Shambles- The Walking Dead [Alden x Maggie] [1/2]

28- Hope

"Are you still mad at me?" Maggie asked.

She and Alden had been riding back to Hilltop on horseback for quite a while. It was just the two of them and they could talk openly, without having to worry about what anybody else thought. But despite being on their own for well over 15 minutes these were the first words that were spoken.

"I am." He replied with a heavy sigh. "You let them kill Arat. I can't just forget that because you came to me, upset. And you tried to kill Negan without talking to me about it."

"I don't need your permission to do something I believe is right." She shot right back at him with a scoff.

"I didn't say you need my permission." He sighed again. "But we're together, meaning I would still like to be informed when you want to commit a homicide that might put you in danger."

"You didn't talk about killing Gregory with me before you did it, you just did it."

"I know and I should've, because what I did was wrong." There was more annoyance in his voice than anger. "And yet you still practically thanked me for it. I think you wanted to kill him too"

"Okay, then tell me how killing Arat was any different from you killing Gregory?"

"Really? I just said why it was different. You sure you want to do this now? Rick just died! The Sanctuary won't last another week. Everything is all screwed up because you and Daryl wanted to kill Negan!" He bellowed loudly.

This was the first time she'd seen him this mad. And she was glad about it. Till now she'd often worried if he just kinda went along with whatever she said out of love. But it wasn't enough to dial her own anger back.

"You want Negan dead as much as I do!" She yelled back.

Their yelling was starting to draw walkers towards them but neither of them cared, they had a fight to finish first.

"I don't know what I want to happen to Negan. I'm not the right person to ask. I'm good as long as I never have to see him again. He scared the living daylights out of me. Traumatized the heck out of me." He looked at her. He didn't want to fight about this because he knew they'd never reach a compromise on Negan.

She read the pain and hurt of his face and she softened her expression. "You're right about Gregory. I would've done the same. I would've killed Gregory for what he did too, you were just faster." She said a lot calmer now.

Her softening up broke him and he swallowed back tears. "Arat's dead and she was just like me. It could've been me they killed just as easily."

"Hold on. What do you mean? She fought for them and you didn't, you were a worker. You're different."

"We both know I wasn't just a worker. The only reason they let me be a worker was because I had expertise they could use. It got Rose and I a room instead of a stretcher in the mainhal. She needed that, a spot to get away from everything. She hated that place so much. But if it weren't for me pleasing Simon and Negan by fixing the lights I would've had to fight too. I wouldn't have had a choice. Simon owned me because he found us and brought us back. It could've been me that slaughtered those people at Oceanside's old place without remorse because I was scared. And don't try to tell me that I wouldn't have."

"I know you just said that I shouldn't try to tell you what you're different from Arat..." She began somewhat hesitantly. "But you are. You got out and she didn't."

"They made me kill for them. They burned a man alive in front of Rose. I had to get us out of there because I wasn't alive anymore, I was another dead man walking." He shook his head slightly. "I think we lost an asset, an ally, by allowing Arat to get killed."