Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Summary: Rose is asked by Rick to talk to Negan in his Cell.

Chapter One

If there was one thing and one thing only that Rose knew about Negan it was that he was dangerous. Even in that dark cell, locked away from the world he was still just as dangerous and that's why she had to always keep her wits about her.

When Rick asked her to do it she had to admit it she had been intrigued. Wasn't this what she had always wanted? One on one time with a psychopath. To really delve deep into their mind and find out why they were that way and maybe even what made them be so. The thing that she hadn't trained for was the way the world was now and the way in which it changed everybody.

"I don't understand what you want me to do." She sighed to Rick, who sat across from her.

"Learn about him... learn from him. Maybe see what happened to make him so... so..." he looked around as if the word he was looking for would be somewhere in the room.

"Savage?" She finished for him.

"Well yeah." He looked at her with a serious expression. "If you study him maybe we can stop it from happening again, see the signs before someone becomes like him." He shrugged. Rose didn't say anything just studied him as she thought about his proposal. "Do you think I'm crazy?"

"No." She leaned forward onto the table. "I think you're smart for thinking ahead and trying to learn from him."

"Good. You understand."

"To a degree. I mean sure I was a psychiatrist but in this world... it's different."

"People are still people." He argued.

"Correct." She nodded. "But in a set of circumstances nobody has ever been in before. It makes people become things they never would have in the old world."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying it's hard to apply an old way of analyzing someone to such an extreme set of circumstances. I could bang a whole list of diagnoses on the guy but then in the next breath I could diagnose everybody here the same way."

"But he's different."

"Is he Rick?" She raised her eyebrows and he looked away rather awkwardly. "We've all done things. Extreme things we would never have dreamed of being capable of before. Hell I was in my cosy little office one day and bashing in heads the next."

"But you didn't use fear and manipulation to rule over people."

"Rick I'm not saying what he did was warranted. I'm just trying to explain to you that I'm no more qualified for this than you or... Carol or..."

"I just want you to talk to him not rehabilitate the man. Isn't that essentially what you did in the old world."

"In simple terms."

"I've seen you do it. Hell you got more out of Daryl in our first week here than any of us did in years. You can get people to open up. I'm just asking you to try. Try to understand him... what made him that way."

Rose realised he had repeated the same thing a few times now. That he wanted her to understand what made him turn out the way he did.

"I get it now." She said out loud.

"Go on..."

"This is for you... not him. You need to try and understand why he got that way because you're scared you could have gone that way too. I remember how you were when you got here."

"How was I?"

"Savage."

He scoffed. "See. There you go again." He relaxed back in his chair looking pleased with himself. "Getting in people heads."

"I'll do it."

"Thank you." He rasped, he looked so tired and she constantly told him to rest more but he wouldn't, she had a feeling he couldn't. "Since he recovered fully and we put him in the cell he's eerily calm." A deep sigh left his chest and he looked as though he was debating wether to not to say something.

"Go on..." She encouraged making him smirk at her.

"It don't feel right. Just leaving him down there constantly alone."

"I know. I've been worried about it myself. It would send anyone strange being down there alone but somebody who is already the way Negan is..." she shook her head not even wanting to go into what it could mean for him. The psychiatrist in her had been dead against it from the moment he got down there but her common sense had prevailed. Until now. "You're doing the right thing."

Later that day as she was just about the enter the small room containing the cell, Rose didn't feel nervous but strangely excited and that did not sit well with her. Walking in she pulled the chair she had brought behind her. She didn't look over to Negan straight away but heard his cot shift as he either sat or stood up. As she set the chair in the centre of the room, a good metre away from the bars her stomach dropped at the lack of light and warmth in the room, the man didn't even have the basic human rights. Shaking the thoughts of the old worlds workings she sat herself down, crossing her legs at the ankle and putting her hands on her thighs in a relaxed and open way.

"Hello Negan." She said confidently.

"Who are you?" He rasped.

"I'm going to be coming to talk to you every now and again."

"Are you fuckin' kiddin' me." She looked over to see him drop down onto his cot. "As if this place isn't bad enough they're sending a fuckin shrink in here. God damn! I thought they weren't trying' to kill me?!"

"Nice to see you still have that sense of humour." She quipped as she pulled out the notebook and pen she had brought.

"You gonna draw me like one of your French girls?" He asked in a husky voice as he sprawled himself into a comfier position. Rose chuckled not being able to help herself. As much as she wanted to tell him to shut up she knew she needed to get on his better side, even though she didn't want to be on any of his sides.

"So is there anything you want to talk about?"

"Yeah actually. This room sucks. The beds lumpy, theres no light or heating and don't even get me started on the wi-fi."

"I'll be sure to tell the manager." She said straight faced. "We do like to put our customers first here at The Alexandria."

Rose was surprised when he chuckled but even more surprised when he stood up quickly but didn't move.

"This has got a whole lot of Silence of the lambs vibes don't ya think?" He started to walk up to the bars. "Clarice..." he hissed before laughing to himself.

"My names Rose. And no I don't think it does. I'm not going to become obsessed with you Negan."

"Oh darlin'... this is gonna be fun." Then he finally stepped from the shadows but on his face was a look far darker than any she had ever seen there before. A cold shiver made its way from the back of her neck downwards as his eyes met her own, still just as confident as before but with a hint of hopelessness.

As Rose stared back at him she knew she was in trouble, she was too empathetic which had always been a strength before. Here she was sat in front of this man who had caused so much heartache, fear and chaos and she was feeling sorry him.

"I'll be back later with your food." She told him standing up abruptly.

"Wait!" He said with a raised voice as she turned, what stopped her frozen was an edge that she had never heard in his voice before, pleading. "Give a guy a break. I can't take anymore of this silence."

"I'll be back at dinner." Rose decided she had to stay in charge with him, she wouldn't be becoming his play thing.

"I'll set the table!" She heard him shout as she left. His humour was clearly his way of hiding his true feelings.

A/N If anyone reads this I'd really appreciate some feedback! I'm loving writing this story!