Under The Water

So...I'm just gonna kill the people you love, and then not update again for two years. Sounds about right. I don't know how I get so side tracked or why I can't properly think to write things continuously.

But anyhow, this is gonna be a bit of a jump from Beth dying. When need be, as always, there will be flashbacks.

Also to make up for the long long absence, I gift you faithful readers with smut.

"I usually conduct these one on one."

"I'm not leaving."

"He's not leaving."

The responses were nearly perfectly synced. Had the noun been the same, it would have sounded like one voice closely echoing the other. Deanna Monroe watched with curiosity and a mild irritant at the pair before her. Daryl, who still refused to sit down since his own interview, was no longer pacing the room at least. Now he stood behind the chair where Willa sat stiffly, fidgeting just slightly. She had been difficult to get in the room at all, and the hunter hadn't been the only one who had insisted on being in attendance. Carol however, had at least agreed to wait outside the room after Daryl had given Willa his vest. She slid into it and seemed to become a different person: less scared, more concentrated. She went to the chair upon request and sat down, folding her hands in her lap and picked slightly at a hangnail, her foot jiggling to some unknown tempo, but otherwise seemed calm.

"Very well, if that's what makes you comfortable." Deanna sat back on her sofa and watched the pair with an intent gaze. "Tell me, Willa...how long were you alone?"

"I don't know." Willa answered simply. Her eyes didn't stay in place even if the rest of her body were facing Deanna. She looked around the room, studied the door, the windows, plotting any sort of escape should she see fit to need one. "Time blended together...I just...was. Until Daryl."

"Until Daryl what?" Deanna asked softly. Her own eyes shifted from the young woman to the grown man, wondering, contemplating, trying to read what they were.

"Until...he...found me." The dark haired woman was tense, her words echoing her posture. While Daryl had paced the room like a caged animal, Willa seemed to behave like she was moving herself into a corner, protecting whatever sides she could while also giving herself ample position for a lunge. They were remarkably different and yet so similar.

"Do you want to be here, Willa?" The former member of congress went to the question she had just asked the man hardly minutes before. She knew before hearing the answer, that they wouldn't match. While Daryl had said that the children deserved roofs over their head, Willa would say…

"I want to be with my family. If that's here...it's here...if it's not...then it's not." Her eyes held distrust, her voice slightly rough. The young woman wanted to be intimidating, but she had a long way to go for that. WIth the teachers she had, Deanna had no doubt that this woman could become something that would make grown men quiver should the need arise.

"You're a family?" It wasn't so much a question, more of a statement of acknowledgement, reaffirming the remark. Willa gave a sharp nod of her head and rose from the chair, her actions declaring an end to the interview. Daryl reached out wordlessly, his hand pressing to the small of her back as they left the room.

Two people bound so tightly through a loss, through a shared experience, that even their past wouldn't be a deterrent to their connection.

It astounded Deanna, to say the least. She couldn't help but wonder just what it was that made them the way they were. What tragedy propelled these strangers to each other?

***WDWDWDWDWD***

Willa couldn't get over just how different Rick looked without his beard.

She knew he was talking, she knew she was staring, but it threw her off so greatly that she just couldn't help it. With something so simple as removing hair from his face, Rick was suddenly decades younger. She would be lying if she thought he didn't look attractive, but then her eyes shifted to Daryl sitting on the steps, gutting the possum he had been carrying all throughout the community, and her face softened. She had so much appreciation for him, so much experience with him even in their short time together. She would even dare to say that she loved him, really. She wondered vaguely about how he would look if he cut his hair and her mind wandered to the possibilities.

At least until Carol and Carl went to the house next door to check it out and Daryl and Rick explored around the house they were all currently sitting at. Willa slowly walked off the porch, letting her eyes roam the street, the houses nearby, counting to the fourth house where she had been told Aaron lived. She took in their surroundings, cased their situation, and met up with the others in the grassy area between the houses. She watched as Carol did as she was previously doing, looking around the neighbourhood, but the older woman did it with a grin on her face, as if she were relieved they were there. WIlla remembered the show Carol had put up when they handed over their guns: how the older woman faked a struggle to get the large gun off. She was putting on the visage of a frail, weak woman, just looking for a place to survive.

With that in mind, Willa stepped herself up beside Daryl, leaning slightly against him and then lifted his arm over her shoulders. Rick gave her a look but said nothing. Daryl didn't react much at all, behaving as if this were entirely normal. Which, at least in private, it was.

"They're right next to each other, but.." Carol let her sentence, not needing to express further what she felt about the situation.

"Take our weapons, now they're splitting us up." Rick commented, utter distrust in his voice. With how often their people got burned from places like this, it wasn't a surprise.

"Yeah." Daryl grunted as he tightened his arm on Willa's shoulders, tugging her in closer. He let his back stay out to the yard, facing his full attention on Rick. He knew the girls were looking around, knew that he could trust them to watch out behind him. How far they had come. Hell, how far he had come. It wasn't even that long ago when he would never have stopped looking everywhere, would never had let another person be in his space. Whether or not for show, he just simply would not have allowed it.

"Yeah...we're all gonna be sleeping in the same house tonight." The leader spoke with a soft finality that none of them would argue. "Everyone else will be here after their interviews. We'll bunk up once they're all here."

***WDWDWDWDWD***

Daryl wiped his hands on his pants as he walked through the house quietly, listening as their group started arriving outside. He could hear the shower running, knew Willa was in there, knew that the proper thing would be to knock, but he simply walked right in. Part of him wanted to scold her for not locking the door, it could have been anyone after all, but another part of him was elated that she didn't. He, however, did click the lock in place and moved to the sink, looking at himself in the mirror. He glanced back to the door of the shower, saw her form in the blurred glass, before turning his eyes back to his own reflection.

He wondered when he had gotten so scraggly. For that matter, when he had gotten so thin. His clothes hung so limply on him, he wasn't sure if they had ever actually fit. Lifting his hair off his forehead, he squinted his eyes at the reflective surface before him, taking in the lines on his face, the circles under his eyes. He looked down at the dirt and grime and lord knew what else was under his fingernails. He contemplated turning on the faucet and trying to clean them but a flashback in his mind to when he'd do that as a younger man while Merle was in the shower led to the water changing from hot to cold and a lot of punches made him reconsider the idea.

The sound of metal on metal snapped his eyes back up to the shower stall's reflection in time to see Willa step out of it silently, not even bothering to cover herself as the water still ran behind her. Her eyes caught his in the mirror and she paused momentarily before walking across the room to stand behind him. He tensed slightly when he felt her hands on his back, thinking that her clean skin shouldn't soil itself with his dirt, but he made no further reaction. He watched what he could see over his shoulder, the top of her head, her eyes cast downwards, narrowing slightly in concentration. Slowly, her hands slid down his back before gripping onto the bottoms of his various layers. He held his breath, part of him wanting to tear away from her, hide his body, his scars from her view as she began to lift the clothing, but he continued to stand there, still as a statue, save to lift his arms slowly when she held the shirts under his armpits. Her eyes lifted back to him, one brow raising in silent question, and he acquiesced to her.

He silently let her disrobe him, let her reach around to undo his belt and let his pants fall free the instant they weren't held up by the leather strip. He gripped the edge of the sink, watching and waiting. He was expecting her to look at him, look at the damage done by his drunken father, by his years fighting the dead and the living, and recoil in disgust. He knew she liked touching him through his clothes, their hidden kisses were proof of that. But he had never let her reach beneath his protective layers, nor had he done so to her. Now they were both bared to the other, and she was taking her time to inspect what was before her.

When she traced her fingers lightly over his scars, his tension seemed to both build and dissipate. Her warm breath blew across his skin and he could feel the little goosebumps raise over his arms. When suddenly, or perhaps finally, her lips touched to a scar on his shoulder, any doubt or restraint snapped in him and he turned quickly before grabbing her head: his calloused palms holding the damp skin as his fingers dug swiftly into her wet hair, and then his lips were upon hers, their tongues clashing in a passionate rush. Her arms encircled his waist and he groaned as she pressed her body against his, his hardened member sandwiched between their stomachs. Pulling back from the kiss, he finally looked at her, took in her thin frame, her curves, her own scars. The dirt from his body had transferred to hers, mingling with the water droplets that ran down her skin, leaving trails across the multi toned flesh. He could see the distinct lines between where she was sunburnt and what skin didn't see the sun and remained more pale. He could also see the scars across her thighs and remembered her words from the days when they first were knowing each other.

Harley likes being rough. He likes blood play.

Daryl felt his knees hit the floor, his hands slide down her body until they reached her legs, his thumbs running as softly as they could over her scars. He heard the slight catch in her breath and shifted his eyes upwards to see her looking down at him.

The most intimate they had ever been was in the forest outside the church, before Grady Hospital. Before Beth. They had a couple of little moments from the time they had buried the dear blonde to the time they met Aaron but it wasn't much. The slightest kisses, sitting close to each other, it was all they could do on the road, surrounded by people with no real sense of shelter.

With their eyes connected again, Daryl slowly ran his hand up her thigh, curving it inward until his thumb touched at the bundle of nerves at the apex of her legs. Her mouth dropped open, her eyes widened and the smallest gasp passed her lips. One of her hands reached over him to hold onto the counter top, the other found itself on his shoulder as he slowly moved his appendage in circles against her. He could feel her twitch under his touches, hear her shallow breathing over the sound of the running water behind them, and he contemplated letting a finger enter her, and almost began to move his hand to do so, until he saw the dirt under his nails again. A grimace passes his face and he rose quickly, shocking the young woman. He wrapped his arm around her and moved her back into the shower stall before pressing his lips to hers under the warm stream of water. He rubbed his fingers on his hand, tried to scratch his thumb nail under the other nails without looking as he nibbled on her lower lip, receiving a groan that shot straight through him, only making him harder. She must have felt him and truthfully, it wouldn't have been hard to miss, but as she reached her hands to wrap her fingers around his length, he found himself stopping her.

"Daryl…" Her voice sounded coursed, roughened by desire and the length of time being silent. Her pupils were blown out, her lips swollen from their kisses, she looked utterly delirious in the best ways but also as if she was concerned. In the distant, they could hear the others in the house, talking, exchanging stories of their interviews, and each of them probably had a moment to consider if this was a good idea in a house full of people.

"I told you...I'm gonna take care of you." Daryl whispered in her ear, his own rough voice sending pleasant chills through her body and gaining him another groan of anticipation. He shot his fingers a quick glance, pleased at their now clean status, before lowering them back between her legs. His thumb resumed residence on her nerves while his middle and forefinger plunged deep inside her. She bit down hard on her lower lip to muffle her sounds of pleasure as he moved his fingers within her. He was fascinated by her face, by her reactions to his ministrations. Her eyes squeezed shut as he went faster, her mouth falling open with quiet gasps. He had to nudge her backwards against the wall without breaking their connection to avoid water getting in her mouth and she looked at him, dazed and lusty. He licked his lips before attacking her neck, giving it the lightest bites and kisses, trying not to give her noticeable marks. Her hands held onto his shoulders, nail digging into the flesh as she tried her hardest to hold in her noises, the faster his fingers got. He could feel her inner walls tightening around his fingers, knew she was almost there, and lifted his head in time to join their lips together, taking her moans into his mouth as a muffler while she came undone on his hand. His other arm snaked around her and held her firmly against him when her legs started giving way.

He breathed out just as heavily as she did, his swollen member aching to be touched as it pressed to her stomach once more, but he ignored it. He let her rest against him, regaining herself as she came down from the high. Slowly, she lifted her head to look at him, her hand coming up to brush his wet hair off his face. She ran her hand back down his body as she watched him, her confidence shooting through the roof as he bit his lip when her hand closed around him. His control was virtually non existent and she loved it, loved that she was the one he did this around, that she was the one he would let himself lose it around. Rising up on her tiptoes, she lifted her other leg over his hip and aligned him to her center. He let her lead the way, holding her hips enough to help her balance but not control her moments. She lowered herself onto him with a pleased sigh as he grunted at the tightness. Her head fell back against the wall and she rotated her hips, bringing another grunt from him and a tightening of his fingers on her flesh. The water was coming down cold on them now but neither of them cared as they moved together slowly, their breathing coming out in quick, sharp bursts. His head fell forward, forehead against her shoulder, and he watched his own hips thrust forward and pull back, burying himself repeatedly within her. One of her hands rested on his head, her fingers tangling in his hair in a soothing fashion, while the other gripped tightly to his shoulder.

"Daryl...Daryl...please…" She whined breathlessly in his ear as each of her grips tightened on him. He picked up his pace, thrusting harder and choking on his own incomprehensible words. He could hear the sound of their wet skin slapping each other and wondered for the smallest moment of anyone else could hear them, but then Willa bit on his neck to muffle her moans and his mind turned blank as he slammed into her a few more times before releasing himself within her.

He swore his heart would jump out of his chest with how hard it was thudding away as he tried to control his breathing. They both panted, leaning on each other and the wall as they overcome their climactic daze, the water now icey cold as it cascaded over them, making her shiver. He shut the water off and lifted her out of the stall, keeping himself within her for just a few moments longer as he carried her across the washroom to sit her on the counter top.

"You think they heard us?" Willa asked quietly, watching in fascination as Daryl gathered the towel and wiped her body dry even as he stood dripping puddles.

"Maybe." His response was gruff, not unlike most of his speech, but his posture was so much more relaxed than it had been as of late. She couldn't help but smile just slightly as he took care of her, drying her with gentle touches. When she slid off the counter top and touched her fingers to his chin, he didn't fight her drawing him down for a kiss, and relinquished the towel to her without any complications. She treated him equally as softly, being her gentlest over his scars, particularly the one on his abdomen that had a mirror of it on his back. He looked at her quizatively and she raised an eyebrow when she noticed. "Do you care if they heard?"

"Do you?" Her questioning response made him smirk down at her as he brushed the backs of his fingers across her cheek.

"Nope." Daryl swooped down for another kiss then held back growling when a knock on the door signified that they needed to join their family now.

I hope this somehow makes up for my absence. I make no promises for being able to keep up on this but I do really really hope I won't take two more again for the next chapter. I'll introduce Willa to Negan soon enough at which point I might actually deviate off the show because honestly, I haven't been watching it much. Not since I found out they were going to kill Carl, I was pretty much done with the show from then.