Chapter 12: One Of Us

Losing her father had broken her family. Fractured them in ways they would never recover. She had to be strong, fast and smart. She had to be the best. They wouldn't accept anything less. She is different to the other girls at school. She doesn't fit in and she doesn't particularly care. Her family is everything and she will do whatever it takes to be what they need her to be.

A year has passed since her father's death. She clenches her hands into fists and ignores the pain. She fights the urge to wince as she sees the blood on the punching bag.

"Again." Uncle Alan's voice commands.

Clarissa does exactly as he instructs without hesitation.

Alone.

Clarissa was left alone as she heard the roar of Daryl's motorbike speed off into the distance. Alone and surrounded by Walkers. She'd only made it a few paces before a group of them had circled around her. She had stayed too long on the farm and now she wasn't sure if she would make it out.

Gripping her knife tightly in her right hand she charges to the left and thrusts her knife through the eyes of one before pulling it out and through the jaw of another. The others stumble forward their arms reaching. She spins round, kicking out and knocks them back to give herself some breathing room. Out of the corner of her eyes she sees dozens more approaching them.

Most of them are pouring in from the woods in the direction she came from when she first arrived with Sophia. She realises that they must have come from Atlanta, to be so many of them. But then that would mean that they would wonder anywhere relentlessly until they came upon food.

"Damn it." She spits in frustration and takes out two more clearing a gap just big enough for her to slip by. She cuts the squirrels that are still tied to her waist and it buys her a few precious moments. Her legs pounding for all she's worth she makes it to the fence and jumps over.

Clarissa's best bet for survival was to head for the highway. There were plenty of cars to hide behind and enough dead bodies to mask her scent. All she had to do was outrun the dead and make it there alive. No easy task. Especially with a couple hundred Walkers between her and the highway. She was never one to give up without a fight.

She could hear the moans and whimpers of the cattle as they were torn apart. It clenched at her heart for no creature should suffer like that. She was helpless to do anything though. If she didn't push herself she'd join them. She was nearing the tree line when her eyes widened. She saw a solid mass of Walkers emerge blocking her intended path. She couldn't go back but she couldn't go forward either.

She was trapped.

She skidded to a holt and surveyed her immediate area. The Walkers ahead of her hadn't spotted her yet which gave her a chance. A small chance. She'd have to go around them. So she noticed that there were fewer of them further to the right and that was where she was going to have to break through. Heading in that direction, adrenaline flooding her veins keeping her going despite her protesting muscles.

As she approached them she pulled her bow from her back and held it in her left hand out in front of her as a shield. Her palms were sweaty gripping her knife and bow so tightly she doubted the blisters would ever go away. She took several deep breaths and thought of Evelyn of how she refused to die until she found her sister in this forsaken world. With that thought she plunged forward.

Clarissa had jumped at the last second to give herself more momentum as she crashed into the wall of Walkers. She shoved her bow sweeping them aside. They collapsed easily with several of them splitting their heads open as they collided with the ground. She rolled to soften her landing and to ensure she didn't stop. She could feel their rotting hands ghost over her clothes. She was moving fast enough that they couldn't actually grab her. She didn't dare look at them keeping her gaze straight ahead.

She wouldn't falter. She wouldn't waver. She wouldn't surrender.

Rolling onto her knees and then in one swift movement launching onto her feet she dashed into the first rows of trees just as the rest of the Walkers were picking themselves up. Despite the lack of light from the burning barn now some distance behind her, she felt confident about her current situation. She'd made it off the farm and if she was truly honest she hadn't been sure she'd make it that far.

She grimaced slightly as she kept up her pace. Her heart pounding rapidly she feared it might leap from her chest. She was soaked in blood now. She could feel the heavy stickiness coating all over her skin. She was certain none of it was hers, all from the Walkers she'd ripped into as she vaulted past. Still she couldn't help the slight worry that she could have been bitten but couldn't feel it.

"Get a grip Clarissa." She scolded herself as she veered right as she saw more Walkers ahead. They truly seemed endless on this particular night. She wondered how long it was until sunrise.

Running. Hours had past and she was still running. Though the number of Walkers had significantly lowered there was still too many out there for her liking. She had to slow down to a jog to allow her stamina to recover somewhat when she found the opportunity. She had always been a good runner but she had been awake for nearly forty eight hours and her body was approaching its limits. When the tiniest rays of sunlight started to peak past the tree tops she couldn't help the small smile that graced her face.

Sophia's hand wouldn't stop shaking.

She had gotten out with Lori, T-Dog and Beth. She didn't know how she had got separated from her mother. One moment she was there and the next she was gone. She closed her eyes as she remembered the Walkers eating Patricia as Beth still held onto her tightly. Andrea had gone down with a few of them piling on top of her. She feared the same had happened to her mom.

They'd all thrown themselves into the car, closing the doors just as the nearest Walkers reached them. Before she could scream at them to wait T-Dog had already gotten the car onto the dirt track. She had gazed frantically out the window desperately trying to see any traces of her mom or Clarissa.

All she saw was a parade of the dead.

She wanted to cry but the tears wouldn't come. No one said anything as T-Dog just drove down the road. She didn't know what would happen to her now. She'd never been without her mom before and it frightened her more than her father ever did.

She felt a soft warmth envelope her hand and she turned her gaze downwards to find Beth's wrapped around it. She lifted her eyes to meet the older girl's and found Beth offer her a tiny smile. Sophia knew then that at least she wasn't utterly alone. Beth was five years older than her but they were in the same position. When she felt her hand being squeezed she squeezed it back and didn't let go.

"I'm sure they made it out together." Beth said and Sophia could tell in her bright blue eyes she was being sincere. But her throat was tight and so she merely nodded her head.

"We have to head back." Lori said when she'd spotted which direction T-Dog had been driving in. "Beth's right. They made it out. All of them. I'm not leaving my husband and son!" She turned her head and gave him a look that scared Sophia a little bit.

"I say we head East. Find a boat." He dismissed the idea completely. "There's no way to find them!" His eyes pleading for them to all understand. He was responsible for them now and he wasn't about to risk their lives recklessly.

"The highway. They'd head there." Lori insisted and placed a hand on the door handle. "If not let me out and I'll go alone."

"You're crazy!" T-Dog exclaimed and against his better judgement glanced in his rear mirror at the distraught faces of Sophia and Beth. "Fine but if they're not there then we head East." Without another word he turned the car around.

Glenn placed his hands back on the steering wheel. His hands were shaking slightly but he'd just told Maggie that everything would be fine. That they'd all be reunited again. It scared and thrilled him how much he had come to love her in such a short amount of time. She was the best thing to ever happen to him. He was grateful in a twisted sort of way for the apocalypse.

He was about to start driving when he heard the distinct sound of a motorbike heading towards them. His dark eyes squinted in disbelief as he saw Daryl with Carol pull up beside them. He rolled down his window "The others?" He asked hoping for the good news.

Daryl said nothing as he yanked their back door open and Carol wordlessly got off the bike and into the car. Both Glenn and Maggie were silent as they saw the determined scowl on his face as he spun his bike around and ventured in the direction he'd just come from.

"Is he mad?" Maggie turned and asked Carol and her face fell slack as she took in the older woman's blank face.

Carol didn't know what to think or feel as she sat safe and sound in the back of Glenn and Maggie's car. She was having a difficult time processing the events of the last few hours. Numb she decided was how she was in that moment. She couldn't erase the image of Clarissa's face as she pushed her onto the bike.

Quietly she said "He went back for her."

Glenn was going to ask who she meant but Walkers were starting to emerge from the trees and so he closed his window up and proceeded down the road towards the highway and hopefully everyone else.

Daryl felt a deadly calm wash over him as he went back for Clarissa. He knew it was dangerous perhaps foolish and downright suicidal but she was one of them and he wasn't going to abandon the chance. He knew she was the most capable out of the others. If anyone could have made it out of there it was her. He was counting on it.

He didn't have a plan. Simply drive and search for her pretty much summed it up. He manoeuvred the bike left and right weaving through the herds of Walkers as they rambled past. He was thankful that it was fully light so he could see clearly in all directions. He'd keep going until the Walkers were too many to go around and he was fairly certain she was dead.

His chest tightened at the thought of leaving her behind of leaving anyone behind. For that would surely result in their death. He grunted in annoyance, his thoughts running wild. He was so good at keeping them in check using his anger to mask everything. It was so much easier that way.

His eyes widened when he spotted the thick ensemble of Walkers still making their way towards the farm. He slowed down knowing that he couldn't go any further forward. He swerved his bike to do a U-turn when he saw a flash of auburn hair amongst the trees. The tightness in his chest alleviated as he saw her slashing past a couple of Walkers.

He watched in wonder as she twirled and with her bow impaled one Walker before crouching down and knocking another one off their feet. She was a marvel when it came to fighting. Like watching a fight scene on a movie. So flawlessly executed and had a certain grace to it. He sped towards her hoping she could hear the roar of the bike over the sounds of the Walkers.

Clarissa was about to stop and rest when she had found herself with yet another group of Walkers. She was getting exasperated with their unending persistence. Just how much longer could she last? She knew the answer to that was a very small number. She grunted in frustration as she used her bow to impale one and then crouched to take out the other one.

Jamming her knife into the head of the one on the ground she heard an engine getting louder, nearer. She snapped her head in its direction and her eyes widened at the sight of him. She couldn't make out the expression on his face and she frowned when she spotted him alone. He said nothing as he pulled the bike to a stop on the edge of the road beckoning her to get on.

Clarissa didn't question Daryl as she got to her feet, the sight of him giving her strength. She slotted her bow onto her back and sheathed her knife as she rushed towards him. She swung her legs down either side of him and wrapped her arms around his waist to tightly she feared she might hurt him. He didn't protest and wasted no time in getting them away.

As they made their way to the highway Clarissa finally allowed herself to feel the exhaustion. Her head flopped and rested lightly on his left shoulder. She needed to reassure herself that he was real and alive. That she had made it out alive and she wasn't alone. She was thankful he didn't say anything even as she felt his body tense uncomfortably at her actions. She should apologize but she's just too damn tired.

"Thank you." She breathes into his ear and unconsciously grips him a little bit tighter. The feel of her arms around a living breathing person restoring her. His scent wafts up her nose all sweat and woodland. He smells a bit like home to her. She knows it weird but in this hellish nightmare she feels hope for the future.

"Ya one of us." He merely says to her as he makes the bike go a little bit faster. He fights the urge to shiver as her breath caresses his neck. It makes him uncomfortable but they have more important things to worry about. They have to regroup with everyone else and decide where to go from here.

A/N: So that's it for the farm being overrun and Clarissa making it out with the assistance of Daryl of course. After this will be a few chapters between Season 2 and 3. Basically them bonding and getting to know each other and of course the progression of romance! As always thanks for reading and hope you're still enjoying it.