Chapter 1

Dee slid the lockbar in place as quietly as she could. Panting, she hugged her swollen stomach and slid to the floor. Her feet ached. Her back ached. Her head ached. Worse than anything, her eyes burned so badly she thought they might start bleeding. It felt as though she had been crying for days. She probably had. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her wrist and tried to pull herself together.

The safehouse outside of the city was absolutely barren. No medical supplies, no food, no water; there was nothing for her to work with. After fighting to get back onto her feet, she searched through the boxes and containers that lined one of the walls. Most were empty, but she was able to find a large t-shirt and oversized jacket. She sighed in relief and, with some difficulty, peeled her uncomfortably tight shirt off of herself. The thing had been stretched beyond capacity as whatever unholy creature it was grew larger inside of her.

She pulled on the shirt and jacket. At least she could stay warm and reasonably safe for the night. She would have to keep moving as soon as she could, but for now she was past exhausted. Carefully, she slid back down to the floor and tried to get comfortable. It was becoming increasingly difficult to find a good sleeping position. She expelled a sigh that was dangerously close to a sob.

Todd. That idiot. That brave, protective, loving... idiot! What was he thinking? He knew it was stupid to go up against the Man and his expanding army of Infected. Now he left her completely alone with the monster she would inevitably give birth to. Just when she thought maybe she'd be able to get him -the real Todd that she had grown up with- back, he goes and does this. She slammed a fist against the floor and wiped her eyes again.

There were no words that could accurately encompass the rage and despair and whatever else was swirling in her head. So she settled for, "Dammit."

Oscar crouched and watched. Emmy's little hands worked with uncanny skill and grace as she tied the trip wire. He glanced at the diagrams in the tattered book that lay before him. It looked like she had managed to do it right. They would just have to wait and see. The girl stood up and smiled at him, her little mouth marred on the left side by a collection of small scars. She maneuvered almost silently through the layer of dead leaves and undergrowth. Oscar fought a frown.

All of this skill and potential was spent strictly on survival. She was five and a half and could already hide better than a chameleon, tie knots on par with a sailor, and, as long as the words were small, write. Emmy stretched out her arms to him and he picked her up.

"Did I do it?" she whispered.

Her voice was soft and quiet from years of having to stay concealed. He smiled and nodded at her. He tapped the side of his head with a finger and winked. She giggled at him and wrapped her arms around his neck. Suddenly, she stiffened in his arms and looked around.

"Hunter somewhere," she mumbled, her eyes now scanning the trees.

Oscar put her down and she made for the nearest cover, as he had taught her to do. This time the nearest cover happened to be a large bush. As soon as she entered it, a rabbit burst out of it. The rabbit hit the trip wire full force and the noose yanked it into the air. Emmy's trap was certainly efficient. But just as suddenly as the rabbit had been caught, it was cut down with a shriek.

The Hunter ripped the little creature out of the noose and wasted no time in tearing it to bloody shreds with its teeth. Oscar carefully placed himself between the bush and the Hunter. It didn't appear to be one of the Smart Infected, judging by the haphazard violence it used to destroy the rabbit. That was alright. It wouldn't be as much of a threat that way. He made a small gurgling noise at Emmy, giving her the signal to close her eyes.

"Uh huh," she replied quietly from her hiding spot.

The Hunter didn't hear. It was too absorbed in disemboweling the rabbit. Without hesitation, Oscar shot out his tongue and snapped the Hunter's neck. It fell limply on top of the ruined rabbit. Emmy whimpered from her hiding place. That noise always made Oscar's blood run cold. He tore the tongue from his mouth and went to her.

"Are you alright, sweetie?" he asked, holding out his arms.

Emmy crawled out of the bush, her large eyes wet with tears. He held her as his heart sunk. She must have seen what he'd done.

"Did you close your eyes like I asked?"

"Yes," she sniffed.

"Then what's wrong?"

"He took my rabbit! That wasn't his rabbit and he took it," she told him crossly, her whimpering strengthening into a full on tantrum.

She chose this out of all the things to be upset about. Oscar's mouth quirked as he tried not to smile, "You're right. It wasn't his to take. But do you remember what I told you about Hunters like him?"

Emmy pouted, her lower lip quivering, "That they don't know any better."

"That's right. They're like animals. They don't know what is right and what is wrong, so we can't be angry at them. We can protect ourselves when we have to, but getting mad won't do any good."

"B-but, that was my rabbit."

"I know, Emmy. We'll find you another one. Besides, it will be good practice if you make another trap. That first one you did was-"

His tongue burst out of his mouth and he sighed. Emmy's pout softened a little and Oscar smirked. She so badly wanted to stay angry. He poked at her tummy playfully and she swatted him away with a giggle. Oscar picked up the tattered trapping book with his tongue and lifted Emmy onto his shoulders. He hummed to Emmy and she sang.

The ABC's song receded into the trees as they searched for another rabbit.

Sage watched from her perch. The stream below slipped smoothly around the rocks. If she wasn't in such a hurry, she'd happily have spent hours enjoying it. However, there were things to attend to. She waited, her muscles tense and ready. The trio of deer she had been observing were heading in this direction. With any luck, she'd be able to catch them drinking from the stream. She rolled her shoulders and smiled when she heard the movement.

Below, two does and a buck paused to take a drink, just as she had hoped. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and gripped the branch she sat on. The part of her that she kept locked away, she internally named it the Fire, was begging to be set loose. She took another deep breath. You have ten seconds, she told it. It growled in acceptance.

She opened her eyes to the stream again. It looked as though it flowed with blood rather than water. Sage shrieked and launched herself at the nearest doe. Its neck was open before it knew what hit it.

The Man had not left the ICU waiting room since Dee's escape. He sipped at a bottle of water one of his Witches had scrounged from the hospital cafeteria. His overlong fingers tapped on the arm of his chair. The rage within him was swelling, almost past his ability to contain it, and it was treading the line of scaring him. He took another sip of water.

A Witch poked her head through the doorjamb and tapped it with a claw.

The Man lifted his hooded head, "Yes?"

"Shhh... She not here. Not in city," struggled the Witch.

"No, of course she wouldn't be," he grumbled, waving the Witch into the room.

She slunk toward him, red eyes flashing anxiously. He put out a hand and stroked her hair.

"And where are my Hunters?"

"Looking."

"Very good," he sighed, pulling two sugar cubes from his pocket and holding them out to her, "and the Hunter? Todd?"

"Burned him. He ash," she said quickly, taking a sugar cube between her claws and putting it into her mouth.

"But you kept his clothes, as I asked?"

The Witch nodded, taking the next sugar cube and moving it about her mouth with her tongue.

"Did you answer me? Use words," he commanded, his voice suddenly harsh.

"I... Yes. Keep clothes," she stammered, pulling away from the Man.

"Good girl. You may go."

The Witch ran from the room. She didn't dare wail. She could sense what was going on inside of him. The Man held out one of his hands. To his dismay, he was shaking. He took an unsteady drink of water and capped the bottle.

"Tell my Hunters to work harder!" he called to the Witch, "If anything happens to her baby I will kill every last one of them!"

He sank back into his chair and closed his eyes. The water bottle exploded in his fist.

AN: Okay, so maybe I couldn't stay away from this story as long as I had planned. I cannot guarantee how quickly this will be updated, since I'm working on a few other things at the same time, but I'll do my best! Cheers.