Hi guys, so I'm sort of back. I couldn't stand not writing, but man did this one take a while to put together so I hope you enjoy it!

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Jo

I lay in the dirt sobbing. My chest heaved with the effort it took to draw in each and every breath. My chest was tight and it took so much more strength than it should have. I gasped in mouth fulls around my sobs but I couldn't get enough air.

I pushed myself up onto all fours as tears and snot ran together down my face and into the dirt beneath me. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think. All I could do was hold myself up on trembling arms as my sobs threatened to tear me apart.

I didn't understand anything that was happening anymore or how I was going to survive it. The pain radiating through my abdomen made my thoughts scatter. I knew I should be doing something, but I was stuck, trapped in an endless cycle of pain and absolute, mind numbing terror.

I squeezed my eyes closed tighter, trying to block out the image of Negan's face. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't banish the memory of that possessive gleam in his eye. I knew that look, I had seen it in Phillip's eyes before he became The Governor. Before he had locked me up in a cage.

I choked on another sob. I wouldn't go back to another cage.

No matter how much time passed, and how much I knew it didn't make sense, there would always be a small part of me that felt like what happened in Woodbury was my fault. As though I had somehow let him put me in that cage. The rational part of my brain knew I had been a victim, but there was a piece of me that didn't believe it. I didn't feel like a victim, I had never viewed myself as one and I wouldn't start. No matter what happened I wouldn't go back to another cage. I turned myself into something no one would ever consider a victim. And yet...a shudder wracked my body as I realized what could have happened had Negan not been here today.

Distantly I heard the sound of another truck on the road and all I could think was that Negan had changed his mind and was coming back for me. I wouldn't let anyone put me in another cage, and Negan's obsession was no different than Phillip's.

I pushed myself to my feet, gasping in pain. Lights flashed along the edges of my vision and I swayed dangerously. I was hurt, too hurt to fight. I hadn't been strong enough to fight then and I wasn't strong enough to fight now. So I did the only thing I could. The only thing my over tired brain could process. The thing I should have done the first time I heard Phillip's voice years ago. I ran.

I stumbled through the thick trees. The branches caught and pulled at my exposed skin but I forced myself to keeping moving. Fight or flight was the oldest of natural instincts and I gave myself over to it. My vision kept going blurry, making it hard to run and I couldn't be sure if it was tears or nausea. Maybe both. My balance was unsteady and it took everything in me to push myself to my feet every time I fell. I just had to keep moving.

It wasn't dark yet when my legs finally gave out. I tripped and fell in the leaves and mud and didn't have the strength to push myself back up one more time. Instead, I crawled into some of the thickest underbrush I could find to hide. I wrapped my arms around my knees, hugging them to my chest and closed my eyes. Fearful tears ran down my cheeks as I waited for him to find me.

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Daryl

I paced around the Hilltop waiting for someone to give it the all clear. The saviors had left half an hour ago and Jesus had sent one of their trucks out to tail them, just to be sure they were gone. I didn't think they were coming back. They got what they wanted and took the doc.

"Daryl?" Maggie's voice came from behind me. I turned towards her and she took a step back away from me after she saw the look on my face. "Are you okay?" She asked uncertainly.

I felt a little bad for scaring her. I chewed on my lip. "Jo ain't back yet," my voice rasped roughly and I cleared my throat as I tried not to let Maggie see how worried I was.

No reason Jo wouldn't be back yet. Soon as they were gone she shoulda been climbing over the back fence. I ran a hand over my eyes. But she was hurt, so she wouldn't be climbing over any fences. I swallowed thickly as a bad feeling went over me. She shoulda been back.

I needed to get out from behind this damn fence and find Jo. I needed to make sure she was okay. Suddenly I felt like I needed fresh air even though I was standing outside.

"Daryl-" Maggie started to say but she stopped and pressed her lips into a tight line. She nodded then as she thought about what I said. "You're right," she agreed. "She should be back, Enid said she was just in the clearing."

I jerked my chin down roughly and looked towards the gate where the truck pulled through and parked. Jesus leaned into the window to talk to the driver. After a couple seconds he pulled back and looked across the community towards me. He nodded to let me know it was clear and I strided off towards the gate, my crossbow pulled up over my shoulder.

"Daryl!" Maggie called after me.

I ignored her. I had a bad feeling about Jo. I couldn't shake the tightness building in my chest every second she wasn't back. When I didn't look back I heard Maggie trot along behind me. I didn't stop and when she caught up she didn't say anything to get me to.

It took ten minutes to get to the clearing and they were the longest of my life. I stepped out into the clearing and froze. She wasn't here. I stopped at the edge and swallowed.

I recognized the body laying in a pool of blood. He was a savior and a real piece of work. He had been one of the ones who did Negan's dirty work. He had happily beat the shit out of me. Behind me Maggie gasped when she saw the body. She didn't realize how much better the world was without this douche bag.

I stepped up towards the body, staying on the outside of the circle, trying not to mess up any tracks that might still be useful. A lot of people had been in that clearing over the last couple days. I toed the body. He had been stabbed in the neck with a knife, but it didn't look like Jo's work.Temple, ear, under the chin, or the base of the skull were her trademarks. She would never leave a body behind to change. She was too careful for something like that. Especially so close to a community she would feel responsible for.

"Daryl," Maggie called, trying to get my attention.

I turned around and she was standing near the target. My chest tightened when I saw most of Jo's knives were still stuck in it. I swallowed, trying to remember how many she had been wearing this morning. I had been too wrapped up in my own guilt, I hadn't been paying enough attention to her. I was such an asshole. I counted the ones in the target trying to figure out how many she would have on her. Maybe three...or four? Not enough.

Something was wrong. She wouldn't have just left them behind.

Jo's boot prints were all over, but I  could also see where someone her size had laid down, or knelt in the sand. There had also been a tussle as some point, someone on the ground. I paced around some more, trying to figure out exactly what happened. None of what I was coming up with was good. There was another set of prints around the body, men's and pretty large. They looked fresh, but with so many people in and out of the clearing I couldn't be sure.

I scrubbed a hand over my face.

Jo's boot prints were all over the clearing, but I found a trail leading into the forest, away from Hilltop. The small boot prints dug more deeply into the soft dirt like she had been running. Jo didn't run from anything. I swallowed thickly.

I glanced back at Maggie. She met my eyes and I jerked my chin towards the forest. "She went into the woods."

Maggie nodded and moved to follow.

"Why don't ya head back?" I told her. "I'll get Jo," I kept my voice even, trying to hide how worried I was, but I could tell Maggie didn't buy it.

"You're worried about her?" she said it like it was a question but it wasn't. "I'll come with you."

"Naw," I said, shaking my head, I looked up just as Jesus came into the clearing. "Ya should head back, not be roaming the forest in your condition," I said jerking my chin in her direction.

Maggie looked ready to argue but I made eye contact with Jesus and he stepped forward, ushering her back towards the community. Maggie went with him without arguing and I couldn't help thinking how pissed Jo would have been being treated like that. I nodded to Jesus, glad he had showed, and set off into the trees.

It shouldn't have been a hard trail to follow, but it didn't make sense. It didn't go in a straight line and far as I could tell she was just running. There were no other tracks, it didn't look like anything was chasing her or that she was following anything neither. When I found the first place she fell and then obviously kept running a sick feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. 

I started to jog.

Something was wrong. Jo never ran from nothing a day in her life. Even when she shoulda. She fought. She fought everything and everyone with every part of her. She fought our enemies, sometimes our friends, hell some days she even fought me. I loved that about her. She was good at it too, it made it so I didn't normally have to worry about her. I couldn't imagine loving someone not able to protect themselves. It woulda driven me crazy a long time ago.

But now Jo was hurt. She couldn't fight I realized. So she was running away. I just didn't know what she was running from. 

I had to find her.

The sun was going down fast and the tightness in my chest was starting to change into full blown panic. I had no clue why she was out here, what happened, or what, if any weapons she had. There wasn't anyone out here with her far as I could tell.

It was almost full dark. I couldn't see the trail anymore and even though I knew I was risking mucking up the trail I couldn't stop. I wasn't going to leave her out here alone. I don't know how I heard her. It was too dark to see, and the whimper should have been too quiet for me to hear over the night time sounds of the forest. I froze at the sound that made my blood run cold. I whirled in the direction the quiet whimper had come from, but there wasn't another sound. I shoved my way through the underbrush. 

As soon as I moved the last branch there was a loud thud as something hit the tree next to my head. I flinched back and whirled towards it in shock to see the handle of one of Jo's knives not five inches from my face. 

"Jo!" I snapped, whirling towards her. 

I held up my hands so she would stop seeing me as a threat until she recognized me. I should have known better, should have understood what was happening when there was no physical reason for her to be running. She wasn't running from anything, whatever had happened, she was lost somewhere in her head. 

She let out a strangled cry when she realized it was me, and her eyes widened in horror as she met my gaze. Her right hand was trembling where she held it still extended in front of her from throwing, her other arm was wrapped around her stomach, holding her ribs. I couldn't tell if she had cried out in pain or if it was because she had realized it was me almost too late. 

She mouthed my name, but no sound came out.  She collapsed back on her heels and hung her head as a sob tore it's way out of her throat. She wrapped both arms around herself as though she could hold herself together.

"Jo," I called cautiously still a few feet away. I didn't want to startle her until I was sure where her head was at.

When she didn't move as I came closer I knelt down next to her. She was shaking and her eyes were closed as silent tears streamed down her face. I hesitated for only a second before I touched her. She didn't flinch away, she didn't move at all. Which worried me more than if she had attacked me again. 

"Jo," I said her name again, this time more gently. I cupped both her cheeks in my hands. "Jo, open your eyes." 

She listened. There were still tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry-I'm so sorry-I'm sorry," her voice was hoarse and rose with tension every time she apologized. 

"Sshh-" I told her. I leaned forward and pressed my forehead against hers. "Jo, what-?" I started to ask, but I stopped when her whole body tensed. 

In the dim light it was difficult to see her. I pulled back to look her over to make sure she wasn't more hurt. I went cold as I realized her shirt was torn leaving her in nothing but her bra. There was dirt and blood smeared across the pale skin of her flat stomach. I thought back to the body in the clearing and a deep pit of rage settled in my stomach. 

"He was here," she told me, her voice was hoarse and she leaned back towards me, half collapsing against my chest. 

I frowned. "I saw the asshole you killed in the clearing," I told her, but she was already shaking her head. 

"Not him, Negan," she whispered. 

I frowned and tried to pull back so I could see her face. She gripped my jacket in both hands however and refused to let go. So instead I just held her even though every part of me wanted to demand to know what happened. I wanted to go kill that asshole with every part of me. 

"He attacked me," she said quietly. "Caught me off guard in the clearing, he-" she dragged off and buried her face deeper in my chest. "Negan came and stopped him, killed him..." her breath fell in warm puffs against my neck, but I didn't feel anything but cold. I had left her alone. I had known she was hurt and alone and I had left her out there by herself. I wrapped her in my arms and held her as she cried. I buried my face in her hair so she wouldn't see the guilt in my own eyes.  

She shivered in my arms and I pulled back. She swayed dangerously. I jerked off the jacket I was wearing and wrapped it around her. I guided her arms in the sleeves as gently as I could, but my hands were shaking with barely contained rage. 

"We need to get you back, have Rosita take a look at you," I said gruffly. 

I slung my crossbow over my back and scooped her up in my arms. She whimpered and tensed at the movement but once she was tucked against my chest she quieted again. I turned to head back towards Hilltop but hesitated when she spoke. 

"Rosita isn't there anymore," she said quietly as she wound her arms around the back of my neck to make it easier for me to carry her. 

I looked down at her frowning. "What-?"

"She and Sasha," she said tiredly. She sighed deeply and tucked her head against my chest under my chin. "They've gone to kill him." 

I started to ask another question but she went still in my arms. I didn't know if she had fallen asleep or if she passed out, either way I needed to get her back. She needed to rest. I frowned in the direction of Hilltop, we had traveled far enough it wasn't the closest community any more. It was closer to go to Alexandria, and they didn't have a doc back at Hilltop anymore. There wasn't one in Alexandria either, the only community left with a doctor was the Kingdom, but I wasn't going to carry her to back to Ezekiel tonight. 

I turned to take her home. 

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Jo

Nightmare after nightmare rocked me. Images of Negan and Terry and The Governor all flooded over me and blended together. There were times when I saw those dark woods after the prison, when I was alone and convinced Daryl was gone. The panic strangled me and tightened around me. I tensed to fight at first but then a quiet, gruff voice settled me. 

It was Daryl. I knew it was Daryl. Somehow, even in midst of all my terror and panic I was able to recognize him. The steady beat of his heart beneath my ear and his warmth grounded me. I was safe and that was all that mattered.

I was being selfish, I knew I was. He was carrying me and I should have insisted I get down and walked, or something, anything other than lay here and let someone else take care of me...but I was so tired and somehow the pain in my abdomen didn't seem so bad right now. I might even be able to sleep. I let my eyes drift closed. 

I didn't open them against until I heard Daryl talking to someone. 

"Open the gate," he said, his voice rumbling under my ear. 

I expected to hear the creak of the Hilltop's gates as they swung open but instead there was the distinctive clanking as our gate slid aside. We were home. 

"Daryl," I heard Carl's voice and I snapped open my eyes. 

We couldn't be here. I struggled to move, to keep my eyes open, but my entire body weighed too much for me to handle. 

"She's gonna be okay," Daryl assured him, but he didn't sound convinced. "I need you to get Tara." 

I heard the slap of shoes against the ground as Carl ran off. I felt Daryl carry me up the porch, heard the door open and I breathed a sigh of relief. We were home. 

Daryl tucked me into our bed and then he paused one of his hands cupping the side of my face "Jo," he said my name so seriously I blinked my eyes open. The lamp beside the bed was on and it burned my eyes and made my temples pound. 

"Tara is here and she wants to look at your ribs," he said quietly. 

"No," I started to say and I tried to pull the blankets around me. I didn't want anyone else touching me. I just wanted to rest. Once I got to sleep I would feel better. 

"Jo," Daryl's voice was soft and soothing, he sounded like he was speaking to a wounded animal. 

"What's wrong with her?" Tara's voice was too loud and too harsh and I flinched away from it. 

Daryl's hands were gentle and his movements slow as he pulled back the blankets and gently opened his jacket. "She was attacked by one of the Savior's." Daryl's voice was tight and I could practically feel the rage pouring off of him. It made me shift uncomfortably. Somehow his hands remained gentle despite the brittle rage I could hear in his voice. 

"Did he-" Tara started to ask but something made her stop speaking. 

I blinked my eyes open again and Daryl was glaring at her, his shoulders and chest were heaving with the effort it was taking for him to remain calm. He looked so defeated. "I don't know," he ground out angrily. 

This question was important. "No-" I said and I grimaced against the pain in my chest. 

They both turned back to me, looking surprised to see me awake. 

"No," I repeated, "He didn't." I said, not able to say the words, it had been close. Too close. "He got my ribs again though." 

Daryl let out a sigh of relief that encompassed his entire body. He sagged against me and pressed his forehead against mine. "I'm sorry," he whispered and his voice sounded broken. 

I reached up weakly to touch him, but he was already pulling back. His hands were quicker now, more efficient in opening my shirt as Tara stepped up beside him.

She let out a low whistle as soon as I felt cold air against my stomach. "That-" she started to say shaking her head. "...is a lot of color for someone as pale as you Jo," she said. She glanced over her shoulder towards the door where Carl was waiting, looking uncomfortable. "I need you to go back and get four roles of ace bandages, the bottle of extra strength tylenol and a few ice packs." 

I heard Daryl shift his weight and I glanced over at him. "Some tylenol and ice packs? You don't got nothing better?" 

"I'm not a doctor Daryl," Tara snapped at him as she glided her cool fingers over my ribs. She touched one and I grunted in pain, trying not to flinch away. 

Daryl made a frustrated noise in the back of his throat and paced away. I leaned back and closed my eyes while we waited for Carl to get back. Once he was back Tara called him into the room. 

"Okay," she said nervously. "Daryl I want you to help hold her up while Carl and I wrap her. We need to wrap them very tightly so Jo this is probably going to hurt. A lot." 

I grimaced as Daryl helped me sit up. "Just get it over with," I growled at Tara. 

She pinched her lips together and stepped closer to me fidgeting. 

"I'm not going to bite," I told her sardonically. She looked like she was approaching a wild animal. 

As soon as I had the thought I instantly regretted it. That was exactly how I had acted out in the woods. I looked at Daryl apologetically, but he was studying what Tara was doing. His brow was furrowed and he shook his hair out of his eyes. He had his forearm looped around my upper chest for me to lean forward. I held onto it, lifting my arms up out of the way. I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth. 

When they were done Daryl helped me lay back down. While it hurt at first, as soon as I laid down I felt better. Tara laid a couple of soft ice packs over the top of the bandages and held out a couple of pills. 

"You should take these," Tara said when I didn't move to take them out of her hand. 

I shook my head. 

"Jo," Daryl said exasperatedly. 

I shook my head again. "No, someone else might need them," I said through gritted teeth. 

"Yeah and that someone is you," Tara snapped impatiently. 

I tried to stare her down but being hurt made it a lot harder. Finally sighing I swallowed the two pills dry. 

"Happy?" I asked. 

"Your welcome!" she said flashing me a victorious smile. 

I scowled at her, feeling like I had missed something. 

She turned to Daryl. "They were the last of our codeine. She should be out cold in about half an hour. If you're up, you should change out the ice packs halfway through the night." 

I scowled at Tara, angry I hadn't been able to pay close enough attention to see her ruse. We needed to save all the drugs we had. What if someone came in who was really hurt? Instead of being intimidated by my scowl Tara just beamed at me. 

I sighed and let my eyes droop as I felt the drugs start to take effect. I drifted off to sleep, feeling relief for the first time in days.

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Jo 

It could only have been minutes later, it felt like no time had passed at all when the door clicked open and I startled awake. The room was starting to lighten and I realized it was already morning. I had slept through the night without a single nightmare, without even realizing it. Despite how frustrated I had been last night with Tara for wasting the valuable drugs on me, I could not have been more grateful. 

"Shh," Daryl whispered into my hair. I hadn't realized he was laying beside me until the bed shifted and he climbed to his feet. He was wearing just his boxers and when Rick poked his head into the door he hesitated his eyes going from Daryl to me. 

"Sorry," Rick whispered. "But I need to talk to you," he said seriously. 

"I'll be right out," Daryl said in a low voice. He was trying to keep quiet so he wouldn't wake me. 

Rick nodded and started to leave. 

"It's okay," I said from the bed, but my voice croaked and came out barely above a whisper. 

Both men glanced at me with matching expressions of concern. 

I rolled my eyes at them. I pushed myself up on my elbows and grimaced. I felt like I had been hit by a truck. 

Daryl's mouth flattened into a frustrated line but I ignored it. "If you talk in here you'll save me the trouble of having to get out of the bed to come eavesdrop." I told them with a half-hearted attempt at humor. The truth was I was going to be hard pressed to get out of this bed by myself just now. 

Rick snorted and shook his head, but stepped into the room anyway. Daryl let out a frustrated sigh and dropped back down to sit on the bed beside me. I reached out and wound my fingers with his. We had a lot to talk about in regards to what happened the day before, but I didn't want him to worry about me. I squeezed his hand so he would know I was okay.  

Both Daryl and Rick looked uncomfortable for a moment. Daryl looked down at his feet guiltily. "I'm sorry," he said, looking back up at Rick. "I know I shouldn'ta come here, but I had to-" he glanced at me and then looked away. 

Rick looked back and forth between us utterly bewildered for a moment and then he shook his head as he realized Daryl thought he was going to throw us out. "That's not why I wanted to talk to you. This is your home Daryl. You absolutely should have come here." 

Daryl nodded, his lips pinched into a tight line. I could tell he didn't like that he had to come here and a fresh wave of guilt went through me. I was the reason we were here. 

"I came to let you guys know that Michonne and I were going to be leaving to go out on a long distance run." 

Daryl scowled at this. "You're leaving?" he asked in surprise. 

Rick nodded and rested his hand on the gun on his hip. "We have to find guns and supplies. We don't have a lot of time, a couple weeks at the most to pay off our new allies." 

"New allies?" Daryl asked curiously. 

I glanced back at him. "The garbage people I told you about." 

Daryl nodded but I could see him rolling the idea around in his head. "We weren't planning on stayin," he told Rick. "Just a few days for Jo to rest up and heal some. Too dangerous for ya guys to get caught with me here." 

Rick nodded. "It'll be fine. Tara and Gabriel are here with Carl and Judith. If you come up with any other places to find guns, nows a good time to share." 

Daryl rubbed at the stubble along his jaw with the back of his hand thoughtfully. "No where I can think of..." he said honestly. He was tracing a circle along the back of my hand with his thumb. I wondered if he even realized he was doing it. 

Maybe it was because of all that had happened the day before, the memories and the nightmares of the past that gave me the idea. It was a little crazy. I cleared my throat and both men turned to look at me. "I have an idea," I told them. "But it's dangerous," I said and I looked over at Daryl. "And you aren't going to like it..."

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Hi guys! I know it took me a while to get this one out, and it will probably take me just as long to get the next one out. I appreciate all of your patience while I heal. I wrote most of this one on my phone so it's a little rough. I hope it's okay and you don't find too many errors. I'm taken it a new direction with some original scenes, I'm excited to hear what you all think! 

Thank you all so much for your support, patience and well wishes. I'm healing up, but man is it taking a while!