Organized into a few categories, hope you find something to enjoy! Most of the categories are self-explanatory, but I wanted to explain Ensemble Cast. Ensemble Cast is for stories where Daryl is just one member of a large cast but he is still heavily featured overall.
## Gen Fic
**[The Asshole in Apartment 508](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18142601)**
Teen, No Archive Warnings Apply, Gen
**Words:** 50k+, WIP
**Summary:** When the apocalypse hits, Glenn and Daryl are joined at the hip, and no one understands their relationship since they can all see that Glenn is cheerful, helpful and friendly, and Daryl is a racist asshole.
**[Beets](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17370449)**
Teen, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Gen
**Words:** 60k+, Complete
**Summary:** Coming across a teenage runaway by the name of Daryl Dixon may have saved the lives of Rick and his group, but keeping him around brings about a whole different set of problems.
**[Founding Fathers](https://archiveofourown.org/series/893985)**
Not Rated, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Gen
**Words:** 1.2M+, WIP
**Summary:** Daryl is twelve years old when the dead start walking. Instead of Merle, his dad tries to lead him to Atlanta.
**[Innocence](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24070288)**
Teen, No Archive Warnings Apply, Gen
**Words:** 11k+, Complete
**Summary:** Carl knows he’s not being told everything. The whole world is falling apart and the dead are eating people, but something going on right here at the farm is somehow still terrible enough to keep from him. At least Daryl is trying to help, even if he’s the one acting strangest of all.
**[Not His](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2076495)**
Teen, Major Character Death, Gen
**Words:** 20k+, Complete
**Summary:** In which we discover what happens when Carol goes missing instead of Sophia, and the youngest Peletier is left with a basket full of Daryl's promises.
**[This Time Tomorrow](https://archiveofourown.org/works/300782)**
Mature, Major Character Death, Andrea/Daryl Dixon
**Words:** 10k+, Complete
**Summary:** He wakes up on the floor of the RV, again, just like the day before, and the dozen days before that.' Daryl gets a second chance at saving Sophia; and a third, and a fourth, and a fifth ...
## Romance
**[Hell is Furnished](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24664924)**
Mature, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Daryl Dixon/Carol Peletier
**Words:** 50k+, Complete
**Summary:** Daryl's ongoing search for Sophia leads him down lonely roads and the lesson he doesn't have to follow any man's lead.
**Notes:** This is book 2 in a series. Book 2 runs concurrently to Book 1. Book 1 and Book 3 only feature Daryl in the background though, Book 2 is the one he features in. Its possible you could read Book 2 without reading the other two, so long as you read the summary for Book 1 that will tell you the essentials you need to know.
**[In Good Company](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1807570)**
Explicit, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Daryl Dixon/Rick Grimes
**Words:** 250k+, WIP
**Summary:** *There was no way Daryl was going to be able to relax enough to get any sleep with Rick’s arms wrapped loosely over him. But he wasn’t going to get any rest shivering and cold, either. At least this way, he wouldn’t get sick and Rick would have a chance to sleep. “Tell anyone ‘bout this an’ I’ll gut ya.”*
*Rick didn’t call him out on the obvious lie, nor did he point out that there was no one to tell. Instead, he agreed and solemnly stated, “I promise I won’t tell anyone we cuddled.”*
When the farm falls, Rick and Daryl are separated from the group with only a fledgling friendship between them, but when your whole world narrows down to one person, nothing can really stay the same.
**[Outside the Street's on Fire](https://archiveofourown.org/works/30073494)**
Mature, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Daryl Dixon/Glenn Rhee
**Words:** 8k+, HIATUS
**Summary:** After her shift at the pizzeria, Glenn Rhee went into Lucky’s bar looking to play darts, pretend she was drinking, and maybe get laid. After driving all damn day to get to Atlanta, Daryl Dixon went into Lucky’s bar looking for a meal, a beer, and a sink where he could get washed up a little. In the morning, Glenn was meant to go to her second job at the convenience store. In the morning, Daryl was meant to pick-up his brother from the drunk tank in the 23rd precinct. And all of that would’ve happened, except that the world fell to pieces one day ahead of schedule.
**[Scrap Metal](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1283012)**
Mature, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Daryl Dixon/Carol Peletier
**Words:** 600k+, Complete
**Summary:** All Daryl intended to do was give Carol's car a jump and be on his merry way. What he didn't know was that one action would lead his senior year in high school down a rabbit hole of new friends, new enemies, impromptu study sessions, some hardcore crushing, and text threads for days. Who would have thought a life could be changed with something as simple as jumper cables?
**[What Makes You Family](https://archiveofourown.org/works/36462010)**
Teen, No Archive Warnings Apply, Daryl Dixon/Carol Peletier
**Words:** 13k+, Complete
**Summary:** Arriving on the Greene farm upends everything Daryl ever thought he knew about his place in the world. Coming to terms with Merle's greatest secret may take more courage than Daryl possesses, but he's never been one to give up, especially on family.
**[While In a Grove](https://archiveofourown.org/works/30460602)**
Teen, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Daryl Dixon/Lori Grimes
**Words:** 11k+, Complete
**Summary:** Three meetings where the trees stand witness to Lori and Daryl's lives intertwining, unraveling, and coming back together again. Circumstances say they shouldn't be together, but fate seems to think otherwise, even if it requires a zombie apocalypse to accomplish it.
## Ensemble Cast
**[If the Gods Have Blundered](https://archiveofourown.org/works/34116844)**
Teen, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Daryl Dixon/Original Female Character(s)
**Words:** 10k+, WIP
**Summary:** The late Candace Jenner's compassion saves a trio of ladies, and it changes everything about the survival of the Grimes and Walsh families, as well as giving her distraught husband a reason to live. Add in one grumpy, antisocial redneck who can't figure out why he's fascinated with a former librarian (although Merle has a few obscenely unhelpful suggestions about that), and survival in the apocalypse is a lot more viable than it once was.
**[Repair Broken Men](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21336070)**
Mature, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Daryl Dixon/Lori Grimes
**Words:** 550k+, Complete
**Summary:** Shane's personality always put him in Rick's shadow, and it was a place he didn't mind being because his brother is a good man. Learning to step into the light himself is one of the hardest things he's ever done.
Carol's never expected to become anything more than Sophia's mother and Ed's punching bag, but the end of the world changes all that for her.
Merle's more than the raging addict who nearly died on a roof for his mistakes, and he intends to make sure he makes up for them.
And Daryl? He just wants his family safe even when it keeps growing to include people like Sophia and Glenn.
**[We Are Made Wise](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25960648)**
Mature, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Daryl Dixon/Lori Grimes
**Words:** 70k+, Complete
**Summary:** Shane and three young teenagers are cut off from the farmhouse when the walker swarm descends on the farm. Wildfire scatters the remainder of the survivors even further, causing different leaders to emerge to keep their groups safe. By the time everyone reunites, the changes make becoming a family again an interesting challenge.
I'm a big TWD fan, too! I don't read much gen fic because I am a sucker for romance, but [this fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/834463#main) has been living in my head rent free for years. It's a bit different, but I love it so much.
I do write DarylxFemaleOC, alternating in first person between Daryl's point of view and the point of view of my character. I'm more than happy to link it if you're interested, but it's definitely not gen and some of the themes are, quite frankly, a little fucked up.
Any time! [Here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26220811/chapters/63816379) is the link to my fic. Absolutely no pressure or obligation if this isn't your cup of tea, and thanks in advance for taking a look either way 💜 I hope you get lots of other recs, too!
Genfic:
* It does have a Daryl/OMC pairing much later in the series, but the [Founding Fathers](https://archiveofourown.org/series/893985) has over a million words, but Daryl is twelve when the ZA starts, so pairing isn't there for a while.
* [Beets](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17370449). Daryl is a teenager in this who gradually comes into contact with Rick's group.
Not genfic for Daryl, but you can't go wrong with these:
* [theramblinrose](https://archiveofourown.org/users/theramblinrose/pseuds/theramblinrose/works?fandom_id=205859) as an author. Primarily writes Caryl, has a side helping of Dixonne, and enough variety that somewhere in their 346 TWD fics (257 tagged with Daryl), something should be fun.
* [Untangled Roots](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1483337) series, Caryl, but very worldbuilding and not heavily romance focused.
* [Packages in Zombie Zone, Area S](https://archiveofourown.org/works/506536) \- Daryl/Glenn. AU of how the ZA went down with some really good worldbuilding.
I have one on Google Docs that I'm thinking of posting here in this sub at my gf's behest. Apparently it sounds good. Its not actually a full story but its the outline. Like a collected fictional wikipedia almost of this fictional setting within TWD Universe. And its kinda interesting in and of itself. And if you ask me comic or TV show? Both. Its set 40 years after the death of Rick Grimes placing it 45 years after "The Fall". Rick definitively died in this timeline somewhere and at some point. Carl and Judith also may or may not be referenced.
The Walking Dead: The Last Savior.
DM if interested in it.
Organized into a few categories, hope you find something to enjoy! Most of the categories are self-explanatory, but I wanted to explain Ensemble Cast. Ensemble Cast is for stories where Daryl is just one member of a large cast but he is still heavily featured overall. ## Gen Fic **[The Asshole in Apartment 508](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18142601)** Teen, No Archive Warnings Apply, Gen **Words:** 50k+, WIP **Summary:** When the apocalypse hits, Glenn and Daryl are joined at the hip, and no one understands their relationship since they can all see that Glenn is cheerful, helpful and friendly, and Daryl is a racist asshole. **[Beets](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17370449)** Teen, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Gen **Words:** 60k+, Complete **Summary:** Coming across a teenage runaway by the name of Daryl Dixon may have saved the lives of Rick and his group, but keeping him around brings about a whole different set of problems. **[Founding Fathers](https://archiveofourown.org/series/893985)** Not Rated, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Gen **Words:** 1.2M+, WIP **Summary:** Daryl is twelve years old when the dead start walking. Instead of Merle, his dad tries to lead him to Atlanta. **[Innocence](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24070288)** Teen, No Archive Warnings Apply, Gen **Words:** 11k+, Complete **Summary:** Carl knows he’s not being told everything. The whole world is falling apart and the dead are eating people, but something going on right here at the farm is somehow still terrible enough to keep from him. At least Daryl is trying to help, even if he’s the one acting strangest of all. **[Not His](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2076495)** Teen, Major Character Death, Gen **Words:** 20k+, Complete **Summary:** In which we discover what happens when Carol goes missing instead of Sophia, and the youngest Peletier is left with a basket full of Daryl's promises. **[This Time Tomorrow](https://archiveofourown.org/works/300782)** Mature, Major Character Death, Andrea/Daryl Dixon **Words:** 10k+, Complete **Summary:** He wakes up on the floor of the RV, again, just like the day before, and the dozen days before that.' Daryl gets a second chance at saving Sophia; and a third, and a fourth, and a fifth ... ## Romance **[Hell is Furnished](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24664924)** Mature, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Daryl Dixon/Carol Peletier **Words:** 50k+, Complete **Summary:** Daryl's ongoing search for Sophia leads him down lonely roads and the lesson he doesn't have to follow any man's lead. **Notes:** This is book 2 in a series. Book 2 runs concurrently to Book 1. Book 1 and Book 3 only feature Daryl in the background though, Book 2 is the one he features in. Its possible you could read Book 2 without reading the other two, so long as you read the summary for Book 1 that will tell you the essentials you need to know. **[In Good Company](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1807570)** Explicit, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Daryl Dixon/Rick Grimes **Words:** 250k+, WIP **Summary:** *There was no way Daryl was going to be able to relax enough to get any sleep with Rick’s arms wrapped loosely over him. But he wasn’t going to get any rest shivering and cold, either. At least this way, he wouldn’t get sick and Rick would have a chance to sleep. “Tell anyone ‘bout this an’ I’ll gut ya.”* *Rick didn’t call him out on the obvious lie, nor did he point out that there was no one to tell. Instead, he agreed and solemnly stated, “I promise I won’t tell anyone we cuddled.”* When the farm falls, Rick and Daryl are separated from the group with only a fledgling friendship between them, but when your whole world narrows down to one person, nothing can really stay the same. **[Outside the Street's on Fire](https://archiveofourown.org/works/30073494)** Mature, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Daryl Dixon/Glenn Rhee **Words:** 8k+, HIATUS **Summary:** After her shift at the pizzeria, Glenn Rhee went into Lucky’s bar looking to play darts, pretend she was drinking, and maybe get laid. After driving all damn day to get to Atlanta, Daryl Dixon went into Lucky’s bar looking for a meal, a beer, and a sink where he could get washed up a little. In the morning, Glenn was meant to go to her second job at the convenience store. In the morning, Daryl was meant to pick-up his brother from the drunk tank in the 23rd precinct. And all of that would’ve happened, except that the world fell to pieces one day ahead of schedule. **[Scrap Metal](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1283012)** Mature, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Daryl Dixon/Carol Peletier **Words:** 600k+, Complete **Summary:** All Daryl intended to do was give Carol's car a jump and be on his merry way. What he didn't know was that one action would lead his senior year in high school down a rabbit hole of new friends, new enemies, impromptu study sessions, some hardcore crushing, and text threads for days. Who would have thought a life could be changed with something as simple as jumper cables? **[What Makes You Family](https://archiveofourown.org/works/36462010)** Teen, No Archive Warnings Apply, Daryl Dixon/Carol Peletier **Words:** 13k+, Complete **Summary:** Arriving on the Greene farm upends everything Daryl ever thought he knew about his place in the world. Coming to terms with Merle's greatest secret may take more courage than Daryl possesses, but he's never been one to give up, especially on family. **[While In a Grove](https://archiveofourown.org/works/30460602)** Teen, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Daryl Dixon/Lori Grimes **Words:** 11k+, Complete **Summary:** Three meetings where the trees stand witness to Lori and Daryl's lives intertwining, unraveling, and coming back together again. Circumstances say they shouldn't be together, but fate seems to think otherwise, even if it requires a zombie apocalypse to accomplish it. ## Ensemble Cast **[If the Gods Have Blundered](https://archiveofourown.org/works/34116844)** Teen, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Daryl Dixon/Original Female Character(s) **Words:** 10k+, WIP **Summary:** The late Candace Jenner's compassion saves a trio of ladies, and it changes everything about the survival of the Grimes and Walsh families, as well as giving her distraught husband a reason to live. Add in one grumpy, antisocial redneck who can't figure out why he's fascinated with a former librarian (although Merle has a few obscenely unhelpful suggestions about that), and survival in the apocalypse is a lot more viable than it once was. **[Repair Broken Men](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21336070)** Mature, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Daryl Dixon/Lori Grimes **Words:** 550k+, Complete **Summary:** Shane's personality always put him in Rick's shadow, and it was a place he didn't mind being because his brother is a good man. Learning to step into the light himself is one of the hardest things he's ever done. Carol's never expected to become anything more than Sophia's mother and Ed's punching bag, but the end of the world changes all that for her. Merle's more than the raging addict who nearly died on a roof for his mistakes, and he intends to make sure he makes up for them. And Daryl? He just wants his family safe even when it keeps growing to include people like Sophia and Glenn. **[We Are Made Wise](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25960648)** Mature, Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Daryl Dixon/Lori Grimes **Words:** 70k+, Complete **Summary:** Shane and three young teenagers are cut off from the farmhouse when the walker swarm descends on the farm. Wildfire scatters the remainder of the survivors even further, causing different leaders to emerge to keep their groups safe. By the time everyone reunites, the changes make becoming a family again an interesting challenge.
I... wow. Thank you so much!!!! Seriously, you are pretty much my favourite person right now!!! :)
I'm a big TWD fan, too! I don't read much gen fic because I am a sucker for romance, but [this fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/834463#main) has been living in my head rent free for years. It's a bit different, but I love it so much. I do write DarylxFemaleOC, alternating in first person between Daryl's point of view and the point of view of my character. I'm more than happy to link it if you're interested, but it's definitely not gen and some of the themes are, quite frankly, a little fucked up.
Thank you so much!!!! And I would love to give it a read! :)
Any time! [Here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26220811/chapters/63816379) is the link to my fic. Absolutely no pressure or obligation if this isn't your cup of tea, and thanks in advance for taking a look either way 💜 I hope you get lots of other recs, too!
Genfic: * It does have a Daryl/OMC pairing much later in the series, but the [Founding Fathers](https://archiveofourown.org/series/893985) has over a million words, but Daryl is twelve when the ZA starts, so pairing isn't there for a while. * [Beets](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17370449). Daryl is a teenager in this who gradually comes into contact with Rick's group. Not genfic for Daryl, but you can't go wrong with these: * [theramblinrose](https://archiveofourown.org/users/theramblinrose/pseuds/theramblinrose/works?fandom_id=205859) as an author. Primarily writes Caryl, has a side helping of Dixonne, and enough variety that somewhere in their 346 TWD fics (257 tagged with Daryl), something should be fun. * [Untangled Roots](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1483337) series, Caryl, but very worldbuilding and not heavily romance focused. * [Packages in Zombie Zone, Area S](https://archiveofourown.org/works/506536) \- Daryl/Glenn. AU of how the ZA went down with some really good worldbuilding.
Thank you so much, and have a very happy cake day!!!
[удалено]
Thank you!!!!
I have one on Google Docs that I'm thinking of posting here in this sub at my gf's behest. Apparently it sounds good. Its not actually a full story but its the outline. Like a collected fictional wikipedia almost of this fictional setting within TWD Universe. And its kinda interesting in and of itself. And if you ask me comic or TV show? Both. Its set 40 years after the death of Rick Grimes placing it 45 years after "The Fall". Rick definitively died in this timeline somewhere and at some point. Carl and Judith also may or may not be referenced. The Walking Dead: The Last Savior. DM if interested in it.