Chapter 3: Look After You

Blurb: The disclaimer still applies. A big thank you to VampWolf92 for reviewing! & thanks to all those that favorited/followed my story. I love you for it. :)) This chapter is named after Look After You by The Fray. Enjoy!

Ellen was sitting in Carl's room the next morning when Rick came in to call her. "I'm about to start a meeting up. Seeing as you're part of the search party too, you might as well come."

Ellen smiled thankfully and turned to look at the sleeping boy before following Rick out. "Has Carl been awake since the seizure?"

Rick looked back at Ellen, "Last night, he was wide awake for me."

"That's great! He'll be back on his feet in no time."

The pair exited the house, making their way toward the group campsite. Ellen observed how Rick walked with a sureness and purpose she painfully lacked. As soon as he entered the camping area, the others in the group recognized Rick needed them. He was the clear authority for each of them.

"Morning, guys. Let's get going. We've got a lot of ground to cover," Rick placed the map that they had used a few days ago for viewing the terrain around the farm on the hood of the station wagon once again. Ellen took her place to Rick's left side while others from the group joined them around the hood of the car.

Rick continued, "We're all getting new search grids today. She made it as far as the farmhouse Daryl found. She might have gone further east than we've thought."

Jimmy interrupted, "I'd like to help. I know the area pretty well."

Rick turned towards Jimmy, "Hershel's ok with this?"

"Yeah, yeah. He said I should ask you."

Ellen doubted it. Hershel was very protective of his family. Ellen tried not to think about how he had let her go out in the woods with little argument. Maybe he had a change of heart.

"Alright, then. Thanks," Rick answered Jimmy.

Ellen let her eyes fall to the map as Rick accepted Jimmy's help. Daryl had approached the meeting with the others, and he was currently pulling his arms through the sleeves of a flannel shirt.

Shane cut in, "Nothin' about what Daryl found screams 'Sophia' to me. Anyone could have been holed up in that farmhouse."

The blonde, Andrea, countered back, "Anybody includes her, right?"

Daryl spoke next, "Well, whoever slept in that cupboard was no bigger than yay high." He held his hand down low near his waistline, indicating the size he believed the person to be.

"Good lead," Andrea praised him.

"Maybe we'll pick up her trail again," Rick answered.

Daryl brought his hand out over the map to indicate a grid of land, "No maybe about it. I'm gonna borrow a horse- head up to this ridge right here. Get a birds eye view of the whole grid. If she's up there, I'll spot her."

"Good idea," T-Dog approved. "Maybe you'll see El Chupacabra up there too."

"Chupacabra?" Rick asked in disbelief.

Dale cut in, "What? You've never heard this? The first night in camp, Daryl tells us how this all reminds him of the time he went squirrel hunting and he saw El Chupacabra."

Jimmy let out a short chuckle.

"What you braggin' at, jackass?" Daryl addressed Jimmy.

Rick defended him, "So you believe in a bloodsucking dog?"

"You believe in dead people walkin' around?" Daryl answered cheekily. Ellen let out a small laugh, winning a look of approval from Daryl.

Jimmy let the conversation go, reaching out to grab the rifle that sat on the hood of the car. Rick stopped him, grabbing the gun, "Woah, you ever fired one before?"

"Well, if I'm going out I want one."

Daryl countered back, swinging his crossbow over his shoulder, "People in hell want slurpees."

"You should come train tomorrow. It appears I'm the certified instructor," Shane invited Jimmy and turned his eyes to Ellen, "You too. Now that you're out there with Daryl, could use a few shots outta you."

Ellen nodded, "I'll be there."

Andrea turned to look toward Jimmy, then back at Shane, "For now he can come with us."

"He's yours to babysit, then," Shane let it slide.

Ellen turned to Rick, "I'll go check in with Daryl."

Rick approved her leave and went back to addressing the rest of the group. Ellen walked away from them, heading towards the stables. Daryl had mentioned a horse before leaving the group.

Upon reaching the stables, Ellen noticed Daryl at the far end of the building. He had a saddle in his arms as he approached a stall to the right. Ellen approached as he got the saddle up on the horse. She asked, "You know how to saddle her right?"

Daryl huffed, "You just pull these straps and buckle it tight." He let the straps hang a bit to loosely around the animal. Having spent a lot of time on the farm with Maggie, it was obvious to Ellen that he didn't have a clue.

Ellen smiled and shook her head, "Here, let me."

After securing the saddle with gentle hands, she took the bit and brought it to the horse's mouth. Once everything was in it's rightful place, she looked back at Daryl. He had been watching her interact with the animal. Ellen stated, "I'm going with you."

Daryl let a smirk slide over his features, "Not today you ain't."

"Why not? It's better if we go in pairs," Ellen pleaded.

"That's what the horse is for. Plus, she doesn't tackle shit like an MMA fighter."

Ellen looked hurt, "I told you I wouldn't do that again."

Daryl's eyes met hers and his voice became less gruff, "Yeah, I know. I'll take you out later- just not today. If you can't fight walkers on your feet then you definitely can't fight them on a horse."

Ellen let her hand brush the horse's neck as she dropped it to her side. She motioned towards the horse in defeat, "Her name's Nelly. She'll behave, just as long as you don't spook her."

Ellen turned on her heel to exit the stall. Daryl stopped her with a few final words, "Hey, Ellen. Thanks…for saddling 'er."

Ellen looked back at Daryl with a small smile, "I expect you both back here in one piece."

With that said, she left Daryl behind in the stable.

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Ellen returned to the farmhouse. Letting Daryl leave on his own was stupid- she knew it. But he wouldn't have her out there with him. The best she could do was keep herself busy until he came back.

Her opportunity came when Lori asked if it would be ok to use the kitchen for a group meal. Ellen smiled, "I'll ask Maggie to just to be sure, but it should be fine. Do you mind if I help out? I'm spending the day here and I don't have anything more important to do."

Lori agreed, and Ellen went to ask Maggie about the kitchen. Maggie was overly excited about the idea of a real home cooked meal. Ellen went out to the front of the house to yell for Lori. Lori heard her calling from the porch and retrieved Carol from her work hanging laundry. They all met up in the kitchen.

Ellen made herself busy chopping, stirring, and boiling whatever Carol or Lori instructed. It was a welcome distraction from the fact that Daryl had left her behind today.

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Ellen was scooping out batter into muffin tins when she heard someone yelling outside. From her position near the sink, she was able to draw the curtains back and look out in an attempt to locate the source of the noise.

Ellen's heart began racing when she heard the crack of gunfire. She immediately dropped what she had been doing with the bowl of muffin mix, letting it fall onto the counter with an unceremonious bang. Turning on her heels, she rushed from the kitchen and out to the porch.

From the front of the house, she could tell there was a group of men- Rick, Shane, Glenn and T-Dog- at the end of the clearing across the field. Ellen's ears were met with the distant cries of Rick, "No! No! No!"

Ellen ran.

She could hear Hershel shouting behind her, demanding an explanation. Lori's voice called out for Rick with an urgency that fueled Ellen's panic. As the others stopped near the camp behind her, Ellen kept running across the field to reach the group of men.

Dale and Andrea were already there when Ellen noticed that Rick and Shane were holding a body between them. Andrea called, "Oh my God, is he dead?"

Ellen couldn't hear Rick's reply over her pounding heartbeat. She just kept running.

As she got closer, she heard Glenn point out, "Look at him! What the hell happened? He's wearing ears."

Ellen didn't register what Rick said next. Her eyes fell on the man between Rick and Shane. He was so dirty that he could have fooled Ellen for a walker, but she soon recognized that it was Daryl. Ellen stopped in her tracks, watching as the group moved in her direction.

Scanning Daryl from head to toe, she knew he was unconscious. Then it hit her- the gunshot. Ellen's face contorted as she brought her hand to her mouth, sucking in a harsh breath. Then the fury boiled, "You SHOT HIM?!"

Rushing forward again, Ellen met the group head on. Andrea looked to her with regret, "I am so sorry. I didn't know!"

"Why the HELL would you shoot him if the others were already out here?!" Ellen asked.

Rick replied for Andrea, "Let it go, Ellen."

Shane let a chuckle slip, "You've got quite the fire holed up in there."

Ellen let her hands fall as she walked quickly to keep ahead of the group. She huffed out a frustrated breath.

T-Dog interrupted the group's progress toward the house, "Guys! Isn't this Sophia's." He held up a dirty rag doll with one outstretched arm.

The group stopped. Ellen turned to face T-Dog along with the others.

Daryl brought back solid evidence that Sophia could be alive.

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Ellen instructed Shane and Rick to put Daryl in a spare room upstairs. Hershel was at Daryl's bedside before Ellen could call for him. Ellen was in somewhat of a daze. Daryl had gone out all on his own- without her. Could she have prevented this?

Hershel broke Ellen from her spiraling thoughts, "Ellen, go get clean water and washcloths. I'm going to need to stitch him up, so grab the sterile needle and anything else we'll need."

Ellen nodded vigorously, leaving the room to grab the necessary tools. She grabbed them quickly, returning to find Hershel had already cut Daryl's tattered shirt so he could get to the wounds.

Ellen wrung out a washcloth she had left in a bowl of warm water. She set to work cleaning the dirt and grime from around the gash on Daryl's abdomen. Daryl seemed to stir from his unconsciousness as the wet cloth touched his skin. He opened his eyes slightly. As Ellen came into focus for him, Daryl was confused, "The hell you doin', Peaches?"

Ellen brought her left hand up to Daryl's face, cooing words of comfort, "Shh, don't worry. We're going to fix you back up."

Hershel addressed Ellen, "Help me turn him. I think it runs through to the other side."

Ellen moved her hands to steady Daryl as Hershel turned him to face Ellen. Daryl growled low when they made the necessary movements to turn his body. "Hurts- dammit!"

Hershel spoke, "Yep, goes clean through to his back. You get shot by an arrow, son?"

Daryl was awake enough to respond, "Fell on it."

Ellen helped Daryl move his right arm so he could prop his head up on it while they worked. He watched as she grabbed another wet cloth and leaned over to reach his back. Ellen noticed as she removed the grime from around his wound, long white lines appeared on Daryl's skin. Hesitating, Ellen realized what they were immediately. After having experience in the hospital, she could easily recognize the scarred slashes. It was a common mark of child abuse in Ellen's line of work.

Keeping her face unreadable, Ellen put the cloth back into the bowl of water. Hershel indicated to her that he needed something to sterilize the wound. Keeping her focus on the task at hand, she helped by getting Hershel's needle threaded and handing him the alcohol.

Once Hershel had started working the needle through Daryl's skin, Ellen went to work wiping away the blood on Daryl's head. Andrea's bullet had grazed Daryl's head, leaving a clean scrape. Ellen determined it wouldn't need stitches, informing Hershel. She doused a 4x4 dressing in alcohol and ran it over the gash.

Daryl followed her with his eyes as she worked. Ellen was sure he was trying to read something from her body language. Grabbing another set of dressing, Ellen placed it over Daryl's wound carefully. She broke the silence, "How do you feel about having the bandage wrapped around your head? I have to keep it in place somehow, and tape won't feel great on your hair."

Daryl just grunted in reply, so Ellen set to work. She wiped away most of the dirt from his face and hair with another wet cloth. Daryl let her. Grabbing the extra dressing, she began wrapping his head to keep the gauze in place. This required a bit of adjusting for Ellen, she had to reach around Daryl to grab the dressing from her other hand.

Rick entered the room just as Ellen finished securing the dressing on Daryl's head. Hershel was still stitching the arrow wound.

Seeing Daryl was awake, Rick took the moment to ask, "Mind showing me where you found that doll?"

Ellen moved so Rick could spread the familiar map out on the bed in front of Daryl. Daryl pointed out a specific grid, "Found it washed out on a creek bed right there. She must have dropped it across there somewhere."

"Cuts the grid almost in half," Rick answered.

"You're welcome," Daryl shot back harshly.

Rick asked Hershel, "How's he lookin'?"

"I had no idea we'd be going through the antibiotics so quickly. Any idea what happened to my horse?" Hershel asked Daryl.

"Yeah, the one that almost killed me? If it's smart, it left the country!"

"We call that one Nelly, as in Nervous Nelly. I could have told you she'd throw you if you bothered to ask," was Hershel's reply. He walked towards Rick, "It's a wonder you people have survived this long."

Daryl didn't make a snide remark in protest. He just laid back on his pillow and let the others talk. Shane and Rick decided it was time to leave; they stepped out into the hall.

Had Daryl been a regular patient in the hospital, she would have made sure he was cleaned up by now. However, knowing his personality, Ellen realized he wouldn't let her wipe any more of the grime off than she needed to. So she left the room to fill the bowl with warmer, cleaner water and to retrieve extra washcloths. Having gotten the bowl ready, she returned to Daryl's room. Hershel had already left, so Daryl was left to entertain himself.

Ellen placed the bowl of water on the nightstand near Daryl's bed. Motioning towards the washcloths, Ellen explained, "Thought you might want to clean up a bit."

Daryl watched her curiously as she continued, "I'll go get you some water. You're probably really thirsty."

Daryl didn't reply, so she left the room again to get water from the kitchen.

Carol was in the kitchen preparing the last bits of the group meal. "How's he doing?"

"He'll live. Do you need help with this? I can come down in a bit."

"No, you stay with Daryl. He needs you. I'll get you when food is ready," Carol answered.

Ellen smiled softly, leaving Carol to her work. She returned to Daryl's room, finding a washcloth in his hand as he rubbed dirt off his arms. "Don't let your dressings get wet. We'll have to change them if you do."

Daryl grunted, but didn't say anything. Ellen placed the glass of water next to the bowl on the nightstand. Ellen took the opportunity to sit down in a chair near his bed.

Daryl narrowed his eyes in Ellen's direction, barking at her suddenly, "Mind giving a guy some privacy?"

Ellen let it slide. She didn't want to argue with him, not after today. She quietly stood up and made her way out the door, shutting it softly behind her. She sat down on the floor in the hall outside his door, just incase he needed something and called out.

Daryl was left to question her passive behavior alone. He knew that he had been too harsh on her. Ellen didn't deserve the crap he dished out.

Carol came up the stairs to check on Ellen soon after. She told Ellen food was ready. Ellen followed Carol back down the stairs, joining Maggie at the small table that had been separated from the main one. It was like being at the kid's table in elementary school: just her, Maggie, Glenn, Jimmy, and Beth.

What followed was the most awkward meal she had ever experienced. The only one brave enough to break the silence was Glenn. He was shut down by a comment about Otis, which hung heavily over everyone the rest of the meal.

Ellen ate quickly. She knew Daryl would be hungry, and he needed someone to bring food up to him. When she was done eating, Ellen excused herself and cleaned her dishes. Grabbing an extra set of dishware, she began loading the plate with each dish on the main table. When Rick asked if she was super hungry, see her overflowing plate, Ellen responded, "It's for Daryl."

Grabbing an extra bun and smearing it with strawberry jelly, Ellen finished preparing the plate. Carol interrupted her work, "I'll bring it up for him, Ellen. You sit down and finish."

Ellen was a bit upset that Carol had taken over her duty after all she had just prepared for Daryl; but she let Carol take the plate from her anyway. Daryl was not just hers to take care of. But she did feel responsible. Daryl had left her behind, and she wasn't there when he needed her. He'd gotten himself into a lot of trouble on his own, and she should have been there. If she had known the horse was nicknamed 'Nervous Nelly' and not just 'Nelly" she could have prevented the whole incident. Instead she let him go, on the back of a skittish animal.

Taking her seat back at the small table next to Maggie, she couldn't help but ruminate in her feelings of guilt and regret over Daryl's current state.

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Pie was served soon after Carol left the dining room. Ellen decided it would be best to bring two plates up to Daryl's room, one for each of them. Heading up the stairs with the desserts, Ellen saw Carol exiting Daryl's room. "Pie already? Daryl will like that."

Ellen nodded, "How is he doing?"

"He's awake. Just be gentle with him. He may be a bit prickly, but he has a good center."

Carol passed Ellen and headed down to the first floor, leaving Ellen to open the door to Daryl's room with two full plates in her hands. Using her elbow, Ellen pushed the doorknob downwards so that it would unlatch. She then pushed the wooden door open slowly and peered inside. Daryl was on his side with the white bed sheet pulled up over his shoulders.

"I brought pie."

Daryl looked over his shoulder at her, "What kind?"

"Pumpkin." Ellen noted Daryl's untouched plate of food. "You need to eat some real food before I hand it over, though."

Daryl grumbled something inaudible as Ellen made herself comfortable in the wooden chair near him. She set his pie down on the floor near her chair. Motioning to his plate of food, Ellen insisted, "No food, no pie."

Daryl turned in the bed slightly so he could grab the plate of food, grunting a little with each adjustment to his torso. Grabbing the plate with his left hand, he set it down on the bed at his waist. Then, Daryl propped himself up with his elbows as he tried to push himself upwards in bed. "Let me help you," Ellen said as she put her plate down in her now empty seat.

She was at his side in seconds but Daryl wouldn't have it, "No, you've done enough." His voice wasn't as gruff as his words seemed. It was almost as if Daryl truly meant what he said. She had been there for him for almost as long as he had been conscious. He didn't want her doting over him like she had Carl. He was fine.

Ellen let him push himself upwards in the bed; but once he was in position, he didn't have anything to lean on. Ellen rushed to place extra pillows behind his back, and he sat back with a sigh. He looked Ellen over, "Told ya not to do anything."

Ellen only shrugged and handed him the plate that had been sitting on his bed. Daryl accepted it from her. Using the fork in his right hand, he sifted the contents of his plate around over the surface, "This what you did all day?"

Knowing Daryl was asking about the food, Ellen replied, "I was in the kitchen when you came out of the forest like one of those creatures."

"Walker?" Daryl laughed, "Must have looked pretty bad."

Ellen couldn't hide the concern from her features. Daryl searched her eyes, "Hey, now. Don't go getting your panties in a bunch. Ain't got nothin' to do with you."

Ellen shook her head, "I'm so sorry, Daryl. I should have made you take me along. I should have known about Nelly. I-."

"Hold up there. I told ya not to come along. Nothin' you could have done anyway."

Ellen wasn't satisfied, "It was up to me to be your backup, and I wasn't there for you."

Daryl huffed out a long breath, "Alright, if you feel that bad. I won't leave you behind again."

Ellen met his gaze for a second before he broke their contact, choosing instead to focus on his plate of food. Ellen didn't look away from his face, "You promise?"

Daryl stopped pushing the food around on his plate, "Yeah, Ellen. I promise. Now eat your damn pie."