Just a warning, daryl is going to be scarce these next couple chapters. I'm trying to write how the show would be and as much as we'd all love for it to be like that, I don't think Beau would follow daryl around everywhere they went.

Also, Character building and relationship building with people OTHER than Daryl.

I had spent much of my day continuing to raid the cars. We had decided to double back to a bi pass that Glenn had found on the map earlier in the day. After I'd grabbed most of the essentials from the car I took to siphoning gas while the men moved the dead cars out of the path.

After my third car or so I finally looked up. It was getting dark, the sky tinted with orange, and Carol was still standing in the same spot she'd started in, looking off into the trees. Lori was never far from her, always there to comfort her when she needed it.

I followed Carol's gaze, staring longingly off into the trees. I was a patient person, but I'd be lying if I said the wait for them to return wasn't killing me. It was near agony, not knowing if Daryl and Rick would come back, including the possibility of us never finding them again if they got lost. I swallowed a hard lump, putting the tube into the fourth car.

I had begun to siphon it's gas when a rustle in the trees caught my attention. I paused, extremely alert, watching the hillcrest. I felt butterflies when I saw the two men returning, but then I realized there was supposed to be three of them and my heart sank.

The men approached Carol and I left the gas can where is sat on the ground, where more than likely it would over flow. I could honestly care less about the gas can, and as I neared the group I felt a weight lifting from my shoulders.

Daryl glanced up at me as I arrived, biting his lip in a worried manner. They hadn't found Sophia and I knew it was weighing on him heavily.

"You can't leave my daughter out there on her own. All alone in the woods at night." Carol worried, crossing and uncrossing her arms feverishly.

"Out in the dark is no good," Daryl spoke up, holding his crossbow on his shoulder. "We'd just be tripping over ourselves. More people'd get lost." He tried to explain, throwing a quick glance in my direction.

"But she's 12, she can't be out there on her own!" Carol argued. I felt my heart breaking for the mother. I would never know how she felt in this moment, and I could only imagine it must have been something terrible. "You didn't find anything?!" Lori placed a gentle hand on Carol's shoulders. I sat quietly, uncomfortably, away, crossing my arms to shield myself.

"I know this is hard," Rick held his hands up calmly, trying to rationalize with the woman. "But I'm asking you not to panic. We know she was out there."

"We tracked her for a while." Daryl interjected, trying to help calm the now hyperventilating woman.

"We have to make this an organized effort." Rick called out to the fellow survivors, looking at each on in turn. "Daryl knows the woods better then anybody, I've asked him to over see this." The fellow campers came closer and I joined in next to T-Dog who had found strength to stand earlier in the day. The group went quiet until Carol spoke again.

"Is that… Is that blood?" She asked, gesturing to Daryl. My mouth dropped and I looked him over quickly, finding the stain she'd been talking about on his pants. Daryl looked down hastily, and I swore his cheeks went red. Carol began to hyperventilate, grabbing her chest.

"He took down a walker."

"A walker?!" That was not something a worried mother wants to hear. Carol muttered under her breath, looking like she was about to faint.

"There was no sign it was ever near Sophia." Rick reasoned with her, grabbing her arm gently.

"How can you know that?" Andrea asked quietly, looking between the two men. Daryl and Rick shared a pointed look, wondering how to tread through such dangerous territory. There was a quick pause before Daryl spoke again.

"We cut the sum'bitch open. Made sure."

Carol took a seat on the highway railing, relief washing over her. I glanced up at Daryl and we met eyes. I tried to show him that I was here for him, but his face was full of uncertainty.

"How could you just leave her out there to begin with…" Carol began quietly. Rick leaned forward, unsure if he heard her correctly and I let out a small gasp, quickly covering my mouth. "How could you just leave her?" Carol asked again, louder this time. Rick took a step back, thinking heavily on his words before he responded.

"Those two walkers were on us. I had to draw them off." He tried desperately to justify himself to the woman but she was hearing none of it. "It was her best chance."

"Sounds like he didn't have a choice." Shane said, surprisingly coming to Rick's aid.

"How was she supposed to find her way back on her own? She's just a child." Carol asked, beginning to cry. I watched the situation unfurl in front of me, suddenly feeling very tired.

I walked away, not able to take it any longer, and made to return to my gas cans which I had left haphazardly in the middle of the road. I felt two eyes burning into my back and I turned slightly to find Daryl watching me. I said nothing, made no gestures, only continued down the street, away from the grieving mother.

I sat quietly in the back of a pick up truck that Daryl had cleaned out earlier in the day. Luckily he'd managed to find one with a cap on it, not far from the RV. I had just gotten done hand pumping the air mattress when I heard heavy footsteps approaching the truck. They were loud, like heavy boots on pavement and I looked up as the caps window opened and Daryl placed his crossbow into the back.

He looked at me, pausing only for a second, before he climbed in, kicking his boots off onto the ground outside. Silently he crawled up the mattress, taking a seat next to me. We sat there in silence until I laid down, pulling the blanket up tightly around my chin.

Daryl didn't lay down but I knew he was watching me, I could feel his eyes on me, burning with an unasked question. Softly he rubbed his hand on my shoulder, his fingers trailing down my arm and then slowly back up to my neck. I suppressed a set of shivers as they made their way up my spine.

"I'm sorry about today, during the herd." I said quietly, not even turning around to look at him. Daryl pulled his hands away, sighing. I could hear him run his hands down his face.

"You already apologized." Daryl said dryly. His tone cut like a knife, though I could tell he wasn't still mad at me. There was another silence among us and Daryl shifted behind me, finally laying down on the mattress. After a few moments he spoke again. "I wasn't ever mad at ya." He said quietly, turning to me and throwing his arm around me. "But when I saw ya go down…" He trailed off. I narrowed my eyes, recounting the day's adventures. "Today was a terrifyin' day for me, but it wasn't cuz of no walkers." Daryl said nothing after that, but the insinuation was clear, especially as he pulled me tighter to him.