Maggie Rhee woke up in her bed within her room inside Barrington House, Hilltop, stretching herself, before sitting up in her bend and thinking once again about the new the situation that has come to the lives of her and her loved ones.

It had been a few weeks since the death of Rick at the bridge. It had hit Maggie hard, losing another member of her family, but obviously, it was even harder for Michonne and little Judith, them being his family. Maggie knew this too well, with the loss of Glenn over one and a half years ago, and also knew the hardships Michonne would have now raising Judith on her own.

Being possibly partly responsible for his death, Maggie decided to take some distance from Michonne and Alexandria, with Jesus and some other trusted taking the role of communicating and negotiating with them. It would take some time to heal from this new tragedy, but they would all overcome this, like they always have. The death of her father Hershel, sister Beth and husband Glenn have all been painful for her, but she has always managed to find a reason to continue to live. Her current reasons to continue onwards was her one-year-old son, Hershel Jr, as well as the community of the Hilltop, for which she was responsible for.

She had also left Negan rotting back in his cell, knowing it would be worse for him to remain there alive.

Maggie stood up from her bed and walked towards the crib where her son was, already awake, crawling around and making noises. The woman picked the baby up, hugged him and placed small kiss on his forehead.

"Good morning! How are you, my little sunshine?" she asked, obviously knowing that she would not get a clear answer from him.

Hershel made some more noises, and she interpreted him being hungry. Which she was as well.

"Let's get dressed and then go down to for some breakfast" she said to him, and breastfed her son for a little moment, before preparing changes clothes for the day.

Maggie put aside the nightgown she had on for the night, and chose a pair of tight jeans, and a white tank top, over which she put on a light blue shirt, while Hershel Jr was put in beige onesies. Maggie put one some brown leather boots and left her room

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Alden woke up in one of the trailers of the Hilltop, which he coinhabited with three other men, Larry and Louie, two vintners, and Oscar, an older mechanic and farmer. He was the first of the four men to rise up, with the others starting to wake up when he was exiting the building for breakfast.

"Shit, that late, already?" sighed Louie, who was still under his blanket.

"I'm just an early bird" Alden replied, as he stepped out. "You guys better hurry though, before the best is taken away"

The young man left the trailer, and crossed Earl Sutton, the old Hilltop's blacksmith, and his wife, Tammy Rose.

"Hey, Alden, we're still scheduled for beginners' lessons at 3 pm tonight?" asked the older man.

"Yeah, still scheduled for that, gotta get some farm work done first though" replied Alden, as the two men and one woman.

Alden had to find a new occupation within the community, since he could no longer serve as the construction foreman for the bridge, as it had blown up in the air with Rick Grimes. Luckily Earl was ready to take him on as an apprentice in the craft of blacksmithing, which seemed like a more satisfying alternative to farming. Earl was also no longer the youngest man, so it was good idea to get an apprentice to learn and master the craft. The original apprentice was meant to be Earl's son Kenneth, nicknamed by all as Kenny, but following his unfortunate passing during a supply over a month ago, a new one was needed. Kenny's friend Marco had been another candidate for the role, but as neither he nor Earl want to spend too much time with each other, as both were still mourning the death of a good friend and son.

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The cantina of the Hilltop was outside of any building or trailer, consisting of two long tables with dozens of chairs, so that several residents could enjoy meals at once. Ms. Maitlin, alongside former food exchange runners Crystal and Craig, served as the primary cooks.

Maggie and Hershel were already enjoying their meals, porridge with fruit, when Alden, Earl and Tammy Rose arrived to the scene. They were still early, with only four others already there: Paul "Jesus" Rovia, recruiter and advisor to Maggie, Roy, as well Eduardo and Kal, the two most experienced guards and protectors of the community.

"Alden, remember that I need you in my office after breakfast" said Maggie to Alden, as the young man had taken his portion of breakfast.

"Say again?" Alden asked still being a little tired and confused about her strange request, before remembering to have agreed to meet her the day before.

"Checking out the expansion of the fields outside the wall, as you promised"

"Oh, sorry, I was a little tired. Of course, Maggie" Alden replied.

"This won't take too long though, remember out appointment, Al?" said Earl as he and Tammy Rose sat down with their breakfast.

"Of course not, Earl, your apprentice is going to be on time for his apprenticeship, I'll make sure of it" Maggie said before turning back to her meal and her son. Hershel was enjoying some mushed fruit, getting a taste of proper food.

Alden also decided to concentrate on his breakfast, but threw a glance or two towards Maggie, every few moments, always making sure she did not notice him. Maggie, with her son Hershel, finished before him, picked up their dishes and left the table. Alden looked behind her, at her swinging bottom in those tight jeans, in way that no one else eating at the table noticed.

Almost no one else did notice. Save for old Earl Sutton.

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Alden had a crush. He had one ever since he saw her the first time when he was taken to the Hilltop as a prisoner of war. He had heard of the beautiful widow in the chatter of his fellow saviors, alongside the Ezekiel the King and Rick the… Rick, who were the leaders of the people who defied Negan's rule. And she was much more beautiful than he expected, even though she threatened to kill most of them in the beginning, and even killed one his fellow saviors, Dean, as a form for revenge for Simon killing one of her men, Neil.

After Simon and the others saviors decided to leave Alden and the other captured saviors to die, they offered their service to Maggie, who slowly accepted them into her group at the Hilltop, allowing them to menial labour. After they, alongside Tara, Aaron and the women of Oceanside, helped defend the Hilltop from another savior-attack during the last day, she fully trusted him. She even accepted him to stay after he asked to remain at the Hilltop, since he never considered the Sanctuary as a true home. He had also shown interested in the project contained within "A Key to the Future", a book given to Maggie by the mysterious woman Georgie.

Maggie was a fierce and tough woman, who did not take bullshit from anyone, whether it was from a friend or foe. She did not hesitate to use force to defend those she loved and cared for, even if it meant killing someone, like Dean. Despite this, she was also a loving woman, who cared for many. He was this in how she loved her infant-son Hershel, or how she was deeply disturbed by the death of Kenny Sutton during that recent supply run.

And she was physically attractive as well. Maggie's soft brown hair was gorgeous, and she had let it grow for the past year and a half after the war. Her piercing, dark green eyes are also simply stunning, no matter her expression. Her lips and the smile it formed was delightful, especially when she was happy about something. And when going down he body, she wasn't disappointing either. Her booty was just right-sized, fit and well-shaped, and her hips were of an ideal width. Her breasts seemed on the smaller side, as far as he could tell, but overall fit the frame of her body. He had also witnessed her body go through the process of a pregnancy, and all which that entailed such as gained weighed and stretching, but he she seemed to quickly bounce back to her old form after giving birth to Hershel Jr.

His crush on had morphed into a desire of her over his year and half stay at the Hilltop. One that was both emotional and physical. Her started having dreams of her over time, which were of large variety. In some there were a loving couple living in a farm house, others more lust-based, in which he dominated her roughly during sex or her being a mythically seductive vixen towards him. Some included Hershel Jr and her widowhood, other did not.

His desire for her was strong, but he knew she wasn't ready for something like that in return. She was in charge of an entire community and was still a new mother, not to mention the long shadow her dead husband, one Glenn Rhee, had cast on her life. It was clear she was still in a state of deep mourning over him. Something he couldn't understand, as he never had a relationship that deep. His last girlfriend had broken up with him a week before the end of the world, and he never pursued anyone among the saviors.

What made it even worse was that Maggie considered him her friend and close confidante in her matter, whom she trusted the most only after Jesus and an older woman named Brianna. She had even hugged him a few times, which was hard for him.

He understood his situation, as well as that of her, but still couldn't help his desires… and feelings. He was at a crossroads, not knowing how to be around her, wanting to respect her boundaries and personal life, but also wanting to follow his own heart's desire…

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Maggie was in her office within Barrington house, looking over some paper plans about expanding the crops fields outside the walls of the Hilltop. On the wall of her office there were several paintings by Anne, the former leader of the scavengers, which depicted her late father, Hershel, and later husband, Glenn. Little Hershel Jr was playing on the ground with some LEGO DUPLOs.

Alden entered the office, heading towards Maggie position.

"Oh, Alden, good that you came so quickly" Maggie said. "Come over here and look at the plans"

Alden came over and looked at them, getting at an idea of how she wanted to expand, but wanting to visualize it, so that it could be presented for the others. Meanwhile Maggie put little Hershel in a crib.

"Got a spare map for this one?" he asked her.

"Yes, Eugene has managed to print some spare maps back in Alexandria and I got one here" Maggie replied, as she pulled a map out of one of one of her draws. "Here it is"

She also pulled out a red pen to mark the ideal areas on the map. Alden noticed that her ideal area for expansion was rather small.

"Why didn't you take my idea of expanding also towards the woods? We could cut down some forests" Alden asked the woman.

"It was a good idea, and we would get a nice amount of fire wood through that, but we don't have the men right now for such a task" Maggie said back, eyes on the map.

"What about the other communities? The Kingdom could send some spare men"

"They are busy with expanding their own gardens"

"Alexandria?"

"I'm not… on good speaking terms with Michonne. And she still needs time with Rick, and my role in that…"

"Maggie, it wasn't your fault"

"Feels a little like that, though… but still, they are busy as well"

"And what about the Sanctuary?"

Maggie looked at him, giving him a baffled look.

"Are you joking right now?" she asked. "Let them near here after what they've done to the Hilltop?"

"I was one of them once, Maggie" Alden snapped back at her. "Maggie, you need to move forwards on them, like you recently did with Negan"

"I did not move on him or what he did! I never will" she snapped back at him, getting noticeably angry. "He's just worse off currently being alive than being dead!"

She rose up and stood directly against him looking up to him (he was 5'8, while she was 5'5). Her piercing green eyes looked at him, while her face formed an angry expression.

God, she's beautiful, even when she's angry, Alden thought to himself while he was looking at her, before returning to reality and responding to her.

"Maggie, you can't bring your personal feelings and baggage when making decisions for the Hilltop and others. You need to think more clearly!" he said as he got closer.

Maggie took a step back and looked away from him for moment. After a few seconds she turned back.

"Sorry, you're right. Expansion of fields is important in order to better food-production. And we need the labour for. Sorry for losing it" she confessed.

"No worries. And I agree that we should not get former combatants here, but rather go for the former workers. If they work here for a while, they will also live here for a while, and those workers share the hatred for the regime Negan and his lieutenants just as much as the people of the Hilltop or Alexandria"

"Got some names?" she asked.

"Potter would be a great foreman for them, he's also a big fan of Rick Grimes. José, Brooke, Mel, Ove, Weiguo, Emma and John are also reliable workers, while Gina is a good at keeping records. And there are dozens of others who would like to leave the tense atmosphere of the sanctuary behind" he listed.

"Good, let's get some work done then" Maggie said as the two returned to the maps and got some papers to draft plans.

For the next hours they started going through how much forest had to be logged, how long it took and how many it would take, as well as how much food, water and living space the workers would need. It might get close in terms of the Hilltop's carrying capacity, but Maggie saw it as a risk worth taking, since with the extra farmland and its yield would guarantee the community's survival and produced more than enough, so that it could Alexandria, Kingdom and Oceanside as well. Bertie, one of the residents of the Hilltop came over to bring them some lunch during this process as well. Hershel napped for the most part, need little to no close attention.

After being done. Maggie and Alden stood over their plans in silence for a while, proud of what they had done. Unconsciously, Alden's right hand touched Maggie's left one during this moment, intertwining with it firmly. Maggie gasped at this and pulled back, both the hand from his and herself from him, taking a few steps back.

"Alden?" she asked, looking at him confused.

"Sorry, uhmm… I was thoughtless" he said, not sure what to say, before looking at his watch. "Shit, I gotta go see Earl for the apprenticeship. See ya"

With the he left the room, cursing at himself in his head on how reckless he had been in her presence. Maggie looked after before she heard Hershel waking up and turning to her son.

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Alden arrived at Earl's forge just in time, and the older man had already heated the furnace for the occasion.

"You're on time" he noted. "Good"

"Always" Alden replied. "Let's get started"

For this first time Alden was just taking mental notes of Earl's work, following the steps the older man made in the arts of being a blacksmith. Earl was open to questions from Alden, who was curious about the different steps and procedures. Hours went by, and the two seemed to miss dinner. Luckily Earl's wife Tammy came by with two plates of food and cups of drink.

The two men set aside their work and started to enjoy their meals: it was a stew that mainly consisted of potatoes, beans and carrot, with some chicken, and as the main drink some watered down wine, though as Earl was a recovering alcoholic, he enjoyed some grape juice.

"Thanks for training me" Alden said to the smith.

"I'm not getting any younger and it's good to have a second smith just in case" the older man replied.

The two men continued their meals. Alden noticed that Tammy had not joined them.

"Tammy's not eating with us?" Alden wondered.

"I think she has already eaten with the others. And she's been hanging out with Brianna. I think she needed more company since Kenny's death" Earl answered. "She's taken so much care of me, I think she deserves to have some healing for herself"

"Can't believe you two have been married for so long" Alden commented.

"Can't believe it myself, Alden, can't belief it myself. I'm a lucky son of a gun"

The two men finished their meals and Alden promised to bring the dishes back to Barrington house. Before he left, Earl approached him.

"Alden, I don't want to be too intrusive, but I've seen how you look at Maggie"

Alden just looked back at the older man, not sure what to say.

"Life's short, so don't let something good go by. Especially these days when a future with loved ones is not a guaranteed thing"

Alden understood. The people they had lost since the fall. Kenny, his and Tammy's son. His brother, who was murdered and whom he avenged. Carl, the son of Rick Grimes. And Glenn, the later husband whose widow he had shown interest in.

"I understand that, of course. I just don't know how to approach her, with my past under Negan, her husband and now her baby son" Alden told the older man.

"Listen, I can't know how she feels about you, but I have a feeling that she is slowly moving on from her grief, now that she has faced Negan. I just think you should be honest with her, especially when you two will be working closely over the next few months over the expansion work. Also, people will eventually notice your gazes behind her and rumours might spread, which wouldn't be necessarily good either of you"

Alden nodded, thanked the man and Earl's forge for his own bed.

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Maggie laid in her bed after having put Hershel to sleep in his crib after having breastfed him again for dinner. She thinking about maybe starting the process of weaning, gradually introducing him to more solid food. Afterall, she's had her little miracle for a year already.

She felt tired, but knew she had to shower before going to bed that night. She asked Bertie to watch over sleeping son, promising she wouldn't take more than half an hour.

Barrington House, which had been converted into a museum by the state of Virginia during the 1930's, had a small shower, likely meant for the staff before the emergence of the walkers. Through some clever engineering, the residents of the Hilltop had managed to keep the showers functioning even years after the fall and a time table was developed so that everyone could enjoy the luxury of cleanliness on a semi-regular basis (of course for only about 4 to 5 minutes). Maggie, despite being the leader, held to this timetable, unlike her predecessor.

The woman entered the shower naked with soap and shampoo, enjoying the sensation of somewhat warm water on her skin. Maggie applied the soap on her body and the shampoo on her hair, thinking about how the day went. She had reviewed the state of ammunition with Eduardo and Jesus, and all agreed that they needed more, deciding to enter negotiations with Alexandria. And there was the expansion of the fields with Alden.

Alden, she thought, and washing the soap of her body, her hand slowly crept between her legs and touched her outer lips. Having him so close to her, their hands almost touching, made her… feel something. Something she though was dormant. As her fingers slowly pushed into her, she snapped out of it, feeling guilty.

What am I doing, she asked, pulling back her hand and started to think about Glenn. This was the first time since his death she had felt turned on.

Maggie washed the shampoo out of her hair and stepped out of the shower, drying her body before slipping in a morning robe, trying not to think about what just transpired. Maggie quietly returned to her room and relieved Bertie from watching over Hershel. Maggie changed from her robe into a nightgown, and stepped into her bed.

She couldn't get sleep and kept thinking about what she had done in the shower. It had been one and a half years since Glenn's death, and during that time she had not even though about sex or any other form of relationship. She thought it would be too soon, and part of her desired be a widow for the rest of her life in order to honour her and Glenn's past.

Then she wondered about whom she had lusted in the shower. Alden.

Maggie felt guilty. Glenn. Her husband. Her husband whose life was cut too short in such brutal manner and could not witness the pregnancy and birth of his only son.

And now she had desired another man. Alden. A good man. A nice man. A former savior, but someone who had grown to see Negan's evil and wanted to change his ways, both for his own sake and that of others.

A good man. A nice man. A handsome man her age.

Not again, she thought and slowly drifted asleep, trying not think about Alden anymore.

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Alden laid in his bed in one of trailers, looking at the ceiling. Larry, Louie and Oscar were all sleeping already, leaving him alone awake.

Earl's comments remained in his mind. Just go to Maggie and tell her how you feel about her.

Alden thought about it, and how he should approach her, and in the end agreed, that he should just tell her directly. After he had accidentally touched her hand, he knew he would have to explain himself.

With that decision Alden fell to sleep in his bed and had a dream in which he was making passionate love to Maggie on the rug in her office at Barrington House, with her moaning how important he was to her and how much she loved him.