[A/N: So, the spin on this story has morphed a little from where I originally planned. Basically, everything up til now should be considered "Part I: Merle", and everything from here on in should be considered "Part II: Daryl". (Actually, I'm going to go back and label chapter one accordingly).]

Part II: Daryl

Prologue

The shack slumped half concealed in the trees, its sloping timbers and cracked frame evidence of neglect that long predated the end of the world. The afternoon sun pierced through overgrown branches that seemed to claw the building back into the woods, casting sharp shadows on the sagging porch.

It wasn't the place he'd grown up, but it was the same. He could see it in the empty bottles and rubbish trapped in the overgrown grass and taste it in the sourness in the air. His lip lifted in a snarl.

He could almost hear the old man's voice raging from the darkness through the open door.

There was a soft voice behind him. 'It doesn't make you who you are.'

Daryl's head snapped around and he saw Asha, her eyes hooded and a smear of dirt across one check. Spear gun held loose in one hand, she pulled her long blonde braid over her shoulder as she came to stand beside him, eyes tracking across the slipshod building.

'What?' He couldn't help the snarl in his voice.

'Your past. It isn't the whole story. I mean, it's definitely part of the picture, but it's not everything.'

Daryl looked at her, eyes narrowing defensively. She was tall enough to meet him eye to eye.

She reached out and rested her hand on his arm. Daryl's skin tingled under her fingers—even through his flannel shirt—and he suddenly wondered when he'd stopped flinching at her touch.

Her voice was sad as she continued. 'We are what we are, and some times that includes things that aren't so good…'

He stiffened. He didn't need her damn pity, but when he looked at her, her blue eyes were clear and calm.

'But we chose what we do with it. You're more than just this Daryl, and I reckon you've been making that choice every day I've known you.'

His chest and the muscles across his back suddenly felt tight. He wanted to step away from her, but her eyes held him, then she gave a small smile and he felt some of his tension drain away.

The corner of her mouth suddenly quirked and she let go of his arm, looking back towards the shack.

'What?' Daryl asked.

'Had a similar conversation with your brother.'

His eyes flashed to her in shock.

Damn Merle and his big fucking mouth.

'What d'he tell ya?'

'Nothing specific about this.' Asha waved her hand in the direction of the shack. 'Though I did get the impression that your dad was kinda a dick.'

Her brow creased and she rubbed tiredly at her forehead with the heel of her palm. 'We were talking about the things he did for the Governor I think. Point still stands though.'

Daryl felt his mouth twist sourly as he looked back at the dilapidated structure melting into the trees in the lengthening shadows.

It ain't everything…

He absently heard a set of footsteps in the dry leaf litter and then Michonne appeared in the corner of his eye on the other side of Asha.

'What d'ya reckon,' Michonne said. 'Camp here for the night?'

Daryl ground his teeth together, and he felt Asha glance at him.

'Nah,' she said. 'Not here.'

Daryl felt the pause, before Michonne grunted.

'Fine, let's keep moving.'

The two women moved away, but he watched the darkening shack for a moment longer before spitting into the long grass and turning to follow them.

They set up camp another hour or so into the woods, leaving them just enough time to spread out their walker traps—long cord with bits of metal and can that rattled together when walkers stumbled into them—and collect some firewood before the light finally faded altogether.

Daryl exhaled, noting the way his breath fogged in the air, and crouched down next to the slender blonde woman poking at their small fire with a stick. The flames crackled and danced, licking upwards around the squirrel speared above it. It smelt like it was done, so Daryl pulled it out, letting the meat cool for a minute, before splitting it down the middle. Michonne—on watch outside the circle of fire light so her night vision wasn't affected—had elected to take the last can of peaches, leaving him and Asha to split the squirrel.

He held out half the meat to Asha, who was staring blankly into the fire. Daryl watched the flame light glowing golden across her profile for a moment, then nudged her in the knee with the meat.

They ate in silence, enjoying the warmth radiating into the thin air from the fire. The meat was gone too quickly, and from the corner of his eye he watched Asha lick the juices off her long fingers and hold them out the heat.

'Ya get any closer and you'll be in the fire,' Daryl said dryly.

'Bite me Daryl.' She smiled, her eyes catching the firelight.

'Gonna have to put that out soon,' he said reluctantly.

They had dug the fire into a hole to hide the flames. They hadn't seen anybody new for a while now, but you never knew who was around and the light of even a small fire could travel a fair distance at night. Wouldn't pay to leave it burning longer than they had to.

'I know,' Asha nodded, but she shuffled somehow closer to the fire. 'You know, when we started looking for the Governor, somehow I didn't think we'd still be out here come winter.'

Daryl grunted. He snapped the squirrel bone he'd been sucking and tossed it into the flames.

He hadn't thought they'd still be out here come winter either, but the Governor had proved more elusive to track then he'd wanted. They'd found and lost his trail—or what they thought was his trail—a handful of times. Daryl suspected the bastard had managed to get hold of car once or twice. He grimaced, they'd been nearly ten days out this time and they still hadn't managed to pick up the trail from where they'd last lost it.

Much as he wanted to put a bolt through the bastard's head he was slowly starting to realise it might not happen. If the Governor had any sense he'd left the damn state and would keep on running.

He felt Asha's eyes on him and realised his lips had twisted back into a snarl.

'Stop thinking about it,' she said. Then she sighed, wrapped her arms around herself and turned away to her blankets.

Daryl kicked dirt over the flames and crawled under his own blankets.

As soon as he closed his eyes he saw the shack in his mind. Not the one they'd passed this afternoon, but one that was near identical—but this time he heard the old man roaring beyond the broken door. His eyes flew open and he lay there, breathing hard for a moment, until the familiar sounds of the woods at night wiped out the echo of his father's voice.

It ain't everything…

Maybe not...but it sure as shit felt like a fucking lot sometimes.

He looked over at the dark pile of blankets and the paler patch of blond hair spilling from the end.

Her voice murmured in his mind, you're more than just this Daryl…

Well, Merle had said she wasn't judgmental.

There was a tightness in his chest. Still hurt to think about his brother, hurt that he was gone—but it helped a little to know that towards the end someone had seen past all of Merle's crap and shit and had believed he was worth something.

His eyes fell back on the pale strip of blonde hair. He owed that scrawny blonde woman more than she'd ever realise for giving his brother that.

Still, he couldn't help wonder just how close Asha and his brother had gotten before the end...

He could tell she wasn't asleep. Every now and then a visible tremor ran across the blankets as she shivered violently.

'Damn woman, how can ya always be so cold? Winter ain't even set in yet.'

He hadn't realised he said spoken aloud until Asha's eyes slit open.

She started muttering under her breath and then she scrambled out of her blankets and gathered them into her arms.

Daryls' brow creased in confusion as she came over and glowered down at him.

'Well, move over.'

His mouth opened but couldn't think of the words, suddenly very aware of the blood rushing in his ears.

She nudged him with roughly with her foot.

'Come on, I'm fucking freezing.'

He could hear her teeth chattering.

In the absence of a better idea he moved over, awkwardly lifting the corner of his blanket so she could crawl underneath. He could feel her shivering as she sat down quickly next to him and spread her blankets out over them both.

She paused and arched a brow at him.

'Don't go reading too much into this sunshine, I fully intend to spoon with Michonne when you go on watch.'

Daryl grunted, but some of the tension he hadn't realised he was carrying went out of his shoulders.

She slid further under the blankets and curled in towards his chest, tucking her head under his chin, and pulling the blanket up around her ears.

He lay there perfectly still and perfectly awkwardly for a moment. Her body shook and felt like ice. She mumbled something into his chest, and he was relieved to feel that her breath at least was warm.

'What?' he asked, pulling his head back a little to look down at her.

'This would work a lot better if you put your arm around me,' she muttered. 'Least until I warm up.'

'Oh. Right.'

He had to admit it was more comfortable once he'd slid one arm under her neck and settled the other around her back.

'Ya remember ya asked to take my bike?' he asked quietly.

Asha snorted softly. 'I remember getting shut down pretty quickly on that front.'

'Pretty sure ya compared my chopper to a dirt bike.'

'Not exactly the way I remember it.'

'Ya still wanna learn to ride it?'

Asha's squirmed backwards and her eyes flashed to him.

'Yeah. Really? Hell yes.' She grinned. 'Why the change of heart? You've pretty much made an art form of threatening me to stay away from it since then.'

He guessed he kind of had. He genuinely hadn't wanted her—or anyone else—near the bike. It was all he had left of Merle and he wasn't willing to share. Though he had to admit, Merle probably would have been ok with Asha on his bike. He suddenly remembered an old calendar Merle had, featuring a different scantily clad woman draped over a different bike each month. Merle had kept the bloody thing for ten years or so past its actual date—and spent far too much time in the bathroom with the damn thing. Merle probably would have gotten a kick out of seeing Asha on his bike—she was pretty enough to give any of those jumped up tarts a run for their money—of course Merle would have wanted her to be wearing as little as possible...

Christ.

Daryl dragged his mind away from there, suddenly becoming painfully aware of Asha's trembling body pressed up against him. He struggled for a moment trying to recall where the conversation was up to.

'Might come in handy some day,' he finally deadpanned.

She smiled as if she knew that wasn't the real reason.

He moved his arm and poked the pack she had pillowed under her head—Nash's pack.

'Sorry it didn't lead anywhere.'

Asha sighed, shrinking in on herself.

'I know,' she mumbled into his chest. 'Always knew it was gonna be a long shot.'

She'd nagged him for weeks after the Governor had vanished, until eventually he'd given in and taken her out to Douglasville on the bike. With the Governor still unaccounted for, Rick was still refusing to let her take one of the cars—and Daryl had figured it was worth taking the bike just to get her off his back.

Damn woman could be a persistent pest when she wanted to be.

It had been a total bust.

When they'd set out, Asha had been near bouncing with nervous excitement, convinced they were going to find a sign from her brother, either in Douglasville or one of the towns they'd passed on the way—and she'd made them stop and search every damn town they'd passed through.

She'd plastered them with her own signs of course, but it had been like watching the life drain out of her when they came up empty handed each time. Her shoulders had gradually folded in on herself and by the time they'd turned back to the prison, her face had been dead eyed and bleak lined. She'd spent the next two days laying in her cell in silence, waving off the attempts of the group to speak to her.

Daryl realised his arms had tightened around her at the memory and he forced them to relax.

They hadn't found Nash turned. That had been something, but she'd just looked at him flat eyed when he'd said as much.

'Did I ever thank you for coming with me?' she asked quietly.

'Way I remember it ya didn't give me much choice.'

'Could have gone myself if you'd let me take the bike.'

He snorted.

'Well, in case I didn't say it before, thank you.' Her face was still turned towards his chest. 'You didn't have to come with me because of Merle you know.'

His brow creased.

''S not why I did it.'

He was silent for a moment. There was several ways he could put it, but underneath it all, there was a very simple reason.

'Just didn't like the idea of ya being out here alone,' he eventually murmured into her hair.

Asha curled in closer to him, until her forehead was pressed against his chest.

He kept his arms around her whilst she stopped shivering and her body eventually relaxed into sleep.

Then he closed his eyes and tried hard to think about anything other than how good she felt nestled up against him.

[A/N: So, what did you think about getting in Daryl's head?

Also, just to clarify, the bulk of Part II is still going to be Asha's POV (although I think there may be the occasional Daryl chapter). This wasn't originally from Daryl's point of view either, but I think it kinda works here as this is really a linking chapter to cover the jump in time between the end of Part I and where Part II really picks up with the next chapter (hence the 'Prologue' heading).]