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Daryl spent the rest of the daylight hours working away on the motorcycle, occasionally taking a break in the house with Eric and Aaron. While Eric seemed nice enough, Daryl preferred the company of Aaron. The man was honest, direct, and meant everything that he said, all qualities that Daryl had valued even before the world had gone to hell.

The light began to grow dimmer as the sun slipped below the horizon of the Alexandria wall, and Daryl begrudgingly called it a day and said goodbye to Eric, who was contently sitting on the porch in the cool evening air. Satisfied with the day's productivity, Daryl started for the house shared by his group.

Rick and Carl were already cooking away with Sasha's help when he came in the door. Carol was also in the kitchen, busily trying to clean up after the multiple messes created by the father and son in their pursuit of a pasta dinner. She looked up as Daryl sat down at the long dining table. She gave him a frown and flicked her washcloth at him.

"Hey!" he protested.

"You're covered in grease," she scolded. "Have you even showered since we got here?"

He glared at her. "Aint none of your business."

"It is if you're putting your greasy, dusty arms all over the family tables."

Carl quietly laughed as Rick flung a spaghetti noodle at the ceiling to test it for proper consistency. Sasha was cutting vegetables on a board and shaking her head at Carol and Daryl's banter. Everyone had fallen into a relaxed routine, with set roles. Everyone…except for Daryl. He still felt uneasy in the clean, proper houses.

"Where's everyone else?" he asked.

"Well, Michonne is finishing up her rounds in about an hour," Rick mentioned from the stove.

"Noah is upstairs, pouring over these architecture books someone found him. I think Abraham is looking over the construction crew trucks they are taking out tomorrow. Rosa is in the shower, Eugene is digging through some garages looking for…tech stuff, I would suppose." Carol continued.

"Glenn and Maggie are over at the pantry, getting the rations for the next few days. And Tara is taking a nap at the other house," Sasha finished. "Are you going to be over at Aaron and Eric's place tomorrow, too?"

Daryl nodded. "Prob'ly."

"Should we have them over sometime?" Carol asked. "I like Aaron. He's a good man."

"He is. You can ask 'em. They might bring another person, though."

"Oh? I didn't know they had another person in their house."

"They don't. Some neighborhood girl, came by twice today. Called her Ry."

Carl perked up from the stove. "Another…person my age?"

"Naw, older."

"Her name is Ry?" Carol asked. "That's unusual."

"Short for somethin'" Daryl responded.

"I wouldn't mind having them over, and Ry, too," Rick said. "It would be easier to get to know the people here through friends, rather than by knocking on their doors."

"I'll ask 'em sometime," Daryl said, taking the hint.

"Thanks," Rick said.

Dinner went by uneventfully, with the family members gradually filing in through the door until the entire clan was seated around the house, happily munching on Carl and Rick's pasta and chatting about the day. Daryl was quietly listening to Michonne describing weaknesses along the fence to Rick when a knock came at the door. The entire group instinctually froze.

Rick was on his feet instantly. "Everyone relax," he reminded them, but his hand wandered towards the revolver on his hip all the same. He walked to the door quietly and looked through the peephole, then unlocked and opened the door.

"Is this the….um… is this the house of….Rick's group?" a female voice asked, her words stumbling as she realized she didn't know what to call them. Daryl curiously peered around Rick to see who was in the doorway. A pretty, slender girl dressed in a long, soft-looking, navy-blue dress was standing there awkwardly, one hand gripped tightly in the other. Her hair was braided loosely down her shoulder, brown giving way to a golden…

"Son of a bitch," Daryl said, louder than he intended to, when he recognized the visitor. "What the hell ya doin' here, girl?"

The awkwardness and uncertainty in her body language melted away as she straightened her shoulders and looked directly into his eyes defiantly. "Well thanks for the warm welcome."

Rick turned over his shoulder and shot Daryl a confused look. "Daryl, do you know her?"

"Yeah I do," Daryl said. He had every intention of telling them all that this was that girl he had been talking about earlier, most likely in an annoyed tone. But she was standing in the shadows of the porch light, looking at him expectantly, those grey and gold eyes somehow growing brighter. He realized that her eyes were laughing at him again, and the more joy and humor her eyes conveyed, the more lost he was for words.

He swallowed thickly, "Uh….this….guys, this…I mean, she…"

She openly laughed at him now. "Daryl, one of these days I am going to get a proper introduction out of you. Perhaps in the distant future, though." She turned swiftly to Rick, hand extended. "Hello, I'm Rylynn, although most around here call me Ry."

"Rylynn, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Rick. This is my son, Carl…" Rick went around the room, introducing the young woman to each of the family members in turn. She smiled and gave a polite "pleased to meet you" to each. Once Rick had finished, she turned her attention back to the leader.

"My apologies for barging in on dinner," she said, "but I actually came to get something from Daryl."

Rick said, "Oh, of course," and stepped aside to let Rylynn speak directly to his right-hand man.

"Whatcha want?" Daryl asked. Carol smacked his arm, protesting his rudeness. Rylynn simply shook her head at him.

"The list," she said directly.

"What list? I aint got no list of yours," he shot at her. Carol smacked him again. He really wished she would just go away and leave him alone; having her in this space was making him nervous and fidgety.

Rylynn seemed unfazed. "The list of parts you need for the bike. Aaron said you would have it."

Daryl's hand went to the back pocket of his jeans, where he felt a thin piece of paper crinkle under his fingers. Oh. But now the entire group was looking at him, wondering why he was being so rude to this pretty girl, and Carol was staring at him with critical eyes.

"I ain't got no list for ya. I can get the parts myself," he quickly justified. Better to do a little extra work than to admit he had been unreasonably rude to her.

Rylynn still wasn't deterred. "You know where to go?"

"Yeah I know where to go!" Daryl snapped.

"Daryl!" Carol finally intervened. "There's no need for that kind of tone."

Rylynn put her hand up. "Thank you, Carol, but it's quite alright. I can handle a little attitude."

"You're going to have to handle more than a little with this one," Carol said as she pushed by Daryl and back into the kitchen. Daryl merely glared after her.

Rylynn sighed. "I can't let you go out to get the parts on your own. The nearest garage that has a decent stock left is out of the ways."

"I'll find it on my own. Don't need no help," Daryl responded. Rylynn raised her eyebrows at him, her face taking on authoritative and almost sassy features.

"I'm sorry," she cocked her head at him, "did you hear a question in that statement? I'll lead you there. If you want to sass off to the trees on any following trips, you're welcome to do so. Until then, you're stuck directing that energy at me. I'll be by tomorrow morning." She turned to the rest of the crowd, including Sasha and Noah, who had to snap their dropped mouths closed. "It was wonderful to meet you all. If you need anything, especially any items from beyond the wall, please don't hesitate to knock on my door."

She turned one last time to Daryl. "And whether you like it or not, I will see you tomorrow."