Thanks to gaara king of the sand for the help.

And as always, thank you all for reading and reviewing!


As time passed and they settled in. Clementine was feeling more comfortable in Prescott. Clementine had fallen into a routine of hanging with her friends most days during her free time, however the girl still couldn't help but worry about the New Frontier, and about Lilly.

She wanted to help more. And even though Molly told her not to worry, for her being told not to worry made her worry more.

The child was a workaholic, it was obvious to Molly. The girl got more anxious when she was sitting still than she did when she was out on the road.

She often asked if there was anything to help with even when Molly tried to convince the girl to take it easy and be a kid. There were more than enough capable adults in the group that the child shouldn't have to do so much.

And Christa continuously pointed out how the little girl shouldn't have been doing such dangerous stuff in the first place. Part of Molly couldn't help but agree… She hated that her girl had been robbed of a childhood, but they had to do what they had to in order to survive.

But for now, they were safe, and she wanted her girl to be able to relax for once. Clementine however didn't want that. She simply wanted to help.

When Molly began taking up runs and guard duty around Prescott, Clementine immediately offered to do so as well, claiming she had to pull her own weight.

"You've done enough already, Clem. I want you to just take it easy for a while." Molly said.

"I've been taking it easy. I can't do that anymore, Molly…" The child said. "Let me help, please."

"You're always helping me, Clem." Molly replied.

"Well, let me help more. You know I can." Clementine said.

"I do know that…" Molly said. "But I don't want you to do this."

"Why?" Clementine said. "I was doing it before. What makes it different now?"

"You shouldn't have to do things like this. You don't see any of the other kids keeping guard or going on runs." Molly said.

"None of the other kids were doing it in The New Frontier either." Clementine said. "It was just me. Because I can handle it. It doesn't matter how old I am—"

"Yes, it does, Clem. It always mattered. I just… allowed you to do more than I should've."

"Christa told you to do this… Didn't she?" Clementine asked.

"What?"

"She never wants me to do anything, she's always telling me to go play." Clementine huffed. "She said something, didn't she?"

She had… "This isn't about Christa, Clem." Molly said.

"Well why are you switching up on me?" Clementine asked. "I don't understand."

"What don't you understand, Clem? I just don't want you doing anything dangerous." Molly said.

"You always gave me a choice. Always. And now… you're telling me you don't want me to do anything dangerous?" The child huffed. "Everything we've been doing is dangerous. I got a brand on my arm to prove my loyalty to a group that kicked us out. I went on runs with you for months, we spent years surviving on our own, and now you don't want me to do anything dangerous."

Molly didn't know what to say in response.

"It's too late for that, Molly."

"Maybe it is…" Molly sighed. "I agree with you, there are a lot of things you shouldn't have had to do. Some of those things I should've put my foot down for in fact, but… I'm still in charge Clem… And I need you to listen to me… If I tell you I don't want you to do something, I'm telling you it for a reason. I need you to understand that."

"I don't… I don't understand at all." Clementine replied.

"Well, hopefully you will one day… But the answer is still no." Molly said.

Clementine frowned, crossing her arms at her guardian's response. It just wasn't fair.


"I just don't get it. She's always let me do stuff, if it was my choice… I mean, she would give me limitations on what I could and can't do, but she never flat out told me no." Clementine complained to Sarah and Becca as the three were playing a board game.

"Maybe she just doesn't want you getting hurt." Sarah said.

"I won't get hurt; I can handle myself. She knows I can." Clementine said.

"Why would she want to put you at risk if she supposed to be protecting you?" Becca asked.

"Because she's not putting me at risk. She knows I'm perfectly capable of handling myself." Clementine said.

"But you're still just a kid." Becca said. "It's just what adults do, especially when they're looking after you. Shel always act like I'm a kid, even knowing I can handle myself."

"Yeah, and my dad always protected me." Sarah said. "He kept me safe no matter what."

"But this is different." Clementine said.

"How?" Becca asked her.

"It… just is…" Clementine said. "Ever since Molly started taken care of me, she always made sure I could handle myself, and when I got older, she let me make choices for myself. But now, she suddenly wants to treat me like a little kid. I'm not a little kid. I'm way passed that."

"Uh, you look like a little kid to me…" Becca said.

"Maybe I look like one, but I'm not one." Clementine claimed.

"So what? You're a woman trapped in a child's body?" Becca scoffed.

"At this point, I might as well be." Clementine replied.

"I don't see what the big deal is. If Molly's telling you to take it easy for once, why not enjoy the break?" Becca asked.

"Because I can't. I want to help. I like helping." Clementine said.

"Even when there's nothing to help with?" Sarah asked.

"There's always something to help with…" Clementine said.

"Mister Tripp and the other adults have a lot of stuff covered. They don't rely on kids to do anything." Sarah said.

"The last group were in didn't rely on kids either, but they let me help. All the time…" Clementine said. "Molly and I got food for them, we did patrols, we made sure everyone was safe…"

"Then technically, they did rely on a kid. They relied on you." Becca said.

"Because I let them. I didn't mind. I liked it, actually." Clementine said. "I want people to be able to rely on me again. It makes me feel good. I like helping."

"I see what the problem is…" Becca said.

"What?" Clementine asked.

"You don't know how to be a kid…" Becca said.

Clementine frowned. "I… No… I guess I don't…"

"Maybe you should learn how to be a kid again…" Sarah.

Clementine shook her head. "I don't think I can…"

"It doesn't last forever you know…" Becca said.

"I know… And I'm fine with that…" Clementine replied.

"Who doesn't want to enjoy their childhood." Becca said. "You're pretty weird, you know that."

"Yeah… I do…" Clementine muttered.


"Please Molly, I really want to do this…." Clementine pleaded again, hoping her guardian would give in.

"I've given you my answer already, Clem." Molly sighed.

"But why not? Why can't I do this? I just want to help you." Clementine said.

"You've help me enough, Clem."

"No, I haven't… I haven't been helping since we got here." Clementine said. "I know you don't want me to worry, but you can at least let me help you… You can't pull the weight for both of us to stay here."

"Yes, I can, Clem." Molly said. "You're a kid… You don't have to worry about pulling your own weight right now."

"I worry about you. I don't want you to overwork yourself when you know I'm here to help…" Clementine said.

"I'm not, Clem, and I not going to let you overwork yourself either… You've done enough of that since I've started looking after you." Molly said. "I could've done better with you…"

Clementine furrowed her brows, "…What did they say to you?"

"What?"

"The group? What did they say that's making you act this way?" Clementine asked.

"I just want you to be a kid for a while." Molly said.

Clementine shook her head. "I stopped being a kid a long time ago, Molly."

"I know, but you have the time to try to be one now… This time won't last forever." Molly said.

"Nothing last forever, I know that…" Clementine said. "But I'm asking you to please, let me do this…"

"And I'm telling you no. Clem…" Molly said.

"But why? Can you at least give me a reason…?" The girl asked.

"Because… I'm not letting you take on any more responsibilities right now…" Molly said. "You don't need to."

"But I can handle it…" Clementine complained.

"I know, Clem…" Molly said. "But the answer's still no."

Clementine huffed at that, fighting back tears of frustration. The child turned away from her guardian.

"Clem…"

The young girl didn't respond, she just walked to her own room.

Molly sighed; she didn't mean to upset the girl. Molly just wanted her to be a kid for a while. It was nice to see Clementine act like a child for once, and with The New Frontier out there, Molly didn't know how long her girl would be able to have that liberty.


Clementine felt upset. She knew Molly had the best intentions in mind, but she didn't agree at all with her guardian's choice. Why would she switch up on her now?

How could Molly go from letting her make her own choices and telling her that she cared about her opinion to simply telling her to be a kid? She couldn't just backpedal like that. To make up an excuse and not have the same standards as usual was confusing for the child and it's felt so unfair.

Clementine felt like someone had to have said something to make Molly feel this way. And she knew it had to be either Kenny or Christa.

She was leaning towards Christa mostly, seeing as though Kenny would let her do things to help out often when they had been grouped up before.

As much as she was glad these people cared about her, she didn't like that they were deciding what she could and could not do. After all she had been through the girl felt like she deserved to have a say. And for a long time, she knew Molly had agreed with the view of letting Clementine have her own opinion, but now it seemed something had changed. And Clementine just wanted it to go back to how it was.


The group would meet on a daily, coming up with idea on how they would deal with The New Frontier. Most of their methods point to going to war with this group, which they really wanted to avoid. Still, they knew they had to find a way to stop the New Frontier, or they were going to end up destroying the lives of everyone they could reach.

Clementine quietly listened to them talk. Each time she would try to add to their conversation the child would find herself interrupted or simply ignored. It irritated her.

They expected her to play all day and that's it, but she couldn't do that. She wanted to know what was going on. She wanted to be able to help.

When the adults had stopped talking and started to head to carry out the assigned tasks of the day, Clementine found herself left with Christa and Sarita as usual. However, she didn't spend her time playing with Genevieve and AJ like usual, instead she approached Christa and asked the woman, "Can we talk?"

"Of course, Clem. You can talk to me about anything."

Clementine looked over to Sarita who was with the toddlers then turned back to Christa. "In private…"

"…Sure…" Christa agreed.

The two walked out of Sarita's earshot to talk.

Christa sighed, "I heard about what happened to you, Clem…"

"What?"

"I know about the… the abuse…" Christa said.

Clementine frowned. "I… I don't want to talk about that."

"You… don't? I thought that's why you asked me to talk…" Christa said.

Clementine quickly shook her head. "No… I hate thinking about that. I don't want to talk about it."

"I think you should, sweetie." Christa replied.

"I don't want to talk about that, please…" Clementine said. "You… You said I could talk to you about anything… Well I want to talk to you about something else…"

Christa hesitated to move on from the subject. "It's not good to keep your feeling's bottle up."

"Christa, please…"

"I just think you should try to talk about what happened." Christa said.

"I don't want to." Clementine said back.

"It'll help you feel better." Christa claimed.

"I said I don't want to." Clementine said again.

"It's not healthy to keep it all to yourself… I know I'm not a therapist, but—""

"Stop…" The child said.

"I just think that you should try to talk to someone." Christa said.

"Stop it…"

"And I understand that you're not comfortable talking to Molly but." Christa continued.

"Stop it." The girl gritted her teeth.

"I just want you to understand, I'm here for you." Christa said.

"STOP IT!" Clementine suddenly exclaimed making the woman flinch.

Christa's eyes were wide at the small girl's sudden outburst.

"I do… want to talk to you, but not about that… I never want to talk to anyone about that." Clementine breathed out, trying to calm herself.

"…What did you want to talk about?" Christa asked.

"I…I want to know what you said to Molly…" Clementine said.

"What are you talking about, Clem?"

"Someone said something to her, about not letting me do patrols around town… I know someone said something…." Clementine said.

"She did bring up that you asked, I told her it was a bad idea." Christa replied.

"What?"

"I told her she should let you be a kid for once, because you've been through enough already…" Christa said. "And that Lee wouldn't wanted you to be able to be a kid."

"I don't care about being a kid. I care about helping… I don't want to sit around and play all day…" Clementine said.

"That's because you're used to doing things a child your age shouldn't have to. But things are different now. You're safe here." Christa said.

"For now, but what about when the New Frontier shows up? We need to be ready for that." Clementine said.

"We'll be ready, but again, Clem. That's not something a kid should have to worry about."

"I'm not a kid, Christa. You don't know anything about me… I've done so many things and seen so many things… I've been through more than you could imagine."

"I know you've been through a lot, but that doesn't change the facts—"

"It does change a lot, Christa. I don't want to be treated like a little kid. I'm not just a little kid." Clementine said.

"You are though, Clem. It's good that you know how to handle yourself, but you are a child." Christa said.

"I haven't been a kid for a long time. And Carver made me into a woman anyway." Clementine said.

"No. No he didn't," Christa said.

"But he did." Clementine said. "I was always doing a lot of grown-up things. I was part of David's security in the new frontier, I helped keep things together… They didn't treat me like a little kid…. I was the only kid who was allowed to do patrols and go on runs. I was the only kid who had this." Clementine pulled up her sleeve to reveal a brand mark.

Christa's eyes immediately widened, and she seized the girl's arm to get a better look at the brand. "They BRANDED you?!"

"I let them…" Clementine mumbled.

"Why the hell would Molly let that happen?" Christa asked.

"It was my choice." Clementine said.

Christa is outraged as she shakes her head. "No… She shouldn't have let you make that choice. This is wrong…!"

"She has a brand too…" Clementine said.

"That doesn't make it okay! This is forever on your skin… This mark of that horrible group…" Christa shook her head and released her arm. "I can't believe this shit…"

"Christa,"

"This just proves to me anymore, that Molly hasn't been the best person to take care of you." Christa huffed.

"Yes, she has. She's always looking out for me and making sure I'm okay… I've stayed alive this long because of her." Clementine said.

"Yes, at what cost?" Christa said. "We should've found you… Omid and I…. We should've looked harder… Thing's would've been different."

"I'm happy with the way things are. I'm glad we're back together again, but I'm also glad that Molly found me. She's the best guardian and friend I could ask for since I lost Lee…" Clementine said.

Christa shook her head in disapproval. "I think we're done talking for now, Clementine."

"Fine…" The child didn't protest. She felt like she shouldn't have said anything, the last thing she wanted was for Christa to start an argument with Molly…


Things were awkward for the rest of the day; Clementine was more than relieved when Molly showed up. The girl quickly asked if they could leave before just as Christa tried to speak with the other woman.

"In a minute, Clem." Molly said.

Sensing things would get bad the child tugged at Molly's hand. "I- I don't feel good… Can we please go home? I want to lay down…"

Molly sighed, "Okay, Clem… Mind if we have this chat tomorrow?"

"Fine… Whatever…" Christa huffed.

Clementine was glad, she just hoped the woman would let things go.


As they got back to the house, Molly spoke, "What was that all about?"

"What?" Clementine asked.

"Why did you want to leave so bad?" Molly questioned.

"I said I wasn't feeling good." Clementine shrugged.

"I know what you said… But what's the real reason? What's going on, Clem?"

"...I asked Christa what she said to you. To make you start treating me like a kid." Clementine admitted.

Molly sighed. "Clem...why would do that?"

"Because, I knew it was her fault." Clementine said.

"Nothing is her fault." Molly said.

"But she told you to do this." Clementine replied. "She told me so."

"It doesn't matter what she says. I make my own decisions." Molly said.

"So did I. You always let me, until she started trying to butt in." Clementine said.

"It's not her fault, Clem."

"Yes, it is… I know it is…" Clementine said. "Why else wouldn't you let me help?"

"Because I want you to take it easy for once." Molly said. "I told you before."

"But I can't… I just want to help you Molly. I don't want to take it easy…"

"Clem, the answer's not changing, now please. Don't ask me again."

The child pouted at that, she just wished Molly would change her mind.


Night had fallen, Christa had just gotten Genevieve to sleep. However, Omid could tell something was bothering her.

"What is it?" Omid asked.

"What is what?" Christa huffed.

"I've seen that look before…" Omid said.

"What look?"

"That "I'm in a bad mood, Omid should ask me what's wrong" look." Omid replied.

Christa rolled her eyes at that. "I'm just thinking…"

"Yeah, you're always thinking, hon. But what are you thinking about right now?" Omid said.

"Clementine." Christa answered.

"Clem?" Omid asked. "What about her?"

"I just… We should've been the ones to find her… She would've been so much better off with us than… than with her…" Christa said.

"Woah, where is this coming from…? I think Molly's doing an okay job. Clem's healthy and seems somewhat happy." Omid said.

"She was raped Omid; she was raped while in Molly's care. It doesn't matter if they were separated, Molly should've kept her out of danger…" Christa said.

"I'm sure she did her best, Christa. You know things couldn't have been easy for them out there… We're lucky we found Wellington… We didn't have to worry about being out there…" Omid said.

"Which is why I wish we had found Clem. She would've been safe with us, in Wellington. She would've had a normal childhood, as normal as we could've given her. She wouldn't have had to spend the last three years scared and struggling to survive." Christa replied.

"Christa…"

"How many nights do you think she went without food? How many days do you think that child was out in the cold or the rain? She deserved better." Christa said.

"I agree. She shouldn't have had to go through that, but we can't just discredit Molly for all she's done. She didn't have to take care of Clem." Omid said.

"She should've taken better care of her. Clem shouldn't have been going on runs to get food, she shouldn't have had to play the role of a provider when she's a damn child." Christa said.

"Christa—"

"She shouldn't have to think that she has to pull her weight just to be able to stay here," Christa said. "She's just a little girl…"

"Christa,"

"And she shouldn't have that damn brand on her arm!" Christa exclaimed.

Omid's eyes widened. "Wh-What?"

"She has a brand on her arm. The symbol of that group… The New Frontier…" Christa told him.

"What the fuck? Molly… let them brand her…?" Omid felt sick to hear that.

"Yes. And I'm really tempted to say a few words to her…" Christa said.

"Look, Christa. I understand that you're upset, but I don't think that's our place." Omid protested.

"But we can't just sit back and do nothing…" Christa said.

"We can't start a fight over it either… It's already been done… Fighting won't change anything…" Omid said.

"Maybe not… But someone has to stand up for that child's rights. She deserves better…" Christa said.

"I know she does…" Omid said. "But she's fine… So just… let it go."

"I can't just let it go… That little girl deserved better." Christa said.

"Just promise me, you want start a fight with Molly…" Omid said.

Christa didn't response.

"Hon…"

"I'll try not to…" Christa said.

"Thank you…" That was all Omid could ask for. The last thing they needed were the two women feuding with each other right now.


It was early morning when Clementine awoke. Her mind was on replay of the conversation between her and Molly the night before.

She didn't want a repeat of that today. She figured she would go elsewhere clear her head.

Still feeling a bit upset, Clementine left, without a word to her guardian. She didn't need Molly treating her like a kid. Not when she could easily handle herself.

The child made her way through the streets until she eventually came to a stop. She knocked on the door in front of her and waited for it to open.

Patricia opened the door and was surprised to see the little girl. "Good morning, Clementine. How are you?"

"I'm okay…" Clementine said.

"That's great, sweetie." Patricia smiled at her. "Where's Molly?"

"She's… busy…" Clementine lied. The girl quickly tried to change the subject. "Umm… Is Gill awake?"

"I'll go get him for you." Patricia said.

The child waited a few moments and soon Gill came to the door, rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

"Hey Clem." Gill greeted.

"Hey, I hope it's not too early…" The girl said. "Mind if I come in?"

"Sure." Gill moved aside to let her into the house.


When Molly awoke that morning and checked Clementine's room, she was immediately alarmed. The child was gone. She wrecked her brain, wondering where the girl could be, and inwardly swore for not realizing the girl had snuck out earlier.

She knew Clementine could handle herself, but that didn't mean she didn't worry about the girl. Clementine wasn't usually the type of kid to take off without telling her. Molly fought the urge to work herself into a state of panic. She knew the girl wouldn't leave town; Tripp wouldn't allow her to do so on her own.

The child had to be with either someone from their former group, or one of her little friends.

Molly sighed, she was supposed to take patrol this morning, but that would have to wait. She needed to find her girl.


"Sorry if I woke you." Clementine said.

"It's okay, Clem. I don't mind…" Gill said. "So what brings you here so early?"

"I had a bad night." The girl replied.

"Want to talk about it?" Gill asked.

Clementine shrugged, "I… don't know…"

"Come on, you can talk to me about anything."

Clementine hesitated. "Okay fine… I… Molly and I have been arguing lately."

"What about?"

"She wants to treat me like a kid. And I'm getting sick of it…" Clementine said.

"But… You are a kid…" Gill said.

"I'm not… I'm not a kid…" Clementine said.,

"Uh… Okay…" Gill didn't argue. "Does Molly know you're here?"

"No… I sort of snuck out." Clementine answered a bit sheepishly.

"Do you think you'll get in trouble?" Gill asked.

Clementine shrugged. "I don't know… I just don't want to be home right now."

"Well… How about I take you somewhere else?" Gill offered.

"Where?" Clementine asked.

"Come with me. I'll show you…" Gill said.


Molly was worried about her girl. She quickly began searching around for the child. Checking with their former group members to see if she had gone to visit one of them.

Each exchange went somewhat similar. She checked in with Vince and Shel, wondering if the child had gone to play with Sarah and Becca, the girl wasn't there.

She then checked in with Kenny and Sarita who were both concerned when they heard the child was missing. Molly didn't stay to hear Kenny question how she could have "lost the girl", as if he were referring to a lost puppy.

Lastly Molly checked in with Christa and Omid. She knew Christa wouldn't take things well. As she knocked on the door, she just hoped her girl was inside.

"Hey Molly, how's it going?" Omid greeted, little Genevieve in his arms. "Is Clem here?"

"Clem? No... I thought she'd be with you... What's going on, Molly?" Omid said.

"I... I can't find Clem..." Molly admitted.


"Where are we going?" Clementine asked as she followed Gill outside. The boy had packed up a bag with some food and water and then led her out.

"I wanted to show you something cool." Gill said.

"Something cool?" Clementine echoed.

Gill nodded. "Are you scared of heights?"

"No." The girl said.

"Good." Gill replied.

"Good?" Clementine rose a brow wondering what was going on.

"Come on." Gill urged her to keep walking.

She did so. "What are you planning, Gill?"

"Just follow me." Gill took her hand.

The girl fought the urge to blush but allowed this.


"She's gotta be around somewhere. I'm sure she's fine." Omid said.

"I know she is. But I just want to know where she is." Molly sighed.

"How did you lose her in the first place?" Christa asked.

"Guys, don't start. Let's just split up and try to find her." Omid said.

"Fine." Christa huffed.


"This is it." Gill said as they came to a stop.

Clementine gazed at the plane in front of her with a look of awe. "It's… a plane."

"Yeah, it is…" Gill chuckled. "Follow me. Feel like climbing inside?"

"O-Okay." Clementine said.

The two began climbing careful until the made it to the inside of the broken plane.

The two sat in the front seat and Clementine played with the yoke, giggling a bit. "This is so cool! It's like I'm driving a plane."

"Ever been on a plane before?" Gil asked.

"Back when I was little. My parents took me on trips sometimes during the summer when they weren't working." Clementine said. "This is so freaking cool!"

Gill couldn't help but smile at that.


Hours passed and the group had been searching for the child. They still hadn't found the girl.

Everyone was worried. Especially Molly. Worried quickly went away when Patricia informed them that the girl was with Gill.

Relieved most of the group headed home. Molly hesitantly did the same, knowing the girl would have to come back sooner or later. She would have some words for her then.


Clementine with Gill spent the entire day hanging out inside the broken-down airplane and enjoying each other's presence, eating the snacks Gill had packed and making small talk. It was nice for both of them.

"It's getting dark... we should probably head back." Clementine sighed.

"Yeah. You're right..." Gill said. "Mind if I walk you back?"

"I'd like that." Clementine said. "Gill, thanks... for today."

"Anytime Clem." Gill said.

The two made their way down from the airplane and began the walk to Clementine's home.


The second Clementine got back to the house she could tell she was in trouble.

"You had me worried sick!" Molly huffed.

"I just went out for a bit. It's no big deal." Clementine said.

"It is a big deal, Clementine. I need to know where you are at all times." Molly replied.

Clementine didn't respond.

Molly sighed, shaking her head. "Gill, thanks for walking her home… I'll take you home."

"It's okay. I can make it myself." Gill said, feeling a bit uncomfortable as he felt the tension between the two.

"It's dark. I don't feel comfortable letting you walk alone." Molly said then turned to Clementine. "You get inside. I want you to go to your room and stay there until I get back. You and I are gonna have a talk."

"See you later, Clem." Gill said.

"Yeah… See you…" Clementine muttered.


"Clem, can I come in…?"

"Come in…."

"…I wanted to talk to you... I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. But... you had me worried, Clem." Molly said.

"I'm sorry..." Clementine frowned.

"You can't wander off like that. It's not safe. Especially with people like the New Frontier out there. You have to tell me when you leave kid." Molly said.

"I'm sorry… I just… wanted to go out for a while." Clementine said.

"I understand… You're growing up and sometimes you need space." Molly said.

"So… You're not mad at me…?" Clementine asked.

"I wasn't ever mad. I was worried." Molly explained.

"I'm really sorry, Molly." The child said, feeling bad for making her worry.

"It's okay, Clem…" Molly said. "I… thought about what you asked me… About doing patrols…"

"Really?" The child brightened at that.

"Yeah… I know that you can handle it…" Molly said.

Clementine nodded. "Yeah, I can…"

"And as long as you promise me, that you'll take time to relax, I'm fine with it. No overworking yourself." Molly said.

"I promise!" Clementine said.

"Okay… You can take patrols during the day only, and you have to talk to me before hand and let me know when you're leaving and where you'll be." Molly said.

"I will, I swear." The girl said.

"Good, that's my girl." Molly said.

Clementine smiled. "Thank you, Molly."

"Don't mention it, kid."


"Are you out of your mind?" Christa inquired. "You're gonna let her patrol and stand guard? She's a child."

"She can handle it." Molly said.

"That's the whole issue. Your way of thinking... She can handle this; she can handle that. Just because she can doesn't mean she should." Christa said. "Is nobody here gonna back me up?"

There was no response. The others were all is fine with Clementine taking on patrols. They knew the girl could handle it.

"So no one agrees with me?" Christa said. "Or you're all just too scared to speak up?"

"It's not a big deal, Christa." Omid said.

"It is a big deal, Omid." Christa said.

"She can handle it. I don't see what the problem is. She wants to help, so let her help." Kenny said.

"She's a child." Christa said.

"And?" Kenny asked.

"She shouldn't have to do this stuff." Christa replied.

"She doesn't have to. She wants to. So I say let her." Kenny said.

Christa shook her head in disapproval. "This is ridiculous." Christa huffed, standing, and walking away from the others.

As the others continue to talk Christa made her way over to Clementine who had been quietly drawing. "Clem, we need to talk…"

"Okay…" Clementine muttered, looking to her. "What about?"

"About the other day. I wasn't trying to upset you. I just care about you. And I want you to make sure you're okay." Christa said.

"I am." Clementine said.

"That's good… And I want you to know that you can come to me for anything. If you ever feel like you want somewhere else to stay, Omid and I would love to have you." Christa said to the child.

Clementine furrowed her brows at that. "Why would I want somewhere else to stay?"

"Just in case." Christa replied.

"In case of what?"

"In case you ever feel like you need a break." Christa said.

"A… break from what?" Clementine asked.

Christa didn't respond, but Clementine followed her gaze to Molly.

"Why would I need a break from Molly?" The child asked.

"I know you guys weren't getting along lately..." Christa said.

"Yeah… We weren't, but we worked it out… And even if we hadn't I wouldn't leave her over a stupid fight like that." Clementine said.

"Well, my offer still stands." Christa told her.

Clementine didn't respond.

From the table Molly noticed the two talking, she was curious on what Christa was saying to her girl. Unable to shake her curiosity she stood and made her way over to them. "Hey," She greeted them. "What are you two talking about?"

Christa shot her a look. "That's none of your business."

"If it's involving my girl, then it is my business." Molly said.

"Your girl?" Christa asked.

"Yeah. MY girl." Molly said.

"Please… Don't fight." Clementine begged.

"It's okay, Clem…" Molly said.

"You know what, I've been wanting to talk to you anyway." Christa told Molly, looking to the woman.

"Okay then. Let's talk." Molly huffed.

"In private." Christa said.

"Fine." Molly said. "Do you mind giving us a moment, please, Clem?"

"Please…." Clementine frowned, getting a bad feeling.

"It's okay, kiddo. Just go play with Sarah and Becca. Everything's okay." Molly said.

"…Okay…" Clementine hesitated but walked off.

"What did you want to talk about?" Molly asked Christa, already feeling annoyed.

"I don't think you have Clementine's wellbeing in mind." Christa said.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Molly inquired.

"Exactly what I said." Christa said. "You obviously don't care that she's a child. You let her do whatever she wants."

"That's not true, Christa."

"It seems that way to me." Christa said.

Molly narrowed her eyes. "What do you have against me?"

"Against you personally, nothing. I appreciate everything you've done for me and Omid and the past, and I'm glad you found Clem, but I don't agree with how you take care of her." Christa said. "…She told me about the branding. How could you let those people brand a child?"

"I didn't want it to happen…" Molly said.

"But it did, and you didn't stop it!" Christa said.

"I know! I should've stopped it, and I do regret it…" Molly replied.

"You should regret it! It never should have happened!" Christa said. "But regret, won't change the fact that she has that disgusting group's mark on her for the rest of her life!"

Clementine frowned, her heart dropping as she saw they were in fact arguing. The others also picked up on this and Omid quickly went over to calm Christa down.

"Whoa, Whoa, what's going on?" Omid asked.

"You know what this is about, Omid." Christa said.

"Fuck…" Omid muttered. "Christa, we talked about this."

"Omid, no. It's not right." Christa said.

"Just back off, Christa. It's not our place." Omid said.

"If Lee was here, if he found out about this he would be pissed!" Christa exclaimed.

"If Lee found out about what?" Kenny inquired, him and the others looking concerned and confused.

"About that brand on her arm!" Christa replied without second thought.

"W-What?" Kenny stammered.

"She has a brand on her arm! From those assholes who attacked Wellington!" Christa said.

"Christa…" Omid groaned.

"They should know, Omid!" Christa said.

"What the fuck?" Vince muttered.

"Oh my gosh…" Shel gasped.

"Show it to us, Clem." Kenny called to the child.

Clementine shook her head.

Kenny huffed and looked to Molly. "So you let those assholes brand her?! Did you tell her to keep it a secret too?"

"No… I didn't." Molly said.

"Funny how when you told us about your group, you conveniently left out the part about how they like to brand children." Christa huffed.

"Guys, knock it off." Vince said. "This is getting out of hand."

"Knock what off, Vince? She let those sick fucks brand Clem and didn't say a thing!" Kenny grumbled.

"Please stop." Clementine said.

"How many more secrets are you keeping from us?" Kenny asked Molly.

"Stop!" Clementine spoke a bit louder.

"First Clementine's pregnancy, and now this?!" Kenny said.

Christa and Omid's eyes widened when they heard that.

The entire room seemed to freeze for a few moments. Clementine flinching with those words.

"Pr-Pregnancy?" Omid uttered, breaking the silence.

That was all it took, the arguing quickly escalated, everyone was talking over one another. Both Genevieve and AJ were crying from the noise.

Clementine threw her hands over her ears. "Stop it…"

The didn't, the arguing continued.

"I said STOP IT!" The child jumped to her feet and made a dash for the door, wanting to escape the noise.

"Clem!" Multiple voices called to her, but she didn't stop. She just ran and ran, with no destination in mind.

"Damn it! Look what you did!" Molly snapped.

"What we did?" Kenny inquired.

Molly ignored them and immediately took off after the little girl.

She hoped the girl didn't get far, but as she got outside, she couldn't see her. She couldn't help but wonder where the child had run off to. She figured she would check with Gill, since the child had been there before. She hoped the girl was okay. She needed to find her.


The child ran as fast as her little legs could carry her. Knowing she would be followed, but needing time away from the group, she ducked into the closest building she could see. Which just so happed to be Conrad's bar. There were a few people inside, having drinks and playing cards. But Clementine ignored them. That is until she bumped into someone.

"S-Sorry…" The girl stammered.

The man looked down at her and said, "Aren't you a bit young to be in here? Where are your folks?"

"Why do you care?" Clementine scoffed.

"Relax, kid. It's just not everyday that you see a little girl in here. You ran in her like a bat out of hell, you bringing trouble?" The man replied.

"No." The girl said.

"You sure? Nobody's gunning for you?" The man asked.

"No…"

"And you didn't bring the dead?" He asked.

"No."

"Then what?"

"Does it really matter?" Clementine asked back.

"It does if you're bringing trouble." The man said.

"I'm not." Clementine replied.

"Hard to believe after seeing you running like that." The man said.

Clementine didn't respond.

"You know, if you're having trouble, I got something that might interest you." The man said. "Help you with any problems you have."

"What's that?" Clementine slowly asked.

"Follow me and I'll show you." The man said then walked off towards a back room.

Clementine hesitated for a moment, but slowly followed, convincing herself that if he tried anything naughty, she could handle him.


"She's not here?" Molly felt her heart drop as Patricia shook her head.

"No. I'm sorry, Molly. We haven't seen her all day." Patricia said.

"Damn it…" Molly said.

"I hope you find her… I'll keep an eye out as well." Patricia said.

"Thanks…" Molly walked off wondering where the kid was. Where else would she even go?

She continued to walk for a while until she heard someone call her name, "Molly," The man seemed a bit drunk, slurring his words. "You better get that girl of yours."

"You saw her?" Molly asked.

The man nodded. "Yeah, earlier. She's inside, probably trying to score a drink."

"…I'll get her." Molly said.

"You do that. And tell her she's too young to be drinking." The man slurred out.

"Will do, Tim."


"This here could be all yours," The man showed her a gun and a large supply of bullets.

"All mine?"

"That's right, little one. But it won't come for free." The man said. "How about a little trade? You give me what I want, and both the gun and the bullets are all yours."

"What…. Do you want?" Clementine asked.


Molly entered the bar and looked around. She approached the counter where she was greeted by both Conrad and Francine.

"Hey there, Molly." Francine said.

"You here to have a drink?" Conrad asked.

"No. I'm looking for my girl." Molly said.

"Clementine? What would a sweet little kid like her be doing in a place like this?" Francine asked.

"No idea. But she's in here. Somewhere." Molly said.

"Are you sure? We didn't see her come in." Conrad said. "Then again the placed has been kind of full tonight, wasn't paying much attention…"

"She has to be." Molly scanned the bar again.

"Maybe check in with Ell. He might have saw her." Conrad said.

Molly frowned at the thought of her girl being with that man. Eli gave her a bad feeling. As she checked through a window, she noticed that her girl was in fact alone with the man. Molly hurriedly headed towards the room they were in and spoke up, "Let's go Clementine."

Both Clementine and Eli looked to her.

"Molly, leaving so soon?" Eli asked.

"Yes." Molly simply said.

"Why not stay a while? Have a drink or something." Eli suggested.

"I'm good." Molly huffed then looked to Clementine. "Let's go."

The child didn't protest as they walked out, Eli called to the young girl, "Don't forget our deal, kid!"

Molly shook her head, wondering what he was talking about. She took Clementine's little hand and shot Eli a look, "Stay away from her." She then walked the child out.

"You found her!" Conrad noticed.

"Yeah. I did." Molly nodded.

"That's good." Francine said.

"Thanks…" Molly said as she proceeded to the door. Once outside she asked the child, "Are you hurt?"

Clementine shook her head. "Uh-uh."

"Clem, you know better than to run off like that. We talked about this…" Molly said.

"I'm sorry…" Clementine lowered her head.

Molly sighed, "Let's just head home."

"Okay…"


"Are you sure he didn't hurt you?" Molly asked, checking the girl over for injuries.

"He didn't… I promise…" Clementine said. "I didn't mean to worry you…"

"Well, you did…" Molly said. "What deal was he talking about…?"

"He offered me a gun and some bullets." Clementine said.

"In exchange for?"

"He said he needed batteries…" Clementine answered.

"Batteries?" Molly asked.

Clementine nodded. "I told him I would find some. He has a whole lot of bullets. We might need them for the New Frontier."

"I guess… I'll see what we can do… Those bullets might come in handy." Molly said.

"I thought so…" Clementine said.

"Yeah, you're a smart kid…" Molly said. "But, Clem. You know you can't run off like that. I was worried…"

"I'm sorry, Molly…"

"No, I'm sorry about the fighting… You shouldn't have to deal with all that."

"I just hate when people fight because of me." Clementine said.

"Hey, we weren't fighting because of you…. None of that was your fault, Clem."

"But it is…" Clementine frowned. "I shouldn't have told Christa about the brand…"

"They would've found out eventually…" Molly said. "But you know… they weren't completely wrong."

"Yes, they were. They were acting like you're a horrible person." Clementine said.

"I know… But I haven't always done right by you." Molly said.

"Yes, you have." Clementine replied.

"No Clem, I haven't. I've made a lot of mistakes with you… Maybe you would have been better off in someone else's care." Molly sighed.

"I want to stay with you." Clementine quickly said. "I don't want to be with anyone else."

"I know… I want you to stay with me too, Clem… But it's your choice… I don't plan on letting anyone take you away from me. But it's up to you if you truly want to stick around… If you want me to keep looking after you." Molly said.

"I do."

"Good…" Molly gave a small smile. "Then you're stuck with me forever, kid."

Clementine hugged her. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Me either." Molly said.

"I love you, Molly." Clementine said.

Molly wasn't ever one for mushy-gushy moments, but she couldn't help but smile. "Love you too, kiddo."


A few days had passed, and things slowly seemed to return to normal. Although there was still tension between some of the group members, the arguing a died down, as they knew figuring out a way to deal with The New Frontier was more important.

Still, they all had other duties as well, so planning usually came during their free time.

As Molly took on patrols for the day, Clementine went to hang out with Gill. Molly was glad the girl had made a friend like Gill. The boy always seemed to be able to cheer Clementine up when the child was down. And it was nice to see her playing instead of worrying all the time. Those kids were lucky to have each other.


Tripp rose a brow as he spotted a figure in the distance. "Don't come any closer," He called out. "Drop your weapons."

The person did so.

Before long, the gates opened, and Tripp and a few guards made their way over. The proceeded to check the woman for weapons, making sure to pick up the weapons she had set on the ground.

"Alright, you know the protocol. Eleanor will check you for bites, make sure you're all good." Tripp said.

The woman nodded in response.

"I didn't expect to see you again. What brings you here this time?" Tripp asked.

"I was actually hoping to see some people… If they're here." The woman said.

"Who?"

"A woman named Molly, and her little girl, Clementine."