-Little hands-

"God I hate this."

"I know, it sucks but let's pull through."

Despite the long walk, my ears were more sore than my feet from the sound of nothing. I constantly anticipated an attack. It had to be from somewhere, that fear that latched onto me so ruthlessly. My rifle, while slung over my back, seemed to weigh a ton more than it did as the day wore by. Dark buildings loomed over our group, casting a sinister shadow.

"Alright ladies, when we get back, I'll whip up some muffins. What do you all say?" Springfield's delicious food was the only motivator to not flop over onto the pavement of the road. We all gave a weak cheer.

"Hey Auntie, you got anything leftover to eat?" I called out. BAR slouched her neck and rolled her head to face me.

"I'm not that old, kid. And no I don't have anything, my gun is heavy, okay?"

M14 snickered at BAR's reply. "Yeah yeah, Auntie needs to put meat on her frame. Hey Rand, why don't you eat that thing you've been saving?"

I recoiled slightly at her suggestion. "No, it's important, I'm saving it. Also my name isn't Rand, if you're too lazy to say my name, don't say it." M14 grinned. "As you wish, Garand." There was silence following that brief discussion, until Spring raised her hand to signal our group to stop.

"Wha-" M14 was cut off by my hand clamping over her mouth.

"Contact! Rebels in the building North of us."

Bullets tore apart a burnt out car beside me. Before I could raise my rifle, BAR grabbed my uniform collar and dragged me behind an empty bus. Glass exploded above our heads, sending a cascade of shards raining down onto us. I leaned my rifle around the corner of the vehicle, and aimed at a man in the building. A cloth covering his face hid his features, but it was still enough for me to see.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, PING!

With 5 targets downed, I hurriedly fumbled with my pouch to free an en-bloc clip. I pushed the clip into the rifle and set my sights on another target. From the building behind me, I could hear the sound of M14 and Spring's rifles firing shot after shot. I fired a few rounds towards some muzzle flashes that I spotted. Pulling the pin of a grenade, I stepped out and coiled my arm back to throw it. A bullet knocked my helmet off, forcing me to carelessly toss the explosive and dive back into cover. The grenade exploded, and I hit the ground brutally before blacking out.

What I can only assume to be close to half an hour passed.

"Hey, hey, the guns stopped."

BAR was shaking my shoulders gently. I sat up painfully and massaged the side of my head. "Oh thank god, you're up." Cried out M14. She threw herself onto me and I choked slightly. "T-thanks." I squeaked.

"There's people exiting the building."

Springfield pointed towards the building entrance opposite to us. Their worn clothing hung in tatters around their thin bodies, and they held their weapons above their heads in submission. Their face covers were down, revealing young, yet hardened children.

"They're just kids!"

I couldn't believe what I was witnessing. One by one, they filed out of the front doors. I got up and followed my team as they moved to meet the children. Their faces, despite being that of kids, were slim and hollowed. They appeared malnourished and scared. I looked to Spring for instructions. "What do we do with them?" Springfield pondered my question for several moments before saying "Well, they're children. We can't kill them."

I stepped forward, and stood before one of the rebels. It was a girl, no more than 12 years old. She was dressed in military clothing like our own, except hers was older and falling to pieces.

"Are you frightened?" I asked

I extended my arm towards the girl. She took it and glanced up at me. I could scarcely see her deep blue eyes beneath her oversized cap. Her tiny body trembled and her rifle fell to the ground as she ran and hugged my leg. I could feel her little hands grasp around me and tremble.

"Shhhh, don't worry. We'll figure something out."

I dropped my bag down and removed a biscuit from it. The biscuit was wrapped in a paper with delicate details around the edges. I unwrapped it and offered it to the girl with a smile. Hesitantly, she took it.

"You have such beautiful little hands." I remarked. "They should be gripping a pen or a book, not a gun." I looked down at the girl's discarded rifle in disgust. "Such little hands…" I murmured.

"Come on! Let's go, Garand!" I could hear Auntie calling for me. The children followed in a pack behind the rest of my echelon, leaving myself and the girl. I took her hand softly and began to walk.

"We're going somewhere safer, okay?"

The girl nodded slowly. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she started to sob uncontrollably.

"Let's go then."