Dixons Little Shifter (Daddy Daryl Dixon)

Chapter 3: The Hunter becomes the hunted

Luna didn't realise that she was holding out hope of finding Sophia's group, and feeling slightly empty of the prospect that Sophia was now like herself. Alone and Lost. The in-between stage of not knowing if your group is alive. While Sophia wondered how they could leave her all alone, a feeling of abandonment strong in her chest.

The 2 girls ventured further into the dense forest, the towering trees casting eerie shadows all around them. Luna took the lead, her small frame moving gracefully amidst the underbrush. Meanwhile, Sophia struggled to keep up, her sneakers tripping over fallen branches.

Luna turned to Sophia with a mischievous gleam in her ocean blue eyes. Her ears twitching and tail flicking realising that a deer trial laid ahead. She had shown Sophia a few different tracks while they were hunting food and she wanted to see if Sophia would recognise them.

"Guess what, Sophia! Time for tracking," Luna said, her voice carrying a playful tone.

"Look at these? D'you know what they are?" Sophia squinted at the ground; her brows furrowed in concentration. "Um...they look like...deer tracks? They're in a straight line, like it's walking." Branches had been broken and snapped in its tracks, from looking herself, Luna had gathered that the tracks were fresh.

Recognising the area as they travelled closer to the stream, following the deer's trial, Luna after a while couldn't help but notice faint footsteps following where they had travelled previously. Faint to her eyes, and probably not noticeable to humans. She slowed her pace, studying the prints carefully. Who could it be? Someone part of Sophias group? The crossbow man? Or someone more sinister like the men she had encountered earlier. She could tell whoever made these footprints was still alive, the walkers prints were generally noticeable and dragged the earth with it. A deep panic set in her stomach, Luna decided to keep this information to herself, not wanting to alarm Sophia.

"Hey, Luna," Sophia called out, pointing ahead. Luna's head picked up, her eyes following Sophias grubby finger. "I think the deer went back towards the stream!"

Luna smiled and patted Sophias hand that still clutched the raggedy doll. She was proud of her friend and how fast Sophia was learning. "Good, you go."

Sophia took the lead, her head held high, and her pace brisk. Pushing past the undergrowth, Luna couldn't help but grin. Her friend had become more confident with each passing moment, and that was the only thing Luna wanted for her.

Luna could hear the stream trickling in the distance and the heartbeat of the doe as it grazed in the water. Luna grabbed onto Sophia's wrist, stopping her in their tacks. She knew, in order to catch the deer, she would have to be in her Shifter form. The deer would be too large and quick for her to take out in her human form.

She had yet to shift in front of Sophia, and she was unaware of how she would react. In all fairness she had yet to shift in front of a human. It was a top rule that must be abide by in her pack.

Luna turned around to look at Sophia, her expression serious and her tone soft.

"Sophia, ya gotta trust me, Okay?" Sophia nodded her head, her expression curious for her young friend. She wanted to warn Sophia, she didn't want her to run away from her. Her mother had always told her that humans fear the unknown and will want to hurt something that is not normal. Luna hoped Sophia did not feel that way.

Luna stepped away from her, Sophia watched, unsure of what was to come. Luna stripped down removing her clothes. A few scars littered Lunas torso, from an earlier encounter with some not so nice men. Cut marks from what Sophia had garnered. Sophias eyes softened recognising them as similar to her own that used to litter her body from her own father.