[A/N: I can't possibly give an explanation for this length of absence, so i'm not going to try. I'm hoping there are still some readers out there who will dig this story despite the long break - and i'm secretly hoping there's still a couple of readers around who started this journey with me!]

'Harley and Billy, take the buildings on the right. Tony and Asha, the left. Len and Dan, you've got the road.' Joe dispersed them with quick commands to search the small settlement they passed through around mid morning. 'Daryl, you're on the perimeter with me. Let's see how good your tracking skills are.'

Asha traded a quick look with Daryl, before he shrugged, chewing his lip. She nodded in return. The group division might not be ideal, but neither of them felt they were in any immediate danger. If Joe wanted them dead there was no real reason for him to delay – especially since an early morning encounter with a group of walkers had revealed that their semi automatic was out of ammo.

'The lack of trust you two have in us is gonna be an issue,' Joe said, stepping off the rail line and clearly expecting Daryl to follow. The others had already moved away, except Tony who was waiting patiently.

'Trust ain't a gift,' Daryl grunted. 'Gotta be earned.' But he turned and followed Joe away from the track, eyes scanning the ground.

Asha sighed, giving Tony a small smile and following him into a nearby building.

The ground floor shop front had been thoroughly ransacked, shattered glass and debris strewn across the floor, so they ignored it and headed through a door and up a narrow set of stairs to the upstairs apartment.

It was small - one bedroom directly off the living area with an adjacent kitchen and what Asha expected was a bathroom down a short hall. She took the kitchen while Tony headed for the bedroom.

The kitchen smelled mouldy and Asha opened cupboards without any real expectation of finding anything useful. From the corner of her eye she watched Tony through the open bedroom door, rummaging through the wardrobe.

It was strange to see him in this situation. He and Carla's family had been based in Miami and Carla had regularly dragged her along on family visits. Her friend's matchmaking intentions for Asha and her brother had been about as subtle as a slap in the face, but she'd never protested. It was always a fun weekend, and Asha had fond memories of the light and laughter of the Sanchez family home – and she liked Tony. Just not enough in the end as it turned out. They'd hooked up a number of times, pretty much every time she made a trip to Miami actually. Tony had always made it clear that he wanted their relationship to be more serious, but casual had suited Asha at the time and she'd been upfront about that. There had never been anything particularly acrimonious about the end of the relationship, it had just petered out naturally as Asha became more focused on her studies and started spending more time away.

'Ya gonna go through those cupboards sirenita?' Tony asked with his head in the wardrobe. 'Or just stare at me whilst I do all the work?' He leant out of the robe and winked to let her know he didn't really mind being the focus of her attention.

Asha grimaced, quickly turning to the shelves and starting an assessment. Last thing she needed to do was give him wrong idea about her level of interest.

There was nothing of interest, just an assortment of crockery and cooking utensils covered in a layer of dust and grime. Definitely no foodstuffs worth salvaging. A lone roach skittered out of the pantry past miscellaneous herbs and condiments that looked well past their best. With a wry twist to her lips Asha flicked the pantry door shut in disgust.

'Hey,' Tony said from the doorway, and she turned, barely managing to catch the baseball cap he tossed towards her. 'I remember how easy you burn,' he grinned.

Lips twitching in a half smile she gave it a sniff - at little musty but not bad - before tugging it on, wincing suddenly as she caught the tender spot at the back of her skull.

'Ya ok?' he asked, crossing towards her from the bedroom.

'Fine,' she mumbled, prodding gently at her skull and then taking her hand away when her vision started to swim.

He gave her an assessing look and she forced a small smile around the pain in her head.

'Do you remember Diego's 30th birthday?' he asked suddenly.

Her brow furrowed. 'You mean the time I was nearly arrested for break and enter? Whilst I was at law school?'

That would have put a quick end to her career before it even started.

'Don't frown at me like that sirenita. I thought he'd hired the place too. Besides, they never would have got you for B&E anyway. Trespass maybe.' He grinned widely. 'But do you remember the look on his face when the cops knocked?'

The corners of Asha's mouth lifted. 'He'd just walked out of the upstairs bedroom, in that gorgeous multicoloured silk dress that he'd found in a wardrobe - which in hindsight should have been our first clue that the place wasn't a holiday rental - and he was posing so spectacularly at the top of the stairs and we were cheering him.' Diego, long-limbed and just a touch on the effeminate side had looked far better in that dress than he had any right to.

Tony smirked. 'And then the front door opened and there were two cops there.'

'The look on his face! It was like someone had crammed a dead fish down his throat.' Asha shook her head with half a laugh. 'It was some kind of horror, and then total panic, and then he bolted down the stairs and took a flying leap across the patio and disappeared down the beach - that beautiful dress flying out behind him like some sort of fabulous bird.'

Tony sniggered. 'I think my favorite bit was the stack he took clearing the patio rail, but then he rolled and just kept running.'

'Don't make me laugh,' Asha groaned. 'Do you remember that minute of stunned silence after he fled? Until the rest of us realised that we weren't supposed to be there and then there was just mass exodus mayhem.' She rolled her eyes remembering. 'And those two cops just stood there with stupid bewildered looks on their faces as we were tripping over each other to get out of there.'

In hindsight the cops must just have been there for a noise complaint. They'd looked far too confused by the chaotic flight of a hundred or so party goers and had made no attempt to chase anyone.

'Handy that you had that bottle of tequila in hand,' Tony said.

'A little too handy that you already had a blanket stashed on the patio,' Asha said, arching a brow.

Tony shrugged with an unapologetic smirk. 'I was hoping to get lucky.'

She could too easily remember how that night had ended too. They'd spent the remainder of it in the dunes behind the beach, wrapped in the blanket and finishing the bottle of tequila. She'd met the dawn with a swim in the ocean.

Tony was obviously thinking along the same lines. There was heat in his eyes as they romped across her. 'I remember waking up with my skull pounding, and you were gone. But then I saw you rising up out the sea like some sort of goddess.'

Asha flushed and looked at her hands, but she remembered the moment clearly - the crisp clean feel of saltwater on her skin and new sun on her face.

'What did you always say about swimming in the ocean at dawn?' he asked.

Asha closed her eyes. 'Makes you feel reborn,' she said softly.

'Reborn,' Tony muttered.

When she opened her eyes it was to see him staring into space. Then he shook his head slightly. 'So, reckon ya gonna stay with us a while?'

'Up to Daryl really.'

Tony raised an eyebrow.

'What?'

'Ain't like you to let a guy tell you what to do.'

Asha felt her cheeks heating and shrugged, opening the nearest cupboard and pretending to be deeply engrossed in plasticware inside. 'It's not like that. It's just … He's got a good sense of direction. He hasn't lost his way in all this.' She waved a hand to take in the world in general.

After a long minute of silence she looked up to see Tony still watching her.

'Ah sirenita, once I would have given anything for you to go pink like that thinking about me.'

His eyes were hot as he stepped towards her, brushing his fingertips along the back of her hand where it rested on the kitchen bench. A shiver of something ran up her skin, and it took her a moment to realise it was a weird echo of familiarity, tainted by unease.

'We missed our chance didn't we?' he said, still stroking her hand.

Asha tried to laugh it off. 'Us and the rest of humanity really.'

Tony wasn't thrown so easily. The intensity in his eyes increased, the feel of his fingers on her hand becoming a little uncomfortable.

'Once I would have done anything for you,' he said. 'Anything. I couldn't believe it when I saw you walk out of those trees. It was a little bit of the past come back to life. Part of me couldn't help hoping…We used to be good together, didn't we'?

'Geeze Tony, that was a lifetime ago.'

'Couple of years only Ash,' he said, still stroking her hand. The feeling was nearly unbearable now.

'No.' Asha shook her head pulling her hand away. 'It was a different life. I'm not who I used to be and I'm backing you're not either.'

'Maybe not,' Tony admitted. 'But maybe we could help each other get a bit of those people back?'

Asha frowned, taking a step back and bumping into the cupboards behind her. Whilst she was looking for words, Tony continued. 'Besides, somehow I don't think all the things I liked about you have disappeared.'

Asha snorted incredulously. 'I wouldn't be so sure about that. Sometimes even I'm not sure there are still things I like about me.' She shook her head again, trying to back up further and just pressing harder against the cupboards. 'Besides Tony, we may have had some fun, but it never worked out for us back then anyway.'

'It could have. It could work out now. But only if you want it to.' He stepped back raising his hands. 'When you want it to.' He gave her a studying look. 'I get it. Ya owe the redneck something. But hell, you walked into the fire for him the other day. Faced down a group of armed men with nothing but a bluff and ya never even blinked. Would he do the same for you?'

'Yes.'

It was the easiest answer she'd ever given.

'Ya sure? I ain't doubt he's happy to take what you're offering, but how much does that really count for in this world?'

Asha's jaw tightened. He made it sound like she was prostituting herself for protection. 'Daryl's had my back long before we were what we are now,' she ground out between clenched teeth. 'Just like I've had his.'

'Hope you're right,' he said, brows were arched dubiously. 'If you ever doubt it, well, just…' He trailed off, seeming lost for a moment before he passed a hand wearily over his face. 'I'd always protect you Ash,' he said, but although he looked at her, he couldn't quite meet her eyes.

Asha watched him closely, still backed up hard against the kitchen cupboards, as he headed back to the bedroom and started shuffling items in the chest of drawers. Something about the way he'd trailed off made her feel like he was trying to tell her something.

'Don't get left alone with Len,' Tony said suddenly, not looking up from the draw contents.

'Obviously,' Asha snorted.

'I mean it,' Tony said. 'Harley and Billy ain't gonna give you much trouble, and ya ain't Dan's type.' He sighed heavily. 'Ya gotta win Joe over. Ya lucky so far that he's taken an interest in the redneck.' His lip twisted unhappily. 'Guess even I can't deny he's got some skills, and Joe ain't likely to ignore an asset when it turns up.'

'Daryl's the only asset? He doesn't think I can pull my own weight?'

'You'd have to pull everyone's weight for it to make a difference,' Tony said, then winced suddenly and appeared to curse under his breath.

Asha narrowed her eyes at him. 'What do you mean?'

'Nothin'.' He tried to wave her off, turning his attention to the bedside table and refusing to meet her eyes.

'Tony,' she pushed.

'Women just ain't worked out well in this group in the past,' he admitted reluctantly, arms corded where his grip had tightened on the side table. 'Ya gonna have to get on Joe's good side.'

She arched her brows. 'Got any advice on how to do that?'

'Don't be weak. Joe ain't got any soft spots left and weakness don't inspire tenderness in him.'

'And he reckons all women are weak?' Asha scoffed.

Tony grunted, shaking his head, lips pinched. Then his arms rippled as he slammed the chest against the wall. He sucked in a heavy vibrating breath. 'There ain't nothin' here,' he growled harshly. 'Let's go.'

Asha, who had flinched at the sudden noise, nodded. 'Ok.'

Tony gave the chest of drawers a final violent shove before storming past without looking at her.

Asha watched him warily for a moment, the reality of difference between the Tony she had once known and the one here now settling heavily in her stomach. As she started to follow him she saw his bootprint, caught in the sodden and filthy carpet fibres, the distinctive missing cleft leaping out at her. Her eyes flickered to Tony stomping down the stairs and then and back to the print, the sinking feeling in her stomach coalescing into a hard knot.

She had to tell Daryl.

Late afternoon found them walking along train tracks, approaching the outskirts of some town, rust stained corrugated iron rooftops distantly visible in the fading light.

Asha was fuming, the snap of her heels in the dry brush a sharp punctuation to the anger broiling in her chest.

Daryl and Joe, a handful of paces behind her, were having a conversation about cats of all things. Asha was only half paying attention.

Daryl had finally found the time to fill her in on Joe's system. Such as it was. Stupid claiming rule.

Idiot men and their idiot fucking pissing contests.

He'd barely batted an eye when she'd told him about the boot print. Though truth be told, she wasn't surprised by it herself.

Up ahead, towards the front of the group, she could see Len, and she heard in her mind again the way he'd declared 'claimed' as soon as he'd laid eyes on her. her flesh crawled at the memory. Even without Tony's warning she would have been steering well clear. She'd felt his eyes on her a number of times through the day, the feeling causing uncomfortable shivers down her spine.

Even thinking of him caused a ripple across the skin of her lower back. She bit hard on her lip, almost growling under her breath. She wasn't a piece of fucking property, and she was trying hard to stoke her anger to keep a lid on her fear.

Because she was afraid. Tony's questions, and the implications of his footprint made all too much sense. She could almost feel the metal walls closing around her and every now and then she caught a metallic whiff that had her heart thumping in her ears.

She had no doubt that the only reason she was being treated tolerably well was Daryl's presence, though she supposed her background with Tony wasn't hurting. Still, she wasn't foolish enough not realise that, here and now, Daryl was her lifeline.

She hated feeling so dependent.

The thought of Beth falling in with the same type of men was enough to make her sick to her stomach, and she glowered at Len's back by way of distraction, pleasantly imagining hitting him over the head, really hard and with something heavy.

Lecherous fucking scumbag.

For a moment she considered doing it, but satisfying as it would be, her own head was thudding from the blow she'd taken the previous day and though she was trying to ignore it her legs were increasingly shaky. Even her attempts to stay angry, and she had plenty of fuel for that fire, were fading fast in the face of her exhaustion.

She really hoped they were stopping soon for the night.

The safest thing to do would be to simply walk away from the pack, but it just wasn't that easy to abandon even the slim chance they were following Rick.

Joe's voice suddenly cut in behind her.

'You sure she ain't just using you? Women like her and men like us. They only wanted us around to do the dirty work before, and hell, all there is now is dirty work.'

Asha's back stiffened as she listened, irritated when the silence stretched and Daryl didn't disagree with Joe.

'Warm bed's worth a lot,' Joe continued. 'But you sure she's gonna stick when there's other options around? Ain't met a woman yet who wouldn't jump ship if she thought she'd be better off.'

'She ain't like that,' Daryl said after a moment.

'All women are like that. I like you son, but she's gonna cause trouble. Ain't never met a man who could keep a lick of sense in his head under the attentions of a pretty lady. Especially when it's men like us.'

Oh fuck this.

Asha turned around and glared at both of them.

'You wish this group of miscreants was worth my attention,' she spat.

'Tony used to be,' Joe said dryly, lips twisting upwards.

Asha snarled, realising she'd backed herself into a corner.

'She ain't like that,' Daryl repeated, but his eyes barely flicked over her returning to Joe. 'And there ain't no us,' he added waving a hand to take in the entire group.

'You leaving right now?' Joe challenged.

In that particular instant, there was nothing Asha wanted to do more, and she was sure that hope was written all over her face. Daryl held her gaze an instant before giving Joe a small shrug.

'Well, sure looks like there's an us then,' Joe said blandly. He suddenly whistled loudly, bringing the rest of the group to a halt. 'That's it boys,' he said pointing to a blocky warehouse beside the tracks. 'Our abode for the night.'

Daryl and Asha waited on the tracks while the others went in. Joe paused at the entry and looked back.

'Hope you two aren't fighting on my account.' But he smirked as he spoke and Asha suspected that, in fact, that was exactly what he hoped.

'You don't believe any of that crap do you,' Asha asked once Joe had disappeared inside.

Daryl chewed his lip for a moment and then shrugged.

'Guess not. Maybe these miscreants ain't worth your attention, but but would ya have looked twice at me before the world turned?'

'Well I looked twice at Tony didn't I,' she said bitterly. 'Why not you?'

She regretted the words as soon as they'd left her mouth.

'Maybe you will again,' Daryl grated.

Shocked to her core, she couldn't even find the words to defend herself. She stood stock still as a ripple of something unrecognisable dashed across Daryl's face before he growled something under his breath and turned towards the warehouse.

After a long sad moment, Asha turned, hunch shouldered, and followed.