The wind continued to howl throughout the night and in to the next day, although the rain abated enough to allow the prison's inhabitants outside. The sun dragged itself into the swollen sky, fighting its way through the storm clouds to illuminate the aftermath of the hurricanes onslaught; the fencing had fallen, jeopardising the safety of their perimeter. Walkers had entered what had previously been a safe zone, the rain having battered them into shambling masses of peeling flesh and sodden, trailing clothing. The assault seemed to have confused them for they seemed even more aimless and lost than usual.
They knew it would take some time to restore the structure of the building, having to clear out the assembling walkers before they could restore the fences. However without getting the fences back up the walkers continued to get in, making every one killed almost worthless.
Daryl spent the majority of the day out in the open, picking off as many of the converging walkers as he could. The day was grey and dreary, the wind often picking up and shoving the more skeletal walkers around, sometimes dragging them a couple of feet from where they originated. The weather made Daryl's life trickier for the wind proved to be unideal conditions for his crossbow, meaning close combat was the most viable option.
Rick, Tyreese, Glen and some of the other Woodbury men were doing their best to re-erect the fencing whilst Daryl, Sasha, Michonne and others took care of the walkers. Michonne's sword swept through the air with impeccable ease, the wind having next to no impact on her ability to slay the walkers in one fell stroke. She moved with deft precision, her face a mask of determined concentration, her long hair blowing about her face.
Sasha was best with a gun, but the amount of walkers that had already converged on their ground were almost overwhelming, meaning any sound issued from a gun would only attract more, weighing them down under the sheer amount of the undead. So Sasha was forced into close range combat too, her knife her best choice of weapon. She wasn't as swift as Michonne or as precise as Daryl, making her work somewhat sloppy. The onslaught of the rain had bogged up much of the grass, causing their boots to stick in the mud often, making their work harder and more arduous than it should have been.
The wind picked up, sweeping up debris and fallen branches and tossing them high in to the air. The rain was picked up along with it, the droplets being raised into the sky before falling down into spirals. Below, the prison inhabitants trudged on, dragging their boots out of the suctioning mud.
Sasha lunged her knife at an oncoming walker, but the ground beneath her seemed to give way beneath her feet, the mud sliding out from under her, causing her to slip forward as her footing came unstuck. Her knees hit the ground with a thud, her knife flying from her grip at the impact. The walker that she had been aiming for moved in on her, its skeletal arms reaching out to her as it fell down on top of her. Sasha rolled under it, pushing it away, but another walker had spotted her, reaching down for her as she struggled to regain her composure beneath the one already on top of her.
Michonne, having heard Sasha's cries, ran towards her, chopping down walkers that had changed direction and were heading towards the encumbered Sasha. Michonne thrust her sword through the brain of the second walker, then tugged the shoulders of the first one, tearing it away from the struggling woman and slashing the top of her rain soaked skull clean off.
She grabbed Sasha's forearm, pulling her to her feet. Wet and covered in mud, Sasha's chest was heaving as she stood up, steadying herself.
'You okay?' Michonne asked.
Sasha nodded violently, but her eyes were wide and frightened. She shook her hands out, looking around, taking deep, shuddering breaths.
Shouldering his crossbow, Daryl strode over to the two women, sensing a potential breakdown.
'Did you get bit?' Michonne asked Sasha, her voice almost too low to hear over the howling wind.
'I – no,' Sasha shook her head, inspecting herself.
Daryl reached them just as, taking him off guard, Sasha burst into tears.
Before long, Tyreese had abandoned his post at the fence and had rushed over to his sister, his face a picture of concern.
'What's the matter? What's happened?' He asked.
'Nothing – nothing!' Sasha cried, dropping her face into her hands, 'I'm just so stupid!'
'We all get taken off guard,' Michonne said softly.
Tyreese pulled his sister into a hug, ignoring her protests.
'I think we could all do with some down time,' Michonne said as Rick wandered his way across to them, 'some relaxation.'
'S'not a bad idea,' Daryl nodded, glancing across at Rick. Rick nodded.
. . .
Beth was sitting on her bed, casually watching her sock covered feet swing a few inches from the floor, her mind a million miles away. She was disturbed by a knock on her door, bringing her back to the present.
'Carol's made apple crumble,' Zach said from her doorway, grinning ear to ear.
'Really?' Beth asked, looking up, 'how?'
Zach shrugged.
Beth jumped up from her bed and, after pulling her boots on, followed Zach out through the prison, heading in to the canteen.
The canteen was surprisingly full as they entered and Beth spotted her sister with their dad and Glen on a table to the left of the room. She made a beeline for them, with Zach following her.
'What's going on?' she asked, sitting down beside her sister.
'Sasha had a melt down earlier,' Glen said, 'Rick wanted everyone to have some down time.'
'Don't say meltdown,' Maggie hissed, nudging Glen in the ribs, 'everyone's tensions are running high, its a good idea for everyone to chill out, if just for one evening, after everything.'
'Good idea,' Beth smiled as Carol brought some of her apple crumble over.
Beth saw Daryl wander into the room from the corner of her eye. Carol, who was still at their table, waved him over. Rubbing his beard, he walked towards them.
'Here,' Carol said, gesturing to the crumble in her arms.
'Nah,' Daryl held out a hand, 'save it f'everyone else.'
'Come here,' Beth said, unable to help herself. She scooted up closer to her sister, making room between herself and Zach.
Daryl shook his head.
'Sit down,' Beth said looking at him, her eyes searching his, her head tilted slightly to one side.
Daryl glanced around the rest of the table, then sighed, and sat himself down beside Beth. Beth could feel the heat of his body beside her as they sat in such close proximity.
'Rick said everyone is to take the night off,' Carol said lightly, passing Beth some crumble.
'And you do the most for the community!' Zach said from beside Daryl, as Patrick, who had sat opposite them, nodded fervently.
Daryl just chewed on the skin at the side of his thumb, not replying.
As Carol walked away to speak to some others, Beth scooped a spoonful of crumble up from her plate then held it out to Daryl.
'Here,' she said.
Daryl looked her up and down, one eyebrow slightly raised.
Beth glanced around the table; her father was deep in conversation with Glen and Maggie seemed occupied in her own food.
Beth grinned, holding the spoon up higher, nodding her head. Daryl looked at her through his hair, his face guarded.
'It's not poisoned.' She said.
She saw Daryl's face thaw slightly as the side of his lip hitched into a small smile. He leant towards her, his eyes on hers, as she held the spoon out. Carefully, he took the spoon into his mouth, Beth tilting it slightly for him.
He pulled away from her, bringing his hand to his mouth, his eyes shining with amusement. Beth had never felt so attracted to him .
'Really?' Maggie hissed beside her, her own eyebrow raised.
'You want me to spoon feed you, too?' Beth whispered to her, earning herself a dramatic eye roll and sigh.
She put the spoon back down on the plate and nudged slightly closer to Daryl until their bodies were touching. She saw him glance down to her, a slight smile playing on his lips.
'Who wants to play hide and seek?' Carl came hurrying over, his face flushed with excitement.
'Really?' Maggie asked.
'Yeah, Dad okayed it, let's get everyone in on it!' he grinned.
Beth was surprised to see Carl enthusiastic about playing a game, often one to distance himself as far as he could from anything considered childish.
'I'll play,' Zach grinned, 'And I'll beat your ass.' He pointed to Carl as he pulled himself up from the table.
'We'll play,' Glen answered for Maggie, putting an arm around her shoulders.
'Will you let an old man rest?' Hershel asked Carl, leaning his elbows on the table before him.
'Sure,' Carl said, 'but you two will play?' he looked at Beth.
'Yeah,' Beth grinned. A little light-hearted play would do everyone good.
'Nah,' Daryl shook his head.
'Yes you will,' Beth said, turning to look at him, 'Rick's rules.'
'What is this some damn Rick says,' Daryl muttered.
'Yeah and he says you gotta play,' Beth retorted, gently nudging him in the ribs.
He sighed.
Carl, seemingly satisfied that they really would play, ran off to gather more recruits.
'This is stupid,' Maggie said, leaning back and folding her arms across her chest.
'Lighten up,' Beth said.
'It's hardly safe,' she replied.
'Rick's okayed it, he knows what he's doing.' Beth said.
'Go and play, go and be children while you can,' Hershel smiled over at his daughters.
'Daddy I'm twenty-six.' Maggie laughed.
'We can get back to our serious, bleak reality tomorrow,' Zach said. 'Tonight we play!'
Beth giggled and pulled herself up too.
'Fine.' Maggie said, pushing herself up as well, 'but I'm competitive,' she said, prodding her little sister in her chest.
'Bring it on.' Beth said.
'Let's go,' Glen said to Maggie, his eyes gleaming.
'No funny business,' Hershel said, pointing to his son-in-law.
'Daddy!' Maggie cried whilst Glen laughed loudly.
'Come on, you've got to play.' Beth said, tugging at Daryl's sleeve.
'Ain't no-one on guard duty,' he murmured.
'That isn't your worry tonight,' Beth said, as he begrudgingly got himself up.
'You be safe now,' Hershel said, sitting back in his seat and smiling up at his youngest daughter, his blue eyes sparkling.
'S'alright I got 'er.' Daryl said to the old man.
Hershel nodded, smiling, as Beth led Daryl out of the canteen.
'Where we going?' Daryl asked.
'You know this place better than me,' Beth said, 'where's the best place to hide?'
Daryl sighed as he fell into step beside her, his crossbow held loosely by his legs. Beth knew better than to tell him to leave it behind; she was pushing her luck with him as it was.
'Boiler room I guess,' he shrugged, rubbing his chin.
'Alright, lead the way,' Beth said, waving her hand out in from of them.
Daryl paused for a moment and looked down at her. Then he smiled and shook his head before walking ahead of her. Grinning to herself, Beth followed him.
. . .
The boiler room was situated in the lower section of the prison but still within the safe zone. Silently everyone knew to stay within close range of the main section, their recent security breach was still a possible threat.
Daryl led the way and held the steel door open for Beth, letting her into the room before him. The room was relatively small, with the oversize boiler ticking away at the far end. It was a warm room, tainted by a damp, musky smell which was only heightened by the slightly muggy feel of the air.
'Alright?' Daryl asked, letting the door swing shut behind him, bathing them in a sudden darkness.
'Yeah,' Beth shrugged, 'I think it's good – leave it!' she suddenly said, noticing Daryl about to go for the light. He turned to look at her. 'They see the light through the door gap they'll know we're here!'
Thankfully, the room wasn't pitch black, so Beth could make out the mixture of confusion and bemusement on the older man's face. He ran his hand down his face.
'Y'wanna sit in th' dark?' he said.
'Til they find us,' Beth chuckled, her heart beating at the prospect of being hunted out. It was a weird feeling and a weird situation, considering they spent a lot of their days now hiding out in fear of being found by undead corpses that wanted them dead. Yet here they were staging and recreating that exact scenario of fear but with an odd addition of excitement. It was bizarre and all a little sick.
Beth gestured for Daryl to come towards her, which he did, slowly.
'This 's'a stupid fuckin' game,' he said quietly, stopping close in front of Beth.
'You're supposed to be lightening up, Mr Dixon,' Beth breathed, suddenly aware of how close they were in the small, dark, enclosed space.
'Ain't all tha' much t'be light about.' He shrugged.
'Oh come on,' Beth sighed, 'play the game.'
Sighing, Daryl walked past her and sat himself down on the floor beside the back wall, crossbow laying at his feet as he faced the door. Slowly, Beth followed him, dropping down to sit beside him.
'Room smells kind of musty, doesn't it,' Beth commented as she tried to get comfortable on the cold, hard floor.
'Can't imagine neither o'us smell tha' great,' Daryl shrugged.
Beth looked up at him.
'Speak for yourself.' She said.
Daryl turned to look down at her.
'Y'smell like roses d'ya?' he asked, smirking.
'Smell me,' Beth said, leaning her body against him, 'I reckon you don't even know where the showers are.'
'We have showers?' he asked in mock surprise. Beth shoved him.
'We do,' she said, 'I'll show you. I'll show you how to use them.'
'Oh will ya?' Daryl raised an eyebrow.
'Yep,' Beth said, feeling the heat of her body rise, 'I don't mind helping you wash off some of that grime.'
She moved herself up onto her knees so she could lean over him, putting her hands on his shoulders beneath his vest.
'Might even be able to get this off of you long enough to wash it, too,' she said, pushing at the leather.
'Y'want it off?' Daryl asked. His voice was low but it tingled through Beth like static electricity.
'Mhmm,' she breathed.
Slowly, his eyes on hers, Daryl shrugged it off, leaving him in a thin shirt which, unfortunate for Beth, covered his arms. The muscles were still plenty visible beneath the fabric however.
Daryl was watching her, his eyes narrowed beneath his hair as her hands slowly roamed across his chest. Beth felt her own heart rate rise as her hands took in the heat of his body. She leant in and pressed her lips to his neck, feeling him flinch.
'Comin' in 'ere wi' ya was a bad idea,' he murmured, pulling away to look at her.
Beth bit her lip.
His eyes stayed locked on hers for some time, the slow, methodical blinks doing nothing to calm Beth's eager beating heart. She reached up to push his hair from his face, then slowly leant in again, this time moving her lips to his. She lingered slightly, waiting for him to move away or make his move, but when neither came, she pressed her lips to his anyway.
Daryl allowed her to kiss him, kissing her back after a moment, his hands gradually moving their way up her body, a slow anxious innocence to their movements. Beth found herself deepening the kiss, her hands finding the collar of his shirt and beginning to unbutton it in an almost subconscious manner, her foggy brain hardly keeping up with her bodies own eager excitement. She pressed herself closer to him, feeling him move with her, his hands holding her tight.
Almost by its own accord, Beth found her body moving itself on top of his, her legs positioning their-selves until she sat in his lap, her legs straddling his hips. He moved his hands down to the light curve of her ass, both hands snaking down over her jeans. Beth's breath caught in her throat at the touch, her body shuddering with the contact. His stubble scratched her chin in an almost burning manner as he gripped her, his mouth roaming across her jaw and onto her neck, his tongue moving across her soft skin, his teeth gently scraping. The occasional small bite caused her to wince, then moan as he followed it up with kisses, sucking at her flesh.
Beth tilted her head back as he kissed her neck, her eyes closed, her body wriggling against him. As he kissed her, his hands hot on her backside, Beth could feel his swelling excitement beneath her, pressing firmly against the fabric of her own crotch as a thousand and one sensations spilled through her in ways she had never experienced before, until she found herself almost panting, the strength of her desire bordering on painful.
She leant back in and kissed him fiercely, biting down on his bottom lip.
He pulled away from her, his eyes searching hers as he sucked his lip into his mouth, nursing the supple flesh she had bitten down on.
His face was flushed, his eyes heavy as he looked at her. Beth swallowed, her chest rising and falling rapidly.
'Don' play wi'me girl,' he growled, his voice low and husky.
'I'm not playing.' She whispered.
Daryl raised his hands to push her hair back from her face, watching the way she melted into his touch, tilting her head into his hand, her eyes closing.
'S'a dangerous game,' he murmured.
'Mm,' Beth leant into his hand, relishing against his touch.
'Someone could come in any minute,' Daryl said softy.
Beth opened her eyes to look at him, drinking in his face. Slowly, she nodded, then climbed off of his lap, her crotch burning in desire. She stood and leant her back against the cold wall, revelling in the cold against her flushed skin, her legs feeling heavy. She shut her eyes, waiting for her heart to steady itself and bring her breathing back down with it. She felt Daryl get up from beside her and heard him pace the room for a while, taking deep, steadying breaths. She couldn't help but smile.
'We need t'get outta here,' he said.
Beth opened her eyes to look up at him.
'Can't keep puttin' ourselves in these situations,' he said, sticking his hands in his pockets. His face was still flushed and his eyes were heavy as he looked at her.
Beth tilted her head. As much as she agreed, she was in no hurry to say so. The attraction she felt for him ran deep through her veins, so much so that her brain seemed to stop working whenever he was around. She found her eyes trailing across his body as he stood in front of her, her mind wandering back to the touch of him, the feel of him beneath her . . . he had wanted her just as badly. The thought brought the blood to her cheeks.
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps reached them. At the same time, she turned to glance at the door. It opened to reveal Carl, Zach and Patrick.
'Found you!' Carl beamed, clearly still enjoying his game.
'Alright,' Daryl said, nodding. Beth pushed herself away from the wall, careful not to look at Daryl. If Carl had been minutes earlier they would have been in very deep, very hot water.
As she left the room, smiling at the boys who had found them, she looked to Zach. Her stomach dropped as she saw his face, a strange, quizzical look of confusion, his eyes narrowed under a slight frown. She followed his gaze to Daryl, who was inspecting his crossbow. His shirt was undone almost half way. Beth's cheeks burned a deep red.