"Fuck you, Clementine. Fuck. You."
Clementine gazed in horror as Christa loomed above her, a gun in hand. It trembled in her grasp, but was steady enough that, if shot, would make a clean path between Clem's eyes.
The girl didn't dare move. She held perfectly still and held her breath. "Christa," she whispered softly. What could she say that would make this better? Clem racked her brain, but no words came to mind. At least none that would stitch the wound of losing a child.
"I don't want to hear it." The other woman hissed through clenched teeth. "You've twice taken from me the people I've cared most for. First Omid and now…" Christa looked down at her baby, purple and still, wrapped in a pathetic excuse for a blanket. She squeezed it to her chest, and when she looked at Clementine again the hatred was clear. It danced like fire in her eyes. "Get the hell away from me."
Tears streamed down Clem's dirty face. For what reason was she being punished for this tragedy? Stillbirths happened even before the world went to shit, albeit not often, but it happened, and it made sense for it to occur now more than ever. So why was a teenager at fault for something that was out of her control? It was unfair, but Christa didn't seem to care.
Clementine fell to her knees as realization sank in. She didn't want to be alone. The thought of it was terrifying. Although it wasn't salvaging the barren lands, running from bandits, or fighting off walkers that was frightening; it was doing it alone that was the scary part. For so long she depended on having some kind of companion to keep her sane, and now her only one left didn't want anything to do with her.
"You swore to Lee that you would always stand by me. Please—"
A shot fired.
A cry left Clem's lips as the bullet grazed her cheek, and blood ran through her fingers when she went to touch the wound.
"I've done all I can for you." Christa continued as Clementine stumbled to her feet. "You're a grown woman now, not a kid anymore. Get out of my sight or this time I won't hesitate to kill you."
"But Christa—" the words quickly died on Clem's lips when she heard the gun click for another round. Her own weapon lied heavily in her backpack, too out of reach for her to defend herself with. If she went for it Christa would surely figure out what she was up to before she had time to execute her plan. She'd be dead, and Lee would have died for nothing, and she couldn't let that happen. Couldn't even bare the thought. So she took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. "Fine. I'm… I'm leaving."
Slowly, Clementine turned away from the mourning mother, watching her carefully as if waiting for her to change her mind and call her back.
No such thing happened, and the young girl headed straight into the damp forest. There was no point in taking anything but what was on her back. She and Christa had no food for Clementine to take on her journey. No water to quench herself with. No spare clothes to keep warm. Nothing. There were only four bullets left in her pistol, and Clementine hoped that would be enough.
Because for the first time since Lee's death, the nineteen year old was on her own, and she didn't feel ready.
a/n: well. that was chapter one. it's been a long while since i've written fan-fiction, or even written in general, but i hope this was all right! i'll probably implement reader choices in later chapters, but for now i'd just like normal feedback in the comments. stay tuned for clucke ~