"Duck... move Charlotte, move!"
Sobbing, she manoeuvred her head under the wood of a collapsed shack. It proved to be good cover, as David crawled in after her and the huge mob wielding pitchforks and torches paraded past them.
She huddled in the corner, petrified, not able to understand why they were being chased. She didn't understand why she was cramped in this dark, scary hellhole of a place. The wood creaked slightly and dripped, and the brisk wind gusted in, causing her to shiver more violently. She had never been able to comprehend why everyone wanted her, and her Davie, dead.
Charlotte jerked at the thought of losing David. He was all she had left… everything. Hot salty tears rolled down her dirt-smeared face. The fact that she hadn't eaten in four days, and the fact that she hadn't cleaned herself in months didn't register in her mind. She was concerned about Davie, and she was concerned if whether or not they were going to live through this night. They had been on the run for so long.
As soon as David had made sure nobody had seen them, and that the coast was clear, he dove into the corner with her, wrapping his loving arms around her. She shook even harder as silent sobs escaped her, and she buried her face in his chest.
"Shh, shh, Charlotte… I'm here," He murmured in her ear as he stroked her messy unkempt hair. "Shh, it's okay."
He looked down at her leg, eyes suddenly wide. She looked down herself to see a huge gash from where a priest had swung a pitchfork at her. She hadn't even realized it was there until David himself noticed. She hissed as stinging registered in her head.
Pulling a roll of bandage he had stolen from someone's bathroom cupboard, he began to wrap it around her wound gently, barely causing anymore pain than there already was. He wrapped it tight though –if she had been at the hospital, she would've required stitches. It was a deep long gash, and her blood trickled everywhere.
"Davie…" She whimpered. He kissed her forehead softly, hugging her closer to him.
"Davie, will we have to hide forever?"
His young, muddied face twisted. Pain was evident in his murky green eyes as he looked over her. He saw the form of a little girl, with dark brown hair and the bluest eyes imaginable. They almost glowed in the dark. David had once teased her about her eyes, saying he'd seen blind men with almost the same intensity of eye colour as her.
This put a momentary smile on her face, until her concentration focused back in on David.
He gulped, and tried to loosen his face, most likely for her benefit. He picked up a lock of her hair, and twirled it around his fingers.
He sighed, almost as if he were about to breakdown. "I don't know Char, I don't know…" He muttered almost absentmindedly… either that or hopelessly. She wished it wasn't the latter.
His expression brightened suddenly though, but not in a good way. He was almost livid. "But I do know that that was a close one, and you will never move out of my sights again, do you understand?"
She sobered slightly and nodded, remembering other times like these, when they had almost been killed. Or she, rather, had almost gotten them killed. She was more of a burden than anything, she knew, to her Davie. He was very protective of her, and she knew it burned him alive inside to think of her being hurt. She had picked this important piece of knowledge up during the many months they had been running. She had had to learn things fast, even though she kind of knew she shouldn't be this perceptive and knowledgeable at age five. She certainly knew David shouldn't be charged with protecting her, another human being besides himself, at age seven either. Rather, he should be the one being looked after.
She relaxed her head on his chest more, listening to the calming sound of his soft heartbeat. He sighed in satisfaction at this accomplishment.
"Davie, I love you…" She mumbled, losing the fight with her drooping eyelids. She felt him squeeze her gently, his arms still wrapped securely around her, as she began to drift.
"I love you too, Charlotte."