Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing from The Walking Dead. The characters belong solely to the creators of the wonderful series.

Summary: Daryl finds himself being pursued in the woods outside the prison. Only, this time, getting caught might not be the worst thing in the world. Rated E for explicit smut!

Author's Note: So this one-shot is totally inspired by the Maroon 5 song 'Animals.' Every time I hear the lyrics "I can smell your scent for miles" and "hunt you down, eat you alive" I just go crazy, and every time I hear it, I picture Daryl and Carol doing naughty, fun things to each other. Ahem, anyway, so this story popped into my head one day while driving, and I began to write it and then let it be. Then I got writer's block after ending No Regrets, and I figured, hmmm, let's revisit this. Thanks to TheWalkingCaryl for sending a couple of muses my way. They must have gotten the smut fairy drunk. ;)

Animals

Daryl leaned against the bark of the large oak tree, panting and wiping the sweat from his brow as he gripped a knife in one hand. He heard the crunch of leaves nearby, and he darted off again, his lungs burning in his chest as he put distance between himself and his assailant. He groaned, feeling a pull in his side as he slammed his shoulder into a branch and ducked under before leaping over a fallen tree long and hiding behind another tree. The following footsteps were fainter now, and he gripped the knife hard in his hand. Daryl Dixon, the hunter—the archer—was not used to being the hunted.

He felt a little dizzy from all the running, and he silently cursed himself for having had that cigarette just a few minutes ago.

He crouched down and peered out from behind the tree, checking to see if he was alone or if he still had some running to do. He stood back up, reaching up to a sturdy branch to pull himself up and peer around the area. There were no obvious signs, and he narrowed his eyes as he regained his breath.

Satisfied that he'd outsmarted his assailant, he hopped back down and prepared to make the trek back to the prison.

"Hold it." The voice was firm and commanding, and he froze in his tracks. "Turn around." His heart thundered against his breastbone, and his mouth went dry. Swallowing hard, he turned. "Back against the tree." He did as he was asked, his eyes focusing on the point of an arrow on his very own crossbow.

"Think that's mine," he muttered.

"You shouldn't leave your toys lying around," the voice said softly. He focused his gaze on her perfectly blue eyes, and he felt his mouth water. "Thought we talked about that."

"Ain't so much me leavin' 'em around as it is you takin' 'em." She smiled at that, stepping forward, the point of the arrow pushing one of the buttons on his shirt. "You sure you know what you're doin' with that?"

"You're the one that taught me how to use it." She bit her lip and placed the crossbow down on the ground.

"Were ya followed?"

"No."

"Who let ya out?"

"Carl," she chuckled. "He didn't ask questions when he saw me carrying your crossbow." She looked at the knife in his hand. "Drop it."

"Yes, ma'am," he groaned, sucking in a sharp breath when her hands pressed against his chest. He dropped the knife, and Carol's hands tugged at the buttons, a couple of them popping off as she exposed his chest and bent down to take a nipple between her teeth. "Aw, fuck."

"Shh," she encouraged, her voice softer now. "We have to be quiet."

"Says you," he chuckled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, batting her lashes innocently as one hand moved down to tug at his belt.

"Just sayin', I can be quiet."

"You're saying I can't?' she asked, the satisfying clink of the belt buckle hitting the ground making her smile. She leaned in again, pressing a hot kiss to the center of his chest as she moved to her knees, her tongue sliding down his stomach. "Wanna bet on it?"

His head went reeling back, smacking hard into the tree trunk when Carol quickly yanked his pants down his hips and took his dick into her hands, stroking him to a full erection. He hissed sharply as she ran her tongue along the engorged, purple head and then traced down the vein on the underside.

"Fuck," he groaned. "That's…" Her hand cupped his balls giving him a gentle squeeze, as she took him into her hot mouth, humming softly, sending vibrations through him that nearly made him shoot into the back of her throat. She felt him tense and heard the groan he tried to stifle. She peered up at him, her gaze locking on his as she swirled her tongue around him again, finally releasing him, and leaving him aching for more, the look in his eyes begging her for release. She stood up before him, her hands moving his stomach and over his chest.

"So…what do you say?" she asked with a mischievous glimmer in her eyes. The fire in his eyes clouded all rational thought, and she watched as his chest rose and fell quickly before he reached out, grabbing her and turning her to press her roughly against the tree.

"What do ya want?" he growled, his lips on her neck, his dick pressing against her belly as he pressed into her.

"If I win," she breathed, "you take me away from the prison for a day or two. Somewhere alone so we can be as loud as we want." She grinned as he nipped at her earlobe.

"If I win?" he grunted, his hand moving up her shirt, palming her bare breast, delighting in the fact that she hadn't worn her bra.

"What do you want?" she asked softly, her hands moving down to help him with her pants.

"Just you," he grunted.

"That's sweet," she chuckled, pulling her shirt over her head, as he dragged the pants down her hips and kissed his way down her belly. He grabbed one of her ankles and draped her leg over his shoulder. "Oh God…" She swallowed hard, screwing her eyes shut as he tortured her with his tongue, tasting her and caressing her most sensitive flesh until she was shaking and gripping his shoulders.

"If I win, you do that thing…"

"What thing?" she asked, groaning as he slipped two fingers inside of her, kissing the inside of her thigh as she writhed against the tree.

"Fuck, I dunno," he grunted. "That thing when you're on top, and…"

"Oh," she giggled, "the reverse cowgirl."

"Yeah," he muttered. "I know ya don't like it, but it's fuckin' amazing."

"I like it," she pouted. "But it's not my favorite." His teeth gently nipped at her clit, and she let out a yelp. "Ok! Ok! Deal!" A little growl escaped his throat, and he ducked out from under her leg, pulling himself back up, pressing her further against the tree, capturing her mouth in a searing kiss.

"I know your favorite," he teased, his tongue sliding down her neck. With a wicked little grin, he flipped her around, pressing himself against her ass, reaching around to run his hand down her smooth stomach and to the apex of her thighs. He rubbed slow circles against her clit as she leaned back against him, wrapping one arm around his neck as he sucked at her earlobe.

"You wouldn't," she grunted. "No fair." He knew damned well she couldn't keep quiet when he fucked her like this, which was exactly why he was going to do it.

"Want me to stop?" he asked, his tongue and teeth on the back of her neck now, as his free hand groped her breast, gently rolling the nipple between his fingers.

"No," she whispered, her body shuddering as he continued to stroke between her legs. "Don't stop." She spread her legs, leaning forward just a bit and lifting her ass to give him better access to her sopping slit. He moved his hands to her hips before guiding himself into her slick entrance. She bit her lip to keep from crying out, her walls clenching around him as he pushed into, stretching her as she reveled in that delicious feeling of being filled by him.

He groaned, his whole body reeling forward as he began to move inside of her, pulling back just enough so that he could slam forward again, eliciting that welcomed yelp that always escaped her throat. She was holding back, trying not to cry out, and that just urged him on.

He bent down, pressing kisses to her shoulders and to her back as he fucked her, his balls tightening as his body begged for release. His hand moved around again, his fingers stroking her clit, and Carol couldn't hold back the cry that escaped this time. The orgasm ripped through her, and Daryl held her close, continuing to pump inside of her as she arched her neck back and cried out, unable to control herself.

Daryl chuckled lightly as she slumped over in front of him, and he continued to move inside of her, his hands torturing her breasts now, rolling the nipples and giving them little pinches once in a while to draw a gasp out of her.

"You play dirty," she gasped, running her fingers through her short curls. "My turn." Daryl slid out of her, his dick standing tall in front of his belly, aching for release, and he had a feeling she was going to make him work for it, but his body felt on the brink already. It wouldn't take much. He was dizzy with desire as she tugged him down onto the ground, looking over her shoulders, still cautious even in the throes. She ran her hands up his muscular thighs, the hair teasing the palms of her hands as her body slid over his, her hard nipples teasing his skin, making his muscles jump.

He bit back a whimper when she straddled his hips with her knees and reached between them to stroke his straining cock. His hips bucked involuntarily, and she smiled, a heady, suffocating power settling over her as she ran her thumb over the head, collecting a drop of come. She brought her thumb to her lips and licked the salty drop off, her gaze never leaving his as he choked out groan at the sight of her tasting him like that.

She brought her hand back down between them, pumping him a couple more times in her hand before holding him still long enough to slide down his shaft slowly, watching his mouth fall open in a soundless cry. She bit her lip, moving her hands up her own body, caressing her own breasts as he stared up at her in awe. She felt his hips begin to rise and fall as she moved against him, and when he bucked upward hard enough to startle her, she cried out at the feeling of him sliding along just the right area.

"Fuck," she grunted, leaning down, gripping his shoulders as she gave herself leverage. His fingers dug into her hips as they fell into a rhythm, and as her muscles contracted around him, he groaned loudly, and Carol shushed him with a kiss. All thoughts of their little bet went flitting off, and she panted, rocking against him, feeling nothing but his throbbing dick sliding against her sensitive walls in the most exquisite way. She gasped for breath, and he arched upward, taking one breast between his lips, sucking at the nipple, gently nipping at it with his teeth.

"Daryl!" she cried out, getting a smirk from him. He grabbed hold of her hips tightly and flipped her over onto her back, plunging into her quickly, each stroke leaving a beautiful ache inside of her as she ran her nails down his back before settling on gripping the back of his neck as he sucked at her collarbone and continue to pound into her, his hips slamming into hers as she lost all focus on the game and cried out her orgasm against his shoulder, gently biting him there. She left little pink teeth marks in the wake of her orgasm, and before she could recover completely, Daryl collapsed on top of her, a loud moan escaping as he came.

Their bodies trembled, their lungs gasped desperately for breath, and Daryl rested his forehead against her shoulder as he gathered the strength to pull out of her and roll onto his back.

"I think we both lost," she panted, still seeing bright stars pulsing behind her eyelids every time she blinked.

With a snort, Daryl cocked his eyebrow. "Beg to differ." The inevitable shuffling of footsteps in the distance left no time for post-coital cuddles. They dressed quickly, and just as a walker came into view, Carol acted immediately, grabbing Daryl's crossbow off the ground and sending a bolt straight into the eye socket. The walker fell quickly, and she strode over, expertly yanking the bolt from the skull. Daryl leaned against the tree and grabbed a pack of smokes from the breast pocket of his shirt. He lit up and watched her as she cleaned the bolt and put it back in the bow, ready to be launched again. She turned, slinging the crossbow over her shoulder and caught him staring.

"What?" she asked, a gleam in her eye as she closed the distance between them.

"Just thinkin' how we're gonna settle this bet," he said with a smirk, taking a long drag on his cigarette.

"Yeah? How's that?"

"How 'bout I take you away and then we do that thing?" Carol snickered at that and pulled her arms around his neck, answering him with a urgently open kiss, her tongue brushing over his to preview what he had to look forward to when they finally got a little time away from the prison.

"Sounds good," she said with a little hum. She moved her hand to his chest, where a few buttons had snapped off in their eagerness. "What'll we tell the others?"

"Just tell 'em I got into a tussle with some wild thing." Carol snorted at the way he punctuated his statement by giving her ass a little squeeze. She stood on her tiptoes to kiss him again before pulling away from him and heading back toward the prison. Daryl watched her walk away, admiring the way she carried herself so confidently. Then he was chasing her, and with a little yelp, she took off through the trees with Daryl in steady pursuit.