AN:Thank you guys for all the positive feedback after chapter 30 (III:VI) I was really anxious about it as I thought most would run screaming and send me hate mail and death threats, but everyone has been really great. I just hope that this chapter doesn't bring on the hate mail instead...

This chapter is lemony. It's lemon pie, followed by freshly squeezed lemonade, with a lime twist at the end ;) Hope you enjoy…

The Walking Deth - Part III

Where We Belong - Chapter VII

Crime & Punishment

The shade popped off the stand of the lamp, and almost fell out of my grip. I placed it down on the oak table amongst the mess of papers and writing utensils, and then pulled the base of the lamp closer to where Daryl was seated. Although I had insisted on stitching Daryl up as soon as we got out of the bathroom, Daryl had taken off with his freshly acquired bag of guns so that he could distribute them throughout the school.

He had stashed several weapons in different rooms on both floors of the school, and a single rifle in the plant room on the third floor. He said he wanted to be prepared, but for what exactly, I wasn't sure. I pointed out the danger in having weapons all over the school with the kids around, and he insisted that instead of teaching them how to read, we taught them how to remove a safety and pull a trigger.

It took him what was left of the day to prepare the school for this phantom siege, and when he went down to get some cold soup for dinner; I was already busy getting the kids ready for bed. By the time he made it back to our room, it was well past dusk, and the office was dark. We didn't use the ceiling lights as they drained too much from the solar, and there was no fuel for the generator, so the lamp was our only choice.

The medical kits that had been left in the gym from when it was used as an evacuation centre were all lacking in suture kits. I had to use some nylon thread and a curved needle from the home studies room to sew Daryl up. It had also been lacking in aspirin, or any form of pain killer, and I wished I hadn't drank all of that whiskey, so that he could at least block out some of the pain.

He didn't squirm when I doused him with antiseptic lotion, he didn't flinch when I stuck the needle into his flesh, and he didn't wince when I tugged the thread through and closed his skin together. He just stared blankly into nothingness.

I didn't need a degree in psychology to know that something was bothering him. He had been quiet and brooding ever since he returned from the hunting trip with Austin and the silence was becoming unnerving.

When I had finished with the stitches, two on his temple and five on his shoulder, I opened a pack of gauze and smoothed it over his wounds with some adhesive tape to hold in place. I took his grey haired chin between my thumb and forefinger and turned his face up to me, so I could look into his swollen eyes.

After holding his gaze for a few moments, examining the flecks of grey that mingled with the blue, he shook out of my grip and looked back to the spot he had been staring at for the past hour.

"What happened to you guys today?"

"I told ya; ran into some trouble."

"I don't think that's gonna cut it Daryl. You go out to hunt, and you come back all beaten and bloody with a darn bullet hole in you and a bag full of guns. I think that needs some kinda explanation."

His eyes flicked briefly to mine, then back to nothingness.

"Didn't Austin explain it to you?"

"No. He just said some guys tried to hurt you, and you killed them all and took their stuff."

"Well, that's what happened."

I bent down so I could look into his eyes, putting my hands to my knees for support.

"How many were there? Where did you find them? Why did they have so many guns...and why're you actin' so weird?"

His cool blue eyes narrowed and he slowly turned them up to look at me. The look was angry, and almost threatening, but it hid a sadness that tore through my heart.

"There were five. I found them in a garage. They were military."

I waited for him to answer the last question.

Daryl glared at me, then gave a frustrated sigh and pushed himself out of the chair, standing to lean on the desk.

"And I'm fuckin' sore. Been stuck up in 'ere with you and a bunch of kids not doin' nothin' but play motherfuckin' hopscotch, hula hoops and handball… Then all a sudden gotta fight for my life… I've been too fuckin' soft."

I couldn't remember him ever being shot before, other than with his own arrow, and it very well could have killed him if it had have been a foot over. I guessed the near death experience had really shaken him up.

I leaned towards him, resting my hands on the desk on either side of his hips, and looked up into his downcast eyes.

"Is there somethin' I can do to make you feel better?"

All I could think of was the rough love making we had on the bathroom floor earlier that day. He had been so desperate and needy, and I had given into him, feeling a slight thrill at how rough he was being. I figured that was a thing guys did; had sex to make themselves feel better.

I waited for him to reply, while I gave him an inviting smile, and twitched my body from side to side, twirling my hips against his thighs.

His eyes were fixed to the floor at my side.

I let out a sigh and then put my hands to the hem of my tee and tugged it over my head and let it drop to the floor, and then I reached over him to the camera that was perched on the edge of the desk.

"Do you wanna take my picture?" I asked in a smooth satin voice, as I dangled the camera in front of my breasts.

He snatched the camera out of my hand and hurled it across the room. It hit the far wall with a crack and fell to the ground in two pieces, the lens piece snapped clean off.

"I don't wanna take no damn pictures of nothin'." He snarled at me, before pushing past me and moving towards the sofas.

"Daryl?" I called after him, confused at his destructive outburst. "Why'd you break that? You can't just go 'round breakin' things when your mad."

He tossed himself down on the sofa, fully clothed in his blood stained flannel, leather vest, jeans and boots, and he put his hands to his face as if shielding his eyes from the light, even though the room was barely lit.

"Nothin' happened!" He half yelled. "Nothin' happened I couldn't handle, or else I wouldn't be 'ere would I?"

I was a little stunned at what he had just said, given it had no direct precursor. He must have been really terrified today. I wasn't new to Daryl's moodiness. I knew he was stubborn when it came to revealing his thoughts and feelings, but I also knew if I pried enough he would divulge them.

I made my way over to where he lay, ready to give him a serving about bottling up his emotions, but re-thought it when I saw his face pinched in discomfort, with his thumb and forefinger rubbing against the un-swollen side of his forehead.

"Do you have a headache?"

"A bit." He grunted.

"Maybe you did some damage to your head?"

"I'm just tired, Greene." He opened his eyes and looked up at me. "Can we get some sleep?"

Feeling defeated by compassion, I walked back to the desk, flicked off the lamp, and stumbled through the dark room back over to the sofa.

I wriggled out of my clothes and boots, and fumbled around for my oversized sweater I liked to sleep in. I found it on the backrest of the sofa pulled it on and climbed in beside Daryl.

I tried to console him using my most gentle and soothing voice as I wrapped my arms around him; "I know it must have been scary out there, with just you and Austin and Mixy, but you made it, you're all safe, and that's what matters."

He grunted in response.

I nestled my face into his chest, and waited for him to put his arm around me like he usually did at night─ most often after we had made love ─but I didn't think that would be happening tonight. He didn't seem interested in me at all tonight. He just left his hands by the side of his head, and tapped his boots against the sofa arm in a nervous manner.

"You'll feel better after a good night's rest." I assured him.

He grunted again.

I turned my face upwards and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek.

"I love you." I whispered into his ear.

"Mmm." He mumbled.

My dream had been clouded and hazy. I couldn't pick the events that were unfolding or the characters that played them out, the only thing I could recognise was a voice, cold and dry and harsh.

"Shut the fuck up!" It snarled.

It made me startle from my sleep, and I snapped my eyes open to the darkened room and waited for them to adjust.

I was surrounded by cold night air, a feeling I had not experienced for months now. I always had Daryl's warm body pressed up against mine, whether it be by my side, on top, or below me. But that night, Daryl had shifted over the dip between the two sofas to settle on the other side.

I reached my hand out to search for his warmth, while I turned my head towards him. He was lying on his back in the exact same position he had first lay down in. With his arms bent and above his head, and his hands resting against his face. His eyes were wide open, the whites illuminated by the moonlight, and staring up towards the darkened ceiling.

I cleared my throat trying to shake the dryness, that I could feel had settled there throughout the night.

"You say somethin'?"

He was silent, but the sudden rigidness of his body gave away that he had heard me.

"No." He grunted in a voice that was identical to the one I had heard in my dream.

I pulled myself into the uncomfortable ditch that neither of us liked to sleep in, and rested my head against his chest. Heat radiated from him, seeping through his layers of flannel and leather. It made me worry that he may have an infection from his injuries, or it could be because he slept fully clothed, which he hadn't done for many weeks now.

"Can't sleep?" I asked in a whisper.

He twitched slightly against me. After a length of silence he finally spoke again.

"I'm sorry…'bout before."

I scoffed in amusement, surprised that he would let one of his regular bad moods keep him awake.

"It's okay I'm gettin' used to your tantrums...You didn't have to break the camera though."

He twitched again, let out a deep sigh, and shifted his legs against the leather of the sofa.

"Not then…before…in the bathroom…I hurt you."

The bathroom. That had been unsuspected, but it had been exciting and new. It did hurt a little, but the pleasure was worth it.

"It's okay." I wrapped my leg around his waist, and drew his hip towards me. "It was kind of fun, just throwin' caution to the wind and doin' it right there on the floor like that. I didn't mind it."

He scoffed into the darkness. I tried to look up to his face, but in the dim light I couldn't tell if it was a scoff of amusement, disbelief, derision or disgust.

"Did it make you feel better? Havin' sex?"

His breathing hitched and I could hear words that he wanted to say cracking in his throat. He was silent for a moment before replying.

"Just go back to sleep."

I woke to pre-dawn light and a soft clicking that echoed through the room. I listened out for the sound of Daryl's breathing which was usually hot upon my neck, but this morning I couldn't hear it or feel it. I turned to my side to see the sofa beside me was empty.

Realising what the clicking sound had been, I clamoured out of bed, over to the door and flung it open to search the corridor for him. I saw his dark shadow, only just visible under the dim skylight; turn around the corner and out of sight.

Dragging the hem of my sweater down around my thighs, I padded my bare feet over the cold linoleum floor after him.

"Daryl." I whispered down the corridor not wanting to wake the children. He stopped in his tracks and turned to face me. The swelling over his eye had settled down to a dark purple ring, yet the skin around his stitches still looked puckered and inflamed. He was wearing his poncho and had both his bow and a rifle slung over his good shoulder, and a handgun in a holster on his hip. On his other hip was a large bag that folded as if it were mostly empty.

"You goin' somewhere?" I asked while eying him up.

He hesitated before me, dropping his eyes to his boots then looking to the pictures on the wall and then to the bag, as if he was trying to avoid my gaze.

"Yeah." He finally replied.

"Well…where?"

His eyes darted back and forth like he was thinking hard about it.

"Found a battery yesterday. Gonna try it out in the bus back at Austin's school."

"Oh…I thought we didn't need the bus anymore."

Daryl crossed his arms and shrugged his shoulders.

"We don't know what's gonna happen, Beth. What if someone comes by with a tank, decides they want what's ours and try an' blow us outta 'ere. We need an escape plan, right?"

I cringed as memory of losing the prison and daddy flooded back to me. "I guess so."

He turned to leave again, and I skipped my steps so I could catch up to him.

"Do you want me to drive you in the Honda? So you don't have to leave your bike?"

"Nah, I'm gonna walk."

I grabbed hold of his arm and turned him to face me.

"Walk? But you were real hot last night, you might have a fever. And the battery; won't it be heavy? And I can…"

"No." He interrupted. "I want to walk."

He started to move away from me again, but I gripped his arm keeping him in place.

"Daryl, you need to tell me if somethin' is upsettin' you. If you don't tell me, I can't help."

"I don't need your help." He snapped, as he shook out of my grip. "I don't need no-ones help. I don't need no-one for nothin'."

It certainly wasn't the first time he had thrown that line at me, but I didn't think I would be hearing it again from his lips.

"I know you don't need my help, but I want to help you. You should let me."

"Jus' lemme go on my own. I need some time to think."

I wondered what it was he needed to think about.

"Okay. You keep safe."

There was a part deep inside of me that felt like I should say goodbye, but I hated goodbyes. So I just smiled weakly at him as he made his way through the corridor and down the stairs.

Austin claimed that his school was only a ten minute drive from here. So I guessed it would take about an hour to walk. Maybe an hour and a half if you were carrying weapons and a large battery. I figured it would take an hour to fit the battery in place and then ten minutes to drive home. Daryl should have been gone for no more than three hours. I expected him home in the late morning, and waited at the gate, while I practiced shooting the crossbow into the trees that lined the front path.

After an hour of waiting I went back inside to give the kids their lessons. I wasn't much in the mood for teaching, but I had to stick with routine for the sake of the kids. After our lessons we had lunch, and then I went out to wait for him again, throwing a stick idly to Mix who had decided to keep me company, while the kids tumbled through the overgrown gardens.

When he wasn't home by dinner time, I started to get very concerned, and anxiously checked the clocks in every room of the school as I walked past. I made the children take their showers and read them a rushed story before going in to the office to wait for him again. I sat in the chair and pulled it right up to the window, leaning my forearms against the cold glass, hoping to see some sign he was out there.

When I next looked at the clock on the principal's desk it was midnight. I had been tapping my foot nervously and chewing on my nails for nearly four hours.

I shouldn't have let him go out there alone. He had obviously had headaches and his temperature was up. He might have passed out somewhere. He might have crashed the bus on the way home. Some bad people might have attacked him again, and even though he was heavily armed, he was in no state to fight.

I was considering leaving the children, grabbing my Stryker and taking the Honda out to search for him, when I saw a tiny light flashing downhill in the town. I jumped to my feet and pressed my face to the glass watching to see the light get larger and split in to two. When I recognised the lights belonged to a school bus, driving down the main street, I dashed out of the office, downstairs and outside so I could open the gate for him.

Once the bus was parked up next to his bike, I waited for him to get off, getting ready to blast him for making me worry about him all day.

When he finally got out the door I reconsidered my plan of attack. He looked haggard, his eyes were puffy and his skin looked blotchy and pale.

"What happened to you?" I cried as I raced towards him and threw my arms around his waist, anger replaced with relief.

"Took longer than I thought." He pried my hands away, and then moved towards the front door of the school.

"I was so worried about you." I followed him inside and toward the stairs.

"I actually thought you might not come back at one stage." I chuckled nervously

"One day I might not."

"What do you mean?"

"One day somethin' might happen to me, and I might not come back. You gotta be prepared for that." He turned off the staircase and down the corridor towards the faculty rooms.

"That's not gonna happen." I laughed humourlessly.

"It might." He said bluntly while spinning around to face me. "Do you think you can drive that thing?" He pointed down toward the staircase. I guessed he meant the bus.

"Maybe. I drove the truck on the farm sometimes, but I won't need to because you…"

"No." He interrupted. "I gotta teach you how to drive it. I'll teach ya tomorrow." He stumbled a little, and leaned on the wall for support.

I put my hand to his forehead and felt that it was hot and clammy, and I wondered if there were any antibiotics in the medical kits.

"Daryl you look really awful, I think you should just rest tomorrow."

He shook his head and backed away from me heading towards the principal's office.

"No. I did that for too long." He grunted before pushing a hand off the wall and disappearing through the open doorway into the office.

I followed him in, closing the door behind me and watched as he threw all his gear to the ground and then dropped to the sofa, fully clothed for the second night.

I felt so bad for him. His run in yesterday had really scared him. He had gone back to the paranoid Daryl, who didn't know how to rest and relax, even when he was sick. He had no reason to worry here, no one had been past here but us.

I turned off the lamp and crawled on to the sofa curling up beside him, and wrapping my arm around his chest.

"It'll get better." I mumbled.

He groaned in response.

"I'll help make it better." I kissed him on the cheek, and he shifted uncomfortably.

"I love you." I whispered for the second time.

For the second time he mumbled his reply.

Daryl didn't look as awful the next morning. His colour had gone back to normal, and he didn't feel so hot to the touch, but I still insisted he stay at the school for the day.

I dragged him into the library with us after the chores and lessons were done, so we could lay by the windows in the sun and read books. There had been a spring downpour earlier that morning and everything was wet outside so I thought it the perfect opportunity to have some quiet indoor time.

Daryl grunted and groaned about being dragged in there, but he seemed fairly content to lie down on a bean bag and close his eyes. Of course he wasn't going to be able to sleep as the kids were never quiet. But I wanted him by my side so I could keep an eye on his condition.

The kids had decided to have a bean bag fight, and then some of the younger kids decided to make a tower from the books, and the double floor library was filled with the squeals and laughter of children. Daryl grunted, groaned and shifted in the beanbag seemingly bothered by the noise.

I encouraged the kids to pick a book and read it to themselves in an effort to keep them quiet, and I leaned up against Daryl's bean bag reading a vampire romance novel aimed at teens. It had a weak storyline, but it was a cute love story. Winnie interrupted my thoughts of impossible romances when she dropped on to my lap and pushed a book into my face.

"Read this to me, momma." She begged me with her big brown eyes

"She ain't your momma." Daryl snapped from behind us. The sound of his voice was so sudden and aggressive that tears immediately came to Winnie's eyes.

"Daryl!" I chastised, while turning an angry glare at him.

"Well you ain't." He glared back at me. "The only one who ever shoulda called you momma is Judith. Remember her? Huh? You raised her from birth and then you walked out and left her."

That was quite possibly the most hurtful thing he had ever said to me. It hit me like a knife in the guts that dragged right up through my chest, and twisted through my heart.

"I did not leave her Daryl." I tried to hold back angry tears. "They left us! Don't you ever imply that I meant to leave her, 'cause it's bullshit!" I had no regard for watching my language around the kids as I usually did. I just waved an angry finger in his face and continued to snarl at him. "I loved that little girl with all my heart."

"Yeah, well… you don't seem to be in no hurry to get back to 'er."

I sighed, impatient with his emotional attack on me.

"Daryl we've talked about that. You know why."

I flicked my eyes cautiously over to the kids who had now stopped what they were doing to watch us. I didn't want them to know that we had decided not to go to Washington in case they wouldn't take them in. I didn't want them to feel responsible for keeping us here and away from our loved ones.

Daryl must have read my body language, as he pressed his lips together in silence and glared up at the ceiling two levels above him.

I ushered Winnie off my lap so that I could turn my body in to face him.

"Daryl, you gotta talk to me. You can't just be snappin' at me all the time, that's not gonna help anythin'. Tell me what it is that's botherin' you…Did somethin' happen while you were out there that you're not tellin' me about?"

"What do you care, Goldilocks?" He snapped.

"Goldilocks?"

"Yeah. 'cause you come into a man's home and fuck with all the shit he's ever known."

He pushed his arms down into the beanbag and threw himself upwards to standing position.

I stood to face him and we both glared angrily at each other while we continued to bicker.

"Why are you bein' such an ass?"

"I'm fuckin' tired of this same old shit, I'm tired of havin' kids hangin' off me all day. Wantin' me to play dollies with 'em, and kiss their booboos. I'm tired of bein' the only fuckin' adult 'round 'ere."

"The only adult?" I growled.

"I'm just…I'm fuckin' tired." He gave his eyes a rub, and then the top of his nose a pinch. "Will you just shut the fuck up!" He yelled towards the kids.

"Daryl, they didn't say anythin'."

He looked around at the kids who had been completely silent for a few minutes now, and were watching him with shocked looks on their faces.

"My head's poundin'." He said while pressing his palms to his ears, and squeezing his face together in tension.

"I'm not convinced you're well." I forced a soft tone into my voice, while I examined his run down appearance. "Maybe just go upstairs, get some rest. I'll come check on you later."

Daryl nodded without looking at me, and made his way up the stairs and to the upper level exit of the library.

I dropped myself back down to the beanbag and thought over the argument we had just had. He had been mean, but he had also been honest. Even though I'm sure he didn't intend to, he had revealed some important clues about what had been bothering him.

He missed the others, he was overwhelmed with the task of taking care of the children, and he held me partially responsible for keeping him here.

As angry as I was at him, I could understand where he was coming from. He had gone from being a drifter who didn't have to care about anyone but himself, to a member of a council that looked after a community of mostly adults, to one of only two adults amongst a mass of children. He had stepped up to the huge responsibility, without complaint, until now. He had been so good to all of us, and I really hadn't shown him enough gratitude.

That would change as of now.

...

I had been insanely curious about the magazines I had found in the locked box several days earlier. I had flicked through them a couple of times, wondering what all the fuss was about. I don't think daddy ever would have read them, and my brother Shawn must have kept them well hidden as I never saw them, even after all the times I had snooped through his room.

The articles were all aimed at men, and mainly talked about cars, lifting weights, food, beer and sex. There was nothing much of interest in there for me, but it did give me an insight into what men wanted. The impression that I got was if I gave Daryl a good feed, and mind blowing sex, it would make him a happy man once again. So I decided that was my task for the rest of that day.

The kids were able to help me with the first stage. We slaughtered a few chickens, seeing as we had too many of them anyway, especially with all the chicks now hatching, and we prepared them and roasted them quick smart before the meat started to go rigid.

We collected fresh vegetables from the garden to roast up with the chicken, and I mixed up some stuffing using stale bread and herbs.

Marie decided to take things one step further and got some rolls of material from the home studies room, some of our emergency candles, and set about turning the cafeteria into a restaurant. She even drew up some colourful menus with the help of the other kids and set them on the tables.

I picked some our strawberries, which weren't quite ripe yet, but I would stew them in sugar which would make up for the tartness. Desert was such a rare thing around here, and it was a special occasion.

When everything was ready and out in the servery, I went back upstairs to collect Daryl.

Walking down the empty dark hall, I swear I could hear a voice speaking in an angry, low tone. When I got to the door of the office, I could hear it was Daryl.

"I tried." He growled. "I can't…she won't make it…just shut the fuck up!"

I pushed the door open, expecting to see him talking to one of the kids, but I only saw him pacing back and forth around the room, looking like he hadn't slept at all.

He stopped suddenly, looking startled when he saw me standing there.

"Who were you talking too?" I asked, while my eyes darted around the room.

"I weren't talkin'." He snapped angrily.

"Yeah you were…I heard you."

"I was givin' my dick a pep talk alright?"

He was being all angry and aggressive again, so I tried to neutralise the situation with humour.

"Isn't she gonna make it?" I teased playfully.

He didn't say anything, but the angry glare fell from his face.

"I've got a surprise for you." I said sweetly as I stepped towards him, took his hands in mine and pulled him back towards the door.

I could see he was trying to fight a smile when he walked into the cafeteria. It did look amazing with all the tables covered in brightly coloured material and the children sitting so quietly and sweetly looking up at him. The smell of roast chicken and vegetables filled the room, and reminded me of home.

I sat Daryl down at a candlelit table and served him a plate piled high. He started picking at it with his hands, before a nudged the knife and fork in his direction which he reluctantly plucked up and started stabbing into his food awkwardly.

When he was done with dinner I served everyone desert. The children squealed with delight, which made me laugh, and Daryl smiled for the first time in days, which washed me with a wave of relief, taking it as a sign he was on the way to recovery.

After dinner he said he was going outside for a smoke, and I spent the time helping the kids clean up, reading them a bed time story and tucking them in to bed for the night.

When I was done I went searching for Daryl so I could get prepared for the second stage of my 'make Daryl feel better' plan.

I found him sitting at the front of the school watching three walkers try to force their way between the iron bars, while he casually sucked on a cigarette.

"Are you gonna finish 'em?" I asked as I approached him, keeping my eyes on the moaning dead.

He threw his cigarette on the ground, and extinguished it with his boot. By the look of the butt covered dirt by his feet, he must have sat there and smoked just about the whole packet in a space of only an hour or so. There were at least a dozen butts there that I'm sure had not been there earlier.

He kicked his pile of butts to the side, then got up walked casually over to the walkers, pulled out his knife and stabbed them one after the other in the head.

"Guess so." He said when they were down and silent.

I stepped to him and took hold of his filthy flannel shirt.

"I've got more dessert for you." I said with a warm smile.

"I'm pretty full." He kept his eyes on his shoes and avoided my attempted sensual gaze.

I put my finger to his chin and lifted his face up.

"This is a very special adult's only dessert."

His cheeks grew red as recognition grew in his eyes.

"Is that right?" He said with a sly grin.

"Yes. So why don't you take a little longer on your perimeter check tonight, so I can prepare."

"What you need to prepare? All you gotta do is take your clothes off."

I grinned at him, pleased that he was oblivious to my surprise.

"You'll see. Just give me about an hour." I winked at him and then examined his filthy clothes and skin. "You better take a shower when you're done too." I turned around and walked away swaying my hips. I glanced back at him when I reached the door, to see he was watching me with a big dopey looking grin on his face.

If any of the girls in that magazine were dressed, they were dressed in a costume. There was a nurse, a maid, a policewoman, and there was even one woman dressed up like a cat. I didn't have any of those particular costumes here, but there were plenty of cheerleader uniforms in the lockers in the change rooms. I was sure that guys were in to cheerleaders, I think that was why just about every girl at my school wanted to be one. I never did, as their schedule clashed with band practice, but I could be one for a night, if it would make Daryl happy.

I took time to shower, making sure every inch of my body was clean, and then went to the mirrors to make my face up with what I had found in the students lockers. Most of it was dried out, and I had nearly forgotten how to apply it, as I hadn't used any for near on two years, but the finished product was smokey and sultry and sexy, and that was the look I was going for. I let my hair dry naturally, tumbled over my shoulders, knowing it would curl and add to the sultry look. I slipped into the orange skirt that only just covered my backside, and a white and orange tank with 'Green Mount Cats' on the front and an image of a panther on the back with 'Parans futura' written underneath. I checked out my reflection in the mirror. It was the first time in my life I had ever felt sexy, and I was sure Daryl was going to love it. I wrapped a towel around my shoulders and then stealthily made my way through the corridors and back up stairs.

Once inside I positioned myself on the desk with my legs crossed and feet dangling in the air, and my chest pressed forward to exaggerate what little I had in the chest department, and I waited for him to come through the door. After waiting anxiously for around twenty minutes, with my dangling feet becoming numb, the door handle slid down, and the door was slowly pushed open. Daryl stepped through the door opening, dressed only in his jeans, carrying his clothes and boots under his arm, with his short hair dripping water over his broad shoulders.

He took one look at me, dropped everything in his arms to the floor and then backed into the door to shut it behind him.

"What the fuck are you wearin'?" He asked me with unexpected vehemence in his voce.

I pushed myself off the desk dropping to the floor lightly and I strolled over to him by the door, switching my hips as seductively as possible.

"We're gonna play a game." I grinned at him lasciviously, and ran my hand over his warm, damp chest. "I'm gonna be the naughty student who gets sent to the principal's office."

He grabbed my hand between his to still my movement and glared down at me.

"For Christ's sake Beth, you think I like bein' reminded how much older I am 'an you?" He pushed past me and stormed into the middle of the room, flicking his arms up in the air angrily. "You think I like fuckin' with little high school girls or somethin'. That what you think I am? Some kinda pervert?"

I stepped forward and grabbed hold of his flailing arms to still them.

"Did you think that maybe I'm the one who likes…fucking...with an older man?"

He stilled in my grip, and his eyes ran over my body from toe to head, taking in my new appearance. I could tell every muscle in his face was fighting that smirk, but when it appeared it was glorious.

"C'mon. It's just for fun. I promise you'll like it."

"You do look kinda cute." The smirk finally exploded into a smile, and his face flushed pink.

"Now Principal Dixon, you have to sit in your chair." I tugged him by his wrist over to the principal's desk and gently pushed him so he fell back into the chair.

I tossed my head to the side innocently and circled my finger across the desk, while I twirled my bare foot into the floor.

"I've been a bad, bad girl Principal Dixon and I need to be punished."

Daryl leaned forward in the chair, resting his elbows on the arm rests, and began rubbing a hand through his beard, twisting the ends in his fingers, looking like a cop who was about to hear a much anticipated confession.

"You have?"

"Yesss" I hissed, as I put my hands behind my back and swung my shoulders slowly from side to side trying to look innocent and sinful at the same time.

His hand left his beard and he began rubbing his fingers together by his face.

He flicked a finger towards me; "What did you do Miss Greene?"

"Well Principal Dixon." I walked my fingers across his arm that lay on the armrest of the chair, and circled my fingers across the back of his hand. "I started something and I didn't finish it. And it's very very naughty to start things and not finish them."

"It is. What did you start and not finish?"

I dropped down to my knees in between his legs, and plucked at his belt, loosening it from the buckle. I turned my eyes up to him and watched his face as I pulled it from the loops and then started unbuttoning his pants. He was watching me with a look of shock and awe and stunned anticipation in his eyes, and he held my gaze as he lifted his hips so I could tug his jeans down to his ankles.

I reached my hand around the base of his half erect shaft and ran it gently along him, pulling along the soft skin and lengthening it out. He let out a gentle moan and his apple bobbed as he swallowed. Still keeping my eyes on him I brushed the base of my lower lip over his end, until it had slipped under the bottom of it, and then I rubbed his end gently along the inside of my lip.

"This." I hissed, before flicking my tongue out so it just brushed his skin, curious of his reaction.

He squeezed his eyes shut and gripped down on the arms of the chair.

"Yes you did Miss Greene, and that was very very bad." His voice was strained and barely above a whisper.

I took my tongue to the base of his shaft where my hand was firmly placed, and ran it upwards along the underside of him, feeling the skin shift under the pressure of my tongue. He seemed to grow longer and thicker in my hand as I moved along. Once I had reached the end I rolled my tongue under and over the ridges, licking upwards like I was trying to stop the drips from a melting ice-cream.

Keeping my eyes on him to watch his reaction I flicked my tongue daintily through the groove in the middle, just as had been suggested in the magazine. He jumped and tensed when I did it.

"Don't you like it?" I asked, keeping his end on my lips.

"No, I fuckin' love it. Keep goin'."

I obeyed, taking the end of him in my mouth and repeating the action of my tongue running through his groove, while my lips pressed around the end of him. He groaned, and sighed and fought to keep his eyes on me.

I rolled my tongue back under the ridge of his end, and then dragged my tongue and lips back to the tip of him together in one fluid motion, as if I was popping a lollipop in and out of my mouth. I repeated this several times, keeping my eyes raised and observant of his reactions. I began moving my hand up and down his shaft to meet with the movements of my mouth, using the wetness that was trickling from my mouth to lubricate the action. He was at his full length and thickness now, and there was barely room for him in my mouth, but I still swirled my tongue around him as much as I could, while I bobbed my head up and down, trying to take in more and more of him with every downward thrust.

I had read about 'deep throat' in that magazine, and it seemed like an impossible thing to do, especially with someone who was so large, but I attempted to simulate it as much as possible, by pushing him in as far as I could and using my hands to cover what I couldn't with my mouth. The first time he hit the back of my throat, my reflex was to gag. So I kept still for a moment, dropping my eyes in concentration, and allowing myself to adjust to the new sensation. Once I had control I eased him further into my mouth.

"Holy fucking fuck." Daryl cried, and I looked up at him to see his eyes were closed, and his face was flushed and sweaty.

I drew him out of me again a few inches and then slowly put him back forcing him in a little further again. He groaned and put both hands to the side of my head, guiding me as I moved up and down, while he gently thrust his hips towards me. It didn't take all that many strokes, before he started twitching and wriggling and panting heavily.

He took his hands away from my head and gripped them down on the arm rest. "You better stop, Greene. You're 'bout to get a mouth load."

That was the point of the entire exercise.

Ignoring him, I gripped my hand tight around his shaft and made my movements quicker and firmer, pushing my tongue against him and sucking when I got to the end, before plunging him back into my throat. I did this only for a short time, before he let out a loud groan and I felt him quiver and convulse, inside my throat. I could feel the warmth spurting out into me, and I moved him on to my tongue so I could taste him. I looked up at him while he spat the last few times onto my waiting tongue, and I savoured the unusual and salty taste for just a second before swallowing it.

I wrapped my tongue around his end and gave it one last suck, and then wiped along my mouth with the back of my hand to clean up any mess I had made.

He continued to pant heavily while looking down on me, the slyest of grins playing on his lips.

"So, Have I redeemed myself?"

"Fuck yes."

He leaned forward and put his rough hands under my arms and stood lifting me to a standing position before him. He stooped down, pressing his shoulder into my chin and ran has hands down my skirt and over my backside and then up to my hips patting his hands around like he was looking for something that wasn't there. He pulled away from me slightly so I could see his face, and now his grin was replaced with a look of shock.

"Miss Greene. Are you wearin' panties?"

I lifted up the hem of my cheerleaders skirt to show him I wasn't.

"Oops, I must have forgotten to put them on this morning." I batted my eyes innocently up at him.

He groaned and rolled his eyes.

"Well you know I'm gonna have to punish you again now?"

"You are?"

"I am. I can't have you comin' to my school not wearin' any panties."

He put both hands to my bare backside and slid them down to my thighs, and pulled forward and upwards so my legs wrapped around his hips.

"What are you gonna do to me, Mr Dixon?" I asked with a voice tight in mock concern.

"Well I'll have to examine the damage, so I can think of a suitable punishment."

He turned around and dropped me on to the desk, and then hooked the base of the chair with his foot and rolled it over so he could sit in it. He gently pushed on my chest so I leant back, and I supported myself on my arms so I could watch what he was doing. He pushed aside the folds of my skirt so they were high on my hips and then put his hands to my knees, so my thighs dropped to the side. A shudder ran through me along with a feeling of anxiety as I felt myself open up before him like a flower bud to the dawn light.

"Oh dear, Miss Greene. Lucky you're not wearin' any panties, 'cause you seem to have wet yourself."

I giggled at him, thinking of how wet I had been while I had been sucking on him. I had felt it drip and slide down my thighs, like rain against a window pane. I was amazed at how excited I had become just by giving him pleasure.

He moved his flushed, smirking face towards the centre of my thighs and I tossed my head back as his hot breath on my skin sent a pulse through all my sensitive spots. He placed soft, slow and wet kisses along my thigh and my legs started trembling in anticipation. I put my feet on to his shoulders in an effort to steady them as his kisses drew closer and closer to the sweet spot.

I let out a load groan when his lips brushed against it, and my shaking arms gave way, so I fell back on to the desk with a thud.

I heard him snigger, and then his tongue was on it, flicking against it ever so softly at first, and then moulding it and massaging with a sensually rough force.

I pulled myself back up and moved one of my hands to his hair and wished he had kept it long so I had something to hold on to.

He continued to flick and spiral his tongue around my sweet spot while I moaned and groaned and tilted my hips back and forth encouraging him to arouse me further.

He slid his tongue downwards, slipping it between my lips and then flicked it teasingly around my entry. I wrapped my fingers around his short tufts of hair and tugged against him, just wanting him to delve his tongue inside me.

He trailed his hands down my thighs while he continue to twirl his tongue around the opening, while his top lip massaged against my throbbing and tingling pearl.

His finger replaced his lip, and he began rolling over me gently in a circular motion. I groaned again, while tilting my hips forward encouraging him to press harder. His finger slipped down between my lips and straight into my quivering opening and I cried out at the sudden appeasement of my desires.

I could feel his finger inside of me, rubbing and curling and twisting, while his tongue found its way back to my sweet spot and flicked back and forth over it.

I moaned loudly now as waves of pleasure took hold of me, building in my chest and drifting downwards over my shoulders and arms, and down through my belly, and then exploding right into his mouth.

"Holy…fucking…Christ!" I squealed between waves.

"The name's Daryl." He murmured against me. The vibrations of his lips made my whole body shudder and convulse.

"Daryl!" I cried up to the ceiling.

"That's hrmmmph." I smothered his sound, as I pushed his face in between my legs encouraging him to continue.

He did as he was bidden, while I writhed and moaned, and squealed and squirmed, until I was trembling so much, I couldn't hold myself up on the table, or keep my legs on his shoulders.

My feet slid off and landed on the armrest of the chair, and my knees dropped to the side in utter exhaustion. Daryl removed his face from between my legs and looked over my sweat covered, panting body.

He wiped a hand over his chin to remove what I had left behind and then smirked at me, his eyes full of knowledge that he had complete control over me.

"Maybe…you should…cut that off too." I sighed out between pants.

He shook his head slowly.

"Nope. That's my manhood right there." He grinned at me and then stood up to show me his fully erect penis. He wrapped his hand around it and gave it a gentle shake. "That, and this of course."

"You're ready again?" I asked, forcing myself upwards to examine him.

"Uhuh." He put his hands to my backside and slid me off the table and onto his bent thighs. I wriggled my way off them and put my feet to the floor.

"Just hold on a minute." I stepped around him, pulling him with me as I went so his back was now to the desk, and I reached beside him and opened one of the drawers and shuffled though it looking for my next prop.

"Now were gonna switch, I'll be the teacher…" I slipped on the principals reading glasses, which were too big, but would still give me the look of authority. "And you be the school boy."

"I like where this is headin'." He said with a smirk.

"I bet you were real naughty when you were in school." I said in a raspy, seductive voice.

"A bit."

"Did you get punished?" I leaned forward searching the desk for my next prop.

He hesitated for a second and dropped his eyes before replying. "Yep"

"Like this?" I wrapped my hand around the ruler and snapped it across the top of his backside.

I smiled at first as I leant forward and examined the pink welt that appeared, and then my eyes rested on the dark puckered lines on his skin that criss-crossed all over his back.

How could I be so stupid! I had got so caught up in the moment, my head was in a heady daze of desire, and all I had thought about was how excited I was when he was rough with me the other day in the bathroom. I didn't stop to think that he had been punished in a similar way by his father.

As I drew my head back and my eyes fixed on his, I knew it had been a terrible thing to do.

He was glaring at me; his mouth held in a tight firm line, his brows creased in the centre. His lips quivered and then tuned into a sneer. In a flash, his rough, strong hands were around my neck. He lifted me and tossed me down onto the desk and pressed his thumbs down into my throat, blocking off my air supply. I put my hands to his thick, muscled wrists trying to tug them away. I tried to call his name, but it just came out in a choked whisper.

His voice was thick, and course and filled with hatred.

"I told you if you touched me again. I'd kill you." He snarled into my face.

I coughed and spluttered as I felt his grip getting tighter.

"I'll fuckin' kill you! I'll fuckin' kill you!"

AN: Did I almost fool you guys into thinking I was just going to blow over the whole dark Daryl thing?

Phew this is intense! I need a breather. I don't even know if I can save their relationship after this….You'll have to wait at least a week to find out if I can, as hubby will be back in town, and I have to devote all my spare time to him. Sowwwyyyyy. Please stick around...if you dare ;)