Switch

What if Clementine died instead of Sarah? Prompt Submitted by SaltyStar_28 on AO3

FYI: This is going to be a short one

Requests On Hold

Clementine dropped down and grabbed Sarah, pulling her out for under the deck when Jane lifted it up. Shoving Sarah ahead of her, as Jane clambered up without them, Clementine saw Luke grab Sarah's arms and hauled her up, just as Clementine felt a Walker grab her shoulders.

"Guys—" Clementine's voice became a gurgling scream, as the Walker bit into her neck and another tore into her arm. The group on the rest of the deck watched in horror as Clementine succumbed under the Walkers devouring her. Thinking quickly, Mike and Jane destroyed the rest of the deck, leaving the Walkers down below them.

"Oh god." Bonnie's hand covered her mouth, "W-why didn't we do anything?"

"I—" Luke coughed, "I don't know."

You don't know what?" Demanded Kenny, walking out of the shop, behind him, Rebecca sat with her baby, "Where's Clementine?"

Everyone was silent.

"Dead." Said Jane, after a moment, "She jumped down, we didn't have enough time to save her."

"She was saving Sarah." Corrected Mike, giving Jane a disgusted look, "You could've done something, but you just ran."

"She went down there!" Snapped Jane, "Why should I let her drag me down as well?!"

"You left her to die?!" Demanded Kenny, glaring at Jane.

"I told her not—" Jane was cut off.

"SHUT UP!" Shrieked Sarah, shoving Jane.

The woman staggered back, falling backwards off what remained of the deck. Jane let out a short scream as she fell, before she hit the rest of the collapsed deck and rolled onto the ground. Groaning, Jane opened her eyes and saw Clementine's face above her. Jane didn't have time to scream as the Walker tore her throat out.

Above them, the surviving members of their group could only watch as Jane died.

S

Sarah trailed behind the group, Luke wasn't talking to her and Kenny was walking ahead of the group. Rebecca had stopped to rest, and had died without them noticing, until Bonnie spotted her and Kenny put her down. They'd come across a power station, with Kenny scouting it out to make sure it was safe.

They spent the night there, before they moved on. Kenny ended up killing a Walker, before they cross over a frozen lake. Everything was passing by so fast for Sarah, the last thing she clearly remembered was pushing Jane, and before that it was her and Clementine walking through the woods.

They made to the other side safely, with Kenny finding a truck and Luke finding supplies inside a half-built house. Soon enough, Kenny got the truck working and the group found themselves travelling some more.

They reached the Wellington place that Kenny and Clementine mentioned, only to be turned away. Leaving them with a couple bags of supplies and a good luck.

S

Sarah quietly watched AJ run around the school. They'd travelled for five years, before stumbling across Ericson's Boarding School for Troubled Youth. They ingratiated themselves with the residents, all of them younger than Sarah.

Sarah liked to think that Clementine would like this place, she knew she did. There was this one guy, Jesse, who reminded her of Clementine, she later found out that he was her brother. Sarah felt something when she was around him, she didn't recognise it and she didn't want to bother Bonnie with it.

A few weeks after they'd first arrived, they ended up fighting some raiders, Kenny recognised one, calling her Lilly. The raiders were killed for the most part, with them taking Lilly prisoner. Luke had vanished, leaving them behind for some reason.

"How long did you know her?" Asked Jesse, appearing next to Sarah, "My sister?"

"I… I didn't know her for long." Confessed Sarah, "But, she was like an adult. Talking about using a gun, hunting, killing Walkers. She stitched her own arm up, she got bit by a dog, but Luke and some of the others in the group we… I was in thought it was a Walker bite and they shut her in a shed to turn. I only met her after she broke out of the shed and while she was stealing the supplies she needed to stitch herself up."

"How…" Jesse cleared his throat, "how did she die?"

Sarah swallowed, "The day AJ was being born, Luke and another member of out group, Jane, decided to 'play around' instead of keeping watch. We were chased by Walkers onto an observation deck and it broke. I fell with it and got trapped, Clementine," Sarah swallowed, "Clementine jumped down and save my life, Jane had lifted the deck up and Clem pulled me out and as soon as I was free, Jane left us to the Walkers. Clementine managed to get me out, but they killed her before she could get free. I don't remember things clearly, but I remembered pushing Jane off the deck after she said something about Clementine."

"Was…" Jesse's voice was thick, "was she put down?"

Sarah nodded, "Kenny didn't want her to be one of them for any longer than she had been."

Jesse gave her a thick nod, "I'm… I'm going to see if Omar needs help."

Sarah watched him go, sadness pooling in her stomach. Part of her hated Jane, another part hated her dad for keeping sheltered, almost as if he wanted her to be dependent on him. She couldn't imagine what Jesse was feeling, finding out his sister had survived with them but that she'd died before they came here. Sighing, Sarah brushed her legs off and stood up, she had promised Ruby that she'd help with the medical supplies, as well as share what their group had in their stores.

Sarah wished that Clementine was here with them, but she wasn't, and they had work to do.