A/N: So, my first fic, here it is. If you don't like original characters then you might want to miss out on this one – or just bear with me as Alice does appear eventually (next chapter).

Disclaimer: I don't own the Resident Evil characters or the storyline and dialogue I've based this around. Sadly.

'This is Claire Redfield's convoy, broadcasting for any survivors. Is anybody out there?'

'Check it out.' The blonde girl pointed ahead in the road, and the redheaded woman sitting beside her nodded.

'I see it.' The yellow hummer shot forwards as she hit the gas pedal and sped at the undead monster devouring some poor soul who had run out of luck. The school bus behind them finished the monster off with it's wheel spikes.

'That was a juicy one, huh?' Otto, the driver, turned and grinned at the kids cheering at the now-beheaded undead in the road. The school bus followed the yellow hummer, behind them a news van, an ambulance, army truck and, bringing up the rear, a tank truck.

The redhead in the hummer clicked on her radio. 'Hey, Carlos, this is Claire. You got any smokes?' K-Mart grinned to herself in the seat next to her and pulled out a mirror and some eyeliner.

'I'm out.' Carlos' voice came through from the army truck over the radio.

'Like I'm supposed to believe that.'

'Claire, would I lie to you?' She could hear the grin in his voice.

'L.J.' Claire spoke to the man driving the tanker.

'Claire Redfield, how can I help you?'

Claire smiled. LJ somehow reminded her of life before the virus. 'Got any smokes?'

'No can do.'

'How about alternate?' She spoke hopefully.

'Sorry to say we're out of that too.'

Betty clicked on her radio from the old ambulance. 'You gotta be shitting me. Otto?'

'Sorry, campers. Smoked the last of it back in Salt Lake.' The bus driver said.

'Damn.' Betty clicked off her radio handset and shook her head.

LJ's voice came back over the radio. 'Yeah, people...it really is the end of the world.'

'Damn it.' Claire threw her empty pack through the window and sighed.

'You know those aren't good for you anyway right?' K-Mart couldn't resist saying as she put her eyeliner away.

'Yeah well, who knows if I'll live long enough for my health to fail anyway?'

'Claire!' K-Mart cried reproachfully.

'Sorry K. But you know...' Claire glanced over at the makeup the teenager was stowing in the glove compartment behind the handgun also hidden in there. 'Now what use is that? Who're you putting that on for out here?'

'No-one,' K-Mart blushed. 'But, well, you never know...' she trailed off and stared fixedly on a sand dune in the distance. Claire grinned and turned to concentrate on the road ahead and trying not to think about the nice but unnecessary things she couldn't have anymore. First they'd run out of chocolate, then coffee, and now cigarettes.

To her relief it wasn't long before Mikey called over the radio from the news van.

'There's a motel not too far off this road, shall we try it for supplies, survivors? It might be a good spot to camp for the night too.'

'Sure thing, Mikey.' Claire answered.

Mikey moved the news van to the front of the convoy to lead them off the main road towards the motel he had spotted on the local map spread over the dashboard. He switched channels on the radio and spoke into it, 'This is Claire Redfield's convoy, broadcasting for any survivors. Is anybody out there?'

As Claire followed the news van, her thoughts drifted back to the early days after the virus had really taken hold of the country; when there were still supplies to be found, stores that hadn't been looted by survivors or trashed by the infected.

The convoy drew up outside the large store, and Claire peered out at the entrance, her eyes narrowed. 'That's barricaded from the inside, Carlos.'

'I see that,' he snapped, then shook his head quickly. 'Sorry Claire, I'm just...'

'I get it, we're all tired and upset, it's okay.' Claire patted him quickly on the arm and reached for the door handle of the old army truck. 'But now we need to focus. We don't know whether the people who barricaded that door are still, well, people.'

'Whatever you say, boss.' Carlos responded with a cheerful grin, earning him a mock stern glance from Claire.

'So what are we planning? Walk up and knock on the door?' LJ asked as the pair joined him.

'Not sure I have a better idea right now,' Carlos replied, but Claire pointed at the roof.

'I don't think we need to knock; pretty sure they've seen us.' The others turned to follow her gaze and saw someone standing on the roof with a gun aimed towards them.

'Who are you?' the man shouted down.

'We're friends, we need supplies, perhaps we can help you...' Claire shouted up and as she did so, she tucked her gun away into her waistband. They waited as the man on the roof turned behind him briefly, talking to someone they couldn't see. He nodded once and then turned back to them.

'Stay there, we'll let you in. Just you three though, the others stay outside.' He gestured at the other vehicles, then disappeared from view as he turned to presumably follow the other person who had been on the roof.

A few minutes later a door to the right of the main entrance swung open and a short woman with brown hair beckoned them inside. There were a few flame torches and candles lighting the way to the back of the store, where a store display of camping equipment had been turned into an actual campsite. About fifteen people, mostly children, were standing around staring hopefully at the newcomers.

'So, what is it you need?' The man from the roof walked over to them, wearing a uniform that looked like it was a security guard's outfit. But he wasn't the man who spoke. A shorter, stocky man in a suit was behind him, and it was he who barked out the words. Claire noticed that he was addressing Carlos, not her. She narrowed her eyes, deciding right now that she didn't like him. While Carlos and LJ discussed their needs with the men, Claire turned her attention to the nearest adult, the woman who had let them in who was now standing with some of the children off to one side. Claire noticed the top of a tattoo just showing on her neck.

'Hey there,' she smiled at the kids who were staring at her, and held out a hand to the woman, 'I'm Claire. Claire Redfield.' The shorter woman took her hand in a grip that was stronger than Claire had expected, and grinned cheerfully.

'Sarah. It's a pleasure to meet you, Claire Redfield.' Sarah gestured to the children near her who were tugging at her arm to be introduced to the first new person they'd seen in weeks. 'This is Max, and D...'

'K-Mart!' the blonde girl interrupted quickly and Claire stifled a grin at the girl's attitude.

'Sorry, K.' Sarah laughed and her eyes met Claire's for a long moment. They were dark, dark brown and sparkled with warmth and more life than Claire had seen or felt in a while. Her stomach flipped and she broke the gaze, turning instead to look at the blonde girl who was named after the store they now stood in.

'Hey, K-Mart, huh? That's an interesting name.' She smiled encouragingly but the girl seemed shy and just shrugged, a blush rising up her neck.

'Claire.' Carlos came up beside her and spoke softly. He guided her a little way from the others so they wouldn't be overheard. 'The guy's half-crazed. He's got some kind of power trip going on here, thinks he needs to keep everyone holed up here until the crisis is over. Hah! Like it's just going to end, just like that, right? But I reckon they're almost out of food; yet he won't listen to any offers of help and really doesn't want to let us take any clothes or blankets.' He looked apologetically at Claire. 'And he only wants to talk to me or LJ, I'm sorry.'

Claire grimaced.'Fine. Perhaps we should just leave and go on to the next place. I don't have time for this.' She paused for an instant then corrected herself quickly. 'We don't have time, I mean.'

She turned round, ready to just walk out, but found the blonde girl, K-Mart, standing right behind her. 'Please, take me with you guys. I don't want to stay here. With him.' Claire looked at her and opened her mouth to tell her off for eavesdropping, but then sighed and turned back to Carlos.

'Well, what do you reckon?'

Carlos glanced around at the hopeful group of survivors standing in the absurd indoor campsite and sighed. 'Your call, Claire.'

The motel was half-buried in sand and at the sight of it Claire's hope failed. It look like it had been picked clean many months ago. She shook her head slowly, and stopped the hummer, the other vehicles coming to a halt around her. 'Let's go wait with Mikey, K.' Claire said as she opened the door. Carlos and LJ were already climbing to the top of the bus to check out the surroundings. Claire drove the truck to the edge of the bluff overlooking the motel.

Mikey was trying different frequencies on the radio. 'This is Claire Redfield's convoy. Location, the Desert Trail Motel. Broadcasting for any survivors. Is there anybody in there?' He paused to listen for a response. 'Broadcasting for any survivors. Is there anybody in there?'

'Keep trying, Mikey.' Claire stood on the door tread of the van to get a better view.

'Is there anyone alive in there? Please respond.' Mikey shook his head at K-Mart but the blonde girl was watching Carlos on the top of the bus.

'Seems quiet.' Carlos said to LJ after peering through the binoculars down at the rundown building.

LJ grunted cynically. 'Yeah, don't they always?'

Carlos clicked the talk button on his radio, 'Claire. Looks clear. Shall we go in?'

'It's your call, boys.' Claire wasn't sure about this one, but they hadn't found anything for weeks now, and supplies and fuel were getting low.

'Come on. Let's go.' Carlos stood up and swung down the ladder on the side of the school bus, LJ right behind him.

'Let's do it.'

Claire watched the two men get into the yellow hummer with the nail salon logo on the side and head closer to the half-buried motel. She wished for more survivors, for gas and food but knew their chances were slim. Her mind wandered again back to that store - how long ago now? Two, three years? She glanced at K-Mart, now almost fifteen. She had been a kid back then, so maybe it was even four years ago.

Claire didn't know whether it was because of the plea by the blonde girl, or her curiosity with regards to the short cheerful woman, but she and Carlos decided to stay in the store. LJ returned to the vehicles outside to be sure everyone was safe there and to prepare the convoy members for the addition of the store survivors.

'So what's his story?' Claire asked Sarah on the first night. Sarah looked over to where Claire gestured and grimaced.

'Hmm? Oh, yeah, he's a jerk.'

'Kind of worked that much out for myself.' Claire smiled to take the sting out of her words and Sarah laughed shortly.

'Sorry. I guess he was the store manager. The other guy is the security guard. From what I've been told, they barricaded the doors with a bunch of shoppers inside as soon as the news came through of the infected hordes. He promised a safe place to 'sit out the crisis' but now he'll only let people in occasionally, like me, and you.' She looked Claire in the eyes grimly. 'It's mostly women though, most of the men have, well, gone.'

'Gone?' Claire looked confused and concerned.

'He'll send them out on scouting trips or something and they generally don't come back. I think he's hoping to single-handedly rebuild the human race. With himself as high patriarch of course.'

'Of course.' Claire said with no humour.

Sarah leaned back against a fake plastic tree and peered at Claire. 'So, what's the plan?'

'The plan?'

'Yeah. I saw you reassuring K that you wouldn't leave her behind. So I'm guessing you're not going to leave the rest of us here.' She gazed at Claire with hopeful smile.

The redhead sighed. 'We don't have a plan yet. I'd rather persuade him that it's better if we all leave than have to do anything by force though. So Carlos will try and talk to him and I'll think of alternatives.' She shrugged, picking at some of the fake grass on the platform they sat on. 'I'll figure something out.'

'Perhaps I can help.'

Claire hesitated, then nodded and looked up at Sarah. 'Yeah, perhaps you can.'

Shaking her head to clear her mind, Claire pointed the binoculars towards the motel again, but her memories wouldn't leave. She thought back to how the crazy store manager had refused to listen, had become violent when Sarah had shown Carlos and Claire what little food they had left, and how in the end everything had been decided for them when LJ called over the radio: 'Guys, I hate to break up the party in there, but we've got company.' The manager had tried to keep them in, but it was his loyal security guard who shot him in the leg and left him in the building screaming for them to come back. The undead had swarmed in from the back of the store, Claire and Sarah had been the last to leave; knocking over the flame torches behind them and barricading the doors to give them time to get everyone into the vehicles.

Everyone rushed to find space in the bus and the army truck. Carlos had the hummer started and ready to go, but Sarah pulled Claire and K-Mart towards an old battered Jeep.

'Mine,' she explained proudly. 'I've been ready packed to leave for days before you even arrived, but I couldn't leave without the others. I guess you were the miracle I prayed for.'

Sarah put the jeep into gear and they sped away from the now-burning store behind them. Claire regretted the supplies they could have taken if it hadn't been for the undead. All that waste just because one man didn't want to relinquish his imagined control over a bunch of children and women, she thought as she lit a cigarette.

'Hey, mind if I steal one of those? Mine are in the back.' Without waiting for an answer, Sarah reached over and took Claire's pack of cigarettes. Her fingers brushed against Claire's as she did, and the redhead's stomach flipped again. Sarah shot her a half smile, 'You got a light?' She made no attempt to take the offered lighter, so Claire moved to light the cigarette for her. Sarah put her hand around Claire's to shield the flame; the redhead blinked, she felt totally taken apart by this woman she had only met two days ago.

Shots from inside the motel woke Claire from her thoughts with a jolt and she spoke into the radio again. 'What happened? You two okay?'

'Yeah. It's all clear.'

'Okay, great.' Claire was still distracted by the memories.

'LJ got a knock on the head, we need Betty down here.'

'Right.'

After checking that Betty had heard the call, Claire started sending the others in to scour the motel for supplies.

'Spread out. Look for anything of use. Gas, food, ammo. You know the drill.' The adults and older children spread out as Claire instructed, while she and K-Mart, Otto and the younger kids started setting up the trucks and tents for the night.

Sarah proved to be really good at organising the nightly campsites, making sure that the children all had enough blankets, and resolving any arguments between children and adults alike. Right now she and Claire were rooting around in the back of the army truck, trying to find some extra sleeping bags for the three people the convoy had found cowering in the back room of a gas station that afternoon.

'So what did you do, you know, before..?' Claire wasn't listening, she was thinking about the number of vehicles the convoy had, and how to most efficiently keep enough of them running for the long-term future.

'Sorry, what?' She said, and Sarah repeated her question.

'Oh, I, well I guess I just kind of drifted. I didn't really settle on anything, though I was at university for a while. Played with motorbikes, learned to fly planes and helicopters; I guess just tried to show my big brother that I was at least as cool as him.' Claire was surprised at the question; people didn't usually ask about things like that these days. Because it took her off-guard, she answered more fully than she usually would have. 'What about you?'

'I worked on a ranch. We raised cows and horses - I worked with the horses mostly.' Her tone changed slightly and Claire sat back on her heels and looked at her. Sarah seemed sad - an odd expression on her bright face, but she shook it off quickly. 'Man I was going crazy cooped up in that store, even if the world's dead, I'd rather be out here and on the move!' She flashed a grin at Claire who couldn't help but grin back. She could well believe that this dark haired, dark eyed girl could have worked on a ranch; although shorter than Claire, she was probably stronger and had an attitude to make up for what she lacked in height.

'What about family?' Claire asked in what she hoped came across as a casual tone.

Sarah shook her head. 'I hadn't spoken to my family for years before the virus broke out. I don't know what happened to them.' She paused and looked at Claire with an amused expression. 'But that's not what you meant, is it?'

Claire blushed and turned away, suddenly very interested in the contents of the kit bag she had just finished sorting through. 'Whatever.'

'No, I had no other family, or anyone really. Never had time for it.' Sarah opened a canvas sports bag. 'Oh hey, here. Sleeping bags.'

Claire retreated to the hummer for a while to collect her thoughts before heading back out to check everything was running smoothly for the evening. She was exhausted in all possible ways - physically of course, but mentally and emotionally as well. She knew the memories she had of Sarah were spurred by the bleakness of their current situation; just as she knew the convoy desperately needed a miracle right about now.