At first Vis was shocked, 'a little girl?!' he wasn't sure how to react to the presence of the red-headed child in the crate. So slowly he leaned in and extended a hand, "My name with-" he was cut off by the feeling of cold steel pushed up against his diaphragm, the blade finding it's way between his arm segments.

"W-where's momma?" stuttered the girl, looking up into Vis' eyes with a pair of broken ones, tears running down her white face and leaving red streaks, "What did you  do to her?!" Vis gulped and slowly brought his hand to her one, she flinched and pushed the blade a little harder but from how tensely she was holding it, he knew she wouldn't stab him. Vis placed his hand on her knife holding hand and shook it softly so that the knife tumbled form her trembling fingers.

Slowly her lips started to quiver and she burst into tears, clutching onto his arm and weeping into it, gasping for breath and crying. Vis didn't know how to react, "I wanth you thoo clothe your eyeth, ok?" he asked her gently though his scarf, she nodded and clenched her eyes closed, she knew what was outside, the stench if death made it clear, but she couldn't bare looking. Vis slowly dropped his other and in and picked her up, grabbing her from under her arm pits and lifting her out, carrying her on him in a way where he could keep an arm around her and she could clutch into his with her arms and legs.

Vis emerged from the basement and hushed the little girl, remembering the soft curses of his mother's handed mimicing it in her back, making her quiet down. Soon they were in the forest and the moment they were out of earshot of the town, she spoke, "What happened to momma?"

Vis pondered an answer for a second and tried to answer in a way that would be softer on her, "She ith thick."

"Will she get better?" asked the little girl, Vis shook her head and her body slumped against his and she fell quiet until she spoke again, once they were deeper in the forest, "Im Khat."

"Vith." Replied Vis, hoping she would understand that it was Vis with an 'S' and not a 'Th', she nodded slowly and clutched onto him as she heard voices. Vis broke into the clearing where the others were and he held her tighter, out of some deep instinct he had not felt before. Vis looked like hell, his legs were drenched in blood and he was covered in ash but otherwise he was ok.