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queenvidal · 8 months

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The Queen For A King

Negan x Reader (Rick’s Daughter)

Chapter 3: Aye For An Eye

Chapter Summary: Negan brings Carl back home - save and sound. He's thinking about how to punish Rick for what his boy did, when a new opportunity arises. While Rick's gone, Spencer is shooting his shot. Things quickly escalate with you sitting on the fence. Alexandria is done living in fear - this means war.

Wordcount: 7698

Era: Season 7

- Part 4 of the The One And Only Series -

Chapter Index:

Chapter 1 / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3

Next Part / Masterlist / Negan x Rick's Daughter Series

It’s late afternoon when Alexandria is set on high alert. For the second time today the guards on the wall announced the arrival of the Saviors. The people in the town are concerned and are getting nervous, some coming outside to take a look while some stay inside, locking their doors.

You’re already making your way from your house to the gate. Something must be wrong, they would not have come back otherwise. People around you seem on edge, rightfully so you muse. You yourself are feeling uneasy. Your father is out of town, on a trip with Aaron. Daryl and Michonne are out hunting, leaving the town pretty defenseless, should shit hit the fan. Hopefully it won’t come this far.

The street is swarmed with worried Alexandrians. With quick steps you make your way down the street towards the parking lot, feeling the uneasiness making your stomach churn. Between the gathering Saviors you spot their boss and suddenly you stop in your tracks. Carl is jumping out of one of the trucks. Immediately is Negan grabbing him, pushing the boy forcefully up the street. At once you start sprinting towards them.

Negan releases his hand from the back of Carl's neck when seeing you running. Carl has only a moment to brace for the impact before you knock the wind out of him. You cling on him so tight he struggles to breathe. “For fuck sake, Carl!” You greet him, “I’ve been sick with worry!” After a few moments you release your brother from the constricting hug, glaring at him. “Where the hell have you been?”

Negan’s voice sounds behind you. “I’ll tell you in a minute.” He nods towards your house. You understand the silent command and get moving without another word, Carl trailing behind you. Thousands of questions are swirling around your head. Did Negan have something to do with Carl's disappearance? What did Carl do and where the hell are his bandages?

Once at your home, Negan opens the front door and swagers inside with you and your brother following. You quickly move over into the living room where Olivia is frozen in place. She looks between you and Negan. Ever so slightly do you shake your head no at her before gathering the documents and clipboards that are scattered all around the floor.

“What have you ladies been up to?” Negan asks with a raised eyebrow.

With the inventory of the sewers in your hand you say “Going over stock of the pantry,” you explain, looking at Olivia. “Wanna take a look?” You press your lip into a thin line while Oliva’s staring at you with wide blown eyes.

“Nah, bore me with that crap next week.” Negan waves you off, sauntering into the kitchen. “My visit isn’t business related.” After a quick sigh of relief you hand Olivia the documents, she’s about to pack up and go when Negan appears behind you two. “Where’s Rick?”

You’re about to answer but when you turn around, you see him looking at Olivia. Her eyes land on you for a brief moment, before moving on to Negan. “I… I was just-”

“Don’t care.” Negan cuts her stammering off. “Where’s Rick?”

“Um, he’s…” Her eyes still travel between you and the man in front of her. You know how scared she is of the Saviors and you feel sorry for her. “Rick’s out… scavenging for you.”

“Cool.” Negan grins at her. “I’ll wait.”

He’s about to turn around again, when Oliva says. “He went pretty far. They might not be back today.” You know what she’s doing and admire that she dares trying to get rid of Negan. But Oliva quickly crumbles under Negan's stare. “We… we’re running pretty low. On everything." Her hands start to tremble. “We’re practically starving.”

That’s a bit over dramatic and Negan catches on immediately. “Starving?” He asks, his eyebrows raised. With a step further towards Olivia, he has to crack a smile, pointing at her. “You?”

Tears instantly well in Olivia's eyes and you look at Negan in utter disbelief, your mouth wide open. Oliva turns around, wiping her tears away while you fix Negan with your eyes, glowering at him. He just shrugs his shoulders, mouthing a quiet “Really?”

He rolls his eyes before apologizing. “Jeez, I’m sorry…” He looks back at you and you mouth him her name. “Olivia? Olivia, look. I’ll be waiting for Rick, which means I’ll be here for a while. Why don’t you be a lamb and make us a little limonade? I for a fact know you guys still have some of that powdered stuff.”

The woman wipes the last tear away before saying. “Well, I was supposed to-”

“Make it.” The apologetic and gentle tone in Negan’s voice is completely gone and his expression slowly turns stern.Olivia just nods, before taking the clipboards and going for the door.

Once the door closes behind her, you turn back towards Negan “Was that really necessary?”

“Oh, c’mon, sweet thing.” Negan sighs, “I had a long day, cut me some slack here.”

With a shake of your head you decide to let it go and turn towards your brother who hasn’t moved the whole time. ”So, what’s going on, what happened?”

Negan leans against the kitchen table. “Well. Your brother dear went on a mission today.” You are tilting your head, your eyes moving from Negan towards your brother. “He, all by himself, sneaked onto one of my trucks and shot two of my men down in an attempt to assassinate me.”

Worry quickly takes over, hastily you take Carl’s face in your hands, scanning him for injuries “Oh my god, are you okay? Wait- are you okay?” You ask, snapping your head back at Negan.

The man just huffs a laugh. “I am unharmed and that little shit-head is unharmed.” He pushes himself from the table, aimlessly wandering through the kitchen. “When did you say your father would be back?” He asks before turning around to face you.

You just shrug your shoulders. “Most likely today but I can’t tell for certain.”

“Well, guess I’ll be puttin’ up my feet up and wait for your father.” Negan walks back towards you and Carl. “Where can I find the bathroom?”

You point up behind you, “Upstairs the first door to your left.“

"Thanks.” Negan rounds you two to go for the stairs. “In the meantime, your little assassin can tell you all about his big plan, huh, Carl?”

With slow steps you move towards the kitchen table before taking a seat. “Actually, I’d really love to hear what the hell you were doing.” The boy reluctantly gets moving, your demanding stare forcing him to take a seat opposite from you. “And?” you ask, still waiting for him to speak up.

“I…” Carl starts, troubling to talk. “He- I…” After a deep breath, Carl tries again. “I wanted to help-”

“By getting yourself killed?” Your voice raises on its own accord. “By killing Negan? Are you insane?!” Carl doesn’t meet your eyes, looking down on the ground, biting his cheek. After you take a deep breath, you tone your voice down again. “Christ, Carl. Can you please tell me what happened?”

The change in your voice makes him look back at you again. After a moment he finally talks, explaining the whole situation, about the attempted murder, about the factory, about his punishment.

“Fuck…” you whisper to yourself, your head in your hands, still taking all of that it. All you can think about are the possible consequences for your family and Alexandria. People are going to die. Eventually you look up at your brother again. “Goddamn, Carl. Did you take only one moment to consider what would happen afterwards?”

Your brother shrugs his shoulders, looking back at the ground, “In that moment, that didn't matter to me.”

Now your anger is flaring back to life. “You’re so much like dad, it’s infuriating! How can you be so goddamn careless?”

Carl's head snaps up, “Because you’re always trying to protect everyone but no one is protecting you!”

You’re taking aback by this statement. It warms your heart to no end, to know your baby brother would go far and beyond for you. Still, what he did was unreasonable. “Carl… I don’t need protection-”

“Of course you do!” Carl states, “No one was helping you, when Negan came into our house-”

“Carl!” You yell, to cut him off. “I am your biggest sister. Protecting you is my job and I do it with all my heart. I appreciate you standing up for me but I wished you had talked to me beforehand. Then you’d have known I don’t need protection, not from Negan.” The boy’s eyebrows furrow. “I am with him because I want to.”

Carl's looking at you with a wide open eye, “But… Dad and Daryl, I heard them say he forces you to-”

You stop him right there, “He’s never forced me to do anything, Carl.”

But Carl is shaking his head, he can’t believe what he is hearing. After a moment he asks, “Is…Do you love him?”

You quickly look up the stairs, making sure you can’t be heard before looking back to your brother. “I… I wouldn’t call it love, but I’d be lying if I said I’d feel nothing.”

“I… I just don't understand.” Carl whispers, visibly struggling with the information. “He is a monster, Y/N. Do you know what he did to one of his workers? He burned off his face with an iron!”

Your eyebrows shoot up at that. “So that’s what happened to Dwight's face.” What could he have done to be punished like that?

Carl’s frown only deepens at your response, “Who cares about Dwight? Have you forgotten about Abraham, about Glenn?”

You almost roll your eyes, “I certainly did not and I am tired of people acting like I’m suffering from amnesia.” You fold your arms over your chest. “There is not one single day I don’t think about them, Carl. Still, the thing with me and Negan just… happened. I know what he did, I saw it, but I also saw that he cared. About me..”

The boy just looks down at the table, thinking about that for a moment. After a deep breath you tell him. “I’ll answer you any question you have.”

Carl’s eye moves up to you again, “So you two are together? It's like with you and Raul?”

You cringe at that name. It’s been a very long time since you’ve thought about your ex. Well, technically you two never broke up, but when the dead started walking and Atlanta got bombed, you assumed he’d died. It just made it easier for you.

You shake your head at Carl. “No, it’s nothing like what I had with Raul, it’s-”, you stop.What exactly is that between you two, just sex? You can’t say that to your brother. And if you’re honest with yourself, it stopped being just sex a while ago, didn't it? “It’s different.” You finally tell him. “But still… nice.”

Carl’s biting his cheek again, “You’re… happy?”

You lean onto the kitchen table, thinking over it for a second. “When we two are together, yeah. I am.”

Silence scratches. Carl just keeps looking at the table, taking it all in and you keep looking at him, unsure what else to say. After a long while, Carl looks up at you again. “What’s going to happen now?”

You shrug your shoulders, “Honestly, I have no idea. We’ll see once Dad’s back.” With a tired sigh, you let yourself fall back into the chair, one arm over your eyes. “First Spencer, now you, I need a damn break.”

"Spencer?" Carl asks, “What’s up with him?”

You shake your head at him, “That’s something I’ll discuss with Dad ‘n Daryl, Carl.”

“You guys can stop trying to shield me”, the boy pouts, “ I am old enough for serious topics, you know?”

“Oh, obviously.” The sarcastic tone is impossible to miss as you wave vaguely at the stairs.

Carl sights before turning silent again, seemingly pouting. After a tired sigh, you decide to tell him. “Okay, Spencer reached out to me today, told me he wants to get rid of Dad, so he can become the leader and not only that, he requested an alliance, so he and I would both be in charge.”

Carl's eyebrows raise up at that. “What? He can’t just do that? And with you together, doesn't he know you can’t stand him?”

“He did not ask me to do it because of sympathy, Carl.” You explain. “He just wants to use me. He needs our group and therefore someone able to keep them from acting out at him, should he become the new leader while simultaneously using me for my connections with Negan.”

“We have to do something about him.” Carl urges.

You just nod your head. “Once Dad’s back. Don’t worry, Carl.” You lean back against your chair. “At the moment we have bigger problems ahead.”

Your little brother looks outside the kitchen window before he beams at you. “We still got one good thing out of it!” You raise a questioning eyebrow at him. “Now I know where their base is. I can show Dad!”

The urge to roll your eyes almost wins when you tell him, “Carl, come on. Do you really think I have been scouting out the whole era for over a year now and don't know where their damn base was?”

To be fair, it took you quite some time to find The Sanctuary. It’s been a few trips out of D.C, scouting out the suburbs and nearby warehouses until you stumbled around blocked off streets. Once you came across the trapped pathways you knew someone was keen to keep the riff-raff out of their territory. It was intimidating and at first you stayed away from that particular suburb. Up until your talk with Negan. When he looked at your map and pointed out the blue pin that was sticking out of that place, you knew what you’d find there. Still you’d not be able to pinpoint the exact location of his home, but that’s fine. You’d just have to follow the trapped streets to find them.

The excitement left Carl’s face as quickly as it came to light. “Really? Why didn’t you tell us then?”

“You really need an answer to this?” You look at him with raised eyebrows. “I told nobody for a reason, no one in this community could handle the responsibility that comes with that information. Can you imagine what would happen if people knew? War, Carl. And you can bet I’ll do everything I can to prevent that from happening. I won’t tell anyone where they are and neither will you.”

Another pout. Carl’s voice can’t hide how hurt he is, “You… you don’t even trust me?”

You sigh again.“Its not like that, It’s-WHAT THE FUCK?”

Negan is walking down the stairs, grinning from ear to ear. “That noticeable?” His beard is gone, he must have shaved it in the bathroom.

“What the fuck?” You repeat, shooting out of your chair and moving towards him. Negan looks so different without his beard, it’s insane. “Why?”

“It started to get on my nerves. Why, you don't like it?” He asks, grinning.

You shrug your shoulders, “I dunno. You just look�� different.”

“Ouch.” He places a hand over his heart. “Don’t worry, sweet thing.” He reaches around your waist, pulling you closer to him. “I’ll grow it back if you like it that much.” He leans down to whisper in your ear. “I do know you liked the it scratching your thighs when I-”

“Negan!” You hit him on the chest. “Not in front of my brother.”

Negan just chuckles. “Alright, fine.” He lets go of you and heads for the kitchen. “Sunshine, I am starving. You guys still having anything good?”

You look at your brother and ask him if he was also hungry. He only nods. After some thinking you want to suggest something, when Negan can be heard happily squealing from the kitchen. “Spaghetti! Sweet.” He turns from the cabinet towards you, “Sweet thing, gonna give me a hand?”

You move over to the kitchen after ordering Carl to get Judith out of her bed, who just woke up and called for them. Carl does as he’s been told, getting his little sister and bringing her to the living room. He plays with her, while his bigger sister and Negan prepare dinner. He watches them ever so often. For the first time in a long time he sees her sister happy. Actually happy. She is all smiles while she’s cooking dinner with the man.

It’s not the first time Carl ever saw her smiling or laughing, she’d do that frequently at their BBQs at the end of pick up days, at stupid jokes from Eric, at Daryl's grumpy nature. But this right now? This seems different. Carl looks back at his little sister who is playing with a doll. His biggest sister most likely lied without even knowing it. As much as Carl hates to admit it, she and Negan seem to be more like what their Dad and his mom were. This kind of happy.

"Carl, Judith, come sit down." You call them over. "Dinner's ready."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It's still beautiful outside with the sun still shining high up in the sky. But the air in Alexandria is still thick with tension.

“This feels odd.” You whisper to Negan, your arm folded around his. It’s not the close proximity that's making you uneasy, it’s the staring of everyone around you, although that's the whole point.

After dinner, he suggested you two should take a walk around Alexandria. He argued showing you two together would downplay your situation, making Alexandria care less. You already had your doubts but eventually decided to go along with it.

“It will get better, sweet thing.” He tries to assure you. “Eventually this won’t be a big deal anymore."

“I doubt that Negan.” You really do. It's going to be so awkward at the BBQ tonight, when the Saviors are gone. If they're gone. Negan is still waiting for your father.

"Negan?” You ask, quietly, “Can we please address the elephant in the room?”

You two have not discussed what's going to happen once your father is back. Even though you can already imagine that at least one person has to die for what your brother did, you still want to know for certain.

“Sweet thing, you have nothing to worry about.” Negan assures you. “Neither does your brother, promised.”

Nervously you bite your cheek. It should calm you down knowing that he won't hurt Carl but it doesn't. “What about my father?”

Negan sighs, “Well, your father-”

“Hey, Y/N!”

Your shoulders immediately tense up at the sound of Spencer's voice. Both you and Negan stop in your tracks, looking over at the man that is approaching you.

Once at your side, Spencer ignores you completely. His attention is only on the head of the Saviors. “Hello. We haven't officially met.” He smiles nicely at Negan. “I am Spencer Monroe.”

He raises his hand for a headshake but Negan points at Spencer's other hand that is holding onto a bottle of liquor. “Oh, is that for me by any chance?”

“Yes”, he confirms, still smiling. “Actually I wanted to invite you to a few drinks and might get the chance to talk to you.”

Nausea instantly makes your guts turn and you clench your teeth to keep your mouth shut. This damn asshole is trying something. You’re glaring at Spencer with as much disgust as you can muster, when Negan suddenly lifts your hand that was holding onto his arm to his lips for a quick kiss. “Excuse me, Sunshine. I’ll catch you later, ‘aight?”

Your eyes switch between the two men before you reluctantly let go. With one final warning stare at Spencer, the two men move on to Spencer's porch. He’s going to pander to Negan, trying to get into his good grace, you’re sure of it. Anger is flooding your system. If your father doesn't return today, you have to find a solution. Hopefully he'll be home soon.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Negan’s leaning back into the chair as the whisky slowly burns down his throat. That sure is damn good. It would be even better if that little bootlicker would shut the hell up.

When that man approached, Negan had half the mind of telling him off until he felt his Sunshine tensing up beside him. He takes her for a ‘no bullshit’ person, so her sudden reaction seemed off. Something was on with this guy and her reaction only piqued his interest. It’s still gonna be a while until Rick’s back, so Negan figured why not play along for a while, just for the heck of it.

It is so obvious what Spancer is trying to do. All his nice smiles and complimenting words are hollow. He’s just as an slimy asshole as Gregory back in Hilltop, only difference is, Gregory is open about it and also fun to scare and manipulate. Spencer on the other hand is trying his best to come off as sincere and the head of the Saviors is eager to find out why.

Negan grabs the bottle and pours himself a second glass when he gets an idea. “This really is good stuff, Spencer. Know what, the only thing missing right now is a pool table. Nothing better than some booze and a game of 8 ball.”

Spencer's face immediately lights up. “Actually there is a pool table.” He points at the garage on the other side of the street. “Right there.”

Negan has to huff a laugh, as if he wouldn't know that. “Oh, really? My, Spencer. You may just be my new best friend in Alexandria.” The other man chuckles, but Negan’s not finished yet. “But it’s such a nice day. Too nice to be cooped up in a dusty garage don't you think? Huh, I might have an idea.”

With a sharp whistle, Negan gets the attention of two close guarding Saviors. He orders them to get the pool table out onto the street. The boss looks at them working with a smile on his face. After another sip from his glass he looks back at Spencer. This is gonna be fun, dragging this slimy dick in front of everyone's eyes.

You step outside right after Olivia. She told you Negan and Spencer were about to play pool in the middle of the street and you just had to take a look for yourself. Carl sneaks out behind you as well. It seems like all of Alexandria is watching whatever is going on there.

The saviors are placing down the balls and handing out the cues to Negan and the other men. The Saviors seem to be unbothered but the Alexandrians seem on edge. Rosita and you lock eyes for a second before she turns around again, crossing her arms over her chest. You and your family stay at the porch while watching the two men at the pool table.

Negan’s eyes quickly scan the forming crowd around them as he takes a long drag from his cigar. When his men are done preparing the table, he says. “Know what, Spancer? I could never do this with Rick. He’d just stand there, scowling. Giving me that annoying side-eye he gives me.”

Spencer himself looks around, seemingly quite uncomfortable. “Well. That's actually what I came to see you about. I want to talk to you about Rick.”

Ah, there it is. Negan knew that guy was on about something. He just chuckles to himself as he prepares his cue with chalk. Once done, Negan leans down to prepare his first shot. “All right. Talk to me Spencer, talk to me about Rick.” The white ball moves over the green, hitting the others. With two balls pocketed, Negan changes positions for his next move.

Spencer is leaning on his cue. “I get what you’re trying to do here, what you’re trying to build. I am not saying I agree with your methods, but I get it.” Negan keeps playing, while listening to this bullcrap, waiting for Spencer to get to the point. ”You’re building a network, making people contribute for the greater good - it makes sense. But you should know that Rick Grimes has a history of not working well with others.”

“Hm,” is all Negan answers to that. He already has a feeling of where this conversation is leading to. “Is that so, Spencer?”

Spencer moves up to the table, now that it’s his turn. “Rick wasn’t the original leader here, my mom was.” Mom. Negan has to fight to keep his face unreadable. A little mommy’s boy. “She was doing a really good job of it. And then, after we allowed Rick and his people in, she died. Same with my brother, same with my dad.”

Negan takes another sip from his glass. “So, everything was peachy here for, what, years?” The mocking tone in Negan’s voice is subtle, but it takes away a little bit of your anger - he is catching on to Spencer's pathetic attempt to dethrone Rick. “And then Rick shows up and suddenly you’re an orphan? That’s the saddest shit I’ve ever heard. Good thing for you he’s not in charge anymore.”

Spencer shakes his head. “Not quite. His word still goes in this community. His ego is out of control. He’ll find a way to screw things up for us, to try and do things his way to take over. That’s what he did to my mom and he’ll do it again.”

The boss takes another sip. This man is unbelievable. Tired of beating around the bush, Negan finally asks. “And what exactly are you proposing to be done about that?”

Spencer smiles slightly. “I am my mother’s son. I can be the leader she was. That’s what Alexandria needs, that’s what you need.”

Negan’s smile grows in return. “So I should put you in charge, huh? That’s what you’re saying?”

The other man nods. “Yes, we all would be much better off.”

“I'm gonna kill him”, you whisper more to yourself than anyone else but Carl heard you. He takes your hand that was already resting on one of your knives and holds it, trying to calm you down. Spencer is such a backstabbing waste of oxygen. Once your father is back home, you’ll have him exiled, if Daryl and Rick won’t do worse.

The boss downs the last bit of whisky in his glass and starts moving around the pool table, seemingly in thought. Spencer looks around the crowd, actively avoiding the people standing on Rick’s porch.

“You got a point, Spencer.” Negan agrees. “The countless times Rick threatened to kill me, his pure hatred whenever he looked at me. The trembling of his balled fists when I'm talking to him. But there's one thing. Right now, he's out there, gathering shit for me, making sure I'm happy and won't harm a hair on anyones head here. He's swallowing up his hate and getting shit done. Now that's taking guts.”

Spencer also moves to stand across from him. “I understand how you might have gotten that impression but what you don’t know is that we’re doing the dirty work. Always living in fear of him eventually fucking this up.”

Negan takes another shot, again pocketing two balls. “Is that really the case, Spencer? You see, managing a community, feeding them, protecting them, keeping them alive - that’s a huge task. You really think you’re capable of that?”

Spencer stands his ground. “I know I am.”

Alright, up until now Negan was just playing with him. Time to finish this game. With his cigar in his hand, Negan once again faces Spencer. “That’s good. Question is, would they really accept you as their new leader, you know, Rick’s people, his friends… his family?”

Negan’s eyes move to Rick's house, to you. Spencer follows his gaze. After a quiet moment, he says “She’ll understand.”

"Try me, Spencer!” You shout, with your free hand again over one of your knives.

Negan's face splits into a smile. His sweet thing’s reaction was all he needed to see. After another drag from his cigar, Negan moves back to the pool table. “See, Spencer. Rick is an annoyance, a fucking pain in my ass. But he knows what he’s doing, keeping this place alive and getting me tons of shit he’s been collecting, either by himself or by coordinating his people and at the end of the day, that’s all I care about.”

Slowly he walks up to the other man. “And then there is you, Spencer. You on the other hand waited for clear air to sneak your way up to me, and try to talk me into doing your dirty work. So you can take his place as a leader, did I understand correctly?”

Spencer is visibly getting nervous but he is trying his best to conceal it. “No, Negan. I-”

“Gets me curious”, Negan interrupts him, “When you wanna take over, why not kill Rick yourself and. Just. Take. Over?”

His nerves are visibly getting the better of him as Spencer tries to speak himself out of this. “See, that's… I mean-”

Negan raises his hand, making him shut up. “Know, what I’m thinking? ‘Cause I have guess. Unlike Rick you have no guts.”

Before even Spencer can react a big and loud gasp can be heard from the people all around. Spencer looks down at Negan's hand that has a hunting knife deeply burrowed into his body. With a sadistic smile on his face, Negan makes a swift motion, slicing Spencer's abdomen wide open. His organs start to pour out and he desperately tries to push them back in as he falls to the ground.

“Oh, my bad.” Negan mocks the dying man. “Looks like you have some. Embarrassing, really. I've never been so wrong my whole life!“

“Back inside!” You usher your brother back into the house. Carl is about to argue but you shut his protest down immediately. “Don’t argue with me, I’ll take care of Spencer, he's gonna turn-.” You move your head back at the scene just in time to see Rosita aiming a gun. “NO!”

BANG!

Time stops. No one is moving a muscle or dares to breathe. It is absolutely silent in Alexandria, until-

“Shit!” Negan screams in shock, in rage. “What the shit?!”

Saviors ram Rosita to the ground, disarming her. Arat holds a knife to her throat, keeping her from moving.

“Shit! You just tried to kill me?!” Negan screams at her. “You shot Lucille!”

“She got in the way.” Rosita sneers.

Your heart is beating violently against your chest. Until now you’ve never seen Negan so enraged. While relieved he’s unharmed you dread what will happen next.

“What is this?” Negan asks, picking up the shell from the ground. “This little bad boy made from scratch? Look at those crimps, this was home made.” His head moves from the woman on the ground over to you. “Sweet thing, I thought I made myself clear about this kinda stuff, wanna tell me who made this?” Rosita swears up and down it was her but his eyes stay on you.

“I had no idea we had something!” You tell him.

He believes you and tries again, moving closer to Rosita, who still insists it was her. Only her. “You may be stupid darlin’ but you showed some great ingenuity here. Arat, move that knife up onto her face.” He leans down to her. “Lucille’s beautiful smooth surface will never be the same, so why should yours?” Rosita just keeps staring up at him. “One last chance. Who. Made. This?”

Rosita leans right into the blade, cutting her face open. “I did!”

Negan has to chuckle at that. “Oh, you’re such a badass! But know what? I think you’re lying, and you lying to me now?!” After a few breaths, Negan calms down a bit. Eventually he says, “Fine. Have it your way. Arat?” The woman holding the knife looks up at her boss. “Kill somebody.”

Immediately you drag Carl behind you, shielding him, when Arat takes her gun out. She doesn’t even aim properly when she shoots up onto your porch. After another bang, Olivia falls to the ground. You look at her lifeless body before turning your head back to the street.

Negan looks at the body as well and recognizes the fat woman as one of his Sunshines friends. Unfortunate. He looks up from the corpse to you and expects you to glare at him but against his expectations are your eyes neither on him nor Arath. They are glowering at the woman who was stupid enough to shoot at him. He can't help but to feel somewhat proud of that. His sweet thing really does understand that she ultimately killed her friend, not him. She gets it.

“We had an agreement!”

Rick’s voice makes everyone look up. Relieve washes over you as you see him making his way towards Negan, pushing through the crowd.

“Rick!” Negan greets him with a wide smile. “Look everybody, it’s Rick! Your people are making me lose my voice with all that yelling.”

Your father looks around him, at the crowd and at Spencer who is lying on the ground in a big red puddle. He is trying to take the chaos in, when Negan starts talking again.

“Hey, Rick. How about a thank you?” Your father looks up in confusion. “Look, I know we started this relationship with me beating the holy shit out of your friends and because of that we might never be braiding our hair, but how about a little credit? I just bet over backwards to show you how reasonable I am.”

Negan points up at Carl, who is still standing behind you. “Your son? He hid in one of my trucks and machine-gunned a bunch of my men down, trying to kill me. And what did I do? I brought him home, safe and sound - even made him spaghetti."

Your father looks up at the two of you with a deep frown, confused and angry.

“And then there was this guy.” Negan continues, pointing at Spencer’s body. “Well, this asshole wanted me to kill you and put him in charge instead.” He moves closer to Rick. “I took him out, Rick. For you.”

Then Negan turns him and Rick around, facing Rosita, who is still being held down by Arat, “And this one? She shot Lucille trying to kill me just now so I gave you one last mouth to feed and by looking at her-” He points at Olivia with his bat, “that mouth did some major damage.”

Rick finally has enough, he turns to Negan, who is smiling at him, “Your shit’s waiting at the gate. Just go.”

Negan huffs a laugh. “Sure thing, Prick. I’ll be gone right after I find the guy or gal that made this bullet. Arat?”

The Savior takes aim at Eric, when suddenly everyone around them claims to be the bullet maker. Negan doesn’t believe any of them until Eugene raises his hand. The man has tears streaming down his face, confessing how he made the bullet, even going into detail. Eventually Negan shuts his stuttering up and orders his men to take Eugene and everything that is waiting for them at the gate.

Rick is about to move away to get to his family, before Negan steps into his way for one last word with him. “Rick, I’m gonna relieve you of that whiny mess and the shit at the gate, but I want you to realize that however much you scavenged, it’s not good enough, because after today, you are in serious, serious debt.” Negan faces the crowd. “Let’s move out!”

The Saviors start moving down the street with Negan following them. Rick stays where he is, watching them go. Eventually you appear next to him, holding a bloody knife. He looks behind him, seeing Spencer with a clean wound on his head. Your voice brings your attention back to you. “I'm so glad you’re back.”

Without a second thought Rick opens up his arm, encircling you in a hug.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Is awfully quiet around the fire. Out of respect for two people that died today, the weekly get together was held in Aaron’s and Eric's garden.

You’re curled up in your camping chair, listening to the cracking of the fire while your mind wanders around. There are some whispered conversations here and there but overall the people around the fire remain mostly silent. Most seem to be lost in thought as you are. All but one.

“This makes me sick.”

You don’t listen at first until Carl, who is sitting next to you, asks, “What?”

“How she’s sitting there so unbothered,” Rosita speaks up.

“Leave her alone.” Carl’s trying to tell her off but to no avail.

“Why should I?” Rosita is standing up from her chair. “Know what? No. Y/N, you could have done something but decided to stay quiet when the Saviors-”

“You are in no place to tell me shit.” You finally address her.

“Rosita, stop.” Rick intervenes. “A lot happened today but Y/N is at no fault.”

But the woman is not having it. “Of course you’d defend her, I won’t even hold that against you, Rick. But she absolutely could have done-”

“What did you want me to do, Rosita?” You yell over the place. “Spencer had it coming and Olivia and Eugene are all on you.”

“I’m not talking about Spencer!” She clarifies walking up towards you. “But you at least could have helped me, when Negan-”

You stand up from your chair, aggravated by her rant, “I sure as hell won't jump between you and Lucille because of your own stupidity.”

“Enough!” Rick shouts. “Enough. What’s done is done. All we can do now is move forward from today.”

“And how so, Rick?” Rosita asks. “More people will die and obviously no one wants to do anything about it.” She’s looking at you, making your blood boil.

“Fuck off!” You almost bark at her. “Olivia died because of you. I buried her today even though it should have been you in that hole.”

Rosita is about to push you for that but Carl steps between you two.

“Carl?” Rick calls him. “Can you please bring Y/N home?”

The two of you go without another word but not before you stare the other woman down on your way out.

“Rosita, please go sit down again.” Rick orders and although the woman is still angry, she does as she’s been told.

Once sure, his kids are out of earshot, Rick stands up from his chair. “After today, I think everyone around here has come to realize that we can’t keep on going like this anymore. The Saviors will not stop degrading us, hurting us, killing us. No matter what we do, no matter how much work we put in, it will never be enough.”

Some people nod, as they listen to Rick. “Today we lost two more people. And more will follow eventually. We all know that. Many of you are tired of it, many are afraid and many are angry. And so am I.”

Rick starts walking around the fire, “I’m gonna purpose something and I want everyone of you on board. Daryl and Michonne are not out hunting, they are negotiating. On one of our scavenging trips, when we were looking for guns, we found a new community. One that is also living under Negan's regime. They are ready to fight back - if we agree on doing the same. The Hilltop already affirmed us that they'd also fight back if Alexandria decided to strike.”

Rick comes to stand, looking around the crowd. “Again, I want all of you on board. Everyone. We can’t do this, if we are divided. We have the gun power, there is more than enough hidden in the forest. And now we’d also have enough men to actually fight back. There will be no turning back, once we’ve started, I want you to know that.”

Rick raises his hand up. “Those who want to fight the Saviors back, raise their hands and say ‘Aye’.”

Chapter Index:

Chapter 1 / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3

Next Part / Masterlist / Negan x Rick's Daughter Series

Taglist: @starry-night-20 / @joceymoo / @srhxpci / @ladykxxx08 / @sunneeflower / @frombloodandflesh / @aleeeesa /@lanamiller / @fanfic-n-tabulous / @noirfan12 / @abbiesxox / @elinafresk / @obsessiveformiyatwins / @kokushibosgirl

#ao3 #fanfic #fanfiction #the walking dead #negan / reader #negan smith #negan x reader #twd #negan #rick grimes #Carl Grimes #michonne #rosita espinosa #judith grimes #jdm #jeffrey dean morgan

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lukin08 · 17 hours

Text

Up In The Air- Chapter 3

Kristanna Modern AU

Rated T

WC: 2300

Summary: Tired of her nomad lifestyle, traveling nurse Anna Arendelle on a whim picks Pensacola Florida as her new town to try find a sense of home. Meanwhile, Navy Pilot Kristoff Bjorgman has accepted a dream position at the Naval station in the same town. After a chance encounter goes south, the two of them find their lives entwined, with neither of them all that happy about it!

Also available on AO3

Previous Chapters- Chapter 1 Chapter 2

“Anna!” The table yelled out in unison, some in the group raising their drinks as they called her name. Camila hadn’t been joking when she said everyone would be out. Most the nurses, techs and doctors who were off were standing or sitting around the three high tops pushed together.

“I saved you a seat,” Camila said as she ran over to meet Anna. Camila led Anna over to the tables to a stool between her and Sue. There was a spread of food already on the tables and Anna quickly filled up a plate. She was famished. Between her morning shift at the hospital and working at the OB’s office, she didn’t find any time to grab lunch.

“So, how was the Dr. Intilli’s,” Camila asked, handing Anna a beer.

Sue leaned in before Anna could answer. “I hope Dr. Intilli is single for the number of hours you’re putting in at his office and how much you talk about him. I’ve never heard him mention anyone, so I’ll remain hopeful.”

“If you must know, his partner helped me find the house I’m renting. They’re a lovely couple. And I like working there when they are short staffed. Gives me something to do.”

“Something to do!” Sue threw her hands up. “Anna, you’ve been here for over a month! Your ‘something to do’ should be filled with getting out and having fun.”

“You sound just like Camila.”

“Good. You should listen to us! Now let me help get you initiated into the club.”

“Sue, stop!” Camila reprimanded.

“Anna’s the one that said she was ready to start dating again. I’m just helping her along.”

Camila shook her head. “What I meant was, she’s not interested in any sailors.”

“Oh please. Was one date really that bad?”

Anna nodded, rolling her eyes as she took a drink from her beer. “I shouldn’t have told you two about that.”

Camila nudged Anna. “Don’t mind her. She’s biased because of her husband.”

Anna’s head swiveled to Sue. “Your husband was in the Navy?”

Sue smiled and winked. “20 years. His last station was Pensacola and we ended up staying. So yes, I’m a little biased, but if you don’t want military let’s see what the options are.” Sue started scanning the bar.

Anna looked at her quizzically. “What do you mean?”

“Sue can spot military from a mile away.” Camila answered.

“They all have a certain look to them,” Sue said as she continued to look around, until she stopped her focus at the back of the bar. “See the group at the back there? All Navy. The two across from us, not. But they don’t look like your type.”

“You know my type too? Anna snorted when she laughed. “Ok. I must know. What is your secret? How do you know who’s who?”

“First and most importantly,” Sue said, holding up her finger. “Years of being around it. And second,” she glanced around until she zeroed in on two men entering the bar. “There it is. See that one, with the brown hair?” Anna looked in the direction Sue was focused on. “The hair usually gives it away- neat and short most of the time. Also, see how he’s walking? It’s too precise. Yeah, that one’s definitely Navy. Although he does have a bit of swager in his step. Probably a fly boy.”

“Fly boy?”

“A pilot.”

“Oh, he’s cute!” Camila added as she looked over and pointed in that direction. “But I like his friend more. Anna what do you think?”

Anna grabbed her hand, shoving it down quicky. “Camila, stop! They’ll see us.”

“That’s the point! Sue what do you make of the other one?”

Sue looked intently for a moment. “You know, I can’t really tell. He’s either a local or an officer. It’s a toss-up, really.”

Anna kept her gaze on the duo until they found a pub table not too far away and started talking. She had to agree with Camila. Both men were good looking, but something drew her more to the second one. Anna didn’t realize she was staring until one of the doctors asked her a question and pulled her back into the conversation with the group.

Five minutes later, Sue was sliding off her pub chair. “Ok, here we go ladies.”

Anna shot a look at Sue. “Where are you going?”

Sue had a laser focus on the bar. “To gather intel. I’ll be back soon.”

Anna could only watch as Sue sauntered up to the bar right next to one of the men from the table. She hid her face in her hands. “Oh, this isn’t going to go well.”

“Relax,” Camila said then got distracted. She held up a sheet of paper from the table. “Oh, look. They have karaoke tonight. Fun!”

“Wait,what?”

***********************

“Hey Svenny,” Sue heard the bartender say as she watched him put both hands on the edge of the bar. “Sorry for the wait. I’m down two wait staff tonight.” He handed over two bottles of beer. “Great to see you again! How you’ve been doing, bud? I see you managed to get Kris out.”

The man turned and looked behind him. “Miracles do happen.”

“Well, I can’t speak for my brother, but I’m sure Cliff is appreciative.”

“I’m always up for dragging his ass out and making him live a little.”

The bartender chuckled as he glanced over to the table then turned his attention back to Sven. “How long are you in town?’

“Just a few more days. I’ve got a few weeks of leave before I report to my new assignment, and we wanted to see Kris. It’s been too long.”

“I heard you’re reassigned to the States now that your deployment is over. Congrats! Where are you going?”

“Virginia Beach. And thanks. Finally. Hopefully we should be back for a long time.”

“Good to hear. How’s the wife doing?”

Sue heard a sigh, and she already knew where the conversation was going. She listened to them talk before she couldn’t hold it in anymore. “Want some unsolicited advice from a wife of a 20-year naval veteran?”

***********************************

“What’s going on now?” Anna asked, not able to look over at the bar.

Camila was watching Sue’s every move. “She’s talking to them. He’s giving her a look. Oh wait! He’s smiling at her!”

“That can’t be good.”

“I’m sure it’s fine.” Camila hopped off the chair with the paper in hand. “I’ll be back in a minute. I’m going to put our names on the list for karaoke.”

A few minutes later, Sue was bouncing back to the table, drinks in hand and smiling like a Cheshire cat.

“What was that about?” Anna asked, crossing her arms and squinting her eyes at Sue.

“Top secret military stuff. But look, he bought us drinks!” Sue sat down and passed Anna’s drink over. “I don’t know what it is, but it looked like it was strong.”

“Sounds like I may need it.”

Sue ignored her and started in. “Here’s the deal. The one at the bar… off the table. Married and from what I could gather, happily. So, hands off. But the blond is definitely single. And the more I get a look at him, fucking hot. I see it as a win-win situation for everyone. So, now you may go talk to him.”

“Just like that?”

“Why not?”

“Because!” Anna threw her face in her hands. “I am going to need a drink for that.”

Sue pushed hers over. “Then you can have mine too. I’m not drinking anymore tonight. Early shift tomorrow.”

Camila was back as soon as Anna finished her drink. Anna grabbed Sue’s when Camila dragged her over by the karaoke.

***************************

“Cheers,” Sven clinked his beer to Kristoff’s and both men took a swig of their glasses. “Thanks for showing me around today. That was a dream come true.”

Kristoff sat back in thought for a moment. “Yeah, glad we could do that. The team liked you…surprisingly.” A corner of Kristoff's mouth turned up.

“What are you talking about? Everyone loves me. I’m a joy to have in class. Ask my second-grade teacher.”

“And it was all downhill after that. But seriously, it was nice to be able to take someone on base besides my parents to see everything.”

“You ready for El Centro? I can’t believe you leave soon.”

“It’s come up so fast.” Kristoff shook his head. “Everything’s been a blur since July. Between transitioning duties in Norfolk, moving down here, getting in the jets and starting to learn the show, I barely know which way is up. We already started working on the routine.”

“How is it?”

Kristoff let out a high bark of a laugh. “Rough. But the boss wants us to have a basic feel for the show in the air before we leave.”

Sven leaned forward on his elbows, his face turning serious. “Be honest. What’s it like? Flying the jet with the team?”

The grin from Kristoff said it all. “Amazing.”

Sven clapped his hands and leaned back against his chair. He wore a huge smile from ear to ear. “I fucking knew it! What a dream! Now you get 8 weeks in Cali flying with the Angels and you’ll come back a cohesive team!”

“Don’t glamourize it too much. It’s not like I’ll be sitting at the beach. That’s 8 weeks of intense work in the Mohave Desert.”

“I’ll glamorize it all I want! Do you know how many pilots would kill to be in your position?”

“I’m fully aware.”

Sven took another drink of his beer. He sat the bottle down, spinning the bottom edge of the glass on the table. “Remember when we used to talk about trying out for the Angels when we were in the Academy? You actually did it.”

“You could too.”

“Fuck off with that.” Sven shook his head, dismissing the idea.

“Why?”

“Why?!” Sven looked like he could barely contain his laughter at the thought. “Look at you! You’ve done twice the amount of combat deployments as I have, you’ve been to TOPGUN, you’re a full rank above me. Plus, all the shit you’ve been through…”

Kristoff crossed his arms. “So what? None of that gets you in the Blue Angels. You have all the required hours and the rank to apply. There’s a lot of things you have that I don’t that could make you stand out to get on the team.”

“Like what?”

“Like Nic to start.”

“Oh, ok.” Sven rolled his eyes. “That’ll help with getting on a team where you FLY AN F-18.”

“It does. It gives you balance. I don’t have that. It’s why I have all the combat deployments, hours and rank. What else do I have to do?”

Sven tilted his head. “Am I sensing some regret?”

Kristoff’s face remained emotionless. “Absolutely not. I’m just showing the comparison. What I’m saying is you have experiences to bring to the team. Plus, you’re a damn good pilot with a stunning reputation.”

“Who told you that?”

“Word gets around.”

“Was it Pop Tart?”

Kristoff let out a heartly laugh. “Definitely not! I swear how can we both have been deployed with him and you and I never be assigned to the same carrier even once?”

Sven was laughing too. “Both times I had deployment with Pops, he’d complain about you to me whenever he had the chance. He really hates you. I think he’s still angry you gave him that call sign.”

“The guy ate Pop Tarts every meal. He was asking for it! I only came up with it and encouraged the name. The rest of the squad had to agree for it to stick.”

Sven burst into another fit of laughter before calming down and sighing. “It would be a blast flying together.”

“Think about it. Applications are due in the spring if you decide it’s right for you. I can give you some advice, but you’ll have to figure out your path on your own.”

“Thanks. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.”

“Any time. Now, how’s Nic really doing? I didn’t want to ask about anything around her.”

Sven blew out a breath. “Better. I was gone for almost 8 months this time. It takes a toll; delays plans we had...” Sven trailed off, lost in thought. Then just as quickly, he snapped out of it and continued. “I think Nicki’s having a tough time believing I should be home now for a few years at least.”

Sven went on to tell Kristoff how they had started couples therapy that was offered on base to help adjust to him being back and how he felt it was a positive thing for them. Kristoff didn’t say anything, knowing Sven needed an ear to listen more than any advice. Not that he would have much to give that would help. Sven and Nicole were a strong couple, and he was happy to hear them address their issues head on. After a while the conversations drifted to their families and a vacation Sven was planning. Sven noticed Kristoff’s attention start to waiver several times, looking over Sven’s shoulder before coming back to the conversation. He asked Kristoff if he was ok, getting only a dismissive ‘yes’.

“What are you looking at?” Sven said after Kristoff got distracted again. He swiveled in the chair to look behind him then back to Kristoff. “Do you want to sing karaoke that bad?”

“What? No!”

Sven gave Kristoff a frustrated look then turned away again. After a few moments, Sven turned back, a shit eating grin on his face. “You’re watching the red head, aren’t you?”

“Fuck off,” Kristoff said. He grabbed his beer and took a long drink, his cheeks flashing red.

#up in the air #Edin What did you write #Kristanna #Frozen #Up in the air chapter 3 #Frozen 2 #Anna #Kristoff

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