Chapter 3
|ELIA|
|October 24th, 2010|
IT WAS A MATTER OF TIME before they would be forced to flee the camp, but they wouldn't miss it. It was make-shift at best and would be missed very little.
The Dixons hadn't really settled there. They built a small fire-pit, pulled out the grill-and-smoker along with the dual-zone ice chest, and set up their outdoor table and chairs.
Merle's tent could be taken down in a matter of minutes, the trailer and cocoon tent could be locked in place within a minute, and the slide-out went in within fifteen seconds.
Everyone was staring by the time they drove up; apprehension began to play upon their faces when they saw a suspiciously camp Merle.
Elia jumped out, closing the door behind her only to be ambushed by the kids all shouting for her. "You've all been good?" She asked and made sure each of them had nodded before pulling out four bars of their favorite candies and handing them over. "Go on then, go play."
"I'm gonna go help Merle take down his tent." Daryl told Elia before walking off with a bag tossed over each shoulder.
Elia gave a smile to Glenn as he approached with Rick and Shane. "Need any help?" He asked and she only shook her head.
She held out the large duffle to him with a smile. "Did anything happen while we were gone?" Elia asked and he shook his head taking the bag.
"Solana brought the kids a few slices of jerky, but she was only outside for a minute and only talked to Carol and Miranda." Glenn reported with a smile.
Elia nodded in acceptance, and she held out the bag of guns to Rick and Shane. "As promised. The truck is mine now." She told them and they nodded in agreement.
"Thanks." Rick said, but the two stayed to watch her conversation with Glenn.
Elia handed over another duffle bag. "That's for the kids. Boots, pants, sweaters and coats, snacks, and some hygiene supplies." She explained softly as Glenn held it tighter.
The group was curious and wondered if they'd do the same if the situation was reverse.
"Are you really leaving in a few days?" Glenn asked curiously with a hunt of worry.
"We haven't decided." Elia answered calmly as five children swarmed her. She hugged them tight and picked up the smallest two. "How has your morning gone?"
"It was so boring, Mama." Elara exaggerated with a pout.
"Yeah, daddy promised to take us hunting." Eliana agreed with a matching pout and wide eyes.
"Give us a few minutes and I promise to find us some rabbits." Elia promised causing the two to jump down and race towards their father. With a nod of her head, the triplets followed.
"Daryl's their father?" Lori asked curiously and it suddenly made sense. Elia is a Dixon and so are her children. "They don't look like him and I've never heard the triplets call him dad."
Elia looked at her and frowned, her eyes turning sad. Draco had been a good father, happy to have children with the woman he loved.
She looked at her children and smiled. All eyes followed hers and they watched the soft interaction between the seven around the tent that was being taken down.
"Daryl is my husband of eight years, we've been together for nine." Elia explained softly with a slight laugh. "My mother had blood-red hair and jade green eyes. My father had black hair and silver eyes."
"Stella is blonde and Selena has ice blue eyes." Amy observed curiously.
"They do." Elia said and walked away with answered the unspoken question. Draco was never a good topic when it came to her. He died when the triplets were two.
Elia deposited the bags into the storage room and used a few spells to send everything to the correct spot before she met up with her family outside.
Merle was climbing into the truck while Daryl was locking the cocoon tent and trailer into place. Stella was laying out the hunting packs. Selena was helping Elara strap her on while Solana was helping Eliana do the same.
"Is it safe to take the kids into the woods after the walker this morning?" Rick asked Elia suddenly, causing her to turn towards the group with a raise brow.
"My daughters can shoot a buck thirty meters away with pin-point accuracy." Elia answered dryly and chuckled at their disbelieving and impressed looks.
"We're having a fish fry; you don't need to hunt." Amy said to keep the peace.
Elia softened and gave the younger woman a kind smile. "We hunt every day for multiple reasons. The pelts will be needed in winter, the meat is good for the reserves, and to keep our skills sharp."
"It's around one in the afternoon, that leaves us at least five hours until sunset." Daryl said as he walked over with a pack he passed to Elia.
"He promised the girls a hunt." Elia stated with a smile as they raced over with excitement written over their faces. "We won't be going far from camp anyways."
"Have fun." Amy told the girls who all sported matching gear, outfits and fishtail braids.
"We will." Selena stated happily. "It's no deer like Dad promised, but maybe we'll get a few rabbits."
"We called dibs on the first blankets." Elara and Eliana stated in unison, sticking their tongues out at their older sisters.
"I called dibs on the black bear." Selena teased back with a smirk.
"I got the deer." Solana stated with a happy laugh as she avoided Stella who lunged.
"I wanted the deer." Stella complained with a pout before grinning widely. "I'll take the leopard."
"Now that that's sorted, ready your weapons. First kill gets the figurine." Elia announced as she notched an arrow in her longbow and waited until everyone had done the same. "We'll be back before dark."
The five children and two adults jogged lightly into the woods while the camp watched them go. Over the next hours, they glanced over occasionally waiting for them to return.
They weren't disappointed.
Elara and Eliana both carried a line of small animals. Elara had a dozen rabbits and three squirrels. Eliana had eleven rabbits and five squirrels.
Solana had five rabbits and three squirrels. Selena had ten rabbits and a squirrel. Stella had seven rabbits and five squirrels.
The triplets worked together to drag a tarp with three white-tail deer.
Daryl dragged a tarp with a leopard and a deer with a line of fifteen rabbits and twelve squirrels.
Elia dragged a tarp with four black bears, two leopards, and a deer. She had a line of twenty squirrels and a dozen rabbits.
"That's quite the haul." Rick said and people voice their agreement.
"Definitely." Shane agreed giving his brother a smile. "They'll pass along a few pounds of jerky and another few pounds of smoked meat."
"They bring in a haul like this every day or so." Lori explained to her semi-lost husband. "Every time they go hunting as a group."
They watched impressed and disgusted as they process the animals without a grimace in sight. The youngest didn't even hesitate.
The bones, pelts, fat, and the meat disappeared into the trailer with the girls while Daryl took the large bucket of muck into the woods.
A few pounds of meat were left on the table next to the small kitchen set up that had been pulled back out from the storage bay when they returned.
Merle joined them at that moment, pulling out clear glass bottles of cider and starting a fire in the pre-prepped fire-pit.
They washed their hands and got to work on the meat, grilling six steaks at a time to make a total of fifty-six over the course of an hour, then two slabs of meat were put in and it was closed with two latches and a switch for the vents.
Daryl took the trays of steak into the trailer; he was going to freeze dry them.
The girls went inside as the sun began to set. Merle went into the truck. Daryl sat with Elia, and they talked while she worked with pelts and fabric.