The Walking Deth - Part I
Only Way Onward - Chapter V
Washed Away
AN: I'm not too sure on what winter is like in Georgia, so if I got it all wrong, lets just say it's out of season weather :)
*Warning* Contains sexually explicit material
The morning after we had taken Terminus, I woke up in a room that I could call my own once more. I had slept alone, in the squeaky cot bed, kept warm with layers of woven blankets and with Mix sleeping on my feet. There was no body else to share this room. Now that the population of Terminus had been reduced by half, there were plenty of rooms to go around. The room was only a little larger than my cell at the prison. Much like the cell it had no windows except a small foot by foot panel of opaque glass in the door, which had a number '12' painted on to it. There was an office desk in the corner, and a worn office chair that was frayed and losing its stuffing. There was also a high bookshelf, but it only had one or two books on it. The shelves were mainly taken up by folded clothes and other odds and ends that had belonged to the room's previous inhabitants. On the floor by the bed was another roll out mattress that must have been used by the second person who shared this room. I had tried to encourage Mix to sleep there last night, but he preferred my bed, and I was grateful of his comforting warmth. I didn't want to be on my own, but David had moved to his own room now, and Maggie and Glenn were sharing, and Daryl…
Daryl and I had barely spoken last night, with all that happened. We didn't get a chance to discuss if we would be sharing a room. We didn't even get a chance to discuss what was happening between us. He had been on watch for the first part of the night, while I was figuring out which room I would take, and he had obviously found somewhere else to sleep after his watch had ended, while I was sleeping soundly with only Mix for company.
I pushed Mix gently off my feet and he lazily dropped to the floor below and stretched out his front paws. I got out of the creaking bed and pulled on my boots and my sweater, thinking about the other clothes in the room and if I dared to wear them. I was going to have to get a new wardrobe and new furnishings, and make this room my own, if we were going to be staying here.
Once I was dressed, and had pulled my hair into a presentable pony tail I went downstairs, with Mix padding by my side.
I found Rick, Michonne, Carl and Judith in the mess hall, standing over a pile of weapons, making an inventory of them.
"Mornin' Beth." Rick said to me as I walked in.
Carl and Michonne both mimicked a "Mornin'" to me aswell.
I strode over to Judith and gave her a kiss on the cheek, and then made my way towards the pile of clean china bowls.
Rick's eyes followed me with a grateful smile on his lips as I organised a bowl of stale cereal for my breakfast. We had a long talk last night, and I had been overwhelmed with the grateful appreciation he had showered on me, for freeing them all and taking care of Judith.
"Seen Daryl?" I asked him as I munched on my cereal.
"Just left. Goin' huntin'." He advised me. He pointed to my bowl of cereal. "There ain't much in the way of food here, but cereal and milk powder. There's some cabbages and corn, but it's not gonna last the lot of us for long."
I swallowed my last mouthful of cereal and then pushed my bowl to the side and hastily got up.
"I can hunt too." I declared.
"I bet you can." He said with a grin. "We already got a couple out there, but we could use someone extra."
"I'll go with Daryl." I insisted.
"Sure. He's gone out the south gate. If you run you should be able to catch him."
I nodded my head and then stepped forward examining the layout of weapons before me. My eyes rested on the big black bow that had belonged to Len. I bent down and scooped it up, and counted the arrows in the quiver. Rick gave me an approving nod and grin, and I raced out of the hall to find Daryl, with Mix trailing behind me.
I passed though the southern gate and took note of the newcomer, Abraham - the one who had been hanging naked with Daryl - who was swearing at the stack of half charred bodies that were piled in a mountain of limbs outside. They had tried burning them last night, but then the clouds had opened up to rain and put the fire out. It had rained unseasonably all night, making the sheet metal roofing roar. It had been a deafening sound, but it had also been kind of relaxing, and it was probably what had given me such a deep and rested sleep.
I gave a sympathetic shrug of my shoulders as I passed him, and he shook his head in disappointment and sighed dejectedly.
I could see the dark figure of Daryl walking off into the woods ahead of me, and I chased after him calling out his name. He stopped and turned and waited for me to catch up.
"What're ya doin'." He asked me with a friendly smile, that looked a little awkward on his face. He gave Mix a rub on the head in greeting.
"I'm comin' huntin'." I replied, presenting him with Len's bow.
He looked the bow over with a frown on his face.
"That big-ass thing?" He said pointing at the bow. "It's twice your size, girl."
I gave my shoulders a shrug. "I thought it would be kinda cool to have two archers in the group. You could teach me couldn't you?"
He glanced down at his own crossbow, and then held it out for me. I took it in one hand, and then he grabbed for Len's bow and I let him take it.
"You look better with my Stryker." He said regarding me with a grin. He brought his hand up to his chin and began rubbing it between his thumb and forefinger thoughtfully. "No. Your Stryker." He corrected, flicking a finger towards me.
Was Daryl giving me his crossbow? I was completely dumbfounded and I just gaped at him in wide eyed disbelief. Daryl had been the crossbowman from the start. It was part of who he was. I would dare say it was his most prized possession, aside from his leather vest. This was big, this was basically like him handing me an engagement ring. He grinned at my shocked facial expression and then turned his head to the bow in his hands.
"Bowtech 101st Airborne." He muttered looking it over. "Been a while since I used one of these."
We trudged through the open woodland in a comfortable silence, enjoying the peaceful tranquillity, and the fresh smell of wet pine. We would steal glances at each other every now and then, while we poked around in the leaves and bushes looked around for animal tracks. The trees eventually thinned out and we came to a creek about twenty yards wide, filled with the winter rains of last night, which ran rapid tumbling over rocks and crashing down in bubbles of white.
"You remember after we left the prison, the first time we went and washed in that creek?" I reminisced.
"How could I forget? You got one fat leech on ya and you came rushin' out screamin' blue murder." He chuckled, waving his hands in the air mockingly. "Thought some water walker had grabbed ya."
I gave him a playful push. "You had to pull it off me, 'cause I couldn't get a grip on it."
"Yeah and it was right up your thigh, and your panties were all wet and I could see everythin'. Man I thought I would lose my mind." Daryl said with a huge grin on his face.
"You could see everythin'?" I enquired curiously.
Daryl dropped his eyes sheepishly and red crept up his neck like he had just been caught out doing something naughty.
"Daryl Dixon, how long have you been thinkin' of me like that?" I asked.
"Like what?"
"Like someone you might want?"
"I dunno." He said with a shake of his shoulders, still looking down and avoiding my eyes.
"How long." I asked again bending my head so I could look at his face.
"Thinkin' it was back when Zach died, and I came told you, you 'member?"
I nodded sadly thinking of the night they had come home from the supply run minus Zach.
"You hugged me, and yer sweater fell of yer shoulder, and it looked so clean and white and smooth. Man, I felt like such a creep thinkin' of you like that when your boy had jus' died."
I was jerking my head up and down, nodding as I remembered. That was the first time I had held Daryl like that, and he had felt so warm and familiar, and if I hadn't have been thinking of Zach at the time, I might have been thinking of Daryl the same way he was thinking of me.
"Wow! That long huh?" I murmured, coming to realisation that Daryl had been attracted to me, before I had even been attracted to him.
"I guess." He said with a shrug, peering up at me with a small grin on his face.
"I'm real sorry Beth." He continued.
"About what?"
"'bout what I said before, 'bout you making me feel guilty. That's not why I did it."
"I know." I said giving him a gentle reassuring tap on the arm.
"I really do care about you." He added.
"I know." I repeated.
"More than just a friend."
My heart beat leapt into my throat and crept up my face settling on my lips as a smile. "I know." I repeated again.
"And I'm sorry 'bout leavin' and makin' you worry 'bout me."
I nodded my head accepting his apology. "I'm really sorry about hittin' you." I apologised back.
"The hittin' didn't bother me none." He glanced up at me with his head cocked to the side. He was running his hands over his new bow nervously. "Being called a dumbass redneck hurt, 'cause it was the truth, but I never had no-one callin' me degenerate before…to my face."
He looked so sad, and hurt by my previous words. I drew him in to me for a hug, and he wrapped his free arm around my shoulders, pulling me against him.
"You're not a dumbass, or a degenerate. You may be a bit of a redneck, but you're my redneck." I said into his chest.
He gave a little chuckle and rubbed over my shoulder.
"Yeah, guess I am."
I lingered in his warm and strong embrace for a moment, taking in the familiar smell of sweat and dirt and wet pine. I allowed my senses to be overwhelmed with the smell, and touch and sight of him, absorbing them all together in my body and feeling it respond with a sharp jolt between my legs.
From my position with my head on his chest I turned my head upwards, and waited for him to look down and meet my gaze.
"Think you need to give me another lesson." I suggested.
"In huntin'?"
"No. In keepin' real quiet."
I examined his face as I watched his eyes grow wide in realisation of what I was talking about. The last time he had taken me out hunting, he had tried to give me a lesson in keeping real quiet under pressure. I knew I had failed miserably, but we had been interrupted before he was able to give me a final evaluation.
Daryl let the bow in his hand drop to the ground. Then he placed both hands on the side of my face and pulled me towards him for a kiss. It was a wet, hot, passionate kiss; the type that sent chills through my body and left me gasping for air. He ran his fingers over my shoulder and slipped them under the strap of the crossbow and lifted it over my head and dropped it down on top of his bow. Then he put his hands on to my back and pulled me against his chest. He put his mouth to my lips and took my lower lip in his teeth, biting down gently and drawing back on it, until it had sprung free.
The new style of kissing left me trembling at the knees and wanting for more. I pushed my lips against his and returned a kiss of lustful fury, using my tongue, lips and teeth to assault his willing mouth. The kiss continued while he ran his hands over my body, to my backside and up my shirt exposing my skin to the freezing winter air. The sudden cold, mixed with the fire already in my blood made me moan, and he chuckled lightly at me.
"So you still wanna do it out in the wild like animals, huh?" He murmured into my mouth.
"Yes, Mr Dixon." I whispered, my lips brushing gently against his.
He pulled away from me, and grabbed at his poncho and pulled it over his head. He took it in two hands and shook it and then spread it on the damp ground by our feet. Then he turned back to me, grabbed me by the back of my thighs and lifted me up so my legs wrapped about him above his waist. He spun me around and then went to his knees and lay me gently back down on his poncho.
He sat back and began placing firm kisses against my inner thigh, pressing them against my jeans, and then moved down my bent leg to the crotch of my jeans and growled hot air between my legs. I giggled at him, and ran my fingers through his long, dark hair.
I heard a low whimper from my side and we both turned our heads to Mix, who was sitting by us, watching our little performance, and looking as anxious as a dog could look.
"Think maybe he doesn't like to watch?" Daryl asked turning back to me.
His question was answered when Mix let out another whimper and then darted off in to the woods.
Daryl went back to kissing me, moving his mouth upwards, over the fly of my jeans and to my bare naval, lifting my shirt as he made his way upward.
My skin was all gooseflesh, both from the cold air, and from the exhilaration of his hot wet lips against my skin. He continued to push my shirt up to my bra and then, slipped his fingers under the wiring and pushed that up over my breasts too, so that everything was bundled up on my neck. My nipples drew tight as the freezing air fell on them.
He stopped suddenly, and I looked down on his face that was glaring at my breast.
"What happened here?" He asked, and I remembered that Anton had bit me there, and there was still a faded blue circular mark left behind.
"That was Anton, he bit me." I told him.
He clucked deep in his throat, and then swallowed hard.
"How close did he get?"
"Pretty close, but I got away. Nothing happened." I reassured him, stroking firmly over his broad shoulders in a comforting manner.
"I'm so fuckin' sorry! I'll never leave you again." He declared passionately before putting his lips back to the mark and kissing it gently.
His mouth moved down against my rock hard nipple and he drew it into his mouth and began suckling on it, until it was warm and supple, and I was groaning in delight.
I began unbuttoning his shirt, while he made his way back and forth between both my breasts, trying to get his mouth over my nipples before they turned hard in the cold air again.
He sat back on his knees and tugged at my belt loosening it and then he undid my jeans exposing my underwear. He sniggered a little at the sight.
"You got some new panties?" He asked.
I crooked my neck a little to see what he was talking about.
"Yeah, while I was out with David, found a pack unopened. They're a little bit small, but you know, can't turn down clean underwear." I had lost my last pair of underwear back in the warehouse with Len, and had felt awkward walking around without any on.
"Did ya have to get ones with kittens all o'er 'em?" He said, running his finger over the frilled elastic waistband. I giggled thinking of the child's underwear I had grabbed.
"Yer makin' me feel like a real creep ya know?" He said, as he slipped his fingers into the top of the underpants and started pulling them down with my jeans.
He dragged my jeans down removing my boots and socks along with them as he pulled them off. My legs were trembling before him, but only in anticipation. I couldn't even feel the cold anymore.
He undid his belt and fly and pulled his jeans down his thighs and then pushed his bare skin against mine.
I rubbed my hands over his exposed chest and down across his abdomen and then around under his shirt to his back, feeling the ridges of the scars. I pulled him towards me, as he pressed himself into me, gliding in slowly through the slick wetness, letting me feel him enter inch by inch. I let out a throaty groan, forgetting all about our lesson.
He put his hands under my arms and pressed on my shoulder blades, pulling my against his chest, and he kissed my neck and ear while he drove himself into me with long deep thrusts. He let out a few desperate groans in to my ear and I moaned loudly up into the canopy of trees above, and it was clear that we had both failed the lesson.
He continued to drive in to me for what felt like an eternity. I lost all sense of time and location as my mind and body ascended into heavenly bliss. I was only drawn out of my state when I felt him suddenly still above me. I opened my eyes to see what had made him stop. And followed his gaze over my head to see a walker was approaching in filthy and tattered clothes, with grey skin sagging off its skeletal frame. It was moaning through a gaping mouth with its arms outstretched stumbling towards us.
Without even waiting for Daryl to say or do anything, I reached to the side and grabbed for the crossbow. Then holding the bow upside down I aimed it up towards the Walkers chin, and shot the arrow up into its skull. It fell slowly to its knees and toppled to the side landing only a few feet away from us.
I dropped the bow above my head and looked back to Daryl who was glaring at me with a baffled look on his face.
"What?" I said, with a shrug of my shoulders.
"That was…kind of a turn on." He said before putting his lips back to my neck and mouthing over the column of my throat while he continued to drive in to me. My lips drew into a wide grin and I allowed myself to moan loudly, not caring who or what heard me.
When he had reached his climax he pulled himself out of me and emptied on to the dirt beside the poncho, with a staggered groan. He looked back at me when he was done, breathing heavily with his bare chest rising and falling noticeably.
"We're gonna need to get some rubbers." He said. "That's gettin' harder to do every time."
We took time redressing, mostly as we were distracted by our hands and lips moving all over each other's bodies, filled with our remaining lust. When we were finally done, he pulled me up off the poncho and picked it up and gave it a shake, then pulled it back over his head.
"Smells like you?" He said sniffing at the fabric.
"Is that good?" I asked.
"Yeah, but might be kind of distractin'."
We both grinned at each other and then went to pick up our bows. I drew up on the string to reload it and he watched as my muscles flexed and strained until it latched into place. I looked up at him, and he gave me a look of pride. I nocked an arrow into place and then swung the bow upwards while turning back to the creek.
I stopped suddenly, mid-turn, as I spotted a large stag, with bone coloured antlers growing out of its head like barren tree branches. It was making its way down the embankment of the creek, completely oblivious to our presence.
Daryl looked to me and nodded, indicating that I should take a shot. I silently took to a knee and shot the crossbow sending the bolt directly into its eye. It let out a small shriek and then fell to the ground.
"Well done!" Daryl marvelled, before giving me an encouraging pat on the back. "Don't think you need me at all no more."
I grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him in for a rough kiss.
"I will always need you." I informed him firmly.
We both stalked over to where the Stag was laying on the embankment. Its heavy body was slowly slipping against the leaves towards the rushing water. It looked like it was going to be real heavy and I wondered if we were going to be able to carry it back to Terminus.
Daryl was looking down at the embankment determining a safe path down so he could get a good hold of the stag. He placed his bow on the ground, and then began easing his way down, to the stag's head, where he grabbed hold of the antlers and began trying to drag it back up. I watched him as he struggled and strained, and then put my bow down ready to go and give him aid, but halted when I saw his boot sink into the mud and then him slip down the embankment dragging the stag down with him.
I watched in horror as he fell into the icy water, with the stag slamming up against him, so he was knocked down under the water towards the rocks below. He was now rolling and tumbling through the rushing water, trying to grip against the protruding rocks. I ran alongside him on the bank of the creek trying to catch up to him. I let out a squeal as I saw him knock his head against one of the sharp rocks and go under the water.
"Daryl!" I shrieked, as I darted down the more gentle slope and splashed my boots into the chilly water. I was momentarily relieved when his head came back up coughing and spluttering, with blue fingers gripping against the nearby rocks. He managed to drag himself over to me slowly and I met him half way and tried to pull his heavy body out of the water. His soaking boots and clothing were pulling him down and I grunted and groaned and strained trying to tug his weight through the rushing water.
He was getting so heavy, and my arms were trembling with fear, cold and overexertion and I had the horrible thought that I was going to let go of him and he would go tumbling down the creek and out of sight.
Just when I thought I couldn't hold him any longer, I felt his body suddenly get lighter. I looked down to see the wet, matted clumps of fur and teeth of Mix, pulling on his poncho and helping me drag him back to the bank. When we got there I fell down beside Daryl utterly exhausted. Daryl was trembling beside me on the dirt. His wet hair was pasted to his forehead, his teeth chattering uncontrollably and his lips and hands were blue.
"F…f…f… fuck!" He chattered, watching as the Stag tumbled down the creek, lost forever.
AN: Thank you to all who have reviewed and followed. It's what gives me the motivation to go on. The chapters are going to slow down a bit now I've caught up to AO3. I hope to have a new one out at least once a week.