Midnight Hour: A Daryl and Beth AU

Chapter Two: Grief

Mika picked up the back pack that serves as Judith's diaper bag. She wasn't sure exactly what contents the bag held, she had grabbed it in a hurry when she had heard the loud boom of the tank firing. She had been so scared and confused. Lizzy had picked up Judith and they had attempt to make their way to the bus when the walkers had attacked them in the courtyard.

Mika had snatched Judith from Lizzy and huddled against the wall. She knew that her sister was sick. She knew that she didn't see the walkers as completely dangerous, she had still seen them as people. She remembered when she was walking with her sister one day. Her sister had had a mouse and was feeding the walkers. She had even given them names. Mika had known then that her sister would not survive these times.

Mika shook her head as if she could shake the memories of her sister. She wiped the tears from her eyes as she emptied the contents of the diaper bag onto the bed. Its contents consisted of two bottles, three reusable diapers, two cans of formula, one jar of Vaseline, three jars of baby food, two baby blankets, two outfits, one stuffed rabbit and one bottle of already boiled water. There wasn't much at all. She knew Judith could go through one whole can of formula in a week…

First thing first, she had already taken care of Beth to the best of her ability. She had used what little first aid knowledge she had learned from Carol at the prison. She had been teaching classes to the children on how to defend themselves as well as how to stop bleeding and dress certain types of wounds with only scarce items. Infection could kill you just as well as walkers. Now, she had to take care of baby Judith who was still sleeping with the black wolf curled around her.

Mika did not understand what had happened or what was currently happening with the wolf. She had never heard nor seen a wolf act like this one had. Neither did she remember wolves being that big. All she knew was that it had protected her and Judith. If it hadn't been for the wolf they would be dead. She had been afraid when she had seen the wild animal walk out of the shadows towards them, and then that was when the walkers had shown up. All she could do was run. Mika let out a shuddering sigh and blinked her burning eyes. She was so sleepy. Surely if Judith woke up it would wake her up. Just a short nap…

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Daryl's ears twitched as he heard a light snoring sound coming from his bed. 'Well shit,' he thought as he looked down at the baby stirring on the pallet. What was he going to do now? Daryl let out a high pitched whine as he stood up and walked over to the sleeping woman on the floor. He couldn't afford the baby to start crying and bringing a herd of walkers down upon them.

He nudged the sleeping woman with his muzzle. She didn't stir. He blew in her face and tugged on her in an attempt to wake her. It didn't succeed. She didn't even twitch. 'Great.' If it wasn't for the fact that he could see her chest rising and falling he would think her dead. Her clothes were still covered in gore and blood. She still had leaves in her hair and dirt under her fingernails, but her skin was wiped clean. He could smell the stench of antiseptic and antibiotic cream. He decided to leave the woman and walk over to look down at the baby who had now rolled over to her tummy and was pushing herself up into a sitting position. 'Well, seeing as I don't have much of a choice at this moment…' Daryl walked over to his closet and with one thought, he was human.

He couldn't remember the last time he had been human. He opened the closet door and pulled out a pair of jeans and a sleeveless t-shirt. He dressed quickly and turned on his bare feet to look over at the baby who had made her way over to where Beth was laying. The baby had her hands tangled in the woman's hair. He decided to let her be while he walked over to the sleeping girl in his bed.

He glanced down at the items and took a bottle, water and the formula. He turned away and walked over to the kitchen counter as he read the directions in the soft candle light. He read it several times to make sure he understood. He could see the faint lines on the bottle and filled it up to the six. He added three scoops to the bottle and screwed the lid on. Shaking the bottle he turned and made his way back to the baby.

"Looks like it's just you and me kid." His voice sounded gravely from not having spoken in such a long time. Judith started bouncing up and down on her bottom and smiled up at him. Daryl scowled and scooped up the baby and walked over to the couch and sat down. It was a worn couch, faded plaid and a little scratchy but comfortable. It reminded him of the one he had in his old trailer he lived in before everything went to shit. His brother used to crash on that old couch he had bought from a rundown thrift store for twenty bucks. His brother… he hadn't seen Merle in almost six months. That was the last time he had been human also, now that he thought about it.

His brother had fallen in with a pack of wolves that Daryl hadn't trusted. He had gotten a bad vibe from them, and their leader Joe was just twitchy. Sure they had a code, a stupid code, but a code none the less. He had travelled with them for almost two weeks before he and his brother got into a fight. He had decided to walk away instead of killing his brother which, with the code, would've been what had to happen. He did not consider himself a pack animal. More of a loner. He preferred it that way.

But then again… here he was with three females. He looked down at the baby in his lap and grunted. She had finished the bottle and was now chewing on the nipped staring up at him. "What you looked at lil bit?" He growled at which in turn made her smile even wider at him. He scowled and took the bottle away from her and made his way back to the pallet. He laid her down and went back to the bed to get a diaper. Thankfully it was just a pee diaper. He didn't know if he could change the other one. No, he decided that he was not even going to think about that. Not at all.

After he had gotten the baby situated and she fell back asleep he got up and walked over to the bed and put all the items back in the diaper bag and set it on the floor next to the bed. He bent over and picked up the sleeping child and put her on the couch. He then looked over at the woman on the floor. She was on her back, her arms lying beside her and she was softly snoring.

He walked over to her and lifted her up in his arms. He walked over to the bed and laid her down, her head lolled to the side. He cocked his head to the side and stood there staring. He hadn't been kidding himself when he said that she was the most magnificent thing he had ever seen when she had burst out of the tree line like some wild animal. She had been covered in blood and gore from her previous kills and the look in her eyes was one of determination… and fear. She had succeeded in killing the walkers and making sure the children were safe before she had given in to her exhaustion and wounds. She was strong. She was a survivor. She was beautiful.

Daryl shook his head. What was he thinking? He had to be twice her age. She couldn't be no older then seventeen. A kid. Hell, he was old enough to be her father for fucks sake… He tried to back away from her sleeping form but found his body wouldn't listen to him. Instead, he found himself setting on the edge of the bed as his eyes roved over her slender form. From her honey blond hair to boot clad feet. She was fucking perfect in his eyes. Daryl ran a shaking finger along her jaw and marvel at how smooth her skin felt.

He snatched his hand away. He had to stop this, he technically hadn't even met her yet, and no doubt she would think him some freak. A beast. Sure she had thanked him for saving their lives… but that was when he was a wolf. Daryl turned his head away from her but found himself looking back down at her. He decided to focus on checking the wound on her side. It appeared to be the worst and it would get his mind off the other things he shouldn't be thinking.

Daryl lifted the side of her shirt and saw that Mika had taped a think bandage of gauze down. He also noticed that it was already bleeding through. He got up and went to get the first aid kit. He sat back down with the kit and opened it. He got out the tape and some more gauze and set the kit aside. He slowly pulled the bandage off. He hissed. It looked like it was going to need stitches. He hesitated. He didn't know what he should do. Sure he could stitch her up no problem but he was pretty sure that she would notice when she woke up… and what if she woke up in the middle of him stitching her up? Then what…

Daryl decided to put some more gauze over the wound and let her figure it out in the morning. Cleaning up the mess he closed the first aid kit and returned it to the bathroom. He walked out of the bathroom and over to his closet and shed his clothes putting them back where he had gotten it from. Walking to the window in the kitchen he glance out of the boards that covered the window. He couldn't see any more walkers lurking at the moment. Glancing around the cabin to make sure everyone was settled he turned back into his wolf form.

His ears twitched as he could hear the disturbances in the forest. The shambling of the walkers and their gurgling groans. He walked back over to the pallet on the floor and curled around the sleeping form of the baby. He would try to figure things out in the morning. He would have to wait and see how the woman would react and what she was going to do. Hopefully nothing stupid.

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Beth felt like she had been beaten from her toes the top of her head. She hurt everywhere. She turned over and felt a searing pain in her side. She hissed. Then she remembered. The Governor, being shot, her father, Maggie, Glenn, Running… lots of running and fighting.

Beth turned her head on the pillow and saw Mika setting in the floor with Judith in her lap. Judith had her teething ring and the black wolf was tugging on the other end. The black wolf with the piercing blue eyes. When she had looked into them the night before she could see a spark of intelligence and understanding. It was something she couldn't understand. She didn't know if she wanted to understand.

"It's okay Beth, we are safe for now. I found these clothes in the closet if you would like to go take a shower. The water isn't hot but at least you'll feel clean. I think you'll feel better." Mika had in her hands a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt. She gritted out a smile and nodded her head. She took the items and made her way to the bathroom.

It was dim in the bathroom, the sun shining through the small window high in the wall above the shower. She looked in the mirror and saw her reflection. She was a right mess, but with all things considered at least she was alive. They all were. Her hair had leaves, twigs, and dried walker blood in it. Her skin was clean, at least the dirt and blood looked as if it had been wiped away.

Beth turned away from the mirror and walked over to the shower and turned it on. She shed her blood stained clothes and set her clothing on the toilet. There was a cabinet above the toilet and when she opened it she found a few towels. She grabbed one and set it on top of the clothes.

Taking a deep breath she stepped into the cold water. She hissed as the water hit her side. She looked down at it and saw the gauze. She reached down and took it off to examine the wound. It was going to need a few stitches. It was going to hurt, but she would survive it. She would live. For Judith. For Mika.

For her family.

She felt the unshed tears fall from her eyes. They were hot compared to the cold water of the shower. She allowed herself the tears. She would face the grief in this shower. She would give into it this once. This one and only time. Then she would focus on the living.

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Mika looked away from the bathroom and looked at the black wolf. She knew, some how she knew that it wasn't just a wolf. She knew that she had fallen asleep on the bed but she had woken up on the couch. She also knew that Beth couldn't had moved her in her condition and that Beth had been asleep on the floor. She knew that she had left all the baby supplies on the bed and she had unfortunately not been able to fix Judith a bottle... but somebody had.

She had looked around the cabin when she had woken up and found herself on the couch. She didnt know what time it was, but Judith and Beth had still been asleep. The cabin was just a big open room with three doors. One was the closet, one was to the bathroom and the other led outside. The door that led outside was locked tight. No one could have gotten in from the outside. She had looked in the closet and there was nothing but mens clothing and two pair of worn boots. She had walked to the kitching and found the bottle and other items on the counter.

She had felt the wolf watching her. She had turned and saw that he was still curled around the baby but his ears were pricked forward and he was watching her curoiusly. Almost human like.

Mika came back to the present and looked at the wolf, "I know you're not just a wolf."

Daryl stopped playing with Judith and looked at the girl. He let out a low growl in warning.

"Your not going to hurt us. I know that. You took care of Judith when I couldn't. You took care of Beth and me when we were unable to see to ourselves. Your not bad." Mika lifted her hand and layed it on the bristly fur of his neck.

Daryl tensed.

"I wont tell Beth. Not yet, anyway. I would like to think of you as my friend. I hope I cant talk her into letting you stay... that is if you want to stay."

Daryl huffed. He wasnt sure what he thought of this girl with the all knowing eyes. They seemed to stare into what was left of his soul. Her hand seemed to seer into his fur. Did he want to stay? Did he want to commit himself to this little pack of females?

He stood up and shook himself. He didn't know what he wanted. He knew that he was drawn to the blond woman. That he wanted to protect the children... he wasn't sure why. Maybe it was because he never had anyone to care for him that way...

'Aw hell...' What was he going to do now?

"Its okay. You don't have to be afraid. "

Daryl snorted. Afraid? He was far from afraid.

Daryl walked towards the bathroom door where he could hear the water running.

He could hear the woman crying. Heart wrenching sobs. He agian wondered what had happened. He needed to understand what was going on if he was going to stay and protect these females.

He looked back over at Mika and Judith. Mika was now playing with Judith as if nothing had happened. Would he stay wolf or would it be better for him to change. What would Beth do? He had to stay...'What a strange feeling this is. This need to stay.' He thought.

For now he decided to watch to see how things would unfold and he would make a decision tonight on what he was going to have to do.

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Sorry it took so long to update. Working twelve hour shifts and having a little one isnt easy. I found myself only being able to write a little at a time between her two naps a day. Boy is she a handfull.

Sorry if the chapters seem slow. Everything should pick up soon.

~MLD