HUG
Five days ago, RJ Grimes finally realized that the stories his mama and sister shared with him, along with the whispers among the other Alexandrians, were true.
The little boy had more confidence in his identity than he ever had before.
He was part bear, part royalty, and part superhero.
"RJ is the prince of Alexandria."
"Michonne is a mama bear and will do anything to protect her cubs."
"Mom says that Dad ripped out a man's throat in order to save her and our older brother Carl."
"Your father's doing everything he can to get back to us, but he's on a very special mission, and we have to be patient while we wait on him to return. Once he's done, he's going to come home and give you the biggest hug!"
RJ wouldn't admit it to anyone now, but he sometimes thought his family and the people in the neighborhood were lying to him.
If he were a prince, Judith a princess, and Mama a queen, then why didn't they wear crowns or shiny clothes like the royalty in the picture books?
If Mama were a bear, then when would she change? At night, like a werewolf? And why did it seem as if everyone but him got to see her as a bear?
Daddy must also be part bear. How else could he have killed a man only using his teeth?
How long was Daddy's secret mission going to last? What if something happened to him before he could make it back?
And if everyone were lying, then why?
Maybe Mama was trying to make the bedtime stories more exciting.
Maybe Judith was just trying to scare him.
Maybe everyone was hoping RJ wouldn't put too much thought into his father's whereabouts.
As of five days ago, RJ could put most of the doubts and concerns behind him.
He still had questions, but he could now ask his father.
XXXXXXXXXX
Michonne, with RJ in her lap, rode to the bridge. The bridge destroyed years ago when Rick sacrificed himself for his family, including his wife, daughter, and members of the adjacent communities.
Michonne found out weeks later that Rick's family also included her unborn son, who along with her daughter, prevented Michonne from becoming the monster that she believed herself to be following the losses of Mike and Andre.
Rick left her with two gifts, pieces of himself, a legacy to be protected without question.
One thing Michonne did early in RJ's life was to visit the bridge on her own to have conversations with Rick. While she thought this was a reasonable way of working through her trauma, she did not think it was in the children's best interest to witness it. They wouldn't understand the nuance.
As she recounted Rick's exploits to her son and daughter, often using elements from Carl's comic books to embellish and thrill, she realized that the bridge was integral to the mythology that she had created for the love of her life. While Judith was now old enough to understand what Michonne was doing but no longer buying it, RJ appeared to take his mother's tales to heart.
It was never more apparent than the morning RJ asked if he could see where his father fought his last major battle in Alexandria, where he defeated a scary group of growling monsters with rotting skin by using his superpowers to set fire to the bridge. According to Mama, a big-time government official saw what Rick had done and was so impressed with his work, decided to use him for a "very special mission".
RJ wanted to see the bridge, and Michonne didn't have the heart to turn him down. Even though RJ was okay with his father doing his part to save the world, just like his mother and sister, the little boy yearned to have even the smallest connection with his father and hold onto it for as long as time would allow.
Michonne kept her son in her lap as they sat at a tree that provided a perfect view of the dilapidated structure. She kept RJ close, wrapping her arms around his waist and burying her head into the curly locks undoubtedly inherited from his father.
"I thought after the superheroes saved everyone, they went back and fixed the buildings and everything," RJ observed.
Michonne paused before answering, knowing that she needed to satisfy RJ's curiosity while continuing to shield him from the complete story that he was still too young to fully grasp, that Rick's hopes of everyone coming together for a common cause failed to come to fruition following his presumed death.
"Well, your father had to leave so quickly that he couldn't stay and fix the bridge. I'm sure that he'll work on it when he comes back."
RJ turned to his mother with a small frown. "He's still gonna hug me first, right?"
Michonne responded with a laugh and a slight tear filling her eye. She hugged her son even more tightly. "Of course."
The boy looked back to the bridge. The two sat mostly in silence for an unknown amount of time, with RJ chiming in every so often to ask a question.
The scene became so serene that Michonne had not realized that she had briefly dozed off, waking only because her son was attempting to break away from her, his hopping and pointing toward the bridge alerting her that something had gotten his attention.
"Mama! Those look like the monsters you were telling me about!"
Michonne's eyes went wide, then she squinted to attempt to make out what RJ was seeing.
There were two figures moving along the bridge's remnants, but they weren't walkers. She could see two men, one black and one white. Both with shaved heads. The black man wearing glasses. The white man was hobbling and pressing his right hand near his ribs, with the black man using what little strength he had to keep his companion upright. Both men were wearing what appeared to be blue jumpsuits, as if they had just escaped from a prison.
Michonne supposed that she was still asleep and was now in so deep that she was dreaming. She blinked her eyes several times to get the clearest view possible of the men. Maybe if she kept blinking, she would wake up.
"Mama! Mama!" RJ cried, continuing his attempts to remove himself from her hold.
They never found a body. She continued to talk to him. She wore his shirts. She transformed him into a larger than life personality.
Michonne was aware that everyone thought her to be in some mental limbo when it came to her husband's demise. They all knew he was dead but allowed Michonne to behave the way she did because keeping Rick alive and raising their children fueled her and kept her going as the warrior and leader Alexandria needed. There were times that she even convinced herself that Rick being alive was all in her mind.
Her blinking and overthinking weren't changing the sight in front of her, nor was it going to help the men who were obviously in distress.
There was only one way to confirm.
"RICK!" Michonne screamed.
Silence swept over the scene. Michonne stood up but made sure not to lose contact with her son by gripping one of his hands. RJ was now scared silent, only staring up at his mother.
"RICK!"
She could see that the men were looking in the direction of her calls. When they reached the edge of the damaged bridge, unable to travel any further, the injured man made his way to the ground, still clutching his side. The other man gently assisted him. She saw the injured man take a large inhale, and with the last reserve of energy, he exclaimed—
"MICHONNE!"
XXXXXXXXXX
The subsequent hours and days were a blur.
Michonne and her fellow Alexandrians rescued Rick and his companion. The companion turned out to be Heath, thought to have been dead even longer than Rick.
Both men were taken to the infirmary, under Siddiq's observation. They were suffering from dehydration and exhaustion. Siddiq informed Michonne that both men appeared to had undergone long-term abuse, with wounds healed long ago as well as fresh ones. Rick also had broken ribs. Neither man was in good enough condition to provide details on where they had been nor how they had made it back home.
RJ had yet to talk to or really see his dad. Once the rescue mission was underway, Michonne specifically requested for Nora to get to the bridge to take RJ. He and Judith had since been staying with her.
Both children were anxious to reunite with their father, but Judith understood and assured RJ that Daddy needed to get better before they could see him. She even took a page from Mama's playbook and told him that even superheroes needed rest. She confessed to Nora one evening that even in this world of walkers, there was a still a place for dreams, wishes, and fantasies; maybe there was more truth to them than she had originally believed.
XXXXXXXXXX
Rick and Heath had been in the infirmary for five days when Nora gathered the children and informed them that they could see their father today. They were immediately as hyper and excited as kids on a Christmas day before the world changed.
They were standing outside the door, attempting to peak through the crack to catch any glimpse of Rick. RJ's questions about his father and his identity still swirled in his mind. Minutes passed before Michonne opened the door from the other side, with a beaming smile that RJ had never seen and Judith could barely recall.
"Now guys, be careful. He's still sore-"
The kids raced past their mother and jogged to their dad. He was sitting up in his bed, small bandages adoring his forehead and bigger bandages on his arms. Yet he shared the same cheery grin as his wife, with arms wide to accept his children.
Judith sat to his right, aware of his ribs. She placed her head on his chest and reached her arm around his waist as lightly as possible. RJ, more aggressive in his approach, wrapped one arm around his father's neck and rested his head on Rick's shoulder.
Michonne initially stood at the foot of the bed, watching the scene play out in front of her. Rick titled his head toward his son and closed his eyes, while rubbing Judith's side. Both parents' smiles soon transformed into tears.
She walked over to her daughter and placed a kiss at the top of her sheriff's hat, not only as a show of love to her daughter but also in remembrance of Carl in the moment. Getting Rick back meant that some part of Carl had also returned. Their voices no longer just fading memories for the young girl.
Michonne then went to her son and moved a hand through his curls. The little boy shut his eyes and tightened his hold on his father. His questions could wait a while longer.
"See? I told you that he would give you that hug."