Although she appreciated the gesture, Clementine knew that if anyone needed rest more than her, it was Rebecca. She shook her head at the proposition. "It's really alright, Rebecca. You need to-" A yawn escaped her mid sentence. "To get sleep." Alvin smiled down at her, kneeling down the same way Lee often did.

"Hey, why don't you and Becca get rest and I'll cover for you?" Both girls shared a glance of mutual pondering. In Clem's head, the decision was already made the second he asked.

Rebecca chirped up first. "Well.. I suppose that's a much better proposition than mine. Thanks, Silly Bear." Her husband rolled his eyes at the nickname.

"Y-yeah, sure. Night, girls." He stood up, waving them off.

Thankful, Clem turned around and nodded. "Thank you, Alvin."

The big man smiled wholesomely. "Nah, thank you. Sleep tight." And that's exactly what they did. Under the stars, mostly peaceful ambience minus the occasional quiet groan from a walker that was dealt with in no time. The only thing that could truly make everything better was if Chuck, Molly, Omid and Carley were back. Hopefully they'd see them all again, someday.

Speaking of which..

Day 3, afternoon.

Carley and Molly continued onward on their journey to Howe's Hardware. Really, all they knew about the place was that it was a hardware store with a massive parking lot built near the woods for the convenience of those who lived in the woods. Not a big brand name by any means, but they weren't unpopular. Plenty of supplies, and in the apocalyptic world, that meant something. That's probably why it was so heavily guarded. At least, according to what Pete said.

The two had been mainly silent toward each other during the following day of exploration, choosing to keep the talk to a minimum to keep on their toes. There could be soldiers anywhere, after all, and in the case that either woman got tired again, they didn't want the cause of that to be talking while walking. So they stayed silent.

Mostly.

"We're out."

"Say what?"

"Of food. We're out." Carley slumped her backpack that should have been full of supplies against her shoulder, a look of annoyance evident on her face. She checked the supply before their next stop for lunch and found that they were all out of not just food, but almost out of water too.

"Let's pick something up on our way." Molly answered, not really caring about the situation and continuing her march.

"Like what? A station wagon in the woods?" The blonde rolled her dark blue eyes.

"You know what I mean. Hunting, animals. You get it."

"Uh, what animals, Molly? There's nothing out here. Nothing but birds."

"So there is something. We'll get it on our break." No words would satisfy Molly, that was for certain. They had already taken one break today, no way would she allow Carley another. So, begrudgingly, the reporter followed the daredevil down the dirt road. They didn't stop until the rumbling of Molly's stomach was getting to be too much. Not for Molly, she didn't care.

"Molly, I heard that."

Childishly, Molly groaned.

"Stop being such a baby." Molly looked back in frustration.

"We literally saw the roof of the building an hour ago! We're almost there!" Carley tugged at her wrist sleeve.

"You wanna save Chuck, right?" Molly stopped walking and turned around.

"What kind of stupid question is that?"

"No one wins a battle on an empty stomach. You remember saving Clementine in Savannah? We still broke for dinner then, too." Molly had no real retort that didn't make her sound like a whiny brat. So, she swallowed her pride, dug up Hilda and looked around.

"..Fine. Three minute detour."

"Make it forty."

"Carley-"

"If they hurt him, he's dead already anyways. But you don't believe that, right?" There was a moment of silence, save for a crow cawing nearby.

"..Of course not. Fine, stay here. I'll find something." Carley gladly accepted the invitation to stay put. She sat down on a log by a tree, pulling out her glock to test its durability. Despite many years of abuse, her baby was as sharp as ever. Still had bullets, still not jammed, still perfectly working. While she was checking her gun, Molly was looking for that crow that cut into her silence earlier. She didn't hear it take off, and she really had no other leads, so her stomach guided her.

"Come on, jackass.. Come to momma." Molly smacked Hilda against her palm gently, scanning the trees for a bird brained snack. Carley got a fire started in the background, smoke spreading quietly to the sky. The crow was finally in sight, however it was out of her grasp. Sitting near the highest tree trunk of a twelve foot tall tree, Molly knew she was perfect for this job. She heard rustles in the bushes and assumed it was some lowly squirrel. Not worth the time she'd be spending on much funner to catch game.

"Perfect." Before she could even try to climb the tree, she heard a whistle, scaring the bird off. Her neck snapped in the direction of the sound, her eyebrows fierce and combat ready. That is, until loud and fast footsteps from out of nowhere tackled her from behind and took a chunk out of her arm. Not even her jacket could withstand it's teeth. She struggled to pull it off, nearly stabbing the thing with her prized weapon and second best friend, but it was pulled off of her. Still, she writhed in pain, blinking a few times before being greeted by a brown haired man with a shotgun pointed at her head.

"Hey there, pretty girl. Sam didn't getcha too bad, did he?" He had a southern accent and white skin, with piercing, smug eyes. Molly would have spit on him if it weren't for the shocking appearance of a certain friend of hers just next to him.

"C-Chuck?" Her eyes turned panicked, scanning him for any injuries.

In hand bindings, a bruised from the cheeks, ribs and legs Chuck kneeled down. "Molly.. Why are you here?" He flinched as his knees bent.

"We came to save you." She breathed out. He looked down with a sigh.

"Of course you did."

"We, huh? Interesting." Carver himself walked past the bushes and shrubbery to reveal himself. His smirk was one of victory.

"Molly!?" Carley called out, hearing her friend's shout of pain earlier. She ran towards the sound, holding her gun out for any signs of danger. She eventually found it, pointing the barrel right at the greying leader hovering over her. She didn't even register that Charles was there, too busy getting the perfect shot. The sound of a gunshot screamed through the forest, only it didn't come from Carley's gun.

The bullet of the brown haired creep's assault rifle collided with Carley's glock, shooting it out of her hands. Before she could even try to run, Carver pulled out a small, sharp pistol that spat out bullets much faster than her old glock ever could. One bullet went straight through her left leg. "No! Stop!" Molly yelped desperately, holding a hand out for Carley. She was face first in the dirt, bleeding through her pant leg.

"You dumbasses, what are you thinking? How are we supposed to work wounded?!" Chuck insulted. Carver's grin faltered to a more serious straight face. He walked up to Chuck, grabbed his arms and began to speak.

"Get the brunette one and bind both girls. Troy, I want you and Justin out here looking for more of their guys. We could be looking at an attempted prison break. Again." He spoke the last part with an eye roll.

"There's.. No one else!" Molly spat out as a fire headed woman strapped up her arms together with what appeared to be make-shift handcuffs.

"Thanks for the help, but I'm not gonna listen to you. You understand, dontcha?" Carver answered condescendingly. The woman pulled Molly up and ushered her to move forward, putting her in the back of a Howe's Hardware Store truck.

"Lookout duty, really?" One of the men, Justin, complained.

"Don't argue. I'll try and make this worth your while if it all goes smoothly." Their violent leader's words were enough to shut them up. "Shawn, get your ass out here! We got a shot one and walkers'll be over here any minute." A scrawny, black haired man with scruffy facial hair and bloodshot eyes jumped out of the back, brushing shoulders with Molly.

"You asked for me, boss?" Shawn Greene obediently questioned.

Carver pointed at Carley. "That one, over there. She's bleeding. I shot her." He sounded proud of his action. The rest of his team ignored his words.

"O-oh.. Okay, I'll uh, see what I can do." Shawn ran towards Carley's body and grabbed her, moving her to the back of the truck.

"You better, boy." Bill muttered as Shawn ran past him. The group got back in the truck, minus Troy and Justin, and sped off towards the north.

Day 4, night.

The fire lighting up camp tonight was quite calming. This time, only Christa and Carlos were on patrol of the surrounding area, neither really feeling up to sitting in a cozy, fun environment like the others. Surrounding the fire was Clementine, Lee, Pete, Luke and Nick while Sarah, Alvin and Rebecca slept.. Lee was quite quiet, but the others were laughing, or listening in on stories.

"For the last time, it really was Experimental Cyder. I could never forget that name." Nick defended, taking a bite of an apple.

"You were probably so drunk you couldn't even remember it. You bet 10K on that company." Luke countered, a warm smile on his mustached face.

"Yeah.. And?"

Pete shook his head. "Jesus, ten grand? What the hell is wrong with you, boy?"

"Lotta things, such as the fact I'm stuck to Luke all the time." Nick shrugged, taking a swig of water.

"That reminds me," Lee spoke, looking down at Clementine. "You guys know that me and Clem have been inseparable forever. What about you two? You guys always seem like you're the perfect duo, and you do talk about knowing each other even before the apocalypse. What's your story?"

Luke and Nick looked between each other, with Nick motioning for Luke to take charge. "That sounds fair to me. I can tell it, since I'm the less alcoholic of the two of us." Nick rolled his eyes at the remark. "Well, it's a bit foggy in the beginning, but I remember where we were: Virginia. Days after we filed for bankruptcy, Nick and I had nowhere to go. We were holed up in a motel for a few days until Nick finally gave in and called his mom for help."

"Why are guys always so obsessed with pride? She's your mom, of course she'd be willing to help." Clem asked.

"And that is exactly why it was embarrassing to ask for help." Nick muttered.

"Anyways," Luke cut in, clearing his throat to grab their attention. "She picked us both up. I told her not to tell my folks, and she agreed. I uh.. kinda regret that part honestly." He rubbed the back of his neck sadly. "By the time we were on the road, the radio was telling us to evacuate Virginia and get to a safe zone. Of course, we had no idea where the safe zones were since the radio transmission went out shortly before they could announce the locations of a safe zone."

"So uncle Pete came to the rescue." Pete declared. Nick chuckled.

"Pretty much."

Luke continued. "Pete offered to help me find my folks, but.. I had received a message from them on my phone without knowing. I ended up checking it before we left, and.. It was uh.."

"You don't have to finish that sentence." Lee cut him off.

"Yeah.. you get it."

"Want me to take it from here, man?"

"Nah, nah, it's fine." After clearing his throat, Luke was able to resume. "After a few long months on the road lookin' for shelter -- give or take thirteen, we came across these really tough looking survivors battling off a hoard of lurkers at an abandoned gas station with machine guns and decided to help them out."

"A couple of scavengers were able to help out guys with machine guns?" Lee skeptically queried.

"Heh, sounds dumb, but we really were a big help. We met the good fraction of Carver's guys that day." Luke looked down at his hairy knuckles, shaking his head at his memories. "Of course when they asked if we wanted to join a group full of walls, food and endless supplies, we happily agreed."

"That's when we found out about mom's bite." Nick cut in. The fire crackled beneath the silence that followed.

"Yeah." Pete whispered.

"She was bitten during the fight?" Clementine asked. Nick nodded yes.

"I'm so sorry, Nick." Lee placed a hand on his shoulder.

"No worries. It's.. In the past." Nick sighed, tugging at his camo pants. "Continue." He beckoned to Luke. Luke obliged.

"After we put her down, we were welcomed in with open arms. Nick was miserable, but this place seemed like a golden opportunity. Food was everywhere, the community was in the low hundreds of people inhabiting it, the walls were sturdy, the work was strenuous but alright and definitely necessary. It was like a fresh start."

"Until I opened my mouth." Pete said, catching the attention of the storyteller and his listeners.

"What do you mean?"

"I started something with Bill. I've always been a rational head, and with the death of Lucy, I had to step up even more. Carver didn't like when I'd give pep talks or act more responsible than him. He didn't like hearing people mutter about how they wanted me to lead over him. You think these two numbskulls are prideful? You should meet Mr. President and his country of spineless cowards." Pete grimaced.

Lee started. "Sounds like you were more popular than him though. Why'd you fall?"

"Because everyone is scared of Bill. I tried standing up to him, or at least I tried to have a civil conversation with him alone in his office. He had mentioned he saw a lot of potential in me specifically and that he saw me as an excellent worker.. But he also saw me as a potential risk. This was before he went nuclear, mind you. I know Carlos told you about what he did. I took serious issue with the awful things Carver did to people, to children.. Everyone in the camp did. The ones who didn't were either already massive sociopaths before the apocalypse or were hardened into not caring about the harsh realities of the world."

"And those people were also very strong. They had access to the best weapons, the strongest armor, the most durable of equipment. They were his lap dogs, essentially." Luke added.

"Not to mention the tens of folks terrified of the guy. I can't exactly blame them, either. He asked me if I agreed with his way of doing things, and of course I said no. He knew that I'd revolt some day. He could smell a revolution. So he jailed me."

"That's seriously unfair." Clem scoffed as she spoke.

"If I were him, pissin' myself over something like a revolution instead of finding ways to fix my corrupt system, I'd do the same." Pete said.

"Did you two go too?" Lee asked the pair of young men.

Luke answered, "Not just yet."

Nick looked up at his uncle. "You can tell em. Or should I?"

"It was my fault, let me." Pete replied.

"What? What happened?" Clem asked. Pete sighed.

"Nick got caught smuggling me the 'good' food. Bill had a separate dinner for prisoners, usually some spoiled can or bag of something or other. Most prisoners hadn't even done anything wrong and they were treated like death row inmates. It was sick. Anyway, Nick got caught and Carver wasted no time tossing him in with me."

"It was beyond stupid." Nick stated. Clementine and Lee were at a loss for words.

"Yeah, it really was." Clem agreed.

"And what about you, Luke?" Lee asked.

"I argued that Nick shouldn't be thrown in jail for wanting a safer, healthier meal for his uncle. Our conversation resumed in his office. It escalated into an argument about who should really be leading the group, and from there he gave me some food for thought: His fist. After that, he chucked me in and I figured it was time to leave."

"So you started the escape plan?" Lee asked.

"I spearheaded it. Everyone you've met at the cabin agreed with it, but some others disagreed or didn't make it."

"Like Reggie. Or Shawn." Pete reminded.

"Danny too." Nick added.

"Bonnie.." Luke drifted away in his thoughts. The surrounding area was quiet once again. Not too many walkers anymore, but at least the fire kept ambience around here. "I think it's about time we turn in." The southern man got up, walking to his sleeping bag. The others around the fire began to stretch up to their feet as well.

"Yeah, tomorrow we should be arriving at that ski lift we saw on the map. We should rest up." Pete agreed, the only one of the five who could not stand. Instead, he began wheeling himself towards the bed with Nick behind him.

"I'll take first watch. Christa needs her sleep too. She's been more distant than usual today." Lee announced.

"Okay. I'll take second watch." Clementine replied, giving a confident look to her mentor. He smiled, brushing her hat with his fingers.

"We'll see." He began to walk towards Christa while Clem retreated to her bed.

"Goodnight, guys."

Day 5, afternoon

All ten survivors of the cabin and forest group marched behind Luke and Pete, who overlooked the rusty, crinkled up map that guided them towards their next destination. Amidst talks of food and supplies scarcity, Luke stopped in front of what appeared to be the end of the forest. At least, the end of this part of the forest. Ahead was a boulder overlooking a cliff that led to a river with strong currents. A red bridge was also visible a few blocks away.

"I think we're here. Just a few more hours and we'll make it to the ski lodge." Luke told the group.

"For now, we should take inventory and check out our surroundings. Clementine, would you like to use the binoculars to check ahead?"

"Oh, sure." Clementine walked forward, putting her purple backpack over Lee's right shoulder. She took the binoculars out of Pete's hands and climbed the boulder with the help of Luke. She brought the tool over her eyes and scanned the area. "I see a red bridge."

"Does it look passable?" Rebecca asked while Alvin and Carlos counted the food and water left. Only one bottle and a can of tomatoes were left.

"I think so. It's kind of rusty and there are some cars on it, but I don't see any walkers. Or people."

"Looks like that's our best bet of getting across this ravine." Luke thought out loud.

"See anything else?" Christa questioned impatiently. Clem rolled her eyes but checked further. Her eyes skimmed over the other side of the bridge, where a small house was located, and behind it more woods.

"There's a house by the bridge." She answered.

"How big is it?" Carlos asked.

"It's small. I don't think more than one person could live in there." She described.

"Does it look lived in?" Christa beckoned. Clem took another look at the house.

"Hm.. Hard to say. I don't think so. There's more woods behind it though."

"Oh god.." Rebecca groaned, holding her stomach. Alvin's hand immediately clenched down on hers for comfort.

"Relax, Bec.. We can take another break when we cross the bridge. Right?" Alvin looked at Pete for an answer. He bit his lip and hummed.

"..Maybe. Clem, you see the ski lodge from there?" She looked further up and, low and behold, there it was.

"I think so. There are these big seats and an observation deck, and behind it is a really big building."

"Sounds like that's where we're spending the night. Close, big, comfy. That one look lived in, Clem?" Lee asked his pseudo daughter.

"Not at all. The glass is broken and boarded up, but it looks like it's been a while since anyone was there." The group looked to itself with an endearing expression of hope.

"I can do that. I can make it." Rebecca assured the group.

"You're gonna have to." Pete stated regrettably.

"We went skiing once, remember, Bec?" Alvin said, closing the distance between them.

She smiled at the memory. "Yeah.. You fell on your ass like, three times before we went back to the lodge for churros."

He chuckled softly. "Yeah. Just think of me, falling on my ass. That'll brighten your spirits."

"Okay.." And she did, calming herself down at least a little bit.

"Alright, looks like we're all ready." Pete began wheeling himself to the path leading towards the bridge, but Luke stopped him.

"Woah, woah, we shouldn't just send our whole group across. Let's send a few to go scout things out, just to be safe."

Pete nodded at the suggestion. "Good point. Lee, Luke, I want you two to head down. Holler if you need help."

"Great." Lee took out his combat pistol gifted to him by Alvin.

"I can go too." Clem volunteered, running up to Lee. He kneeled down to her.

"I don't see why not." He stood back up. Clem was always happy to hear his trust in her. Carlos was a bit more skeptical.

"Come on, Lee, she's just a little girl. Let her stay here for now." The father spoke. Sarah seemed to want her to stay too.

"It's okay, Carlos. I can handle myself." She said calmly. He was still a bit skeptical, but lowered his gaze anyway.

"You heard her. Besides, I'm sure it won't be that bad."

"In that case, mind if I come too? I can watch your back."

"No, three is good enough. Stay here and defend the others, alright?"

"Sure. Yeah. Sorry, I'm just a bit.. Cloudy. I need to take my mind off of things."

"We can talk more about it when we're on break, alright? We'll be alright." With that, the three took their leave away from the rest of the group. Christa, feeling guilty about her prior interactions with Rebecca, sat down next to her and sighed.

"You'll be alright. You have to be, right? You still have a group that loves you. We'll protect that baby too."

"Christa..? Huh. I figured you still hated me."

"I don't exactly trust anyone else outside of my group. But I guess this is my group now, huh?"

"I guess so. Happy to make your acquaintance."

"You've had a baby before, Christa?" Sarah pondered curiously. The woman turned her head, rubbing her stomach.

"..Kinda."

"I've been wondering about something." Clementine started a conversation as they walked side by side.

"What's that?" Luke humored her.

"Why is Carver so keen on finding you guys? Why not just let you go and move on? It doesn't sound like he liked any of you at all."

"Well.. Let me answer that question with another question: What's the most important thing in this world?"

"Family." Lee answered rather quickly. Luke was shocked to hear him answer so fast.

"Is that right?" Clem asked. Luke laughed.

"Yeah, yeah it is. It's a tough world out there without people you can trust. Anyway, it's less about trust and more about.. Attachment."

The three scouts found two walkers standing in front of the bridge and stopped before they could notice them. Well, one of them was standing. The other appeared to be sitting. They looked between each other, with Clem pulling out the knife she found earlier in the woods and Luke taking out his machete. Lee didn't have one, so he gestured for them to make the first move.

"Alright, I'll take heavy, you take shortie. Just don't make too much noise, alright?"

"I can take the big guy." She insisted, a cocky smirk on her face.

"No no, he's mine. You take care of the small one, okay? I like your enthusiasm, but let's not overcomplicate." He steadily tiptoed over to his walker after whispering to her, ready to stab the big one.

"Hmph." She sassily grunted, quietly walking alongside Luke to take out the smaller walker. But she could still get the standing one if she wanted to that badly.. Should she?

Choices:

A: Take out the small one.

B: Show off and take out the tall one.

Relationships:

Lee: 10/10

Carley: 10/10

Christa: 8/10

Molly: 8/10

Chuck: 10/10

Luke: 8/10

Pete: 10/10

Nick: 8/10

Carlos: 8/10

Sarah: 10/10

Alvin: 7/10 (For being forgiving and understanding towards his wife, as well as attempting to cover her watch for her.)

Rebecca: 7/10 (For forgiving and taking watch for her)

Carver: 2/10

((QOTC: Sorry for another hiatus, my computer broke and I couldn't get a new one until my Chromebook came in. Which Walking Dead character is the most badass? Lee is excluded for obvious reasons, so I'll say Jesus.

As always, here is the discord link: https/discord.gg/7TRgv3XVAU ))