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"HOW'S VI DOING?" Freya approached the pig pen where her father was shovelling away at a revolting pile of pig faeces. She had Judith in her arms, the baby was at the age where everything was exciting so she was currently waving her chubby fists at a rock, wriggling around in Freya's with a huge smile on her little face. "She coming on well?"
Rick gave a frustrated groan. "How many times? Don't. Name. The. Food."
"I didn't," Freya stated, shifting Judith onto her hip so she had a better grip on her. "Your son did. Just like the last two."
"Your brother has to stop getting attached to these things," Rick insisted, glancing down at the pig who wasn't moving very much at all. "I came by the cell last night, saw him-"
"Reading that comic book," Freya finished for him. "Yeah. That flashlight pisses me off, I sleep under the duvet now. I'm tempted to break it."
Rick chuckled softly. "Exactly how I felt waking up at four am to hear gunfire coming from your room every other morning."
"Hey, video games are beneficial," Freya argued. "And it wasn't every morning."
"It was. Your mother wanted to throw the thing out. I had to talk her out of it."
"Simpler times, huh?"
Rick reached over the fence to tickle Judith's stomach, evoking a delighted giggle from the baby. "I just hope we can give her some good memories too."
Freya bounced Judith gently. "We will."
"You didn't wake me up," Carl yelled, jogging across the field to reach them.
"'Cause I knew you were up all night reading comics with a flashlight," Rick told him.
Carl greeted Judith with a smile, and then his attention went straight to his pig. "What's up with Violet?"
Rick gave an exasperated sigh. "Carl, I told you not to name them. They're not piglets anymore. They're food."
"I just thought.." Carl's smile faded fast. "You know until..."
"Keep on naming them if you want," Freya told him, determined to put that smile back on his face. "I say we name the next one Rick- Rikki if it's a girl."
Rick frowned at Freya. "You're not helping."
"I didn't come here to help," Freya replied, flashing him a teasing grin. "I came here to annoy and I believe I've succeeded."
Rick couldn't help but return the grin. "Very much so."
Carl cleared his throat loudly, drawing the attention back to himself. His voice had recently broken and Freya found it quite terrifying. Her baby brother was becoming a man. Little Carl was in fact taller than her now, and it was quite humiliating. She hadn't grown more than an inch since she was twelve so the chances of her somehow having a sudden growth spurt seemed unlikely. "What's wrong with Vi- the food."
