Chapter 51

Daryl returned to the prison after two days.

She had heard the truck and the clanging of the gates from the storage room where she had been working.

As she made her way through the courtyard she could see him walking through the field.

She smiled at Rick and patted his arm as she passed him.

She knew it was no coincidence that Rick had become her shadow when Daryl left. She also knew there was a reason why Glenn and Maggie had a sudden interest in all the activities that kept Sophia busy throughout the day.

Given the current situation with Ed, she hadn't expected a single thing less from Daryl. She knew he wouldn't have been able to walk out those gates unless he knew that both she and Sophia were protected properly.

Daryl passed both Glenn and Maggie nodding to them both, as he continued on his way to Sophia.

Sophia's head turned and in the same moment she jumped to her feet. A huge smile covered her face as she spotted Daryl making his way toward her.

She stepped out of the Garden bed that she has been tending to and began wiping her hands on her pants.

As they quickly approached each other, Daryl began opening the duffel bag that hung from his shoulder.

Both Sophia and Carols steps quickly faltered when she saw Daryl pull the large cat from his bag.

Sophia's hands covered her mouth and her head dropped. And even though Carol was far away from them, she could still hear Sophia cry out loudly.

It was clear to Carol that this wasn't just some random cat that Daryl had brought home. Even more clear when the cat suddenly started trying to claw its way from Daryl's grasps to make its way to Sophia.

Daryl held the cat out and Sophia reached out for the cat as he got close enough to put it in her arms.

She pulled it roughly to her chest before pulling it back to regard it. They looked at each other like long lost friends for a brief moment, before the cat nuzzled itself into Sophia's neck.

Daryl crouched down in front of her and for a moment he just smiled at the sight before him. It wasn't until Sophia looked down at him that Daryl started talking.

Carol couldn't hear what he was saying, but she knew from the expression on Sophia's face, that it was important. It was something that he needed to say and something the Sophia needed to hear.

Sophia cried as he spoke, trying to choke down the emotions bubbling inside of her, but she couldn't contain them. Her face was red and streaked with tears, but Daryl continued on.

He placed his hand light on the cat as he spoke before finally reaching up and taking a lock of Sophia's hair between his fingers before his hand fell flat on his chest and he began shaking his head as he spoke.

Sophia nodded continuously as she openly sobbed. Until something he said had pulled at the last thread she was hanging by.

Without warning she fell forward onto him and wrapped her free arm around his neck.

There was no hesitation, Daryl hugged her back pulling her close, not worrying about the cat that was being squashed between them.

It was a moment she felt blessed to witness. It tugged at her heart and for a brief moment everything was perfect.

Carol never thought she'd see the day that Sophia was openly affectionate with anyone but her.

When they were at the campsite, Daryl had always been her friend. Her protector. But somewhere out there, while they wandered their way from place to place, he'd become so much more than that.

And Carol felt something inside of her untangle. Something that had been knotted up for a very long time.

Sophia had a real father. One that loved her. One that would do anything for her.

But no matter how focused she was on Daryl and Sophia, it didn't stop her blood from running cold.

She turned her head, as though something in her body could sense him. Ed, standing behind the fence of his cage, eyes narrowed and the corner of his lip curled. Growing angrier with each passing second.

They stood outside of the barn while Sophia helped Herschel examine the cat. It couldn't seem to decide if it liked the old man or not. There was nuzzling and purring, followed by raised claws and hissing, all depending on what part of the examination Herschel carried out.

"Why did she call him Fred?" Carol asked as they watched Sophia and Hershel laughing at the Cats dramatic antics.

Daryl smiled and raised his brow as he looked down at her. "cause she's a smart ass."

The breeze was warm and though he knew they had more then enough problems to deal with, right now everything was good.

He had decided to ignore the raging voice in his head. He pushed those horrible memories away and did his best to pretend they didn't belong to him. That was someone else. Like it was a movie he'd seen a long time ago.

As Sophia came towards them with the cat in her arms, she smiled widely at them both. "Hershel said he's healthy"

Daryl had figured as much. If anything he was sure the cat had gained a few pounds since he last saw him. But even though the news came as no surprise he told her that he was glad to hear it.

Sophia walked ahead of them, talking quietly to Fred, giving him his own personal tour of the prison as they made their way from the field. He wrapped his arm around Carols shoulder and leaned down to brush his lips against her head.

She stopped at the contact and turned toward him. For a brief moment he thought he'd done something wrong. Until she took his face in the palm of her hands and brought his face to hers. He wound his arms around her and deepened the kiss, unable to help himself because didn't want it to end too soon.

When she pulled back, she took a moment and searched his eyes. For a moment he felt lighter and he was certain that she could see it.

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and they continued on, walking slowly behind Sophia.

Daryl woke up with his arms and legs tangled up with Carol. He'd woken up in similar positions with her before, but this wasn't like those other times. This time they were fully clothed and he didn't have the same satisfied feeling that he often woke up with after spending the night with Carol.

Because now, even after sleeping, he was exhausted and quite honestly a little afraid to move.

Slowly he tried to untangle his arms from hers and slide his legs out from under hers.

He was careful, he was precise.

He felt her move and knew he was actually failing.

"Are you crazy!" Carol spat in a harsh whisper.

"I gotta take a piss. Like, I'm running out of time here" he grumbled as he froze in place.

Carol groaned, but slowly began working with him so that he could escape the bed as quietly as possible.

Sleep regression.

That was what Carol called it.

But Daryl mostly saw it as some kind of torture tactic.

Like the baby wanted information and he was going to use these tactics to get it out of him. The only problem was, Daryl didn't know what the kid wanted from him, if he did he would have folded after the first night.

It had started the night he left to go and get Fred. Carol said at first she just thought the baby was missing him. Maybe he was to used to Daryl being there and him being gone had disrupted his routine. But it had continued even after he got home and every night since.

As he stood up he peered over the top of Carol and waited to see if the angry baby had any idea that one of his prisoners was escaping.

"Oh thank god" Carol whispered when it became clear to them both that Hayes was none the wiser.

He leaned down , kissing her cheek as she turned her head to look up at him.

"Coming back?" she whispered.

"right back." He promised quietly before he snuck out of the room.

As he snuck out into the hallway he heard a sound. Footsteps maybe? And he felt sorry for whoever it was that Hayes had disturbed with his whining and growling. Growling, there was no other word for it. His kid literally growled like an angry puppy.

After relieving himself in the field by the cell block he lit himself a smoke and very slowly, started making his way back to the cell. He had no doubt in his mind that Hayes would be awake by the time he got back and he needed to engage in any kind of stress relief that he could get his hands on.

When he approached the dining area he could see someone sitting at one of the picnic benches.

It wasn't necessarily a cold night but it was cool enough that he had to wonder why Eric was sitting alone at one of the picnic benches.

He tried to skirt around the man because he didn't really want to share the same space with him. He didn't want to have anything to do with him. And because Daryl felt that way, he wasn't surprised when the asshole stopped him.

"Daryl? Can I talk to you?"

Daryl didn't want to stop. He didn't really want to give the man the time of day. The vote had been 6 to 2. And Eric had been one of the two.

So he kept walking by him, ignoring the fact that the man had spoken to him.

"I just wanted to apologise"

Daryl huffed and turned around. He was annoyed and frustrated just hearing the guys voice, but when he turned and looked down at him, he found himself feeling somewhat sorry for the guy.

He looked worried, way more worried then Daryl thought he could look. It was just easier to assume that he was just some arrogant prick like Cain.

"Yeah? Well go ahead" he said roughly, giving the man a stiff nod. He was tired and pissed off about it, so if this asshole really wanted to talk about, then Daryl thought there was no better way to get his anger out.

He sat himself up when he realised that Daryl was giving him a chance to speak.

"Look, I didn't really understand what was even going on in that meeting." He said with his hands open infront of him.

"You knew enough" Daryl told him as he took another drag of his smoke and leaned back on his heel.

Eric raised his brow.

"To vote against a man I hardly know? In favour of a woman I didn't know at all?"

Daryl narrowed his eyes and shook his head.

"It weren't about Carol, it was about Sophia. She's just a kid."

"Look. All I knew was that the world ended and you came along and stole another man's family" Eric interrupted.

"You see now, I hate that shit!" Daryl spat, pointing his finger at Eric as he spoke. "Carol's a person. So is Sophia. they got minds of their own-?

"Offcourse they do" Eric interrupted again. "I didn't mean to imply-..." he sighed rather then finishing his sentence.

Daryl waited the man out, because he clearly wasn't finished. He was just searching his head for the right words before he put his foot in his mouth again.

"All I knew was the stories Ed had told me. And I saw you attack him that day."

"Do you know why?" Daryl questioned raising his brow.

Eric nodded "I do now. I didn't know he was like that, that he did all that. Truly, I didn't."

Daryl thought Eric looked remorseful and he knew then that if he had have gone into that room knowing all he did now, then he wouldn't have hesitated.

Daryl's shoulders slouched slightly when his body realised it no longer had to prepare for a fight. He didn't need to be on the defensive because no one was attacking him.

"Look, Daryl. Truth was I never paid to much attention to any of you. Then suddenly I was put in that room." He said, shaking his head and throwing his hand up. "I went with what I knew."

"I made a mistake. I can promise you it won't be one I make twice."

Daryl stared at the man and sucked back a breath.

"I'm no stranger to making mistakes. So I'll give you that." Daryl told him.

Eric nodded. "Thank you. I appreciate it."

Daryl chewed his lip and looked around him. "well, I better get back in there, kids bound to be up again by now."

"He giving you hell? Eric asked, giving him the same smile that most people did when they asked about the baby.

Daryl quickly realised that people smiled because they thought it was funny. It was funny when babies screamed in public, shit and vomited all over you or decide to drive you absolutely insane,...all those things that were socially unacceptable as an adult, were down right hilarious when it was a kid doing it.

"Just ain't sleeping right now." He told him, shaking his head slightly As he spoke.

Eric hummed and smiled as though he was revisiting an old memory. "Sleep Regression?"

"That's what Carol calls it." he said with loose shrug.

Eric smiled, but his eyes betrayed him.

From the strained look in his eyes, Daryl thought it was likely that he was only seconds away from loosing his mind and going batshit crazy. But he never did. If anything Daryl was sure the man relaxed further into his position at the bench.

"It won't last forever. Just keep that in mind. He'll come good... you just gotta wait him out." Eric offered as he looked back up to the sky.

Eric didn't have kids, or a wife for that matter.

At least he didn't anymore.

Daryl's blood ran cold in his veins and his stomach flipped as he took in Eric's expression.

Suddenly it wasn't so hard to believe that he would try to help a man who was losing his family. Especially if he didn't know the finer details. Especially if he knew what it was like when they were taken from you.

"G'night" Daryl said as he dropped his cigarette to the ground and used his shoe to put it out.

Eric nodded, but he didn't have anything else to say.

And Daryl walked a little more quickly back to his cell then was needed.

When he came back and heard the baby fussing once again he didn't hesitate to get back in there.

"He just woke up again" Carol whispered shaking her head as she bounced the baby in her arms.

Daryl reached out and took Hayes from Carol and pulled him close to his chest.

"You rest. I got him"

Carol paused and took far to long to process what he had just told her. Her eyes were red from exhaustion and it was pretty obvious that if she didn't get a decent rest soon, then she wouldn't be able to function like a normal human.

"Wha-... are you sure?" she stuttered out, clearly unsure if she had heard him correctly.

He smiled at her and nodded as he leaned down to kiss her cheek, before looking at the whining and growling baby in his arms.

"Definitely."

The cat apparently was Sophia's chance at being miss popularity amongst the other kids. But Sophia wasn't interested in the slightest bit.

The children who had ignored her, teased her and, as far as Daryl was concerned, had been little shit heads to Sophia, suddenly surround her like a flock of annoying birds waiting for crumbs.

They wanted to pat the cat, hold the cat, cuddle it and play with it. But when they came towards Sophia in droves she had told them quite eloquently to "Fuck right off".

And when word got back to Daryl and Carol, they had nothing to say to Sophia about it. Fred wasn't a toy and Sophia wasn't desperately seeking out the company of those little brats, so they didn't understand why they were supposed to punish Sophia for standing up for herself and the damn cat.

He had been holding Hayes and patting his back repeatedly, trying to force a burp from his tiny body. Carol had been pulling their clothes from the line and answering some questions he had about Hayes. Like when the kid would be able to walk and talk. And Carol hadn't made fun of him for not having that knowledge, she had just answered his questions and continued on with the laundry.

That was until Kelley turned the corner and asked Carol if she could speak to her a moment.

Kelley stood in front of Carol, hands on her hips and a bitchy expression on her face, talking to Carol as though she was the worst mother on earth.

At first Daryl decided to stay out of it. Because he thought that Carol would want to deal with shit by herself. But when the woman really started running her mouth, Daryl found it harder and harder to shut his.

"She's swearing at other children. You realise that?"

Carol nodded as she took another piece of clothing from the line and began inspecting it to make sure it was dry.

"They just need to leave Sophia alone. Just like they've done since she got here." Carol said flatly.

Carol didn't sound upset, angry or even frustrated. She simply sounded bored with the conversation and her attitude only seemed to twist Kelly up more and more.

"Elizabeth just wants to hold the cat. She has no intention of hurting it. She had a cat herself before all of this and..."

"Which of em's yours?" Daryl asked from where he was still sitting on the crate.

"Excuse me?" Kelly asked raising her eyebrows at him, clearly annoyed that he had decided against remaining silent.

"Which kid is yours?" Daryl repeated a little bit slower then was necessary.

"Elizabeth. The girl in the jeans and tan jacket" she told him, pointing towards the field where a few of the older kid's often hung around.

Daryl couldn't help but choke out a laugh and shake his head.

"Something funny?" Kelly asked, dropping her hand to her hip

"Listen lady. Ya kid has been horrible to Soph since she got here. And don't act like it's a shock cause everyone knows about it.

"She's scared of Sophia." Kelly muttered.

Daryl felt his chest tighten at the explanation and it took everything he had not to loose his shit at the woman.

"Scared of what? Cause quite honestly lady, I've wanted to come and have a word with you. She called Sophia an animal."

"she told the other kids Sophia was dangerous." Carol added with disgust.

Daryl could see the woman searching her own mind for something to say, something that would excuse her kid being a little shit head.

Kelly shook her head and shrugged her shoulders tightly. "She kills walkers and.." Kelly said, trailing off into silence.

"Most people have" Carol reminded the woman, "Especially if they aren't relying on other people to protect them all the time"

Daryl, repositioning the baby against his chest, waited, making sure Carol was finished before throwing in his two cents. And maybe he had waited to long, because for a brief moment, he was sure that Kelly thought that this was her cue to continue on with her bullshit parade.

Just as Kelly opened her mouth to continue, he took it as his sign to jump in.

"Only reason we haven't pulled you up is cause Sophia told us not to. She said it's not worth it. That she could care less what ya kid thinks of her."

Truth was, he was fairly certain that the kids alienating Soph had upset him more then it had Sophia. He thought that when he brought her here, that she would be able to be a kid again. That they would give the her a break. But that hadn't happened and it only added to the feeling of failure on his part. It was just something else that Sophia had lost. Something he hadn't protected as carefully as he should have.

"Now cause ya' kid wants to have play-time with a goddamn cat were supposed to what? Tell Sophia to do as she's told so's little Elizabeth is happy? Can you hear how messed up that is?" Daryl asked with a humourless laugh.

There was no denying it. He'd pissed the woman off by telling her the truth. No one wanted to admit they'd messed up, but he was pretty sure it was harder for people like her to admit.

"If she doesn't at least try to get along with the other kids, then she's always going to be the outcast. They will always look at her as someone who doesn't belong."

Both Daryl and Carol stopped what they were doing and stared at Kelly.

His hand was no longer patting away at the babies back and Carol stood frozen , holding one of his shirts in her hands.

An outcast?

Doesn't belong?

Daryl instantly felt his jaw clench and his shoulders tense.

Carol, very suddenly, went from looking bored, to being clearly pissed off at the lady.

She looked so angry that Daryl wouldn't have been surprised if she were to walk right over and kick Kelly's arse.

"We'd rather her be a pariah then a bully." Carol said sternly.

Daryl nodded enthusiastically as she spoke.

"Any day of the damn week I'd prefer that. So if you don't mind lady, you can fuck right off too."

Kelly's mouth opened, but nothing came out. Her eyes darted from Daryl to Carol, clearly hoping to find Carol in just as much shock as she was.

Instead she was greeted with something of a sneer from Carol before she went back to folding the shirt she had been clutching.

"You heard him" Carol said as she pulled another item from the clothesline.

With a huff Kelly spun around stomping her feet, making it very easy to see where her daughter had gotten her attitude from.

"What a bitch" carol said with a smile, shaking her head to herself.

Daryl laughed loudly, unable to contain it, and he was sure the sound hit Kelly's ears as she walked off.

And just when they thought Kelly couldn't look anymore irritated then she had, Sophia turned the corner almost bumping into Kelly as she passed her.

They both watched as Sophia stepped back dramatically and raised her hands. "Hey. Slow down lady"

But Kelly didn't slow down and Sophia raised her brow watching the lady stomp off.

Sophia shook her head and turned to continue toward them, with Fred practically skipping beside her.

She had wide eyes and a playful smirk on her face as she chuckled in an insincere manner.

"jeez. What a bitch." Sophia laughed, nodding her head back in the direction that Kelly had marched off in.

He and Carol laughed in response, neither of them bothering to correct Sophia's language. And maybe they would have, if the woman hadn't just called the kid an outcast and said she didn't belong in her own home, with her family.

They didn't dwell on what Kelly had said for a second longer.

He'd known women like that before the change and he had no doubt in his minds that Carol had to.

Women like that, only cared about status and they thought being left alone with your own company was the absolute worst thing that could happen to a person. And Daryl imagined that if you were someone like Kelly? Then maybe you couldn't think of anything worse then being left alone with your own thoughts.

The three of them went back to discussing Hayes and all the different things they had to look forward to. Because soon the boy would say his first words and take his first steps and they would get to watch him grow, together.

And Daryl noticed that every time his name was mentioned, the baby looked between the three of them with a big toothless smile.