I hope everyone had a fun summer solstice! Just to clear a couple things up: This story takes place about 4 years after the outbreak, with the events in season 1 taking twice as long (approx. 6 months). Also, I started out without a clear pairing in mind, but as the story progresses I keep leaning towards the cute guy with the machete. Expect more of that coming up.

"There was a lot they didn't tell you about death, she had discovered, and one of the biggies was how long it took the ones you loved most to die in your heart."

Chapter 4

The kitchen was lit by candles dripping onto saucers scattered along the counters and dining table. Nick stood against the wall, chewing his finger while Carlos delicately dabbed ointment on Clementine's arm. Luke paced next to them, glancing over every few seconds. The rifle on the table gave her an uneasy feeling, but she said nothing as she took a penicillin tablet and chugged down her second glass of (clean!) water.

"This might hurt a little." Clementine winced as a fresh bandage was secured with gauze wrapped around her forearm from the elbow down.

"How's she look?" Luke asked.

Carlos bobbed his head in a so-so gesture. "Her suturing skills could use some work. But otherwise I'd say she should be fine."

"So it definitely wasn't a lurker bite."

He shook his head. "If it was, the fever would have already set in and her temperature would be through the roof."

Nick suddenly pushed off the wall and exited through the swinging door. Luke glared and followed after him, leaving Clementine alone with the taciturn doctor. He hunched over the sink to wash his hands, striking her as someone used to most things around him being too small. She jumped when he spoke, realizing she'd been staring. "I wish you hadn't done what you did."

"Huh? Oh," She sat up straighter in her seat. "I wish I had another option. But I was hurt, and you weren't helping."

"Because we considered you a threat. Which you were." He said as he dried his hands. "Maybe you still are."

"No, I'm not. I don't know how many more time I have to say that." She said, resenting the implication.

"We put you in that shed out of concern for the safety of our loved ones," He said in a slow, clear voice. "And then you escaped and persuaded my daughter to steal from us. So far, you've done a good job of making me think otherwise."

So, he'd found out about that little detail. Clementine occupied her attention with a stray toothpick, wishing she could sink through the floorboards, anything to get out of this conversation. "Yeah, but ... sometimes you have go with what your gut tells you. You don't seem like bad people, but you were wrong about my arm and I had to do something about it. Out of concern for my own safety, seeing how I don't have the luxury of others looking out for me."

Carlos mulled over what she said, putting away the first aid supplies into the box with long, measured movements. "I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, but there are a few things you need to know about my daughter."

"Okay..."

"She isn't like you. You may not get that initially, but once you're around her for a while you'll understand." He crossed his arms, turning sideways to stare out the window at something she couldn't see. "If she knew how bad the world is ... What it's really like out there ... She would cease to function." He closed his eyes briefly. "She's my little girl. She's all I have left and I would ask that you stay away from her."

Clementine's mouth hung open, not sure whether she should be thankful for the excuse to keep Sarah at a shouting distance, or irritated that he'd kept the girl so sheltered for so long. She chose her words carefully. "I'm sorry, I didn't know ... you don't really meet people like that anymore."

Carlos nodded. "Precisely."

"I bet my mom and dad would've wanted to protect me as much as they could, too." She licked her lips, gathering her courage for the next part. "But during times like these you don't get to be a little girl and expect to survive. She needs to grow up sometime."

Carlos whipped around, his normally even features dark with anger. "You do not know what she needs!" Clementine shrank in her chair with wide eyes. "Rebecca was worried you might be working with someone else. That your being here was no accident. I guess we will find out." He picked up the first aid kit, inflicting a cold look on her. "But one thing I know for certain. You are not to be trusted."

He stormed out the kitchen, letting the door swing wide before it was caught open. Luke poked his head in. "Hey, uh, everything all right in here?"

Clementine nodded, staring at her hands twiddling the toothpick. "I guess first impressions are just not my thing." Who was she to tell anyone how to raise their kids? It was no business of hers, she didn't even like the girl.

"I brought you some food if you're hungry." He raised a bowl steaming with what smelled like cinnamon oatmeal. She raised her eyebrows as he set it in front of her and brought over a candle to the table, sitting down across from her as she dug in. "Mmmph!" She hummed, savoring the taste of Saturday mornings in front of the TV.

"That's gonna leave one helluva scar." She swallowed her mouthful, eyeing the clean white bandages. Shrugging, she said, "I don't mind, it's better than losing it."

He chuckled. "Yeah, scars are way cooler than stumps. See this?" He held his palm up, showing her a long smooth scar starting at the crook of his thumb extending to the opposite corner of his wrist. "I got it trying to catch a knife coming at me. Would have taken my eye out."

Clementine blinked in astonishment. "You'd have looked like a Bond villain."

"I know!" He exclaimed. "But I guess I'm the kind of weirdo who'd rather keep his depth perception than look like a badass, y'know?"

The door swung open again. She felt the smile wilt on her face as Nick tentatively approached. She ignored him, spooning hot oats into her mouth while he stood there trying to look casual. "Hey look, um ... I just wanted to say I'm sorry for ... well ... for being a dick. I got kind of aggro out there, aaaand that was definitely not cool."

"Nick's been known to go off every once in a while," Luke explained. "Don't hold it against him."

"Yeah I guess we all have our moments."

Luke squinted at his friend. "You ... definitely had one out there."

"You were just protecting your friends." Clementine found herself saying. "I get it."

"I didn't mean to be so harsh," Nick rubbed the back of his head. "It's just ... We had a bad experience before."

"We've all had bad experiences." She told him.

Nick pulled out a chair and sat down next to her, both men taking on a distant look. "Can I ask what happened?" She asked, setting her spoon down.

Nick opened his mouth, but the words didn't come out. Luke said, "Nick lost his mom. We were taking care of somebody who got bit."

"It was my fault," Nick said thickly. "I was -"

"It was no one's fault. We thought we could control it, but we couldn't ... and then she turned and his mom was standing right there and she got attacked." Luke remained still, fingers clasped together. "There was nothing we could do about it."

Clementine thought back when Ben's teacher had turned in the flatbed of a pickup truck at the Motor Inn. Katjaa was grabbed, right there in front of Lee. She hadn't been hurt, but it had been so close.

"Anyway, hopefully you understand." Nick said, rising to his feet. Clem nodded and smiled reassuringly. "I do, it'd be hard not to see some parallels. I'm sorry about your mom."

He gave her a charming little smile with just a hint of tooth, nodding before he left. She scraped the sides of the bowl with her spoon, feeling Luke's eyes on her. "So ... since you're pretty much on your own, what's your plan?"

Good question. "I don't really know. My friend is ... oh, wow."

"What is it?"

"Christa. The friend I was with ... she's really gone." She gazed out the window, streaked diagonally from the wind and rain. "It's weird. Things between us weren't going very well for a while now, but after knowing her for so long ... its just hard to let all that go."

"Well, you're welcome to stay here if you want. You can let yourself heal up, and take some time to sort things out."

"Do you think everyone else will be ok with it?"

He leaned in over the table and gave her a disarming smile. "They'll just have to deal with it." She had to look away, hoping the bill of her hat would hide her blush. She continued to eat, hoping she wouldn't be such a dork for the rest of the evening.

"So ..." Luke said, examining the swirls on the wood table. "What happened to your parents?"

She would never finish eating at this rate. He shifted in his seat, picking up on her subtle expression. "If you don't mind me asking. I mean, I assume what happened to them is what happened to just about everybody's parents. You're ... just so young, I didn't think you could have made it on your own for so long ... or maybe you did, I don't know."

"Just how young do you think I am?" She asked coyly.

He shrugged. "Sixteen? Ish. Around Sarah's age, I figure. I'm awful at guessing."

"I'm 18, actually." She said, feigning offense. Luke frowned. "Huh. You don't look like it."

"I get that a lot." Clementine said. "It's all right though. Usually, I can get away with being unnoticed easier than others because of it."

"Hmm." Luke scratched at the stubble on his jaw. "But still, you must've been pretty young when all this started. How did you get by?"

Clementine recalled those first few frantic months in the beginning, when the shock was still fresh and there was still an unspoken expectation of a rescue. "My parents died ... other people took care of me."

Luke looked saddened. "Thats tough. I lost my folks, too." He moved as though he were about to reach for her hand, then thought better of it. "Hey. Look, I'm sorry. I ... I shouldn't of asked."

She shook her head in dismissal. "It's all right. My parents went on vacation and left me with a babysitter when it happened, and they never came back. We went to Savannah to go find them, but they were already dead. This man," Clementine smiled softly. "Found me a few days in and took care of me. We met up with other survivors, and we all tried to make it. But ... it didn't work.

"His name was Lee. He taught me how to survive, and how to shoot a gun," She remembered her friend beaming down at her when she shot all the bottle targets in the boxcar, clapping her hand in a high-five. It was one of those funny instances that the brain stores away in perfect clarity, not necessarily for its personal significance, but for some other mysterious reason. "He never asked for anything in return, he never lied ... and he always believed in me. I'd be dead right now if he hadn't come along."

"What happened to him?"

"I killed him." She didn't bother looking up to see his startled face. "He got bitten ... protecting me, and I had to kill him before he turned."

Luke was at a loss for words. "Wow."

"I had to." She said quietly.

They both jumped when the door creaked open again, this time by Pete. "I hate to interrupt, but I'm out there standin' watch and I can't help but notice this place is lit up like a goddamn beacon in the middle of the woods."

"Yeah, it's time to turn in anyways." Luke said as he got up. "Goodnight, Clementine."

She perked up before he could get through the door. "It's Clem."

It was totally worth seeing that smile again. "'Night, Clem."

Pete took her empty glass and refilled it in the sink. "Hey, Pete?"

"Yeah?"

"I didn't thank you for sticking up for me earlier."

"Don't sweat it. Just get some rest in for me, all right? There's a blanket on the couch for you. G'night." He gave her a parting smile and stepped outside. Not that she didn't mind the friendly company for a change, but now she could finally scarf down her food like a maniac without anyone watching.

"Oh. You're still here." Clementine gave the pregnant woman a blank look that was returned with cool disapproval. She went to the sink with an empty glass and proceeded to fill it. "I wouldn't get comfortable if I were you."

Clem gulped down her last bite. "What?"

Rebecca clinked some dishes around the basin distractedly. "Maybe you've fooled everyone else. But not me."

Bewildered, she shook her head. "I don't understand, what are you talking about?"

"Don't pull that shit on me. I'm not my husband." She turned to face the confused girl directly, secure on her deceptively calm cloud.

Clementine put on her most serious-business face. "I seriously have no clue what you're talking about."

"Yes, you do."

Exasperated, she threw her hands up. "I just needed some help!"

Rebecca leaned her hands against the table, all but sneering into her face. "Well you got it. Now go."

"Whose baby is it?"

Rebecca jerked back. "Excuse me...?"

For a second, Clementine didn't realize she'd said that out loud. "If it's not Alvin's, whose is it?"

"You shut your fucking mouth!"

They glared at each other, nothing but the rain and low rumbling of thunder to fill the silence. "I won't tell." Clementine finally said. "I'm not interested in whatever trouble you got yourself in, just don't take it out on me."

Rebecca gaped at her. "I knew you were going to be a fucking problem." She left the kitchen in a disgusted huff.

Oh yeah. She was bombing these first impressions spectacularly.

Clementine woke up in that space of time between night and daybreak, when the sky was a shy dawning blue and the entire planet held it's breath in perfect stillness. Even as haggard as her body had felt, she had evolved a natural alarm clock that sensed when it was time to get up and going. Her eyes quickly focused on the strange walls and she jolted up on the squeaky couch before the blurry dream corpses faded from her mind's eyes. Right, she wasn't out in the open wilderness anymore. A small part of her still wanted to look around the room for Christa, out of habit ... Oh, Christa.

Clementine rallied a cleansing breath, listening to the birds begin to chirp, the scent of petrichor emanating through windows so old the glass dripped in their panes. She watched the sun begin to rise over the jagged tree tops and streak the air with gold columns pouring in between the cracks.

No one else seemed to be awake for a long time until she heard footsteps pace along the porch. She saw Pete pacing through the windows, facing the woods they'd rescued her from.

A door upstairs creaked opened and bounced off the wall. She looked up to see a shirtless Nick stomping blearily down the hall to the bathroom, rubbing the sleep from his eyes under his slightly askew hat. Unless the guy had a severe masochistic streak, that probably meant it must be getting time to change watch shifts. Clementine stretched out her arms until she fell back flat against the seat cushion. She had the feeling today would be a long day, and despite Luke's reassurances, she might be 'encouraged' to leave. She would have to steel herself for that possibility.

She'd folded up her blanket neatly and rolled up her crusty browned sleeve to examine the bandages. Only a couple spots had bled through and the skin underneath felt taut but not swollen. That was probably a good thing for now. She pulled it back down as Nick exited the bathroom fully clothed and trudged down the stairs, growling something that sounded like, "Guhmornin'."

"Good morning, Nick."

He swung the front door open, sharing some amicable interchanges with Pete, to Clementine's surprise. As long as the two were exhausted and barely functional, Nick and his uncle Pete seemed to get along just fine.

Pete stepped inside in mid-yawn and noticed her sitting alert on the couch. "Good god, Clem. You always such a morning person?"

Clementine shrugged. "Sorta."

"Hmn, well thank god for some miracles." He went to a small basket next to the coffee table and handed her a bundle of clothes on top of a towel. "Here you go. I gathered up some things you might want. Why don't you go upstairs and get washed up?"

Clementine opened her mouth, but had no idea what to say that wouldn't sound stupid. Did he mean a shower? Like, with actual soap?

Pete cleared his throat awkwardly. "The shirt'll be pretty big on you, but we don't got a whole lot of spare clothes lying around, so it ought to suffice until we get yours cleaned"

Clementine took the clothes with wide eyes. "Uh, thank you. Really! I ... I can't tell you how much I appreciate this."

Pete shrugged. "You're very welcome. We all take care of each other here, and sometimes you gotta carry your friends along before they can carry you." He stifled a yawn into his fist before turning to leave and said, "Good morning, Clementine."

"Sleep tight," Clem said cheerfully, then scurried upstairs and locked the bathroom door behind her. She looked at herself in the mirror, turning her chin left and right to examine the fine layer of grime caked on her face and neck, which made her appear gaunt in the morning light and darkened the circles under her eyes. Her hair was flattened under her cap, though thankfully it was too short to get really tangled. She grimaced as she pulled her shirt over her head, pulling slightly at her stitches. Several blue and yellowed bruises dotted her arms and torso. Nothing she could do about those.

Spinning around, she tried the bathtub faucet. After a few moments she had hot, glorious water to wash with. She stripped down all the way and settled into the bath water with a happy moan. The water seemed to massage the aches and tension she didn't even know she had in her muscles, and the bubbles shooting out from the shampoo bottle when she squeezed it filled her with absurd delight. Nothing like the collapse of civilization to make one really appreciate the finer things in life.

She did her best to conserve water, however, as no doubt the many other residents had to share the same supply. She dried off quickly, excited to try on her borrowed clothes. The men's T-shirt fit much too large and nearly slouched off a shoulder, though that suited her fine and tied a knot at the small of her back to keep it from flapping around. The pants were long-legged and an odd maroon color, but otherwise fit fine. Beggars can't be choosers, she thought.

She stepped out of the bathroom with her bundle of laundry and nearly ran into Luke. "Oh, mornin' Clem." He said, giving her a wan, sleepy smile. "You're looking a lot better since last night."

Clementine hugged her bundle close, saying, "I feel a lot better, too."

Luke nodded. "That's good." His hair was sticking up at odd ends and he still had the squinty eyed expression of someone who really did not want to leave his bed. He kept looking thoughtfully at her though, as if seeing her for the first time. Clementine tried not to squirm under his gaze. "What is it?"

"Well, I'm just, uh..." He pointed to the bathroom door she was standing in front of.

"Oh! Sorry!" She jumped out of the way and stumbled her way down the stairs, trying to hide her rosy cheeks.

The kitchen door was propped open, bright sunshine flooding the otherwise darkened sitting area. The crackle and smell of frying sausages filled the room, making her stomach growl.

Carlos was in the kitchen, hovering over some boxes on the counter. He turned at the sound of her approaching, throwing her a nod over his shoulder. "Good morning," he said, spotting the clothes in her arms. "Go ahead and toss that in the hamper by the door, we'll get to it later today." There was a tall basket full of what she presumed was their collective laundry sitting in a steel bucket with a box of borax powder. The doctor handed her a mug of dark tea. "Can you take this to Nick? He's only marginally better than those lurkers at this hour."

Clementine nodded, taking the hot mug carefully. Nick was leaning on the pile of firewood, already starting to nod off. She checked whether his finger was anywhere near the rifle's trigger before approaching. "Hey,"

Nick jerked his head up, immediately yawning so wide she could see his teeth fillings. She offered the mug out. "Careful, it's hot."

He gripped it by the handle, jiggling the tea bag up and down. "Thanks. It'll never beat coffee, but caffeine is caffeine." He sipped at the tea, wincing and setting it on the porch rail. He sighed, "Man, I'd do anything for some instant."

An idea began to form. She asked innocently, "When's the last time you went on a supply run?"

He shrugged. "A few weeks ago. We're doing all right as far as food goes for now. Carlos is usually in charge of the rationing."

"Maybe I can help the next time you guys go out."

Nick scoffed, grinning skeptically. "Yeah, well no offense, but we can't afford to babysit you and fight them lurkers at the same time."

Clementine pouted. "I can probably shoot better than you."

"Not with your arm chewed up like that."

"Maybe," She mended, deciding against pushing his buttons. She would have to figure out some other way to show them she could pull her own weight.

Luke came out with two plates of honest-to-god pancakes and sausages. "You better get some food while it lasts, Clem." He said, handing Nick a plate and leaning against the stack of split wood, cutting at his pancakes. Just as she was about to leave he said, "Oh hey!"

She looked back at him. "Hmn?"

He pointed at her with his fork. "I was looking for that shirt."

She looked down dumbly at it, then back up. "Sorry! Uh - Pete gave it to me when - I mean, borrow, he let me borrow it. I didn't know-"

Luke chuckled. "It's all right, you can wear it. Not like you got anything else."

"Well, thanks," She said uncertainly. What the hell is wrong with me? She wondered if she was exhibiting signs of a latent mental illness when she noticed Sarah climbing down the stairs in blue unicorn patterned pajamas. Clementine froze, remembering Carlos's warning about staying away from her. She thought about dashing back outside, when Sarah squealed. "Clementine!"

She groaned internally as the girl ran up to her. "You're alive! How's your arm? Does it still hurt?"

"Uh, yeah, but your dad patched it up last night."

"Oh, good," She said, relief almost comically visible. "I was worried you'd have to stitch it up by yourself."

"Ha, yeah ..." Clementine trailed off.

"Hey, you know what this is like? It's like that one movie when-" Sarah started to babble. That was when Clementine decided to nod and make a beeline towards the kitchen, with Sarah trailing behind. Rebecca was already sitting at the table, with Alvin serving her up breakfast. She refused to even look at her, though Alvin gave her a nod before sitting down.

Clementine took a seat at the end of the table. "Morning Dad!" Sarah said cheerily, taking a seat next to her new best friend. Carlos set plates in front of them both, kissing Sarah on top of her head. Clementine hummed her approval around a mouthful of pancake and strawberry jam. "Ugh, I can't even remember the last time I had something this good."

The corner of Carlos's mouth quirked up. "That's the last of the frozen grocery store food we're going to have for a while. We're lucky it even kept for so long."

"Aw, that sucks." Sarah said, dumping a spoonful of the canned fruit preserves onto her plate.

"Thanks for the food, Carlos." Nick said as he entered the kitchen, depositing plates into the sink.

Luke followed behind, clearing his throat. "Well, since almost everyone is here, I think it's time we should talk about going on a supply run."

"What?" Rebecca arched an eyebrow. "Why the hell would you think now is a good time to do that?"

"Well, Pete, Nick and I have been talking about it for a while, and frankly Clem's arrival was a reminder that we ain't got enough of the basic stuff to go around for much longer. What we gotta focus on is gathering meds and ammo, and my best guess," He slapped down a map on the table, with a red circle drawn around a spot by a lake. "-is to start around this campsite on the other side of this lake."

The group was quiet for a moment, waiting for him to continue."I don't follow." Alvin said.

Nick pointed to a label inside the red circle. "There's a small town just outside of the state park. It's a tourist trap, they'll have gift shops, a clinic, camping gear, all kinds of stuff we can use."

"After all this time you think no one else has thought of this same thing?" Rebecca pointed out. "This town has probably already been picked clean. It's not worth the risk."

"That's the thing," Luke said, his hand gestures growing more animated as he explained. "It's practically sitting on top of a canyon. Unless you're driving for miles down a two-way road, there's no other easy way to get to it without hoofing it."

"You're saying that like that's a good thing." Alvin said, sharing his wife's skepticism.

"Think about it, when this all started people were told to go to military set ups in the major cities for evacuation. There's no reason to go hiking through herds of walkers to get to some glorified strip mall way out in the boonies. I'll bet you most of the stuff we're looking for will still be there."

"So if it's such a remote place, how are you going to convince any of us to go there?" Carlos drawled.

Luke crossed his arms, looking smug. "Well, we have a shortcut."

One by one, lightbulbs lit up over everyone but Clementine's head. "You mean the motor boat?" Sarah remarked, popping a piece of sausage into her mouth. Luke smiled and nodded. "That's right, kiddo."

"I knew it!" Clementine blurted out. They looked at her in surprise. Embarrassed, she explained, "The shed had a bunch of fishing stuff, I figured there might be a boat to go with it."

"Well, you figured right." Luke dragged his finger along a trail branching from the lake. "We go through here and cut around the main campsite, just in case the place is overrun. From the ranger station we can figure out what the situation is like and decide whether or not to continue into town." He glanced at everyone for objections. "How's that sound?"

"Like a waste of time, but ... it ain't the worst thing you've come up with." Rebecca admitted.

"So who all will be going on this expedition?" Carlos asked, crossing his arms.

"Well I'm in." Nick volunteered, raising his hand.

Luke bit his lip. "Actually, I was going to ask Pete and Clementine to go with me."

Clementine froze her fork in midair, wondering if she'd heard right. Nick looked offended. "What?"

"You're not serious." Rebecca scoffed, dropping her fork with a clatter on her plate. "Really, Luke? You want her watching your back? Anything can happen out there!"

"What the hell, man?" Nick said, hitting Luke arm. "Why am I getting benched?"

Carlos scratched his chin. "I can't imagine she'll be especially helpful against the lurkers, with her arm like that."

"I'm right here," Clementine pointed out with a wave of her hand, forcing them to acknowledge her presence. "I'd like to help out, if I can."

"Great, if you can carry a backpack then you're solid," Luke said, then turned to drop a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Nick, I need you here to hold the fort while we're gone. If things go south we can't have all our eggs in one basket, understand?"

Nick blew out an irritated breath. "Yeah, whatever."

"This is crazy." Rebecca said, picking up her plate to leave.

"Well, that's not a no." Luke said with a head tilt. "How about you two, what do you think?"

Alvin shrugged. "Doesn't really seem like enough to go on, but I ain't gonna stop you."

Carlos thought long and hard, tapping a finger on his chin. "It's in our best interests to investigate this town. If there's a chance we can replenish our stock of medical supplies, then I support your plan."

"Good." Luke said with a pleased smile. "I think we should go tomorrow morning after breakfast, if Pete's onboard. If everything goes as planned we ought to be back before dark."

"Sounds good." Clementine said.

Carlos cleared the counter while Rebecca and Alvin left for their room. Nick wandered back outside with his tea, while Luke paused by Clementine. "Come find me when you're done eating, I'll give you the grand tour around this place."

She nodded, her eyes lingering maybe a second too long as he left. When she turned back to her food she caught Sarah scrutinizing her. "What?"

Sarah put on the least convincing innocent face Clementine had ever seen. "Nothing," She said flippantly, repressing a knowing grin. "Nothing at all."

Yup, that's happening. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Remember, leaving reviews brings fairies back to life.