Newly Revised

Hershel had woken up later in the day after they had dealt with the prisoners, though he didn't stay conscious for very long. Most of the clothes they had were becoming ratty and now what few towels they'd had had been covered in blood so that Carol and Lori could save Hershel. All of the clothes were wearing thin now that they had been washed several times and the ones that weren't were full of holes. They needed new clothes and Tea had picked a spot at the beginning of winter that they'd tried to get to a couple times, but walkers had made it impossible. She'd gone to the laundry room they'd found in the prison and brought new towels back to the cell block when she'd gone to check on Axel and Oscar. She'd done her best to try to find a place closer, but aside from a few small stores around the prison, there was nothing that could get them as much as the strip mall closer to Atlanta. It was risky and would take at least two hours to get there, but it was a necessary risk Tea and Daryl had to take. Glenn needed to be at the prison for Maggie and the kids were on strict guard duty inside the prison and courtyard for 28 more days. Rick needed to remain at the prison to get things up and running with T-Dog on Tea's request as well as being tasked with beginning to clean up the courtyard. Lori couldn't walk more than ten paces without being winded and obviously Maggie and Beth weren't going to leave their father. Carol was the only person with medical knowledge, albeit very little, aside from Tea, who could do very little for Hershel at the moment, and therefore also needed to stay behind. Tea and Daryl were the only people available to go on any kind of run and if they were lucky, while they were out, they might even be able to bring in some fresh meat.

The pair left after breakfast in Glenn and Maggie's car since it was the most fuel efficient and had enough space for what they needed. Tea had left strict instructions with Carol to index their medical supplies before she returned and to have Sophia and Carl take her back to the infirmary when they had a chance. While she wasn't a doctor and didn't know half of what Tea did and maybe a quarter of what Hershel did, she would better know what else was there that they could use than any of the others. Glenn and Maggie were helping with the clean up process, planning on burning all the bodies as soon as they had enough firewood to start getting rid of them. Tea had already talked to T-Dog and Daryl about Axel and Oscar being brought back to their cell block and joining them, only to be met with Daryl not even wanting to talk about. T-Dog was with her on it and they had gone back more than once to talk to the men when Daryl was out on watch or otherwise occupied around the prison. She never stayed gone long, though, not just because she didn't like all the dark corridors, but also because being around Daryl was the only time she really felt at ease.

It was silent going down the road with no music and the windows closed, the only sound being those of the engine and the wheels beneath them. Tea went from looking out the window to looking out the front while side-eyeing Daryl to checking the maps to make sure they were going the right direction as she compiled her thoughts. They hadn't been met with many walkers yet and the few they'd seen weren't in really in groups. The silence was a blessing that neither of them minded after being around the other for so long. After the hour mark, however, with Tea not saying anything and him not knowing what to say, Daryl was getting antsy. He normally enjoyed the silence, but not when Tea had been talking when they cleared the prison's field as well as the day after. Ever since, though, she had gone right back to being silent more often than not. Daryl was afraid that the little woman was trying to withdraw again but he just didn't know how to breech the subject. He'd gotten so angry at her last time that their relationship had been put in jeopardy because they both thought the other wanted space. She had taken to staying by his side more often than not and it was the only comfort he'd had aside from how she'd convinced him to sleep in a cell with her. Even if he told himself that she wasn't meaning to and it wasn't his fault, Daryl hated how quiet she had gotten and never could shake the feeling that she was pulling away.

"We got a place now," he told her, breaking the silence.

"Eh?"

"We got us a place now. You can relax," he told her.

She smiled and spoke quietly, "I know."

"Are you okay?"

"Rick didn' kill Andrew. Locked 'im up outside with the walkas while 'e was bleedin', but 'e didn' kill 'im," she mused, seemingly changing the subject.

"You think that was a bad thing?"

"Is it bad that I do?"

"Naw, I trust your judgment. Haven't led us wrong yet," he told her, risking a longer glance at her.

She smiled at him, thankful for his trust in her. "Tell me somethin' ya haven' told me yet 'bout yaself."

"Tit for tat?" he asked.

"Always."

"Alright. You remember how I told you 'bout how my mom died?" he asked her, hoping that if he gave her something she would let him into her head. She silently nodded her head, so he continued, "So, my dad, he was a mean bastard, but my mom, she was the sweetest thing. Always said I had a soft heart and was her precious boy. My dad hated how soft she was on me, sayin' she was gonna turn me into a faggot, that I weren't never gonna be a man. Up until the day she died, she'd protect me when she wasn't drunk outta her mind. Didn't blame 'er for bein' drunk, though, married to a man like my dad. I always thought, was always scared, I'd end up like 'im. That I'd get angry and lose my shit with the woman I ended up with. Damn near lost it on a couple a the ones I was just with for one night 'fore. You're the first and last woman I've been involved with for more than a night," he told her honestly.

"Seriously? Even in high school?"

"Dropped out sophomore year. Worked on cars at my uncle's shop instead. Huntin' only gets you so far when there's no one else to put food in your belly. Merle was already in the Army by then and my dad was either on benders with the local piece a ass or in a damn drunk rage at home. Either way, gave me somethin' to do and somewhere to go," he said with a shrug. "Your turn."

"What do ya wanna know?" she asked him.

"We still okay?" he asked timidly.

She looked at him in shock, trying to keep the hurt from her voice as she answered, "We were neva not okay, D. I know I been quiet. I know I ain' been the most touchy feely lately. And I know ya need that, ya need the reassurance. I'm sorry I ain' been givin' it ta ya. Jus'...jus' wait for me jus' a little bit longa and I'll be back ta what ya love, I promise," she finished, looking down at her hands.

"Don't say it like that," he said, a bit of hurt in his own voice now. "I love you even though you can be a serious pain in my ass and don't wanna touch me."

"Ya know it ain' like that!" she told him, the tears she was trying not to let fall sounding plainly in her voice. "I do want ta touch ya! I don' eva want ta stop. I jus'...Fuck, it's hard ta explain. There's jus' so much goin' on in my head right now. It's hard ta focus on doin' anythin' that ain' in line with what Rick wants or what the group needs. Or what ya want when we're tagetha. I know that first night in the cell block was the first time in ova a month I started it. I ain' tryin' ta keep from touchin' ya, I jus'," she sighed and hung her head in defeat. "I forget ta give ya the attention ya need and deserve 'cause my head's so wrapped up in everythin' else. It ain' that I don' want ta or that I don' need or love ya, I jus'...I...I'll get betta, I promise. We got a base now. We got some place we can make a home. Some place I don' got ta constantly worry 'bout the next move or whetha or not walkas are goin' ta come bearin' down on us in our sleep. A large burden's been lifted now, I jus'...I got ta let that sink in."

They both fell silent, unable to think of what to say to the other to ease the guilt they felt towards one another. They were both hurt by how the other had worded what they said, but Daryl knew that he was the one who had done the most damage. She couldn't help how she was behaving, literally couldn't help it, and here he was accusing her of not wanting him. She'd never once shied away from his light touches nor his heavy advances. She welcomed and encouraged him every time he'd demanded her attention and he'd all but said she was refusing him. Daryl sighed heavily, upset with himself for letting his emotions get ahead of him again. He hadn't meant to; his need to know she was still his outweighed her need to adjust in that moment. They had been so close to breaking a couple times over the winter until he'd forced her into the storage unit they shared and hadn't let her out for three days. Daryl had made sure that she had gotten enough rest, exhausting her to the point of passing out cuddled into him before putting any clothes on.

I'm a fuckin' asshole, he thought to himself angrily, trying to figure out how to make the situation right and make sure she knew he hadn't meant what he said how it came out. She was so much better at apologizing, always explaining herself plainly and giving him assurance that everything was alright. Even in the hushed whispers in the dead of night that they shared, talking about their pasts and experiences, she had been able to explain what happened easier than he did. He wasn't as educated, he wasn't as talented, hell, he didn't even know why she was with him. Tea was everything that he thought he could never even touch and somehow she wanted to be with him anyway. She never forgot to praise him even if she didn't touch him, commenting anywhere from how good he was at hunting to how she liked how his hair had grown out. Daryl always made sure she knew how he felt about her with his touches and holding her at night, but it wasn't the same as being able to talk about how he felt. Tea was just better at talking than he was; even her writing was more eloquent than he ever could hope to be with his words alone. He pulled the car over to the side of the road with a growl and put the car into park before punching the wheel and making her jump and look at him.

"Dammit, Ania, I didn't mean it like that!"

"I know," she said in a small voice.

"Dammit, girl!"

"It's alright, D. I get it."

His anger got the best of him as he got out of the car and slammed the door before she could say another word or before he said something worse. Of course she knew, of course she understood; she always understood. And if that didn't make it that much worse, he didn't know what did. Her education allowed her to read cues no one even realized they were giving and made it easier for him to communicate with her. That pissed him off even more because she didn't need to hear his words because the woman always already knew. He didn't have to explain himself because she seemed to always know exactly why he did what he did ever since their big fight in the winter. It was as if he was an open book whether he spoke or not and it irritated him to no end to be so well known. He punched the door to the trunk as she got out of the car, trying his best to get his anger under control so he didn't take it out on her. She didn't talk when she got to him, just simply wrapped her arms around his waist tightly, waiting for him to calm down as she laid her head on his shoulder blades and took a deep breath. Of course she's fuckin' waitin' for me, he thought spitefully. He crossed his arms across hers, knowing she was trying to keep from sobbing just as much as he was trying not to let the tears welling in his own eyes fall..

"I'm sorry, Ania," he said quietly, unable to face her.

"Me too, D. Me too," she whispered back. "It's my fault. If I wasn' like this. If I was normal, ya wouldn' have ta deal with this shite."

"Nah, girl, never apologize for that. I was an ass 'cause I got scared. I got dumb and got scared and it made me angry and I took it out on you," he said in one breath. "You told me it was gonna happen. You warned me and I still...I'm sorry."

"It's okay, D. It really is. Ya've neva had much good in ya life. Ya jus' as scared about losin' me as I am that ya goin' ta walk away from me one day," she told him. "I'm sorry I've been hurtin' ya. I really am."

"Dammit, girl," he said, finally turning around in her arms and holding onto her. "Just quit apologizin' already and let me be in the wrong for once."

They held each other for a few minutes, leaning against the car, before deciding to get back on the road, though Tea wouldn't let go of Daryl's hand when they did. It took only about twenty minutes until they reached the town the strip mall was in, only to find that a lot of it had already been looted. There was a biker shop, though, that would probably have a few spare parts for his brother's bike. Daryl had been pretty happy about that as his brother's bike was in horrible need for a tune up. They headed towards the bike shop first, since it seemed to be the only store that still was in any shape to raid. Walking up to the front of the store, Tea rapped on the glass of the door and waited with Daryl, counting to sixty in case any walkers came up. When they heard nothing, Tea opened the door for Daryl with his crossbow at the ready before following him with a throwing knife in one hand and her buck knife in the other. Nothing moved as far as she could tell as she and Daryl moved standing back to back searching for walkers. It wasn't until they'd moved into the storage room that they heard the first sign of walkers from behind a door.

Daryl motioned for Tea to stand by the outward swinging door to open it. She knew this was his way of trying to make up for what he'd said earlier and the almost-fight they had on the road. She'd noticed that every time his anger got the better of him and he took it out on her, he would become overprotective and have her take the least dangerous job. The problem was that what Daryl considered taking his anger out on her was what she considered healthy emotional release. He would never admit that it was cathartic to yell or scream about something that was bothering him, but Tea knew that it was just what he did. When he was angry, whether with her or someone else, he would start getting aggressive in his tone of voice and louder he became. It wasn't anger, it was frustration, he just didn't know the difference because, like her, he had never been taught emotions. Still, it wasn't as if she minded Daryl being overprotective because that just meant cuddle-bear Daryl would show up when night time rolled around. There was no better feeling than when he held her in his arms as she slept, except perhaps waking up in the morning with half his weight on top of her, using his arm as a pillow, one leg between hers while her hands rest either on his back or around his arm. She was only ever able to get enough sleep when he was laying on her or when she had her ear against his chest.

Counting down from three, she opened the door at the same time as Daryl released his arrow. He didn't have time to reload as four more walkers stumbled out of the office space after the one that immediately dropped. Tea came from behind the door and took two out at once using her knives while Daryl stabbed one of the others. She grabbed the final one and let Daryl finish it before letting it drop. As weird as it was, the release killing the walkers gave both of them damn near killed all the tension between the two of them. Daryl pulled her in and kissed her hard and dirty, a promise of what was to come later. Her response to him almost made him lose control right then and there, but they had a job to do and they were expected back by a certain time. Releasing her, they checked for anything of use in the office, finding a rifle and a box of rounds. After that, they moved into the storage room where Daryl searched through the spare parts, pulling those that would work for his brother's bike and putting them into his bag. Tea was standing guard for him, humming along to a song she was listening to in her head that he didn't recognize but found that he was quite enjoying it.

"What song is that?"

"It's called, 'The Rose'," she said. "I don' really like it, but it's stuck in my head."

"Why hum it if you don't like it?"

"It's stuck in my head."

He scoffed at her before asking, "Why don't you like it?"

"It was momma's favorite song," she admitted quietly. "I only learned it ta sing for 'er and, well, she told me ta teach my sista and then sang her praises when she butcha'd the damn thing all ta hell," she lamented.

"Do you think you'll find 'em, your family?"

"Gods, I hope not."

"What would you do if you saw 'em again?"

"Depends; as walkas? Shoot 'em with no remorse. As livin', breathin' people? I ain' got a single damn clue," she admitted honestly. "I haven' seen any a them in a long ass time. I'd like ta think I've changed and gotten stronga since the last time I saw 'em, but I know the logical, psychological likelihood. What would ya do if ya saw ya daddy, alive and well?"

"I'd put a arrow through his brain," Daryl said, though he could feel his voice waver.

Tea laughed, "I bet ya could. Me, though? As with most trauma surviva's, I'm scared a regressin'. Not bein' able ta take what I've learned, who've I've become and keep it if I see 'em. I'm scared a becomin' that same scared little girl surrounded by 'er family gettin' beat for gettin' a betta score than 'er sista. Scared a bein' the girl who can' speak up for 'erself. I'm fuckin' scared my family's gonna show up and take everythin' I've worked so hard ta build, so hard ta protect and jus' fuck it all ta hell."

He pulled her into a hug, holding her to his chest as her breathing calmed down from being the heavy, close to hyperventilating, it had a moment before as she was speaking. Her trembling slowly ebbed allowing him to let go and pull her back into the main area of the store. While there weren't a lot of clothes available that were feasible for now, there were still some long sleeve shirts and jackets as well as some pants that the group's men and women could use. The coats wouldn't be good enough for the winter, but the spring and fall months would find them perfect for use. She wasn't sure how well the pants would fit either, deciding that they should probably try for one or two of the clothing stores along the strip. None of these clothes would fit Carl, Sophia, or Beth, there were obviously no baby clothes and she wasn't sure if the clothes they were collecting would be the right size, either. If they weren't they could use them for something else, but that didn't mean they shouldn't try to find things they could use. The pair were throwing anything they could use into a bin they'd found in the storage room when Daryl caught sight of something in the window. He told Tea to stay put where she was before heading over to the display case and grabbed the article of clothing there.

"Close your eyes," he told her as he came back, standing right in front of her with the thing in his hands. "Open."

Tea slowly opened her eyes to see a leather vest similar to the one he and Merle had worn since the quarry. While theirs were monotone gray, however, the wings on this vest started a deep blue before coming up into fiery colors that tapered off near the wings' arches into pure white. She reached out to touch the wings, finding them to be embroidered pieces of colored leather rather than material like the brothers'. It was absolutely beautiful and she was giving him the same smile she had given him the day he gave her the crossbow. Daryl was breathless for a moment when she gave him that smile, still surprised as the first time he'd seen it. The smile reached all the way up to her eyes that shone bright as she looked at him in pure wonder.

"Damn, D," she said in astonishment and joy. "People might think ya tryin' ta make an honest woman outta me."

"And if I am?" he asked with an eyebrow raised and pink ears as he looked away from her.

"I like Ania Dixon a hell a lot betta than Titania Parker, that's for sure," she said smiling even brighter.

"Well then, let's see how it fits."

He helped her put it on and smiled at the fact that it reached just above her hips and the sleeves stopped right at the curve of her shoulders. Taking a deep breath in through his nose, he had to will himself to remember the task at hand as he looked at her in the vest. She actually said it, he thought to himself merrily. My Ania fuckin' Dixon! His smile was just as bright as hers as he lost control momentarily and crashed her into him once again. They were both laughing into the kiss, too happy and in the moment to care about anything else until a bang at the window drew them back to reality. A single walker had made it's way to the store and was watching them from outside, startling Tea, who started laughing her ass off, and frustrating Daryl. Removing himself from her with an aggravated sigh, Daryl left the store to take care of the intrusive thing. There were no more in the street, but due to the urgency they both began feeling, they quickly went through the rest of the stores until they determined they had enough to take back to the prison to last a good while. Before they left, Tea ran back into the biker store to come out a few minutes later with matching sets of leather gloves and handed the larger pair to Daryl while she kept the smaller one for herself, tucking them in the back pocket of her jeans.

When they came through the gates the night before with all the supplies, Tea sporting her new vest, a lot of looks were given. Glenn had joked that she looked like a Dixon with it on, to which she simply replied she should since she was. That earned a round of congratulations from the group for what essentially counted as a wedding in this day and age. The two helped move the supplies into the cell block and Tea handed some things out to the group, including handing Lori a nice blanket she had found for the baby. Daryl had also found a couple boxes of ammo and a silencer in one of the restaurants within the strip mall, which came as a surprise since they hadn't expected to find anything along the line of weaponry on this run. Tea even managed to sneak away for a few minutes to give the inmates some blankets since they'd been using towels as blankets until then. She was still determined to get them into her group no matter what so that not only they would be safe, but her group would be that much safer, too.

~x~

"Dammit, Rhee!" Daryl roared.

He had dragged Tea to one of the guard towers after everyone else started going to bed, bringing their own blankets with them so they could stay there and have some alone time without having to be quiet. As soon as they'd gotten through the trap door and into the tower, Daryl had attacked her, pinning her right up against the wall and kissing the ever-loving life out of her. Tea moaned into his mouth as his tongue entered her mouth and completely dominated hers while her hands pulled on his short locks while still holding his face to hers. He had sat her down only for one of his hands to go under her shirt and roughly groped her breast before he literally tore her shirt open. She had giggled at that before bringing her hands to his face and brought him back to her lips as his arms wrapped around her and picked her up once more. He'd laid her down after that and had managed to get her pants undone, pulling her bra down under one breast and latched onto the nipple before the door had opened and Glenn and Maggie came in. The pair had been using the guard tower closest to the prison which was the entire reason he'd pulled Tea to this, well, that and so he could hear her voice again. Daryl started cussing out Glenn as Tea and Maggie laughed their asses off at the situation before the pair finally left after Daryl got a final word in.

"Pick ya own damn guard tower," he growled at them. "Fuck you laughin' for?" he asked Tea.

"Ya got ta admit, afta all the times we caught 'em ova the winta, they finally caught us!" she laughed. "At least they didn't catch us with our pants down."

"I still want to burn my eyes out from that," Daryl said as he put the latch in the locked position to prevent any more intrusions. "Only ass I want to see is yours."

"I think we can make that happen," she said coyly as she stood up and went back over to him.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him back into a gentle kiss that slowly became more and more heated until he had her legs back around his waist. He sank to his knees and laid her back on the blankets, resuming what he had been doing earlier by sliding one hand down into her pants. Tea mewled as he started rubbing, his other hand once again pulling her bra. He squeezed one breast while attaching his lips to the other as he rolled the nipple between his teeth before using his tongue to sooth the peaked mound. Tea's hands were pulling at his short locks as she panted and bucked into his hand until she couldn't hold back her voice anymore.

"Gods, D, please? I need ya," she begged, her own hands going down to his waist and opening his pants as he climbed back up to kiss her again.

He didn't say anything, just laid his entire weight on her as he tangled his hands in her hair while her arms wrapped themselves around him under his shirt. Her nails raked down his skin when he finally broke the kiss only to move down to her clavicle and bite her there, making her buck up into him. The friction caused both of them to start grinding against each other as Daryl took her lips again, only releasing her when she was breathless and wanting. He moved down her body, leaving a sloppy trail as he kissed, licked, and sucked his way all the way down to the top of her pants, paying special attention to each breast before moving along. When he got to her pants, he pulled at them while kissing the junction of her thighs and hips on both sides before licking a trail down the inside of her thigh. Her breathing was coming out harshly by the time his tongue hit the bundle of nerves that had her moaning his name and her fingers running through his hair after he had pulled her pants all the way off.

"Daryl," she moaned out. "I can'...I can' take it."

"Let me take care of you, baby girl," he told her, looking up at her from between her legs and seeing her flushed face.

He kept his eyes on her face as he removed his fingers and licked her with the flat of his tongue until he reached her clit, her back arching off the floor even as her hands pulled at his hair. Tea could barely hold her voice back as she felt Daryl's teeth and tongue toying with her most sensitive spot before he moved down to her opening. She tried, she really did, to look down at him, but the sensations he was giving her was too much for her to do much other than close her eyes and pull on his hair, although she was more pulling him closer to her. Daryl's nose was buried in her pubic hair as he attacked her sex, her voice spurring him on until her juices were running down his chin and he himself couldn't stand the tension anymore, either. Tea was blushing when he leaned back and wiped his chin off before taking his shirt off and crawling up her body. She could taste herself on his tongue when he kissed her and moaned into the kiss while her nails clawed into his shoulders before moving them down towards his pants.

She reached into them, grabbing his ass before she started pushing them down as far as she could until she couldn't move them any further. Daryl didn't waste any time in leaning back and standing up, looking down at her flushed body, swollen lips, and her blown pupils in the light of the lamp he'd brought with them. He pushed his pants all the way down and stepped out of them, looking at his feet for just a moment before she was on her own knees. His cock was already stiff and standing when she crawled over to him and took it in her hand. She looked up at him through her thick lashes before licking him from base to tip, taking the tip into her mouth. Tea's tongue flitted across his meatus before she took him all the way down, Daryl growling in response as he tangled his hands in her hair. She sucked him down straight while looking up at him, his eyes never leaving hers as she worked him. He was close enough to a wall to lean back so he didn't fall as his legs began to shake from the way she was working him, alternating between taking him down to the base and pumping him with her and while licking the appendage.

When he couldn't take anymore, Daryl pulled at her hair, pulling her mouth of his dick and making her have to stand up. He whipped her around and pressed her against the wall, picking her up so he didn't have to lean down to kiss her. It worked better for him anyway since she was high enough that he could simply slide right into her, both moaning at the sensation. He didn't even wait for her to adjust before he started pounding into her with such vigor that she couldn't even try to hold her voice back. It was loud enough to echo off the walls as Daryl moved them back to the blankets, leaning down and taking her breast into his mouth again. She mewled and ran her fingers through his hair before he released it and turned her around onto her knees. He wrapped her hair around his hand and pulled her head back, leaning down and biting her shoulder as he entered her again. Pulling her hair gave Daryl more leverage and made him go so much deeper as he kept one hand on her hips to guide her down on his length. She was dripping wet and the sounds she was making were only a partial sign of how close she was, her walls tightening around his cock.

"Come on, baby girl," he growled before he smacked her ass, making her twitch around him.

Tea wanted to beg and plead with him to let her cum, to make her cum, but she couldn't properly get a word out. All she could do was moan, the angle her head was in and the way her back was arched preventing her from making any other sounds. His length and girth were torching her insides with how rough Daryl was being but she didn't care that he was being rough. He wasn't always fast and heavy, but when he was, it turned her on all the more. The sound of their skin slapping against each other, her moans, Daryl's hard breathing and grunts, and the occasional resounding slap to her ass echoed off the walls. Her arms and legs were starting to give out as he maintained his brutal pace until he finally let go of her hair and let her chest fall to the floor. Both his hands gripped her hips as he relentlessly pounded into her as she cried out his name, her walls tightening around him as she came hard on his cock. Daryl smacked her ass again before pushing her down to her stomach and put his chest to her back, biting her shoulder again hard enough to leave a mark.

While the new angle didn't allow him to keep up his relentless pace, he was able to push as deep as he could into her. She moved her head back, giving him more access to her neck and shoulder as he attached himself there, deepening the color of the mark he was leaving on her. One of her hands reached behind her to hold his head while the other was captured by one of his as his thrusts started becoming erratic. Tea could feel the pressure building up all over again, the feeling of his weight on her, his teeth and tongue on her shoulder, and the way he was grasping her hand nearly pushing her over the edge. Daryl finally released her shoulder only to bring his forehead down beside her neck, the sensation of his breath on her skin making her cry out even more. The thread holding them together snapped so hard that Tea practically screamed his name as he swore while his bucks slowed and his dick twitched within her walls. They stayed like that as their breathing calmed and he softened inside her, not bothering to slip out when he wrapped his arm around her and shifted so that his weight wasn't completely on top of her. Daryl kept a hold of her as they slowly fell asleep, the two of them not moving for the rest of the night.

~x~

There wasn't much to do but clear out the field little by little, Tea and Daryl heading out every day to find propellant to help the corpses burn without burning through the gasoline they'd managed to collect. Near mid-week, Tea started puking almost as soon as she woke up only to be fine afterwards, something she attributed to having not gone to bed with food in her stomach for a while and now it was just making her nauseous. The smell from the burning corpses didn't help, either, because it smelled like rotten meat being cooked. Daryl was getting nervous because they had never really tried to be careful and even though Tea assured him it wasn't possible since she still had over a week left before she was even supposed to have her cycle, he couldn't help the feeling of dread. Tea tried to get his mind away from what he was thinking, especially after Lori's due date came and went and the possibility of needing a c-section grew, but the man was too stubborn to listen to her. Every time they went out for wood or to hunt, Tea was grabbing as many herbs as she could to help with infection, pain, blood flow, and nutrition. Somehow, that only served to make Daryl's fears grow more and more to the point that he hadn't let Tea out of his sight for the rest of the week and into the next.

After a week with Daryl up her ass, they were on watch together when she asked him, "Why ya so worried anyway? Do ya not want kids or somethin'?"

"Do you?"

"If it's ya's, yeah, I want that," she admitted.

Daryl looked at her before looking back out at the woods, "What if..."

"I can' be. Not right now, anyways. If ya want ta try, I keep count a my days. I know 'bout when the right time would be ta try..." she told him, tapering off to gauge his reaction.

"You'd really want my kid?"

"I'm ya wife, ain' I? Might seem a bit sexist a me ta say, but if we both want a kid, ain' it my job as ya wife ta give ya one? And if ya don'," she said as she looked out at the woods, too, not willing to give Daryl up just to be a mom. "If ya don', that's fine, too. I can keep track ta make sure it doesn' happen."

"You sure?"

"Do ya really think I'd say it if I didn'? Eitha way, as long as I got ya, I'll be happy."

Did he want a kid? Daryl contemplated it for a few minutes, picturing what a kid of theirs might look like; green eyes with his dark hair or blue eyes with her fiery locks. A child that would be theirs that they could teach and protect, help thrive and survive in the world. A chance to get right what his own father had completely screwed up and not give his child scars either mentally or physically. The thought of it made his chest constrict, but the thought that he might lose her in the process made him feel dread. What would happen if she went over like Lori? What would happen if she died? Would he be able to take care of the child by himself? He'd already lost Merle, what happened if he lost her, too? Yet, she had told him that she wanted one, but if he didn't, she would make sure it didn't happen. Thinking hard about it, the dread of losing her was overpowered by the idea that they could actually have a family, he could actually have a family.

"You sure?" Daryl asked her, finally looking at her.

Tea chuckled a little before turning to him with a soft smile, "Whateva ya want."