Okay, so I'm not one to go into too much detail, because I think readers' imaginations are better at that. Still there is some implied and I'm sure triggery grossness in this chapter, including unwanted hair-petting on a black woman and the threat of forced assault by an animal. If you don't know Negan, now you know.
I truly hope his episodes also come with trigger-warnings if they go anywhere near his comic incarnation.
His men came into the women's quarters early that morning and nudged Michonne 'awake'. They directed her through the compound, clearly unafraid of what she would learn of it's layout.
She memorized everything, every detail that she could see, from the number and demeanor of the men and women on duty to basic directions. The layout would be a definite problem. The corners were blind and she had no idea how deeply into the compound she actually was, since she had yet to see a window.
She could find no hint of an entry or exit point.
She came to what appeared to be a large presidential suite. One of the men opened the door and Negan sat in the middle of the room on a plush couch. He wore a short silk robe which gaped in the front, showing-off an heavy dusting of grey and black chest hair.
Tied with jute and kneeling before him was Joy. She looked resigned to whatever fate awaited her.
Three of Negan's men retreated back into the hallway to the shut and guard the door.
The other four took different positions at corners of the room, their weapons unlocked and casually levelled at Michonne.
"GOOD MORNING BABE!" Negan announced, as he got up grinning, with his arms wide and welcoming. It made Michonne want to dry-heave.
"I can't tell you how glad I am to have you here, with my Joy! Joy-Joy my fuck-toy!" he sing-songed as he petted the restrained woman's hair.
The poor woman very clearly wanted to recoil.
"-Big Joe?"
Big Joe was a large handle-bar mustached sunburnt white guy, with straw-blond hair. He lowered his weapon and stepped away from his position at the far corner and left the room. He returned seconds later with Michonne's katana in his hands.
He presented it to Negan first, who waved it away.
"Oh, no, no, no. I'm a big hairy-ass white guy. That shit doesn't look right in my hands."
Negan licked his lips.
"Give it to it's rightful owner."
Negan watched closely as the man held the weapon in front of Michonne. Michonne remained relaxed and did not reach for it.
"I'm not doing anything to this woman." Michonne whispered her head inclining to indicate Joy.
Negan grinned again.
"I didn't expect that you would, but I had hoped."
He nodded at Big Joe who retreated once more with the sword in hand. This was a problem. She had no idea where this man was taking her katana. If she took Negan at his word, and she didn't, she would think that it was mounted openly in his room. There for the taking.
...But she remembered what the women had told her about traps, all of their attempts to ambush and escape. She knew that this man would not have been able to keep a hold on such a large amount of organized armed men and women, unless he was able to avoid stupid mistakes like the Governor had made.
Michonne could see that this man's cockiness was an act. He was very careful about who and what he trusted.
"It's fine. You don't have to do shit. I just wanted to see you again." Negan said.
He snapped his fingers and the men all raised their weapons to eye-level, in firing position. He crossed his arms behind his back, allowing his robe to gape even further, much to her disgust and he slowly took a walk around her, in a wide circle.
"Fucking-fuck, the Creator broke the mold when he created that ass of yours. ...Like you're fucking smuggling two honeydews back there!"
Michonne could see that he was trying to goad her into violence, to see just what she could do and get a better idea of what kind of threat she is. She wouldn't give him that pleasure. Unfortunately, even doing nothing told him quite a bit.
He came back around to face her and his smile dropped.
"You know, you can tell a lot about a man by the kind of people he loves...the quality of people who love him."
"All of my ladies would have tried to placate me or kill me at least once by now, but not you, huh. -Just biding your time. You won't give anything away, even if I have you ass up with a pitbull ready to take you."
Michonne continued to refuse to recoil in any way. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction.
"I thought you didn't approve of rape."
He smiled his sick twisted smile again.
"I DON'T. I'm just saying that you wouldn't, even if I were that kinda' scumbag."
"Fuck me, but I really, really fucking like you a lot Michonne and I have a feeling that I'll like Rick just as much. Shame you won't even consider becoming one of my wives. But ain't that a some kinda' bitch of a conundrum!? If you did, I probably wouldn't want you as much... Ahh, who the fuck am I kidding! Fuck yeah, I'd have you and that superior posterior of yours, in every fucking way."
He cast his sleazy eyes along her form again in a way that made her skin crawl, but she merely sighed as if bored and unimpressed, which she was.
"I can see just from that fact that a woman like you is his, that Rick is a man I can't beat around the fucking bush with. Nope, I'm gonna have to pull that shit up by the roots and fucking incinerate it in front of him, -maybe a few times before he's brought to heel. You might want to give that some thought, while I'm taking my time figuring out just when and who I'll be picking for that honor."
"Take her back to my girls."
As his men converged on her, she noticed one thing that she just might be able to work with.
Joy had something in her mouth, something which jutted out at an odd angle, distorting her cheek.
Something that suspiciously looked like it could be a small key.
Michonne saw that as Negan and his men were distracted, she swallowed it.