Beth moved a little closer to Daryl and interlaced her fingers in his. The five of them stood outside, taking it all in. Maggie had managed to push her jaw shut again. Her mom was still blinking but forcing a smile. Daryl could see Beth trying to think of what to say next. But, as soon as it looked like she'd figured it out, her brother opened his mouth.

"You got to be fuc – "

" – It's so nice to meet you, Daryl!" Beth's mom cut Shawn off and moved to give him a big ol' Southern hug. Beth let go of Daryl's hand but his arms remained by his said as the woman nearly squeezed him to death. When she was done she took a step back and forced her smile once again. "I'm Annette, as you probably know…and…I'll let my kids introduce themselves."

Shawn crossed his arms, and Maggie rolled her eyes at him before introducing herself to Daryl. "I'm Maggie, I've heard a lot about you. It's so nice to meet you."

"I'm Shawn and I've heard absolutely nothing about you."

"Shawn." All three women spoke together in a chastising tone.

"Well, I haven't," Shawn replied, his eyes falling to Daryl. Daryl had never felt so uncomfortable. He could now tell glaring was a family trait that they were all very good at…because, once again, if looks could kill…

Beth stepped back towards Daryl and grasped his hand again. Shawn's gaze, however, made him want to drop it. But, being the ever-so-stubborn girl she was, Beth tightened her grip and glared back. Daryl wondered if she felt like she had something to prove. Or maybe she was just falling back into the swing of being a little sister. He couldn't tell.

"Well, now that that's over with, we should all go inside!" Beth practically had her customer service voice on.

"Of course," Annette said and turned for the rest to follow. Daryl tried to follow right away but Beth stayed right where she was and weighted him from moving any further. She was still so nervous, no matter how stubborn she was. She hadn't been inside her home in almost six months.

"Offer to leave still stands." Daryl (half) joked.

"Let's just get this over with." Beth started walking, now dragging him.

…

"So, the bathroom is upstairs to the left…" Annette pointed as Daryl followed as they made their way through the house. Her voice was chipper, but of course, she felt awkward. She was hit with a curveball. "…across from the guest bedroom that you'd be saying in."

Daryl glanced over at Beth, who was about to object. He spoke before she could "Yes, ma'am."

Beth mouthed what the fuck at him. He wasn't sure if had ever said the word ma'am in his life.

"Annette, please."

"Ma'am is fine." Shawn chimed.

"Annette, is better, Shawn." She cleared her throat and continued her tour. "Dinner will be at six…I don't know what time you two usually eat."

"I hear he eats around eleven almost every other night…" Maggie was whispering to her sister. But it was a little too loud if he could hear it. Daryl coughed loudly. From the corner of his eye, he could see Beth's elbow jam into her sister's rib cage.

"Six is fine," Daryl said.

"Eleven is better," Maggie whispered again, and both him and Beth went into a coughing frenzy.

"Oh goodness! Are you two alright?" Annette had, thankfully, missed Maggie's comments.

"Probably just all the dust from the drive" Daryl let go one more cough to add emphasis.

Beth rolled her eyes and did the same. "Yeah super dusty."

"It's winter," Shawn said, eying them both in disgust. He had definitely heard Maggie.

"Alright!" Annette laughed and tried to hurry the conversation. "Well, I guess we should let you two rest and then we can all…catch up around dinner?"

"I'm going to show Daryl upstairs first before we rest," Beth said.

"Okay, but no closed doors…" Annette caught what she said as soon as she said it, but there was no taking it back.

She was speaking to Beth like she was a child. That wasn't going to sit well with the blonde and he'd probably hear all about it in a bit. Of course, Beth knew she was on thin ice with her family and kept her thoughts to herself for the time being by simply nodding and turning on her heels.

…

Her room looked exactly how she left it. Her dresser drawers were still half open from last-minute packing and her bed was unmade. There were several different swatches of paint slapped on the wall and Beth recalled that painting her room was a project she'd planned for last July. However, there was one thing distinctly different about the room. It smelt like it had been unlived in for a very long time. Instead of the homey smell that used to feel so welcoming the only scent that Beth found was that of mothballs.

"You know those movies and TV shows where the kid dies and the parents can't seem to find it in themselves to clean or pack up their room?" Beth asked Daryl as she went to sit on her old bed.

"Sure." Daryl hesitated at the door which made Beth twist up her face. He was acting like an awkward teenager, not knowing what to do next.

"That's what this like." Beth let out a sad laughed. "And I didn't think this place could feel like any more of a tomb."

Daryl finally took a step into the room. For the briefest of moments, he looked like he wanted to sit next to her but couldn't bring himself to do it. Beth watched him wandered around scanning the room. She wondered what he made of the pastel pink walls, the stuffies, and all the photos of her (former?) friends. Her childhood room was a far cry from the one they shared. It was somewhat amusing how different her life had become.

"Is this your dad?" Daryl lifted up the scrapbook from Maggie. She had left it sitting open, collecting dust.

Beth got up and walked over to him. His finger was resting on the wrong face. "No, that's my Uncle Harold…" she gently grabbed his wrist until he was hovering over Herschel "…that's Daddy."

Daryl studied the photo for a moment then looked at her and gave her a warm smile. "You have his eyes."

"Thanks" Beth laughed with a little more life in it this time. "And I'm sorry my family is…a lot. I can't believe they're treating me like such a baby."

"You are the baby of the family, Beth." Daryl rested his hand on the crown of her head.

Beth immediately wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. She didn't think she was going to cry but tears were suddenly welling up and her lip trembled. Daryl held on to her as she took a deep breath and tried to reign herself in. After a few moments, Beth could feel herself calming down.

Daryl kissed her head gently and tried to let go. "I should probably shower."

"Two seconds!" Beth muttered into his shirt. She wanted to stand there for as long as she could go. That homey smell that had disappeared from her room clung to Daryl now.

"One…two…" Daryl counted and Beth pulled away.

"Fine." Beth crossed her arms and gave him an impish grin. "Want some company."

"Tempting, but I don't want to get crucified our first night here."

"You sure?" Beth couldn't help herself as she crossed the room and gently closed the door.

"Greene." Daryl shook his head. "You might be the death of me."

Beth laughed as she slipped off her shirt and tossed it at him. Daryl caught it and look at her. She was daring him, seeing if he would toss the shirt back or away. After a short pause, he groaned and knew she had won. Daryl tossed the shirt aside and soon had her pressed up against the door. Another giggle escaped as he carried her towards the bed. But that was as far as they got.

Without so much as a knock on the door to her room swung open.

"You left your bags in the truck…and Mom said no closed…" Shawn's voice filled the room "…WHAT THE FUCK, BETH!"

"SHAWN GET OUT!" Beth screeched as she behind Daryl.

Shawn threw the bags into the room and quickly stocked off, leaving the door open behind him. Beth leapt up and ran to close the door again. Daryl was two steps behind her. She whipped her head around looking for her shirt, but Daryl had already found it. He handed it off her and she had it on in a matter of seconds.

"Right." Beth sighed in defeat.

"Right," Daryl repeated. "I think should probably take that shower now."

…

Frigid.

That was the only way to describe the air around the dinner table that night. Of course, the whole house knew. He and Beth both knew they were being stupid at the time and, honestly, Daryl was surprised he hadn't been kicked out on the spot. Shawn had probably demanded it. But, it was Annette who had made the final call as the two hid upstairs.

And now they were eating pork in utter silence.

Beth was particularly twitchy. He figured she was wondering why no one had said anything after Shawn's outburst. A few times she went to speak, but Daryl watched as she clamped her lips such each time. It was Maggie who finally broke the silence.

"Beth, I was thinking about going into town tomorrow, did you and Daryl was to come?"

Beth looked at Daryl.

"What you have to ask his permission?" Shawn sneered.

"No." Beth snapped back. "He is the guest and should have a say, however, don't you think?"

Shawn rolled his eyes. "Sure, whatever."

"Well, if Daryl doesn't want to go I do have a few things around the house that could use fixing…you look like you…fix things…Daryl" Annette chimed.

"Mom you can't just ask him to fix things!" Maggie moaned.

"I told you I could get everything done," Shawn added.

Beth simply sighed.

Daryl cleared his throat. "I can fix things if you need me to…ma'am…Annette…"

"Annette."

"Ma'am is fine." Shawn spat at him, again.

"Oh, would you stop it." Beth huffed. "You're being a brat!"

"I'm being a brat? That's rich, coming from you."

"Excuse me?!" Beth gritted her teeth and look as though she was about to cuss her brother out.

"That's enough from both of you!" Annette interrupted with her voice raised. The two siblings shut down and stared sheepishly at their plates.

Daryl shifted in his seat. They went back to silence and finished their meals. Beth and Maggie helped their mom in the kitchen and he hovered there too. He even dried the plates as Annette pointed out the leaky sink and mentioned some breaks in the fence around the property. It wasn't late by the time they were done the dishes but Daryl didn't know what else to do besides wish everyone a good night a disappear into the spare bedroom. Beth followed a little later. From his open door, he watched as she padded from the bathroom to her room. Despite the events of the day, she still closed her door behind her.

As he laid on his back in the dark, Daryl wondered if Beth and her brother were always going at each other. Probably not. The resentment in his voice was aimed at Daryl and he didn't blame him. But, at any rate, if it continued on like this, their "visit" would feel like an eternity.

AN: Hello, again, everyone. I know it's always a surprise when I upload. To be honest, although I've had the end of this fic in mind since the beginning, it has been tough getting to it! I didn't know If I was ever actually going to finish Saudade because I lost my passion for the Walking Dead after "Coda." I did not, however, lose my passion for Bethyl and I feel as though those who have stuck it out for 6 (!?) whole years deserve an ending to this story. This series of uploads will be my final. Thank you so much for those who stuck with it.