Sorry for the super long wait!

And apologies for the length of the chapter... It's a bit short...

This one is mostly filler, next chapter will be more exciting.

Anyways, enjoy!


As the group walked down the road, Rick kept Carl close, making sure his blood covered son was beside him at all times. Michonne walked right behind them, her posture rigid. Daryl hung back, a few feet in front of Blake.

Everyone kept glancing back at Blake, as if they were making sure she was still there. She wasn't going to leave, she just didn't feel like talking to anyone right now. Her clothes clung to her skin, the drying blood bonding fabric and flesh like glue. She wanted nothing more than a hot shower; an impossible luxury in the world they lived in.

Blake's thoughts kept returning to the clearing. She had managed to get her hands free during the night and grabbed the dagger from her boot while her attacker had been… preparing. She stabbed him forty two times. She counted.

Blake's skin crawled and itched as her mind insisted on replaying the events that had unfolded in such a short period of time. She began fiddling with Tegan's necklace, sliding it back and forth across the chain to keep her hands busy. Unfortunately, the motion didn't occupy he mind.

Once again, Daryl glance back at Blake, this time seeing her fiddling with the charm on her necklace. He slowed down until he was walking next to the girl, who seemed lost in thought.

"Your sister's?" he asked in a low voice.

Blake started before nodding, her shoulders tensing slightly. She kept her gaze down, unable to look at the man beside her. She knew Daryl wasn't going to hurt her, but her brain was running a mile a minute, unable to sort her thoughts properly.

"My brother died too." Daryl wasn't really sure why he was about to tell Blake this story; the words just seemed to roll off of his tongue like when he had told Carl about his mother. "Carl tell ya 'bout The Governor?"

Blake nodded again, slightly intrigued with Daryl's sudden willingness to talk.

"Well that prick killed Merle." Daryl tried-unsuccessfully-to keep the anger out of his voice as he spoke. "Shot 'im in the heart, not the head. I found him later, chowin' down on one of The Governor's 'soldiers'. Had to kill him."

Blake's shoulders had relaxed slightly as her brain finally caught up with the fact that Daryl was safe to be around.

"You had to kill your sister, din'cha?"

Another nod.

"I know it's not gon' do much, but I'm sorry." Daryl was never good with words, but he wanted Blake to know that she was part of the family now, and that she could talk to any of them any time. Even Daryl.

TWDTWDTWDTWDTWD

Blake leaned against a tree on the edge of the woods, staring at the fire in the middle of the tracks. The group had reached the railroad an hour before sundown. Luckily, there had been a map to their destination at the intersection of track and road. They headed south along the tracks to the place they now knew as Terminus before setting up camp for the night.

Carl was propped up against a tree a few feet away from Blake, his eyes closed. Rick and Michonne were sleeping on the ground and Daryl was watching the woods. Blake rolled up her hoodie sleeves despite the cold and began subconsciously scratching her arms.

After thoroughly surveying the opposite side of the tracks, Daryl glanced in the direction of the kids, making sure they were okay and noticed Blake was frantically scratching her arms. He got up and slowly walked towards the girl, knowing she was in a fragile state of mind. "Blake." He said gently, kneeling down a few feet away form Blake. The scratching immediately stopped and Blake's head snapped up, her left hand immediately going for her machete. Daryl saw a bit of fresh blood on her forearms and under her nails.

Recognizing that is was just Daryl, Blake brought her hand away from the blade at her hip and followed his concerned gaze to her own forearms. She was surprised at the blood and claw marks on her skin, and more surprised by the sting that followed.

"Can I do anything?" Daryl asked, knowing 'are you okay?' was not a question he could ask in this situation.

Blake shook her head firmly, biting her lip as she rolled her sleeves back down.

"You sure?"

Blake nodded again, looking away from Daryl this time, embarrassed. She kept looking at the ground until the man before her got up and headed back towards the fire.

Once she was alone again, Blake could feel eyes on the top of her head, and looked up to see Carl gazing over at her with a guilty expression on his face. Blake immediately turned away, unable to look at him. Instead, she chose to stare into the woods across the tracks. She could feel Carl's eyes on her the whole night.

TWDTWDTWDTWDTWD

When the cries for help echoed through the trees, everyone stopped and listened. The man was close, probably within fifty yards, but no one moved toward the sound. They all just listened as the screaming got louder and then stopped, watching the trees for stray walkers. Blake kept her gun trained on the treeline, finger hovering over the trigger.

"We're close." Rick stated flatly once the silence returned. "We should keep moving. Might get there before sundown tomorrow."

With that, everyone fell into step, continuing their hike along the tracks.

Blake sighed, thinking about the man who had just died so close to them.

'Lucky him.'


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