DISCLAIMER! I DO NOT OWN THE WALKING DEAD OR ANY OTHER COPYRIGHTED WORKS MENTIONED HEREIN. THIS IS A WORK OF FICTION AND ANY ACTIONS TAKEN BY THE CHARACTERS OR REFERENCES MADE ARE BY MY DESIGN.
Chapter 1 I Put My Life In Your Hands
I was running. Michonne was right, Woodbury wasn't what I thought it was. I don't know why I didn't see it before. Maybe I just didn't want to, maybe I wanted it to be true so much that I ignored everything else including the word of a woman who'd kept me alive for over a year.
I had set up the meeting hoping the Governor could come to an agreement with my old group. He used the meet as a chance to take them out. Not that it worked, none of them were hurt in the fire fight but they managed to take out quite a few of the men from Woodbury.
They deserved it too. Both sides had come to this place under a banner of peace but as soon as the men from the prison made themselves known the Governor's men opened fire on them. Me, I just watched horrified at what Phillip was trying to do.
When I went to the prison to tell the group about the meet Michonne pulled me aside and told me to kill the fucker as soon as his back was turned. At the time I was horrified that she would suggest something like that but she was right its the only way to end this without further bloodshed.
So that night after we got back to Woodbury I killed him in his sleep after fucking him. Waiting that long was the hardest thing I'd ever had to do, I never wanted him to touch me again, not after I found out what he was capable of but it was the only way to do what needed to be done.
Then I snuck away into the night. I found Milton and offered to take him with me to the prison but he wanted to stay, at least for the time being. He told me that after what I'd done they needed him here to sort things out, put them right.
He promised to leave if things got too rough but I was pretty sure if they did he'd be dead before he turned around. I hoped that he could turn Woodbury into the haven that was promised but I wasn't sure even he could save them.
*A Lady's Choice*
I'm sure they followed me but I made it to the prison quickly and without incident so maybe I was wrong about being followed. They were probably too busy dealing with the Governor's mess to come after me, at least I hoped so. The last thing I wanted was more bloodshed.
Things had to change in Woodbury. I could no longer stand by them, reaping the reward of murder. Living the sweet life at such an expense was something I could not do anymore. I'd rather live in my own filth than be a part of something so evil and depraved.
Which brings me to the present, standing at the gate begging Daryl to let me in. He was none to happy to see me not after what had happened at the meeting I'd set up. I didn't blame him, for all he knows I knew what they were going to do the whole time.
After I told him I wanted in he snarled at me a bit but then he just stood there watching me. I kept trying to talk to him, begging him to let me inside but I might as well have been talking to a wall.
I hadn't seen anyone outside but Daryl, there must have been someone else on watch though because someone had to get Rick. All of a sudden he was there, waltzing up to the gate to see what all the fuss was about.
His eyes got wide when he saw it was me. They weren't expecting me back here anytime soon that's for sure. They probably thought I'd chosen Woodbury over them. If I was lucky they would hear me out, if not they might just shoot me or hold me hostage. In this new world the old Roman saying 'hope for the best but prepare for the worst' was never more true.
No time for those thoughts now so I pushed them back and focused on the problem at hand.
*A Lady's Choice*
It took some convincing but eventually they let me into the prison. I was put in a cell away from the rest of the group and I would be guarded constantly. I would be interrogated as well but even though I was locked up I considered all this good news, it meant they were at least going to listen to what I had to say.
They brought me food which was nice. It wasn't much and I hadn't been on the run long enough to be overly hungry but I savored it because I knew that no one had been killed over it. Then I waited, I knew someone was guarding me but I couldn't see who and whoever it was didn't seem overly eager to talk to me.
Other than that the cell block seemed to be empty. The group was probably elsewhere discussing what to do with me. That could be either good for me or bad for me. I could be lying just as easily as I could be telling the truth.
I knew them more than a year ago. Besides I came from Woodbury, and I have proven my loyalty to the Governor. They know not to trust him anymore. No matter what he says about peace, all he wants is blood and he'll have it.
Yesterday I was by his side and in his bed, now I'm telling them that I knew nothing about the cross and when I found out the way things are really run in Woodbury I killed Phillip and ran. I know they don't know what to believe and I don't blame them.
I was blind, I saw what I wanted to see. I wanted Woodbury to be a place where things were the way they used to be. I have no idea how to make it right but if I live through this things will change there or I'll destroy them; even if I have to do it by myself.
I knew it was probably less than an hour but it seemed that I had been locked in that cell forever with only my own thoughts and my guilt for company.
There was no way to keep time anymore, it didn't matter anyway. Even if I'd had a clock to watch it probably would have made the waiting worse. I couldn't agonize over what their verdict might be. I couldn't think like that, not yet. I wasn't ready to die but thinking about the fact that I might was too terrible, even if it could happen at any moment. I've been living in Death's shadow for a long time it seems and the only way to deal with that oppressive feeling is to not think about it. You need to think of something else, anything else or you'll go mad or worse; give up, stop fighting.
I had nothing to do but wait. I didn't even want to think anymore so I just stared at the wall.
*A Lady's Choice*
I heard steps approaching, it seemed the whole group had come to hear my interrogation. Most of them stopped short of my cell though. I only heard one set of heavy steps approaching the door.
My guard opened the door and Rick stepped inside. As soon as he was in, my guard closed and locked the door. I wasn't cuffed but I knew I didn't stand a chance if I tried to bust outta here. Rick was armed and the rest of the group was just outside, all of them most likely armed as well. But that wasn't my plan, I came here for redemption.
Rick had changed since I last saw him. The burden of leadership weighed heavy on his shoulders. What happened with the Governor, the realization that they would have to fight and kill other men to stay alive haunted him.
"What do you want to know?"
"Everything" was his grim reply. "Start at the beginning, when you got separated from us at the farm."
"I was running, trying to get away. I ran out of bullets faster than you can imagine but they kept coming, more and more of them, drawn by the sound of my gun going off. Then I ran into Michonne just as I was about to be surrounded. She saved me and for the next year we did what we had to to survive.
I got sick over the winter. We ran into some soldiers, they were under attack. The Governor's men killed them all. We were hiding in the brush nearby, they musta caught sight of a piece of fabric or saw one of us moving. We tried to run but it was useless, they were faster than us and I was sick. I told Michonne to go that I was only slowing her down but she didn't, she stayed and tried to fight them off. I passed out and when I woke I was getting looked over by the doctor in Woodbury.
After the doc gave me some medicine the Governor came in to talk to me. He wanted to know if I knew of any other groups in the area. He said that as long as I obeyed the rules I could stay there, safe. I could have a life, a real one. It seemed too good to be true. Michonne wanted to leave right away, she knew something was wrong but I begged her to stay.
I wanted it to be true, so I ignored the signs right in front of me. On the surface it seemed like a regular community and I didn't look any deeper, I didn't want to but I should have. I just wanted to stop running and start living again. I thought I could do it there but I was wrong.
They started me out doing woman work. It annoyed me but I let it be for a little bit while I settled in. I got comfortable there, started making friends. The Governor came by, I sat with him during a fight. It was horrible, like a gladiator match. Not unlike when he had Merle fighting Daryl cept they weren't fighting to the death. I should have known something was wrong then, especially when he talked to me afterward.
He thinks violence and brutality is something we crave. Then we had sex. I wasn't comfortable with the blasé manner he talked about violence but I didn't think about it then. I told him I was a fighter, that I could handle a rifle and kill walkers, that I could help them on supply runs and defending the wall. I convinced him that letting me walk the wall was a better use of my skills since so few in Woodbury could handle themselves the way I could.
While I was on watch Merle asked me about his brother. I showed him where the farm was on a map and wished him luck in finding him. The next few days passed uneventfully. I got closer to the Governor and quite comfortable there. Michonne left. I found out later that they sent Merle out there to track and kill her.
While he was gone he found Glenn and Maggie. I didn't know it but he was torturing them for information. I didn't even know they were in Woodbury. You can ask Merle about that, he was in the inner circle and the Governor went a long way to hide things like that from me.
Then y'all attacked the town to get them back. Merle was named a traitor for being involved with the 'terrorists'. Guess he figured he'd have a problem with his brother being killed so the Governor could be king of the only mountain around.
Anyway when he told our people that the group that attacked was going to come at us with everything they had because they wanted our town I tried to set him straight. I told him that it was a misunderstanding, that he should at least talk to you before things got too far. I suggested the meet because I thought he was a reasonable person and he would listen.
I had no idea he would use it as a chance to kill you or that he was manipulating the townspeople. He was lying to them about everything, he wanted them afraid so that they would stay. So that they would fight his war on humanity and reap its rewards without question.
When I came to you to propose a sit down, Michonne pulled me aside and told me to kill him. That putting a knife through his skull was the only way to end this. After he crossed you I did just that. If you send me back to Woodbury they'll execute me for killing him."
I looked at Rick as I finished, he was quiet as I told my tale. He didn't speak right away when I finished, or move for that matter. His posture retained the pensive bow it had taken while I was talking.
Not saying a word he got up, he looked at me one last time before knocking on the door to be let out. Merle opened the door to let him out quickly but instead of closing it and leaving me alone he handed the keys to Rick and walked in. Apparently he wanted to talk to me too.
"D'you really kill him?" He asked in his rough drawl.
"Yes, I found out what kind of man he was that day. I'd never felt more sick in my whole life and I was a part of his sick game, willingly."
He nodded and left. His face unreadable as he went to join the group for their discussion.
*A Lady's Choice*
They came back and opened the cell not too long after. Instead of someone coming in they motioned for me to come out. This was it-my judgment. In a few moments I could be dead, they could be leading me to an execution but I didn't care. Whatever their decision was I just wanted this to be over, after this I would be free one way or the other.
That was the truth I was trying so hard not to think. I knew that if they killed me it would be quick and that was the easiest death I could hope for in this terrible new world. I embraced that, I wasn't afraid anymore. Alive or dead I had reached my salvation.
*A Lady's Choice*
They walked me through the prison to a cell block that looked like it was their living area. The cell I had been kept in was in another part of the prison but the journey between the two wasn't far. They didn't cuff me so I could move freely and take in my surroundings better. It didn't matter though, I couldn't escape even if I wanted to. Several of them had their eyes on me and all of them were armed whereas I wasn't.
Looking around I could see that many of the cells in here were occupied. No one made a move to lead me to one however. Instead we headed to the tables in the middle where they no doubt took their meals. They all sat down at the tables. There was a chair facing them, I knew it was meant for me so I sat down in it and faced them.
Rick was the leader of the group so I thought he would be the one to announce their judgment. I was surprised when Merle of all people stood to tell me my fate. It had been less than two weeks since he left the Governor but it seemed that he'd found a place here if they trusted him to speak for them.
We stared at each other for a moment. He looked nervous, he had power in Woodbury but nothing like this and it seemed that he was somewhat uncomfortable being valued for something other than being a ruthless killer. It looked good on him. While I was looking at him, for the first time it seemed, he was preparing himself to speak. He cleared his throat.
"Andrea, deciding what to do with you was not an easy decision. We did not come to this conclusion lightly and we have considered it fully. We understand that you were only compliant with the Governor's action before you knew what he was really up to. Once you saw his true colors, you killed him. There's no way to verify this but I believe you and so does Rick. We've decided to give you a second chance. You'll do chores and have shifts on guard duty.
Most of the time you'll be with someone, more for your protection than to guard you but if you try something they'll stop you. You'll have a knife to carry at all times but unless you're on guard duty you won't be issued a gun. Even then your partner will have the rifle but if something happens or if we want to thin out the herd along the fence you will be authorized to shoot.
This is only a precaution til there's more trust between us. In this world we can't afford to take people at their word or trust them without hesitation. Those days are over, but if you're with us it doesn't seem right to kill you. With the Governor at our gate we need all the people we can get. You also seem to be the best choice to solve this peacefully. They know you, if you tell them the truth they'll listen. With the Governor gone things may be chaotic enough for his soldiers to lose control of the civilians or even give up on us all together."
I just blinked, I was only a little surprised that they decided to spare me. What left me shocked and unable to speak was their plan to use me to settle things with Woodbury. That they would trust me with something like that. They were going to let me roam free just like that. I had been silent too long because Merle was looking at me funny and then he spoke again.
"Somethin' wrong Blondie?"
"No it sounds like a plan."
Originally this was going to be a one-shot but I realized if I did that it would be absurdly long and I wanted ot split it up anyway. I have a plan for how I want this to go, kind of but I realized that I didn't want it to just happen, I want it to unfold. Therefore I have decided to make this a story. The worst part is that I have no idea how long it will wind up being. I have a ton of other stories that I'm writing and adding to that list only makes it harder on me but I wanted to get this out there.
This is dedicated to Haitus80 and HGRHfan35, hope you girls like it. I know this isn't what you had in mind exactly but I think you'll prefer the slow burn.