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

And since this has taken me so long to update…just a little lite smut to make up for it.

Chapter 26-Swear

Dani woke to Daryl's hand running over her hip and down across her stomach. She had woke briefly earlier when he returned to the perch after Tyreese relieved him for guard duty but he had quickly fallen asleep, snoring lightly before his head had even hit the pillow. Now, his stomach and chest were pressed against her back and she could feel the stubble of his beard on her shoulder, his breath on her neck, his lips leaving a warm trail as they moved to her ear. She wondered for a moment if she were still asleep and dreaming. This was definitely not Daryl Dixon standard behavior. Dani opened her eyes and let them adjust to the dark. They were still in the prison and on the perch. Afraid to move and acknowledge that she was awake lest he stop, she kept her breathing under control and let him continue to caress her and nuzzle her neck. His hand slid down inside her pants and she bit her lip. His fingers slipped down between her legs and he groaned, burying his face in her hair. Daryl shifted his hips against her ass and she could feel his erection pressing against her. Poor boy. Dani stifled a giggle as she thought of the monster she had created and she stopped trying to feign sleep.

"Daryl," the hand between her legs froze and he tensed up against her. "please don't stop." Not having to be told twice, Daryl pushed her pants down and Dani kicked them off her ankles. Daryl pushed his pants down just enough and Dani hooked her leg back over his hip. Turning her head slightly, she kissed him over her shoulder. Growling low in his throat, he pulled her back tight against him and guided himself inside her. For a moment, neither one moved and then he began slowly rocking in and out of her, a rhythm that had them both panting, wanting more. She reached behind her to bury her fingers in his hair. Daryl's fingers slid back between her legs and she moaned. Daryl removed his hand and clamped it down over her mouth.

"Quiet," he hissed in her ear. "Sound carries in here." She nodded and he removed his hand, moving back down to continue the exquisite torture between her legs. She rocked her hips back against his, her head rolled back in ecstasy. Daryl moved his unoccupied hand underneath her neck and cupped her chin, pulling her back to nip at her neck. He was thrusting harder now and buried his face in her shoulder, trying to hold back. He knew she hadn't..done whatever it was that happened that made her cry out like she had their first time together in the yard. After the last time against the wall in the cell, he felt he owed it to her to make sure she got something out of this. Her body bowed back against his and she twisted around to kiss him, moaning into his mouth. He suddenly didn't care if everyone heard. He pulled her tighter against him and thrust harder. She was so warm and so wet. He reached his fingers up to her mouth and found she was biting her lip, trying to stifle her cries.

"C'mon Dani. Please." Those whispered words in her ear made her shift against him and speed up her own rhythm. She grabbed a handful of his hair and pulled tight.

"That's my girl." He hissed through gritted teeth. "C'mon Dani."

Daryl didn't think he could hold back any longer when he finally heard Dani draw in a sharp breath and felt her tighten around him, her body fluttering under his fingers. Groaning again he thrust once more and came hard, the release a welcome relief. After they both caught their breath, he slowly pulled out of her, instantly missing the connection. He rolled onto his back to pull his pants back up and Dani reached down to retrieve hers. Clothed again, she reached over and brushed his long hair back from his face to kiss him.

"You didn't have another nightmare did you?" she asked him, remembering the last time he woke her up for a quick session. He shook his head.

"No. Just couldn't go back to sleep. And you were just lyin' there..." he trailed off, pulled her to him and kissed her hard. "I'm glad I woke you up." Dani smiled and kissed him back.

"I'm glad you did too." She turned to her side and he curled around her, his arm wrapped around her waist. A few minutes later, she could tell he was asleep but he hadn't loosened his grip on her. Even in his sleep he was trying to keep her safe. Dani smiled and closed her eyes.

Andrea opened her eyes and tried to focus through the pain in her head. Her ankle was twisted under her and attempting to move brought her screaming to consciousness. Her ankles were shackled to a chair. She tried to move her arms and found that they too were chained down. The adrenaline was coursing through her veins now and she was trying to ignore the pain. She had to get out, there was no question about that, and she was going to need help.

The door opened and Martinez stepped into the room. His face was expressionless when he saw she was awake.

"Martinez what's going on?" He said nothing as he walked over to her chair, knelt beside her and unlocked her chains.

"You really pissed someone off didn't you Blondie." Martinez's voice was low and he kept his head down, focused on the chains at her feet.

"Martinez please. My ankle is broken and the Governor is just going to kill me. You know that he is. You know everything that he's done, that he's allowed to go on here. You know what he did to Danielle, why she left." Martinez didn't respond but his visible wince showed he knew what she was talking about. "Martinez, help me. Help me get out of here." Martinez stood and leaned over by her ear.

"You got yourself in this mess. Get yourself out." He stood, turned and walked out the door, closing it behind him. Andrea struggled with her chains and found them loose. He had unlocked her chains and left her there to free herself. Her ankle throbbed and she didn't know how she was going to put weight on it or how she was going to get over the wall but he had given her a chance. She sure as hell was going to take it while she could.

Andrea pulled her right hand free and then loosened the chain on her left. Leaning over, she quickly pulled her right foot free and gingerly slipped the chain off her left. She braced herself against the chair and pushed herself up on her right leg. She carefully placed her left foot on the ground and immediately jerked her leg back, hissing in pain. She tasted blood and realized that she had bit the inside of her cheek. She was balancing awkwardly on one foot while trying to figure out what she was going to do when Martinez walked back in the room with the nurse.

"I figured you'd get yourself out of there," he said, a faint smirk on his face. "Now sit your ass back down and let Christa fix your leg." Andrea sat down and glared at him.

"I suppose you expect me to thank you." He didn't answer and Christa knelt down to inspect her ankle.

"So what's the plan?" Daryl asked Rick as they crouched down in the covered walkway, keeping an eye on the growing number of walkers at the perimeter fence. Rick shook his head.

"I don't know Daryl. I don't know if the Governor's coming back. I don't know if we did the right thing letting that boy join us." He motioned towards the fence. "I don't know if it's a good idea to let them walkers group up like that. You'd think without seeing us in the yard everyday they'd move on but they don't." Daryl nodded in agreement.

"You think it's safe enough to do a run? The baby's gonna need formula soon. We're runnin' low on supplies, even with that run me, Maggie and Dani made. We're gonna need to do somethin' and soon Rick." Rick frowned and closed his eyes.

"I know Daryl, I know. I just…" He shook his head and ran his hand through his hair. "Do you think we have enough gas to make another run into Barnesville?" Daryl shook his head.

"I don't know. Maybe. It depends on what's goin' on out there now. If Woodbury's got road blocks up, we might have to drive more out of our way than we think. If we have to go around herds of walkers, same thing." He squinted his eyes against the sun as he looked back at the walkers crowded around the fence. Their moans were getting louder every day. "I think we need to try it. Make sure we can get out if we need to. Because from where I sit right now, we're trapped here. The Governor comes back with the heavy artillery Dani and Andrea say he's got or if those fences come down, we're up shit creek. No question about that." Rick nodded in agreement.

"Who do you want to take with you?" Daryl frowned.

"I'd feel better taking Tyreese and Michonne but with Oscar and Axel dead, that doesn't leave y'all much help if the shit hits the fan while we're gone." His forehead creased and he glanced sideways at Rick. "You know this is a suicide run. We probably won't make it back."

"Don't you think like that." Rick grabbed his shoulder and forced Daryl to look at him. "I trust you. I trust you with my children, I trust you with the group and I trust you with our lives. I know you will make the right decision." Daryl looked away, embarrassed.

"I'll take Michonne and Jeremy. See if that kid can earn his keep and then I can keep an eye on him. If he don't, he's walker bait. Me and Michonne can take care of ourselves. That leaves you, Tyreese, Glenn, Maggie and Dani to guard the place. We'll just make sure you're set up before we leave." Rick nodded and they both stood in silence for a minute.

"What are you going to tell Dani?" Rick asked, not taking his eyes off the herd at the fence. He felt Daryl tense up next to him. They hadn't really talked about Daryl's relationship with Dani. In the short time she had been with them, Daryl had emerged from the emotionless shell he'd cocooned himself in the entire time Rick had known him. Daryl obviously cared about Dani, he possibly even loved her. Rick watched the way Daryl's eyes followed her around when he didn't think anyone could see. When Rick had night watch, there were times he glanced up to the perch and could see Daryl sitting up there watching Dani sleep, though Rick might think twice about looking up there, judging by what he heard going on last night.

"I'll talk to her. She'll be ok here if I'm gone for a couple of days." Rick nodded.

"Ok. We'll go in and make sure we're all set." Daryl glanced at Rick and then back at the fence. He adjusted his crossbow up on his shoulder and glanced down, obviously nervous.

"Rick, um," Daryl began, keeping his eyes on the ground. "If I don't come back, you'll take care of her right? Dani…you'll…you'll make sure she's ok?" He glanced up at Rick long enough for Rick to see the worry in his eyes. Daryl didn't want to leave but knew he had to for the good of the group and it was obviously tearing him up to leave Danielle.

"Of course. But you're comin' back so don't even think about sayin' goodbye, alright? I'll go talk to Michonne." Daryl turned and walked silently back into the prison.

Dani was holding Judith, feeding her and singing Bye Bye Blackbird softly as the baby drifted off to sleep. She was getting so big so fast. When Daryl walked in to the room, he set his crossbow down on the table and watched them for a moment.

"Dani? Can I talk to you for a second?" Dani looked up, her smiling fading when she saw the look on his face. Carol, who had been upstairs hanging the laundry to dry on the railing, hurried downstairs when she heard Daryl's voice and took Judith from Dani.

"I've got her. You two, go talk." Dani stood and followed Daryl down the hall until they were in the cell he had taken her a few nights before.

"Daryl? What's wrong?" Daryl crossed his arms in front of him and brought his hand up to nervously chew on the knuckle of his thumb. Dani had noticed that he only did that when he was really worried about something. She reached up and took his hand, forcing him to look at her.

"We're gonna need to make another run." Dani was confused. This couldn't be the reason he was so upset.

"And? What's the big deal? I'll get my stuff together." She turned to leave and Daryl grabbed her arm.

"No Dani. You're not going. I'm going with Michonne. And we're gonna take that Jeremy with us, see if he can earn his keep." Dani stared at him in disbelief.

"The hell you're goin' off and leavin' me by myself again!" Her eyes flashed and her jaw clenched. "Last time you took off, you got picked up by your asshole brother, had the shit kicked out of you and we almost got killed savin' your sorry ass!" Daryl flinched at the mention of Merle.

"Then it's a good thing my asshole brother's dead ain't it? So you don't have to worry about that happenin' again!" They stared at each other, their tempers boiling just below the surface. Daryl looked away first.

"I'm not runnin' from you, ok? I'm doin' this for the group. We need supplies, Dani. And I won't be by myself. Michonne will have my back. You trust her, right?" Dani chewed on her lower lip and looked down.

"I don't like it Daryl. I'm scared if you go out those gates, you won't be comin' back." Daryl put his hand under her chin and tilted her head back up, forcing her to look at him.

"I swear, I'll come back. I won't leave you by yourself." Dani reached up and traced his jawline with her fingers.

"You swear?" He nodded. "Then prove it."

"How?" Dani kissed him softly and then looked him straight in the eye.

"Before you go, I want you to make love to me." Daryl looked startled.

"What?" Dani smiled.

"You heard me." Daryl looked her up and down and then nodded.

"Alright." He slipped his hands under her shirt and pulled it slowly over her head. Dani quickly unbuttoned his shirt and ran her hands over his chest. She'd seen him shirtless before but was still shocked at the scars on his skin. She leaned over and kissed his neck, feeling his rapid pulse beneath her lips and tongue. He growled and pushed her back towards the cot, tugging at her jeans as they walked quickly across the small cell.

They didn't have that much time. If they were going to make the run today, they would have to leave soon. But hearing Dani's voice whispering in his ear while her fingers twisted in his hair and her hips rose to meet his made him forget everything. In this moment, it was just the two of them.

"You're sure you've got everything right?" Rick asked as they loaded up the Hyundai with enough supplies for three days on the road. Daryl nodded and Michonne carefully placed her katana in the front seat. Daryl smirked at her.

"You think you're gonna be able to swing that in the car if we get stuck?" She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Think you're gonna be able to load that crossbow in the car if we get stuck?" A tiny smile turned up the corners of Daryl's mouth and he glanced over at Rick, who was trying to contain his laughter.

"Point taken. Alright," Daryl turned to Jeremy. "You all set Junior?" Jeremy nodded. "Okay then. Let's get goin'." He looked over at Dani who was standing by Carol. She raised four fingers to her lips. He nodded and returned the gesture before climbing into the driver's seat of the car. Rick saw the exchange and walked over to lean down by the window.

"You take care of yourself out there." Rick glanced over at Michonne sitting in the passenger seat. "Both of you. We need you here, got that?" Both of them nodded and Daryl started the engine.

"If that guy turns before I get back, kill him." Daryl told Rick, staring out the front window. "I checked on him just now and he was still breathin' but he won't be for much longer. Don't wait, alright?" Rick nodded.

"Anything else?" Daryl looked up at him.

"Take care of Dani." With that, he put the car in gear and Rick backed away. Carl opened the gate and Daryl spun out, speeding down the drive towards the highway.