A/N: Based on the Daily Writing Prompt from Writers Write on Tumblr:

Your protagonist has a secret talent. Why does he or she hide this from the other characters in the story?

Set in the prison era; Rick has a secret he doesn't want anyone to find out. Richonne fluff one-shot.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead

Warning: It's fluffy!

The crisp, cool air of the early morning always shook Michonne from her slumber; she was not the type of person who particularly enjoyed the cooler seasons. Her eyes slowly opened as the first glints of sunlight touched the drab walls of her cell. She felt stiff and did not want to move out of her bed and relinquish the covers that enfolded her form tightly. Michonne let out a groan as she stretched and moved to a sitting position; the cement floor felt icy under her feet. She quickly found her boots and pulled them on. While she did not want to be out of bed at that hour, she had to catch up with Rick before she left on the run with the others.

Rick was always the first person to be awake and moving around at the prison; having a baby meant that he rarely had time to rest when he was supposed to be resting. However, he did not mind because he got to spend the time with his daughter.

Rick held Judith in his left arm, wrapped in her small blanket, and tried to fix her bottle with his free hand; he was finding it difficult. Michonne stopped at the door of the common area and smiled; there was something special about watching Rick Grimes holding his little girl. She watched them a moment longer before going to his aid.

"Here, let me." said Michonne as she reached for Judith's bottle. She screwed the lid on tightly and shook the contents vigorously.

"Thanks." Offered Rick as he moved to sit at one of the tables and placed his child on his lap.

Judith tried to wriggle free from the blanket as Michonne brought her bottle over; kicking her little feet until her pink knitted booties covering her feet popped out of the bottom of her blanket.

"Oh they're new." Said Michonne, gesturing to the socks the baby was wearing. "Who found them?"

She understood that Rick did not go out on runs anymore, so figured that someone must have found the booties for Judith.

"Ah, yeah." Rick started unevenly. "Um, Sasha found 'em."

Michonne found his stumbling on words to be a little strange; it was as if he were unsure of what to say. What's goin' on with you, Rick? She thought a moment, but then brushed his odd behaviour aside while she grabbed some cereal and poured the warm, powdered milk over it in a small plastic bowl.

"Good find; they're very cute." She said and took up a seat across from Rick and Judith.

They sat in comfortable silence a little while; Rick would look over at her every so often when he was certain she was not looking. He noticed that she had her sleeve pulled right down so that you could not see her hand when she held the spoon.

"Are you cold?" He asked finally. Michonne lifted her head to meet his eyes with her own.

"Yep. This place is so cold; I'm not good with the cold and I can never warm up." She answered.

"I'm different; my body is naturally warm. It's good being outside in the sun too. I'd say it's colder inside from all of the concrete; not much insulation in here." He said pragmatically.

Michonne lost her train of thought a moment at the mention of Rick's warm body. She was certain she would have no trouble getting to sleep on a cold night if she had Rick pressed closely against her. Michonne shook her head slightly as if physically trying to shake the thought from her mind; now her face grew warm.

"My cell is the worst; it takes me forever to get to sleep at night and then it's a struggle to get up in the mornings. I'm just so pleased you guys made the fire pit." She said quickly trying to change the subject.

Rick nodded; the fire pit was a great idea and he was enjoying the evenings spent sitting around it just talking happily with his family and friends. It became quiet once more until Rick spoke up.

"You ready for the run today?" He asked, holding Michonne's gaze.

"Yeah, I think so." She answered. "Which reminds me, was there anything you wanted me to bring back for you while we're out there?"

Rick looked contemplative for a moment before shaking his head.

"Just make sure you bring yourself back."

He offered playfully wearing a rare smirk that made Michonne's stomach feel as if it were doing little flips. She smiled back at Rick and he swore that his body began to warm up even more than it already was. Judith sat tugging at her father's collar; unaware that the adults were having a moment. She then giggled at something and drew Michonne out of her daze; the woman glanced at the little girl and asked in a sweet and gentle tone:

"What about you, Judy? You need anything? Maybe more cute socks, yeah?"

Judith mumbled something in baby talk and reached for Michonne.

"I'll take that as a yes then." She said and both she and Rick chuckled.

xXxXx

Michonne, Sasha, Bob and Daryl drove into the main part of the town and went over their plan of action once more; this was to be a general supply run which meant they would pair off, fill their respective bags and meet back at the car. Sasha was with Bob and Michonne and Daryl were paired; they were about to head off in different directions before Michonne called out to Sasha:

"Psst. Sasha? Where'd you find the booties for Judith? I wanna try to get some more for her."

Sasha looked at her friend in a somewhat perplexed manner.

"Booties? Nah, that wasn't me; must've been someone else." She answered.

Michonne furrowed her brow and shrugged.

"Ah, okay." was all she said as they turned and headed off.

xXxXx

It was late afternoon before the group that was on the run returned to the prison. Carol and Carl greeted them at the gate and let them in. Rick removed his gardening gloves, placed them on the makeshift fence and jogged over to see his friends. They unloaded the bags and Bob drove the car to the designated parking area.

"How'd it go out there?" Rick asked Daryl before sneaking a look at Michonne who was carrying Bob's bags as well as her own.

"Good. Got a good haul and didn't run into big trouble." Said Daryl.

Rick nodded and moved to Michonne.

"Here, I'll carry those." He offered and took two of the bags from her.

Their fingers brushed slightly as she handed Bob's haul over to Rick; their eyes locked a moment and small smiled graced both of their faces.

"Thanks." Michonne offered quietly.

xXxXx

The group sat around the fire pit enjoying the heat that was radiating from the flames; Michonne sat beside Carl and held her hands out so that she could warm them. She would glance around the circle and listen to the different conversations that were taking place. Carl would nudge her every so often to show her something in the comic book that she had found for him on the run. They would share a laugh and she would feel warm on the inside when she saw his face light up.

Rick sat not too far away and watched Michonne with his son; he could not remember the last time he had seen Carl laugh and smile that way. She was a good influence on Carl; they both got on so well considering he was very vocal about not wanting her to remain at the prison initially. To look at them now one would never have known that.

Rick could not help but let a small smile play on his own face every time Michonne beamed; everything about her countenance changed when she smiled and it was marvellous to watch.

"You okay?" Asked Hershel as his eyes followed Rick's line of sight.

"Yeah." Came Rick's reply.

"She's good for Carl. They get on well." Said the older man.

Rick looked at him and nodded knowingly.

xXxXx

Michonne was in her cold cell looking through her bag with a flashlight; she retrieved the object that she had procured for Rick on the run. Luckily, it was still in that shop where she had seen it several weeks ago. She would never have thought to grab it then, but after her conversation with Rick that morning, it seemed appropriate.

Michonne bundled it under her arm and headed for his cell; she could see Rick's silhouette on the sheet that offered him some privacy. She knocked three times and waited for his reply.

Rick drew the sheet back and smiled when he saw that it was Michonne who was visiting him.

"Hey, come on in." He said and held the sheet back so that she could enter his quarters.

Judith was fast asleep in her crib; Michonne smiled down at the sleeping child before taking a seat at the table in the corner. Rick sat down on his bed and they began to speak in hushed tones.

"I know you didn't need anything in particular from the run today." She started. "But I saw this and thought of you."

Michonne tossed the object across the room to Rick and he caught it easily; it seemed to be an item of clothing. When Rick held it up, he saw that it was a yellow t-shirt; he laughed when he saw the writing emblazoned across the front of it. Written in fire engine red were the words "Hot Stuff" and there was the outline of some flames behind the writing.

"Hot stuff?" Rick asked. "You think I'm 'hot stuff', uh?"

He wore a teasing look on his face as Michonne realized how it must have seemed; her own face grew warm.

"What? No. I mean, yeah. I mean, of course you're attractive. But that's not what I meant, I didn't see it and think, Rick's hot so I'll get this for him; oh, but it's not that you're not hot, 'cause you are. I got it because, you know. Oh god, I can't believe I just called you hot. I'll just shut up now!"

She offered completely flustered and covering her face with her hands; Rick sat there wearing a wide grin.

"No, go on. I wanna hear about how hot you think I am." He teased.

Michonne took a deep breath and tried to explain the gift.

"Anyways, I got it because of what you said at breakfast. About your body being naturally warm…"

"So you were out on the run thinkin' about my body?" He interrupted.

"You're enjoyin' teasing me way too much, Rick! I don't expect you to wear it in the public, but you can use it as a night shirt, alright? I gotta go."

She said half holding back a smile and half horrified at how embarrassed she was becoming. Michonne stood and made her way to the door before Rick caught her hand in his.

"Hey, thank you." He said genuinely before she smiled and left.

xXxXx

Michonne was already in the common area cupping a mug of hot coffee in her hands in an attempt to warm them when Rick came in with Judith. He and Michonne greeted one another and, after Judith's bottle was made and Rick picked up something to eat, he sat opposite Michonne.

Michonne noticed Judith was wearing the beanie she had found for her on the run.

"Oh, she looks so cute in it." She offered playfully. "At least she's wearing the gift I got her, unlike her daddy."

"Hey!" Said Rick, feigning offence. "I did sleep in it. Besides, how would I explain it to everyone that you think I'm hot?"

"Oh, Grimes. It's too early for this and I haven't even had my coffee yet, so calm down." Michonne said as she chuckled.

"Yes ma'am." Replied a smiling Rick.

"I actually couldn't find any more socks for Judith; seemed like it was all summer stuff at the shops. Was lucky to find the beanie in a car." Michonne said before adding:

"Oh, and Sasha said she didn't find those booties for Judith; you feelin' a little absent minded there, are ya, Rick?" Michonne teased, but noticed that Rick became a little uneasy.

"Ah, right. Yeah. Must've been someone else then." He stammered.

"Rick? You okay?" She asked, becoming concerned.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" He asked.

"Well, you just seem a little odd whenever I talk about Judith's booties; what's up with that? It's like it's a huge secret about where they came from."

"I don't know what you mean." He offered vaguely.

"Rick, have you got a secret supplier? Or maybe you just have a secret." Michonne now teased.

"No, not at all. No secrets." Was his reply as he stood and readied to exit. "I gotta go."

With that, Rick took Judith and left Michonne sitting at the table, shivering from the cold and thinking about Rick being strange.

xXxXx

Michonne yawned as she stepped into her cell; she turned on the lantern that sat atop her desk in the corner and reluctantly kicked her boots off. She noticed there was something small and colourful sitting on her bed near what appeared to be a piece of paper. She picked up the paper to see that it was a note written in messy penmanship; it read:

Here are some socks for you since you seem so interested in Judith's. I hope they keep your feet warm.

-Rick

Michonne smiled to herself and then picked up the multi-coloured, mismatched knitted socks. They were nothing like Judith's cute ones, but they sure felt soft. They were warm when she slipped them on and she happily thought about going to thank Rick when she heard a rapping at her door.

"Come in." She called out and Rick entered looking at her coyly; he remained in the doorway watching Michonne who was now seated on her bed.

"So you found my gift, then?" He asked gesturing to the socks.

"Yes, thank you! They're nice and warm." She smiled.

"Good. Sorry that they're odd." Rick offered quietly. "I ran out of pink wool, so had to use what other colours I had left."

Michonne tilted her head slightly and looked questioningly at Rick.

"Ran out of pink wool?" She asked. "Rick, are you tellin' me you knitted these socks?"

Rick now became a little shy as he looked to the floor, back to Michonne and then answered.

"Yeah. I knitted 'em; I knitted Judith's as well."

Michonne smiled brightly at him and shook her head.

"Wow! Rick! That's why you were acting secretive; you didn't want me to know you can knit?" She asked.

Rick nodded his head: "Yep. That's basically it."

"You don't have to keep it a secret, seriously, it's cool. You really are multi-talented, Rick. Where did you learn?" Michonne said sincerely.

He seemed a little more at ease now that he knew she was not going to laugh in his face and scream to the high heavens: "Our fearless leader knows how to knit!"

"My grandma taught me; spent a lot of time with her growing up. I would sit with her and listen to her talk about the ol' days while she was knittin' and one day I asked her to show me."

Michonne smiled at Rick.

"That's a nice story." She said and they both shared a grin before she went on to add:

"This is the best news I've heard! I will survive this winter if I find more wool! You came make me all kinds of gloves and windcheaters and more socks!" She said excitedly.

"Hey now!" Said Rick. "It's not like I got that kinda time."

They both laughed.

"I know. I'm sorry. These will do just fine. I love them. Thanks again." She said.

Rick nodded and went to leave; satisfied that she was pleased with the gift, but he stopped and began to speak once more.

"Hopefully they'll keep your feet warm and help you get to sleep tonight." Said Rick. "But if they don't, you just remember that my body is naturally warm and I'm happy to share it with you."

Michonne beamed at Rick and took note of his implied message.

"Okay, I'll remember that, hot stuff."

A/N: I warned you it was fluffy! LOL Imagine Rick Grimes sitting up with his granny knitting hehehe