"Are you sure this is a good idea? "Rick asked in doubt when Daryl told him and Cole about his idea.

"I've seen that girl out there, she's doing just fine, and who knows what might happen in a few months. She may have to manage herself at some point, and then there's no one left to teach her to hunt," Daryl said.

"Do you think she's ready for the world out there? "Rick asked.

"The kid's been sneaking out for weeks now to practice and already killed walkers without any help. Besides, she was alone in the woods for two months and survived," said Daryl.

"I don't know, I actually wanted her to be in a safe place and not have to fight for survival again. She's supposed to be a kid," said Cole.

Daryl ran his hands across his face.

On the one hand, he was able to understand Cole, he was just trying to protect Jodie, but on the other hand...

"We are all fighting for survival, also she is not really happy or safe here, from what I heard," he said cynically.

Cole ran his hands through his hair thinking about the other kids bullying Jodie every day.

"And I am not sure if she is really a child anymore, because she is already dealing with things that a 14-year-old cannot do normally," Daryl said.

Cole bit his lip, seemed to be fighting with himself.

So, what it's gonna be? ", Daryl asked impatiently.

"Ah shit... Fine, take her with you," then Cole gave in and Daryl nodded satisfied.

"But... If anything happens to her, if anything goes wrong, that's on you, and I really don't want to be in your shoes, if it does" then Cole hisses angry, turns around on the heel and leaves the room.

Daryl and Rick watched him leave in surprise. Sure, he was worried about Jodie, but they'd never seen him like this. He'd always been a gentle, charming guy, but this time he sounded really dangerous.

Yet they understood this outbreak.

Take her with you, it's good for her," said Rick then to Daryl, who hummed with approval.

"But I have to agree with Cole that if anything goes wrong, it's on you," said Rick seriously before he left the room.

***********************************************

Jodie's world had become a little better since Daryl took her hunting. So that she didn't screw it up right away, she did to what he told her.

She stayed close to his side, watching exactly what he was doing, trying to keep quiet and not get in his way.

In return, Daryl showed her everything he knew. He taught her how to hold the crossbow right, how to position it right, and also how to hit the target best.

He taught her how to use sound to know whether a human, a biter or an animal was approaching.

And he taught her to track. Where Jodie had previously only seen leaves, branches and stones, she could now see where animals had crossed the path and how fresh the tracks were.

When they weren't hunting, they sat down and Daryl showed her how to set traps.

Jodie tried to remember everything, listen to him, and do everything exactly as he explained. And in fact, it worked a lot after a few tries, and Daryl was satisfied with her improvement.

While they were in the woods together, Jodie not only did learn how to survive in the forest better, but she also got to know Daryl.

She soon interpreted every hum, every posture, every sentence of him exactly right and knew how to behave in the relevant situations.

She understood when he was satisfied, when he was angry or perhaps tired, when he wanted to be left alone.

If the latter was the case, she always took a few steps back, smiled at him and signaled that she did not want to corner him and gave him his space.

Daryl was surprised how well the girl adapted to him. She seemed to feel his mood very closely, and she also adapted to make him feel better.

He was actually prepared for some annoying teenager who wouldn't back off, even though he knew Jodie was actually different. But if she found out he wanted to be alone, she'd leave him alone, step away from him, or just came back later.

Even if he would never admit it, he liked that consistency in his life. Going on tours, fixing his bike, talking to the people here, going hunting with Jodie. He liked her. And because she brought him cigarettes every once in a while, or other things he liked, he decided to do something for her. From the antlers of the deer that he and she had done together, he had carved for some days now, a kind of pendant for a chain.

But he wouldn't give it to Jodie until she had her own first hunt, and it looked like it would happen soon, because she learned it very quickly.

*************************************

"Okay, ready for the big hunt? ", Daryl asked when he went into the woods with Jodie.

Jodie nodded, she seemed a little nervous. Although Daryl would stay close and help her if necessary, she was supposed to hunt alone now.

Find the trail, find the prey and kill it, as they have practiced in recent weeks.

"Good, then go ahead, show her what you got," he buzzed, and she ran out.

He watched Jodie carefully inspect the ground for tracks or after the trees were cracked.

She was paying attention.

It took about 20 minutes for Jodie to appear to have found a lead and now pursued it with determination.

Daryl followed her quietly, paying attention to her posture, her breathing. So far she did everything right.

After about five hundred meters, Jodie seemed to have found it. A wild boar was digging its way through the mud when Jodie found it.

A big smile spread on her face, and Daryl also raised at least a corner of her mouth.

"Do your thing, kid," he muttered to her. Thanks to the shrubs, she was still in cover and Daryl was watching her closely. Her posture was steady and calm, as was her breathing. Her finger was on the trigger.

For a moment, time seemed to stand still, and then Jodie pulled the trigger and the arrow went off the string.

A buzz of the boar was heard before it ran a bit into the forest and Jodie followed it immediately. Still quietly and careful.

The arrow had hit the animal in the side and it would not come far with this injury.

In fact, after about a hundred meters, she found the animal again, and it just wavered, and Jodie aimed and shot again. Another squeak was heard before the boar staggered a few steps and fell to the ground.

Daryl observed Jodie, who now cautiously stepped from the cover of the trees on the clearing and pulled the arrows out of the dead animal's fur. He stepped next to her and looked at the animal for a moment before he turned it to her.

"That was good," he said, and pat her on the back.

And Jodie smiled at him, full of pride that she had earned his respect, and Daryl also struggled to make a real smile.

Jodie stared at him in surprise.

"What?", he asked surprised.

She scribbled something on her arm before she showed it to him.

"That's the first time I've seen you smile," it said.

Daryl shrugged her shoulders.

"So what? ", he asked a little upset.

"It looks nice on you," she wrote.

Daryl was just humming gently, patting her head for a moment before he turned back to the boar.

"Come on, before the walkers help themselves."

************************************

Later, after they carried the boar to prison and gutted it, they sat together and ate the meat.

Daryl watched the girl from the side, silently ate up her food.

He wanted to give her the gift he had prepared for her, but he couldn't find the right words. On the other hand, Jodie never needed a lot of words from him either.

So he put his bowl aside and looked at it while he was fishing for the necklace from his vest with the homemade pendant.

"Jodie."

She looked up and right in his eyes, and when she realized that he seemed to want to talk to her, she put her bowl away and looked at him.

"You were ... you were pretty good today, and normally I don't do anything like that, but ... ", he held the necklace to her and Jodie gently received it, looked at the little carved Pendant on the leather cord.

"The pendant comes from the antler of the deer we both found, it's a wild cat," he hummed as she carefully examined the necklace.

Jodie looked at him from the necklace.

"This is for you. For your first hunt," Daryl said.

Jodie smiled wide and put on the necklace.

Then she reached for Daryl's hand and squeezed it tight for a moment, and her eyes said, "Thank you."

Daryl slightly raised a corner of his mouth, though at that moment he would have liked to smile as broadly as she did.

"But don't think you'll get always things like this", he hummed then.

She nodded and smiled again.

"Good, now eat up."

That ended the conversation and there was silence, but it was not an unpleasant silence. There were no more words needed, and that was a good thing.

And once again, Daryl found that the bond of friendship between him and Jodie had become even stronger. And if it stayed exactly the way it was, it was good.

**********************************

Hi, Guys, I know, it's been a while, but I still hope you are interested in this story. I hope you like the chapter. Have a nice evening and if you like leave a comment.

Love, Liz;)