Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, ownership goes to Robert Kirkman, Frank Darabont and Glen Mazzara. As well I don't own any of the songs I will be posting either.

A huge thank you to my very good friend and fellow writer, Ihasabukkit for helping me with the character interactions in this chapter. If you love reading well written fanfics with characters acting in perfect canon. I urge you to go read Three Trees

I heard the church bells from afar. But we found each other in the dark.

- City and Color. We Found Each Other In The Dark.

My stomach hurt. I'd had nothing to eat but a handful of berries. My mouth was very dry too, my tongue was swollen up and it felt like it was too big for my mouth. My feet were getting sore but I kept on walking. The forest wouldn't go on forever.

A half dead tree stood out over the thousands of them. The right side of its branches was leafless. It was probably sick, had some tree disease inside was slowly killing it. I seen it happen before. The tree in our yard started losing all its leaves and no matter how much I watered it, it didn't grow anymore.

As I got closer to it I saw that a strip of bark had been torn clean off from top to bottom. Like a giant tabby cat had used it as a scratching post. Lightening had hit it. I touched the burn scar, the wood was smooth not like the bark. It was going to get sick being all exposed like that.

I ducked under its branches as I went around it. There were tiny little buds on it.

All of a sudden my insides got all cramped up, I sat down at the base of the tree and looked up the branches.

I didn't get how it could still be growing. Nature's funny that way, I s'pose.

The wind rustled through the leaves, making that whispering noise.

It was my fault that I was stuck out here. If only I hadn't wandered off.

I buried my head into my knees and cried. I didn't want to but couldn't help it anymore.

No one was looking for me.

"Daryl," Andrea brought him out of the forest and back into the present. She held out a cardboard box to him. "Can you find room for this in one of the cars?"

He looked at the box and then at her, grinding his jaw like he was thinking about what to say, then took it from her wordlessly.

The unexpected weight of it tugged at his tender side. The discomfort flashed across his face.

"You alright?" Andrea asked and went to grab the box for him.

"Fine," he growled, straightening up.

She withdrew her hands but kept watching him with a concerned look. They both knew that Daryl wasn't fine with this at all.

The tents were deflated and the Winnebago was finally running after Dale's fine tuning, filling the air with a steady rumbling and the occasional puff of blue smoke. It was as ready as it would ever be to go to Fort Benning.

Rick had assured them that they weren't going to go far from the Greene's farm after he said that they were going to with Herschel's wishes and get off his land. But Shane was pushing Fort Benning harder than ever now and why would the other's choose hanging out in the open over going to a potential safe haven.

But what about Sophia? Carol's little girl was still out there. Hungry, cold and very, very scared. The only thing keeping her going might be the hope that they were out there looking for her. And here they all were on another day with their thumbs and heads clear up their asses.

Daryl looked over at the woods. About three quarters of the way into that tree line was a roughly carved dirt trail that he had taken every single day he went out. He should've been on it today. Someone should have.

"Hey Daryl, when you're done, could you bag up some of the tents?" asked Rick.

"You got it," Daryl readjusted the box in his arms so it wouldn't pull against his sore side so much and fixated on Rick with a steely glare, "gawd knows you got a million other things to be doin'."

"Thank you," Rick said curtly.

He did have enough to do keeping Lori calmed down and from keeping her from going to talk to a devastated Greene family and make things worse for them. Rick would bet his left kidney that explaining the plan again to Daryl would only open up a conversation for an argument. Daryl simply wanted to fight.

"Yeah, yer welcome," Daryl growled and went to go find a space for the box.

The vehicle with the most remaining trunk space was Carol's Cherokee. Daryl hefted the box on to the tailgate and slid it to the back, over the stark paperback of a photograph lying loose. Written in blue pen, Roo 4 months.

Curious, Daryl flipped the photo over. It was of Carol, only her hair was shoulder length and her features were softer, not as hard as they had been lately. She wasn't looking at the camera, she only had eyes for the baby nestled on her shoulder. Given the feathery scrap of blonde hair, it had to be Sophia.

The photo had picked up some gritty dirt, Daryl very carefully brushed the specks off so it wouldn't get scratched up. Due to the closeness of the shot, nothing else was really in the picture except the mother and daughter.

Were they sitting in a rocking chair? He liked to think that they were. That Carol would rock the chair back and forth with her toe while humming or singing to her daughter. Sophia would coo or make whatever noise babies made.

"What is it?" Carol in the flesh snuck up on him.

"I ah was um packing up and just found it in the back," Daryl muttered sheepishly, handing the photo out to her.

Carol plucked the photo from his fingers and stared at it with a far off look.

"Oh, my little Roo. That's what my sister nicknamed her because she always had to be carried, would make such a fuss if you put her in a stroller so I had one of those baby pouches and carried her around like a kangaroo," Carol brought the photo closer to her face, "ugh I look crap. I don't think I slept at all during her first year. Sophia was so colicky… "

Her voice trailed off as she pulled a navy blue scrapbook from the side. Sophia's baby album, where this picture belonged, was somewhere in the car but she knew she wouldn't be able to look at it without breaking down. Carol couldn't do that in front of Daryl or should she say to Daryl. He had done so much and he was taking all of this bad enough.

Truth is, what else I got to do. She thought about their talk by the little duck pond earlier.

She didn't think for a second all of this was out of boredom. Daryl could amuse himself hunting for food. It was something personal. It had to be. Was because of what happened to Merle? Andrea had told her that Daryl had gotten lost in the backwoods when he was a kid, was that why he cared so much?

Carol took a deep breath and opened the scrapbook to any old page to tuck the photo safely away. The second she did so; Daryl leaned in just enough for the movement to distract her. He, however, was looking at their last Christmas pictures so captivated, you'd think he'd never seen any before.

That was almost the truth. He'd had his picture taken of course, but mostly in his adult years. Daryl didn't have any family photos. He had never given it any thought until now. There was something special about them.

Carol slammed the scrapbook shut and put it back in the car with shaky hands that she berated herself for. Daryl caught her eye, biting his lip.

"I'm ok," she said softly and patted his arm, before walking off to go find something to do to help. Carol didn't see him slip a photo out of the album and put it in his backpack before he walked off in the opposite direction.

It's ok. Daryl had mouthed to her earlier with a rifle still smoking in his hands outside the barn.

All those walkers from the barn had been from around this area, a sampling of what was out there. What chance did Sophia have?

Carol started untying the clothesline from the two trees.

She couldn't remember the last time she hugged her baby girl or told her that she loved her. She knew it had been recently but she couldn't remember the details and it was killing her.

A particular strong beam of sun hit her as she stepped out of the shade of the tree with the clothesline.

She's in God's hands now.

Shane was emptying a jerry can into the Hyundai Tucson, Rick circled the car looking at the tires. They were full and the tread on them was deep, they must be new. They'd be good in the winter.

"We really ain't gonna go far?" asked Daryl.

"Yes Daryl," Rick answered tiredly. He gave Shane a keep-quiet look. Daryl was also eyeing up his partner, silently daring him to do the opposite and say something.

"Where 'bouts?" asked Daryl.

"Haven't figured that out yet."

"Could ya give me a guesstimate?"

"Farther down the road west, towards the town. Glenn said from what he could see when he went to the pharmacy that there's a few farms that are look like they might be untouched."

Shane scoffed and ran his hands over the stubble on his head. Rick prepared for a fight. But Daryl nodded, apparently satisfied with the answer and left them.

They packed up the tents in to the Hyundai and a few in the RV. Dale, T-Dog, and Carl had bagged them into their airtight sacks.

"I still don't see why you don't want to stick around here," Shane started again, "We have enough gas to get halfway to Fort Benning. We'll be able to find the other half on the road. We can go, so why are we staying?"

"For Lori, for my baby, for Sophia. That a good enough list for you," stated Rick.

"You think a refugee center won't have a medical team. Real doctors, Rick. Not a country vet."

"That is if there is a refugee center there. What if there's not and we drag Lori all that way for nothin'. Swim toward the closest ship not farther out to sea, remember? This is real. It's worth the fight."

Shane ripped open the drivers door on the Tucson. "Guess I'll go scout out one of these ships then huh?"

In the rearview mirror he saw Andrea wave for him to wait for her. She hopped in the passenger side eagerly.

"You still wanna run away together?" Shane joked.

"I'm along for the ride," she smiled devilishly.

Rick watched the dust trail rise up as the silver car ripped down the road. He walked through the camp or what was left of it, which wasn't much. He swept through it like he was leaving a hotel room. Rick did notice that something was missing. He walked across the field in a power walk to the stable.

There it was.

The motorcycle was tucked into one of the stalls, along with Daryl's pack and a photo of a lost girl holding a white goat.

A squirrel perched on a swaying tree branch looked down at the peculiar creature lying on the ground.

Straw hair matted in muddy tangles. The skin was a sickly sallow. The grimy blue t-shirt rose and fell a little with each dragging breath. It was lying on its stomach, then ever so slowly it pulled its legs underneath it and slowly stood up.

With a warning chatter, the squirrel darted up the tree. With hazy eyes, the peculiar creature watched its bushy tail disappear in to the treetops. But the squirrel didn't lose sight of it until it stumbled off, snapping twigs and rustling the bush as it went.

The horse's ears flicked forward and perked up attentively, he turned his head to look off in the brush with a quiet whinny.

Daryl put the brakes on the horse with a pull on the reins. All he heard was a squirrel chirping in the background. He nudged the horse back to walking but kept an eye on the spot they had both been looking.

From between the trees Sophia staggered like a sick animal, weaving from left to right, not aware of anything around her.

He'd be looking for her for so long, called her name more times than they had ever talked, it was a shock to finally see her.

She collapsed. Just went over on her side like she'd been shot.

Daryl dismounted and led the Tennessee walker over to the girl. He couldn't believe it. Sophia was lying right next to a Cherokee rose bush.

The pure white rose was the first thing Sophia saw when she opened her eyes. She found herself once again lying on the ground but this time she was being held. Daryl Dixon from camp was cradling her. A dark brown horse looked at her from over Daryl's shoulder. She liked horses.

The girl was a mess. Her clothes were damp and she smelled like a wet dog. There was a big hole taken out of her shoulder that had left a bloodstain on her shirt. It was scabbed over well enough that it couldn't be fresh so he didn't worry that it was bite. Mentally, Daryl didn't think she was making heads or tails of any of this, as she looked up at him in an exhausted daze.

But she was alive. Daryl still could not believe he was sitting here with her. The look on Carol's face when he rode up with her…

What are you waiting for? Daryl interrupted his daydream.

Dark storm clouds were blowing in overhead. They had to get back.

When Daryl went to scoop her up, Sophia pushed against him weakly and tried to crawl away.

Sophia was going to be heavier than that box he was struggling with before. But she wasn't going to be able to get in the saddle on her own in her condition. However if she was going to put up a fight, he was going to lose a few stitches.

She solved the problem when she got to her feet and walked over to the horse. Beneath all the dirt was a smile when the horse sniffed at her filthy rainbow shirt.

"This 'ere's Memphis, he's sure-footed and more importantly very calm," said Daryl quietly.

Making a cradle with his hands, Daryl gave her a leg up and then he swung himself up behind her and with a kick to Memphis they were on their way. "Let's git ya home, Sophia."

"Sophia Lynn," corrected Sophia. "I always liked it 'cause it's like Loretta Lynn. You ever seen The Coal Miner's Daughter?"

" No, heard a it though,"

"It's all about Loretta Lynn's life, she was really poor and her husband bought her a seventeen dollar guitar and she taught herself how to play and she became a country music star. It's one of my favorite movies. The other one is Hairspray, you probably haven't seen that one."

Daryl prepared himself for a very long ride back but after that Sophia was quiet. She

sat hunched over in the saddle, more often than not petting Memphis' musty brown neck. Any slant on the trail would pitch her

"Ya can sit back," Daryl wrapped an arm around his passenger and rested her against him. "

Sophia didn't take to it and leaned forward again. Daryl tried hooking her back a little while later, she stayed this time, putting all of her weight on his sore side of

He thought he could handle it. A minute of jouncing on horseback proved him wrong.

"Yer gonna have to sit on my other side," Daryl shifted her over. Sophia compliantly lolled over to his other side with a small whimper.

Memphis kept looking behind them towards his home as they got close. But Daryl was taking Sophia straight to her mother. Everything else, picking up his stuff and taking the horse back was coming second.

The sky grew even dark and the wind picked up. Thunder rumbled as it began to spit. They were getting caught in a storm but a sleeping Sophia was dead to the world.

"Sophia. 'ey Sophia Lynn" Daryl shook her, "c'mon kid. "

She wouldn't wake up.

It occurred to Daryl that he didn't know exactly where the group was, just had a guesstimate but they didn't have time to look around right now. Not being able to wake Sophia up was adding to the pressure.

Daryl turned Memphis around and kicked him into a canter. They breached the trees into a clearing. The Greene's farm was a speck in the distance.

"I took a bullet an' a arrow lookin' for you. You hold on."

Author Introduction

Hello all. I am Delta 9, beloved (and obviously egotistically) author of Whiskey & Cakesters, and other (Great) stuff. After the premiere of the prologue I noticed some familiar faces which is great because I love all of you, (except for that guest I had to yell at, but enough with the glory day) Anyway if you're here on authorship basis, I just have to point out this is an M rated story.

A big thank you to all who reviewed, I loved hearing your predictions and interest in this story: piratejessieswaby, 6747, Ihasabukkit, Effigy, deelove1, Emberka-2012, sammyjase, jemlou, Narnian at Heart, LittleSlytherin394.

Next time on Dark Horse: Especially since he looked after me last night… he was so nice. Finding Sophia may have been the easiest part for Daryl.