The front seat of the pickup truck doesn't fit all of them. Pandora glanced around and tried to suggest as casually as she could to Rosita to sit in the back so Rosita joins her. She sees the stare Daryl gives her the moment she offers and hopes no one else does. Her head is already full of him, the idea of close quarters with him right now is enough to send her head spinning. She has to be able to think so Pandora settled in the back of the pickup truck, knees tucked tightly into her chest.
"So…" Rosita said from beside her, eyes straight ahead, letting the question hang in the air. Pandora flinched, so everyone had seen the looks pass between her and Daryl.
Pandora thinks for only a moment until she speaks, "I kissed him, last night, this morning, and just now." She lifts one hand, gripping the side of the truck as it lurches under her. She had half a mind to bang on the glass behind her and ask when Daryl became such a terrible driver, but the sound of Rosita laughing brought her back to the present moment.
"What?" Pandora asked, glaring at the other woman.
"Nothing, you were very detailed." Rosita has stopped laughing now, but was still watching her. "I'm happy for you."
The words were odd to Pandora, maybe it was because she really had no name for this new relationship if they could even call it that. It was something new though, and soon they would need to talk about this new thing, but not right now.
"Thanks, I guess. I don't really know what the fuck I'm doing."
Rosita was laughing again, "Neither does anyone else."
The truck under her lurched forwards, gears scraping and grinding. Pandora screwed her eyes shut, trying to picture something calmer. Under her, the truck stopped and she could right herself again.
With a grunt, she hoisted her frame over the end of the truck. In seconds, she is on the ground knees bending to take the shock of her landing.
The road ahead of them is blocked by a thick tree laying across the road. From under the tree, the groan of the dead reached her. Daryl and Rosita get out as well, Denise doesn't. Pandora isn't going to allow herself to be side lined, not when she had fought so hard to get here. When she draws her gun out, Daryl moves immediately, like his ears are trained to her movements.
"Stay here, watch our backs and watch the Doc." He says before glancing around and stepping over the tree, disappearing into the bush.
Pandora stands right where he left her, fingers in a white-hot grip around the handle of the gun. Every sound seems sharper to her now, she tilts her head to the side, trying to follow the sounds of Daryl moving.
It wasn't long before he came back to her side, fingers brushing her elbow lightly.
"It's clear." He says, voice low. "Yah alright?"
Pandora nods slowly, lowering her gun and relaxing the grip a fraction.
They all begin moving and she falls in line behind Denise, her gaze flicking between her and Daryl.
"What did you find?" Denise was asking Rosita, who Pandora now noticed was holding a small plastic bag.
"Bottles of booze. Any takers?" Rosita answered.
The events of the other night played in her head, the feather light feeling she had after her shot.
"Me!" She pipes up from the back, holding out her hand for one.
"No thanks." Denise answers, shoving the knife in her belt.
Rosita only laughs, "For later. I'm not bringing these to the pantry."
Pandora closed her hand, lowering it back to her side before slipping up next to Daryl again.
"I'm good." Denise says pulling her map from her bag. "They were kind of my parents thing. Which is why they aren't mine."
Pandora lets her gaze slid over to the doctor when they all stop. In all of this time she didn't know anything about the other woman, not from her life before. Pandora had sat with her many times pouring out her life and her struggles, but she didn't even really know the person she was talking to. Daryl laces his fingers with her own, that movement tugs her back to the present moment.
"That truck ain't gonna make it past this tree. Com'on, let's walk."
He doesn't even give them time to answer him, he is already walking and tugging her along with him. She doesn't object, he would keep her safe so with him is where she should be anyway.
"Hold up," Denise called out. Daryl stops in his tracks, turning to glare back thus causing him to turn her as well. "Looks like a straight shot if we follow the tracks."
Pandora walks forward with him not dropping his hand, but she turns a bit to stare down the tracks. The path looks clear, sunlight streaking through the branches. It's less used this way, she can tell. The tree would provide nice cover and allow for them to hear anyone approaching them.
"No," Pandora holds back the urge to roll her eyes she knows that tone. "No tracks. We'll take the road."
"That's twice as far!" Rosita shouts to their backs.
She is talking to their backs now because Daryl has already turned to the road with Pandora at his side. "You go whichever way you like! Ah ain't taking no tracks."
Somewhere in her head she remembers a story about a place along the train tracks, a place they thought would be safe. She understands his refusal, Rosita should too since she was there if her memory is right. Pandora doesn't hear whatever is said between Rosita and Denise, only sees the Doctor coming up behind them.
"Took long enough." Denise mutters. When Pandora looks up, she realizes the Doctor is staring at her and Daryl's entwined fingers.
Heat rises up her neck, colouring her cheeks slightly. She makes sure not to meet the doctor's eyes. This conversation was one she was not ready to have yet. The rest of the walk is spent in silence. Denise tries to make conversation a few times, but Daryl always shuts it down, intent on spending the trip not speaking. Pandora can't be mad, she knows where the anxiety, now rolling off him in waves, comes from. He is here with her and Denise, if anything happened he couldn't keep them all safe.
"Everything is fine," She whispers, fingers tugging at his. "We are all safe."
He doesn't answer, only grunts and picks up the pace. For the first few steps he is pulling her along, the movement too sudden for her to keep her footing. She rights herself matching his pace again.
Around them the scenery changes, densely packed trees give way to a few homes. Those few homes before more closely packed together until they are walking through a small neighbourhood. It's not long before Pandora spots Rosita, and then she is the one pulling Daryl along.
"Bout time." Rosita scoffs, coming out of her spot to meet them.
Daryl didn't speak, but Pandora saw the glare he shot in Rosita's direction. He didn't stop, only pulled her along past the other women.
Only when they had gone a few steps ahead did she tug him back silently, asking him to slow down.
"Daryl, it worked out fine. Rosita was ready and waiting."
Daryl only grunted again, she sighed, deciding not to try another attempt at conversation. It was best to leave him when he was like this, let him rage in peace.
She understood, she really did, but she had come so far now and she was more able to take care of herself. This wasn't any different from when she had come with Daryl and Rick. This might even be easier since they had hardly seen any of the dead and hadn't heard anything save for the one under the tree.
They all follow the road, it takes them away from the deserted area and leads them into a small city. There is the strip mall like Denise said, it had long since been abandoned. The surrounding streets are littered with bodies, some long dead, others not. For a moment Pandora is looking at the bodies and she isn't there anymore. Instead, she is walking through a camp the wolves had just taken, the dead left scattered carelessly on the ground like these ones. There is sensation of phantom rope on her wrists, a tugging as if someone is pulling her forward.
The flashback is almost all encompassing, almost. The real world demands her attention and gets it by allowing her to stumble on the outstretched hand of a corpse. The movement jolts her back into the moment.
"Pandora?" Daryl's voice tickles her ear. Blinking, he is right there at her side, putting firm pressure on her elbow.
"Ya?" She blinks again, gaze sweeping the area around her to remind her of where she is. "Sorry, I'm fine, I just got distracted."
Rosita is looking at them now although trying to appear like she isn't. Pandora can tell though, and there is a mix of strange emotions playing on her face. Anger twisted her features for a second, then it was gone. As she catches Pandora looking, Rosita turns away with a scoff.
Daryl moves towards the door, obviously satisfied by her answer. He knocks on the door, not loud enough to bring anything from far, but enough to bring any of the dead from inside to the door. Seconds tick by in silence while Pandora waits with her breath held in her lungs for the sounds of the dead, but they are all met by only the same, uneasy stillness.
"Alright me and her are gonna do this." He gestures to Rosita, eyes flicking between Pandora and Denise. "Yah both gonna stay back, got it?"
Pandora doesn't see what Denise says, but Pandora's answer is clear. "No fucking way. I'm going in with you. I will be last to watch you two and Denise."
Her chest puffs out with a bit of pride as that seemed like a great plan. Everyone would be happy, she would be close to the door if she needed to run close to the Doc, perfect. Daryl stares at her though, mouth formed into a hard line.
"Fine, I'm in front, then Daryl, then you." Rosita rolled her eyes and doesn't try to hide her scowl. Pandora doesn't care though, since she got what she wanted anyway.
Pandora smiles, pulling out her knife. Daryl is busy trying to avoid her gaze as he shifts through the contents of his bag pulling out the crowbar and using it to pry the doors open.
They all stand there again, breath held while they wait. Again, nothing happens, nothing moves or comes towards them, it's empty. One door is open all the way now but Daryl is opening both doors to allow the sunlight to flood in inside. Rosita goes in first, her steps still slow and careful, always ready. Daryl throws a glance back at her for a second before entering himself.
Pandora steps in behind him, the smell hits her full in the face causing her hand to fly up. There was something dead inside here, something that had been dead for a long time. The whole place stank of it, meaning nothing had been open for a while. From behind her she hears Denise gagging. It doesn't take long for her to get used to the smell, Pandora has been in the company of worse. She doesn't allow herself to go there now though, forcing her brain to fast forward over the next thoughts.
"We gonna find out what you had for breakfast?" Daryl asks Denise, his tone laced with a mild annoyance. His nerves are thin, she knows this, but it's giving him a nasty edge, something she's hardly seen while he is in her company.
"Oatmeal, just so you know." Denise's answer is light hearted, a sharp contrast to the current mood.
Pandora would never admit it when asked, but she is stressed. Her anxiety feeling like a slow creeping monster up her spine. She follows closely behind Daryl who, without looking back, reaches for her hand. He must know, must be reading her mind or her energy or something. Or maybe it's that they are more alike than they realize, he knows what she is feeling because he feels it too. Before it was nothing, a run with Daryl like always, but life outside of the walls was always unpredictable. Inside this store for some reason, the danger was beginning to seem monstrous.
As Pandora walks with him, she tries to steer her mind in a different direction. Her eyes go to the store around her, drinking in every detail. It's un-looted, all the displays and merchandise still intact resting on dust covered shelves. It's a odd little shop with clothes, bags, herbs, candles and other random items.
"Anything you like?" Daryl asks her as she was stopped in front of a jewelry display.
There is enough lightness in her still to smile at him, slipping up next to him and putting her head on his shoulder.
"I don't know, pick something." She mutters her fingers trail over the glass. its pretty, she's never been much for jelewery really. She was always training and she couldn't wear any of that in the training gym.
He is really trying she can tell, trying to be what she needs right now: a calm influence. Watching, he snaps the lock on the case, hand reaching for a necklace in the back row. It's a beautiful, silver chain with a tree encased in a circle. The tree's roots run deep, and its branches reach high.
"Ah like this one." He mutters as he unhooks the clasps to slip it around her neck.
"I love climbing trees." She whispers, her fingers brushing the tree where it hung at her chest.
"Hey,"
Rosita's voice carried over to them. She had her flashlight turned up to a sign that said pharmacy. Right, the thing they were actually here for: more medicine. Daryl moved from her side, crowbar in hand, ready to pry the metal of the window open. It doesn't give on the first try, so Pandora stands back to give him some space to work.
"Do you want me to hold your bags or something?" Denise is behind them holding her light towards Daryl. No one moves to answer her, Pandora slipping away to the side to look around more.
When it finally clicks open Daryl pushes up the metal screen to reveal an almost stocked pharmacy. Pandora is jumping over the counter and inside first, she doesn't quite make out all the conversation taking place behind her, but hears someone say to take everything. She goes with that and heads in to look for something useful. She finds what she wants right away a few bottles of different anxiety meds. They all get shoved into her bag, along with a new bottle of Xanax.
She moved on, scanning the shelves. With a shrug, she opens her bag and clears them of everything. They can sort it out at home, better to just bring it all. As she moves to read more bottles, she notices that Daryl and Rosita have stopped moving, they are both leaning out the little window. She hears it then, a thud, thud, thud. She can't quite place where it might be coming from and no one seems bothered by it.
"it's just one." Rosita comments offhandedly before turning back inside.
Pandora is slipping up next to Daryl now, bag full of pills jingling. He knows, like always, that she's anxious so he puts a hand on the small of her back to turn her back to the shelves where the sound isn't as loud.
"It sounds like it's stuck." The words are said out loud to everyone, but she knows they were meant for her because as soon as they reached her, he was slipping back into his alise.
Only when they were all gone did she allow her shoulders to slump a fraction. "It's stuck." She whispered to herself, hands tightening on the strap of the bag between her fingers. She decides to stay there, her bag feeling full enough from before. She will just wait right here where she can still hear everything. For a while, it's the background noise of Daryl and Rosita filling their bags that is helping to calm her down.
Behind her, glass shattered sending a shock through her. Daryl was at her side before she had even fully turned her head towards the sound.
"What the hell are you doing?" Rosita snaps, face hard.
Pandora flinches, the edge in Rosita's tone scraping her nerves even more.
"Nothing." Denise's voice is low, but strained.
Pandora turns then to see the Doctor holding a glass vase, they lock eyes for a second then Denise is gone heading for the front door.
"Pandora? Pandora?" Daryl is calling her name, shaking her shoulder lightly. "Com'on stay with me now."
Pandora isn't sure how much time it takes for them to finish, only knows they are done and Daryl is leading her towards the front. She pictures them heading for the door, but shuts her eyes to the movement.
When the sunlight hits her face she turns her head towards it, seeking the warmth. Once outside, she can hear Denise. Opening her eyes, Pandora glanced over her face. Denise looks tired, trying and failing to wipe the tears on her cheeks.
"Hey," Daryl breaks the silence and the rumble in her chest wakes her a bit more. "Yah did good finding this place."
Denise doesn't answer, she can't as her face is splitting into pure agony. Pandora's heart breaks for her, she knows what it's like to see what the world outside has become. Inside the walls it was easy to forget what had happened to the world. Pandora had been out here since the beginning, going from one place to another before she was taken. The world was ugly but she had come to accept it.
"Tried to tell you, you weren't ready." Rosita's face is hard, but she is trying to soften the edges. "We both did."
"I know," Her voice is tiny, so tiny that Pandora has to strain to hear it. "I know."
Pandora steps away from Daryl to lower herself down onto the ground beside Denise. It should frighten her really, watching the woman who held her together falling apart. But this was something she could understand, this fear of the new world. She lived with it every day, no matter how strong she became there was still always the taste of fear in her mouth.
They sat beside each other for a few silent moments before Denise patted her arm gently as she stood. Daryl moved in front of her, hand held out to help her up. She took it, holding it tightly in her own, deciding then that she wasn't going to let him go until they got home.
They started walking back towards where they had all met where the tracks crossed over the road. They walked until the surrounding buildings thinned out slowly; the landscape around them changing ever so slightly. Pandora watched silently like always, marking each house and body on the map in her head. It's so quiet again that the storm in her head is quiet too. Pandora walked at Daryl's side, one hand held a gun, the other held her smaller one tightly.
"So was he older or younger?" Beside her Daryl had slowed their pace to walk next to Denise.
"Older." Denise answered, her lips pulled up into a small smile. "By six minutes. My parents came up with the Dennis/Denise thing on one of their benders. Hilarious right?"
When neither of them answered she went on, "Nothing scared him, he was brave. He was angry too though, kind of a dangerous combination."
His hand shifts around Pandora's holding tighter for only a second before relaxing. "Sounds like we had the same brother." He tried to make his tone light but failed.
They came to the point where the tracks met the road. In front, Rosita and Denise kept walking on the road. It was Daryl who moved away, tugging her along with him towards the tracks.
"Hey." Rosita called somewhere behind them.
"This way's faster right?" He asked, pointing with his free hand down the path of the train tracks. He doesn't wait for anyone to answer him, instead he leans down just to her. "Ahm taking you home ok?"
Sighing, she nods slowly, "I'm fine, really. I promise."
It's not a lie really, she is right here with them now, feeling only her every day anxiety and nothing more. Being out of the store helped, nothing like the feeling of being trapped to cause her anxiety to flare. Out here in the open it was different.
An opening in the trees leads them to a path littered with cars on one side. The area had been deserted for some time, it had the look of an camp set up in the beginning. A tent was pitched towards the tree line, flap flying open.
"There's a cooler in there! Might have something we could use inside."
Denise is somewhere behind them, but when Pandora tries to look, Daryl tugs her forward.
"No we got what we came for." Rosita is ahead of them though, Pandora doesn't really understand when that happened.
"Nah," His voice is a low rumble through her chest when she is pressed this close to him. "Ain't worth the trouble, come on."
They keep walking along the tracks, confident that Denise will just follow. It's not until they hear Denise scream that they stop, heads whipping back towards the sound. In a flash Daryl is running and she's left standing on the tracks alone. When they don't come back for a moment she wanders over to them, only to find Denise bent over throwing up.
"Ah man, I threw up on my glasses." Denise mutters picking them up off the floor, she shoves them in her pocket before turning to inspect the cooler.
Daryl has noticed Pandora is there now so he puts his arm around her, holding her tight against him. She watches the Doctor pull out a six pack of pop, five black and one orange. Pandora isn't sure what happened here, but when she sees the car door open and a walker dead on the floor she can only assume Denise killed it. Part of Pandora is proud of her, despite the vomiting Denise had done well.
Denise pulls the orange one and stares at it. "Hot damn." Denise is grinning at the orange can.
"What the hell was that?" Daryl barks at her, biting off the end of each word. "You could have died right there, you know that?"
"Ya I do."
"Are you hearing me?" He thunders, she stiffens against the harshness of it.
"Who gives a shit!" Denise roars. "You could have died killing those Saviours, both of you, but you didn't. Pandora could have died leading the herd away and she didn't. You wanna live, you take chances. That's how it works. That's what I did."
"For a couple of damn soda's?" Daryl sneers.
"Nope, just this one." Denise holds the orange can as she passes them, Rosita shakes her head but follows.
"Are you seriously that stupid?" Rosita asks when she finally catches up. Daryl and Pandora right behind her.
"Are you?" Denise stops now looking towards them. "I mean it are you? Do you have any clue what this was to me? What this whole thing is to me? I have training in this shit. I'm not making it up as I go along like with the stitches or the surgery and the other stuff." She whips her head towards Daryl, full heat of her rage on him. "I asked you to come with me because you're brave like my brother and sometimes you actually make me feel safe." Denise turns to Rosita now, but her face has already softened. "And I wanted you here because you're alone. Probably for the first time in your life. You're stronger than you think you are, which gives me hope that maybe I can be too." She's watching Pandora now who answers with a small smile. "I could've gone with Tara, I could've told her I loved her, but I didn't because I was afraid. That's what's stupid. Not coming out here, not facing my shit. And it makes me sick to see that you guys aren't even trying because you're strong and you're smart and you're both really good people, but if you don't wake up…"
When the bolt pierces her eye, Denise falters for a second. Pandora feels the impact as if she's been hit, all the air escapes her lungs in a gasp. Something inside her shatters feeling like glass breaking into a million pieces. The arrow drove right through her eye, red tip dripping blood onto the front of Denise's shirt.
"And face your…" Denise doesn't finish, only wavers on her feet before finally dropping to the ground. Pandora screams, a deep sound from the hollow of her stomach, all burning rage and pain.
Pandora thinks that broken look on Daryl's face will haunt her forever as she watches him struggle to catch Denise. It only takes the sound of one twig snapping to bring Daryl and Rosita back though right away. Daryl and Rosita cock their guns and take a moment to aim while figures stream from the trees, Pandora doesn't take a moment. She is flying into motion, small sleek handled blade held tightly in her right hand.
She's quick and small, it helps her get behind one of the men before jumping on his back. The man that she lands on grunts and tries to pull her off, but she's too fast, slashing a thick red line across his neck. Blood pours from the wound, washing her arms in the warm liquid. She hit an artery so he will be dead in seconds. She takes two more breaths before the man stops moving, dropping his full weight on the floor under her.
When the bolt fired this time, it doesn't feel the same, there is no pain. It pierces her right shoulder like a hot knife going through butter, but she doesn't feel anything except warmth. Somewhere behind her, Daryl makes a strangled sound as Pandora tumbles to the floor. Her knees collide with one of the metal tracks and the impact makes the arrow in her shoulder shake, causing a hiss of pain.
"You drop'em now."The man from the burnt forest shouts at them, his words knocking around in her brain.
Pain clouded her head, but she tries to remember his name. The cold metal knife is still held tightly in her left hand, muscles tightening around it.
Dwight, it was Dwight. Struggling to stay on her knees, she lifts her head enough to make out Dwight shoving Eugene to the floor with one hand and the other hand holding the crossbow. The crossbow that's bolt was making a home in her right shoulder. Her pain-wracked brain tries to understand what Eugene is even doing there.
"Well, hell." He breathed from in front of her. "I was better with the second shot." Dwight laughed, taking in Pandora's crumpled form. The world dips and sways around her, bile forcing its way up her throat.
Daryl makes another sound somewhere between a snarl and a curse. Pandora tries to turn to look at him, even just for a second, she doesn't make it though. The movement is too much and her body gives up, hitting the ground hard on her left side. Dwight leers at her before snapping his face back up to her friends.
"You got something to say to me?" She knows he is talking to Daryl now, pictures Dwight's disfigured face sneering at him. "You gonna clear the air? Step up on the high horse? No, you don't talk much."
The men's boots cross through her field of vision. She hears them behind her, taking the weapons like they asked them to the last time. She tries to turn again, but her body refuses to take orders. The pain is bright and hot, spreading like a wildfire. She feels the tears then, a pain, choked sob coming free.
Dwight grins at Rosita, leaning on the cross bow lightly. "Still getting the hang of her. Gets better every time though." As he finishes, his toe finds the bolt inside her and kicks. The sound she makes is more animal than human, black spots crowd her vision as she tries to blink them away. "Kicks like a bitch but…"
"Ah should've done it." Daryl's voice is so low, she almost doesn't catch what he says.
"Oh, what's that? Seriously, I didn't catch what you said."
"Ah should have killed yah." Daryl replied.
Daryl's voice is like a lifeline for the moment, keeping her grounded. It helps her fight the darkness, helps her battle against the white-hot pain in her shoulder.
"Yeah, you probably should have." Dwight leans down now, fingers pulling the stray locks from her eyes. Her vision is clearing, but the only thing she sees is Dwight.
"So here we are. Kind of begs the question, right? Who brought this on who? I mean, I get that you'll just have to take my word for it, but she wasn't even the one I was aiming for. Like I said, kicks like a bitch."
He stands again then, hand grasping the back of Eugene's shirt. "It's nothing personal. Look, this isn't how we like to start new business arrangements, but you pricks kind of set the tone didn't you?"
A chill creeps into her bones now, starting at her toes and making its way to her chest.
"What do you want?" Rosita? Maybe? She is having a hard time understanding what she is hearing.
"I'm sorry Darlin', I didn't catch your name. I'm D or Dwight, what's your name?"
There is a weight on her shoulder, a hand maybe. At least she thinks it's a hand.
"Pan it's me, yah hold still ok?"
Daryl had snuck up behind her, he had to be behind her because she couldn't see him. Only feel his hand on her shoulder giving her a reassuring squeeze.
"Rosita. What do you want?"
"Well Rosita, it's not what I want, it's what you are going to do. You're going to let us into your little complex. It looks like it's just beautiful in here. Then you're going to let us take whatever and whoever we want…" His foot jerks out again, hitting the arrow causing her to scream and black out.
The beauty of the darkness doesn't last long, it spit her out back into the day. Everything hurts, even the hairs on her head. The pain makes it hard to think, hard to even see. There's a pounding coming from her shoulder, it expands through her body. She's missed something important, that's for sure. Conversation had kept going after she had blacked out.
"You wanna kill someone you start with our companion hiding over there behind the oil barrels. He's a first-class a-hole, and he deserves it so much more than us."
Eugene sounds scared, Pandora wished she could turn to see him. There is an order barked out, then nothing. Gunfire erupts around her and she is coherent enough to move. Trying to pull her frame up from the tracks, every movement makes her body scream in agony. Dwight is far from her, she sees him while trying to crawl back towards Daryl. Now that she hears him something snaps and a new sense of purpose fills her. Lifting herself on her good arm, she grabs for her knife to drag herself towards him. It's a slow going on her knees, but she refuses to stop. He sees her coming though and once she is close enough, he grabs for her. His hand tightens around the bolt and he jerks it hard, sending her stumbling towards him. Screaming, she tries to push him away, but he has a hold on her. Panting with tears streaking her face she panics. Grinning, he gives the bolt another tug. Black swims in her vision again and she's sobbing, begging despite herself.
The gunfire is closer now, she feels the displaced air just above her head. Somewhere she can hear Daryl screaming her name through the pain, she is almost sure he is telling her to get down. Dwight let's go of the arrow, shoving her away as he rolls off the side of the tracks.
Even with the orchestra of gunfire around her there is a sense of calm. She knew that soon she would be gone soon, there wouldn't be anything. No more pain, panic, fear, just nothing. If she could see Daryl though, that would be nice. The sounds around her die down as if she is swimming under water. It would be so easy to just lie down and wait for death. That's the scary part, how easy it is to die.
She isn't sure what happened, but she hears Rosita yelling, "Daryl stop! Help me!"
"Shit, Pandora fuck, fuck." Daryl is more emotional than she has ever heard him.
'It's because I'm dying.' She thinks to herself and it must be true because she is sure he's crying.
"It's gonna hurt ok? I'm sorry." She hears Daryl say.
Then her vision is filled with nothing but white, it's like another bolt going right through her. The pain is blinding so she blacks out again, just for a moment. Although when she comes back, she knows he has taken it out. She knows because they are moving, Daryl carrying her with nothing sticking out of her.
"Stay with me Pan," Daryl leans his face down to hers, brushing his lips softly on her forehead. "Please Pandora."
It's the way he says her name that changes everything really, makes her begin to thrash and kick again to fight the growing darkness.