Restoration Of Joy

Chapter One: Partial Truths:

The girl clapped excitedly and the boy sighed and gestured for us to lead.

And off we went, the children walking between us and the dog occasionally walking ahead before returning to the boy's side. 

"That yer sister?" I asked after a few hours of walking. 

The boy nodded, "SeraMay."

I gasped dramatically, "Smalls speaks!"

He giggled a little before returning to silently walking, holding his sister in his arms and pulling his yellow backpack up onto his shoulders better. 

"If ye want a break, I can carry her for ye?" Daryl offered.

Smalls hesitated but finally handed SeraMay over, "Yah hurt her an I'll hit yah wif my hatchet."

Daryl fought a smile and nodded as soberly as he could, "I won't let nothin' hurt her."

I didn't need to hide back a smile but I did repress the urge to make a snide remark about Daryl getting soft. 

The rest of the walk was quiet, just the sound of us walking and occasionally the dog pissing on a damn tree.

"Yer folks get ate by geeks?" I decided to go ahead and ask. 

Smalls shrugged, "Ma left with'r boyfrien' 'fore da biters showed up, an I ran from Pa wif ma Sissy."

I decided that I wasn't going to let their Pa anywhere near them if we came across him. Daryl seemed to agree from the look in his eyes when I glanced at him.

"We won't let'm hurt ya," is all I said. 

Since we weren't really trying to hunt down and track a deer now, our trip back was a little faster. We kept walking through the night, though I ended up carrying Smalls, his small bag over my shoulder, not too long after dark when his steps got slower and heavier.

By daylight we were nearing camp. 

🐇🐇🐇

Smalls' pov:

A tan, angry, scary, man charged up to the brothers as we walked into camp. I quickly grabbed onto Merle's arm, holding Sera's hand tight, as the stranger charged, his brown eyes filled with rage. He's shouting. Loud like Pa. 

"Where the hell have y'all been at!" 

Merle didn't look at me but gave my little hand a small squeeze before stepping towards the yelling man and letting go. 

"Ye best quit yer yellin' fore I knock that head of yer's clean off," Merle growled into his face. 

Angry Man stepped forward, getting ready to raise his fist when Romeo charged from beside me and knocked the man down, growling in his face. 

The man blinked in confusion before moving to grab his gun, and I found myself running from out of behind the Dixon's, dropping my bag and leaving Sera with Daryl, and kicking Angry Man's gun out of his hand. 

"Don't yah hurt Romeo! He was jus' tryna protect Mista Mer-mer- ugh, him!" I exclaim, as I grabbed Romeo, holding him close to me and moving away from the angry man who looked at me with confusion.

"Where the hell did you two find kids at?" He questioned as he slowly stood.

Merle didn't answer but Daryl did, "Was hunting about a day's walk from 'ere and the boy and his sister literally ran right into us, the dog not too far behind'm."

Maybe I should tell them I'm not a boy? But they haven't tried to hurt me. Maybe cause they think I'm a boy? Maybe it's safer to be a boy? 

Pa probably wouldn't have hurt me if I were a boy.