Chapter Four, people. Woot~ Thank you everyone who has supported this story thus far and I seriously hope it continues and increases; it means a great deal to me. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this next part. Please, review and whatnot.

Disclaimer: I do NOT own the Walking Dead, comics or television series, nor its characters. All I own is some OCs and some plot points.

Warnings: Daryl and OC romance, swearing, crude humor, sexual content, gore, mentions types of abuse, and alcohol and drug references.

Chapter: Four

It was an anniversary and not a particularly cheerful anniversary.

It was the fifteenth anniversary of Katherine's mother's death and she had been the only one to show up and visit the woman's grave. Then again, no one knew that she was there or probably cared, especially her father, who was pretty delusional these days; sometimes, he mistook her as her mother and those would be the only times he'd acknowledge her presence. As for Keith, he didn't care about the anniversary, but he would certainly care when he found out Katherine was gone.

Long story short, the adolescent had basically run away.

The moment she had woke up that morning and discovered that neither her brother nor father hadn't cared what day it was, Katherine became fed up. She left, not even bothering to with school, taking whatever her backpack could hold. They could do whatever they wanted to her, but forgetting the day Sarah Sherwood died was another.

Katherine had never even met her mother and she clearly cared far more about the woman than the other two did.

So, there she was, standing before her mother's grave, a tombstone that was only tended to by Katherine with a bouquet every year and the occasional cleaning up. All was silent, except for the whispering of the autumn breeze and Katherine's only company was the graves that surrounded her.

"Ya could've told someone where ya goin', y'know?"

Or so she had thought…

Katherine kept her back to him as she said softly, "No one cares."

"That's not true," Daryl countered curtly, approaching her from behind, hands tucked into his jeans' pockets. "Yer brother was kickin' up a storm when yer school called sayin' ya played hooky."

Inwardly, the blonde winced, but did her best to keep her composure as she retorted coolly, "If he really cared, he would've come himself instead of sendin' you, especially if he could remember what fuckin' day it was."

"'Nd wha' day would dat be, huh?"

Instead of verbally replying, the teenager pointed to the grave standing before them.

Daryl was silent for a moment as he glanced to her then, to the aforementioned grave. Dark cobalt orbs read the elegant engraving before his annoyed concern ebbed away at what he had taken in. "…Yer mom." It wasn't a question. The grave and Katherine's face was answer enough. Besides, Merle had told him long ago that their boss' wife was long since gone, but he had never known the reason nor had the heart to ask.

Katherine kept her solemn gaze forward. "She died givin' birth to me. Complications. Today's the anniversary."

That made Darcy falter.

If today was the day that her mother had died while giving birth to her that meant today was also Katherine's birthday. No wonder she never celebrated it, let alone mentioned it.

Chest tightening further, he bit down on his thumbnail, only biting harder when Katherine continued to speak, "Papa and Keith blame me for her passin'." That was why they either ignored her or took their mourning out on her physically and mentally. Though, now that she was older and started to apparently look more and more like her mother, her father had become slightly more affectionate AKA he just spoke to her.

"…I don't entirely blame them, but-"

"That's bullshit."

Eyes widening, Katherine snapped her head to Daryl, who looked more pissed than she had ever seen him and, at first, she thought it was directed at her until she saw that he was looking anywhere but her and her mother's grave. "It ain't yer damn fault yer mom died. It just happened 'nd fuck yer asshole father 'nd brother fer makin' ya feel dat way. No baby is at fault fer anything."

How could her family make her feel that way? How could they blame her for something she had had no control over? Katherine had just been born for crying out loud. How could they just throw such a burden upon her? At least with his father and brother, he knew he deserved it, but Katherine…? All the girl deserved was to have endless reasons to smile; she deserved to be happy.

"But-"

"No, buts, Kat." Daryl swiftly cut her off through his gritted teeth, his anger growing from the fact that she was actually going to argue with him. "It ain't yer fault, dammit. It ain't. Ya hear me?"

"Daryl-"

"Ya hear me?" That time, his tone was a lot firmer and Katherine worried her bottom lip between her teeth, eyes searching his. He was a very stubborn man, she knew, and she also knew that he wouldn't take "no" for an answer. Besides, she just didn't have the energy to argue even if Daryl had left room for it.

That being, sighing, body slumping, the teen nodded. "Yeah… I hear ya…"

"Good," Nodding curtly, the young man moved around Sarah Sherwood's tombstone towards a small patch of a lovely white blossoms down the path a bit to snatch one up off its stem. Then, the male returned to the gravestone to place the bloom among the bouquet resting against it. Silently, blinking, surprised, Katherine watched.

And having her stare so intently made Daryl shuffle awkwardly. "It's a Cherokee Rose," he explained quickly, trying to sound nonchalant. "When da Native Americans were bein' kicked outta their homes on da way out West, alotta kids 'nd family wound up dyin' from disease 'nd starvation 'nd a lot got lost 'nd shit. So da Cherokee women cried fer da ones they lost 'nd legend says dat these flowers grew from their tears fer their loves ones."

And that was all that needed to be said.

Katherine understood and it brought a small albeit genuine smile to her face. Cupping Daryl's cheek, she kissed his free one, whispering afterwards, "Thank you."

If she didn't know any better, she could've sworn she saw the brunet blush. However, after she released him, he had looked away too quickly before she could make sure. Her smile grew either way. Daryl never ceased to surprise her. How Keith didn't like him, was beyond her for he was a genuine good man; just had a few rough edges.

Regaining his composure after a few moments of silence to recover from embarrassment (Daryl) and to pay respect (both Daryl and Katherine), Daryl slung an arm over Katherine's shoulder, causing her to look to him quizzically. '"Nuff of this drama bullshit, 'm takin' ya out ta celebrate."

"Excuse me?"

"Its yer birthday, right? Means ya gotta celebrate."

"Oh, I don't-"

"Yer mom would want it."

Katherine made a face. "…That's not fair."

"Don' care. Takin' ya out 'nd yer gonna like it."

"…Fine. Where are ya gonna take me then?"

"Golden Coral." he stated, steering her towards the exit iron gates, arm still around her slender shoulders.

That caused Katherine burst of in a fit of laughter. "Golden Coral? Seriously? Oh, yeah, that's real classy, Dare-Bear."

"'ey, I ain't got da same kinda cash ya got, Princess Kit-Kat," Katherine chuckled harder, bringing a smile to Daryl's face. "Be grateful 'm takin' yer sorry ass anywhere, woman. I didn't havta come out here like yer brother's errand boy."

"Oh, my sincerest apologies. I'm greatly honored to be havin' the great Daryl Dixon payin' for a nonstop salad bar and chocolate fountain."

"Damn straight."

Ever since that day, every year, Katherine didn't visit her mother's grave alone.

Katherine had had her share of awkward/tense passages through the woods when she had managed to trick Keith into thinking she was sleeping over a friend's house so she could go hunting with Daryl and Merle. That being, the trip would always be a bit tense because…well, Merle wasn't the biggest fan of her and wasn't the least bit tickled when Katherine would tag along. The only reason he had allowed her to continually come along and not rat her out was because eventually she had become a decent enough of a shot and didn't freak out from seeing blood.

Either way, those awkward hunting trips were in the past and couldn't even compete to the tense-filled trudge through the woods now in search for Sophia. Carol was upset and was on the brink of tears every moment that passed and Andrea was silently fuming that she didn't get to carry a gun while the others tried to ignore it all and focus on the task at hand; the only person truly capable of that seemed to be Daryl.

Finally, though, someone had addressed these little issues.

Lori Grimes, and that was mostly because these problems pertained to her—or her husband—and she had become fed up.

Her tone, at first, towards Carol was slightly gentle as the group took a small break, "Sweetie, I can't even begin to imagine how you feel, but you have to stop blaming Rick. I see it on your face every time you look at him. And you," Her voice became harsher when regarding Andrea as she thrust her borrowed gun from Daryl to her. "Take it. You clearly want it so badly. I'm getting sick and tired of the dirty looks."

Carol and Andrea exchanged looks, Carol's expression being a bit more wary than Andrea's, yet the other blonde woman of the group was apprehensive in taking aforementioned gun from Lori.

Shaking her dark head, almost as if disgusted, Lori let out a huff as she plopped herself down on a fallen tree. She went on, "Rick is trying his downright best; he is not perfect. The minute Sophia ran, he ran right after and I didn't see anyone doing that. He is doing what he thinks is right by this group, but if you think can do this by yourself, go right ahead. No one is stopping you. Go."

Silence fell.

Carol and Andrea looked away guiltily while Glenn and Katherine exchanged somewhat impressed looks; Lori had been harsh, but the woman certainly spoke her mind, saying what needed to be said. Daryl seemed completely focused on looking for Walkers, always on the watch, anxious to keep moving.

Clearing her throat, eyes avoiding Lori's, Andrea held the pistol back out to her. Katherine supposed that that was her quiet and reluctant apology. Lori assessed her for a moment before nodding in gratitude and took the weapon back.

Carol was the first to speak hesitantly, "So…then, what do we do?"

"Same thing we've been doin'. Keep trudgin' on in searchin' fer dat lil' girl, obviously." Daryl finally integrated himself into the conversation, pulling his keen gaze from the depths of the woods.

No one could object to that statement. Sophia was their key concern right now and they were wasting the light sitting around feeling sorry for themselves or pointing fingers at one another. Thus, picking themselves up, the group started to continue onward or was going to when the others noticed Carol and Andrea lagging behind, attempting to comfort each other. From how it sounded, Andrea had lost her little sister, Amy—made Katherine wonder how many other had lost someone to the Walkers.

Daryl had become much too impatient, wanting to move on and now. So, with a bit of a scowl, he dropped in on their conversation, speaking sternly, "Y'know wha' all this hopin' 'nd prayin' is worth? Notta damn thing. We are gonna find dat lil' girl 'nd she's gonna be just fine."

Everyone stared at the hunter with evident astonishment. Though, Katherine had a small smile on her face, approbation reflecting in her pale green hues.

"Am I da only one who believes in zen 'round here?" He scoffed, turning away to go back to leading the group. "Good Lord, people."

Carol still looked shocked, but the others now held the same amount of amusement and reverence as Katherine; they were even smiling.

As he passed, Katherine clapped her hand against Daryl's back. "Wise words, Buddha." she teased to lighten the mood for the others further; they needed to keep their spirits high, particularly Carol.

"Oh, shuddap," Daryl snipped.

Holding back a laugh before following her childhood friend, Katherine shot the group a wink over her shoulder without Daryl seeing. There were even bigger smiles; she thought she had even seen a ghost, a sliver, of a grin on Carol's flustered face.

They trudged onward with newfound hope or so Katherine figured. Ar least the atmosphere felt a bit more at ease as the group moved, leaves and twigs crunching and snapping beneath their feet. Everyone's eyes were ardent and their ears, attentive for any signs of Sophia and, of course, for Walkers. Daryl and Katherine remained at the front of the group with their weapons prepped. Lori and Glenn lagged behind to cover the backs of the rest.

All was quiet and surprisingly serene. And then, suddenly, a gunshot, rung out throughout the woods, causing everyone to jump nearly out of their skin. Birds screeched and took to the skies. The group peered to one another fretfully, hearts picking up in their pace.

Daryl did his best to act like the temporary leader, keeping a calm person. "C'mon," he shepherded. "We gotta keep movin'. We're losin' light. C'mon. Sure they're alright." He meant Rick, Shane, and Carl for that seemed to come in the direction they had left in.

No one looked too convinced, especially Lori, but complied; no one wanted to waste anymore time. The more time they wasted, the less chance they had of finding Sophia and alive. That could fuel anyone to press on with a conscious.

So on and on they trekked, moving gradually with the setting sun. Regrettably, by the time dusk had fallen, the group was as empty-handed as to where Sophia was as they were from the beginning. Only change was that they were worse for wear, dirtied clothes plastered to their just as dirtied flesh like a second skin thanks to sweat.

They had to retreat back to the interstate, retrace their steps and try again tomorrow. They were all unwilling, but fact was fact and Daryl had encouraged the company by saying they had covered a lot of ground and that they'd definitely find Sophia tomorrow.

Katherine was actually pleasantly surprised by how much leadership skills Daryl was showing. In all the time she had known him, despite how independent he was, the brunet had always been a follower, of sorts, mostly following Merle. Except now, though, she knew he'd never take full advantage, he had great potential to be a leader and a great one. He was slowly and discreetly revealing all of his good traits, traits that he had rarely shown, even to her. Katherine was proud of her friend, pleased by the change; she wondered if the others noticed or at least appreciated it.

Screams abruptly broke the blonde from her thoughts.

Jumping, startled, everyone whipped around to come to the haunting conclusion that the shrieks belonged to none other than the lighter-haired blonde for she was the only one who was missing. "Andrea!" Panicking, everyone rushed to her aid, following her screams.

They were all too late.

Someone wasn't, though.

A pretty brunette with short hair was the savoir. She had rode in on a horse, swinging a baseball bat with great force in a gallop. The bat collided with the attacking Walker promptly knocking it off of a desperately struggling Andrea.

"Lori Grimes?" the new face asked hurriedly, breathlessly.

Andrea had not yet calmed her heart enough to tell the female rider "no", but thankfully, Lori had mustered enough breath to choke out in wonder and disorientation, "I'm…I'm Lori Grimes."

The brunette snapped her head to her, eyes only taking in Lori. "You need to come with me right now!" she ordered. "It's your son, Carl! He's been shot! Your husband, Rick sent me!"

And that was all the motivation Lori needed to dump her backpack and hop up on the back of the horse behind the stranger.

"'ey! We don' know dis girl!" Daryl exclaimed, but his words fell on deaf ears.

"Rick says there's more of you, right? On the interstate? Grab them! There's a farm a mile up! Says 'Greene' on the mailbox!"

And with that, they were gone.

And with that, the group remaining was stunned into silence.

Then, "Never a dull moment with you people, is it?" spoke Katherine.