WARNING: This story contains heavy foul language, detailed death, implied sexual content, and an extreme amount of feels. I DO NOT own The Walking Dead, any of the mentioned characters in this story, or "You" (because apparently it's illegal to kidnap people and keep them in your basement).
Chapter Twenty-Five
Deal With It
You descended down the empty stair-case as your made your way down to the lowest level of the house. The building was fairly quiet for the most part... a couple of faint voices from a different room speaking up every once in a while. Your eyes scanned the areas you entered for Ryan and Clementine, but their figures weren't visible. The longer you weren't in their company, the more your head began to fill with worry. Where had they gone? Had they left the house without saying anything? Were they in danger? The last thing you wanted was the closest thing you had to a family be in a dangerous position.
You continued to search the rest of the house, looking through every nook and cranny. You couldn't find them anywhere. It wasn't long before you finally stumbled upon Kenny, Ben, Marzia, and Felix however, in the living-room. Felix and Marzia were by the fire-place, smiling at each other and whispering as they caught up on events. They looked so happy together. Felix's face was lit up with pure joy, and those light blue eyes shined brighter than you'd ever seen them shine before. His girlfriend was in his arms, and you were certain he wouldn't be letting her go for a long time.
Though... the other two people in the room were... not so happy.
Ben was sitting in a small chair, a worried look on his face as he watched his older friend. Kenny was sprawled out in an awkward position on the couch, one arm rested against the back of the couch, and the other holding onto a big bottle of liquor. ...The same one from the dining-room table. He continued to take large amounts of drinks from the bottle's top. When he'd noticed your presence, he pulled the bottle away from his lips, and you watched as a couple golden-greenish drops trailed from the corner of his mouth to down his chin, and onto his shirt. He looked to you and gave you a drunk smile.
"Ohh, heyyy, you made't back!" His tone was bitter and sarcastic, and his words were so slurred you could almost hardly make out what he was saying. "Good job, good job!"
You frowned and crossed your arms at the scene before you. Ben looked a little scared, now, and eyed you wearily. You gave a small huff of irritation.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, Kenny?"
Kenny slightly smirked at you and took another sip of his booze, before giving a bitter, short laugh. "What'd doess it'look like?" He asked.
"Where'd you get the bottle?" You took a step toward him, keeping your arms crossed as you asked the question you already knew the answer to. Kenny grumbled, his smile fading slightly, and continued to take a drink after a drink. A few drops fell into his lap.
"Foouuuuuund it!" He replied. He suddenly glared, and your eyes grew wide as he stood and began to walk toward you. "What, [Your Name], d'ya wanna throw down like'we did on'th train?" He snarled. "Because I fight better when'm shit-faced!"
Although he was several times taller than you and really intimidated you, you tried your best not to look fearful as you put on a stern expression. You took a step toward him, which he'd angrily noticed, and reached for the bottle in his hand.
"C'mon, Kenny. Give me that." You told him.
Kenny frowned and backed away, holding the bottle close to his chest. He gave you a nasty glare and protectively placed his arms around the booze. You glared back.
"Kenny, give me the damned bottle!" You told him.
"GET'th FUCK AWAY from me!" He snarled back.
"Getting wasted is not going to help anyone!" You pointed out to the broken-hearted redneck.
Kenny scoffed, eyes widening. He leaned in close to your face, and your nose wrinkled at the disgusting smell of booze on his breath.
"Yeah, well what is?!" The brunette demanded. "We are FUCKED!" You watched as he sat down, took another sip of his never-ending booze, and crossed his arms. "Molly said there's not a single boat left in Savannah." He informed you, glaring. "No way out. We got walkers following us, that crazy fucker on the radio messing with us... Hell, if now ain't the time for a drink?"
He took another sip, before offering the bottle to Ben. Ben eyed the bottle curiously, and then looked to Kenny. You could see the slight want in Ben's gaze. You knew he wanted a drink of that. The kid had probably never had a taste of alcohol before. And, Kenny did give a good point. So would the teenager refuse?
He finally looked up to you, and you glared at the light-haired high-schooler, giving him an expression that said don't you dare touch that fucking bottle. His eyes lightly widened at your expression, and then he looked to Kenny. He slightly raised his hands up and shook his head in refusal. Kenny frowned, but then shrugged, huffed, and took another sip for himself. You gave a nod of approval to the teenager, before looking to Kenny.
"Kenny, listen. I know you just lost your family, and I know you don't really want to live anymore because of it. But I am not going to let you fuck the chances of the rest of us surviving."
Kenny looked at you with a dark glare, but you didn't hesitate as you walked up to him, snatched the bottle from his hand, turned, and threw it against the wall. The bottle shattered with a loud sound and dropped to the ground, letting whatever liquid was left inside pouring onto the ground. You turned back to Kenny, who looked like he was going to explode with rage. You glared back and continued.
"So while you wallow in pity and get drunk off your ass, I'm going to do the whole group a favor and look for another way out." You leaned into his face. "And if you don't fucking like it, you can fucking leave."
He opened his mouth to argue, but you didn't have it. Giving him a deep glare, you turned on your heel and stormed away, walking to the back entrance of the house, and heading out the door. You would not put up with Kenny's shit today. Not today.
Cry's P.O.V.
I stared up at the boat with wide eyes, my hands falling limp at my sides with surprise. The boat sat in the shed, and though it was a little dusty, one would see it as shining with all it's wonderful glory. It seemed to be in great condition... no holes or damage, but I couldn't really tell for sure.
In front of the boat, Clementine gave a big smile and threw her hands up in the air in a victorious pose. When I was done gawking at the boat, I fell to my knees and opened up my arms, a huge smile spreading along my lips. Clementine squealed with laughter and dove into my arms, wrapping her own around me and hugging me tightly. I hugged her back and gave the top of her head a kiss as I praised her work.
I called her different names... Wonderful, Brilliant, Amazing... each of which she was taking great joy to hearing. Absolute happiness spread through me.
Suddenly, a gasp came from behind me. A feminine gasp. I got to my feet and turned around, my eyes falling upon [Your Name]'s figure. Her hands covered her mouth and her eyes were wide with the same surprise I had felt moments ago.
You could tell she was widely smiling from behind her hands. She then looked to me, and her grin grew even bigger. I chuckled and walked forward, and took her into my arms. She gave a delighted hum as I planted a kiss on her lips. Behind her, only a little ways away, the back door to the house opened, and Kenny's (apparently drunk) body stumbled into sight. He walked closer to us, a glare on his face.
He seemed to be gunning for [Your Name]... though I was unsure why. I quickly pulled her behind me and made my hands into fists and sent him a glare. He opened his mouth to speak, and I expected terrible, hurtful words and terms. But instead, his jaw shut, and his anger fell as he noticed the boat sitting in the shed. His arms fell at his sides. A smile broke out on his features.
"Holy shit... [Your Name]... I think I owe you an apology..."
OoOoOoO
The living-room was silent... even Felix and Marzia had grown quiet. It held almost every member of the group... everyone but Omid and Kenny. [Your Name] had just given the news of Charles' death, and it put everyone into a state of mourning.
Each person had their own spot in the room. [Your Name] and I stood behind the couch, my arm around her shoulders, holding her close. Clementine sat on the furniture in front of us, and kept stealing glances in our direction. We tried giving her reassuring smiles as we pat her head or whispered, but we knew that even the little girl was missing the homeless man.
"How is Omid doing?"
[Your Name] broke the silence as she looked to Vernon, who had just taken his place beside Christa on the other couch. Christa looked like a mess... emotionally. I could tell how worried she was over her boyfriend's state of health. Beside her, Vernon gave a curt nod, and lifted to meet [Your Name]'s gaze with his gold-brown eyes.
"As well as to be expected, under the circumstances." He informed. "I did what I could for him; cleaned out the wound... but he's got a real infection. Running a feaver. ...Without antibiotics-"
"Will you quit pacing?!" Molly suddenly piped up, interrupting Vernon's medical list as she turned to Felix. The blonde had left his girlfriend's side and began to pace back and fourth across the room, a fist under his chin as he tried to think. He was giving a light, concentrated frown... and I could practically hear him thinking, with how hard he was doing it. Molly grumbled. "You're making everyone nervous, Felix."
"I'm sorry." Felix mumbled, halting in his step as he turned to the female blonde. "I'm just-"
"Why are you even still here?!" Christa snapped, chiming in as she sent Molly a interested stare. Molly huffed again as she looked to the skinny black lady, and rose a brow.
"Marzia has been with me since the beginning," The orange-sweatered woman replied. "Wherever she goes, I go. We're a team. I'm not leaving her side any time soon. ...Besides, if you guys can get that boat working, you're taking me with you. I don't think I'll be able to stand another minute in this God-damned city."
The sound of a door opening was suddenly heard, and everyone turned to watch as Kenny made his way out of the hallway, and into the living-room. I couldn't read his expression well... but by the look of him not being totally overjoyed anymore, I knew there was some sort of trouble. I gave a concerned frown and slipped my arm off of [Your Name]'s shoulders and fully turned to him. I crossed my arms across my chest. Clementine peered curiously between [Your Name] and mine's bodies.
"Well?" I asked, implying that we were all curious to know the status of the boat. Kenny's brows furrowed, and he gave a light sigh. He looked to me with his darkened emerald-colored eyes.
"Do you want the good news or the bad news?" He asked. I bit the inside of my lip and looked to [Your Name]. She looked just as concerned as I was. I looked around the room, but everyone's eyes were on me, as if they wanted me to answer. I finally sighed and turned to Kenny.
"Hit us with the good news, Kenny. That'll be nice."
Kenny slowly nodded at my decision. "The good news is; the boat's sea-worthy enough. It's in pretty good shape... mostly."
"Mostly?" Christa asked, raising a brow. Kenny slowly nodded again.
"That's the bad news," He continued. "gas tank is empty, and her battery's dead. We need to fix both before she's taking us any place."
I reached up and raked my fingers through my hair with my right hand, and gave an irritated sigh. My brows came together to form a frown. Beside me, I could feel [Your Name]'s annoyance radiating off of her.
Christa groaned. "How are we supposed to get that stuff?"
The room fell silent again as everyone began to think. I rattled my brain for answers... and finally, one suddenly came. I gave a small shrug.
"Search the streets?" I suggested. "We should go back out and see what we can find."
"That's not going to work." Molly mumbled. Marzia huffed.
"Crawford took everything," The woman continued. "and took it into their walls. They siphoned every gas tank, stripped every battery... there's nothing left out there, [Your Name], Felix, and Kenny even saw so."
"She's right." Vernon chimed in. "There's nothing left."
"Well, what about Crawford?"
Vernon, Molly, and Marzia's eyes widened as they looked to the speaker: [Your Name]. She had taken a couple steps away from me and made it to the center of the room. She put her hands on her hips, the skin on her hands disappearing under my green jacket... which she'd stolen from me and had yet to return. I hummed in remembrance of the motor-inn, and slipped my hands into the pockets of my red jacket. I suddenly remembered my mask... which I had left back at the inn. I sighed.
"Crawford seems to have everything we need," [Your Name] continued. "We should try there."
Vernon frowned. "Hold on a minute," He started.
[Your Name] shook her head and continued talking, cutting the old man off. "Surely, we have to try! If there were people left in the city who are still alive, still open with supplies, what harm would it do to ask?"
Vernon shook his head and stood up from where he sat. "Trust me, you don't know these people." He told the female. "I do. You showing up with a wounded man? Might as well put a noose around his neck." He then flashed a look to Clementine. "They don't exactly welcome children with open arms, either."
Christa frowned for herself and stood. "What the hell kind of place are we talking about, here?"
"The worst kind." Molly chimed in, uncrossing her arms as she moved to the center of the room to stand next to [Your Name]. "But... [Your Name] is right. I don't see what other choice we have."
Kenny scoffed, and spoke for the first time since he'd finished giving the news about the boat. "And how the hell are we supposed to do this? From what I've heard, that place ain't exactly friendly to outsiders."
"That's to put it mildly," Marzia mumbled.
I moved out from behind the couch and made my way closer to my girlfriend, giving her a pat on the shoulder before looking around the room. "We should sneak in." I suggested. "There's got to be some way we can get in undetected."
The room fell silent for a split second. Vernon looked as if he was actually considering the idea. His face brightened a little.
"There might actually be a way." He looked to me as he spoke. "I know the sewer system that runs beneath Crawford like the back of my hand." He paused. "Ya'll wouldn't happen to have a map by any chance?"
I blinked, and put my hands into my pockets again, checking for the map. It wasn't there. I mentally slapped myself and cursed, before looking toward [Your Name]. She didn't have it, either. I stared at her with worry, before my gaze landed on Clementine.
The little girl had gotten off of the couch, and made her way toward Vernon. She held the map in her hands. She shyly smiled up at him as she handed it up. Vernon gave her a sincere smile and patted her head, before taking the map from her hands and setting it on the coffee-table a little ways away from the couch. He looked down at it as he studied, before nodding.
"I think I can lead us through, so we can pass under the perimeter, and right into the center where they keep their supplies." He started. "We come up right underneath them, take them by surprise, grab what we need, and get out before they even knew what hit 'em!"
As he spoke, he looked around the room, making eye-contact with everyone. Everyone seemed to approve of this idea... each person giving little nods or hums of agreement. I even nodded myself. It really was a good idea.
"That's actually not the worst idea I've ever heard," Molly spoke up. "I mean, it's close, but... I don't know. Maybe it could work."
"I've thought about it before," Vernon admitted. "but I never had the people to do it. But I think if we all work together, we can pull it off."
Kenny frowned, suddenly. "And what do you want in return for all this help you're giving us?" He asked.
Vernon hummed. "Crawford doesn't just have what you need for your boat... they're also well-stocked with medical supplies. Medicine that my people could use, just as yours could."
"We can do this!" Christa spoke with a hopeful tone. "We have to!"
"So, it's decided then?" Kenny asked. "We're going to Crawford?"
"Does anyone have a problem with this plan?" [Your Name] asked, looking around the room. "Because we're gonna need every single one of us to pull this off."
"M-Man... I... I don't know..."
The nervous tone came from Ben, who stood behind Kenny, now. Kenny frowned and turned to the high-schooler, raising a brow in question.
"I don't know about you, Kid," He started. "But I'd rather take my chance at doing something... than just sitting here waiting to die." He looked to [Your Name], then. [Your Name] smiled at him, her face beaming with pride. I rose a brow. Had I missed something?
"That boat out there is an answered prayer." Kenny continued. "We just gotta push a little bit farther." He looked back to Ben. "Are you in... or out?"
Ben hesitated. I watched him curiously, giving him encouraging words in my head. I knew he couldn't hear it, though. He didn't have enough time to answer before Vernon suddenly spoke up. I looked back to him.
"We should go tonight," The doctor advised. "Under the cover of the night. I'll go let my people know. It'll give you all a chance to prepare." He turned and began to walk toward the back door of the house. "I'll be back before midnight," He spoke as he walked.
"Be careful," [Your Name] chimed in. Vernon turned around and eyed her for a moment, before giving a slow nod, and a small smirk.
"That's how I'm still alive, darling." He replied. I felt a pang of irritation, and put my arm around [Your Name]'s shoulder. Vernon turned and walked off, shutting the door behind him as he exited the house.
Everyone began to do their own thing. Felix, Marzia, and Molly talked in the corner, the subject being about tonight. Molly and Marzia looked a little worried, but Felix still looked confident. Christa escaped upstairs to check on her boyfriend. Kenny... well... he walked off to do his own thing. I didn't catch where he went. The only ones who had nothing to do at that moment were me, [Your Name], and Clementine. Speaking of the little girl... the tug of my shirt with her hand grabbed my attention. I turned to look to her. She had gotten off of the couch again and stood in front of me, eyes full of hope.
"Is it going to be dangerous?" She asked, sentence slow and cautious. [Your Name] slowly crouched in front of her.
"We can't lie to you, Clem." She told the girl. "Yeah, it's going to be dangerous. But it's the only way to get the things we need to make Omid better, and get the boat working. That's why we have to do this." She paused, and gave a light sigh. "Do you understand, honey?"
Clementine looked away, eyes lightly darkening. She gave her own small huff.
"I don't want anyone else to die..." She whispered.
[Your Name] reached forward and readjusted Clementine's hat. She nodded. "Neither do I, Clem." She admitted. "No one does. But sometimes, we have to take that kind of risk."
Clementine slowly nodded, and then turned, as if she was going to head toward the stairs.
"I guess I should go get ready." She mumbled.
My eyes widened. "Say, what now?" I asked. [Your Name] had the same expression. She stood, and stepped at my side and curiously looked down at Clementine.
"You said you need all of us to do this," Clementine pointed out. "And earlier, you guys said I'm a big help! ...Remember, [Your Name]? Cry?"
[Your Name] and I hesitated, looking to each other with confused expressions. Clementine continued.
"Molly and Marzia said that Crawford is the only place left in Savannah that still has people. That means it must be where my Mom and Dad are, right?"
No. I thought. No, no, no, no. It's dangerous for ki-
"It's dangerous for kids." [Your Name] spoke my thoughts. "Where we're going, it's just... too dangerous, Clemmy."
Clementine frowned. "You both said I'm supposed to always stay close to you!" She paused, and waited for us to speak. When we didn't, she sighed. "Please? Can't I come with you?"
I thought for a moment... unsure of what to do. My brain was screaming for me to do the right thing and let her stay at the house, but another part of me was thinking that keeping her here was a bad idea. What if Omid turned and tried to get her? What if strangers showed up and took her away? Crawford was dangerous, but as least I'd know where she was while we were there. But Crawford is terrible, Molly, Marzia, and Vernon said. They could do something horrible to Clem. I didn't want that to happen.
As I continued to think, I found myself becoming more and more frustrated. [Your Name] wasn't saying a word, and I could tell she was in the exact same state of thought. Clementine patiently waited for our answer... and it got to the point where I... I couldn't do it. [Your Name] was the one who spoke up.
"Yes, Clementine..." She finally answered. Clementine's eyes lit up, but [Your Name] didn't stop talking. "You can come with us. But you have to promise to stay quiet, and do exactly what you're told the whole time we're there."
"Okay!" Clementine smiled. "I'm going to go get ready!"
The little girl then turned and sprinted off toward the staircase. We watched her leave, and then I watched as [Your Name] turned to me and gave me a sorry expression. Her shoulders lightly slumped.
"I couldn't say no to that face." The female admitted. She then lowered her voice to a whisper. "I'm sorry, Ryan."
I shook my head and lightly smiled, before bringing her in for a small hug. I rested my chin atop her head.
"It's okay. You made a good decision." I told her. "We'll just have to keep a special eye on Clementine while we're there."
"Of 'course." [Your Name] agreed.
The two of us pulled away and stared at each other with small smiles. I leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her lips, before slowly pulling away. [Your Name] beamed. Suddenly, the sound of a throat clearing sounded from beside us. We looked up to see Felix smirking, and crossing his arms. He turned to Marzia.
"I totally called Cry and [Your Name] getting together. If Doug were still alive, he'd owe me a dollar."
Your P.O.V.
The sun had fallen behind the buildings of the city, now. It was quiet... the only sounds being heard were the faint groans of walkers in the distance. Everyone was gathered into the backyard, waiting for Vernon to show up. Everyone looked a little tired... but more determined than anything. Clementine cheerfully stared up at the stars, and you watched with a small amount of joy as she and Ryan pointed up at them and put constellations together.
A little ways away, Christa was loading her hand-gun. Beside her, Molly was knelt on the ground, eyes scanning over something small and white... something you couldn't really make out what was from where you stood. She looked very curious with whatever it was, but her concentration had broken when Kenny approached.
"Check out what I found in the garage!" The redneck spoke carefully to the group, not wanting to attract walkers. He was lightly smiling. "Hatchet, Hacksaw, some tools... things that might come in handy on this little break-in."
At the sound of this, Ben and Felix left their spots and made their way toward Kenny, taking the red tool-box from his hand and beginning to go through it. Beside you, Ryan chuckled.
"Nice." He commented.
Kenny nodded... but his smile faded. He looked to Cry, and then to you, and slowly approached. He'd lowered his voice to a whisper, and requested that the two of you talk to him for a moment. You nodded, and told Clementine you'd be back in a second before you followed the boys toward the wall of the house. You stood beside Ryan and looked to Kenny as you waited for whatever he had to say. Kenny looked worried.
"I took a look at the boat." Kenny announced, voice soft. "She's a thirty-footer."
You blinked. "So?" You asked. "What's wrong with that?"
"We're going to have a compacity problem," Kenny told you. "That boat ain't gonna hold more than five people... even with one of them as a kid."
Beside you, you felt Ryan tense. You looked to him, and watched as he began listing off names.
"Me, you, [Your Name], Clementine, Christa, Omid, Ben, Felix, Marzia, Molly..."
"Assuming everyone makes it back alive, it's still five too many. We're going to have to cut some people, before this is over."
You scoffed. "You're not serious?" You asked the redneck. He turned to you and frowned.
"Look, I'm just saying." Kenny mumbled. "If we want the best chance of surviving-"
Suddenly, the gate began to open. Everyone turned to look, grabbing for their weapons, incase it was a couple walkers. However, you let go of the gun around your belt when you realized it was Vernon who had arrived. He was alone... luckily. You were almost worried he was going to bring that lady along with him. God, you really didn't like her.
"Alright," Molly piped up, pulling her hood over her head and making her way toward the gate. "Let's get moving."
Everyone began to make their way toward the gate, passing you, Clem, and Ryan as they went by. However, you and Ryan stopped and looked to each other, and as if you read each other's thoughts, you stared down at Clementine. She beamed up at you both with a warm smile. You smiled down at her, but it was Ryan who spoke.
"You ready?" He asked. Clementine nodded, her smile widening. Before she could answer, though, a different voice suddenly chimed in.
"Whoa, hold on a minute."
Vernon stepped closer to the three of you. You all turned to him, and your brows narrowed as you sent him a curious, and lightly irritated gaze.
"You're not taking her with us?" Vernon asked.
You huffed, and crossed your arms. "And what if we are?" You asked.
Vernon groaned. "Did you not hear a word I said about Crawford not liking kids? If we take her in their, and they find her-"
"I'm not leaving her in the house with only Omid to protect her," Ryan chimed in, lightly frowning himself. "It's just not happening."
"For what it's worth," Molly's voice sounded from the crowd. "I don't think it's a good idea either."
Ryan's frown deepened. "She's coming." He told them. "Deal with it."
"You heard the man," Kenny's voice sounded from the gate. "The little girl is coming. So let's move out."
Vernon and Molly didn't seem very happy, but they said nothing more. Instead, they turned and trotted through the gate, following the rest of the group. You gave Ryan a nod of approval, before taking Clementine's hand and following after the group.