Life Goes On || TWDG Season 5 Fan Fic

He Went Ranging Up On The Outskirts, Fire Light Gave Them Away

(The attached video is not mine, but I recommend watching it! )

The shot echoed through the forest, bouncing off the walls protecting the school. Everyone's attention snapped back to the now dead widow: her body sprawled across the ground, blood seeping from her skull. "Holy shit.." Vi said, stepping towards the body. Mariana was shrieking. Javi scooped her up, covering her eyes and burying her face in his shoulder. Clem sighed in frustration. "God fucking damn it.." Aasim spoke out. "Every walker for miles probably heard that shit!" Ruby grabbed his arm. "Aasim a woman is dead!! Let's worry about that firs-" he shook her off and turned to face Antoine. "This moron said there was a fucking herd of them!! How the hell are we gonna survive?! They're all probably on their way!!" He looked towards Clem. "What do we do?" She was deep in thought, her frustration melting into fear. A few of Jess' group, consisting of Viola, Clay, and Evelyn, had moved to sit next to her remains, silently morning her loss.

Clem looked at Javi. "Javier, you said you used the fires to move packs before, right?" He nodded, clutching Mariana shakily. "What if it causes a forest fire?" Ruby said, trying to contribute. Christa tried to suggest an alternative option. "Any way we can fight them?" Omar shrugged. "Well we can't kill them all.." Willy seemed to have walked off, leaving without a trace. That being said, they had bigger concerns right about now. Henry put a hand on Javi's vacant shoulder. "I'll help Javier." Viola suddenly spoke. "NO!" Everyone gave her a puzzled look. "We can't fucking lose any more people.." Louis had approached Clay during the conversation, wrapping them into an embrace. Violet was clearly done with the bullshit. "Look, we'll bury the body later and morn, but clearly we have bigger problems. Antoine, how many?" Antoine stood frozen, tears streaking down his face. The guilt was clearly overwhelming him. "Hundreds.." Clementine nodded. "We.. we have to try the fires. We won't survive if we just try to lay low.. something will go wrong." Viola was clearly distraught. "Are you people fucking nuts!? What happens when the " P L A N " backfires?" She was mourning the death of her close friend: no one blamed her for her behavior, and simply ignored it. "So, we have Javier and Henry going - any other volunteers?" Clem said, eyes traveling across the group. AJ tried to speak, but Clem immediately stopped him. "Clem I can do it!!" He protested. "Listen, goofball.. I need you to stay here and.." She thought for a moment. What would convince him? "I need you to protect me and Mariana. She's too little and I don't have two strong legs like you!" His face softened. "Mm..." He pondered the options for a minute. "Fine..." 

At this point, Violet spoke up. "I think it should be Javi, Henry, Me, and either Aasim or Clay. Everyone else should stay here." Louis seemed to try to protest the plan. "Lou, no, you can not go. You can't tell us if you're in danger.." He frowned, reaching up and touching his lip before backing down. Clay stood up besides him. "I'm okay with the idea." Christa stopped them, stepping in front. "I'll take Clay and Aasim's place. I've seen these two fight walkers and I frankly don't trust them enough to survive this.." She paused, before adding: "I say that with love, for clarification." Aasim rolled his eyes. "Jee, thanks. Hey, if you wanna go risk YOUR life, be my guest." Clay laughed. "What would that have sounded like WITHOUT love?" Clem nodded, trying to keep everyone on track. "Okay, team. We don't have long. By the way, where the hell is Wi-" Willy came trotting out of the greenhouse with a wheelbarrow chocked full of flammable fertilizers, old bottles, and a box of matches. "I heard we were committing arson!" Henry chuckled. "This kid's my favorite now." Violet smirked. "You'd be the first to say that." Clem held back laughter. "Don't care how you do it, but just make some sort of fires, distractions, anything LOUD or BRIGHT. Once you get them far enough away, try to circle back without them noticing. They probably won't turn back.. at least I hope." Javi shrugged her off. "We know what we're doing, Clem." She shot him a nasty look. Guess he forgot his prior fuck up of the day. Clementine turned her attention to Violet, wrapping her arms around her. "Please come back in one piece.." Violet took her face into her hands and gave her a soft yet passionate kiss. "I swear.. don't worry about me." Willy made a gag sound in the background. "C'mon, dykes! We got shit to do!" Violet laughed, backing away. "Sounds like Willy is coming, I guess." 

~~~~

The group had finished packing a few quick things. Some stragglers had already reached the school, but the big horde was yet to come. The assumption was that the boat sinking was where they had gotten the supplies.. and it was what lured and created some of the walkers that Antoine spoke of. Everyone was still pissy with him after all that had happened, but Clem tried to be neutral. He was just trying to help, after all. He reminded her of Ben.. his face a distant memory. Kenny always said he got Katjaa and Duck killed, but she knew it was never his fault.. he was just a stupid guy trying to save someone he cared about. Even appearance wise, Antoine resembled Ben: the only difference being that he had chocolatey brown eyes, unlike Ben's blue ones. God, Clem would kill for some chocolate.. not like she wanted to eat his eyes, more lik- she realized she was getting off topic. She just missed fucking candy. A handful of people had moved some of the outdoor furniture in front of the gate to secure it. The raiders had really done a number on it.. she was shocked that the hinges stayed in tact. 

Everyone was saying their goodbyes: quietly whispering to each other, embracing.. everyone except Viola, who stood her ground of protest. "Why the hell are these kids making the decisions?!" She got a mouth full from Javier for that one. Looked like he was trying to earn Clem's forgiveness. Of course, she wasn't still mad. Louis gave Violet a big bear hug, nearly lifting her off the ground. She wriggled out of his grip to give AJ a quick side hug before re-approaching Clem. "I love you.." Clementine smiled. "I love you too.. stay safe." Clem gave Javi and Christa a quick nod, and Omar gestured towards the make shift watch tower that the group constructed long ago. "Just climb up and hop over there: it's not a far fall. You'll be fine." AJ and Willy exchanged a quick high-five before the group began departing, carrying duffle bags of the supplies they'd need. Antoine stopped them for a moment. "When will you be back?" Christa shrugged. "We have to get them far enough out that they'll keep moving.. we have enough food for a little while. If we're not back in a few days.." She swallowed hard. "Assume the worst." Clem nodded. "Assume the worst, hope for the best." 

With that, they left.. the group of five dashing off into the trees. Soon enough, the smoke of the first fire could be seen above the line of trees: the smoke dancing up to the sky. After receiving the signal, everyone rushed inside. 

All they had to do was stay hidden.

Quiet.

No noise,

No light.

Only one person would leave the building at the first daylight to see if the horde had passed. 

That is...

If it passed.