AN: I feel like I need to say this at some point in almost all of my fics. I am no expert on many of the things that I write. Therefore suspension of disbelief is required. You may know more about certain things that I do and see that things are not factually correct. If that bothers you, I apologize. Again, I do not claim to be an expert. I am merely trying to provide you with an entertaining story and I'm sorry if any facts that I mess up bother you. Google is my only friend in many cases.

I hope you enjoy!

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Daryl hadn't felt like going to the bar after work. He was too worried that he might run into Ed Peletier there, and he didn't know how he'd react to the asshole now that he had a face to go with the woman that he'd heard the man brag about beating so often. When he'd gotten home, he'd been surprised to find that there was food in the cabinets, and some in the refrigerator as well. It wasn't a glorious bounty by any means, but it was more than the half used box of outdated rat poison which had been the only contents of said cabinets when he'd left that morning. He had no idea how the food got there, but he assumed that Merle had gone to buy it after work, though that was entirely unlike his brother. Daryl wasn't hungry, though. Something about eating the food bought with Ed's money turned his stomach a little.

When Merle burst through the kitchen door, Daryl was sitting at the card table in the kitchen, the lights still switched off, smoking cigarette after cigarette and absentmindedly shuffling a deck of cards that he'd found in one of the drawers in his bedroom.

"Ain't got no damn electricity?" Merle asked, stumbling into the dark kitchen.

"Just ain't got up ta turn it on," Daryl said, shuffling the cards again.

"Ya playin' solitaire in tha dark, boy?" Merle asked. He flipped on the light switch. Daryl could tell from where he was sitting that his brother was pretty well drunk, though not to a point of being completely gone.

"Nah," Daryl said.

"What tha hell ya doin' then?" Merle asked.

"Where'd the food come from?" Daryl asked, ignoring his brother's question.

"What?" Merle asked. He leaned against the counter.

"Where'd the food come from, Merle?" Daryl repeated.

"Andrea brought it, said she weren't stayin' in no house she couldn't have a snack in," Merle said. He smiled.

"Ya didn't buy it with Ed's money, then?" Daryl asked.

Merle looked at him like he had no idea what was going on, and Daryl realized that was essentially because he didn't have any idea what was going on. On top of that, the liquor saturating his brain wasn't going to make him the sharpest tool in the shed.

"I done told ya that Andrea brought it," Merle said. "Why tha fuck ya think I was gonna go an' buy this shit? She got fuckin' milk an' eggs an' shit, do that look like somethin' ya brothah was gonna buy at tha store?"

Daryl shook his head and went back to fiddling with his cards.

"The fuck is wrong with ya tonight, Derlina? Ya ain't even come down ta tha bar an' now ya sulkin' like someone just drowned ya damn cat," Merle went to the cabinet and started shuffling around in it. "Look here, boy, she even brought ya some a' that damn cereal ya like. Wipe that fuckin' face off."

"You remember that woman down at the bar?" Daryl asked. "The one that somebody fucked up?"

"Yeah," Merle said. "What about her?"

"I saw her again today," Daryl said. "She was workin' down there at the diner in town. I was eatin' there with the old man."

"This story got a point, Daryl? 'Cause I'm kinda ready for bed if it ain't," Merle said.

"She's Ed fuckin' Peletier's wife," Daryl snapped.

"The hell you talkin' 'bout?" Merle asked.

"That woman, she's Ed Peletier's wife. She's the one he's been knockin' 'round an' braggin' 'bout," Daryl said. "Ya workin' for the asshole that done that."

Merle regarded him for a minute, but didn't say anything else. After a quiet moment, Merle nodded his head.

"Andrea's comin' up later, so don't'cha go lockin' tha door," Merle said.

Daryl had no intent of locking the door. He hadn't locked it since they'd moved in. There wasn't anything in the entire place worth more than ten bucks probably, and he didn't imagine that anyone around them had a hankering to steal their old underwear.

Merle left the kitchen without another word and Daryl heard his bedroom door close. Daryl sat there for a moment longer, lighting another cigarette. He decided that after this one he'd go to bed. He still had to work in the morning, and he wanted to be good and asleep if Andrea did come up and managed to rouse Merle from the alcohol coma he was likely to slip into.

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When Michonne got the call at her office to come down to the station, she was a little surprised. She had expected things to be calm for a few days at least. Sweet Junction just wasn't a very happening place and the Peletier scandal had been the biggest thing to happen in some time.

When she got down there, though, she was surprised to find out that the call related to the whole Peletier situation, as Rick referred to it. Apparently she needed to represent someone who was currently taking up a bench in a jail cell for assault and battery against Ed.

While Michonne was not particularly sorry to hear that someone had apparently cleaned the floor with Ed down at the construction site he was working at, what surprised her was that she didn't recognize the name.

"Merle Dixon," Rick said, leaning on the desk beside him.

"Who is Merle Dixon?" Michonne asked. Rick shrugged, making a face.

"Don't know," Rick said. "Apparently he's new to town." Michonne was thoroughly confused. Ed Peletier was a disgusting creature and could quickly get on someone's bad side, but very few people had ever really tangled with him. He'd never really started anything physical with anyone besides Carol. He tended to be a coward when the person he was pounding on didn't stand five foot six and weigh in at less than half his weight.

"Who called you?" Michonne asked. She wasn't in any particular hurry to get to her new client, at least not without exploring what Rick already knew about the situation. She didn't know what she'd be walking into when she was dealing with a man who apparently just strolled into town and assaulted someone. It was difficult to know if he had a reason for targeting Ed or if Ed had simply been the first person that he'd gotten his hands on.

"One of the guys working for Ed. Shane got out there first and pretty much had them apart when I got there," Rick said.

"Well what did they say? Why were they fighting?" Michonne asked.

Rick fumbled through some papers on his desk and came up with a file folder. He opened it and read it a moment before looking back at her. He shrugged again.

"Ed said that the man's been working for him for a couple of days," Rick said, "though I don't think they'd have much time to get to know one another because we've had Ed here."

Michonne nodded and waited for Rick to continue.

"Ed said that the man came out to the job site today and when he got there he confronted him, verbally assaulted him, and then proceeded to start a fist fight with him," Rick said. He closed the file and leaned back on the desk again. Michonne sighed.

"How much damage did he do?" Michonne asked.

Rick shrugged again.

"Hard to say, honestly. It looked like he did a number on him, but I wouldn't imagine it was anything too serious. Ed was making a scene of it, though. Demanded to go to the hospital," Rick said. Michonne scoffed without being able to stop herself.

"Of course," she said. "Look what he can do to other people, but the minute that it comes back on him it's damn near fatal."

"That's why I called you," Rick said. "Ed's got his lawyer already, somebody from county, some big wig. He's going to press charges and I figured it would be hard for this new comer to find a sympathetic lawyer…" He let his voice trail off.

"But because you know how bad I want to nail Ed Peletier, you thought I might like to represent the guy who beat the shit out of him," Michonne finished. She smiled at Rick. Rick returned the smile and shrugged again.

"I just figured he might stand a chance with you on the case," Rick said. "Says he's got a brother in town too, works out there with Hershel Greene."

"Get the brother," Michonne said. "See if he'll come here to talk to me. We'll at least try and get him bailed out, and I'll figure out what we're going to do from there. Can I talk to him while you're gone to Hershel's?"

"Sure," Rick said. "Jeff's here, so he can let you out whenever you're done. I'll go and see if I can't round up the brother and get him back here."

Michonne thanked Rick and followed him to the cell where her new client was sitting on a bench, his head tipped back against the wall, appearing to be daydreaming.

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When Daryl saw the police cruiser pull into the long driveway at Hershel Greene's farm, he got a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Even though he didn't know for sure that it was in regards to his brother, he was fairly certain it was. Merle had been especially quiet this morning. He'd been so quiet, in fact, that Daryl had been forced to make friendly conversation with Andrea while she cooked breakfast just to cut the tension.

Daryl didn't know what Merle had done. There were a number of possibilities when Merle was concerned and Daryl had been approached by the police about his brother for just about anything under the sun. Usually his favorites were DUI, drunk and disorderly, drunk in public, possession, or some kind of assault. Daryl instinctively started across the field from his current position as he saw the cruiser pull to a stop near the door of Hershel's house. From the distance he could see the officer get out of his car, put his hat on his head, and walk over to talk to Jo who was stepping outside.

Daryl watched as Jo pointed in his direction. The officer looked his way and he knew that he hadn't been wrong in assuming that he needed to begin the trek toward the man.

"Are you Daryl Dixon?" The officer asked as Daryl walked up, wiping his hands on his pants. Daryl shoved his hands in his pocket when he realized the officer wasn't going to make a move to shake one of them. He was still figuring out how this whole hospitality thing worked in Sweet Junction.

"That's me," Daryl said.

"I'm Rick Grimes, Deputy Sheriff of Sweet Junction," the officer said.

Daryl nodded his head.

"How do?" He responded. "What can I do for ya?" He was sure he already knew the answer, but if Merle was in trouble it always worked best if he managed to stay out of it.

"Is your brother Merle Dixon?" The officer asked.

Daryl nodded again.

"What'd he do?" Daryl asked.

"We've got your brother for assault and battery. I need you to come with me to handle some paperwork," Rick said.

Daryl nodded his head again and turned to Jo Greene.

"Ms. Jo, ya reckon ya can tell Hershel that I ain't likely ta be back today? I'll be back first thing in the mornin', though, an' I didn't get ta finish with them cows."

Jo nodded her head without saying anything, tugging nervously at the collar of the dress she was wearing. Daryl imagined that it wasn't a common sight at the Greene farm to see law enforcement. For him it was more or less something he expected. He was more surprised that they'd been here this many days without meeting the fine officials of the fair town.

"I got my truck here," Daryl said, "but I'll follow ya back."

Rick nodded his understanding and got back in the cruiser. Daryl got in his truck and cranked it, following the officer slowly down the back roads that led into town.

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Michonne stepped into the cell and took a seat on one of the benches. She wasn't one for pomp and circumstance in these situations and the man sitting across from her certainly didn't seem like he was one for such shows. She looked him over a moment.

The man, Merle Dixon, was filthy. That was probably owing to the fact that Shane Walsh had plucked him out of the dirt where he'd been rolling around with Ed. His hands were bloody, and she thought that she'd see to it that he at least got to clean himself up before she left. Other than his hands, however, he didn't appear to have a scratch on him besides a small crack in his lip. A lucky punch, perhaps. Michonne tried to hide her appreciation of the man for the moment.

"Who tha hell are you?" The man drawled, not lifting his head from its position against the wall.

"My name is Michonne Williams, Mr. Dixon. I'm a lawyer…your lawyer," Michonne responded. "Would you like to tell me why you attacked Ed Peletier today?"

"Ehhh…" the man drawled, "just doin' what needed ta be done, sweet cheeks," Merle said.

Michonne ignored the man's commentary. She was slowly figuring out the kind of individual she might be dealing with, but that still didn't explain entirely why he'd gone to work, presumably, and ended up sitting in a jail cell for sending Ed, whether it merited it or not, to the hospital.

"How long am I gonna be in here?" Merle asked.

"Officer Grimes has gone to get your brother," Michonne said. "You can pay the fine and be out of here this evening." Merle snickered.

"Prob'ly can't pay no fine," he said, "so just tell me how long I'ma be in here without no cash changin' hands."

"Do you have some engagement?" Michonne asked. The man seemed in one way to have no interest in moving at all, but something in his voice sounded urgent to know how long he'd sit in the jail without the ability to pay his fine.

"Just sittin' here calculatin' how long I got 'fore I can my hands on ole Ed again," Merle sneered. "See, I weren't done when the kind officer come an' snatched him 'way from me."

"Mr. Dixon," Michonne said, "I don't think it's going to help your case any if you make comments about the premeditation of another assault." Merle laughed.

"Speak English," Merle said. "I don't know nothin' 'bout no pre-med-i-ta-tion, but I do know I aim ta finish what I started."

Michonne sighed. She'd seen his kind before, but only once or twice and usually they moved on after one or two offenses.

"Mr. Dixon, why did you attack Ed Peletier?" She repeated. Merle sat up then, straightening his frame out. He snickered.

"Ya see, girlie, I don't care for men like Ed. I don't really give a turkey's ass feathers if the man likes ta drink or if'n he owes money on his gamblin' debts. That's still a man I'll have a shot or two with, but I ain't one for toleratin' a man that'll put his hands on woman, 'specially if that woman can't defend herself against 'im," Merle said. "It come to my attention that Ed was such a man, so's I figured if he liked hittin' on people so damn much, I'd give him a target his own size. Turns out Ed don't like hittin' people near as much as he thought he did."

Merle chuckled again, flexing his fingers. He leaned back against wall again and resumed his original position.

Michonne was unsure how the man knew about Ed's past with Carol, especially owing to the fact that he wasn't a native of Sweet Junction and apparently rolled into town only a few days ago, but she didn't really feel that she knew how to proceed at the moment. Clearly, legally, it wasn't permissible for this man to go about and dole out what he considered to be justice for Ed's actions, but her own internal voice was struggling because it was silently cheering him on for what he had done and regretting a little that maybe he had not finished the beating which he thought that Ed deserved…a beating he very likely did deserve.

"I see," Michonne said finally, deciding to dismiss herself until she could get composure and proceed with a level head. She got up, bid him farewell for the moment, and called to Jim to let her out of the cell. She went to Rick's office and sat, waiting on him to return with the brother of this mysterious stranger who was apparently some champion to battered women's rights.

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When Rick came in leading the man that was presumably Merle Dixon's brother, Michonne stood up from the seat she had taken in Rick's chair. She walked around the desk and offered her hand to the man. She could see no clear family resemblance from the two, but it was obvious that in any case this was Merle's younger brother. He was very likely somewhere around her own age, though he had a baby face.

"I'm Michonne Williams," she said.

"Daryl Dixon," Daryl replied.

"Have a seat?" She asked. The man sat down in one of the chairs. Rick gestured to her that he was leaving the room and she nodded at him. When he was gone she took a seat in Rick's chair again.

"I'm your brother's lawyer," Michonne said.

"What'd he do?" Daryl asked. The manner in which he asked it led Michonne to believe that this was not the first time that Daryl had probably been called in about his brother's actions. She hoped that when they finally got his records that wasn't going to be too problematic if Ed pursued this.

"Your brother, it seems, attacked Ed Peletier this morning," Michonne said.

Daryl leaned back in the chair that he was sitting in and crossed one leg over the other, resting his elbow on his knee. He rested his head in his hand, but didn't look too surprised by her announcement.

"How does your brother know Mr. Peletier?" Michonne asked.

"Been workin' for him a couple days," Daryl said. "Been drinkin' with him up there at that juke joint, the Waterin' Hole."

Michonne nodded her head.

"Do you know any reason that your brother would have to want to attack Mr. Peletier?" She asked. Daryl snickered a little.

"Saw he was beatin' on his ole lady," Daryl responded. "Merle ain't never took kindly ta that kinda thing. Always said the only reason a man would hit a woman was 'cause he ain't had a set big enough ta hit a man. I reckon Merle was givin' him his chance." Michonne nodded her head again in response. "We seen his woman up there workin' at the bar, an' she's workin' at that diner in town. She ain't but a lil' bitty thing an' Merle didn't like none seein' what Ed had done ta her. I don't support Merle in a lotta the shit he does, but I gotta say I ain't against him in this one."

"I'm familiar with the situation," Michonne said. "However, everything that can be done legally is being done. Your brother, no matter how noble his intentions, cannot legally go around attacking people when he feels that they've done something wrong." Daryl snickered again.

"I reckon ya can tell him that, but it ain't never stopped Merle before," he said. Michonne sighed. Suddenly she was seeing some family resemblance between the men. Namely it was the fact that neither one of them was going to be easy to negotiate with.

"I'll do what I can if Ed presses charges and tries to take this to court," she said, "but you need to keep your brother away from him. It won't look good for him if he attacks him again."

Daryl nodded.

"I'll talk ta him," he said. "I'm afraid he's gonna have ta wait it out in here, though, 'cause we ain't got no money for bail right now. I just started workin' at Hershel Greene's farm an' if I ask him for any more money he's liable to think I'm a crook."

Michonne sighed and sat facing the man for a moment.

"I'm going to pay your brother's bail," Michonne said. "But I'm trusting you to make sure that he doesn't get into any more trouble. Whatever he does is going to end up hurting him a lot more than it's going to hurt Ed Peletier."

"Why ya gon' go an' do a think like pay Merle's bail?" Daryl asked.

Michonne swallowed, sure she'd regret her answer eventually.

"Don't repeat this, or I'll deny everything," she said, "but I think that no matter what your brother did to Ed he probably deserved worse. I don't know why your brother felt the need to do it, but I'm going to pay his bail. Just make sure he doesn't get into any more trouble or he might dig a hole for himself that I can't get him out of."

Daryl looked at her, obviously confused, but he didn't say anything else except to offer his thanks.

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"So some stranger comes riding into town and beats Ed up?" Carol asked when Michonne explained to her the craziness that had taken place during her day. "Why would he do that?"

"You know just as much as I do," Michonne said. She got the tub of ice cream out of the freezer and sat down at the dining room table with it. She was too tired to even care about getting a bowl. She wasn't surprised when Carol got a spoon and joined her from across the table. "His brother said they saw you working and this Merle fellow decided that he was going to give Ed a taste of his own medicine."

"I don't know if I even remember this person," Carol said. She'd seen so many faces in the past few days that it would be difficult to pinpoint any one or two individuals.

"Well, apparently they both remember you," Michonne said.

"And he just beat Ed up? Just like that?" Carol asked again.

"Apparently he sent him to the hospital, but I don't know how much of that is actually related to the severity of the beating and how much is just Ed being theatrical," Michonne said.

Carol took a spoonful of ice cream and sat back in the chair trying to remember if there was someone that she'd seen at both of her jobs, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. For the most part she'd been too nervous since it was the first day at each position to even pay attention to what was going on.

"Anyway, I bailed the asshole out of jail," Michonne said with a laugh.

"You bailed him out?" Carol asked.

"I figured any man that would whip Ed Peletier's ass and not even know you by name was a friend of mine," Michonne said. "I told him to stay out of trouble, but I'm not sorry that he did what he did. It needed to be done, like the man said. It was worth the bail just to know that Ed got his ass kicked."

Carol laughed in response. She thought about it a little longer and laughed again.

"I can just imagine the look on Ed's face," she said.

"I just hope he had the good common sense to tell Ed why he was whipping his ass," Michonne said. "I would hate for Ed to think it was just some random act."

"I just can't believe that some random stranger would get into a fight because of someone he saw at a bar or someone who waited on him at the diner," Carol said.

"That's what they both said," Michonne responded. "Merle and Daryl Dixon. They're brothers. I have no idea where they came from."

"Did they ride into town on white steeds?" Carol asked. Michonne snickered.

"They were in a rusty old Ford when we finally left the jail," Michonne said. "So no steeds…they were a little too rough around the edges to be considered the princes that would fight the dragon for a damsel in distress."

"Rough around the edges, maybe, but it seems like they surely tried to fight the dragon," Carol said.

She wished that she could find them, just to say thank you and show her appreciation that, even though they didn't know her, they had felt that what Ed had done to her for so many years merited at least some kind of payback. Legal or not, she was oddly pleased by the thought of Ed somewhere with a black eye or a busted lip. Even if it wasn't much, it was something, and she owed it to two invisible strangers.