Thanks for the all of the great reviews and comments on the first chapter. Many of you picked up on certain things that were going on with Michonne, and this chapter will certainly expand on that. It's going to take a while for this all to unfold, so hang in there. Thanks for reading!

Michonne followed the paved pathway up to the doorstep, unlocked the door, and stepped inside her new home of just a few weeks. It was a small, simple house; but it far exceeded her expectations because when she pictured their future, she always thought home would come in the form of another unconventional setting like the prison. As thankful as she was for this house, it still felt a bit foreign to her. It was a study in browns with light beige carpeting, freshly painted darker beige walls, an overstuffed khaki sofa with two matching armchairs, and a dark wood coffee table. The only pop of color in the came from a small pink blanket lying in the middle of the room. She walked over to the blanket, picked it up, folded it, and draped it over the arm of the couch. She then grabbed a glass of water from the kitchen before heading upstairs to her bedroom.

She set the glass of water on her dresser and studied herself in the mirror as she unbuttoned her top. She had reinvented herself and adapted to changes so many times since the turn, but this transition wasn't going as easily as she expected it to. It was the closest to real life she'd been in years, yet she felt restless and anxious. At first she told herself that her body and mind were still in a state of hyper arousal after being in survival mode for so long, and that she would eventually settle down. Lately, though, she had started to identify this more as a feeling of something missing in her life. She had food, water, shelter, and safety. She also had her friends who had become her family. Now, however, she found herself thinking about things beyond the basic necessities like love, intimacy, a greater purpose in life. She wanted as many aspects of her old life back as she could, and being in this more normal setting made her more impatient to have them.

She slipped into bed and her mind wandered off to the first few days in Alexandria, thinking of how the initial skepticism of the group gave way to giddiness and hope once they realized this place may not be too good to be true. She smiled as she thought specifically of their third night in Alexandria. It was a night she found herself thinking back to often.

She stood in front of her dresser mirror trying to fashion her locks into a chignon at the base of her neck, but she was just a few pins short of being able to do so. She thought that wearing her hair back would compliment the plum colored sleeveless sheath dress she had found in her closet that day. The dress was plain with a high neck in the front, but had a deep V-shaped opening in the back which made her feel a little less conservative and a little more like herself. She finished it off with a pair of black peep-toe heels and a pair of fake diamond studs she found in the dresser drawer. She had exhausted the supply of hair pins in her room, so she decided to check elsewhere in the house. She walked down the hallway and knocked softly on the door of Rick's room hoping that his master bathroom may have some.

"Come in," he said.

She cracked the door and peeked her head in first, not wanting to barge in. He was standing directly across the room in front of his open closet with just a towel wrapped around his waist. His bare, muscular back was all she could see and she felt herself blush feeling like he wouldn't have invited her in if he knew it was her and not Carl. "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. I'll come back later," she said as she started backing out of the doorway.

He turned around at the sound of her voice revealing his clean shaven face. She reflexively gasped and brought her hands to her mouth shocked at the sight of him. She couldn't help her reaction as a huge smile spread across her face as she started to giggle.

He got a serious look on his face and made his way across the room and over to her, stepping into her personal space. Her giggling slowed as he stood toe to toe with her looking down into her eyes. "What's so funny?" he asked in a gruff voice.

Her face felt hot and her breathing quickened slightly as she stared back at him for what seemed like the longest second of her life. She was ninety-five percent sure he was fucking with her, but the fact that he hadn't broken with a grin yet left a little doubt in her mind. She moved forward to close the already small gap between them and placed her left finger under his smooth jaw, then traced her finger along the angle of his face toward his chin, not breaking eye contact.

"Your face," she replied starting to laugh as she finished saying it. Before she knew it, he grabbed her wrist, turned her around, and pulled her into to him so that she was trapped with her back against his chest. His other hand came up to secure her free arm so that she couldn't get away. They were both laughing so hard they could hardly breathe.

"You're not right, Michonne," he huffed into her ear in between laughs. She tried to squirm out of his arms, but he had her completely wrapped up and only tightened his grip when she tried.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she said as she continued to laugh and try to wiggle out of grip. "I really do like it, I swear!"

"I don't really buy that, " he answered back, tightening his grip on her again.

"Oh come on, Rick! Wait, what time is it?" she asked urgently.

He loosened his grip slightly as he strained his neck to see the clock on his night stand, and she slipped away from him.

"Sucker," she said as she made her way into his bathroom to look for bobbie pins.

"You're not right," he said again shaking his head as be walked back over to his closet.

When she emerged, he was still standing in front of his closet in his towel with his hands on his hips. "You wearing that to the party?" she asked as she made her way over to his dresser mirror to secure her hair with the extra pins she found in his bathroom. He met her eyes in the mirror and shook his head.

"I don't know what to wear," he answered.

She scanned the closet contents from their reflection in the mirror and answered, "Light grey gingham shirt, black pants, dark grey jacket."

He met her eyes again in the mirror and raised his eyebrows with grin, "Gingham?"

"Light grey checkered shirt, sorry." She said as she finished up her hair and turned to leave. "Hurry up. I'll meet you downstairs."

As she walked down the stairs the thought wasn't lost on her that she had just been pressed against his near naked body. She still felt a little rush and flutter in her stomach from what had just happened. Her face was warm and she felt like she had the stupidest grin on her face that she tried to suppress. Teasing and joking was something they did frequently, but what just happened between them went beyond the normal.

She made her way into the living room to find Carl sitting on the couch with Judith in his lap reading to her. When he heard Michonne's foot steps he looked up, "Whoa! You're wearing a dress!"

"Thanks, Captain Obvious," she said with a smile.

He laughed at her reply, then took on a more earnest tone, "You look really nice, Michonne. Doesn't she, Judy?" He tickled the baby's belly and she giggled in agreement.

"Thank you. That's really sweet of you to say." She walked towards the kids and sat on the couch with them, then lifted the book slightly to see what they were reading. "Good Night Moon," she said smiling. "Nice choice, big brother."

"Yeah, my mom-" Rick's movement down the stairs caught his attention and he looked up to see his father clean shaven wearing a dress shirt and pants. His mouth dropped open and his face stayed frozen like that for a second. When he finally found his words, his voice was shaky with emotion, "Wow, Dad..."

Michonne looked down to see tears welling up in Carl's eyes which caused her to well up instantly, as well. She looked up at Rick and made eye contact, she could tell his son's reaction had surprised him. Michonne took Judy from his arms which freed Carl to stand up and walk over to his father. "Dad, you look like you used to back when..." he trailed off and wrapped his arms around his father's waist. Rick embraced his son and locked eyes with Michonne who was wiping tears out of the corner of her eyes. He bent his head to kiss the top of his son's head, then knelt down in front of him to talk.

"I figured I'd go for a new look for our new beginning. Guess it's not such a new look, huh?" he said smiling.

"No, but it's good. I like it, Dad. You're back."

Rick smiled and nodded at his son. He stood up and used his thumb to smudge the tears off of his cheeks, then pulled him in for another hug.

After releasing him, he looked down at his son, and asked "You gonna be OK here with your sister?"

"Yeah, we're gonna be fine," Carl assured him.

"We won't be out too late, and Daryl's right next door if you need anything, OK?"

"I know, I know. You guys can go now," Carl said in an exasperated tone.

Michonne handed Judith over to Carl, kissed them both good night, then walked towards the door. Rick opened the door and motioned for her to leave first. As she made her way past him, he placed his hand at the small of her back, then followed behind her. He turned to stop and lock the door, then rejoined her.

She smiled and asked, "You ready for this party?"

"Hold on," he said as she moved his thumb to the corner of her eye and wiped gently. "Mascara," he said smiling.

She looked down slightly embarrassed, "Yeah, you guys were killing me in there."

"I never imagined he would have had that kind of reaction," Rick said.

"No, but it makes all the sense in the world. It took him back to a time when things were simpler. Hopefully you guys can get some of that back now," she said as they walked side by side down the street.

"Yeah, hopefully," Rick said.

They continued walking in silence for a minute until Michonne spoke, "Just so you know, I really do like the new look."

He cocked as head and raised his eyebrows questioning whether she really wanted to go down this road again.

She laughed and reassured him, "No, I swear. No bull shit. I do! You look very handsome."

"Thank you," he said smiling bashfully. "I have to tell you, when you came into my room today, I was taken aback too. You're absolutely beautiful tonight."

"Rick.." she shyly answered back.

"You are. No bull shit," he said copying her with a smile.

She started to laugh at how ridiculous she must have sounded, "So I lost some of my polish on the road, what do you expect? Let's hope I can get it back."

"Yes, let's," he said teasing her. He sighed as they reached the door of the community center. "You ready to get back into the real world?"

"Yes, but let's hit the bar first. Will make it a little easier," she said grinning.

"I'll follow your lead," he said smiling as he opened the door and ushered her in to the party.