Clementine is holed up with two factions of angry, desperate survivors. One group cowers on the floor, while the second flashes their guns and makes an example of a rival survivor with two quick, non-lethal snaps. Clementine watches the torment from a raised landing, where she's hiding with two allies who argue about their next move. They reach an impasse and turn to Clementine for advice.

Let's get that straight: Two adults, who have weathered the zombie epidemic for more than a year, pause in their argument about a serious, life-or-death situation to take tips from the 11-year-old girl. An 11-year-old-girl that they would have easily shot two weeks ago. She still has pigtails.

She also has good advice. "A House Divided," the second episode of The Walking Dead's second season, presents Clementine as a complete, independent character for the first time. Though she is surrounded by people - mostly adults - she doesn't answer to any of them, and she doesn't depend on any one person for survival. She can hold her own and she has demonstrated her skills to her new companions. They trust her, and she trusts herself.