"Oh my, lord...".

Violet jumped slightly when she heard Ruby's voice echo beside her, desperately trying to rein in her heavy breathing as she was pulled back into reality. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't break her gaze away from the bloodied mass of flesh that sat on the other side of the bridge, walkers still milling about the fresh corpse.

It was, no doubt, Minnie.

It was a sickening sight, to say the least, seeing the girl she once loved reduced down to nothing more than a rotting hunk of flesh and bone, but the blonde couldn't bring herself to feel anything other than anger and disdain for the traitorous redhead. Minnie killed Sophie, gotten Tenn killed, and was the reason Clementine had gotten hurt. For all she knew, her ex-girlfriend was the reason her current girlfriend was bleeding out, all alone in a barn, surrounded by walkers ready to devour her.

Subconsciously, Violet gripped her cleaver's handle tighter, her bloodied up knuckles turning white.

If she lost Clem…

… she didn't even want to imagine a world like that…

And she couldn't even get revenge on the person who would be responsible for taking her away if such a thing should happen.

"Vi... I know you're upset, but we have to keep moving," Ruby said, reaching over and placing a hand on the blonde's shoulder, trying to drag her away from the horrific sight, "We should be getting close to the barn now, AJ said it wasn't too far from here, just over that ridge,".

Of course, Violet didn't respond, she just stared silently at the remains of her ex-lover, anger still flowing through her veins.

"We… we can find a place to bury her too… if you want,".

"No, fuck her!" Violet snapped, shooting daggers at the southern girl, appalled by the mere suggestion, "That crazy bitch got exactly what she deserved, I hope she burns in hell,". As if to prove her utter hate for the other girl, she spit vaguely in the corpse's direction before walking off, shouldering Ruby's hands away, "Now let's get the fuck out of here…".

Louis grunted with approval, clearly not wanting to stay on the bridge any longer either. Even though he wasn't there for the events that transpired a few hours earlier, there was a heavy sense of dread and sorrow that hung in the air as the trio set off again. They'd planned on coming back to the last place she'd seen Clem, and bring poor little Tenn's body back to Ericson, wanting him (and only him) to have a proper burial. But, when they arrived, it was already too late… the boy's body was nowhere to be found, which meant one of two things… things Violet refused to think about but ironically couldn't stop obsessing over.

She already had so much shit going through her head, that it was hard to focus on anything else. But for Clem's sake, she kept moving forward, determined to bring the girl back home even if it was the last thing she did. However, the logical side of her knew not to get her hopes up about what they might find in the barn when they arrived, but for some reason, blind optimism took control of her emotions, denying her to reason with the fact that the dark-haired girl might already be dead.

Ruby and Louis followed behind her, keeping their distance as she silently cursed to herself, all of them trying to ignore the very clear trail of blood leading away from the spot when Minnie had taken an ax to Clem's leg, the wood and asphalt stained a deep, reddish brown color. It was easy to follow, along with the alarming amount of dead walkers lining the street. No way Clem could have taken them out all on her own; strong as she was; so AJ must have helped protect her, along with pulling her up the small ridge where the road continued.

Violet looked up at the large scale of rocks standing before her, both shocked and impressed that a 5-year-old helped pull a girl nearly 3 times his size up there. But then again… according to AJ, this is where she also got bit, one of the walkers with a bullet between its eyes being the one responsible for that. She gave it a kick before sighing, not wanting her anger to take over again.

"Louis, give me a boost and I'll pull you guy's up," she said, turning to her friends.

They both shared a look.

"Why don't I go first and we both pull up Louis," Ruby suggested, "Be easier that way".

Violet's initial confusion slowly turned into suspicion. "Why does that matter? We just need to go help, Clem. You… you don't trust me, do you? You think I'm just going to ditch you?!". In truth, the blonde had considered it, but Ruby was right, Clem was going to need medical attention as soon and as quickly as possible, so she quickly dropped the idea. "What the fuck!".

"Just, calm down, Vi. We're just being precautions, alright? You're… you're in a very vulnerable place right now and none of us want you making any rash decisions," the southern girl explained, "We're just looking out for you… and for Clem,".

Louis nodded, offering her a smile as if it would make everything better.

It did not.

But Violet couldn't exactly waste time yelling at her friends for not trusting her, not when they were racing against the clock. So, for the time being, she just groaned in annoyance and gestured to the ridge again. "Fine, we'll do it your way…" she said, "but don't think I'm going to forget this".

Ruby seemed content with her answer and didn't say anything farther until they both pulled the boy up to solid ground, all of them taking a short breather. "It's… It's not that we don't trust you, Violet," she continued, "I'm just worried… alright? I know how you get when you're like this, and as your friend, I don't ever want to see you like that,".

The blonde did her best to ignore her, already knowing where the conversation was going. "I don't want to hear it right now," she hissed, getting to her feet and trudging off again, "now get up off your asses and let's go,".

"Vi-".

"Drop it, Ruby… I mean it…".

There was a tense moment of silence between the two girls, Louis once again caught in the crossfire. It was an unspoken rule between all the Ericson kids that no one was allowed to bring up things from their past, things from before the world ended. If it was in their files, it was all the others needed to know other than what was told by word of mouth.

Violet knew what she was getting at, referring to a night long ago when Minnie first went missing, she'd broken into Marlon's 'not-so-secret' liquor stash and gotten herself wasted, trying to focus on anything other than the emotional pain. She was young and dumb… reckless, and lucky that Ruby had found her when she did.

"Just… just drop it… please," she muttered, not wanting to remember that night… ever.

A wave of sympathy washed over Ruby as she sighed, dropping the subject for her friend's sake. "Fine," she finally said, "just know we're worried about you… alright?".

Without saying another word, Violet continued down the road, poor Louis still having no clue what was going on. It really wasn't anything he needed to know, something that no one, not even Clem, knew about (not that she intended to tell her). What happened was a lifetime ago, she was a different person back then and none of that shit even mattered anymore, but it still haunted her.

"Let's go…" the blonde muttered, a small part of her expecting Ruby to persist, continue arguing or what not, but she and Louis remained silent, save for a few grunts from the boy, obviously trying to figure out what the fuck just happened. Thankfully, the southern girl didn't say a thing, and neither did Louis (Violet mentally kicked herself for thinking that), and all that filled the air was the buzzing sound of flies, and a low hum of walkers groaning and moaning in the distance.

There was still a clear path of dead walkers that Clem and AJ had left behind, some with bullets in their brains, others with their heads entirely smashed in, rotting brain matter covering the pavement. Whilst being impressive, it also made the teens wonder just how many walkers were waiting outside the barn AJ described, tearing at the surely weak and worn out structure, clearly drawn out by the smell of fresh blood…

Or a dead body.

Violet shook her head and quickened her pace, readying her weapon as more walkers came into view. "Take out as many as you can," she instructed, "Clear the area and look for that barn!".

Ruby and Louis nodded, both running in and taking down two unsuspecting walkers. "We've got your back, Vi," the other girl said, the taller boy raising a hand to his forehead and giving her a salute with a smile.

Using the technique she'd seen Clem use the first few days she was at Ericson, Violet kicked in the knees of an upcoming walker, jamming the sharp point of the arrow into its skull before moving on to the next one, repeating the process a few more times before resorting to using her bow as more of them moved in.

It was a somewhat pleasant distraction from the situation at hand, fighting and killing off the creatures… even if the task itself was gruesome. It wasn't that she enjoyed the act or anything, in reality, Violet was still the same, scared little kid that watched her grandma kill herself. But in this world, she was a skilled killer with a cold, closed off personality to cover up all her fears and insecurities.

All of them were hiding behind a false personality… it was the only thing that kept them alive so long.

Who they are and who they needed to be to survive were two very different things.

But as the years dragged on, it was harder and harder to tell the two apart.

"You guys alright?" Violet asked, panting slightly as she pulled her bloodied cleaver out of the walker's skull. Most of them were dead now, Louis taking out the last one before grunting in response, "Ruby?".

"Yeah, I'm good," she replied, wiping some blood off her face, "Now let's go. With all these walkers milling about, we should be getting close to the-".

Before the redhead could finish, they all paused, a large gust of wind blowing through the treeline, and with it carried the sound of… windchimes? There was a moment of confusion that spread through the trio, none of them quite sure what to make of the sudden ambiance, but after few second, realization hit Violet like a brick to the face.

"The barn," she muttered, blinking a few times before quickly taking off in the direction of the chimes, remembering how AJ had mentioned hearing them when he and Clem first went to James' barn. Ruby and Louis didn't even question her, immediately following after the blonde as she ran down the road and up a dirt path, stopping dead in front of the large wooden structure.

Walkers were everywhere, some dead on the ground and others clawing at the loose boards, desperate to get in. Violet just stood there, unblinking and unmoving, her fears and paranoia finally catching up to her. This was it… the homestretch of their journey. What laid beyond those barn doors would make or break the rest of her life, and she wasn't sure if she was ready to face that.

But her friends had other plans.

"Violet move your ass now and take down those walkers!" Ruby snapped, harshly shoving her forward to, once again, snap her out of her trance, "Louis, secure the perimeter and make sure none of those bastards can get in there!".

The boy nodded, immediately running off into the horde of walkers, taking them down with horrific blows to the head before disappearing around the corner.

Desperate to help fight off the dead, Violet lifted up her bow with trembling hands, struggling to focus on her intended target. It wasn't like her to freeze up… she'd always been able to maintain a steady hold on her weapons even in the worst of conditions.

But…

Maybe Minnie was right… maybe she was just a coward, a shy, quiet coward who never bothered to stand up for herself.

"Focus, Violet!" the southern girl yelled again, watching the blonde completely miss her target, the walker getting dangerously close to her, "Don't you fucking dare give up now! Fight for your girl, Vi… she needs you! Clementine needs you!".

Clementine.

Out of everyone she ever knew, Clementine was the only person who ever made Violet feel important... like her thoughts, feelings, and opinions mattered. The dark haired girl never once made fun of her, not even when she asked if they could dance, something she'd wanted to do with Minnie for years, but would always get turned down and laughed at for having such childish desires.

Clem made her feel strong, stronger than her false closed off personality ever made her feel. Around Clementine… Violet felt like she could finally be herself.

And there was no way in hell she was going to give that up.

"For Clementine," she said, drawing her arrow back and driving it into the walker's head, a spray of blood hitting her in the face as it toppled over mere inches away from her face. The blonde could practically hear Ruby sigh with relief as she finally snapped out of it and began taking down more of the horrid creatures, driven purely by determination.

One by one she, Ruby and Louis took down the monsters, mowing through them until the ground was littered with bodies, the trio covered in guts and blood.

Violet took a deep breath, looking down at the carnage before them, the rush of adrenaline finally wearing off. "... fuck," she muttered, letting her bow fall to the ground, blinking a few times as she leaned against the side of the barn to catch her breath.

"Looks like that was the last of 'em,".

"Good… now, let's get in there and-". Before Violet could open the barn doors, Louis suddenly placed his hand on the wood, holding it shut as the redhead stood beside her, an utterly serious look on her face, "... Ruby?".

"Vi, I need you to listen to me," she said, "Whatever we find in there… I'm gonna need your help. I'll need you to patch her up with me and make sure the bleedin' has stopped… and if she's-".

The redhead paused, blinking away tears of her own.

"If she's turned… you're gonna have to be the one to… to take her out, Vi," she continued, "I… we can't do that for ya, and… I think she'd want you to be the one to do it,".

Violet couldn't respond, having already tried mentally prepare herself for this exact moment, but part of her never thought it would actually come down to the possibility of her having to kill her own girlfriend. A small sob escaped her throat at the mere thought, and Ruby threw her arms around her and held her in a tight hug.

After a moment the blonde to pulled away, dragging her sleeve across her face to dry the tears and blood from her face. No matter what, she was going to have to walk through those doors and deal with the aftermath whatever it may be. So Violet walked silently over to the doors, looking up a Louis who removed his hand, allowing her to pull them open to reveal what was inside.

Blood.

That was the first thing Violet noticed when she entered the barn.

It was strong and pungent, almost suffocating, enough to make her recoil in disgust and bury her nose in the crook of her arm.

"Ah, fuck…".

As her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting of the barn, she looked around the place to take in her surroundings. "And always look for another way out, " she thought, remembering what the Clementine had taught her.

There were a few large holes in the roof, sunlight illuminating the hay covered floor in warm, sunny patches. Some of the walls were rotted through, time not faring well for the place, but it was safe enough for now. The structure itself was small inside, a couple of stalls for animals and a bit of room in the back for feed and equipment, and a few bales of hay piled in the middle of the room.

Violet looked to Ruby for reassurance for a moment, hesitant to step forward and see what was hidden behind said hay bales, a small pool of blood trailing away from the corners.

"Clem…?" she muttered.

Of course, there was no response… not that she really expected any in return.

She took a step forward.

Dread began to creep into her mind as the blood puddle grew the closer she got.

The blonde could feel Ruby and Louis beside her, ready to jump in when she finally turned the corner. In all honesty, Violet wasn't sure what to expect when they finally found Clementine, already knowing ahead of time what AJ had to do in order to save her, but nothing could have prepared her for the real thing.

"Holy shit…".

For a moment, her mind went blank, her body refusing to move as she fixated on the sight before her.

Clem's leg was gone…

The missing appendage sitting about a foot (no pun intended) away from where it should be attached, a bloody ax still stuck in the red-stained dirt. She could see where AJ had tried to fashion a tourniquet out of some rope that had been left lying around, but it didn't doo much to stop the bleeding.

"Oh god…".

The other girl was beyond pale, her normally warm caramel skin was reduced down to an ashy grey color, her eyes and cheeks sunken in.

She looked to be dead.

Ruby was the first to move, immediately pushing Violet and Louis out of the way as she grabbed Clementine's unconscious hand, checking her pulse for any signs of life. "Come on… come on…" the redhead muttered, her eyes shut tight for a moment… waiting… listening.

"Oh, god…" the blonde repeated, pressing her hand against her mouth as she felt bile begin to build up in the back of her throat, forcing it's way up. She was never really squeamish per se, but the sight of Clementine missing a limb, plus the added fear and anxiety she felt didn't exactly help her case.

Louis didn't move as she shouldered him aside and ran to the opposite end of the barn to throw up, unable to hold down the little food she had in her stomach from the night prior.

"P- Please…" she sputtered, dry heaving again, "Please… she can't be gone… she-".

Violet just stayed there on her knees, trembling as she tried to wrap her head around what was happening, Ruby's words barely registering in her head.

"Vi, we got a pulse! She's alive… but she's lost a lot of blood. We need to cauterize the wound and get her to the school fast!".

But Violet couldn't move.

Louis, too… stood looking shell shocked at the girl who laid dying on the ground.

"Violet!".

Her body jolted slightly as the southern girl grabbed onto her shoulders, pulling her up to her feet in one fell swoop.

"You'll have a lot more to cry about if she dies," Ruby snapped, "Now get your ass over here and help me stop the bleeding!".

Violet just looked at her blankly for a moment, tears on her face and vomit clinging to the edge of her mouth, her breathing struggling to maintain a steady pace."T- tell me what to do,".

Ruby sighed with relief.

"Good girl… now I need you to start a fire, heat up your knife until it glows red. I'm going to tighten the turniquite until you're ready".

Usually, starting fires was Aasim's job, but the blonde figure making that joke in this situation was… not wise. So she simply nodded and looked around the barn for something to get a small blaze going, trying hard to get her hands to stop shaking...

"Louis…" the redhead continued, "Keep an eye on the door for us… all this blood is bound to draw out more walkers".

The boy nodded with the same thousand-yard stare she had but somehow managed to get himself to move unprompted, planting himself at the front door of the barn.

Violet envied his resilience in difficult situations. Unlike her, he seemed able to handle the harshness of reality… or he was just good at hiding it.

"How's that fire going Vi?".

"I- I can't find anything to light… the hay will just burn up on its own, and I can't peel any wood off of this place without making a door for unwanted guests,".

"Shit… are you sure there is nothing else to use?".

Violet nodded, "I mean… I can use the ax and take down one of the inner doors but… that'll take too long and-".

She paused. suddenly feeling something hard tap against her shoulder, Louis' soft grunts sounding behind her, the boy looking down at the weapon resting in his hands.

"What are you-?".

He gestured to the weapon and grunted, pushing it forward in her direction, a broken smile adorning his face.

Violet took it out of confusion, staring at it for a moment as she tried to figure out why on earth Louis would give her Chairles… his favorite weapon. But then given the predicament they were in, realization dawned on her.

"Louis…".

But the boy shook his head, refusing to take the weapon when she tried to hand it back.

"I… thank you," she muttered, shyly throwing her arms around him, knowing that his small sacrifice would help Clem in the long run. He nodded and hugged her back tightly before stepping away, pointing over to Ruby who anxiously monitored over the other girl.

Sniffling once more, Violet got to work, putting her minimal knowledge of fire starting to the test, gathering a bunch of hay to act as kindling.

Getting a spark was the easy part, striking her clever against the metal of the ax AJ had left behind, but keeping those sparks alive long enough to catch was harder than she thought. But eventually, after an agonizing few minutes, she had a small fire going, immediately placing the metal of her cleaver into the flames, careful not to douse them in the process.

"Good... now keep adding hay on it to keep it going," Ruby said, "Once it's all nice and hot, we gotta cauterize it… the rest can be taken care of at the school,".

"Will… will she feel it?' Violet asked, terrified that Clementine could feel everything but was just unconscious enough to not be able to react.

"Probably," she admitted, "Yer going to have to find something for her to bite down on…".

She swallowed hard and nodded, keeping an eye on the knife as it slowly started to turn a bright, glowing red.

"Louis… we're going to need you to hold her down, make sure she doesn't move too much,".

He grunted in response, walking over and placing his hands over Clem's shoulders.

"Vi.. get the knife ready…".

Violet obeyed, removing the glowing weapon from the flames, and bringing it over to her unconscious girlfriend, staring down at te stump where her leg used to be attached. She could see the raw flesh, bone, and muscles that just seemed to taper off into bloody nothingness.

It must have taken a few good swings for AJ to cut the entire thing off.

"... Are you ready, Violet," Ruby asked, looking over at her as she gently placed a hunk of splintered off wood into Clem's mouth, "I won't lie… it ain't gonna be pretty,".

"As ready as I'll ever be," She muttered, gripping her hand on the cleaver's handle, her hands continuing to tremble and shake as she slowly pressed the glowing metal against the exposed flesh.

It sizzled upon contact, Clementine lurching and grunting in pain.

"It's okay! It's okay… just keep going Vi," Ruby said, seeing tears spring up in the blonde's eyes.

The smell was awful.

Sure she'd been subjected to the smell of burning walkers before (thanks Aasim), but their flesh beyond rotten, and Clem...

Clem was still alive, and she could feel what they were doing to her.

"I'm sorry…" Violet muttered, continuing to cauterize the wound as the barn began to fill with the revolting stench of cooking flesh, "I'm so sorry…".

By the time Ruby said she'd done enough and bandaged up the other girl's leg, Violet had dissolved into silent tears again, her girlfriend seeming even more pale and fragile than before. Guilt had made its presence known again, but the blonde did her best to keep those feelings at bay, focused on getting Clem back to the school.

With Louis carefully carrying the unconscious girl, Violet, and Ruby armed and prepared themselves for the journey back, ready to fight off whatever walkers were drawn to them.

Sniffling one last time, Violet pushed the barn doors open and stepped outside.

"Let's go home…".