Daryl had run into trouble. Well not really Daryl, but Noah. His bad leg had made hiking down the hill and through the forest extremely tough. He probably shouldn't have even come. He'd put his own life in danger and they rest of them as well. Daryl had noticed he was struggling and had tried keeping track of him and watching his back as they fought off the hordes, but the kid was relentless, determined to carry his own weight. The last big horde that they'd been in the middle of had been Noah's downfall. Daryl couldn't do anything but watch. He'd been able to get to Noah and take care of him in the end and he put his body in a hollow tree to come back for later. Because this kid had been the reason they'd found Beth. He'd been Beth's friend and Daryl wanted to bring his body back for her. That had turned out to be a huge ordeal. Everyone else had cleared the area and Daryl had searched for the hollow tree for hours before finally finding it again. Now the sun was rising and he was making his way through the forest with Noah's dead body over his shoulder. It was hard, especially now because the terrain was beginning to slope upwards. Hiking with the extra weight made his muscles scream in protest. And his heart ached with another loss. One that would break Beth too. And he didn't want her to hurt, he was determined to protect her but this, this was gonna hurt. He shifted Noah's body and adjusted his crossbow. His boots slipped on lichen and leaves. He heard a crack, he was sure he hadn't stepped on anything that big. He stopped and raised his bow. He searched the trees ahead of him where the sound had come from. He saw movement. There was nowhere for him to hide. Someone was coming. Maybe someone looking for him. Then Daryl recognized her. Oh god no! He thought. And she stepped from behind the trees. The sun shone on her hair. When she made eye contact, she smiled and started to hurry towards him. As she got closer she saw what Daryl was burdened with and he saw her face fall, her eyes widen. Daryl lowered Noah's body to ground seconds before Beth was on her knees at his feet. Daryl knelt next to her. "No, no, no." she whispered. She reached out and touched Noah's lifeless hand.

"I'm sorry Beth." Daryl said. She fell against him shaking and wiping her face.

"I'm not crying." she swallowed.

"Yes you are. You cry for him." Daryl held her shoulders and saw for the first time the newly bandaged wound that had bled through and the blood on the front of her t-shirt. He panicked.

"You're bleeding! Are you hurt? What happened?" She looked up at him with those blue eyes and they were so full of sorrow.

"I'm okay." she said in a voice too small to be convincing.

"You weren't supposed to leave without…" Daryl's voice broke. ..without me." He pulled her to him and just held her on the forest floor Noah's dead body beside them. Being broken was normal. Being raw and ripped wide open came unexpectedly.

"You. Didn't. Come. Back." she forced the words out.

"I needed to bring him back." Daryl said. She looked at him. And then she finally cried. She held Noah's hand and cried for the loss of her friend and for the gift that Daryl gave her by bringing his body back.

Beth pulled herself together and took a deep breath. Daryl watched her closely. "We need to get back. They're gonna be worried." she said. "I can help." She stood up and looked at him. Daryl knew if he said the wrong thing or was too overprotective it would be a mistake right now. Beth needed to feel something other than hopeless.

"Take my crossbow. You can cover us. It will make it easier for me to carry.. him."

"I snuck out. I didn't tell them I was going to find you. " she confessed.

"Mmmm." he didn't look at her. "You're a pain in the ass Greene." She adjusted her knife and gun.

"I'm a survivor." she said.

"Yes you are." he smiled slightly. While they walked she told him what had happened with Father Gabriel. "I'm gonna kill him!" Daryl said.

"I don't trust him." she said. Daryl stopped walking. He put Noah down. Beth kept walking for a few steps and then she turned and looked at him. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Come're." he said. She walked back over to him. He looked at her bandaged wound. He touched it gently. "No bump?" he asked quietly. She shook her head. He trailed his lightly fingers down her cheek. He looked into her eyes and traced her lips with his finger. He closed the space between them and leaned down and kissed her softly. "I know you will do everything you can to take care of yourself. And you're strong, you're a survivor. But I, I can't, if I lost you…" She put her arms around his neck and pulled him to her and kissed him again.

"You're not going to." she whispered into his mouth.

"Then let me protect you, let me be me." he wrapped his arms around her.

"Teach me to fight, to shoot and hold my own. Let me protect you if you need me too and you can protect me." She gave him a small smile even though her eyes were filled with sadness. He didn't want to agree, but he didn't see any way out of it.

He shook his head and muttered "Pain in the ass." And she smiled and the smile almost took away the sadness. That's all he needed. Her smile. They could get through anything if he could just make her smile. Even the hard stuff. It was like a candle in the darkness for him. He picked up Noah and they headed back to the cabin.

The lookout must have spotted them them because Rick came down through the trees to meet them even before they got to the fence.

"Where the hell did you go Beth?!" Rick said angrily. Daryl stepped forward putting himself between Rick and Beth. Rick looked at him and what he was carrying. His face fell. "When did that happen?" he sounded defeated.

"Early. Before daylight. Kid wasn't prepared." Daryl said. Rick rubbed his face and looked at Beth again.

"We sent people out looking for you. We were worried." Beth looked at Daryl.

"I'm sorry." was all she said. She pushed past Daryl and walked ahead.

"We need to find a place for him." Daryl said walking by Rick. Rick nodded and followed them. Michonne and Tyreese were waiting in the yard. Tyreese helped Daryl with Noah's body. Carl came down the steps followed by others from the house. They looked at the body on the ground, a jagged knife wound at his temple.

"Oh no.." Tara said softly. The expressions on everyone's faces was as familiar as a photograph you've seen a hundred times. Too many times. As Maggie came down the stairs she just looked angry.

"You left without telling anyone!" she said.

"I know. I'm sorry." Beth said gently.

"This could be your body!" Maggie kept on.

"I said I was sorry." Beth gritted her teeth.

"That's not good enough! What the hell made you think you could go out there alone?" At this Maggie glanced at Daryl.

"Let it go Maggie." Glenn said. Maggie looked at Noah's body.

"I almost lost you." Maggie said quietly. Her anger was losing steam. Beth stared at the ground. Eugene came up with shovels and Abraham and Daryl grabbed them .They went just outside the back gate and started digging a hole. Maggie came up next to Beth.

"You went after him?" she said accusingly.

"I did." Beth said turning and looking her sister in the eyes. "And you would have done the same."

"It's different." Maggie said weakly.

"Why? I'm not allowed to love someone?! He risked his life to bring Noah's body back because Noah was my friend." Beth said, close to tears now.

"Do you love him Beth?" Maggie asked watching her sister's face closely. Beth didn't know how to respond. She and Daryl had never ventured into this territory. She knew what she felt, but until she shared it with Daryl she didn't feel like it was right to share it with anyone else. She watched as further out in the forest, two shadows struggled to make their way through the vegetation. She knew Daryl was aware that the walkers were there, they just weren't a threat yet. But they were a distraction. Beth wanted a distraction. She pulled out her knife and took off at a jog towards the walkers in the trees. She let herself go to that place in her head where she found herself best able to deal with the horrors before her. And she raised her knife and stabbed. And kept stabbing until a strong hand grabbed her wrist and held it still.

"Stop Beth. You got them." A gruff voice in her ear, warm breath on her neck. She looked down at her hands and the front of her shirt. She was covered in blood and bits and pieces of walkers. One body lay on the forest floor. The other had fallen over a branch where she had continued to stab it, demolishing it's rotting head. Daryl wiped blood from her cheek with a dirty hand. She looked at him and over at the mound in the dirt where Noah was buried. Nothing made sense. Was this it? Just loss. And if she loved Daryl and lost him? She suddenly felt overwhelmed with the weight of everything. The kiss, her promise, Noah's body. Living, dying, loving, losing. And then he was there, his hand under her chin, making her look at him.

"You there?" he asked. She bit her lip until she tasted blood.

"Can you cut this stupid cast off?" she asked him. His eyes clouded in confusion and then he shrugged.

"That's what you need right now?" he asked. She nodded. "Ok. Let's go cut it off." He took her hand and led her back to the cabin.

Daryl found a small hack saw in the cabin. He sat in a chair facing Beth, her arm held steady between his legs. He slowly and meticulously cut the cast off her wrist. He kept looking up at her. She looked lost. Her expression reminded him of how he sometimes felt. Disconnected. That wasn't a good place to be.

"We should go out with the bow and guns and get this wrist back in shape." he said quietly.

"You'll help me?" she asked.

"Mmmm. I will. It ain't no good to feel helpless." he said. He brushed away residue from the saw. She watched as he sawed back and forth. She did feel helpless. It was like being back in the farmhouse. She heard a crack. The cast fell away from her wrist. Underneath her arm looked skinny and weak.

"I feel like my arm looks." she mumbled.

"You look like shit. We both do." She looked at him. He had a smirk on his face. He touched her cheek and tugged at her shirt. Blood and walker goo. "Let's clean up." He led her into the bathroom. He took off his jacket and pulled his t-shirt over his head. Standing there shirtless, he pumped water for the shower. Beth couldn't breathe. He reached over and helped her take off her flannel. He just looked at her t-shirt fingering the hem while they looked at each other. He turned to the bucket of water and wet a washcloth. He wiped her arms and face being gentle with her wrist. When he finished she took the washcloth and rinsed it out and washed his face and arms. Her hand lingered on his chest and she felt his heart beating fast beneath his warm skin. He turned and put his head under the bucket and dumped the water over his head. He shook the water from his hair. Beth stood there shivering.

"Come on." he took her hand and led her into the bedroom Rick had been staying in. He went out and grabbed their backpacks and tossed them on the bed. "You should change." he said. He laid on the bed. She raised her eyebrows at him. He looked and her and turned over facing away from her. She rummaged through her bag and found another t-shirt. She dropped the bag and stood there awkwardly. Daryl patted the bed beside him. "Just rest for awhile." Daryl said. She looked at the door. "Don't matter what they think anymore Beth." he said gruffly and patted the bed again. She crawled across the bed and laid beside him. He put an arm underneath her and moved her closer to him. She turned on her side and rested her head on his chest and it no longer felt awkward. She felt safe. And he felt like he was taking care of her, something he had failed at too many times before. For the first time in a long time sleep came quickly for both of them.