From that point on, Daryl made a promise to himself. From that point on; Daryl was going to do all in his power to protect Rick. He will find strength in his pain. He will find a way to make the water a little less cold.
He will do anything.
His trance-like state had kept him idle for hours; wasting away his breathes and regathering his physicality so he could continue. Standing up; it had felt almost foreign to him; as if the shock had almost rewritten him in a matter of seconds; and his first few steps looked as clumsy as a newborn foal.
He takes from the world a moment to look at the mess they’ve made of his friend. His best friend. Somehow, even with such a broken form; even with the dry stains of blood and tears on his marred cheeks; he looks… peaceful.
He checks his pulse, then. Just in case. Still beating.
“I won’t be long,” Daryl says softly to him; though whether he can hear it or not, is another story. Then the hunter sets to work.
The moon high in the sky, he tracks across the road, to the house where it all happened. The mess of blood and the corpses he created give him a small shock; especially the one he pulverized brutishly; but he doesn’t feel guilty about them. They deserved it. All of it.
Strengthening fingers pluck the crossbow from the ground, and retrieve the fired arrow and throwing knife. He takes the bat; wipes it on one of the attacker’s jackets; and moves back to the bungalow.
That’s when he starts making it safe. The windows are blocked up with whatever works; curtains drawn, paintings hung over them. He finds each exterior door and closes it; all those aside from the front door being barricaded; and then he leaves again. The scene of Rick’s attack is, ironically, a goldmine of supplies; and Daryl takes them all.
By the time he’s good to take a moment to sit, dawn is breaking.
He sits at the base of the couch Rick is laid on. He b r e a t h e s .
Two weeks later.
Icy orbs stare across the street at the house where it all happened, the house where he was brutally beaten to nothing. It’s a constant reminder of what he had lost, of what had happened to him, a reminder that he can’t ever seem to escape.
After the attack, it wasn’t long before Carl found them, when Daryl had gone back for him. He tried to forget about that day as best as he could, the day his son stared into the eyes of a man that was now useless, that could no longer protect him.
He looked from the window and to the walking stick that Daryl had pieced together when he’d had the time to. He would have to use the God forsaken thing if he ever wanted to move around by himself again. He could walk, but barely.
He stumbled to his bed and collapsed down on it once he realised he could no longer take the pressure on his legs.
The Sheriff’s orbs burnt into the stick, he was still so young and yet he was already bound to a walking stick. He rose back onto his feet, not bothering to pick up the stick to help him. He dragged himself to the bathroom, using the wall for support, to guide him.
He manages to make it. The fragile man stares into the mirror, stares at the ugly scars that are now forever stained on his face. He breathes through corrupted lungs, his eyes wander down to the scars that mark his torso also, the bruises that still remain from the broken bones in his chest - God knows how he survived that.
The recovery had been long and hard, and there were times when Rick really didn’t think he would make it. He should have died that day, he shouldn’t have been as lucky as he had been. If Daryl hadn't been there, he would have died.
Looking in the mirror, he caught a glimpse of the walking stick Daryl had placed in his room during the night - the sight of it made him feel sick. Hands clutched at the sink, holding on for dear life. If he let go, his legs would give way and he’d end up lying on the bathroom floor like he had done for so many nights.
Nights when Daryl would find him. When he wouldn’t move him but would instead lie there with him until he fell a s l e e p.
xrarchived-blog reblogged this from officerfriendlygrimes and added:
officerfriendlygrimes reblogged this from xrarchived-blog and added:
the-farmersdaughter liked this ofcriminalgrace liked this
tysarchived-blog liked this