ᴛʀᴏᴜʙʟᴇ ɪɪ ᴍᴀɢɢɪᴇ ɢʀᴇᴇɴᴇ

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ꜰᴏᴜʀᴛᴇᴇɴ

''Hey! 'What's going on?' When Harley spotted Glenn and Rick rushing out the door of the Greene's house, she immediately questioned. Glenn jogged over to Harley, who was sitting on the roof of the RV, and ran his hand through his hair. It was starting to get longer since he hadn't trimmed it since the world had went to hell, and Harley had been begging with him to let her cut it. "Beth passed out." Harley's eyes widened significantly as he blurted out.

She bobbed her head slowly up and down, gazing at the ground. Regardless of her current mood, she cared about the younger Greene, even if she didn't show it. ''Oh'' Glenn arched an eyebrow at her statement, expecting a bigger reaction. "Does Hershel know why?"

"That's the issue. Hershel is not present."

Harley raised her head and cocked her head, confused. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Glenn sighed and rolled his eyes. Harley, however, was not satisfied. 

"Are you sure, sure?"

"Yes!" Glenn snapped, his gaze fixed on her. Harley lifted her hands in faux surrender and bit back a threatening smile. Even in the dullest of moments, it brought her happiness to aggravate Glenn. "I was just wondering. There's no need to get you're pants in a twist."

Glenn groaned and instinctively rolled his eyes. "Maggie thinks he went to the bar in town. She found his old flask in his room."

Harley's lips twisted into an amused smile, and she chuckled. Glenn scowled at her, attempting to conceal his excitement at seeing her smile for the first time in a few days. "Ah, so papa Greene does have some naughty little secrets.''

If the situation hadn't been so serious, Glenn would have chuckled at the joke, "Not the time. Do you want to come with us?" He asked Harley as his gaze went over to where others of the group were getting ready to go. ''We could use an extra pair of hands."

Her head perked up slightly since she had always enjoyed the opportunity to walk around. She despised being cooped up in one spot like an animal. She was grateful Daryl felt the same way since they would always offer to go hunting together. What better way to bond with your friends than to shoot arrows at squirrels? She opened her lips to answer but stopped when she spotted Maggie watching them from the porch. A smile grew on her face subconsciously, but it vanished when the woman turned and walked back into the home. She dropped her head, feeling a sudden rush of guilt. ''I think I'll stay here and man the fort. Someone has to keep Officer Meathead from killing everyone.''

"Alright, we won't be gone long." Glenn gave a nod. "Stay out of trouble," he said, pointing a finger at Harley and giving her a serious look.

"We both know that's not possible," Harley smirked, shaking her head.

"Yeah, I know," Glenn murmured.

Harley remained still as Glenn walked away and drove into town with the others. Even if Rick could handle himself, she trusted him to keep him safe. After all, he was her brother, and she was always concerned about his safety. She was now left with a raging bald officer who despised her, a toddler sheriff, Pocahontas, and the real housewives. Oh, and she can't forget how she snapped at the one woman she likes. Her day couldn't have been better. Carl came sprinting out of the house, calling for her, before she could ponder any more.

''Harley!" Carl yelled, pushing his hat around on his head to shield his eyes from the sunlight. Harley groaned at the disturbance of her peaceful stillness, or, more accurately, her peaceful whining. "What do you want now, Grimes?" she snarled back.

''My mom needs you''

Harley scoffed. This is why she disliked people. They were continuously looking for something. Maybe she should follow in Daryl's footsteps and become a brooding caveman. ''Tell you're mom she can shove her needs up her a-- Actually don't say that, she might take it literal. Just tell her I'm unavailable and to come back never.'' While Carl raced back inside to inform his mother, Harley ignored him and reclined back in the chair on top of the RV, relaxing. She cleaned herself up after putting the corpses to rest and had a little nap. It wasn't long, and she still felt awful, but it would have to suffice. Her mind wandered whenever she closed her eyes. Her imagination would haunt her, taunting her and robbing her of sleep. She would usually crawl in next to Glenn in his bed, but she didn't want to wake him up or concern him.

Carl slipped through the doors again, this time with a shit-eating grin on his face. Whatever he had to say must be good for such a strong reaction. "Hey, Harley?" Carl simply grinned more when Harley whipped her head towards his and glared dangerously at him. ''What now? Can't you see I'm enjoying my peace of being alone from all of you''

''Maggie needs you. She says It's important''

That explains the shit-eating grin.

The scowl vanished instantaneously from her face, and as her heart tugged at her, the guilt returned. She hadn't said anything to her since their encounter, and Harley knew she should apologize but her ego couldn't handle it. What made matters worse was that she had no idea how the women felt. Harley didn't want to be on the receiving end of her anger today.

Harley jumped from the top of the RV, throwing her bow on her back, and trudged to the house with a frown on her face, exactly as Carl expected. He smirked to himself, then yelped when a hand slapped the back of his head.

''Zip it offspring''

She shut the front door and followed the sounds of voices in the kitchen. She came to a halt at the threshold, not wanting to disrupt their conversation. Patricia and Maggie were both in the kitchen preparing dinner. Cooking Daryl's latest catch and chopping some fresh fruit from the garden. It was a refreshing change from canned food and anything they might scavenge in houses. It was starting to feel normal again. Cooked meals, comfortable beds, and security. They felt safe, but Harley refused to succumb to the warmth. Her guard was constantly on duty. Lori sat at the dining table, studying over a map, as the two prepared dinner.

Lori looked up to see Harley standing there waiting. ''Hey,'' Maggie and Patricia both paused their cooking to follow Lori's gaze to Harley. Patricia greeted her with a bright smile as Maggie returned to chopping the vegetables. Harley maintained a stoic expression, not allowing the small gesture to trigger a reaction.

"You need me?" Harley cleared her throat, keeping her attention on Lori.

''Yeah. I - I know It's a lot to ask but were running low on meds and with Beth in shock-''

''Do you know a place that's stocked?'' Harley gently halted her rambling. Lori smiled gratefully and motioned to the map on the table. Harley moved closer, resting against it as Lori pointed. "The pharmacy was the nearest, but it's been looted so you're next best hope would be the hospital a couple of miles south."

"Look for IVs, bandages, and Advil. The whole lot." Patricia spoke up as she peeled some fresh potatoes. "And blankets, we're going to need them in winter. With the size of the group, there won't be enough to go around."

'If we stay,' Harley thought.

Harley dismissed the negative thoughts with a nod of her head. "All right, I'll go and see what I can find. "I'll be back before it gets dark." Her boots nudged soundlessly below as she walked out of the house and down the stairs.

"Wait," Harley turned around to see Maggie coming out behind her. Harley tilted her head to the side in question. Maggie sighed, bringing out a couple of food cans and a canteen of water. "Take this with you. You need it; I haven't seen you eat so I know you're hungry. — I'm not accepting no for an answer," Maggie said as Harley opened her mouth to argue. Harley hesitantly took the items in her palm, being careful not to touch her skin.

"Thank you," she said gently as she lifted her head to glance at her. She was expecting to see rage or disappointment in her eyes, but there was none. Maggie instead sent her a soft smile, which made Harley's stomach flip once again. Her gaze flickered to her lips for a few seconds before returning to Maggie's warm green eyes. Maggie took a step closer, raising a hand to her face, but Harley stepped back before it could touch her cheek. "I should get going," she said hurriedly, avoiding eye contact. She dashed off, forcing herself to keep going rather than turning around and succumbing to Maggie's comfort.

A/N
I hope everyone had a good new year!