A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.

Chapter Twenty-Stranded

Daryl and Oscar both tightened their grips on their weapons but stayed in the car. Andrea closed the door behind her and, with her hands raised, walked slowly towards her car.

"Cash, don't do this." She tried to keep her voice steady. She glanced back at the car and saw Tyreese slowly shaking his head. She stopped. "How are you going to explain this to the Governor?" Cash shrugged.

"You got caught in the crossfire. Accidental shooting. No great loss." Andrea blanched but tried not to let Cash see her fear. The boys started towards the car and the three men got out, guns raised. Tyreese spoke first.

"You boys, you don't want to do this. Nobody has to get hurt." Cash started to issue a sharp retort when one of the younger guys called out to Tyreese.

"Hey, didn't you used to play for the Falcons?" Cash whipped his head around.

"Shut up! That don't matter now! He's just as dead as the rest of-" A scream from one of the guys startled everyone. A walker had staggered out of the woods, unnoticed by everyone, and was tearing the throat out of one of Cash's men. Tyreese jumped back into the car and started the engine just as a dozen or so walkers followed the first out of the woods.

"Get in!" Daryl and Oscar didn't have to be told twice but Andrea hesitated. Cash and his men turned and began firing on the walkers, ignoring their original targets. Daryl leaned over the seat.

"What the hell you waitin' for Blondie? C'mon!" Andrea jumped in the passenger seat and Tyreese backed up quickly as the Woodbury group continued to fire on the walkers. Even more walkers were coming down out of the woods. Tyreese saw another of the men taken down by two ravenous walkers as Cash and the others jumped back into the truck. Tyreese turned sharply and floored the car up the road back to the prison. Daryl snorted.

"Well that plan worked great." Andrea glared at him.

"Shut up Daryl."

Axel was waiting by the gate when the car came roaring back up the drive. He quickly pulled the gate open just in time. When Andrea got out of the car, he was confused.

"Did you change your mind?" No one answered him, save Oscar who shook his head slightly. Tyreese looked around and was relieved that no one was in the field. Rick and Glenn were up in the guard tower but quickly descended when they saw the entire group return. Rick joined the group as the quickly headed inside, keeping a wary eye on the road behind them.

"What happened?" Daryl glanced over his shoulder again before answering.

"Some boys from Woodbury followed her here. Wanted to make sure that all-out war starts between us and that town so they were gonna kill her." Glenn looked surprised.

"How'd you get away?" They got inside the cellblock and bolted the door behind them. Oscar then looked back at Glenn.

"Walkers came out of the woods." They joined the others, who were surprised to see Andrea return and all began talking at once. Tyreese motioned for them to be quiet.

"Everyone hold up. Those boys from Woodbury were waiting for us. They would have killed all of us if those walkers hadn't come out of the woods when they did." Carol sat down by an obviously shaken Andrea.

"Are you alright?" Andrea nodded and tried to erase the fear and worry from her face.

"Yes I'm fine." She looked over at Michonne who was watching her, expressionless. "Michonne, I'm sorry. You were right. We should have left Woodbury right after we arrived." Michonne pursed her lips.

"Thought you were all cozy with the Governor. Didn't want to leave. Hell, you were ready to run right back down there a few minutes ago. You put our men in danger. Now we're stuck with you. And for what? He's comin'. You know that right? He'll kill all of us, including you." Andrea was shocked. In the entire time that she had known Michonne, this was probably the most she had heard uttered from her friend's mouth. Carol looked upset, like she wanted to argue with Michonne but surprisingly, Maggie agreed.

"She's right. What good are you to us? Glenn and I were captured in that town. You know what they did to me, you know what they did to Dani and you know what they did to her little girl. Instead of saying 'You're right. You're my friends. We'll get through this' you said 'Now y'all play nice now. I'm gonna go tell the Governor that we can all be friends.' Well to hell with that Andrea. And to hell with you too." Maggie sat back down next to Dani, obviously demonstrating where her loyalties lay. Glenn moved to stand with her. Daryl crossed his arms and stood behind the two women. Tyreese, Sasha, Beth and Ben also quietly walked over to stand with the group. Oscar quickly joined them while Axel looked torn. He stood in the middle, watching both Carol and Rick for a decision. Allen stood back, away from everyone. It was obvious he didn't have a horse in this race. Hershel remained seated by Carol. Rick, seeing the obvious division in the group, raised his hand.

"Now hold on. We can't start splitting up over this." Sasha spoke up.

"It sounds like we're already split. There's no starting about it. I understand that she's one of your group Rick but she's not with us. She won't defend the prison and side against Woodbury." Andrea stood, glaring at Sasha.

"Who the hell are you to say what I will and will not do?" Sasha shrugged.

"You were very eager to get back there. That's all I'm saying." Andrea turned to Rick and then back to Sasha.

"To protect you. To protect this group. I have to get back there so the Governor won't come here…" Daryl cut her off.

"He's already on his way here. You don't think that idiot Cash came up with that brilliant idea all on his own do you? Man. And you think I'm stupid." He shook his head. "Remember back in Atlanta when we went back to see Guillermo and those guys at the old folks home? You thought they'd all been killed by walkers, even though you saw the bullet wounds. What did I tell you? If you're observant you'd see. You obviously still ain't learned shit. So why don't you pull your head out of your ass and look at what's right in front of you?" Glenn, Maggie and Dani all nodded in agreement. Andrea, hurt, again looked at Rick and Carol before throwing up her hands in frustration.

"What do you want to me say Daryl? I already said I was wrong. And you're right. Cash didn't think of this little plan on his own. I know the Governor told him to come here. Alright? Are you happy now?" Maggie tilted her head.

"That depends." Andrea closed her eyes.

"Depends on what Maggie?"

"It depends on what you intend to do here. We," she indicated the rest of the room. "intend to defend this prison, keep our family safe and kill the Governor. Either you get with that plan or you can start marching your skinny ass back to Woodbury." Andrea shook her head.

"Maggie, that's really not fair."

"I don't give a shit if you think it's fair or not. That's the reality."

"What is this? Your 'you're either with us or against us' speech? I'm offering to help and I'm getting ultimatums? I told you, there are good people in Woodbury. I don't want them hurt or killed." Hershel rose at that and made his way slowly towards the door. When he reached the doorway, he turned.

"I didn't really get to know you back at the farm. You comin' here, I was thinkin' that I should side with Rick and give you a chance. But now, I can't do that." The whole room was quiet, waiting on Hershel. "You see Andrea, what you don't seem to understand is that there are good people here. Better people by the sound of it. And you don't seem to give a good goddamn if any of these people, any of your 'friends', are hurt or killed." With that, he turned and left the room.

Daryl sat up quickly, sweat pouring off his face, the last traces of the nightmare still vivid in his mind. Earlier, after Hershel had left, they had divided up guard duty and once again, Daryl was kept out of the rotation. It had irritated him, even though Rick had again explained that he was going to be needed soon and should rest his knee. When he and Dani had settled down for the night on the perch, Daryl had still been pissed off. He figured that was probably what brought on the nightmare. Slowly his eyes adjusted to the darkened prison. Reaching over, he felt Dani's shoulder, bare in her tank top. She was lying on her stomach, mere inches from him, her hair spread out over her pillow. He ran his hand down her back and she sighed, shifting in her sleep. The last bits of the dream were fading away but the key part still lingered..he had dreamt the Governor had attacked and Dani was dead. He had seen her body, saw the blood pooling beneath her head, and he had ran to her. When he picked her up in his arms, her eyes opened and she lunged at his throat. That was the part that had woken him up.

Daryl lay back down, turning on his side towards Dani. Her arm was on his pillow and he ran his hand down her shoulder to her fingers. It was like he was touching her for the first time. He was free to explore her body without the embarrassment of getting caught. Her hair smelled fresh, like the woods in the morning. Part of him hoped she stayed asleep so he could continue touching her. Part of him, the part of him that had woken up for the first time in years the other night, wished she would wake up so he could really touch her. As if hearing that thought, Dani lifted her head from her pillow and moved closer to him.

"Daryl?" Her voice was a sleepy whisper. He didn't think she was fully awake and almost let her go back to sleep without any further interruption. But he needed her. He'd never needed or wanted anyone before and he needed her bad now. The fear of her death was still real and he wanted to be as close to her as he could. Without thinking, he sat up pulling her with him, hauling her to her feet.

"Daryl what are you doing?" her voice, more alert now, sounded concerned. Daryl didn't respond, instead pulled her behind him carefully but quickly down the stairs. When they walked past the door, Daryl pulled out his flashlight. In the dim light it cast, he could make out Dani's bewildered face, her forehead creased with worry. She probably thought he was losing it. He wouldn't blame her. He was pretty sure that he had. She dropped his hand and stopped.

"Daryl, please. You're scaring me." He brought his finger to his lips and then motioned for her to follow him.

Dani followed Daryl further back into the prison, concerned. Had he heard something? Should she get Rick or Tyreese? Suddenly, Daryl pulled her into one of the cells and straight into his arms. He was holding her so tight and his whole body was shaking. She was surprised but didn't pull away. She put her arms around him, holding him, stroking his hair.

"Daryl, are you alright?" She felt the slight shake of his head against hers. She pulled back and wished she could see his face but the flashlight, now lying on the cot, was pointing towards the other wall. "What's wrong?" He didn't answer with words. He pushed her back against the wall as he kissed her hard. He twisted one hand into her hair and slipped the other up the back of her tanktop. He pressed his hips to hers, pinning her to the wall. The hand at her back moved slowly to her front, tickling her slightly but she dared not laugh. He brought his hand up to lightly touch her breast before moving his hand away quickly, like a kid getting caught with the cookie jar. The other night, as she rode him in the yard, his hands had not left her hips. It was almost as if he was unsure what to do. She wasn't going to let him get by with that tonight. She pushed back from him and raised her arms over her head. He didn't hesitate and pulled her tank top up over her head. He paused, breathing hard. Dani hated not being able to see his face. She thought he might change his mind but instead, he quickly pulled his shirt off and kissed her again, harder than before. Gone was the timid Daryl that was afraid to touch her. The Daryl that was with her now couldn't keep his hands off of her. His lips moved down her neck, her breasts, her stomach…she closed her eyes and sighed as he began to pull her sweatpants down. Hearing her, Daryl stopped and stood up. He stroked her face and twisted his hand back into her hair. His breathing labored, he pressed his forehead to hers. She reached up and played with his long, thick hair, twirling it through her fingers.

"Daryl, what do you want?" It felt strange to ask him the question he was always asking her. He didn't move.

"You. I want you." Those were the words she'd been waiting for.

"You can have me whenever you want." He pulled back and quickly unfastened his pants. Dani took the moment to untie her sweats and slowly pull them down. When she straightened back up, Daryl didn't waste any more time. He picked her up, holding her against the wall. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. Daryl waited one second more and thrust inside her. He buried his face into her shoulder, breathing hard as he took in the sensation before he thrust hard again and again. She was so warm, felt so good and he wondered why he had been fighting this for so long. Daryl forgot where they were as he lost himself in her. Her nails dug into his back and she was murmuring his name in his ear.

Dani couldn't move but the friction created from being so open and so close to him was enough. He was taking from her and she didn't care. The other night, she had needed him and took, not caring what he felt. Tonight, it was payback but Dani knew that wasn't the reason for this. He said he wanted her. So she let him take and take. He had one arm wrapped tight around her waist, keeping her against him and braced himself against the wall with the other. Dani ran her hand down his arm, feeling the tension in his muscles, feeling him tremble. He was still nervous, still unsure of what he was doing and was being driven by instinct and a primal desire and she knew it wouldn't be long. Dani didn't care, just feeling him inside her was enough. She felt him come hard and held him as he carefully set her back down but didn't let her go. He was still shaking. Dani held him against her.

"Daryl, are you ok?" Daryl pushed away from her and grabbed his pants. He sat on the cot and began getting dressed. Dani pulled up her sweatpants and put her tank top back on. She sat next to him on the cot. "Daryl, talk to me please." From this angle, the light hit his face and she could see a mix of sweat and tears. She reached over and touched his face. "Daryl, why…" He pulled away.

"I'm fine. Just leave me be." Dani ignored him and kneeled in front of him.

"Daryl, you woke me up, dragged me in here, fucked me against the wall and now you're telling me to just let you be? What happened?" He pulled his shirt on and looked down at her. He reached down and ran his fingers down her face.

"I dreamed you were dead. I woke up thinkin' I was gonna lose you and I can't…" Daryl ground the tears away. "I can't lose anyone else, especially not you. I need you Danielle." Dani reached up and brushed his hair off his face.

"Daryl I'm here." He leaned over and kissed her softly. "Do you want to go back now?" Daryl nodded. Dani stood but Daryl didn't follow.

"I didn't hurt you did I?" She frowned.

"Of course not. Why would you think that?" He shrugged and looked away.

"I wasn't exactly gentle with you." Dani bit her lip to stifle a giggle. It was so sweet of him to be worried and it wouldn't do to let even a smile slip through at that moment.

"Daryl I'm fine. You didn't hurt me. I liked it. A lot." His face was a mix of surprise, relief and pride.

"Really?" She nodded and held out her hand.

"Come on. Let's get some sleep before everyone wakes up." Daryl picked up the flashlight and they walked out of the cell. Walking back towards the cellblock, they both heard the noise. Daryl handed Dani the flashlight and pulled his knife. They walked slowly towards the sound, which came from around the corner, exactly between them and the cellblock. Dani could see another light on the wall. Knowing it wasn't a walker, Daryl lowered the knife but kept it ready. Glenn and Maggie surprised them as they rounded the corner, both of them armed. Glenn looked from Daryl to Dani and suppressed a grin.

"What were you guys doing?" Daryl glanced back at Dani, her cheeks a bright red, then turned back to Glenn. He'd given Glenn enough shit about the times Glenn volunteered to keep night watch in the tower with Maggie, knowing full well they weren't going to be watching anything but each other.

"Heard a noise. Thought we'd check it out." Daryl was surprised his voice sounded steady. Glenn glanced again back at Dani then to Daryl.

"You heard a noise huh?" Daryl frowned.

"Yeah. That's what I said. What are you doin' back here?" Glenn grinned at him.

"We actually did hear something." Daryl nodded and reached back, grabbing Dani's hand.

"Yeah, well, the second cell on the left is clear." He pulled Dani with him and heard Maggie and Glenn laughing behind them. When they were safely back on the perch, Dani curled up next to him and propped her head up on one hand.

"You're terrible." Daryl couldn't see her in the darkness but he could almost feel her smile.

"Thought you said you liked it." The smack on the arm he received was gentle but firm. He heard and felt her turn her back to him and lie down. He curved his body against hers, his stomach against her back, brushed her hair back and kissed her neck right below her ear. He heard her sharp intake of breath and smiled in the dark. He pulled her back into his arms.

"Go to sleep," he said, knowing damn well that if they got started he'd want to take her again. Whatever she had woke up in him seemed to want to make up for lost time but logic and rational thinking were still in full control of his brain, if not completely in control of other parts of his body. He buried his face in her hair, smelling the combination of shampoo, sweat and musk. The rhythmic breathing coming from her a few minutes later told him she was sleeping again. Only then did he finally drift off. She was his and for the first time in his life, he felt whole.