♤

Daryl's POV

"Merle, you down here?" I called out for him as I slowly headed into the generator room, where Thomas was killed. There was some clanking as I raised my crossbow and called out to him once more, "Merle?"

As I entered, I saw him stood, leaning against the counter, likely high off some form of fumes, "Hey little brother"

"What the Hell?" I growled as I looked him up and down.

Merle stumbled slightly, "I was just about to holler back at you"

I looked around the room, "What you doing down here?" I asked calmly.

Merle took a few steps forward and leaned against a pillar, "Just..uh, looking for a little crystal meth" He admitted. I rolled my eyes at him and looked around the room once more, "Yeah, yeah, I know, I shouldn't mess my life up when everything is going so sweet, right?"

"You talk to Rick yet?" I asked with a sigh.

He nodded, "Yeah, oh yeah, I'm in, but, uh, he ain't got the stomach for it" Merle explained. "He's gonna buckle, you know that right?"

"If he does, he does" I muttered.

Merle raised his brow at me, "You want him too?"

I paused for a second, thinking of the upset it caused Kelly and Hershel. "Whatever he says goes"

Merle scoffed at me, "Man, do you even possess a pair of balls little brother? Are they even attached? Shall I go ask Kelly, maybe she can tell me. And if they are, do they even belong to you? You used to call people like that sheep, what happened to you?"

I looked at him, chewing on my bottom lip slightly, "What happened..with you..and Glenn and Kelly?"

"I've done worse. You need to grow up, things are different now.." Merle mumbled, justifying it to me. "Your people look at me like I'm the Devil, grabbing up that Asian kid and your snuggle buddy, now y'all wanna do the same thing I did. Snatch someone up and deliver them to the Governor, just like me." He paused.

"Yea, people do what they gotta do or they die"

I looked at him and shook my head, "You can't do things without people anymore man,"

Merle scoffed at me again, "Maybe these people need somebody like me around, huh? Do their dirty work. The bad guy" He leaned against the cupboard again. "Maybe that's how it is now huh, how does that hit you?"

I stepped forward, getting in Merle's face slightly, "I just want my brother back"

He looked at me, "Get out of here man"

♤

Kelly's POV

I stood in the courtyard, watching the fences before Rick came over to me, looking out in the same direction, "I can't do it to her, you were right, if we do, we're just like him"

Daryl came out into the courtyard, Rick explaining the situation to him too as I watched from a distance. "I can't find Merle to tell him" Rick sighed.

"I can't find Michonne" Daryl explained.

We all looked between ourselves, "Shit"

Daryl lead us into the generator room, "Found Merle in here, said he was looking for drugs, said a lot of things actually"

Rick looked around, "Like what?"

"Said you were gonna change your mind, here we go" Daryl announced, finding a piece of cloth on the floor. "Yeah, he took her here and then they stood up"

Rick growled, "Shit, I'm going after him"

"You can't track for shit" Daryl grumbled,

Rick sighed, "Then all of us"

Daryl shook his head, "No, I said I'll go and I'll go, you need to be ready when I get back"

I sighed, "I'm coming, if he's hurt her there's no way you can watch them both"

Rick nodded at the pair of us as we raced out of the door. We got in the car and quickly headed out after Merle and Michonne.

The car ride was quiet as we sped down the road, neither one of us speaking to each other. The trees passed quickly, Daryl's foot pressing down on the accelerator.

Leaves flew behind up, the speed of the car picking them up and carrying them somewhere else.

As we gathered on Merle, I spotted something, "Pull up!" I ordered, causing Daryl to hit the brakes hard as we both piled out of the car.

Running across the grass, I spotted Michonne, she was finishing up with a walker. "Where's Merle?" I asked, "What happened?"

"He let me go" She explained.

Daryl turned up his nose, growling, "Don't let anyone come after me" And with that, he took off running on foot.

"There's a car up there, take it, I'll follow him" I explained, she nodded and grabbed my arm before I took off,

"Merle said he had something he had to do..said he couldn't just come back" I nodded, confused as to what it could mean but thanking her none the less.

Daryl was a short way in front of me as I ran to catch up, "I told you not to follow me" Daryl growled.

I panted out of breath, "Tough shit" I growled, following behind him, "You don't have to do everything alone"

He ignored my words as we continued to head closer to where we met with the Governor last time.

As we approached, it was a blood bath.

Bodies sprawled out across the floor as we slowed to walking pace. Guts and intestines were thrown out of bodies, tossed to the side.

The place was a war zone with some bodies with bullets littering them, not walker bites.

The floor was strained and one walker was enjoying itself a feast as we reached him. It turned it's attention to us causing Daryl to quickly aim his crossbow at it, it's body falling over as we continued through.

I was looking around until I noticed Daryl come to a stop. Looking past him, I saw what he was looking at.

Merle.

I let out a small cry, "Oh God" as Daryl stumbled, dropping his crossbow.

His brother looked at us with ligament falling out of his mouth and a sunken face. Merle stood, stumbling over to us, the dark around his eyes even more prominent now.

Daryl pushed his brother, like he had many a time before, but this time was different, this time every time he pushed him, it got weaker, losing his strength. "Daryl.." I hushed, "I can do it"

In truth, I didn't want to, despite all Merle's flaws and wrong doings, he had saved me and Charlie, he gave us a shot. Despite his execution, everything came from a place of good intentions.

"No.." Daryl cried as his brother kept coming. Daryl pulled his knife and drove Merle back, pushing him onto the ground where Daryl plunged his knife into Merle again and again before Daryl collapsed onto the floor where I was there to hold him.

He rolled around until I knelt down and held him, letting him cry into my chest, his arm slung around me with mine wrapped tightly around him. After a few minutes, he pulled away and looked at his brother one last time before he got up, walking away.

I followed slowly as Daryl headed over to a truck, sitting on the back of it.

"He did the right thing" I whispered. "He did it for you.."