#clem ruby brotp

[ericsonclan]

Ruby: How many hours of sleep did you get last night?

Clem: 3 hours, believe it or not

Ruby: Straight?

Clem: No, bisexual

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

I wish Brody survived and if you didn't want to date Violet, you could have Clem set her up with Brody (or Louis with Aasim❤️). That would be sweet :3

YES

DOUBLE YES

Like, listen... If I had the power to be bros with Violet and help her woo Brody, I would. I would be playing matchmaker all over the place. If you go fishing with her, that’s the perfect start, y’know? Clementine talks to Violet about the twins and what’s going on with Brody, and if you pick the proper answers, Violet will be on better terms with her and tell her where she’d go on for a road trip. 

Then, let’s say Brody doesn’t fucking die because Marlon didn’t hit her as hard, yeah? When you’re talking with Violet after all the nonsense, you can either take the romantic approach for yourself, or you can push her more in Brody’s direction. 

Play your cards right and Vi and Brody will be holding hands and smoochin’ by the final scene of the season, like Ruby and Aasim, y’know? 

Listen, I just need more briolet + wingman Clementine content, okay? 

[yellowsugarwords]

Could we get hcs of brotp mitchentine? Like he is in the barn with AJ and Clem(like Mitch didn't die in ep 2) and he is trying to take care of the walkers, then he has to help her with the bite?

gonna combine this with a few other Mitch and Willy brotherly hcs and Willy + Clem and Mitch + AJ bonding requests. I think these guys make the cutest Sibling Clan™ so I support this

AJ was throwing his fists against the front gates.

Desperate.

Yelling.

Louis was the one who heard first.

But Mitch noticed when he charged to let him him.

Pleading with him to stay calm as he opened the lock.

“It’s Clementine!” He wailed, fists banging at the gates.

Bloody.

Torn skin over each finger.

But Mitch didn’t notice that when he started charging over.

It was the name.

Clementine.

It rang like echoes in his head as he darted closer.

Finally getting the gate open, the child threw himself into Louis.

Eyes wide.

Bubbling over with tears.

“She’s bitten. And I think I made it worse.”

Mitch didn’t say anything to anyone.

Not even after people were yelling after him.

Pleading for him to wait so they could make a plan.

AJ yelling for him to slow down so he could follow.

So he could guide him.

Mitch didn’t need guidance.

Or permission.

He just ran where his gut told him to.

Where he felt like Clementine was.

He had a sixth sense for her.

She was like a sibling to him.

A sister. Someone who loved him without judgement.

Someone who he was permanently connected to.

And he couldn’t lose her.

He refused.

By the time he slowed to catch his breath, AJ was darting up at his heels.

“Go right!” He said.

And Mitch obeyed.

His lungs burning.

By the time he hit the front doors, his ears were ringing.

He collapsed at the door’s base.

Hearing footsteps charging behind him.

“Mitch!” A voice gasped.

And he recognized it.

It wasn’t AJ’s.

Willy grappled onto his shoulders.

Eyes wide and desperate.

His body shaking in exhaustion, his knees wobbly.

“We need to get inside.” He heaved. “It’s not safe.”

He was right.

He was smart.

AJ was already inside.

And Mitch and Willy dragged in anger him.

Clem was laying against a wall of the barn.

Eyes closed.

Chest barely moving.

Her body pale and still.

Her leg, sitting on the ground to her left.

Her stump, bloody, but elevated and wrapped.

Mitch could hear Willy’s gasp.

And could feel his gut churn.

“She got bit,” AJ blubbered, sitting by her side. “I tried to help her.”

Mitch reached out to the boy.

Arm extended.

Trying to keep him calm.

He didn’t know how close Clem was to turning.

If she was at all.

And they needed to be careful.

With tears on his eyes, he knelt beside her.

“Clem?” He hushed softly.

And she groaned.

And Mitch’s heart stopped.

He heard Willy sit beside AJ.

But Mitch didn’t look up.

He couldn’t.

He couldn’t look away from what might’ve been Clem’s last moments alive on Earth.

Properly alive.

“Clem, you gotta hear me.” Mitch pleaded.

His hands cupping the side of her face.

Taking the risk.

“Can you hear me?” He pleaded, his vision blurring. “/Please/, tell me you can hear me.”

Her eyes slightly faded open.

Enough for Mitch to see the life within.

Like a faint curtain.

And decided to run with it.

“I got you, Clem.” He hushed.

Pulling her into his arms.

Carrying her delicately to the door.

Willy walked alongside him.

AJ leading the way.

They started back to Ericson.

Much slower than before.

More cautiously.

When Mitch glanced down to his side, his gaze softened.

Along the way, Willy had reached up.

His fingers clinging to Clem’s jacket.

Begging her to stay.

Keeping her close.

Willy didn’t leave her side when they got back.

Sitting on the bench beside where she was lying on the table.

Watching Ruby tend to her.

Watching Louis give her sips of his remaining water.

Water Violet brush the hair out of her face.

Mitch darted inside to get more supplies.

Clean fabric.

More first-aid supplies.

Anything he could grapple too.

Willy never left Clem’s side.

He hesitantly held her hand.

Squeezing.

Praying that she’d wake up.

“Is Clem going to be okay?”

Mitch turned from where he was gathering supplies.

Looking at AJ after his question was posed.

Noticing the way he stared down at his arms dejectedly.

Mitch frowned.

Abandoning the supplies in his arms on the floor.

Kneeling in front of the boy.

And taking his arms in his hands.

“She’s gonna be okay,” he said.

AJ’s expression didn’t change.

And he looked away.

Hiding his tears from the male.

“It’s not your fault that this happened. It’s no one’s fault.”

AJ gulped.

Mitch could see his throat wobble.

His eyes shake.

And watched as the tears hovered at the corners of his eyes.

And pulled him tightly.

AJ abandoning his supplies on the ground.

Clinging to him.

Mitch held him tightly as he cried.

AJ so small in comparison that Mitch acted as a shield.

His arms swallowing him whole into his chest.

Holding him through his sadness.

Clutching his back and the back of his head.

Outside, Willy was frantically asking questions.

“Is she going to be okay?”

Louis gulped. “Yeah Willy, that’s what Ruby’s making sure of.”

“Is she hurting?”

“I’m making sure she isn’t,” Ruby said, rewrapping the girl’s stump.

“She’s gonna wake up?”

They were silent.

Louis was by her head, checking for breathing.

Ruby was at her stump, stopping the bleeding.

And Willy was at her side, holding her hand.

Eyes glued to her.

Eyes teary.

Her eyes opened.

And she groaned.

And glanced around without acknowledging her leg.

Words didn’t leave her lips.

They didn’t have a chance to.

Teary-eyed, Willy threw himself onto her.

Shaky sobs escaping him.

“You’re okay,” he blubbered out.

And groggily, Clem reached out to comfort him.

“You’re okay. You’re okay,”

Hearing gasps and commotion.

Tears and cries.

Mitch and AJ darted for outside.

They were fearing the worst.

And Mitch felt himself hold his breath.

Terrified for AJ.

For Willy.

For Clem.

But seeing Willy wrapping Clem in his arms.

Watching as Clem sleepily stroked his back.

Watching the excited way AJ ran for Clem.

Tossing his supplies with Ruby.

Tearfully joining Willy at her side.

His fear subdued.

She was okay.

She was there.

She survived.

As Ruby helped Clem sit up, Louis passed her water.

Willy and AJ clung to her sides.

Clem was reassuring Willy of her safety.

Her free hand stroking AJ’s back.

And Mitch took his chance.

He started forward.

Clementine looked his way.

Spotted the twinkle in his eye.

And gasped when he lunged and wrapped her in an urgent hug.

His arms tightened around her back.

Coiling.

Refusing to let her go.

Lifting her from her seat.

Clem closed her eyes.

And squeezed back as much as she could.

“Thank fuck,” Mitch hushed.

His breath shaky and nervous.

Her fingers curling around her jacket.

Clementine weakly chuckled.

“I’m not leaving you alone,” she said.

Mitch smiled into her neck.

“You’re too stupid to make it without me.”

Mitch snorted.

And pulled away.

And helped her sit back down.

Yep. That was his Clementine.

And she was okay.

And she was going to stay that way.

[adorasbiceps]

I have so many thoughts on the new episode of TWDG so I’m just gonna write it all here so spoilers for Episode 3 Broken Toys beyond this point:

- I’m gonna start with the heavy shit because I’m still thinking about it now and I can’t stop. Louis. That scene broke me in a way I can’t even describe, the way he fucking hugged Clem and Clem hugged him back, I’m on the verge of tears now just remembering that scene. They cut his tongue out. THEY FUCKING CUT HIS TONGUE OUT. That is beyond fucked. Most of my emotions before this scene had been happy ones, because I was enjoying my Violet/Clem scenes, and then I get kicked in the balls and smacked over the head with this scene? I honest to god cried, I cried during the Lee scene and I cried during this scene, I was distraught and Clem’s response that she never would have let them take him had she known was fucking ME. I love Violet so much but this honestly made me want to go back and save Louis instead because, as far as I know, Violet is fine physically but is pissed at Clem but, at the very least, she can fucking TALK. I have a Violentine and Clouis, save I avoided spoilers all day so I had no idea what happened to Louis in this route, Violentine is my ‘canon’ save so I played that first and it destroyed me. From that point on I was operating on shock and anger. 

- Was I the only one who was deeply disappointed (and furious) with Lilly. At the end of episode 2 it said I left her feeling ‘unconvinced’ I had hoped I’d laid the seeds of doubt and could harvest them in this episode to get Lilly on my side. Nope. That never fucking happened, once, she’s a savage from her first scene until her last. She literally doesn’t give a shit, it’s like that scene when you tell her you were once family never even happened, she gives zero shits about Clementine or her friends, I thought maybe we could do something to at least further her doubts to completely break her away from the Delta in episode 4 but she’s irredeemable to me now. I decided to not let AJ shoot Lilly because I still had that one shred of hope I could convince her (also James’ warning of not letting AJ become a killer was ringing in my ears) and she just fucking murdered James. Straight up killed him. She’s dead to me now, irredeemable. 

- Also I let AJ take the risk and save Violet, I wasn’t sure at first because I really didn’t want AJ to get hurt but my genuine panic that they were gonna slice Violet’s hand off (I think they only take a finger but I thought they were going for a hand) made me think the risk might be worth it, and AJ ripping an ear off with his teeth, I stan. Yeah, I didn’t want AJ to get hurt but I didn’t want Violet to get hurt or maimed like they’d already done to fucking Louis I was so panicked. 

- I thought James’ philosophy on the walkers was interesting. It’s been raised before on the Walking Dead TV show (don’t read the cross out if you haven’t seen The Walking Dead TV show or read if you don’t mind spoilers anyway): Hershel keeping his family/neighbors in the barn in the vain hope of helping them, they’re still in there kind of thing, and also Morgan’s wife, who was a walker walks up to her house and tries the door and stands there and she does it regularly suggesting that perhaps the walkers retain some of their memory or whatever. The thing is that doesn’t really change anything, even if a part of you existed in that walker, isn’t that a cruel fate? I don’t care if part of me would live on in a walker, you’re a rotting corpse that likes to eat human beings I think I’d rather be killed and set free, born anew, than remain a walker. Even so, I can’t confirm nor deny that apart of people do live on in the walkers so I agreed with James that there was something up with them - also that scene was highkey so cool wearing the walker mask and being in first person I was actually scared and the breathing horror level increased tenfold. I also did everything James asked me, I didn’t kill the walkers in his camp, not a single one even though it was terrifying and I almost got eaten. When Lilly killed him my jaw dropped open, I was shookth after I told AJ to spare Lilly she does THAT pissed doesn’t come close to how I felt. 

- The scene with Lee was everything (though it didn’t prepare me for the whiplash I was about to get in the cell scene with Louis) I felt comforted. It’s so full circle. Clem is Lee now. He’s her conscious and it just reminds me of the scene with Ava in TNF when Clem says she could hear Lee in her head, ‘helping her, guiding her’ when she was looking after AJ and now we got to see it for real, played out. Lee is apart of Clementine forever. And when he hugs her and then she’s grown up Clem I fucking cried, not going to lie, and Clem’s sniffle like she was going too cry got to me. I miss Lee so much and he really would be so proud of the person Clementine has become. He’s still keeping her alive, even from beyond the grave. Also the fucking ‘I thought I told you to keep this short.’ and Clem’s ‘Do you know how hard it is to find scissors’ bit made me laugh and cry. 

- I don’t like the foreshadowing at all, Lee’s ‘you’re in my shoes now’, Clem telling AJ what he has to do if she gets bit, the fact that you teach AJ that sometimes killing is a mercy, my alarm bells were ringing, literally when AJ said all he thinks about is Clem getting bit I was like ‘boi shush that ain’t gonna happen’ They can’t kill Clem off, seriously, if she dies I’ll sue them for emotional distress.

- On to the lighter stuff, Clem and Violet exchanging gay glances and smiles every chance they get is a whole ass mood. The dancing scene in the bedroom is so darn cute, AJ interrupting, I jumped and missed the prompt for the ball and it bounced off of Clem’s head I died laughing, Violet saying that she can’t lose Clem too was adorable and AJ interrupting, yet again, when they kiss and Clem telling him to go look in another direction was precious. Vi: Don’t disappear on me, okay? End of the EP: lol everyone is MIA. I absolutely picked purple because Violet and when Ruby connected the dots too I was chuckling away.

- AJ was absolutely precious this episode, his dancing, his drawing, his banner that says ‘surprise dummies’, I liked how candid he was about his feelings, even when they could be considered :/, like how he admitted he wanted to hurt Willy, telling AJ that he’s a good person was a highlight and I just want him to grow into a good little human and be happy. AJ highkey being protective of Tenn was everything. 

- I like to think my headcanon about Violet/Louis brotp was pretty accurate, Vi hated him but in a ‘he’s-so-annoying’ kind of way, because their personalities clash but after Minnie and Sophie he was honest with Vi about his feelings, and was the only one to make her laugh and was just there for her and made her feel so loved, he grew on her and they’re my brotp okay. 

- Hearing Violet’s backstory holy shit. Like holy shit. Enough said.

- Rosie is mine now. I highkey considered siccing Rosie on Abel but I didn’t want to be too violent with AJ present and all. 

- When Violet hugged Minnie at first I was like 0.o (lowkey so was Clem) but I chilled quickly.

- I wasn’t surprised Violet stayed to help Minnie I mean I would’ve done the same if I was her but that’s because I’m a ‘no-man-left-behind-even-if-they’re-an-asshole’ kind of person. I don’t trust Minnie at all but she doesn’t deserve to die, she’d been well and truly Stockholm syndrome-d, she doesn’t deserve to die because it wasn’t her fault.

- In summery everything was gay and good and then I got decked in the face with feels all of a sudden and could barely function. 

[agirlinhell]

Title: Spice Girls

Genres: Friendship

Characters: Ruby, Clementine, Aasim, Louis, Violet, ( mentioned ) Mrs. Martin ( mentioned )

Rating: K

Warnings: None!

Pairings: BROTP!Rubytine, implied Rusim and Louisentine/Clouis!

A/N: A really simple and fluffy drabble because GOD Ruby and Clementine’s friendship are REALLY underrated. For @keptmanners!

Ruby sighed in contentment at the smell of garlic and tarragon filling the kitchen. The stove was ablaze with frying pans and boiling water, and Mrs Martin’s old cookbook lay open on the counter. The kitchen was nothing spectacular, but it was almost twice the size of the one in her last apartment in Prescott. Moving in had been a great decision if only for the increased kitchen space, among other things, she thought with a smirk.

“Where’s your paprika?”

Clementine rummaged about a cabinet above the kitchen sink looking for the elusive spice. Ruby glanced at the other woman, whom she’d somehow strong-armed into wearing a purple apron while they prepared dinner. Then again, Ruby had always been good at convincing people to see things her way. Even Clementine was not entirely immune to her charms.

“It’s in the one next to that cabinet,” Ruby said as she maneuvered a knife to chop up some scallion stalks.

Clementine returned with the paprika and examined the cookbook with a practiced eye. She was a decent cook, Ruby had discovered, and it was nice to finally have someone to do this with. She told Clementine as much.

“What, you mean your useless boyfriend doesn’t help?” Clementine inquired with a chuckle. “Shocker.”

“Not a chance, Aasim can’t cook to save his life, but he tries. He’s just a bit better with a pen.” Ruby laughed. “But even Violet can’t do this. That woman should never go within a hundred feet of a kitchen, let me tell you.”

Clementine laughed, measured out the proper amount of paprika and added it to the sauce they were making. Ruby returned her attention to the scallions. “One time in Home Ec, Vi almost blew up the stove in the backyard. Poor girl.”

“Oh, damn,” Clementine chuckled as she continued adding ingredients to the sauce according to the recipe.

“Yeah, it was somethin’. And here we are, years later. You know, I think girlfriends are a necessity of life. Violet’s saved my life in more ways that I can count.”

“I’ll have to take your word for it.” Clementine replied with a smile. That girl was something else.

Ruby stepped closer to Clementine and slung an arm around her neck, prompting Clementine to blink.

“You don’t have to take my word for it. Violet and I go way back, and I’ve only known you for a year. But it’s the same thing.” She pulled Clementine into a hug over Clementine’s muffled protests. “I’m really glad you decided to help us, Clem.”

Clementine smiled but didn’t hug Ruby back, but she didn’t push her away. “You’re getting scallion bits in my hair.”

“Oh, shut up, you love it.”

“I definitely do not.”

“Hey, when’s dinner gonna be ready?” Louis popped into the kitchen and caught Ruby trying to squeeze the life out of an unresponsive Clementine. Damn, Ruby knew how to give bear hugs. “Uh, am I interrupting?”

Ruby pulled away and put her hands on her hips. But before she could say anything, Clementine beat her to it.

“As a matter of fact, you are,” she smirked, crossing her arms.

Louis caught sight of Clementine and Ruby’s matching aprons and laughed. “Whoa, never thought I’d see the day Clem wore a frilly apron. Are those bunnies patterned on the front?”

Clementine advanced on him, sauce spoon in hand. “Louis, I swear to the gods—”

“Leave Clem and my girlfriend alone, dude,” Aasim said, putting a hand on Louis’ shoulder.

“Hey, I don’t remember inviting either of you to our super awesome kitchen party,” Ruby said, getting in between Clementine and the boys. “Both of you shoo. No boys allowed.”

“You mean not until it’s time to clean up,” Aasim griped.

“You read my mind!” Ruby shrlled.

“Sorry for the intrusion, Ruby, Clem, ” Aasim said, dragging Louis out of the kitchen with him.

“Hey! Let go of me right now or I’ll give you the worst dare in Truth or Dare!”

“Shut up, Louis.”

Ruby and Clementine exchanged a look, and Ruby burst out laughing. “See what I mean about the necessity of girlfriends in your life? Imagine being stuck with just them.”

Clementine could barely hide her grin. “Believe me, I know.”

“Hah, I guess you would. Good thing you have me now, huh?” Ruby went back to chopping up the scallions and dumped the bits in a frying pan to cook.

A hand on her shoulder startled her, and she turned. Clementine was no longer smiling, but there was a softness about her that she rarely displayed. Ruby didn’t have to ask to know why. Having headed the medics and nurses of the group, she knew all about Clementine’s difficult life alone. It was a life Ruby could never even imagine surviving, but here Clementine was, still able to smile when she wanted to.

“Yeah,” Clementine said. “It’s a very good thing.”

It was one of the rare times in her life that Ruby was speechless. Knowing how reserved Clementine was, how mistrusting and private she’d become due to her past, to see her open up was a feeling that brought Ruby joy.

She blinked the memory away before it could sweep her away. “You’ve still got scallion bits in your hair, by the way.”

Clementine snorted and pinched some flour from a nearby bowl. She tossed it at Ruby’s face, who sputtered in surprise. “Oh look, now you’ve got flour in your hair.”

“Oh, I see how it is. You wanna make this personal? You wanna go? I'll give you somethin' fierce!” Ruby taunted. She grabbed the flour bowl and flung a bit at Clementine, who was quick to dodge it even with her wooden leg. “Hey, hold still!”

“Hell no!”

They fell into laughter as the kitchen filled with white powder. The boys would have a nasty mess to clean up when they were done, but neither Ruby nor Clementine seemed to care.

[ericsonclan]

Ruby: What if his mother serves something gross like brussle sprouts?

Clem: Just spit them in your napkin 

Ruby: That’s disgusting!

Clem: Not if you put them in your purse when they’re not looking 

[ericsonclan]

Big News

Summary: Clementine and AJ come back from a hunting trip when all of a sudden Clem's stomach takes an unexpected turn...

Word Count: 2000+

Read on AO3:

Read Ch.1

Clementine felt her brain short circuit at that. Pregnant? She thought Ruby was going to tell her she was dying or something. This was what pregnancy felt like? Clementine’s voice was weak as she croaked out a single word. “How?”

Ruby look incredulous. “Clem, you do know how babies are made, right? You and Louis have been together for years now and I did give you that talk back when-”

“I know how they’re made,” Clementine raised a hand in protest, adjusting her position on the bed. Another wave of nausea hit from the movement, and she quickly leaned over to let another mouthful of stomach fluids fall into the bucket. Clementine wiped her mouth with the spare rag she’d been using then leaned back against the wall, closing her eyes in exhaustion.

Ruby watched her worriedly. “You and I have never really talked about pregnancy, not at length that is. I know when I’ve brought it up in the past you thought of it mostly as something different, a “maybe someday” sorta matter.”

“I did,” Clementine kept her eyes closed, trying to recenter herself and suppress the queasiness. “I sort of just put it in a box with all the other things I thought I wouldn’t have to deal with for a long time. Like there was always the outside possibility but… damn,” She glanced down at her stomach. It looked the same as always. Was there really a baby growing in there? Ruby stayed silent, as if unsure what to say. Clementine couldn’t blame her; she wasn’t sure what the right words were either. She was still trying to wrap her head around what this would mean if she was really, truly pregnant. Varying emotions clashed within her: shock, fear, excitement… hope,”

“I’m not sure if this is good news or bad news for ya, Clem, but no matter what if this is really what I think it is, I’ll be there for you. We’ll get you to the other side of this,”

Clementine met Ruby’s eyes, studying them intently. There was danger in this. So much danger. Their painkillers at this point were pretty much nonexistent. They’d been able to bring medical books back from Johnstown but how much use would those be if they didn’t have the equipment to employ the techniques inside? What if something went seriously wrong? What if she started bleeding? What if she lost the baby? Clementine’s gaze fell back down to her stomach, flat and achingly empty after all the vomiting. Her eyes drifted to the stump that once held her leg. Was her body strong enough to carry a baby?

“Tell me your thoughts, Sug. Don’t get caught up in your own head,” Ruby’s hand had taken Clementine’s and her thumb gently brushed against it.

“It’s just… a lot. Fuck, I thought I had stomach flu and now you’re telling me there’s a little life inside me? I…” Clementine’s hand came down to gently rest on her stomach. “I don’t know what to do with that,”

“Do you want this baby?” Ruby’s tone was somber. “I know you said you wanted to wait till you were sure and, well, this is sorta hitting out of nowhere,”

Clementine pondered the question. A “someday” had suddenly become “today” She’d thought this was still years away. But then again, she’d thought marriage was a “someday” too and instead she’d proposed out of the blue just a few months ago, surprising Louis and surprising herself even more plans changing wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. But a baby was a lot different than marriage. It was another human life in the mix.

As Clementine looked at her hand as it rested atop her belly, her thoughts drifted back to a memory many years ago: the first time she’d help AJ. He hadn’t been hers then. Raising him as her own had never been part of the plan. It was something that had happened as everything in Clementine’s life slipped away. Through it all she’d had AJ. And even when he was lost to her for a time, she’d got him back. She’d fought and bled and risked her life itself for him to be safe, no matter the cost.

This child would ask the same. It took more than grit to raise a child in this world; it took everything. But as much as it took, it gave back in kind; it gave everything. To see AJ smile was worth all the trials and fear and pain that life brought each day. It was what made life worth it in the end: family. AJ was her family. Louis was her family. Life had taken from Clementine again and again, but it had also given her them. Now it had led another life her way, a new life to experience all the joy and grief, the pain and wonder of this world beside her. As Clementine sat with her emotions, letting the initial chaos within her slowly subside, one remained steady amidst it all: hope. This could be a good thing. It could be something truly wonderful.

Lifting her eyes to meet Ruby’s, Clementine smiled softly. “Yes. I want them. It’s a lot to take in, mind-blowing, earth-shattering news…. But it’s good news. Louis and I are having a baby,”

Ruby’s expression softened, shifting into relief then joy. “Oh, thank goodness! I didn’t want to pressure ya one way or another on how to take this, but I had a feeling you’d be happy about it once the initial shock wore off. You’re having a baby!!” Ruby clapped excitedly before slipping into doctor mode and correcting herself. “Well, the chances are good you’re having one. All the symptoms match up and if things hold steady I’d say we can be sure of it within the next few weeks,”

“Hold steady… does that mean I’m going to be puking day in and day out for the rest of this pregnancy?” Clementine felt another wave of nausea rise at the thought.

“Oh, heavens no! Just for the first trimester. At least, that’ll be the worst of it. But now that we know what we’re dealing with I’ll use all the powers of the greenhouse and gardens to boot that nausea right in the tush and get you back on your feet! Speaking of which…” Ruby handed Clementine the tea she’d poured earlier. “Ginger should help do the trick! Drink up, we need to keep you hydrated. I’ll go ask Omar to add some of those peppermint leaves to the soup he’s been making for you then I’ll go and check the infirmary. We don’t have prenatals but there should be enough regular vitamins for both-” Ruby caught herself but Clementine had picked up on her words too.

“Both?” Clementine eyed Ruby over the rim of her cup. “Ruby, are you…?”

Ruby’s hand drifted down to protectively cradle her stomach. As she looked up at Clementine, tears welled up in the corners of her eyes. “I think so. I know I gave a false start before so I’m being real careful before I say anything to ‘Sim… but yeah. I think I’m pregnant too,”

“I can’t believe this! Ruby!” Clementine sat up in excitement, setting her tea aside. “That’s amazing! How far along are you?”

“A little farther than I think you are, maybe a month ahead or so. I’m trying to hold out through the first trimester seeing as that’s the most dangerous time for something to go wrong. Then I’ll tell him,”

“How long is a trimester?”

“About three months,”

“Three months? You’re going to go three whole months without telling him?” Clementine paused. “Also, why aren’t you sick? You haven’t barfed once these last few weeks. But you just said that’s what happens in the first trimester,”

Ruby noncommittally shrugged. “Well, y’know, different bodies, different reactions. Every pregnancy is different. Anyhoo, I’m gonna go let Omar know about the peppermint,” With that Ruby was off, bustling down the hall before Clementine had a chance to say anything more.

Clementine was left alone once more with her thoughts. There were so many of them too. Would the baby be a boy or a girl? Would she give birth right here in this bed? What would she dress them in? Should she start knitting? But one question soon rose to prominence in Clementine’s mind: When was she going to tell Louis?

---

After deep thought and consideration of the manner, Clementine decided to follow Ruby’s lead in waiting a while longer before telling anyone else of her pregnancy. Like Ruby had said, she was only probably pregnant. Clementine wanted to be sure of the matter before she let the rest of her family in on the matter which would make everything surrounding the pregnancy all the more chaotic.

And so Clementine remained silent on the cause of her sickness, a sickness which greatly concerned Louis despite Clementine’s attempts to brush the whole thing off. Now that she knew the nausea wasn’t a symptom of something far worse, Clementine felt an inner resolve to get back to her regular life. Sometimes this worked and she could push through the nausea and sometimes even forget it once enough of the day had passed. Other times she would puke out of nowhere and sometimes this would lead to her needing to lie down again which always frightened Louis and AJ to no end.

With each visit they made to her room, each night AJ slept over or Louis held Clementine even closer in his arms at night, Clementine felt her guilt grow. At first she told herself that her silence was necessary in order to ensure that Ruby’s verdict of pregnancy was accurate, but after two weeks with no changes either to her nausea or menstrual flow, Clementine began to wonder if something else was holding her back. She wanted this baby; she knew that for certain. Most of her thoughts were consumed by it no matter what she was doing. Yet the thought of telling Louis she was pregnant always sent a tremor of fear down her spine. It couldn’t be his possible reaction that warranted the fear – she knew it would be positive. Perhaps then it was the simple truth that as soon as she told him, the baby would no longer be an idea, a possibility inside Clementine’s mind. It would be real.

She knew she should tell him. Knew it was only a matter of time. But every time Clementine tried to muster the courage she would freeze. Being pregnant would change everything. Once she told Louis, all their thoughts, all their actions, would be directed toward the baby and every emotion would be determined by its welfare. Babies were frail, helpless. They could get sick. They could die. Right now, in this moment, everything was perfect. As perfect as Clementine had ever known within this world. Everyone was safe, happy, healthy. Sure she puked her guts out in the mornings, but when the nausea settled and things returned to normal each day, Clementine felt as if she couldn’t ask for any more in life than sitting by the firepit with Louis and watching AJ and Willy chase fireflies in the soft glow of the evening. If she opened her heart to this baby, if she told Louis and made it real and somewhere along the way their baby died, what would happen to the perfect life they shared in this moment. Would it all crumble to naught?

Clementine tried to tell herself that she was being silly or selfish or cowardly, anything to quiet the fears stirring in her heart. But she knew those fears were very real. People died. Family could be lost. She’d told Ruby she was ready to let this baby into her life, to love it with all the passion and dedication that she loved AJ, but growing a new life, starting from the very beginning, held so much danger. And amidst the joy and hope of what could come to be, Clementine also felt the terror.

---

On one particularly miserable morning, Clementine tried to drag herself out of her morning miasma earlier than normal. She’d already coughed up everything from last night; there was no point dry heaving for the next hour or so and making her whole ribcage sore. Willing herself to focus on anything but her stomach, Clementine shakily slipped out of bed and onto the floor to put on her prosthetic. She had to start getting up earlier if she wanted to convince the others that she was getting better. Louis was about ready to launch an exhibition out to one of the more remote trading posts in search of meds if Clementine continued on like this.

Feeling woozy and with her legs more than a bit shaky, Clementine headed out of the room and toward the courtyard. There she found everyone already busy with their daily tasks. Prisha was on watch with Violet keeping her company, Louis sat at the table with Omar skinning rabbits for the evening meal, and Ruby was on her way to the greenhouse with Aasim. AJ and Willy were nowhere in sight which probably meant they were off somewhere else playing with Garbage. As Clementine emerged into the sunlight, Louis spotted her and got up to help.

Clementine refused to believe she needed it, but she was thankful when Louis provided a steadying hand, an arm around her waist and the other holding her hand as they walked.

“Are you alright, my sweet?” Louis’ tone had its usual playful ring to it but Clementine could see the concern in his eyes. She smiled, hoping none of her nausea showed on her face.

“Feeling great,”

Louis didn’t seem to believe her on that front, but he settled with simply placing a kiss upon her forehead and remaining silent the rest of the way to the picnic tables.

Omar smiled and nodded in greeting as Clementine sat down before his eyes widened and he quickly grabbed the half-skinned rabbit off the table. “I can do this somewhere else if you like. I know certain smells have been bothering you lately,”

“No, that’s fine. I-” Clementine felt her words catch in her throat as the smell of raw meat hit her. “Actually yeah, if you don’t mind,”

“Of course,” Omar quickly gathered up the skinning materials and rabbits and moved over to another table.

Louis rubbed Clementine’s back gently, his eyes worried. “It’s still bad, huh?”

“Nothing I can’t handle,”

“Y’know, I can head out to the Pendleton outpost and be back the next day. James said the herds in the region were pretty thin last he checked,”

“No fucking way,” Clementine internally winced at the forcefulness of her words, her eyes softening in apology. “Shit, sorry. I just want you here right now. That’s all I want,”

“OK,” Louis’ voice was soft and his eyes turned down, looking at the weathered table.

Clementine felt guilty. She couldn’t keep going like this. She had to tell Louis soon. But not now – she needed to wait until her head stopped spinning. Sighing, she laid her head upon her husband’s shoulder.

Ruby’s laugh drew Clementine’s attention over toward the greenhouse. Ruby and Aasim were doing some weeding in one of the outdoor gardens. Clementine couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy at the sight of Ruby, as rosy cheeked and joyful as ever. Pregnancy didn’t seem to have affected her in the least. Meanwhile Clementine woke each morning after a shitty night’s sleep feeling as though a semi had run her over. It wasn’t fucking fair.

She shouldn’t hold her friend’s happiness against her though. With a low groan, Clementine stirred slightly, her head titling up to look at Louis. “Do you know where AJ is?”

“He and Willy went down to the basement a while ago to test out one of the new ‘inventions’ with Garbage,”

“I knew it,” That poor possum. Willy loved her but he certainly put the creature through her fair share of frights.

Louis chuckled. “Yeah. They’ve been down there a pretty long time. I can go check if you want,”

“That’s alright. I-”

Suddenly the door to the basement burst open and Willy and AJ ran outside, Garbage held high above Willy’s head. “C’ mon, Garbage, it’s time to test this out for real!” Willy declared as the boys ran toward the outer wall.

“Boys, what are you up to?” Clementine called, having half a mind to get up and investigate if not for her shaky stomach.

“We’re making an elela- an evala… we’re making something to lift Garbage onto the wall!” AJ responded.

“Garbage can already get onto the wall on her own, can’t she?”

Willy nodded as he pulled a sling out with one hand while holding a struggling Garbage in the other. “Yeah, but this way we can take her up whenever we want instead of waiting for Garbage to want to go herself,”

“Well guys, it might be better to just respect what Garbage wants-” Louis began before standing quickly. “AJ!”

The youngster was already halfway up the wall though his approach was worryingly precarious. Using only one hand while the other held the ropes and gears needed for the “elevator” to work, AJ grunted with determination each time he leapt a few inches further up the wall.

Clementine moved to get up as well but Louis put a reassuring hand on her shoulder before heading over himself. His expression shifted to a sterner look than Clementine almost never saw and his voice took a lower tone than usual. “Little man, if you don’t get down and come up with a safer plan right this second-”

It was already too late though. As the words left Louis’ mouth AJ’s hand missed the next brick and the boy came tumbling to the ground, hitting the ground with a harsh thud.

“AJ!” Clementine screamed, leaping to her feet and rushing over. The nausea hit her like a truck before she got a dozen feet though and a wrong step had her prosthetic twisting underneath her, sending Clementine tumbling to the ground.

“Clem!”

Clementine heard the terror in Ruby’s voice at her fall, but she shook her head, gesturing blindly away from herself. “Check on AJ first!” The surge in her emotions was overwhelming and before Clementine could try to hold it back she was puking again, her shoulders hunching in agony as a watery pink mixture fell to the ground. A moment later Aasim was by her side as well as Prisha. The two of them helped Clementine to her feet and began guiding her back toward the dorms.

Looking back towards the wall, Clementine could see that Louis had AJ in his arms while Ruby carefully cradled his head. The fall had knocked him out. Clementine felt tears pricking her eyes and she swallowed roughly, the taste of bile still fresh in her mouth. “I need to be with AJ. I-” She was cut off by another wave of nausea wracking her body and the trio paused for a moment before leaving the latest watery discharge behind them.

“We need to get you back in bed,” Prisha said simply, “And get some fluids back in you,”

“Prisha’s right. Louis and Ruby have AJ. Violet’s helping too,” Aasim’s grip was steady as he helped Clementine up the stairs even as her own legs felt weak.

Minutes later they were in Clementine’s room helping her into bed. As soon as she laid down Clementine insisted that they leave her and go check on AJ. Aasim agreed to go check for her while Prisha stayed by her side, pouring a glass of water from the pitcher on Clementine’s bedside table and gently guiding her to drink. She wouldn’t let Clementine speak until half of the glass had been drunk and Clementine’s racing heart had somewhat stilled. She took a last grim swallow then handed the cup back to Prisha. “It was a bad fall. He was out when I looked back. What if…”

Prisha placed a hand upon Clementine’s arm, the pressure warm and reassuring. “We aren’t dealing in ‘what ifs’, we’re dealing with what we know. AJ’s in good hands. Ruby got to him right away. We’ll hear an update any minute now,”

As though summoned, Aasim appeared in the doorway. “He’s awake,”

“Oh, thank God,” A choked sob escaped Clementine and the tears she’d held back till now spilled out.

“It looks like AJ dislocated his shoulder and he might have sprained his wrist as well. Those are both things we can fix. Louis is right by his side helping him be brave,”

“What’s the treatment going to be?” Clementine tried to sit up but gave in when her nausea almost tipped over the edge again. “Is he going to need a cast? A sling?”

“Definitely a sling. Ruby’s resetting the bones in place now which will reduce the pain but first we’ll likely hear-”

A scream echoed from the floor above but it was short-lived. Clementine looked down to see her hand was clasping Prisha’s, her knuckles pale from the tension.

Prisha looked over with sympathy, her thumb brushing against Clementine’s hand soothingly. “She just popped it back into place. That will reduce a great deal of AJ’s pain,”

As Clementine strained to listen for any other sound from the room above, she picked up a faint tune drifting in through her window. It was one she instantly recognized: a song Louis and AJ had made up together to sing when you felt mad, sad or scared. She couldn’t make out the words but she could hear both their voices singing together. The panic of the moment softened into a lingering worry. The crisis was past. Now she just needed her nausea to dissipate enough to let her go upstairs.

---

It was about an hour before Prisha and Aasim agreed that Clementine looked stable enough to get out of bed provided they stayed beside her. They didn’t need to support her arms this time but both made sure Clementine didn’t go above a brisk stroll as they made their way to the nurse’s room. There AJ lay upon a cot, his arm in a sling, with Louis sitting on the edge of the cot beside him while Ruby made a note in their inventory log of the pain meds dispensed. She looked up with a warm smile as the trio entered. “Well hey there, Sug. I was about to come check on ya but you look like you could fight a bull one-handed if need be so I’d say you’re just fine,”

“Thank you, Ruby,” Clementine smiled gratefully at her friend before joining her husband in sitting on the cot beside AJ.

AJ gave a brave smile as he looked up at Clementine though the pain was still visible in the tension between his brows. “Sorry I scared you, Clem. Louis said I did real good during the bad part though. We sang “Fuck Off to Fear” three whole times!”

“I heard,” Clementine reached forward, lightly brushing a hand through AJ’s afro. “I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that the wall is off limits for a long time now, even after your arm gets better,”

AJ nodded sullenly. “Yeah, Louis said that a bunch of times. But as soon as I’m better I’ll be real careful so I’ll never fall again!”

“As soon as you’re better you’re grounded from any climbing for a month,”

“A whole month? That’s no fair! Violet climbs up that wall all the time and she’s blind!”

“Violet is an adult,” Clementine countered.

“And I’m only half-blind,” Violet added, appearing in the doorway with Willy looking awfully ashamed as he slunk behind her.

“Alright, there’s far too many people in here. Now scoot,” Ruby gently pushed her husband through the door, Prisha following behind the pair after she gave a parting wave. Violet nudged Willy’s shoulder to get him to step in the room then headed off hand and hand with Prisha.

Willy’s eyes were red as he looked at the little family; he’d clearly been crying. “I’m so sorry that my plan got AJ hurt. I promise I’ll never do it again,”

“We know, buddy. Hey,” Louis gently put an arm around Willy as the teen sniffled. “We know neither of you meant it. The important thing is that AJ’s gonna be okay and both of you know to be more careful in the future,”

Willy nodded though his head was still downcast. AJ looked at his friend worriedly before his face brightened. “Hey, do you wanna sing ‘Fuck Off to Fear’ with us again?” His eyes quickly shot over to Clementine for confirmation. “That’s ok, right? Cause I’m still hurt,”

Clementine couldn’t help but chuckle. “Alright, one more time,”

AJ and Louis immediately launched into the song with Willy soon joining in. After a minute Clementine sang along as well. Their music lilted down the hall, dispelling the fear of the moment with some good, old-fashioned swearing.

---

The nest morning, Clementine awoke with a deep-seated conviction. Today was the day. She was going to tell Louis the big news. He was on watch this morning so she’d have to get out to the courtyard first. Moving with careful intention so as to avoid any further spewage, Clementine got out of bed, put her prosthetic on, and slowly made her way toward the courtyard.

She was scared to finally share the secret but Clementine wasn’t going to let that stop her. Something about the events of yesterday had finally pushed her to not wait any longer. Maybe it was something about the terror of that moment AJ fell. It had shaken her out of the theoretical. A bad thing happened. And they had made it through alright, together. They’d do the same with this baby. Clementine felt her stomach lurch and paused a moment, breathing slowly and intentionally to dispel the nausea before she continued.

Louis had been there for AJ even when she couldn’t. He had run to AJ’s side the second he got hurt and carried him to safety, just as he had years ago when Clementine had collapsed in front of Ericson’s gates with AJ in her arms, feverish and bleeding. Louis had stayed at AJ’s side and helped him through the hardest part, giving him the courage to face the pain. And as they’d sat there together after everyone else had stepped away, just the three of them, Clementine imagined the moment there would be four. Their family was growing. She wanted Louis to know it too.

Entering the courtyard, Clementine saw Louis on watch, his dreadlocks swaying slightly in the breeze as he kept watch from the tower. Making her way over, Clementine paused when she saw Ruby and Aasim taking a morning stroll. “Ruby!”

Ruby’s brow knit slightly in concern as she and Aasim changed course and headed over to Clementine. “Everything alright, Clem? I checked on AJ this morning but I was going to drop by again soon to make sure he’s not moving that arm too much,”

“Everything’s fine. I could hear the two of them laughing in their room so the pain doesn’t seem to be bothering him too much. I actually wanted to ask if you know how soon watch duty is going to switch. There’s something I need to talk to Louis about,”

Ruby’s eyes widened in understanding. She nudged her husband in the ribs. “Hon, go ahead and take over for Louis a few minutes early. It’s important,”

Aasim looked disappointed to be sent away from his wife’s side but he nodded. “If that’s what you want. Hey, Louis!” Aasim turned round, heading toward the tower. “Clem wants to talk with you!”

Louis’ attention immediately shifted at those words and he hurried to the ladder, practically sliding down it in his haste to get to his wife.

Ruby gave Clementine a knowing smile before heading off herself. “Good luck,”

“Clem! Are you feeling OK? Is it AJ?” Louis skidded to a halt in front of her, his eyes large.

“It’s nothing like that, Lou. I just wanted to talk,”

Louis looked a bit confused at that but a smile soon returned to his face as he took Clementine’s hand. “I appreciate whatever you told Aasim to get him to take over early. That dude is fastidious when it comes to the schedule,”

“Fastidious. That’s quite a word,”

“I learned it from him,” Louis guided Clementine over toward the picnic tables, his grin turning mischievous. “He can’t really blame me for calling him a name he came up with himself,”

Clementine chuckled at that. She let Louis guide her to a seat on the picnic bench and sit down beside her before she began to speak. “So I know you’ve been really worried about me lately what with the puking and all,”

“Did Ruby figure out the cause of it?” Louis’ grip on her hand instinctively tightened.

“Yes… she actually figured it out a few weeks ago. A theory at least. We agreed it was best to wait a few weeks to see if she was right before we told anyone,”

“Is it something serious? Does she think you’ll get better soon?”

“Oh, I’ll get better. It’ll still take a few months though. Maybe longer,” Clementine’s heart sank as she saw the worry in Louis’ eyes. Fuck, she was totally messing this up. She clearly sucked at beating round the bush. She’d have to just say it outright. Taking a slow, deep breath, Clementine closed her eyes. She could do this. This was real. And it was going to be OK. “ Louis… I’m pregnant,”

Louis blinked. Then blinked again. “Sorry, what?”

“I’m pregnant, Lou. That’s why I keep puking all the time. It’s morning sickness,”

“You’re not sick?” Louis looked at her incredulously.

“No, I’m fine. Or I’ll be fine once I’m through the first trimester. Ruby said that’s about three months,” Clementine felt her confidence faltering. Was this something Louis didn’t want to hear?

“Holy shit,” Louis whispered, his gaze lost in the middle distance. Then he looked up, realization fully sparking in his eyes. “HOLY SHIT. I’m gonna be a dad?”

“That’s right,” Clementine smiled shyly as she saw the grin on Louis’ face grow.

“Oh my god. I can’t believe… you’re pregnant?”

“Like I said. Many times,”

“You’re pregnant!” Louis leaped to his feet, spinning around in exultant joy. “We’re gonna have a baby!” Vaulting from the picnic bench onto the table itself, Louis cupped his hand round his mouth and crowed. “You hear that, world? I’m gonna be a DAD!” Immediately he flinched, looking down at Clementine apologetically. “Shit, was I supposed to keep that a secret?”

“I mean, now that you know I guess everybody else can,” Clementine shrugged before her eyes suddenly widened. “AJ. We should tell him in person,”

“Shit. Maybe he didn’t hear that?” Louis looked toward the dorms worriedly but there was no sign on movement. “We can head over there right now and tell him in you’re up for it,” His hand took Clementine’s then he paused, sitting down beside her once more. His other hand hovered hesitantly before he withdrew it. “Is it…. Can I?”

It took Clementine a moment to understand. “You want to see if you can feel it?”

Louis nodded, eyes bright with anticipation.

“You can try. I don’t think you’ll be able to feel anything yet; I don’t. We can ask Ruby when to expect that to change though,”

Tenderly, Louis extended his hand and placed it upon Clementine’s stomach, silent in his reverie. He stayed like that for a moment before leaning forward and placing a kiss upon Clementine’s belly.

Clementine felt her heart race at the gesture. She’d been so afraid of this moment, so petrified of what it would mean to tell Louis and make this pregnancy real. Now that the moment was here she wondered why she’d waited all that time. Seeing Louis’ smile, the joy in his eyes at the news that he would be a father, made all her fears drift into the background. They were having a baby. Together. It felt amazing.

Drawing back, Louis looked up into Clementine’s eyes with utter adoration. “Clem…” his voice cracked and Clementine could see that his eyes were misty with tears. Leaning forward, she placed her hand upon his cheek.

“I know. I love you too,”

Louis’ eyes drifted shut as he closed the distance between them, his lips meeting Clementine’s in a warm, perfect kiss. When he pulled back, the tears had fallen, freely travelling down his cheeks. His voice was soft. “Let’s go tell AJ. He’s about to be a big brother,”

Clementine nodded, her heart too full for words. Taking Louis’ hand, she got to her feet, a bit shaky but determined. Hand in hand, the couple headed to the dormitories. Clementine could feel her anticipation grow with each step. She couldn’t wait to tell AJ the big news.

[ericsonclan]

Clem: Can we have these huge question mark stickers?

Ruby: Why?

Mitch: We want to put them on stop signs

Ruby: I don’t think that’s a good id-

Mitch and Clem: *Run off with the stickers*

Ruby: nO! Get back here!

[ericsonclan]

Ruby: *catches wasp under a cup*

Mitch: *puts two more cups down*

Ruby: No...

Mitch: *Starts shuffling*

Clem: Oh shit, let’s go!

[ericsonclan]

Ericson kids as mha characters 👉👈

OOO! This is fun! We decided to not include Tenn, Willy, or AJ since they wouldn't be in the same superhero classes as the others.

Okay, let's go!

Clem: Deku- main character, strong desire to be a hero, would sacrifice her safety for others

Louis: Kaminari- He's goofy but is also powerful, would also fry his brain with his powers

Violet: Todoroki- tragic backstory fits, hates dad, powerful but controls it well

Marlon: Ojiro- Idk we think Marlon would have being a sort of monkey dude and he would kick ass by whacking people with his tail

Mitch: Bakugo- explosion powers, a hothead Mitch would be a lot nicer though and have more of a friendly rival with Clem

Brody: Uraraka- gravity powers, a sweet kind person who wants to help others, Although when anxious she might have some trouble with her powers

Omar: Tsuyu- easy going but blunt plus Omar would vibe with having the frog-like abilities

Ruby: Ibara- she has plant abilities and Ruby would like that

Aasim: Iida- both nerds, serious but caring and we think Aasim would enjoy having that hero ability

Minnie: Kirishima- she vibes with the ability and would want to give her all as a hero

Sophie: Ashido- bubbly, friendly, and Sophie would have a lot of fun with her acid powers

James: Tokoyami- he would look dark and mysterious but is a pretty chill dude. Also, the shadow and James would be besties

Adding some of our ocs too!

Prisha: Momo- she enjoys inventing things and is a huge nerd so the ability fits her

Renata: Aoyama- she is just as over the top, she would love the belly button beam and would always be smiling

[ericsonclan]

I Like You The Bestest

Summary: Louis waits impatiently for Clementine to arrive at school

Word Count: 1941

Read on AO3:

The sun was warm today as it peeked through the clouds, its rays pushing through the leaves and highlighting the veins on them. The cool breeze helped with the temperature, making sure it wasn’t too hot or too cold but a happy medium. Not that it mattered much to the kindergartners as they jogged towards the front door, their backpacks bouncing as they got ready for another day of school. One kindergartner seemed keen on waiting outside though. Louis bounced excitedly on the balls of his feet, his hands firm on the straps of his backpack as he waited.

“Hey Louis, wanna head inside?” Marlon asked with a smile but Louis shook his head.

“No, I wanna wait for Clem.” Louis spotted the frown on his best friend’s lips. “Buuut we can play superheroes during recess today.”

Marlon’s eyes were big as they shimmered with happiness. “Deal!” He grinned and dashed off inside, ready to get the boring stuff out of the way and get to recess already. Louis watched his friend bump into Minnie who gave a small frown before brushing off the collision. A moment later though Louis’ gaze returned to the parking lot and he waited. Patience wasn’t his strong suit. Time seemed to drag on like molasses and each second felt like a year to him until finally, he spotted the girl he was looking for. Clementine strolled up with a purple backpack on, the little pink and yellow flower sticker standing out proudly on it. She seemed to be in a tired mood as she kept walking.

“Clem!” Louis grinned and waved excitedly when Clementine spotted him. Immediately her entire expression brightened and she picked up her pace.

“Hi, Louis!” Clementine smiled as he ran towards her, his hug making her smile grow as he swayed them back and forth.

“There! Now that I gave you your morning hug we can go inside!” Louis grabbed onto Clementine’s hand and walked towards the entrance of school. He swayed their hands back and forth as he hummed a happy tune. His day always seemed brighter with Clementine by his side.

As soon as Louis held onto Clementine’s hand he was determined not to let go but his first obstacle appeared fairly quickly. The little kindergartener stared at the nameplate on the desk next to his: Therissa. He didn’t want to sit next to her though, he wanted to be next to Clementine. After brainstorming and letting the gears spin around in his young mind he stomped on over to Therissa who looked to be about to eat a glue stick.

“Therissa, I want you to switch spots!” Louis demanded, trying to be intimidating as possible. It wasn’t very effective though and Therissa just looked at him casually.

“Okay, I want the candy in your bag though,”

“What?”

“I saw candy in there yesterday. So we’re gonna trade: candy for a seat with your girlfriend.”

“Wife! She’s my wife!’ Louis corrected with a huff. Therissa didn’t seem fazed again nor did she respond to that outburst right away.

“So, candy?”

Louis frowned deeply. “Fine.” He rummaged around in his backpack and got out a single partially melted packet of Skittles which Therissa pocketed gratefully. She immediately disappeared though when Ms. Martin went over to ask Louis why he was being so loud and gently reminded him what happens when you misbehave in the classroom. Louis kept nodding along and said he knew that when out of the corner of his eye he spotted Therissa sneakily switching nameplates.

“Louis? What’s with that big smile?” Ms. Martin asked and watched the kindergartener look up at her with a wide grin.

“Because it's a good day!”

Ms. Martin blinked at his response then smiled warmly. She was glad to hear at least one student was excited for the school day. After a minute she went over to talk with Mitch who seemed to have gotten into a stupid fight with Aasim over something, giving Louis the chance to walk over with Clementine to the table. Both of them couldn’t stop smiling as their plan had worked and due to Ms. Martin’s busy schedule and more than energetic class she didn’t notice that the table placement had changed.

The day went by quickly. Louis worked hard to get his assignments done, wanting to impress Clementine who seemed just as eager to show off to him as well. She was going to show counting who was boss and look like the coolest kindergarten in the whole class.

That didn’t turn out to be the case when Clementine declared loudly that she had five beans and Ms. Martin said she was wrong. Instantly the wind left her sails which only made what happened next sting worse.

Mitch gave a small laugh which made Clementine shoot a look over his way.

“What?”

“Nothing,” He smirked. “I can count more beans than you can.” Mitch stuck out his tongue and Clementine stood up abruptly, her chair clattering to the ground as she stomped over to Mitch and threw an eraser at his face. Ruby gasped softly at the violent scene before her but it only escalated. Mitch quickly picked up the eraser and threw it back then proceeded to toss his beans at Clementine. Her eyes flared up at that and she reached out for him.

“You have a stupid face!” Clementine wrestled with Mitch who fell to the floor and started fighting back.

“Oh yeah? Well look in the mirror,” He spun around on the ground with Clementine. Some kids like Violet and Minnie seemed chill with the fight. Others like Brody and Ruby, on the other hand, were worried about it. The fight was long, vicious, and cutthroat in the kindergartners’ minds. In reality, though they rolled around three times for two minutes before getting picked up and separated by Ms. Martin.

“That's enough, you two. How many times have I told you not to fight?” She looked back and forth between the pair.

“I wouldn’t fight her if she wasn’t stupid,” Mitch grumbled and frowned deeper when Clementine stuck her tongue out at him. Those last actions the kindergarteners displayed had been the final straw. Within seconds they were in their timeout corners and watched as the rest of the class got to go outside for recess.

Louis stood there in shock. He hadn’t moved at all since he’d almost got in trouble while switching the nameplates earlier and was worried he wouldn’t get a second chance. But now Clementine was in the timeout corner. They were separated.

While Louis was stuck in his guilt about not helping Clementine, Brody was happily walking away, pretending not to hear Mitch calling out for her. She was obviously not a fan of what he pulled just now. “Let’s go, Louis,” Brody grabbed her friend’s hand and pulled him outside.

“Brody! It was Clem’s fault!” Mitch called out but it was too little too late and those words weren’t what the auburn wanted to hear.

Once she was outside Brody was ready to ask Louis if he wanted to play in the sandbox with her and Ruby but Marlon quickly scampered forward. His jacket was wrapped around him and fluttered like a cape. “Ready to be heroes, Lou?” He beamed as he placed his hands on his hips.

Immediately Louis mirrored his best friend’s expression and mannerism. “Yeah!”

“Awesome! See ya, Brody!” Marlon gave a wave as he ran off, Louis right behind him and working to get his jacket on like a cape.

Both boys owned the playground, making large leaps and cool sound effects as they saved imaginary citizens. Louis sent out cheesy quip after cheesy quip while Marlon settled on the generic superhero phrases. The two of them were having the time of their lives, inseparable when together as they stood back to back.

“Evil better watch out!” Louis looked over at his best friend with a grin.

“Yeah, we’re gonna kick its butt!” Marlon jumped down and landed with a heavy thud. Louis scrambled over to the monkey bars and swung wildly as he gave a never-ending commentary.

Recess was over before they knew it and soon Ms. Martin was calling them back inside. It took Louis no time at all to spot Clementine, frowning and slumped in her chair.

“You doing okay, Clem?”

“No. Mitch is a stupidhead,” She sent a look over at Mitch who stuck his tongue out but as soon as there was the possibility of Ms. Martin spotting them, they both stopped. Clementine was still bitter though long after the break and she held onto her grouchiness until she felt Louis tap her shoulder.

“I got some stickers from the treasure box last week. You want one?” He held out his hand secretly and looked over to see where Ms. Martin was. She was currently busy explaining to Omar why he had to partner up and the importance of teamwork. Louis quickly glanced back and held up a cat sticker, turtle, and a rainbow. Clementine studied them for a few minutes then tapped the cat one.

“That one for me and this one for you. We can put them on during lunch,” Clementine whispered conspiratorially.

“Ooo! Okay,” Louis whispered back and giggled with excitement. He couldn’t wait for lunch break.

As the seconds ticked by, his legs kicked enthusiastically under the table until Ms. Martin finally announced that it was lunch. Without waiting a second longer, Louis grabbed Clementine’s hand and ran outside but suddenly stopped. His eyes were wide as he redirected and went back inside. He didn’t bother asking for permission as he grabbed the little toy piano then ran outside with Clementine. Both of them made their way towards the tree and sat down by the patch of wildflowers. Silently, Louis worked to get the backs off the stickers while Clementine picked some tiny flowers.

“Come on, don’t be a meanie!” Louis scolded the stickers as he worked on them, completely unaware that Clementine was putting little flowers in his dreadlocks. A minute or two later Louis let out a little victory cheer at getting one sticker free. With a dramatic flair, he placed the cat sticker on Clementine’s shirt then worked to get his turtle one on. “These stickers are so cool!” Louis beamed and bounced excitedly on the ground until a small flower fell down onto his lap. His brows furrowed, his hand silently reaching up and feeling the different flowers in his hair.

“I wanted you to look extra pretty today,” Clementine explained as she swayed back and forth. Louis was silent for a second, his eyes wide before he reached over and wrapped Clementine in a hug.

“Now I am extra pretty, Thanks, Clem!”

Clementine returned the hug and held on tight. “You’re welcome.”

Louis kept going on and on about whatever he thought of until he redirected the conversation back to Clementine. “Wanna know a secret?” Louis whispered and watched Clementine’s curiosity grow. She gave a short nod and Louis leaned towards her ear.

“I like you the bestest,”

Clementine’s mouth went slightly ajar at that and she saw Louis grin big.

“I like you the bestest too.”

She was sure Louis’ smile couldn’t get any bigger but it did and he excitedly reached for the toy piano.

“We gotta celebrate this with a song!”

“Okay, I’ll get our lunches set up like a picnic,” Clementine grabbed the lunch boxes and began to work while overly enthusiastic music notes filled the air. Both of them were far too excited from their mutual confessions and neither wanted lunch to ever end.

[ericsonclan]

Inseparable

Summary: Clementine heads out to hunt with AJ looking forward to spend some time with the one she loves most.

Word Count: 3138

Read on AO3:

Clementine glanced down at the worn-out map of Ericson and gave a long sigh. Things were really starting to come together around here. It had taken a lot of work and time to process all that had happened but after what felt like countless months they had finally reached it. A new normal.

Clementine’s eyes studied the map once more, her fingers tracing the different markers until they paused on the marker for the traps. Today was the day. She’d finally go out and get to help with hunting again instead of being stuck with indoor chores. She knew exactly which partner she wanted to take with her. Clementine smiled softly to herself then folded up the map and tucked it away in the headmaster's desk.

With a deep breath Clementine turned sharply on her heel and opened the door. Her fingertips brushed against the hallway wall as she moved forward. For some reason she was swept up in a feeling of nostalgia; maybe it was because things were finally truly looking up. She had been cleared to help out on all chores now. She had gone hunting a handful of times already. Louis had always jumped to volunteer to go with her and each time they went out he’d been extra protective of her, making sure that the coast was clear each step of the way.

But today she wanted to give Louis a break, let him focus on other things and go with the person who was the nearest and dearest to her heart. All she had to do was find AJ. He wouldn’t be hard to spot with his afro and never-ending energy and determination to help protect the school.

Clementine moved down the stairway carefully since she was still getting used to the newest prosthetic that Willy had made her and headed toward the door. With a strong push she opened it and was greeted immediately by Rosie. The pitbull happily wagged her tail and moseyed over to Clementine, giving her hand plentiful licks.

“Hey, girl,” Clementine laughed and wiped the dog's saliva off her left hand before giving Rosie some much needed head scratches. The pitbull soaked up the love and happily panted, her tongue drooped out of the right side of her mouth as she enjoyed this simple bliss. Clementine chuckled once more then looked up. Her eyes scanned the courtyard and noticed that Aasim was helping carry some fertilizer over with Ruby, their joined hands lazily swaying back and forth as he whispered sweet words into Ruby’s ear. The redhead’s rosy cheeks turned rosier as she stopped for a moment and got up on her tiptoes to surprise Aasim with a tender kiss. Aasim was shocked for a moment but immediately deepened the kiss before leading the way towards the greenhouse to store away the fertilizer. Omar waved towards the pair from the watchtower and exchanged a few words then resumed his lookout duty.

“That's bullshit!” Violet’s voice made Clementine glance over to see her friend crossing her arms as Louis gave a shrug.

“The game is the game,” Louis offered his best friend a playful smile as he shuffled the cards with a bit of a flamboyant flair.

“The only reason you're winning is because I’m fucking blind,” Violet grumbled and leaned her arms on the table. Her eyes tried to follow Louis’ movement as he started to deal the cards.

“Partially blind, and no, I’m winning because I’m the best at card games,” Louis’ statement made Violet roll her eyes. “In fact you might say I am the greatest card player to ever live! I-”

“Just deal the damn cards,” Violet groaned and waited until all the cards had been dealt before picking them up. She was acting like this game wasn’t fair and that she was just doing this for Louis’ sake but the small smile on her lips showed her real feelings. Based on the grin on Louis’ face, he had picked up on that too.

Clementine’s eyes moved away from the pair and over towards the loud laughter nearby. Willy was happily chasing AJ who kept bobbing and weaving through the courtyard to avoid his friend. Stretching his arm out, AJ grabbed the flagpole and spun around to dodge Willy as he tried to tag him.

“Gotta be faster, dummy!” AJ smiled back at Willy who frowned for a second before a confident smile appeared on his face.

“You’re gonna be the dummy when I finally tag you!” Willy sprinted forward and began to close the distance between the two of them. AJ’s eyes grew large and he quickly sidestepped to avoid Willy, laughing smugly when he was successful.

AJ was about to run off again but he stopped when he noticed Clementine. His eyes immediately shone with joy and he scampered forward. “Time out!” AJ yelled as he ran up the steps of the admin building, jumping over steps to reach Clementine faster. His arms stretched foward and he tackled Clementine in a loving hug. He had put so much force into it that it caused Clementine to stumble back a bit.

“Whoa there, kiddo! You gotta give me some warning next time,” Clementine teased as she ruffled AJ’s afro fondly. AJ looked up with a big smile, only a flicker of apology in his eyes.

“Sorry. Oh! You wanna play tag with me and Willy?” AJ asked, bouncing slightly on the balls of his feet.

“Not now, goofball. I was going to go out hunting and I was hoping I’d find you because I needed to ask you something,”

That statement made AJ’s nose scrunch up. “What?”

Clementine knelt down in front of AJ to be more at his level, a warm smile on her lips. “Want to be my hunting buddy today?”

AJ’s eyes grew large and he nodded excitedly. “Yes! Are we going now?”

“Yep, just gonna grab my bow and I’ll be all set,” Clementine smiled when she saw AJ’s little happy dance. She loved whenever he got excited enough to do that.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to keep you safe,” AJ’s expression turned serious and he met Clementine’s eyes. “I’ve been working hard.” He patted his hip which had a sheath with his knife in it, a gift that Clementine and Louis had bartered for with a caravan not long ago. Clementine had wanted to make sure that AJ had a weapon all his own so he wouldn’t have to rely on shivs anymore.

“I know you will,” Clementine pulled AJ in for another hug then started to walk towards the targets where the bows were kept while AJ went to explain to Willy that their game of tag would have to wait.

Clementine’s eyes searched the pile of bows and landed upon Marlon’s old bow. Her hand grasped it and she examined it closely, her mind being drawn back to the day it had been fished up from the stream by the fishing shack. Even though Clementine had mixed feelings about Marlon and what had transpired she still found it fitting that his bow would continue to protect the school.

“I heard you’re heading out,” Louis’ voice shook Clementine from her inner thoughts and she looked over at her boyfriend whose eyes held love and concern for her.

“Yeah, don’t worry,” Clementine took one of Louis’ hands and gave it a gentle squeeze. “AJ and I will be safe. I promise.”

Louis still seemed worried but he nodded. “Okay, you better be because if anything happened to you or that little dude-” Louis’ throat became tight and he took a deep breath. “Are you sure you don’t want me to come with? Because I totally can.” “No, it's okay. I think it's good for you to have some down time. You’ve been pushing yourself so hard lately and besides I think some one on one time with AJ will be good for me too,”

Louis nodded and gave Clementine a quick, warm kiss that soon turned into many before he wrapped her up in a hug.

“Be safe,” he whispered into Clementine’s ear and she immediately returned the hug.

“Always,” Clementine held on tight then slipped her hands free and gave Louis one final goodbye kiss.

“Clem! I’m ready!” AJ declared proudly as he barreled forward with Rosie in tow. “Rosie wanted to come too. Is that okay?”

“Sure, I think that's a great idea.” Clementine ruffled AJ’s afro once more then started to head over towards the gate. Giving their final goodbye waves, the trio set out towards the traps.

“So, you gonna be my eyes and ears to make sure no walkers get near me?” Clementine smiled over at AJ who nodded determinedly.

“Yeah, those monsters won’t get near you,” AJ’s grip on his knife tightened and Rosie gave a small bark in agreement.

Clementine smiled at that; she really was lucky to have AJ beside her. He had kept her going throughout all those hellish years on the road, had always been by her side and had kept her safe just like she did for him. Now they’d continue to be the inseparable duo they always were excect now they had a forever home to come back to. After all those years of searching they had finally found their home. The thought made Clementine’s heart swell with pure happiness as she notched an arrow to prepare to snag any rabbits that came their way.

The two walked side by side down the trail, the leaves and twigs crunching and snapping underfoot as they were on the lookout for both walkers and rabbits. An unnerving groan to Clementine’s left drew her attention and she pulled back the drawstring, releasing the arrow and hitting a walker right in between the eyes. Walking over, she pulled out the used arrow and brushed the blood off on the side of her pant leg.

“I get the next one,” AJ commented as he jogged over to Clementine, Rosie right on his tail.

“Alright,” Clementine nodded, then led the way forward. It wasn’t long before another walker was spotted. “Okay, AJ, now remember-”

“Kick out the leg then aim for the head,” AJ finished Clementine’s instruction then moved forward to take down the walker.

“Hey, stupidhead!” AJ yelled, getting the walker’s attention. The walker roamed forward, its milky eyes staring blankly at AJ as it extended its arms to grab its next meal. AJ easily dodged its attempt to grab him though and kicked out its leg. The walker fell with a groan and AJ lifted up his knife and plunged it into the walker’s skull. His blade became slick with blood and brain matter as he yanked it out, causing the walker to fall over dead. AJ took a deep breath then looked back at Clementine with a smile.

Clementine returned the smile, her eyes shining with pride as AJ ran back towards her. “That was great, AJ. You’ve really gotten better with the knife,” Clementine knelt down. “You’ve definitely grown.” “I’ve always been this tough, Clem,” AJ corrected and Clementine gave a small laugh.

“Yeah, you have. Have I ever told you how proud I am of you?” Clementine asked as she led the way once more.

“Yeah, all the time,” AJ jogged forward along with Rosie, his eyes peeled for any signs of threats.

“Well, I’m gonna tell you again. I’m super proud of you, AJ.” Clementine smiled over at AJ who beamed at her praise. After a moment of them sharing a smile both focused back on the trail, making sure the path was clear. Soon the two got into a rhythm along with Rosie, clearing out walkers. There weren’t that many today which was nice and with how capable all three of them were it was easy to clear the way.

“Do you need a break, Clem? Is your leg hurting?” AJ stopped and looked at Clementine, his hands on his hips. “You gotta make sure you don’t push it.”

“I’m not. My leg is okay for now. I promise that as soon as it's too much I’ll tell you,”

AJ thought about Clementine’s words for a moment then gave a nod. “Okay, promise?” He held out his pinky.

“Promise,” Clementine intertwined her pinky with his. The two shared a smile then continued forward.

After a minute they had reached the traps and then began to undo the ones that had been triggered, taking the game and then resetting them once more. It seemed like a fairly good haul today. They didn’t need to gather as much as before now that they had the rabbit pen but still it was good not to abuse that and grow cocky in thinking it was unlimited.

Clementine handed over some more of the rabbits to AJ who had offered to carry some more then began to walk towards the next trap, careful to avoid setting off another. Suddenly though her balance shifted due to her still getting used to this newest prototype and her foot gave out, leading it to get snagged in the trap. A small, startled yell left her lips as she immediately flipped upside down as the trap pulled her up into the air.

“Clem!” AJ’s voice was frantic as he ran forward with Rosie who gave a worried bark.

“I’m fine, kiddo. Just lost my footing for a second there. Mind helping me get down? I-” Clementine froze when she saw a group of four walkers roam forward. Low, gurling moans left their hollow throats as they approached. “AJ! Behind you!”

AJ spun around, his knife drawn as his eyes grew big. Rosie growled protectively and got ready to take down the walkers before her.

“Don’t worry, Clem, I’ve got this,” AJ took a deep breath and tossed the rabbits to the ground then shuffled over to the right to take down the walker that was furthest away from the others. Picking up a rock, AJ tossed it against a tree to draw over the walker.

The walker’s head tilted as its jaw flapped due to it being loose and decayed. Stumbling forward, the walker went for its new target. AJ used that to his advantage and harshly kicked out its leg before embedding his knife into its head. He grunted as he struggled to pull out the knife. His sounds of struggle drew one of the other walker’s attention who wandered towards the child.

Clementine felt her fear rising and she tried to lift herself up to cut the rope and get free. Unsheathing her knife, she leaned up and was nearly at the rope when her knife dropped. “Shit! Fuck!” Clementine whacked against the tree due to the force of her swaying. Her eyes immediately went back to AJ who had successfully gotten the knife out of the first walker’s skull but the other walker was nearly upon him now.

Suddenly Rosie dashed forward and jumped onto the walker, pushing it down. The walker groaned, its arms flailing about until Rosie’s maw pierced into its skull and crushed it into a bloody pulp. Brain matter and blood coated the pitbull’s mouth as she moved to attack another walker, her teeth ending its existence in mere seconds.

AJ took a deep breath and picked up the rock. Using the same tactic again, he guided the last walker over to a secluded spot and kicked out its knee. With a sharp jab AJ’s knife ended the walker’s hollow life and soon the monster was on the ground, limpless and lifeless. AJ let out a shaky sigh and gave Rosie some head pats then ran over towards Clementine. “I did it!” He smiled proudly and Clementine returned it, her heart relieved that he was okay.

“You did. Good job, AJ!”

AJ’s smile grew at that praise before he turned his attention towards helping get Clementine down. Studying the tree for a moment, AJ proceeded to climb it carefully while holding the handle of the knife in his mouth. He’d have to cut the trap, destroying it in the process, but he’d make up for it by helping Willy whenever he came out with Louis to replace the trap. Holding onto the tree with one hand, AJ spat out his knife into his other hand and worked to cut down Clementine. The edge of his blade slid back and forth on the rope, slowly cutting through each thread until finally it snapped and Clementine came crashing down. Clementine gave a pained groan as she landed, causing AJ’s eyes to widen with worry.

“Clem!” AJ hastily climbed down the tree and placed away his knife before running over to check on her. “Are you okay? I was trying to help and- Did I do a bad?” AJ had a guilty pout as his sight turned to Clementine.

Clementine took a shaky breath and got up then kneeled in front of AJ. Without a word she wrapped him in a hug. “No, you did good. You helped make sure I was okay. You and Rosie both,”

The pitbull barked happily at the mention of her name, her stub tail wagging back and forth.

AJ held tightly onto the hug. “Told ya I’d keep you safe,”

“You did,” Clementine pulled back and gave AJ a smile. “Now how about we take what we caught for the day and head back home.”

“Okay,” AJ ran over to pick up the game and separated it evenly while Clementine retrieved her knife and bow, glad that both weapons were still in good condition. She paused for a moment and looked at AJ.

AJ felt her staring and his sight turned towards her. “What's wrong?”

“Nothing. I’m just glad I have you, that's all.”

Clementine’s words made AJ’s heart warm with happiness. “Me too!” He smiled as Clementine wrapped her arm around him and planted a kiss on the top of his head. “Bleh, a kiss!” “Hey now! That was to show that I love you,” Clementine defended her gesture as AJ walked forward.

“I already know you love me,” AJ looked back at Clementine, waiting for her to catch up. Clementine sighed and ran forward to catch up with AJ before the two wandered back down the path with Rosie in tow.

“Well, even if you know it, I’m gonna keep showing you that I do and keep saying it. I love you, AJ.” Clementine’s eyes locked with his.

“I love you too,” AJ smiled brightly up at Clementine and he led the way forward. His heart was warm with those words and his pulse had settled now that Clementine was safe. As AJ walked forward through the woods towards his home he knew that no matter what they’d always look out for each other and would always be together. They were inseparable.

[ericsonclan]

Exciting News

Summary: Clementine and Mitch are being their normal competitive selves until Clementine and Louis learn some news about Brody.

Word Count: 2657

Read on A03:

It was an incredibly slow day at Ericson’s Diner. Only a few customers had wandered in for the breakfast shift and now that lunch was approaching it looked like not many more would show up. This left a bunch of the employees with a lot of time on their hands and not much to do with it. Some just waited patiently while others used this time to their advantage.

“Get ready, Clem, I’m gonna win this round!” Mitch declared as he gritted his teeth. His arm flexed as he tried to get the upper hand in this arm-wrestling match.

“Heh, doubt it. You have ‘loser’ written all over your face,” Clementine smirked as her arm didn’t budge at all. These matches had been intense and their arms always remained firmly stuck in the middle. This gave the two plenty of time to shit talk each other though, which they gladly took the opportunity to. Their banter was the loudest thing in the empty restaurant as they sat in the nicest booth in the place.

“No way you’re gonna beat me with those twig arms,” Mitch held a smug smile on his lips.

“I could beat you in my sleep but I think it's almost your nap time, grandpa,” Clementine felt pride flicker in her heart when she saw how pissed Mitch was by those words.

“I’m only one year older than you, dumbass!” he grumbled then poured all his focus into the arm-wrestling match. Until suddenly a voice appeared beside the competitive friends.

“What in tarnation are you two doing?” Ruby stood there, her hands on her hips.

“We’re arm wrestling, duh,”

“Yeah, maybe you should invest in some glasses,” Clementine added with a smile and high-fived Mitch until she saw the look in Ruby’s eyes. Mitch caught sight of it too and the two stopped their match.

“That’s better. Honestly, if you want to duke it out, do it in the break room. Not where the customers can see you,” Ruby scolded the pair who weren’t surprised that Ruby was the one to interrupt them. Even though it was Violet’s job to be in charge of the front of the house she never stepped in. She was clearly too busy flirting with a certain bartender for the hundredth time that day.

“Fine,” Mitch had a pout on his lips as he looked away.

“Sorry, Ruby, we’ll go to the break room,”

Clementine’s words made Ruby smile then after a minute she wandered back to the kitchen. Mitch and Clementine watched her walk away in silence before Clementine took the opportunity and slammed Mitch’s arm into the table, winning the match. The unannounced move had caught him off guard and within seconds his ass was on the floor. Mitch sat there in stunned silence until he heard Clementine’s laughter.

He immediately sent a frown her way. “What the hell, Clem!”

“All is fair in love and arm wrestling,” Clementine shrugged then held out her hand. “Pay up,”

“Whatever,” Mitch grumbled and pulled out a ten, smacking it into Clementine’s hand.

Clementine grinned to herself, leading the way to the break room. “Ready to lose even more money?”

“Shut up, I’m gonna be the one with the shit-eating grin when I kick your ass at Street Fighter 2!” Mitch pushed open the door while Clementine let out a cocky laugh.

“Heh, doubt it,”

The day passed by at a snail’s pace until evening rolled around and Mitch and Brody finally showed up at Clementine and Louis’ place. After the simple pleasantries were out of the way all four of them went to the kitchen.

“Alright, pick your poison,” Clementine leaned against the open fridge door. She watched as Mitch leaned over and started to pick the ingredients for Skunk Me.

“You’re gonna be the one drinking this shit,” He sent a smug look her way as he picked pickles, chocolate sauce and blue cheese. Clementine immediately snagged some leftover fish and soy sauce. The two friends kept shit talking and butting heads as they walked over to the blender where they placed all the ingredients they had chosen into it. Both of them were fully confident they’d win these rounds of Skunk Me. It was a simple yet entertaining game: they’d play a round of a game of their choosing and the loser had to drink the weird concoction they’d made in the blender. Clementine and Mitch had both experienced the disgusting taste of defeat and were raring to go and kick the other one’s ass tonight.

“Mmm, look at the delicious drink you're about to have,” Clementine leaned her arm on the blender as its contents turned an unnatural shade of gray.

“Not happening because I’m gonna kick your ass so hard in Street Fighter tonight!”

Louis and Brody watched on with amusement as their spouses kept shooting crappy insults back and forth.

“So, did you bring the nail polish for tonight?’ Louis looked over at Brody who gave a short nod.

“Yep! I brought all the colors you wanted too,” Louis beamed at that and hugged Brody. “I’m so excited, I love your nail art!” He swayed his friend back and forth which made a smile appear on Brody’s lips.

“You got the romcom all set, right?”

“Of course! I’d never disappoint you like that, Bro,” Louis let go and strolled over to the counter. “I got us our favorite charcuterie board and a chardonnay.” Louis held up the chilled bottle of wine. “It’s white, just like you!” He gave a big smile before he noticed Brody’s expression. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, nothing, I just feel bad because I’m not really in the wine or deli meat kind of mood.” Brody saw Louis’ face drop at that. “But I’ll eat a lot of cheese!”

“That’s good enough for me!” Louis linked arms with Brody and wandered to the back living room while Clementine was carrying tons of shot glasses with Mitch that were filled with the weird gray goop.

Pulling a small side table next to the Street Fighter ll arcade machine, the two prepared to decimate each other in virtual combat.

“I still can’t believe Louis bought you an arcade machine for your birthday,” Mitch commented as he picked Zangief in the character select. “It’s pretty fucking badass,”

“Yeah, I remember telling him that I liked going to the arcade to escape from life for a bit when I was younger. Guess he really listened when I was gushing about Street Fighter 2 ,” Clementine smiled to herself then selected Chun Li.

“Get ready to have your ass kicked at your favorite game. I’m more of a Mortal Kombat guy but I can still destroy you,” Mitch smirked over at Clementine who quickly returned.

“Let’s see if you’ll keep saying that as you drink those seven shots,” She nodded over to the gray goop then prepared for the fight.

Soon both were completely focused on the match. Clementine had chosen a faster character and it was one she had been playing as since she was a teen. Guiding Chun Li forward, she performed a high kick then jumped over before Mitch could land a hit.

“Fuck,” Mitch grumbled and moved to strike but due to playing as a slower character, he couldn’t seem to land many hits. Clementine kept toying with him before finishing him off with a flurry of kicks. As Zangief lay on the floor, completely annihilated, Chun Li stood beside him and gave a respectful bow.

“Whatever, that was just luck. I’ll win the next round!” Mitch yelled as he made Zangief charge forward.

He quickly lost the first match and stood before the shot glass of the disgusting mixture.

“Enjoy,” Clementine had a shit-eating grin on her lips. “It’s the first of many,”

“Fuck off,” Mitch grumbled as he downed the drink in one go. His face twisted in disgust before he let out a burp that tasted spicy for some reason. Clementine chuckled to herself which made Mitch’s frown grow. “Shut up,”

“I didn’t say anything,” Clementine pushed another quarter in and soon the next match started. Fortunately for Mitch, he was getting used to playing Zagrief again, unfortunately, he also lost this match too. Clementine’s smile seemed even wider this time as Mitch shuddered after taking the shot, hoping to get rid of the taste.

“Man, you sure like losing, dont’cha?” Clementine started off the third match with utter confidence. She knew it was impossible that she’d lose.

She had lost. That fact floored Clementine as she watched Zagrief give a victory pose.

“Heh, your turn with the sewer water,” Mitch handed over the shot glass. “Oh, shit, that top layer looks like piss,” “You’re enjoying this,” Clementine plugged her nose and threw back the drink. Her eyes squeezed shut as the multiple clashing flavors overwhelmed her taste buds.

“You like it?” Mitch laughed when he saw his friend flip him off.

“Come on, it’s time you finish your drinks,” Clementine tapped the buttons, quickly setting up the next match. After some well-timed jump kicks, grabs, and punches, Mitch won again which annoyed Clementine to no end as she tortured her mouth once more with the revolting concoction. But it was soon over and she was ready to kick his ass.

Once was luck, winning twice took a little skill, but winning four in a row made Clementine pause.

“What’s wrong? Want to savor this shit?” Mitch swirled the shot glass under his friend’s nose.

“Cut it out,” Clementine snatched the glass and drank the contents. After a few seconds, she put the pieces together. “You went easy in the first two matches,”

Mitch’s smug smirk said it all.

“Heh, so that’s how it's going to be,” Clementine cracked her neck and got ready to hold nothing back.

Mitch hadn’t known that he would unlock an ultra-competitive side to Clementine who wiped the floor with him. Her devastating kicks completely annihilated any chance he had of winning any more rounds and soon the matches were done. He had won four and Clementine had won three. Mitch still held the biggest shit-eating grin on his face as he strolled into the back living room with Clementine after they’d cleaned the shot glasses.

“Guess I’m a master at Street Fighter 2 now. Better watch out because next time I’m gonna rock your shit.”

“Heh, keep telling yourself that,” Clementine turned her attention to her husband who was in the middle of a conversation with Brody. After a second he glanced back and his eyes shimmered with happiness.

“Hey, Clem, ready for the romcom?” Louis asked as he wrapped his arms around her hips and stole a quick kiss. He immediately regretted it though as his lips were bombarded with the awful taste of the Skunk Me drink. He pulled back, trying to hide his disgust at the taste with a smile. Clementine still picked up Louis’ discomfort though.

“Oh shit, the Skunk Me drink! One second, I’ll go use some mouthwash,” Clementine gave his hand a quick squeeze then left.

“Well, Brodes, you are looking at the winner of Skunk Me,” Mitch smiled with pride and leaned forward to kiss his wife but his lips were quickly blocked.

“Mouthwash, now,”

“Okay,” Mitch got up and wandered off to the bathroom.

After a minute the pair of friends returned and sat with their respective spouse. When Mitch sat back down he moved his arms around Brody’s shoulders then whispered something to her as his hand wandered to her stomach for a second. Clementine found that odd but was quickly drawn away from that as Louis finished setting up the movie. The title screen for How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days appeared on the screen and Louis soon sat back down, moving Clementine’s arms to wrap around him.

“So, watch the movie for a bit then do each other’s nails?” “Sounds good to me,” Brody looked around and saw that the others felt the same way. They all enjoyed the movie, giving commentary here and there and sharing a few laughs before they got set up to paint each other’s nails. Brody focused on Mitch’s, painting them black then adding cute yet badass little skulls on his thumbs, middle and pinky fingers. After that was done she added a heart on the nail of his ring finger.

Mitch looked at his finished nails with awe. “Fuckin’ A!”

“You like them?” Brody smiled at her husband who held her gently in his arms for a minute.

“I fucking love them,” He pressed a kiss to her cheek and then got ready to do her nails. Mitch wasn’t anywhere near as good as a nail artist as Brody but he had gotten better over the years. So he tried to be ambitious and gave her a beach-themed set. It actually turned out fairly decent and he even added a matching heart on the nail of her ring finger. That fact made Brody’s heart warm. Soon the couple was relaxing and enjoying the moment while Louis worked on doing chevron nails for Clementine.

Using the tape that Brody brought for nails he applied color after color. Soon Clem’s nails were covered in beautiful layers of black, shiny silver, and teal. Clementine peppered Louis’ face with kisses after he finished then looked up a cute design on her phone to do for his nails. Searching for a few minutes, she landed on a cute turtle design and thought to herself that she could easily accomplish that. Sadly that was far from the truth as most of Louis’ nails that were supposed to have turtle shells looked like weird camo splotches and the cute cartoon turtles’ faces looked like they were melting right off his hands.

“Holy shit, Clem,” Louis whispered and Clementine got a bit nervous about her husband’s reaction. “These are so cute! Brody! Brody! Look! Aren’t they cute? They’re turtles!”

“Awww, they are cute,” Brody gave a soft smile.

“Turd-les is right,” Mitch joked but changed his tone after he received a look from Brody. “I mean, they're nice, I guess,”

“Right! Clem is super talented,” Louis planted a huge kiss on his wife’s cheek then held her close.

After nails were done they started up the movie again until Clementine went to get a drink. “Oh yeah, we got your favorite wine, do you want some, Brody?” “No thanks, I can’t have wine,”

Clementine and Louis shared a look at that.

“Wait, you said you didn’t want deli meat,”

“And Mitch has been touching your stomach,” Clementine added.

“Are you pregnant?!?” Louis’ eyes were large as he leaned forward. He hoped he was right.

Brody gave a shy smile. “Guess the cat is out of the bag, Mitch,”

“Guess so,” Mitch leaned back and held Brody close.

“No way! That’s amazing! How far along are you?” “Only a month. The nausea hasn’t been fun or the mood swings but that’s just part of the package,” Brody placed a hand on her stomach.

“Does anyone else know?” Louis asked; clearly he wanted to know everything.

“Only Ruby and Aasim. We were going to wait to tell everyone after the first trimester but...” Brody looked up at Mitch.

“Eh, fuck it, let’s tell everyone. Knowing Louis he’s gonna tell everyone everything anyway,”

“Am not!” Louis huffed defensively but he knew that he was going to text Violet and Marlon the news as soon as possible. They would then tell Prisha and Sophie and from there, one by one everyone would find out.

“Well, either way, we’re really happy for you two,” Clementine gave a warm smile and watched with joy at how soft Mitch was being with Brody. It was really sweet. Quickly Louis grilled the expecting couple question after question. The movie remained paused on the screen for the rest of their time together as they all got lost in the joy of the news.

[ericsonclan]

It’s Saturday

Summary: Clementine and Violet open up to each other about their pasts and come up with a new idea to make Ericson feel more like home.

Word Count: 3789

Read on AO3:

Clementine looked out from her perch on the watchtower. It had taken a lot of convincing to get Louis to stop freaking out at the thought of her up there. But after some words, many promises and an elaborate talk about the prosthetic with Willy, the others had let her go up to take a shift on lookout duty. Clementine’s gaze moved out past the walls and studied the few walkers roaming the area. One was currently trying to reach for something in a hole of a large tree. Leaves and animal dropping were all that the walker found though. Another was busy running into different trees and rocks repeatedly while one further away was simply staring up blankly at the sky.

Clementine took a deep breath, a small smile appearing on her lips. It was nice to finally have a different chore to do around Ericson. Though she did wish that the prosthetic wouldn’t bother her leg so much. She’d have to talk about that with Willy. Clementine felt bad whenever she added to the young teen’s list of things to work on but Willy always smiled and promised her that he would make the next prototype even better than the last one. She wouldn’t bother him about it till later though. For now she wanted to enjoy this newfound freedom of being on lookout duty. Clementine was suddenly pulled out her thoughts, however, when she heard the creaking of the rickety ladder. Turning around she saw the top of Violet’s head as she blindly climbed up the ladder.

“Violet, grab my hand,” Clementine moved forward and held out her hand. The blonde glanced up and squinted due to the harsh sunlight before grasping out towards where she assumed Clementine’s hand to be. With a small grunt Clementine lifted up her friend the rest of the way.

“Thanks,” Violet muttered and walked forward, her hand brushing against the few wooden boards that covered the watchtower’s side.

“What are you doing up here?’ Clementine looked towards her friend who had finally found a spot she felt secure on.

Violet glanced up then out beyond the walls. “Thought I’d join in. People won’t be as pissy at me if both of us are on the watchtower,” Violet crossed her arms and leaned against the wooden boards. She remained silent for a few seconds, her eyes searching out towards the outside world. “I just wanted a break too.”

Clementine understood where Violet was coming from. Life could get monotonous at points, especially when you were one of the two who were adjusting to permanent injuries. Injuries that made people hover over you and that limited what you could and couldn’t do within Ericson’s walls.

“Okay, but you won’t be getting a break from the worried looks,” Clementine crossed her arms as well and looked back at the courtyard. Violet studied Clementine for a moment and tried her best to follow her gaze. She noticed that Clementine was staring at Louis who was busy carrying some firewood for Omar. His dreadlocks bounced a little with his movement as he tried to sneakily look over to check on Clementine. The worry was clear in his eyes when he glanced up her way, only growing stronger when he noticed Violet up there too. He was so distracted by this that he didn’t pay attention to where he was heading and quickly ran into the side of one of the picnic tables. Louis yelped in pain and dropped a few pieces of firewood.

“Are you okay, Louis?” Clementine called out to her boyfriend who gave a thumbs up.

“Who, me? Yeah, I’m totally fine. Just doing my part around Ericson in style,” He gave a playful smile over towards his girlfriend and leaned aesthetically against the picnic table. Clementine laughed softly at Louis while Violet rolled her eyes. It didn’t matter that she couldn't’ see clearly - she knew the two of them well enough to know what was happening.

“Are you sure it's safe for you two up there?” Louis asked while he placed down the firewood and rubbed his hip.

“We’re fine, Lou. Just be careful not to run into any more tables,” Clementine’s words seemed to do little to calm down the concern in Louis’ eyes but he nodded regardless.

“If you need anything, either of you, just shout and I’ll be there,” Louis waved to the pair then picked up the firewood and walked over to where Omar was setting up the fire pit. Clementine and Violet watched him for a minute before they returned their sights to the outside world. Neither of them talked for a little while. Both of them were enjoying the peaceful silence and the small freedom they had gained.

“It's nice that we can finally do this,” Clementine’s voice made Violet look over her way. She gave a small smile then gazed out towards the woods once more. Something about the sight of the green and brown blurs along with the slowly moving greyish ones was comforting to Violet. Maybe due to the fact that she rarely saw anything outside of what was inside Ericson’s walls.

“Yeah, it took fucking forever but it is nice,” Violet’s smile soon faded and her eyes turned sadder. Her mind slowly turned back to the events of that night. A night that had taken so much from her and the others.

Clementine could feel the mood shift and studied her friend for a minute.

Violet hunched over and stared off into the distance as her eyes continued to get lost in their emotions. “Jesus. Everything is so different now. Me,” Violet glanced over at Clementine and down at her prosthetic. “Us, the school.” She took a shaky breath and turned around to look at the courtyard. Her eyes focused on the flagpole where the black Death Murder t-shirt flew lazily in the wind. “I remember how Marlon described it, what we were gonna turn Ericson into. It’s not the way any of us pictured it.” Violet’s eyes wandered around the courtyard, trying to pick up on all the different tasks that were being done.

Clementine moved closer to her friend and stood beside her. “How did you picture it?”

Her words broke Violet’s focus away from the courtyard and back to her. She gave a small shrug and sighed as she looked at the floorboards of the watchtower. “I guess I couldn’t. I just listened to what Marlon said. How it would be a home, a real one. But I couldn’t wrap my head around it.” Violet’s eyes held a deep sadness to them as her eyebrows knit together.

She never really knew what a home was to begin with. Not with the one she had when she grew up. Violet was silent for a few moments before she spoke up again. “My family lived in a trailer.” Her pale eyes wandered over to Clementine’s golden brown ones. Curiosity flickered in Violet’s eyes. “What about you? Where’d you live?”

Clementine leaned against the wall and looked up at the sky. “I lived in a house with my mom and dad. Fence around it. Big backyard.” She smiled nostalgically at the fond memories. Her eyes looked back at Violet and noticed the soft smile on her lips. She seemed genuinely happy at Clementine’s nostalgia.

“What was your favorite part of the house?”

Violet's question surprised Clementine for a second. She thought deeply about her response. “The kitchen.”

Violet looked surprised by the answer. Her eyes danced with confusion and curiosity at the choice. “Really? Why?”

“On Saturdays my dad got up early to make us all pancakes. I’d come downstairs and run to the kitchen so I could help.” Clementine smiled warmly at the memories. “Seeing my mom’s face when she took a seat at the table, all laid out with pancakes, syrup and orange juice...” Clementine’s smile faltered for a moment, sorrow overtaking her eyes as she looked off into the middle distance. “She was so happy. We all were.” Her voice wavered slightly and she took a moment before looking at her friend once more. “Y’know, Ericson can still be the home Marlon promised. It’s taking some time but we are starting to rebuild.” Clementine’s words struck a chord within Violet whose eyes grew large before softening. She let out a sigh then locked eyes with Clementine.

“It’s a lot of work but I know it will be worth it,” Violet’s faint smile grew when she saw the joy on her friend’s face. She leaned back further and looked over at the steam that was rising up from the pot Omar was stirring. “The kitchen’s a mess, but we could find some old pans and start a Saturday pancakes routine.”

“Sounds great, but I’m not sure when Saturday is,” Clementine smiled playfully at her friend. Ever since the world ended calendars had become non-existent.

Violet laughed softly, a gentle smile resting on her lips. “How about this: it’s whenever we want pancakes. When we’re having a bad day or life is being too shitty, we’ll make it Saturday and start cooking pancakes.”

Violet’s suggestion made Clementine smile grow and her eyes danced with excitement. “Perfect. It will be our pancake pact.” Clementine held out her hand and Violet grabbed it, shaking it firmly. The two shared a smile.

“So, how soon do you think we’ll declare it to be Saturday?” Clementine asked with a playful grin.

“I don’t know. Life can turn to shit pretty quickly. I give it four days.” Violet answered and kicked off the wall to turn and look past the walls again.

“That’s generous of you. I thought you would say a day or two,” Clementine’s gaze looked out past the walls and at the walkers once more.

“What can I say, I guess I’ve become more optimistic,” Violet smiled and the two continued to watch the world in silence, both of them happy with this new pact they had made.

Violet felt like shit. She hadn’t been able to sleep at all last night due to the same nightmares that always plagued her mind. It didn’t help that for some reason the skin around her eyes was beginning to irritate her too. Ruby said she would make some more ointment to help with irritation but until then she would just have to deal with it. Slowly Violet walked through the halls of Ericson, ready to face yet another boring day of chores. Knowing the group they wouldn’t let her do anything remotely dangerous still and so she would be spending the day picking herbs and cutting vegetables or maybe making rabbit pelts. The blonde grumbled and grumpily pushed open the doors to the courtyard. Her eyes were focused on the ground as she kicked a pebble.

“Damn it all!” Prisha’s angry voice made Violet look up to see her girlfriend angrily hunched over a contraption and scattered notes. Prisha pushed back a few wisps of hair before she began to look over her notes again. She lifted up her right hand and tried to fix the contraption but it seemed impossible with just one working hand. Prisha huffed and swung her body, causing her non-working arm to sway out into the air before whacking against her side. She groaned and let her head fall onto the table.

Violet redirected her path and walked over towards Prisha. She silently sat down beside her and looked at her for a moment. “Shitty day?”

Violet’s voice made Prisha turn her head and look up at her love with sad eyes. “Yes, it just feels like nothing I do today works out,” Prisha gave a tired sigh.

Violet thought for a moment and leaned over, kissing Prisha’s face. The blonde then noticed that Willy had come over to check on Prisha. Violet knew that Prisha was too wound up to focus. She wasn’t doing much better herself. So Violet made a decision and took a deep breath. “It’s Saturday!”

Willy let out an excited gasp and scampered off. He spotted Garbage who was staring off blankly into the distance and munching on some crunchy leaves. The lanky teen picked up the possum and spun her around. “Garbage, it’s Saturday!” Willy laughed as the possum hissed, annoyed by the interruption.

“Holy shit, it’s Saturday?!?!” Louis had just come back from hunting with Clementine, their hands swayed lazily as they walked forward. He beamed over at his girlfriend who looked just as excited as he did.

“It hasn’t been Saturday for a while. I’ll go help Ruby with the ingredients. Can you help with the pans?” Clementine looked over at Louis who smiled widely.

“Leave it to me, my darling!” Louis’ eyes grew wide when Clementine kissed his cheek softly. She gave his hand a quick squeeze then went off to find Ruby.

Prisha watched in confusion. She had no idea why everyone was freaking out about a certain day of the week. Willy had spotted AJ and was excitedly telling him the news. His hands and arms swung around animatedly as he spoke. AJ’s eyes grew large and sparkled with joy.

“It’s Saturday!” AJ did an excited little dance and quickly ran off with Willy who mentioned the oil press and acorn grinder for some reason. Garbage bounced on top of Willy’s head, hissing wildy as the pair ran off laughing and high fiving.

“I’m confused.” Prisha spoke up and looked over at her girlfriend who also seemed ecstatic about this for some reason. “What’s so special about Saturdays?”

“A long time ago, Clem and I made this pact. Whenever someone was having a really shitty day or life was being way too much of an asshole they could declare that it's Saturday. Once they did, everyone knew that it was code for pancakes and we would use pancakes to make the day less shitty,” Violet smiled brightly.

Prisha was surprised by this news. She never could tell what secrets she would discover about her new home. Ericson seemed to be a treasure trove of secrets and hidden joys that those living here had worked hard to obtain and hold onto.

“I heard it’s Saturday,” Omar smiled warmly over at the couple as he fed the fire some more logs to reignite the flames.

“Yeah, it will be Prisha’s first Saturday too,” Violet gently took her love’s hand and smiled.

“Actually, it’s not Saturday.” Aasim spoke up as walked forward with a mason jar full of honey. “According to my internal calendar, it should be Tuesday.”

Violet frowned at Aasim and his know-it all-attitude. Suddenly Ruby appeared and intertwined her fingers with Aasim before tenderly kissing his cheek.

“Pookie, stop being a stick in the mud and enjoy the pancakes.” Ruby’s words seemed to soften Aasim’s expression.

“Yeah, take that stick out of your ass and have fun,” Violet crossed her arms. Aasim was about to speak up when Louis appeared from the admin building with two busted up pans.

“People, people, please. Let us not fight on this cherished pancake day!” He smiled as he walked forward and handed over the pans to Omar. “We wouldn't want to ruin Prisha’s first experience of these end of the world delicacies.” Louis pulled on the sides of his coat with a warm expression.

“Ruby!” Clementine called out. “I need help with Milky Way!”

“I’ll be there in two shakes of a lamb’s tail!” Ruby yelled back at her friend before stealing another kiss from Aasim and bustling off.

“Is there any way I can help?” Prisha offered as Willy and AJ scampered forward with the oil press and acorn grinder.

“Prisha! Prisha! You gotta help with the acorns! It’s the best part!” Willy lifted up a bag of acorns and shook it around. “Alright,” Prisha got up and joined the two youngest members of Ericson. WIlly and AJ took turns animatedly displaying how to use the acorn grinder. Prisha nodded and smiled, listening thoughtfully even though she had used it before in the past.

Once the explanation was done she placed her hand on the crank. With a deep breath, Prisha began to grind the acorns while AJ and Willy excitedly cheered her on. Omar laughed and grabbed a bowl to take the dry ingredients they were making. Meanwhile Louis and Violet were arguing about how the oil press even worked. Louis tried to figure it out but just ended pinching his pinky. While he was blowing on his pinky and rubbing it Violet began to try her best at getting the oil press to work.

“You got this, Vi! Show that oil press who’s boss!” Louis cheered for his friend who wasn’t doing the best job showing the oil press who’s boss. By the time they had figured it out, Ruby and Clementine were back with the goat milk. Prisha let out a shaky breath and used her right hand to wipe off some sweat. She had gotten so caught up in the boys’ cheering that she had used up a lot of strength to make the acorn flour.

“That was so cool !” Willy exclaimed. His words made Prisha’s heart warm and she lifted up a hand, ruffling his hair fondly.

“Thanks. I suppose we’ll have to wait until next time to see if you can beat me, Squirt.” Prisha had a competitive expression on her face.

Willy’s eyes shone with the same competitiveness. “I totally can! Just wait until next Saturday!”

Willy and Prisha shared a smile before looking over to see AJ helping out Louis and Violet with the oil press. The youngest of the three was somehow the best at the device and both Violet and Louis watched in awe as AJ helped make oil. Both of them ruffled his hair and praised his skills once he had finished up.

Omar and Aasim worked together to mix the wet ingredients of honey and goat milk with the dry while Clementine went over with Ruby to place the pans on the low flames of the fire pit. Both of them were happily talking about the anticipation of pancakes.

Soon the batter was complete and the group took turns cooking pancakes. Clementine and Louis giggled and laughed as they hovered over their pan. Louis continued to give Clementine’s cheeks tons of kisses as her eyes focused on making the best pancakes. Prisha glanced over their way before she heard the sizzle of the pan as Violet placed down some batter.

“Y’know our first few pancake days were pretty bad. Our pancakes were all chalky and tasted like dirt.” Violet had a small smile on her face.

“Those pancakes were good though!” Willy jumped in as he helped set the picnic table with Ruby and Aasim.

“They were god awful,” Ruby corrected him. “Thank the Lord we have Milky Way and Comet now.”

“It also helps that we have the oil press and acorn grinder up to the standard we need them now.” Aasim added with a smile.

“The pancakes are really good now,” Omar added as he nodded towards the pan.

Prisha’s eyes followed his gaze and she swore under her breath. Her pancakes had nearly burned.

Soon Prisha and Violet’s turn was done and so was Clementine and Louis’. Ruby and Omar took a turn at one of the pans, the pair working in perfect harmony as they discussed what type of tea they would pair with the pancakes. Both of them spoke happily and ended up making the best pancakes out of the group. Willy and AJ on the other hand had made the worst. They were lumpy, off-looking and somehow ended up both undercooked and burnt at the same time. Neither of them seemed to mind though as they high fived and beamed proudly at their pancakes.

After a while everyone was at the picnic table eating happily. Willy continually snuck bites of pancake to Rosie who seemed ecstatic for pancake day. Her stubby tail wagged joyfully as she moseyed around getting more treats from Louis and Clementine alike. Ruby was busy feeding Aasim a bite of her pancakes while Violet judged them silently for it. Everyone laughed and smiled until they saw that Prisha was taking her first bite of her pancakes. Her eyes lit up as she chewed the food and a joyful smile pulled on the corners of her lips.

“Woooo! Pancakes were a success!” Willy crowed happily and tossed over a piece of pancake to Garbage. The possum sniffed it suspiciously before licking up the pancake crumb. Her beady black eyes sparkled as she hissed happily.

“I’m glad,” Violet smiled over at her love then continued to eat. Everyone congratulated themselves on a job well done.

“Here’s to the first of many more Saturdays with Prisha!” Louis held up his cracked mug that held his tea. The others all cheered with him.

“So, I’m curious why this is attached to Saturdays,” Prisha spoke up and the group looked over at her.

“It was an old family tradition of mine.” Clementine leaned forward and looked at her friend. “One that I really loved. So it’s really nice to share it with my new family.”

Prisha felt her heart grow warm at those words. To find a group like this one that treated her not only as an equal but as family was something she never expected to gain.

“There is nothing like the joys of pancakes and family,” Louis kissed Clementine’s hand softly.

“Clem used to always talk about pancakes before we came to Ericson,” AJ spoke up.

“Goofball over here used to think I was talking about some secret weapon,” Clementine teased and some members of the table laughed as AJ frowned.

“It made sense to me,” AJ huffed and munched on his pancakes. Ruby gave his hair a quick ruffle and smiled which seemed to brighten up his mood. Everyone quickly went back to talking happily as they enjoyed the pancakes.

Soon the food was consumed and Aasim and Ruby helped Omar with the dishes. Prisha watched them for a moment when suddenly she felt something warm wrap around her hand. Looking down she saw that it was Violet’s hand. She glanced up and noticed the calm, gentle expression on her girlfriend’s face.

“I hope that helped make your day less shitty,”

Violet’s words made Prisha smile softly. She lifted up Violet’s hand and pressed a few gentle kisses to it. “It did, thank you.”

“I’m glad,” Violet smiled at Prisha before looking up at the sky. It had made her day feel better too. Her eyes soon wandered around the courtyard and took in the positive energy that the others were radiating. Saturdays always made life a little bit better.

[ericsonclan]

Mitch being the type to friendly smack people on the back, but does it too forcibly. Once he does this to Clem, she smacks him in the back harder to assert her dominance. Then it’s a back and forth thing until she goes flying. She swears she's going to catapult him someday.

Mitch: *smacks Clem’s back in a friendly manner*

Clem: *smacks his back to assert dominance*

Mitch and Clem: *lock eyes*

Mitch and Clem: *have a back smacking contest*

Ruby: You two better stop that!

Mitch:

Clem:

Mitch: *waits for Ruby to go away then smacks Clem’s back super hard*

Clem: *goes flying over the picnic table*

[ericsonclan]

The Freedom of Freckles

Summary: Clementine feels her anxiety building as more and more issues for the near future arise.

Word Count: 3153

Read on AO3:

Clementine could feel her anxiety rising slowly but surely. Her eyes stared out towards the balcony, noticing the little details on the doors that lead out to it. Most of the glass was shattered on all the small square panels within them and it made her wonder if there was a story behind it. Or maybe she was wrong and they had just shattered due to weather or something else uninteresting. Then again with all the tales she had heard from the residents of Ericson she highly doubted that there wasn’t a story behind it.

“Clem?” James’ soft, whisper-like voice snapped Clementine out of her train of thought and she glanced over at the ex-Whisperer who was sitting on a chair by the desk. On top of the desk was the map of Ericson and a few pebbles that represented walkers. Clementine’s mind turned back towards the conversation at hand. James was here to discuss how best to guide walkers away from the school.

It wasn’t something unusual; it had become a fairly regular routine ever since Clementine had offered James a place at Ericson. He had accepted but not in the way that Clementine had anticipated. James stayed every so often behind the walls of Ericson and in more recent times his boyfriend Jesse had stayed as well. But it was never for long and soon enough the pair would travel outside Ericson to herd walkers away or to gather intel on nearby communities that may be forming. Clementine was extremely grateful that the two of them had been willing to do this for them and continued to do so. But occasionally James didn’t simply drop by to let Clementine know that things were running smoothly. Instead he would bring more troublesome news. Today was one of those days.

“Sorry,” Clementine leaned back in the headmaster’s chair. “I guess I got lost in thought.”

“That's okay, it's never easy to hear that a herd is coming towards Ericson. Especially since winter is fast approaching,” James fidgeted with his walker skin gloves and took a deep breath. “Jesse and I will do our best to make sure they don’t get nearby. If any of them reached you and the others...” James paused for a moment, his eyes sad for a multitude of reasons. “I’d rather save as many lives as possible.”

“I understand,” Clementine looked at her friend’s eyes then down to the map where the pebbles representing the walkers stood on the westernmost edge. The sight made her gut twist with anxiety. This hadn't been the first time that a herd threatened to reach the walls but still, bad memories were attached to herds. Memories that Clementine didn’t want to add to. She’d make sure that every single person at Ericson was unharmed to the best of her ability. “When would you and Jesse leave?”

“As soon as possible. We have to go by foot to reach this point,” James’ finger rested on the spot by the pebbles on the map. “Then we’d have to redirect them as far north as possible. All of this takes time and I’d rather have more time than less.”

“Right,” Clementine took a shaky breath as she rose from her seat. “Ruby will be sad that Jesse will be gone. Those two could talk about horses all day long.”

James softly chuckled. The ex-Whisperer rose from his spot and double checked to make sure his walker mask was still in his back pocket. “True, but we’ll be back sooner this time.”

“I’m gonna hold you to that,” Clementine smiled and walked forward, giving James a hug. James was surprised by the friendly gesture for a moment but soon returned it.

“Okay,” James pulled back and gave a shy smile. He wanted to say more but was forced to put that to the side when the door to the headmaster’s office opened. Aasim walked in, his expression too worrisome for Clementine’s liking.

“Aasim, what's wrong?” Clementine walked forward and placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder. Aasim took a deep breath before responding. “Milky Way is sick and Comet is restless. I normally wouldn’t be too worried about this but-”

“But with winter coming it makes this worse,” Clementine finished Aasim’s statement. Normally a cold would easily be dealt with thanks to Ruby’s natural remedies she had concocted with the help of Omar and Aasim but the chill of the winter made even the heartiest animals at risk if they were already sick. Clementine turned back to her visitor. “James, was there anything else you needed to tell me?”

James shook his head. “No, that's all. If you want, Jesse and I can head out right now.”

“You should at least stay for dinner. I’m sure food while traveling isn’t that nutritional.” Aasim offered.

James’ eyes enlarged slightly. It was clear he wasn’t expecting that. Even though his friends at Ericson had always offered him kindness, James supposed still wasn’t used to it at times. “Okay. Thank you.” He gave a soft smile towards Aasim who returned it.

“Think nothing of it. Clem,” Aasim looked over at the leader of Ericson.

“Right, can you show me Milky Way? If I can see how bad she’s doing, I’ll have a better understanding of the situation.” Clementine walked forward towards the door and Aasim quickly opened it.

“Of course,” Aasim soon took the lead and the three of them walked out of the headmaster’s office and down the stairs towards the entrance of the admin building.

With each step Clementine could feel her anxiety rising. Not only was a herd heading this way but Milky Way was now sick and to add to the stress of the situation winter was nearly upon them. All of it was overwhelming Clementine and no matter what she did to try to recenter herself and steady her heart she couldn’t get rid of her fear. In fact all of her thinking only made her anxiety grow worse by the second.

Soon Clementine was outside in the courtyard and noticed that Ruby was standing beside Jesse who was absolutely in awe of Molly. It didn’t matter how many times he saw that horse, his love never wavered and the wonder in his eyes never left when he was around her. He turned to Ruby and began to gush once more about how amazing horses were while gently brushing Molly’s mane.

Ruby seemed just as invested in the conversation as she fed Jesse’s horse Adsila a carrot. The appaloosa snorted happily as he munched on the treat. How those two could talk about horses constantly and for such long periods of time Clementine had no idea but she was glad that they were friends. Jesse seemed to be a fairly closed off type but with a few residents of Ericson he got out of his shell and showed that he had a softer side to him.

Jesse continued to talk with Ruby, a kind smile on his lips before he noticed James out of the corner of his eye. Looking over at his boyfriend, he gave a loving smile and wave which James instantly returned.

“I’ll see you later,” James gave a quick wave towards Aasim and Clementine then ran off towards Jesse. After a moment he had reached his boyfriend and gave him a soft kiss then wrapped his arms around him for a moment. James soon let go of the hug although it seemed that neither of them had wanted that and began to explain the plan to Jesse.

Jesse nodded along as he reached out for James’ hand. A small smile appeared on his lips as James told him that they’d be staying for dinner. It was obvious that Jesse had wanted to spend a bit more time here so he’d gladly take any time he could get.

Clementine watched them for a moment longer then followed Aasim who walked off towards the pen where Milky Way and Comet were.

As they walked they soon passed by the picnic tables where Prisha was jotting down some adjustments to her latest projects to better this school. Violet sat beside her and enjoyed the simplicity of the moment with Prisha. After a moment Prisha paused in her task and reached for Violet’s hand, giving it a tender kiss before returning to her work. She would’ve loved to continue to give Violet little moments of affection but with the limitations of only having one working hand and with winter fast approaching Prisha had to prioritize work. Violet didn’t seem to mind though as her head tilted over and rested on Prisha’s shoulder for a moment. Prisha gave Violet’s forehead a small kiss then another and was about to resume her task when a voice appeared to her left.

“Are those doodles?” Allison asked as she reached out for the notebook on the table.

“That's irrelevant,” Prisha tried to get to the notebook before Allison but failed.

Allison studied the contents for a moment then gave a faint laugh. “Is this the three of us?” She held up the notebook and revealed the small doodle beside the copious amounts of notes and blueprint sketches. It was drawn in a somewhat cartoonish style, nothing special but which had a sort of charm to it. The doodle consisted of Prisha, Violet and Allison all standing side by side with fishing spears.

“Yes. It is.” Prisha snatched back the notebook. “Is there something wrong with that?”

“No, I think it's nice,” Allison sat down beside Prisha and reached in her pocket for her knife. Slowly she began to move the knife from finger to finger. “So, are there more?”

“I don’t remember,” Prisha returned to jotting notes down in her notebook. Even though she was happy to hear that Allison thought her doodles were nice it was still embarrassing to go around showing her doodles that were amuetur at best.

“She has a ton of them,” Violet had a small, playful smile on her lips.

“Violet!” Prisha was shocked by her betrayal.

“What? Allison wants to see them so what's wrong with that?” Violet asked.

Prisha thought about it for a moment then handed back over her notebook. “Fine, you can look for five minutes but then I have to get back to work,”

That made a small smile appear on Allison’s lips and she began to flip through the notebook. Clementine watched the small family for a few more seconds.

“Here we are,” Aasim’s voice made Clementine snap her focus back onto him. Her eyes immediately spotted Milky Way who was laying on the ground in somewhat of a daze. Comet frantically bleated and was clearly concerned for his mother. The older mountain goat looked up at her child then rested her head on the ground once more. “Ruby said that she would do all she can but isn't sure how long it will take Milky Way to get better.”

Clementine knelt down and examined the mountain goat as Aasim continued to go on about what they figured it was and the natural remedies Ruby and he would try on the mountain goat. She listened silently for a few moments, feeling the steady sensation of anxiety start to rise further and overwhelm her body.

It felt like it was reaching Clementine’s lungs, making her breathing feel more forced. Wintertime was always scary but why had all these issues arisen just before this upcoming winter? Clementine took a few deep breaths and listened on but Aasim seemed to pick up on the tense aura.

“Clem, if you need a minute I can wait. I-”

“Clem!” AJ’s happy voice cut off Aasim as the youngest of the Ericson residents barrelled forward with Willy in tow. Both of them had huge, excited smiles on their faces.

“What's up, kiddo?” Clementine noticed the little frown that appeared on AJ’s lips for a moment. She knew that he was outgrowing that nickname but it was tough to let it go.

“We want you to help us with something!” Willy hopped into the conversation; his tall, lanky body towered over Clementine. “AJ and I are gonna do a tree climbing contest and we want you to be the judge. We’re gonna climb that sucker!” Willy pointed to a tree outside the walls of Ericson.

That fact made Clementine’s anxiety boil over. There was too much on her plate to worry about to have the dangers of some silly competition be added on.

“It’s super close to the watch tower and with you-”

“No!” Clementine snapped, causing AJ and Willy to grow quiet. Aasim seemed just as shocked by the force with which Clementine had shut down this idea. Clementine wasn’t finished though. “You want to go outside these walls for some stupid competetion where walkers could reach you? Your safety isn’t something you can just throw around so easily. People have died because of dumb decisions like that!” Clementine’s words made Willy and AJ turn their eyes away from her and Clementine instantly regretted the harshness of her words. She had lost her cool with some of the youngest among them yet her anxiety remained the same .

“Hey there, dudes,” Louis placed a hand on both Willy and AJ’s shoulders. “How about we talk about a tree climbing contest later?” He gave a warm smile to the two of them and they nodded before walking off. “Aasim, mind if I steal Clem for a little bit?”

“Not at all. I need to talk to Ruby anyway,” Aasim quickly walked off to find his wife, leaving Louis alone with Clementine.

Slowly Louis moved forward and took Clementine’s hand. “Follow me,” He began to gently guide his wife who still seemed lost in her own thoughts.

“Where are we going?” Clementine looked at her husband who was making his way towards the dorms.

“We’re going somewhere where we can take a break from work,” Louis’ statement made Clementine stop right before they turned to walk down the hallway towards their room.

“Louis, I can’t take a break right now! There’s a lot to do around here and I need to check in on like fifty different things and-” Clementine paused when she felt Louis squeeze her hand.

“Just a small break, okay? We can give ourselves that and then we’ll be back fighting the good fight to make Ericson the best home ever. It won’t all fall apart if you step away for five minutes. Everyone is working on different things and Omar is keeping an eye on Maisy and Lee Kenny and all the other kids.”

Louis’ words seemed to calm down Clementine’s overwhelming emotions for a moment and she gave a short nod. A bright smile quickly returned to Louis’ lips and he continued to guide them towards the room.

Once the door was shut and both of them were sitting on the bed, Louis decided to go for his idea. He could see how antsy and nervous Clementine was. So he gently cupped her face and looked directly into her eyes.

“We’re going to start with a few deep breaths,” Louis instructed and Clementine listened, following her husband’s slow inhales and exhales. After a few of those she felt some of anxiety slip away but not enough. It was still clawing at the inside of her body. “Y’know, my darling, you still have never been able to guess the true number of my freckles.” Louis gave a playful smile. “How about we play a game during this break? I bet you can’t count every single one of them.” Louis grinned as he saw the playfulness in his wife’s eyes return for a moment.

Clementine mirrored his smile. “If I do, what do I win?”

Louis’ eyes grew large for a moment. He wasn’t expecting that question. “Ummm, uhhh...” Louis fidgeted with one of his dreadlocks as he tried to think.

“How about this: if I get the correct number of your freckles, then you owe me a date,” Clementine’s statement made Louis smile once more and he leaned forward, kissing her lips for a second.

“You’ve got yourself a deal, m’lady,” Louis reached down and took his wife’s hand, his thumb gently rubbing circles along the top of it.

Clementine gave a small smile then lifted up one of her hands and started to count, her finger lightly tracing along Louis’ skin. “One, two, three, four, five, six, seven,” Clementine whispered as she carefully counted her husband’s freckles.

As time continued on Clementine found herself becoming lost in the game, her competitive side taking over as she meticulously counted Louis’ freckles. Her anxieties and worries slowly began to melt away and slip to the back of her mind as she continued to record each and every one of those freckles she adored so much.

Suddenly Louis scrunched his nose in amusement and joy from seeing his wife’s concentration face; he always found it adorable.

“Hey, no nose scrunching. That’s gonna hide some freckles,” Clementine gave a frown but soon a playful smile reappeared on her lips.

“Oops, sorry, my darling,” Louis leaned forward and kissed her lips.

Clementine immediately became distracted by the kiss and deepened it. Her mind was completely on the kiss as she cupped Louis’ face and melted into the warmth of his lips until she remembered she was in the middle of a competition. Pulling back, Clementine glared at her husband.“That was all a trick to make me lose count, wasn’t it?”

Louis chuckled at his wife’s accusation before he placed a hand over his heart in mock shock.

“Me? Using kissing as a means to win a game? I would never!”

“Uh huh,” Clementine crossed her arms. “Because that's outside the realm of possibility?”

“Okay, so it's not outside the realm of possibility, but! This time it really just was because I wanted to kiss you.” Louis’ confession made him grow flustered and Clementine could feel a soft warmth appear in her heart.

“Well, I’ve lost count now,” She scooted further onto the bed and leaned her back against the wall. Louis soon followed suit and sat beside her, his fingers intertwining with hers like it was second nature.

“How terrible,” he teased and pressed a kiss to her cheek. Clementine shook her head before she shifted closer and leaned her head onto Louis’ shoulder. Being with Louis always brought her comfort and because of his idea to take a break her worry and fears had settled down. At least in this moment she was at peace, free from mulling over all the concerns that came with being a leader. Louis tilted his head over and rested it against hers. The two of them took a deep, cleansing breath and let the world outside of just the two of them disappear for a little bit, escaping from the worries of life even if only for a moment.