A Shred of Hope (The Walking Dead) (The Final Season Retelling)

38. 5 Years Later

Clementine's eyes flickered open. Lazily stretching herself, she gazed at the ceiling. Her hand habitually stretched across to the other side of the bed, landing on the empty blanket. It was strewn across haphazardly, just like it was every morning.

She smiled.

Pushing herself up, she got off the bed, stretching again. The sunlight streaming in through the window told her it was going to be a warm day. She could hear the sound of the birds on the trees outside. She glanced at her bedside table, looking at the drawing AJ made of the two of them and Louis and Violet. It had been years but she still missed him.

Pulling some clothes on, she hunted for her cap. She was sure she'd kept it somewhere on the table, but it was one of those things that she never found when she wanted it.

Sighing, she gave up. It wasn't worth the headache. She headed out of the room, stopping in the hallway before descending the stairs. The living room was empty, just like she'd expected it to be. Lately, nobody sat in the house in the daytime. It was the kind of weather that made them feel like being out in the sun.

She quickly scoped out the kitchen, noticing the pot. It still appeared to be warm, though she didn't feel particularly hungry. She decided she would eat it later. By the looks of it, it was still early morning.

The main door was open, allowing the warmth in. The cold weather was something all of them despised, and since it was summer, they were doing everything they could to enjoy the heat. Winters had been brutal the past few times.

She stepped out into the little garden, lined with their vegetables. They grew enough to keep them well-fed. There was no more food to be found on supply runs any longer, making them rely on growing their own. It wasn't the most difficult thing in the world to do though. After all, they had help.

Her eyes fell upon the man standing in the middle of the garden. His beard had grown considerably in the last few years. He had grown it because he thought shaving it was a hassle, but instead had come to like it. He leant on a spade, balancing it precariously with his hands under his chin, intently staring at the ground. He looked up as he heard her approach him.

"Morning," Cain said.

"Morning," she greeted him back.

"Breakfast is in the kitchen. You should have it before it gets cold."

"Yeah. Minnie and Marlon aren't here?"

"They left for South Home a while ago. We had some stuff they needed. Should be back by tomorrow."

"And Nora?"

"She went with them. Said she could do with some walking."

"Did you annoy her?" she asked playfully.

"You know me," he replied, laughing. "I never have to do anything to annoy her. God knows why she married me in the first place."

"It was too late by the time she found out," she joked. "Where are Violet and AJ?" she asked.

"Right up there," he replied, lazily pointing a finger at the wooden tower by the door.

She nodded. "How are the potatoes doing?"

He glanced down at the plants. "Well, not too bad. I thought they were dead, but well, it's going okay. Anyway, I'll get back to work."

Clementine made her way to the guard tower. Violet and AJ were looking beyond the wall, their backs turned to her. She noticed Violet wearing her cap and chuckled. She softly climbed up the stairs to make sure they didn't hear her and very carefully placed her hands on AJ's shoulders.

"Ah!" AJ jumped, turning around in a panic.

"Got you!"

"One of these days AJ is going to get you, Clem," Violet said.

"Goofball? I don't think so."

"Come on, Clem. I don't like being called that," AJ said, annoyed.

Clementine smiled. AJ was nearing her height and his hair had grown out a little.

"I've looked after you since you were a baby. You're always going to be goofball."

"I told you, we're in the rebellious age," Violet said, laughing.

"I'm not!" AJ argued.

"Okay, okay," Clementine conceded, chuckling. She looked at the trees. "No sign of them?"

Clementine had asked that question every day for the past couple of years and every day, she had gotten the same response. It had become a habit for her to do this every morning, and pray that the answer would never change.

"No, no sign of them at all," Violet answered. "They're gone, Clem. We're not going to see them again."

"I know. It's just... I feel better hearing someone else say it."

"Well, okay." Violet stepped next to Clementine, cupping her mouth. "The outbreak is over. There are no more walkers." She removed her hands.

"Yes," Clementine replied, laughing. "Thank you for the announcement."

"You're welcome."

"You two are weird some times," AJ said, giving them a funny look. "I'm going to eat. I want to go to the lake after that."

"I wouldn't mind that," Violet said. "Sundays by the pool is everything we need."

"How do you know it's a Sunday?" Clementine asked.

"Every day is a Sunday here, Clem."

"Of course." She watched AJ run down the stairs and talk to Cain before heading towards the house. She felt an immense pride well up inside her as she looked at him.

"So... slept well?" Violet asked.

"You bet," Clementine replied. "I was looking for my cap. Good to know you took it without asking me."

"Oh, I have to ask now?"

Clementine could hear the sounds of Cain digging as she looked at the green trees. The warmth of the sun made her close her eyes, enjoying the surreal feeling. She had grown used to mornings like this, without having anything plaguing her mind. It had taken years, but she'd finally found it. She'd found her home and her family.

Her lips curled into a smile as she reached for Violet's hand.

"Yes."

A/N: And there we go! A Shred of Hope comes to an end. It's been nearly a year since I posted the first chapter and it's been amazing writing for all of you readers. But before I say anything else, I believe I need to thank prudi1331 and nushie297. Without them, this story would be impossible. They've proofread my chapters, along with all the earlier drafts that, in my opinion, weren't exactly the best, and given me a whole lot of input. But because of all of that, I could put up so many chapters that you liked reading (hopefully!).

The Walking Dead Game has been one of my favourites and I absolutely loved playing it. But because I wasn't particularly happy with the Final Season, this book came about. I remember talking to prudi1331 and telling him that I wanted a better ending. And so, we brainstormed ideas and came up with a plot. Funnily, I just did something else entirely, but I'm really happy with how things turned out. Clementine deserved a good ending for her.

I'm glad to have met all of you who comment, vote and read these chapters. You're the reason this book was finished. It's amazing to have people that enjoy this as much as I do.

And so, now that we've finally seen the little walking dead family in their post-post-apocalyptic time, I think I'll work on something else now. I'm going to miss staying up late into the night, trying to write a chapter and then completely throwing it away the next day because it sounded absurd. And I'm going to miss getting all excited when I finished writing a chapter. So, until I have another story to do that again, happy reading!