strangers [daryl]

[Monika Andrews]

strangers

T

here was a lot that was on Monika's mind as she made her way from a town that she had gotten supplies at. She normally wouldn't take the train tracks because it seemed like a lot of people did that from the looks of all the signs and warnings. She needed to find somewhere to sleep though, it was already late afternoon and she didn't know what was next for her. 

As she walked on the tracks, her eyes looked back and forth from all around her to make sure she was in the clear. But thinking that she heard something behind her, she saw someone coming, which caused her to run into the forest and take cover. She didn't have anyone to turn to when she was on the road anymore. She had been with a group, and they got ambushed by walkers, leaving her alone. It had been weeks since she's been around others, and it seemed like longer then she's actually felt like she could trust someone. 

So as she sat in the forest, waiting for the person to move along, she heard something approaching her. Holding her knife in her hand, she turned and found a walker grabbing her. Gasping loudly, she pulled away, stabbing it in the head causing her to back up. She saw more and more walkers around her as she tried to crawl away. Holding her bag and holding her knife in her hand, she wasn't able to keep up as quickly as she liked. 

tags: daryl dixon
notes: sorry it took so long

crafted by Molly Josephine ☁

[daryl dixon]

Daryl din't like the tracks. It wasn't fear of meeting others. He was out recruiting after all and the idea was to find others, but tracks brought him memories he didn't need right now. Crossroad. Losing track of a certain car. Failure. Joe and his thugs and almost losing Rick, Carl and Michonne.

Tracks be dammed.

But fate decided he would ended up on the tracks today. He split from Aaron after they checked the town and his companion was now securing their vehicles while Daryl checked the perimeter one last time before they set off back to Alexandria. This recruiting mission had been a bust so far. They found no one and nearly got their asses kicked by a herd of walkers. They got a few supplies at town but nothing that would've made this trip worthy.

Daryl was about to backtrack when he heard noises coming from the forest just off his side. Walkers. Definitely walkers. He wouldn't have cared about walkers in the forest. They weren't after his ass, but he swore he heard a gasp and something told him there was someone in trouble.

He raised his bow and rushed towards the sound; it didn't take long for Daryl to spot the woman and the walkers surrounding her. Daryl fired a bolt and took out one walker before the man could reach the girl. He dropped his bolt to the ground and took his knife out to start working through the walkers. He had been quiet in his approach and he took a few walkers down before they even noticed.

Daryl took out his share of walkers and by the time he was done he was covered in walker blood and guts again. Typical. He grunted and kicked one of the walkers that had fallen down next to him. "Piece of shit." Daryl glanced at the girl as he made his way to his bow and picked up.

"You bitten?" he asked, keeping a distance. He had no idea what to expect. Some folks snapped about dangerous or stressful situation and who knew how long this girl was alone out here. "Need medical attention or somethin'?"


Monika Andrews

[Monika Andrews]

strangers

O

ne after another, they came towards her and Monika didn't know how they even managed to sneak up on her the way they did. After having one falling on her, she pushed it off and quickly got up. Right as she did she saw an arrow go through the walkers head. Hearing someone rushing over, she took down a few more walkers and before she knew it, they were all dead. She turned and faced the man who had helped her. He had taken a few steps away but she didn't know what to say to him. She stared for a few seconds and found her voice, "Um, no not bitten," she said, her voice quiet and throat dry due to her not having to talk to another person in weeks. Coughing roughly and turning away so she didn't cough in front of him, Monika relaxed her breathing.

Turning her attention back to the man when he asked her if she needed any medical attention, she shook her head. "I'm okay, I'm okay." she said before reaching for her bag. She wasn't used to being around other people so it was quite awkward for her to be around this man. She didn't know who he was or if he was alone. As she took out a steel water bottle she had and took a drink, she was able to get her voice back. "Are you alright?"

"Thank you for helping," she said to him, noticing that he was holding a crossbow and soon she saw that he was covered in blood. Taking a look around, she couldn't help but wonder if the man was alone again. People weren't to be trusted these days, so Monika never found herself interacting with many. 

tags: daryl dixon
notes: sorry it took so long

crafted by Molly Josephine ☁

[daryl dixon]

Daryl nodded at the woman's answer as he put his knife back on its place. Apparently, she wasn't bitten or hurt and he was satisfied with the answer. He was not going to get any closer to check whether she was lying or not. She looked well enough a considering their little battle. Daryl reloaded his crossbow again and set over his shoulder. "I'm good," he told her with a quick glance through the corner of his eye. Daryl's attention was on the forest now. They had handled his walkers but there was no way of knowing whether there were more coming or not. They hadn't been quiet at all.

He moved closer to one of three and squinted, checking the woods. Her voice made him look at back at her. "It ain't nothing," he grunted with a shrug. He wasn't about to let her die. She didn't seem a bad person. Or looked like bait. He considered that option, that made this was a set up to flush people out, but in his gut it didn't feel like that.

"We shouldn't stay here," Daryl spoke then and nodded towards the way he had come from. "The noise will attract more walkers," he explained, shifting his body so he was facing her. "You gotta a name, girl?" Daryl wished Aaron was here. He had a more friendly face for this sort of thing. Looked clean and good. Daryl pulled a rag from his back pocket to clean his hands. "I'm Daryl...got friend out there waiting for me. You can tag along if you like. It's not safe to be here after this," he motioned the walkers bodies, reinforcing his previous remark. This fight would drawn more danger their way.


Monika Andrews

[Monika Andrews]

strangers

S

he didn't know what else to say to the man that saved her life, but she felt like saying thank you wasn't enough. Monika didn't have much else to offer though, so she was just grateful that he was around. Once he told her that he was okay, she nodded and looked back at the mess in front of them. 

"Still though, thank you," she said to him, pressing her lips together, not really smiling but still it was an emotion she hadn't shown in months. With the mess that was laying in front of them and the noise that it produced, he was definitely right when saying that it was't safe for them. "I'm Monika," she said when he asked for her name.

As she stood with him, putting her bag on her back, she looked at him when he told her that she could tag along to meet his friend. Nodding to him, she began walking with him. Her hands stayed in her jacket pockets as she finally spoke again after walking for a few moments in silence. "Is it just you and your friend?" she wondered. She didn't know what she was getting herself into, so she thought she'd ask and hope she didn't step on any toes.

tags: daryl dixon
notes: n/a

crafted by Molly Josephine ☁

[daryl dixon]

Daryl acknowledged her thank you again with a nod. He didn't do much. Just lent a hand. He knew a lot of people would have left her to fend for herself, but that wasn't him. He was trying now. Trying to be the person Beth would've been proud of it and Beth wouldn't have left this girl to fight all these walkers off alone.

With his crossbow shouldered, Daryl began to head towards the direction he had come from. Monika seemed to have decided to tag along as she started walking with him. Daryl's eyes were on their surroundings. He couldn't see any walkers or heard anything. It could be they were clear for now.

"We live in a community," Daryl explained, reaching the tracks again. He scanned the area and continued to walk. Aaron was still waiting for him and they didn't have a lot of light left. "We head out sometimes lookin' for people." He should have said good people. "To offer them a place," he shrugged. Daryl wasn't really that great at explaining this. Aaron was more welcoming and he would make the girl feel at ease.

"Aaron can explain it better," he said without looking at Monika. Aaron had the pictures to show her. He was a far better salesman than Daryl. "But it's a good place if you are looking for one. You got family or somethin'?"

[Monika Andrews]

strangers

M

onika was someone who usually kept to herself, but she wasn't going to be rude or not answer someone who just saved her life. He didn't seem like he talked a lot and it sounded like he wasn't much of a talker but his actions definitely spoke louder then words. As she walked with him, towards where she assumed his friend was she heard him talking about how he looks for people while on his travels with that same friend.

"How do you know who to look or? Or bring back with you?" she asked curiously. She knew that there were a lot of messed up people in the world now that would do anything to get themselves ahead. Those same people found themselves to be higher then others. 

"I never really thought about joining a group to be honest. I didn't think I would ever find some good people. I've seen a lot of hate. There's this group, I don't know who they are, but they wiped out a whole group. The ones that they deemed useless at least. After that I-" she paused for a second. "I guess I lost faith in humanity. Which is what surprised me about you and saving me,"

She knew that she was rambling, but it had been so long that she's actually talked to another person that she wanted to be able to talk to him, and tell him what she's seen. She didn't know if he'd understand, she thought maybe he did but she didn't know for sure. If he had made it this far, and this community he talks about has see what she has, then they would have the proper protection.

When he asked her if she has a family, she looked away and sighed a little. "I did. My parents were in Florida, and they were heading up towards New York to where my brother lives. They were supposed to meet me Raleigh but they never came," She said as she stared at the tracks in front of her. She didn't talk to anyone about her family. The group she was with early on didn't even know about her family really, other then what she told Daryl. "Do you heave family?" she asked.

tags: daryl dixon
notes: n/a

crafted by Molly Josephine ☁

[daryl dixon]

"I dunno." Daryl said with a shrug after pondering over her question for a few moments. He wasn't really sure what to tell her. He didn't know who he was looking for. He was just trying to give people, good people, the chance a finding a home. He was trying to make Beth proud; maybe this was his way to honor her. Daryl never had a lot of faith in people before. Rick and the others changed the way he reacted to people, but it was Beth who came into his crap life and stirred up something inside of him. She gave him a purpose.

"We watch them for a while, make sure they would be a good fit." That was the best answer he had for Monika right now. They spied on people. That was what Aaron did when he found them. Aaron would probably explain it better and say something about finding people who would be assets to Alexandria but who were also good and needed a home. Daryl himself didn't consider Alexandria home, not yet anyway. His home was a person. If he were a poetic man he would have said that. Beth was home and faith and hope all in one package and now he was just drifting again. This time he didn't have Merle to follow. He had Beth's words and memories to guide him though.

"There's shitty people out there but that's not new," Daryl said after Monika mentioned a group getting rid of those deemed useless, but for Daryl there had always been shitty people even before the end of the world. Human nature never really shocked. The new world just allowed people to act their worst without consequences. "Mmmm," he hummed. He didn't think much about what he did. She needed a hand and that was all. Daryl didn't see the big deal but it seemed she had seen some bad shit and was thankful.

Daryl could understand her reasons about losing faith in humanity. He had been through a lot too. They all had and he wasn't about to tell her to have faith again. That kind of talk didn't come natural to him. If Beth were here... Aaron could tell Monika some comforting words.

"Yeah well, there are still good people around," he stated with a shrug and stopped walking after a couple of minutes to check a few tracks. He noticed some prints on the ground. Aaron's boots probably. " 'm sorry about your family." Daryl muttered with a sidelong glance at her. He could have told her that maybe they were still out there, but that was not likely. Odds were they never made it because they were dead.

After she threw his own question back at him, Daryl stated off again. "Yeah," he nodded and didn't really expand on that. The group wasn't his blood family but they were his family all the same. Rick was his brother and Carol was like a sister to him. "Aaron should be waiting just a past those trees," Daryl said. He didn't mean to change the subject so suddenly but it wasn't like he had more to say to Monika. "He can drive you to the community and explain how things work there. You'll like him."

Monika Andrews