9.
Twenty-two years ago
"Do not use that tone with me!" a hard ruler came down on Ana's wrist, slapping against her bare skin with a satisfying crack. She whimpered slightly, by now used to the pain the wood inflicted. The nun stood in front of her, the venomous look of contempt sprawled across her wrinkled face.
Ana parted her lips, about to inform the nun that the rumors spread about her nonexistent dissertation regarding the nun, was false. "I didn't say any of those things!" she said, her eyebrows pulling up. The nun scoffed.
"What did I tell you about lying?" Another slap on the wrist followed. The young girl was about to retaliate, threaten to tell her father, but realized that being quiet meant less pain. So, she closed her lips and accepted her punishment for something she hadn't done.
Ana woke with a searing pain in her head. She was positioned in an old wooden chair with her head lolled to the side, a jacket covered her once bare arms, and the brunette was sitting in front of her with a gun on her lap. She was in a darkened room, the walls were grimy and she noticed tiles glued to the wall as well as various appliances to the side. Pipes and hoses hung from the dirty ceiling.
"Finally," she heard the brunette whisper. Ana's head was throbbing, making it hard to hear exactly what the other girl was saying. She wanted to go back to sleep, but as her eyes closed she felt a slap on her cheek.
"Don't go back asleep, it's time to talk."
She tried to wave her arm to shoo away the hand, but realized rather quick that her wrists were restrained by strong tape. The weight of her arm trying to swing forward knocked her over. Before she knew it, her body fell from the narrow chair and her shoulder collided with the ground. She gasped in pain before the brunette gripped her arm and hauled her back onto the chair.
"Now you have a nice dress on, your friend has time to make a baby. You're holed up somewhere good." Ana grimaced as she tried to roll her shoulder, checking how injured it was. It felt out of place.
"Where is it?" the brunette asked. Ana knew better than to reply. She was sure anyone in the group knew that. However, she was somewhat worried about what would happen to Carol or Maggie if she didn't reply. She wanted to know if they were safe and why they weren't in the room with her. Perhaps they were somewhere else in the building, hopefully alive.
The brunette gestured towards her gun. "Make this quick," she said, flashing her eyes up to say she was getting tired of waiting. When Ana still didn't respond, the brunette stood up and squatted in front of Ana, bending down to level her head with Ana's.
"Where's Negan?" Ana asked quickly.
"Not here, sweetie," the brunette answered. "Though you'll meet him real soon if you tell me where your camp is."
Ana quieted, thinking over her choices.
"This is how it goes," she said in a whisper, "you and your friends stay alive if you tell me where your camp is." She brought the gun to Ana's face, tracing her jawline with it. "You guys aren't the good guys." Ana bit her cheek before bringing her head back and forward quickly, hitting her own forehead against the brunette's. Searing pain instantly overwhelmed her senses.
The brunette stumbled back a bit before tripping over her own chair, falling to the ground with a loud bang. The gun slid from her hands, falling a few feet away. Ana stood up from the chair, realizing that her feet were also tied together. Her head begged her to sit back down as white dots invaded her eyesight. She hopped towards the brunette and easily jumped onto her chest, hearing the brunette's ribs crack and break, piercing her lungs. Ana stopped jumping as the door in the building opened. Carol looked through it, Maggie behind her. For the first time in a long time, a genuine smile crossed the girl's face.
"Thank God," Carol whispered as Maggie walked to her and helped unwrap the duct tape. Once free, Ana grabbed the gun, handing it to Maggie because she knew Maggie had better aim.
"Thanks," Maggie whispered, and followed Carol out the door. Ana took the rear, closing the door behind her quietly and hoping the brunette had enough blood in her lungs and throat to keep her from warning the rest of her group.
The rest of the building was grimy and dirty as well, and most of the time Ana listened as Carol and Maggie debated whether or not to kill the two other people in the building. Ana was about to tell them there were three when they came into another room that resembled a wash room or a bathroom. The body of a large man was strewn across the floor, his body unmoving. So there were two, not three. Maggie strode over to the lifeless corpse as Ana wondered what happened in here. Maggie removed a steel pipe and the rope that helped make a tourniquet for his arm. She held both items in her hands, about to stab the future waler with the steel when Carol interrupted.
"We should just leave it."
Maggie sighed and didn't respond. Ana looked on as she tied a rope around the man's waist, noticing a gun peeking from one of his pockets. The girl reached her small hand towards it and picked it up.
"Someone's gonna come through here," Maggie said as she started to drag the body towards one of the doors, eyeing Ana as she pocketed the gun. Carol proceeded to help, tying the rope against a pipe and allowed the body to lay there. "Come on," Maggie whispered, walking out the door and hiding behind a corner. Sure enough, the short gray haired woman walked through the door. Ana heard a yell and some growls, and assumed that the man had indeed turned. After the growls silenced, Maggie charged into the room, using the butt of the gun to smash the woman's head in. Ana watched in horror as she continued to do so, remembering how the brunette said they were not the good guys. Perhaps they weren't, their actions would surely defend the brunette's point. Her eyes fell on Carol, who harbored terrified expression. When Maggie was finally finished, she grabbed a knife off the body and lazily tossed it towards Carol.
"Go," she ordered.
The three of them rounded almost every corner, avoiding the hallways with an excess amount of walkers. Eventually they wound up going in a circle, coming back to the end of a hallway filled with walkers that were embedded in pipes or had their legs smashed.
"They're using them to keep us in, keep the others out," Carol said, observing them with her knife at the ready. Ana stood at the back of the group, her eyes glancing behind them every so often. She had the steel pipe in her hand, although her dominant arm was practically useless. It was throbbing, as was her head. Her body was tired and aching; she wanted to lay down and sleep for a few months.
"Come on," Maggie said, "We have to find them." As a walker advanced towards her, she stabbed it in the head with a knife she found off of the man's body. The head gave in with a squelsh before falling. Ana took a step forward, ready to fight the walkers when a burning pain registered in her lower calf. She felt it before she heard the gunshot. Her face contorted in confusion as she watched her head get closer to the ground, mumbling something as time seemed to stop. More gunshots followed, but her body was already covered by Carol and Maggie, who were quick to come to her aid.
"Are you shot?" Maggie asked, looking over Ana's fucked up body. Her eyes rested on the amount of blood coming from her lower leg as she cursed.
"I think," Ana said, trying to sit up. The adrenaline in her veins made it hard to recognize where the pain was coming from. By now, Carol had raised Maggie's gun in the direction of the shooter, Paula.
"Just run," Carol said. Maggie shrugged off the jacket she was wearing, grabbing the steel pipe that fell from Ana's hands as she fell. She began to make a tourniquet just below Ana's knee.
"Shoot her," Maggie demanded.
"Go on, do it," Paula taunted, "you've killed Donnie, you've killed Molly, your people have destroyed my home." Ana's leg became numb as she tried to reach for something to throw in Paula's direction. She was angry at the woman, almost unnaturally angry.
"Carol," Maggie said as Carol told Paula to get out, and save herself.
"You have no idea the things I've done, what I've given up, what I had to do…" a gunshot rang. Paula's body fell to the ground as Carol turned to face Maggie. Her eyes lowered down towards Ana, seeing Donnie's gun in Ana's fingers. She was tired of the yelling, and wanted peace and quiet
A walker seemed to break free from the pipe and Maggie stabbed it before it had a chance to do anything. Maggie looked down at Ana, noticing her eyes floating closed.
"Ana, come on, stay with me." She heaved Ana up onto her arm, slinging her shoulder around her neck. Ana watched as Carol reached for the walkie off of Paula's body, mumbling something into it. For the next hour, Ana's vision went in and out. She remembered a series of screams and yells, but couldn't pinpoint the source. She remembered Carol looking down at Ana's bare leg, quickly speaking, although Ana didn't remember what she was saying. All she could hear was the sound of her heart beating incessantly through her eardrums, curious as to whether anyone else could hear it. She remembered one more gunshot and then hands on her face, stroking it endearingly then suddenly the hands were on her back and under her knees, carrying her. There were hands holding her leg straight up in the air and talks of keeping it elevated or else she'll bleed out.
Ana finally opened her eyes twenty hours later, around ten in the morning. Her leg was numb, and any movement of her eyes hurt her head. As for her shoulder, she was able to move it without a problem. It took a moment for Ana to realize that she was in someone else's bed. The bed was smaller, more like a twin bed. The room she was in was surrounded by several windows, which were covered with curtains, giving the space a dim look.
Ana coughed for a few moments before trying to sit up. For a moment, her head begged her to sit down, but she ignored the feeling. She threw the covers from her body, noticing a large bandage placed across the back of her calf. She was dressed in a small t-shirt and shorts to provide access to her wounds. There were a pair of crutches next to the bed. She grabbed them and used them to stand up before placing them under her armpits and striding through the bedroom to the door. Once reaching the door, Ana realized how tired she was. She quickly debated laying back down, or continuing onward to get some water. She decided to open the door.
After opening up the door, she realized she was on the first floor of someone's house. The front door was a couple yards ahead of her, outside she saw a few people pass by. To her left, she saw the back of someone's head as they stared intently at a plate on the counter.
"Denise," Ana mumbled lightly. The buoyant girl slowly turned around with a smile on her face.
"Ana," she said, her voice contradicting her smile, "I'm really glad you're awake. You need to get back in bed, you suffered major injuries."
"I probably should," Ana ventured.
"So, let's get you back in bed." Denise paused for a second, "and just so you know, I'm mad at you for disobeying Rick and tricking me."
Ana looked down, nodding in agreement. "I'm a bit pissed about that as well."
She heard Denise chuckle, and decided it was okay to look up again. Denise was on her way towards Ana, a plate of what seemed to be chicken in her hands.
"Rick's even more pissed. You should have seen him after I told him you were stable." Denise ventured around Ana, towards the room Ana was in when she woke up. Ana followed her, deciding she was hungry, as well as curious as to what Denise meant by Rick being pissed. Her crutches clacked loudly on the hardwood floor as she tried to get a hang of them. She was relieved when she made it to the bed in once piece, awkwardly tossing the crutches on the floor and reaching for the plate Denise left on the end table. She swung her swore leg onto the bed as Denise took a seat on the edge of it.
"You lost a lot of blood," she said. Ana wasn't surprised. Her head was still hurting and her entire body felt exhausted. "You probably have a major concussion, and your shoulder was dislocated. Not to mention you were shot."
"Really? That was the pain in my calf, huh?" Ana said sarcastically.
Denise continued, pretending not to notice Ana's humor. "Until it heals and I can take the stitches out you need to use these crutches. If the skin continually stretches as it does when you're walking, the stitches will fall out. Not to mention you'd be in a hell of a lot of pain." Ana gingerly pulled at the cooked chicken with her fingers, shoving pieces into her mouth and savoring the taste.
"I better go tell everyone you're awake. Maggie and Carol were extremely worried." Denise stood up, telling Ana to stay in the bed and that she would be back soon. Ana obeyed, carefully finished her chicken and wiping her hands on the shirt she was wearing. Only then did she realize she was wearing a new shirt, a clean shirt. Someone had changed her clothes for her. Hopefully it was Denise.
Ana brushed her fingers through her hair, combing through a series of knots and hoping that her face wasn't as dirty as her hand was when it came away from her hair. She sighed lightly, remembering the events from the day before. Angry as she was for her own actions, Ana would do it over again. She knew her husband was head of the saviors, and knew that if he was as big as a threat as he seemed, Ana would see him. Hug him. Kiss him. She smiled at the deranged thought, brushing her hair behind her ears and rolling over on her side to imagine what it would be like to feel him again.
The door burst open. Ana rolled to the other side in a tired manor, seeing a very worried looking Maggie. Her brow was tightened as she observed Ana's condition.
"Are you okay?" Maggie said, kneeling in front of Ana's face. Ana let out a small yes as Carol appeared in the doorway as well, a container of cookies in her hand.
"We figured you'd be asleep for at least a day longer," Maggie explained, standing up again. Carol placed the cookies on the end table and pulled her lips into a thin line.
"I'm so sorry," she said.
"No need to," Ana responded, "you couldn't have anticipated it would happen." Carol nodded, pursing her lips as another voice boomed through the room.
"The hell were you thinking?"
Maggie and Carol parted as a very irritated Rick came close to Ana's side. He was unlawfully mad, with his mouth frowned and his forehead wrinkled as he scowled at Ana. Maggie and Carol quickly left, deciding it was time for Rick to scold her alone.
"I left you with Denise for a reason," Rick said, staring straight at Ana.
"I wanted to see Negan," Ana whimpered, guilt coursing through her veins.
"Y-You thought this was a good idea because you wanted to see your murdering husband?" Rick squinted, raising his voice as he cocked his head. She looked away quickly, already feeling her cheeks become warm. "Your husband who would probably kill all of us along with you?"
"Stop," Ana said quietly.
"I left you here to keep you safe," Rick said with venom in his tone, "your little stunt almost got Carol and Maggie killed, as well as yourself." Rick said nothing else, and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Ana slipped under the covers, pulling them up to her chin and closing her eyes, rationalizing her decision as a way to assure herself that her efforts weren't in vain. Eventually, she decided to sleep.
A/N: Oh my God! First off, I can't believe I've gotten almost twenty more followers since posting the last chapter! That's amazing, I never thought this story would be that great. And second...how about that first episode? Jesus, I started crying. It was practically an emotional rollercoaster and I don't think it's going to let up in the next few episodes since everyone has to deal with that major loss. Damn. And third, I apologize for any spelling errors I tried to edit this, but I might've missed a few.
Just a side note, I'm expecting that after Ana meets Negan the story will focus much more on her than Rick's group's activities.
Replies:
Jasper'sCowgirl: Hmm...you'll have to wait and find out. I can't say too much about it, except that the group will definitely be surprised when they find out about Negan and Ana.
I'm a Nerd and Proud: I feel like even after last Sunday, I'm still compelled to love Negan! He's such a ruthless and round character that it's hard not to.
x3sunnydaay: Thankfully the shit with school turned out fine :). Sadly, my school life goes through lulls with no homework to days where I'm forced to pull all nighters. Aside from that, the moment when Ana and Negan meet is coming up soon! I'm excited to see your reaction along with everyone else's.
wastedyouth: Thank you, i really appreciate your comment because it makes my effort towards the story feel worthwhile! :)
StTudnoBright: Man, what did you think of that premiere? It was absolutely crazy. With regards to Ana, I'm still questioning whether or not Negan should tell her...or if she should find out accidentally. Accidentally seems much more dramatic :)
tripmisses: Here's the next chapter for ya! I hope you enjoy it and thanks for reviewing
msgemgem: Jesus I think this is the longest review I've ever gotten and I'm really thankful you put the time in to write it for me! I've realized now (after writing 11 chapters ugh..) that my writing has been more objective than subjective which doesn't really give the readers a glance into Ana's mind, so she seems flat; I totally agree with you on that aspect! I'm hoping with future chapters she's able to show her true colors, and become a more round character. In regards to her being quiet and not integrated, it's because most of my prior characters have been impulsive and brave. I wanted to create a socially awkward, submissive girl who latches on to certain people...which she will learn does NOT work in a world where everyone is dying. As to her flip-floppy attitude, I honestly slapped myself in the face when reading that. You're totally right! Her actions aren't consistent- maybe I'm pulling too much from my prior characters in giving her that impulsive streak. I'll definitely work on that. Negan will be introduced, and the love triangle will be kicked into motion, although it might be hard for Rick to make moves towards Ana given Negan's threats. Plus, Ana's relationship with Negan is slightly deranged, like that of an abusive one. She knows she should hate him, but can't. Hopefully with more flashbacks I'll be able to show where her submissiveness and quiet, socially awkward nature comes from. Again, I really appreciate this review because it'll help me in the future when deciding whether Ana's actions fit her personality, or if they're totally random.