartment right when he said he would and threw pieces of bark from the garden at Tahlia's balcony window until he drew her attention. Of course, he could have just called her to let her know he'd arrived, but he enjoyed this tactic so much more. Seemed like Tahlia did too, given the way she flung the balcony door open and pelted him with handfuls of M&Ms (some of which he caught and happily ate).

She was soon down to meet him, backpack in hand and smile at full wattage.

"Weather's lookin' good." he said by way of greeting as he glanced up at the cloudless sky, then pointed at her bag. "Toss it in back."

"I wasn't really sure what I needed, so I ended up bringing hardly anything." Tahlia told him as she threw it on the bed of the truck, then she did a double take and stopped to stare at the items already laying there: crossbow, bolts, rifle, ammo, hunting knife, coil of rope, spade.

Glancing at Daryl, back at the items, then back at Daryl again, she gave a hard swallow, her eyes wide.

"Umm… I think I might just make a quick phone call to Michonne and Rick – he's a cop, you remember, yeah? - and let them know where I'm going for the weekend…"

Frowning in confusion, Daryl followed her skittish gaze to his belongings, then laughed in understanding. "You think I'm gonna be huntin' you up there?"

Tahlia pressed a hand to her chest. "Obviously I didn't think that before, but now that I'm looking at all this, I'm feeling like it's a very real possibility."

Folding his arms, Daryl scoffed. "No point. Wouldn't even be a challenge."

Her mouth dropped open in mock offense. "Rude. I'll have you know that I'd fight valiantly for my life." Then she raked her eyes over the weapons again before fixing him with a hard stare. "How many people have you killed?"

"None." he replied, then shot her a pointed look. "Yet."

She sucked in a tiny gasp of air, torn between trying not to laugh and wondering whether maybe she should be a little worried. And then wondering what the hell was wrong with her because she didn't feel scared, just thrilled.

Cocking her head to one side, she raised her brows. "Ok. But, seriously, are you planning on killing me?"

"Naw."

"Promise?"

Schooling his face into a serious expression, Daryl took a step closer. "Tahlia. I promise I ain't gonna torture ya, kill ya and bury your body in the woods where no one will ever find it."

She stared at him.

He shrugged. "I'm gonna burn it."

"Daryl!"

Laughing, he fended off her hit and caught her wrist in his hand. "Kiddin'! I'm kiddin'!" Then he yanked her close and raised his other hand to lightly brush her cheek. "Ain't never gonna hurt ya."

Despite her breathlessness as a result of their sudden proximity, she narrowed her eyes. "I feel like that's exactly something a murderer would say to lull their victim into a false sense of security."

Blue eyes alight with amusement, Daryl gave her an innocent look. "Guess you're just gonna have to take your chances then, aren't ya?" Releasing her, he headed for the driver's side of the truck. "By the way," he called, "Ain't no cellphone reception up there."

"Course not." muttered Tahlia. "And no other way of contacting the outside world, I suppose."

"Nope."

"And there certainly wouldn't be any neighbors."

Daryl grinned at her just before he swung himself into the truck. "No one for miles and miles. Just you, me and my crossbow. So, you comin'?"

Heaving a sigh, Tahlia rolled her eyes and followed. "Yeah. And then one day they'll make a documentary about how stupid I am."

On their way out of town, they stopped at a little grocery store to pick up a few supplies. Although the cabin was usually stocked with basics, Daryl was fairly certain Tahlia would much prefer some fresh produce to the tins of Spam and expired boxes of macaroni that lived in the cabin cupboards.

As a general rule, he hated grocery shopping and always tried to be in and out as quick as possible, but it soon became clear that Tahlia liked wandering around and taking her time and reading labels and spending an age deciding between products that looked exactly the damn same to him. Funny thing was, the whole process was much more bearable with her. Didn't let her know that, of course. Rolled his eyes and complained a lot, but secretly smiled at her excitement when she found her favorite cheese, and tried his best to remember all the things she liked and didn't like from her throw-away comments as they moved around the store.

"So, what do you want for dinner?" asked Tahlia as they stopped in front of the meat. "What do you like? Chicken? Steak?"

"Like it all, but ain't gonna need it. I'll catch somethin'."

She turned to him. "Really?"

"Yeah. Didn't ya hear the part 'bout how I'm goin' up there to hunt?"

Laughing, Tahlia shrugged. "Yeah, but usually when guys say they're going hunting, they mean they're going to traipse through the woods for a while and take a few shots for fun, then sit around the fire, eating store-bought meat and drinking a ton of beers while they try to sound macho and brag about all their near-hits."

Daryl's brow furrowed as he stared at her. "Who the hell you been hangin' out with?"

"Clearly no one like you." replied Tahlia teasingly, then she arched a brow. "Wait. So, you're really going to hunt for food?!"

"Uh, yeah."

And Tahlia looked so impressed that Daryl felt all self-conscious, so he smacked the back of her head and dropped his arm around her shoulders. "And I'm gonna make sure we knock some of that little city girl right outta ya."

The drive took close to two and a half hours because they stopped three times - once at a lookout Daryl thought Tahlia would like; a second time so she could pee at a truck stop; and lastly at a picnic spot at edge of the woods where they had some food and Tahlia picked a big bunch of wildflowers then sprinkled lavender over Daryl's dash which he made sure to grumble about while doing his best to look annoyed.

They talked a little but mostly took in the scenery while listening to music - Tahlia leafed through Daryl's CD wallet and teased him for his collection of hard rock, and he teased her right back for her softer tastes. It was easy, though, being with one another – and that was something that Daryl was still trying to get his head around. After a lifetime of preferring solitude to the company of others, it was strange that being around her felt as natural as breathing. As necessary, too.

They drove on, urban sprawl now well in the rearview mirror and only wilderness yawning ahead, and soon the road turned into a rutted dirt track and they bumped and wound upwards for many miles through overhanging trees and close shrub until, eventually, they came to a clearing, a small cabin standing alone in the green.

"S'it." declared Daryl as he pulled up outside the front door. "Ain't much, but we don't need no more."

"This is so peaceful." murmured Tahlia as she stepped out and stretched and sent a slow glance around – nothing but birdsong and treetops for miles.

"C'mon." said Daryl, grabbing their bags. "Show ya inside."

The cabin itself was old and weary - a worn wooden porch led into a large, open, basic living and kitchen area, a corridor behind branching off to two bedrooms with two sets of bunks in each. The place was well-used - the furniture rickety, the furnishings threadbare, but there was a warm sense of heart in the yellowing photographs on the walls, the battered books on the shelf, the knick-knacks on the mantel, the beat-up board games under the window, the moth-eaten throws on the chairs. A place that secreted away scores of memories in her walls.

Tahlia gazed at Daryl, a softness settling on him that wasn't usually visible, and she smiled.

"You really love it here, don't you?"

He peeked over at her, ducking his head shyly as he jammed his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah. Makes me feel all like… clear, or somethin'? Feels like home." Moving to the windows, he pushed the cobwebbed frames open, letting a little air in to stir the staleness inside. "My dad and his brother inherited this place. Used to come here when they were kids, then brought us here too. Spent a lot of our childhood up here. My uncle did mosta the work making it what it is. I mean, ain't fancy or nothin', as you can see, but he patched it all up – insulated it, put solar panels in, rainwater tank, compostin' toilet out back, made it self-sufficient. Wanted us to keep usin' the place. Best thing I ever got outta my family. Know it ain't nothin' like you're used to, but -"

"Daryl." Tahlia cut in. "It's perfect."

And he blushed and smiled and rolled his eyes. "Let's go for a walk."

"Ooh, is this the hunting bit?"

"Nah, not really, I'ma head out early in the mornin', track down a deer. Just thought maybe I'd take ya through the woods this afternoon. Couple places I wanna show ya."

At first, as they ventured further and further from the cabin, Tahlia had been a little apprehensive at how unprepared they seemed to be for a trek into the wilderness – dressed in long pants and a tank, with no warmer clothes, she was carrying a satchel containing only one canteen of water for the two of them, and Daryl carried only his hunting knife and crossbow. It quickly became clear to her, however, that being out here was second nature to Daryl and that she was in good hands.

As they walked, unhurried, he pointed out nearly every plant and flower and animal track, and it was when they were crouching side by side as he showed her the near indecipherable differences between two species of mushroom, that she looked at him in warm admiration.

"How do you know so much?!"

Daryl glanced over at her and shrugged. He hadn't even realized that he did know so much because he'd never had anyone out here with him like this - except Merle, and Merle liked to hear himself talk more than he liked to listen and had the attention span of a gnat most of the time anyway. But he found it felt good, knowing things, sharing them with someone who was genuinely interested; and he wanted her to know everything that he knew, wanted her to love being out here as much as he did.

Instead of answering her question though, he reached over and pulled up a clump of flowers and held them out to her.

"This is what you need. Chicory. Roast up the root and brew it. Tastes like coffee but ain't got no caffeine. Maybe help wean ya off your addiction."

"I don't have a coffee addiction." replied Tahlia mildly, taking the bunch from him and sniffing the stems.

"Pfft." scoffed Daryl as he got to his feet. "You got caffeine runnin' through your veins. You'd mainline it if ya could."

"Can you blame me?" laughed Tahlia. "I get drug tested at work. Getting amped on caffeine is as good as it gets for me."

"Better than all that other shit." Daryl said soberly, thinking back to his own aimless, drug-hazed days, grateful that he'd been able to leave all that behind, glad that Tahlia had a good reason not to dabble in it herself. "Put that in the bag. Gonna go up through here. Clears out a bit. Give you a crossbow lesson."

Obediently, Tahlia opened her satchel and added the chicory to the assortment of other edible plants and flowers and herbs that they'd collected so far, then hurried to catch up with Daryl who was already yards ahead, weaving easily through the trees.

Then suddenly she let out a little shriek and stopped short, swiping frantically at her face.

"What's up?" called Daryl, immediately heading back for her.

"Oh God, I just took a whole spiderweb out with my face!" she cried as she gave a wild shake of her hair. "It was massive! Ugh, must've been built by a monster of a spider!"

"Like that one crawlin' up your shirt?"

Tahlia jumped and squealed and slapped at the nothing on her top.

"Ahh, Daryl! Don't!" she scolded when she realized he was teasing. "I just –" She broke off and shuddered, brushing quickly at her shoulder. "Now I feel like there's things crawling all over me!"

"Ain't nothin' on ya. You're fine."

"Well I don't fucking believe you now, do I? Can you please just come over here and check?" she whined, jigging a little on her feet.

"Gawd." Daryl rolled his eyes, but laid his crossbow down and strode over to her, catching hold of her forearms. "Lemme see."

And it probably wasn't the standard method of bug-checking, but in that moment it felt like the right way to Daryl as, with slow deliberation, he ran his palms up her arms, over her bare shoulders and across the thin straps of her tank top, his brow arching in interest at the trail of goosebumps left in his wake. Tracing the lines of her collarbones, his index fingers came to rest in the hollow at the base of her throat, and a smile quirked one side of his mouth at the thrum of her heart below.

Willing her traitorous body to calm, Tahlia repeated a steady mantra of friends, friends, friends, in her head, until he slid his gaze - deep, intense, inscrutable - up to hers and washed all logical thought from her brain. Hazy and breathless, all she knew now was sensation - skin rough and warm against smooth and soft as he trailed his hands up to her jaw and thumbed slow lines across her lips, her cheeks, her forehead. Then he dropped a hand to her shoulder and gently pushed her to turn around, and in the next moment Tahlia felt his fingers running through her hair, gathering it up, sweeping the strands from her shoulders as he used one hand to twist it and lift it away from her neck. Her eyes inadvertently fluttered closed as his free hand brushed across the skin he had just exposed, and she could feel the heat of him as he stepped closer to her, his voice low and gravelly and right there by her ear when he spoke.

"See? No spiders." Then he tickled her elbow. "'Cept maybe this one."

Crashing back to her senses, Tahlia gasped and jumped. She'd forgotten all about the goddamned spider. Way to ruin her dreamy moment. So she promptly elbowed him in the stomach and stepped away, shaking her head and trying not to smile.

"Jerk." She kind of meant it. He seemed to have more control over her body than she did, and she suspected he knew this and just enjoyed messing with her.

And as if he had heard her thoughts, he grinned crookedly at her.

The thing was, he'd noticed how, when he moved in close and looked at her just so, her breathing changed and her eyes glazed and she went all pliable, subservient, and he wondered about the things that she might let him do, wondered at how close she would let him get. Of course, above all he was determined to respect and protect her, but sometimes he couldn't resist testing out his notion.

"Alright," he said, nudging his head to the trees beyond. "Think it's 'bout time we shot somethin'."

So they moved further through the forest, and Daryl shot two squirrels which had Tahlia tangled in a mess of dismay for the animals and amazement at his accuracy; and then he handed the crossbow to her, but it was big and heavy and he had to help her, which involved him right in behind her with an arm around her waist and his chin on her shoulder and his hand on her arm, and her body went all soft against his, and he felt her lose all concentration and told her as much, then she accused him of 'doing that on purpose', to which he insisted he didn't know what she was talking about (although of course he did, but this time he really had just been trying to help her), and after that, they agreed that was probably enough with the crossbow.

Carrying on up the steady incline, the terrain rough, the weather unseasonably warm for mid-fall and the air close in amongst the trees, Tahlia wiped at her brow as they arrived at the edge of a narrow, burbling stream.

"God, that water looks so good right now."

"Cross over." instructed Daryl as he started to pick his way across the protruding rocks. "Show ya somewhere even better."

The ground soon flattened out, and the stream opened into a calm, clear pool, fed by the thin tumble of a mountain waterfall from the sloping rock face above.

"Daryl! This is beautiful!" exclaimed Tahlia, her eyes lighting up at this secluded, serene gem of nature, and Daryl smiled to himself, glad that she obviously felt the magic of this place as much as he did.

Peering over the steep bank into the deep water, Tahlia could easily see every rock and plant at the bottom. "This is the clearest water I've ever seen! I bet it has some serious healing properties. Do you swim in it?"

"Ya can." he shrugged, "But it's straight off the mountain. Fuckin' freezin'."

Tahlia looked at him, then the pool, then back at him again, her eyes luminous with zeal. "We should do it."

"You're on your own, crazy girl."

"Come on!" she coaxed, toeing off her shoes. "It'll be fun. And I'm pretty sure extreme cold is really good for your immune system or something."

"Pretty sure it's the opposite."

Tahlia stared at him for a moment, then shrugged. "Ok. Fuck the immune system. How about, whoever gets out first has to shout drinks at Fox's for the other person for the next month."

"Goddamn." grumbled Daryl, because now she'd added a wager, he was going to have to kick her ass and win. "Fine. But I'ma be orderin' top shelf whiskey for the whole month."

"You do that. It's only gonna be hurting your pocket." goaded Tahlia.

"See about that." retorted Daryl as he kicked off his boots and stripped off his shirt. Undoing his belt buckle, he had his pants halfway down his hips when he heard Tahlia's loud, exasperated sigh.

"Oh, for God's sake."

"What?"

Staring at him, Tahlia opened her hands in frustration. "As if you don't know. You look like you've been chiseled out of fucking stone!"

Daryl had never thought of his body as anything to admire before, so it took a moment to digest her words. "Huh?"

"No. It's fine. It's fine." she muttered, turning away and shaking her head as she tugged her top off in resignation. Because it wasn't enough to know that underneath that tough exterior he had the heart of an angel, but now she also had to live with the knowledge that underneath his clothes he was built like a damned God. As if she needed any more fuel for the fire that burned for him. She was having a hard enough time extinguishing it as it was. Forcing those thoughts out of her mind, she stripped off her pants and tossed them into a heap off to the side before moving to the water's edge and gazing into the deep, shivering in anticipation, unaware of Daryl's eyes now fixed on her.

Fuck. He thought. Fuck.

The brief ego-boost from Tahlia's comment was quickly swallowed up by something far more primal at the sight in front of him. That was an image he really, really didn't need to add to his arsenal of her – casually standing there in her black lace underwear, twirling her hair over one shoulder and just being all incredibly, mouth-wateringly –

Fuck.

He quickly put his back to her, even though she was burned into his brain and that would be all he saw every time he closed his eyes for God knows how long, and as he shoved his jeans off, he was only half-listening as she started to say something else about the water, and it wasn't until he was standing there in his boxers that he registered the fact that she had stopped talking. Registered her stillness. And it was only then that he remembered the marred canvas of his back. Raising himself to full height, squaring his shoulders, he turned slowly, eyes narrowed, preparing himself for the horror or worse – pity - he expected to see on her face.

But there was neither.

Her eyes were wildfire, blazing with an anger he'd never seen before, and though her feet were planted firmly on the ground, her body was vibrating with rage.

"Those scars from your dad?" Tahlia asked, her tone controlled, quiet, though her fists were clenched at her sides. She knew a little of the legacy of Will Dixon – some directly from Merle, some secondhand from Andrea. She knew that Daryl had copped the worst of it, but seeing the evidence firsthand had set off a flare of fury in her that she hadn't expected.

Daryl nodded slowly, fascinated by this rare ferocity. Liked the way it sparked for him.

"I'd fucking kill him if I could." avowed Tahlia, irrationally angry that a heart attack had done the job for her.

Unable to help the tiny smile that twitched on his lips at that, Daryl ducked his head to hide it. Will Dixon would've torn this sweet slip of a thing to pieces and devoured her for breakfast, then washed her down with a bottle of Jack.

He squinted up at her. "Then I'd say it's real lucky for him he's already dead."

Tahlia pressed a hand to her chest as a sudden wave of sadness doused the rage inside, and she let out a long sigh. "Daryl…"

"Tahly." he cut in softly, shaking his head. "Don't gotta say nothin'. Is what it is."

She stared at him for a moment then gave a grunt of frustration. "I really, really want to hug you, but I feel like because we're both in our underwear that might make things weird. Just for you, of course." she added with a grin.

Daryl huffed out a laugh and nodded. "It would. So don't fuckin' do it."

"Ok. I'll save it for later."

"Nope. No thank you. Let's just pretend you did it already."

"No way. You're getting it later."

He rolled his eyes and gestured to the water. "Goin' in or what?"

"Yes. Let's jump. On three."

"'Kay."

"Wait." said Tahlia as they hovered over the edge of the bank. "Maybe I should test how cold it is first."

"Don't do that." advised Daryl with a firm shake of his head. "Ain't never gonna get in then."

"Ok." she agreed. "Ok. On three. One… two…"

"Wait." said Daryl, turning to face her with narrowed eyes. "Don't believe you're gonna jump. Just a trick to make me go in, huh?"

"I'm going to jump, I swear!"

"Don't believe ya."

"I will, I –" Tahlia's words were lost in a squeal as Daryl dashed towards her, grabbed her around the waist and propelled them both into the pool.

Letting go of her somewhere on the way down, Daryl hit the icy water, and as the breath was slammed from his chest, he realized it was a hell of a lot colder than he had prepared himself for. With daggers in his lungs and skin aflame from the cold, he flailed for a moment under the water before managing to boot himself back into motion and kick for the surface. Catching sight of Tahlia only a yard away, he reached out for her, worried that she might go into shock, and dragged her up with him.

"Y'ok?" he choked out when his lungs finally kicked back into action, pinning her to his chest with one arm as he treaded water.

Clinging to his shoulder, she nodded, still attempting to draw in sufficient air, then she gasped, "Holy… f-fuck… it's… freezing!"

"Told ya." managed Daryl, now acutely aware of their half-naked bodies sliding against one another, but unwilling to let her go.

"Character b-building!" asserted Tahlia, teeth chattering. "But let's g-get out."

Daryl agreed that was probably a good idea.

They swam the short way back to the bank, and Daryl quickly pulled himself out first before hauling Tahlia up behind him.

"Whose stupid idea was that?!" asked Tahlia, her skin pins and needles from the cold.

Grabbing his shirt, Daryl threw it around Tahlia's shoulders and rubbed her arms to get the blood circulating again. "Some real dumbass, that's for sure." he replied with a smile. "Dry off with this then get dressed. Shouldn't take long to warm up."

Obediently, Tahlia patted herself down with the shirt then picked up her clothes as feeling returned to her extremities, and grinned. "That was actually really refreshing! We should do it again tomorrow!"

"Ain't no one but you crazy enough to do that twice."

"You're just sore because you lost. You got out first."

"What?!" demanded Daryl. "Got out to help you get out!"

"Well," said Tahlia with a cheery shrug, "As chivalrous as that was, unfortunately that makes no difference to the terms of our bet."

Daryl gave her a withering look before bending down to pull his boots on. "Gonna throw ya straight back in, if you ain't careful."

He finished tying his laces, then looked up to find Tahlia standing in front of him, fully dressed, drips from her wet hair making little pockmarks in the dirt.

"Daryl."

"What?" he said uneasily, as he quickly got to his feet, wary of the deep intensity of her gaze.

She stepped in towards him, stood on her tiptoes, and slid her arms around his neck. "I'm sorry for all that happened to you."

"Godsake, Tahly." he grumbled, catching hold of her hips to press her away from him. "Was forever ago. Don't matter."

"It does." she replied softly, simply, then felt his hands relax on her hips, so she kissed him on the cheek and hugged him close. "Because you matter. You matter so much, especially to me. And I want you to always remember that."

"Shut up." he grunted but buried his face in the crook of her neck and sniffed a little as he wrapped his arms tightly around her and tried not to think about her knack for saying things he didn't know he needed to hear and tried not to notice how she filled up all the empty space inside him and made him feel so full.

"Now, get off." Abruptly, he pulled back and gave her a little shove before turning to walk away. "And don't do that no more."

"What," she asked, eyes sparkling with mirth at his gruffness, "Hug you?"

He stopped moving, his back to her and paused for a moment, then glanced over his shoulder, unable to keep the half-smile from his lips. "Nah. You should still do that. Just don't say no more of that soppy shit."

"Alright," laughed Tahlia, "Next time I hug you, I'll be sure to tell you how much of an asshole you are."

"Yeah, much better." grinned Daryl. "C'mon, time to go cook up some squirrel."

"Cook it? Where?" asked Tahlia as she caught up with him.

"You serious? Skewer it up, build a fire." He took one look at her expression, then rolled his eyes. "Gawd. Ya don't even know how to build a fire? Fuckin' hopeless, Tahly. You ain't got no survival skills at all. What if I weren't here? Then what?"

Tahlia looked at him like he was crazy. "What do you mean, 'if you weren't here'? Why the hell would I be out in the middle of buttfuck nowhere by myself trying to peel squirrels and build fires?!"

"You don't 'peel' a squirrel." retorted Daryl, trying his best to be disparaging, but she was too cute and it was too funny. "And I mean, like what if the world went tits up and stores didn't exist no more and you had to try and survive without all that shit you're used to? Whatchu gonna do then?"

"Well," smiled Tahlia sweetly, "If that happened, I'd just come and find you, and then I'd be set."

He stopped and stared at her because that was exactly what he would want her to do, but that wasn't the point, and he told her as much.

"I'm not completely useless." remarked Tahlia as she started collecting sticks at Daryl's direction. "I have mad sword skills, you know."

Making a noise of disbelief, Daryl led her through to a small glade and started clearing a spot on the ground.

"I'm serious!" Tahlia insisted, dropping her armful of kindling. "I have a katana. You know, those Japanese samurai swords?"

Daryl glanced up at her. "I know 'em. Really?"

"Yup. Went to Japan as a teenager and dabbled a little over there, then got really into it when I came back. That and martial arts. Me and Michonne belong to the local dojo. We go down there at least once a week and practice."

"Damn." Daryl was impressed. "Would like to see ya with that."

"Well, one day you might get to."

He smiled. "Maybe you ain't as city as I thought. Now sit your butt down here while the fire catches, and I'ma show ya how to peel this squirrel."

Later, much later, after they'd hiked the two hours back to the cabin and had a beer and cleaned themselves up and had another beer and roasted the wood duck Daryl had caught and ate it with salad that had been half-foraged, they were sitting by the campfire, a nightcap in hand and an ink-black canvas above, emblazoned with thousands of stars.

"God," remarked Tahlia in awe, as she leaned back in her camp chair. "The sky is so clear out here! Look at those stars!"

Sending his gaze upward for a moment, Daryl then cast a glance at her across the flames. "Even brighter without the fire. Jump up."

Setting his glass down, he stood and she followed suit, unquestioningly trailing after him as he led her around the back of the cabin, beyond the fence, and into the gloom of the trees.

"Don't we need a torch?"

Daryl laughed a little. "Naw, city girl. We don't. But I'll keep hold of ya." He caught her hand in his and immediately shot her a look. "You're cold."

"Just my hands." Tahlia assured him. "I'm fine."

"Sure?" asked Daryl skeptically as he carefully led her through the shadowy copse. "You tell me if ya get cold."

Soon they came to a glade, and Daryl gestured to the dewy grass in the middle before throwing himself on the ground.

"Lay down."

She lay next to him and instantly drew in a wondrous breath at the brilliance of the stars, dazzling against the contrast of the pitch dark.

"Know anythin' 'bout stars?"

"Yep!" replied Tahlia confidently. "That's Big Burning Ball of Gas, and that one right there is Galaxy Far Far Away."

Daryl chuckled. "So that's a no, then."

"Is this part of my survival skills course?"

"Gotta least be able to find Polaris, the North Star. 'Kay." He put a finger in the air. "That thing that kinda looks like spoon? That's Big Dipper. Follow them two stars at the end to the tail of Little Dipper, and that's Polaris. If you're facin' that, then you're facin' north."

Then Daryl went on to point out some of the other constellations, mildly surprised at how much he seemed to know about stars. Glancing at Tahlia, he then rolled onto his side to face her.

"Hey! Are you shiverin'?" He put his hand on her arm and felt the slight tremble beneath his palm. "You are! You're freezin'!"

Tahlia laughed and smacked his hand away. "I'm not, I'm all good."

"Goddammit Tahly, what did I say? You're meant to tell me if you get cold! I'm layin' here ramblin' on 'bout stars, and you're gettin' hypothermia. C'mon, let's go inside."

"No! I like listening to you 'ramblin' on 'bout stars'."

"I'll go get you a blanket, then."

"No!" she chuckled at his concern. "Stop. I'm fine."

He frowned. "C'mere, then."

And before Tahlia had time to figure out exactly what he meant by that, he had scooped her into his arms and rolled onto his back, taking her with him, settling her against his side and laying her head on his shoulder.

"You are fuckin' cold!" he chided, pulling her close, close as could be.

"Only in comparison to you." she retorted, feeling herself melting into the warm strength of his body.

God. This friendship with Daryl Dixon would probably be the death of her.

Daryl found his focus slipping from the stars, settling somewhere much, much closer to home - on this woman in his arms who had brightened his world and seemed to be fast becoming its axis. And what, exactly, was he going to do about that? He had already decided that up here, the answer was: nothing. He would hate for her to think that he had an ulterior motive in bringing her to the cabin, because hand on heart, he had just wanted her company. And he was all too aware how isolated it was here, how removed they were from the world, how reliant she was on him, and there was a part of him that couldn't help but think if anything happened between them up here, that it might not be real, that it might not translate into their everyday lives, that they wouldn't be able to take it back with them to the city.

So, this weekend, nothing. But then? Then something.

As he absentmindedly stroked her shoulder, her voice, soft and dreamy, drew him out of his head.

"Would you ever want to go up there?" she asked, still stargazing. "See what it's like?"

"Nah." he replied quietly, turning his head until his lips were just brushing her hair. "Real happy right where I am."

Reluctant to move, they lay tangled together for a while longer until Daryl felt Tahlia yawn.

"Right." he tapped her hip. "Let's go back 'fore you fall asleep on me."

"Nearly too late for that." murmured Tahlia, and then grunted in protest as Daryl practically lifted her to her feet and pulled her along after him through the darkness.

Something darted in front of them, rustling the bushes, and Tahlia gasped in fright, fully awake now.

"God, what was that?!"

"Fox, probably."

And then an owl hooted somewhere up to the left, and Tahlia pressed herself close to Daryl.

"For a place that's so beautiful during the day, it really is goddamned terrifying at night."

"Terrifyin'?" laughed Daryl, then he glanced down at her as they reached the edge of the treeline, stepping back into the light of the moon. "Wait, you serious?"

"Yes! This is horror movie material out here. You know, like all the darkness and the wilderness and the murderers."

"Damn, girl. You got murder on the brain. So, what murderers might these be, huh?"

"The axe murderers who appear at nighttime and will try to slaughter us in our sleep."

"Silver, I been comin' here my whole life, and ain't no one ever tried to slaughter me." replied Daryl assuredly as they neared the cabin. "Well, 'cept maybe Merle. Back when he were a tweaker."

"Shit." chuckled Tahlia, rubbing a hand across her face. "My imagination goes into overdrive when it's dark and I start thinking there's something hiding in every shadow. Ooh, hold on. I'm just going to pee before we go in."

Daryl pointed to the outhouse at the back. "You know where to go." Then he registered Tahlia's imploring gaze, and gave a heavy sigh of understanding. "You want me to come with ya."

"Just to distract the murderers!"

"Let's go, ya big baby." He propelled her down the side of the cabin and opened the outhouse door, flicking the lantern on for her. "Good to go. Nothin' that wants to kill ya in there."

As she beamed at him gratefully and disappeared inside, he huffed out a laugh at the fact that she was scared of the dark, and then choked on his next breath at the same fact as he thought about all the times she might have been afraid and had no one to make her feel safe.

"Don't want ya to be scared." Daryl told her sincerely when she emerged. "You're safe here, y'know. Safe with me."

Tahlia glanced up at him, "And I do feel that, but what if – "

"'What if', nothin'." interrupted Daryl as he gently shoved her inside the cabin. "Ain't gonna let no one hurt ya. Not up here, not in the city, not nowhere, ever."

"Oh." breathed Tahlia, momentarily caught up in thoughts of Daryl getting all fierce for her, then quickly reminded herself that he would do the same for any of his friends.

"Mean it." he insisted as he locked the door and drew the curtains (for Tahlia's benefit, because he wouldn't usually have bothered). "Anyone even thinks 'bout layin' a finger on ya, I'ma kill 'em."

Tahlia's eyes widened because he sounded deadly serious. "That's very sweet, but don't ever do that. Kill anyone. You could go to jail."

"Nah." replied Daryl with a smug smile. "See, I know this kickass lawyer, and I reckon she'd have my back."

Tahlia laughed. "Yeah, she definitely would."

"'Kay." Daryl stretched and yawned. "I'm goin' to bed. Gonna head out real early in the mornin'. Gonna be gone by the time you're up, but should only be a few hours. So just do whatever, but don't wander too far, alright?"

"Why not?"

"On account of all the murderers round here."

"Daryl!" Tahlia swiped at him. "Too soon!"

He jumped back and chuckled. "Nah, just real easy to get lost up here. Not for me," he added with a smirk. "Just for little city girls."

"Dude, I'm about as outdoorsy as you can get." asserted Tahlia, puffing her chest out. "I'll have you know I've been peeling squirrels and lighting fires and navigating by stars today."

With a grin, Daryl shook his head then started down the corridor, gesturing between the two rooms.

"Which one you want?"

And he should have known, really.

"Ohmyfuckin'Gawd. You wanna sleep in the same room too, don't ya?"

Tahlia just smiled, unapologetic about her irrational fears because she got the feeling that really, he didn't mind at all (and fucking yes she wanted to sleep in the same room because she could hear something howling outside and a creepy scratching noise on the roof).

Rolling his eyes, Daryl shoved her into the room on the left. "Yeah, you're real outdoorsy. Tough as they get." he mocked as he pointed to the top bunk. "Ain't scared of nothin', you. S'pose you want me to tuck you in too, huh, ya baby?"

"Well," grinned Tahlia as she snuggled under the blankets, "If you're offering."

First fixing her with a withering look, Daryl then suddenly vaulted up onto her bed and straddled her, wrestling her onto her back and pulling the blanket tight over her shoulders, using it to pin her arms by her side. "There." he smirked. "How's that?"

Laughing, Tahlia tried to wriggle free, but he had her fixed tight and she could barely move. Then he dropped his face to her neck and started rubbing his scruff against her sensitive skin, making her squeal and buck beneath him.

"Daryl!" Tahlia gasped, tears of laughter in her eyes, "Stop, oh my God, stop! You promised you weren't going to torture me!"

Tormenting her for a few moments longer he suddenly because aware of the smell of her, the feel of her, and he quickly sat back, the laughter fading from his eyes as he gazed down at her, all tousled and flushed and glowing.

Another perfect opportunity. God, the whole day had been littered with them, and it made him ache to let another one pass by. But there would be other opportunities, and he could wait. Would wait for the right one.

And because him staring at her like that had made the atmosphere cloud over with seriousness, he fixed it by tickling her ribs, then shooting her a crooked smile before jumping off the side of the bed and climbing into the bunk below.

"G'night, ya big wuss."

Ha, sorry that they didn't get around to doing the one activity that I know you're waiting for!