His lips are on mine before another word can get out, his strong hands cupping my face. I return it eagerly, feeling as though he's been gone forever. I hear Elliot laughing again, causing me to pull away.

"I'm sorry, angel. I wasn't there for ya when ya needed me," he says, still gazing deeply into my eyes as his thumb caresses my cheek. "I thought you were gone before-"

"Daryl, you haven't met..." I trail off, instantly looking to the baby sleeping against my chest.

His attention also falls to Theo, his face flooding with awe as his mouth falls open. "That's..."

I smile, carefully reaching down and lifting Theo from his little hiding spot. He squirms again, his big blue eyes fluttering open as he looks up at me with a sort of wonder. Daryl steps closer, his eyes blazing with a deep sense of love.

"Look Theo, it's your daddy," I murmur.

My redneck's face softens, reaching out and running his hand along Theo's thin brown hair lovingly. I carefully hand him off, finding myself smiling wider when I see that I remembered to put him back in the squirrel onesie. Daryl cradles Theo close, his shaggy bangs nearly covering his eyes as he lets out a soft laugh.

"Hey there, son," he whispers, his voice unnaturally soft. "Look at you...already gettin' big and strong..." His smile grows wider. "You gonna kick some ass too?"

"If he's at all like his parents, I don't doubt it," Elliot jokes.

Daryl looks up, seeming to notice the African American for the first time. He cuddles Theo closer to his chest as I turn around, giggling a little. It's weird to feel so happy after what just happened, but Daryl's reaction to Theo has parted the dark clouds for at least a moment.

"Where's everyone else?" Daryl asks. "Are they okay?"

Elliot's face falls. "I don't know..." He sighs, adjusting his bag. "When the wall fell, I grabbed everything useful that I could get my hands on and went looking for Hope. She found me first though."

Theo coos and taps his tiny fingers against the buttons of Daryl's shirt. Daryl looks away briefly, taking in a long breath.

"Damn, I just miss everythin' huh?" he asks. "First I miss you havin' a baby, then I miss the damn town goin' to shit."

"I took tons of pictures and I have them with me. It'll be like you were there." I arch an eyebrow. "Also, cursing around the baby? Really?" I scold, although I'm mostly teasing.

He smirks. "He can't understand us quite yet, angel."

My happy demeanour still doesn't fade, my relief at seeing Daryl again keeping me from the negative thoughts. Unfortunately, that doesn't last quite long enough until I remember another tidbit of information.

"Wait...weren't you with Sasha and Abraham?" I ask. "Where are they?" I look him over, finally noticing that his crossbow is missing. "And what happened to your crossbow?"

He shakes his head, adjusting his grip on Theo as he rocks him gently. "Sasha and Abraham went back into Alexandria lookin' for the others. I went lookin' for you. The crossbow was...a run in with some assholes. They took my bike too."

I bite my tongue to keep from saying something less than polite. How dare they take my husband's most prized possessions and get away with it.

"Good thing I brought this then, huh?" Elliot asks, swinging said weapon off his back. "Only a few arrows though."

Daryl glances at the weapon and nods, not yet taking it. I tousle my messy curls as I stretch.

"We've got to keep moving, right? Daryl, I'll take Theo," I offer.

He shakes his head. "No way, darlin'. You've been playin' single momma for days, and I'll be damned if I don't get my daddy time in."

I laugh. "Okay fine, but take the carrier then."

A few quick switches later, Theo is cuddled against Daryl's vest in the carrier and the new crossbow is back over his shoulder. Elliot has a tight grip on his axe, my fingers tapping lightly on the hilt of my knife. We head off, trying to find the nearest road heading away from Alexandria. The further from the walkers we get, the better.

We haven't gone far when a voice rings out behind us.

"Wait! WAIT!"

Lightning stops, her tail stiff as she sniffs the air. Daryl places one muscled arm around Theo's carrier, fingers hovering over his hunting knife. Elliot steps to his side, both men on the alert.

Two figures can be seen coming from back the way we came, one dragging the other. Lightning's tail starts wagging and she yaps happily, giving us a better sense of security.

Elliot is the first to recognize the people. "Aaron? Eric?"

Aaron moves closer, helping Eric walk. His face breaks out in a relieved smile.

"Elliot! Dixon family! You made it out okay," he says, adjusting Eric's arm over his shoulder.

"What happened to you two?" Elliot inquires, his face flooding with concern as he moves closer.

Eric laughs weakly. "Oh...we sorta fought through a tiny herd to get out. I cut my leg on a sharper piece of metal." He shakes his head. "I'm just a disaster on legs."

Aaron smiles at him briefly before returning his attention to us. "Mind if we join the group?"

"Free country," Daryl comments.

"If we hurry, we can reach a safe spot by sundown," Elliot urges. "I packed most of my medical supplies when I left. I can patch you both up."

"Sounds good to me," I cut in. "I've got..." I glance at my backpack and smile sheepishly. "Well...baby supplies and food."

"Time's a'wastin'," Daryl comments. "Move your asses."

I roll my eyes as Elliot chuckles. Our little group of six plus Lightning keeps moving, and I can hear Daryl murmuring softly to Theo as he goes.

I can't help but hope that Elliot is right about the safe place. We need a spot to rest for the night, maybe even a place to hunker down while we wait to see if our group shows up.

I send another silent prayer up, wanting the best for my little group.