Chapter 2:We Must Be Killers

Blurb: Hi! So I wanted to mention that the disclaimer still applies. Also, this story is titled after the song Consequence by Notwist. You could say that it's the theme song. Chapter one is named after the song Begin Again by Measure. Chapter two is named after We Must Be Killers by Mikky Ekko. Enjoy reading! I love feedback. :))

Needless to say, Daryl was not excited about the prospect of having Ellen as his shadow. "I ain't no babysitter!" This was his response to Rick's proposition.

Ellen felt completely out of her element with Daryl pointing and yelling harsh words her direction. Rick pulled Daryl aside to a spot a few extra feet away from where Ellen stood. She could still hear bits of their conversation from her point of vantage.

"Daryl, come on. She wants to learn how to survive out there. You're the best teacher we have right now with both Shane and me out of commission. Who knows, she might be of help to you." Rick hushed his voice so Ellen wouldn't have to hear.

Daryl huffed out a breath, "Ain't nothin' she can help with. Just be a nuisance." He eyed her with a narrowed expression.

"Give her a chance." Rick suggested.

Daryl lifted his chin in the air a bit before walking toward Ellen. He eyed her up and down, long and hard. "Can you defend yourself?"

Ellen hesitated, "Not very well…"

Daryl shook his head in exasperation, letting out a grunt. "You believe this shit?" He looked toward Rick, "You honestly want me to take this doe-eyed peach out there?"

Rick sighed, "If anyone can toughen her up, it's you."

"You got that right," Daryl answered roughly. Turning his attention back to Ellen, he lifted a demanding finger in her direction, "Ain't my fault if you get yourself killed out there! Or bit! I won't have nothin' to do with that. Ya hear?"

Ellen nodded, "Yes, of course."

Daryl shook his head in disgruntled disbelief, "Can't believe this. Ain't you got a kid that needs fixin' in there? Don't need you out in the woods playing survivor."

"Daryl, please." It was the first time she had ever addressed him by name and the words felt strange on her lips. "I'll do everything you tell me to do. I won't get in your way."

"Like hell!" Daryl paced around in the dirt with his hands on his head as he brewed over this predicament. He stopped in his tracks and turned to Ellen, "You stay near me at all times! And you best be ready when I call you, ya got that?"

Ellen agreed, "Promise."

Daryl sent one last disbelieving shake of his head in her direction before storming off, "Don't know what you're in for, princess!"

In all honesty, she agreed with him.

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After a night of tossing and turning, Ellen was in less than optimal condition for survival in the wild. Her alarm woke her at six in the morning. Daryl hadn't specified a time for their departure, so Ellen wanted to be ready for him when he gave the word.

She set to work selecting an outfit fit for an outdoorswoman. It consisted of jeans, boots, and a tank top. It was too hot out for a jacket and that would just weigh her down.

When it came to weapons, Ellen was lost. She didn't even have a small knife handy. Hershel had always stressed that weapons were unnecessary on the farm. Being set apart from the horrors that surrounded the rest of the world was both a blessing and a curse. Ellen had nothing to show for her experiences in this post-apocalyptic world. Her lack of preparedness had to come to an end at some point, or it would be her downfall.

After brushing her hair up into a high ponytail, Ellen decided it was time to leave her room. She took a deep breath, collecting herself. She needed this experience, even if it killed her.

Knowing Patricia had been put in charge of Carl for the day, Ellen didn't stop to check on him. She went straight down the stairs and out the front door without looking back.

Ellen could see Daryl's tent at the edge of the property. He had decided to separate himself from the rest of the group. Why, Ellen didn't know. Perhaps he really did do everything on his own.

Ellen hesitated, unsure whether she should go back into the house and wait for Daryl to find her or go straight to his campsite. She didn't want him to have an excuse to leave her behind. She saw movement from across the field as Daryl unzipped his tent and exited, stretching his limbs after being in a cramped space. Ellen decided it was now or never, and she made straight for Daryl.

Ellen stomped across the field in her boots, avoiding the clumps of weed that might cause her to stumble. Daryl was putting on his leather vest over his sleeveless shirt when she approached his campsite. "That's pretty cool," were Ellen's first words to him.

Daryl spun around to face her with narrowed eyes. "The hell you talkin' about?"

Ellen pointed towards his torso, "Your vest- its wings. A bit ironic, don't you think?"

"How's that?" Daryl obliged her as he grabbed his crossbow.

Ellen shrugged, "It's rather angelic."

Daryl huffed back, "Whatever."

Ellen stood off to the side of Daryl's campsite, never really approaching him as he gathered his crossbow. He swung the strap over his head, allowing the weapon to rest against his back where it was easily accessible. "Alright, girl. What you need?"

Ellen was caught off guard, not understanding his meaning. "What do you mean?"

"Weapon wise. You packin'?" Daryl asked.

Ellen raised her eyebrows, "No, don't have any of that back at the house."

"Sittin' a little too pretty, maybe?" Daryl answered. He motioned for Ellen to come forward with a slight wave of his hand.

Ellen took a second to register that he had just beckoned her forward. She jumped into a quick few steps, closing much of the distance between them, eager to please. Daryl's mouth set into a thin line seeing her quick response to his simple gesture. "You need to calm down, I ain't gonna bite you. It's the walkers that you best be afraid of."

Ellen didn't respond, not knowing what to say to him. Daryl looked her up and down, assessing her attire. He motioned towards her boots, "Those comfortable?"

"Yes, I'll be fine."

Daryl met her eyes, "Can't have you hobblin' about. I'm not carrying you back."

Ellen could only nod. He wasn't exactly delicate with his words.

Daryl grabbed a duffle bag from near his tent and began searching its contents. He pulled out what Ellen considered to be a rather large pocketknife. Daryl held the object out to her with an outstretched arm. Ellen took it from him. "You hold onto that," Daryl instructed.

He then returned to the bag, sifting around for more weapons. Daryl's next weapon of choice was a silver pistol, which he handed over to Ellen. "Ever shot one?"

"Never," Ellen looked at the pistol, a little breathless at the thought of firing it.

"Keep it anyways. You'll get better after the classes Rick's been talking about startin'. You're gonna need it."

A moment of silence passed as Ellen stared down at the pistol he had just given her. "These too," Daryl stated as he handed her an extra round of bullets from inside his duffle. Ellen allowed the concern and fear in her eyes to show as she met Daryl's steel gaze.

Daryl broke eye contact with her to look out over the field to his group's RV. "We'll check in with Rick before we leave. Make sure he's still ok with this."

Ellen didn't argue. She followed as Daryl brushed past her towards the open field, "You ready?"

Ellen nodded and kept moving. She was as ready as she would ever be.

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Rick approved Daryl to go out looking for the missing girl, Sophia, with Ellen in tow. He wished Ellen luck and sent them on their way. Ellen followed Daryl away from the group's campsite and out over the field toward the small stream that lied at the edge of the property. She had never been this far from the safety of the farmhouse before- not since before the world was overrun.

Daryl lead her past the stream and further out towards the woods. He spoke in a hushed tone, turning his eyes toward her, "You stay close, ya hear? Don't use that gun unless you have no other choice. The sound brings them crawlin'. Stick with the knife."

Ellen answered, "Knife, got it."

Daryl kept walking forward as he asked her, "You know how to kill a walker?"

She raised her eyebrows, "Is that what you call them?"

"Biters, geeks, walkers…"Daryl listed a few, "You make sure to aim for the brain."

They kept moving, finally getting into the thicker areas of the forest. Leaving the farm behind was disconcerting for Ellen. Could she really trust Daryl to keep her safe in this unfamiliar setting?

Daryl surprised her with his delicate instructions, "Make sure you pay attention to where I lead you."

Ellen sent a concerned look his direction, "What for?"

"Never know if you'll have to get back on your own," Daryl's words hung in the air between them.

They continued to push through the forest. At first Ellen was thrown off by Daryl's quiet hand gestures, but she picked up their meanings quickly: stop, stay behind, go forward, left, right, go ahead. He kept to hand signals for much of their time in the woods. When he picked up an unfamiliar sound, he would gesture for her to stop and get behind him. So far they hadn't come across anything life threatening.

Daryl kept his eyes focused in front of him, taking in everything from the ground to their surroundings. At one point he kneeled down to look at the dirt and broken leaves before him. Ellen was confused as to why he would stare at the dirt for more than two seconds. But then he would suddenly stand up from his crouched position and motion for her to follow in another direction, continuing to watch the forest floor beneath him.

Ellen caught on after a few minutes of this, "You can track?"

Daryl answered her with a quiet roughness, "Well ain't you a peach. Figured that out all on your own?"

Ellen didn't answer him. She let silence fall once more between them as they kept moving. Daryl led her towards a clearing past a collection of trees. He stopped to scan the area for danger. Ellen immediately noticed the run down house in the center of the clearing. Daryl grabbed an arrow with his right hand, crossbow in the left, before heading out into the clearing. Ellen followed close behind.

Daryl approached the house with caution, loading his crossbow before reaching the entrance to the house. He looked to Ellen and nodded, checking to see that she was prepared.

Then Daryl kicked the door of the house open. When nothing happened, Daryl started inching forward into the house. Ellen pulled out her pocketknife, pinching it open as she followed Daryl inside. Their steps caused the wood to creak horrendously. Ellen could have sworn it was the loudest sound she had heard all morning.

Daryl led the way with his crossbow, swerving to the left as he checked the first room. Once he knew it was clear, he moved on down the hall. He checked each room on the lower level in this fashion, until he came to the end of the hall. He entered this room, looking around at its contents. Ellen was close by. She watched as Daryl picked up an open can of tuna. He brought it to his nose, then let the extra contents of the can spill out onto the floor. Daryl's attention was diverted to a slightly open cupboard at the other end of the room. He inched towards it slowly, crossbow trained on the door. He opened the cupboard quickly, and seeing nothing but old cans, let his crossbow fall to his side. At the bottom of the cupboard was a blanket and cushion. It looked as though someone had hidden themselves inside.

Declaring the house clear, he motioned for Ellen to follow him back out to the front entrance. Ellen nearly jumped when Daryl suddenly called out, "Sophia!"

He rounded about to the other end of the house, looking around the corner briefly. Calling again, he turned back to clearing, "Sophia!"

Ellen stayed quiet, letting Daryl do the shouting for her. She didn't feel comfortable enough to add extra noise on their hunt.

Walking towards the edge of the clearing, Daryl crouch down to face a set of white flowers. He picked one of the flowers with surprising gentleness, holding it in left hand. His explanation to Ellen was, "Carol should see this."

Carol was Sophia's mother.

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As they headed back through the forest towards the farm, Daryl continued to direct Ellen with silent hand gestures and simple looks. Ellen was caught off guard when he suddenly stopped in front of her, holding his hand up for her to do the same. Daryl crouched down and Ellen did the same. Scanning the area, Ellen couldn't see what it was Daryl had stopped for and that made her all the more uneasy.

Standing back up, Daryl moved forward to lean against a tree. Sticking his crossbow out past the tree, he scanned the area beyond the cover of the tree. Ellen stuck close behind Daryl, crouching on the ground near him to make herself as small as possible. Her pocketknife was retracted and ready at her side.

Daryl didn't say anything, just brought his hand down to Ellen's line of vision. He held out two fingers for her to see.

Two walkers.

Daryl brought his hand up to point at his head.

Brain.

Ellen nodded and took in a steady breath, clutching her pocketknife.

Daryl made a move to shuffle past the tree, motioning for Ellen to follow behind him. Her eyes focused in on the two walkers Daryl had indicated. One was small and female, the other a tall and gangly male. They were feasting on a dead deer that had fallen prey to a hunter's gun.

The female walker noticed them first. It grunted and made to move towards them. Daryl took her down with one clean shot of his crossbow. The arrow had penetrated her skull.

The other walker looked around curiously when his companion fell to ground.

Daryl motioned towards the creature, "Have at it, Peaches."

"What?!" Ellen could have cried at the thought.

"I'll shoot him if you can't handle it. Just go for his head."

The walker spun around slowly, facing Daryl and Ellen with jowls full of deer meat. He opened his mouth to reveal a combination of uneaten deer and blood, letting out a throaty snarl.

Ellen gripped her pocketknife hard, preparing to take charge of the situation. She didn't wait for Daryl to instruct her again. She sidestepped past Daryl and his crossbow to face the walker.

Daryl stepped to her side so he could get a clear shot at the walker, should she need it.

The walker stretched out its long arms towards Ellen, beckoning her forward with a moan. As soon as the walker stepped forward once, Ellen made herself charge forward. She met the walker head on, and it's hands were on her. Ellen pushed the walker with all of her might, sending them both toppling to the ground. It grabbed at her clothing, seeking the flesh beneath them. The walker's teeth gnashed at the space between itself and Ellen.

Seeing she had little to no control of the situation, Daryl took his shot. One second the walker was rabidly reaching for Ellen with it's teeth, and the next it laid limply on the ground beneath her.

"The fuck was that?!" Daryl charged towards Ellen with purpose. He grabbed her arm, yanking her to her feet. "I didn't tell you to go tackling shit! Good Lord! Don't you know nothin'?"

Ellen was a bit dazed from the whole situation, allowing it to sink in quickly. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't know."

Daryl let her arm go, freeing her from his grasp. "And that was the best tactic you could come up with?!"

Daryl looked her over quickly, grabbing her arms and turning them about with his large hands. He then lifted the hem of her tank top to look at her abdomen, letting it fall when he was satisfied she had not been scratched. Ellen didn't even protest. He had just saved her life and she wasn't about to cross him.

He huffed aggressively as he moved away from her, "Next time I'll kill the walker! You just sit back and watch."

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They made it back to the farm without further incident. Daryl walked her to the front of the house. Once there, he turned to face Ellen. He let his gaze sweep her up and down, observing her shaken appearance. Daryl spoke, "You let the others do the cookin' today. You've had enough."

Ellen met his gaze slowly, and he continued, "You rest up. We'll go back out soon. And this time we'll be smart about it."

Ellen nodded in acknowledgement.

Daryl's last words to her were, "No more tackling shit."