A/N: Hers Jr, if you wish to speak to me you can PM over fanfic, your gmail is not required. Thanks for the support! Also, apologies for the lack of an update, life has been quite busy.
Original artwork done by BenteJam, so check them out!
Disclaimer: I do not own Telltale's The Walking Dead, only my character.
Road to the Dairy Farm
October 12th, 1057 Local Time, 2003
When Zoey went down to join the group meeting, she was well aware of how dire their situation was becoming. It was no secret about how low their supplies had become, as Doug made sure to keep a list of everything. So it was no surprise to her when everyone, including Lilly and Larry, agreed that they should send a few people to check out the farm to see if it was real.
It went without saying that Katjaa would stay behind for the kids, so she was out by default.
Mark was quick to volunteer, no doubt driven by the hunger and hostility that plague their place of residence. To his credit, nobody argued against his points, which was to be expected. Doug had also opted to tag along, with Carley quickly deciding to join up next to him. That got some eyerolls but was to be expected.
Kenny was the last to volunteer, but Zoey swiftly reminded him that they had no idea how long the trip would take, and they needed him to stay here to work on the RV. That got Lilly to roll her eyes and make a rather rude comment about abandoning their "home," something that further soured relations.
Seeing as they still wanted to send one more person, that left Lilly, Zoey, Larry, and the two high school students as the remaining candidates. As much as the group hated it, Larry had to stay behind due to his heart condition, and Lilly was adamant that she stay with her dad to make sure he remained ok. Ben and Travis were still recovering from the ordeal in the forest, which left Zoey as the sole pick.
Zoey heavily refused to go, stating that she wanted to stay behind for Clementine. But with everyone else already having made up their minds, she had no choice but to join the expedition. After talking over it with Clementine, she could tell that she also didn't like the idea, but went with it for everyone's sake.
So, after grabbing her backpack once more, she and the rest of the expedition set out, which is how she ended up being escorted on a trail through the forest with Doug, Carley, and Mark.
"So how did you and Doug meet exactly?" Andrew asked the couple.
"Oh, that's actually an interesting story." Carley replied. "At the start of this whole mess, my production crew and I were sent to cover the Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon. At first we thought a walker was a homeless man who was coming to ask us for money, but instead he took a bite out of my camera man. It all went to shit after that. Doug managed to save me and, well, the rest is history." She stated as she locked hands with the technician.
She and Doug shared a smile as Andrew and Danny glanced at each other. "Well in that case, good for you. How about you Zoey?" He then addressed, gaining her attention. "You look like a tough gal, especially with that firepower you got there. How'd you come across everyone?"
Zoey thought over the question for a moment. She didn't exactly trust these two strangers, and although she still didn't know much about Ben and Travis, she figured they wouldn't try anything, especially Ben. These two on the other hand, something about them just didn't sit right with her.
If the movies taught me anything, it's that if something sounds too good to be true, it more than likely is. That, or my paranoia is just getting the best of me. Zoey thought. With a huff, she answered his question. "Me and a few others were making our way down south when we got caught up in Macon. We were looking for supplies when one of us nearly gave us away to walkers." She explained, her mind going back to when Kenny was about to announce their presence. "Eventually, Carley and Glenn kinda just found us and brought us back."
Andrew and Danny nodded at the response. "Well at least y'all seem like decent folk. Too many people going 'round shooting each other these days. I swear, the dead are walkin' the earth and people turn on each other instead." Andrew stated.
"Understatement of the century." Zoey muttered under her breath.
"If ya don't mind us askin', how many of y'all are at the motel?" Danny asked.
Mark put on a thoughtful look for a moment before answering. "About twelve or so."
"Hm, quite a large group. You'll certainly need the numbers, 'specially with the bandits out and such." Andrew said. The four motel members were about to ask what he meant until Andrew suddenly spoke up again. "And here we are, St. John's family dairy."
Ahead of the group was a large open field surrounded by the forest. To their left was a sectioned off area with multiple rows of corn stalks, carrots, and other various growing vegetables. Just beyond that was a barn for whatever use it may serve. Further down the path and up a slight hill was a large, white, two story house.
Zoey was honestly impressed at the sight. The same went for the rest of the group, with Mark whistling in wonder, and Carley and Doug standing in awe. Guess they were telling the truth after all. Everyone's gonna wanna know about this. Zoey thought.
"The setup you have here is pretty damn impressive." Doug complimented. "Makes me wish we had the tools to do this back at the motel."
The St. John brothers smiled at the praise. "Well I'm glad you like it. It's worked wonders for us so far, just be careful not to trip while near it." Andrew joked. "Anyway, mama should be out in a minute with some samples for y'all."
Not a minute after he said that, an older woman dressed in a purple and white flannel shirt and jeans walked down from the house. Zoey guessed from what Andrew had just said that she must be their mom.
"Why hello there!" She cheerfully greeted them. "It's a pleasure to see so many new faces. It's been a while since we've had any visitors. Oh my, where are my manners? My name's Brenda St. John."
"Guys, meet our mama. Mama, meet Mark, Doug, Carley, and Zoey." Andrew said as he pointed towards each person with their respective names.
Brenda gave them a bright smile. "Such nice names, especially yours hun!" She said while looking at Zoey.
This made her give a shy smile as she rubbed the back of her neck, as she never had someone compliment her name before. "Oh, uh, thank you miss."
"They're from a group that's holdin' out at the motel just down yonder." Andy informed. "From what we saw when we got there, they've managed to make the place pretty secure."
"Well that's good news. That motel isn't exactly the safest of places, but it's nice to hear that some folk are using it well." Brenda said.
Doug nodded. "You can thank Kenny and Zoey for that. Zoey used to go camping all the time, so she's our residential survivalist expert. Kenny's the one keeping us together. He's got a good heart and strong head, at least when Lilly isn't challenging him."
Brenda raised an eyebrow, no doubt curious about what Doug was talking about. Whether she wanted to know more or not, none of them knew as she continued the conversation. "Having such people in charge is usually a good idea. Anyway, I bet y'all must be hungry after that trip, huh?" She asked.
"You have no idea." Carley said before her stomach began rumbling. Doug laughed at his girlfriend's misfortune, causing her to pout. This only caused him to laugh even harder until she playfully shoved him.
"If that's the case, then here y'all go. A little gift I made in anticipation, fresh outta the oven." Brenda told them.
Mark took the basket of biscuits from Brenda before reaching in and greedily begin eating one. The rest of the group quickly surrounded the basket and took a biscuit for themselves. The sight caused Brenda to smile even more, clearly glad that they liked her cooking.
"Eef yu don' mind," Zoey said with her mouth full. She stopped herself for a moment and swallowed the biscuit. "Sorry. If you don't mind, I want to get the rest of the group up here. We're all so hungry that we're at each other's throats at this point." Zoey explained.
Brenda shook her head and waved her arm. "No no, go ahead. It would be our pleasure to help you folks."
Zoey nodded and reached for her radio. "Clem, come in."
The radio remained silent for a few seconds, leading Zoey to press the button once more. Just as she was about to speak, Clementine's voice came through. "I'm here. Sorry, I was showing Ben and Travis one of my drawings." She replied.
Zoey chuckled at the response before speaking. "That's ok Clem. Carley and I are heading back with some food. Go ahead and get the others ready to leave." She instructed.
"Ok. See you soon." She replied.
"See you soon Clem." Zoey said, ending the conversation and clipping the radio back onto her pants.
Carley, having heard what Zoey said, took the basket from Mark before turning around. As the two started to walk off, Carley suddenly stopped before jogging back to Doug and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. With that accomplished, Carley jogged back over to Zoey so that they could venture back to the motel.
Travelier Motel
October 12th, 1118 Local Time, 2003
"Dad, dad! Look what I drew!" Duck excitedly said, trying to get his father's attention.
Kenny didn't look up from the engine as he twisted another of the engine's rusty bolts. "In a minute Duck. Let me finish this then I'll take a look." He told the boy.
"But daaad!" Duck complained. Katjaa, who was only a few feet away, called her son over and lightly scolded him about bothering Kenny when he was busy.
Kenny wiped the sweat from his brow and set his wrench down on the table next to him. Reaching over, he grabbed a water bottle that Katjaa had left for him to drink, something that he was grateful for.
"They're back!" Lilly suddenly announced from atop the RV.
Setting the bottle down, Kenny saw Zoey and Carley stepping out from the woods with a basket and food in their hands. It was a glorious sight to say the least. Not only did they have food, but the dairy farmers were making them a homemade meal, something that was almost impossible to have these days.
Kenny, like all the others in the group, had been skeptical of the two brothers. It was a large gamble for them to trust the St. Johns, but it seemed like their trust had paid off, even if it was more than likely that the group would have gone with the St. Johns almost regardless of their group decision.
And thank god too. If they're willing to feed us, then they can have all the spare gas they want. Kenny thought.
When the group circled around Zoey and Carley, they began handing out the remaining biscuits as evenly as possible in order to accommodate everyone's hunger. Clementine and Duck seemed especially giddy at the sight of the hand outs, as they were the first to swarm them.
Kenny smiled when Zoey gave Clementine a cheerful look and playfully messed with the brim of her hat. Clementine laughed and tried to shake Zoey's hand away, but to no avail. After a few seconds of this, she stopped and laughed at Clementine's slight pout. Once Clementine ran off to play with Duck, Kenny leaned against the R.V. as Zoey walked over to him.
"How's it coming?" Zoey asked.
Kenny shrugged with a shake of his head. "Not too great. There's some parts that need to be replaced, and others that just need some tuning up. Nothing big, just some bolts, nuts, and some other stuff." He answered.
Zoey slowly nodded as she listened to him list out all the problems he had to fix. "How long do you think it'll take?"
"I don't know, maybe a week or two at this point." Kenny said as he glanced at the engine compartment.
"You know we could get it done quicker if someone helped you, right?" Zoey questioned. "I mean, most of us are willing to give you a hand if you need it."
Kenny shook her head. "And like I've told you before, I got this. The motel needs everyone else to do their jobs, and that includes you."
Zoey sighed and gave up on the idea. At this point, there was no way she was going to convince Kenny. She knew he was right, but at the same time, so was she. The two remained silent for a few minutes as Kenny ate the last biscuit.
"You know, Clementine's pretty fond of you." He suddenly said, "You two may not be related, but from what I've seen, you care for her as if she were your own sister. Hell, you two probably spend more time together than with anyone else. She's your family now, and family is what matters most, don't forget that." He concluded with a slightly saddened look.
"I won't." She reassured the fisherman. "...We should probably join the others. I'll be taking everyone to the dairy while Carley stays here with Travis and Ben."
Kenny nodded and wasted no more time in getting himself and his family prepared for the short trek back to the farm. In all his years, he never thought there would have been a time when he would have had to lecture someone on the importance of family, seeing as that in itself was hypocritical of him to discuss. But now, after everything had gone from good to bad, and bad to shit, he realized that there was nothing else in the world he wanted other than to be with his family and keep them safe at any cost.
Near St. John's Dairy
October 12th, 1143 Local Time, 2003
The walk back to the dairy was full of life and optimism, something the motel had been deeply lacking. The news Zoey and Carley had given about the dairy and the St John's willingly giving the group some food had quickly lifted the starving spirits. Not only that, but for once, Lilly and Kenny actually agreed that leaving the motel for the day was a good idea, something that surprised most of the group, including themselves.
Clementine was busy playing a game of I Spy with Duck, a bright smile spread across their faces as they each tried to guess each other's various choices. The sight of the two children having fun also acted to lift everyone's spirits, especially Zoey's. With the current status of the motel, she was worried about their slowly dwindling chance of survival. While she had utmost confidence that Kenny could fix the R.V, that didn't mean he would be able to.
Whether it's ready or not, we'll have to leave eventually. There's no way we can stay forever. Zoey thought.
Zoey made sure to keep her head on a swivel for most of the walk back. Early on, they had heard a gun go off nearby and someone shouting angry insults at someone or something, forcing them to be ready for a possible fight. Luckily that fight never came, as a minute later the voice and whoever it belonged to was gone and the forest silent.
Eventually, the forest gave way to the sight of the dairy farm, something that left the rest of the group in awe.
"Holy shit, Mark!" Zoey heard Lilly shout. She and the others immediately saw what had made Lilly panic. Doug was standing near the fence with Mark who had an arrow in his shoulder.
Huh, guess she's not a heartless bitch after all. Zoey thought before running over to two men.
"Fuck, what happened?! Are you ok?!" Zoey began questioning. She took note of the pained face Mark had as he tightly gripped his shoulder.
"We were helping Andrew out with the fence before some bandits came out of the forest and began shooting at us. Caught us when we were on the outskirts of the farm, so we barely made it back." Doug explained in distress. It was clear that whatever happened while Zoey and Carley were away had the man shaken. "I- I'm sorry, just, we were so far from cover and there were so many of them. I was so sure we were going to die…"
Kenny placed a comforting hand on the plump man's shoulder and gave him a sympathetic look. "You're safe man, that's all that matters." He reassured. "How about you head back to the motel, maybe spend some time with Carley, alright? Go ahead and have some grub when you get back." Kenny then suggested.
With a grim expression, Doug walked back the way the group came. By now, Mark was being escorted into the house by Brenda and Katjaa while Andrew and Danny stood by with looks of shock. Angrily, Zoey marched over and shoved a finger into Andrew's chest.
"You said this place was safe! Well what the hell was that huh?!" She exclaimed.
Andrew took a step back and held his hands in surrender. "We weren't lying when we said it was, I swear! Those sonsabitches killed a bunch of our farm hands a few months back, so we made a deal to trade food with them if they stopped attacking us!"
"Well it doesn't seem to have worked now, does it?! One of our guys has a fucking arrow in his shoulder, and you somehow have the nerve to tell us that your place is safe?!" Zoey shouted even louder.
In the ensuing argument, Zoey had a few select words to tell the brothers before calming down. Even then, she was still furious at the lack of the warning, as it meant that so long as they were here, then the bandits could come back. With Clementine and the others here, that was a big no-go for her.
"Look, we're sorry! They haven't fucked with us ever since the deal, but we'll make it up to you!" Andrew said.
"Yeah, these fuckers crossed the line this time. Don't worry, they won't get away with this." Danny said. "We know where one of their camps are, so if y'all are willing, we can take the fight to them. I'll go get ready." He and Andrew quickly walked away from the remaining group members, leaving them to further discuss the situation.
"I'll go make sure Mark is ok." Zoey suddenly said before taking her leave with Clementine. Although she was worried about her friend, she also didn't want to be chosen to go after the bandits. While she was the one to make a bigger deal out of it, she wasn't about to leave Clementine for a third time on the same day.
Entering the house, it was quite spacious with multiple rooms and a nearby staircase that led to the second floor. Taking a look around, she and Clementine quickly spotted a trophy case full of various awards and medals. Reading through each of the plaques and trophies, Zoey was impressed with the dairy's pre-apocalyptic success.
Coming to the living room, they saw Mark sitting in a chair with an open med kit beside him. Brenda and Katjaa were currently doing their best to try and alleviate his pain whilst taking care of the arrow. Clementine gasped in fear at the sight of all the blood and Mark's condition.
Zoey spoke up and got their attention. "How can I help?"
Katjaa looked up for a moment before going to dabbing a cotton ball with hydrogen peroxide. "Zoey! Thank god you're here. We're trying to get the arrow out but it's stuck, and each time we try Mark keeps moving. Any ideas?"
Zoey nodded before pointing for Clementine to go to another room. "Yeah. First things first, you don't pull it, you push it through." She stated.
"Are you sure? Won't that cause more damage?" Katjaa asked.
Zoey shook her head. "No... well, less than pulling it. Trust me when I say it's a lot easier than trying to pull it out." Zoey replied.
"S- she's right." Mark painfully said. "If you pull, I'll bleed out."
The information came as a shock to Brenda and Katjaa who ceased their attempts at removing the arrow. Zoey walked over to the three and placed her hands on the arrow. "Katjaa, Brenda, hold Mark still. I'm going to push on three, ok Mark?" All she got in response was a nod. "Ok, one…" Suddenly, she forced the arrow through his body and out the front, causing Mark to scream in pain. Zoey quickly snapped the back of the arrow off before pulling it the rest of the way through.
Katjaa and Brenda took bandages and went to work on covering the wound. Mark on the other hand had a no-so-pleased look on his face.
"Why would you do that?" He asked.
"You'd be more tense on three." She easily pointed out.
Mark hissed and held his breath for a moment as Katjaa applied a cotton ball with hydrogen peroxide. "I- right." He eventually replied.
"Thanks for your help young lady." Brenda suddenly said. "We can take it from here, you go on ahead and spend some time outside with the others." She instructed. With a nod, Zoey left the room and went to retrieve Clementine.
Rounding the corner, she saw the girl in question sitting on the bottom step of the staircase with her head resting in her right head. It was clear by her expression and the way she held her radio that she was most likely reminiscing about seeing her parents again. Zoey knew how much she missed them, it being one of the top things on her list when they reached Savannah.
Zoey let out a sigh and went to sit next to Clementine, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her against her torso. Clementine went with the comforting action and let her head rest against her caretaker's side. It broke her heart seeing Clementine so down at times, as it made her feel like whatever burden she was carrying extended onto her as well.
Don't worry Clem, we'll find them. Even if we don't, or we do and it's worst case scenario, I'll be by your side. Zoey thought as she closed her eyes and let out a sigh.
"...Zoey?" Clementine asked after some time, breaking the silence between them.
Zoey looked down only to see Clementine with a few tears in her eyes. "Yes Clem?"
"...Are we ever going to find my parents? I mean, what if they already left Savannah, o- or what if they're…" Clementine trailed off, unable to finish her sentence. Zoey could see a few tears begin to build up.
Optimism can only last so long, even for a child in a fucked up world like this one. Zoey thought as she gave Clementine a sympathetic look. "Hey now, don't talk like that. We'll find them, I know we will." Zoey tried to reassure. She then adjusted herself so that she was directly facing Clementine. "...And if we don't, then I'll take care of you, just like I promised. I know I may not be able to replace them, but I'll do my best." She concluded with a heartwarming smile.
Clementine was left speechless for a moment, causing Zoey's smile to slowly disappear thinking she had said the wrong thing. That would not be the case however, as Clementine suddenly wrapped her arms in a tight hug around her and buried her face into Zoey's shirt. Zoey was startled but quickly hugged Clementine back. Zoey knew that she was more than likely giving Clementine false hope, because if it was this bad near Atlanta, then just how bad was it in the cities?
"Let's go see what the others are doing, ok?" Zoey asked softly, which got a nod in response. Splitting apart, Clementine wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her jacket before standing and following Zoey out of the house.
Outside, things seemed to have settled down. The group was scattered about the farm's premises looking around. Kenny was in the middle of pushing Duck on a swing, the little boy laughing all the while.
"Hey Zoey!" Kenny said with a wave. His smile vanished as a look of concern took over when he saw Clementine's puffy red eyes. He quickly walked over to them, leaving Duck to swing on his own. "Woah, something happen? …Is Mark ok?" He questioned.
Zoey nodded. "He's fine, should hopefully start recovering soon." She answered, her tone indicating her unwillingness to further answer the former of the questions.
Kenny took the hint and rubbed the back of his head. Although he was deeply concerned for Clementine and Zoey's wellbeing, if something happened between them, then it wasn't his right to butt in. "That's good to hear." He stated before looking back at Duck for a moment. "Oh, just to let you know, I'll be heading out with Danny here soon to find those damn bandits. Hopefully we'll be able to teach 'em a real good lesson."
That came as no surprise to the teenager. She had learned over the past few months that Kenny would go to almost any extreme by now to protect his friends and family. While that could make him a little reckless, it wasn't anything the group was particularly worried about, since they knew he was just looking out for all of them- er, most of them.
"Hey Ken, you ready?" Danny suddenly asked as he walked over to the trio with a pair of hunting rifles.
"Yeah," he said with a determined look, "Let's get these bastards."
"Good luck." Zoey said. "See if you can get your hands on anything useless while you're out there."
"Will do. I'll see you guys later, take care of Duck for me in the meantime, alright?" He asked.
Once Zoey gave him a nod, Kenny went over to Duck, telling him that he'd be back soon before following Danny to the main gate. After giving him a wave of goodbye, he and Danny closed the gate behind them and disappeared into the forest.