Are We Alive?

Twenty-Two: Lungwort

Lungwort–Thou art my life

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Rin had forgotten why exactly he'd become Sachi's father in the first place, but the past twenty-four hours had been a rude wake-up call.

"Please, Rin. She's the future. So raise her to be the future we need! Raise her to be strong, yet kind-hearted and caring like you are. Raise her to survive in this world. Raise her to lead humanity into a New World one day."

It was too soon, Rin couldn't start so early.

He needed to.

After what had happened this morning, he knew he needed to. He just wished he could give Sachi a little more time to be a carefree baby.

From how much of an understanding of this world she seemed to have, though, it was much too late for that. Rin bit his lip to keep from making any noise as tears slid silently down his face and he fought the whimper rising in his throat.

She was so small, so young. Sachi was such a bright and happy presence in his life that Rin had difficulty swallowing the realization that he needed to start teaching the little girl how to survive.

Clearly, the kid understood this world possibly better than Rin did. She understood what needed to be done in certain situations.

He'd start teaching her how to defend herself tomorrow, he decided as he sunk into the chair in the corner of the nursery, shoulders shaking as he sobbed as quietly as possible to keep from waking anyone in his group and disrupting their much- needed sleep.

§~•~§~•~§

Rin had been on a run with Sachi that morning. It shouldn't have been dangerous, they'd long since taken care of the corpses that had lingered in the neighborhood since they'd decided to stay in the house for a while.

They'd had to stay the night and Sachi had happily curled up with Daddy the whole night until sunrise. Rin had been woken up by the clicking of a gun safety being turned off. His eyes fluttered open and he blinked a few times, sure he was still dreaming when he saw what was happening in front of him.

First, there was a man he didn't know standing over him and Sachi, wearing a jean jacket, jeans, cowboy boots, and a red baseball cap, and pointing a handgun at them.

Then, there was Sachi, his perfect little ball of happiness and sunshine, holding his knife, pointing it at the man.

Rin blinked and rubbed at his eyes to make sure he was seeing right.

"That's a big knife you got there, lil lady. Mind puttin' it down?" The man requested lightheartedly, like he wasn't pointing a loaded fucking gun at a teenaged boy and a four-year-old when they'd woken up.

"No." Sachi answered sternly. "Strangers are bad. Knife stays up." 

Rin didn't know whether to have a heart attack or be proud. He settled for de-escalating the situation first.

"Go away and we'll leave too. Fair deal." Sachi offered before he could even get a word in. Rin gaped at the near-four year old. She was striking a deal to talk down a potentially dangerous man with a gun. Rin still wasn't sure this was actually happening.

"I wanted that there sword. It's a pretty piece, ain't it? Pretty useful to me. Won't draw more of the dead to me if I use a blade instead of a gun." The man tried reasoning. The toddler wasn't budging.

"No. Family sword is mine one day. Find knife like this one." She denied. The man himself looked positively stressed that a small child was not only holding a knife at him, but winning an argument and offering a totally plausible alternative for him to take.