virago|c.g.|

xxii

As Rick turned back to the people, everyone's eyes averted to the entrance as Pete came in. Clary's eyes widened as she saw that he held a katana in his hand. "You're not one of us. You're not one of us!" Clary watched the scene unfold as Reg made his way to the visibly drunk and angered man. "Pete, you don't want to do this," Reg tried to reason with the angry man, who only kept his eyes on Rick. "Get the hell away from me, Reg." Trying to push past Reg, Pete didn't stop even with more warning. "Pete, just stop."

As Reg continued to try to move Pete away from the scene, Clary came forward in front of the crowd, ready to protect them from the crazed man. Carol looked to her, shaking her head to tell the girl not to advance, so she didn't. Instead, her eyes widened as Pete placed his hands on Reg'a chest, pushing him away. "Get away!" But Pete pushed Reg with the hand that held the sword, the blade slicing Reg's neck clean through before he staggered back into Deanna's arms Screams erupted all around as Deanna cradled her husband close to her as he fell, the woman sobbing as he choked on his own blood.

Immediately, Abraham launched himself at Pete, getting him on the ground as the man continued to yell in anger. Rick looked between the two, but Clary knew what he was waiting for. Pete fought against Abraham, looking to Rick with a fire in his eyes. "It's him! This is him!" Pete cried out, still fighting against Abraham as he pushed the man's head harder against the ground. "Rick..." Clary looked towards Deanna, her eyes flicking to the man in her arms to see Reg unmoving. "Do it." Clary watched as Rick was quick to take out his gun, firing a shot into Pete's skull without hesitation.

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Clary couldn't help but stare at where Pete lay unmoving, the blood slowly beginning to spill from the bullet wound in his head. She was no stranger to death, to rage, to fighting, but this was different. Her eyes glanced up, looking towards Rick as he kept his attention elsewhere. She had seen him trying hard to play into the lie that Alexandria offered, whether it was for his children or for himself, she didn't know. But she could see the man for who he truly was at that moment: a man who would stop at nothing to protect his people.

Glancing away, she didn't want to show her slight fear of the man, her attention only returning as a new voice sounded. "Rick?" All eyes, including her own, moved towards the entrance once again to see Daryl, Aaron and a man she had never seen. Clary clenched her jaw, her eyes watchful of the new man within their walls as her hand instinctively reached for a weapon. But as her eyes flicked over to Rick, she noticed his ease and almost familiarity with the man. However, before Clary could question their bond, her eyes fell upon Deanna as she stood up. Clary couldn't help but feel bad for the woman as she stared at her bloodied hands in a trance like state. "Meeting over, " was all she said, her voice was barely above a whisper, as she stepped away from the body of her husband. Clary only looked back to Rick to see his eyes fall on the woman, his eyes holding no emotion before he turned back to the people. With a reassuring nod, he urged them to return home.

With everyone around her departing, Clary did the same as she made her way back to the home she shared with Glenn and Maggie. The night had been still, silent, which was almost for deafening than the far off moaning of walkers. "Clary!" The girl was quick to whip her head around, her hand laying on the switchblade in her pocket, ready to defend herself if need be. However, she let her hand fall as she saw it was Enid who had called out for her. But it was the fear in Enid's eyes and the speed she was running towards her, barreling into Clary as she gripped onto her friend's arms. "Enid? What's—" the girl cut her off. "I— I was with Ron. We were taking a walk around just to clear his head when I saw Maggie running to the infirmary. She said to get you." Clary's eyes widened, not even thinking to mention to the girl that her boyfriend's father had just been killed. Instead, she pulled away, worry gripping onto her heart. "Is she alright?" Clary questioned worriedly, to which Enid nodded. "Yeah, Maggie's fine but... it's Glenn. I don't know what happened but—" Clary didn't allow Enid to finish before she took off towards the infirmary. Enid watched for a moment as the girl ran before heading back to the pond where she had been with her boyfriend.

As Clary approached the infirmary, she opened the door to see many people inside. The first person she saw was Tara, who had been in the infirmary for a while because of the head injury she sustained while on the run. The woman looked to Clary, giving a small wave. "Hey badass, glad to see you're in one piece." The girl let out a chuckle, nodding her head softly. "I could say the same for you. How's the head?" The woman have a small wink, tapping a finger to her head. "'Bout as strong as steel, I'll be out of here in a few days. Heard you wrapped up my head pretty well. Thank you." Clary only nodded before she turned turned to see Glenn sitting at one of the other beds, Maggie by his side.

The girl was quick to make her way towards him, her eyes scanning his body for injuries. "What the hell happened? Where were you?" Glenn placed a hand on her arm, causing her voice to falter. "Nicholas and I were outside of the walls. Walkers snuck up on us but we're okay." Seeing her worried eyes, Glenn forced her to look at him by placing a gentle hand on her arm. As she looked to him, he smiled reassuringly. "I'm fine, barely even a scratch." Clary pursed her lips, not too convinced of the story as he definitely had a lot more than a scratch on his body from what she could see. She looked towards the other man mentioned, anger in the pit of her stomach as she knew that couldn't be it.

However, before she could give the man a piece of her mind, Glenn's hand found its way onto her shoulder. She looked back to him, allowing her eyes to show how worried she had been about him. "Are you sure you're okay?" Clary asked once again, just to be sure. The man didn't hesitate to nod. "I'm okay, Clary. Cross my heart." Glenn made the motion over his heart, to which Clary calmed down before doing the same to acknowledge his words. "You had us both worried. You hadn't gone to the meeting." Maggie looked to her husband lovingly, causing Clary to smile slightly. "I was going to, but obviously I got sidetracked." Maggie nodded softly.

Both Clary and Maggie sat with Glenn, not leaving the infirmary as he stayed there for the night to properly heal. The only one that left was Maggie, who felt the need to go check up on Deanna after the events of the night. Clary opted for a metal chair in the infirmary, allowing Glenn the full bed before she, surprisingly, fell asleep. Glenn wouldn't voice his feelings but his heart grew warm as he realized he meant quite a bit to the young girl as she stayed. With that thought, he, too, fell asleep.

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Hey guys! I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for 1k reads! Never did I think 'Virago' would hit such a milestone so quickly. I hope you are enjoying Clarissa Dean's story and will enjoy what is to come.
But seriously, thank you so much. You guys are amazing. Stay safe! <3