Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

[Laurels]

((All Hansel GMing approved))

Claire turned around at Hansel's command. She continued to control her breathing as she listened to the sounds of him picking up the bag. If he really was just going to rob her, then she had to wonder why he was being so genuine to her. She couldn't have been the kind of girl he fancied, especially after days of walking in the heat and digging graves. Something had to be behind his actions.

Sure enough, Hansel surprised her. He was going to make her walk, with the barrel of his gun on the back of her head. All she had to do was keep her hands on her head, not be a smartass, and he'd keep her alive. Claire exhaled slightly as he said this.

Okay, he's keeping me alive. Great. I'm a hostage now. Just as mama dreamed for me.

Hansel asked if Claire had any questions. She stayed silent.

Lessee, "Why did you shoot my friend?" "Why are you going along with this game?" "Why do you model yourself so anachronistically?"

Finally, a question came to her.

"What makes me more valuable than the ones you killed?"

She waited for his response. She hoped that question stung at his core. She couldn't give a shit if his feelings were hurt, and she hoped that that question would make him think long and hard.

Just walk.

Oh, a stoic, huh? Okay then. I guess it's up to a girl like me to chip away at that icy exterior.

Claire began to walk out of the tennis courts, Hansel close behind. Her arms started to feel a bit tired from being held up, but she knew she couldn't waver. She had no clue how itchy his trigger finger was, and she didn't want him to have cause to shoot her. She continued to walk, keeping her eyes to the ground as he said. Soon they were at the entrance. Claire walked out the door, stepping over her beret as she made her way down the path. As they walked past Adonis' gurney, she saw Kyle's body on the ground. Hansel had shot him in the head, probably to put him out of his misery. Claire closed her eyes as she walked past.

"Kyle, I'm sorry," she muttered under her breath.

But it looked like Hansel wasn't done yet. He told her to stop, and she froze in place. He noticed Kyle's vest, and he told her to take the vest off and check Kyle's bag for anything valuable. He gave her back her own bag and the flashlight, telling her to put it all in there. Claire walked back and sank to her knees. She grabbed Kyle's body and turned it over. She closed her eyes as she saw the back of Kyle's head, where a pool of blood had begun to form from the exit wound. She looked away and got back to the task. She reached under his shirt and worked to remove the vest. Once it was off Kyle, she tossed it, along with the flashlight, into her bag.

She then grabbed Kyle's bag and began to search through it. She wasn't sure how much else she should carry. She put the remaining water bottles in her bag, along with a few of the energy bars. She could leave the rest of Kyle's stuff with him. She wasn't going to need it any time soon, and he should keep his personal items with him.

Once she had everything she needed, she turned Kyle's body back over, allowing him to look at the sky. She moved her hand over his face and closed his eyes. She wouldn't be able to bury him, so the least she could do was pay some respects to him. But it was time to go again, and Hansel wanted her to walk.

Claire stood up, slinging her heavy bag over her shoulder and putting her hands behind her head. She began to walk away from the clubhouse, onto the greens. She gritted her teeth as she got further away from the building and Kyle's body.

So that's it, then. Alright then, I understand. No more tears. No more self pity. I'm alive and Kyle isn't. You can't just let this be. You can't let him get away with taking lives. I can't go home unless I kill one person, right Mr. Danya? Well, I think I found my "one."

Claire continued to walk ahead of Hansel, the clubhouse getting farther away from the two.

((Claire Monaghan and Hansel Williams continued in The Things We Lost in the Fire))