After Daryl kissed Jupiter, things started to change between them, and for the better. She had to spend a whole week in bed, during which time Daryl would come in and talk to her, telling her about what she was missing from her room. Mainly it was that the guy Rick, Shane and Hershel had brought back from town- Randall- was healing up and soon Rick and Shane would be driving him 20 miles away and leaving him so he couldn't find them again. Daryl agreed it was a good idea, but said that Shane wanted to just kill him. Jupiter wasn't surprised and decided to tell Daryl about what she'd seen in the woods that day, when Shane had pointed a gun at Rick's head, and how she'd told Shane that she knew, which was why the two of them didn't get along. Daryl listened, a frown on his face.

"Do you really think he'd go through with it? Kill Rick? I mean, those two are like brothers..."

Jupiter shrugged, pretty sure he would, but not sure enough to make something out of it if she was wrong. Still, at least Daryl was aware, so she wasn't the only one keeping an eye on Shane. Though she'd noticed Dale wasn't in the Shane fan-club either, though she suspected that had something to do with Andrea, and the way she followed Shane around like a love struck school girl.

It was painful to watch, especially when Shane was obviously in love with Rick's wife, who had clearly been involved at some point, which was obvious every time they looked at each other. They had the look of two people who had seen each other naked, but while Lori looked like she regretted it, Shane did not, and it was creepy as hell. He was probably deranged enough to kill Rick and think that entitled him to Rick's family...

She didn't want to think about it any more, so she changed the subject, talking instead about how she couldn't wait to be let out of that bed and back outside into the fresh air. She was going crazy in that room, even if Daryl did spend most of his time with her. He still got to go out for a few hours to keep watch for walkers, though he always returned after and slept beside Jupiter, holding her hand in the space between them as he was too afraid to accidentally hurt her ribs in the night, even if Jupiter said they were fine. It was a lie, and they still hurt, but not nearly as much as before, and she could sit up by herself again. Hershel had told her one more night and then she could go back to sleeping in her tent, and return to normal activities, so she was excited that night.

"As soon as I'm out of here, I'm going for a run. All the way around Hershel's land..." She grinned as she leaned into Daryl's side, tracing the path on the back of his hand with her fingers. Daryl pulled a face that she felt more than saw.

"Why would you run when something isn't chasing you?" He asked, and she smirked and turned her head to look at him, seeing the slight smile on his face and knowing he was messing with her. Still, she knew he hated running. He'd mentioned it a few days before. She wasn't surprised. It kinda killed the fun in running when you had to do it in life and death situations all the time. Not for Jupiter though. Running had always been one of her favourite hobbies, and the reason why she'd survived in that first week before the people from the hospital found her. She was fast and she was fit, so she could outrun the walkers. Cars? Not so much- which was the only reason she'd been caught in the first place.

That was another thing she didn't want to think about, so she picked up Daryl's hand to distract herself, turning it over and running her fingers down his life line and then over his whole palm, feeling how it was calloused in all the places where a knife would rest. His hands told a story, and it was a story of a fighter, even before the world ended. She held up her free hand beside his, noticing the differences. Her hands weren't exactly soft, but they were more so than his, though she bore almost as many scars on hers as he did. Most of them from before, though the newest scar across her middle knuckle was from fighting her way out of the hospital, and it still had yet to fade to white.

Daryl ran his hand over hers and entwined their fingers as he yawned, carefully putting his left arm around her and holding her close. It had only been a week since he kissed her, and the two of them weren't completely sure of what they were yet, so they were taking it slow. Not that either of them minded. It was nice to be able to just sit in someone's arms and feel completely safe for once, knowing they weren't as alone as they thought.

Of course being able to kiss Daryl whenever she wanted was a bonus, she thought with a smile, turning to do just that before she lay down for her final night in that house. She kissed him slowly, her hand brushing his fringe back from his face gently, and his hands moving to her hips, his fingertips just brushing beneath her shirt, spreading goosebumps along her skin. As of yet, he hadn't failed to take her breath away every time they kissed, and he knew it.

There was a knock at the door and the two of them turned to it as it opened and saw Patricia coming in to give Jupiter her final dose of medication. Jupiter took it without complaint, knowing that when she woke up in the morning, she'd be free. Of course it also meant she only had another few minutes with Daryl as she would be out cold in a few moments. Daryl wasn't going anywhere though, he'd been on his watch already, so he'd stay with her for the night. Which was exactly what he did, laying awake for a few hours longer than her, watching her sleep.

He chuckled at the sight of her sleeping, her face scrunched into a scowl, as if she was daring anyone to wake her up. Not that it was possible after she'd had medication. He was pretty sure that a walker pack charging through the house wouldn't wake her up after meds, which was half of the reason he stayed with her at night. He'd known something was going on between Jupiter and Shane already, but now Jupiter had said exactly what it was, he was gonna make extra sure he had her back. Shane was dangerous.

Jupiter was getting stronger again though, and soon she'd be able to fight her own battles again, not that she'd ever stand for anyone else doing it anyway, but Daryl felt better knowing he had her back. Of course he'd already had her back before the two of them decided to be more than just friends- a fact which he was still amazed at. Jupiter wanted him back? Jupiter, who was brilliant, beautiful, and resourceful... He couldn't wrap his head around it. He was just a drifter, not worth a second glance. But Jupiter had yet to look away, and he doubted he'd ever get over that fact. He didn't deserve her.

That hadn't stopped him from thinking about her though, and he'd been fighting his feelings for her from the beginning. There was just something about her that had called to him right from the start, even though he hadn't been looking for it as he was too busy with the world ending and everything. Not that he regretted it for a second, especially as Jupiter felt the same and he had something worth surviving for.

He brushed her hair off her face and just watched her for a few more moments until there came a knock at the door, and he looked up as it opened and Rick gestured for him to come out. Frowning, Daryl did as he was told, closing the door behind him and then leaning against it with his arms crossed, waiting for Rick to say what he was there for.

"Me and Shane are taking the boy tomorrow. I need you and Jupiter to keep an eye on things round here. Make sure everyone is safe and deal with any problems... There shouldn't be any, and Shane and I are leaving at first light, so should be back soon enough... But I need to know someone capable is in charge..."

Daryl narrowed his eyes and debated arguing that Jupiter was barely back on her feet, but he decided just to nod, figuring that he might as well go on perimeter watch as Jupiter had decided to run around it anyway, so he could keep an eye on her and make sure no walkers or any of Randall's crew wondered onto the farm.

When Rick saw the nod, he sighed in relief, and thanked Daryl. He didn't leave straight away though, and nodded at the closed door behind Daryl.

"You and Jupiter?" He asked, and Daryl just rolled his eyes and went to leave, but Rick just laughed and patted him on the back. "I'm happy for you both. It's good to have someone, and the pair of you are good together."

Daryl nodded again but walked away, back into Jupiter's room, uncomfortable discussing his personal life with Rick. The two of them had warmed up to each other of late, but Daryl wouldn't go as far as saying they were friends yet. Still, he thought about what Rick had said about Jupiter and him with a smile, returning to their bed and laying down beside her. They were good together.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, Jupiter woke up early, even before Daryl, and found him facing her with his arm thrown across her stomach, keeping her close. She smiled as she watched him, leaving him rest for a few moments more before leaning over and kissing his lips lightly.

"Daryl..." She whispered, seeing his eyelids flicker as he started to move, sighing as he stretched and then slowly opened his eyes. Damn those eyes, Jupiter thought as she watched him wake up, still smiling as she watched him rejoin the land of consciousness. He blinked a few times and then grunted as he rolled onto his back and stretched again. Jupiter had to suppress a grin. Daryl was like a grumpy two year old for the first few moments after waking up, a fact which she had discovered much to her own glee. Even though she knew he was a dangerous walker killer, excellent hunter, and overall badass, she still found it adorable.

After a few moments Daryl was more awake and sociable, and he rolled back onto his side to see Jupiter already sat up, lacing her converse up with her back to him. He reached out and trailed his fingertips across the bare skin on display between her shirt and shorts as she leaned forward to do her laces. She smiled at his touch but didn't react until he spoke, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"What're you doing?" He asked, looking out at the beginnings of a sunny day and then sitting up himself. Jupiter continued smiling while she laced up her shoes and then turned back to him with a grin.

"I told you. First thing I'm doing today is going for a run!"

Daryl rolled his eyes as he grabbed his jacket from the floor on his side of the bed and pulled it on before standing up and walking around to Jupiter's side, where she was already stood and waiting for him, almost bouncing in place with out of character excitement.

"You sure you ain't still high from those meds the doc gave you?" He asked, but Jupiter just smirked and playfully pushed him before heading for the door. The rest of the farm house was silent, and everyone still in bed, so they were quiet as they went outside, pausing on the porch while Jupiter stretched. One of the cars was missing, but it didn't look like anyone was awake yet, so she pointed it out to Daryl, who explained about Rick and Shane.

That made sense she guessed, putting all thoughts of Shane out of her head so he wouldn't ruin her mood without even being there, and then turned back to Daryl, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before bidding him goodbye and stepping away. Only Daryl grabbed her wrist and stopped her. When she raised her eyebrows at him, he shrugged.

"You think I'm gonna let you go running round alone, when you're still hurt. You might pass out again, or walkers could be near..." He explained, but Jupiter just laughed and shrugged it off instead of being offended. She felt great, and was gonna prove it.

Stepping past Daryl, she patted him on the chest and gave him a cheeky grin. "How're you gonna back me up if you can't keep up?" She teased, watching as Daryl's eyes lit up with the challenge. Before either of them could speak, they both started sprinting towards the trees to make their first loop.

It was great to be running again, and Jupiter didn't stop smiling the whole time, even when her sore foot started to complain and the hint of a stitch nagged her side. She kept running until she knew she was done, and then walked back to the porch on shakey legs, Daryl waiting for her there, having stopped after Jupiter lapped him for the second time. He could have ran for longer, but he was better at running for a long time at a steady pace. Jupiter on the other hand was fast and able to keep going for ages.

When she collapsed onto the steps beside him, he shook his head at her and offered her his water bottle, which she accepted gratefully and downed a few gulps. The water was cool, just like the morning, though the sun would soon burn up the mist lurking around and the others would get up too.

"Are you even human?!" Daryl demanded when Jupiter had got her breath back. She debated leaving him in the dark about why she could run so good, but in the end took pity on him and answered after another long drink of water.

"I ran cross country in school, and never really grew out of it. I did loads of sports during high school and uni, but afterwards, when I moved in with Jake... I didn't have much free time or money, so I just ran every day... And believe me, if you were running through my neighbourhood, you'd get pretty fast too," she joked, and Daryl chuckled. He was leaning new things about Jupiter every day, though he didn't know why he was surprised to learn that she was into sports. Even for a survivor, she was strong and fit, managing to outrun him even with still healing broken ribs, and she'd never had trouble with any walkers yet. She was a force of nature, and Daryl was curious about what else he didn't know about her.

Helping her to her feet, he led her back towards his camp site, listening while she spoke about her life in the old world, and then slowly opening up about his own. He'd never been part of a sports team in school, and had dropped out when he was sixteen, following Merle around ever since. They came from different backgrounds and lives, yet both of them were there, at the end of the world, still holding on and fighting with all they had. They might have been completely different, but one thing they had in common was what they were.

Survivors.