Chapter Text
Stella, a young nurse, was bandaging up Carl, he fell and scraped his knee while playing with Sophia and the other kids of the group. "Did the ground look okay after the fight?" She knew how scared kids could get, and how tough they try to be when they're around the adults.
Carl smiled, looking back at his mom who was talking to Carol and Sophia. "No, it was super bloody and looked like it was limping."
Stella chuckled, putting the last bit of tape across the kids knee. "Well, I think you'll survive, but you might wanna check on the ground later." She pulled out a lollipop from her bag, handing it to Carl. "Go on, be careful out there." Stella followed him out of her tent, stretching as she nodded to Dale from his post on the RV.
EEP EEP EEP EEP EEP
Dale froze, pulling up his binoculars to his face searching for the source of the sound.
"Talk to me, Dale!" Shane ran to Lori and Carl, leading them to the RV.
"I can't tell!" He yelled from on top of the RV.
Stella headed the kids and mothers in the RV, closing it behind her as she pulled out her rifle, searching for any Walkers. "What is that?" Her dark brown eyes shifting around as she searched the perimeter.
"Joy riding." Dale replied, seeing a red sportscardriving straight for them.
EEP EEP EEP EEP EEP EE
The car stopped, Glenn stepping out and waving everyone to him. "We had to get a distraction."
EEP EEP EEP EEP EEP EEP
"Open the hood!" Shane commanded, slamming his hand on the hood of the vehicle.
EEP EEP EEP EEP EEP EEP
Stella ran and pushed Glenn out of the way, pulling the lever to release the hood. "What were you thinking?" She screamed at Glenn over the alarm, raising her gun to search the tree lines.
EEP EEP EEP EEP EEP EEP
Shane quickly lifted the hood, searching for the battery and trying the wires to stop the noise.
EEP EEP Schoom
"They're alive, but we were surrounded." Glenn explained to Amy, who's sister, Andrea was on the supply run.
"What the Hell were you thinking?" Stella turned around and punched Glenn's arm. "That could have attracted every corpse straight to us."
Dale pulled her away, trying to calm everyone down. "I think we're safe. But you need to think a little more." He condoned Glenn.
A box truck came into view, and Stella slung her gun to her shoulder. "Anyone hurt?"
"Yeah, T-Dog is hurt bad, Merle did it."
"Shit." Stella ran to meet the truck after it stopped, seeing T-Dog being held up by Jacqui. "I got him. Merle! Come out here, you son of a-"
"He's not here." T-Dog admitted, grunting from the pain. "I dropped the key."
"Damnit." Stella sighed, shaking her head. "We gotta g-"
"Dad!" Carl ran past them, making Stella turn and see a new man, who held Carl tightly.
"Wha-" Stella had heard about Lori's husband, he was dead, Shane said so himself. "Let's get you fixed up." She saw the look of panic in Shane's eyes, looking down as she helped T-Dog limp to the RV.
Lori came to find Stella after she saw T-Dog walking out of the RV. "Stella? Can you do me a favor and take a look at Rick?"
Stella eyed Lori, seeing the guilt flooding her face, she nodded, cleaning her hands before seeing Rick coming inside. "Stella."
"Rick Grimes." Rick shook her hand, hissing and grabbing his stomach. "Sorry."
"Sit." She told him, motioning to the table, she saw Lori hovering with Carl at her side. "Hey, Carl. Can you go grab me my red flashlight? I wanna give your old man a full check up." She smiled at him softly. "I think I left it in my tent."
Carl nodded, rushing off to go do as she asked.
"Lift your shirt." She commanded, sitting on a stool in front of Rick. "Lori, I think Carl may need some help." Stella waited for the door to close before she unwrapped the dirty bandages.
"Lori said you're a nurse." Rick hissed again when she touched his incision. "So you know what you're doing."
"Been a nurse for over ten years, mostly saw basic everyday things." She touched his skin to check for heat. "This incision could still get infected if you're not careful." Stella wiped it with alcohol, making Rick flinch. "Wanna tell me what happened to make you cuff Merle to a pole on a roof?"
Rick gulped, checking her face for a reaction. "He was acting reckless and beat T-Dog."
"That sounds like him." She sighed, standing up and pulling out a red flashlight. "Open your mouth."
"I thou-"
"That boy has seen enough, he doesn't need to see his dad who just came back from the dead as anything but strong. Open up." Stella said calmly, checking Rick's throat and eyes. "You seem to be just fine, all things considered. Just gotta rewrap that wound and then you can head on back to your family." She sat and carefully taped some gauze to his wound. "And you need to be prepared for Merle's brother coming back. Merle is a son of a bitch, and Daryl, let's just say he won't take kindly to anyone that abandoned his brother."
"Do I have to worry about you retaliating against me too?"
Stella sat back, taking off her gloves and tossing them in the trash, sighing. "No, but if you hurt Daryl, then you might."
"Any suggestions?" Rick asked, putting his shirt back on.
She groaned, rubbing her neck. "Promise me, you and your buddy, Shane won't hurt him, and I'll consider helping you disarm him."
"Disarm?"
"Merle and Daryl are hunters, they grew up alone." Stella stood up and cleaned up the mess. "He will have at least one knife on him, and a Stryker crossbow. He's fairly competent at hand to hand, and will definitely be pissed off that Merle was the only one left behind."
"How do you know him so well?"
She sighed, shaking her head and putting back on her necklace with her wedding ring attached. "Because he's my Brother in Law, you left my husband on the rooftop."
Rick stepped back, holding up his hand. "I had to, he-"
"Merle used to beat me to shit." She sighed, lifting her shirt a bit to show Rick the yellowing bruises. "It wasn't a lovely marriage. Daryl didn't know, and he will listen to me, at least I can help." She pulled out her hunting knife from her boot, pointing it to Rick. "You hurt Daryl, and I won't be Nurse Nice anymore."
Rick gulped, still holding up his hands. "Why help us?"
"Because I see those kids, and I don't want to leave them without a fighting chance." Stella put her blade back in her boot. "Do we have a deal?"
Rick nodded, walking out to talk to Shane.
Next morning, Stella woke up alone before dawn, staring at the empty sleeping bag beside her. She had at one point loved Merle, but he turned out just like his father, and she only stayed because she had nowhere else to go. She groaned, getting up and grabbing her rifle to go relieve Dale.
Dale watched Stella climb up on the roof, holding out his hand to help her up. "I'm sorry ab-"
She held up her hand to stop him. "No need. Merle deserved it. Go get some rest."
"I can stay up here for longer." Dale tried to be sympathetic. "You just lo-"
"Go, Dale." Stella insisted, lifting the binoculars from his neck and patting his arm. "I'm not gonna break. Go rest."
The others all stared up at Stella cautiously as she watched over them, unsure if she was lulling them into a false sense of security before Daryl got back. Shane glared up at her, before going up to talk.
"So, you're really gonna help us?" He asked, not believing her. "Rick and T-Dog left your man behind, he's probably dead, and you're just gonna help us?"
"Would you rather me be crying and useless?" She glared at him, seeing some of the others giving her wary looks. "Like I told your boy, Merle was an Asshole, and he deserved being left behind."
"Why continue to wear the ring?"
"To remind myself that not everyone who claims to care really do." She said blankly, seeing some women in the gorge washing clothes. "Did Rick tell you the condition of my help?"
"Not to hurt Daryl." Shane groaned, wiping the sweat from his head. "You don't care about your husband, but you care about him?"
"Daryl is still my family." She glared at him, seeing movement behind him.
"MOOOM!"
Stella and Shane jumped down, running to the kids, rushing past the other adults.
She found the kids first, checking them over for bites. "Are you hurt? What happened?" Shane and Rick saw the genuine concern for the kids' wellbeing in her face as she held them close.
"Over there." Sophia pointed to the bushes.
Stella handed the kids off to their moms and raised her rifle. "Let's go."
Shane and Rick raised their guns, going beyond the bushes and finding a Walker eating a deer.
"Fucker." Stella grumbled, not even stalling before she blasted the thing's brain in a single shot. She walked closer, seeing the familiar arrows in the deer's thigh. "Shit."
SNAP
Everyone raised their weapons and turned to see Daryl coming out of the trees. "It's just me. What the Hell, Stell?"
She lowered her weapon and shrugged. "I didn't shoot you this time."
"I still say you did that shit on purpose." Daryl replied with a faint smile, going to hug her, then he saw the Walker and the deer. "That fucker stole my deer!"
"I got it back for you, if it helps." Stella deadpanned.
"You think it's still safe to eat?" Daryl ignored the others, kneeling beside the mutilated deer. "Cut off the gnawed on bits?"
"Absolutely not." She pulled the squirrels off Daryl's back. "These seem fine, give me your knife."
Daryl stood up, dusting off his hands. "Where's yours?"
"Merle took it, and hasn't given it back." She hated lying to him, but had plenty of practice. "Besides, yours is always sharper." Stella held out her hand to him, smiling sweetly.
"Whatever. I still think you need to learn how to sharpen your shit, Stell." Daryl handed her his blade, nodding to the catch. "Squirrel stew?"
"Sounds good to me." Stella turned around, her smile vanishing as she glared at Shane and Rick, walking towards the camp.
"Merle! Get your ass out here!" Daryl screamed when they got back to the others, he didn't see Stella flinch as she walked away. "Merle!"
"We need to talk to you." Rick said quietly, seeing Stella stop and turn, slipping the blade in her belt loop.
"Who the fuck are you?!" Daryl asked, confused as he saw Shane going beside him.
"Rick Grimes."
Stella put the squirrels and blades on the table beside her, still watching the men 'talk', sensing Daryl's reluctance.
"We had a situation, on the supply run." Rick explained. "Your brother caused a disturbance and we had to restrain him."
"Where's my brother?" Daryl growled, turning back to look at Stella. "Where is he, Stell?" Her lack of reaction told him everything he needed to know. "You left him behind?!" He screamed, before lunging towards Rick, Shane caught him, holding him down and putting him in a headlock. "Let me go."
Stella went to grab her blade, but Glenn and Dale restrained her. "Let him, go Walsh! If you two don't let me go right now-"
"We're going to have a nice calm conversation." Rick kneeled beside Daryl and glanced at Stella. "Can you both do that?"
Stella struggled against Glenn and Dale. "You said you were just gonna talk to him!"
"You knew?!" Daryl tried to turn, but Shane kept him in place. "You fucking helped these assholes, Stell?!"
"She asked you not be hurt, I gave her my word you'd be okay, as long as you're calm, you won't make me a liar." Rick explained, seeing the fight leaving Daryl, he nodded to Shane, Dale and Glenn to let them go. "Your brother put everyone's lives at risk, and I had to cuff him to the roof of the building we were hiding on. There was an attack and we couldn't get the cuffs off in time."
Daryl turned to Stella, seeing her not surprised at the news, and she looked away. "You fucking left my brother, cuffed on some fucking tied up like an animal on some fucking roof?"
Stella saw the anger in Daryl's eyes, the same one Merle would get before doing something stupid. She rushed to his side, reaching for his hand. "Daryl, don't do-"
SLAP
"You are still here?!" Daryl yelled in Stella's face, she hadn't even moved to hold her cheek he slapped. "Why did you help these Assholes, Stella? You should have been going to get your husband!"
Shane got between her and Daryl, pushing Stella towards Rick. "Hey! You don't put your hands on anyone in this camp, Man!"
Rick looked at Stella's cheek, hold her chin gently, unfortunately, they had too much experience working with Domestic violence. "Are you okay?"
Her dark brown eyes glared back at him, she wasn't even phased by the pain anymore. She pushed him away and growled. "Get off of me." She turned to see Carl and Sophia scared, her face softened as she walked to them and smiled. "I'm okay, Kids. Let's go see if I got any candy left in my medic bag."
Daryl felt horrible, he never wanted to raise a hand to Stella, but his pride kept him from going to her. "Where's he at? I'm gonna go get him." He growled under his breathe, trying to keep Stella from hearing him.
After she settled the kids, Stella grabbed Daryl's knife and walked to the box truck as the men were loading up. She saw him pacing inside the back of the truck, trying to ignore her as she climbed in. "Here's your knife. I'm sorry, Dar-"
Daryl snatched the blade from her, glaring at her cold features as he barked. "You don't even care that your husband could be dead?! What kind of bitch doesn't care that her man is stuck somewhere? He would have come back for you, you would have never been left behind!"
She stared in his hate filled eyes blue eyes, the same as Merle, they seemed wrong to her. "Daryl, Merle has done worse than leave me behind. I think you know that he's-" Stella finally let a tear fall, wiping it away as she turned around. "Just be careful, Daryl."
"Fuck you, Bitch." He spat behind her, kicking the horn to rush the others. "Let's go!"
Rick stopped Stella, holding her arm gently. "Are you okay?"
She pulled her arm away, storming to her shared tent and rubbing her head as she whispered. "Don't get hurt, Daryl."