Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Red wine sloshes in its glass confines as Yumiko lowers it from her lips with a sigh. Two chimes of the clock on her living room wall signal the early hour but she pays it no mind. She knows she should’ve long retired to bed, yet makes no move from the couch, her mind too distant, filled with a swirling hurricane of stress and worry.

The entry into Tuesday marks the fourth day since her meeting with Pamela and Lance, and the lawyer is still struggling to wrap her mind around all that'd happened. It’d been hard enough to take in the information being given to her, but then for the Commonwealth's leaders to ask of her what they had- her stomach lurches violently at the memory of it.

Yumiko thought she’d experienced the worst of the horrors of this world, even those dredged up from the deepest realms of hell itself. After everything with Alpha and the Whisperers and hearing tales of both the Governor’s and Negan’s reigns of terror, after all she and her family had been through before Judith found them that day, after coming to know of the demons residing within Magna’s past, after her job landed her face to face with those who'd carried out the most vile and heinous of acts, the lawyer had been certain she’d seen and heard it all. 

Apparently not.

Apparently she had yet to know of all the atrocities to be found roaming the earth. 

Apparently the bounds of hell knows no limitation. 

What she is certain of, after finding out about the happenings of the previous week, is that she wishes never to know what more is possible, what other dark and twisted terrors can be fathomed, let alone brought into existence. 

For what she’d been told in that meeting, what they’d asked her to do, well, Yumiko’s entirely certain it’s something only capable of being created within the lowest levels of Hades pit, for only from the darkest depths of abhorrence could something so sinister, so purely evil be brought into being. 

Draining the last of the wine from her glass she exhales heavily, wishing earnestly for the burden weighing on her shoulders to ease even the slightest bit, but resigns herself to knowing it futile. 

The situation she now finds herself in is not one that’s going to go away easily. 

She reaches towards the wine bottle on the coffee table and pours the last of its contents to refill her glass anew. It’s been a long time since something has shaken her this badly. Not even when Magna had so harshly revealed the truth kept concealed for thirteen years had she felt like this. It’s as if the very core of her soul is being wracked with tremors in attempt to rid itself of the affliction cast upon it; her skin crawling and stomach churning, her body trying to do all it can to reject the information placed in her mind. 

She gulps a third of the glass’s contents in a single mouthful before depositing the, now empty, bottle back onto the table and slumping back against the couch, glass still in hand. At least, she supposes, in the Commonwealth she has a decent supply of alcohol to try and numb herself. 

Then again, if it weren’t for the horrors of this place, she wouldn’t currently be needing it.

Of all the things she’s had to do in her life, of all the things that’ve been asked of her, this is by far the worst. 

Her mind reels as her memory revolts against itself, as if attempting to free her from what happened yet succeeding only in replaying it on a constant loop. 

— 

Yumiko exhales shakily before soothing down the front of her blazer for a final time, tightening her hold on her briefcase, and knocking on Pamela’s door. A glance at her watch tells her it’s 3pm on the dot, yet her punctuality does little to ease her nerves. 

In spite of the promises she’d made to Magna two days ago, ones of the meeting being fine and there needing not be any concerns for her safety, the lawyer can’t help the worry gnawing within her that perhaps she’s made a promise she can’t keep.

She’s about to enter the unknown, and has no clue if she’ll be walking back out of it again. 

Before she can spiral any further, Pamela’s office door opens and Max is greeting her with a gentle but tense smile, “Yumiko hi, right on time, follow me.” 

Closing the door behind her, Max begins to head down the hallway and the lawyer frowns, confused that the meeting isn’t being held in Pamela’s office, but follows her nonetheless. 

They walk wordlessly down winding corridors until they reach the doors to the main meeting room, causing the gnawing feeling in Yumiko’s gut to intensify. She’s been here only a handful of times since being appointed the head of Pamela’s legal team and even then, they were only for official and highly important meetings, something she hadn’t been informed that today was.

Max sends her a smile, reassuring and gentle, and altogether as if she’s aware of the apprehension tugging at the lawyer’s chest, before opening the door and motioning for the lawyer to enter.

Yumiko sends her a quiet thanks and steps into the room to find Pamela, Lance, and a man sitting around the large polished oak table. 

She has no clue who the man sat across from Pamela is, and in truth she’s not entirely sure she’s ever even seen him before. Although judging by her recognition of his clothing being identical to Rosita and Daryl’s black under armour, she’s pretty certain he’s a soldier or guard in some capacity.

Lance stands to greet her, and Yumiko can’t deny that every time she’s in his vicinity it makes her skin crawl. Of course she’s starkly aware of his misdeeds and constant being up to no good, but it’s as if there’s something more, something sinister lurking within him. As if of all the horrors she’s come to know regarding his person and actions, they’re nothing in comparison to what he’s truly capable of. 

A jolt of worry shoots through her at the realisation that it may only be a matter of moments before she finds out the full extent. 

“Ah Ms Okumura you’re here. Thank you Max, that’ll be all.”

Max moves to leave and Miko frowns, unable to conceal her surprise, “you’re not staying?” 

As Pamela’s personal assistant, Max has never not been present at any meeting before, and the realisation sends her mind reeling and hackles rising. 

“Oh, uhh, no. It’s been requested that this meeting be a private one.” Max’s response is simple enough, but her eyes tell a different story and Yumiko knows there’s more she wishes she could say. Even without her skills and intuitions as a lawyer, she senses the demeanour of the woman before her is off, and considering she knows it wouldn’t be without reason the knowledge only causes her worry to increase tenfold.

Max smiles at, presumably Pamela, over Yumiko's shoulder and then meets her gaze once more, eyeing her with a look she can’t quite fully decipher yet knows is one of caution - for what reason though, the lawyer has yet to discover. 

Although, as Max leaves, closing the door behind her softly, she’s pretty sure it won’t be long before she finds out.

Exhaling gently, Yumiko sends a silent prayer to the universe that she’s not about to find herself in deep water without a lifeline.  Steeling herself, she claws together what she hopes is at least a semblance of a collected resolve before turning to face Pamela, Lance, and the man she has no recognition of. 

There’s something not quite right about the way he’s sitting, eyeing her wearily yet coldly, and clearly trying to hide his agitated fidgeting. His leg is bouncing in the same way Magna’s does when she’s overcome with adrenaline or nervousness - and judging by the way he’s gnawing at the inside of his cheek, his jitters are the result of the latter. 

Alarm bells immediately begin ringing in Yumiko’s mind. Her instincts are too finely tuned to be unaware that something is deeply wrong and not only is he involved, but worse, so somehow, is she.  How exactly, Yumiko has no clue, but as she tears her eyes from the man to shift her attention between Pamela and Lance, she knows nothing good is about to happen.

Her mind reels, running through everything she’s done and played a part in over the last few months in attempt to find anything to warrant any kind of reprimand or potential impeachment, but she struggles to find anything of note. 

There’s nothing she has to hide, nothing she’s done wrong in their eyes. 

Well, ignoring the fact her family are currently stockpiling all and any information about the wrongdoings and misdeeds of those in power here, and that she is - albeit highly secretly - one of the main providers of said information. 

And there’s the whole Eugene situation. 

But with regard to what Pamela and Lance see of her, Yumiko deliberately ensures her facade of being their dutiful and acquiescent lawyer is perfectly maintained. She doesn’t even look at the unspoken line drawn by the Commonwealth's authorities, let alone approach it. She does everything they ask of her and always by the book as to ward off bringing any attention to herself at risk of them finding out about-

Oh shit-

Magna.

Fear washes over her as her heart falters and plummets to the very depths of the pit that’s been gnawed into her stomach since this morning. Her throat closes, trapping her breath as her chest scrambles to keep hold of the air rushing from it and it’s as if all at once the oxygen has left her lungs yet there is no more left in the room to refill them. 

No, this can’t be about their relationship. Can it? 

The two of them have been so safe, so careful. They’ve barely even made eye contact without being certain there’s no risk by doing so. And unless one of the six others have let something slip around prying ears there’s no way anyone knows of her and Magna’s weekly arrangements. 

No one else should know; no one else can know. 

And yet, as loud as the cachophany of alarm bells in her head rings, as bitter cold as the icy terror stabs through her, Yumiko battles to keep her demeanour calm. She’s frighteningly aware of the eyes upon her and for her resolve to shatter, for her fear to be visible through even the smallest of cracks could be the end of everything. 

“What- what’s going on?” Her voice catches but she attempts to play it off as confusion as opposed to the fear currently coursing through her.  

Pamela smiles at her, warm and welcoming, and if the governess senses the true emotions within her she makes no comment on it. “My apologies for the secrecy Yumiko but there’s no need to worry, we simply thought it better to have some privacy for today’s meeting as it’s of a somewhat sensitive nature. Please, take a seat.”

However, the lawyer doesn’t move. Her feet remain rooted to the floor as her knees work valiantly to stabilise her amidst the tremors they’re trying to hide. Whilst Pamela’s giving off no signal of her being in danger, she needs more of a reassurance that her fears haven’t become reality, “I don’t- sorry, what’s this regarding exactly?”

Pamela’s eyes flicker to the man sitting opposite her before meeting Yumiko’s once more, “we have a bit of a, well to put it bluntly, a situation. One that needs handling with the utmost delicacy.”

Some of the tension eases from her shoulders, and oxygen fills her lungs with more ease than it had only moments ago. The gnawing in her gut however, continues, clawing at her insides almost in attempt to remove itself from the situation she finds herself in, just as she herself wishes to turn and flee the room. 

Because something is still off. 

The air remains filled with an anxious energy and as much as Yumiko’s allowing herself to believe she and Magna are in the clear, she can’t be sure. Not until she’s told explicitly what’s happening. 

Shifting her weight uneasily, she tightens her grip around the handle of her briefcase and swallows thickly, resigning herself to the acceptance that whatever’s about to happen, there’s no getting out of it. 

In spite of the many unoccupied chairs around the table, Lance steps away from his seat to lean against one of the wall cabinets just behind it and gestures to it in offering for her to sit in it. And as much as his doing so appears to be a kindness, it’s obvious that under the thin veil of politeness lies a silent reminder of the control he holds - even down to dictating where she sits around a table. 

Not wanting to make a fuss, Miko sends him a small smile and sits, dutifully doing as she’s told. 

Exactly as they expect of her. 

She places her briefcase on the floor beside her chair and eyes the unknown man. His features are cold and unforgiving; short hair perfectly groomed and of the same dark brown colour as his eyes. He’s muscular and it’s obvious he’s spent many hours throughout his life working to be so, and although currently sitting, it’s clear he’s tall. 

Intimidating.

She gets the impression he might’ve been in the army before the world went to hell. Or, considering the righteous set to his shoulders, perhaps he wasn’t officially and instead was one of those people who merely acted as if they thought they were in some sort of imagined neighbourhood militia. 

Then again, in spite of his hardened form, he looks uncomfortable and agitated, and rather akin to a child sitting in the headmasters office waiting to be reprimanded but convinced it isn’t deserved. 

Yet in spite of all signs pointing towards him being the one in trouble and not her, Yumiko still isn’t wholly certain she and her relationship are in the clear. 

Besides, if this is the person who’s going to bring her fears to light and ruin the one truly good thing she has left in this fucked up world, Yumiko’s going to look him directly in the eyes as he does so.

A beat passes and Pamela clears her throat, dragging Yumiko’s attention away from the man to meet hers instead. 

Clasping her hands on the table before her, the Commonwealth’s Governess looks the picture of poise and refinement, yet there’s a tension within her shoulders and in the crease of her brow. 

She’s troubled, deeply so. 

“Ms Okumura, I’d like to introduce you to Johns, a key member of our guard here at The Commonwealth.”

Yumiko is unsure whether Johns is his first name, last name, or even some sort of nickname. What she does know however, is that as soon as Pamela introduces him he sucks in a breath and looks at her with hard, untrusting eyes. 

Pamela continues with her introduction, “Johns, this is Yumiko Okumura, she provides legal services to myself and cabinet and, as far as I’m concerned, is the very best of our legal team.”

The lawyer is aware Pamela’s words are spoken with the intention of bestowing upon her the highest compliments, however right now, they feel like a threat. Nonetheless, she sends Johns a small smile. In spite of her feelings, Miko holds her professionalism above all else, and she knows she’ll do well to keep a hold of it for whatever’s about to happen. 

Pamela clears her throat quietly and in doing so pulls her attention once more, “Yumiko, I'm sure you're curious as to the reasoning for this meeting and the secrecy surrounding it. The truth is, we have a delicate situation on our hands and as such we require your expertise and skill within the realms of the legal services you provide us. I need this handled with discretion, and as highly accredited as you are, I expect for you to handle it as such.”

Knowing explicitly that she and Magna are entirely in the clear, Yumiko should feel relieved. Her anxieties should be calming and fear subsiding; instead, she feels the growing in her gut break through to form a pit of dread. 

Whatever’s happened, it’s nothing good. 

In fact, she’d go as far as to say it’s very, very bad. 

She almost dares not ask, but knows she must, “I- forgive my bluntness, but I don’t follow. What’s happened exactly?”

Pamela shifts uncomfortably, her lips parting briefly as she sucks in a sharp breath before shutting firmly. It’s the first time Yumiko’s seen the Governess’s composure slip and, as she attempts to find her words, the lawyer decides it’s unsettling to see her as anything other than the collected leader she knows her to be. “There’s no easy way to speak of this, I warn you now what I am about to say is, well, distressing.”

Yumiko braces herself, preparing for the worst. But then again, after all she’s done, all she’s seen and heard tales of, surely there’s nothing worse? Surely the happenings inside the Commonwealth, no matter how sinister, can’t be worse than the evils she’s already encountered? 

Right?

However as Pamela begins to speak, Yumiko realises she couldn’t be more wrong. “As you know, considering all that happened with Mr Porter last year, there are things that take place within this community that are of course for the benefit of all but we deem the citizens of The Commonwealth need not be concerned with.”

Yumiko fights against the scoff that threatens to bubble from within her chest. That’s one way of putting it.

“As you are also aware, governing an entire community by oneself is no easy task, and so I have those within my cabinet that I delegate to look after certain matters for me, and who also have their own dealings, of which I play no part with.”

Lance shifts his weight behind Yumiko and immediately her shoulders tense. She should’ve known he had a part in all this. At least when it comes to Pamela her offences are strictly political and focused solely on maintaining her governing authority and perfect image. Lance, on the other hand, seems to be obsessed with power in the sense of absoluteness, stopping at nothing to put himself in a position of reigning over everyone with nothing less than entire control. 

And in regards to the lengths he seems willing to go to in order to gain the things he wants, well, Yumiko has bared witness to enough to know there’s no telling the full extent of the dark and sinister happenings orchestrated within his corrupt mind.

Pamela releases a sigh in clear attempt to buy a moment to compose herself. “After the happenings of last fall, measures were put in place to ensure that certain… meetings regarding some such matters remained private and away from those that need not be concerned with their happenings. And these said measures appeared to be working well and everything running smoothly.”

Yumiko watches as the governess swallows thickly, “that is, until Monday night.”

At her words, Miko watches three things happen simultaneously: Pamela’s fist clenches seemingly subconsciously as if in attempt to keep a hold of something that’s already escaped her grasp, Lance clears his throat in a manner Yumiko just knows is preparation for devioding himself of any and all responsibility of whatever’s happened, even though it’s more than obvious that just like always his part in it all is clear. And Johns… Johns squirms in his seat as if he would rather be literally anywhere else in the world than in this meeting, even if it means he finds himself amidst the likes of Alpha’s hoard. 

But as Yumiko watches his nostrils flare and jaw clench with such an arrogance that an eye roll seems only fitting to follow, the one thing she can’t put her finger on is if his demeanour is due to the discomfort he’s feeling, or if it's because in all his righteous attitude he believes he doesn’t deserve to be there. 

Not that she currently knows why any of them are there . 

But then again, in spite of the fact she still has yet to be informed of what exactly has happened, and is entirely unsure as to what could have caused such a fallout that needs handling so privately and delicately, Yumiko knows one thing for certain: for something to be warranting such a reaction from Pamela, whatever happened on Monday night, it’s really fucking bad.

“You know, of course, that as a highly esteemed member of my cabinet, as well as aiding my leadership of the Commonwealth, Lance deals with many things that I personally have little part in.” Pamlea’s voice has developed a bitter edge, and Miko immediately knows this is to do with one of his many side projects, of which the Governess has made her distaste for known on many an occasion.

Side projects Yumiko and the rest of her family already know a lot about thanks to Eugene and his discovery last year.

“It appears,” the breath that heaves from Pamela’s chest is heavy, “that in spite of the measures put in place to ensure the privacy of such matters, on Monday night, during a meeting held between Lance and, others, someone was present that most definitely should not have been.”

Instantly Yumiko’s mind speeds into overdrive, weighing out which of her family would be brazen enough to sneak into a meeting knowing all that Eugene went through, let alone the consequences should they be caught.

A few names come to mind.

The fact that Magna’s is one of the first does nothing to quell her rising panic.

Johns shifts in his seat, and Yumiko wonders what any of this seems to have to do with him. 

As Pamela continues however, the lawyer finds herself unsure whether she does in fact, actually want to know what horror has taken place. “An intruder, that likely heard, at the very least, some vital information not meant to be known by anyone other than those in attendance. And, considering all that happened with Mr Porter last year, there could be no risk of any more leaks of the Commonwealth’s matters, and so some rather, drastic, measures were required to be taken.”

One look at each of the three others in the room tells Yumiko that whatever she’s about to be told, it will not be something she is easily able to forget. 

Pamela shifts in her seat, her body tightening in on itself, as if somehow trying to steel herself for the words about to fall from her mouth, “as I understand it from what I’ve been informed, Lance sent Johns, and the two guards posted at the door, after the eavesdropper to ensure that whatever had been overheard most certainly would not be repeated. Johns was instructed to simply follow the uninvited guest and use means of a, well, physical nature, to convince them to keep anything they may have heard to themself.” 

Yumiko knows enough to read between the lines of all she’s being told, and what she finds renders her utterly sick to her stomach. She knows exactly what had been ordered, even in spite of the veil Pamela is trying to cover it with. 

Lance sent three armed soldiers to follow and threaten a Commonwealth citizen by way of a violent beating in threat to keep quiet about what they witnessed and anything they may have overheard. 

The Governess clears her throat as her gaze falls to her clasped hands on the table, before lifting to focus on Lance, her features schooled into a look of utter fury. “Unfortunately the situation appears to have gotten out of hand and as a result of the events of Monday night, let’s just say there’s no worry of information being revealed to anyone considering she’s lying in the morgue.”

The level of acidity within Pamela’s words matches that revolting inside of Yumiko’s stomach. She’s no stranger to death, to murder even. Hell, the things she’s seen over the last decade of her life, the things she herself has done, Miko is starkly aware that barely anyone living today can truly say their hands are clean. 

But of all she could have imagined the nightmare of the Commonwealth to involve, this is something she would have never even considered. 

Even from Lance.

And to make it worse, she has yet to know who.

(She’d be a liar however, to deny the tiny part of her that’s instantly relieved to realise upon her calculations that whoever is now lying in the Commonwealth morgue, she knows for a fact it isn’t Magna. Or any of her family for that matter.)

“And so, Ms Okumura, that’s where you come in.” 

Too busy lost in her calculations, she’s not heard the rest of Pamela’s words and is confused as to the expectant look the Governess is sending her.  Yumiko’s eyes shift to Johns, who has yet to say a word. Then again, she’s neigh on certain he’s been told to sit there silently and let Pamela and Lance do the speaking. 

She frowns as she searches the soldier's features for any sign as to his feelings towards what he’d done: remorse, grief, worry even. When she finds nothing more than agitation, Yumiko returns her focus to Pamela, her brow creased in confusion, “I’m sorry but I’m not following, what has this got to do with me?”

But it’s not the Governess who answers, it’s Lance, his breath crawling into her ear from his place behind her, so close that she can smell the stale coffee that clings to it, “well, you are the provider of legal services to Ms Milton and her cabinet by extension, no?”

The sheer arrogance within his tone has Yumiko unsure whether she wants to roll her eyes or cringe. She knows however, that neither will go down well, and a more professional response is expected of her. 

Although, before she gets the chance to give one, Lance steps back again as Pamela commands their attention, “as I said before, our legal team here at the Commonwealth is one of excellence and, within that team, I regard your personal accolades and skill set very highly. And so, when it comes to managing this I trust you will be the one best brought in to do so.”

“Managing?” Yumiko fails to keep her confusion from her voice, surely they don’t mean for her to-

“The full details of what happened on Monday night cannot become known by the citizens of the Commonwealth, it would destroy everything we’ve worked so hard to create here,” the Governess swallows thickly, “and so this needs handling with the utmost care and discretion to ensure fallout is minimal. Of course, had Lance followed protocol in the first place we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

Lance shifts uneasily as he clambers to find his words, however he appears as no more than a child who’s attempting to lie their way out of trouble in spite of being caught red handed in the act. “Ms Milton, when I sent Johns to clear things up, I had no idea this would be the outcome, how could I have done? What happened was an unfortunate accident, I am not responsi-”

Pamela cuts him off sharply, “you should have come to me, I would have sorted it. I’d have had Ms Okumura create an NDA and paid the family off and that would have been the end of it. But instead-”

Lance interrupts her, flustered yet filled with an underlying air of desperation to dissociate himself from any wrongdoing, “with all due respect Ms Milton there was no time. We didn’t know who it was, we were discussing sensitive information that would have had catastrophic outcomes should it have been leaked. The situation is regrettable, of course, however it’s not my fault she was-”

Pamela slams her palm on the table, her voice a chilling blast of icy fury, “a child Lance, she was a child! A fifteen year old girl is dead because that is what happens when you send three highly trained soldiers to-”

The Commonwealth’s leader falters and Yumiko’s chair scrapes along the floor as she barely makes it to the trash can in time for her stomach to pour its contents into it.

She’d assumed they were speaking of an adult. Assumed whoever had found their way into Lance’s meeting had done so deliberately with intent to spy on it. But to learn it was very likely a case of someone simply stumbling into the wrong place at the wrong time, it makes the acid in her stomach churn. 

And not only that, but a fifteen year old-

She heaves until there’s nothing left in her stomach but a pit of utter horror.

Yumiko leans forward to rest her forehead on her arm, which is braced against the wall in front of her and right now feels like the only thing stopping her from crumbling to the ground in despair. 

Closing her eyes she exhales shakily. Of all the things she could’ve imagined this meeting to be about, never would she have even dreamed of this being a possibility. 

The room is silent save for the sound of her heavy, shaking breath and the lawyer knows they’re all waiting for her to compose herself. She swallows thickly before inhaling, hoping the air will somehow soothe the churning in her stomach, but it’s to no avail. 

For how can it be? How can anything possibly settle the way her insides are burning in sheer horror? 

As much as Miko wishes to run from the room, from Pamela and Lance, from the terrors lurking within the Commonwealth's walls, she knows she can’t. She can’t turn and sprint through the doors and round up her family and take them away from this place, back to Hilltop where she can pull Magna into her embrace and never let her go. 

There is no going. There is no anything other than sitting back down and finishing the meeting. 

Because that’s what’s expected of her, to diligently follow the rules and instructions set out by those in power.

Yumiko opens her eyes and takes a final breath in the hopes of steadying herself, before moving to once again take her seat at the table. She soothes the front of her blazer in an attempt to curtail her fidgeting and clears her throat before addressing Pamela, “my apologies I- it was just a bit of a shock is all.”

“It’s alright Yumiko,” Pamela’s voice is oddly soft and the lawyer finds herself taken aback by the understanding laced within it. But as soon as she thinks Pamela might just be actually capable of empathy, the Governess’s focus shifts to Johns and the lawyer watches her eyes harden into poorly concealed fury. 

Yumiko would give anything to believe Pamela’s anger is directed at what he’d done, that the utter disdain written across her face is the result of her hatred for the actions of the man sitting across from her.  But, as the Governess once again clasps her hands together on the table before her and continues, Yumiko comes to the horrifying realisation that her anger isn’t directed at the fact he’s taken an innocent life, but rather for the fallout left behind that she now has to clean up. “Lance and I have curated a way to handle everything and ensure this doesn’t get out, but we require you to work alongside us in order to make it work. It will be difficult and require delicacy, but we are confident this is the way forward.”

Miko knows she should respond but her mind is too busy stumbling over everything to even begin to try and form one. 

Pamela takes her silence as a queue to continue and with every word that leaves her mouth, the lawyer tumbles deeper into the ever growing well of disbelief. “We aren’t going to deny to the public that the death happened-”

The death. Yumiko clenches her fist in attempt to prevent herself from scoffing at the blatant lie. 

It wasn’t death, it was murder. 

“-it wouldn’t work and would only leave us open to bigger problems should anyone learn of it. What we are going to do, however, is tell the citizens in a way that allows us to, well, paint the picture of events in a way that prevents any unwanted fallout.”

Yumiko’s fist tightens, her growing fury becoming harder to contain. Of course all Pamela cares about is image, of course their priority is ensuring the upkeep of illusion of the perfection of those in charge. 

A teenage girl was killed, murdered, and all they care about is how it makes them look. 

“As part of this, we want you, as the head of our legal team, to lead an investigation, of which we will inform the public of, into the happenings of Monday night. Upon the conclusion of this investigation, your findings will show that not only was the result of Monday night an unfortunate accident, but moreso, one that came about after the deceased not only got caught breaking the Commonwealth’s laws but then resisted arrest in a violent manner.”

Miko clenches her jaw in attempt to keep it from falling slack at what she’s hearing. 

Pamela wants her to do what? 

Lance speaks up then, his tone devoid of emotion, as if he’s over all of this already and wants nothing more than for it to disappear so he can resume his corrupt scheming, “of course as per your findings Johns will face due repercussions, a demotion which, between us, will be in title but not in reality. As a valuable member and confidant within my team of my more… personal endeavours I cannot afford for him to be removed from his current authority and access level.”

Yumiko’s focus shifts to Johns and although he seems intent on following his assumed orders not to utter a single word, he meets her gaze before subtly rolling his shoulders and straightening his spine, as if daring her to contest what’s been said. 

They want him to face no ramifications, to continue on as if he hadn’t murdered a teenage girl four days ago. 

Miko inhales sharply but stays quiet, watching in utter disbelief as Johns’ mouth curls slightly in a twisted smirk that tells her all she needs to know. 

Pamela’s voice draws Yumiko’s focus back to her, “as part of the findings, a fair sum of money will be paid to the family of the deceased upon the signing of an NDA, that you will also draft for us, in which they will relinquish their right to challenge or appeal the investigation findings and outcomes, and limiting their ability to speak about both it and anything else regarding this subject to anyone.”

With every word that tumbles from the Governess’s mouth, Yumiko finds herself falling ever deeper into the pit of horror she’s been tumbling down since this meeting started. For not only do Pamela and Lance want her to cover up the truth of what happened on Monday night, they want her to pay off the girl’s parents in order to prevent them from being able to do anything about it or speaking of the fact their daughter is dead at the hands of those in charge at risk of facing major retribution.

Pamela leans forward in her seat and when she continues her voice is firm, carrying with it an air of firm authority Yumiko has never heard from her before, “you and your investigation will rule this as nothing more than an unfortunate accident as the result of an unruly citizen resisting the repercussions of breaking laws we have here. Johns will face due consequences and the family of the girl will be compensated generously, and that will be the end of it.” 

Pamela’s demeanour is chilling and the intensity of it has Yumiko shifting uncomfortably. 

There’s no way she actually means this, right? 

There’s no way The Commonwealth’s powers have decided that a twisted investigation with no consequences to its illegitimate findings and a payoff is even close to acceptable. R ight?

Then again, the lawyer is all too aware of just how far those in power will go in order to maintain it. Even before the world became what it is now, there were those that cared only for their place at the top of the ladder and didn’t spare a second thought for who they threw from it. They would do anything, hurt anyone, just so long as they ascended and settled into their permanent place on top. 

And for Pamela to sit here speaking of generous compensation, as if anything in the world could possibly even begin to come anywhere near retribution for the brutal murder of a child? Yumiko opens her mouth but finds no response, for what can she possibly say?

The Governess however, seems to care not for her lack of reply and instead leans back in her chair and unclasps her hands. Almost instantly her demeanour is shifting, lightening, as if she hasn’t just spoken of something so heinous and is instead simply having an idle conversation. “The case will be closed and we will find a way to shift the focus of the public, perhaps a fundraiser raising for an extension to the school, one the cabinet will match graciously in reminder of our care for the citizens here.”

Blinking in disbelief, Yumiko’s mind attempts to claw together all Pamela has said, but she finds herself unable to comprehend the sheer abhorrence of it all.

Pamela’s acting as if this is just another day, just another job. But what they’re asking her to do, not just twisting the law but shattering it entirely, all so they can remain in power, it’s not right. 

No. It’s far past not right, it’s beyond fucked up. It’s… well, in truth she’s not entirely sure there’s any words to express how twisted this all is.

She tells them as much. “Let me get this right, you’re asking me to falsify an investigation and use a payoff to blackmail a family grieving for their child, in order to stop the truth of what Johns did from getting out, all the while he’ll face no real consequences for his actions?”

She hears a quiet shifting behind her, and suddenly there’s hot breath on the back of her neck as Lance leans forward into her personal space, murmuring into her ear in a manner so sinister it sends shivers down her spine, “I’m calling in on that favour you owe me, and hey, if you do this right, maybe I’ll even owe you one.”

Yumiko wants to revolt away from him, but in an instant he’s gone from her space and instead walking around the room to stand behind Pamela’s left shoulder. 

She knows what he’s doing, and his not so subtle attempt at reminding her of who’s in charge is noticed by Johns too, who sits up even straighter in his chair, the set of his shoulders one of someone who believes they’ve already won.  It takes everything in Yumiko not to roll her eyes at his attitude. Yes, admittedly, he may have Pamela and Lance on his side, and for all intents and purposes appear to have the upper hand in spite of the atrocity he’s done. 

But the thing is, he’s also only met her today, which means he has no knowledge of her skill set, no understanding of her past and the things she’s seen and experienced. It means he’s missing vital information regarding the things that make her tick. One of which is that Yumiko doesn't like to lose. 

But how can he win? How, with what he’s done, can he possibly come out of this unscathed?

He committed an act Yumiko isn’t sure even Negan would, and is now being afforded the help of the two most powerful authorities in the Commonwealth in order for him to face no repercussions and ensure that what happened is made to disappear. 

And what happened, is one of the most vile horrors that Yumiko has come to know of. 

Because fuck Pamela’s diplomatically calculated wording, fuck her twisted self preservations and rose tinted glasses; a teenager is dead, because of the joint actions of Johns and Lance.

He killed a child due to Lance's instruction.  

There’s no twisting it or glossing over it, because that’s the blatant truth. A fifteen year old girl was in the wrong place at the wrong time and as a result, Lance ordered Johns and two other guards to stalk her home and threaten her by way of physical assault in order to ensure she didn’t tell anyone what she’d seen. 

And Johns went too far and murdered her. 

And now a family is missing a loved one, now her parents have to find a way to cope with the fact their daughter has been taken from them and, if the person in charge of this community has her way, they will never know the truth about what happened. The only thing they will know is that the story spun is not the real one, and that if they do anything to even attempt to find out what truly happened they will suffer far greater consequences than the man that killed her.

And worse, this happened in the late hours of Monday night, and a glance to her watch tells Yumiko it’s currently 4pm on Friday, which means this girl’s parents have gone four days without knowing anything other than their child is dead and what the fuck is going on in this place?

Shaking her head, Yumiko blinks in disbelief, “I- you’re asking me to cover up a child’s murder to falsify the truth so the person who did it, so you,” she glares at Johns, her anger growing when he responds with a smirk, “so you go free. For murder. That’s…”

She trails off, unable to get a hold of the words tumbling from her mouth, as if they’re falling into reality from some messed up psychological thriller playing on a late night special in the Commonwealth’s movie theatre. 

But they aren’t a creation of horror, they aren’t a work of twisted fiction. Her words aren’t speaking the tale of some messed up story. What’s happened is very, very real. 

Pamela and Lance truly are asking her to do this, to spin everything in the favour of their hand. They’re asking her, not even to skew the events of Monday night, but to rewrite them entirely and in doing so allow there to be no consequences for the murder of a child. 

A child she still doesn’t even know the name of. 

For that’s how little Pamela and Lance care about the life Johns has stolen. They’re acting as if her murder is more of a nuisance than anything else, a mess that needs clearing up and brushing under the carpet. A stain on their image, on the illusion they so carefully manipulate, a mark on the perfect picture of the Commonwealth they’ve spent so long curating. 

But no matter how they try to hide it, there will be no getting rid of it, there will be no cleaning this up, no removing the permanent reminder of what has happened. The residue left behind cannot be wiped away, instead, it will be left to seep into every crevice, every crack, rotting away at the foundations that Pamela and Lance so desperately try to stack in their favour. 

And Yumiko cannot, will not, allow herself to become a part of something so callous. She may have seen things, done things, but she refuses to help them pull the rug over the unignorable blood stain on the floor. 

She’s seething. The fact they deem her someone that would be okay with this, that would help them. As hard as she’s tried to keep a hold of her professionalism thus far, the fact they think she would even contemplate doing what they’re asking has it slipping from her grasp. 

“Johns,” Pamela’s voice is disconcertingly gentle, but the edge of agitation is poorly concealed, “would you please give the three of us some privacy? I think Lance and I need to speak to Ms Okumura alone.”

Johns’ eyes slide from the Governess to meet Yumiko’s own, and the air of arrogance radiating from the smirk he gives her is enough to make the lawyer’s blood boil. It’s clear he cares not for what he’s done, that he feels no remorse for the innocent life callously taken by his hand. 

No, all he cares about is himself, and knowing he’s under the protection of the two most powerful people within the Commonwealth’s walls is only adding to the righteous attitude that it’s obvious he already carries far too much of. 

He stands and Yumiko sees her assumption of his height was correct. Johns is imposing as he looms over them and the way he sets his shoulders before turning his attention back to Pamela tells her that he knows it. His voice is deep and stoic, “of course Ms Milton.”

Johns steps aside and turns to leave but Lance halts him, “we’ll see you back here Monday evening. We’ll sort this, don’t worry.”  

The soldier responds with a curt nod, “I’ll be there. Thank you Mr Hornsby, Ms Milton.” He addresses them both before turning his attention to Yumiko, but says nothing and instead stares at her in a manner she assumes would be intimidating were she someone easily made to feel so. After a beat he makes his way across the room and leaves, closing the door behind him with a quiet click. 

The second the door is pulled shut, Pamela and Lance are turning on her, their expressions no longer ones of pleasant neutrality and instead are harsh and cold.

Pamela leans forward, clasping her hands together on the table before her and looks every bit the image of controlling authoritarian, her tone calculated, deadly, “Ms Okumura, it appears you don’t quite understand your place here, I’m not asking you to do this, I'm telling you to.”

Lance steps forward, moving to stand directly beside the Governess, “I think it may be important for you to remember your role within our community. You work for Ms Milton and her cabinet, and as such, your services are under her, and by extension her cabinet’s, direction. That means you do as we direct you, without question.” 

Yumiko knows she shouldn’t be as taken aback as she is, after all, she’s more than aware of what Lance is like and the things he’s done. Pamela too. But then, whilst the lawyer knows of the corruption raging within the two people before her, she hadn’t thought them capable of a horror such as this. 

Well, Lance, maybe. He’s always been the more sinister of the two, his morals and ethics long rotted away, but Pamela? 

Yumiko knows the Governess has had a hand in varying schemes and illusions. She’s more than aware of the twists in the system placed there under her direction; but they were for political means, falsifying votes, elevating the status of those she knows are loyal to her and her alone - things that, whilst corrupt, are nowhere close to what she’s asking of her now.

Yumiko attempts to keep her voice neutral but fails, there’s simply too much disbelief coursing through her to be able to keep it at bay, “I just don’t- I don’t understand h-”

She’s cut off by Lance, “there’s no need for you to understand, just follow the instructions we’re laying out before you. Simply do as we tell you, nothing more, nothing less.”

Except it’s not that simple, is it? Lance is acting as if they’re asking her to carry out some mundane task, some senseless job that’s nothing more than dull labour. A far cry from twisting the truth and shattering the law to cover up the murder of an innocent fifteen year old girl, which will allow the killer to face no repercussions, whilst deliberatly lying to the public and denying the victim’s family the truth of what happened to their child.

“All we are asking,” Pamela’s voice is firm, harsh; as if she’s tired of this conversation and is in the hopes that if she spells it out to her then Yumiko will miraculously fall to her knees and agree to what they want her to do, “is for you to head an investigation of which the findings align with keeping private matters private, and allow us and the citizens of the Commonwealth to move on from what happened peacefully.”

It takes every last fibre of Yumiko’s being to prevent the disbelieving laugh within her chest from erupting. The Governess is speaking as if it’s some minor task, a simple favour, not a monumental act that will require her to turn her back on her morals. 

If she didn’t know better she’d be eyeing the room for cameras, certain to find this whole meeting out to be an elaborate prank or some test by Pamela to see how far her loyalty goes.

However, what the two people standing before her don’t know is that the lengths of her loyalty have yet to find an end, it just doesn’t lie with them.

No, her loyalty to the powers of the Commonwealth is practically nonexistent, extending no further than what is necessary to maintain the illusion of it being absolute. 

Her loyalty to her friends and family however, is something that has yet to receive a limit. And her loyalty to Magna, well, Yumiko knows that no such limitation could ever exist - that much has been proven clear.

Her loyalty to Magna is ride or die, for not only will she ride by her side for as long as physically possible, but she’d rather die than even thinking of betraying her.

Pamela shifts in her seat and relaxes her demeanour, the Commonwealth’s leader clearly hoping that she can in some way ease Yumiko into changing her mind and seeing their point of view. “We wouldn’t be asking this of you did we not think it something within your capabilities Yumiko. I personally know of your skill and grace when it comes to handling matters of legality, especially those of a more delicate nature. The work you’ve already done for us here in the Commonwealth has been insurmountably important and greatly valued.”

Yumiko knows Pamela’s trying to butter her up, and were she someone easily bought perhaps there may have been a chance of it working. 

But she’s not. No amount of complimentary lavishings will do even the slightest to alter the sheer atrocity of what they want her to do. Besides, she can’t be certain Pamela even means them. 

Every word that’s fallen from her mouth thus far has been either an outright lie or, at best, a bending of the truth, and whilst Yumiko is aware that her skill set and knowledge is a rather elite one, she’s uncertain if the Commonwealth’s leader genuinely considers her the best or is just saying so in hopes she’ll do as asked. 

“So, we’ll see you Monday evening for the initial meeting to discuss the details of everything, yes?” Apparently the lawyer’s silent tumble into her thoughts has given Pamela the assumption that she’s on board with what they’re asking of her, and fuck she still can’t comprehend that they’re even asking her to do this. 

That for even a second they could deem her and her morals so fucked that she’d even consider what they're asking. 

Yes okay, admittedly she’s been involved with things here that’ve left a sour taste in her mouth, having the masquerade ball guests signing NDA’s to keep them quiet about Tyler’s outburst being one of them. Yumiko’s not proud of the things she’s had to do, she’s not okay with the things they’ve requested of her - and by requested she means ordered - but she’s done them knowing that choice and opinions are something she’s allowed to have on the matter. 

But what Pamela and Lance are asking of her now is incomprehensible. 

To allow Johns to get away with what he’s done, Yumiko can’t fathom even considering it. 

Yes, she’s more than aware that once again what’s being asked of her isn’t actually a question of her willingness. Oh no, Pamela and Lance’s words so far have been mere formalities, ones that soon slipped into revelations of their real intentions the second she even dared question them. 

Because Pamela had already said as much hadn’t she? They’re not asking her to do this, they’re telling her she has to. 

In spite of the fact she knows she’s being given no choice in the matter, Yumiko can’t ignore the acidic sickening within her gut as she thinks of what it is they want her to do.

But then again, it’s not as if she hasn’t cleared the name of a guilty convict before, is it? 

Which in turn begs the question: would she have helped Magna all those years ago if she knew the truth? 

Would she have gotten Magna’s charge overturned had she known of her guilty hand?

No.

Definitely not.

If she’d known the truth behind her charges Yumiko would’ve turned and walked away from the interview room and left Magna to face her sentence in full. 

And a quick mental calculation tells her that, had she done so, her love would most likely still be in that cell now, all those years later. 

Except, factoring in reality, she wouldn’t be, would she? 

No, there’s a very high chance her girlfriend would have died in the very jail she’d have left her in. 

Because, had Yumiko known the truth behind Magna’s conviction, not for even a second would she have considered doing anything to overturn the charge of the murder she actually did commit. 

And it’s an incredibly hard pill to swallow.

But the thing is, Yumiko knows her now. She understands why Magna had taken that course of action, why she'd made the choice she had.

She’d done something she thought she’d had to. 

Justice had been denied to the one person in the world Magna loved, and she’d been determined to obtain it for her. And so, Magna had taken the life of the monster that stole the innocence of a little girl. She’d killed the man that’d abused and tormented her cousin in the most abhorrent of ways, thinking it to be the only way to serve justice after the system had failed to provide the very thing it was put in place to. 

And yes, admittedly, Yumiko knows that had she known the truth of Magna’s charge when she’d first opened her file, she’d have closed it mere moments later and removed it from the wrongful convictions pile with a disgusted grimace. 

But she’d been a different lawyer back then, a different person, seeing only two sides of the law and not the murky grey waters lapping at the shores of either side - and moreso, not even pausing to look at the ocean stretching far out into the distant horizon. 

Now she knows different, better.

Magna had been like a tidal wave, washing over everything Yumiko thought she was certain of and revealing the ugly truth underneath it all. 

Magna’s case had single-handedly made her see that law isn’t always just, and sometimes there’s more to things than what lay on the surface. That people and their actions are more than the damnation of ink in a file. That all too often there’s more than meets the eye, and yet it goes ignored in favour of focusing on a tiny piece of a never ending puzzle. 

And so yes, as hard as it is to face, back then, had she known the truth, Yumiko wouldn’t have given Magna or her case the time of day. 

But now, the lawyer she’s grown to be, the person she’s become, Yumiko would like to think she’d at least take a seat across from her with the knowledge that nothing is ever simple. 

And yes, she’s aware that for her to think as such regarding Magna’s case and not this soldier’s is somewhat hypocritical. But she also knows the two have no comparison, not really. 

Magna had been no more than a teenager, let down and dismissed by everyone that had ever entered her life. And when the law had failed the one person she loved and loved her in return, when justice had been denied to a little girl whose innocence had been ripped away by someone supposed to protect it, when a judge had decided to protect a grown man and his abhorrent actions rather than a child, she’d done the only thing she’d been able to in order to provide at least a shred of the justice that’d been so cruelly denied. 

Magna had been born into nothing, had been told she would always be no one; and so when the law had been twisted and once again corroborated her and her cousin’s unimportance she’d turned around and told it no, the courts may fail her cousin, but she would not. 

She cared not for what would happen to her, gave no worry to the repercussions of her actions, as long as she could know for certain that such a vile monster would never be able to harm another, and that her promise to her cousin of him never coming near her again would be fulfilled. 

But the case laid before her now is so vastly different, so much so that even the smallest of comparisons between the two is nearly impossible.

This man, this Commonwealth soldier holds a position of authority, he helps control the justice system in place here. His boot is one of the many standing on the backs of those who live here, holding them down and ensuring that those who tower over them will always be allowed to. 

And he’d murdered a teenager to prevent Lance’s dirty secrets from getting out - no matter intentional at first or not, that’s the blatant truth of it.

His case is nothing like Magna’s. For Johns is no teenager desperate to fix a wrong so negligently cast. This soldier is nothing akin to someone who's been so downtrodden their entire life they see it as no loss when they throw it away willingly to protect another. 

For the reality of it all is that Johns is cut from the same cloth as the abhorrence of a monster that’d harmed Magna’s cousin. 

And for Miko to fix an investigation that favours this man, for her to prevent even a shred of justice being given to a murdered teenage girl and her grieving family, it would make her no better than those that denied it to that little girl all those years ago. 

Yumiko’s insides revolt at the mere thought. 

She may have been a part of things here that have tarnished her, her hand may have dealt cards she wishes weren’t even in play, but she cannot, will not, be a part of this. 

Because the thing is, Yumiko knows that should she do this, she’d succeed. Were she to do what Pamela is asking of her she’d pull it off without question. Not only due to the obvious fact of the whole investigation being twisted to align favourably to Johns, but also for the fact that she’s a damn good lawyer. 

There’s a reason she’d been elevated to the top of the ladder the second those in power here had found out her alumni. Just as there’s a reason she was able to work those wrongful conviction cases pro bono, due to being so sought after within her firm that her wages from her general practice were more than enough for her not to need or want the extra money. 

And that reason is, in spite of the false niceties behind her pandering, Pamela isn’t incorrect when she speaks of Yumiko’s skillset. In all the cases she’d taken on over her years, Yumiko can count on her fingers the amount of cases she’d lost. 

(And half of those were because corporations suck and more than once bought her client’s silence through settlements before any trial had scarcely begun.)

Yumiko knows that if she took this investigation on, if she invisibly stood by John’s side, she would succeed without a shadow of a doubt and in doing so the murder of a teenage girl will be brushed under the rug and a killer allowed to roam free. 

And that is not something she can allow to happen. 

Her actions of recent months may have been questionable and Yumiko knows she’s had to ignore her own opinions more than once since finding herself sitting upon the palm of the Commonwealth's leader. But at the end of the day, no matter the illusioned facade she may present, Yumiko knows deep inside her where her morality lies, undisturbed and unquestioned.  

This place may require her to push aside her feelings in order to keep up with the image she must present, but her bones will return to the earth before she allows this place to change the foundations of her heart.  Yumiko would sooner row herself across the very Archeron than allow those in power here to pull at her strings and make a puppet of her soul. 

For in spite of how the cover may appear, she is not a character in a novel Pamela and Lance are penning, and she refuses to allow them access to the pages. 

No. Yumiko is the author of her own story and she’ll be damned if she allows anyone to dictate the path of the ink flowing from her pen.

In spite of the fact Pamela and Lance appear to be giving her no option, Yumiko knows there is still a choice to be made and she knows what she must do, for only one will result in her being able to live with herself. 

For she knows that really, there is no choice, only what is right. 

“No.”

Pamela offers a singular blink in response. It’s as if for a moment the Governess is so shocked by Yumiko’s refusal that her body has glitched, unknowing how to process being denied something she wants. Clearly she’d had no anticipation of Yumiko responding with anything other than total compliance with what’s being asked of her and the idea that their oh so doting lawyer would dare question them, that she would resist following their orders had obviously not even entered Pamela’s consideration.

Then again, Yumiko knows it’s been a very long time since anyone has questioned the Governess, and even longer since anyone has so outrightly denied her orders.

And then, as if she suddenly comes back into herself, Pamela inhales sharply before sending Yumiko a bright smile. “You’d be well compensated for your time and services of course, both in monetary terms and in other varying benefits that I personally will see to accordingly and will ensure your life here is more than comfortable.”

At first Yumiko is confused, Pamela’s blatant ignoring of her refusal has her questioning if she’d actually said it aloud, but then the realisation sinks in. It’s not that she’d somehow failed to give voice to her opinion, it’s that the Governess is giving it such disregard that she might as well have not said anything at all. 

Whether Yumiko is actually accepting of doing it or not isn’t something Pamela would ever pay any mind to, because in her opinion it doesn’t matter what the lawyer wants or thinks. She cares not for her wishes, has no consideration for her thoughts or opinions; the Governess has ordered something of her, and that’s the end of it.

But no matter how high the price Pamela and Lance deem her cooperation to be worth, no matter how much they try to lavish her with, both financially and in regards to other benefits, there is nothing they could give her that would lead her to ever even dream of doing as they’re ordering her.  Yumiko isn’t someone that can be bribed, hell, if she were there’d have been a darn-sight less inhabitants of jail cells when the world fell. She tells the two of them as much, her voice firm, unwavering, “nothing you could even consider giving me would ever be enough. My answer is no, and there is nothing you can do or say to change it.”

Lance inhales, his jaw clenched in agitation. He leans forward, placing his palms flat against the tabletop in what Miko assumes is supposed to be a threatening manner, “Ms Okumura, I don’t think you understand what’s at stake here-”

“I said no. I’m not doing it, I refuse.”

The lawyer cares little for what he has to say. She knows the two of them are desperate, knows this will all but destroy their reputation and positions atop the ladder towering above the Commonwealth’s citizens, but she cares little for their fear. 

For Pamela and Lance have forgotten the most crucial thing when it comes to leadership - no matter how high your position at the top of the ladder, the power lies with those at the bottom of it.  Yes the view from the top might be pretty, but the truth is that those at the bottom are the foundations, they hold the ladder up, keeping it stable and strong. Without them not only does everything come crashing down, but it doesn't exist in the first place. 

But the thing about the ladder that Pamela and Lance - and admittedly Yumiko herself - reside at the top of is that it’s built on illusions and held together with half truths. It may appear to be strong but in reality it’s image is nothing more than a facade covering the rot that grows ever potent the higher it seeps. 

A rot that in spite of Yumiko’s attempts to stay clear of, seems determined to seek her out regardless. 

It’s clear that neither Lance or Pamela are accepting of her denial of their orders, anger seeping into both of their demeanours with every growing moment she dares refuse.  The lawyer watches as the two of them turn to each other, a silent conversation taking place, but regarding what she doesn’t know. Pamela glances at her before returning her focus to Lance and with a huff nods once, so slight that had the lawyer not been paying close attention she’d have missed it. 

Having apparently been given Pamela’s approval Lance looks to her then, his eyes hard, unyielding, and Yumiko knows they’ve reached the point when the facades and niceties are entirely dropped to reveal their true character.  “Ms Okumura,” he smiles condescendingly, “if I were you, I’d consider the information we have at our disposal, what harm it could do, what someone like Pamela or I could do with it if we thought it necessary.”

It’s not the first time Yumiko has faced threats from Lance, and isn’t naive enough to think it's the last. However, just like the times previous, she knows better than to fall for it. 

They have nothing on her, she’s made certain of as much. Her tracks are covered impeccably, sometimes with the assistance of her family. She’s left no footprint behind her, nothing from all her snooping and uncovering of information that could possibly trace back to her.

As far as Yumiko’s concerned Pamela and Lance know nothing of her reconnection with her friends and family, and even less about all that she’s been working alongside them with.

Then again, apart from six of them, the rest of her family don’t know either.

And, most importantly, apart from those six members, plus Tomi, and Yumiko herself, no one knows about her and Magna. 

No other soul knows of her rekindled relationship or their secret meetings, and in spite of it often breaking her heart to know her love for Magna must be kept under wraps, its moments like this that Yumiko is reminded precisely why it has to be. 

Admittedly she’ll ensure the two of them take extra precautions from now on, laying even lower than they already have and keeping everything under even tighter wraps, but she’s not overly worried of Magna being turned into ammunition in Lance and Pamela’s weapon against her.  But in truth, in spite of her certainty that the majority of her secrets and those they involve remain unknown by those in power here, and therefore out of any danger of being targeted, Yumiko would be lying if she said she isn’t unnerved by Lance’s comment. 

Yes, admittedly, the last threat of substance made against her was with regards to the truth of Tomi’s former occupation and it’s not as if Lance can reuse it, but the Commonwealth’s leaders are still aware of their bond and she wouldn’t put it above the two of them to drag her brother into this mess if it resulted in her falling into line.

Yumiko’s mind calculates every possible piece of information that Lance and Pamela could use against her, running through each and every tiny thing they could drag to light, every person they know of that could be used against her.

But apart from Tomi, she finds nothing. 

Well, that is, other than herself.

The only real threat of substance that Pamela and Lance have against her, is her own self, and what the two of them have failed to understand is that she’s been through too much in her life to allow that to phase her.

She will not back down, not when it comes to something so monumental. They can imprison her, spread lies about her, hell, they can send Johns after her like Lance did the teenage girl if they so wish. 

She may be sitting in the palm of their hand, but Yumiko will not break under their crushing fist. 

Steeling herself, the lawyer sucks in a breath and squares her shoulders; she’s done enough damage both in a courtroom and on the battlefield to be confident in holding her own. She’s faced monsters bigger than Lance, alive or undead - she’s looked both Negan and Alpha in the eye for fuck sake, this righteous man in a fancy suit has nothing on the two of them. 

“You can threaten me all you like but I’m sorry I-” Yumiko catches herself, the time for placating is long over, “actually, no, you know what, I’m not sorry, not in the slightest. I don’t know what kind of twisted person you both regard me as that you think I’d not only allow such a thing to pass, but to enable it too. I’m not doing it, no matter your reputation and how important the killer is to your little projects.”  

Pamela opens her mouth to speak but the lawyer continues, her voice harsh and brimming with anger that this could be asked of her. “He murdered someone, he murdered a child in cold blood. You are correct that I provide services regarding the law, but I do not provide assistance to break it. You may be in charge of the Commonwealth, but you are not above the law and I will not allow you to ignore it or attempt to bend it at your will.” 

A silence takes over as Yumiko faces off against Pamela and Lance. That air is thick, goading each of them to be the first to concede yet none of them do. 

The lawyer’s focus burns into Pamela’s, as hers seers into Yumiko’s in return. Lance’s attention is unwavering from her also, but his eyes are telling of much more sinister thoughts, no doubt plotting her demise in each and every way for daring to deny them what they demand.  Unsurprisingly, it’s he who breaks first, his will for patience too minute to ever be able to play any kind of strategy or long game. The Governess’s right hand he may be, but the qualities needed to be any sort of good leader he possesses not. 

Lance wants things done in the moment, no consideration of the long term, no patience to allow things to take time in order to achieve the desired outcome. He demands things to be sorted in the here and now, with little regard to how easy things can go awry - which is exactly how they’ve ended up here isn’t it? 

He didn’t think, he just did, just gave his orders, and now a fifteen year old girl lies in the morgue, her life ended far too soon by a hand that should have never even laid itself upon her in the first place. 

He clears his throat, apparently expecting Yumiko’s attention to shift to him, but when it remains fixed to Pamela’s own, he stands to his full height and walks over to the window on the right, looking out of it as if this were a moment of deep reminiscing in some shitty hallmark movie.  “The thing that you appear to have foolishly forgotten Yumiko,” the lawyer finally shifts her focus to him, however he pays her no mind and continues to stare out the window, his voice almost nonchalant, “is that you work for us. Your place, your job, your life, your safety within these walls has been given by Ms Milton and it can just as easily be taken away. The way I see it, Ms Okumura, is that you owe us, and hey, when you do what we are instructing you, then we might just owe you instead. But to go against us, to deny what we’re asking after all we’ve done for you?”

He turns to face her then, his eyes hard and expression dark, all remnants of the facaded niceties gone and replaced by the truth of his person that lies underneath. Lance pauses for a second, as if he almost believes she’ll suddenly change her mind at witnessing his demeanour become so cold -  little does he realise Yumiko’s never regarded him as anything but.  When she still doesn’t back down he inhales sharply, the muscles of his jaw clenching as he grinds his teeth together. Lance flicks his gaze to Pamela, who has continued to keep her own focus on the lawyer, before returning it once again to Yumiko, “for someone we’ve done so much for, to go against us, well, you can be assured there will be repercussions pertaining to our disappointment.”

Yumiko knows this is it, knows whatever she says next is the end of it, the decision she must stand by. 

She’s starkly aware that there’s great risk in what she’s doing and the danger she’s putting herself in, for she knows the threats being cast upon her are not idle, they aren’t made in bluff. 

No, the harm Yumiko is exposing herself to is very real and, looking at the unfiltered rage beginning to reveal itself across Lance’s face, she knows it is danger that is imminent. It’s not just her back she now needs to watch, it’s every angle.  And yes, under the seething glares of Pamela and Lance, under their threats and flauntings of power, the lawyer supposes she may be forgiven were she to crumble and comply with their demands.

But the thing is, in spite of knowing what’s coming her way, whilst others may forgive her compliance, she would never be able to forgive herself.  

Yumiko may have seen many atrocities, been involved in many horrors herself, but even in the midst of some of the most harrowing times of her life, never once has her integrity come into question, never once have her morals even wavered.  Yes admittedly, being here in the Commonwealth has tested them. The things she’s been ordered to have a hand in have pushed against the furthest limits of how far she’s willing to allow her morals to bend. 

But this, what they’re demanding of her this time won’t just bend her limits, but shatter them entirely.

Yumiko knows the line of danger she’s willingly walking into, knows there are several outcomes of her denial of their orders and none of them end well for her. But she also knows that no matter what they do to her, no matter what their threats contain, she will face them standing strong and proud, not on her knees crumbling before them.

Come what may, she will not bend, and she will certainly not break.

Squaring her shoulders, the lawyer shifts upright in her seat, sitting tall and steady. 

Defiant.

Yumiko's voice is strong and firm, and in spite of the gravity of what she’s doing, so is she, “I’m not doing it, I refuse, and no matter what you do to me, no matter what harm you threaten me with, I’ve made my decision and I stand by it.”

Lance opens his mouth but Yumiko cuts him off bluntly before he can even begin, “your request for my legal services has been denied.”

She’s aware that she hasn’t just rubbed salt into the wound but instead poured the whole bag over it, and stamped on it for good measure, but she finds herself uncaring. For after all this time, all they’ve had her do, all the problems they’ve caused her, she’s finally getting her own way.  And the thing is, if Miko doesn’t do this for them, no one will. No other member of the legal team has her experience and degree of skill. And so by denying them so bluntly all three of them can hear her words for what she truly means:

Fuck you, you lose.

On the surface Pamela appears unaffected, but her eyes tell a different story, screaming with fiery rage at the rejection delivered like a slap to her face. Lance immediately looks to the Governess like the little lap dog he is, waiting obediently in hope that Pamela is about to unleash a torrent of hell upon the one that dares defy her.  Instead, the Commonwealth’s leader exhales shakily before leaning back in her chair and resting her elbows on the armrests in order to clasp her hands in front of her, and simply stares at the lawyer before her. 

A beat passes, then another, and yet she remains silently focused on Yumiko, as if there’s a chance that her gaze may very well burn right through the lawyer into her soul and allow the Governess purchase to reach into her very body and rip it from her in the hopes it will deliver her control over the one who dare look her in the eye and defy her. 

However, whilst Yumiko’s heart pounds, it remains safely protected within its ribbed enclosure. 

Pamela’s eyes narrow and she sucks a breath through her nose, holding it hostage in her chest as she rakes her gaze over the woman sitting in front of her before finally allowing it to escape, her nostrils flaring with the intensity of the air rushing from her lungs.  For a moment everything is still, and then the Governess’ lips slowly begin to curl upwards into a half smile, that in truth appears more of a twisted sneer. “Very well Ms Okumura, you’ve made your choice, but understand what it means.”

Immediately Lance’s eyes snap to Pamela, widening with confusion. He stumbles over his words, desperately trying to cling to his illusion of a collected leader, “what? You- but you can’t, she-”

Pamela cuts him off, her tone harsh, and it’s clear she is quickly reaching the end of her tether and Lance’s direct questioning of her is only accelerating it. “Yumiko has made her stance known, and it is clear she will not be changing it today. I see no reason to drag out this meeting even longer when it is obvious the outcome will remain the same.”

In all honesty Yumiko’s somewhat surprised the Governess isn’t pushing any further, but then again, all three of them know she’s made her decision and there will be no changing it. 

The only person she knows more stubborn than her is Magna - which in truth used to be the reason behind the majority of their disputes. Not anymore though, the both of them have spent a long time working on being more aware of the others views and understanding of why they see things in such a way, and things have been good between them for a while now.  However that’s not something Yumiko will be doing today, or at any time. What Pamela and Lance want from her is not something she will ever be willing to give, for in doing so she will be giving them a piece of her soul.

Lance’s lips part, an argument formed and ready to be launched from them, but Pamela speaks before he can, addressing the lawyer dismissively, “Yumiko you may leave.”

The relief flooding through the lawyer’s chest is almost palpable. She knows this won’t be the end of this conversation, but it’s over for now and she hastily gathers her things and stands, murmuring a thank you to the Governess as she does, and makes her way to the meeting room door.

No sooner has her grip closed around the door handle than Pamela calls out, Yumiko pauses, but refrains from looking at her, and instead rakes her eyes over the dark wood of the door. Although the Governess’ voice carries with it an air of nonchalance, there’s a sinister edge to it that has her skin tingling icily, “but remember Yumiko, you are the one who made this choice, you accepted the consequences we warned you of. Should something happen, you’ve accepted that it’s you who decided for it to, you are the one at fault and you alone.” 

Miko can feel Pamela and Lance’s eyes burning into her back, daring her to face them, instead she swallows thickly and opens the door, refusing to give them the satisfaction.  As she steps through it, Pamela speaks up a final time, “however, if you wish to change your mind at any point please know my door is always open.”

Yumiko sees her words for the threat that they are. All three of them know she’s placed herself directly into Pamela and Lance’s firing line, and now the Commonwealth’s leader has made it clear there is only one way out of it alive.

In spite of her adrenaline beginning to burn away into fear of what she’s about to walk herself into, Yumiko still doesn’t turn around, doesn’t give them the satisfaction of making her question herself for even a moment. She knows she’s made the right choice, and no matter what they throw at her, no matter the harm they bring to her, she won’t turn her back on it.

She won’t turn her back on a fifteen year old girl and her grieving parents.

Inhaling sharply, Yumiko steps through the doorway and pulls it closed behind her, and only when she hears the click of the latch does she release the air from her lungs. Closing her eyes she allows herself a moment to breathe and release the tension and horror that has settled on her shoulders over the last few hours within the meeting room. 

Then again, the weight of the knowledge she possesses is not one that will be easily lifted, and the lawyer knows it will be one she carries with her for a long time to come.

Gathering herself, Yumiko exhales and makes her way down the corridor, but in spite of the relief growing within her with every step she takes away from the meeting room there’s a worry beginning to seep through her and settling itself into her very bones.  This is not the last she will hear of this, for Yumiko is starkly aware of the righteous power held within Pamela and Lance’s hands, she knows that to defy them is to look the devil in his eye and tell him no.

And she knows the devil does not go down without a fight.

—------

Now, sitting on her couch days later, Yumiko’s at a loss. Her mind has been a swirling mess since the meeting, echos of all that was said drifting through her thoughts, depictions of what Johns did terrorising her late at night to a point where she’s beginning to wonder if there’s any point in even trying to sleep anymore.

Never, when she’d entered that train yard with Eugene and the others, did Yumiko think this is where she’d end up. She thought they were about to find help, to finally be given a hand up by the universe after all they’d endured. But no, instead she finds herself sitting on her couch with an empty wine bottle on the table for the fourth night in a row, in desperate hope it will numb the terrors in her head.

Because in spite of her hopes, apparently any moment of reprieve from the onslaught of horrors the world seems intent on throwing at them would have been too easy.

When they’d first entered this place she’d felt such hope, such relief that her family may finally know peace, that Magna may finally know peace. But, as seemingly happens with all things in this new world of horrors, the surface paint has long chipped away to reveal the rotten core underneath. 

All she desires is somewhere for them to belong, somewhere to put down roots and allow themselves to bloom in full, a place to rest their weary bodies where the Archeron no longer laps at their heels. She craves better for her family, for herself, to be free from living a life constantly looking over her shoulder at the danger trailing behind - whether the hand of the dead or of a more human touch.

Yumiko wants somewhere to make her home with Magna, somewhere they can finally just be without fear of being torn from each other the second they have a moment to breathe. 

She wishes for Magna to have a place to belong for more than a fleeting moment, somewhere she can finally have the stability and routine she so desperately craves yet has remained all too elusive for the majority of her life. Somewhere she can feel safe enough to begin removing the claws of her past and burdens from her back. Somewhere she can allow herself to be free of all that’s come before and look ahead to things coming and embrace them with open arms.

Yumiko just wants her family to have a home, a real one, a proper one. 

They’d been given a glimpse at one inside the walls of Hilltop, and for a fleeting moment she’d thought they were finally being allowed a reprieve from the utter shitstorm the universe seemed intent on continuously raining over them. 

For, after all they’ve endured so far, by now the bar is so low Lucifer himself is using it to play limbo in hell. 

Yet, apparently it seems there is still room underneath it for her current reality to lie, for those in power here are dancing right alongside him. 

Because in spite of the fact they find themselves in what appears on the surface to be the very place she wishes for her love and her family to have, Yumiko would argue even the rig was better than here.

At least back then they knew of the danger surrounding them, they knew who they could trust and that those around them always had their backs. Yes, admittedly they fought for their lives on a literal daily basis and lived on whatever they could scavenge, but they did so together.

They did it as a cohesive unit, working with and for each other, caring for and looking out for one another and keeping their family safe. 

Nowadays, the safest thing Yumiko can do for them all is to stay far away from them.

She thought coming here would grant them the home they’ve been searching for, hoped it’d provide her and Magna somewhere to grow old together, safe and happy at last. 

And for a moment she’d believed they’d found it. Admittedly her love didn’t get off to the best start here, but Yumiko hadn’t been concerned. She thought they’d have time to settle and make things start working for them, rising up the ladder together, hand in hand as they always should be. The lawyer had thought they might be able to get an apartment together, or perhaps for Magna to simply move into hers - fuck knows it’s big enough - and they could begin a life here, a real one, a proper one.

She’d begun to dream about the future, to think of what it might hold for the two of them now the likelihood of them even having one isn’t in danger every time they wake up in the morning. 

And hey, who knows, maybe one day they’d get married, maybe not - both of them have always been somewhat on the fence about the whole concept. But then again Yumiko thinks that whilst marriage has never been a construct she’s seen herself partaking in, to be able to call Magna her wife and for her love to say the same in return, even just the thought sends a warmth through the very bones of her.

Yumiko had started to allow herself to wish, to believe that finally the two of them might have everything they’ve been dreaming of; and then the Commonwealth had proved itself to be nothing more than a deeper level of the hell they’re so desperately trying to claw themselves out of.

The lawyer found herself at the beck and call of the very people keeping Magna from being anywhere but the bottom of the very ladder she herself was being carried up. 

Yumiko thought the Commonwealth would be the place they could finally rest and live, and yet all they’ve done since walking through the gates is fight. Yes admittedly they’re fighting in the shadows now, meeting in secret to bring those in power down as opposed to wielding their weapons out in the open. 

Their battle may look different, but it’s a war nonetheless.

For The Commonwealth is a show in which everyone plays their part dutifully, mastering their role in the story of illusion to perfectly angle the smoke and mirrors like some elaborate play where no one cares what truly lies beneath someone's mask as long as they get the script right.

And on Friday Yumiko had made the puppet masters appear as no more than court jesters.

It’s an elaborate system that requires total loyalty and following from those involved, one that demands totalitarian compliance, and Yumiko denied it.

She denied them.

And in doing so tightened the puppet strings that hang around her neck like a noose.

Yumiko’s more than aware that she’s playing with fire, skimming her hand through the flames and praying she doesn’t get burnt. She’d be ignorant to not understand that she’s opened herself up to Pamela’s wrath, and naive to hope it won’t be sent her way with chilling fury. And Miko knows fire is manageable. She’s dealt with enough of it in her lifetime to know there’s a way of dousing the flames until they’re nothing but embers that will eventually cease. And once it’s out you can heal the scorches that ail you, bandaging the wounds and allowing time to soothe them away into scars and memories.

But this time around, the lawyer knows it’s not a fiery rage that’s coming for her, it’s an icy wrath, hunting her down until she either convinces Pamela to call it off or it engulfs her entirely, lashing against her in punishment for her disobedience until there’s nothing left of her.

A burning fury she can deal with, but there’s no escaping when fire burns you cold.

The lawyer knows this isn’t over, knows Pamela and Lance will make good on their threats against her. They may be obvious, violent, or they may be quiet, secretly ruining her from the shadows until she concedes and gives them what they want. But Yumiko also knows that in spite of the dangers that lie ahead of her, she stands by her decision, stands by her refusal to allow them to twist her into a monster like them.

She has to be careful, that much is obvious, and she plans to warn the others of the risk surrounding her; she's just yet to see any of them. But thanks to the chiming clock, it's now officially Tuesday and the knowledge brings with it a lightness that’s been all too elusive these past days, for it means tomorrow she gets to see Mags again. 

She plans to tell her about it all of course. Whilst she’ll only warn Connie, Kelly, Daryl, Rosita, Carol, and Tomi of the lazer target on her back, Yumiko knows there will be no keeping this from her love. Not least because she knows Magna will attempt to rain down fiery hell on anyone that dares even contemplate harming a hair on her head unless she’s made starkly aware of just how desperately they need to maintain their act.

Never has it been more important that their relationship be kept secret, never before has it been so imperative that she and Magna calculate each and every step before they even think of taking it. 

Of course, even if there were no threat of imminent danger Yumiko would tell Magna everything anyway. She knows her girlfriend will support her, will remind her of the terrors lurking in the shadows of this hellscape and that she’s done the right thing by not allowing them to wrap her in their clutches and drag her into their darkness. Whilst Yumiko doesn’t regret her actions, this is not information she can cope with alone, and she knows she doesn’t have to, that Mags will listen, will soothe her fears and remind her that she is not one of the monsters in charge of this place, but instead someone they desperately wish to control.

A chime jolts Yumiko from her thoughts, and when two more follow she resigns herself to the acceptance that whilst her sleep may be terrorised by all that fills her mind, she can’t put it off any longer.

That, and every hour that passes is an hour closer to being in Magna’s arms.

Unwilling to find the energy to clear away her glass and the empty bottle tonight, she stands and stretches with a heavy sigh before trudging to her bedroom. Tomorrow is a new day, one she hopes will bring with it a sign that perhaps everything might just work out in the end.

—---

It’s late Tuesday evening when a quiet but urgent knocking on her door drags Yumiko’s attention away from the paperwork sprawled across her kitchen island. 

Glancing at the clock on the living area wall her brow creases in confusion. The hour is too late for it to be anyone unintentionally coming over and she’s also conscious that whilst sometimes her focus on her work can cause time to run away with her and make her late, she doesn’t have any plans with anyone tonight. 

None of her family have made her aware of any intent to stop by and Yumiko knows her girlfriend wouldn’t outright come here - even in an emergency - for it’s simply too dangerous. Besides, she’s seeing Mags tomorrow night at Carol’s place above the bakery (their friend organising her own plans for the evening to allow them the space to themselves) so anything she might require of her or needs to talk about can simply be done so tomorrow.

Whoever is on the other side of her door is clearly of little patience for another burst of knocks sounds out again and Yumiko can practically hear the desperation reverberating into her apartment with every thud. She stands cautiously and makes her way over to the door, however, when she looks through the peephole her confusion only grows at the sight greeting her. 

Unlocking the door without second thought Yumiko pulls it open to reveal Daryl and Rosita, both wearing their black soldier underclothes and the image of utter distress. 

“Can we come in?” Rosita speaks before Miko can even open her mouth to greet them, and the sheer worry lacing her tone has her heart filling with unease. 

Stepping aside, she pulls the door open to allow her friends into her apartment and glances down the hallway to ensure they haven’t been followed, before closing it quietly and turning to face them. The two of them look out of place as they stand awkwardly in her living room surrounded by finery and all kinds of luxury that those in authority have deemed their top, and personal, lawyer deserving of. 

A beat of silence passes by as they shift their weight awkwardly and Yumiko’s anxiety only grows as tension sweeps across the room like a thick, unwelcome fog. The worry written across their faces is cause enough for concern, for if something has gotten these two especially in the state they are, she knows it’s nothing good.

“Yumiko…” Rosita begins but trails off, her eyes falling to the floor as she does, and it’s clear that whatever she has to say will not easily be voiced.

“What?” She doesn’t even attempt to conceal the apprehension within her voice, for she knows her friends wouldn’t be standing before her right now if there wasn’t cause for it.

Daryl speaks up then, his eyes shifting from Rosita to meet hers, “It’s…” he sighs, gruff and strained, “it’s Magna, we-”

He falters, but at the mention of Magna’s name Yumiko feels her heart plummet from her chest into a deep pit of sheer, utter dread.

“Tell me.” It’s a demand not a request, and her friends know it.

Rosita inhales shakily, but when she speaks nothing could’ve prepared Yumiko for the words leaving her mouth, and it takes everything in her to stop her knees giving way underneath her.

“Magna, we- we think she’s missing.”

------