A/N: You know I can't stand it! Daryl and Hallie revisited. Forget everything you've ever read until now. This one's dedicated to NR, because I still am not buying his theory about Daryl, but I'm gonna give it a shot.

Chapter 1

Shane leaned on his shotgun and looked at the woman who stepped out from behind Daryl. She was tiny. Her clothes were bloody, smeared with mud, badly fitting. There were scratches on her arms and face. Her hair was tucked under a stained baseball cap with strands wildly sticking out of the opening in back and around her face. Here eyes were wild and she surveyed everyone with a mixture of what Shane assumed was fear and mistrust. Watching your two friends get eaten by walkers only to be found by Daryl Dixon and hauled back to a group of people you don't know had to be frightening. Hell, running into Dixon alone was probably enough to make any girl pee her pants.

"What were you doing in town?" he asked with more than discernable suspicion in his voice. The girl looked at him, eyeing the writing on his cap, her eyes moving to the small sheriff's department crest on his dirty t-shirt. He was tan, very muscular, his biceps rippling as he fiddled nervously with his ball cap. His face was rugged, handsome, with dark eyes and dark hair. Hallie thought he looked like a wrestler and her gut told her that it was a safe bet that he was not entirely to be trusted. The kind of cop that would pull you over on a deserted road and would forget about writing that ticket if you were "real nice" to him.

"Getting supplies." she said. "Although I'm sure you'd call that looting, Officer."

"What happened to you?"

"We ran out of water and food. Couldn't find much of anything in any of the cars along the highway so we had to come into town. Jules-my friend Julia-got hurt and we were surrounded trying to get her out of there. They...we..." The woman was struggling to speak and keep it together.

"Ok. That's enough. There'll be plenty of time to talk later. Right now, we need to get this young lady some food and something to drink." Lori butted in, sensing how tenuous the girl's hold on her composure was. She noted that Lori looked at the cop with a fair amount of disgust.

"And a bath. I'll bet you'd like to get cleaned up." Carol spoke up, moving to the girl and putting her arm around her.

"That would be really nice. " she said.

"What did you say your name was, Miss?" Shane asked.

"She didn't." Daryl said flatly.

"Hallie...McAllister." she said, her eyes moving between Daryl and Shane, who were now glaring at each other. Wow. Lots of tension going on in this group, she thought to herself.

Carol and Lori took Hallie to Andrea's tent where they had a few extra supplies stored. Andrea helped find clothing to fit, jeans and a t-shirt, socks, underwear and a bottle of shampoo and bar of soap. "We'll watch out for you while you have a good long bath in the lake. It's pretty cold, but you'll get clean. Dale's getting you something to eat so you can have a hot meal when you get back." the thin blonde told her.

"Thanks. I don't know how to repay you. This is really nice of you all." Hallie was at a loss for words.

"You don't have to repay us. Don't be silly." Carol said.

XXXXX

Hallie walked back into camp behind Carol and Lori, squeezing the water out of her hair with a towel. They led her to a lawn chair by the low fire and when she sat down, an older man handed her a plate and smiled broadly. There was some meat on it, beans, crackers and canned peaches. The man introduced himself as Dale and told her if there was anything she needed, not to hesitate to ask. Hallie dug in, trying to pace herself and not appear to wolf the whole plate down in a couple bites. It had been three days since she'd eaten anything and she was famished.

Shane watched her walk up to the fire and sit down. She didn't look like the same woman. The clean clothes they'd given her fit her much better. He could now see that even though she was very tiny, she was curvy, with big enough tits and a nice round ass. Her wavy, dark auburn hair was still damp but much longer than he expected, falling around her shoulders and down her back to her waist. She was pretty, too, now that all the dirt and dried blood had been scrubbed off. Big eyes, small nose, pale skin. She looked almost too delicate to survive on her own, especially the way the world was today.

Shane sat down on the car seat that served as a couch, across the fire from where Hallie was sitting. He watched her eat, obviously pacing herself, her eyes moving from person to person as she chewed slowly, deliberately. He looked at her as their eyes met. They were green, deep emerald green, with a fringe of long lashes. She blinked and looked away quickly, then looked at him again, biting her lower lip. Shane looked down and then looked back at her with a small grin, the corner of his mouth turning upwards a bit. Hallie forced a slight smile and looked back down at her plate.

Daryl was standing back by his truck, watching Shane. He didn't trust him, not a bit. Why was he sitting down there now? Shane hadn't shown any interest in any of the women in their group before, well, with the exception of Lori and that was kinda' in the crapper now that her husband wasn't really dead. Daryl had heard them together on several occasions and knew exactly what was going on. Shane had lied to Lori about Rick dying in the hospital so he could move in on Rick's territory. He wanted Lori and Carl for himself. It was easy to see if you just watched Shane at work. Now that Rick was back, the tension between the Lori and Shane was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Poor ignorant Rick was so busy playing the responsible cop he couldn't even see it for himself.

He caught Shane grinning at Hallie. No fucking way. She's in camp for less than two hours and he's hitting on her already. Unfuckinbelievable, Daryl thought to himself. He sat his crossbow down against the truck and walked to the fire, standing behind Shane on purpose. "You're gonna need place ta' sleep." he said.

"Uh, ok." she said, swallowing a mouthful of water from the bottle Carl had given her. She looked sheepish as she wiped her mouth with her fingers and then looked around, finally wiping her hand on her pants leg.

"You can have Merle's bag and sleep in my tent. I got night watch anyway." he said.

"Don't think so, Daryl." Andrea said firmly, shaking her head. "Merle's sleeping bag probably smells like Merle and she'll be just fine in my tent tonight."

"I thought you was sleepin' in Dale's motor home now?" Daryl rubbed his neck, eyes narrowed. "Now yer' sleepin' in yer old tent again?"

"Yeah. Now I am." she said smartly.

"Whatever." Daryl said, turning back to his truck and throwing his hands up. He picked up his bow started walking to his tent. He turned back around quickly, hearing footsteps behind him. "What?" he said quickly when he saw it was Hallie.

"I just wanted to say thanks."

"Fer' what?"

"Well, for saving my dumb ass, for bringing me back here and for offering me a place to sleep."

"Oh."

"Mighty grateful." she said quietly. "I owe you." she said, looking up at him. He was handsome in the evening light. Rugged, sharp features, nice muscles. He had a stubbly goatee and tanned face but his deep blue eyes were his most striking feature. Clear, bright, see-right-through-you blue eyes. It was hard not to stare at those eyes.

"Ya' don't owe me nuthin'." Daryl said, turning on his heel, heading again for his tent.

Hallie stuck her hands in her pockets and walked back to the fire. Fuck, she thought. Guess he's not going to win Mr. Congeniality.

XXXXX

Hallie woke up about two in the morning, sweating. She had been tossing and turning all night, half-waking dreams of what had happened to Julia and Michelle. Thinking she could feel the walkers tugging at her pants legs, clawing at her, grasping for her. Reliving those last days over and over.

She unzipped the tent quietly and climbed out. The air felt cool on her damp skin. She took a deep breath and looked at the sky. It was full of stars. The moon was a thin crescent, barely visible. A movement caught her eye on the edge of the woods. Red. Glowing. Cigarette. She exhaled, relieved somewhat. She went to the seats around the fire and sat down, hoping that the cigarette smoker wouldn't notice her and she could sit in peace and enjoy the quiet. The glow moved slowly towards her until the outline of his shadow became visible in the darkness. It was Daryl.

He walked to the seat opposite and stood, resting the crossbow on the back of the chair. He didn't say a word, just looked at her, staring. Hallie looked back, unblinking as well. Daryl took a step around the chair and stood beside it, still staring. Hallie still watched him, not saying a word.

"What..." he started to say, fumbling for words. Daryl kept his eyes focused on hers and tried not to look down. It was difficult. From where he was standing, it was real obvious that she was chilly. "Can't sleep." he finally said. It was more of a statement than a question.

"Got hot." she said. She didn't want to mention the dreams. She knew anyway that he wasn't going to want to talk, so she was at least grateful for that. She didn't know him well, but she was pretty sure Daryl Dixon wasn't the touchy-feely, warm fuzzy type of guy to open up to. Dale, maybe. Daryl, definitely not. Hell, he'd barely grunted at her on the hour-long ride back in his truck earlier in the day and he'd been even less talkative when they got here. "Quiet?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah." he said, his Georgia draw very evident. He scanned his eyes around the perimeter and then focused again on her.

"Good." Hallie stood up. "Goodnight." she said quietly, moving swiftly back to Andrea's tent. She flung herself on the sleeping bag and closed her eyes, angry at herself for not saying more and just as angry at him for the same thing. Angry at herself that she was even thinking about him. Angry that there was something about him that made her heart beat a little faster whenever he was around. She rolled over and punched the pillow, causing Andrea to stir in her sleep. Shit, she thought. Shit shit shit.

Daryl sat there, not knowing what to say as he watched Hallie walk back to the tent. There was a lot he wanted to say. A lot he WISHED he could say. But nothing would come out that didn't make him sound like an idiot, so he took Merle's advice from long ago. Just shut tha' fuck up. Women don't need no conversation-starters. Except this time, Merle's advice simply hadn't worked.

XXXXX

Hallie opened her eyes and remembered where she was. The sun was beating down on the tent and the air inside was hot, stuffy. She rolled over and grabbed the brush that Lori had given her, running it through her hair a couple times, then forced herself to stand and leave the tent.

She looked around. Andrea and Lori were washing dishes and Carol was sitting at a picnic table, reading something to the two kids. Shane and Rick were nowhere to be found. Dale was sitting on top of the r.v. in a lawn chair. He smiled and tipped his bucket hat when he saw her. T-Dog and Glenn were chopping firewood at the timberline. Hallie's heart sank a bit when she realized Daryl was gone as well.

Hallie was greeted by a chorus of "Good mornings" and "About time, Sleepy-heads" from the women. Glenn waved when he saw her. The women told her that they'd made a decision to let her sleep late after Daryl told them she'd had trouble last night and would probably need some extra rest the next few days after what she'd been through.

"He told you that?" she asked, disbelievingly.

"Well, yeah." Andrea said.

"He can talk?" Hallie asked. "Wow. Who would have known."

"Yeah, he can be pretty tight-lipped." Lori agreed. "But he has his moments. Don't piss him off." she warned.

XXXXX

Shane walked up to the circle of the women, who by this time were folding clean laundry and giggling.

"Ladies." he said. "How are we all this morning?" He looked straight at Hallie and smiled. "Miss MacAllister?"

"Fine, thank you, Officer." she said, putting her head down. She was not in the habit of conversing with law enforcement, even if it was the end of civilization. How did he even think that he was still a cop, much less have any authority, she thought.

Andrea giggled as Shane walked off. "Miss McAllister" she twittered, as Hallie shot her a dirty look. She leaned over and whispered in Hallie's ear. "Don't look now, but I think somebody else is checking you out, too." Hallie sat up and continued to fold a man's shirt. She nonchalantly looked around camp, only to see Daryl standing by his truck, cross bow in hand, looking straight at her. She looked down quickly and refolded the shirt. When she looked back, he had disappeared.

XXXXX

Hallie laid back on the wooden dock, her toes in the water. It was cool. Every once in a while, a fish nibbled on a toe, causing her to jerk her foot and make a little wave on the otherwise smooth surface. She must have dozed off briefly because when she opened her eyes, she found Shane standing over her.

"You shouldn't be out here alone." he said, offering her his hand.

She took it cautiously and pulled herself to a sitting position, only to find that it made room for Shane to sit down on the dock behind her. Between her and the shore. Between her and camp. She was a bit uneasy about being alone with him. There was something about him that was not quite right.

"Thanks. Andrea said that you've never had walkers in the water here, so I figured it was safe."

"Nothing's safe nowadays." he said, tossing some grass into the water. "You gotta be real careful."

"Suppose you're right." she said, nodding.

"So," Shane said, bending one knee and leaning back on an elbow, "tell me about Hallie McAllister."

"Not much to tell really. Used to teach kindergarten. Lived in a little apartment in Dolton. Had a cat. Born and raised in Atlanta. Don't smoke, barely drink, don't do drugs. Boring." she shrugged.

"Sounds nice. A good girl." he said. "No boyfriend?"

"Too much work." she said.

"Aww, bet the guys in Dolton weren't happy with that."

Hallie was getting nervous. She shrugged again. "Guess I just never met the right guy."

"Had the opposite problem." he said quietly. "Met the right girl and she was somebody else's."

"Bummer." she said quickly. "Guess it's not an issue anymore."

"No, she's gone now. She's..." he sat up quickly. "just...moved on." Shane stood up and held out his hand. "I need to get back and I can't leave you here by yourself."

"Uh, ok. I think it's time for bed anyway." Hallie took his hand and he pulled her up, putting his other hand on her elbow to steady them on the swaying dock. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it." he said, putting his hand lightly on her back as they started up the path. If he'd put his hand on her neck, he'd felt the hairs standing up. As they walked, they were unaware that they were being watched the whole time. The dark-haired man leaning against the tree on the other side of the pond, barely visible. He picked up his crossbow and moved quietly to the camp once they were out of sight. He didn't like it. Seeing Shane try to cozy up to her, it wasn't right. It made his stomach tense and his fingers want to clench up. Daryl didn't want Shane anywhere near Hallie.