Pedestal

ReedusLover3

** Enjoy! **

Rick, Daryl and Merle made a plan to get through to the courtyard but that meant running and I couldn't do that. I could barely walk and my leg felt on fire.

"Go on and kill them, I'll wait out here." I told all three of them.

"Fuck no!" Daryl hissed and gave me a glare. "Ya are weaponless and can't walk, no."

"Rick." I glanced at the man who was still holding me. "Go on."

"He's right, Liz." Rick sighed. "Someone is gonna have to carry you through while we kill them off." I groaned, not wanting to slow them down.

"Give her to me." Daryl ordered and I started arguing with Rick, telling him not to give me to the redneck. Rick obviously didn't care and passed me into Daryl's strong arms. My protests quieted down when Daryl tightly held me to him, his eyes skimming over my face. "Ya two go, kill as many. I'll be behind ya with her." Merle and Rick nodded and I was surprised Merle hadn't protested or made some kind of joke about anything. Daryl carried me behind the two men and when they rushed into the field Daryl began running after them. He didn't seem to be bothered by my weight as he effortlessly carried me across the field. Once they were all killed, Maggie and Beth opened the gate, the one that blocked the biters off from the courtyard, for us. Everyone hurried into the prison to our cell block but Rick locked Merle off in the other room, not wanting him to cause any riots. Daryl sat me on the stairs and Hershel came over to look at my leg.

"Flesh wound." Hershel sighed. "We'll clean it out and wrap it. You won't be able to walk for a day or so." I groaned, not wanting to miss out on anything while I sat in bed. "I mean it Beth, no walking."

"I'll make sure of it." Daryl said, his rough voice making me shiver. Everyone seemed relieved that Daryl was back, their eyes all watching him and I.

"Beth." Hershel called the blonde over and she handed Judith to Daryl who cooed at her. "I need water and a rag, please." She nodded and rushed off to the kitchen, returning not only a minute later. Daryl was rocking Judith with a smile and it warmed my heart. Even if I was angry at him I was still very attracted to him. Beth and Hershel worked on my leg while Rick cleaned up in the shower area, he wanted to have a meeting later.

"Fuck!" I cursed when Hershel pressed a little hard on my wound. I saw Daryl stiffen, his glare focused on the old man. "Ease up."

"Sorry." Hershel apologized, his blue eyes gave me a sheepish look. "I'm going to have to wrap this a little tight." He produced a gauze like wrap and started wrapping it tightly around my ankle and calf. When he was finished he used some tape to keep it shut. "We'll change it later. Watch how much blood leaks through." I nodded and went to stand but he put a hand on my shoulder. "Not yet, you'll need to keep pressure off that leg for today."

"I can walk fine." I protested.

"No ya can't." Daryl growled out, handing Beth the baby back. "Jus' stop bein' stubborn." I glared at the man and looked away, not wanting to argue. I heard him sigh and sit next to me, his arm wrapping around me. I stiffened and moved away, not wanting him to touch me, not after he just up and left! "Beth..." He whispered, his eyes sad.

"We'll talk later." I assured him and then watched Rick enter the cell block with dripping wet hair.

"We're not leaving." Rick started off and people began protesting about the safety of the prison.

"If Rick says we're not running, we're not running!" Glenn stated with a serious look on his face.

"Better to live like rats." Merle muttered from the gate that blocked him off.

"You got a better idea?" Rick asked.

"Yeah, we should have slid outta here after all that shit happened." Merle seemed to be so sure, he was so nonchalant. "We lost out chance, he's probably got scouts out on every road."

"We ain't scared of that prick." Daryl told his brother from the second floor. He had moved away from me when he figured out I didn't want him touching me.

"Ya'll should be. That truck through the fence thing, that's jus' him ringin' the doorbell. He's got the guns and the numbers... he could starve us out if he wanted to."

"He's gotta a point." Daryl mumbled, his eyes focused on his older brother.

"This is all you! You started this!" Maggie hissed at Merle.

"What's the difference of who started it?" I chuckled bitterly. "We have to do something, we gotta make a plan."

"I said we should leave, now Axel is dead." Hershel spat with a hard voice. "We can't sit here." Rick started walking away, planning on hiding but Hershel stopped him. "Get back here! You're slipping Rick, we've all seen it, but now is not the time. You once said this isn't a democracy and now you have to own up to that. I put my family's life into your hands so get your head clear." Rick nodded, understanding how he felt. I sighed and stood, wincing when I accidentally put pressure on my leg. I saw Daryl making a beeline for me but Beth made it first, putting her hand on my elbow.

"Come on, let's get you to bed." Beth gave me a sad smile and helped me climb the stairs. We both passed Daryl, who gave me a look, and moved towards the two mattresses in mine and Daryl's cell. Daryl seemed surprised I was still sleeping there since it was his bed too, but I didn't care.

"Thanks." I gave Beth a smile and settled myself on the bed, pulling a sheet over me.

"Holler if you need anything." Beth urged me before leaving and joining the group discussion that was happening downstairs. It wasn't long until Daryl was in our cell, staring at me with an unreadable expression.

"What?" I asked, not bothering to turn around.

"Ya okay?" His rough voice made me shiver.

"Better as ever."

"Elizabeth-"

"Not now."

"Beth-"

"I said not now, Daryl!" I snarled and sat up. "Why can't you understand that I don't want to talk right now!?"

"'cause ya obviously 'ave something ya want to say. So say it." I glared at him before focusing my eyes on the wall in front of me.

"You make this hard for me." I sighed. "You left, Daryl, you left me in the dust for your shitty ass brother."

"Hey! Watch what ya say bout him!"

"No, you shut the hell up." I spat. "One day you are going to admit to yourself that your brother is a piece of shit. That he is only here to save himself, not yours. If he loved you, would he have done all those things to you? All the things he did to you when you were kids?"

"We're family."

"This group, they're your family. I'm your family!" I felt a few tears slip. "You must not love me enough because you went with him. You didn't want me to go with you."

"I do love ya-"

"No. Stop." I laid back and shut my eyes. "You understand me. You love me. You're everything to me." I rolled on my side and stared at the redneck. He was leaning against the wall with his head down, his fists clenched. "You tore my heart out, you understand that? It's like you ripped it to shreds and fed it to a walker. I love you, I do, but you need to stop putting your brother on a pedestal."

"He's the only one who taught me shit when I was a kid. I put him on a pedestal or whatever because he's my only role model." Daryl admitted. "Yeah, what I did was wrong but ya have to understand that I do love ya."

"I do, I know you do. Just... stop making him seem like he is a good guy."

"I-"

"Just be quiet. Don't ruin it, I'm forgiving you so you better get over here and kiss me." I didn't want to fight anymore, I was tired of it. Daryl's eyes lit up and he knelt down next to the bed and kissed me lightly. I giggled when his beard tickled my face, I missed this. He leaned into me further and climbed over me, hovering, and used his elbows to prop himself up. Things got pretty heated before Rick was shouting for Daryl, his voice frantic.

"Get some sleep." Daryl muttered before grabbing his crossbow and running out of the cell. Sighing, I rolled over and shut my eyes. I hope I was doing this all right. I know he left me but there is no point in arguing, he's back now and that's all that matters.

When I woke, it was to the baby crying and I didn't hear anyone cooing for her. Stumbling, I managed to stand and limp over to where her makeshift crib was outside the cells. She was probably hungry. I picked up the small child and smiled down at her innocent features, rocking her. Her cries stopped and I grinned- she just wanted to be held. Leaning against the table, I rocked Judith and shut my eyes, still groggy from my sleep.

"Don't tell me you went and had a baby." I heard a familiar voice behind me so I spun around to see Andrea standing at the top of the stairs.

"Andrea? How... Oh my god." I smiled. Andrea and I had always had our rough times but she was always a good person. "Meet little Ass Kicker." I held out Judith slightly and Andrea smiled. "And no, she's not mine. She doesn't even look like Daryl." I laughed.

"Can I hold her?"

"Sure." I handed the small baby to Andrea and I saw her eyes light up.

"Daryl named her Ass Kicker, didn't he?"

"Bingo." I laughed.

"Where's Lori?" Andrea asked and I looked away, my eyes downcast.

"C-section. Carl had to..." I didn't need to finish and Andrea's eyes fell, her face sad. "She knew it was going to happen. We just didn't expect it when it did happened. T-Dog's girlfriend died... Carol too..." I trailed off, not wanting to remember how Carol died.

"Shane?"

"Rick killed him." I saw Andrea's eyes go wide as she thought about what I said. "At the farm, the whole Randall thing was a lie. Shane wanted to kill Rick."

"Shane loved Rick."

"Shane loved Lori."

"Rick's gone cold, unsteady."

"The Governor-" I paused when Andrea handed me Judith. "You need to do something. Sleep with him, make his guards fall down, and when he's out, kill him. End this." She didn't say anything after that, her eyes on the floor as she walked down the stairs. "Think about what I said." I called after her as I rocked Judith to sleep once again. When the baby was out, I put her back in her crib and moved it into my cell so I could watch her. It wasn't until late at night when the rest of the group returned. Rick found Judith and I both in my cell- her sleeping and me reading a random book I found.

"Come on, you should go down there with everyone. We ain't gonna get much sleep tonight." Rick told me, taking my hand and pulling me up. He walked me down the stairs and I saw Daryl glaring at our joined hands. "Thanks for taking care of her." I nodded and pulled my hand away, limping towards Daryl. He put his arm over my shoulders and rested his hand on my collarbone, his rough hands making me weak. Everyone was silent until Beth began singing in a slow, upbeat voice. Rick came back down by Beth with Judith in his hands and then made his way towards Daryl, Hershel and me.

"Some reunion, huh?" Daryl muttered, peering at Rick and then the small child.

"Andrea's persuasive, she'll do it." Hershel told Rick.

"So what do we do?" I asked Rick quietly, trying to not gain the others attention.

"We'll match it. I'm going on a run tomorrow." Rick gave me a small look.

"I'll go." Daryl stated.

"No, I need you here. Keep an eye on your brother. Glad you're back." Rick told Daryl. "But if he causes a problem, it's on you. I'm taking Michonne tomorrow."

"Think that's a good idea?" Daryl questioned.

"It is." I ground out. "She's not some useless person, you can trust her."

"I'm taking Carl too." Rick stated after he gave me a nod and a glance back at Michonne. "Can she come tomorrow?" Rick asked Hershel, indicating to my leg.

"What!?" Daryl hissed. "She is not going!"

"We'll see how her leg is tomorrow." Hershel nodded and I smiled at Rick, happy he didn't think I was weak.

"No!" Daryl said louder.

"Stop. I'll be fine." I told Daryl with a nod but he wasn't looking at me, he was looking at Rick with a glare. "Daryl." I pulled him to me and kissed him hard. "Let me go."

"We'll see." He ground out and pulled me into his chest, wrapping his arms around me. We both listened to Beth's voice as the night went on, and soon I was asleep in his arms, happy he was back.

* Not too happy with this chapter but oh well. Hope you like it. *