Author's Notes: Hi guys, thank you for all your reads and reviews over on my other WIP. This is something new. It's a prequel to Cadence. Little snippets and drabbles, almost, leading up to what was within Cadence. It will lead up to an M rating and very soon, I would expect. It's a little bit of a departure in terms of how I normally write a multi-chapter, so I hope I do OK.

"Would you mind if I stayed here tonight?" Carol clutched the threadbare blanket and a flattened pillow in both hands and stood in the doorway of Daryl's cell, blocking the tiny bit of light coming from the candles on the lower floor.

The man himself startled a bit, as if he'd been expecting her to walk on by and he pushed himself up onto his elbows, squinted up at her.

"Everythin' alright?" His voice was scratchy and low, thick with sleep.

"Yeah, got ourselves a chorus of snoring down the other end of the corridor. All these old people." She let out a small laugh and stepped forward, resting her hand on the frame of the bunk beds.

Daryl nodded, snatched up his pillow and stood up. He gestured towards the mattress.

"No, I'll clear off the top one." Carol dropped her blankets to the floor and reached up with both hands to pull his crossbow from the top mattress but Daryl closed the gap like a shot, snatched up her wrist and jerked her hand away.

"Don't." He warned her. "I've taken it apart for cleaning. Floor's fine for me." He gave her wrist a quick squeeze and let her go, throwing his pillow to the ground and sitting down on the concrete floor.

"No I can't do that to you. I'll go back to my cell." Carol bent forward to retrieve her fallen blankets and tipped her head to Daryl, giving him a warm smile.

His cheeks flushed scarlet, his eyes flying to the floor and she frowned with confusion. As she stood upright it dawned on her. Her tank top fell back flush against her chest and her own cheeks burned when she realised she'd exposed her chest to him. Worse still, she'd exposed her chest, clothed in a greying, tattered bra. There hadn't been an opportunity for better lingerie and Carol was cross that such a trivial want actually crossed her mind.

As if Daryl even cared.

"Sorry." She muttered. "'Night." She clutched the blankets tight to her front and turned for the door, when Daryl's hand snatched out and tugged at the fabric of her pants, right on the back of her knee.

"Hey, I said it's fine."

Carol looked down at his hand, fingers twisted in the fabric, and back up at the mattress, blankets rumpled and grimy, but looking far more appealing than anything her own cell had to offer.

"You don't get enough sleep as it is." She protested weakly, but really, she knew her resolve had been broken. She would never turn down an opportunity to spend extra time in Daryl's company.

"I'd be spendin' more time sleepin' if you'd just sit your ass down." He grumbled, turning on his side, his body firmly declaring the matter settled.

Carol said no more and made for the small bed. She was right, it was more appealing. Daryl's warmth was still pressed into the sheets, the smell as familiar to her as if it were her own scent.

Really, she should've given him his blankets and unfolded her own for herself. But instead she tossed the bundle over to him and they landed on his stomach, eliciting a grunt of surprise from him.

"Thank you."

"I'll move that crap tomorrow." Daryl muttered, she heard him shuffle onto his side, the scrap of a buckle against the concrete.

Her head came off the pillow questioningly and even though it was dark, she knew he could sense the question in her posture.

"Well, it ain't like the snorin' is gonna go away by tomorrow, is it?" He sounded faintly annoyed with her, like she was slow on the uptake, but she took no offence. If Daryl's face hadn't been smothered by his pillow she was sure that there would be pink tinging his cheeks once more. She knew he didn't take gratitude very well.

There was a cluck of disapproval and she could feel his gaze on her but Carol chose to smile into the darkness and bury herself deeper into the blankets and settle down for what was to be the best night's sleep she'd had in awhile.