Song of the Day: Gangnam Style- PSY (Lol, just discovered this at like 2 A.M.)
So...this chapter has been running through my mind for a long time and I've been trying to figure out if I should take the story this route or not...and I've concluded that we need a little drama/action/fear up in here so...here goes nothin'!
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Daryl stretched his long legs almost dramatically, then let the stretch ripple up the entire length of his body, to the very tips of his fingers. Sighing, he forced himself to sit up, joints popping from the lack of movement during the night, and rubbed his eyes firmly to help them focus in the darkness of the early morning.
He twisted his neck, causing a nasty crackling pop sound, and then reached out from under the blanket to grab his crossbow. He pulled on his boots and stood up, grabbing his jacket and winter coat and slipping them on. Then he dropped to his knees, grabbed his buck knife and leaned down to press his lips to Carol's temple.
"Mm, mornin', Daryl," she mumbled sleepily, rolling over to look up at him. He smiled.
"Mornin," he whispered back, "I'm goin' out."
"I'm going with him!" Sophia suddenly announced from behind him. She had her bow in her hand and was pulling on her boots.
"We're going out," Daryl reiterated, "See you when we get back. Be safe."
He handed her the machete and laid her bow and arrows next her in the spot he had occupied all night. He hated leaving her alone up here by herself, but she had refused to move closer to the house when he suggested it. They had both gotten use to the privacy of their location.
"You be safe too," Carol mumbled as she started to slip back into sleep, "Keep an eye on her."
"Yes, ma'am," Daryl smiled and kissed her once more before he and Sophia slipped out of the tent.
Daryl shivered slightly as the cold air hit him and he sighed, wishing it was spring again...before all this shit happened, before the world went to hell. But, then again, he'd be living under the same roof as methed up Merle, alone and cold hearted...so maybe this winter chill in the current circumstances wasn't so bad after all.
"C'mon, squirt, let's go kill things," he ruffled Sophia's hair as he walked past her in the direction of the woods.
Sophia giggled and followed behind him as they made their way to the woods in silence, taking careful and quiet steps even now before they were beneath the cover of the trees. When they reached the edge of the woods, Daryl gave Sophia a nod for her to head to the left but stay in his sight and they split apart slightly as they made their way into the trees.
Daryl spotted a trail very quickly and crouched low as he followed it forward, recognizing the tracks as fox and thinking fox fur would be a pretty awesome addition to the collection of furs he already possessed and planned on making into useful things.
Sophia had taken up on his body language and dropped into a crouch of her own, carefully angling her body till they came together further into the woods. She mouthed her question of what they were tracking and he mouthed back "fox". Sophia's eyes widened and she stopped in her tracks, causing Daryl to turn his head and look at her in confusion.
"Daddy, please don't hurt it," she whispered, her blue eyes were brimming with tears.
Daryl felt a bit of anger flair up inside him, his survival instinct told him it would be foolish not to go after any game he could find...but his heart told him his there was no way he could handle the look his daughter was giving him. When he thought of all the death and destruction and ugliness she had seen in her short life, he felt his throat tighten angrily.
"C'mon, Sophia," he whispered back, continuing his tracking.
Sophia didn't look pleased at all, but she hung her head and followed in silence. Daryl knew their quarry was just over the next hill and he slowed Sophia up with his arm and put his finger to his lips. He carefully moved up to the top of the hill and, sure enough, spotted the fox on the edge of the creek, digging at something on the bank. He turned back to Sophia and motioned for her to come up and she made her way silently to his side.
They lay there on the cold, frozen ground together, watching the fox dig up a mouse and eat it then smiling when the fox began romping like crazy, jumping up into the air and twisting, landing gracefully with a foxy yip and then leaping again. Playing, like foxes were known to do. Sophia watched with a big grin until the fox decided it was time for it to go back to wherever it came from and took off into the brush, never even aware that they were there.
"Thank you for not shooting it, dad," Sophia whispered when it was gone.
"Didn't feel like fox today anyway," Daryl shrugged with a grin. "How's squirrel sound?"
"Delicious," Sophia replied with a roll of her eyes.
"Beggars can't be choosers," Daryl teased, standing and taking aim at a squirrel over the hill. Of course he pegged it and he and Sophia exchanged a high five.
They slid down the frozen embankment and he plucked the squirrel off the end of his bolt and put it on his ever present game string. Sophia nocked an arrow and headed for the edge of the clearing.
"Where ya goin', 'Phia?" Daryl asked quickly.
"Heard a rustling," she explained, "I'm gonna try and get it."
Before Daryl could even respond to her statement and call her back or move to stop her, he felt something connect with the back of his skull hard and his vision flickered for a moment before it went completely black. The last thing he saw was Sophia's arrow embedding in chest of large man.
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When Daryl came to, the first thing he noticed was that his head felt like he'd just been sat on by an elephant and then he noticed the back of his neck was sticky with blood...and then he noticed the body lying on the edge of the clearing.
"Sophia," he yelled out, causing his eyes to squint in protest at the sound. He forced himself to his knees and tried to stand but only succeeded in stumbling back to his knees as vertigo hit him so he settled for dragging himself across the ground toward the body.
It was a man, a big one. He eyed the face, trying to decided if there was anything about his he recognized, anything on him that identified him, but nothing looked familiar. He examined the arrow in his chest...Sophia's. This made him rise shakily to his feet again, but this time he maintained his upright position and he began scanning the ground with trained skill and his anger and fear just increased as he read the story written on the ground. There had been a scuffle, he recognized Sophia's small footprints and he deciphered two pairs of larger feet...men. Suddenly, the smaller prints of his daughter disappeared and he knew she'd been picked up and carried.
"Mother fuckers!" he screamed helplessly to absolutely no one, sending birds flying in fear. Growling like a deranged animal, rage flooded every sense he possessed and he was immediately on their trail, following their heavy-footed trail with ease. He'd find them. He'd kill every single one of them. He'd get his daughter back.
But the trail suddenly went absolutely cold. He'd seen a third pair of prints, larger, heavier...but then all traces of them just vanished. Even his highly skilled eyes couldn't pick up a trace, but he didn't give up and soon he found himself on the edge of the woods on a dirt road. He found tracks then, the same tracks as before and tired treads as well. He eyed the direction they disappeared in with fury before turning on his heels and running back the direction he came.
By the time he reached the shooting range on the outskirts of the farm he felt like his lungs were going to split open and his legs shook from the distance they'd covered and pace he had forced them to take. He leaned over for a moment to catch his breath but his adrenaline was still pumping and he made himself keep going until he reached the tent where Carol was sitting on the old stone fireplace sewing a pair of Sophia's ripped jeans. The sight of them made everything so much worse and Daryl felt his stomach turn and he dropped to his knees and emptied the contents of his stomach, not that that was very much, onto the ground. He stayed there, sucking in air and coughing, his lungs couldn't take one more yard.
"Daryl!" Carol's panicked voice reached his woozy brain and he raised his head to look at her as she dropped into a crouch next to him. "Daryl are you alright? Where's Sophia?!"
"She..." Damn it, lungs! This is more important than you, fuckin' work! "She...they..."
"DARYL, WHERE IS SHE!?" Carol shrieked, hurting his ears again. He felt his vision swim for a moment and he closed his eyes to try and focus. "Daryl, LOOK AT ME! Where the fuck is my daughter!?"
Daryl felt a spark of indignant anger rise up in him, doubled with the frustration of not being able to speak for the burning pain in his entire airway.
"Took her..." he gasped out.
"WHO TOOK HER!?" Carol gripped the front of his shirt and shook his firmly, her eyes were wide and frightened.
Daryl sucked in another breath and felt like maybe the burning was starting to lessen.
"Don't...know..." he wheezed, forcing himself to suck in another breath no matter how much it hurt. How far had he fuckin' run? He had no idea...but he had a feeling it was farther than his body would have been capable of under normal circumstances.
"You don't KNOW?! Daryl, didn't you see them?!" Carol stood up, somehow dragging him up with her. Daryl's eyes widened at her sudden strength and he gripped her wrists firmly out of instinct. "How could you not have seen them?!"
The combination of not being able to breathe, not being able to think and Carol yelling in his ears was starting to wear on Daryl's patience. She should be running to the farm and getting the group ready to go after Sophia instead of interrogating him when he couldn't even tell her anything in the first place!
"Fuck...Carol...shut up!" he coughed out.
"SHUT UP!? SHUT UP?" Carol released her grip on him and gave his chest a firm shove as she stepped back. He saw a look in her eyes he'd never seen before and it was absolutely terrifying. "How DARE you tell me to shut up?! My daughter has been kidnapped right out from under your fucking nose and you have the audacity to tell me to shut up!?"
Daryl took an involuntary step back as Carol stepped forward threateningly.
"How could you let this happen? How could you be so irresponsible?" Carol didn't stop her approach and she gave him another firm shove, putting her entire upper body into it. "How could you let them take her?!"
"I...I didn't...they..." Daryl's lungs began to calm down and he found he could breathe a little better but still, he was in condition to defend himself so he just stepped back a little further, but he felt that familiar anger flaring up in his chest.
"No! There is no excuse! Of all people, you should have been able to protect her!" Carol's words stung him far more than the angry pushes and her tone. The look on her face was one of accusation and disbelief and...was he reading that right? Hatred?
"Carol, I wasn't..." he tried to sooth her, to calm her down. He reached out to pull her to him and she twisted violently out of his grip, moving to the side to come at him again.
"Don't make excuses!" Carol's pitch was beyond what he'd thought her capable of, her eyes were crazed with fury, "You're her father! I trusted you! How could you let this happen?"
She was accusing him. Blaming him. Angry at HIM. He was beginning to get really annoyed at her behavior, because this was NOT helping Sophia and time was of the essence here.
"Carol, please, we don't have time for this..." he tried to make her see reason, and he was fighting hard to keep the anger that was bubbling inside him under control. She was being unreasonable, reckless and this was complete and utter bullshit! He'd been jumped, there was nothing he could have done!
"Shut the fuck up!" Carol shoved him firmly again, "Don't give me your excuses, I'm tired of your damn excuses! This is your fault! You're a complete and total fuck up, Daryl Dixon! You're a complete JOKE, pretending to be all big and bad and unbreakable but you can't even protect your own family!"
She gave him another, heated, angry shove and he felt his heel connect with the stone fireplace, running out of room to back up from her assault and he tightly closed his eyes to take the hits, every muscle on edge from the tension.
Carol's next words came out in a cold, monotone: "No wonder your mother opted out."
And that was all he could take. Maybe it was the flashbacks flitting through his mind at the feeling of being backed into that stone, images of whips, broken bottles and fists all flying in his direction, or maybe it was the look on her face, the hatred practically oozing out of her pores and the blame in her eyes, maybe it was the words she was saying, maybe a mix of all of these factors...but whatever it was, Daryl felt every ounce of self control just snap inside him and before he could even register what he was doing, his hand shot out and connected with Carol's left cheek with a loud and resounding slap!
The second he felt the connection of their skin, he regretted it. As soon as he felt the sting of the connection on his hand he hated himself. The moment Carol stepped back and raised her hand to her face the anger was gone. The moment she looked at him, eyes wide with disbelief and distrust, brimming with tears and full of fear...he wanted to take it back.
"Carol..." he whispered in complete and utter shock, horrified by his reaction.
But Carol stepped away and stumbled slightly as she did, her mouth opened as if to speak but the only sound she made was a heart wrenching wail as she spun around and ran, full speed, towards the house. Daryl stared after her for a moment before he sank to his knees as his stomach turned again, dry heaves wracking his stressed out body.
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Slap!
Carol could still hear it in her mind, she could still feel the sharp sting on her cheek and she could still see the absolute ferocity in those blue eyes of the man she'd come to love. She still couldn't quite believe it. She couldn't believe herself even more...the second the words left her mouth, she wished she could have cut her tongue out.
Daryl had told her the story of his mother's suicide once, about how he'd found her in the shed, hanging from the rafters. His father and Merle had blamed him, told him it was his fault, that he'd driven her to her last act of desperation. She remembered the look on his face when he'd told her the story, the guilt and shame and hurt...and she'd just ripped that half healed wound wide open all over again.
And yet...she couldn't quite feel sorry. Her daughter had been kidnapped, taken from her once again and this time it was his fault. This time was looking much bleaker. This time, she was in the hands of complete strangers, strangers who were obviously up to terrible things...and he'd been unable to stop it from happening. All the things he'd promised about keeping them safe had just been proven wrong and she was too clouded with grief, fear and disbelief to feel any sympathy for him at this moment.
When she stumbled onto the porch, her strength gave out, the adrenaline wore off, and she collided with the door and slid down onto the wood of the porch in a crying heap. She wasn't sure who, but somebody lifted her, bridal style and kicked the door open, taking her inside where a group of shrieking people gathered around and began shooting questions at her.
"Shut up, all of you!" came the voice of her carrier, she recognized it as Shane and she finally managed to bring her brain into the now. Shane laid her gently on the couch and knelt next to her. "Carol, are you ok? Can you tell me what happened?"
"Oh my god, her face!" Carol glanced over to see Maggie clasping her hand over her mouth as her eyes widened. "Someone hit her!"
"Sophia," Carol made her dry mouth say, "They took Sophia!"
"Who took her?" Shane was remaining irritatingly calm, but she somehow felt confident that he would help. He would help more than Daryl.
"I don't know," she started sobbing and felt big fat tears slipping down her face, "They took her when she was out hunting with..."
"With?" Glenn asked.
"With Daryl, you ass," Shane snapped over his shoulder. "Carol, don't worry, we'll find her. We'll leave as soon as possible and we'll find her."
And Shane stood and was out the front door hollering for Rick in a flash, Glenn and T-Dog on his heels. Maggie knelt down in Shane's place, a rag filled with ice cubes in her hand which she pressed to Carol's cheek.
"Does it look that bad?" she asked softly as Maggie gave her a sad look.
"Swollen," Maggie replied, "It's gonna bruise really nasty. Who hit you, Carol?"
Carol felt her throat close tightly and she turned her face away, staring at the floral print of the table lamp.
"It doesn't matter right now," she said blankly, "I want to go find my daughter."
She pushed Maggie away and stood up, keeping the washcloth pressed to her face, making her way to the doorway. Just as she reached for the handle, the door flung open and she jumped back when Daryl stormed in. He stopped in his tracks when he saw her and his eyes squinted painfully as his eyes scanned her face.
"I...we're..." he dropped his eyes and glanced to the side to speak to Maggie, "Rick, Shane, Glenn and I are goin' to get Sophia back."
"We'll hold the fort," Maggie stated grimly, her eyes shooting daggers at him. "Bring that little girl back."
"T-Dog and Andrea will be on watch and patrol in case anyone unfriendly shows up," Daryl stated as he began backing up, his eyes then came back to Carol. "I'm gonna find her. I WILL find her."
Carol ignored him and backed away, into the living room to take a seat by the window so she could watch them leave. She heard Daryl heave a heavy sigh and then the door slammed loudly and he marched angrily to his motorcycle and kick started it roughly. He yelled something at the blue truck the other three were in before tearing up the driveway as he sped off, leaving them to follow in the cloud of dust he left behind.
Carol felt a hand on her knee and she involuntarily jerked in surprise as she looked over at Maggie, the young girl looked up at her from where she knelt with concern.
"Carol...they'll find Sophia," she whispered, "But there's nothing you and I can do at this moment. Let's get you calmed down and cleaned up."
"I should be looking for her," Carol whispered helplessly.
"You wouldn't know where to begin, honey," Maggie said sympathetically, gently taking the washcloth and handing it to Lori who nodded and headed to the kitchen to replace the melted ice cubes. "Those men know their stuff and Daryl will find their trail, you know he will."
"I don't know anything about him," Carol whispered, almost inaudibly.
Lori returned with the washcloth and sat next to Carol, wrapping her arms around her.
"Carol, honey, did he do this?" she brushed her finger down Carol's cheek. Carol pulled her head away but let herself give in to the comfort and nodded slowly.
"Asshole," Maggie stated angrily, standing up to stomp her foot on the floor angrily. "This isn't your fault, how could he do that!?"
And it all came crashing down on Carol at that moment. Everything hit her at once. Her daughter was missing, taken, stolen...and her husband was hurting just as much as she was. She hadn't given him a chance to explain what happened, didn't give him a chance to even tell her where it had happened. She'd physically attacked him and blamed him and said horrible, unforgivable things to him and she hadn't even stopped to think how he must have felt, how scared he must have been. She'd earned this swollen face, she deserved it.
"I'm gonna be sick," she muttered, standing quickly and running up the stairs heading for the bathroom. She made it to the toilet just in time to bend over it and release the physical tension and stress into it. Her mind replaying the scene over and over again, his frightened, hurt expression burned into her mind's eye.
What had she done?
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Yeah...this is kind of a sudden, sharp change of feel but I don't know where this stuff comes from, it just comes to me and bugs me until I write it! This too shall pass, bear with me while I ride this wave to wherever it leads!
Reviews are boss awesome! Or "dope" as Mr. Reedus would say. Leave me some dope reviews, all my too legit to quit readers!