Chapter Four: The Gaze

Grabbing the bags that had previously been packed by Lysette, Penny and herself guardian began making their way across what use to be Dobeson County Marlyand, a once calm and peaceful home for Lysette and Penny, had now become another disaster that had to be left behind.

" Do you have any idea where we should go next..? " Penny asked, saddened that they had to leave but knowing full well the consequences of what could have happened had they stayed. At the same time, the adrenaline of the actions Penny had taken, left her feeling shaking with confidence. This had been the first time she had actually gotten to take any form of life. But it had to be done, or maybe it didn't? Had Penny not attacked them, Lysette would have massacred them. Though, if they had left the three men to choose their fate, perhaps they would have lived. This was a moral quandary that Penny tried her best to find escape from for the time being.

" I guess we will keep heading south and see where that takes us. I know of a few towns along the way, but I have no idea what shape they are in. We won't know until we get there" Lysette answered as she did her best to focus on the small hunting trail in front of them.

Lysette had decided it would be best to stay off of main roads simply to avoid any form of confrontation. But this measure could only last for so long, and she knew this. However, Penny had proven herself in combat now. She had been willing to take action, decisively, without hesitation and that meant that Lysette's training had been successful. And even though, Penny was still young, doing whatever it takes to survive would be a lesson that Penny needed to learn, all whilst acting with a calm and collected head, which Penny displayed today.

" I am proud of you, ya know? " Lysette said to Penny who looked over to her with a smile of admiration. " You did what had to be done. And you did so, without overdoing it. Your parents would be very proud of you" Lysette assured Penny who smiled even wider. " I am...well, I'm glad that they know their little girl can take care of herself I suppose" Penny answered, the smile slowly fading away. " But I'm not sure that taking life is always going to be the best action. I feel like, if we had let them go, perhaps they would have just ran away and by then we could have been gone" Penny confessed her concerns, though Lysette had an answer already prepared. Hoping that it wouldn't, but knowing that it could, Lysette turned to Penny and placed her hand on her shoulder. " Kid, sometimes you have to make decisions in the moment. You can't spend your life regretting your calls and decisions. You just need to learn from them. They could have ran, but if they did, they could have told others and they could have improved their next tactic and the next time, we wouldn't be so fortunate. Sure, we were vastly more prepared than they were, but that will not always be the case. I can assure you of that" Lysette knew that she had to do her best to keep Penny confident. Any form of self doubt would lead to her downfall, even if it may have been morally incorrect.

" I understand that" Penny agreed, holding her own thoughts to herself. Despite her own feelings, she knew that Lysette meant well. She wanted to keep them alive, whatever it took. And she dared not challenge Lysette's wisdom.

" If we do find a place, we will have to be more careful. We have to make sure that we don't cause to much noise" Lysette muttered to herself, deep her own thoughts. " Well you couldn't get much more remote than we were before" Penny pointed out which snapped Lysette back to reality. " Yeah.." She mumbled as she stepped over a fallen tree branch, Penny hopping over the branch behind her.

" We need to be even more remote. I'm thinking we should find somewhere in the mountains.." Lysette's voice getting lower and lower, almost seeming to hope that Penny wouldn't hear her.

" I thought we were going to stop at the towns.." Penny was a little shocked by Lysette's sudden change. It seemed like something was bothering her now, which Penny assumed was the paranoia catching up with her. Though she knew she could not calm Lysette down, she never could when she got like this.

" Stop challenging me" Lysette barked at Penny and stopped in her own tracks, turning her head to Penny, her eyes glowing a deep red color. This was both a tone and look that Penny had never experienced before with her guardian.

" I'm..not.." Penny tried to explain but Lysette seemed to want to hear nothing of her reasoning. " I am doing the best that I can. I think we should go to the mountains, we will be isolated there! " Lysette growled, which only increased Penny's anxiety.

" If that's what you think is best then I am okay with that" Penny said quietly, her voice slightly shaken now. No matter how hard she tried, Penny couldn't look away from Lysette's gaze. It was captivating, but mostly, it was horrifying.

Without another word, Lysette nodded, as her eyes changed back to their original color and continued walking forward and Penny followed behind, now with a new fear, her Guardian.