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ericsonclan · 4 years

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Doing Her Part

Summary: Violet grows annoyed at her continued difficulties with her limited sight and comes up with a new way to help out.

Word count: 1420

Read on A03:

“Gosh, that’s an awfully deep cut, Vi,” Ruby noted. She was examining the injury more closely now that she’d gotten it properly cleaned.

“It’s nothing,” Violet looked away, her eyes sullenly locked upon the blurry floor beneath them. “Just bandage it up and I’ll get back to work,”

“I’m not sure what you were doing handling the knife in the first place. Isn’t that Clementine’s job when you two are on pelt duty?”

It was, but Violet had gotten impatient waiting for Clementine to get done with her conversation Aasim had pulled her aside for. Skinning a rabbit was easy, just a few quick cuts, some firm tugs and the skin was off. Violet had been sure she could do it on her own, even with her shitty eyesight. Clearly she was wrong.

“I’m gonna have to put a stitch in this,” There was a clear tone of concern in Ruby’s voice. “I’ll try to get it done as quick as I can,”

Violet shrugged. “I’ve been through worse. Go ahead,”

Ruby worked neatly, laying out the materials that would be needed. She handled Violet’s hand gently, seeming hesitant to push the needle through.

“I’ve had stitches before. You don’t have to baby me,” Violet snapped before her brows immediately knotted together in apology. “Shit. Sorry. Didn’t mean to yell like that,”

Ruby shook her head, chuckling ruefully. “I’ve been through worse,” With that she pushed the needle through Violet’s skin, making a quick stitch and knotting the thread. “That’ll be sore for a few days, but it should heal just fine. Need a hand getting anywhere?”

“No, I know the way,” Violet got up and strode toward the door, pausing in the doorway for only a moment. “Thanks,”

She left before Ruby could reply. Running her hand softly along the wall, Violet made her way down the hallway. She knew this school like the back of her hand but navigating it with her damaged eyesight was still a skill she was mastering. It had been a few months since they’d defeated the Delta and come home to rebuild their lives. Violet had told herself that once the burning pain on her face was gone the worst would be over, but she knew now she’d been tricking herself. The struggles of living with such severely diminished sight wore on her day in and day out without end. The pain wasn’t the worst thing at all: it was the helplessness.

I can’t fish, can’t hunt, can’t go on watch or fight, and now I fucked up the simplest job they could find for me. Violet could feel her anger rising within her as she turned the corner and headed down the stairs to the first floor. Next thing you know they’ll confine me to my room to make sure they don’t have to assign somebody to follow me around like some-

“Clem! I’ve been looking for you!” Louis’ cheery voice rang through the hallway as he strode over. Violet could just make the pair out as they met at the end of the hallway.

“What’s up?” Clementine asked, her crutches clacking on the floor as she turned around.

“Was wondering if you’d like to join me on watch. It might be a bit tricky getting you up there, but I figure if you cling onto my back I should be able to lift the both of us,”

“Putting those muscles to use, huh?” Clementine teased.

“Well, you did say it was one of the things you look for in a partner. So how bout it?”

“Sounds good to me. Lead the way,” With that they were off, Clementine’s crutches thumping against the floorboards with each step.

Somehow the interaction had only served to further sour Violet’s mood. She knew it wasn’t right to compare injuries, but it was moments like that that made her feel Clementine got the longer end of the stick. Right, Vi, cause getting your leg chopped off in a barn surrounded by walkers is a total dream, Violet snarked to herself, making her way down the hall. Still, Clementine was able to do things she simply couldn’t anymore: handle a knife, aim a bow, be on watch duty (even though that last one was more about keeping Louis company)…

Violet looked out the window. The blurry forms of trees intermingled with the sunlight. Beyond that lay Ericson’s gates. Those things had been blown to hell the night the raiders attacked. The barrier the kids had spent weeks building was charred and burnt now, only a few boards hastily piled back in place. There was so much to be done, so many injuries and losses to recover from, that they hadn’t yet gotten around to reassembling the barricade to its former glory.

Wait a minute… that was it. That was something she could do. She could lift shit and carry it out to the gates. Hell, she could rebuild that entire thing herself. A surge of determination ran through Violet’s veins at the thought. She was gonna prove to everyone just how capable she still was. All she needed was material to build the barricade with… and she knew just the place to start.

---

“Hey, Vi!” Louis said cheerily before his face fell in confusion at the sight of his friend lugging a mattress outside singlehandedly. “Um, what you got there?”

“A mattress,” Violet huffed, readjusting her grip and tugging harder.

“Well, I can see that, but what for? You planning to sleep outside tonight?”

“I’m rebuilding the barricade. Figured I’m still strong, I can handle it. Besides, this mattress won’t be missed. It’s yours,”

“Mine?!” Louis scurried after Violet, circling her and walking backwards so they could speak face to face. “Why on earth would you grab my mattress?”

“Cause you’re not using it anymore. I heard you sneaking out of Clementine’s room last night. Or are you gonna tell me I’m wrong?” Violet stopped, raising an eyebrow. She could practically envision the embarrassment upon Louis’ face.

“I- that- I was telling A.J. a bedtime story!” Louis placed his hands on his hips defiantly. “Besides, like you said, I was sneaking out of the room. So I didn’t sleep there!”

“Mhm, I’m sure that’ll be the status quo for a long time,” Violet quipped before starting to walk again.

“Violet, what are you doing?” Clementine called out. She must still be up on the watch tower.

“My part!” Violet replied, still dragging the mattress through the dust. These things were heavier than she remembered. It’d probably take a few days to build the barricade up as high as was needed. It was almost suppertime now, the light beginning to mellow and fade. This mattress would have to be the symbolic start of her work. She’d really get going tomorrow.

“What’s the mattress for?” A.J.’s voice popped up by her elbow. “Are we sleeping outside?”

“No, little man. Violet’s just playing a prank on me,” Louis replied. “A prank that will end momentarily when she returns that mattress,”

“Get your own mattress,” Violet replied.

“It’s my mattress!”

“What’s a prank?” A.J. asked in confusion.

By now her trek to the gates had drawn the attention of most of the other kids. Everyone had been mingling around the front yard in anticipation of dinner. Good. Then they’ll all get to see me hard at work. She must be to the gates by now. If her memory served correctly, it was right in front of her. Heaving the mattress up in both arms, Violet flung it against the gates. It landed with a muted thunk. Huh. I thought that’d sound grander or I guess louder. Oh well. Dusting her hands off, Violet straightened to her full height. “Well, my work here is done,” With that she strode off proudly, ready for a good supper.

The rest of the kids stood assembled round the mattress. Clementine had successfully made it down from the watchtower, joining Louis and A.J. as they stared at the tattered, dusty mattress. Ruby and Aasim had dropped by on their way back from the greenhouse and Willy had stopped his bug chasing to curiously join the crowd. Louis was the one to finally speak. “So, who’s gonna tell Vi that what she actually threw my mattress against was a tree?”

They all looked over at Violet who sat at one of the picnic tables, contently kicking her legs and waiting for dinner. Perhaps they’d just leave the mattress there for the night.

#twdg #fanfic #twdg violet #twdg louis #twdg clementine #twdg ruby #clouis

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