The Walking Dead - Drained and Insane ([Daryl Dixon]Fanfic)

Chapter 11: He's Next

Evangeline had been ignoring Daryl ever since the mentioning of her brother, which infuriated him more and more by the minute. It had been three days and she had not spoken one word to him...and he hated it.

Her mental condition had deteriorated rapidly. He would watch the way she would smile at someone when they spoke to her, but as soon as they broke contact her face would immediately fall and she would return back to looking drained, dead and vacant.

One night, he found her standing outside her cell within a single ray of moonlight that poured out of one of the cell windows. She was motionless; her eyes were huge orbs and illuminated by the light and specks of silver dust danced and swirled around her and onto the floor. He had gently come up behind her and led her away from the light and she did not break contact with it until he brang her back to their cell.

He hated not being able to talk to her, she simply went about her day doing her shifts that she was ordered to do with a nod or a mumble.She was isolating herself and slipping away quickly; and that frightened him to death.

"Daryl," Rick repeated, waving a hand in front of Daryl's face, "You there?"

He shook his head slightly, "Yeah, sorry," he mumbled, he found he was often going into trances thinking about Evangeline and how he could somehow get her to talk to him again.

"Did you hear what I said?" Rick asked.

"Huh?"

Rick sighed, placing his hands on his belt, "I asked if you could out hunting with Evangeline, we're running low."

Daryl's heart immediately skipped a beat at the mention of her name; something that had been happening often.

"Yeah...sure," he replied back gruffly and fetched his crossbow. He was growing more and more anxious of the idea of being alone with her. Would she talk to him? Would she ignore him? What if he said something wrong and she never talked to him for good?

He wouldn't be able to live with that. He hated himself for making her so upset when she was just starting to let him in and now she was distancing herself and hiding behind thicker armour.

He waited in the courtyard in bated breathe until she finally emerged with the same vacant and distant expression. It was neither sadness or happiness it was something in-between, emptiness, something much more frightening than sadness.

He would rather her cry or scream or at least let her be able to feel some emotion that kept her sane and human instead of being numb and unable to feel even the slightest emotion. She was like a walking ghost - she may be breathing and not a rotting corpse - but that didn't necessarily mean that she was alive.

He would do anything to save her from the darkness surrounding her and make her feel alive.

Evangeline brushed past him without a word and headed towards the vehicle, she almost struggled to keep herself walking. Daryl followed behind and they both hopped into the car, a heavy silence immediately filled the car as Daryl started it up and they pulled out of the prison and towards the forest.

They drove for what seemed like days, but after an hour they had gone far enough into a much more secluded, quiet and deserted part of the forest. Without a word nor a glance, Evangeline hopped out of the car and took off, earning a frustrated groan from Daryl who hastily ran a hand through his hair and followed after her.

Evangeline slipped cunningly and swiftly between trees after catching sight of a possible meal. She quickly forgot about the frantic Daryl trying to find her and continued forward, Once she was close enough she immediately crouched down and steadied her throwing knife, waiting for the exact moment. When the moment was just right, she brang her hunting knife back and prepared to throw it at full force.