Jasper
Chapter 1: Family Matters

The old van ate up the miles as the weary group made their way back to the prison, more drained and heart sore than the trip should have left them. Tyreese was still lost in a haze of grief thanks to Karen's loss and to Sasha going into quarantine right before they took off in a desperate attempt to get medicine. Michonne stared stone faced out the window, her attention on the road and on the bastard that had eluded them for far too long. Every trail had gone cold, every lead a dead-end. She was just now coming to terms with what Daryl had accepted long ago. The governor had given them the slip and that was all there was to it. If he got the chance, Daryl would gut the bastard and let the Walkers finish him off. That seemed less and less likely as the months passed with no word. Now, he had other things to worry about. Michonne was having to accept that Phillip Blake might be gone for good. It was going to take her a while to let it go.

Daryl looked over his shoulder and caught Bob Stookey's eye before the man hurriedly dropped his gaze to the backpack cradled lovingly in his lap. He bit back a growl, his hands opening and closing reflexively with the urge to choke the shit out of the fucker. It had taken everything in him to keep from tossing the prick off the roof and into the walker horde clamoring below. The only thing that kept him from it was the man's medical knowledge and how badly they needed him back at the prison. Dr. S was already locked in isolation. Now Hershel had gone in of his own free will to try to ease the suffering until Daryl made it back with the meds. Carol was still on her feet, but her attention was on those two girls. She and Maggie were both battling to keep an even keel with loved ones over in A fighting for their lives. It was hard enough, knowing that his family and friends were suffering without having to deal with a dumbass and his addiction.

Anger, hot and bright and welcome, flared anew as Bob continued to avoid his gaze. Son of a bitch. Stupid fuck. Didn't they have enough to worry about without this shit? He rolled the light green stone between his hands, his thumb sliding along the rough edges and facets. Jasper was an uncommon stone in Georgia but you could find it if you knew what you were looking for. Daryl thought of the shoebox he'd kept under his bed as a kid. He had been fascinated with rocks and fossils and anything that got him out of the house. It was the one thing he had that belonged just to him. Part of the blame fell on his mother and her stories of Cherokee roses and legends and stones that healed and protected. Jasper was her favorite before she died. Now, it was his.

The welcome sight of the fences pulled him out of his musings. He heard Michonne let out a breath and echoed it. Hopefully they'd made it back in time to do some good. Some would have passed on and that hurt more than he wanted to let on. He couldn't think about them, couldn't let it pull him down because he'd never crawl out. He'd mourn afterward, help do right by the dead but the important thing was those still breathing. They had to be priority number one. They had to be.

The courtyard was largely deserted when they rolled through the gate. Daryl grabbed his pack and shouldered his crossbow before pushing the door open and bailing out. He walked toward C block, anxious to find out what was happening. A few people congregated under the outdoor pavilion that served as a dining area. Hopeful eyes followed him as he strided across the courtyard. He nodded shortly in response to their questions. Are you okay? Did you get the medicine? Did everybody make it back? The others followed closely, just as quiet and intent as he was on getting inside and handing the medicine over to those that could do something with it.

Rick met him at the entrance, his worried blue eyes darting from one to the other. They softened when he realized that all four had made it back. He chuckled softly, clasping Daryl on the shoulder before giving Michonne a one-armed hug. "Glad to see you," he murmured. She gave him a half-hearted smile but didn't answer. She walked past them, heading for her cell at the far end of the corridor. Bob and Tyreese gave Daryl a sidelong look as they followed the taciturn woman. Rick's brow furrowed as Bob gave Daryl a wide berth, tightly clutching his pack to his chest as he eased past.

"Everything alright?" Rick questioned. "You get the stuff?"

"Yeah, we got it," Daryl answered, his gaze darting around the cell block. "Had a few bad minutes but nothing we couldn't handle. Everything okay here?" He glanced briefly at Rick, taking in the man's pale face and his anxious expression. "How many did we lose?"

Rick shrugged, meeting Daryl's questioning look with a pained one of his own. "One dead, five more sick. We went on a shot run while you were gone to stock up on what we could. Maggie was on her own for a while but it worked out."

Daryl finally realized whose face he hadn't seen since they'd gotten back. Carol. He took another quick glance around before asking, "So where's Carol? She over in Admin checking on the kids?" Rick's nervous expression morphed into a solemn mask as the man seemed to brace himself. "Rick?" He repeated. "Where's Carol? Is something wrong?" The bottom fell out of his stomach as another possibility occurred to him. "Is she sick? Does she have it? Fuck, man, say something!" His tone bordered on hysterical as Rick remained silent. "Where the hell is she?"

"She's gone," Rick finally confided. "I had to do it. She confessed to killing them, Daryl. She killed Karen and David. She decided on her own that they were a threat and had to be eliminated and acted on it. She disregarded everything the Council decided and killed them in cold blood. I took her out, gave her some supplies, and told her to go." He hooked his thumbs in his belt loops and met Daryl's astonished gaze squarely. "I did what I had to do for her and for the good of the group."

The stone cut into his palm as his fingers tightened around it. He couldn't believe what he was hearing much less that it was coming from Rick. Carol was gone and she wasn't coming back. Gone just like that with no goodbye, no stay safe, nothing. She was gone and there wasn't a damned thing he could do to change it.

Fury kindled a twisted and tangled thing that tunneled his vision until all he could see was the tenuous certainty on Rick's face. He'd made the call and was sticking with his decision no matter what. Fuck what the rest of them thought, fuck everything that Carol had done for them, and fuck everything they'd gone through together. He'd cut her loose and sent her off to fend for herself.

Blood seeped between his fingers, warm and slick, coating the stone still clutched in his hand. No way. No fucking way. He wasn't going to lose anybody else, especially not her. He spun on his heel and made a beeline for his cell. He heard footsteps following him but didn't look around to see who it was. He tossed a few shirts and an extra pair of pants into his rucksack along with his spare knife. His gun was swiftly checked and tucked into a convenient pocket along with an extra clip. He grabbed his spare quiver on his way out of the cell, slinging it over his shoulder with his bag.

"Where do you think you're going?" Rick asked harshly. "I told you what she did and why she had to leave. This is for the best, Daryl. Stop for a minute and think it through. You know this was the only way."

Daryl shrugged off Rick's hand and kept walking, refusing to acknowledge Michonne calling his name from the far end of the cell block. He stopped suddenly and looked over his shoulder where Rick stood frozen. "Which way did she go? What was she driving?"

Rick's sigh was barely audible and his shoulders slumped when he saw his friend wasn't going to change his mind. "You're really going to do this, leave the group to go chasing after one person. We need you here, Daryl. People are sick and you're on the council. The people here are your responsibility. You can't just take off any time you feel like it."

Daryl's hands tightened to fists, the jasper cutting deeper into his flesh. "I've done my part. You've got the medicine. Hershel can take care of the rest. I'm going to bring her home to her damned family where she belongs"

"She's safer out there," Rick argued. "If Tyreese finds out, he'll kill her. The other Woodbury people will be there to cheer him on, Daryl. They won't want her here once they find out what she did."

"Fuck them," Daryl growled. "And fuck you, Rick, if you think she deserves this. Carol's family, our family. She's been there right down the line. You don't let one of your own go, not like this." He shouldered past the man and made for the cell block exit. "Just so you know if she don't want to come back then I'm done. No her, no me."

"You don't mean that," Rick yelled after him. "Dammit, Daryl, don't do something you'll regret."

"Don't worry, brother," Daryl spared him one last look. "The only thing I regret is that I've wasted this much time. I won't make that mistake again." With that said, he strolled determinedly out of the cell block without a backwards glance.

End part 1

A/N Wrote this as a drabble on Tumblr to deal with my emotional wreckage following ep. 4. Looks like there might be a WIP forming here. Let me know what you think. Reviews are appreciated and loved. Thank you.