After she went missing in Savannah for a few days, Rarity finally found Lee and Clementine only to discover that the man was bitten; leaving her with no choice but to take Clementine under her wing.
The Walking Dead OWNED BY TELLTALE! MLP OWNED BY HASBRO!
It's been a week since Savannah. A week since they left. When Lee had died from his bite, Rarity was left to become Clementine's next guardian. She'd gone missing from the group for a few days when she went out on a supply run, enduring multiple life-threatening risks to live. It was difficult taking care of herself and now she had to take care of the little girl.
She hated having to leave the city without her friends but she couldn't take the risk to search for them, not with the child. Rarity hoped she would find them again but right now, keeping Clementine safe was her top priority and if she were forced to, she'll kill anything that brought harm her way.
"Why don't we set up there?" Rarity pointed at the gasoline station they were coming up at on the road. They were arriving in a small town, A few broken cars stationary on the deserted road. Store windows smashed in and trash all over the estate.
It was in the afternoon, or at least she thought it was. They had been travelling for hours, taking only five-minute breaks, sometimes even less. The sun had been completely glossed over by the clouds, painted in grey like a coated canvas. The cabin they decided to take for the night had been overrun by walkers early in the morning when the sun was beginning to arise. The mare didn't want to give the herd a chance to catch up to them. She forced Clementine to keep up with her, no matter how tired she got.
The first few days were the most horrifying. Rarity wasn't able to find any source of shelter, not even a small campsite on the first day; If it were up to her, she would've kept going. She wouldn't have stopped until she found shelter, someplace to sleep in but Clementine had gotten too tired to keep going. She was extremely reluctant about sleeping outside. Hygienic issues were the least of her problems, surprisingly, being Rarity and all but that wasn't the problem.
Way too dangerous. Too dark and they were surrounded by trees in every direction. It was the worst place to get some sleep. They had no camping equipment with them, just themselves... and one handgun. Rarity had stayed up the rest of the night, flinching at every twig that snapped.
"Is there anywhere else we can go?" Clementine asked, trailing along beside the mare.
"No, this place is more... safe." Rarity didn't care if it was safe or not. The station was still holding up, it's windows were covered in cracks. It looked to be extremely delicate, one small tap could shatter the entire window.
The child sighed. "I just hope there's no walkers that we have to deal with."
"Well even if there were walkers, you wouldn't be 'dealing' with anything."
"W-what do you mean?"
"I mean... You wouldn't be dealing with any walkers. If you were to get..." Rarity cleared her throat. "Hurt, I'd be devastated."
"But... what about you? Won't you get hurt?"
"There's no need to worry about me darling, I do have magic after all. If anything tries to harm us, I'll take care of it."
The child hanged her head. "Okay..."
They slowed to a halt outside of the station. The lot was a cesspool of walker carcasses. Most of them had probably been there for a long time by the looks of them. Dried up blood, the horrid smell and crusty skin.
Rarity turned toward the child. "Clementine, I need you to wait out here for me."
"What!?" She worriedly inquired. "Why!?"
"Because there could be walkers in there and I need you to stay safe."
"B-but... I'm safer with you."
"This isn't a debate, you are waiting out here." Rarity replied, leaving no room for argument. The fashionista began making her way into the gas station.
"Lee would've brang me along."
The mare stopped in her path, frowning at the mention of his name. He probably would have. If he were here right now, Rarity wasn't going to have any regrets about leaving the child outside. It was safer out there than it was inside, at least they were able to see if walkers were closing in. Who knew what was inside the station. The lot was empty and as far as she saw, no one was around. Just dead bodies.
Somebody or something could be inside the station, she didn't know.
"Well, it doesn't matter what he would've done because he's not here, now is he?" Rarity paused waiting for Clementine to respond. When she didn't, she continued. "If anything happens, just... yell okay?" The mare's aura materialized around the doorknob. She turned it and pushed it open.
The interior of the station was in cluster. One huge mess, junk all over the place. There were two aisles, it's contents spilled all over the floor... or maybe have been looted by other people. The windows to the left of her provided some light. Thankfully, no walkers were around... yet.
The mare pushed aside a pile of clutter and began making her round through the station. Before moving over to the counter, she glanced around once more, making sure she didn't miss anything. No walkers that may have been lurking between the aisles.
When she found nothing, she moved over to the side of the counter and gasped. The maggot-ridden corpse laid mangled, limbs bent in places it wasn't supposed to be. It's eyes were presumably eaten by the larvae, all that was left was it's sockets.
The mare gulped. "I suppose there are worse fates." She levitated the piece of monstrosity over the counter plopping it down onto the cold hard tile floor. She went through worse, she thought to herself. The mare doused herself in walker gunk, you'd think she'd be used to seeing this filth. The lot is filled with them.
She walked past the counter into the office. It wasn't any better than the room she had just left. It was a simple set-up, a desk, chair and an inoperable computer. It was riddled with paper, a couple of empty bottles, cans, jars; stuff that wasn't important.
Her eyes found a framed photo on the desk, it's glass cracked. The picture was of a small family. A husband and wife with a little girl. They were smiling, hugging each other; entirely in bliss, full of happiness. Rarity couldn't help but feel sad, they seemed so happy in that photo. She wondered what happened to them if they were still alive.
Founding nothing of value, the mare left the room. She sighed, listening to the silence. The mare had no plan, no indication of what to do. Surviving the day? One day after the next? Survive a week, a month, year; then what? Was that it? Just survive? There weren't any other options.
Without her friends or just civilisation in general, life was... meaningless and she didn't like that.
With a sigh, the mare began to leave the station. She pushed open the door and found Clementine looking at a couple of the gas pumps. She walked over to the child. "Clementine, darling," the mare called.
The child turned. "Rarity? Are you okay? Were there any walkers?"
"No, there wasn't and I am fine." She lied. She wasn't fine, mentally at least. "There wasn't any walkers, fortunately for us. We'll rest up here for a little while, then move on." The mare then began walking back into the station with the child following behind her.
"Why don't we just stay here for a while? You know, like back at the motor inn?" The little girl inquired.
Rarity sighed. "Because it's not safe."
"W-why not?"
"Look around Clementine." The mare gestured to the whole station. "Does this look safe to you?"
The question went unanswered and the two of them entered the station. The mare then saw the corpse that she tossed on the floor earlier. She went over to it, nearly gagging. She levitated the mangled corpse and brought it outside. Once she was done, she closed the door and went to rest up.
She hoped to feel more vibrant as time flew by. Maybe if she got some rest, she would feel better. It could merely be exhaustion that was making her feel so demotivated. Hopefully, that was the case...
Rarity and Clementine have been on the road for a couple of weeks now. It was mainly them moving from place to place, stopping at some point to take a rest. That was a daily basis; wake up, start moving until they came across a new place to stay at. That gas station they decided to hunker down at wasn't much but it had a roof and four walls which were perfectly enough.
Couldn't complain, not in this world. Rarity was lucky enough to have even come across the station. Most of her time was spent tracking through the woods, ducking herds, left from right. Half of the time she would have issues trying to figure out which direction to head in, seeing as how there was nothing but brush everywhere she looked.
You could only imagine her relief when she found the road, finally being rid of the woods.
Everything was okay, to say the least. It wasn't perfect but the seamstress was hanging in there. She was feeling somewhat better, but still, she lacked that motivation deep down. The will to keep going. She always tried to ignore it, just simply shrug it off but it would constantly come back when she would finally take a rest.
At one point, the seamstress wondered what it would be like if she were alone. If she didn't have Clementine to take care of.
When she found Lee and the child, so much had transpired and she found herself as her new guardian. Lee had told her what to do but to her shame, she wasn't able to carry it out. Once she left that rotten excuse of a city, she had a child with her, she couldn't take the risk of going back into it for the sake of tracking down her friends. It was hard enough trying to survive on her own...
The two were travelling along the road in a fairly rural environment. Their left side was nothing but the wilderness, trees, brushes and to their right was a wide-open grass area, more specifically, dead wilted grass. They were coming up on a couple of road signs. One read "Truck Stop Rest Area" with an arrow pointing to the right. The other few were insignificant, old commercial posters that were peeling off the steel of the sign.
Rarity sighed. "Well, looks like we've found another rest stop."
"Finally, we've been walking for hours," Clementine replied.
The child would sometimes attempt to strike up a conversation but it would always end up one-sided and eventually, she would just stop trying. Rarity couldn't find the will engage in conversation
"Hopefully, it'll have some supplies." The mare remarked.
"Don't we already have some though?"
"Yes, we do but I always want to be prepared. You can never have too much."
They continued down the road for a little while until they came across a turn-off. Rarity followed and she came upon a small parking lot with a sign that indicated for cars on the right and trucks to the left. In the middle of the pitstop was two structures. The smaller one, being the latrine and the other was slightly bigger and the purpose of it was unknown to the mare.
She noticed a few walkers aimlessly roaming around the area. To her apprehension, she would have to take care of them. She stopped causing the child to halt as well. "Clementine, wait here for a moment. I need to deal with these... vermin."
"You always get me to wait. Can't I help you?" The young girl argued.
"No." Rarity simply replied.
"Why though?"
"Again, you'll only get yourself hurt. What exactly are you going to do without a weapon?" Rarity didn't wait for her to respond, she began walking over to the roamers.
Not her first time dealing with them, she dealt with plenty back in Savannah. A new norm she adapted to fairly quickly. She made light work of the roamers, using her magic to slam their heads into the pavement.
Soon after, the two of them walked over to the rest area.
"This seems like a nice spot to stay," Clementine said.
"Perhaps..." Rarity muttered. The windows inside the rest stop were boarded up, only a few gaps in the boards allowed the sun to shine through. Cluttered mess on the floors, junk and metal tables that Rarity had flipped over to keep the doors sealed shut. There was essentially only one room, the mare hadn't bothered to check the restrooms that were next door.
Clementine sat down by the corner, shrugging off her backpack and began rummaging through it. She pulled out a half-eaten granola bar she found a few days prior.
Rarity had been staring at the same wall for... well, a while now. That would frequently happen, every time they would find somewhere to rest; she'd always find herself being sucked back into her thoughts. She honestly disliked it, having to rest but she needed it... Clementine needed it. She would rather keep going, at least then she had something to focus on.
"Rarity?"
"Hmm?" The mare turned at Clementine who was holding up her granola bar.
"You want some?"
"Mm-mm." She shook her head. "It's yours but thank you, dear."
"Oh okay, are you sure?"
"Yes... I am sure." They both stayed silent from then on. Clementine sighed inwardly, there wasn't a point to try and start a conversation if it was only going to be one-sided.
Rarity opened her eyes, awakening from her sleep. A roar came from outside. It made her paralyzed, stuck staring at the door blocked by metal tables. It wasn't faint and it sounded like it was getting closer by the second.
This was no ordinary roar, it sounded like nothing that you would hear from an animal. This one was different...
like an engine.
Rarity was quick to conclude that it was a vehicle.
It got closer and soon enough, the roar of the engine was right outside the pit stop. The mare stood up, frantic, looking for the child. Her horn lit up a small portion of the room and she found the child, stirring in her sleep. "Clementine!" The mare whispered, gently shaking her. "Clementine, wake up."
It was dark out, the sun had but the dust a while ago. It was difficult to navigate around the room, utterly pitch black. Sometimes, the glow of the moon would've provided some light for the room; in this case, the windows had been boarded up which left the two in complete darkness.
"Clementine!" Suddenly, the engine went silent and voices could be heard on the other side of the door and a few thuds came after.
"Rarity? What's goi-"
"Shhh! Quiet!" The mare harshly whispered, turning back around at the door.
"What's going on?" The child inquired.
"A'ight yeah, ah'll get t'that in a minute!"
"Yeah well, hurry it up! We ain't gon' wait out 'ere forever!"
"Ya never know, could be some valuable shit 'n there."
Rarity and Clementine silently listened in to the stranger's conversation, a pool of dread filling their stomachs.
"Well, you can go 'n there if ya want. Ah'm gonna wait out here."
"Fine but if there's loot... it's all mine."
"Whatever." Suddenly, a pair of footsteps were approaching the door at a steady pace and the door began to rattle.
"The hell?" They heard on the other side of the door.
Rarity's breathing began to hasten. She walked in front of Clementine to shield her from what was about to happen. The door began to rattle then turned into full-on bangs, making the mare jump. Her horn then went.
After a few moments, the tables that were blocking the door began to grind against the floors.
"Be anymore louder why don't you?"
"You're gonna attract walkers, asshat!"
Rarity's heart was about ready to burst out of her chest. If it were any faster, she'd pass out. The door had opened slightly and a flashlight shined through. A head appeared out from behind the door, and what Rarity presumed was his hand had shined the flashlight in their face; blinding them.
"The fuck..." The stranger muttered to himself.
"What? What'd ya find?" A voice came from outside, a deep country accent.
The stranger silently stared at the unicorn, not responding to his friend. Rarity wasn't able to see the man's face but she could tell he was in complete shock.
"The hell... are you?" He whispered, pushing the door open further, allowing himself to come in. The headlights of the vehicle they were using were had lit up a large proportion of the room. Seeing no other use of the flashlight, he turned it off and went further into the rest stop.
"Don't come any closer."
The man immediately stopped after the mare spoke. The headlights had provided a better view of the man in front of her. He looked to be fairly young, maybe mid-twenties. Short patchy beard, shaggy hair. A pair of jeans and a button shirt. What grabbed her attention was the rifle in the man's hand.
"Turn around... and leave." Rarity quietly continued. Her eyes were square with the intent of watching him. She noticed his eyes going behind her, presumably at Clementine.
"Davy! You found anything!?"
"Uhh... y-y'all ain't gonna believe this!" The man known as Davy called out.
"Dude, hurry the hell up! Trevor's done, we're waitin' on you!"
"Guys just shut the hell up and come 'n 'ere!"
"Oh for the love of God, what the hell is it-" Another man with thick slicked back hair came into the rest stop and saw the unicorn. He had a scruffy beard, pair of jeans and a black t-shirt. "The fuck is that?" He breathlessly said.
"Back up." Rarity warned, readying herself for trouble.
"You cannot be fuckin' serious... this thing-or-whatever-the-hell it is, can talk?" Both the man and Davy stood there, side by side, shock written all over their faces.
"It looks like a... a-a unicorn to me," Davy muttered to his friend.
"Unicorns ain't real, moron."
"Then what the hell are we starin' at then?"
"I am in fact, a unicorn." Rarity interjected, suspicion laced in her tone. "I don't want to ask again, but please leave this establishment."
"Why? It ain't like you own the place." Davy replied.
"Whoa-whoa-wait, hang on! What the hell are you even doin' 'ere!? How the fuck did you even get 'ere!?" His friend interrupted.
"Can you..." Rarity cleared her throat. "Hold back on the profanity, frankly, it's quite unnecessary."
"Not in this case," Davy retorted.
"Fine. How did you get here, unicorn?" His friend repeated sarcastically?
Rarity grunted. "I don't have to explain anything to you."
"Why not?"
"Get out of here."
"Well ain't you a bitch right now."
"I could say the same for you." The mare kept her stare on the man. She noticed the pistol in the man's hand, slight ticking. "Listen, all I want is for you to leave. All of you. We don't have to cause any trouble."
"Yeah well, I dunno where yer from but there ain't any unicorns 'round 'ere-"
"I've noticed." The mare said, cutting off Davy.
"...y-yeah. Well then, I'm sure you can understand our... perspective? Why we'd be a bit... freaked out."
"Yes, I see why but that doesn't change the fact that you two are strangers and judging by your friend there; you seem very unpleasant."
Davy eyed his friend. "Y-yeah, but that's just the way he is."
Rarity stayed silent, observing the two men. As far as she knew, they weren't to be trusted.
"Is that kid-uhh..." He trailed off.
"Just a friend, I'm looking after her."
Davy slowly nodded in understanding. His friend silently watched the interaction, Rarity was keeping a close eye on him. "A-are you guys lost... or somethin'?" He inquired.
"We're just following the road." The mare offered simple answers, she wasn't looking for a conversation; she wanted them to hit the road.
"Hey yo, what's takin' y'all so long?" Then a scrawny looking man, who had to be no older than thirty came into the rest stop. He immediately saw Rarity. "The hell's that?"
"Alright, that's it, enough with this. You people are overstaying your welcome here. You either leave or I'll make you leave." The mare ignored the scrawny man's shock at the talking pony.
"And how exactly are you planning to do that?" The man with the slicked hairstyle grunted out, his tone didn't go unnoticed by Rarity.
She kept her silence. Her horn began to glow, the firearms in their hands were swiftly snatched from them and began hovering in mid-air.
"The fuck!?"
"Hey-hey-hey, let's just relax a'ight."
"I'll relax when you walk out the door." The unicorn retorted, her voice deep and low.
"No, you listen. I don't trust you, I don't want to, nor do I need to and that being said; I highly suggest that you take your friends and leave." She turned the deadly weapons against them, ready to pull the trigger if needed.
"Hey-hey, just hold on a minute! Do you guys have a group? Is it just y'all out 'ere or what?"
"It is none of your concern."
"Oh come on, just work with me right!?"
"Hey, Davy a-ah think it's best if we just get the hell outta 'ere." The scrawny man muttered to him.
"She has our guns."
"And she'll kill us with 'em if we don't leave."
"What the hell is going on here!?" Another stranger came into the rest stop. It was a woman, most likely in her mid-twenties. Curly shoulder-length hair, holding a rifle in her hands.
"LEAVE!" Rarity yelled, the guns still hovering in the air. She began walking toward them. "Go! Now! Move!"
The mare began forcing them out, backing up out of the rest stop. She felt the cold air flowing around her and saw the vehicle they were using. A small four-seater jeep. "Get in and leave!"
"W-wait, hold the fuck on! What the hell is that!?" The woman's inquiry was entirely ignored.
"You gon' give us back our weapons or not!?" The man with the slicked-back hair interjected.
"Just get in the car and leave!"
The group reluctantly got into their jeep, switching on the ignition and slowly accelerated away.
As the humans drew distance, the mare felt a weight lift off her chest, finally allowing herself to breathe. She gently laid the guns onto the gravel below, hammers slamming in her chest. As the lights of the vehicle vanished into the darkness, the mare felt a breeze on her forehead later followed up by moisture.
She didn't know if the group would be back or not but she had an inkling that they would. The seamstress did not want to go wandering off into the dark, not without the bright light of the vehicle anymore; it was near pitch-black.
She didn't like how she acted toward them, practically robbing them of their protection. Thinking about it now, she hated it. She had seen her fair share of conflict between walkers and humans.
The st. Johns, the bandits at the motel; she wasn't naive to the fact that humans were dangerous. Probably even more dangerous than the walkers, she couldn't take the chance of trusting them but that don't mean she had to like it.
The image of her drawing their weapons on them flashed through her mind, gnawing guilt eating away at her stomach. She could've killed them right then and there, just pulled the trigger and that would've been it. She would've killed someone for the first time.
She would've became a killer.
The thought alone horrified her. Killing walkers were one thing, they were already dead. They were no longer sentient, as for killing someone who was still alive...
She stole one last look at the darkness, her horn began to glow and the weapons she had dropped on the ground were floating again.
She went back inside the rest stop and closed the door shut. Maybe it was best to leave, the pit stop was compromised. Someone knew where they were. This place was no longer safe.
The walker was pinned under Rarity's hoof, stuck, unable to move. It's arms flailed about in futility as the seamstress launched the bowie knife into the back of it's temple, putting an end to it's pointless existence.
"I-is this where we're going to stay?" Clementine inquired, carrying her signature backpack.
"Yes." The unicorn simply answered. She pulled her knife from the walker's head, giving it a few flicks to get (most of) the gunk and blood off of it and sliding it back into her chestnut-colored holster that was attached to her forearm. She found the belt from a gun store in a small rundown town, a week and a half ago. There weren't too many walkers, so it was all the same.
Over the past few months, Rarity had begun to be more inclined to start taking more risks even trusting Clementine to handle herself during times of need. It was a slow process. Initially, the mare was going to stick to her original plan; let her bear all the risks to keep Clementine out of harm's way.
That was until a realization came into her head. She couldn't protect the child forever. What if she were to get bit? What if she got injured, her limbs broken or if she fell prey to an illness or worse... die? The child needed to learn to survive on her own.
If the mare were to... die, at least the child would know what to do then rather than having to depend on someone else to survive.
They found a small gas station, the parking lot was infested with walkers but the mare had taken care of most of them. Clementine stood back with a pistol that had a magazine loaded into it to take care of any stragglers.
In their travels, the mare was able to establish where they were, the directions they were taking. "Welcome to South Carolina! Smiling faces, beautiful places!"
Doubt it.
Back then, probably but definitely not now. The mare would've loved to see how everything was. Before everything was destroyed by this... plague. How the locals operated, communicated. Especially how they made clothes. Something the seamstress would've been delighted as well as eager to find out.
She was mainly following the road, having no need to stray from it. After all, she wasn't from this world, she knew only a few things about it and that they left a city called "Savannah". The road was the best route to take really, it would lead her everywhere.
Rarity walked inside the gas station with Clementine following behind her. It didn't take long to secure it, there were a few walkers left in the restroom. One was behind the counter which Clementine took care of.
After they were done, Rarity barricaded the door with a shelf that had been pushed over and they stayed there for the rest of the day.
They got up early, as the sun was coming up, hoping they could catch more ground before evening again. A week after leaving that small run down town, Clementine had suggested to Rarity that they find a group, a community of people that were settled at one location.
Initially, Rarity didn't like the idea, memories of the motor-inn rushing back to her. The bandits attacking their walls, destroying everything they've built. Walkers flooding in to take care of the leftovers. If they did happen to find a stable community, it would only crumble just like everything else. Just like the motor-inn.
She'd wondered what would've happened if they never came across those bandits if they'd still be at the motor-inn... with her friends.
Speaking of which, it's been a while since she'd thought about them. She distracted herself by moving, surviving, focusing on anything other than her friends. She'd done it too often that eventually, surviving the day was all she thought about. Getting to the next location.
She didn't want to forget about them, she had to. If she had continuously thought about what she should've or shouldn't have done, her will to continue fighting, surviving would've been finite. Surviving and taking care of Clementine was significantly more important than worrying about where her friends could be.
After giving it some thought, the mare reluctantly agreed to look for a settlement, some type of community where they could settle down. For a while at least so they could take a break from wandering around the world, moving from place to place and hunkering down at some worthless gas station.
"Hey, Rarity?" Clementine called as they continued down the road.
"Yes, dear?" The mare replied with a small smile.
"When we find a settlement... will they have any beds?"
"Well, first we'd have to see if they're good people or not. We don't wanna have another St. John situation on our hooves now, do we?"
The child shook her head before sighing. "Hands... and it's been a while since we last saw your friends."
Rarity's smile dropped. "Yes... yes, it has..." The mare trailed off.
"Do you think you'll ever see them again?"
The mare looked off to the side. "I hope so." She didn't know how big this country was, let alone how big the world was. The chance of her finding her friends again was close to none.
"Me too, 'cause I miss them."
Rarity sighed, feeling a pang in her chest. "Me too."
It was nearing sundown and the two drifters had entered a city called "Manning". So far everything was fine, walkers were easy to deal with, ducking herds wasn't difficult; she just needed to pay extra attention to Clementine. The last time she entered a city, was the time she lost her friends.
If she hadn't gone on that supply run, she'd most likely still be with them. Of course, the reason why she did though was because of Applejack. Her shattered ribs. The pain was irking her, hindering her breathing. The unicorn had volunteered to look for medicine, to search for painkillers along with Lilly, David and Carley; who sadly didn't survive.
Well, Lilly may have survived. There were too many walkers to even pay attention to where she was or what was happening to her.
Carley and David on the other hoof...
It was distressing to even picture what they looked like after the walkers managed to get their hands on them let alone recalling the whole ordeal. The thought of what their bodies looked like, how they screamed... it was almost enough to make her puke. She forgot it all entirely. Shut it out as if it never happened. She wasn't going to remember what happened. She didn't want to. She didn't need to. It was nothing but a distant memory. Not important.
The survivors came across a graveyard of an intersection filled with dead walkers. Their blood was painted all over the concrete ground, and if Rarity wasn't mistaken; shell casings were riddled everywhere. The blood appeared to be fresh...
this happened recently then.
"Someone was here." Rarity simply stated, still staring at the blood.
"Who do you think did this?" Clementine inquired.
"I don't know but hopefully we don't run into them." Rarity continued, walking across the intersection onto the main road.
"Maybe they're... friendly?"
"Maybe they are, maybe they're not but either way we can't take any chances when it comes to strangers."
"But why not?" The mare threw a frown at the child walking next to her. "You act like everyone is bad and that we should stay away from them."
"Because most people are bad, Clementine. Unfortunately, that's just how the world is."
"Then what about those people we met at the rest stop a few months ago?"
"What about them?" Rarity simply retorted, not knowing why the child was bringing up that group.
"They didn't seem like bad people..." The child paused for a moment. "You were the only one who did anything bad."
The mare stopped before turning to glare at the child next to her. Locking her in place with her gaze. "What do you mean by that? What did I do that was considered 'bad'?"
"W-well... they didn't do anything wrong, they were only looking for a place to stay."
"And you know that for certain? What if they hurt other people before us?" Rarity inquired only for it to go unanswered.
"You stole their weapons."
"And?"
"You robbed them!"
"Well, maybe they should have just minded their own businesses. I asked them to leave and they didn't!" Rarity justified, her voice rising slightly.
"So you decided to be bad yourself? Why did you want them gone anyway?"
"Again, they couldn't be trusted and I wasn't going to give them the chance to do anything!" The mare sighed inwardly, shaking her head. "It doesn't matter." She muttered, mainly to herself. She turned around and continued walking. "You're still a child, you wouldn't understand."
The child glared at the mare but didn't respond and the two of them strolled through the streets in silence.
Gunshots rang out through the city, startling the two survivors out of their thoughts. A few more came after, rattling, throwing worry into the pits of their stomachs.
It sounded close by as if it were around the corner. Rarity began walking in the other direction, crossing the street and onto the sidewalk. Whoever was firing those weapons, obviously there was some sort of battle going between who knew how many people. Whatever it was, the mare wasn't going to have any part in it. She already experienced one firefight back at the motor-inn, she wasn't going to go diving headfirst into another.
"What do you think's going on over there?" Clementine asked as they speed-walked away from the gunfire.
"I dunno, nor do I care. Come on, we better hurry unless you wanna end up in the middle of it." The mare began to jog along the sidewalk, sticking to the buildings. Dead walkers littered with shell casings were scattered throughout the city. A good but also bad situation, a double-edged sword.
They needn't trouble themselves with walkers but whoever killed them was, unfortunately still around and the mare wasn't planning on sticking around to find out.
As they were nearing the corner, their hearts dropped. A man dressed in terrible attire, a dirty checkered shirt and worn jeans came around the corner. He was geared with a rifle and strapped with holsters to which Rarity didn't want to know what they held.
He stopped immediately when he saw them, he wore a stunned look on his face as if a million thoughts were racing through his mind. The two survivors stared at him, hoping he wouldn't raise his weapon to fire at them. He appeared muscular, looked to be in his mid-thirties with short black hair and beard.
"What the hell?" He muttered breathlessly.
Rarity inhaled deeply before replying. "Look, we don't any trouble."
The man's eyes widened at the revelation. "You can... talk?"
Rarity slowly nodded, watching his arms and fingers. If he were thinking about killing them, Rarity would be the one to make the first move... not him.
"I've gotta be hallucinating, this shit ain't real." The man said, more likely to convince himself. A palm grasped at his head.
"It is, in fact, real you can choose to believe that... or not but we have to get going." Rarity replied, however, she stayed still observing the man's every move.
He didn't reply for a few moments. There was still gunfire in the distance, the only sound that could be heard. After a few more moments, the man finally said something, a question. "What the hell are you?"
"A pony." Rarity gave a simple answer.
The man's expression never faltered, he held his stunned look but he seemed to be fidgety. He looked off to the side, his foot tapping quickly. "What are y'all doin' here anyway?"
Rarity gave a simple answer to a simple question. "We're just looking for a camp, a community somewhere where we can rest." Gunfire was still heard in the distance, the only thing that could be heard in this city. It was almost like the walkers had been cleared out.
The man looked off to the side, letting a sigh fall out of his mouth. He chewed on the inside of his lip before looking back at the mare. "There's a community, somewhere far up north in Ohio."
Rarity perked up at the sound of that, her heart beginning to fill with excitement and stress. She let him continue.
"A place called Wellington, fully fortified; it's a pretty large community... got a lotta people though." He finished.
"Have... you been there before? I-is it safe?" The mare asked, she had to be certain or at least sure that it was safe. After what happened with St. John's, feeding the group human flesh; she needed to make sure it wasn't going to happen again. That this community wasn't completely insane like they were.
"Last time ah checked yeah. Left like a... month ago though, ah'm sure it's still standing but... ya never know."
The mare looked down at the child, next to her who had a look to be just as excited as her. She then looked back up at the man. "Well... thank you."
The man stared at her for a moment before nodding. He then walked past them, in direction of the gunfire. He stopped and turned back at them. "Good luck." He then took off to a full sprint.
Rarity sighed before chuckling at the good news they have received. She turned toward the child with a smile on her face. "Well, looks like it's off to Wellington then."
The child nodded with a smile of her own and the two continued their travel with a sense of hope. Something the mare hadn't felt in a long time.
The child looked at the mare beside her with a cheeky smile. "He seemed nice." She said, hinting at the heated conversation they had before meeting the man.
The unicorn merely scoffed before starting their journey toward Wellington. Hopefully, she'd find a map soon. She'll need it to figure out where this "Ohio" was.
A few hours have passed since they came across that bearded man, deeper into the city who told them about the community "Wellington". For the first time, in a while, the mare had felt hope. The past few months were all about surviving the day, scrounging, scavenging and moving from one place to another. It wasn't much of a life for the seamstress.
Essentially, all they were truly doing was existing and although she agreed to search for a community, she also highly doubted that they would actually find one that was stable... or even still standing.
Everything she had done up to this point was all for Clementine, so she could provide somewhat of a life for the child. Even if that "life" was just surviving. She couldn't just abandon the child, she couldn't even if she wanted to! It would've brought great shame to Lee's memory. Once she heard about Wellington, it was the perfect place for the child and maybe the mare could build some sort of a life for herself there too.
The sun had fallen over the horizon hours ago. The mare had been using her horn to provide light for the bookstore they had come across, just by the edge of the city. A store called "Tony's books n' more!".
Rarity cleared the walnut table, lowering the thick atlas onto it with her magic. She flipped open the book and began skimming through the pages. "Okay, Ohio... Ohio... where is it..." the mare muttered to herself as she flipped through the pages of the book, frowning at the strange map. It was all alien to her, the continents, countries, states. It felt satisfying to finally be able to see the world fully, she had no clue that it was this big. "He said Ohio was up... n-north, correct?" The mare asked, her eyes still focused on the page, taking in the contents.
"Yeah, he did. He said there was a community called Wellington." Clementine replied, sitting on a chair with her elbows propped up on the table.
The mare sighed. "Okay then... hmm-oh! Look! South Carolina!" She pointed at the state on the map, allowing the child to see. "He said it was north so..." She trailed off as she further scanned the map. "Oh...kay-oh! Look! Ohio!" The mare cheered in triumph.
"That's pretty far." Clementine frowned as she leaned over to look at the map.
"Hmm?" The mare stopped before taking another look at the atlas. "Oh... oh my, you're right. That is quite... far. It's practically on the other side of the country."
The child looked at the mare. "So, are we not going there now?"
"What? Oh, no-no. We're still going there! Don't be daft! It's just that..." Rarity paused for a moment, sighing. "It could take months just to get there, maybe even a whole year."
"At least we know where we're going now." The child said as she looked at the mare with a reaffirming smile.
"Hmm, I suppose that's... something to be happy about. Just more walking..." she glanced back at the map, annoyed at how far the two states were. "Hopefully, it won't take too long to get there."
1 Month Later...
The mare begrudgingly strolled along the road, Clementine following beside her. It's been one month since they left the city, "Manning".
Of course, the trip wasn't going to be quick...
They've only arrived in North Carolina a few weeks ago and even then, they still had a couple more states to cross.
It could be worse, one of them could've gotten injured. They would've had to look for supplies, medicine, antibiotics to make sure an infection wouldn't form.
They had just left a town known as "Spencer". It was getting late, the sun had already begun it's descent over the horizon to make way for nightfall.
"Why didn't we stay in the town? I thought it was dangerous travelling in the dark." Clementine inquired with a frown as she looked at the darkening sky.
"I wanna catch as much ground as possible." The mare casually answered. "Besides, we're more than capable of handling ourselves."
"But we'll need sleep, aren't you tired?"
"Nope. Why? Are you?" The mare asked, turning to look at the child.
"N-no, I'm just... being prepared..." The child suddenly felt the strong urge to yawn and she clenched her teeth in an attempt to stop it.
Rarity saw through her lie and sighed. "If we find a house or somewhere to stay at, we'll take that. Does that sound okay to you?"
"Uh-huh, that sounds good."
"Good, because I'd rather not go back to that town."
The two of them continued down the road of North Carolina and the sun was quickly falling over the horizon. As the mare was walking, in the distance, she swore she heard a roar in the distance. One that sounded familiar, a type of machinery.
She frowned, feeling her nerves heighten and she turned to see a set of headlights in the distance. Lights that grew bigger by the second.
As it got closer, the mare was able to make out a vehicle. It appeared to be a pickup truck with a set of clearance lights on the roof.
"Oh, wonderful," the mare scorned.
"Hm, what?" The child frowned seeing the mare's expression before taking a glance to see what she was looking at. She gasped and turned back. "Rarity! There's a car coming!" She exclaimed.
"Yes, I see that." The mare stopped in her tracks, laying a reassuring hoof on the child's shoulder. "Just relax darling, if anything happens we'll take care of it. Like always." She offered a smile.
Clementine returned it and nodded. "Okay, we should be careful though."
Rarity then turned around, her eyes locking onto the vehicle, watching it get closer. Her guard was up, as it usually was but it somehow managed to increase in size.
The truck then began to slow down, homing in on them before finally pulling over.
She got a clear view of who was in the truck. There appeared to be only one man in the vehicle. He looked to be in his late thirties, wearing a hat and a denim jacket with a hoodie under it.
They both maintained eye contact for a few moments. Rarity kept her glare on the man, her magic prepped. Suddenly, he pressed something and the window to the passenger seat began to wind down.
"Are you real or am I just havin' a real messed up dream!?" The man shouted from his car.
He was about to continue but was cut off by Rarity. "I assure you that this, very much real."
"Now that is the most weirdest goddamn thing I've ever seen in the apocalypse... by far."
The mare frowned, glancing at Clementine who looked just as cautious as she did. She then looked back up at the man.
"So you got a kid with you, huh... is she yours?"
"No, she is not." Rarity grimaced at the stupidity of that question.
"Ah, so you kidnapped her then?"
"No, I did not!" The mare nearly shouted.
"Okay, okay. Just askin'." He waved her off, Rarity kept her glare on him. "So, where are you guys headed?"
"Frankly, that's none of your concern."
"O...kay. What's your name then?"
"Neither is that." The mare simply concluded. She wasn't going to give this man any detail about herself, it didn't concern him at all.
"Oh come on, you won't even tell me your name? You gotta give me something to work off of here."
"Actually, I don't. Why are you still here?"
"Because you're the first fucking unicorn I've ever seen in my life and I saw that you had a kid with you so I just thought to see if you guys needed any help."
"Oh well, your 'concern' is appreciated but we are perfectly fine on our own." Rarity said with an icy tone.
"Are you sure about that?" The man threw her an incredulous look, before cocking his head toward the sun. "'Cause it's gettin' dark out, you sure you wanna be out here in the woods?"
The mare didn't respond for a moment. She couldn't trust him, that much was certain but he had a truck. With that, they'd be able to get to Ohio in probably less than a month! She hated being on the road, walking on a daily basis but with a vehicle, they wouldn't have to. They could rest while still travelling.
But of course, she knew nothing about this man. He seemed relaxed for someone who was seeing a unicorn for the first time. He could be a complete maniac just like the St. Johns, or worse...
It was getting dark, the sun was nearly gone and they were in the middle of nowhere. Perhaps she could fetch a ride... just this once.
She had magic and if the man were to try something, anything... she would effortlessly take him out. She had the element of surprise and her bowie knife, he'd be as good as dead before he even get to do anything.
"Where are you headed?" The mare inquired.
"Anywhere. Where the wind takes me." He casually answered.
"Okay... can you take us to Ohio?"
The man's eyes widened. "Ohio? That's like... a day's worth a drive from here!" He exclaimed.
Rarity had to refrain from rolling her eyes. "Are you able to take us there or not?"
"Sure I can, it's just... what the hell's in Ohio?"
"We heard that there was a community there, called 'Wellington'."
"Ah, I see. You guys wanna get there then?"
The mare nodded. "That is correct."
He sighed. "Alright then, get in."
The mare went to go open the door but stopped when she felt a set of urgent taps on her back. She turned around to face the child who had a troubled look on her face. "What is it?"
"What are we doing? Why are we getting in his car?" The child whispered. The car's engine was still on, allowing her to talk without the man being able to eavesdrop.
"Don't worry, I have this under control." The mare whispered back.
"But I thought we weren't-"
"Are you guys comin'!? I ain't gonna wait around here all day. Come on, scoot!" The man called out, unknowingly interrupting the child.
"Just hold on a minute!" Rarity glanced back at the child. "We'll be fine. If he tries anything, I'll deal with him. Now, come on." The mare nudged the child forward before opening the door to the passenger seat and climbing in.
Clementine got in the back seat and the man accelerated on down the road.
He pushed a button on the settings and music began to play. Rarity frowned at the built-in radio. "That device can play music?" She can't seem to recall Kenny's R.V. being able to play music.
"Sure can!" The man said with a smile. He pulled out a bottle, taking a swig of it. "Name's Nate by the way, not that you care." Rarity kept her glare on the man. "You gonna tell me yours or are you gonna continue actin' like an asshole?"
The mare scoffed. "It's Rarity and I'd prefer it if you refrained from using profanity."
"Seriously?" The man threw the mare an incredulous look. "This is the fuckin' apocalypse, who cares?" He casually said. He then looked in the rearview mirror, at Clementine. "What's your name kid?" He asked, trying too hard to sound friendly.
"C-clem... Clementine," The child reluctantly answered.
"Ah, like the fruit then. So what's your story?" Nate directed his question at the mare.
"Story?"
"Yeah, story! Like, how the hell did you get here? How'd you learn to talk? Why do you have a kid with you? Surely, you didn't just appear out of nowhere."
Rarity couldn't help but chuckle at the last assumption, a small grin etching onto her mouth. "Actually, that's exactly what happened."
"You appeared outta fuckin' nowhere?" The man exclaimed.
The mare rolled her eyes, sighing inwardly at the vulgar language. "Teleported... is more accurate."
"So you got transported? From where? Your home? That sucks. How was it like back there?"
"It was good... definitely better than here, that is." The mare wondered what was going on back in Equestria if anything happened while they were gone. If anypony even cared about where they were. She merely wondered, she no longer cared. She gave up hope of ever getting home a long time ago.
Nate took another swig from his drink before offering it to her. She eyed the bottle in his hands, reading the label. "Parsen's Whiskey".
"What is that?" She inquired.
"It's whiskey? You gonna have some or no?"
"No, I'd rather not."
"Fine, whatever. You still gotta tell me how you ended up with that kid." He took another swig.
Rarity sighed, pausing for a few moments. She didn't have much of a choice, he was giving them a ride and they needed it. The least she could do was tell him how she ended up here, he couldn't use that information against her. Worst case scenario, they get into a physical altercation with him ending up dead. Morbid, but it kept her alive. "Me and my friends arrived here... m-maybe a year ago now."
"Your friends? Wait, there's more of you?"
She ignored him and continued. "We arrived here probably a year ago. We found... a group and they took us in, protected us, looked out for us..." The mare trailed off, pausing for a moment, recalling the previous events. "We came across a city called 'Savannah' and I got lost... that was months... a few months ago."
"And how did you end up with the kid?" Nate casually asked.
Rarity sighed. "I found them walking among in a herd full of walkers."
"What!? Seriously?"
"Yes. If you..." The mare gulped. "Cover yourself in... t-their organs, it supposedly... masks your scent so they don't attack you." She felt sick as she recalled back to the moment she doused herself in walker guts.
"That's rad." He concluded.
"Oh please... it's unpleasant."
"Hmm, sounds like you need a drink." He simply stated.
"No, I do not need a drink." The mare once again declined.
"Oh come on! You gotta lighten up, you're depressed as all hell!" Nate gave her a light-hearted tap causing her to recoil against the door.
"And who says I am depressed?"
"You do, I can hear it in that tone of yours." The man took a sip from his bottle before offering it to her. "Here ya go."
Rarity frowned at the bottle in his hands, contemplating her decision. Surely, it couldn't hurt to have one sip... how bad could it taste? She highly doubted that it was poisoned, considering he'd been drinking out of it. She sighed before taking the bottle from him with her hooves.
"See!? There ya go!" He offered useless words of encouragement.
She shook her head, rolling her eyes before taking a nip at the bottle. Shortly after, her tongue burned with the putrid liquid and her eyes began to water. Her throat felt misty causing her to cough and she handed the bottle back to him. "W-what the f-fuck is that!?" She sputtered in between coughs.
"Woah! What happened to holdin' back on the profanities!?"
"Oh s-shut u-up!" The mare retorted.
"To answer your previous question, It's whiskey. It'll help ya relax, take the edge off!" He brightly said as he took a sip from the bottle.
"I-I don't u-understand why you would continue to drink such a revolting beverage!" She said, irritated. Her throat still burned from the aftertaste of the drink and the man began laughing.
"A-are you okay, Rarity?" Clementine interjected, leaning closer to the front seats.
"She's fine, just a lightweight!" The man answered.
"I am not-ugh! I am fine, dear. It's just that the drink was absolutely awful!"
"Hey kid, want a drink!?" He held up the bottle to the rearview mirror.
"No, she will not!" Rarity yelled only to have the man laugh harder, nearly wheezing. She rolled her eyes before leaning against the door, watching the trees pass by them. "This is going to be dreadful..."
The sun went down hours ago. They had been travelling on the road within that time. Nate and Rarity mainly spent their time chatting with one another. Well mostly Nate, the mare would merely respond to his questions, ever rarely asking any herself.
Clementine fell asleep hours ago, the mare decided to stay awake to watch over her. Not that she would be able to sleep anyway, she still didn't trust this man. He hadn't done anything... yet, so that was something to be grateful for. Although everything else about him was irksome. Sometimes teasing her from time to time or simply just not shutting up.
The headlight was on, revealing most of the road. The other headlight, the right one, had been busted. Rarity had asked what happened and Nate told her that he had a "run-in" with some people who shot it.
They were coming up on a gas station to their right, it was uncertain if anyone or anything was there. Nate drove into the parking lot, further away from the gas pumps and switched off the ignition.
Rarity frowned at the man. "Why are we stopping?" She inquired with caution.
He flounced his arms at the mare, half of his face grimacing. "To look for supplies? Hey, maybe if we're lucky, we can get some more whiskey?"
An obvious fake laugh fell from the mare's lips. "Yeah... no."
Suddenly, the window beside her shattered and her heart jumped into her throat.
"Oh shit! Get the fuck out!" Nate threw open the doors and ducked out of the car. Rarity immediately dipped her head below, her face touching the leather of the seat and gunshots were suddenly being fired.
"Rarity? W-what's goi-"
"Clementine, keep your head down!" The mare pushed the child's head against the chair with her magic.
"Rarity! What the fuck are you doing!?" She heard Nate's voice from outside.
"Nate, shut up! For the love of Celestia just shut up!" Rarity screamed. "Clementine, I need you to stay put, Okay!? Do not and I mean do not, poke your head up at all! Do you understand me!? I will come to get you when this is all over but for now, I need you to stay put, understand!?" The child silently nodded, trembling. "Okay, don't worry I will come get when this is over okay? You'll be fine."
Rarity then proceeded to put up a magic barrier, blocking the outside of her door. She opened it, hearing the bullet reflect off of the shield she put up. An image of her and Twilight on the farm, deflecting the arrows flashed through her mind.
She carefully climbed out of the truck, the bullets continuing to ricochet off the shield. She felt her chest pumping violently. She began walking around to the other side of the truck, making sure the magical barrier was aligned with her. One mistake could be her last mistake. She crossed the corner of the truck and jogged around to find Nate who had a pistol in hand.
"There you are! Did ya get a good look at him?" He casually asked.
"Uh-no. Sorry, but I was too busy trying to get out of the truck!" Rarity yelled.
"Ya sure took your time doin' it."
Rarity's eyes widened. "By Celestia's mane, please tell me you're joking? I was being shot at!"
"Alright, look I might've been a bit insensitive about that and I apologize but we need to figure this out! So just take a breather and relax, okay?" Nate's voice was calm, casual as if they weren't being fired at. Oddly, it was enough to cool down her nerves.
The mare paused for a few moments. The gunman was still shooting at the truck and having no luck hitting any of them. She sighed. "Okay, what do you suppose we do?"
"Well, first of all, we need to figure out where this asshole is and once we do that we'll fuckin' get 'em! Just take a quick glance, got it?"
She nodded, slightly extending her legs and getting ready to scout out the shooter. She took in a quick inhale before poking her head and seeing a muzzle flash by the windows of the gas station. She immediately dipped her head back down.
"Did you see him?"
"Yes, he was inside the station."
"Good, see? That wasn't so bad now, was it? We just gotta figure out how to get over there..." Nate trailed off as he poked his head around the corner of the truck seeing the back entrance to the station. "Bingo!" He turned to face the mare again. "We can get around back, we just gotta move the truck."
"The truck? How are we supposed to do that!?" The mare exclaimed.
"By pushing it?" Nate opened the car door and fiddled with something inside it.
As he did that, the mare saw a vehicle sitting stationary, a few distances away giving her an idea. "Hey, Nate! I have an idea but I need you to trust me!"
He slammed the door shut before looking at her. "Trust you? Okay, what's your brilliant idea?"
"You see that car? Over there? I need you to run to it."
He took a quick glance at the car she was talking about. "You need me to run to that car without cover? Have you lost your mind?"
"What? No! I need you to trust me, just run over to it. You'll be fine."
"Oh, I see what this is. You're trying to get me killed, aren't you?"
"What!? No!" Rarity groaned, grasping at her face. "Let me show you!" She didn't give him any time to respond. She ran over to the car, quickly manifesting a barrier to keep her safe. A few bullets found their way onto the shield but ultimately, she came out unscathed.
Eventually, she made her way over to the other car and turned around at the man. "You see, Nate!? Are you coming or not!? I'll cover you!"
A few moments pass and he took off running. The mare quickly manifested the barrier back up, keeping him covered and he made it over to her unharmed.
"What the hell was that!? Was... that fuckin' magic!?" Nate exclaimed a look of shock on his face.
If this were any other situation, Rarity would've been eager to show off but in this circumstance; she wanted this shooter dealt with. "Why yes, it is but right now, we have more pressing matters to attend to."
"Goddamn! Now, this is what I'm talking about! So what? Just do the same thing!?"
"Mhm! Just hang on a minute!" She paused, letting a few gunshots fly through before taking off into a full sprint. Nate took off immediately as she did, matching his speed with his.
They made it to the corner of the gas station where a large tanker was parked, most likely out of commission. Rarity then turned to Nate. "Well, so far so good." The mare then began to feel anger coursing through her, now that she was out of the line of fire. She was almost killed, Clementine was almost killed.
If it wasn't for this filthy parasprite of a shooter, Rarity wouldn't have needed to leave her behind in the truck. It was too dangerous for the child to be out in the open, it was safer for her to be in the vehicle while she dealt with this mysterious shooter. Lethally, as the shooter rightfully deserved.
"Now that was badass! Good to see that you're finally loosening up!"
"Sure. Now, what are we doing about this... fiend?" She inquired, already planning ways to take out the threat.
"There could be an opening round back, come on." Nate and Rarity began walking over to a fence that blocked off the back entrance. Not wanting to waste any more time, they decided to climb over it.
Rarity had some trouble climbing over the gate but she managed nonetheless. "Let's just get in there and finish this vermin off." She said, feeling her anger flare-up. The adrenaline from being shot at had mostly dissipated. She couldn't care any less about why the shooter almost killed them.
The fact is, they tried to and it was only fair to do the same...
Whoever it was that fired at them was going to be dealt with. One way or another, there was no chances, no risks... not anymore. Clementine could have died! She lost the element of surprise with Nate, he now knew she had magic but it didn't matter. Dealing with that shooter was way more significant than worrying about what Nate would do.
"Now you're gettin' it, come on," Nate commented.
They continued around the back, a small parking lot with a fence set up around it. As they continued, a walker was lying on the ground, a screwdriver lodged into it's eyeball. It appeared to be a law enforcement officer. The mare didn't pay it no mind.
She pulled out her knife and plunged it into the walker's temple.
"So you can levitate shit too?" Nate asked, his arms folded.
She pulled out the knife, flicking it a few times. She blatantly ignored him, there was no need to point out the obvious.
They came across a door that presumably led into the station. Nate stopped the mare. "Alright, we gotta stay as quiet as possible so we can sneak up on this guy." He said in a hushed tone.
"Okay, shall we?"
Nate gently pushed open the door, quietly and slowly moving in. The mare followed after him, they appeared to have entered a kitchen. There was a counter and they both silently took cover by it.
Rarity slowly peeked her head over the counter, only seeing one person over by the windows. They were boarded up, terrible effort too. Plenty of gaps. "There's only one." She mouthed to Nate.
They moved over to a set of two doors that led out into the cafeteria. "You got magic right?" Nate whispered.
"Yes, why?"
"Can you use magic on that guy?"
"Yes, I most certainly can." She silently opened the doors and left the kitchen. She saw a person by the window, holding a rifle with a scope in his hands. The mare snatched the gun from his grasp, tossed it aside with her magic and shoved him against the wall creating a loud bang.
"WALT!" A feminine voice cried out before groaning.
"GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE, YA MONSTERS!" The stranger shouted. It was an old man, balding and dressed in formal attire. He had a woman with him, appeared to be the same age and had a wound that she was clutching to. Rarity ruled her out as a wife.
"Monsters!?" The mare exclaimed, her anger flaring up.
"STAY THE FUCK AWAY, YOU FREAK!"
"Woah, chill out grandpa!" Nate interjected, coming up beside Rarity.
"I told you to stay the fuck away from here! Think you c-can just l-leave your mask at home a-and now you're with this fuckin' freak!"
"I am not a freak, you incompetent wretch!" Rarity retorted. "And secondly, we have never been here before. YOU were the one who tried to kill us first!"
"Exactly what I'm saying!" Nate added. "You were the one who tried to kill us for no goddamn reason, if anything we should take you out for that." He pulled out his pistol, aiming it at the old man.
"Please just get the fuck outta here!" He then turned to Rarity, his eyes pleading with her's. "Please leave us alone!"
Rarity couldn't find it in her to feel sympathy for them, not even for his wounded wife. As far as she was concerned, they were merely cockroaches that bit off more than they could chew. They started it, there is no room for mercy. Not in this world...
The mare could only scoff at his insolent begging as if he had any right to. "You act as if that's going to help as if I should be compelled to feel anything for you after what you tried to do, what you could stilldo!" Rarity roared, staring daggers into the old man's eyes.
"What do ya say, Rarity? Should we just kill these folks and take all their stuff?" Nate had a crazed look in his eye, his finger looked ready to pull the trigger.
Consumed and driven by anger, Rarity, who was once known as the proud element of generosity. Prideful and elegant, glared into the man's soul and gave her answer.
"Do as you please."
Nate drew on the old man, pulling the trigger instantly. The woman let out a shriek but was instantaneously shot dead. He holstered his pistol, putting it back in his pants and walking over to the kitchen. "Alright! Looks like got ourselves some goodies!"
The mare stared at the dead couple for a few moments,
They deserved it...
They fired first...
We ended it...
Their fault. Not her's. What if someone else came along? What if someone else had been killed by them? Some unfortunate soul could've lost their lives to this man, it was safer for anyone who would pass by here. One less scumbag in the world was perfectly fine with the seamstress.
Not sparing another second staring at their bodies, the mare turned and followed Nate into the kitchen. "We most certainly do."
Rarity pulled open the door and left the station. Nate was still in there, in the kitchen and scrounging up whatever the elderly couple had.
Nate wasn't stable, that much was obvious. It became clear very quickly when he killed the couple without a moment of hesitation. He drew on them and shot them. Although the seamstress didn't oppose the idea of killing them, it didn't change the fact that he had a few loose screws but regardless; who didn't?
Rarity was all for killing the couple, she had no qualms. No remorse. They tried to kill them but failed and it cost them their lives. They pleaded for mercy but the seamstress didn't care and neither did anyone else in this world. They were too dangerous to be left alive. The old man almost shot her in the head when she was still in the vehicle, she was mere inches away from death.
She could not care less for their pleas.
The element of generosity no longer existed, none of that mattered in this world. Most of civilization was dead and those who were still alive were not innocent. Everybody was guilty of something.
The mare strolled past the gas pumps. It was still in the dead of night, dark and barely any light. The sky was full of clouds, blocking out the moon's glare, making it difficult to see.
She saw Nate's truck a few feet away. She could faintly make out the dents where bullets hit. She pulled open the door to find Clementine hiding in between the seats and floor. "Clementine," She called.
"Rarity?" The child frowned. "Is... it over?"
The seamstress nodded. "Yes, we're okay now. We took care of them."
"Oh okay, c-can I come out now?"
"Oh, yes, of course." She took a step back, allowing the child to exit the car.
"So, what are we gonna do now?" The child asked, taking a look around the lot.
"Well, we're taking the supplies the couple had."
"Couple?" The child frowned.
"Yes, couple. There was some elderly man and his wife that was shooting at us."
"Oh..." the child trailed off, a slight hint of sadness.
The seamstress frowned. "What? Is something the matter?"
"No, it's just... a-are they still alive?"
"...No. They are not. As I said earlier, we took care of them."
"You mean, you killed them?"
The seamstress and turned to face the child fully. "If you want to blunt, yes we killed them."
"Couldn't you spare them? Like, let them live?"
"No, I couldn't. They were too dangerous to be left alive." She answered, slightly irritated. She turned and began walking back into the station.
Clementine quickly caught up to her, walking side by side. "So, you just... killed them?"
Rarity sighed. This was getting irritating very quickly, She was asking way too many questions. She went in there with Nate and took them out, what more did she need to know? "Why are you asking so many questions? We killed them, it's quite simple to understand." She said, frowning at the child and stopping.
Clementine had no choice but to stop as she found herself under Rarity's fierce gaze. The mare seemed so sure of her decision as if she felt no remorse for the killing. It would've been terrifying if not for the fact that she knows Rarity.
"Well?" The mare snapped her out of her thoughts. "Are you gonna answer the question or not?"
"N-no." The child answered and Rarity left without another word.
They both continued to the diner and the mare opened the door. Rarity entered the building, moving past the counters and into the kitchen. The child found herself staring at the elderly-now dead couple. They were by the window, laying there motionlessly as blood leaked from their wounds, out onto the leather seats.
She walked closer toward them, getting a better look. Deep within her chest, her heart slowly picked up as she saw the dead couple up close. An old man had been shot in the chest and the woman had been shot in the neck.
She couldn't help it but Clementine felt sad for them, she wished that they could've helped them in some way. Even though they were shooting at them. It was difficult to believe that Rarity, the mare of generosity, the one who forgave Lilly for murdering Doug, had no issues over this.
"Are y'all ready to hit the road?" Nate called out as he and Rarity stepped out of the kitchen with duffle bags in hand. Well, Rarity was using her magic.
"Certainly. Come on, let's go." The mare went to leave the station with Nate.
"Just gotta fill up some gas tanks and then it's smooth sailing from there!" Nate stopped as he approached the door, turning back around at Clementine. She was still staring at the dead couple with a troubled expression. "You coming, kid?"
"Huh?" The child looked up, at him. She was still unsure as to why Rarity came along with him in the first place. She knew that she wanted to get to Wellington in Ohio but with him? He was clearly unstable, you didn't need a degree in psychology to figure that out. "Oh... uh-yeah." She finally answered and the man left without saying anything. Before she went after him, the child spared a glance at the couple once more; a feeling of regret still on her mind.
"Nrgh-alright! There we go!" Nate grunted as he tossed the duffle bag into the back of his pickup truck.
"Is that it? Shall we set off now?" Rarity asked, standing behind him.
"Yeah-yeah, just hang on for a sec." The man walked around the truck, the side of where the bullets hit. "Ah dammit..." he trailed off as he surveyed the damage.
"Oh wonderful, is the vehicle destroyed now?"
"Nope, just making sure she was alright." He gently tapped the truck, a cheeky smile on his face.
The mare merely rolled her eyes. Clementine then came over to the duo. "Are we leaving now?" She asked.
"Yes, we are. Nate's just having a moment with his... truck. Come on." The mare walked over to the back seat of the vehicle and opened it, allowing the child to climb in. She then walked over to the front passenger's seat and entered it.
A few moments later, Nate got in the driver's seat and switched on the ignition before accelerating out of the parking lot.
Rarity woke up the next morning, slowly lifting her head off her hoof on the armrest. The sky was as grey as ever, clouds painting it like a canvas. She noticed the Virginia sign a few feet in front of the vehicle. "Virginia is for lovers" with the "O" replaced as a heart.
Loud snoring came from her left. She turned, saw Nate passed out and leaning on the steering wheel. Rarity rolled her eyes before checking on Clementine who was peacefully sleeping in the back seat like it was her personal bed.
The mare sighed as she thought to herself, taking in the view of the deserted road. The vehicle was no luxury but it was vastly better than sleeping in some abandoned store or rest stop; all over the littered, uncomfortable floors. It was the most relaxed she had felt in... a while. Even though it was just a vehicle, this was the most comfortable she'd felt.
When they left the gas station-diner last night, Rarity had realized she was beginning to feel drowsy, tired but she forced herself to stay awake. She didn't want to sleep when Nate was right next to her, he could do anything while she was unconscious. Unfortunately, the vibration of the vehicle as it smoothly drove along the road was more than enough to lull her to sleep.
She thought of the elderly couple. Now that everything was settled and she wasn't mad anymore. When the image of the elderly couple being shot by Nate flashed through her mind, she couldn't help the guilt that manifested in her chest.
The mare still stood by her decision in letting them die but she still felt guilty about how she acted. Her attitude toward the couple. She felt ashamed of the barbaric thoughts that took place during the encounter.
Because it was barbaric, she wanted the couple dead. Gone. Completely obliterated. She wanted to find the shooter and kill them herself. To make them pay for almost killing her. Thinking back on it now, she visibly cringed at how monstrous she was in that situation. She was so worked up about almost being killed that she essentially turned into a bandit herself...
When they began begging for their lives, just wanting to be alone; at that moment, Rarity practically became a bandit. Killing them and stealing all of their stuff. She was confused, conflicted about it. On one hoof, she was glad they were gone because you can't just open fire on any passerby who stumbles across your home. On the other hoof, it still didn't feel right to kill them although they were in the wrong. It just felt... wrong having to take a life without remorse. That was what a bandit was right? Somebody who kills without a second thought?
At the end of the day, they were the ones who opened fire first. They caused their own deaths, not her...
or so she told herself.
"So, where should we go next!?" Nate inquired in his usual casual tone.
Rarity frowned, turning to look at him. "Ohio. We're going to Ohio, remember?"
He quickly gasped. "Oh Yeah-yeah, now I do. Thank you!" He said, smiling.
They were driving down at a rural spot, where it was just trees on either side of the road. Not much to look at.
"Rarity?" Clementine leaned forward in her seat.
"Yes, darling?"
"What are you gonna do once we get to Wellington?"
"Uhh... well... I don't know. We'll just have to see once we get there." The mare didn't know what she would do, honestly. She doubted that they would have any functional boutiques in the community, so making fashionable attire was out of the question.
"I just hope they have beds there."
"What!? My truck ain't comfortable enough for you?" Nate feigned a scowl into the rearview mirror, at the child.
"No." The child simply answered, a blank look on her face to show her bemusement.
"Hey, Rarity."
"Yes... Nate?"
"What did you guys used to do back at home? You know-your friends and all that." He asked, curious. "And what is your home called exactly?"
"Well, if you really must know, it was called Equestria and I owned a boutique."
"The hell is that?"
The mare gave him a blank look. "An establishment where you purchase clothing."
His eyes widened. "You owned a clothes shop? Really? I guess I shouldn't be surprised."
"And why do you say that?"
"Your pompous attitude."
Rarity scoffed. "Pompous, attitude..." The vehicle was turning a sharp corner, going a tad too fast.
"Yeah, pompous."
"You're irritable."
"And you're stuck up."
"I prefer the term, elegant."
Nate paused for a moment, a frown of thought. "So... stuck up?" Glancing at her with that cheeky smile.
"Be quiet and drive."
He let out a laugh before looking at the road. "OH SHIT!"
Before Rarity even registered what was happening, or look to see what was on the road she was ejected from the car and barreled into the windshield headfirst at full force. She flew mid-air and plummeted to the ground; landing hard on her right arm, taking most of the impact. She rolled a couple of meters from where she landed before slowing to a halt, laying on her stomach in the road.
As everything slowly faded away, a persistent loud ringing echoed in her ears all throughout her temple, grinding against her cranium and suddenly everything went black.
Sounds were muffled. There was a ringing grinding against her skull. The mare opened her eyes, her muzzle still kissing the pavement.
Her temple buzzed with blunt pain as she slowly lifted her head from the concrete, it felt like gravity shifted as she did so. The ringing was still there but it was gradually fading away, her hearing growing better by the second.
She scanned her surroundings, carefully not wanting to irritate the ache in her head. The sun was nearly over the border, it was getting darker. She turned behind her, wondering what happened and suddenly she had caught up.
The mare saw Nate's busted truck, it had collided with an abandoned green busted up jeep that idly sat on the left lane where they were driving.
The hood of Nate's truck had been completely damaged, dark smoke flowing out of it. A hissing noise was coming from it.
Something must've been damaged, the mare's temple didn't feel right. Of course, that was to be expected. She had just been in an accident and was ejected from the car. It seemed like every time the mare moved her head, gravity changed. Unbalanced, as if one side of her head was light and the other was heavy.
She felt the scrapes all over her body. Some of it had dried up, turning into newly fledged scabs. She was extremely lucky that no walkers had stumbled upon her while she was passed out. Maybe the world was on her side for once...
Speaking of which, where were Nate and Clementine?
She went to slowly push herself up when she yelped, feeling a sharp pain shoot up in her left arm followed by sudden nausea. She stopped for a moment before applying more weight to her right arm and began pushing herself up again. She stumbled around a bit before regaining her balance.
The mare jogged (attempted to) over to the truck. She looked around the interior and her heart plummeted into her gut.
They weren't there...
The seats were empty, the windshield had a large shattered hole in it where she flew out of. She began to panic, dread filling the pit of her stomach. Her eyes widened as she then began to frantically search the surrounding area.
She checked the nearby trees, the road ahead and behind; not that they would be there anyway but she was desperate. She couldn't lose her, she couldn't, she won't. She made a promise to Lee, she promised to look after her.
She was gone... Clementine was gone.
The mare stood there, a glazed look in her eye and mouth hanging slightly hanging open. She was alone... she lost Clementine.
Nate must've taken her. She concluded. There was no other explanation. He must've taken her while she was unconscious. This was a nightmare, this couldn't be happening. He took her. He took her and left her to die...
The mare then felt a wave of nausea hit her as regret found it's way to her heart. She never should've trusted him, she never should've... what the hay was she thinking!?
No!
Wait...
She never trusted him. She was just using him for the vehicle! This wasn't her fault, she shouldn't be surprised because she saw this coming. A man like Nate, a complete psycho? Of course, she didn't trust him! Her blood began to boil as her thoughts played in her mind. She should've stayed more attention. She should've killed him the minute he pulled up to them!
That no good, filthy ne'er do well was going to get exactly what he deserved the next time she sees him. He better hope she did not catch him-no! She had to catch him! He had Clementine! She had to go after him! She made a promise! A promise to look after her. There was no "if she caught him", she was going to find him.
Once this was over and she finds Clem... there will be no more chances. Any stranger they come across will either be killed or robbed. There ain't no more chances. Not anymore. Not after this. Nobody could be trusted, you had to look for yourself in this world. Everyone who can't deal with that will be the ones who die first.
No one was innocent...
Everyone was guilty of something...
The mare wasn't going to stop searching for them. Her head still ached like it was getting pounded by a hammer. She never should've continued with this charade. Should've just dropped him, looted him and left.
But now, Clementine was gone due to her mistake. Nate had took her while she was unconscious, just left her there completely unguarded, free for any walker that would stumble across her.
She trekked through the woods, passing by the trees. She didn't know if Nate had gone through the woods and ditched the road. As she looked around the area of the crash, she decided to take a look around the woods for any indication of where he might have headed.
Sure enough, there were leaves, plants and brushes that were looked like to have been trampled on as a scuffle had took place. They were faint but Rarity took notice of the boot marks in dirt and ever since then, she had been following them.
This man was going to die, morals be damned. You try taking somebody or something that wasn't yours, you're going to die. If Rarity had to become a bandit in order to ensure her and Clementine's survival then to hell with it, she'll become one. She'll do anything if it meant Clementine's safety. Nate made the mistake of not putting her down when he had the chance.
The mare came across the a few walkers, all who had bullet holes in their heads. Nate must've gone through here. She thought. She continued on down the path until she came upon a clearing, leading out of the woods.
Up ahead was large brick wall which she soon came to realize that it was a building. There were others all next to each other, she made her way through the alley and found herself in a town. There was a black car that was flipped over on the road.
At this time, the sun had bit the dust and was late in the evening. She was going to have to travel blind. The boot marks had led her here.
Panting and frustrated, the mare ditched the last walker to the pavement, it's skull exploding on impact.
After she entered the city, she started running through the streets; her temple was a mess but she pushed through the pain. Searching for Clementine, searching for any sign that may have indicated where they have gone.
All that running had led her to take a turn into an intersection, right into a herd. She was drenched in walker blood, gunk, pieces of rotten flesh all over her fur and mane.
Welp, this was who she was now. A perfect representation of what she needed to be in order to survive.
A killer...
Looking around the mutilated corpses. All sliced up or ripped apart, she didn't even gag at the sight of it. She wondered how she would've reacted if someone had told her a year ago that she would become this. A ravager.
A series of bangs rang out in the town, snapping her head toward them. Gunshots. It came from her left maybe a buildings over. It sounded far but it echoed, maybe four or five blocks away from where she was.
She immediately started sprinting toward them, the nausea was hitting her like a brick but she refused to acknowledge it. This could've been Nate and he just gave himself up. She wasn't going to let him get away.
She took a turn, leading into an alleyway. A few walkers were in it but she made quick work of them. She left it, continued turning right and followed the road.
The gunshots stopped for a moment before another rang out. She turned left and ran past a few more blocks.
After a few minutes, she turned left once more and her eyes widened instantly when she recognized him. She found him, the blood in her veins began to boil as she watched him aim his pistol and shot the walker dead.
She saw the shock flash through his features once his eyes met her's. The ringing came back but something about it was different, She saw Nate's lips moving but nothing came out. Her magic already found it's grip wrapped around his wrist. A loud crack came from his wrist, bone popping from it's socket; protruding through the skin.
He let out a wail, dropping his pistol. She held his wrist in midair, keeping him from falling to his knees in agony. He was already clutching at his arm with his good one.
She noticed that Clementine was nowhere in sight and her frown deepened. She proceeded to walk toward the man, no sympathy for him. "Hello Nate," she greeted casually. The man didn't respond, he was still clutching to his arm with wailing. She was almost positive that he had tears in his eyes, ready to spill over. Blood poured from his mutilated wrist. "I hope you know where Clementine is... for your sake."
She released the aura's grip around his wrist and he fell to the ground almost in a fetal position. She watched in squirm for a few moments. She sighed before walking closer to him, feigning a look of sympathy. "I can help relive your pain but you have to tell me where Clementine is."
"P-P-PLEASE! P-P-PLEASE!!! MAKITSTOP! MAKEITSTOOOOOP!" He screamed and begged.
"I will, ju-"
"PLEASE! JUST MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE!"
She sighed, rolling her eyes. "Tell me where Clementine is." He held his broken wrist to his chest like a cradle, his cries then began to quieten down after a few moments.
From the amount of blood he was losing by the second, Rarity chopped it up as him dying from blood loss. Maybe I had been too harsh to snap break his wrist like that. "Hey... hey, Nate?"
He hummed in response as he slowly played his head against the pavement.
"Where is Clementine? Where is she!?" Rarity exclaimed, feeling frustrated.
"Sh...s-she ran... off." Came his weak reply.
"What do you mean? Where did she go!?"
"She... left... s-shot at me..."
She groaned, rubbing at her face. As the man bled out in front of her, she walked over to the pistol that he dropped and held it up in her magical grasp.
"Rarity?" She turned and saw the child. She was standing there, gun in hand with a little blood splatter on her dress.
The mare's heart dropped and she trotted over to the child. "Clementine! Darling, are you okay!?" She soon realized that the blood splatter wasn't her's as she got a better look at it.
"It's okay, I'm fine Rarity. J-just a bit scared, Nate left you behind."
The mare felt a surge in her anger. She tried to brush it off, for Clementine's sake. "I know, darling. I know but I'm alright now. There's no need to worry."
"I-I thought you were dead. L-like when we crashed, you flew out of the window a-and you weren't moving."
Rarity laughed at the child. "Well, it's okay now. I'm here, no one is gonna hurt you." She was about to put her hoof on her when she remembered the state she was in and she quickly withdrew it.
"W-what happened to you?" The child inquired, noticing the how horrible and grimy the mare looked.
She quickly shrugged it off. "Just a few walkers that I had to deal with." The mare turned back at the man who beginning to lose consciousness and she slowly trotted over. She pulled the knife from her holster and lodged into his head, putting an end to his worthless life.
"T-that's Nate..."
"Yes, yes it is." She pulled the knife, flicking it a few times and sliding it back into her holster. The mare sighed before she ushered the child to follow her.
"W-where are we gonna go now?"
The mare didn't answer for a moment. She was still thinking about how foolish she was to go along with Nate who, she knew was a complete carefree maniac. It was bound to happen with the type of person that he was? Of course, he was going to try something sooner or later.
But what she was utterly confused with was why didn't he bother to kill her when she fell asleep in the car? They were driving all the way to Virginia, Clementine was already sleeping. The mare was forcing herself to stay awake, simply for the fact that she didn't trust Nate and yet when she did, he didn't try anything.
He could've killed her then and there while she was unconscious but he didn't. Could've easily pulled out his pistol and shot her in the head. Celestia forbid what would've happened if that was the case...
But he didn't and the mare couldn't be more confused. Why did it take a car crash for him to take Clementine and haul?
Perhaps, he thought she was dead? Still didn't make any sense.
They continued walking along the sidewalk, sticking closely to the buildings. "Rarity?"
"What?" The mare snapped, carelessly ignoring the child's flinch.
"N-nothing... nevermind." The child tried brushing it off but the mare wanted her to continue.
She stopped and turned at the girl. "No no, what you were going to say?" They both stood there, the mare waited for the child to answer who was appeared troubled. A few moments past and the mare piped up. "Clementine, what were you gonna say?"
"I-I just wanted to know where we were gonna go next..." she reluctantly answered.
Rarity rolled her eyes, turned and proceeded down the lane. "To Wellington, like we always were."
"We don't have a car anymore though."
The mare ignored her and continued through the town's streets. Clementine had kept her silence as she let the mare lead the way, taking care of the walkers or more accurately, slaughtering the walkers that were in their way.
Clementine hated to admit it but Rarity was terrifying to be around. She wasn't the same pony she met back at the motor-inn. The way she moved, talked and felt about certain things put her on edge.
They were close to leaving the town. It was still dark out, they were following the road leading out of the town. "Nate said that you shot at him."
Clementine frowned. "Y-yeah, but I didn't want to..."
"Well, honestly that is too bad. You have to hurt people in order to survive in this world."
"I don't want to hurt anyone."
"Well, you're gonna have to get used to it." Rarity simply answered, they were now leaving the town onto the road once more.
"Is that what happened with that old couple back at the diner? Did you just kill them?"
Rarity stopped and stared directly into the child's eyes. "Yes. That is exactly what happened. If you can't handle making difficult decisions then you will not survive in this world."
Clementine felt herself growing more anxious by the second. The mare was scaring her. The way she talked about killing, making difficult decisions, frightened her. She understood having to make difficult decisions and being cautious about surviving but Rarity seemed... too unstable?
She didn't look like she cared at all about hurting people. Yes, some people have tried to hurt them but she always felt guilty about having to take them out. Even if their sole intention was to kill, she still felt remorse but with Rarity? She acted like she never cared at all.
"You will have to kill people in order to survive. Just like with Nate, you nearly died."
Clementine frowned. "B-but wasn't it your idea to go with him in the first place?"
Some of the fire in Rarity's died down and sighed through her nose. "Yes, I did and that is a mistake that won't be happening. Ever. Again. From now on if we come across anybody we rob them blind."
"What!? Why!?" Surely, she was kidding... she had to be, right?
"As I said, difficult decisions."
"B-but-but why do we have to rob people though? Why can't we just-you know... ignore 'em or something? O-or just walk past them!?"
"Because we need supplies. Whatever they have, will be our's." The mare answered without hesitation.
"...And what if I don't wanna do it?"
"You don't have a choice Clementine, I made a promise to Lee that I would look after you and that is exactly what I'm doing." Rarity turned and proceeded forward. "Come on, we need to find somewhere to camp down at."
The child reluctantly followed after her, unnerved by the mare's hostility and her new "ideals". She sincerely hoped that they wouldn't cross paths with anyone, it wasn't going to turn out well for anyone. A part of her just also hoped that the mare was just mad or stressed and didn't mean any of the things she was saying.
It could just be the adrenaline. Freaked out about what just happened. Nate kidnapping the child and taking her into the woods, it could've been just that. Once Rarity calmed down, perhaps she would talk things over with her and apologize for acting so... barbaric. Clementine hoped she would, at least; other wise the Rarity she knew was already gone.
Clementine stared at the dying fire as she sat upon the log a few clicks away. They managed to track and kill a weasel. Rarity had been eating meat for a while now, initially she'd thought she was going to get food poisoning but that never happened; she actually thought it to be quite good which disgusted her the first time it came into her head. The experience was somewhat nerve wracking but having seen and done a handful of other awful things; she quickly grew accustomed to it.
The mare in front of her, fiddled with the fire trying to keep the flames alive. It was late at night with light rain pouring down on them. Winter started off hard for the two. They had been travelling for months, possibly a whole year now on the road and every step felt farther than the last. Rarity could've made due without a fire, the cold nights were tolerable; thanks to her fur but Clementine needed the fire to keep her warm.
Rarity grew more irritated as she tried in vain to keep the flames alive. "Well... this is absolutely wonderful," Clementine heard the sarcasm in her voice. Using her magic, she moved around a couple of logs she tossed into the fire. She'd hoped that it would burn better. She sighed and shook her head. "It doesn't even seem like it's working."
"We can't really do anything about it, now can we?" Clementine asked.
Rarity sighed. "The rain is making this a whole lot worse for us."
Over the months, the two had met their fair share of strangers on the road. Most of which who were unpleasant, either wanting to kidnap Clementine, rob them or kill them on sight. It made the whole "robbing people and leave them with nothing" ordeal much easier to deal with. Rarity would usually be the one to kill them, Clementine would sometimes want to spare them but the mare wouldn't have it; chopping it up as "they're too dangerous to be left alive" and that would be it.
Rarity's magic and otherworldly appearance gave them both a great advantage over others. There were only a few people they came across who actually seemed decent which only made the guilt worse when Rarity robbed them. It always happened, every time they came across somebody. The mare always ended up robbing them blind and if they had any weapons? She would destroy them. The best part about it was that she didn't care. At all.
Those who were decent were left alive... as long as they didn't try anything, that is.
There have been a couple of traumatic occasions where the victim would try to defend themself against the unicorn and it always only ended in death. The mare would take the supplies and continue down the road as if nothing happened.
Within those months, Clementine grew distant and slowly began to harbor a strong resentment for the unicorn. If she had a choice, she wouldn't stay with her anymore. She obviously understood defending herself but when it came to strangers who were obviously struggling and Rarity deliberately taking advantage of them without a care in the world, that was just morally wrong and Clementine hated it. Lee wouldn't have approved of this behavior. It wasn't like she could anything against the unicorn anyway, what she says goes.
The girl was planning on leaving the first chance she got but that was a month ago. She never had the gall to actually make the move and leave. Clementine didn't know how to survive on her own, she'd probably last a week at best out there on her own and judging by the number of bad people they've dealt with; it only made the chances of survival slimmer.
Rarity stopped fiddling with the logs and looked at the girl. "Clementine, I'm gonna go look for more wood. Make sure the fire is lit by the time I get back, okay?"
The girl merely nodded before the mare walked off into the woods.
Rarity added the wet log onto the pile that she was levitating. She didn't think the trip to Wellington would've taken this long, a few months at best but not a whole damn year. How long has it been? 12 months? 16? They've been on the road for at least a year now and still little progress had been made.
Rarity wondered if Wellington actually existed. She was considering the conclusion that maybe it didn't. It could've just been a rumor, a story they came across and they were just following a pipe dream. Maybe that man they met back in that town... Manning was it? She couldn't remember, it was year ago but that man could've been lying.
She sincerely hoped that he wasn't, she was getting tired of having to get up everyday just to fight. Getting Clementine to a safe and secure location was always the top priority.
If she didn't have her... well, she probably would have given up a long time ago.
If Wellington did turn out to be some fake story, she was going to have teach the girl how to survive. Granted, the child already knew some things such as; how to kill a walker. She still know much of everything else. The mare hoped the kid learned her lesson in trusting others, seeing as how she got Lee killed by running off with some random stranger who claimed to know her parents. If it wasn't for that decision, Lee would still be alive and she wouldn't have had to promise him anything.
Clementine was essentially the only thing keeping her alive at the moment, her promise to Lee. Once she got the child to a safe place, a reliable community where she could finally be able to sleep in a comfortable bed without keeping one eye open; nothing would be stopping the mare from doing whatever she wanted. She wouldn't have anything else to live for, nothing to keep her going.
Her friends were gone, her career was gone. Her shop had probably been closed down by now, unless someon-pony took care of it. She knew how Clementine felt toward her, it wasn't difficult to read what she was thinking at times; it's just one of those things you learn by default when you're around someone every second of the day.
Rarity wasn't going start all over again at some random community. Try rebuilding civilization. She wasn't civilized, not anymore. She's done too many bad things to even be considered "cordial". That fashionista that arrived on this world was long gone, along with her life. It was over and the only thing that mattered now was making sure Clementine was safe.
Once that's done... she'll leave. There was no sense in sticking around any longer than she had to, she'll put herself down. "Surviving the day" wasn't her idea of a life, others may find that motivating for them but it wasn't for movitating for her. Without her friends or her career, she was nothing. Selfish? Foolish? Maybe but she didn't care.
The mare turned around and saw three men coming out of a huge brush of leaves. She dropped the logs immediately before they were able to notice her magic. The sound of wood smacking against each other drew one of the men's attention. He had more of a yellow-ish skin tone with slicked back dreadlocks. "Looks like we finally caught ourselves some food!" He exclaimed, catching the two other's attention.
"The hell is it anyway?" One of the men asked with stunned expression, he had a grey hoodie with a much more dark skin tone.
"Doesn't matter, let's just kill it and-"
"You are not going to kill me." The mare quickly countered the other man. He had a light skin tone, wearing a green shirt with a backpack on him. She saw their expression morph into a look of shock before she continued. It worked every time, it was kind of boring going through the whole "holy shit! It talks" ordeal. "You are going to hand over everything you have and leave."
The three strangers glanced at one another before they bursted into a fit of laughter, causing an eyeroll from Rarity.
"N-no... no way!"
"Y-you're joking? You're fuckin' jokin', right!?"
"This is bullshit. There is no logical way on EARTH that this is real right now." The man with locs denied. "Y'all so full of it, I'm dreaming right now."
"Naw, you ain't dreaming. We all seein' this." The man with the hoodie replied.
"Then what the hell is going on!? Why is there a random talking-whatever-the-fuck-it-is out here!?"
"I dunno, how am I supposed to know!?"
"Everybody shut up!" Rarity interrupted, attracting their attention once more. "You are all going to hand over everything you got or something bad is going to happen." The mare warned which only made the man in the hoodie stare at her as if he was about to laugh again.
"Oh really? Really? Okay, how about this? Cut the shit and show us what you intend to do about it if we don't. What the hell are you anyway? What? A damn unicorn?"
"What I am is actually irrelevant. This is the last time I'm going to ask, hand over your stuff now!"
The man wasn't threatened, he didn't look threatened. Not surprising, being a colorful unicorn and all but people would be more likely to try and attempt something. Her magic always took them off guard, an amazing advantage.
He casually pulled out a pistol from his pants and drew on her. "What the hell are you gonna do about it? You gonna poke me with that horn? You ain't gonna do shit, you got a group? Are there more of you around!?" The playful edge to his voice was gone, deep and serious now like he was ready to start shooting.
"There has to be more of them, there ain't no way she survived out here all on her own!" Dreadlock man said.
"Exactly, there has to be more of them around!" The other man added.
"Where's the rest of your group!?" The hoodie man exclaimed once more, the pistol trained on the mare.
She's been in these situations before, it wasn't her first rodeo and it always ended the same way; with her coming out on top, alive. This wasn't going to be any different. The mare groaned in frustration. Using her magic, she yanked the pistol out of the man's hands and threw them all up against the trees; trapping them with a blue aura.
They all had the same fearful look on their faces as they began to lose their nerve.
"Ohshitohshitohsit!"
"What the fuck are you doing!? Let me go!"
"Oh fuck... oh shit, I'm gonna die..."
"I told you to hand over your supplies but yet, you people always like to make things more complicated than they should be and now here you are!" Rarity exclaimed.
"Please, please just let me go. Okay-okay? I-I-I'll leave, okay-you'll never see me again. I promise, alright? I promise!" the hoodie man began breathlessly begging.
"You're too dangerous to be kept alive, you could've just handed over your supplies but it doesn't matter now." The mare unsheathed her dagger from her holster and approached the man.
"NO! Please! Wait-wait-wait, jus-fuck!!! Just fuckin' wait a second! Shit man!"
Rarity sighed through her nose, growing ever so irritated. "What?"
"Just let me go, okay? I'll go, I'll leave and I'll give you all of my shit! Okay? T-that's-that's what'chu want right!? I'll give it to you! I'll give you everything!"
"Or I could just kill you and take everything anyway?" Rarity retorted.
"Well-what-fuckin'-good is that gonna do anyway!?"
Rarity scoffed, shaking her head. "It's gonna make me feel secure, you'll be dead and I'll still be living."
A twig snapping behind her caught her attention. Her head snapped around and came face to face with a walker. She released the three men and her knife from her grasp. She quickly dodged to the side, shoving the walker to the dirt below with her magic.
She went over to finish it off but felt something sharp go into her left rib. She yelped, stumbling and her balance was lost instantly. She was tackled to the ground by one of the scavengers, an arm wrapping around her neck pinning her and her right arm to the ground, she struggled as she tried to break free.
Too many things were happening all at once. Too fast to process, that and being presumably stabbed. Hopefully, not by her own knife.
She saw one of the man with the backpack take care of the walker while the hoodied man went searching for something on the ground. The mare brought her left hoof over to the man's head, hammering it mindlessly. The wound screaming at her side wasn't making things easier, it hurt just to move but actually trying to punch someone was sending her through a wave of utter hell.
She noticed the man with the backpack was coming over to assist his friend. Making an instant decision, she manifested whatever strength she had left; implementing it through her magic, she shoved the man's leg out from under him. He fell to the ground face first, letting out a groan of pain.
The one that was looking around all over the ground had finally found what he was looking for. His gun. She quickly attempted to use her magic once more but it suddenly cut off when a hand wrapped around her horn; cutting off the magical grasp like a flame on a candle.
Adrenaline pumping through her veins on overdrive, the pain that was aching in her side a few seconds ago disappeared and she brought her hoof to man's ribs. She punched it over and over until he finally let go. She released herself from his grasp and immediately focused on the hoodied man who already had his gun trained on her, standing a few feet away.
He pulled the trigger and a loud crack ranged throughout the woods.
In the midst of firing, the bullet itself hovered in the air between the mare and gun. The aura that was manifested around the bullet kept it in place while the man who had fired the gun, stared at it with a look of horror on his face as he realized the gravity of his situation.
Rarity deflected the bullet right into the his hand, forcing him to drop the gun. He stumbled backwards as he clutched to his hand, grunting in pain.
The mare quickly glanced around, her heart racing to take a break, she noticed the number of walkers appearing around the forest in all directions. Her eyes landed on the two other scavengers who were beginning to recover.
Not wanting to continue the fight, she ran away; being mindful of the walkers that were advancing on her. Blood dripped from her wound, leaving a trail in the patch of wet dirt. She needed to get to safety as soon as possible.
She had no idea where she was going, the woods, trees, brushes all looked the same. She just had to stay in one direction. The walkers were seemingly popping out from nowhere. Some in front of her, forcing her to detour from her direction, some coming out from the brushes and some following her from behind.
She was going to be travelling in a circle if this continued. She was going to get nowhere if she kept taking different paths but it was not like she had a choice and to top it-
Rarity gasped, stopped and her eyes widened as she remembered something.
"Clementine!" She blurted out. then turned back to where she came and stared. The mare slowly began to panic as she realized that she forgot Clementine. Her breath began to pick up as she scanned in all directions, walkers coming out from the bushes in plain sight. "Oh no,no-no-no-no-" she uselessly muttered to herself.
After a few moments of looking around aimlessly, she decided to continue down her direction; running as fast she could. The blood wasn't to stop anytime soon and it was attracting walkers from all over. It could lead them straight to Clementine...
A brush was coming up as she ran. Not wanting to take another direction, she ran into it and tripped. She tumbled, rolling down a hill, smashing into hard bumps before finally being thrown into a pool of water. The water filled her nose creating a painful sting. It flooded her throat causing her to choke, her body tried to cough a few times but the water only fill it even more.
She was slowly drifting off, she managed to figure out that she had just landed into a river. Was this how she was going to die? Realising that she had failed Lee? Was that going to be her last thought? She tried and was doing good too but in the end she failed. Rarity had lost Clementine. The mare would most likely be long gone by the time she woke up... if she would even wake up.
It depended on how long this river was, it could probably lead to the ocean for all the mare knew and then she really would've lost Clementine at that point. Her friends were gone, lost in Savannah somewhere. Probably not even in Savannah anymore and here she was, floating down the stream as she was losing her consciousness.
She wondered if they were still alive. If they were still looking for her, perhaps not. She would shamefully admit it but she stopped looking for them a long time ago but despite all that...
...at least, she could rest now.
"Rarity?" The fashionista opened her eyes only to come face first with Pinkie's abnormally large grin.
"Pinkie?" The mare breathlessly said as she stared up at her pink friend.
"Yeeeeeees, Rarity?" The unicorn remained in stunned silence as she soaked in the situation. She looked around in the disbelief. She was in a small brick-red room with one window, the blinds were closed but she could see the sunlight seeping through and there was a restroom to her right. Was she... was she back at the-
"You were grumbling and mumbling in your sleep! So I was like-ooh I wonder what Rarity's dreaming about!? Then I was like-oof!" The pink mare was cut off by the fashionista sudden embrace. She could feel the patch of fur on her chest begin to moisten and the involuntary shaking of the unicorn against her. "Aww! Rarity..." The party pony quickly returned the embrace. "Did you have a bad dream?" The fashionista nodded. "Oh, i-it's okay. It was just a bad dream, ugh! Where's Princess Luna when you need her!?"
The distraught mare lifted her head up from her friend's chest, bloodshot eyes filled with leaking tears. "W-where...where are we?"
"We're at the motel! Remember? We got here yesterday!"
"W-was..." The unicorn gulped. "w-was I dreaming?"
"Well, yeah! That's what happens when you sleep! Oh-uh, by the way, what was that dream about?" The party pony's smile was still etched onto her features.
The unicorn thought about it for a moment but ignored it. "I-I'll tell you later. Where are the girls?"
"Oh they're outside, talking with the humans." Pinkie explained.
The fashionista hopped off the bed immediately and trotted over to the door. She flinged it open and was assaulted by the sun's bright light. Once her eyes had adjusted, she was hit with a wave of warm nostalgia.
She was really back at the motel again. Hey eyes took in the familiar scenery. The parking lot, the R.V, the wall the humans had built to block out the walkers and any other threats.
She even recognized a few people she hasn't seen in a while. Lilly, sitting and keeping watch on top of the R.V. Katjaa sitting with Kenny. She even missed Larry of all people. Then her eyes laid upon them, her friends all huddled together. She walked closer toward them, Rainbow was arguing about something but stopped when she saw Rarity.
"Rarity! Tell Twilight that... hey, were you crying?"
The unicorn didn't respond instead threw her arms around the confused but concerned Rainbow-maned pegasus. Rainbow Dash threw an glance around everypony before hugging her friend back. Twilight and Applejack both exchanged a concerned look at each other while Fluttershy gently patted the sobbing unicorn.
"Rarity, are you... okay?" Twilight asked as she came over to the two.
The elegant unicorn lifted her head up from the pegasus's shoulder and turned around to meet Twilight. "Yes, o-of course I am. I'm absolutely wonderful!" She then embraced her lavender friend to which she pleasantly returned. "I'm just... so glad you're here."
"She had a bad dream," Pinkie interjected.
"Must've been a fairly awful dream ta get 'er goin' like that," Applejack added with a frown. "What was it about?"
"I dunno, she didn't tell me." Pinkie shrugged.
Twilight nodded. "Rarity, you want to tell us what your dream was about?"
The white unicorn looked up at all of her friends, all looking back at her with a concerned expressions. Her friends, all of them together again. "I-I... I just-felt... I felt what it would be like to lose... a-all of you. All my friends... wait... where's Lee?"
"I'm right here." She turned around to find the man himself, coming over to the group. "I was just coming to check in, seeing how you were all holding up."
"We're... doing fine, thanks." Twilight answered, glancing worriedly at Rarity.
"I still can't believe I'm standing here talking to... horses." He rubbed at his forehead.
"It's ponies and ah can't believe that there are actual aliens!" Applejack exclaimed.
"I guess that makes to of us." Lee seemed to notice Rarity's red puffy eyes. "Are you okay?"
The white unicorn nodded with a smile. "Yes, I am. Thank you for asking."
He decided not to press forward, presuming her friends would take care of her. "Alright, if you girls need anything or... if you need help with something just come find me."
"Will do, thanks Lee." Twilight said and the man walked off.
"You gon' be okay, sugarcube?" Applejack inquired.
"Hmm? Oh, yes of course! I'm just glad you're all here with me." The fashionista gave a warm smile, rubbing at her puffy eyes.
"Well, obviously. Why wouldn't we be here?" Rainbow added.
Rarity still couldn't believe what she was seeing. Was that all truly a dream? Going to Savannah, getting lost and losing her friends...
...was this the dream?
No.
No, it wasn't.
Of course, it wasn't. Why would it be?
As Rarity stood there, watching her friends chat amongst each other, a feeling flowed through her; something she hadn't truly felt in a long time...
