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"Long before the walkers had become a threat to any common society. Before the quaintness of the forest had become a warzone and any feeling of peace were lost to the chaos held within the shadows. Before the fall of the major cities and the government itself. There stood two children. One child was forced to face the perils of the world too early. The harsh reality of adulthood thrust upon him without remorse. Beaten. Bludgeoned. By the very man, he was supposed to trust. His protector was thrust into jail once more. This time for a minor scuff protecting the very boy himself from the very man they both begrudgingly called father. The second child lived not too far of a life different than the first. Neglect wrecked this child's body down to the bones. Dirt stuck to her skin and dug deep into her nails even after minutes of scrubbing under hot water. The child's hair was cut short to prevent matting or bugs. Hunger constantly pained her. Illness wracked her body from lack of nutrition. However, together the two children were unstoppable forces of nature. Together, they grew as the saplings that refused to succumb to the fowl weather they were forced to grow under."
Bright blue eyes grew wide as the little tot scrunched deeper under the heavy woolen blanket. At only five years old the little girl had asked her father to tell her a story to keep the nightmares away and lull her to sleep as the moans of the dead had only gotten louder outside of the prison walls.
"The best of friends from the day the two met in the public hell hole-" The little girl gasped out cutting Daryl off.
"Daddy cuss word." She chastised. With a roll of his eyes Daryl continued.
"Public-crap hole they called school. The forest behind their trailer park served as a playground and a better school than any the state of Georgia could offer out of brick and mortar. It was there Daryl-" The little girl gasped out smiling widely at her father.
"That's your name Daddy! Does this mean this is a story about you and Mommy?" She giggled, all too pleased to be able to piece together the puzzle by herself. Smiling down at his daughter, Daryl chuckled leaning down to kiss her forehead.
"Yeah, it is." He whispered sitting up with a smirk as his little hellion kicked giddily.
"Now lay still and listen, or yer mama will be pissed." He laughed,
"Where was I... Oh! Daryl taught his best friend to hunt using only a stick, string, and tiny pocket knife to craft a simple bow from the elements around them. He taught her the value of patience. To hold as still as possible despite the adrenaline and jitters caused by the hope of a fruitful dinner. She in return taught him all she knew. She taught him to fish and how to lay traps in the warm months. Taught him never to waste a single article of a meal and to thank the land for any food taken for then nature would be more fruitful come the next bounty. But most importantly. She taught him to trust, to love." The little girl made a show of making large doe eyes at her father batting her long lashes at him.
"That's beautiful." She whispered dramatically. "Oh trust me, baby. You haven't heard the best part." Daryl whispered back caressing his thumb over her checks.
"Years passed. Daryl got his license. With every right, he could have run. He could have chosen to leave everything he knew behind and start life anew. He could leave his father behind without so much as a second thought. He'd miss his brother but held some lingering hope that after his extended stay at the state penitentiary for drug possession, Merle would find his way to him." The little girl blinked up at him sadly.
"You mean... Uncle Merle?" She asked sadly. Daryl couldn't meet his daughter's eyes this time, simply nodding and continuing his story.
"He'd gotten along fine without him so far. But he would be damned if he left her behind. Daryl had dropped out and gotten his GED the first chance he'd gotten.-" Daryl paused meeting his child's curious gaze.
"That just means I... Daryl quit school to work." He answered the question he knew was lingering at the back of her mind. The small girl nodded in acknowledgment.
"He refused to give her a solid answer why the day he did it. He guess he just assumed she was planning on doing the same. But... she didn't. She told him she was determined to stay and finish her degree out. The thought truly baffled Daryl. They both had talked about how much they fucking-" The little girl gasped out in shock once more looking completely appalled. This time Daryl knew he messed up however when he heard her whisper a little. "I'm tellin' momma".
"ain't no reason to tell yer momma! I'll change the damned word just... go to sleep." Daryl sighed scrubbing his face.
"They both had talked about how much they really despised school. How they hated the town they lived in. From what he gathered the plan was to leave as soon as possible. He heard Atlanta had work. Lots of it. They could just go there and get jobs now instead of wasting another year and a half in a town they both despised. But she insisted it was something she felt she needed to do. It was only a year and a half... Fine... Daryl hated it but he could live another year. It gave him time to start saving for that ring he saw in the jewelry store window." The little girl giggled once more earning a pointed look from her father. "What is it?" He asked a little less patiently than he intended.
"Daryl's gonna buy her a ring! It means he like likes her." Daryl couldn't help the snort that escaped his throat at the absurd statement.
"Yeah, baby. He really like likes her." He responded pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Daddy." The girl whispered out grinning from ear to ear. "I like like a boy." She teased earning a low groan from her father.
"One and a half years passed." Daryl continued making a point to ignore her obvious teasing. "The glittering diamond ring now sat proudly on Daryl's best friend's ring finger. A promise for a future untold as she walked proudly to accept her diploma. Daryl had never been so proud of anyone in his life. Nor had he ever been so happy while wearing the most uncomfortable clothing he could possibly imagine. A white button-down, Khakis, dress shoes, and a tie he "borrowed" from Merle's closet. None of it matched the piercings he refused to remove or the tattoos the sleeves and shorts failed to cover. But she loved him so deeply anyway unbeknownst to her that he would look even more handsome in a few months' time standing next to her in the courthouse in his rented suit. With Merle standing by their side he would never look prouder to be a big brother in his life than when he looked on at his little brother and his wife."
"So they got married?" The tot asked sweetly, sleep finally winning as she yawned. "Yes. baby. They got married."
"Another two years. Another blink of an eye. Daryl stared at his apartment with his brother and wife. If he had any say in the matter it would just be he and his wife but Merle was fresh out of jail... again and the pain in his heart every time he watched his older brother throw back more and more liquor or use whatever the drug of choice for the day was kept him from throwing him out on the streets. He knew where Merle's pain was rooted from. The difference, was Merle hadn't been sheltered or protected as much as he was... which wasn't an excuse but warranted warmth from him. This time was different, however. His wife was pregnant. She was going to have a little girl. Fantastic news for the little family. Even Merle seemed excited to have a niece. But the time would come when the baby would come and Daryl and his wife would need their trailer to themselves..."
Daryl's daughter's eyes grew heavy but the small tot fought sleep, curling her self around his middle and laying her head in his lap.
"Is the baby me?" She whispered sleepily. "Yes, princess." He whispered combing through her soft hair.
"Well... that's not exactly how things turned out. It had been exactly six months after the birth of their beautiful daughter, Phoenix that the world went and crapped itself. When his little family had first heard about the outbreak, Daryl specifically remembered Merle laughing before telling his wife to change the channel before it gave the baby nightmares. She did. The news broadcast was on every channel... No matter what they turned it to. Cartoon Network. The Food Channel. All of it was covered by a constant feed of various news anchors covering the horrific new virus everyone should be aware of. Live footage of people... human beings devouring each other in the streets filled the screen and all Daryl wanted to do was turn it off. But Merle has glued a seriousness plastered to his face he'd only ever seen twice before. It scared him. "This has to be a fucking joke..." He remembered whispering, holding Phoenix close to his chest to lessen the soft whimpers of her cries until her mother could fetch a bottle for her to feed with. But as some glass broke outside of the trailer followed by the high-pitched screams of their neighbor, Daryl wasn't entirely sure anymore. Merle had been the one to creep to the window peeking out of their broken blinds before stepping back and looking horrified. "We gotta get the fuck outta here." That was all Merle said as he started grabbing furniture and shoving them against the flimsy door of the trailer. Grabbing whatever they deemed important, they stuffed everything into duffle bags. Guns, arrows, bows, baby supplies, baby food, blankets, and survival gear. They'd all unfortunately trained for this moment. For a life of hardship outcast into the forest to fend for themselves. Daryl, his wife, and Merle. But poor Phoenix... How Daryl and his wife had wanted more for her than what they knew."
Daryl waited for Phoenix's feedback but smiled when he heard none, only feeling her grip on him tighten when he moved and a soft sigh escape her tiny body as she got comfortable. Daryl wanted to be the kind of dad that told his daughter fairy tales of princesses, dragons, trolls, vampires, monsters, and fairies. Not life before the turn. He didn't want to tell her stories to keep her safe from the walkers that existed just outside the prison gates or even the people that could harm her if he or his wife weren't there to protect her. He wanted to be the dad that took her to t-ball and dropped her off at school bawling at the drop off on her first day. Not took her to the courtyard of the prison to practice how to hold and use a pistol should the need arise, shoot a bow just her size to hunt should she ever be left alone for too long, or worry what a lack of education was going to do to her in the long run. Looking up as his wife climbed the stairs to their shared sleeping area Daryl tried to push all his anxiety away. Kissing his best friend, his greatest love, his wife, the mother of his child so deeply before she laid down beside Phoenix he tried to convey that love. He tried to let them know they were the princesses to his fairy tale.