So here I am again everyone; I wrote a Season 3 fanfiction. I started one during the first episode of this season then after everything that has happened I couldn't help myself –I had to write this. Forgive me now if I'm slow on updates, I'm still going through radiation and everything so I'm very tired and sick lately. :(

But I hope you all enjoy this story. I'm not sure how long I'm going to make it but its all Caryl baby! It starts off from 3x05 and goes into 3x06.

Please let me know what you all think!

Chapter: 1

Remember me;

"Was she bit?"

"No… I … I had to cut her open."

Daryl thought for a moment and sighed hearing what Maggie was saying as they surveyed the area for walkers. He heard her gasp slightly as she fought back tears as she spoke to him again.

"Oh God," she whispered in exhaustion. "I'm so sorry about, Carol," she said softly.

Daryl nodded and looked ahead of him, tears threatened but nothing fell, "she had so much hope for the baby," he whispered softly with a frown.

As Daryl stared down at the baby in his arms the memory of what he and Maggie talked about not hours ago shot through his mind. The quest to find formula and clothes for the baby was easier then he thought it would be. But emotionally it was hard –it took Maggie some time but she finally calmed down once they found the preschool. Daryl had a moment inside seeing everything laid out around him; he always wondered what it would be like to have a family –to have a child of his own. It wasn't a thought that came to his mind much anymore but it was one he had, had a few times in his life. Being told he was no good for nothing always shot that dream down but Daryl had always hoped that one day he would have a family he never had.

When the world went to shit all those dreams were shattered along with it.

But then something happened… he realized that even though these people were no real kin to him –they were his family. And for one brief moment he thought maybe in some weird way he could find someone to share his life with. It was funny it took the end of the world and for Merle to be gone for Daryl to finally go for what he wanted.

He found that in Carol.

…and it wasn't just because she was a battered wife whose worthless husband had been chewed up by walkers –or because she had a child of her own –no it was because Daryl saw her heart and how badly it had been bruised. He wanted nothing more than to take her heart and heal it with his own. To keep people away from him, he was always on the defense when it came to emotions or showing affection –he had never felt love from anyone in his life and he didn't really know how to show it. The times he did show his emotions were always the worst times –he was so bad at comforting people or showing them he cared.

But when Sophia went missing, Daryl knew that was his chance to prove to himself and to the group that he wasn't some heartless monster; Merle may have led the group to believe he was. Daryl was nothing like his brother –they were complete opposites in so many ways. But when they met up with the group originally Merle had told him it was them or nothing –that these people didn't matter. Although Daryl was a grown man and could think for himself, Merle had always had that hold on him and it scared him at times to think that his brother of all people could keep him down as bad as Merle used to. After his brother went missing it hurt him to think he'd never see him again –but in some twisted way Daryl was glad he was gone. He felt like he could finally breathe for the first time in his life. There was no one there putting him down, he had people around him that relied on him for so much. He was the reason they ate every night and he wanted to be the reason Carol found her happiness again.

He did everything he could to find Sophia and he failed her. He failed them both and in the time he looked for her he bonded with Carol. Emotionally he let her in more than he would have liked to admit to himself but he did and she let him in a whole lot more. He wasn't sure what he was expecting out of Carol when he found her daughter –maybe the family he always wanted or maybe just a good friend that he could confine in that wasn't his brother or Rick. All he knew was he would never truly know –Sophia was supposed to be his saving grace –she was supposed to be the one to give him what he always wanted.

She failed him… but most of all he failed her.

It took him a long time to get over what happened at the farm, he had spent the first month away from the farm ignoring Carol. He wasn't as mean to her as he was towards the end but ignoring her was just as bad. It wasn't until the day she finally stood up to him –she told him everything he didn't want to hear but he knew deep down was the truth. It was the first time since he had known her, that she had shown any real sign of strength. He was proud of her and from that day on they were friends. She had become his partner in crime so to speak –he taught her how to shoot a gun and fend for herself when she needed to. She was an ok shot for the most part but she had heart and that was the most important part. He knew she wanted to do more for the group then just help feed and take care of them. Making sure everyone had clothes on their backs and food in their stomachs was a big deal and he had told her that once but she felt the need to do more and that's what made Daryl love her so much.

Yeah love…

His thoughts were finally pulled away from him when he heard the baby start to fuss. He smiled down at her and glanced up the group watching him carefully. He felt a little embarrassed showing this side of himself –hell he never thought he had this in him to be like this with a baby. He never held one in his entire life, but for some reason a fatherly instinct crept up inside of him and he knew what he was doing. Or at least he thought he knew what he was doing –it must have been something right seeing how no one stopped him at least.

"Here let me take her," Beth said finally as Daryl hesitated for a moment and handed the baby over to the blonde.

It was still in the early morning hours as they all gathered in their cell block to finally wine down after the events of the days before. None of them had really slept in days – losing T-Dog, Lori and Carol was a big break in the group. It put a damper on everyone emotionally and physically. Daryl sometimes felt like he couldn't go on and that wasn't like him –he had never mourned over anyone or anything in his entire life. He knew if he stopped to mourn over the loss of Carol, now, he would never recover. He had to keep pushing forward –he had to do something right for this group and if helping take care of little ass kicker was the way to do it then by God he was going to. In the honor of Lori, Carol and Sophia he would do his best to keep this child safe. It was his own personal quest for redemption from everything that had gone on in his life the last year or so. The only thing that made him sad was the baby would never really have its mother or father for that matter. Rick hadn't come out from the boiler room in over a day and they were all wondering what to do from here on out.

He knew if Carol was here she would be in mother mode and this baby would be fussed over so much more than it already was.

"Has anyone talked to Rick?" Maggie asked finally as she passed out the bowls of oatmeal to everyone. It wasn't much but right now it was all they had until they decided what they were going to do in the cleared out cellblock.

"Everyone alright?"

Everyone looked up to see Rick. He appeared normal –he was clean, blood free –and sane.

Possibly.

"We're fine, how about you?" Hershel said to him.

Rick ignored the question and looked around the room avoiding eye contact with everyone. "Cleared out the boiler room," he said quickly. "I just came to check on Carl," he said patting his son on the back quickly striding over to Daryl.

"Everyone have a gun and a knife?"

Daryl looked up at him and nodded, "we're runnin' low on ammo," he said quietly.

"Maggie and I are going to do a run today, see what we can find," Glenn spoke up from behind Rick. After what happened yesterday when he tried to pull the man out of the mental slumber he was in he knew not to get close to him.

Rick was dangerous.

"Cleaned out the generator room… in case somethin' happens we have a place ta' go, gonna do a sweep of the lower levels later," Daryl said quickly seeing Rick nod to him before making his way back to the gate he came from.

"Rick, wait…" Hershel said but there was no stopping him. Rick was gone before anyone else could get a word out.

It was quite among the group again and everyone looked around and finally eyes settled on Carl. The kid seemed to be holding his own pretty well right now –but he was just as bad off as the baby. He lost his parents –he had to kill his own mother and his father didn't seem to want anything to do with him or the new baby. Daryl was no dummy, he knew Rick didn't think the baby was his and they all faced it over the winter –they all knew it was Shane's but it was never up for discussion. The baby was here now and that was all that mattered –it was a new life saved.

"So what do you want to name her, Carl?" Beth said suddenly breaking the sad silents. The girl wanted to nothing more than to make her friend happy. But seeing the neutral look on his face she frowned looking up at her sister.

"I think ass kicker's pretty good," Oscar said hearing a few chuckles from the group.

Daryl smiled at that –that's what he was going to call her regardless if –when she got her official name. The kid was a fighter and he was going to make sure she stayed that way. They weren't going to lose her –not this girl. Daryl would make sure of it. As he looked around the room his eyes fell on Carl again, the kid didn't seemed to be amused by anything anyone was saying so Daryl spoke up finally.

"How's 'bout we worry about that later?" he said leaning up off the steps he was sitting on. "He's comin' with me an' Oscar … maybe find some more ammo if it hasn't already been picked clean," Daryl said seeing the boy finally look up at him. Daryl just nodded to him and went about his business before the sweep.

D/C/D/C/D/C

Glenn and Maggie took off first to see what they could find. Daryl stayed close and went for a quick hunt around the wooded area of the prison. He wanted to hunt this morning but after visiting Carol's grave he went into the woods and silently cried to himself asking so many questions that would forever go unanswered. He knew how it felt now to lose someone he cared about –sure he knew how he felt when they lost one of their own but never had they lost someone he loved.

Daryl loved her. He loved Carol with every fiber of his being.

He would never be able to tell her that now –so much did he want to express himself this morning when he put the Cherokee Rose he found on her pile of dirt. But there was no body there and even if there was she would never hear him. It would be pointless to talk to a pile of nothing.

"Down this way," Oscar said softly as lead the way down the opposite side of their cell block.

After Maggie and Glenn had been gone for about an hour, Daryl came back from his hunt and gathered up weapons and he, Carl and Oscar all set out to the lower levels of the prison. He knew it was probably over run by walkers –the whole fucking place was but if they could clear out more space it would be so much easier for them all to escape if the time ever came.

"Sophia," Carl whispered softly looking up at Daryl.

Daryl's head snapped down to look at the young boy with the gun in his hand, Daryl furrowed his brows looking at him. It took him a moment before he realized what Carl was talking about, he sighed and swallowed hard looking out ahead of him as they walked the dimly lit hall way.

"I want to name her Sophia," Carl said once again.

Daryl didn't really know how to tell him that he didn't think it was a good idea. There was only one Sophia… one Carol, one Lori … one –of everyone. Although he thought it was nice and he knew Carol would think it was thoughtful but knowing that this child may grow up and talk and finally fight to survive for herself –calling her Sophia would hurt. The name rolling off his tongue would feel wrong in so many ways.

"What was yer' grandma's name?" Daryl asked him suddenly seeing the boy eye him curiously from the corner of his eye.

"I didn't know my d –dad's mother… but my grandma was Judith… why?"

"That's a nice name ta' call the kid," he said quickly. Knowing that he would have to explain himself he spoke up once more, "S –Sophia was named after her grandmother…" he said all in one breath. He remembered Carol telling him about it a few months ago when they decided to play a game of twenty questions.

That was when he found out her favorite color was green and her favorite band in high school was Bon Jovi. She also told him how she was choir –that was always his favorite story because usually he could get her to sing for him if he got her comfortable enough.

She had a beautiful voice… he'd never hear it again.

He'd never get to touch her again, hear her laugh or look into those big icy hues he loved to get lost in from time to time.

All the anger rose up inside of him again thinking about her. She was fucking dead –nothing he could do about it now. He had to learn to let go because if he didn't he'd end up going fucking crazy. He didn't want that for himself and he knew Carol sure as hell didn't want to see him like this –besides he knew sooner or later he would be the one in charge of the group. There was no way in hell Rick would be able to retain the position he was forced into.

"Shh! Wait," Oscar said holding his hand out behind him to stop the two of them from walking.

Daryl threw his crossbow out in front of him and eyed the target before walking slowly out in front of Oscar –there were walkers –about a dozen of them.

As they took them out left and right –Carl ran out of ammo leaving him to fight with an axe next to Oscar. Daryl shouldered his crossbow and used his knife –it would save on time picking the arrows out of the walkers eyes. They needed to get this done and get it done fast. Seeing a walker staggering towards him, he kicked it in the stomach before pulling his knife out and stabbing it right in the back of the head. It penetrated through the eye socket and when he pulled the knife out of the walkers skull the walker started to fall back into him.

Daryl pushed it against the wall and took in a few deep breaths looking over and Oscar and Carl who were walking towards him now cautiously. Daryl rubbed his mouth with the back of his hand before looking down at the lame brain on the ground slouched over. It took him a moment for his eyes to adjust to what he was seeing but when he did he leaned down looking at the walker carefully.

"What is it?" Oscar asked him quickly.

Daryl squinted and gasped slightly. Sticking out of the walkers cheek was a knife. One that looked familiar to him –one that used to be his.

"This is Carol's knife."

So was this good enough to continue on or no? If anyone reads this chapter/story and you read my other Caryl fanfictions –I want to say think you all again!

For all my new readers thank you as well… I hope you enjoyed Chapter: 1 everyone. The idea of Daryl wanting his own family came to mind after I read a few interviews and thoughts from fans. It makes sense if you really think about it –there really was NO reason for him to look for Sophia. He and Carol had no ties together before she went missing so I think he latched onto Carol and Sophia because he realized that this woman was hurting because she was missing her daughter. Never having a family himself it made him realize that he wanted nothing more than to take that hurt away from her. At least to me that's what it meant? Makes for an interesting story, no?

But anyone who knows me and my Caryl fanfictions knows I like to keep things cannon and in-character, so I hope I did that well? I always fear I'm no good at it! The scene between Daryl and Maggie is a cut scene from that episode, hopefully it will be on the Season 3 DVD.

I hope this is good enough to continue on?

Your positive reviews would be lovely!

Thank you all so much!