A/N: I decided that torturing you with this crossover couldn't wait till December.
Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead or Code Lyoko. All rights reserved to their respective owners
Ulrich and Monroe squatted down behind a rock for cover as they spotted two walkers. Monroe assessed the situation noticing that one must have been legless since it wasn't moving and it was significantly shorter than the other. The other walker aimlessly limped around the entrance of the bridge. "Okay, I got better leverage than you. I take the big one and you can take small fry."
"Deal." Ulrich said and he slowly approached the shorter walker as Monroe did the same with the mobile and taller walker. Monroe then whirled his halberd back and use axe portion of it to kill his walker. Meanwhile, Ulrich sliced the top of his walker's skull.
"Let's move." Monroe said and the two moved across the bridge. "Careful, the wood here is corroded to hell." Monroe stated observantly. Two walkers on the bridge took notice of the two and headed towards them. Monroe approached them with his halberd in a thrusting position but then the obvious sound of breaking wood could be heard underneath his feet.
"Monroe!" Ulrich exclaimed as the wood finally gave way and Monroe yelped. However, Monroe quickly reacted by slashing his halberd into a part of the wood that was still intact to prevent him from falling.
"It's alright, Ulrich. I'm fine." Monroe huffed as he struggled to pull himself up. Monroe then turned to Ulrich who offered his hand to help him. However, Ulrich didn't notice a walker behind him. "Ulrich, behind you."
"Oh shit." Ulrich said as he finally noticed the creature. He proceeded to slash the walker's leg off and then stabbed the creature in the head. The walkers that were in front of him and Monroe earlier went around the gaping hole in the bridge and headed toward Ulrich simultaneously. Ulrich sliced one in half and stabbed the other to prevent it from biting at him. The walker that was cut in half crawled towards Ulrich as he struggled with the other walker.
The walker that was impaled by his sword growled and snapped at him until a spearhead protruded from its face and it fell limp. Ulrich took his sword out of the creature and sliced the crawler to finish it off.
He turned around and saw Monroe taking his halberd out of the walker's skull and huffed, "Thanks."
"No problem." Monroe said. "Reminds me of the old days."
The two slowly walked towards the end of the bridge as Ulrich said, "You didn't save me that many times in Lyoko."
"Yeah, sure. Keep telling yourself that." Monroe said.
"You wouldn't have saved me that many times, if it wasn't for your ability." Ulrich said.
"Hey you had three abilities. I only had one." Monroe argued.
"Yeah but that one you did have was probably the best one you could get. Seriously, Berserker made you four times stronger, twice as fast, gave you a projectile, and you were invincible." Ulrich said.
"Yeah for only a minute at the most." Monroe said but then he stopped Ulrich and said, "You see him." Ulrich nodded as he could see a man armed with a hunting rifle coming towards them. Monroe pondered the best choice of action as the man got closer to the two and finally said, "You talk to him."
"What, why me?" Ulrich asked.
"Because, he is less likely to shoot a fifteen year old teenager than a sixteen year old teenager." Monroe replied. "If anything I wish Clementine would have come with us. This guy would probably be less likely to shoot at us with her around."
"Yeah and then you put your half-sister at risk." Ulrich shot back.
"Yeah you're right about that." Monroe said. "I guess this is for the best."
"Well who are you?" The man shouted.
"I'm Ulrich and this is Monroe." Ulrich shouted back.
"Ulrich and Monroe!" The man shouted to give their names a try. He then got closer to them and said, "You don't look like assholes. Are you assholes? No offense or anything… it's just… you know how it is?"
Ulrich was about to respond when Monroe yelled back, "Which kind of asshole, the annoying kind or the dangerous kind? Because Ulrich does a good job at being the annoying kind."
The man laughed as Ulrich elbowed Monroe in the side. Monroe replied with grunt of pain. "I like that; that was good." The man said as he approached the two. "You two heading up north like everyone else?"
"Everyone else?" Monroe asked.
"Yeah there's at least one group a day that passes through here to go up north." The man replied. "It's like the great migration of the dazed and the confused."
"Have you seen a group of teenagers recently? The leader is a blond genius." Ulrich asked.
"There is also a girl in that group that has pink hair. She's my sister." Monroe added.
"You know? Now that you mention it… there was…a…" The man squinted his eyes as if he saw something in the distance. His eyes widened as he exclaimed, "What the hell, man?"
Ulrich and Monroe turned around and saw Nick running towards them with his hunting rifle in hand. "What in the world is he doing?" Monroe asked.
Nick then aimed his hunting rifle at the man. The man responded by raising his as Monroe exclaimed, "No, no, no. He's with us." Monroe turned to Nick and yelled, "Nick, no!" He waved his arms in a pattern.
"Put it down." The man shouted.
"Don't shoot!" Ulrich exclaimed to both men.
"Dammit, get down!" Monroe exclaimed, and he pushed Ulrich to the ground. A gunshot rang out and the two looked up and saw the man was shot in the throat. He clutched his throat as blood spewed out but then tripped over the bridge into the water below.
Monroe seethed and walked towards Nick with Ulrich following behind. "Did I hit him? Where is he?" Nick asked.
"Why did you shoot?" Monroe bellowed.
"What? Who was that guy?" Nick asked.
"He was going to help us." Ulrich said angrily. "He knew where our old group was."
"Dammit Nick! I was telling you not to shoot!" Monroe shouted.
"How was I supposed to know?" Nick shot back. "You gave me a clear shot."
"That shot rang out for miles." Ulrich scolded him. "We need to get off this bridge." Ulrich and Monroe then turned around and they headed for the end of the bridge. Behind them was Nick, followed by the rest of the group.
They finally reached land and Rebecca asked, "Who the f***… was that back there?" She went over to a log and sat down feeling winded as Clementine looked to her worriedly.
"That asshole drew on me." Nick argued. "He was about to shoot."
"Oh really? Because what I saw was you drawing on him first." Monroe said angrily.
"Everyone calm down." Clementine said.
"Ulrich, what did you see?" Alvin asked.
"He was going to help us. Then smartass shot him." Ulrich replied as he glared at Nick.
Nick glared back and exclaimed, "I know what I saw!"
"Either way, you could have hit one of us!" Monroe shouted.
"Yeah but I didn't." Nick said.
Monroe seethed and yelled back, "It's only a matter of time till you do! And I'd dammed if it's me! I am NOT getting shot again. Have ever been shot before, let alone in the freaking head? It is not pleasant! And my sister thinks I'm dead because I got shot by some freaking bitch!" Monroe sighed and shook his head, "I need some space." He walked away and leaned against the side of the cabin. Sarah looked at him sadly and walked over to Monroe. Nick looked stunned by the teenager's outburst and went to sit down.
"Ulrich, do you think he was with Carver?" Carlos asked.
"I don't know. I… No, I don't think so." Ulrich replied. "He fell off the bridge so it doesn't matter."
"He fell off the damn bridge?" Luke asked. Ulrich nodded.
"We have to keep moving." Carlos said.
"I can't. I need a minute." Rebecca said
"Fine." Carlos said and he stared at Nick. "Luke, I need a word with you, alone." Luke nodded and the two adults walked over to some nearby brush away from the rest of the group.
Alvin walked to Ulrich and Clementine and asked, "Hey, Ulrich, Clementine, do you two have anything to eat? Bec's dying over here."
"Alvin, I told you I'm fine." Rebecca said.
"Sorry, I'm out." Clementine said.
"Yeah, I don't have anything either." Ulrich said. Then an idea hits him. "That station must be where that man lived. I'd imagine he would have something in there for us to eat."
"Give it a try." Alvin said and he went over to sit next to Rebecca. Ulrich and Clementine nodded and they went into the building.
Inside, there was a cot, with some empty cans near it, a radio and a trunk at the foot of the bed. Clementine went up to the radio and tried to get a signal. "Anything?" Ulrich asked.
Clementine shook her head and said, "Nothing. The battery is dead."
Ulrich sighed but then he eyed something. He approached the object which was a hunting knife that was engraved with the initials: MW. He picked it up and checked the blade. "What are you thinking?" Clementine asked.
"This knife seems strong and sturdy." Ulrich replied. He then eyed the trunk and went to it. He placed the knife in between the locking mechanism and shifted his body weight to break the lock open. It snapped open and he put the knife away. "Alright, we're in." Ulrich said and he looked into the trunk. There were only two large cans of peaches and a huge stack of comic books. "Holy shit." Ulrich said. "And I thought Odd's collection of comic books was outrageous." Clementine picked up one of the can and looked at it as Alvin entered the room.
"Man and I thought we had it bad. Look at this dump." Alvin said.
"It gets worse." Ulrich scoffed. "There is a small library of comic books in the trunk."
"Geez…" Alvin said. He eyed the other can in the trunk and picked it up. "Man, screw Nick. Nick's lost a lot of his people but that doesn't mean he can just go around shooting up strangers."
"He was trying to help us." Clementine said.
"I'm sorry Clem but Alvin's right. Nick is out of control." Ulrich said. "He killed that man for no reason, and he almost shot me and Monroe."
Clementine looked down sadly and said, "I know."
Alvin smiled as he looked at the can of peaches and said, "That's funny she looks just like you." Alvin then showed the can to Clementine so there could be a comparison. "Hey, there's not a lot of food here and Rebecca well… she's eaten for two now. You think you can just keep this between us?"
"Rebecca can have it. I won't say anything." Clementine said.
"Same here." Ulrich added.
"Thank you, both of you." Alvin said. Alvin then went to the window and looked out to Nick. "It's a shame. Nick was a good guy; he still is a good guy. He's just losing it." Alvin then looked over to his young companions and continued, "I'm happy that you two are with us."
"What about my half-brother?" Clementine asked.
"Trust me, without Ulrich or Monroe we wouldn't have lasted as long as we have." Alvin said. He then went to the window to check on Rebecca but then he saw a herd of walkers coming toward the group.
Outside, Carlos looked to the herd and said, "Oh no. We have to move now!"
"I'll go help Rebecca." Luke said.
"Sarah, time to move!" Carlos exclaimed and he rounded the corner to see his daughter and Monroe separating from a kiss. "What are you two doing?"
"Dad… we just needed-" Sarah tried to explain but Carlos interrupted her. "Explain later. We need to go."
Sarah and Monroe nodded and got up to be joined by the rest of the group. They quickly fled up the mountain in hopes of avoiding the herd. Eventually the herd was out of sight and the group could see the ski lodge getting bigger, however, the sky was getting darker which indicated a storm was heading for them.
They were finally at the ski lodge. Rebecca huffed as she climbed the mountain to its summit. Meanwhile, Carlos and Nick looked across the walkway of the lodge. "Well? What are we waiting for?" Rebecca asked as she approached the two men.
"We have to be careful." Carlos said.
"Careful? We've been on the road for 5 days." Rebecca responded. "My back is done being careful."
Alvin walked down the walkway examining the windows and said, "It doesn't look like anybody is home." He looked at one of the fortified windows and pulled on it. "No good." Alvin said. "Nailed down tight." Alvin then got up and walked towards the entrance. "I'll check around front."
"I'll go with you." Carlos said as he followed his ally.
The other members of the group stayed behind. Nick was antsy and looked around with his hunting rifle at the ready. Rebecca and Sarah were the opposite. Both were exhausted by the day's walk and sat down. "You alright?" Monroe asked Sarah.
"Yeah, I'm okay." Sarah said.
"Hey Monroe, come over here." Ulrich said.
Monroe sighed and said, "I'll be back."
"I'm looking forward to it." Sarah replied.
Monroe got up and went to Ulrich and Clementine as Luke came up to the three. "Well it'd be good to know if anybody is back there following us." Luke said. "Could probably get a better view from up top." He then looked to Clementine and said, "You'd have an easier time getting up there. Feel like taking a look?"
"Sure." Clementine shrugged. The four then headed toward the pole and Clementine looked up. She felt nervous for having to climb something so high.
"Don't worry." Monroe said supportively. "Just take it slow and I'll catch you if you fall." Clementine nodded and started to climb the ladder.
"We've done more risky things than this back at you know where." Monroe said to Ulrich while forgetting that Luke was behind them.
"You know where? What are talking about?" Luke inquired.
Clementine then slipped on one of the rums. She yelped and gripped the ladder tightly. "Whoa, whoa, whoa." Monroe said hastily. "You're alright. You can do this."
"I know I'm alright." Clementine snapped back.
Monroe smiled and said to Ulrich, "She's definitely Aelita, all over." Ulrich grinned back.
"Made it." Clementine yelled as she reached the top of the lift and a crow flew off. She took the binoculars from her backpack and looked through them.
"See anything?" Ulrich asked.
"I... I think I see lights." Clementine replied.
Suddenly the group was clustered around the middle of the walkway with inaudible yelling, "Ah, shit." Ulrich said. Luke then went to the direction of all the yelling. "Luke?" Ulrich said in vain to stop the man but it was useless, Luke went over to the crowded group.
"Clementine, climb down!" Monroe said. Clementine obliged and started to climb down the ladder. "Ulrich, go see what's going on. Clem and I will catch up with you."
Ulrich nodded and he went to the clustered group with his hand over his katana. "Listen, everyone. Just stay calm." Luke said.
"Who are you? Are you trying to rob us?" An Indian-American woman asked.
"Excuse me, honey, but do I look like a freaking thief?" Rebecca snapped.
"Everyone just stay calm." A plump man in a red sweater said.
"Hey man, you calm down." Alvin shot back.
"Sarah get behind me." Carlos said.
"Explain yourselves now? Who are you?" A boy's voice spoke. Ulrich shot up and brought his hand down to his side; he couldn't believe who he just heard. The voice belonged to Jeremie! Ulrich pushed his way through his group trying to see if it was indeed Jeremie and hopefully the rest of the group.
"We ain't here to rob anybody. Now put the gun down man." Alvin said.
"Screw that." A man said. His voice was also familiar. Sounded like a redneck's voice, Kenny's voice.
Ulrich finally managed to push his way through as Kenny, Jeremie, Aelita, Odd, William, and Yumi stood in front of the group; Kenny had his hunting rifle at the ready. They then saw him and were shocked. "Yumi!" Ulrich said as he pushed past Luke and looked at the girl.
"Wait, you know these people?" Luke asked.
"Ulrich?" Yumi said tearfully and the two embraced each other. Both had tears coming down their faces as they enjoyed each other's embrace. They released and looked at each other happily.
"Hey, good buddy." Odd said as he approached Ulrich.
"Odd!" They both shook hands and did a quick hug. "Man, I missed you guys." Ulrich said.
William approached him sadly and said, "Hey man, I'm sorry about…" William tried to apologize.
"Don't be." Ulrich said. "You guys had to get out of there."
"K-Kenny." Clementine's voice said as she saw the man.
"Clementine...?" Kenny said shocked but happy to see the girl.
Clementine hugged the man and he hugged her back. They released and looked at each other happily.
Aelita approached Clementine and got to the girl eye level and said, "We were worried about. Are you okay?"
Clementine nodded but then the Lyoko Warriors would receive one more surprise. Jeremie's eyes widened as a boy approached behind Clementine. Aelita looked to Jeremie questioningly but was answered when she turned around to see what Jeremie was looking at. Her eyes widened when she saw her brother behind Clementine. "Hey A." Monroe said. All at once, Aelita got up and cried into his chest, "It's okay, A." Monroe said as tears came down his eyes. He rocked as she sobbed into his sweater. "Sh… it's okay."
"Holy shit!" Kenny said shocked. "You're alive?"
Monroe smiled to Kenny in response and said, "Yeah, some way or another."
After a few minutes, Aelita was finally able to let go of her brother and said, "I'm sorry. If I would have known that you were alive…"
"I was in shock at that point, so you couldn't have known. I'm just glad that I have you back." Monroe said happily.
"Let's talk inside." Kenny said.
"Are you sure you don't mind?" Carlos asked.
"It's going to storm soon." The plump man said. "Please come in"
The group headed in with Kenny, Walter, and Clementine talking at the top of flight of stairs. As they entered the building, Ulrich and Monroe were amazed by the lights that ran from the columns. Plus there was a Christmas tree that was nearly decorated near the fireplace. "This is nice." Ulrich said.
"Please make yourselves at home. You can leave your things over there." Walter said as he gestured to an empty bench.
"The hell we will." Rebecca shot back.
"Yeah, I'm holding onto my rifle, thanks." Nick said.
"The hell you're holding onto it." Ulrich snapped. "I haven't forgotten that you almost shot me and Monroe today."
"He what?" Yumi exclaimed.
"Hey, when are you going to let that go man?" Nick snapped.
"How about an ultimatum?" Jeremie said. "Everyone leaves their weapons at the door. Deal?" However no one seemed to like the idea since no one was willing to put their weapon the bench.
Carlos, Sarah, and the Indian-American woman, Sarita, entered the lodge and Sarah looked over and gasped, "Dad! Look, a Christmas tree."
"Not now, Sweetie." Carlos said keeping his hand on her shoulder.
"Isn't it great? We found it all in storage." Sarita stated.
"It's amazing." Sarah said
Kenny smiled at Sarah, and he walked down the stairs and placed his gun on the bench. Odd shrugged and followed, putting his crossbow on the bench. Odd was followed by Ulrich and Monroe. Monroe leaned his halberd against the wall behind the bench as Ulrich unstrapped the harness that held his katana. Yumi and Jeremie were next. Jeremie laid his hunting rifle down as Yumi placed her five knives on the bench. The rest of the group then followed placing their weapons and equipment near or on the bench.
Sarita smiled and said, "Good. Will you all please follow me." From there she gave a tour to Nick, Sarah, Luke, Alvin, Rebecca, and Carlos. Walter went back to the kitchen and tried to get something made for the giant group.
While Kenny, Clementine, and the Lyoko Warriors went to a portion of the room that was surrounded by furniture. Kenny, Clementine, Aelita, and Jeremie sat on a couch, Monroe and Ulrich sat on the sofa, William stood next to the couch and looked to Monroe and Ulrich, and Yumi and Odd sat at the opposite sofa. Kenny looked to Clementine and smiled. "Still wearing this dirty old thing." Kenny said as tapped the brim of Clementine's hat. "You know, I half expected Lee to walk up with you. You two were like two peas in a pod." Kenny then jumped back seeing Clementine look down sadly. "Ah, shit. I didn't mean… it's just hard to not think about him."
"I got him killed." Clementine said sadly.
"What?" Kenny asked.
"It was my fault. Lee died because of me." Clementine explained
Aelita's eyes widened and she said, "Clem. No, it's not your fault."
"How long have you been thinking that way?" Jeremie asked worriedly.
"Since Savannah." Clementine replied and she turned around to face Jeremie and Aelita.
"Why didn't you tell us, Clem? You know that we think the world of you." Aelita said.
"It wasn't that important." Clementine said. "We were too busy trying to survive."
"That doesn't mean you should ignore your feelings. Please, don't do that anymore." Aelita said. "I love you way too much for you to put yourself through that kind of pain."
Aelita then took the girl's hands supportively and gave her a smile. Clementine looked to Aelita and smiled back.
"You've become quite a good older sister, A." Monroe complimented.
Jeremie's eyes widened and he asked, "You knew?"
"Clementine told me on the way here." Monroe replied. "I guess we're not Schaeffer's anymore."
"Clem and I are Prescott's. That was Carley's last name." Aelita said. "Carley technically didn't adopt you, so you're still a Schaeffer."
"That's true, but I'm still looking after you two like you were my sisters." Monroe replied.
"Well I know Jeremie's story but I don't know either of yours." Kenny said as he looked to Ulrich and Monroe.
Ulrich sighed and said, "Well, after you guys left the motor inn. I backed myself into a corner to avoid any bullets that came from the bandits. It was a risky move since more and more walkers were showing up, but at least I didn't have to worry about stray bullets hitting me. From there, I took down several walkers; I just kept slicing and slashing with my katana. After a long time, the walkers stopped coming and the bandits must have been far away because I could hear gun fire in the distance. I guess they attracted a herd towards them." Ulrich stopped to recollect everything afterwards and then continued. "Anyway, the area seemed to be clear and I ran out of that motel to try and find shelter since it was night time. That same night, I ran into someone…" Ulrich sighed and said, "His name was Russell. When I found him, he was surrounded by walkers. I went to him to help him out and from there we looked out for each other."
"Was Russell with that group that you and Monroe were with?" Yumi asked.
Ulrich shook his head sadly and continued with the story, "The following day, we were heading toward Statsborrow and that's when we found Monroe. He had a dead walker on top of him."
"The same walker that you and William killed. I took a desperate guess to see if the walker could mask my scent before I lost consciousness." Monroe explained to Kenny.
"After we fixed up Monroe, we kept going until we ran into this psychotic guy named Nate. We weren't with him very long and then we found a group. Two sisters, Shel and Becca, an overweight man named, Wyatt, a former drug addict, Bonnie, and our leader, Vince. There were others but they either left or died."
"We were with them for a while and then we were found." Monroe said with a tint of anger in his voice.
"Who found you?" Jeremie asked.
"Carver. The man that's chasing us now. A woman named Tavia found us and promised us that there was a paradise in all this madness, but she lied." Monroe said. "We went to this shithole and there we worked our asses off. The only plus from the experience was that I found Sarah. I wasn't in good shape when we first met and at first neither of us talked. She was too shy and I was too angry. However, when we did talk to each other, we began to like each other. We helped fix each other… gave each other hope."
"Wait a minute, Sarah was with that group you guys are with. She was with Sarita." Yumi said.
"That's right. I care about Sarah, so don't make me choose between you guys and her." Monroe said.
"We won't." Jeremie replied.
"It sounds like it hasn't been easy for you two." Kenny said.
"We fared better than you guys." Ulrich said. "I mean you guys aren't looking good either."
Suddenly, Sarita rounded the corner and asked, "You all getting along okay?"
"Clementine, Ulrich, Monroe, this is Sarita. Ain't she a beauty?" Kenny asked rhetorically.
Sarita rolled her eyes and said, "It's so nice to meet you all."
Walter then walked back into the makeshift kitchen and Kenny asked, "Hey Walt, where's Matthew? He still out there rootin around?"
"Of course he is." Walter replied. "Well I'll start dinner." Walter said and continued his walk to the makeshift kitchen and Sarita went over to Sarah.
As soon as they left Monroe looked down sadly. "What's wrong?" Jeremie asked.
Monroe sighed and said, "We got to tell them."
"Tell them what?" Kenny asked.
"Despite all the time that we spent with that group, Monroe and I never told them about our secret." Ulrich said.
"You think now is good time?" Aelita inquired.
"None of them armed. It won't be like last time." Monroe said.
"I'm not losing you again." Yumi said with hint of anger in her voice.
"You won't." Ulrich replied.
"We have to tell them. Sarah and I are getting close and now that you're here, there is definitely no way I can keep lying." Monroe said to Aelita. Aelita's eyes softened as she realized that Monroe was right and replied with a nod. Monroe then stressfully put his head in his hand. "I know one thing though… I'm going to need a drink after this."
"How about a drink now. It'll take the edge off." Odd said cheerfully.
"Yeah, then they're going to think we're drunk." Jeremie said.
Odd shrugged, "Jeremie we're going to sound like we're drunk anyway and probably high." Odd said. The group chuckled in response.
Meanwhile, the cabin group descended the stairs and Sarita approached them. "Carlos, right? Won't mind if I steal your daughter for a secret mission?"
Sarah perked up and looked to Carlos. "Stay inside, Sweetie." Carlos replied. The two then walked over to the Christmas tree and started to decorate it.
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Luke asked.
"Yeah, actually, there's still a few supplies outside. We need to bring them in before the storm hits." Kenny replied.
"Sure." Luke said and he and Nick headed for the door.
Kenny then stared at the Christmas tree and chuckled. "You two are doing an amazing job." Kenny said to Sarita and Sarah.
"Thanks Kenny." Sarita replied.
"Yeah, thanks Mr… um…" Sarah tried to reply respectfully.
Kenny smiled and said, "You can just call me Kenny, darlin."
"Okay, Kenny." Sarah replied happily.
Kenny then looked over to Yumi, Odd, and Clementine and said, "How about you three help Sarah and Sarita finish the tree?"
"We're on it." Yumi said.
"Ulrich and William, could you two manage through those supplies to make sure we got everything?" Kenny asked.
"Yeah, we're on it." William said and he and Ulrich went toward one of the storage closets.
"I almost forgot." Kenny said hastily. He then ran upstairs and grabbed a duffel bag and come back down. He unzipped it and grumbled until he said, "Aha!" He then pulled out a small purple hooded sweatshirt to fit a child. "Here, Clementine, this is yours." Kenny said.
"Thanks Kenny." Clementine replied ecstatically. She removed her hat and immediately placed the sweater over the upper portion of her denim dress and placed her hat back on.
"…And Aelita." Kenny said as he pulled out a teen's pink hooded sweatshirt.
"Wow, thank you. You definitely know my favorite color." Aelita stated and she placed the sweatshirt over her long-sleeve shirt.
"…And finally Jeremie." Kenny said and he pulled out a red sweatshirt.
"Alright, thanks Kenny." Jeremie said and he started put it on.
Kenny then looked to Aelita and said, "Alright, Aelita, could you go help Walt with dinner?"
"Yeah, sure." Aelita replied.
"Monroe and I are going to discuss how we're going to… tell this new group about us." Jeremie said.
Aelita nodded and walked over to Walter. He was stirring a concoction of some kind. The smell was unfamiliar to Aelita. He looked up and asked, "Hey Aelita, settling in well enough?"
"Yeah, thanks for everything." Aelita replied.
"You're welcome." Walter said. "Want to help me fix a little dinner?"
"Uh maybe… what is it?" Aelita asked. "I never smelled anything like this before. It actually smells good."
"Le Walter surprise. An autumnal legume salad with a peach roux." Walter replied.
"Peaches and beans, in other words." Aelita said.
"Why, yes." Walter said surprised by Aelita's guess. "How did you know that?" Walter asked.
"Most of the words you used have their origins in French. That's my native tongue." Aelita replied.
Walter chuckled and replied, "Impressive."
Meanwhile… Clementine looked up the stairs. She felt on edge about what she saw from the ski lift. What she saw was a pair of flashlight that kept shining back and forth as if searching for something. Someone had to know. Her thoughts were broken when Sarita said, "Good. Now all we need is the topper."
"We always put an angel on top of our tree." Sarah said.
"You know? My family and I never really celebrated Christmas. We always liked the decorations, but then I found Kenny. I converted to Christianity in maybe a week of meeting him."
"That's wonderful!" Sarah exclaimed.
Yumi smiled at the two but then noticed something was bothering Clem. She went over and asked, "You okay, Clem?"
"I… yeah… I saw something from the ski lift outside. I need to tell someone in that group I'm with. Some people are after us." Clementine said.
"What?" Yumi asked and her eyes widened. She got down to Clementine's eye level and asked, "Oh, no. Carver's group?" Clementine nodded and Yumi continued, "Clementine tell that group about what you have found. I'll make sure to tell Jeremie about this." Clementine nodded and ran up the stairs.
"It's crazy. Why would they follow us this far?" Rebecca asked as Clementine climbed the stairs and reached the top.
"We can't be sure." Carlos said. Clementine approached the adults but they continued to be wrapped up with the idea of Carver still following them.
"It has been a week man. We got to be out of the woods." Alvin remarked.
"We can't be sure." Carlos repeated. "They might be tracking us."
"Tracking? Who do you think they are, ninjas?" Alvin inquired as he panicked from the thought of Carver's men hunting them down.
Rebecca noticed Clementine standing in front of them and said, "Clem, Luke said that you saw something in the valley."
"Saw something? All the way down there? How?" Alvin inquired.
"She has binoculars, genius." Rebecca mocked.
"I saw lights." Clementine said.
"Which way did they go?" Rebecca asked.
"Back into the woods, I think." Clementine replied.
Carlos crossed her arms and inquired, "You think?"
"I didn't have enough time to see where a couple of the lights were going." Clementine said.
The three adults pondered on the next move until Carlos spoke up again, "We can't take any chances. We leave at dawn."
"But we're safe here for tonight, right?" Rebecca asked.
"Clementine, you talked to that man, Kenny, right? What did he say? Is he and this group hiding something?" Carlos asked.
"They did say something about another man. I think his name is Matthew." Clementine said as she clutched her right arm.
"That doesn't seem relevant, Clementine." Carlos said.
"It could be…" Rebecca said. "Clementine, did Ulrich or Monroe tell you who that man was that Nick shot?"
"What? You think this Matthew guy and the guy that Nick shot are the same?" Alvin asked.
"That's exactly what I think." Rebecca said.
"I never asked them." Clementine replied.
"Look, I don't care what that man said or about this Matthew guy. Personally, I think you two are overthinking this." Alvin said looking to Clementine and Rebecca. "We're staying here for tonight."
"Just talk to the rest of the group. They trust you. See what you can find out." Carlos said to Clementine. "I'm going to go find Luke." Carlos then headed to the stairs and left the three.
Suddenly Rebecca started to rub her hand on her head and said, "Honey, I don't feel good."
Alvin got down to be eye level with Rebecca and asked, "Bec what's wrong?"
"I just need something to drink." Rebecca replied.
"I'm on it. I'll be right back." Alvin said and he got up and went to the stairs.
…To be Continued.