A/N:

For the Revo Redux over on LJ, the prompt being: 'Miles and Bass never grew up together in Jasper.'

Not sure if this should be rated T or M due to some suicidal ideation and a bit of violence, nothing really major but please can you let me know if I should up the rating or not? Wouldn't want it to be deemed inappropriate.

Definitely hope to take part in more of these in the future, it's amazing how much creativity it can spark!

Love to all,

PIP

Kill Or Be Killed

Beaten to a raw pulp, food stolen, the last drops of his whiskey making its way down a stranger's throat, Sebastian Monroe had been left with just a pistol with a single bullet in, his attacker's way of being merciful, he supposed.

Unable to lift his body from the dirt it had been thrown and pummelled into, he stared at that gun through bruised, swollen eyes and wept. What had he done to deserve this life?

In the single, short year since the lights turned off, civilisation had gone to absolute hell, but he had stayed strong, choosing to live off of nature instead of stealing from people who were just as desperate, he had never killed anyone, hell, he didn't even enjoy hurting them, he wasn't a violent man, the only reason he was still alive was because he had been mugged once, long before the blackout, his mom had insisted he take self-defence lessons, they had come in handy a few times in the past twelve months.

Today was a stark and painful reminder that men like him didn't belong in this world. Kill or be killed, it was that simple, and it was becoming increasingly clear that there was no other way anymore, people like him were rare and dwindling.

The gun shimmered in the sunlight, it looked mighty beautiful.

He sure as hell couldn't kill anyone, when he heard screams in the night, he'd cover his ears, when he would come across a group of thugs, he'd walk the other way, that's if they didn't beat him up first. He was a selfish, terrified, self-preserving coward that didn't have a mean bone in his body, and he was stuck in a world that was seemingly out to get him.

It was time to put an end to it all, he didn't want to struggle and suffer on any longer, he had tried his damn hardest but he just didn't belong in this new world, and he didn't really want to belong either if it meant turning into a murderer.

Kill or be killed. The rules weren't specific on just who he had to kill.

Reaching out, his dirtied fingers grazed the edge of the weapon, its coldness made him flinch. Tears blurred his vision as he half-heartedly clawed at the ground, desperate to get a grasp but lacking the energy to do so.

Twigs and branches snapping out of his field of view made him jump, each crack sending a shiver down his spine, had his attacker come back to finish the job? A sick relief filled him; perhaps he wouldn't have to pull the trigger himself.

He could hear voices, whispers, "There's a man over there," footsteps now, "Stay here, kiddo," they were drawing closer, "Hey buddy, you alright?"

Rolling over with no shortage of pain, Sebastian looked up to see a brown haired man staring down at him, face etched with what appeared to be concern, the man bent down and put an arm behind Sebastian's shoulders, hoisting him into a sitting position, "Let's get you up. You want some water?"

He nodded cautiously, feeling dizzy from suddenly being upright. Movement caught his eye, there was a little, blonde girl poking her head around a tree, the man followed his line of sight and motioned for the girl to come closer, she was understandably hesitant, "This is Charlotte, I'm Miles."

Taking the offered bottle of water, Sebastian took in several large gulps before responding, "Sebastian… Bass," he extended his free hand, nodding a thanks to Miles when he shook it and even offering a smile to the little Charlotte when she wrapped her little hand around one of his fingers.

Seeing how vulnerable the guy was, Miles felt like extending an olive branch, he was good at reading people and this one just seemed down on his luck, unlike others he had come across, he didn't have the creepiness factor, there was just sadness, and he looked like he'd taken a pretty bad beating, Miles couldn't leave him like that, "Look, we've not got much, some food, medical supplies, but it looks like you're in a tight spot, so I'm willing to help a brother out."

Bass looked at the pair with unease, he wasn't getting a particularly bad vibe but he couldn't remember the last time he'd met someone so… Normal. It seemed too good to be true.

Miles sighed, rolling his eyes, "You can be a stubborn ass abou-"

Suddenly, Charlotte poked him in the shoulder aggressively, grunting a little with the effort, "Don't say that word!"

"What word?" He winced and rubbed where she had prodded him, feigning injury.

Staring at the ground, she shuffled her feet awkwardly, "Ass."

"There, now you said it," Miles chuckled, tickling her playfully in the ribs before turning his attention back to Sebastian, "We're not bad people, we just wanna help."

Hours later, the trio were huddled around a campfire, munching on bowls of mushed up beans. Miles had checked over Sebastian's wounds a little before dark, cleaning up the more serious ones and deeming him fit to fight another day, something Bass struggled to be entirely happy about.

He watched with amusement as Charlotte played with a worn and shredded doll on the other side of the fire, such innocence warmed his heart. Not taking his eyes off her, he questioned Miles, "She yours?"

"As good as," He turned to Miles then, his eyes pleading for more information, "Her mom and dad died… I couldn't walk away."

The shuffling and playful noises Charlotte had previously been making ceased, the men looked over to find her staring at them, her glistening, blue eyes reflecting the emotional hurt she was still holding onto inside. It was still fresh in her memory, the raid on the camp they'd been staying at, her mom had died immediately, a shot to the head was hard to survive, but her dad held on, he couldn't breathe and her little hands couldn't stop the bleeding from the wound across his chest.

Miles found her a couple hours later, soaked in blood and in shock. It was still fresh in his memory too, he had only seen horror like that in the movies.

"Time for bed, sweetheart, go get your blankie," He cooed softly, watching her with a heavy heart as she ruffled through his bag for her bedding, "You might as well rest your head too, buddy, I can take watch and you can decide what you're doing in the morning."

Lying down next to Charlotte, Bass pulled the blanket, on loan from Miles, up to his face, cocooning himself in its warmth.

Watching her watching him, he stuck his tongue out, making her eyes crinkle with glee and supressed laughter. The fire danced in those heavy eyes, gradually, her lids dropped and her thumb fell from her mouth as she nodded off.

Bass felt his body relax for the first time in months. He was warm, well fed, and safe, he had missed this, had forgotten what it felt like, he could get used to it.

A few weeks later…

In his heart, Bass had decided to stay the moment Miles and Charlotte offered to help him; he wasn't going to waste the rare and good fortune. Their kindness had given him hope for humanity, and for himself, and their family dynamic fascinated him, he had missed the strength that having a family gave him, he wanted to be a part of it.

He taught Miles how to hunt better, received daisy chains from Charlotte almost daily, and felt his confidence grow, feeling less afraid whenever they encountered other people and was more at ease when he was left alone for a while.

So he was cool with the idea of looking after Charlotte while Miles went hunting, he wouldn't be gone long and they hadn't seen anyone else for days.

It was an incredibly hot day, even the shade of the trees gave no relief, Charlotte wanted her hair tying up, complaining that it was making her back itchy and sweaty. Bass tried his best to do a braid, settling with something that didn't resemble it in the slightest, he hadn't had to do anything like that for a very long time, but Charlotte seemed content.

She spent the afternoon pottering around their camp, off in her own imaginary world, occasionally calling on Bass to be her knight in shining armour or play doctor to her dolly, he obliged happily, glad of the distraction from the heat, but eventually it got the better of both of them and they found themselves dozing off.

Distant but piercing screams woke Bass up a little while later, his heart stopped when he noticed that Charlotte, who had previously been tucked into the crook of his arm, was missing. Frantically, he grabbed the gun, still with its one bullet, from its hiding place and charged through the bushes and branches in the direction of the little girl's cries.

Crashing onto the scene noisily, he got there just as a large, bearded man was about to put a bag over Charlotte's head, she screamed again, "'Bastian! 'Bastian, help!"

Her tears broke his heart; he raised the gun shakily, praying to a God he wasn't sure he believed in that the inevitable would be avoidable, his voice was low, dangerous, "Let her go."

Charlotte whimpered again, the man spun around to her and raised his hand; it never reached its destination. A single shot rang out and Beardy face planted the ground, blood pouring out of the back of his head.

Bass stiffened, a cold chill running down his spine, in spite of the high temperatures, as it dawned on him that he had squeezed the trigger, he had ended a man's life, he had killed someone.

He felt tiny hands tug his on his outstretched arms and he threw the gun to the floor, dropping to his knees in front of the little girl he had just become a murderer for, he could hear Miles shouting for them some distance away.

Wiping some blood spatter from her cheeks with his thumbs, Bass cupped her face in his hands, his voice was strained, choked, "I'm sorry you had to see that… I…," the words caught in his throat, there was so much strength in her eyes, courage that she was sending his way, bravery that pumped through him along with the last of the adrenaline, "I am never going to let anyone hurt you, okay?"

She nodded with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, pulling one of his hands away and gripping his finger with her own small hand, like she had done when they'd first met.

Charlotte had seen a lot of bad things in her short life, she wasn't completely unfazed but she had learned that there was no point being afraid anymore, bad things were the norm now, they happened all the time. She just needed a little help when bad things happened to her.

So they had an understanding, she would give him strength and he would give her protection, and the occasional lopsided plait.

"Charlie?!" Miles burst through the bushes, so out of breath that he almost collapsed; his eyes were wild as he spotted the body on the ground, "What the hell happened?"

Charlotte wasn't stupid, she was well aware that Sebastian would get in trouble for falling asleep, so she decided to leave that part out, giving Bass's finger a squeeze, hopefully warning him to keep schtum, "I wandered off, I'm sorry."

Miles knelt down and brought her in for a suffocating hug, eyeing Bass over her shoulder, he looked a little pale and confused but otherwise, he was okay, "I'm sorry man, I should've watched better."

Standing up again, Miles shook his head, "No, don't worry, I know how sneaky she can be," stroking her cheek with the back of his hand, he smirked down at her but the worry lines were still there, "She's safe now, that's the main thing."

They both looked down at the body, blood boiling with anger at the thought of him hurting Charlotte, or worse. Miles picked her up protectively, she was unsurprisingly light for her age, food being in short supply these days, even shorter in the place they'd been calling home for the past couple weeks, the forests were the first target for pretty much everyone, the game being plentiful and easy at first, now though, they were lacking.

They walked in silence for a while but there was a niggle that Miles just couldn't ignore anymore, "We've gotta do something, Bass. It's chaos, no kid should have to grow up in this, there's got to be other people out there wanting the same thing, safety, a normal life, and I bet if they wanted it enough, they'd fight for it too. Gotta stamp out the bad to get the good, right?"

Bass nodded with understanding, reliving the moment the bullet went flying into the scumbag's skull, he didn't feel so bad about it now, it had kept Charlotte safe. The man was just one of millions that needed to be stomped out, and Charlotte was one of the dwindling millions that needed help, needed protection, unite those people and you have yourself a peaceful civilisation.

It made sense, even if the lines were a little blurry; the end result would be worth it, surely?

"I'm with you, brother."

So, we all know where that leads! Thinking of doing a little epilogue of what the future holds for our favourite trio, but it'll probably quickly turn into another multi chapter Charloe fic, knowing me. We shall see... For now though, I hope you enjoyed it!