forum I summon thee @Young-Dusty

Started May 08, 2019 by @amber_is_in_a_loop

tune

Charlotte was about to speak but Jessie beat her to it.
"No need to imply anything. We're going to kill him." Harsh words coming from a girl no older than 14. Charlotte reached for her hand, and Jessie gave it to her.

(It's okay! I've been pretty busy too, no worries ^^ )
Rick shrugged a shoulder. "You're talkin' to a mercenary, miss. I'm willing to do what it takes." Then he shifted into a more comfortable position and gave Jessie a smile. "But enough about that guy for now. Want some more broth, either of you?"

Jessie looks at Rick with wide eyes. Optional food? She shakes her head carefully as Charlotte accepts another round. “I don’t have to have more, right?”

"Well, we need you to keep your strength up, but naw, you don't have to eat any more if you ain't hungry." Rick took some more for himself and put a lid over the pot. "Anything else we can get you?"

“Uh… no. But thank you.” She curled up tighter, leaning on Charlotte’s knees and half lying down. Within minutes, she was sleeping soundly in Charlotte’s lap. The latter started stroking her hair, distractedly drinking out of her bowl with her free hand,

Rick was reminded of how, when he and his brothers were young, their father had taught them to fall asleep on command, anywhere, anytime. He'd gotten very good at it, but these days he preferred to drift off naturally since it made him feel less….controlled. It was probably just a mind game he was playing with himself, but it was still enough to make him wonder if Jessie had received similar training, and that thought in turn made him feel even more sorry for her.
"So how long do you think we should stay here?" he asked Charlotte quietly. "We're still on a schedule, acourse, but I'd hate to set out again before Jessie's had enough time to rest."

Charlotte looked down at the sleeping girl thoughtfully. "We can leave when she wakes up. She's sturdy, just catching up on some sleep. She'll be fine once we get moving again."
She leaned back, closing her eyes slightly and looking over at Rick.
She trusted him. It felt strange.

Rick nodded his agreement and started quietly packing everything up so they wouldn't have to wait around once Jessie woke up. Then, to pass the time, he took out his rifle and started carefully taking it apart, cleaning each and every piece of the gun before putting it back together. It wasn't often he felt safe enough to dismantle his own weapon, but with a grumpy young Deorn on watch, there seemed no better time.

Charlotte watched Rick work silently, studying the familiar movements she'd taught countless people to do. He was, in fact, doing it perfectly, and Charlotte had to suppress a smile.
Not long after he'd finished, Jessie's eyes blinked open. She sat up urgently, shaking her head. "I'm sorry!" she cried, looking over at Rick and Charlotte. "I shouldn't have slept! We can go now!"

"Huh? Oh, it's all right," Rick told her cheerfully, getting to his feet. "We were happy for the chance to rest, seein' as we had to run all morning to catch up to that caravan." he walked to the edge of the thicket and stuck his head out. "Slash? Where are you at? We're ready to hit the road again."
After a minute, Slash came trotting into view. "Finally. There's nobody around out there, so I think we're good to keep going."

Jessie blinked. He hadn't reacted…
Charlotte lay a hand on the girl's shoulder, and the message in her eyes was simple but clear: Everything is fine. She relaxed into Charlotte's grip, dusting off her tunic and ready to start walking. Charlotte shouldered her backpack and gestured for Jessie to follow her towards Rick and the Deorn.

Slash shifted back into human form as they all started walking, brushing bits of grass off his jacket. "Do you feel better now?" he asked Jessie, frowning as he found some burrs on his sleeve.

She stiffened slightly, but expertly deflected whatever fear she felt. "Yes, much. I rested while you were away. Thank you for asking." Did she sound curt? She couldn't tell.

Slash made no comment on her words. He might have been able to smell a person's mood from three miles away, but that didn't mean he was very good at reading subtle cues like the tone of someone's voice. "Kay." He momentarily zoned in on a grasshopper as it crossed his path, then got bored and kept going. "So how strong are you? You seem pretty strong, for a human kid."

She shot him a look. "Strong. I could probably lift that over there," she told him, pointing to a boulder a few yards ahead. There was a fairly obvious edge of competitiveness to her voice, as well as excitement to be talking to another kindly kind-of-person.

"Hmm." The young Deorn eyed the boulder critically. "That's not bad, I guess. Bet I could lift it with one hand."
"C'mon, people," Rick called from the front. "We've got a long way to go before sundown. Y'all can have a weight-liftin' competition later."
Slash grumbled. "He's really strong," he said quietly to Jessie. "But he's too nice. He's like a giant puppy. I could totally take him in a fight."

Jessie hummed thoughtfully. "I could definitely see that. You've seen him fight? He looks pretty burly."

"Mm. I've only ever seen him use those dumb guns. I'll bet he's helpless without them." Slash grinned scornfully. "Anyway, all I'd have to do is yelp a little and he'd be too much of a wuss to hurt me. Don't tell him, but me'n Charlotte are the ones who really keep us safe."

Jessie nodded proudly. "Charlotte's epic."

"Yeah, she seems pretty tough. She's the one that actually went to get you while we were distracting everybody. And she's much better at sounding bossy than Rick is. Is she really your mom?"

Jessie's smile faded to a sweeter one. "No, but she might as well be. She raised me and three other kids, who I say are my siblings. I was the second oldest."

"Really? I had an older brother before he left home." Slash scowled. "I didn't like him. He thought he was better than me because he was born first. Do you like your…..siblings?"

"I love them so much," she sighed. "The eldest, Will, is dead. But the other two, Tessie and Tom, are the loves of my life."

"Huh." Slash thought about that for a bit. "You mean, you didn't used to….like, fight, and get in trouble, and fight some more after that because you both said it was the other's fault? How did you share stuff without cheating each other?"

"We needed to be there for each other. We had no choice, and our relationship grew from desperation. Those are the best kinds of relationships because they're the most honest as well as the most total."

Slash looked away. "Well…..cool, I guess. Maybe if Me'n Rockfall were from the same litter, we woulda gotten along a little better." He shrugged. "Anyway. I think we're going to go rescue your siblings now, so you should see them again pretty soon."

She nodded. "Not only that, but I will kill who has them. Then I'll be free."

The Deorn nodded also, as if it was obvious. "And then what are you gonna do?"

She shrugged. "I'll follow Charlotte. She'll probably take us three in again, at least I hope so."