meanstreak
rick grimes 𝘹 fem!𝘰𝘤
© WANDARYEN ──── 2024

I had my back pressed against one of the cages while Michonne stood beside me. The small group of people had left and Rick walked off with his gun still grasped in his hand.

Nobody made a move to go capture him and find out what the hell was going on. If anything, I thought it was best if we let him walk it off, alone.

"Now you said you found Tyreese's group here?" Glenn pointed to a specific spot on the map that was drawn on the floor.

Carl nodded, knelling down in front of it. "Yeah. He thought he came through here." Carl then pointed out.

Glenn reached up, rubbing his chin as he eyed the map. "Means there's another breach." A sigh escaped his lips. "Okay. The whole front of the prison is unsecure. If walkers just strolled in, then it's gonna be cake for a group of armed men."

"Why are we even so sure he's going to attack?" I looked over at my youngest sister. "Maybe you scared him off."

Michonne shook her head, her arms crossed firmly over her chest as she looked towards my sister. "He had fish tanks full of heads. Walkers and humans. Trophies. He's coming."

Glenn looked over at Michonne and nodded. "We should hit him now. He won't be expecting it. We'll sneak back in and put a bullet in his head."

"We're not assassins." Carol brought up, but Glenn ignored her comment, standing up and walking over to Michonne and I. "You know where his apartment is. You and I could end this tonight. I'll do it myself." I looked over at Michonne as she stared at Glenn with deep thought before giving him a single nod.

He nodded back, taking their sign of agreement and walking back over towards the map.

"He didn't know you were coming last time and look what happened. You were almost killed. Daryl, Sienna were captured. And you and Maggie were almost executed." My father finally spoke up, causing Glenn to turn and look at him. "You can't stop me."

I pushed myself off of the gate, arms crossed firmly over my chest, and turned towards Glenn. "We're not going anywhere — not right now at least."

He turned to me quickly. "What? You're against this? What about what they did to Maggie? To you? I would've thought — "

I held my hand up, "first of all, Rick is not all together right now and we need him. Second of all, we're not making any hasty decisions that would get us all killed. So, yes, I'm against it Glenn."

"Think this through clearly." My father nodded. "T-Dog lost his life here. Lori, too. The men that were here. It isn't worth any more killing. What are we waiting for? If he's really on his way, we should be out of here by now."

Glenns eyebrows furrowed, "and go where?"

"We lived on the road all winter."

"Back when you had two legs and we didn't have a baby crying for walkers every four hours." Glenn shook his head, "we can't run."

I watched as Maggie moved away from the nearby wall and walked into the cell block — away from the huddled commotion. Glenn watched her leave as well, a small sigh leaving his lips. "Alright, we'll stay put. We're gonna defend this place. We're making a stand. Carl, you and I will go down to the tombs. We need to figure out where the breach is."

Michonne moved away from the gate, walking over to Glenn. "You'll need some help."

Glenn raised his hand to pause her movements, "no, in case anything happens, I need you out here." The room got silent, his eyes scanning between each of us until his eyebrows knitted together. "Who's on watch?"

When no one answered, he sighed deeply and walked off.

"How are you holding up dad?" I took a seat beside him at one of the cafeteria tables with my hand hovering over his back. "Can I get you anything?"

I watched carefully as he shook his head. "Just stay put and coherent — that's all I ask."

"Okay," I smiled.

When Glenn and Carl returned, Glenn dropped his weapons on the table, placing his hands on his waist and sighed. "The tombs outside the boiler room are overrun again."

"That whole section had been cleared." Beth spoke, shutting the door behind the boys as they stormed in, locking it with a set of keys.

"We're wasting time. The Governor is supposedly on the way and we're stuck in here with walkers." My father sighed from beside me.

Carol shook her head as she wrapped her arms around herself from the side. "Trapped between a rock and a hard place."

"For the last time — running is not an option." Glenn spoke in frustration.

"Glenn, if the tombs have filled up again, it may just be a matter of time before they push in here. Or until some fence gives way." Carol looked over to him.

"What if one of them herds is passing through? Or settled?" Axel spoke up as he walked towards the group, now entering the room as he had been listening to the conversation. "Can't handle that with just the few of us." Carol sighed.

Glenn's gaze faltered towards the ground before nodding, "okay. All right, we need — we just need to scout the far side of the prison. Find out what's going on."

"You're going out there?" Hershel questioned.

"Take a car and make it quick."

Axel stepped up, "i'll drive." But Glenn shook his head, "no you stay here. Help with the fortifications." Axel nodded and took a step back. "I'll take Maggie." Glenn spoke with a sigh.

Hershel adjusted himself onto the crutches, standing up from the table, "you sure she's up to that?"

I rubbed the bone under my brow with my finger before standing up beside my father. "I need everyone to breathe for two seconds. All this arguing isn't going to help. Rather yet, it's driving me insane." I turned towards Glenn. "I love you, I appreciate what you're trying to do but you're being a bit of a jackass right now." His eyes shifted towards the floor as I pointed near the cells. "Maggie needs you. We may have walkers on our ass, an army or men wanting our heads, but you need to talk to her. Pay attention to her."

My eyebrows furrowed with frustration but relaxed immediately when I turned towards my father. "I love you — and I know you mean well but we can't run. We fought so hard to get where we are right here. This is our home. It may not be perfect, but these walls are the strongest ones we got." I slowly looked around the room to the others. Carol was watching me curiously and Michonne was just barely nodding her head, but I could see it in her eyes that she agreed. "If we run, we put ourselves at a weaker state. Dad, you have one leg. We have a new born baby. Rick about lost his mind and no offense, I'm sick and tired of running — yall can't make me."

"We stay, defend our home, and when they arrive; we kick their ass. No more letting people walk over us. No more losing people. Got it?" I looked around the room to search for anyone disagreeing, but when the room remained silent, I walked past the them and into the cells; in search for my very own bed.

When I entered my cell, I dropped down on the bottom bunk with a hard sigh, my head dipping backwards as I closed my eyes.

"Sienna?"

My lips pursed, irritation beginning to overwhelm me as I opened my eyes, turning to the curtain in front of my cell to see Beth holding Judith. I immediately sat up straighter and placed my hands on my knees.

"Can you help me feed her? Real quick?"

My mouth opened then quickly shut as Beth stepped into the cell without a reply, her arms gently cradling the child. "I— I don't think that's a — I stumbled over my words quickly as Beth held out her arms for me to take Judith. It would be the first time I got to hold her since Lori passed. When my sister wasn't taking no for an answer, I smiled nervously then slowly took Judith into my arms.

"Hold her head like this," she adjusted my arm for the baby to have balance.

Beth sat down beside me and pulled out her bottle, shaking it up nicely before handing it off towards me. "This is your first time holding her," she pointed out as I started to feed Judith her milk.

I laughed nervously, not taking my eyes off Judith in fear she would slip or choke. I felt as stiff as a board holding her.

"Why haven't you?" Beth placed her hands on her thighs and I slightly shrugged my shoulders. "I—I don't know. It didn't feel right."

"Is it because you have feelings for Rick?"

I blinked several times. "Because I—" when I looked up at her, a smile was tugging at her lips with one eyebrow raised. "I'm the youngest—, not stupid." She started to sooth down the small hairs on Judiths head and I tilted mine to the side in shock. "You really—, what do you— first of all."

Beth laughed softly, her eyes rolling playfully before she looked at me again. "Come on, everyone else may be old and blind, but I'm not." I pulled the milk away from Judith once she finished and Beth carefully fished her out of my arms, patting her back gently.

"I think—," her eyes wandered down to the floor as she shrugged. "I think you guys would make a nice couple." With that, she stood up and I sat there completely baffled.

How was my baby sister so observant and knowledgeable about love?

I froze in my spot over my own thoughts. Love? What even was love anymore?

I quickly jumped to my feet and rushed to follow Beth, finding her as she placed Judith into her own little basket. "Let's get some fresh air," I let out a breathy laugh, putting my arm around her shoulders and guiding her outside.

Carl was wandering around, kicking rocks across the basket ball court. I dropped my arm from around Beth and took a stance beside Carl. "You know, I used to play volleyball back in high school."

Carl looked up at me from under his hat, his eyes squinting against the sun. "Really? Was it fun?"

I tucked my hands into my back pocket and nodded my head. "I went in for a championship. It was the only time I put effort into sports."

Beth laughed beside me and looked up to the old basketball nets. "Maybe on our next run, we'll try to find some usable gear. We can really turn this place into a home." When I looked back down at Carl, he was nodding his head with a big smile.

Just as I placed my hand on his shoulder, looking up towards the sky with the bright sun shining across our faces, I almost felt comfortable enough to be thankful that we had a secure home.

But as the thought just about entered my mind, a gun shot ringed through my ear and zipped through the field before us.

I flinched from the sudden scare, looking over where Carol started to scream and Axel's body laid down on the pavement. I gasped, my heart rate picking up as the gun shots started to follow continuously.

I pulled out my gun, grabbing both Beth and Carl — shoving towards the bleachers. "Get down! Get down!" I shouted out, diving behind a few planks of wood in front of two barrels and shooting off my pistol towards the commotion out in the yard.

The governor was right at the gate with my father and Rick down on the grass. Panic rose in my body as I tried to peek where I could see them, but another bullet flew by my head and I quickly ducked down with a gasp.

"Dad!" I screamed — my own voice scratching at my throat as I continued to shoot.
     
"Beth! Sienna!" Maggie came running out of the cell block with a handful of rifles.

I turned to my sister as she ran up to me, tossing one to my sister then the other to me. I quickly put my pistol away then loaded the rifle before setting it on top of the wood, looking through the sight and aiming towards the men in the field.

One managed to get into the guard tower by the front gate, but Maggie quickly took him out as I took down several others. Sweat was building across my forehead from the sun beating down on us.

When the area grew silent, I waited for a signal that it was clear until a large truck drove through the gate and into the field. My eyes narrowed at the truck as the back door was kicked open and a handful or walkers started pouring out.

"Oh my god, oh my god." I whispered to myself, standing to my feet and taking a stance towards the gate.

I noticed the governor and his few men that were left, hop into another truck and quickly sped away from the scene. I used the remaining of my bullets to take down the few walkers that lingered around just as Rick helped my father to his feet.

Not long to Glenn come to the rescue with one of our trucks, collecting them both then driving back up towards the prison.

I put the rifle behind my back and helped get the gate open for the truck to drive through. When Glenn parked the truck, Maggie and I helped get our father out of the passenger seat with concern.

"Dad! Are you okay?" I placed my hands over his face while checking for wounds as Beth came running up.

"Dad!" Her arms went around his waist as he gently took my hands in his. "I'm alright. We're okay." I took a deep breath as I pulled my hands away from his, letting Maggie embrace him in a tight hug as well.

I turned towards Rick abruptly, my eyebrows raised with frustration, "are you with us?"