Warning: Themes of domestic abuse (though nothing beyond what happened in last chapter).

.........................................

"Sophia Peletier, please pay attention!" my teacher's voice was cutting and much too loud.

I snapped my eyes away from the window and back to the front of the classroom. I tried to pay attention, I'd been trying all day, but it was no use. All I could think about was seeing my mom's face that morning. The ugly dark colors around her eye. I hated it. I didn't want to think about it. So I let my teacher's voice pass right over me like the sound of wind outside my bedroom window and drew little pictures of flowers and birds and fairies on my papers.

Sometimes I wish I could be tiny, like Thumbelina and live in a colorful, pretty world of flowers and dewdrops on spider webs and friendly little creatures. Eventually my teacher gave up on calling me out and the day passed slowly and then I was staring out the window of my school bus, holding Dolly in my lap.

I got home and dropped my book bag by the door. I headed to the kitchen where, at that time of day, Mom was usually making me a snack but the kitchen was empty.

"Mom?" I called, wandering into the living room where I saw her.

She was lying on the couch. She was still. Too still. I screamed and shook her shoulder and it felt like a horrible eternity before she blinked and woke up, rubbing her eyes and looking confused. I was sobbing by then and she kept telling me 'I'm okay, it's all okay'.

I didn't want to believe it, because nothing was okay, but she held me so tight and eventually I stopped crying. I didn't want to get up or do my homework or anything. All I wanted was to stay right there, safe and warm with her arms around me. She must have felt the same way because we turned on the TV and stayed on the couch watching cartoons for a long time.

What happened next is what always happens. Papa came home and before long our little house that had felt so cozy a moment ago was stifling and the walls were too close around me. I dashed out of the room to escape that horrible loud voice but this time, when I heard him hit Mom, I didn't run to my room. I ran to the kitchen, through the door, and out into the back yard, Dolly clutched tight in my hand.

I paused for a moment, looking at my wooden playhouse with the pink and blue paint peeling off in strips, but I could still hear the shouting. If I stayed for one more second I would explode. My feet carried me past my playhouse, past the overgrown garden, and into the woods.

I ran and ran, ducking around tree trunks until my legs hurt and I was gasping for breath. I slowed to a walk and looked around.

It was late afternoon but the shade from the trees and a light breeze felt nice. There were funny looking mushrooms growing out of a rotting log, a yellow butterfly flitted right by my face, and somewhere in the distance a bullfrog croaked. It almost looked like Thumbelina's world!

I sat down on a patch of thick green grass. "We'll rest here for a bit," I told Dolly, picking some little clover flowers to make a crown for her.

"We'll go back home after everyone's asleep," I decided.

When the shadows under the trees started to lengthen, everything I didn't want to think about started to creep back in. Was Mom okay? What if she wasn't and she needed me?

I stood up, brushed the dirt from my hands, and looked around and realized...I didn't remember which way I'd come from. It all looked the same. I tried one direction, walking uncertainly over pine needles and moss, but nothing looked familiar, so I turned and tried another direction.

"Mommy!" I yelled, then as loud as I could, a voice I rarely used, "MOMMY!!!"

Suddenly the forest was huge, stretching on and on forever in all directions. It was the magical forest from The Hobbit and I would never escape. Something rustled in a bush nearby and I jumped. I ran as fast as I could, certain that something was following me.

Then the dirt crumbled under my sneakers and I stumbled and fell down with a big splash. I gasped and thrashed around for a bit before I got my feet back under me and realized the water barely came up to my waist.

I took a deep breath and wiped the water from my eyes. Just in time to see Dolly floating away on the current!

I tried to chase after her but stumbled and fell to my knees, getting soaked all over again. Dolly disappeared from view and I was all alone. I climbed out of stream and squeezed as much water out of my clothes as I could.

The sky was getting dark quickly now and I was too scared to be sad about losing Dolly. There was nothing else to do but keep walking. I walked and walked, my shoes squishy and wet.

After what felt like forever, I found a house. There were no lights on and only a gravel path for a driveway, stretching out into the dark forest. I went to the front of the house and bravely knocked on the door, although I had a sinking feeling. There were no cars, bikes, toys, or anything outside to show that people lived there.

The front door swung open and I peeked inside. The house looked dark and empty, except for some old broken furniture and random things scattered around.

"Hello?" I called out but only heard the echo of my own voice in return.

"It's not scary!" I told myself and stepped inside.

I walked around, stepping carefully on the creaking floorboards. It was a little exciting, exploring an empty house all by myself, like I was seeing a secret world that nobody else knew existed. I picked up a paperback book and brushed the dirt off it. I found an old blanket and wrapped it around my shoulders.

The best discovery came when I opened the door to a pantry. The shelves were almost empty but I spotted a few tins of sardines and boxes of those military rations that Papa liked to keep in the basement.

The sardines tasted awful but I was so hungry that I almost didn't notice. I arranged the blanket on the little rectangle of open space on the floor of the pantry and closed the door. I would be safe in there. I curled up on the blanket and, listening to the crickets chirping outside, fell asleep.

It was very dark in the pantry and I must have slept a long time because when I opened the door the next morning, it was very bright. I ate another box of sardines and decided to go exploring. I searched the whole house, bringing anything interesting I found and putting it on the shelves of the pantry.

When I'd explored the whole place and the house started to feel too quiet, I went outside. The gravel path stretched out into nowhere. The forest stretched out and out and covered the rest of the world. I was all alone and sure that nobody would ever find me.

After a long time of sitting on the gravel with my chin on my knees, feeling lonely and sorry for myself, I got up and started to aimlessly walk around the outside of the house. I was careful not to go too far because I didn't want to get lost again. Being alone in an empty dirty old house was better than being alone out in the endless woods with the wild animals.

Behind the house I found a patch of overgrown wild raspberry bushes. I spent the rest of the day gathering raspberries to eat. I drank from a little creek nearby. I read the book I'd found. It was called Tom Sawyer.

When nobody showed up to rescue me and it started to get dark again, I went to sleep again in my pantry bedroom. I did the same things the next day. And the next. Before long I forgot how many days it had been, but it'd been a lot.

One day I found something very strange.

There was a man lying on the ground. I was so startled that I immediately turned to run away, remembering how my mom always told me never to talk to strange men, but only took a few steps before I realized he was hurt.

He was wearing a dirty shirt and torn pants. There was a lot of blood on his side and some on his face too. I crouched down next to him.

"Mister, are you okay?" I asked. He clearly was not okay, but I didn't know what else to say.

He didn't answer, so I shook his shoulder a little. Then I shook it harder. "Hey, mister, wake up!"

Finally the man opened his eyes and mumbled something. He seemed confused.

Then I saw something tucked into his belt. It was dark with dirt but I would recognize that shape anywhere.

"You found Dolly!" I exclaimed, pulling her free. She needed to take a bath in the washing machine, that was for sure.

"Stay here, I'll get you some water," I told the man, unclipping a canteen from his belt.

By the time I got back with the full canteen, he seemed a little more awake. I helped him sit up and handed him the canteen.

The man took a long, slow drink. His eyes focused on me, holding Dolly.

"Sophia?" his voice was low and gruff, but not unfriendly.

I nodded.

"I'm Daryl. I was...looking for yah," he said. He grimaced and for a bit I thought he was going to pass out again.

"I think you need a doctor," I said.

"Yeah..." he agreed, then, "Help me up."

With some trouble, I managed to help him stand up. I let him rest his hand on my shoulder to keep from falling over. We stood like that for a long moment. He looked around, left and right and over his shoulder and then back again.

I looked up at him. "Mister Daryl," I said hesitantly, "You got lost, didn't you?"

"I don't get lost!" he said, looking around again.

I looked down. I knew better than to talk back, but when he didn't say anything else and we were still standing there, I spoke up again.

"Which way is home?"

Daryl groaned, "I don't know."

As I'd suspected, it was a magical forest. Anyone who came looking for me got lost. But I'd found him, so maybe there was a way out after all.

"I have an idea," I said, leading the way back to the abandoned house.

Once there, I grabbed my stash of raspberries and told Daryl my plan.

I pointed at the overgrown gravel driveway, saying, "We'll follow this until we find a road. Okay?"

Daryl nodded.

I'd been too scared to take the road by myself but now that I had someone with me, someone who needed my help, I felt a new sense of boldness taking over.

I smiled. Despite his scary appearance, Daryl seemed pretty okay. After all, he'd found Dolly. I held his arm so he wouldn't fall over and together we walked slowly away from the old house.

.......................................

Preview: Up next is The Search Part 3: Daryl's Story

A/N: Wow, it's been a long time since I've updated this story (over a year and a half!) but I haven't forgotten about it! Anyway, I hope you liked it. Please review!

I have a whole plotline planned out for the showdown with The Governor. Maybe I'll get around to finishing it one of these days.