Whatever semblance of time Clementine had been keeping track of completely dissipated, the room so shrouded in silence, all she could make out was the soft ringing in her ears. The girl had been effectively shut out by Marlon, in complete isolation. She wasn't sure if he thought she was bullshitting him, or if there was some other reason for keeping her there. All she knew was that it felt like she'd been in there for an eternity... but how long had it actually been? A few hours, maybe?

Maybe he wasn't coming back? Some elaborate hoax to get her inside a cell without a fight, get her alone and separated from AJ so they could take advantage and try to suck out as much information as they could from him. The only unresolved question that had the pit of her stomach spinning was that she didn't know the extent of the lengths they'd go to get that information, and if that involved hurting AJ.

Footsteps, finally. She was quickly jolted out of her morbid thoughts by the soft thump of boots creaking against the wooden floorboards, causing her head to shoot upwards. It wasn't long until the door gave way to a soft click, light being the first thing to reach her eyes. Her tied wrists instinctively rose to cover her face as she squinted, attempting to adjust to the sudden change.

Her eyes then darted towards the silhouette standing at the door. It was Marlon again. This time an object gleamed in his right hand, its serrated end coupled with the silver complexion being unmistakable. He was holding a knife.

Clementine squirmed at the sight, shuffling backwards as the dodgy-looking kid advanced towards her. She contemplated kicking him, trying to shove past him… getting the knife. However, much to her surprise, the boy knelt down and grabbed the rope that bound her hands together, and… he actually began to slowly cut away at the rope in between her wrists, causing the rope-like cuffs restricting her to loosen in response.

After a brief moment of silence, Clementine stared at him while he continued to cut away at her wrist binds. "Why?" She croaked out warily, probably coming off as ungrateful, but in her mind he, still couldn't be trusted.

There was silence. Marlon's gaze didn't raise from her hands, though his eyes seemed to glaze over, as if he was trying to contemplate some kind of retort. Nonetheless, he continued to cut through the last parts of the rope entangled around the girl's wrists. Clementine continued to glare at him, allowing him to do so as she waited for a response.

"Because you guys aren't lying. Your kid had the same answers when we asked." Marlon finally responded, almost like he was grateful for it, a tinge of a regret in his tone. "I know I was a prick before, but I couldn't take any risks. Sorry."

Something was different in his demeanor, he sounded a lot more relaxed this time around.

And with that, Clementine was finally released from her binds as they fell to the floor. She steadily got to her feet, warily eyeing off the boy in front of her as she rubbed her wrists, a slight pause before she spoke, squinting her eyes. "What happens now?"

"Guess I'll take you to go see the kid. C'mon."

Marlon stepped aside, gesturing his head outwards, allowing her to finally walk out of the cramped room. She was greeted with a long hallway that stretched all the way down, fixed with some kind of carpet overlay. Whatever this place was, it looked pretty old-fashioned. And big. Clementine looked both left and right cautiously, almost as if expecting some kind of ambush.

"Well, we ain't got all day," Marlon spoke rather impatiently as he brushed past Clementine, expecting her to follow as he began to make his way down the corridor.

The girl watched him walk onwards for a moment, considering her options. Being crammed in that room and then suddenly getting her freedom so quickly left her flustered. Although she supposed she should listen… for now. Making up her mind she slowly made her way to his side, trailing behind slightly.

"Did you guys shove him in some room too?" She spoke with a tinge of hostility whilst she followed along, eyeing off the back of his head. The thought of him alone and probably frightened was enough to infuriate her, and if there was even one scratch on him-

"We didn't, actually. No." Marlon bit back defensively, feeling the girl's ice-cold stare from behind him as they walked. "The kid's in the courtyard, already making new friends. He's a trooper."

New friends? Hearing that alone was enough to get Clementine to raise her eyebrow in suspicion. Had Louis not been pulling her leg, then? Was this actually a place where only kids were allowed? It sounded like one of the books she'd be reading out to AJ, not something she could just believe straight up. She found herself having to question it right then and there.

"So, where the hell are we?" It was blunt and rude, but it was more of an act of curiosity if anything.

Marlon seemingly couldn't quite tell if she was angry at him, or if her social skills were just plain bad. Maybe it was both.

"Hope you liked school." He swiveled his head around until he could see her from the corner of his eye, a small grin.

"This is a school?" Clementine spat out, her attitude screaming skeptical.

"Boarding school." He corrected with a curt nod. "At least, that's what it used to be."

"And you're the only leader?"

"Yep, that'd be me."

This was so bizarre. Marlon didn't even look that much older than her. As far as she was concerned, teenagers weren't really the ones people would turn to for a leader. It just wasn't how things worked in her old groups, unless-

"No adults here to do it?"

The boy scoffed at the question, a smirk creeping up on his lips as he shook his head, recounting the events.

"None left to lead, a lot of the teachers booked it from here in the early days. Had families of their own that were more important to get back to." Disregard emanated from his tone, Clementine being able to pick up on a tinge of resentment there.

"So we had to make a go of it alone. A few of us were here before the corpses started walking around. Some came after… but we managed without adults so far, and that's what we're gonna keep doing. It's why we don't let them anywhere near us. We've had nothing but bad experiences with'em".

There was no doubt about it… Clementine was sure that Marlon kid must've been there even before the walkers started popping up. When she was younger, Clem remembered hearing white noise about the concept of boarding schools. The idea was enough to get her stomach to churn, it was already enough of a chore having to go to school, even if she did used to miss it. But actually living there? No damn way. It looked like they had zero tolerance for adults being around, which at least explained why they were so damn paranoid about being followed back home.

It was at that moment that a small silhouette turned the corner at the end of the corridor, almost bumping into them. Clementine's features quickly brightened at the sight, but dampened just as quick at the realization that the figure wasn't AJ. The young boy had darker skin, and was taller than AJ. Maybe a couple of years older too.

"Woah, Ten? Thought you'd be outside?" Marlon stopped in his tracks, seemingly taken off guard by the sight.

Clementine came to a halt, soon noticing that something wasn't quite right with the kid's appearance. The right side of his face bore horrible burns, a creased pink color permeating the space just above his eye. The teen forced herself not to stare, averting her gaze to the side so she wouldn't seem rude.

Ten stopped in his tracks, his head swung low, staring at his feet, hand holding his other arm, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

"I was… Just came in t - to get my things and head back out." Ten responded dryly, a sense of shyness being projected from the kid.

"You're looking for Violet, aren't you?" He crossed his arms, rolling his eyes with a sigh. A smirk yet again appearing on the older boy's face.

"I wanted to see if she needed help with the watch patrol."

"Alright, well, as long as she agrees. How's AJ doing?" Marlon questioned, brow raised.

"Oh, the one who's with the-" His glance found Clementine, halting his speech as he laid eyes on her, quickly looking back to his feet nervously. "The others are showing him around."

"Good." Marlon then turned towards Clementine, signalling her onwards towards the door at the end of the hallway. With a twist of the knob, he opened it, strolling out first as Clementine followed. Ten almost excitedly jogged past the door and ran towards the courtyard, seemingly intent on catching up to Violet.

Clementine noticed Marlon waiting near the door behind her, seemingly observing her reaction to the place. The girl's eyes widened in their sockets as the outdoor area of the courtyard was now in full view. She could spot out several kids in the distance going about their daily business and strolling around. A lot of them looked around her age, some younger… but Louis had been telling the truth, there really were only kids in this place.

There's… no way. She pondered, eyes still nearly popping out of her head as she took a few steps forward, observing her surroundings. Her eyes immediately trailed towards the largest building in the middle of the courtyard, four pillars holding up the front deck along with some stairs leading upwards. It looked pretty weathered, and a lot of the windows also seemed to be boarded up. The whole place was untouched, apart from the well-fortified fencing that stretched around the area. Patches of overgrowth and greenery stemmed from a lot of the buildings, and it didn't look like a place anybody would be living in, let alone bother searching, but maybe that was the point.

"You've been... surviving out there for a while, huh?" Marlon made his way to her side, noticing how perplexed she was acting. "I mean, that's what it looks like. We don't really see people our age alone, in the wild."

Clementine turned over towards Marlon, frown lines appearing on her forehead. The teen's tone near accusatory. "You sound surprised, like you think I can't take care of myself."

Marlon shot her a lighthearted glance, near apologetic. "With the ass whooping you dished out on Louis, that's the last thing I'd think. Didn't mean to come off like that... sorry. I was tryna say, it's actually pretty cool."

He began to walk again, leading her through the courtyard, her eyes slanting whilst she continually checked her peripherals. The daunting notion of being in a new area alone was enough to put her on edge.

The duo approached what seemed to be an area near the middle of the courtyard. Clementine zeroed in on an odd sight, some of the kids jumping around. She took notice of some pieces of chalk on the ground, some squares having been drawn along with numbers…

Are they… playing hopscotch?

Before the girl could take any of it in, she heard a voice she could never forget cheerfully yell out from behind her.

"Clem!"

She turned around, shock quickly followed by joy overwhelming her as AJ sprinted towards her. Without a second thought, she ran towards him, both of them meeting in the middle. She dropped to her knees, pulling him into her arms.

Clementine let out a sigh of relief as she pulled away, starting to check him over for scars or bruises.

"Are you, okay? Did they-" She stammered out, concern starting to take over by instinct, before she was interrupted.

"No. I was just out here waiting for you… they were teaching me to play while you were away. What took you so long?"

"I had to… sort some things out, but I'm here now." It wasn't a proper explanation, but it was enough to at least elicit a reassuring smile from him.

"This place is so big, they were showing me around before. There's even a library!" AJ was eager to fill her in, barely being able to contain his excitement.

The feeling wasn't so mutual with Clementine, right now all she could think about was asking Marlon about where the nearest exit was.

"Listen, AJ… we're probably gonna have to get go-"

"Don't mean to shove in here but-" Her response was interrupted by the apparent leader of the boarding school, who had been standing there waiting for them to reunite before butting in. "I was going to say..." He trailed off, stopping momentarily, as if he was deeply considering what he was going to say before he did so, eventually he came out with it. "You two look like you could use a break."

"What do you mean?" Clementine stood up, eyebrow raised, holding AJ's hand as he stood by her side now.

"I mean, I'm willing to offer you our facilities here, for however long you need… repayment for the whole trap mix-up thing, if you get me."

"That sounds great!" AJ spoke up, practically answering before Clementine could even get a word in.

"AJ." She frowned, looking down at him with a disapproving gaze before sending a stern glance towards Marlon.

She still didn't trust them. Even if Louis was telling the truth, her whole interaction with these people had left nothing but a sour taste in her mouth. Her past mistakes kept calling out to her, urging her to take the kid and leave as soon as possible.

"Not even just one night? Please?" AJ begged in a hushed tone so Marlon wouldn't hear him, tugging at Clementine's sleeve. "We actually found others. And they're not bad, for once."

Clementine wanted to be stern about it, to tell him that her mind was made up, but the way those eyes of his locked onto her own, longing for her approval... it made it all the more difficult. It would've been a lot easier had her mind already been made up.

It wasn't.

The fact of the matter was, as much as Clementine had been pretending in front of AJ, they hadn't been doing so well on supplies, food especially, for a while now. Each passing night only brought the same thoughts, second-guessing herself. Was the solitary lifestyle sustainable for the long term? Was it one that he deserved? These were only a couple of the many questions that plagued her mind every day. She was starting to think there might not be a choice. The whole reason why she put AJ in danger was because of how desperate she was to take that bag of supplies, who's to say that situation could come around again if she stayed on the road? That guilt continued to eat away at her, wishing their situation wasn't so dire.

She looked away, shaking her head, and after giving herself a moment to properly think, she turned her attention towards Marlon. Not exactly warm on the idea, but not ruling his offer out entirely either.

"And what's the catch? There's gotta be one, right?" She asked, suspicion in her tone.

"The catch is: just don't expect a free ride. If you're going to hang around, I'd expect you guys to help out just as much as the others here would. Kids are safe here. We make sure of it."

Clementine was still mulling over the fact that she was on shaky terms at best with everyone she'd met here so far, and if they were to stay, it'd probably be really awkward. Nonetheless, she refrained from speaking, continuing to eye him off.

"Look," Marlon sighed out irritably, pinching the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes. "We'll even give you half of what we get on our next supply run, I'd say that puts us well on even terms. But only if you come with us."

"When is it?" The mention of more supplies had caused the girl's head to prick up slightly.

"I'm taking a crew out tomorrow morning."

Marlon's proposition had Clementine gritting her teeth, not because it was a bad deal, but more so because it'd practically force her to stay the night there with AJ. Something she obviously wasn't very keen on.

We get what we're owed and then get out. Simple, right?

Clem averted her gaze back to Marlon, her eyes locking onto his, not at all happy with the decision she'd come to terms with. The proposition of possibly getting more supplies was ultimately too much of an opportunity to pass up.

"One night." Clementine deadpanned, her tone almost threatening. "Then in the morning, after that run, we're leaving."

"Suit yourself." Marlon shrugged, probably knowing she was too stubborn to come to a different conclusion.

After being led to their room for the night, she let AJ explore a little bit outside and talk with the other kids under her supervision. Clementine herself remained fairly reclusive, not wanting to really interact, not until she had to go on that run tomorrow morning. Nevertheless, it wasn't long before the sky had gotten dark, and the duo had traveled back to their room. It was getting late, the noises of everyone going about their daily jobs finally came to die down.

"Time for bed, little guy." Clementine closed the door behind her as the two of them strolled into their designated room. The only source of light was the lit candle in her hand and the various other ones that lit up in the room. A large bunk bed was in the corner, and the windows in the room were also boarded up. It didn't really make for a nice view, but it was safe, at least.

"Can I stay up?" AJ swiveled around to face her, trying his luck.

"Nope." Clementine shot him an amused smile, shaking her head. Not today.

"Two more minutes." The boy pouted, attempting to bargain.

"Tell you what..." She turned around, setting the candle down on a desk that was in the middle of the room. By now, she knew how to get around this. "You lie down, and then we'll see."

"Okay…"

AJ reluctantly made his way to the bed on the bottom of the bunk, taking off his shoes as he clambered onto it, making sure he was under the covers. Finally, his head was on the pillow, though his eyes were still wide open. Today, she couldn't blame him. It'd been a lot to take in, and everything he'd seen probably had him excited still. Clementine made her way over to him, sitting down on the edge of the bed to keep him company, at least until he got tired.

"I like it here…" AJ spoke up softly, his gaze remaining towards the bunk above him, seemingly in a trance. "It's nice, after doing so much running away…"

"Do you like it?" He asked her curiously, perhaps hopeful that she wouldn't want to run away from here either.

Clementine's soft gaze settled on the boy, her hands on her lap now, resisting the urge to twiddle her thumbs. She didn't want to crush his hopes, or ruin his excitement, but every group seemed great at first… he hadn't been around long enough to realize just how dangerous things could get when you were with too many people. Trying to tell him that on the other hand… was easier said than done.

"We'll have a roof over our heads tonight, at least." She twisted her lips, looking away from him so he wouldn't see her apparent uncertainty. It was about the only positive thing she could say.

It wasn't really the answer he was looking for, but he'd take it.

"They've got games… and everyone's been nice to me so far. I've even seen someone around my age too." AJ began to list off in awe.

"Yeah, it's a change...seeing so many people." Clementine added, she supposed it was nice that he'd get to enjoy himself a bit, even if she was a thorough supporter of them leaving as soon as they could.

"Louis said he was sorry, while you were away. He even let me listen to some of his music on that MP3 player thingy of his. There were some swear words on it..."

"He shouldn't have done that." Her tone reeked of disapproval, trying to stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"It wasn't that bad. Besides, I hear you swear all the time."

"No, you don't." Clementine grinned embarrassingly, playfully nudging his leg with her elbow, which managed to garner a small chuckle from the boy.

It went silent again, Clementine trying to hold onto her smile but ultimately falling short as she once again averted her gaze to the candle on the desk, watching the flame slowly flicker before AJ broke the silence, his voice softer now, as if he was succumbing to his grogginess.

"Are you going to that thing they invited you to tonight?" He asked curiously, obviously he wanted to come with her and hang out with the older kids, but Clementine much preferred for him to just rest tonight, they probably weren't the right company for him to keep, and she'd made that much clear earlier.

"I've been thinking about it... I don't know." Clementine sighed, spite in her tone. Marlon had expressed his desire for her to get to know some of the other kids before they went out tomorrow, pre-plan a route they were going to take for the run. The hostility she'd expressed towards most of them coupled with her general lack of will to socialize tonight had her frustrated.

"I think you should." AJ yawned, Clementine slightly taken off guard at the suggestion. It still surprised her how open and trustworthy he was to others… even after everything they'd seen on the road. Maybe he wanted her to see what he saw in this place, or maybe try to get to know the others so they wouldn't have to leave. It was optimistic as ever.

And who used to be like that, huh? The girl mentally jabbed herself.

"I… guess I can try." She didn't want someone knocking on the door and waking AJ up, asking if she was coming, it'd be better to avoid that by just sucking it up and going.

"It might be fun."

"Alright kiddo, time for you to rest up, we've had a long day." She considered that to be an understatement.

"Fine…" The boy sighed out, trying to make himself comfortable under the sheets. It wasn't long before he assumed a comfortable position, finally closing his eyes. "Night, Clem."

"Night, goofball." Clementine quietly replied, before leaning over and lifting the blanket up to his shoulders, tucking him in slightly, just to make sure he was snugged in.

After all was said and done, Clementine quietly got up from the bed. Making her way towards the middle of the room where she'd set the candle down on the desk. She slumped down into the chair, taking off her hat before placing it on her lap.

She was a wreck, physically and emotionally… this whole day had pushed her to her limits and beyond. Her main feeling was relief, but the thought of having almost lost him had her reeling. If they'd been caught today by a group like Howe's… what could she have done? The answer in her head wasn't at all good. They were just lucky this boarding school crew seemed to be relatively okay, at least towards other kids. But there was no way to know for sure yet… unless she actually followed AJ's advice and got to know them.

Clementine had already told him she'd give it a shot, so there really was no backing out of it. Honestly, she saw no point in going, seemings as though they would be leaving tomorrow morning anyway. However, she supposed since she was going on a run tomorrow, maybe it would benefit her if she saw who she'd be working with.

It wasn't that she was scared of them or anything, but the whole concept of trying to make conversation with other kids had her shifting in her seat, not to mention her obvious trust issues with the lot of them. Roughly ten minutes passed, Clementine's eyes fanning over to the door every minute or so. Why was she so nervous about this? The time had come where she had to force herself to make a decision about it.

Damn it...

The moonlight did little to creep through the windows, seemings as the plasterboards they'd nailed up against them prevented that. Candles provided the light they needed at night, set up all around the place in which Marlon had converted into a meeting room of sorts. A large table was at the corner of the room, littered with maps of the area, various places highlighted that they had yet to scavenge. Violet and Marlon had been occupied with sorting that out.

Louis paid no mind to it. Only reason he even showed up was for the piano he'd grown to love. Having already taken his seat at the large instrument, his fingers began to methodically strum each key in accordance to the notes from the old music book he had in front of him.

"Hey, can you cut that shit out." A voice nagging from the corner of his ear forced him to stop. It was Marlon's, of course.

"What now?" Louis frustratingly swiveled around from his chair, facing him.

"We're hashing out a plan for the run tomorrow, and I can't hear myself think with that damn piano busting my balls." Marlon snapped back.

"I thought we were waiting for Clementine." The boy spoke up, eyebrow raised.

Violet crossed her arms as she spoke up, a rather presumptuous tone in her voice. "I wouldn't bother. Doesn't even look like she's coming anyway." It was quite clear to Louis that she didn't want the new girl here anyway.

"Violet's right, that girl's stubborn. No point in waiting." Marlon concurred.

"Not like she's staying after tomorrow anyway." The blonde girl squinted her eyes, averting her gaze to the wall next to her.

Here they go again, the dynamic duo teaming up against him. Granted, a lot of the times they were right for doing that, but this time Louis figured they weren't. He was onto something here.

"I think I can get her to come around." The would-be musician spoke up nonchalantly, eyeing off the two of them.

"Pfft, yeah. Good luck with that. Trust me, I tried." Marlon scoffed, shaking his head.

"Think about it. When was the last time we saw a kid our age out here? She could be useful." Louis persisted with the idea.

"Better to send her packing before they get too comfortable. I still don't trust her. That kid of hers was already trying to get all chummy with Ten earlier." Violet wasn't having any of it, not after everything they'd done to make sure this place was secure.

"So what? That pipsqueak probably needs a friend anyway. All he does now is stare at those damn graves every night. It's creepy."

"Don't joke about that, you dick." The blonde took a single step forward, balling up her fists, her teeth gritting, dumbfounded by how insensitive he could be sometimes.

"It's true, though." He shrugged at her.

"Alright, alright. Quit it." Marlon decided to intervene, but Violet was done, already brushing past him as she stormed towards the door with a sour look on her face, leaving the room before disappearing down the corridor.

Louis chuckled after the fact, looking up at Marlon and grinning. "I think that's a new record."

"Are you fucking five?" He grumbled, crossing his arms at him. "You want more time to play with your stupid thing? Fine. But we're coming back." The rowdy-looking one turned his back on Louis, heading towards the door as the room soon again fell silent.

He had a moment of peace now, but he didn't know for how much longer. Maybe just enough for one more song. Louis swiveled back around on his chair, his feet now positioned under the piano. His fingers started moving again as he continued tapping away at the keys, eager to just let his mind drift for a bit.

Where did he say it was, bottom floor, room on the far right? Clementine mulled over her thoughts, strolling through the deserted corridor. If anyone was awake, maybe she could ask for directions, but it looked like everyone had already gone to bed. The place was like a damn maze, and she sure as hell didn't want to leave AJ alone in the room for too long.

Just when she considered calling it quits and heading back to their room, Clem swore she'd heard something coming from the last room at the very end. It sounded pretty close to unnerving at first, a sound that had become unfamiliar to her ears after so long.

Is someone playing… piano?

Clementine was sure of it, her head tilting down the corridor, her brows furrowed. Slowly yet steadily she crept towards the noise, and the closer she got, the more recognizable it became. The melody was loud enough to echo out into the hallway. As the girl made it to the doorway, she leaned over and peeked into the room. It was none other than Louis sitting there, seemingly entranced by the melody as he continued to play the tune on the old-fashioned piano.

He might've been a condescending prick, but Clementine had to admit... he knew how to play. Is this even the right room? It had to be… since every other room was either locked up or dead silent. I should probably-

"I can see you." Her thoughts were abruptly cut short by the sound of Louis' voice. He'd spotted her staring. Shit… The girl took a step forward, now standing in the doorway as she came into full view.

"Marlon told me there was a meeting somewhere." Her expression was stagnant, the girl spitting out an excuse, immediately regretting her decision to come down there.

The boy turned around on his seat to face her, that same antagonistic smirk creeping up on his face. She couldn't tell if he was trying to be confrontational or friendly.

"You found the right room. Just waiting on em' to get back. Make yourself at home."

Clementine shifted her weight to her other foot, looking around the room as if trying to scan every little detail. Louis just found it to be weird. It went quiet for a moment before he spoke again.

"Unless you think I got another trap in here…"

"I don't know. You tell me." Clem crossed her arms, squinting her eyes at the boy who'd pretty much made her walker bait earlier today.

"Listen, how many times do I have to say I'm sorry before you chill out?"

"More than none."

"I…" Louis stuttered, his usual bravado giving into the fact that she was right this time around. "Y'know what? Forget it." He sighed out in his seat, turning his back on the girl.

Clementine was taken off-guard, because for once he didn't have something smart to say back. Was he actually sorry? Or just trying to fuck with her again? After a brief pause, she rolled her eyes, giving into the silence before strolling into the room. She'd have to wait for the rest to get there regardless… so she picked her seat at the desk which was well away from Louis, the chair's legs grinding against the wooden floor when she turned it outwards to face him before finally taking her seat. Silence filled the room again.

"If you got something to say, then say it."

"How about this. Because of my trap, you're getting free supplies tomorrow. It's like… probably the best thing that's happened to you all week." Louis retorted, probably thinking it was true, even if he did seem to be kind of kidding.

"Ha. Funny." She answered back in the dryest tone she could form. "You obsessed with always being an asshole?"

"Not as obsessed as I am with this piano." He grinned, patting the lid of the instrument.

"I know, I could hear you from a mile away."

"I just figured... we all gotta carry over something from the old world, so why not music?"

"Sounds like a pretty risky hobby."

"Why's that?"

"It's a lot of damn noise, don't you think?"

"Well, that's what the walls are for, Clementine."

She turned her head away from him, a sour look smeared across her demeanour.

Yeah, and you trust those walls to stay up? She felt like spitting back, but held her tongue. Was making conversation always this… confrontational? Or was she being too aggressive? It'd been so long that she couldn't even tell.

"How'd you even learn to play like that, anyway?"

"Oh, curious are we? Didn't know I had a fan."

"That's a stretch." The girl mumbled under her breath.

Louis let out a small laugh, seemingly taking joy out of her jab at him. He adjusted his position now, interlocking his fingers with both of his hands as his elbows rested on his knees.

"I had a strict teacher when I was a little. Piano class three times a week… three-thirty to four-thirty after class. Was a drag at first, but I ended up kinda digging it. Stuck with me even after everything fell apart. Obviously, I had a lot of time to catch up on practice, too." She didn't sense that tinge of snark usually present in his voice anymore, his eyes trailing off to his feet. She could tell he was thinking about it, that it wasn't bullshit.

"You ever play?" The question he asked caught her off guard, her head jolting towards him.

Clementine scoffed at the thought. "One time… in music class. I was horrible."

The boy chuckled in response, before looking down at his hands yet again, seemingly mulling over something. It was then that he asked a question she wasn't exactly prepared for.

"You wanna try?" He asked, gesturing his head over to the piano behind him.

"What?" Her voice croaked, unable to tell if she'd heard him right. "No, it's fine." She spoke faintly, shuffling in her seat. Looking away.

Louis groaned, getting off his seat as he made way, leaning on the side of the piano, offering her the seat. "C'mon. This is a once in a lifetime chance. When's the next time you're gonna see a piano?"

She didn't answer him straight away, awkwardly glaring at the contraption beside him. Trying to decide between the voice in her head yelling at her to stay put, and her hopeless curiosity towards giving it a try. The invitation was ultimately too tempting to turn down.

"Okay…"

Her eyes trailed over to the keyboard, slowly making her way towards the old piano. Immediately taking notice of some sort of label encased on the wood. 'Blackraven.' She read out in her head, before assuming her position in the seat, various black and white keys that she could hardly remember how to operate.

"So, what do I do?" She finally asked the boy beside her, a hint of confusion riddled across her face.

"Alright, let's start simple. Hands in this position." Louis leaned over, placing his right hand on five of the keys. "C.C.G.G….. A.A.A.A.G" He spoke evenly, pressing each individual key slowly, playing a small tune that Clementine instantly recognized.

"Baa Baa Black Sheep?" Clementine looked up at him, raising a brow in near amusement.

"Damn right it is. You don't got anything against that song, right? It's a classic."

"No, it's just… haven't heard that one in a while."

"Well, your time to shine. You have the floor."

Clementine placed her hand on the exact keys as instructed. Now came the hard part. Pressing down on all the keys in precise timing, a process that had her brain all muddled up.

"Uh… like this?" C.C.G.G She repeated in her mind, hopefully it'd just… flow out. The first four notes surprisingly formed the first part of the tune, resulting in something that wasn't a complete disjointed mess, even if she was a little slower. Woah…

Alright, now the other notes.

Starting with the first A, she gently but firmly pushed down on the key, producing a soft hum that echoed through the room. However this time she overestimated her speed, rushing it slightly. The first four notes came out in quick succession, unfortunately, the last note resulted in her finger sliding outwards and accidentally hitting the wrong key… the tune blaring out in a contorted mess that was super obvious, causing Clementine's lips to twist into a pout. Yeesh...

She looked over to Louis, who let out a large hiss through his teeth… wincing in an over exaggerated manner. "Ooft. My ears."

"Shut up, " Clementine smirked, perhaps enjoying this piano thing more than she cared to admit. Although, she wasn't about to let Louis see that, quickly adjusting her gaze to her hands.

"Seriously though. With some more practice, I reckon you'd be pretty kickass." Louis' comment once again took her off guard. It sounded an awful lot like he was suggesting she should stay… Of course, she could just be overthinking it.

"It's too bad I-"

"Oh. You're finally here." Before she could even finish her sentence another voice cut her off. It was loud… and didn't sound at all impressed. She looked over to see that stern looking girl from earlier today. Violet… I think. The blonde called out in an over-exaggerated tone as she butted in. The other teen was leaned up against the door, her arms crossed. Clementine didn't have a clue how long she was watching, but instinctively rose to her feet, almost as a defence mechanism.

"Great, we can get started then." Marlon's echoed from behind her, strolling into the room, making a beeline for the back desk as he slammed down an old-looking directory on it. "Everyone get your seats."

"Took your time," Violet commented, eyes locked onto Clementine. The girl delivering her a harsh scowl, walking past her before making her way to take a seat at the table.

Clementine decided to hold her tongue. Brushing off the comment, Louis seemed to take notice of it too, looking at Clementine awkwardly as he delivered her a simple shrug. The both of them headed for the table as they all began to take their seats.

"Brody gave me a rundown on that Lodge near the bypass, still quiet. Now that we got an extra set of hands, I think we can pull it off."

"And what are we pulling off, exactly?" Clementine directed her attention to Marlon, hoping to know exactly what she was getting into.

"This place we scouted out a few weeks back. It's a fucking goldmine. Problem is it's rigged with a shitload of traps."

"Not yours?" Clem questioned.

"Not ours."

"We've been watching over it for a while. Whoever put it there's long gone. Similar setup to what we had… but instead of getting strung up, one misstep and a boulder's coming down on your head. There's a lot of them around the building." Marlon explained, fingers trailing over the outline of the map.

"Great. So I'm live bait pretty much?" Clementine sighed out. It was now no secret she wasn't at all pleased with how unsafe it sounded.

"You'll be fine, we just need someone to watch our backs while we cut 'em down. The noise brings deadheads. Violet, I'm pairing you up with Clementine on this one… can you guys handle that?" Marlon pressed both of his hands up on the desk, leaning forward, swapping his gaze between the two of them.

"Last thing I need is to get partnered up with someone that doesn't know their right foot from their left out there. Just don't expect me to carry your weight." Violet leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms once again.

"I've always taken care of myself." Clem's eye twitched, trying to keep a straight face at the apparent third degree. Her message was loud and clear: she considered her dead weight, and oh how much Clementine did not like that one bit.

"Hell, I believe her." Louis was quick to intervene, the reasoning behind his statement being obvious. They'd all seen how he'd been outmaneuvered by her when they first met. It should go without saying.

"It's settled then. Clementine and Violet on deadhead duty, while the rest of us deal with the traps."

"And our deal?"

"Half of whatever we find, like I said before. No more, no less."

As the four teenagers conversed about tomorrow's run, a fifth party had been listening in. Although not the type Clementine may had been expecting, failing to see the dog that had wandered into the room so casually, not being able to recognise the new person among them. Rosie made her way behind Clementine, who hadn't seen her yet.

Just as Clem was about to open her mouth, her heart nearly jumped out of her chest, she felt something nudge her side, and then a paw brushing up against her leg. She froze and her eyes widened, hearing the familiar sound of heavy panting that she remembered all too well. The girl let out a gasp in response and jumped out of her seat, backing away from the large hulk-like dog that had somehow snuck up behind her.

"Woah, what's the problem?" Marlon rose out of his seat, the reaction from Clementine seeing his dog not something he could predict. It was out of the ordinary.

"Call it away!" Clementine yelled out in a panic, Rosie let out a friendly bark in response, only serving to frighten the girl more.

"What?" Marlon scowled at her in confusion.

"Calm down, it's just Rosie... She's-" Louis didn't even get a chance to speak before Clementine cut him off, yelling at them again.

"I said call it away!" The girl's breathing increased rapidly, now in fear of the massive dog, placing her hand on the side of her belt as she contemplated withdrawing her knife.

"Rosie. Come!" Marlon called out, pointing at his feet. Rosie tilted her head over to her apparent owner, beckoning to his call as she ran over to Marlon's side, sniffing his pants as Marlon grabbed her by the collar to stop her from running back to Clementine.

"Looks like we gotta keep an eye on the pets now." Violet was now standing up, however, not seeming to be as concerned. In fact, she seemed more amused than anything. Shrugging at Louis and Marlon, as it only further served to justify her suspicions about this new girl.

"What's wrong with you?" Marlon snarled at the girl, taking notice that she almost withdrew her knife on his dog, not at all being able to comprehend how someone could even do something like that.

"Maybe keep it on a fucking leash, that's what's wrong!" Clementine yelled back, her tone like venom. It was then that a lump formed in her throat, only now being able to realize her actions… and her outburst. The room fell silent, and Clem's face went white in sheer embarrassment. Knowing she wouldn't be able to explain it… nor did she want to.

"I…" The girl croaked out, trying to offer some sort of apology. Everyone was looking at her like she was some kind of maniac… and the worst part was, she couldn't blame them. Clementine's gaze averted to her feet, head hung low as she stormed past all of them, heading out of the room.

"Clementine… it's no big dea-" She saw Louis outstretch his hand as if to stop her from leaving the room, however his voice was abruptly cut off as she slammed the door. Leaving the room dead silent with three very confused teenagers.

"What the fuck just happened?" Marlon looked to his companions, then back down to Rosie, who was looking up at him excitedly.

"I… don't know, she just freaked." Louis looked towards the door, bewildered.

"You guys figure it out. I'm not the one that decided to let her roam free around here." Violet spoke in a judgemental tone, seemingly disengaged from whatever had just transpired.

Clementine could feel her chest thumping rapidly, she needed air… and after storming out of the room she found herself on the veranda at the entry of the building. It was a mistake… going down there. It was better for her to just stay away… better for them too. Her hands gripped the front of the railing, leaning forward against it as she squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, trying to calm herself down.

It was stupid, after all they had been through today…of course the freaking pet was the thing to frighten her. Her unwavering paranoia from the last experience she had with a dog… it was enough to make her flip out. She thought it was going okay there for a moment… interacting with other people again. However, it was a thorough wake up call that she just wasn't ready to try again, nor did she need to. The next morning would be her last one here, and after Marlon made good with his deal on giving her supplies, she'd be gone. It was for the best.

Author's notes: This one took a while to come out, so I thought I'd make it a bit chunkier for you guys. Again, thank you to all that have left a comment thus far. And a massive thanks to my buddies Art and Dot yet again for beta reading, it's been helping me a tonne. The recent TFS teaser has me hyped and I can't wait to see how Clem interacts with the boarding school characters there. Just a heads up, I have been considering waiting until the first episode has released so I have more content to go ahead and write with and get a better idea of the new character's personalities. Of course it wont just be episode 1 word for word, but it always helps to have a base idea to write around. This story was pretty much revolving around Clem's first interaction with the boarding school, with that now out of the way and with the release of the first episode, after I play it I'll have a better idea if I should continue the story.

Regardless, I'll see you all again soon : )