"Excuse me, hi" A voice called and all guns turned to the owner, everyone alert and ready to kill whoever had snuck up on them. A women stood holding her hands up in surrender, she looked nervous but she kept talking anyway. "I was wondering if you could help me"
"No" Rick responded clicking the safety off his gun, ready to shoot her but for some reason he paused.
"I don't want anything from you, i'm just looking for someone"
"Well then we don't know them"
"I-I haven't even told you who i'm looking for yet" The woman gulped staring around at them all. They weren't in the mood for strangers not after the prison and Terminus. Terminus further proved strangers were not to be trusted.
"We don't care" Abraham responded clicking the safety off his own gun. Everyone was glaring at the woman, wondering who the hell she was and how she found their camp. Also how she had snuck up on them. The woman stared at them turning the palm of her hand towards her face. Rick got ready to shoot.
"Michonne Andrews" She called out, stunning the whole group. Rick's finger pausing on the trigger.
"What did you say?" Michonne questioned stepping forward slightly, so that she was level with Rick.
"It's the person i'm looking for, Michonne Andrews"
"How do you know my name?"
"Is that you?" The woman blinked her, surprise clear on her face.
"That's my name, how do you know it"
"Where you at a refugee camp when the outbreak hit?" The women quizzed tilting her head slightly.
"Yeah i was why?" Michonne nodded, feeling extremely uncomfortable, the group could feel it.
"Do you remember me?"
"No, should I?"
"I guess not, I was at the refugee camp with you, my brother Randy used to go on runs with you" The woman explained a small smile on her face.
"Doesn't ring a bell"
The woman nodded in response her small smile not faltering, she went to lower her hands but a glare from Rick made her keep them up.
"It doesn't matter, i've been looking for you, for a really really long time"
"Why what do you want?" Michonne questioned her eyes narrowing in on the woman as she took her in, she didn't look dangerous, rather small petite and dainty looking, really skinny as well, and Michonnes name was written upon her hand, it looked like she had written it multiple times every time it was about to fade. Michonne's eyes narrowed further her hands adjusting on her sword.
"Why do you have my name written on your hand?"
"So i didn't forget it, i told you i've been looking for you for a really long time, your names all i had to go on" The woman responded glancing at her hand again.
"Why have you been looking for me?"
"I waited around the camp for a while, hoping I'd see you, i never did, so i've just been searching ever since, every group i came across i asked them if they knew you, some were nice, some weren't so kind" She mused her hands touching a scar on her cheek.
"I said, why have you been looking for me"
"So i could give you back your son"
Michonne felt her whole world freeze and her group turned to look at her in wonder. Her heart tightened and tears wanted to spill from her eyes.
"My son died along time ago" She growled her hands tightening on her sword. She didn't know how this stranger knew her or her son but to try use it on her. Michonne really wanted to kill her.
"No he didn't, when your partner went to go smoke with his friend, they asked me to look after Andre-"
Hearing his name Made Michonne's chest tighten even more, how did this stranger know her sons name, did she really have him?"
"-then the corpses attacked, i ran somewhere safe, and waited around but i never saw you again" The woman explained, Michonne stared back at her, trying to look for any sign of deceit but the woman's eyes look genuine, and for the first time in a very look time Michonne felt hope.
"So where is he then?" Rick cut in bringing the woman's attention to him, he glanced around her, his eyes searching for her group no doubt she had one. Probably watching them.
"I'm not stupid enough to bring him to every camp i go to" She responded, staring straight back at Rick.
"That doesn't answer my question of where he is"
"At my camp obviously"
"And let me guess you want us to follow you to your camp" Rick responded giving Michonne a look, that said 'this was a trap'.
"Not really no, I don't know you and i have two sons of my own I'm protecting, strangers aren't to be trusted that's a little fact i found out the hard way, i don't intend to endanger my sons lives, i just want to help a boy find his mother"
"So how do we get to find her son then?"
"Well i wanted to confirm it was Michonne and i'll bring him here tomorrow" She shrugged glancing at Rick as if it ask if that arrangement was okay. Rick shook his head as if her words were funny, he suspected a trap all the group did but the small bit of hope on Michonne's face was the only reason he didn't shoot her.
"Okay" He nodded feeling his group turn to him, but his eyes were locked with Michonne's, she needed to know now that she had been given a new found hope. "Okay, tomorrow then, but if you try something, or this is a trap, i'll kill you"
The woman raised an eyebrow a small frown on her face but she nodded, stepping backwards towards the forest. "I guess that's a deal, but it's honestly no trap"
"We'll see"
They watched her disappear in to the forest and out of sight, listening for her foot steps, when they could no longer hear her they all turned to each other.
"This sounds like a trap"
"I know"
"So we're just going to wait for her to bring her group to us?" Rosita questioned really not liking the idea.
"No we're not, but Michonne-"
"I know Rick I know" Michonne nodded giving Rick a small smile. "You don't have to say it, I made my peace long ago that he was dead, i won't get my hopes up"
Rick nodded his eyes locking with her for a second longer before he stepped in to the forest.
Clue pushed the bushes out of her way stepping back in to her camp, her friends jumping to their feet as she entered, both holding machete's, realising it was her, her friends lowered their selves back down picking at their cans of food. K-9 holding a can out to her.
"You find the group?"
"Yeah, hostile bunch" She mused sitting herself on the log beside Tee.
"They hurt you?"
"No but i'm pretty sure they would have killed me though"
"Why do you still insist on doing this Clue, people are dangerous, and i've lost count of how many times they've nearly killed you"
"Yeah it's a lost causes sweet heart time to give up, don't get me wrong it's amazing that you've not lost hope and kept trying all this time, but the worlds a different place now, time to let it go"
"Actually i found her" Clue mused staring back at her friends.
"You did?"
"Yeah i said her name and a woman answered"
"Doesn't mean it's her Clue, you know what people are like, how many times have they faked and story told to try come back to our camp?"
"I know I know, this time feels different"
"You say that all the time girl, sometimes i just wish you'd loose that Kind soul of yours so that i don't have to worry you won't come back one day"
"Well if this is her, i won't have to do this anymore"
"I don't get why you have to do it in the first place, I mean it's been what a year now maybe longer, the worlds over, even if she's alive there's no way to find her, it's an impossible task"
"I promised him, K-9"
"He's 4 Clue even he's lost hope now, you're practically his mum"
"But i'm not Tee" Clue responded her eyes resting on her friend. They hated her private mission, even though she never dragged either of them along with her, they didn't understand why she was determined or why she kept looking, after all the bad things that had happened, all the times strangers had tried to kill her, she still tried. She had barely escaped death way too many times to count and she still never gave up, they hated it.
"If that's his mum if she's alive, doesn't she deserve to know so is her son, don't they deserve to be together again"
"It's been a year, he barely remembers her and she's either dead or moved on"
"No one moves on from losing a child" K-9 added in shaking his head, his hand absentmindedly touching his tattoo with his daughters name. "Ever"
"Well then she's probably dead then"
"Like i said i have a lead, just need to see if it's her, and i'll find out tomorrow" Clue shrugged, turning to look behind her as her tent rustled a tiny body came out rubbing at his eyes. "What's up champ couldn't sleep?"
"No are you fighting?"
"No sweetie just talking" Clue smiled opening her arms so the tiny boy could climb on to her lap. "Did we wake you?" She questioned wrapping her jacket around him as the fire warmed them.
"A little bit"
"I'm sorry" Clue smiled stroking his eyes, only to jump to her feet in a panic when she heard something drop to the ground, a body coming out of the bushes followed by other, at first they thought it was walkers but then they saw all the guns aimed at them.
"Fuck" K-9 cursed attempting to hide the girls behind him, but Clue didn't move, her eyes were on the women who was stumbling towards her as if she had seen a ghost.
"Michonne, Michonne" Rick called, keeping his gun aimed at the glaring male, but Michonne didn't stop, her weapon laid long forgotten on the ground as she slowly stumbled towards the group, her legs like jelly. Tears freely streaming down her face.
"It can't be, it can't" She whispered falling to the ground, Clue smiled turning the boy in her arms around to face her and lowering him to the ground. Rick watched as his face lit up and he raced towards Michonne a cry leaving his lips.
"MUMMY!"
Michonne caught the tiny body in her arms, crying out thank you as his scent hit her nose, it was her baby. Her baby was alive, by what ever miracle he was alive. It was like a dream, and boy had she dreamed this many times but this, this was real, she could feel him, smell him, he was alive!
"My precious baby!" She cried, repeating thank you over and over again, she didn't care how weak she looked, her baby was alive!
"She wasn't lying" Glenn gaped feeling tears in his own eyes at the scene. Maggie and Carol wiping at their eyes beside him, even Rosita and Tara were tearing up.
"I guess not" Abraham added a sad smile on his face. Rick didn't know what to think, as he watched Michonne clutch her son to her, oblivious to the rest of the world around her. Her smile, her face, she was so happy, the demon that had haunted her, had been lifted away.
"You've had him since the beginning?" Rick questioned bringing Clue's eyes to him. "And you never gave up searching?"
"No, something always told me to keep going, i don't know, i've bumped in to alot of bad people, who've tried to kill me or worse while i searched, but something just said not to give up, i guess i just had alot of hope"
"You never lost hope all this time?"
"No and i'm glad i didn't" Clue smiled her eyes turning back to Michonne who glanced up at her.
"I, I, no words, can say what i'm feeling right now, and i can't repay you for this, you've given me the best gift i could have ever received, i can't, i can't repay you, I gave up when i lost him, i thought he was gone, when i walked in to that centre and there was walkers everywhere, and Mike and Terry where both bit and high, i lost all hope, I lost my self, but you brought my baby back to me, i can't thank you"
"I knew you were alive mummy, i knew it, Clue promised me she find you and she did, i knew you were alive!" Andre giggled hugging Michonne tightly. "My mummy is back"
"My baby is back"
"I guess there's still happy ending in an apocalypse huh" Glenn mused hugging Maggie to him.
"It's not an ending, its a new beginning"
All because someone never gave up hope.
