Salvation. The Walking Dead: Season Five.

Risks We Take - Part Five.

*

No words had to be exchanged for Lilly to know they had been unsuccessful in their venture, reacting by passively screwing up one of the two maps she had drawn up in prelude of their nearing departure the following morning.

It was clear she hadn't truly anticipated results but Clementine respected her resolve to account for the possibility that they may have gotten lucky anyway. It was akin to somewhat of a back handed compliment coming from Lilly.

Having returned home on the cusp of dusk they didn't have much time left for anything before needing to get a good nights sleep. But waiting on a hot and filling meal gave them a little leeway for a few activities still to be accomplished.

Violet had withdrawn a scavenged pair of scissors from her back pocket after setting up both AJ and Tenn with their drawing supplies, indicating it was time for Clementines desired haircut.

The two lovers climbed up and out of the hatch where a couple of their number already sat enjoying the shallow breeze, antithesis to the circling sticky heat being generated by the stove cooking their meals inside.

"You sure you trust me with these?" Violet said jokingly. She attempted to make quick cutting motions with the scissors but they resisted, catching due to all the rust they had fallen to over the years.

Clementine nodded.

"Of course. You're the not the first and I know you won't be the worst." She giggled to herself then, remembering the months she had to put up with Javi's attempt until it grew out enough for her to even it up herself.

She wondered where he was now. They had been overrun so quickly that day there was no time for anyone to pick a rendevous point, only a moments notice to grab AJ and run to safety. Returning to the outskirts of Richmond days later found the place no longer inhabited by the prior residents and no sign of Javier existed among the corpses.

"You sure? Sophie's usually the stylist around here. I can go get her if you want, Clem." Violet asked again, doubting her own ability. Clementine plonked herself down in front of Violet in defiance, her legs overhanging the railing once again.

"I'm sure, Vi. I just need a trim, you can do that. If you fuck it up, well maybe then we can ask Sophie to salvage it. AJ needs a haircut too, we can ask her to do his a little later." She said, sensing Violet getting onto her knees behind.

She removed Clementines hat and set it to the side, releasing her overly long pigtails so that her hair hung wavy to her shoulders. Clementine took this opportunity to rest her chin on the steel barrier while Violet took a few minutes to run her hands through her hair delicately, stopping when they snagged on a knot, and picking it free patiently each time until her thick, usually near black locks reposed almost chocolate-like under the dying light at their backs.

"So, are you going to tell me what Min did to piss you off earlier?" Violet asked, fiddling with Clementines split ends.

"Oh, you saw that?" Clementine didn't bother to play dumb. She respected Violet a little more than that.

"From the window, yeah" Vi confirmed. "I wasn't spying - I just like to see you, like all the time. Louis had just come up and I wanted to call you too, but I look out the window and you've got Minnie up by her ears. What did she do this time?" She asked, clearly well enough aware of Minnie to know she caused an appropriate reaction.