AN: What do you guys think about me using polls to decided where the story goes? While I am MOSTLY going to pull the story in the direction I want there are times where I have many ideas and I can write either outcome. During those windows maybe I could post a poll on my account to see how you guys vote.
-Review response-
Supernova1219: I'm glad that you're enjoying your read. She is mostly detached, yes but that is because she still has some morals thanks to Lee. Think of her like the Clementine we find at the start of season 3 except she didn't change. That's the reason she didn't side with Lily and protected the kids at the school. But if she had a working car, I think she would have left them. Lee is going to have to pull her away from that mind set because she will still take what Lee says to heart. She practically idolizes him. Especially when she pulls some crazy shit later on. Lee will eventually remember everything.
thedarkpokemaster: This Clementine viewed all of the kids at the school in a "neutral" light. This Clementine stayed the singletine route because she didn't want to feel the pain of losing someone close again. (Although she did find Louis' antics cute sometimes.)
Worker72: Clementine isn't in the clear just yet!
MedicusAestus: Yes, Lee is "back". This Lee died canonically by being shot by Clementine before he could become a walker.
AN: Before this chapter starts, I'd like to thank gaara king of the sand for being kind enough to beta my story.
-Line break-
"He's going to be in a lot pain when he wakes up." Clementine said leaning herself back for she had finished looking at the injury.
Sandra in response let go of Lee's shirt once she saw Clementine pull away.
Clementine had her eyebrows scrunched up thinking hard about something. Sandra wanted to ask her something but decided against doing so because she didn't want to break the girl's focus. While Sandra knew that Clementine's mother was a doctor it didn't explain how she knew how to deal with this so easily. It was like she's done it before. Clementine told her herself that Diana and Ed didn't know about her intelligence so it wouldn't make sense that Diana taught her how to do this.
Clementine suddenly stood up and made her way towards the kitchen before Sandra could say anything. Clementine opened the freezer and look for something could be cold enough to help lessen Lee's swelling. She found a tray of cubes and then looked around in some more and found a plastic ziplock bag and with that she put the ice inside of it.
She came back into the livingroom with the bag and held it against Lee's head. She looked at him with a sad look on her face. She was glad she had him back but seeing him like this put a knot in her chest. If she hadn't convinced Sandra to go with her out there, Lee would have probably died before he got to them with those injuries. She knew that Lee could definitely could use the stuff back at the pharmacy but until then, it was up to her to protect him.
'Don't worry Lee. Its my turn to protect you now.' She vowed that in life Lee wouldn't die trying save a naive little girl. She wouldn't let him die because of her incompetence again.
Clementine sat there in silence for awhile with that same look of contempt on her face.
"So Clementine..." Sandra said getting the girl's attention.
"Yes?"
"Why did you have the all of that food and the first aid kit in your tree house?"
"My mom bought the first aid kit while ago but since we never had any use for it she let me play doctor. I had all of the food in there because I thought it could come in handy someday." This statement was only half a lie.
"...so you're a hoarder?"
Clementine shrugged.
"Maybe a little."
"Well I don't think its a bad thing. If you didn't have any of this we would have had to to start scavenging for food. And after today I'm not to eager to step out there." Sandra said with a thoughtful look.
"You got anything else up there?" Sandra asked out curiously.
"Just my Dad's tool box."
"That explains how you got a hold of the screw driver and the hammer."
"Oh before I forget, I found something out there." Clementine reached into her pocket and pulled out shotgun shell.
"While you were getting Lee out of the car, I found this laying on the ground."
"Wow nice job Clementine." Sandra surprised.
Clementine smiled slightly.
"I'll go get us something to eat. I'll call you when I got it ready."
"Okay."
Sandra stood up and went into the kitchen. With Sandra gone she turned her attention back to Lee.
-Line break-
(7 hours later)
It was night already and Clementine did all that she could do help but found herself growing tired as the hours tick by. It looked like staying up late had a negative effect on this younger body of hers. She supposed she would have to get used to the needs of this smaller and weaker form. Sandra noticed Clementine's fatigue and told the girl that she could watch over Lee while she slept. Clementine declined the offer at first but after some further persuasion and her body practically begging for her to rest. Even then Clementine told her to call her if anything happened. When Clementine left to rest Sandra hand nothing to but to sit quietly. She turned on the T.V and turned to the news only to find that there was no signal anymore. She turned off it and decided that she would try to contact her family once more.
The hours pasted as the phone rung over and over with no response coming from any of her immediate family or other relatives. With each call not answered the growing pit of dread in her stomach only grew. She knew what happened to them.
She broke into a sob after struggling to hold in her raw emotions
"They're gone, all of them." She said to herself weakly.
She knew everything going on was terrible but now the situation truly sunk in. This is what the end of the world looked like. She imagined her parents nice little home being over taken by countless monsters. Or if them trying to escape their car got stuck in the jam of cars because of everyone trying to flee from the chaos.
If it wasn't for Clementine, Sandra knew that she'd be dead. It's been only two days since the world has gone to hell and she already had to be saved twice. First she almost rushed herself and Clementine to horrifying deaths by trying to leave the house. If she had foolishly pulled Clementine and herself out they would have found themselves in the middle of the chaos that ravished the neighborhood. Then she got herself nearly killed by a monster because she let her guard down.
She was weak, so very weak.
And she hated it.
Unbeknown to Sandra, Lee was beginning to stur in his sleep. Only moving in slight twitches for brief moments at time like he was having bad dream. Then his face then formed into a grimace as heard distorted voices in his head followed by images that were too blurred to tell what was going on.
"You're strong Clem, you can do anything."
"But...I'm little."
"That don't mean nothin'. You're gonna see bad things but its okay."
The voices sounded distant and came from all directions. But they also drew closer as time went on.
"You have to shoot me honey."
"I'll miss you..."
"Me too."
The next image was surprisingly clear compared to the rest. Which happened to have him stare straight down a barrel of a gun.
BANG
Lee jolted awake at the volume of the gunshot that was still resounding in his head. He found himself in a dark room only lit slightly by the moonlight that was present. What first noticed was the pain assaulted his senses. He felt dizzy and his head was pounding. Lee turn his attention to what appeared to be the silhouette a woman sitting across from him. She was leaning forward and had her and clutched tightly around a phone when he heard a quiet robotic voice.
"The person you're trying to call is unavailable at this time. Please leave a message after-beep" She end it before it could complete.
Then he heard her take a sharp intake of air and slowly let it out with a haggard breath, like she was trying to avoid making noise.
Noticing this, Lee tried to sit up and ask if she was okay. Unfortunately, he was stopped by a sharp pain in his side that made him grunt in pain. Sandra heard him and started whipping the tears from her eyes.
"Oh...you're awake." She said weakly.
After she whipped all of the tears away she spoke again.
"How do you feel?" Sandra asked concerned.
"Like crap." Lee said bluntly.
"You should go back to sleep. You have a concussion and I don't think straining yourself will help you get better."
Although the woman was right and he knew that his body definitely wanted it but there was too much that he need to know.
"Where am I?"
"A small town just outside of Atlanta. We found you stuck in a police car just outside of our backyard." Sandra explained.
"Oh..."
"You're lucky that Clementine knows you because if it were up to me, I would have left you inside."
Clementine...
That name was awfully familiar but he couldn't match a face with who it was
"Why didn't you call the police? Or maybe an ambulance?" Lee asked genuinely curious and confused. It wasn't like he would rather be headed to prison but the situation made no sense so he had to ask.
Sandra shook her head bitterly.
"The world has gone to hell since the time you were out."
"What do you mean?"
"To put it simply, the dead are walking the earth."
Lee eyed her strangely.
"That sounds ridiculous. "
"Yes it does." Sandra agreed.
"I wish it really was a bunch of nonsense but its true. We're trying to hold out until the military comes but I'm starting to have my doubts." Sandra said in a thoughtful tone.
"Doubts? Why?"
"If this is really happening everywhere, how will the army actually going to deal with something like this? Are we really this fucked?" Sandra rested her hand on her forehead.
"Besides that, I would like to ask you a question."
"Shoot."
Sandra straighted her posture and looked at Lee straight in his eyes.
"Tell me...what was the reason you were in that police car?"
-Chapter end-
AN: I know the dialogue in Lee's strange 'dream' was almost mix-matched but that is on purpose. I wanted to show that Lee's memories didn't return perfectly like Clementine's did.