Hello everyone. This chapter is a little late because my computer shut off and wouldn't turn back on for a day and I didn't have my story saved anywhere else. I was so worried that it wouldn't be on there when I finally got it to turn back on, but thankfully it was. Now that the Walking Dead is over for the moment, all I am going to have to keep me going is this story. SPOILER: I am so glad Daryl made is still alive, I just thought he was a goner when he was trapped in that vehicle. Hope you enjoy this next chapter!

Beth's POV

"If Rick had just stuck to the route I charted we wouldn't be in this predicament," Eugene told Beth for about the hundredth time that day.

Recently, Daryl had scouted ahead and seen signs of a large group of walkers. Rick had decided that it would be best to take the long way and avoid a possible herd. However, now the group was in more danger of dying of dehydration rather than being torn apart by the walking dead. Ever since Beth had said a nice word to Eugene, the mullet-haired man had latched onto her as a sympathetic figure and followed her around complaining as the trekked through the unknown territory.

"Eugene," Beth groaned, her tongue sticking to her dry mouth, "you know we couldn't have gone that way. It was too risky."

"I'm just saying that we should have stayed low for a few days and then gone through," Eugene pressed, "with my excellent navigation skills we would have come across water by now rather than wandering around lost in the woods."

"We aren't lost," Beth said exasperated, "Daryl knows exactly where we are."

"Well, did your amazing guide ever take a map, compass, and GPS class? Because that should be required of all navigators," the mullet-haired man asked, oblivious to Beth's growing frustration.

"Hey, smart-ass," called Rosita, "get your butt over here and stop boring the poor girl to death."

"I'm not boring her," Eugene told the Hispanic woman, "I was just explaining to her the importance of being proper educated in the task one is preforming."

"Yeah, yeah," Rosita said dismissively, "just get over here before I tell Abraham that it was you who stole his chips yesterday."

Immediately, Eugene shut up and fell back in line with Rosita. The blonde barely had time to breathe a sigh of relief before Logan appeared at her side.

"Thought you could use some company," the young man offered, "I mean, you have had to put up with Eugene all morning, it would drive anyone crazy."

"Yeah, thanks," said Beth. She really wished she could walk with Daryl but he was out scouting ahead. Maggie was trying to weasel something out of Glenn and that wasn't what Beth wanted to be in the middle of so she was stuck being kept company by Eugene and Logan. Not that Logan was bad, but Beth was still a bit mad about what he thought of Daryl.

"How long do you have to keep that on," asked Logan, gesturing at the bandage on Beth's forehead.

"Bob said I can take it off at the end of the day," Beth said hesitantly. Although she was glad she was healing, she was also a bit worried about what her scar would look like. No one in the group had a mirror so she hadn't been able to see how she looked when Bob changed the bandages, but she was sure it wasn't pretty. Instantly the blonde scolded herself. In the world they lived in now it wasn't important to be pretty. What was important was being alive and having the ones you love around you and she had both. However, the worry in the pit of her stomach didn't completely go away no matter how vain Beth told herself she was being.

"Here Beth," Logan said excitedly, pulling Beth out of her thoughts. He was holding a bright yellow flower in his hand and offering it to her. The gesture brought to mind the time Daryl had done the same thing. The moment had been so intimate and sweet that Beth couldn't imagine accepting the flower from Logan. It just wasn't the same. She was sure he didn't mean for his small offering to hold such meaning, so Beth wasn't quite sure of how to refuse.

Luckily, the blonde spotted Lena bobbing a ways off and called to the girl.

"Here," she said, taking the flower out of Logan's hand and giving it to the Vietnamese woman, "Logan gave this to me but the yellow won't stand out in my blonde hair. I think it will look really nice on you though."

"Ohh, it's beautiful," Lena exclaimed, tucking the gift behind her dark brown hair, "thanks Logan!"

"Your welcome," Logan said, sounding a little downcast. Beth felt bad but she hadn't known what else to do without explaining that she and Daryl were together, which they weren't exactly, so she couldn't.

If Lena realized how awkward the situation was she didn't let on. Instead, she began talking about the flowers that had grown in her hometown. Beth was thankful for the company and soon Aidan joined the group.

"Aidan, I heard that you saw a girl the other day," Beth mentioned.

"Yeah," the man said, "The other night when I was on watch this girl popped out of the trees."

"What," exclaimed Logan, "I haven't heard about this! Is she dangerous?"

"Dangerous," laughed Aidan, "I doubt it. She was really skittish and I think she was injured. After I gave her a granola bar she high-tailed it out of there."

"You gave her food," Lena said in shock, "dang, she must be pretty. Aidan's got a crush!"

"No," he immediately denied, "it's not like that, I was just being helpful."

"Un-hunh," Lena teased, "just like old times. Some new girl shows up and you fall head over heels. Aidan used to be a real player before the apocalypse. Guess the dead rising from their graves has dampened your game a little bit."

"It has not," said Aidan in mock horror. He turned around and his eyes landed on Beth.

"Beth, darling," the Hispanic man drawled in exaggerated tones, "never have I ever seen a girl so fair. When you kill walkers it just makes me fall in love with you all over again. Please, let us get married and have a dozen children."

A giggle escaped Beth's mouth, partly because it was rare that the group joked around and partly out of embarrassment at the silly suggestions Aidan was making.

"But no, really Beth," Aidan continued, "you are quite pretty, how do you not have a dozen guys following you around. Do you have someone special? Carl seems a bit young for you."

"Oh, do tell," begged Lena, "I never get to gossip like this anymore."

"Carl is like a brother to me," Beth denied.

"Still didn't answer the question," Lena insisted.

"It's the apocalypse, it's hard to have a boyfriend," Beth hedged.

"Still haven't denied it," Lena persisted, aware that Beth was hiding something, "Who is it?"

Right then, the hunter she had been thinking about popped out the trees near the group and went to report to Rick.

"It's a secret," Beth said before running off to talk to Daryl.

Logan's POV

Logan watched as Beth walked, her hips sashaying side to side. Their conversation that morning with Lena and Aidan had made him incredible happy. He never thought that during the apocalypse he could feel like this. When Beth had given his flower away, he had been very disappointed. However, he had realized that Beth just always thought of others before herself and probably had no intention of making him feel bad. Then, as Aidan and Lena had started hounding the youngest Greene girl about who she liked, she had admitted that she liked someone. But even better, she wouldn't tell them because it was a secret.

Logan just knew she had to be feeling the same way he felt. Of course she wouldn't admit to liking him with him walking right beside her, that's why she had to say it was a secret. Other than Carl, there were very few guys around Beth's age. Aidan was close enough but the two definitely had more of a friend vibe. Brian, a guy slightly younger than Logan, was around, but he didn't think he had ever seen him interact with Beth. So that left him.

"Someone is grinning like an idiot," said Brian.

"Things are going well," Logan replied.

"You hit your head too hard," his friend asked, "we are going to die if we don't find water, we are roughing it out in the woods and could be attacked by a herd any second. How exactly is that good?"

"Things with Beth are going well," Logan clarified.

"Oh," Brian muttered, "she doesn't seem that interested if you ask me."

"Why do you say that," Logan asked.

"Well, she is always tailing after that redneck like some puppy," Brian stated, "just thought something was going on there."

"With that grimy archer," Logan exclaimed, "there is no way, he is old enough to be her father and treats her like shit! Beth may follow him to learn survival skills but there is no way that there is anything more. She wouldn't be interested in a guy who yells at her and walks around with dead animals hanging off his shoulder."

"Okay," Brian said in surrender, "didn't say they were, just crossed my mind is all."

"Well you're wrong," Logan said firmly.

The conversation ended when a commotion from up ahead distracted them.

"No way," breathed Brian.

Daryl's POV

Daryl shook his head spraying water all over Beth, who cried out in protest, but it ended up being more of a cry of happiness. The whole group was jumping in the river and splashing each other. The worn, tired people that had been trudging through the forest the entire day had all but disappeared.

A wave of water smacked Daryl in the face. He turned in surprise to see a soaking wet blonde girl with a huge grin on her face.

"Oh, that's how you want to play, hunh," Daryl said, advancing on the young girl who began trying to get away.

Easily, Daryl hoisted Beth over his shoulder and threw her into the water. She came up gasping for air but her characteristic grin was still plastered on her face.

"Girls against guys," announced Maggie, pushing Daryl into the deeper water, "that's for my sister."

"Glenn," Daryl called, "get your butt over here and help."

After that it was flurry of activity, everyone joined in and pretty soon they were all soaking wet except for Rick who had stood watch. Once everyone was done, the leader cleaned off and played in the water with Judith.

Daryl was digging around in his bag for a change of clothes when a little hand grabbed his wrist.

"Com'on," Beth said and Daryl didn't question her. He let the petite blonde led him up the river and away from the group. The archer wondered where this was leading but at the same time didn't really care. At the moment his group was safe and happy and Beth was right by his side.

The younger Greene girl finally stopped when the group was a ways out of sight. She walked over to the river and stared at what Daryl assumed was her reflection.

"Do ya think you can help me with this," Beth asked, tugging at the bandage tied to her head, "Bob said I can take it off today but it is tied in the back and I'm not sure I can get it off by myself."

"Oh," Daryl grunted, not expecting this request. He pulled out his pocketknife and walked over to Beth, who turned around so that he could work on the bandage. The archer was careful not to cut her long, blonde hair as he dragged the blade across the wet material. When he had finally cut through, he stepped back to see Beth standing there, as still as a statue.

"You okay," he asked, unsure of what to do.

"Umhumm," Beth muttered, raising her hand up to the bandage but still not taking it off. His years of hunting enabled him to detect the slight tremble in her hand as it pressed the material closer to her head.

"Let me," he said as he began to understand what was wrong. He slowly came closer to her and reached up and pulled her hand away. Then, he took the end of the material and slowly began to unwind it. Bit by bit it came away until all that was left was her mostly healed wound. It was slightly indented and still bruised. The skin was beginning to take on the waxy look scars had. A bit of the hair at the very front of her forehead was missing and never would grow back. However, it didn't look infected and seemed to be healing okay. Daryl had known Bob was looking after Beth's wound, but it still relieved him to see that for himself.

"How do I look," asked Beth in a small voice, her eyes trained on the ground.

"Look," offered Daryl, giving her a slight push towards the river. After a moment she gave in to him and slowly began walking towards the edge of the water. The hunter watched as she got closer and closer. He could tell the moment she saw herself by how wide her eyes got. Suddenly, tears were dripping from those big, blue eyes and a sob broke through the silence of the woods.

Daryl never knew what to do in situations like this. He wasn't good with women or crying and this was both. However, he couldn't just leave Beth here crying, he didn't want to. Cautiously, he moved closer to her until they were standing shoulder to shoulder. The blonde didn't reach for him, her arms just dangled limply at her sides as her shoulders heaved.

"Beth," Daryl said, but she didn't look up at him.

"Beth," he said hesitantly, putting a hand on her shoulder, "what's wrong?"

"It's so stupid of me," she sobbed, "to care about how I look in the apocalypse. I shouldn't care…. But it is just another thing I have lost. I lost my parents and my brother and my house and the only thing I have left is Maggie and myself. But now I don't even recognize myself."

Daryl had let his scars control who he thought he was for most of his life. They had defined him, because of them he felt ashamed and embarrassed and worthless. He wasn't about to let the same thing happen to Beth.

Quickly, he took off his vest and began unbuttoning his shirt. His fingers trembled at what he was about to do, but this was Beth and he trusted her.

"What are you doing," came Beth's confused voice, but by then he had already gotten the last button off. Instead of answering, he shrugged the shirt off and turned around. He heard Beth's little gasp that marked the moment she saw his scars.

"Daryl," Beth breathed.

"They are from my dad," Daryl said, the story falling out of his mouth, "he was a mean-ass, son of a bitch. He would get drunk and beat whoever got close to him. My mother, my brother, me. After my mom died and my brother ran off, it was just me and him, alone in that shitty trailer house….."

Daryl could feel himself getting choked up at the memory so he stopped talking. In just a few seconds he had become reduced to the scared child who hid at the sound of his father's footsteps. He jumped when a hand brushed his back. He had to remind himself that it was just Beth and she would never hurt him.

Lightly, her fingers trailed over the longest scar on his back. When she came to the end of it, she started on the next one. Daryl couldn't feel her touch, but could feel the pressure, even though she was barely touching him. After she had traced each one, Beth suddenly hugged him from behind, her cheek pressing up against one of his scars. The archer could feel each breath she took warming his skin and for once he enjoyed having another person touch him.

Daryl never wanted to end this moment, but he still had to make sure that Beth understood what he was saying. He reached down and unhooked her hands from his waist and turned around to face her.

"You told me once that we have to stay who we are, not who we were," Daryl said, grabbing her wrist with the bracelets and began taking them off, one by one, "When I first met you, you were a scared young girl who didn't know how to handle the shit that happens in life."

Daryl pulled off the last bracelet, revealing the scar Beth had on her wrist. He took her hand in his, keeping her palm upturned.

"You aren't that same girl anymore," Daryl told Beth, kissing the scar on her wrist, "you told me you wanted to change and you have."

He dropped her hand and brought his own up to her forehead, carefully tracing around her newer scar.

"The scars you have are something to be proud of," he explained carefully, "they tell the world that you are strong, they say what you have survived, that you are a fighter. I didn't get that for a long time, but now I think I'm starting to, ever since I met you."

Daryl leaned down and placed a soft kiss on Beth's forehead.

"You are still you, still Beth," Daryl said, finally placing a kiss on Beth's mouth. He could taste the salt from her tears, but it was still perfect. He felt Beth's hands go around him as he deepened the kiss, her hands running up and down his scars, causing pleasure he never would have thought possible. Daryl couldn't seem to get close enough and he was vaguely aware that he was pushing Beth back with each effort to get closer to her until they ran into a tree. The archer ran his hand along Beth's hip and then up under her damp shirt. Copying her earlier motion, he ran his hands along her back, enjoying the feel of the soft flesh. He groaned when Beth's hands moved to his hair and her nails scraped at his scalp. At the sound, Beth somehow pressed closer into him even though there had been no space between them to begin with.

"What the hell," came a voice from his left.

Immediately, Daryl moved away from Beth and turned around to find Logan standing there gaping at them. Damn kid just didn't know when to stay away.

Daryl glared at him before going to pick up his shirt and cover his back. Despite sharing his scars with Beth, he wasn't ready for anyone to just stare at the signs of his childhood abuse.

"Well, what you standin there for," Daryl demanded as he shrugged his shirt back on, "ain't you got shit to do other than following us around."

"How about you keep your grimy old hands off Beth you pervert," yelled Logan, coming up to him.

"Hey," snarled Daryl, automatically seeing red as the boy crossed into his personal space bubble.

"Logan, stop," demanded Beth, "don't you dare talk to Daryl like that!"

"What else can be expected of a redneck like you," shouted Logan, "jumping on Beth the moment everyone else is out of sight! She is a good girl and doesn't want trash like you getting your hands all over her…"

Smack!

Daryl gaped at the sight in front of him. Beth had slapped the guy across the face hard enough to leave a red-hand print.

"Look Logan," Beth snarled, "I'm not some helpless girl who can't take care of herself so don't go around telling me what I do and don't want. What happens between me and Daryl isn't any of your damn business and I would appreciate it if you stayed out of it. And if you ever so much as say one side remark about Daryl again, you had better hope that you don't need to rely on me when shit gets bad, and it will get very bad."

Despite everything that had just happened, it took everything Daryl had not to snicker at Logan's gaping mouth. Daryl had to admit, Beth could be terrifying once she got angry.

"Let's go," Beth said, taking Daryl's hand and all but dragging him back towards camp with her, leaving Logan standing there in shock.

After they had gotten far enough away, Daryl thought it safe to comment.

"You about made that kid piss his pants," he remarked.

"Yeah, well he deserved it," Beth said, anger still coloring her voice, "after all those things he said about you."

"Let me just remember to never get on your bad side," Daryl said as he squeezed her hand.

Renee's POV

Renee watched from her cover as Beth and the archer made their way back towards their camp. Beth never left the group alone. Renee had been waiting for several days for her to just use the bathroom by herself, but so far it had yet to happen. She always seemed to be around a tall brunette or the archer. It had to happen at some point though and Renee was willing to wait until it did.

At first, she had just been on her own, wandering through the woods. It hadn't been good, but it hadn't been bad either. Until she saw some of Seth's henchmen. She recognized them from when she had last been held captive. Quickly she had hid, but even if she hadn't, they had been so focused that she didn't think they would have noticed her. That's when she saw what they were fixated on. It was Beth, the only person she had met since the apocalypse that had been nice to her. Beth had sung to her and brushed her hair and treated her like a human being. Despite not having any weapon other than an old knife, Renee had waited, hoping to get the chance to help the girl who had been a light for her in a dark world.

As the men started dragging Beth back towards camp, Renee knew she had to act fast. Once Beth was back at the camp, there would be no way to free her. However, Seth's sudden appearance only made the rescue even more impossible. Renee was still trying to figure out what to do when things had gone from bad to worse. Seth had begun shooting at Beth and then his calm had been replaced by anger as he had started beating her.

It had to stop. Renee had snuck around the men, who were all focused on the scene and stabbed the man closest to her straight through the head. He had slumped to the ground right as chaos broke out.

Some man lunged out of the trees and barreled straight into Seth. Renee stabbed another man as a gun went off and she looked to see Beth fall to the ground, blood coming out of her head. Renee wanted to sob, but one of the men had finally noticed her and was charging. She dodged out of the way and kicked his back, just like she had been trained in her martial arts class, which sent the man tumbling forward. Without warning, a blow hit her knee from behind, causing her to crumble to the ground. Suddenly, an arrow whizzed through the air and buried itself in Seth's head. Renee looked up to see the first stranger lying on the ground dead and another stranger running onto the scene, followed by what looked like a mob of people. It had been too much, too many strangers, too much unknown. Renee had turned and limped into the woods, as far as her legs would take her. Her knee hurt but didn't seem to be permanently damaged.

After she had finally calmed down and think about what happened, she realized that the strangers had been coming to save Beth. Renee didn't know if Beth was still alive or not, there had been a lot of blood, but she needed to know for sure. Carefully, Renee had picked her way back to where the chaos had broken out. It was dangerous because walkers had been drawn by the noise, but luckily there hadn't been too many within hearing range. Renee easily took out the shambling corpses until she reached the bodies. Some were already being preyed on by walkers, but Renee didn't bother to stop them. The stranger that had first burst onto the scene was lying dead on the ground. The shot obviously hadn't killed him, but whatever had gone through his head had certainly done the job. Renee could only assume that he was dying and someone had put him out of his misery. Among all the bodies, Beth was missing. There was no sign of the blonde girl. That could only mean she was with the people who had shown up.

That was how Renee had ended up here, watching the campsite. She had seen Beth take her first steps outside and breathed a sigh of relief. Since then, she had been waiting for an opportunity to show herself, but she didn't want anyone else to know of her existence. People, no matter how good they might seem, were usually only trouble. However, constantly watching Beth meant Renee had no time to go hunting, not that she had much to hunt with anyway. After several nights, Renee had been spotted by one of them men and she was so tired and hungry that she didn't automatically run away. When he offered her food, she was sure it was a trap, but she so none of the cruelty in his eyes that she had become accustomed to. Still, after taking the food she had run off, just in case her reading of him was inaccurate.

Now, she was getting hungry again. Renee had to make contact with Beth soon or go hunting and risk losing the group if they moved on. Movement in the campsite caught Renee's eye. It was a boy wearing a sheriff's hat. His movements suggested that he was sneaking out and didn't want anyone to know. Renee watched as he slipped into the woods and no one noticed. Beth was sitting at the campfire and didn't appear to be leaving anytime soon. With that, Renee slipped into the trees to follow the boy she had seen. What she was going to do when she found him, she wasn't even sure.

So a lot happened in this chapter. First off, Daryl finally really talked with Beth, even if it wasn't really about their relationship. I think it took seeing someone else feeling hurt/ashamed of their scars for Daryl to get over his fear of showing his own. I believe that him seeing Beth, one of the best people he knows, being hurt by other people made him realize that the marks on his back don't necessarily make him a bad person because just like her, they didn't have a say in what happened to them. Secondly, Logan finally got what was coming to him. He still sees Beth as the sweet girl from his class but she has changed and that was put right in his face in this chapter. Now, he can no longer pretend that she is some damsel in distress that needs his taking care of. Thirdly, I am really liking Renee as a character and have plans for her. She has been on the sidelines for a while now but I feel like she is going to make herself known soon. Thank you for supporting my story and feel free to leave comments/suggestions.