Daryl watched from his perch on dense branches of the tree as Michonne crept through town. Her dark skin helped her blend in quite well, especially since she was dressed in all black attire. While the last few times he had gone with her, she had insisted on going herself this time, because of yesterday. His hands clenched at the mere thought.

He has only been able to watch in horror when the Governor pulled Presley out into view. While clean, her already pale skin had been white as snow. He had gotten a glimpse of those blue eyes, dark and dull compared to their previous radiance. That was the Presley never wanted to see again. Broken, destroyed.

Michonne crept towards the window of the building that Presley had come out of the other night. She peered inside, crouched low to the ground. A patrol walked by, oblivious to the woman hiding in the shrubbery.

Daryl frowned when his bladder tightened. He'd been holding in a piss for the past twenty minutes, ever since Michonne had snuck past the fences of the small town. He glanced over at her. Hopefully he wouldn't miss much. As silently as human possible, he climbed down from the tree and turned, thinking he was undetected.

"You must've been holding in that one for a while." A male voice said as Daryl zipped his jeans. He spun, pulling a knife out of his holster. A figure leaned against the fence, eyes calm, despite Daryl's threatening posture. He didn't even know what to do, so he just stood there, standing a few feet away from the stranger.

"You and that woman have been sneaky... But I've been expecting you to come looking for the girls." He said, pushing himself away from the building. Daryl then got a good look at him. He was tall, probably an inch of two taller than himself. He was built and fairly thin, shaggy blonde hair falling just above his eyebrow. He looked clean enough, but Daryl sensed something was off Because of the blood splattered on the bottom of his jeans.

The man noticed Daryl eyeing his bloody jeans,"you were discovered. I disposed of him before word could get to the Governor." The man informed him. "My name is Stefan."

Daryl continued to eye him. "Why did ye help us?"

"Because..." He faded off briefly. "What they're doing to that poor girl, it's so wrong..."

"Presley? What are they doing to her?" Daryl demanded, taking a step towards Stefan.

"Whoa there cowboy, no need to get all threatening here. I'm your only hope of getting those two out of here." Stefan said, glancing over his shoulder.

"How do I know I can trust you?"

"You don't." Stefan shrugged. "But you don't have much of a choice, do you, Daryl?"

- -

Silence was loud that particular morning. Presley sat in her bed, trying to find peace within her own mind. In just a few hours the Governor would come in and destroy her virtue all over again. She shuddered, goose bumps adding texture to her pale skin.

Her hair was damp from her shower, and the shampoo she had used smelled faintly of strawberries. She inhaled the scent, bringing a tendril of hair up to her nose.

The silence was broken when she heard the door rattling. It could either be lunch, or the Governor coming in for an early date. She closed her eyes, fearing the worst. Her hands fisted around the sheet of her bed, so hard that her knuckles began to turn white.

"Here's lunch." The voice said when the door was cracked open. Relief was the first thing that came over her. She looked to see an attractive man. His brown eyes were friendly. He closed the door behind him, causing the smaller girl to freeze. She stared at him with wide doe eyes as he sat on the edge of her bed, a few feet away from herself.

"Hello, Presley." He greeted quietly. She closed her eyes. "My name is Stefan."

She said nothing in return, simply rocked back and forth. Was he going to take advantage of her body now?

"I know you don't understand, and I can't tell you everything." He said, lowering his voice. He leaned closed so that she could hear him. "Your group is coming for you, Presley."

Her eyes snapped open. Her group? She looked at the man in confusion, lips turning downward in a small frown. "The prison?" Her voice was as quiet as his own.

"Yes, Presley." He said quickly. "The Governor is having a party right days from now, and you will be attending. The guard will be down, and that is when the attack will happen." He scratched his chin.

The small girl frowned. "I-I can't last that long..." She sputtered, wrapping her arms around herself.

"You have to, or you won't last at all, Presley."

- - -

This week better go fast. Presley cringed, reminding herself that it was going to be all over in just a while.

Deep down, she knew she could last, but she didn't want to. She didn't want to endure the pain that she went through every night. She didn't care that it was only a half hour a day, it was still hell and it made her feel weak. No matter how hard she fought him and screamed for help, she could never stop him. His hands still ended up on her porcelain skin, often turning it shades of violent and blue with his iron grip. Every time he left, she had a new set of bruises to admire.

Her eyes burned, threatening to spill over tears. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She knew that she was safe to cry, but she didn't want to let the Governor win everything. He had already broken down every one of her walls and crushed her very soul, she wouldn't dare cry because of him.

The raven haired girl drew her knees to her chest, staring at the full length mirror ahead of her. The room was simply and small, attached to a small bathroom with a tiny shower and a toilet. The cupboards were all bare, except for a roll of toilet paper in a drawer.

The small girl stood, approaching the mirror. The wood floor creaked underneath her sudden weight, but she didn't care. She had given up the fire over the last few days. But now there was hope for her. Maybe she could get out of this mess, maybe she would return to her old ways.

She looked at the girl who stared back at her in the mirror. This girl was weak, and this was the girl Presley wasn't raised to be. The girl raised her chin and hardened the soft, frightened expression. If she was going to endure this torture, she was going to endure it the right way she was going to go down fighting and give the governor a hell of a ride.

Without thinking, the girl balled her fist and struck the mirror as hard as she could. The glass shattered, bursting her reflection into a hundred pieces. She kicked a thick shard of glass underneath the bed, followed by a few more.

A man burst into the room, gun raised at Presley's head. "What the hell?" He exclaimed at the sight of the shattered mirror and her bloody hand. She stared back at him, blue eyes dark.

"You're nuts, girl." He muttered, reaching for her arm. She grabbed his wrist and yanked him towards her. The gun went flying from his hand across the ground. She brought her knee up into his gut and pushed him towards the ground with all the strength she had. He crumpled instantly, caught by surprise. She kicked his chest twice, hard. She knew that something broke when he cried out the second time.

"How does it feel, bastard?" She seethed, crouching down beside the broken man. "It sucks, doesn't it?"

She didn't get to say anymore, to finish her little speech, because a pair of hands grabbed her and tore her away. She willingly stood beside the bed, looking at the man sprawled out on the ground. He was now laying flat on his back, yelling profanities she didn't understand. The sight made her smile.

"You stupid bitch!" He yelled. The other man looked at her, slight horror masking his features.

"How the fuck did you do this by yourself?" He said, mostly to himself. Another minute later and the Governor entered the room, eyes raging in annoyance.

Presley was quite the sight to see. Her arms hung down loosely at her sides, and those blue eyes were blazing in anger. She didn't look like the scared little girl he was used to seeing, she looked... Lethal. She slowly raised her head and looked at the Governor. Instead of frowning, she did something that he didn't expect. She smiled. Those plump pink lips curled upward, revealing a set of pearly white teeth.

"Get him out of here." The Governor said, continuing to look at Presley with a frown.

"You should know better than to post weak men to watch over me." She said, continuing to smirk. His eyes narrowed into slits.

"Get somebody to clean up her hand. I don't have time." He muttered, shaking his head and exiting the room. He would deal with the stupid girl later.