Oh my God I never expected this story to be so well received but 43 follows, 20 favorites, and 36 reviews, all this makes me so happy. I'm so glad people enjoy it and if you take the time to review or favorite it or anything thank you so much :)

I feel like I have to say this every couple of chapters but I do not own The Walking Dead or any of its characters. And by the way this hiatus is killing me.

Chapter 17: Memories

Beth made sure to stay close to Daryl the whole time they were with the strange men. They kept glancing at her out of the corner of their eye and it was creeping her out. By the looks of these guys they had it rough ever since the turn. As they walked she heard a few of them tell Daryl how they met. They never spoke about any wives, or kids, or any other form of family. Joe ran the show, she knew that, and a few of them had been friends with him so he brought them together once the world fell apart. Then as time went on their group began to grow into what it is now but they were so alike it just worked. Beth could tell Joe knew how to talk to people, she could picture him as a con artist before all this.

Daryl had stayed silent throughout their journey, he nodded at times and acted like he was listening but Beth had been around him enough to know the wheels were turning in his head. She knew he didn't trust these guys, it took some time to gain Daryl Dixon's trust, and these guys probably knew that as well. They were trying to include him as best as they could but he wouldn't budge. It was like they were trying to get him on their side, be one of them. Beth knew Daryl had a difficult life before but that all changed when he met Rick and became a part of his group and these men weren't going to make the old Daryl return. She would make sure of it.

They walked until it was almost sunset before Joe told them they were going to camp out in the woods. As they settled into a spot she heard rushing water close by. "Daryl, we should go get some water." She told him pulling some water bottles out of her bag.

Nodding once they were about to walk off when one of the men shouted. "Where do you two think you're going?"

"Get some water," Beth said holding the bottles up.

She noticed one man, Len she believed she heard someone say, pull out his canteen. "Here, get me some too will ya, sweetheart?" He asked holding the canteen out to her.

Taking it from her hands she saw him wink making her almost roll her eyes. When they were safe enough away from camp she whispered. "How long are we gonna stay with them?"

"Long enough for us to either get a lead on where our people are or until we find a safe enough place to make camp."

"I'm not staying anywhere without Rick." She blurted, the words just slipped out but both of them knew she meant them. "And have you seen those guys? The inmates at the prison looked friendlier."

"Look I'm gonna try to find your boyfriend but for right now those guys are our best shot. Its suicide for only the two of us on the road." He snapped. "We've been lucky so far but eventually our luck's gonna run out."

Beth sighed. "I know its risky but right now I'm willing to take my chances. I don't want to stay around them for long."

"We won't," He mumbled as they reached the river. "You fill those up, I'll stand watch."

Nodding her head Beth bent down to fill up the bottles, thoughts of where Rick could be filled her head. All she wanted to know was if he was safe or not, if he was out there alone. If it was risky her and Daryl out there she knew how dangerous it would be if he was by himself. The thought alone made her want to cry and keep moving til her feet couldn't carry her anymore. Then there was Judith and Carl, they were just kids, how on earth could they survive out there? Wiping her face just in case any stray tears fell she finished up with the bottles. "Lets head back." She muttered not looking in Daryl's direction.

In silence they went back to camp where the other men were waiting. A few of them said they were going hunting but Beth could barely hear them. Sitting down she tuned everything out and just sat alone in her thoughts. Putting her head on her knees she prayed. 'Dear God, its me again, I'm sorry but I need your help again. Rick is out there, so is Carl and Judith. I just need some help finding them.' She could feel tears stinging her eyes but she tried her best to keep them at bay. 'I understand if its too much to ask but if you could please do this I wouldn't be able to thank you enough. Judith is just a baby, Carl's a kid he deserves more time on this earth no matter how bad it is right now. And Rick...Rick's been through so much, I just want to help him. Please, just help me find them. Daddy if you're up there I could really use some of that fatherly guidance you always gave me.' Sighing she closed her eyes, a few tears leaked out. 'I hope you found mom and Shawn up there and you're all watching over us. I love you so much and miss you every day. Amen.'

At this point Beth couldn't help but cry but she made no sound. She had kept silent, biting her bottom lip to prevent any noises from escaping. At times like this she missed being at the prison and being able to go to another cell and talk to her sister or her dad. Then Rick was always close by for her to see. She remembered one night when he visited her in her cell. It was just one of those nights, Judith was already asleep in her crib. Maggie was on watch duty with Glenn and she didn't want to disturb Hershel. She tried her best to be strong but it felt like everything was just crashing on her all at once. In the loneliness of her cell she allowed herself to cry. She sat on her bunk with her knees to her chest just weeping when she heard footsteps approaching her cell. Wiping her eyes she knew it was Rick and the last thing she wanted was for him to see her as a weak little girl. "Beth?" He whispered peaking into the small room.

"Y-yeah?" She murmured, her voice betraying her.

"Hey, hey, what's wrong?" He asked, his voice so gentle she just wanted to run into his arms and stay there for the rest of the night.

"Nothing, I'm fine," She tried her best to smile but she could tell he wasn't buying it.

"Why are you crying?" He questioned, gently reaching up to wipe the tears away with his thumb.

Leaning into his touch she sighed. "I just get sad sometimes," She told him then cringed at how bad her answer was. "I'm sorry...I know I sound like a baby right now."

"No, no, its ok. Come here," He said opening his arms letting her fall into him. She could tell he still felt a little awkward when it came to physical contact but he knew she needed him in that moment. Laying on his chest she breathed his scent as he rubbed circles on her back. "Its not good to hold it in, if you ever need to cry just let it happen."

"I just don't want you to see me as a cry baby."

"I could never think that, hell if you never cried I would be more concerned." He sighed. "Just know I'm here if you need me."

"I'll remember that," Finally she smiled the genuine smile that made Rick's day a little better.

"Good, now you get some rest, I'll stay here until you fall asleep."

Feeling content in his embrace Beth found it easy to drift off to sleep. She was vaguely aware when he shifted enough to let her completely lie down on her bunk. When she felt a light kiss on her forehead she drifted off to one of the most peaceful sleep she had experienced in months. 'Its ok, Beth,' She thought to herself. 'You'll find him and have that again. Or you'll die trying.'

In Morgan's apartment Rick couldn't help but stay awake and keep watch. Carl slept beside him, snoring softly while Morgan was on a cot close by. Sitting by the window Rick looked out into the darkness, endless worries kept his mind busy. He needed to find Beth and the others but he had no idea where to even start. They could be on the road for months without even a hint as to where she was. Then a dark thought was always there, what if she wasn't even alive and he was just out there chasing a ghost? Leaning his head on the wall he knew he needed to think rationally before they left the next day. If Beth was gone he needed to move on and find a safe place for him and Carl to live but what if she was alive? What if she was out there and needed his help? There were too many questions without any answers and it was driving him crazy.

The next morning Rick stood on the roof of the building overlooking the area around them. He and Carl had been all around King county the previous day with no signs of anyone else passing through. They were going to have to travel on foot to the next town and he wasn't sure if Morgan would be up for that. "Rick," He heard from behind him.

Turning around he saw Morgan walking towards him. Without waiting Rick asked. "So...do you know what you want to do?"

"Maybe but you have to answer me this, why are you so eager to find your group? They could be dead for all you know and you're willing to risk your's and your boy's life for them? Why?"

Rick didn't want to talk about Beth, mentioning any form of female may bring back horrible memories of Morgan's wife, Jenny. "Its simple really," Rick started. "I know they would do the same for me and Carl. We were a family back at the prison and family is something hard to find these days."

"Lord I know." Morgan sighed. "I lost mine...you're lucky you still have your boy."

"I know, but Morgan listen to me, if you stay here you will live the same life day in and day out. If you go with us you could gain so much more. You don't have to be alone anymore."

Rick could see him thinking about his words. He didn't want to push his luck by saying anything else but he hoped he had gotten through to the man. Sighing again Morgan met his eyes. "All right...I'll go but if at any point I want to leave you can't stop me."

"If that's what you want." Rick agreed.

"All right, well let's get going, we're burning daylight."

Downstairs Carl was finishing up loading his gun when he saw his dad coming towards him. "Morgan is coming with us."

Nodding his head Carl picked up his backpack. "So where are we gonna go?"

"I don't know," He spoke running a hand over his face. "I don't even know where to start."

"Maybe I can help," Morgan interrupted pulling out a map and laying it on the table. "Where was your prison?"

After scanning the map Rick pointed to where they used to live. "Right in here, we ended up there after a herd cut us off here." He explained. "It was just north of us."

"Well then that herd was heading south so if I was guessing your group had to avoid them somehow. If they went north they would run right into them."

"And everyone knew where the herds were coming from so they would never go in that direction." Rick argued.

"Exactly so your group headed south from the prison. If we're here," Morgan pointed out. "then maybe your group is spread out throughout this whole area."

"That's a lot of places for them to be." Carl interjected.

"Then we better start moving." Rick said rolling the map back up. "We keep to the woods, there's more cover for walkers but we need to stay as close to the roads as we can for when we run out of supplies."

Morgan nodded. "Come on, we're wasting time."

The good thing about Joe's group, they knew how to hunt. After being gone for a few hours they came back with rabbit, squirrel, and a snake. Beth picked the meat off a squirrel but she wasn't hungry. After calming herself down she just felt exhausted and kept to herself most of the night. She noticed Daryl wasn't really talking to anyone either. The other men were distracted by their food to notice but she saw Joe watching them. Out of everyone he seemed to scare Beth the most, he was the leader he decided what they did every day and no one seemed to question him. She wondered if anyone ever questioned his leadership or if they were too afraid to.

Even though all she wanted to do was sleep she was aware of how dangerous it was to sleep around these guys. Daryl would probably stay awake but if they tried anything he could be easily overpowered by the men, they had guns and other weapons. She knew Daryl was tough but a bullet didn't care how tough someone was.

"All right boys, its time to turn in for the night," Joe spoke wiping his hands on his jeans. "Dan over here has the first watch."

Beth watched the man nod his head before standing up to go lean on a tree with his rifle strap over his shoulder. Zipping up her sweater she laid on her side with her back facing the other men. Daryl sat up next to her with his crossbow right at his side. Knowing he was there was comforting but she still wished it was Rick. She was grateful for Daryl and everything he had done to protect her ever since they left the prison, he just wasn't the man she loved. Turning over on her back she looked up at the sky, trying her best to drown out the other men's snores she stared at the stars. She wished she was back at the prison, in her small bunk with Judith sleeping nearby and Rick just down the walkway. 'Don't go there, Beth, everything will be fine. You're going to find him.' She thought blinking away tears. 'You're not gonna give up.'

After making a few rounds around camp Rick finally came back to stand around the small fire they had built. Morgan and Carl were asleep while he volunteered to keep watch. He couldn't sit still even if he tried. They had walked all day with no signs of anyone from their group. By the time they settled in for the night he could tell they wouldn't want to keep doing this every day. They would need a lead and soon or else they would give up the search entirely.

Leaning against a tree Rick thought back to happier times at the prison. When things actually starting going their way, they had food growing, walkers were under control, and for once he felt like they weren't just surviving day by day. They were actually building a life they could live for many years. It was still hard but it was better than being on the run. He felt like a new man than when they first found the prison.

For a while there he tuned everyone out, didn't listen to anyone, and was just in a blind rage all the time. He never wanted to admit it but it was hard looking at Judith sometimes, he knew Lori died so their daughter could live. Then he was terrified, how were they going to raise a baby in this world? They had enough to worry about now they had to get everything a baby would need when they barely could find enough supplies for the rest of the group. After a particular bad day around the prison, walkers had managed to get into the tombs, Carl had ignored him when he said stay in cellblock C, and to top it all off Hershel had told him they were beginning to run out baby formula and diapers. He had been running on little sleep and stress was eating him alive, he felt like he would never get a break. When he walked into the cellblock he decided to go check on Judith when he heard soft singing. 'Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high. There's a land that I heard of once in a lullaby. Somewhere, over the rainbow, skies are blue. And the dreams that you dream of really do come true.'

Beth was singing to Judith, cradling in her in her arms, gently rocking her. Leaning against the cell door he just listened, he never said it out loud but Beth's voice calmed him somehow. It was soft and melodic, perfect for lullabies. Judith seemed to think so too because she was sleeping peacefully in Beth's arms before she even finished the song. When Beth looked back up seeing Rick watching her made her jump in surprise. "Oh hi," She muttered, a faint blush on her face.

"Hey," He coughed, regaining his senses. "I just came to uh, check on Judith. Your dad said she was running low on formula."

"Yeah, she was a little fussy earlier." She explained. "I figured try to get her to sleep while someone went out to get her food. My mama said that song always calmed me down when I was a baby."

"Well it seemed to work for her too," He smiled gently brushing his hands over Judith's hair. "I'll get a group up to go get formula."

"Ok," She muttered looking up to meet his eyes.

Nodding his head he turned to leave but he'll never forget how easily his anger and frustration left him hearing Beth sing. At the time he didn't feel any attraction to her but he couldn't deny being around her stirred something up in him. It wasn't long after that his feelings for her grew and now he couldn't deny he loved her and he needed her back.

So I wanted to keep things a little cute and fluffy in this chapter, hope you don't mind. Also I hope I didn't offend anyone that likes Bethyl, I like Bethyl in the show but this is a Rick/Beth story. Review if you like it or if you have any suggestions on how I could improve :)