CH 3: When it's Settled

Rick found Carl when he looked up at the watchtower. He was leaning forward over the rail staring out in the distance while Glenn stood next to him, talking. After a moment Glenn looked down and waved, and Rick waved back.

"Any sign of trouble?!" Rick called up.

"None so far!" Glenn yelled back.

Rick gave a nod as Glenn turned to make his way down. Carl stayed where he was looking pensive from where Rick could tell.

Glenn walked over to him, his brown Capuchin monkey dæmon trailing behind him. When the man came to a stop, the dæmon easily scaled his body like a tree and hopped atop his shoulder.

"I don't mind taking over the watch, and giving you guys a break."

"Actually I spotted Carl up there and thought I'd keep him company," Glenn explained. "I think he's feeling, out of sorts."

"What do you mean?"

Glenn looked away, leaving Rick to wonder if he was just trying to figure out how to say it or how to avoid saying it.

"Go on Glenn," his little dæmon piped up. "We've gone through this ourselves once."

"Right Sungo. I guess he's kind of troubled with his dæmon."

Rick looked up to see the red-tailed hawk perched on the rail next to his son. Her sharp gaze was directed in the same way as Carl's. Shira was also looking up, exhibiting Rick's concern for them.

"I'll have a chat with him."

"Yeah, I tried talking to him. Don't think I really got through."

"Parenthood's a little more involved," Rick declared. For a fraction of a minute he thought of Lori.

"Right, but anytime you need me for something, I'll do what I can." Glenn started to walk away, but Rick stopped him.

"Actually there is. You can give me your opinion on our new inmate."

"Wha, you mean Michonne?" Rick nodded and Glenn shifted on the spot. "I'd take her over Merle."

"I figured you'd say that, but that means losing Daryl."

"Yeah…sucks," said Sungo as she leaned forward.

"We might end up losing Merle and Peggi, if they ever go at each other," Shira said aloud, earning a partially annoyed look from Rick.

"I would pay to see them battle it out," said Sungo mischievously.

Glenn smirked as he held back a laugh while Rick ignored to two joking dæmons.

"Anyways, what's your feelings on her?"

Glenn gave a sigh.

"I know a lot of the group feel kind of, weird about her, but, I think she could help us."

"She is handy with that sword of hers." Rick tossed his gaze up at Carl once more. "I better deal with this."

Glenn gave him an encouraging smile as Rick headed up the watchtower.

"Got a plan?" Shira asked as they drew in closer.

"Just go by ear," he muttered.

As he approached, Carl didn't stir.

"Don't spot any trouble out there do you?" Rick asked as he took Glenn's place against the railing. Shira moved to Rick's other side to be closer to Carl's dæmon who also didn't take notice of their arrival.

"No," Carl said after a minute. He kept a steady forward gaze. Rick followed it and released a sigh.

"I know things can get kind of, difficult and stressful around here, but if something's wrong I really need you to tell me. We can't do things alone, not in this world."

He looked to see if his words were registering while Shira stood on her hind legs and rested her paws on the rail to address the hawk.

"Kairi, you know I'm here for you. We've always been a team, all of us. Is something going on with you?" The hawk shifted slightly but didn't break her gaze. "I can help. We can."

"Carl?" Rick prodded.

Carl leaned away from the railing just as the hawk took to the air. It swooped and landed on Carl's shoulder as a mouse. Shira lowered herself back to the floor and stared up at it.

"I don't know," Carl finally confessed. "I just…it's frustrating sometimes. Especially…I mean Kairi is…"

"We want to mature," Kairi spoke up. "We need to."

Rick crouched over the railing as he discovered a semblance of the issue. He remembered going through a similar phase when Shira was still unsettled. There had been a point where he couldn't wait for it to happen; as if her settling would show him who he truly was as a man. In his early years, Shira had bounded after him as a dog most of the time, then even a hawk like Carl's had been.

Rick looked down at her and thought about how happy he'd been when she settled as a wolf. But he soon learned that it didn't mean he didn't possess other qualities, or some weaknesses. He looked out at the walkers roaming below. He couldn't imagine how different it was now for kids to grow up in this world. They had to be ready to survive and fight. He wondered if such a change in the world also inspired them to want to quickly grow up to handle it.

"You don't need to, at least not now," Shira insisted. "Just be patient."

"We've been patient enough."

"I want to be better," Carl said as he finally broke his gaze and looked back at Rick who laid a hand on his shoulder.

"You already are. A settled dæmon's not going to change that. It means you've come into your own, but it doesn't mean this world's gonna get any easier for you. If anything I envy you."

Kairi crawled down halfway, then jumped and landed on the floor as an ocelot who faced Shira with a swaying tail. Shira nosed the cat in comfort.

"Silly girl, this is the time of your youth, you should be enjoying it," Shira told her.

"Why?" Carl asked his father.

"Because, you're still young. Even though you've had to take on some tough responsibilities, you haven't had to do the things I've done, or rather, will have to do. When such times come, I think you'll be ready then. It'll all be settled." Carl bowed his head for a moment. "Guess it's just a natural desire to want to grow up fast. I wanted to also."

Carl gave a nod while Rick turned his attention to the ocelot who was pawing at Shira. After a moment, Shira curled around her.

"What do you think she'll be?" Carl asked as he looked down at her.

"Whatever she becomes, doesn't matter," he said as he patted his back.

"Maybe she'll be like mom's," Carl said after a pause.

Rick smiled softly as he thought of his late wife. Her dæmon had been a roebuck. How he missed his time with Lori. He missed talking with her and watching as a younger Carl ran about in their front yard, pretending to chase Kairi in various forms. He glanced down at Shira who met his eyes and knew she was thinking about the times she had frolicked around and snuggled with Lori's dæmon Barlow.

"Maybe," said Rick. "Or maybe, that'll be Judith's dæmon."

"Those things make it harder," Carl muttered as he looked back at the walkers.

"Yeah, a flying dæmon would make it easier."

As if on cue, the ocelot jumped up, instantly shifting back into her hawk form, and landed on the rails.

"But," Rick continued, "either way, we all still have to prepare. And most of us don't have birds."

"A wolf is much cooler," Shira said as she stretched up to the railing again. Both Carl and Rick laughed.

They stood in comfortable silence for a moment, before Rick thought about bringing up Michonne to gage his son's thoughts on her, however, he didn't want to break the moment between them.

"Well, I'll leave you to it."

He turned, ready to head back down.

"What do you think of her?" Carl suddenly asked. Rick turned back around and Shira twitched her ears.

"Michonne?"

"Yeah."

Rick moved back over to him.

"I been asking around, seeing how people feel."

"And?"

"So far, no one's really sure what to think, except maybe Merle. I'm not quite sure what to think."

Carl gave a nod and began stroking Kairi's feathery wings.

"What kind of person do you have to be, to have your dæmon settle as a jaguar?" he questioned.

Rick thought about it for a minute.

"The kind you have to watch out for…or maybe the kind we need." He straightened up. "Suppose it's time to find out."

"I think it'd be pretty cool if Kairi was a jaguar," Carl stated as he looked out across the field.

"Certainly would draw attention," Rick answered. He gave him a pat on the back before turning to head down. "Watch yourself up here."

Once Rick reached the ground, he set his destination for Michonne, but Shira came to a stop. He looked around and saw her gazing up at the watchtower.

He too looked up to see that Kairi had shifted into a wolf not unlike Shira. He smiled as he watched Carl scratch her behind the ear much like he did for his own wolf.

Glenn's dæmon's name was based on the name Seung which according to a site means "rise" "ascent", like how Glenn's character seemed to rise. As for Carl, I wanted his dæmon to still be unsettled, this way we see the spectrum of someone with a settled dæmon, someone like Judith with a dæmon unformed, and someone whose dæmon was unsettled. I also kind of think Carl comes more into his own around the Alexandria time or a bit before that. So here, he's not yet mature. I think in the book dæmons settle when they hit puberty. I can't recall how old Car is when he was at the prison but either way I didn't want his dæmon settled yet.

Like I said this is a short story and I'm kind of hoping to wrap it up next chapter. So keep reading and reviewing.