I think I liked you better when you didn't have a knife in your hand, Peaches

Well would you look at that...

"You can come in, take your stuff and then go," he replied in a drawling voice, sounding tired and worn-out. "We don't want any trouble here today."

Fuck had Negan actually done it? Had he ground Rick down that much?

But the dark-haired Saviour merely grinned, taking a long-legged step forwards, eyeing the leader of Alexandria as he did so.

Several people stood around now, just inside the walls of the community. Some of which Negan recognised, some he didn't, but all glaring at him with those same old insolent stares they usually carried.

Jeez, now he knew why Blake hadn't wanted to come back here...

With that, Negan's dark eyes lingered mometarily on the brown haired woman who had once fired a bullet into Lucille, staring daggers at him right now.

Not that he gave two shits about that of course.

"Now why would there be any fuckin' trouble, Rick?" Negan said in a loud innocent tone, smirking at the man, and placing his free hand to his heart dramatically. "We're good people. An' hell, we're not the ones pullin' guns on people when their backs are turned."

Negan's eyes suddenly flitted back over to the woman, his face a picture of gleeful wickedness, as she turned on her heel and stormed away, shoving past people as she went.

But this only served to add to Negan's happiness today, as he swung back around to face Rick, who was just an inch or two shorter than him, but stood there, head bowed a little, with hands on his hips, looking slightly stressed.

"Look, your stuff's over there, everything we could get, all ready for you to load up," he said unhappily pointing at a large pile or crates and boxes sat in the centre of the paved street. "Like I said. We don't want any trouble."

Negan's eyes lingered on the bounty of what looked like boxes of fresh tinned gods, vegetables, a couple of large battery packs, and a small box of weapons of various sizes.

Negan leaned back on his heels, marvelling at the pile, before turning back to Rick and clapping him hard on the back.

"Now that's what I like to see, Rick!" said Negan leaning into the brown-haired man and wrinkling his nose. "You and these fine people here finally realising your place in this great new world of mine."

But Rick stayed silent, keeping his eyes trained on the ground, his shoulders slumped dejectedly.

"Although," continued Negan, the grin on his face soon slipping just a little, as he closed the gap between himself and the Alexandrian leader a little intimidatingly. "I was doubting your fucking loyalty the last time we met. I mean, jeez, the way Peaches came screamin' outta' this place in that car. Almost getting' herself fuckin' killed...."

At once Negan came to stand before Rick, his eyes dark now, his long bearded face full of seriousness, as Rick gazed back at him questioningly.

"....and shit, even today she still won't tell me what happened that night....what you fuckin' said to make her so upset that she would fuckin' tear off like that," Negan carried on. "So don't think you and your people are off the fuckin' hook here, Rick. My Lucille is still real fuckin' thirsty and she doesn't like it when I'm pissed off."

Negan watched as a gulp trailed its way down the Alexandrian's throat. But to his surprise Rick, with his eyes narrowed, gazed up at the dark-haired Saviour defiantly.

"She's with you? You found her?" he asked in a scratchy voice. "Blake?"

Just at the mention of her name from Rick's mouth, Negan felt his lip curl and his jaw tense protectively.