Chapter 1: Finding A Way
She tunes out the sound of arguing yet again as they walk, distracting herself by making faces for little AJ in her arms. "What were you thinking? You could've gotten us all killed back there!" The woman somehow gets her frustration across without shouting. Restraint was never Kenny's strong suit, however, so Clementine braces herself for his response. She's surprised when he's quiet for a few moments. "I'd never have let them hurt Clem or AJ." Their newer companion has no reply for that, but Clementine thinks she sees her nod and that's that.
—
The young girl remembers when they first met the woman with the sword- a katana, she informed her. They'd been reluctant to take in anyone new, of course. After all that had happened, Clementine wasn't even certain about how much trust she could put in her old friend Kenny, much less someone new. After Bonnie, Mike, especially after Jane, she wasn't sure she could ever trust again. People had a way of leaving her or betraying her, so far there'd been little evidence to the contrary.
But that mentality just wasn't something she could afford, not with AJ in her care. So she put her faith into Kenny, he was family after all, and even despite any concern she knew she wouldn't have been able to just leave him. So far he'd kept his side of the bargain not to let her down. It'd been about three weeks since they turned their back on the looming walls of Wellington when they ran into her.
"You don't want to go that way," she warned them, voice coming out of nowhere. They'd been exploring the area in search of a decent place to settle for a while, potentially until Wellington would be open for all of them. Having spotted what looked like a small neighborhood in the distance, they planned to check it out, regardless of what some stranger might tell them.
The plan was cut short when they saw what the mysterious acquaintance meant. A herd had taken over the entire road, presumably drawn there by whoever had been unfortunate enough to make an attempt at the homes before they arrived. It was all but thanks to the katana wielding stranger that they'd made it out of there unscathed, and soon after that she wasn't a stranger anymore.
Her name was Michonne, and she was reluctant to share more than that, but the look in her eyes when she saw little Alvin Jr. up close for the first time told Clementine a lot more. At first, the tentative alliance was riddled with conflict. The two adults were both stubborn, believing they knew what was best and often wanting to go in different directions. Despite the headache, Clementine felt strangely safer with the new addition to their crew. However, she would not get attached, not again. She waited for the day Kenny would take her aside and bring up the topic of their going separate ways from her.
The moment never came, however, and as the days passed Michonne became more of a mainstay in their little ragtag group of survivors. Clementine isn't sure when exactly they unconsciously made the decision to accept her, but she thinks it has something to do with the night they spent camped at what was once a toy store of some variety. Clementine insisted she was too old to have any use for toys, but they were glad to find a few things AJ might enjoy at an older age. She was asleep on the other side of the room while the adults kept watch, at least that's what they thought. Sleep didn't come easy to her anymore most days.
As she laid there, head resting against a stuffed lion for a pillow (Michonne's choice for her, although Kenny agreed), she could hear bits and pieces of the conversation. The words were hushed, but not with any sense of urgency. It was when Kenny mentioned Duck that her attention was caught. Clementine opened her eyes long enough to see tears in both of her adult companions' eyes and she was reminded again of when Michonne met AJ that day. After that night, things were different. Although the arguments still came, they were less frequent, and put to rest with less struggle. It was as though they'd come to understand one another, and Clementine was glad for it.
Maybe they did have a chance of surviving this after all.
