𝐍𝐄𝐅𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐎𝐔𝐒 | daryl dixon

- 𝟏𝟑𝟏

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

     AS ALWAYS, the forest was dense, seeing anything was hard. especially during the night. her walkie-talkie crackled, some messages relaying through as she and daryl reunited with michonne and carol. it seemed that the whisperers had disappeared or masked their scent, as rhaegar couldn't catch anything more after a while of walking.

     the group made their way to a building, michonne suspicious if carol had actually seen anything. she'd been taking these pills, that were induced with caffeine and potentially could just be seeing things from her lack of sleep. despite that, they chose to keep looking.

     when daryl entered the building, rosaline followed behind him as he shone his flashlights in potential spots that could hold the hiding whisperers. rhaegar followed close behind, his hackles raised. the marksman noticed that carol was slowly falling behind, staring emotionlessly at a picture of some sort. there were children gathered in a group printed onto the canvas.

     "hey." he called to her, frowning at her odd behavior, "come on."

     without another word, she trailed after them, rosaline offering her a sympathetic look. in front, michonne was asking more people to keep a lookout on the east end. it'd gotten too dark to keep searching.

     they ended up in a small room, a door to each side. carol placed her weapons down along with rosa, turning to daryl, "i'll take first watch."

     "you sure carol? i can do it." the brunette offered, adjusting her clothes.

     she shook her head, "no you get some sleep. i can't anyway."

     "okay." rosaline nodded, walking over to daryl who gave a look of approval, then observed the room.

     it had to be a school of some sort. bright images painted on the wall with various eye-catching colors, little doodles, and desks. most of it had been looted, but clearly, this was a place meant for children; hence why carol had found that picture earlier.

     daryl slipped off the cloak that he used to hunt with. it gave him camouflage within the undergrowth, proving good use. he passed it over to rosaline to lay it out below them, his gaze slightly swaying between the two women. he seemed lost in thought.

     carol noticed his stare, "what?"

     he plopped himself beside his wife with a slight grunt, his arm wrapping under her waist as her head landed on his chest with some relief, "nah, just... thinking 'bout my dad. he used to be a trucker. he'd tell mere and me all these crazy stories about his trips."

     rosaline breathed in his scent, some comfort slipping into her and the worries of her daughter subsiding ever so slightly. she could feel that he was tense too. gently, her hand latched onto his and he gave her a reassuring squeeze whilst continuing on with his story. daryl wasn't fond of his dad, yet he still thought about him sometimes. rosaline wished she could say the same - but her head had been emptied of that man.