Alexandria

Chapter 13

Negan rubs at his eyes as the sun begins to rise. He rolls onto his side, his eyes widening as Beta sits just a few feet away with a knife in his hand as he stares in Negan's direction.

"Morning, beautiful," Negan smirks. Beta grunts, but still refuses to look away. Fucking weirdo, Negan frowns. He unzips his sleeping bag, turning to look at the rest of the camp. He'd been made to sleep away from the others, and truth be told he'd been relieved. This was not a place he intended to stay for long.

Negan glances over at the woods as Alpha steps out.

"I do not approve of this," Beta says as he rises to his feet, gesturing towards Negan.

Alpha stares at him with a frown. "Tell me what you don't approve of, Beta."

"You are letting him live. He should be killed for trying to deceive you. He was forbidden to come here. You spoke your word, your word is law. He does not understand our ways, he is defiant. You cannot allow him to live."

"Hey," Negan frowns as he looks up at Beta. "I'm interested in learning your ways. Don't i get any fucking credit for that? How exactly do you guys recruit people when you have so little trust?"

Beta rushes towards Negan. "You mock me?!" Negan jumps to his feet as Alpha grabs Beta's shoulder.

"You question my judgement," Alpha sneers. "Do you also question my leadership, my strength? Is it time, Beta for you to become Alpha? You have stood by my side for so long, helping me lead, trusting my judgement, never have you asserted your dominance over me when we both know you could at any time. Is that time now? Is this a challenge?"

Beta drops to one knee, resting an arm against his thigh as he dips his head. "No. You are my Alpha. I have sworn never to challenge you. I am sorry. Please forgive me."

Alpha places her hand against his head. "You are forgiven. Leave us."

Negan watches with a smirk as Beta walks away. "Well that was fucking awesome," he says with a smile. Negan drops to one knee. "I recognise your strength and i bend to your will. Do you accept me?"

Alpha steps towards him, placing a hand on his head. "I do. You may stand."

"Is it okay that this is giving me a hard on?" Negan smirks.

Alpha stares at him, clearly not amused. "Stand."

"Sorry," he smiles as he gets to his feet. "Sometimes little Negan gets control of the mic for a second or two.. embarrasses the fuck outta me. And if i'm being honest, it's usually a lot more than a fucking second or two."

"You can stay. How long you stay is up to you."

"Do i get my knife back?" Negan asks. "Big dude took it last night."

"You'll get it back when you prove yourself. Learn the rules and follow them," she says.

~

"My hands hurt."

"That's because you need to strengthen them up, same with your arms. It's hard work drawing a bow," Rachel says. "I'll give you some exercises to do."

"How you getting on?" Rick asks as he makes his way over.

"I'd say four out of the ten here have potential."

"I was hoping for more than that," Rick frowns.

"I can't work miracles, and it's not like we have time. Eugene's going to have to shit bullets if we even want to make a dent in that walker herd the Whisperers have," Rachel says.