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15 YEARS PRIOR
'TOMMY, YOU'RE MAKIN' A MISTAKE," Joel yelled as his brother cocked his gun, giving him a once over before scoffing. "The only mistake I'm making it letting that little girl stay anywhere near you," he snarled and watched as Ryder sat on her horse, a small handgun attached to her hip by a holster and the reigns in her hands. She'd grown up far faster than Tommy could have imagined in the five years they'd been together, the eleven year old having looked out for herself and he and Joel.
"The Fireflies ain't gonna help you like your own family, please just rethink this," Joel had lowered his voice to a snark whisper to remove Ryder from the conversation, speaking so low that Tommy could barely hear yet the hostility still raised the temperature in his veins.
"Let me take her, Joel. It's only a matter of time before the same thing happens to her that happened to-" he broke off before he could finish, watching as his older brothers face fell into unreadable emotion. "She ain't leaving my side," he spoke in monotone and Tommy only shrugged before pushing past him.
He made sure to shove his shoulder, walking over towards the militia group that waited with open arms. "You keep her safe, Joel. You keep her alive even if it means you die, because I don't ever wanna your goddamned face again — even if it's right next to hers," he spoke without anger but Joel could feel the family bond breaking. He let out a scoff and turned on his boot heel, walking briskly towards his own horse before settling on.
"You ready, Kiddo?" he asked her as Ryder looked back at Tommy. "He's not coming with us?" she asked and fixed her gun so it wouldn't bounce while they rode. "We're gonna come back for him a while down the road but for now it's just me and you, you got that? We're gonna look out for each other because I damn well ain't gonna let anything happen to you," he told her and Ryder nodded, watching as Joel kicked his horses side and bounded down the path. She turned to look at Tommy and the people around him one last time, blinking back the tears and confusion as he jogged forward and held something out for her.
"This is for you, got it Darling? Keep yourself safe and do whatever you gotta do to survive," he ordered and pealed the bow from his back, climbing into her horse halfway so he could help sit it over her back. "This too," he tucked his handgun into her bag as well as a box of bullet, giving her a kiss on her head before hopping down.
"I'll see you soon," Tommy told her, giving her a small thumbs up as she looked to see Joel stopped a few hundred yards ahead, waiting for her. "Bye Uncle Tommy," she bid her farewell as his heart beat so fast it was painful at the name. "See you soon Ryder," he watched as she kicked her horse with a 'hiyah!' and took off down the dirt path towards Joel, the lone brother walking back to his new family. "She wouldn't stay?" Marlene asked as Tommy shook his head, not bothering to tell her that he didn't even ask the girl. "Joel needs her if he's going to survive."
