The closer were Sally and Negan to The Sanctuary, the more at ease Sally felt. Her body was starting to tremble. It spread from the tips of her fingers, ignited her soles and exploded right at her core. Once again it felt like her chest opened up and swallowed the place up. She embraced the whole factory and became vital part of the machinery. The building was boiling.

"Take the blindfold off." Only with The Sanctuary in sight, Sally allowed Negan to end his time-out. He untied the cloth and clasped it in his hand. What reenacted in front of them was not a sight for sore eyes.

"Look at them welcoming us." Negan scoffed as the Saviors were coming out of the Sanctuary with their guns ready to fire. He observed the situation from the best seat in the house - the passenger seat. And he was disgusted.

The Saviors had no way of knowing it was them in the car and through it all they got all the way up to the front gate without any trouble.

Sally drove them the whole way back and she sensed Negan's mood was in decline. He kept mumbling under his breath, but Sally riddled what got on his nerves. As soon as she hit the breaks in front of the gate, she nudged half of her body out of the car window.

"Mom is home!" She shouted at them not even trying to hide the wolf voice in the slightest. She tried to warn them before Negan ate them all up. There was not much time left and they needed the Saviors sharp for the attack, for the war at their hands.

The gate opened and Negan with Sally crossed the walls of their castle.

"It really is you... We thought you both were..." Simon lowered his gun welcoming them.

"Is that why we got all the way over here without any obstacle? Because we are ghosts? Do you even see us?" Negan grouched.

Sally saw there was nothing good coming out of this. They needed to distribute their plan and needed to do it right away. She approached Negan and slipped her hand into his.

The congregation. She nudged him to the door.

"Get everyone now!" Negan said.

The Saviors were on command, they gathered in the main hall in no time. Negan talked to them from the railings above. He had to be quick, they were too vulnerable gathered all in one place like that, but it was necessary to brief them all at once. He laid out their strategy and as everyone was being dismissed a gunshot outside introduced their guests.

Rick!

Negan and Sally shared a quick glance. Sally's finger pointed up to the roof. Her route was destined. Still, Negan grabbed her arm and Lucille pointed at her chin made her meet Negan's eyes in silent agreement. Sally was not to act on her own, nor let her biased attachments make any excuses for Rick's group.

Just before she took off, Negan reached into his back pocket and handed her the blindfold. The promise of their fun times coming. Sally grabbed it on both ends and with one simple knot created a headband. Too bad they had no flowers at hand.

Negan stalled for a few seconds watching Sally as she turned and headed off to the roof until his lieutenants re-grouped around him.

On their way out to greet Rick's group, they picked up Gregory to come along and help with their cause. Negan loved to hear himself talk, the bargain was their first play. Little did he know, Gregory and his word were just leftovers for Hilltop people.

"Well, shit. I'm sorry. I was in a meeting." Negan smiled at Rick's cavalry. It may have been silly from him to come out of the building exposed like that. Lucille would have no power stopping the fully armed group on the other side of the barriers. But Rick was not ruthless, he wanted to talk first and give the innocent people a chance for redemption.

"So they surrender and you and your little piss patrol doesn't kill them. That sounds like a good deal! What about me, Rick? What about Sally?" Negan asked.

"I told you. Twice. You know what's gonna happen. Sally's fate is in her own hands. She can decide whether she stays alone without you or if she comes back to her family." Rick could only hope Sally heard him call her their family. However calculated the meaning of the word was.

"I do. I do know what's gonna happen. But you don't. You have no idea the shit that's about to go down. You can't even imagine what the little birdie told me." Negan motioned upwards to the roof.

Jesus' gaze shot up high. And there she was. She got them all under her eye.

"She's on the roof," Jesus whispered.

"Damn it, he separated her." Maggie hoped at least this could go the easy way, but they were not that lucky. "We have to lure her down."

"I'm on it."

☁︎ Flashback ☁︎

Sally and Negan's departure from Treehouses had been delayed. Nobody liked Negan to be staying longer than necessary, only this time he was just a footnote in the story of Sally and her brother. So the leader of Sanctuary ended up held in the board room while Sally was in her room talking to Jonathan. 

"Sally, I absolutely hate to ask this, but I really need to be sure ... Patrick?" Jonathan saying the name of his son hit Sally with the power of a blast wave. She squeezed her eyes hard shut to hold back her tears and opened them to watch Jonathan when she shook her head no.

Your son didn't make it.

"I was with him, watched over him, taught him to protect himself. I told people he was my brother so they wouldn't let us separate. Still, the walkers got to him."

"Walkers... The undead." Jonathan's head fell down. He'd been going over every possible scenario of how his son could die. The world was far beyond the dangers of the everyday world. He pictured every possible death and yet, the confirmation got to him the same.

The father sat there imagining his son get eaten by those creatures.

"I'm so sorry. I did my..." Sally reached out for Jonathan's hand.

Jonathan grasped it fast. "I know you did, Sally. I know you would put your life for his. It's just... I kept this stupid hope. I couldn't give it up no matter how hard I tried. This hope that you and him are out there... Alive, at least."

"We were staying with this group, we were keeping each other safe. And then that happened. I left the group shortly after, ended up here."

"But you were leaving just now, weren't you?"

"I still am. We still are. We can't stay here anymore."

"You and the guy in the other room?" Jonathan asked tenderly.

Is it possible Sally fell in love?

"Yes, Negan." She nodded.

"Negan?!" Jonathan's jaw tensed.

"You know him?"

"...of him. His men... We managed to get out of their territory but we can never be far enough."

"Who are you with?"

"Mom. Me and mom and bunch of other people."

"Mom? She is okay?" Sally balanced on the edge of her seat.

"She is. But she could use a break from all this hiding from the Saviors."

Sally froze. "Dad?" She whispered.

"Didn't make it."

And that was it, her bloodline. Her mom and her brother.

"I'll take care of it. The Saviors, I mean." There was no doubt in her voice.

"Are you one of them now? You can't mean that, Sally. Those people, they are... heartless." Jonathan spit out the last word as if it was a chunk of burning charcoal.

"That's what keeps you alive in this world." Her explanation was plain and simple. But Jonathan wouldn't budge.

"Alive doesn't mean right. Come with me, Sally. Back to me and mom."

And it would be beautiful, the reunion of the mother with her daughter. She would take her under her wings and wouldn't let the world take her away from her ever again. But the danger was imminent.

Sally tried to collect her thoughts. "I can't just leave. He..."

"He wouldn't let you?" Jonathan felt something was off. Something was not right with Sally.

"I can't just leave him. We have this..."

Please don't say bond. You're nothing like that guy.

"You're not like him, Sally." Jonathan interrupted her blabbing. "You don't use people for your own profit."

The last sentence set Sally's head straight.

"We all use people for our own profit. We use them for resources or just to feel better about ourselves."

Jonathan could hardly recognize her. She was always blunt. But never so cold.

"I don't believe this happened to you. Come with me. You'll see there is still life after this." He used the voice that worked on his son when he was being stubborn.

"Negan won't be making you any trouble once you get back, you can be sure of that." And that was set in stone.

"How do you..." He tried one last time, but Sally was way ahead of him.

"Listen to me carefully," she said. "This is how it goes..."

☁︎

Author's Note:

Hello there, my lovely Negans, 💋

how are we feeling before the big finale? 🎊

Slowly but surely this story is going to wrap up. 😭

Stay tuned for the last updates. 💜

Love,

🌩