Title - Bodies And Souls Collide
Chapter title - To Pay A Debt
Author - OblivionsGarden
Genre - Hurt/Comfort/Romance/Family/Horror
Disclaimer - I do not own The Walking Dead in anyway shape or form. I only own the plot points surrounding my oc's, not recognized from the show or comics.
Chapter Word Count - 3216 words.
A/n - Please leave a review, I'd greatly appreciate it. Hope you enjoy, xx (:
"Don't just stand there girly, grab yourself a knife and follow us."
They didn't look like the type of men that Teddy would usually follow but she was quick to realize she had no second option other than to stay and die. She reached forward, grabbed the most useful looking blade she could see and sprinted after them.
They didn't stop until she was seated in between the two in the front of a flat bed truck. She took a few minutes to catch her breath, just managing to breathe out a thanks. It was only as her heart began to return to it's normal rate that she looked down, noticing the blood on the left leg of her pants. She closed her eyes for a second, ignoring the thought that it was probably Michael's.
"You alright there, girly?" The one driving asked. "Not gonna pass out are ya?"
"No. I'm ok." She shook her head and kept her eyes on the road ahead, forcing the rising bile back down her throat. "I'm Teddy by the way, not girly."
"Teddy?" The man scoffed. "Kinda name is Teddy?"
"Better than Theodora, don't you think?" The man made a face before laughing. "What's your name?"
"Merle. Merle Dixon and that's by baby brother Daryl."
She aimed a smile at the silent brother who merely nodded and continued to stare out the window. She asked them if they knew what had happened but the only thing Merle said was, "people went batshit and started eating other people. Crazy bastards got laid to rest when they came after ol' Merle though."
Teddy sighed to herself, wondering where they were headed. She asked but only got a shrug in reply. She asked for them just to ride her back out of town so that Daryl's arrow he used wasn't a complete waste. They agreed to that, Merle saying that they'd drop her off and then carry on just the two of them. Teddy wasn't sure how she'd survive but the silence of Daryl coupled with Merle's inability to close his mouth for longer than eight seconds already had her wanting out of that truck.
The sun was just beginning to set when they saw signs of life. Actual life too not the reanimated bullshit they'd seen everywhere else. Teddy leaned slightly across Daryl to get a better look and earned a grunt from him.
"You can leave me here... Maybe."
"Sounds good to me."
Merle pulled his truck around, continuing on until he stopped in front of a group of people all watching their arrival. Daryl climbed out, watching the group as Teddy stepped out behind him. She slowly walked towards the group as a tall man with dark hair started towards them. Merle was murmuring something into his brothers ear as Teddy began her explanation of their arrival.
"We came from Atlanta, it's full of those things." She glanced over the man's shoulder at the group of people listening. "I was told there was a refugee camp."
"It got overrun by the geeks. We set up camp here. There's room for three more if you'd like but you gotta pull your weight and pitch in."
"Oh, I don't think that they-"
"Home sweet home." Merle interrupted Teddy and stepped up to shake the man's hand, introducing himself and his brother once again. "And as for the girly here, says her name is Theodora."
"Teddy." She corrected, rolling her eyes. "Call me Teddy."
"I'm Shane. Come meet everybody, we're just cooking up some grub now. We should have enough for you guys too, I reckon."
"Where did you say you were from?" A young girl named Amy asked as she handed a metal tray with fish and rice over to Teddy.
"Originally, somewhere around Louisville."
"Really, you sound more Southern than Louisville." Dale commented.
"I grew up hopping around the South. Tallahassee, Richmond, Memphis... I think I've stayed in most of the bigger towns for at least a weekend at some point in my life."
"And your family?" Amy asked. "Did they make it?" Another woman, Andrea, gave her warning look but Teddy brushed it off.
"I ain't seen my daddy since I was around seven or eight and my momma stopped talking to be about five years ago."
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"S'alright. I'm over it. Besides, I think family is better when you choose it yourself." She swallowed almost half of her meal in just a few bites, the hunger having really settled when she smelled the food. "I did loose two friends though... Dylan and Michael... On the way into Atlanta, we didn't know it was over run... If I'm honest I'm still none the wiser as to what's actually happened."
The group drifted into silence as they realised that none of them had any definite answers. It was quiet for almost the rest of the evening. The Dixon brothers set up their own tent that they'd grabbing at the outdoors store a little ways away from everyone else. A woman who introduced herself as Jacqui offered Teddy a space in her tent which the younger girl was grateful for.
Over the next few weeks Teddy settled in with the group well, even the Dixons. Jacqui was definitely a 'take no shit' kind of woman which she enjoyed. Shane, whilst being the stereo typical meat head that Teddy usually poked fun at, did his best to keep the camp running smoothly. She hadn't spoken much to Laurie, owing to the fact that the older woman seemed to be encouraging the women to slip back into the ways of days gone by and Teddy was adamant she wouldn't be caught dead scrubbing someone else's dirty drawers. Carl got on well with her though, always asking if she was alright and if she needed anything. Teddy thought he was sweet as she did with Sophia too although the little girl was much more timid.
Teddy owed that to her parents. Carol, whilst polite and kind hearted, was clearly terrified of her husband. Teddy had met people like Ed Peletier before and they always rubbed her up the wrong way. She knew, however, that saying something would cause a rift and so instead chose to keep an eye on him whenever Sophia and Carol were near.
Dale was a sort of grandfather to the group in weird kooky old man kind of way but Teddy liked his stories and always volunteered to go on watch with him to hear more. The Morales family, like Carl, always made the effort to ensure she was comfortable and had eaten enough. Andrea and Amy became close to her as did Glenn and T Dog. Jim didn't speak much but was polite enough when he did open his mouth.
As for Daryl and Merle Dixon, Teddy was almost certain she was the only one in the group that had managed to have actual conversations with either of them. Daryl barely spoke to anyone other than his brother and Merle was either making lude sexual comments at the women or arguing with the men.
She spoke about mundane things just to open them up a little. Daryl was still quiet and Merle was still crude but she was getting there. She knew that they always travelled around together so this wasn't so out of the ordinary, save for the geeks. She also noticed that they could handle themselves better than most of the group. After a few weeks of nothing but cooking and watch duty, she figured it was about time to invest in some new skills.
"Hey, Dixon! Hold up!" She called to Merle who was making his way through the more heavily wooded area. He stopped and smiled down at her petite frame, so easily dwarfed by his own.
"Hello little lady. Wouldn't wanna get caught sneaking around the woods with Merle now would you? What would they think?"
"Ha ha." She said dryly. "You're good with a gun and I've only ever used a plastic one on arcade games. Think you could teach me, y'know just incase?"
It took a little convincing and a vague 'you'll owe me, if I do' to get Merle to agree. They drove out away from the camp so as not to bring any unwanted attention to the group. They found another clear area and Merle used an old chunk of chalk to draw some crude targets on one of the trees.
First he taught her the basics of holding the weapon correctly, about the safety and then how to load and unload. When it finally came to firing the weapon Teddy was a little nervous.
"Nothing to be afraid of, I'm right here."
"That's calming." She pursed her lips as she raised her weapon only to lower it again. "How bad is the kickback? Only, I've seen videos of people firing a gun and then smacking themselves in the face with it."
"Alright, alright!" Merle chuckled and stood on one side of her and gestured for her to raise the gun. "I'll keep my hand here and hold your arms, so's you can get a feel of it."
With a determined nod and a deep breath, Teddy aimed, fired and missed completely. She sighed and shook off Merle's hand. The eldest Dixon stepped back to give her space as she took aim again. She used all twelve rounds and only hit the tree twice. Neither were near the target but it was a start.
Merle only spared two more clips that he'd gathered at the store they'd met in and after a few helpful pointers and some reminding that being from the South 'this shit should be second nature', she finally hit her mark.
"Holy shit, did you see?"
"Calm down and finish the clip. We better be leaving soon before the geeks arrive."
Daryl Dixon was a little harder to crack. He preferred to keep to himself unless he was talking to Merle. Teddy had brief snippets of conversation with him about his hunting and decided that that would be how she would get more from him. She waited until he gathered up his cross bow and knife and started to head out into the woods. She quickly hopped up, excusing herself from her conversation with Morales and Dale.
"Hey, Dixon!" She called causing him to stop and glance over his shoulder. "Can I ask a favor?" He shrugged and waited for her to continue. "Merle taught me how to handle a gun and I think I've almost persuaded him to teach me how to fight too so I was wondering, since you seem to be a damn fine hunter, could you teach me?"
"Why? Food I get not enough?"
"The food you get is fine but if something happens and I end up on my own I wanna be able to feed myself, that's all." She folded her arms as he watched her with narrowed eyes.
"Smart, I guess." He sniffed. "Alright, but it ain't easy."
"I wasn't expecting it to be."
Daryl did his best to teach her different tracks and how to identify which direction they were moving in but Teddy just wasn't picking it up. She persevered though, listening avidly to every word until it came time to wait for something to come their way which he assured her it would.
"So, what do you think of the group?" She murmured, watching for any signs of an animal. Daryl shrugged and Teddy realized she'd have to work harder. "Most of them seem nice I think. Jim's kinda quiet. Laurie is a little full of herself but I think she means well. Carl said his dad died so maybe it's something to do with that."
"Olive Oyl?" Daryl frowned and Teddy snorted.
"Well Mister Dixon has a sense of humour." She smiled. "Yeah. Her and G.I Joe seems to think their homecoming king and queen around here, have you noticed?"
Daryl chuckled and nodded and finally Teddy knew how to get him to talk to her. They shared more idle chatter between them until Daryl shot a bow through a doe. Teddy grimaced and let him teach her how to strip the skin and meat.
"You know, just a few weeks ago I was a vegetarian."
"Never would've guessed from all the dry heavin' you've been doing." Daryl smirked and handed her a knife. "What changed?"
"Don't think I've got much choice anymore." She shrugged. "Honestly I surprised myself with how much I just didn't care about eating meat after barely eating anything for so long."
"Just don't start eating people and you're fine."
As the days continued to pass by Teddy made herself a valued member of the group. She could fight and shoot, thanks to Merle, she could kind of hunt, thanks to Daryl and she was also a fairly good cook and a friend to most. Not only that but when the Dixon's got aggravated she seemed to be the only one that they would listen to.
So when Glenn finally caved and decided to allow some of the group to join him on a run and Merle decided to tag along, Daryl asked her to go with them. She knew something was bound to happen with Merle's loud mouth and agreed it was for the best.
For the most part, everything had been going smoothly. Arguments were at a minimum, which was a miracle considering Merle was stuck in a car with T-Dog, they found a few decent supplies that they could use and were just about set to be heading back. Then out of nowhere as they were about to leave the department store, geeks were everywhere on the streets.
Whilst everyone was panicking wondering how they were going to get out, Glenn had raced up to the roof to see what was happening and spotted a man crawling into a tank. With his good heart and quick feet he was soon outside trying to save the guy. Merle disappeared to the roof whilst the others tried to figure a way out of this.
"Why is he out there trying to save a stranger? We need to be finding a way out of here." Andrea paced the room, gun in hand.
"Because he's a decent human being, Andrea." Teddy was shocked at her outburst. "If people weren't still helping strangers I would've been eaten weeks ago and never would've made it to the camp... Beside this is Glenn we're talking about, he knows this city and he'll be fine."
It was only a short while until T-Dog's radio crackled to life with Glenn's voice, though with the noise the walkers were making it seemed much longer. T-Dog and Morales headed out to help whilst everyone else gathered in the back room. When the door burst open again Teddy spotted another man with Glenn but Andrea was straight on him, gun pressed against his head. Teddy stayed back for the most part until Morales moved to the side and she got a good look at the man.
"Andi, hey." She gently placed her hand on her shoulder. "It's not worth it."
Whilst Morales and T-Dog explained the shit show of a situation they were in, Teddy stood to the side to watch him. She took in his tired eyes and his uniform, his wedding ring and eyes the same shade of blue as her own and felt her stomach knot.
"I'm Teddy." She introduced during a break in the conversation. "What's your name?
"Teddy..." He repeated, nodding a little as he glanced to his feet. "I'm Rick."
"Where the hell did that asshole come from?" Merle murmured to Teddy as the others looked over the edge of the roof. Rick kept glancing back at the two, watching Teddy as she squatted beside Merle.
"Glenn found him."
"We really letting the Chinese kid bring back strays now? We got enough mouths to feed as it is."
"If they didn't let in strays we'd still be on the road." Teddy stood, shaking out the muscles in her legs.
"What do you mean 'we' ?" Merle smirked up at her, squinting in the midday sun. "We were set to leave you at that camp. If they had turned you away you'd be on your own."
"No." Teddy scoffed. "I'd be dead."
She moved over to the group, listening in to see what their plan was. Rick offered a polite smile but it went ignored.
"We got a plan yet?"
"We're thinking sewers. Jacqui says there should be access in this building." Glenn sighed and Teddy could tell he was regretting ever agreeing to bring the group.
"Well, let's hop to then, shall we?"
The group headed back to the door, hearing Merle shouts about how they couldn't just leave him there. Teddy rolled her eyes and turned back, kneeling beside him again.
"No one is leaving you up here, loud mouth. We're just gonna get us an escape route then we'll come back and get you. Mmkay, pumpkin?" She mockingly rubbed his hair before leaving, his curses still heard when she was halfway down the stairs.
Whilst Glenn and Morales went down into the sewers, Teddy followed Andrea into the main area of the shop. She was vaguely aware of Rick talking to her but decided to make the best of a bad situation. She began to flick through the rails of clothing until she found a fairly thick khaki green jacket with plenty of pockets. She pulled it off the hanger and slipped it over the light shirt she was wearing. Happy with the fit she tied it around her waist, planning on keeping it for when winter came. She was just heading to look at the other shelves when Rick approached her.
"I see your stocking up."
"Might as well."
Teddy ignored his presence, instead looking through the shoes for a decent pair of boots in her size. The converse she was currently wearing wouldn't last forever.
"How did you end up with the group?" Rick asked, clearly uncomfortable at Teddy's reaction to him.
"Came to Atlanta with some friends when we heard about the refugee camp."
"Merle?" The way he said his name irritated Teddy and she stood up to face him, dropping the boots that were in her hand.
"No and if it wasn't for Merle damn Dixon then I'd be dead too, so maybe ease up on him, Officer." She shouldered her way past him ignoring the confused look that Andrea was giving her.
Teddy was still in the main area of the store when the rest of the group came racing through. She was quick to follow, chasing after the others as quick as she could manage. She saw most of the group infront, T-Dog just behind but someone was missing.
"T-Dog, where's Merle?"
"I dropped the key." He panted, running to catch up.
"Wh- So he's still up there?"
"Teddy, we gotta go come on!" Morales shouted from the truck.
"I'm not leaving Merle behind, dammit!" She glanced behind her, the groans of the geeks growing louder. "GO! I'll figure something out!"
"Teddy, we're not leaving you!" Andrea shouted, reaching out to grasp the younger girls shoulder.
"Merle saved my life, I owe him the same. Go."