She didn't want to leave him.

She hadn't strayed far from him in days. And he hadn't gone far himself. Between eating and sleeping he seemed to do little else. But Hershel wasn't concerned and that eased the others.

It was when he was sleeping, while she ran her hands through his rather matted, still rather greasy hair that she noticed it.

She'd seen it on Ed a few times. A red blotch on Daryl's skin, just hidden under the collar of his shirt.

She peeled the material away slightly. Saw the black body in the centre or the red mark and knew straight away it was a tick.

She was quick in retrieving the items she needed from Hershel's kit and settled back down beside Daryl.

She felt his body stiffen with tension when she gently wiped an alcohol soaked cloth over the redness.

She soothed him by reassuring him with what she was doing, and felt some of the tension ease from him. She dealt with the tick with practised ease and quickly discarded it, washing her hands before she returned to him.

"I'm gross," his voice croaked, lack of use affecting it. But his lip quirked up slightly in one corner and she couldn't help smile back at him.

"Did I hurt you?"

He shook his head, sat up. And for the first time, he looked around the room. Really took notice of where he was.

"The new place looks a lot better. More space for us all, but we're all together still."

"Show me?"

She nodded.

"How's it going?" Carol asked, entering the room where almost all of the group would be.

Beth had Judith off somewhere else, where the younger children could interact, but everyone else was here. "Wow," Carol said as she saw how much work they'd done since she last saw the area.

If the others noticed Daryl, they didn't make a big deal about it.

The room was three times gibber than the last one they shared. And they'd managed to make some dividers up so that they all could have a little privacy when they wanted.

"It's pretty much finishing touches," Glenn said.

"Just need the crib over here," Rick said, looking at his own side of the room. "We could move in today."

Rick looked to the others, because Daryl wasn't to know that he was the reason they had been holding off moving out, not wanting to disturb him too quickly. A few nods and it was decided.

The others cleared out leaving Rick, Daryl and Hershel remaining in the room.

"You're over here," Rick said, walking across to the corner of the room, Daryl and Hershel following behind.

The corner section they'd set up for him was pretty much the same as all the other sections. Except there was a window close to the bed. Rick looked slightly awkwardly down to his feet as he motioned to the bed closest to Daryl's own. "Carl kinda insisted being next to your bed."

Daryl just smiled slightly. He noticed that the area where Rick had motioned earlier for the crib to go was next to Carl's section of the room, so he guessed Rick was keeping himself close to the boy to make sure he behaved.

Daryl went over to his bed and sat down.

"You're okay?" Hershel asked, gently.

Daryl nodded sitting up. "Everyone made it."

Hershel nodded. "The only one we thought we lost was you."

"We tried..." Rick started.

"I know," Daryl cut him off quickly. "I heard you."

"Why didn't you call out?" Rick asked.

Daryl shrugged. "My leg was pinned down and I didn't know how bad it was. I didn't want you come back for me if you couldn't get me out. Someone had to survive."

"I... it killed me thinking we'd lost you." Rick started. Was going to say more before Hershel interrupted.

"We all made it. That's all that matters." Hershel said. Daryl didn't need Rick laying his own feelings of guilt onto him right now. He had plenty of his own baggage. Hershel would make sure he spoke to Rick later about it. "You should get some rest," he then told Daryl.

Daryl looked beat, but resisted Hershel's words. "Ain't done nothin' but sleep," he said.

"You can spare a couple more days. Then I'll drag you out of bed myself."

Daryl smiled fully at that and Rick did too. A slight feeling of normality coming to him. The door opened as Glenn and Maggie carried the crib between them.

Beth behind them, muttering to Judith about her new home.

And while they all started filtering in, bringing their belongings from one place to another, Rick and Hershel drifted over to help and Daryl laid back on the bed.

He'd earned this. Two more days to get his shit together and then he'd be ready to help again.

He watched the group for a while, just enjoying their banter, they way they worked together, bringing back those early nights on the road together before the prison.

Soon, his eyelids were heavy and he turned away from them, ready to sleep.

And as he did, he saw underneath the window, Rick had propped up Daryl's crossbow for him.

Left it there for him, just like he had done at the roadside.

And he slept to the sound of his family around him.