Too Good to be Bad 2 | Negan |

7 - What's all this noise?

TW: Sexual assault and violence

The Whisperers don't bother me much. They move around me and go about their business, sometimes throwing a darting look in my direction, but otherwise ignoring me. I just sit against that tree and keep my eyes on the ground, avoiding eye contact. I'm totally fine with them ignoring me.

Everything hurts. My head still pounds from my fall in the cave and my cheek stings where Negan cut me. I tell myself he didn't have a choice. But I don't understand why he's here. Did he join them? Are they the ones that let him out? Maybe some spy like Dante?

But he didn't want to hurt me. I could tell that much. Trust me, he said. Right before he cut my face open. Does he have a plan here? I certainly don't. It's been hours and all my mind does for me is give me images of my head on a stake.

Then suddenly, a pair of legs appears in my field of vision. I look up anxiously and see a woman standing in front of me. Another woman lingers a little bit behind her.

'You are a doctor?' the woman asks in that whispering tone they all use.

'Yes?' I answer suspiciously.

The woman motions to the other woman to come forward. She does so a little reluctantly.

'Show her', the first woman tells the second one.

The second woman moves closer and rolls up her pants. On her leg is a large, nasty wound. It's flaming red, the area around it is swollen and it's oozing pus. Did they come to me for medical advise?

'Um, looks like it's infected', I say, a little unsure of what they want from me.

'Is it dangerous?' the first woman asks.

'Well, it can be if it isn't treated', I answer. I thought these people were so keen to join the horde as guardians? These women seem pretty concerned about their health after all. But well, maybe if I help them, they'll be willing to help me.

'How do you feel?' I ask the woman with the wound. 'Do you have a fever?'

She just shrugs in response. Clearly uncomfortable with the situation.

'Could you take your mask off?' I ask her.

She doesn't respond, but the first woman nudges her.

'Take your mask off', she whispers.

A little hesitantly, the woman pulls off her skin mask. I startle a bit when I see how young she looks. I couldn't see it properly when she had her mask on, but she can't be much older than 14. She's sweating and I notice she's shaking a little bit. Even as just a doctor's assistant I can tell this wound needs to be treated.

'The infection needs to be treated', I tell her. 'Do you have any antibiotics here?'

The girl looks at the other woman and waits for her to answer. Her mother maybe?

'No', the woman tells me.

'It's important that the wound gets treated', I tell them. 'If you don't, the infection will spread. If it does, you could lose your leg. And in the worst case, it could be fatal.'

The girl's eyes grow wide and she looks helplessly back at the other woman. The woman stares at her, then turns her eyes to me. I can't see her expression.

'We don't have medicine', she tells me again.

'Well, without antibiotics, the best you can do is clean the wound as well as possible. Then wrap it up with clean, dry bandages. Change the bandages regularly and clean the wound again when you do. You need to give the wound the chance to heal and keep bacteria away.'