Hi! So this is a redo of my story No Such Thing As Redemption but it will have the same basis so I hope you enjoy it! This is also when the Van der Linde gang was starting to form.
Ada woke that morning, her ice blue eyes adjusting to the bright light appearing through the window. She glanced to where her siblings, Dakota and Flint, slept; they weren't there.
Ada leapt out of her bed and tumbled out of their room. She could smell her mother preparing food. It was probably for later as it took forever to prepare. When Ada was in the kitchen her mother was humming Oh Suzanna to herself.
Her mother's loose blond hair and the freckles on her face, the nice dress she wore, and a calm aurora she carried around with her.
"Darling," Ada's father's voice spoke from the direction of her parents room.
Ada left them to talk to go find her siblings, she went outside. They lived near a town called Valentine, Ada has been there a few times, she was still quite young. Ada was only seven.
Dakota was eight and Flint was six. Ada glanced around, she heard small excited squeals coming from the barn they had behind the house. Ada smiled and rushed towards them.
Dakota and Flint were wrestling in the barn when Ada came through.
"Oh hi Ada!" Flint greeted when he heard her enter.
"Hi Flint!" Ada returned the greeting happily.
Dakota glared at Ada, they had never really gotten along. Dakota's loose blonde hair was a lot like her mother's and Flint's blonde hair was like their mother's too. Ada on the other hand had bright red hair like her father's, it was curly so she mainly kept it in a braid.
"What shall we do?" Ada asked.
"Dunno," Flint answered.
Something made the air burst into screams and crackle, the ground rumbled. Ada blinked and turned around. The barn door had closed and Dakota pushed past Ada and opened the barn door.
The house had been engulfed in flames. Ada gasped. What? How? There was nothing there to explode! Ada thought, horrified.
Dakota dashed out of the door, Ada and Flint followed on her heels. Their parents were nowhere to be seen. The flames crackled and roared and Dakota pulled Ada and Flint close.
What now? Their parents were gone… instantly. Ada glanced around, spotting men with green handkerchiefs and gray coats riding off, they had a smug expression Ada guessed.
Rage and grief built up inside her and Ada had to hold back a wail of anger and loss. Dakota moved Ada and Flint away from the house and towards Valentine. Ada felt tears streaming down her face, she didn't attempt to stop it.
Does Dakota know where she's going? Ada thought to herself but Ada didn't question her older sister.
The town came into view and Dakota herded them into the barn, not many people nor animals went inside so they were safe there. Ada sat on a haybale, crying softly to herself. Flint's face was wet with tears and so was Dakota's.
What now? Ada didn't dare speak that aloud but the question lingered. Ada turned onto her side and gazed out the small barn window, the sun was going down beyond the train station.
Ada closed her eyes, she didn't want to stay awake any longer. That night she had no dreams, just black.
(One year later)
Ada blinked open her eyes. They were in the abandoned Blackwater blacksmith, Ada and her siblings had traveled away from Valentine due to not wanting to be near the memories.
It was hard traveling when they were so young and it took a few days but they had managed. How? They would go into peoples houses when it was dark and took food, did Ada feel guilty about it? Yes she did in fact but Ada always regarded it as they did what they had to do.
Flint was still asleep, snoring softly. Ada was now eight years, Dakota was nine, and Flint was seven. Ada and Dakota had gotten on better terms while they were running from their memories.
The lawmen would sometimes recognize them but that didn't really matter. The siblings would split up and confuse them. Dakota was staring out a window, her hazel eyes clouded, she looked deep in thought.
Ada's stomach rumbled. She walked quietly up to Dakota and tapped her on the shoulder, Dakota seemed to jump out of her skin.
"We need to get somethin' to eat," Ada murmured.
Dakota nodded and shook Flint gently who snorted in surprise and got up after a moment. When they walked out into the bright morning sun, the town was quite quiet. Ada guessed everybody was just getting up.
Dakota normally let Ada take the lead on this stuff for a reason Ada didn't understand, so Ada led the way to the General Store. Was this going to be quite risky? Yes.
Ada swiftly walked towards the store, semi- crouched.
"How are we going to get in?" Flint's questioning voice broke the silence.
Ada shrugged. They had no guns, a lock pick? Potentially… Ada glanced around, no hair pin in sight. Ada blinked, they kept a chest outside the barber shop for an odd reason.
She darted towards it and opened it. Ha! Yes! Ada thought, triumph surging through her as she spotted a fancy hair pin inside the chest. She ran back to the door and began to pick at it.
Flint and Dakota stood on watch. The door flung open and Ada smiled and crouched and walked inside, Dakota and Flint following.
They grabbed some canned goods, fresh goods, and bread. When they had all they wanted they went back outside and closed the door behind them.
"Stealing are we?" a new voice spoke when Ada had closed the door.
Ada froze. She eventually turned to see a broad shouldered main with black hair, black vest, black coat and striped black pants. He had gold chains dangling down from his vest and some rings.
Ada gulped as she noticed he was armed. He didn't look like a lawman but what if he was? Ada straightened, she needed to be strong!
"S-so what if we are?" she challenged, her first word in a stutter but she forced her fear down.
The man chuckled, "Do you think I'm gonna tell some folk?"
Ada looked the man up and down and crept a little closer, "You are?"
The man laughed once more, "No, I ain't. I like your spirit. Do you have parents I could take you to? I don't think they'd like you out here."
Ada felt a pang of grief pierce her heart and shook her head sadly. The man blinked.
"Well would you like to come with me?" he asked.
Flint looked a little intrigued but weary, Dakota looked alarmed, Ada felt a little excited and weary.
"My apologies, the name is Dutch van der Linde. I just want to help you have sorta a home," Dutch soothed.
Dakota looked at Ada and Flint and then back to Dutch then nodded. Dutch smiled and helped Flint up onto the front of his horse, Ada was next and was put right behind Dutch and Dakota was behind Ada.
The man's horse was black with white feet. (Note: Dutch wouldn't have had the Count at this time since the Count wouldn't be alive to make it to the main story of rdr2.)
They rode out of Blackwater, Ada clung to Dutch tightly, she had never been on the back of a horse before.
They reached the outskirts of Blackwater, a small camp lay in front of us. Ada blinked. There was a lady with loose blond hair like Dakota's sat talking to another girl with brown curly hair.
Dutch slowed to a stop and hitched his black horse and helped Flint, Ada, and Dakota down. A black haired teenage boy was in the shadows of a tent, he looked scrawny and bedraggled. The boy looked up, his brown eyes sparking with interest.
A blond man came from a tent by a wagon and looked at Ada and her siblings with confusion and interest. He walked over to them. Dutch had dismounted and landed right beside Ada and her siblings.
When the blonde man approached, he looked to be maybe to be twenty-three while the boy by the tent appeared to be thirteen. Ada blinked at the blonde boy, he had gorgeous blue eyes and a black hat and a striped blue shirt and some worn black pants.
"Who is this, Dutch?" the blonde boy asked in a gruff voice.
"I never asked their names but new members potentially," Dutch answered, "Introduce yourselves to everyone. John, Annabelle, Bessie, Hosea, Susan!" Dutch's call sounded.
A slightly older man than Dutch appeared with another woman from the other side of the camp. They had a look of confusion on their faces. The boy from the tent stood and walked over to them.
Ada suddenly felt very frightened but pushed it away.
"We have new members, you lot should introduce yourselves first," Dutch told the now surrounding members.
The older man started, "I'm Hosea, this is my wife Bessie-" He pointed to the girl with curly brown hair and Bessie waved a greeting, "- and Annabelle-" the one with the loose hair smiled at them.
They went on with introductions and Ada learned the boy with the black hair was John and the boy with blonde hair was Arthur, and the older woman was Susan or Mrs. Grimshaw.
"Erm… I'm Ada.." Ada said after everyone had finished, "And this is Dakota and Flint."
Mrs. Grimshaw spoke next, "We don't have any tents for you yet but we will. Arthur and John will go get some supplies tomorrow. Until then you can sleep on a bedroll by the fire is that alright?"
Ada nodded and so did her siblings. They followed Mrs. Grimshaw to a nice fire.
Arthur was talking with John, watching them from a distance. Ada could tell they didn't trust her or her siblings.
Ada blinked at them, she hated being accused of being untrustworthy. She also got a good look at them. They were both very broad and imposing, muscular, Ada glanced to her siblings. They looked nothing like them, scrawny and bony.
She shrugged it off and sat on the ground, humming softly to herself as she stared at the fire. The memories of that tragic night one year ago came back to Ada and she shuddered and pushed the memory away.
Ada hadn't really thought about her parents death for the past year. She couldn't bring herself to…
She heard footsteps and immediately looked up to see Mrs. Grimshaw with three bowls of food. She gave each one of Ada and her siblings a bowl. Ada was grateful for the food and ate it quickly.
It wasn't the greatest but it certainly wasn't terrible. Ada thanked Mrs. Grimshaw and continued to munch on the stew.
By the time Ada was done it was dark. The stars above shined in a beautiful array. It was as if someone took a paintbrush and splashed the night sky. Arthur nor John had talked to her or her siblings that day but Ada didn't really mind.
This is my new home… Under the stars each night… traveling around with these new people, this should be nice, Ada thought, not taking her eyes off the stars as she laid in her bedroll beside the crackling fire.
Ada closed her eyes and let sleep overcome her.