(I'd like to know how you read me mind)
Charlotte looked up at her in surprise: had her face gotten so easy to read? She rushed a blank expression onto her face, and shrugged lightly. "I've settled down alone for a while, so I haven't been on the road long. But I think it'd be a welcome change…" If not for the situation.
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(lol! I'd like to know that too XD)
"Well, I hope it's a good thing for you. That traveling companion of yours strikes me as a little rough around the edges….how is he?"
"Rough around the edges, definitely. But competent, sweet, if a little instinctive. He's good."
Rebecca nodded approvingly, expertly arranging some sandwiches and wrapping them in cloth. "Lucky. I've heard Southerners can be quite dangerous sometimes. Where are you headed?"
At that, Charlotte hesitated, before going with a "I think it's best for everyone if I kept that between myself and Rick. You understand?" she asked gently.
Rebecca's smile disappeared and she stared at Charlotte for a moment, then went back to cooking. "Of course. I'm sorry to be nosy. Wherever you're going, I hope you get there in one piece." She picked up the packaged food and handed it over. "Here you go. It's not much, but it'll last you a day or two."
Charlotte would have apologized had she not herself known that it was best to keep quiet. She took the food with a grateful smile, and started walking back towards the doorway to where the men were stood.
Rick and Albert seemed to be deep in a debate about the best breed of work horse, but when Rick saw Charlotte coming he straightened. "All right, I guess we'll be off then. Thank-you, folks, for your hospitality."
"No, thank-you," Albert said, clapping Rick on the back and walking them out to the porch. "You helped us dodge a real bullet there. Safe travels now, and if you ever want to, you're welcome to swing by this way."
"Will keep that in mind," Charlotte told Albert with a weak wave. "Good luck. And take care of yourself, Rebecca!" Charlotte called.
"I will," Rebecca called. The two of them stood in the doorway and waved until they were quite a ways down the road.
"Well that was nice," Rick commented. "It always feels good to do a good deed for a stranger or two. I don't think we even spent that much time on the whole thing, so we didn't get set back very far."
Charlotte nodded. "Yes. Detour well done. Are we walking right past the town this time?"
"We can if you want, why?"
"No reason. Just making sure. We need to make good time."
Rick nodded. "Right. In that case we'd better just cut straight back to the road again, the town's sort of out of our way."
As they walked down the old road away from the farmhouses, the sky started to slowly become overcast, which meant that the afternoon light would fade much more quickly. Rick eyed the clouds for a while, then decided it didn't look like it was actually going to rain and kept going as usual. "I wonder how long it'll take that Deorn boy to find a new territory. If he doesn't learn how to hold his ground better, he might lose a lot more before he gets settled."
"He'll know for next time. Deorns easily learn from their mistakes, they've got excellent muscle memory."
They walked beneath the newly overcast sky, silent in meaning.
They traveled for a couple miles without saying much and without encountering any more obstacles. The river slowly peeled away from the road, taking the trees with it, until eventually they were surrounded by nothing but fields of wild grass and gently rolling hills. Only the occasional stream or the tangled remnants of a fence broke the monotony.
Then, Rick broke the silence rather abruptly. His voice was quiet and casual. "There's somebody followin' us a ways back. I'm pretty sure it's just one person."
(hey dusty tell me if I'm being too passive or something I feel like I'm letting you carry this whole rp)
"I thought something was off. Any idea as to who?" she responded in a low voice.
(No no, you're doing great ^^ Actually, please let me know any time you think I'm getting too controlling, I'm used to carrying rps so this is my modus operandi ^^; )
"Couldn't tell. They're being sneaky though, so I doubt they're friendly. Think we should stop and chat?"
(okay sure :)
"Let's keep going for now. If they got closer, or louder, or make themselves known, then we'll see."
Rick nodded, keeping one hand lightly rested on his gun.
After a while, it became clear that their follower was not going to make a move. They just kept passively trailing behind, but seemed to get bolder as time went by and didn't bother being as stealthy.
"It's four-legged," Rick muttered after a bit. "And pretty big."
She nodded. "Let's turn around. But don't make a move." She stopped walking, slowly turning sround.
Rick did the same, ready to pull out a weapon if necessary.
The creature following them was caught walking in plain sight along the edge of the road, frozen awkwardly mid-step. It was none other than the Deorn they'd driven off earlier.
Rick blinked. "What the–? Well that's not what I expected…"
Charlotte frowned, lowering herself slightly. "Hey!" she called carefully.
The Deorn paused for a long moment, then very slowly rose up, shifting as he did so. Soon a teenage boy stood where the pine marten had been, eyeing them warily from under his shaggy brown hair. He was wearing ordinary jeans and a jacket, and the only sign that he wasn't human were the small green scales lining either side of his face and neck.
"What do you want?" Rick asked, standing at his full height.
The Deorn avoided fully meeting his gaze. "Just…wanted to know who you guys were," he muttered.
"And the best way of doing that was following us?" Charlotte asked, voice getting quieter by the minute. "Are you injured?