Chapter Eight: Echoes of GreenHill

Warning: mention of sexual assault.

Alison eagerly devoured the food, not realizing just how hungry she really was. Each bite was packed with flavour, which only made her eat faster. It was a far cry from what she was used to back in her community. There, the meals were limited to military meals ready to eat, known as MREs as they were found in an abandoned army barracks nearby. The food was dreadful and lacked any real flavor. Alison had to cover the mushy, disgusting food in salt just to get it down without gagging.

After her community fell, and she was on her own, she managed to get her hands on canned food, which was a welcome change. At first, the canned meals tasted much better than the MREs, she didn't need to cover anything in salt or force the food down. However, as time went on, the novelty wore off and flavours faded. The longer she relied on canned food, the more bland and tasteless the meals became. Each one seemed to strip away her appetite, leaving her wishing for any other kind of food.

She often thought back on the meals her dad would prepare for her, she took it for granted at the time but now it was a cherished memory she held deeply. His fried chicken was the best, crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside. Thursdays held a special place in her heart. Every Thursday was spaghetti night, it was a tradition ever since she was a little girl. Her dad would make a giant pot of spaghetti with meatballs the size of tennis balls.

On her birthday, her dad would always bring home fish and chips from her favorite spot, Chips Ahoy!. They had the best fish and chips around and it made her birthday even more special. Her dad couldn't always afford presents but he always made sure he got her favorite meal. Alison's heart broke, knowing she would never feel the warmth of sitting on the couch in her father's arms, the styrofoam take out container in her lap as she used her fingers to tear apart the fish.

Her meals now consisted solely on MREs and canned food. If God was on her side, she might be able to catch a rabbit. However, hunting was not her strong suit. She lacked any skills or experience. Most days, if she wasn't going through houses, she was foraging, searching through the surrounding areas for any edible plants or berries. The struggle with food weighed heavily on Alison's mind, fearful that a can of spaghettios could be her last meal.

Maggie watched as the girl wolfed down her food like a hungry animal. The girl was eating so quickly that Maggie became afraid that she may end up choking if she continued in this manner. Taking the chance of being jabbed by a fork she placed her hand over the girl's plate, stopping her before she could take another bite.

Alison had to stop herself from leaping over the table and attacking Maggie when she placed her hand over a large helping of scrambled eggs. Alison couldn't remember the last time she'd had eggs, much like fruit it was something she hadn't tasted since before the fall. The sweetness of the fruits, it was something she hadn't tasted in a very long time and it was heavenly.

She took in a deep breath as she pressed her lips tightly together, her grip on the fork tightening in response to her frustration. She gritted her teeth as she slowly looked up at Maggie, seconds away from lashing out before Maggie spoke.

"Slow down," Maggie said softly once the girl looked up at her. Maggie could see that she was walking in thin ice at the moment but she stood her ground, giving the girl a stern look. "Slow down or you're gonna make yourself sick," Maggie warned as she removed her hand, "You have all the time you need to eat, no one's gonna take it away from you." She reassured, hoping the girl would slow down a little.

Alison paused for a brief moment, taking a deep breath as she worked on chewing the food that was already in her mouth before taking another bite.

Maggie lowered her head slightly as she let out a smile, glad to see that the girl took her advice. "My name is Maggie, by the way." She introduced herself, sitting on the edge of the bed as Daryl took his usual seat in the chair. "I believe you already know Daryl," Maggie added, gazing at him for a moment before returning back to the girl. "Do you think you can tell us your name?" Maggie asked calmly.

Alison stared down at her food, running her fork across the plate. The fork scraped lightly against the ceramic before she used it to stab one of the pancakes and brought it up to her mouth, taking a large bite. "...Alison….or Alice" She muttered with a mouth full of pancake.

"Which one do you prefer?" Maggie asked, happy that they were finally getting somewhere. It was just a name but it was more than what they had for the past three days.

Alison shrugged her shoulders, she hadn't given it much thought before. After a brief pause, she replied "Doesn't matter, people usually just call me Alison."

"Alison it is then," Maggie replied with a slight smile, hoping to put Alison at ease a little, "do you mind if we ask you a couple of questions? You don't have to answer anything that makes you uncomfortable." Maggie reassured her.

Ailson hesitated, a hint of uncertainty flashing across her face as she shifted a little. "...I guess." She replied slowly as her eyes shot between Maggie and Daryl.

Maggie nodded, "I'm going to start off with three questions. They may seem a little strange at first, but our friend thought of them. We ask everyone the same three questions when they enter our community." Maggie explained, hoping she could make Alison feel more comfortable if she explained the reasoning behind the questions. "The first question is, How many Walkers have you killed?"

Alison stared at Maggie for a moment before shrugging her shoulders "I don't know," she finally said "a few." The words came out slowly, as if Alison was carefully choosing them, worried about saying something wrong.

"That's alright, most people don't know how many Walkers they have taken down but we ask anyway. Honestly, I don't know how many I killed either. It's hard to keep track of that kind of thing." Maggie reassured, sensing the girl's hesitation. "The next question is gonna be harder," Maggie warned before continuing, "How many people have you killed?"

Alison went silent, lost in her thoughts as images of the people she killed came back to her. She didn't like thinking about the lives she had taken, each life weighing heavily on her conscience. For a moment, she considered not answering but she recalled what Aaron had said to her. She could trust these people.

Taking a deep breath she forced the answer out,"Three."

Maggie nodded, taking a quick glance over at Daryl before returning to Alison, "Why?" Daryl asked the last question before Maggie had a chance to.

Alison felt a lump in the back of her throat start to form as she looked down at her plate of food. Her stomach twisted in knots as she suddenly lost her appetite. She pushed her plate away as she realized what the questions were about. These people were trying to figure out if she was a threat, they wanted to know if she was one they should be afraid of.

Alison couldn't be too upset, after all, they lived in an unpredictable world, it made sense for them to be cautious. Trust was hard to come by now, no one could afford to be careless.

"It was my life or theirs," Alison finally replied, her voice heavy. She had made a choice that day, a choice to live. As those men held her down and took what they wanted, she decided that she was gonna fight, that she wasn't going to lay down and allow this new world to destroy her.

Maggie frowned, she didn't need Alison to explain what had happened. The memories of the Governor still lingered. She could still feel his eyes on her as he made her strip for him, his cold breath on the back of her neck as he held her down. She would never forget what he did. He took her dignity away that day, something she could never get back. "It's alright, you did what you had to to survive. We all had to do things to stay alive." Maggie reassured her.

Maggie allowed the silence to fill the room for a few moments, she knew the weight of the situation and that she needed to choose her next words carefully. After a slow exhale, she spoke, "Sweetie, do you have a community that you belong to?" Maggie asked gently as she reached her hand out across the mattress but made sure to still keep her distance.

"We can head back to where we found you. I'm sure your people will be looking for you. We can get you back to them." Maggie explained.

Alison shook her head, the silence becoming even more deafening before she spoke, "I don't have a community…not anymore." Her voice was steady, but there was a hint of sadness to her tone. She was a part of a community once, had close friends, people who understood her but shit happened and now she was on her own.

"What happened?" Daryl asked. He had witnessed many communities fall apart. The Atlanta camp crumbled the moment those Walkers wandered in. The prison, once a stronghold, ended in chaos. Woodbury seemed like a safe haven for those inside but turned out to be a nightmare. Each place he had known did not last long in this world, it was a miracle that Alexandria had lasted as long as it had. He had learned that building a community was hard, and keeping it together was even harder. He didn't give Rick as much credit as he should have.

"Same thing that always happens," Alison replied, her eyes filled with sorrow, "I was part of a small community called GreenHill. There were thirty-four of us. We didn't have much, but we made the most of what we did have. We built a home for ourselves in a Museum, it was one of those places where you could go and see how people lived a hundred years ago. One night…I don't know what happened but Walkers broke in. Everyone was running, screaming…I couldn't see anything. I managed to escape by climbing one of the trees and waiting it out. I saw everything…my friends, family being torn apart. I couldn't do anything to stop it." Alison was silent for a moment as a tear slid down her cheek. "I don't know if anyone else made it out. I hung around the area for a while, searching for anyone that may have made it out but I couldn't find anyone…at least anyone that was still alive. I've been on my own ever since." Alison explained.

Maggie was silent, she had no words. Alison had endured much more than she would have ever expected, to witness your community, your family be torn apart, it was horrifying. The pain in Alison's eyes showed just how much she was carrying around with her. Maggie shared a look with Daryl, with Daryl giving her a gentle nod to show that he was on the same page as her.

Daryl leaned forward in his chair, his hand resting on his knees, "We want you to know that you have a place here with us. You may not know us very well yet, but we will keep you safe." He paused, trying to gauge her reaction which was much harder than expected. The girl had a blank expression on her face as if she hadn't heard a word that he just said. "Once you start to feel a bit better, we'll help you find a home, get you out of the infirmary."

"We have someone here, Eugene," Maggie said, breaking the silence when it became clear that Alison wasn't going to speak to them, "He built a radio that allows us to stay in touch with the nearby communities. If you like, I can send a message out asking if anyone from GreenHill is listening. It's a long shot and I don't want you getting your hopes up because we may not get a replay. But if you think that there's a chance that someone else escaped, then you should give it a chance." Maggie explained "Would that be something you would like?" Maggie asked.

Alison wasn't sure what she could say, these people have already given her so much and now they were giving her a place to stay and offering to reunite her with her community, it was too good to be true. "...Yes…I would like that." Alison said softly, her voice barely above a whisper. The thought of being reunited with anyone from her community brought tears to her eyes. Maggie nodded in understanding.

"Alright, I will send out a message today. For now though, we really need you to eat." Maggie said as she pushed the plate forward, noticing that Alison had stopped halfway through their conversation. " You need to gain your strength back and to do that is to eat. Daryl worked really hard on this meal." Maggie explained with a slight smirk as she shot Daryl a look.

Alison glanced up at Daryl and could have sworn she saw the man blush a little, it was subtle but it still caught her attention and she couldn't help but to smile a little as she looked back at her food. She licked her lips as she picked up her fork, she scooped a generous amount of eggs onto her fork and shoved them into her mouth, remembering to chew before going in for another bite.

Maggie smiled before giving Daryl a look that said that she was going to send out the message before showing herself out. It was a long shot that they would get anyone from GreenHill to respond but Maggie was willing to take the chance if it meant reuniting Alison with some of her people.