Episode 4:Beacon Of Light- We Cope Together

A/N- At the time of the chapter being written, having Clementine keep going won out by one vote. Sorry for the lateness of this update... again. It's been a busy holiday season. On with the story! Enjoy! :)

Dusty sighed, not wanting to start an argument he turned his attention to Clem. "You should wait outside, Clem." He instructed her.

"Why? What's going on?" She asked. But deep down she knew.

"You don't want to see that. You really don't." Michael assured her. "Not if you don't have to."

"Just go outside, Clem. Please." Lucas pleaded with them. But they needed her to help find stuff for Alvie, it was because of her she questioned Leanne and they came here. She was strong, she could take it.

"I can keep going." Clementine stated boldly.

(?) They will remember that.

The group was silent for a moment before Dusty gave her a brief nod, but he still had a troubling look of concern on his face. "If that's what you want... But if you need to leave at anytime just say so."

"Go head outside, Michael. We'll meet up with you soon." Lucas told him, patting his son's back in a comforting manner. Michael gave Clementine a stern look before staggering over to the doorway and going outside, disappearing out of Clementine's view. But she could still hear his stifled sobs...

"Alright everyone... Lets get this over with. Check every room, leave no stone unturned." Dusty ordered. "And try to keep it down."

Hazen and Clementine approached the room Dusty and Michael had looked in earlier. They paused in the doorway before walking inside, their eyes meeting what they had feared most but also expected.

There were children there. Half a dozen to be exact, their ages ranging between one and three. They were all undead and rotting, looking more like skeletons than human. Clementine looked around before her eyes fell upon the nearest dead child. She was wearing a shredded, blood stained pink dress, and what was left of her hair was tied into pigtails. Her skin was stretched across her skinny frame, with flesh peeling from one side of her cheek. The poor girl lay on the carpet, using what little energy she had to lift her head and claw at the air.

It reminded Clementine of the boy Lee had found at the Manor in Savannah, even though she only saw him when he carried him to the backyard. She might have ended up like the boy or the children in the day care if Lee hadn't found her. Clem was thankful that he did.

Nevertheless, seeing all these children made her heart sink. It shook her right down to the core. It made her think of AJ and how she wished this would never happen to him. No... it won't happen to him.

Hazen meanwhile had walked up to the particular child Clementine had been staring at and knelt down beside her with a look of fondness in his eyes. He reached out his hand and gently brushed a wisp of curly black hair out of the walker's face and combed it behind her ear.

"What are you doing?" Clementine hissed with a quirk of confusion.

"I-" Hazen began, only to cut himself off and standing up "Nothing. It's nothing." He grunted, making his way over to the exit. "Let's keep searching, there's got to be something useful here."

Clementine let that pass and followed Hazen out of the room, and they walked down the corridor. The carpet had dark blood stains soaked into the fabric. The wallpaper was peeling, and the ceiling above them was rotting. The building was decaying along with the children in it...

They passed another doorway, spying Dusty and Lucas in the room it led into. The two silently decided to investigate the last room at the end of the corridor. "So..." Hazen began. "How do you think they died?" He questioned.

Clementine paused to consider her answer. "Maybe they all starved?" She suggested.

"Where are the people who used to run this place?" He questioned further. "Did you think they just left all these kids here?"

Depression sank in as Clem replied. "Seems like it, but we can't be sure."

"What kind of sick person would do that?" He wondered.

"Someone who was looking out for themselves and nobody else."

"Starving is one of the most horrible and cruelest ways to die. And the fact that-..." Hazen stopped himself and shook his head as they approached the door they had been making their way towards. Hazen paused outside for a brief moment before opening it up, the stench of rotting flesh yet again hitting their noses.

Another group of child walkers were gathered in that room. Hazen entered first, and Clementine followed. This room in particular looked like a game area for the oldest of children kept at the daycare. Even so, there were only building blocks, a chalk board and a bunch of drawings scattered on the floor and some pinned to the walls.

"At least there's a silver lining." Hazen breathed, pointing out a cardboard box near the far wall. He trudged over to it, and began routing around inside.

(o) Look at drawings.

Clementine walked past a small boy, who looked around the age of 3 or 4, maybe even 5, and went up to the drawing-covered wall. The picture she singled out was a leaf rubbing, something she had done in the first few months of the apocalypse... When Lee was around.

(o) Take leaf rubbing.

She pulled the leaf rubbing off the wall and folded it four times, making it small enough to tuck into her back pocket. She glanced over at Hazen to see him approaching and carrying the box he had spotted. "Find anything good?" She asked.

"Baby formula... And some baby medicine too." He informed her.

"That's great... This was all worth it, then." The little girl nodded at the effort. Hazen went over to the doorway but paused on the way out, glancing at the small boy Clementine had looked at. "Are you okay?" She inquired.

"Yeah, I just..." He paused once more. "I wish I could help them, y'know?"

"I wish I could too, but... I think they're beyond our help."

"At least put this little guy out of his misery... He's mostly just bone."

Clementine looked back at the small boy again. Hazen was right, he was mostly bone. His flesh had become rotten and decayed a long time ago, revealing white cartilage in places. She could see his cheek bones, his ribs, not mention most of the flesh was gone on his arms and legs. It was disgusting to her...

"I can hold the box while you do it." Clementine told Hazen as she offered to take the supplies.

"No, you do it." He replied firmly.

"Wait, why?" She questioned.

"I just can't!" He exclaimed, his brow furrowed in frustration. Clementine furrowed her brow back at him, before turning away and kneeling down by the walker. She could probably shoot him... But she didn't want to risk the noise. She still had her screwdriver, though.

(o) Use screwdriver on walker.

She took out the screwdriver and leaned in closer, sliding the tool into the boy's skull. He had hardly moved before... Now he would never move again.

"I feel better knowing we helped at least one of these kids today." Hazen stated in a relived manner as Clementine pulled the screwdriver out of the walker's head and tucked it into her waistband. "Thanks... For doing that for me, sorry if I was being mean."

"It's okay, I didn't just do it for you... I did it for him too."

(?) Hazen will remember that.

"You ended his suffering. I'm sure he appreciates it as much as I do." He turned and left the room. "Now let's get out of here."

"Wait up." Clementine called after him.

The two of them quickly met up with Lucas and Dusty who were in the hallway waiting for them too. "Hey kids." Lucas greeted.

"You two ready to leave?" Dusty asked anxiously. "Me and Lucas managed to get some stuff for Alvie."

"We did too." Hazen spoke up showing them the box that he had found.

[Leave]

[Stay a little longer]

"We're ready to go." Clementine stated in a flinty tone, ready to get out of this pit of death.

"Good, I can't wait to put this place behind me. And I don't think none of us should ever come back here." Lucas muttered, turning and leaving the daycare the way they had came in. The rest followed close behind them.

Michael was sitting on the edge of the front pavement by a gutter. He had his head in his hands and his body seemed to be shaking.

Clementine looked over at Lucas, who returned her gaze with a stern look. The older man then approached Michael and placed a hand on his shoulder. Michael was startled at first and then relaxed. He lifted his head, his eyes red and puffy.

Lucas gently helped him to his feet, and the two stared at each other silently for a moment, almost as if they were sharing thoughts, before Lucas put his hand on the back of Michael's head and pulled his son in close for a hug.

Michael embraced his father and began to wail into his jacket. Clementine watched the spectacle and her eyes soften at the sight of Michael crying. Lucas ran his fingers through Michael's hair. "It's okay." He whispered to him, closing his eyes. "It's okay..."

He opened his eyelids once again after a brief moment and looked over at Clementine, Hazen, and Dusty with sorrowful eyes. "This isn't the first time me and Michael have seen shit like this... And I doubt it'll be the last. For us... Or for you."

Clementine slowly approached them and gently touched Michael's back as he quaked. Seeing him break down like this... It seemed unreal. She had seen him cry before... But never like this. She began to rub his back soothingly.

"Thank you." Michael spluttered, his voice muffled as his face was still buried into his father's jacket. "Thank you."

The walk back to the lighthouse was a quiet one. The group was still shocked by what had happened... What they had seen. Clementine was trying her best to get the terrible images out of her head by thinking about AJ. But instead she ended up seeing him as a rotting, undead corpse. She immediately shook those thoughts away.

So, she decided to take her mind off it by simply looking around. Michael and Lucas were in front, even though Michael had wanted to lag behind, Lucas had kept him close. They were currently sharing hushed whispers. Michael's eyes were still red, and he had tear marks on his cheeks. His voice was croaky and hoarse too. Every time she looked it him, it made her think back and picture what had happened outside the daycare.

She was glad that they were at least getting along, like a father and son should, even if the circumstances that had brought them together were awful.

Dusty and Hazen were right behind her. She wasn't sure how Dusty felt about the daycare, but he must have been phased by it to some degree. Hazen was hard to read as well.

"Walker." Hazen spoke up, pointing at a straggler that was wandering around by the path to the lighthouse. He withdrew Katherine's knife and approached the walking corpse "I got it." He declared.

He stabbed the walker right between the eyes and then kicked it off the blade. He paused, narrowing his eyes at the dead body and slashing its skull over and over, its blood covering his hands and droplets getting on his face.

"Hazen!" Dusty called over to him. He continued slashing the walker with the knife. "Hazen!" Dusty yelled.

"What?" Hazen yelled back, his breath wavering.

"It's dead." Dusty told him bluntly.

Hazen stood up, his pants caked in mud and blood, and crimson red liquid dripping from his blade as he rejoined the group. "Sorry..."

"Fucking sicko." Michael grumbled.

"Michael!" Lucas warned.

"What did you say?" Hazen asked, flashing Michael a glare as everyone stopped walking.

"You heard me!" Michael snapped. "You walked into the daycare and came out without batting an eye! What kind of sick fuck are you?!"

"Michael, just because you cried like a little fucking baby back there doesn't mean I had to as well. We all have a way of dealing with shit. Clem didn't cry, are you going to have a go at her too?"

"Leave me out of this!" Clementine told him, she didn't want to be part of this 'alpha male horseshit'.

"At least Clem doesn't go around cutting up walkers!" Michael barked.

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Hazen defended himself. "Did it even occur to you that I'm just pissed that all those kids died? This is just my way of dealing with things, Michael!"

Michael roared back. "Your way is straight fucked up!"

"Goddammit, enough!" Dusty exclaimed, getting in between the two teens. "We've all had a rough day. Don't make this into an excuse to turn on each other. We've already had enough drama, so cut this shit out!"

"Dusty's right, we shouldn't let what happened at the daycare tear us apart." Clementine spoke up. "We need to stick together."

(?) They will remember that.

"Let's just get back the lighthouse... It's been a long day, and AJ needs this stuff."

"You heard the girl... Let's go you two." Lucas ordered the two teens. He patted Michael's arm before walking on ahead.

It was starting to get dark outside, and night time was coming sooner than expected. The sun was slowly setting on the horizon, reflecting off the lake and creating a scene like the one yesterday. Clementine hadn't really kept much track on the time.

"Michael..." She called up to him.

"Yeah?"

"What time is it?" She asked.

"Time you got a watch." He joked, glancing down at his wrist. "It's half past six." He informed her.

"Almost dinner time." Lucas commented as they finally reached the lighthouse that they could call home. The group entered one at a time, with Lucas entering the building last. "I'll cook us up a meal... To take our mind of things." He stated whilst moving towards the stove after locking the door behind him.

A smiling Brooke appeared by the foot of the stairs. "You're back." Michael trudged past her and climbed the stone steps. He probably just wanted some time alone. Brooke watched Michael before turning towards the group. "What happened at the daycare?" She asked the burned man in uniform.

"Let's just say... We saw a lot of fucked up shit, but we got what we needed." Dusty replied.

"I don't like being left outta the loop, Dusty." Her eyes narrowed at him.

He sighed. "I'll fill you in later, okay?"

Brooke nodded. "I've heard that one before, fine." She turned her attention to AJ, who she was cradling in her arms.

"How is he?" Clementine asked when she approached them.

"He's a little better but... I couldn't find much medicine for his fever." The redhead sadly informed her.

"We might have some." Hazen spoke up, putting the box down and rummaging through its content for Alvie. "I'll have a look."

"That's great. I'm glad going to the daycare was worth it... Even if you saw some awful stuff."

Clementine walked over to her backpack she left by the table and opened it up. The first thing she noticed was the bottle from the RV, the one she hid from Michael after he cut off his hand. She had almost forgot about it. She took the alcohol out of her bag. "Everyone could use a drink after the day we've had." She said to herself.

(o) Talk to Lucas.

She decided to approach Lucas on the subject. He was by the stove, and he seemed to be cooking something in a large pot. "Hey Lucas." She greeted.

"Hey Clem, what can I do for you?"

"I was thinking... Maybe we could pass this bottle around after dinner?" She told him with a smirk. She knew some adults loved this stuff.

He chuckled at that, looking impressed for some reason. "You have some?" He grinned. "Well, I agree. We could all use a drink right about now, I certainly could."

"That's what I was thinking." Clementine responded. She glanced at the pot. "What are you cooking?" She asked, doubting it was anything she wouldn't eat at this point.

"I had some cans of chili and beans so I decided to mix the two together. It's going to be a great combination, trust me." His smile changed to a coy one. "...Even though I've never tried it. But cooking is all about experimenting, right?"

"Right..." Clem agreed. Hell, she had peaches and beans, can chili and beans be any worse?

"That's the spirit."

He paused, glancing over at the stairs. "Clem... Do you think you could check on Michael for me, I kinda got my hands full down here."

"Sure" she agreed.

(?) Lucas appreciates that.

"Thanks... I'm just really worried about him, y'know? He has his way of dealing with things, going off on his own to think like that. And I see Hazen do that too, but uh... in a different way." He finished the list of kids the group. "Even you Clementine. I'm sure you cope your own way too."

"Yeah, I guess we do." She nodded to him. "I'll fill you in on what he says later." She told him.

"Great... Thanks again, Clem."

Clementine left Lucas to finish dinner, and she still had the bottle with her as she approached the stairs. She paused at the bottom, considering whether to check on the rest of the group. She settled on doing that once she's talked to Michael. She made the spiraling climb upwards.

At the top, Michael was standing on the outside balcony, staring out at the sunset and the lake. Clementine approached him, giving a broken railing near them a quick glance. "Someone could hurt themselves on that." She muttered to herself.

"Hey Michael." She greeted, standing beside him.

"Hey..." He responded still in a sadden tone.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Michael glanced at her and then looked out at the lake again. "Yeah, that was a stupid question." Clementine agreed, since she could tell that's what he had been thinking.

Michael looked at the bottle in her hand. "Is that the same one from the RV?" He asked.

"Yeah, I kept it." She replied, lifting the bottle up to him. "Do you want a sip?" She asked. It was just a sip, she didn't want to allow him to get himself drunk.

"I don't know..." He murmured.

"I guess you could have one later. We're passing it around after dinner." The widow's balcony they were standing on was peaceful and quiet, high enough to forego any walker moans seen or heard below.

"Okay, you've twisted my arm." He feigned aloofness, reaching for the bottle.

"Just a couple of sips." Clementine warned.

"Yeah, I know." He mumbled, taking the bottle and unscrewing the cap. He began to take a few swigs. "Oh, that tastes good." He murmured with a small smile. "You want some?"

[Sure]

[Nah]

"Sure." Clementine nodded, taking the bottle and having a small sip. "You're right, it is pretty good" She commented, handing the bottle back to him. Michael took a few more swigs. It must have been flavored or something, something sweet.

"Do you... Want to talk about what happened?" She inquired from him, ready to play the role of therapist yet again.

Michael's face fell. "I suppose you should know." He sighed. He took a deep breath and began. "It wasn't always just me and my dad..." He closed his eyes. "About a year into this whole mess we came across a car crash. There were a couple in the front but... They were dead. But there was one survivor... A baby girl in the back seat. She was a mess, she had been sitting in her own full diaper for a while and she was pretty skinny. We were lucky to find her when we did... She probably wouldn't have made it much longer."

"I guess the crash didn't happen in the first few days." Clementine commented. That family had a working car which was rare to her experience.

"No... It probably didn't." Michael agreed. "Anyway... My dad didn't really know what to do with her, so it fell to me to watch out for her. I named her Rosie, and I looked after her as best I could. I got attached to her pretty quickly but a few months after we had met her, she-" He choked up, letting out a small sob "We got boxed in by some walkers... I put Rosie down just for a second so I could help my dad... Not long after that I heard her scream. A walker got a hold of her while my back was turned... Before I could do anything it was already too late... It took a bite out of her. She died... In my arms and I had to... I had to make sure she didn't turn."

He put his head in his hands and wept. "I'll never be able to get the sound of her scream out of my head... Not now, not ever."

"I'm sorry, Michael." Clementine apologized, placing a hand on his shoulder. "At least she's in a better place."

Michael sniffed and wiped his eyes. "Going into that daycare... Seeing all of those kid walkers... It was like losing Rosie all over again."

"At least she didn't turn, right?"

"That's true... She didn't suffer like those kids did." He paused and looked at her in the eyes. "I can't believe you went in there though... I don't know how you could handle that."

"I did it for AJ." Clementine stated proudly. "It still hurt, okay?... Of course it hurt to see them dead like that, what happened in there..."

After a moment of silence between the two of them, Michael surprisingly brought up a different topic, catching the little girl off-guard. "Clem... I think we need to have a serious talk about Hazen."

"Wait, what do you mean?" She furrowed her eyebrows at him.

"The guy is losing it, Clem. I trust him as far as I can throw him. First Helga... Then the daycare... Then that walker outside, it was overkill. It's only a matter of time before he hurts one of us."

"You don't know that." Clementine protested. "Helga was a mistake, but you weren't even inside the daycare with him. He's dealing with all of this just like us."

"Look, Clem, just..." He paused. "Think about it, okay? We'll talk about it more some other time."

Michael looked out at the lake and sighed. "I cared about Rosie... I cared about Helga..." He turned his attention back to Clementine "I care about you, Clem." "I care about you a lot, actually. I don't want you to end up like them..."

She smiled at him. "I care about you too, Michael."

Michael leaned closer. Clementine was a little stunned, she didn't quite know what was happening. But what we would call butterflies in their tummies arose and their cheeks flushed hot. What was this?

Michael's lips almost touched hers and then...

A/N- Again, sorry for the late update. Hope you all had a nice new year's! So back to the story. What will we learn with our characters? Will passing the bottle share a few secrets or not? And finally, what may or may not happen at the beginning of the next chapter? Clementine's first kiss maybe? Or...

Will stay tuned for the next update! :)