A/N: I know I don't have to tell you guys how much your comments/reviews mean to me. I would really love to know how you felt about my story in its entirety. xoxo (notes after, too).
From the Ashes Anew
10 months later ...
Daryl stood, leaning against the porch column, his shoulder scratching against the grain of the wood as he waited for Beth to get home. Home. He was still adjusting to suburban life, but Beth definitely helped in that aspect. It was nice to have someone to come home to. Hell, it was nice to have a home to come home to.
Where was that girl at?
"Hey neighbor!" Eric called from across the street, as he and Aaron stepped out onto their porch.
Daryl nodded his head, watching Aaron struggle to balance a large tray in his arms, while trying to pull the door closed behind him. He couldn't help but chuckle at the two of them bickering like an old married couple - Eric chastising him to "watch and not spill" whatever it was he was carrying, while Aaron huffed in frustration.
"See ya," Daryl nodded again as they passed by and hurried up the road.
Beth emerged on the horizon a moment later, running like the hounds of hell were nipping at her heels. Hair flying out behind her, cheeks rosy and a smile that was meant just for him sent a warm feeling stirring deep inside Daryl, leaving him impatient to wrap her in his arm again. He couldn't seem to get enough of her, and while he knew this strange, emotional Daryl left everyone side-eyeing his behavior more often than not, he simply didn't give a shit.
"Where ya been Greene?" He called out to her when she was within earshot.
She bounded excitedly up the porch steps, breathless and flushed in the most adorable way. "Watchin' my most beautiful and perfect nephew so Maggie could get ready," she replied, voice all breathy. "Glenn had to pry him from my arms, his soft fuzzy little head smelled so good, I didn't wanna let him go!"
Daryl smiled, imagining Glenn forcibly removing Hershel from his overbearing Aunt's arms. Ever since Maggie had given birth a few months back, Beth had spent more time at their house than at home. He knew Glenn and Maggie were grateful for the help, though.
The truth of it was, Beth was a nurturer and at her happiest when she was lovin' on babies ... and now that Michonne and Rick were a couple, she had taken a voluntary step back when it came to Judith, not wanting to interfere too much in their family dynamics. She still got her daily visits in, but she was no longer Lil' Asskicker's primary caretaker.
Daryl tugged Beth into the circle of his arms, and she instantly melted against him. "Maybe tha practice is good fer ya," he grinned against her hair.
The words just kind of slipped out - he had no idea where they'd come from, but now that they were floating in the space between them, it wasn't as scary a prospect as he'd once thought. It wasn't exactly as if they'd been very cautious in the past, although they had gotten into the habit of using protection since they'd arrived at the Safe Zone - with much more time to make love now that they weren't stealing kisses and caresses away from prying eyes, or fighting for their lives every second of the day. Another plus for domestic life.
Beth froze momentarily, then tilted her face up at him, her eyes blue and wider than he'd ever seen. "Daryl ... what are you- Why would you-" she stammered. "Are you serious?"
Daryl shrugged, the grin creeping farther across his mouth. "Ya did say ya always wanted a child."
"Daryl ... I -I ... What changed your mind?" She asked, still awestruck.
"Mm-mm," Daryl shrugged. "Ya know ..."
"I know I love you, Daryl Dixon!" Beth exclaimed, wrapping her arms so tightly around his neck he could barely breathe.
"I know I love ya, Beth Greene," he choked, when she eased up on her grip and he could drag some air into his lungs again.
"It's Dixon," she reminded him, lifting her hand and proudly displaying her ring finger, the token of his devotion glittering against the sun. It had only taken him three weeks to whittle a "yes" out of her - and he had asked every day ... sometimes several times a day.
"Yer always gon' be my Greene," Daryl rasped, sliding his hands down her back and squeezing her bottom, pressing her tightly against him so she could feel how much he desired her. "So ... Wanna get started now?"
Beth playfully slapped at his shoulders. "Daryl, stop! We'll be late!" Sparing a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching, she pushed up on the tip of her toes and kissed him full on the mouth, tugging his bottom lip between her teeth.
Daryl groaned. "Ya don't play fair girl," he said in a half laugh, half whimper.
"Well ...maybe no one will notice if we're a few minutes late?" She smiled coyly up at him, her teeth finding her own bottom lip.
That's all he needed to hear. He really hadn't expected her to agree, but he wasn't about to argue. Spinning them around, he backed her through their front door, kicking it closed with the heel of his boot, his mouth already hungrily capturing her giggles.
Pressing her back against the table in the foyer, and lifting her onto it with ease, he said a silent prayer that she had chosen to wear a dress today, as he hiked it up to her hips, while she worked his belt buckle free. He groaned again as she tugged his zipper down and her seeking fingers circled around his shaft, stroking him while she sucked on his tongue suggestively.
"Yeh, ya don't play fair at all," Daryl growled as he broke the kiss, and pushed her thighs apart, his fingers pressing against the thin cotton of her panties, already damp from her moist heat.
"All's fair in love and war," she moaned, as he slid her panties aside and rubbed his thumb against her clit until her legs began shaking and she was begging him to stop.
He relented, but only because his need for her was that strong. Slipping his hands up under her backside, he pulled her to him as he pressed himself closer, sliding his throbbing erection against her wetness before plunging inside. They moaned simultaneously, as their mouths made love too, their tongues and bodies desperately seeking to give them both the release they craved.
Hands and mouths and breathy moans all collided, a tangle of limbs and half dressed bodies. He'd love her slow and proper later, in every room of the house, over and again, until her belly was swollen with his child.
Wriggling his hand between their bodies, Daryl found Beth's clit again, pressing it in a slow, circular motion as he thrust himself deep inside her. "C'mon sweetheart, I can't hold out much longer," he growled against her lips, his body shaking with the effort to hold himself in check when just the whimpering sounds she was making were more than enough to push him over the edge.
As if his words were the only thing she needed to toss her over that precipice, her muscles contracted against him, as she threw her head back and cried out her release. Daryl followed her lead, his body shaking convulsively as he plunged into her a final time, his hands firmly locking her hips in place as he spilled his seed deep within her womb.
"I love you," she panted, her breath fanning his face as he rested his forehead against hers.
"I love ya too," he sighed, reluctant to withdrawal from her when all he wanted to do was drag her upstairs and make love to her again, until they both walked with a limp. But he did, groaning with the effort.
Daryl stumbled a few steps backwards, giving Beth some room to slide off the table and adjust her dress, enamored more with every passing second of the prospect of watching her belly grow and swell with the fruit of their love. Beth was already glowing, her cheeks flushed and her lips swollen from his kisses.
It scared the hell out of him, too -more than he'd of liked to admit. Somewhere in the back of his mind a little voice nagged at his subconscious, reminding him of the type of home life he came up from ... that it had been years into his adult life before he'd known a loving, gentle touch.
"Daryl," Beth pulled him from his thoughts with her sing-song voice. With extreme care, she tucked his sensitive manhood back into his pants and refastened his belt. "You know, if you're not ready for this, I understand ..." She clutched the neckline of his vest in her fingers and raised her wide, blue eyes up at him. "But the fact that you're worried, is the reason why I know you're nothing like him."
Daryl had never actually told her where his scars had come from, but she knew -just like she was in his head now, and she knew his insecurities were tugging at him, trying to pull him back down.
Put it away.
Forcing down the lump that had lodged in his throat, Daryl swallowed and reached to cup Beth's face in his hands. Beth who had known nothing but love, who's eyes were overflowing with it as she stared back up at him ...and he was confident she wouldn't let him fail. "M'ready. Maybe ya gotta keep remindin' me though," he said quietly, stroking his thumb lightly against her cheek.
"I think I can do that," Beth nodded, kissing the underside of his jaw. "But we really should go," she sighed, slipping from his embrace.
"Well, c'mon then. Yer the one jus' standin' 'round," he teased her, yanking open the front door and whistling for the dumb dog.
Willy came bounding through the dog door he'd recently installed on the back porch, nearly tripping Beth up as she grabbed her apple pie from the kitchen counter. Skidding past Daryl, he leaped down the stairs and barked impatiently at them from the front yard.
"Gettin' rid of that dumb dog, though," Daryl grumbled, guiding Beth out the door and down the porch stairs with his hand on the small of her back.
Beth laughed, like she always did when he talked shit about the dog. Stupid one eyed mutt that had caused more trouble than anything, and she knew just as well as Daryl, he would never get rid of him.
They headed up the road towards the pond where everyone had gathered with tables filled with food and the smell of grilled meat hung heavily in the air - venison, compliments of his hunt earlier that morning. Soft music was playing from the speakers set up on Deanna's front porch - just loud enough to be heard over the chatter, but not loud enough to draw the dead. It looked like a scene out of one those TV shows he might have watched a few minutes of while blindly flipping through the channels at whatever crummy motel he and Merle had flopped in for the night.
And we'd have birthdays, and holidays and summer picnics ...
Daryl hooked his arm around Beth's waist and drew her in closer, pressing a kiss to her forehead, as Rick called them over to the seats they'd reserved for them. As they sat down and he helped himself to a serving of whatever the first bowl contained that was passed down from the head of the table, Beth's warm hand resting on his thigh, Daryl glanced around at his makeshift family with a feeling of contentment.
There was no guarantee they'd be safe here forever, maybe not even for much longer, but Daryl knew he was ready to face that uncertainty with Beth and his family by his side. The people who had taken him in, accepted him for who he was - Carol, Rick, Glenn ... each one of them helping to draw him out, bit by bit, piece by piece from behind the walls he had so carefully constructed to protect himself.
And then there was Beth... who just took a wrecking ball to it, lit the sonofabitch on fire and then flipped it off for good measure.
Don't you think that's beautiful?
Daryl covered her warm little hand with his own and gave it a squeeze.
A/N: Sigh, well that's all she wrote, my lovelies! I can't believe this story has finally concluded - for those of you that have been with me since the beginning, I would just like to express how freaking awesome you are! In fact, you're all awesome - every single one of you who read my fic baby from start to finish.
I know you's have all seen my shoutouts to my "editor" and dear, dear friend - he deserves some serious kudos, as this story simply would not have been possible without his input, advice and generally just putting up with all my crap over the last 2-3 years. He's volunteered to continue along on my next Bethyl adventure as well, and I couldn't be more thrilled!
If you have any questions about From the Ashes, of just want to chat about it or Bethyl in general, please feel free to shoot an ASK to my inbox on Tumblr - kitten1618x
Below I'll place a list of songs that helped to inspire From the Ashes - music holds a big key in my creative writing process.
I hope that you'll pop in and get "hooked" on my newest fic - a Bethyl AU exploring Beth and Daryl's relationship if the prison hadn't fallen. The summary:
The Way Forward
Bethyl Prison AU -takes place after the season 4 premier -
He was tired of losing people, that's what he told her. After the tragic events at The Big Spot, and an innocent hug, Daryl is more than a little surprised when Beth seeks him out to secretly take her back to the Greene family farm for a precious family heirloom. Bound by a sense of duty, he hesitantly agrees, and when a heated exchange results in an unexpected passionate tryst, Daryl is forced to come to terms with this shifting friendship and the growing attraction he has to Beth Greene. Can they move forward past the mistake they made while isolated and emotionally vulnerable? Or would that be their biggest mistake of all?
From the Ashes Playlist
(the music that inspired my story)
1. Be Good - Waxahatchee/Emily Kinney
2. All over you - Live
3. Over Anticipate - Emily Kinney
4. Wicked Game - Chris Iaasac
5. Eternal Flame - The Bangles
6. Cold Contagious - Bush
7. Go your own way - Fleetwood Mac
8. You - Keaten Henson
9. Going Under - Evanessence
10. Running Away - Hoobastank
11. Moving On - Asking Alexandria
12. Mouth - Bush
13. Last Chance - Emily Kinney
14. Light a Fire - Rachel Taylor
15. Feral Love - Chelsea Wolfe
16. She's like the Wind - Patrick Swayze
17. Cry Little Sister - Seasons After
18. Open your eyes - Snow Patrol
19. Invincible - Pat Benetar
20. Don't let me down - The Chain Smokers