Why hello there! It's been a while...

Summary of my excuses: School, friend drama, being a marriage counselor (because apparently my friends believe that I am so it MUST be true XP), new laptop, writers block, plain not wanting to go back through on YouTube to find dialogue, other fics, obsessing over shows, and watching too much Glee (there's never enough :D).

Alright, I just want you guys to know that YOU ARE THE BEST PEOPLE EVER! REALLY! It's not even funny how awesome all of you are! 11,959 views and 54 reviews?! I would legitimately hug all of you right now but sadly, it is not possible (yet).

I don't own The Walking Dead game...The Walking Dead game owns me hahahahahah.

On with the chapter!

Carley's eyes widened slightly in Clementine's direction as she blushed. A warm smile slowly trickled onto her face, and she lost herself in thought for a moment before she cleared her throat, remembering their task at hand.

Lee chuckled before holding Carley's weapon forward in his hands toward Clementine, "First, don't be afraid of it. It's just a thing. Take it," he glanced across the car to see that Lilly was still there, but getting some sleep for the first time since...well, Lee couldn't remember the last time any of them had slept well or without a reason. Realizing that gunshots were loud and he was going to wake Lilly up with the noise, he looked at Carley and tipped his head towards the woman. She understood and crossed the car to wake Lilly up.

Lilly was roused from her sleep the second Carley's hand made contact with her shoulder. She started to glare as the other woman explained what they were doing in a hushed tone. Lilly responded quietly in words that Lee couldn't make out, but they didn't seem harsh or incriminating.

Carley just nodded and walked back towards Lee, giving a slight shrug before saying quietly, "She wants to stay."

Lee was slightly surprised, but got over that and focused his attention on Clementine again, though still aware of Lilly's gaze.

Clementine was holding the gun at if it were a foreign object, her small fingers trembling slightly.

Lee continued, "Know where your finger is all the time," he instructed, adjusting her hands so they were holding it properly, "and don't pull the trigger unless you want to hurt somebody."

Inspecting the weapon in her hands, Clementine nodded, "Okay, okay."

"See? It's not scary," Lee grinned at her confused expression. She looked so innocent as her face scrunched up, trying to make sense of it. Every kid's first experience trying to shoot a gun was confusing.

"...it's heavy," Clementine offered, smiling sheepishly.

"You'll get stronger," Lee said; it was true, she was going to get stronger to survive. It meant everything to him.

"To aim, you look right down the top, through that notch, then line up the sight at the end with your target," he pointed out as Clementine lifted the gun with both of her arms, which were shaking a bit because of the weight. She peered through the sights before turning her head towards Lee.

"Anything else I should know?" she asked, blinking curiously.

"I know theses are just bottles, but aim for the head," Lee replied with little hesitation. This was definitely the most important thing - shots anywhere else on a walker would prove futile.

"I know," Clementine responded, "Only the head."

"Unless it's not a walker and it's someone trying to hurt you," Lee added. Other people were almost as much of a threat as walkers these days. The memories of kind neighbors and friends were distant now.

"...and then?"

"Head or body; anywhere," he answered, searching Clementine's gaze.

Clementine shuddered, "I don't want to think about that."

"You're right. It might be a lot for your first day," Lee agreed, "You ready?"

"Yeah, I'm ready," Clementine affirmed but she looked nervous, her eyes wide and face pale.

Lee stooped and snatched a glass bottle from the floor. It shone green and a small crack ran from the mouth. Dust rimmed both the outside and the inside. It looked almost like an antique, but it was probably pretty new. It was scary how the conditions out here could change something so clean and new into a cracked piece of broken glass without even being exposed to much.

He glanced from Clementine to the bottle before placing their new target onto a convenient cardboard box at about the right level for her to aim at.

He stood behind her as she lifted the gun as she had before, squinting through the sight.

"Good," he pushed down her stiff elbows; they would only make the kickback worse, "Don't lock your elbows," he advised.

Clementine nodded slightly as Lee placed his hands over her ears to protect them from the shocking jolt of a sound a gunshot made at close range.

"Okay, let's take your first shot. Squeeze the trigger smoothly and I'll cover your ears. Nice and easy."

"Nice and easy," Clementine repeated as she let out a breath, and pulled the trigger. She squeaked in surprise as the gun flew back towards her in her hands, sent backwards by the force of the shot. There was a sharp pop, and a smoking hole appeared in the box that the bottle was placed on.

"You okay?" Lee immediately asked, worried that the gun had harmed her.

"My hands hurt. I don't like this," she expressed, obviously a bit shocked.

Carley stood from where she had been sitting on the floor. She nodded to Lee, taking over the lesson for a bit. She knelt in front of Clementine and spread out her fingers, palm up.

"Clem, you see these?" she asked, trailing her other fingertip around the calluses on her palm and the length of her fingers.

Clementine quirked an eyebrow, "Yeah?"

Carley smiled, "They're called calluses. It's where my skin got tough to protect against the kickback - er, when the gun flies backwards," she looked at Clem's hands, which were red and soft.

"You'll get them too. They stop it from hurting so much."

Clementine nodded thoughtfully.

Carley brushed off her knees as she stood, "You can get back to your lesson now, Professor Everett," she said with a sly wink and retreated to her corner.

Lee chuckled, heating, before looking back to Clem.

"Let's keep with it," he said as the girl lifted the gun once more. He adjusted her elbows again, as they were locked frigidly. He covered her ears, watching as her eyes traveled from the notch to her target.

"Aim a little higher and to the left," he advised, and she adjusted her aim.

This time the crack of the gun was greeted by the shattering of glass when Clementine pulled the trigger. Realizing what she had accomplished, she looked at Lee with excitement.

"I got it!" she exclaimed happily, amber eyes shining and a smile on her face.

"Excellent," Lee praised, "good shot."

He grasped another bottle up from the floor and placed in on the box, careful to avoid the pieces of glass that remained there.

He stood behind her as she aimed again.

"You can do it, Clem!" Carley encouraged from where she sat. Clementine smiled, unlocked her elbows without being reminded, and took her shot. Glass exploded across the top of the box where a bottle had once stood, spreading and falling onto the floor with dull thuds.

"I did it!"

Lee grinned, "Yeah, you did. Good job."

"She's a natural," Carley observed as she stood up.

Clementine smiled at the comment and looked at her, "It didn't hurt as much the other times!"

The woman laughed lightly, "Of course it didn't. You're tough. Too tough to be scared of a gun, right?"

"Uh-huh," Clementine affirmed proudly, glowing with satisfaction. She carefully offered the gun to Carley, who took it after flipping on the safety.

Clementine could protect herself. Lee was relieved; his initial worry now seemed foolish. He should just as soon trust thoughtful, responsible Clementine with a gun than any other adult. She was more mature than she appeared, at least in her thoughts. She had stuck up for Lilly before anybody else would and shared her opinions like an adult.

For a moment, Lee could remember that good still existed in the form of the smiling, confident, strong girl in front of him.