Regina lets the wounds on her arm fester. She leaves them be, night after night, staring at them, dark eyes empty, breath easy, and she could be sleeping, if she weren't in so much pain. But henry is gone, her baby, and the pain will never go away. Infection is no laughing matter, and when Roland witnesses her fall to her fever, it's his father he runs too.

Daryl Dixon hated hospitals. He hated the way they smelled. He hated the bright fluorescent lights. He hated those stupid gowns they put you in. He hated all the sick people wandering around. But mostly he hated the way those doctors and nurses looked at him, like he was just another trashy, redneck junkie trying to score a prescription for Oxy. AU, no zombies

Left alone at the mercy of his father, Daryl's early life is a brutal one. He is shattered and broken with little hope of being put back together. But there IS hope, right? AU, no zombies. Warnings inside.

This is a Caryl AU fic. This tells the story of how Carol and Daryl could have met and therefore fallen in love. There will be other characters from the show involved and there will be smut in later chapters, but I'm going ahead and rating it 'M' now. I own nothing from The Walking Dead. Carol/Daryl romance, so don't read if it bothers you. Thanks!

AU: District 12 has been overrun by those who should be dead, yet aren't. Where do they go next? How do they fight off this combination of Muttation and human without losing their own humanity in the process? Is anywhere safe? Madge's POV. "Don't worry, Madge," the little girl says. "The zombies can't get us here." Cover Image made by S. Lily Potter