Hi guys đ Iâm back again with another 3am crack fic!
Summary: Daryl and the reader begin to develop a father/daughter relationship and after giving Daryl a scare she surprises him even more.
Warnings: Daryl x Daughter/Teen!reader, gunshot wound, twd type violence, cuteness and fluff
You were only thirteen when the apocalypse began. You and your parents had been lucky enough to stumble upon a camp of survivors in an abandoned quarry after escaping the city. At first, the group of survivors that had taken you in were wary of your family and you all understood why, but they soon warmed up to you. One member of the group was especially fond of you. Daryl Dixon. Initially, he wanted nothing to do with you, thinking you were just some helpless, scared kid. You finally started to grow on the hot-head after asking him to teach you how to hunt. You saw how he provided for the camp and you wanted to learn so you could help provide for the camp too. He rudely declined your first few requests but you hit him back with your own sarcasm and didnât let his rudeness get to you. You persisted in asking him to teach you until he finally caved. With the consent of your parents, he promised you one hour, no more and you happily accepted.
Within that one hour you shocked him with how easily you picked up tracking skills. You even helped him track a deer and then caught your own squirrel with Darylâs crossbow. Of course he helped you hold it up to aim since it was heavy but you still took all the credit and he gladly let you. After that day you became Darylâs protĂ©gĂ©e and he started taking you out on lessons regularly. Your parents were very fond of the archer and grew to trust him with their only daughterâs life. At first Merle thought Daryl was stupid for getting attached to some random kid but eventually you even grew on the older Dixon. Eventually you had earned the nickname Mini Dixon, having managed to gain the affection of both brothers. Though you mainly stuck by Darylâs side as Merle was still a bigger ass than Daryl ever was. Between your parents and the Daryl you managed to find happiness even in the middle of the end of the world.
When the new guy, Rick, arrived and you found out Merle was left behind in the city you were sad. Despite you always being closer to Daryl and Merle being an ass you knew that Merle had cared for you to some capacity and you didnât wish for him to die. You went to find Daryl to see if he was okay but when you found him he had yelled at you for the first time since before he took you on your first hunting lesson. Being the little fire cracker you were, you yelled back before walking off so you could both cool down. Daryl had felt terrible about yelling at you and went to apologize before going back to Atlanta to look for Merle. You wanted to go with him and the other guys but he quickly shut that idea down and instead made you promise to keep your parents and the camp safe. You pinky promised him. And when the walkers invaded the camp you fought with everything you had to keep that promise but you couldnât. You couldnât protect your parents, let alone the rest of camp.
Once Daryl and rest of the group returned from Atlanta he immediately ran to find you, fighting his way through walkers. When he finally found you his heart broke for you. He had found you crying over the corpses that were your parents. The archer couldnât find any words so he just knelt down and hugged you while you cried. Ever since that night Daryl had unofficially taken over the role of your guardian.
Without Merle, you were the one person Daryl cared about more than anything. Heâd never admit it but over time he started to view you as his own daughter.
Daryl was beyond relieved when they group found the prison. He was glad that you would have a safe place to live and grow up in. During your time at the prison you and Daryl grew closer than ever. He showed you new tracking and hunting techniques and even managed to find you your own crossbow while he was out on a run. Now that you were slightly older and bigger you were able to hold it up on your own. He even taught you how to make you own arrows like he did.
Since you had your own crossbow and were older you finally convinced Daryl to take you on a run.
Thatâs where you were now, rummaging through an abandoned drug store. After deeming the store clear you, Daryl and Glenn agreed to split up to cover more ground.
âBe careful, kid. Weapon up, got it?â Daryl warned.
âGot it,â you said and Daryl smiled at you before going down his aisle.
Unfortunately, the store wasnât completely cleared. When you crossed over into your next aisle you came face to face with a burly man who had his gun drawn. Before you could act he pulled the trigger.
Daryl heard the gunshot from a few aisles down and sprinted towards the source of the shot.
âY/N!â He called out.
When he found your body unconscious on the ground the man who shot you didnât have to time to finish reloading his gun before Daryl tackled him.
âWhat did you do!â He screamed, punching the man before grabbing his knife and the stabbing it through the shooterâs face.
âNo, no, no, no,â he mumbled crawling over to your body, âGlenn!â He screamed.
âDaryl? Y/N,â Glenn called, rounding the corner to find Daryl frantically tying his belt around your torso to stop the bleeding.
âGet the car! Now!â Daryl said. He didnât bother looking up as Glenn made a run for the car. He focused on tying his belt around you as tight as he could before lifting you up and running to the car.
âDrive! Now!â Daryl called from the backseat. âYouâre gonna be okay. Ya hear kid? Youâre gonna be just fine. Youâre gonna be okay,â he kept repeating this until you reached the gates of the prison where you were taken by Hershel and Maggie. Daryl wanted to follow you and sit while they worked on you in your cell but Rick held him back. âGive them room to help her,â Rick had said. Now Daryl was just pacing back and forth in the hall right out side your cell. Rick and Carol both tried to get the archer to sit down and rest or eat but he refused.
Daryl couldnât focus on anything but his thoughts. You had to be okay. You had to, Daryl couldnât bear to loose you. Over the past year you had become the daughter Daryl never got to have and you couldnât leave him now. Not like this. You couldnât die like this you were only a kid.
It was nearly sunset by the time Hershel pulled back the curtain and walked out of your cell.
âIs she okay?â Daryl asked immediately, his voice slightly cracking.
âSheâll be okay,â Hershel nodded, âthe bullet went clean through, itâll be some time but eventually the Mini Dixon will be good as new,â Hershel smiled, âsheâs still sleeping but you can see her now. She wonât be awake for a while.â
âThank you,â Daryl gasped out as his system flooded with relief. Hershel nodded in response.
Daryl took a deep breath before entering your cell. Even though he had just heard that you would be okay the sight of you pale and unconscious broke his heart. He pulled a chair up next to your bed and took one of your hands in his.
âHey, kid,â he whispered, âgave me a scare back there. Itâs okay though, Hershel says ya gonna be fine. So I just need ya to rest up and then open up them pretty eyes. Okay, kid?â Daryl swallowed his tears as he watched you lay there, helpless.
Hours passed and different people came in to check on you but Daryl couldnât keep track of who. He was too focused on you. After a while, your eyelids fluttered open and you woke up feeling severely disoriented.
âY/N,â you heard someone call your name. The voice was echoey but familiar though you couldnât quite place a face to the voice. Thatâs when you felt the weight in your hand and looked over the side of your bed though your vision was clouded with black blots. Bits and pieces of what happened slowly started to com back to you. The drug store, the man, the feeling of hitting the tiled floor when he pulled the trigger.
âHey, kid. Thereâs them pretty eyes. Youâre okay, ya need rest. Sleep, kid.â You heard the voice say. It sounded like a man.
âMâkay dad,â you slurred, âlove you,â and you passed out again.
Daryl stared at you in shock as you fell back into a deep sleep. Sure, he had always thought of you as his daughter but hearing you call him âdadâ made it so real. Letting a tear slip, he squeezed your hand and placed a kiss on your forehead.
You didnât wake up again for a few hours and this time you remembered everything. Even calling Daryl âdadâ. You mentally smacked yourself. Sure, you had thought of Daryl as a second father since your biological dad died but you knew he wasnât one for emotions so you kept that to yourself.
Finally coming out of your thoughts you noticed the cell was empty and a sob escaped your mouth followed by a wince as you remembered your wound. Daryl was gone. Did you scare him away by calling him dad? What if he thought you were crazy?
In reality Daryl just had to use the bathroom and he was on his way back to your cell when he heard your sob. He ripped the curtain open and saw you awake and crying.
âY/N,â he knelt down next to your bed, âwhatâs wrong, kid?â He gave you a moment to catch your breath before responding. âI thought you left me,â you said tearfully, breaking Darylâs heart for the hundredth time in twenty four hours.
âWhy would ya think that, kid?â Daryl was confused, heâd never abandon you and he thought you knew that. You hesitated before responding.
âLast night, I, uh, I called you dad. Thought I freaked you out and that you decided to leave me.â You admitted. Daryl was silent for a moment.
âI didnât mind it,â he confessed. And it was true, he always saw you as his daughter and hearing you call him dad just felt right even if I was shocking.
âReally?â You questioned with wide eyes. He nodded at you. âSo,â you hesitated, âwould it be okay if I, uh, called you that from now on? I kinda of, um, seen you as a father since, uh ya know,â you trailed off. Daryl knew what you were referring to, the night your parents died.
âIf you want ta,â he said, âI, um, I donât mind it, kid.â You smiled at him.
âSo then that makes you my Dad,â you smirked up at the man as he smiled down at you.
âSure do, kid. Sure do. Now get some rest and heal up,â he patted your head and kissed your temple.
Looking at you smile at him before closing your eyes to sleep, Daryl silently promised to be the best father possible. He vowed to be nothing like his own father. You were his daughter, biological or not, and Daryl would protect you with everything he had.