revenant|c.g.|

xxxii

It was silent as the sun rose high above the grounds of Hilltop, light shining upon what had just been a battlefield. A field covered in blood, the bodies that had littered it either buried or burned.

But no grave mattered as much as the one where a young girl sat. It would take a few moments for people looking on to realize it was the Commander, with her body caving into itself as she seemed to hold herself together. She was, at least trying to hold herself together it seemed, especially when looking at the grave.

Clary was silent until she heard footsteps, forcing her to stand. Looking to her side, she saw Maggie being tailed by Dianne and Alec, who gave her soft nods in greeting.

Maggie approached with a soft smile, her hand finding a quick home on the girl's shoulder. "Alec was looking for you. I thought I'd find you here." Clary only nodded, the two leaders silent as people passed through to pay respects to the fallen and speak to the two leaders if needed.

It wasn't until everyone was gone that Clary allowed herself to kneel once more. She removed the pocket watch from her clothing, the metal cool as it came in contact with her calloused fingertips. She then placed the watch upon the dirt of the grave, almost as if it was a direct line to the man buried below.

Clary wondered what Glenn would say if he had been beside both herself and Maggie. Would he be fighting side by side with them? Or would he hold onto an image of peace just as Carl did? She tried to imagine what he would say to calm her self-doubts as a leader and at what lay ahead. All she heard was the soft ticking of the watch.

"He meant a lot to you, huh?"

A presence kneeled beside her, the girl recognizing the voice without needing to look over. Alec noticed this, worried until she nodded. "He saved me, in more ways than one." She clenched her jaw, her grip on the watch right. "He saved me even when I showed him I wasn't worth saving."

Finally, Clary's gaze met Alec's beside her, his dark eyes holding her own. "He should be here, not me. He didn't deserve this." Clary looked away as soon as pity fell upon his face, not wanting to see it. The young man only shook his head, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You didn't either. He should be here, same as you. He should be by your side— by Maggie's."

Clary only let out a soft breath, Alec wondering if it was a scoff or a weak laugh. "But he's not. So, all I can do is make sure I protect his family. That I protect mine." Wrapping the pocket watch's chain around her fist, she stood up. Alec only watched as she stood, her eyes dark as she looked blankly at the grave. "And then I'll avenge him— Abraham, Sasha, my sister, my people— by ripping that bastard apart."

While her eyes had been on Glenn's resting place, she knew how Alec had looked at her. His eyes— the fear that took hold of them— haunted her as she sat herself on the edge of the bed. She felt bare, wearing only a thin long sleeve t-shirt and jeans, almost becoming used to the armor she wore once again after wearing it for the many battles in the past few days.

The coldness she felt was replaced with slight warmth upon feeling a hand on her back, moving up and down her spine before resting on the small of her back. A soft smile made its way to her face before she turned to see Carl looking worriedly to her. "You okay?" Clary nodded, attempting to pull away but being unsuccessful as Carl pulled her back gently. "You don't have to lie to me, you should know that by now," Carl said, his eye pleading with her to tell him what was wrong. "I'm not lying, I'm fine." She almost laughed at how pitiful she sounded, lying through her teeth to the point where it was too obviously a lie.

Clary let out a sigh before moving closer, Carl's hand resting upon her own as he rubbed soothing circles on the back of it. "I was at the graves today with Maggie. Seeing the death they have caused, what they took..." Clary clenched her jaw. "I told Alec how I wanted to kill Negan, how it's all I want." She took a deep breath. "And he— he was afraid. He tried to hide it but I could see it. Maybe I am too."