That little devil of a girl. | Glowfic Constellation

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From the diary of Arthur Morgan, March 3rd of 1894.

As I write today, I cannot decide if I am glad of Dutch and his big heart, or worried this will all go to hell somehow. He picked up another stray (not that I can complain too hard, seeing as I was a stray myself), but this time it was a little slip of a girl, couldn't be much more than 6 years old. I worry that is much too young to be travelling with a gang of wanted outlaws such as ourselves. The way she was living ain’t no way for a child to live, but it is dangerous with us. And we cannot take every stray child we find! For there are too many urchins in the world, and we cannot support more ~~depan~~ de~~pendets~~ freeloaders who do not contribute to the gang.

Dutch swears up and down she will be useful, that the girl is sharp as a tack and a brilliant shot, that she shot a pistol right out of someones hand despite the recoil almost knocking the girl over, but it still seems to me that she is too young to be coming with us. Dutch was kind to take me in when I was young, but I was almost grown, and a boy besides. The camp ain’t no place for little girls. But at least here she can get better food than scavenging the streets. So maybe I ain’t that upset he brought her here.

I suppose I should explain what happened to Dutch this latest time he went into town, he says he was accosted by some of Herr Strauss’s debtors, unhappy with the methods of collection Dutch and I had employed to ensure payment. They took his gun and kicked it away, and just as they were about to shoot him he says the girl took his pistol from the ground and shot his assailants gun right out of their hand. Dutch then managed to turn the tables once they was unarmed. I find it hard to believe him that the girl could manage to do that, but he did not give me the impression that he was making the tale up. If Dutch embellishes things it is to make himself, not tiny street urchins, look good.

She’s an awful serious child, always staring at everything with her big blue eyes. Never smiles or plays around, just listens intently to Dutch and is unfailingly polite to anyone who talks to her. Something is wrong with that girl.

I told Dutch what I thought, but he just told me “We all got something wrong with us, Those that get along with the way the world is don’t need to be free like us Morgan”. Fair enough I suppose.

I also spotted an Elk today when going out to patrol near the camp

(A rough pencil sketch of an Elk is taking up a quarter of the page, the lines are rough but the proportions and angles are very well done.)

From the diary of Arthur Morgan, March 8th of 1894.

Turns out the little girl, Tanya, knows german. Herr Strauss seems to be happy to have someone to speak german with. Dutch says the cover story for her if anyone asks is that she is Strauss’s niece. She can also read, at such a young age! I worry that an educated kid might have someone looking for her, even if she was definitely half starved and uncared for when Dutch brought her back with him. Hosea told me he asked her about her past and her eyes went far away, like happens to veterans of the war sometimes, and she didn’t answer. Something terrible must have happened he thinks.

I helped teach young John to Lasso properly today, he ain’t bad, is quick with tying things up too. It’ll be good for next time we need to make sure somebody don’t scamper off while we rob them. Also caught John and Abigail making eyes at each other and holding hands behind the wagon, I pretended not to notice.

Dutch says we are moving soon, angered too many people in Colorado. Hosea is thinking maybe we go down California way for a while, avoiding the mormons in Utah. We might be crooks but they are even bigger crooks than us, and much better armed.