For my sister | Negan |

40 - Queen of the Sanctuary

I can hear Ella scoff beside me. When I look over at her she meets my eye and shakes her head indignantly. I put my finger on my lips to tell her to be quiet. We don't need to draw any attention to ourselves right now.

'That's over', Negan continues. 'We're done playing nice. Let them enjoy their little rebellion for now. Soon, they will be back to working for us, and they'll be working twice as hard, to provide for you! The good people of the Sanctuary!'

Cheers go up around us, but a pit forms in my stomach. With everything going on, I haven't even thought to ask what he's planning to do with Alexandria now that everything went sideways. But whatever it is, it can't be good.

'But I'm not here to talk about that shit', Negan says, standing still to lean on the banister. 'I'm here to tell you that you have nothing to worry about. I know some of you are scared for what's going to happen, but you can trust that me and my Saviours are here to keep you safe.'

Murmers of relief and gratitude float through the hall. He really has them all enthralled. I guess I'm not really one to judge that anymore...

'And what great resilience have you shown.' Negan smiles as he lets his eyes glide over the crowd. 'You haven't let yourself get down, you've all manned up and done your jobs to keep this place running. So I want to say thank you. From the bottom of my fucking heart.'

Being prone to dramatics as he is, he puts a hand over his heart and lets his words sink in with everybody. It works. People shout their gratitude, or they shout out his name. The effect this man has on people is crazy. The effect he has on me is crazy...

'But there is one person that I want to thank in particular', he says, cutting off more shouts of appreciation. 'One woman here had shown her dedication in a way that I truly had not anticipated. She has worked day and night to patch up our Saviours that got hurt defending our home.'

It takes a beat too long to register what he's saying. I'd been looking over the crowd to take in their reactions, but I turn my eyes back to him now and find him looking straight at me. He couldn't possible mean-

'Christina', he calls out, pointing at me.

My eyes go wide and my face turns bridgt red when everyone who's kneeling close to me, turns to look at me. What the hell is he doing?

'Doctor', he continues. 'Get up so everyone can see you.'

What? No, thank you! But of course, arguing would only make all of this more awkward. Reluctantly, I push myself up from the ground and find myself looking over a crowd of kneeling people. It feels very fucking weird. I glance over at Ella who stare at me open-mouthed. Her face describes how I feel right now, but I try to look a little more subtle about it.

'Doctor Christina Stavros, everybody', Negan calls out. 'She hasn't been here very long, but man... In the short time she's been here, she's done more for us than some of you sorry shits have done in years.'

Chuckles run through the crowd, but I just stand there with my arms tightly crossed, feeling insanely uncomfortable. I don't know what possessed him to think I might appreciate this.

'She's been saving lives. And Christina, I thank you for it.'

I look back up again and he holds my gaze for a moment. Even across the backs of the many people between us, I can feel the intensity of his gaze. But then he smiles.

'We all thank you for it', he says, raising his arms into the sky. 'Everybody stand up and give it up for our queen of the Sanctuary!'

At his command, the entire crowd gets on their feet and turns to me, clapping and whistling. Some people seem impressed, others seem a little jealous. Negan winks at me from the platform and takes in the applause for a little while. Then he turns around and walks away from view.