Hello! I am a few days late. I will be trying to update every Sunday. If you guys want longer chapters let me know! I can make them longer I just thought that 1000 to 1300 words would be a nice length. Also still looking for someone to Beta this story if anyone is interested.

For the purpose of this story, the time between Daryl and Aaron coming back and before they go out to deal with the herd is a few weeks.
Thanks for reading comments give me life!

Chapter 3
Awake

When Pandora woke the third time, she was ready, and it was different. Taking her time, she opened her eyes, slowly. This is different all of it, if they wanted her dead she would be dead. No one else had ever taken care of her before, she wasn't hurt, she was better even. Pandora tested her fingers, they moved. Her wrist, it moved. She lifted slowly above her head, a deep cut on her forearm had been covered. She started the process of testing her muscles

Slower now she sat up the room shifted and pitched to the side, her eyes closed a few deep breaths later she opened them again. The room was straight again; it was small a door to the right two windows on the adjacent wall. Turning her head to the right she saw another door this one closer to her. It was a room, a nice room. Where, she wondered a house, no how they be so stupid.

Fear bubbled up inside her, pushing past her lips in a little hysterical laugh. She must be dead, or this was some new kind of torment the wolves had thought of for her. Why because she still chooses to fight, she would always fight not fighting meant dying, dying was something she was not ready to do. The feeling of hot bodies pressing against her again, she realized she had closed her eyes opening them the room swam into focus for the third time.

Doors, she told herself she had been looking at the doors. It was so easy to forget what she was doing, so easy to just slip away. Now was not the time, she scolded her wondering thoughts.

A pressing feeling on her bladder made her wonder if one of the doors lead to a washroom. A tug on her arm when she tried to move made her turn. An IV was stuck into her hand the tube leading to a clear bag hanging on a pole to her right. Fuck she thought. The pressure was growing, and her thirst was growing which was not a good combination.

Shutting her eyes, she wrapped shaking fingers around the tube and pulled. It didn't hurt, when she opened her eyes bright red blood leaked from where the needle had come from. The sight of the blood cause the panic to flow up again, she remembered nail marks scratches, visits in the night. Her breathing quickened, blood dripped onto the white sheets she stopped moving.

Pandora's legs swung over the side of the bed, Go she yelled at her body willing it into motion. The floor pitched rising up to meet her tumbling form. The tears came then, or had they been coming before now she was not sure. Her body lay sideways on the ground pain traveling up her arm, a warm feeling spreading on her skin. Just work! She wanted to scream. Just work! If she couldn't stand she couldn't run, and it always came down to running no matter where she thought she was.

"Shit!" A man's voice cursed slamming the door shut footsteps thudded around the bed. She hadn't even heard anyone come in, but there he was the one with the blue eyes. He stopped there a few feet from her, hands outstretched face a cool controlled calm. "Hey." He whispered.

Hey, Pandora want to open the box? A voice sneered at her from somewhere in her head, no, no this was not the same man. She was not in that place, she was in another place a different place, with strangers still though everyone was a stranger now.

Pandora sat pushed into the corner of the room, as if is she pressed hard enough the wall would open her up and take her away with it. He looked down at her a ghost of an emotion flashed in his eyes before it was gone.

Getting down into a squat in front of her, he blinked. "Can I see your hand." He asked keeping his voice low and calm.

Pandora blinked pushing back just a bit more, the panic gripped her. For a moment she couldn't speak, unable to form her quick jumping thoughts into words. The pressure on her bladder was like a lightening bolt through the panic attack getting her brain moving again.

"I have to go to the bathroom." She whispered. He only nodded moving closer reaching his arms out. This seemed insane, a part of the brain could see that. Asking this man, she knew from nowhere to help her find the bathroom.

"I ain't gonna hurt you." He said it again, this time, his hands were out palms facing upwards.

She nodded, still crying unable to stop. He leaned holding her arm gently to lift her up. Once standing she swayed, shaking hands gripped his vest to steady herself. He walked slowly, thankfully helping her into the washroom. Once inside they both stopped, clearly no one had thought this through.

Looking up she stood straighter, the room no longer moved, her legs no longer gave in with her weight. They wanted to she could tell, the tiny tremble told her she wouldn't be standing for long.

The man moved her over to the toilet cleared his throat then turned his back to her and left. She stood gripping the toilet before going about her business. When Pandora she finished she just sat there, her shoulders slumped. The room was beautiful looking, the tall glass shower seemed to call her name. Whispered to her with its promise of clean water, warm even. It had to be warm they had lights, lights meant power. Could she manage a shower, even a short one and she wouldn't feel the walking dead anymore.

There was a sharp knock on the door. "You alright?" He called. Daryl, she remembered hearing the name before. Somewhere in the darkness bits of pieces of conversation floated back to her, he was always there. When she didn't answer right away he opened the door stepping inside waiting for hand on the handle.

What did she look like to him, she wondered. What made that look creep onto his face when he saw her. He probably saw someone broken, frightened. She was frightened she knew, somewhere behind everything else she felt that fear, tasted in just in the back of her mouth.

Turning she balled her hands into fists and stood, but the movement was too fast and she was still too unstable on her feet. Cold marble smashed into her knees, her hands barely had time to catch herself before her face make contact with the floor. A sob pushed out of her, darkness threatened.

He was right there, though. Moving faster than she thought he could. Without a word he was lifting her, arm under her legs the other holding her at the waist. Pandora tensed at first a protest bubbling to her lips, panic flaring. The images came again, phantom fingers on her skin. She screamed shoving at him, it was no use her hands hardly brushed him.

He kept moving ignoring her hands trying to bat him away, "Please, please, please." She managed. Begging, they loved it when she begged it only made them want her more. He stiffened under her moving with more rapid steps, eager to put her down maybe.

Gently he set her down on the bed again, looking down at her as he did so his hands moved the blankets covering her lower half again. Her fingers clung to the smooth fabric of the sheets, hands balling into fists. With his hands off her she could think again, she could remember that there was time before when he didn't hurt her. But everyone hurts, a voice said slowly was that her own voice, she was unsure now. His chair was there right beside the bed she was in, he lowered himself into it. Reaching over he placed a plate in front of her, it had an assortment of dried fruits and nuts.

Shaking she reached for it, her body wared against her, her stomach demanded it her brain panicked. She chose her stomach, this time, taking small bites chewing until it was paste in her mouth then swallowing. Killing her with poised food would be a waste of food she thought as she finished the plate.

She wasn't sure how long she ate, but whatever amount of time passed the man, Daryl she reminded herself, watched her in silence. She glanced at him a few times, to make sure he was real. Sometimes she couldn't tell the difference all her nightmares seemed real too. He was older, or maybe not maybe the world had hardened him. His hair hung long on his head reaching past his ears, his eyes were clear and bright, though. Lights in the fog.

Her hands tightened on the blanket twisting the material in her fingers, the plate was gone now. Had he moved it? Or had she? Why couldn't she remember that? She looked at him again, her mouth opened again no sound. She waited to take a few slow breaths "Pandora." She finally said her name feeling thick on her tongue.

He only nodded. "Daryl"

"I remembered you. The first time I woke up, I remember seeing you." She was talking now the words coming faster, the memories rushing in with them. "You found me." She was whispering again, the memory of being left out there to die came flashing back. She felt the ropes holding her still, the roughness of the tree against her as she panicked. She could smell the forest, his rotten breath, his hands on her. She had to turn away, her chest felt tight again her breath quickened.

"Ah did." Leaning forward he put a hand on top of her. "Take a deep breath." He encouraged. She screamed pulling her hand away from his like he burned her. She tried to breathe, but it was never enough.

Panic and anxiety rose up, she pictured the woods felt the ropes against her skin, felt hot breath on her cheeks. Nails dug into the skin on her arms, the ropes she could feel them if she could only get them off it would be fine. She wasn't in the room anymore she wasn't seeing them, she was seeing them yellow teeth and W carved into their skin.

"Fuck" She almost didn't hear it, everything sounded so far away. There was some noise in the room, but she pressed her hands to her ears now. There were other sounds now behind her eyelids the world seemed too loud. She started humming her voice blocking out the other noises. Go away she told herself, just like the other times. Just go away.

Before she knew it Daryl was holding her hands down away from her face, her eyes were open and she was looking at him. Someone was screaming a harsh horrible sound, his mouth opened speaking to her but she couldn't hear it not over the screaming. She was screaming she realized now, why was she even screaming.

Something moved behind her, but she never turned. The familiar feeling of ice in her veins calmed her down, making everything slow and heavy. She hadn't realized she was struggling against Daryl until the tension was melting away from her. Darkness shrugged up with its fingers clawing ripping at her.

Her hands reached out for him, vision floating in blackness.