A/N: For this next update, it is time to introduce one of the fandom's most prolifically creative writers. Tigerwalk3 is known for her Richonne love stories rich with complex characterizations.

Be sure to check out her other works on her fanfic page.

-We're The Ones Who Write

Chapter 2

Ezekiel's reputation for pageantry had preceded him from the moment they had been introduced to the grey-haired, self-appointed king, and it seemed party planning was a parallel talent. The entire Kingdom had been transformed to a venue fit for a...well fit for a king. The courtyard area, already impressive with its lush green foliage and spectacular seasonal blooms, had been decked with flickering torches lining a makeshift dance floor, and what must have been hundreds of paper stars that the children had fashioned out of folded paper and strung from the lower branches of the trees. There were banquet tables lined with crisp, white tablecloths and overflowing platters of spit-smoked meats and fresh vegetables. There was music floating around the entire area, pumping softly from speakers that Eugene rigged through a series of apocalyptic work-arounds that Rick hadn't even bothered to try to comprehend.

Previously, Rick had considered his new friend's flare for ambiance superfluous to their immediate goal of survival and the advancement of their respective communities, but with the defeat of the man whose own version of showmanship had nearly squashed those goals completely, he acquiesced to the need to preserve some semblance of the old world when supplies allowed for it. Besides, he had become the party planning committee's number one supporter the moment he'd found the dress Michonne was currently donning. If he had still needed an excuse to celebrate, her legs in that short skirt were the final push.

They had already dropped their bags off in the rooms that had been made available for their overnight stay- the double room he was sharing with Michonne set up like a lavish hotel room at some pre-apocalypse resort. There were some perks to the close friendship they had developed with Zeke, he had decided, when he saw that Carl and Judith were afforded a separate space to share. He had even decided to forgive the Zeke's less than clandestine visual grazing of his wife, given the fact that his generosity had made it possible for Rick to be able to do much more than graze later on in private. He had every intention of it, but first he decided to be a full participant in the party by making his way to the beverage station and enjoying some of the whiskey, delivered personally by Jesus, from Gregory and Negan's respective stashes. The occasional sips of homemade swill that Daryl had shared back home had done the job when the stress of war pressed heavily on their minds and the need to numb themselves had out weighed the MORE, but tonight he was allowing himself something a little more enjoyable to indulge in for the pure sake of indulgence.

He had left Michonne reluctantly when she had asked for a tour of the gardens, and Carl and Enid had already exchanged their company for some of the kids their own age. Carol had Judy on a meet and greet tour, which she was more than happy to be the star of, so he was officially free to do whatever he pleased.

He spotted Daryl and Morgan clinking together a couple of glasses of dark brown liquid and tossing them back with matching satisfied smiles on their faces, and he made his way over to get one of his own.

"You look well," Morgan said, reaching out for a hearty handshake as he approached. Rick received the greeting, returning his own genuine smile at the sight of his old friend.

"That might be an understatement," he said, his mouth curling into a grin he couldn't help. He thought about his wife, and how people kept noting how healthy and vital she looked lately. That pregnancy glow was inspiring all sorts of compliments despite the reason for it remaining unshared. They were both more than well these days, and he briefly wondered if his own face wore the same hints.

"Zeke knows how to throw a thing," Daryl said, pointing with his empty glass at the groups of people from all communities milling about with similar looks of merriment.

"Never doubted he would," Rick replied. He nodded to the table behind Morgan and set his hands on his hips. "Never thought I'd be contemplating my choices when it came to having a drink again."

"Ah, choices we have, my friend," Morgan said with a knowing grin that sparked up to his dark eyes. He had seemingly made his own choice some time ago. "What was your poison, Rick? Back in the old world."

"I never turned down a good whiskey," he said, scanning the labels on the array of differently shaped bottles, the likes of which spanned all of the now-proverbial shelves.

"Well then, you won't turn this one down," Morgan said, plucking a short, round bottle from the group and displaying it like a waiter would display a fine wine at a restaurant.

Rick read the name, his chest filling with nostalgia at the brand of liquor he'd shared many a toast with Shane over; the day they'd graduated the academy, his debacle of a bachelor party, the day he'd found out he was going to be a father. He decided it was only right to toast this new moment in life the same way. "I don't suppose I would," he said, reaching for a glass from the stack of mismatched tumblers set out beside the bar.

Morgan uncapped the bottle, pouring three fingers of the aged spirits into Rick's glass, then topping off Daryl's and his own. When everyone had been served, he held his glass at eye level, and spoke. "To the future," he said, simply.

His mind darting back to the secret his wife concealed, the physical manifestations of which only he was privy to, Rick thought there was never a more appropriate salute given over a drink. He tipped his glass back, letting the familiar fire burn the back of his throat and smiled at his friends, blinking away the dampness that had attempted to pool in the corners of his eyes.

…

"Carl!"

Carl turned over his shoulder to see Carol hurrying toward him, Judith smiling from her spot on the woman's hip.

"Hey Carol," he said, briefly wondering why her mouth was turned up in a devilish grin. He looked hard at Judy, his first thought that she might have already done something both of them were going to regret, since he had been derelict in his watch for the last few minutes. He'd assumed she was fine for a short while being dragged around by Carol, but his face began to flush with a warm worry as the two approached, grinning mischievously. "What's up?"

"Judy told me something interesting," Carol said, her blue eyes narrowing on his.

Carl cleared his throat, his mind racing. Of all people to tell, Carol had to be the first? The woman couldn't hold water. "Um...yeah. It's not supposed to...she really shouldn't have…"

"What did she tell you?" Enid asked, interrupting him with a hand on his elbow.

"She says your mom and dad have a stash of homemade applesauce in the van for me?"

Carl breathed a sigh of relief, gathering his sister from Carol's arms and forcing a laugh. "Yeah...yup. Bunch of boxes of this canned stuff."

"Great!" Carol exclaimed. "Why don't you give me a hand real quick. We'll bring it in before the party really gets started. Maybe we'll even open a can now, what do you think, Judes?"

Carl looked at Judith, who was grinning from ear to ear at the thought of getting to eat some of the applesauce Rick and Michonne had specifically told her was reserved for the Kingdom. Then he turned to Enid, who was wearing her own smirk. In assuming Judy had already done it, he had almost spilled the very secret he was trying to get her to keep. "Yeah, ok. I'll be right there."

When Carol had headed off in the direction of the family vehicle, Carl turned to his co-conspirator. "You're on Judith patrol for a few minutes," he said to Enid. "Can you handle it?"

"Please," Enid said. "I've got this. Go haul in the groceries."

…

When Michonne finally found her husband, after touring the newly expanded garden and being elected the official taster of the new strain of tomatoes the Kingdom's farmers had cultivated, he was looking relaxed and happy. She spotted him with a drink in his hand and his head thrown back in laughter, as he stood in a circle, chatting with Maggie and Jesus. She approached him from behind, a his eyes startling, then melting into glimmering, blue pools of contentment when she placed her hand on his back and settled in beside him.

"You look gorgeous!" Maggie exclaimed, leaning over her own protruding belly to embrace her. Michonne glanced down at the younger woman's newly round form, her heart skipping a beat at the thought of her own midsection growing in the same way. Suddenly her trouble with her skinny jeans didn't seem as defeating.

"You're the gorgeous one," Michonne smiled, placing a palm on Maggie's belly and beaming. "It's been so long. You look like you're ready to pop."

"Food supplies are up," Maggie shrugged. "I've been making up for lost time."

Michonne chuckled at the joke, catching Rick's eye as she did and noticing the wistful smile he had on his face. She cut him a quick look to remind him to keep the evidence of their secret from spilling onto his expressive face, then turned to greet Jesus.

"It's great to see you two," he said, gesturing to the couple with a hand that held a glass of burgundy colored wine. "It really has been too long. How about a drink, Michonne? I know I can find something you'd like around here."

Michonne felt Rick's arm tighten around her waist as he began to stutter out an excuse for her, and she jumped in to interrupt his awkward response with her own more poised version. "I lost the coin toss on getting up early with Judy tomorrow," she said with a feigned pout. "It's Rick's night to have the fun."

Rick raised an eyebrow at her quick thinking, taking a sip from his glass. "I won fair and square," he shrugged, joining in on her lie.

Jesus and Maggie both eyed them skeptically, knowing that Rick was always the first to offer up whatever he had to Michonne, but the two seemed happy with the arrangement so they let it go.

A moment later, they heard the large doors of the Kingdom screech open and Jerry's booming laughter as he announced the arrival of new guests.

"You'll have to excuse us for a moment," Maggie said, her hand finding the inside of Jesus's arm. "We've got a few more room assignments to hash out before we can really settle in. I'll find you in little while." Maggie reached out to squeeze Michonne's hand and then the two Hilltop co-leaders wandered away to greet a few more of their community members.

"That was smooth," Rick said, when they had been left alone.

Michonne shrugged, her face dissolving into a frown. "We should have discussed a plan for that."

"You sold it," he said. He turned toward her, his hands coming to circle her waist and his head tipping languidly to the side. "How long's this thing gonna last, you think? I'm thinking we should sneak back to the room…"

"You have some more mingling to do first," she said with a grin. "Besides, it looks like you're enjoying yourself."

"I was when you were occupied, now you're back and I don't feel like sharin'"

"Few more hours," she said, starting to feel her defenses waning. Something about seeing Rick without the weight of the world settled on his shoulders had her thinking her own anti-social thoughts about escaping with him somewhere private.

Rick dropped his chin to her shoulder and his hands to her ass, as he sighed his agreement. "Alright," he said. "Let's go do this."

…

"My dad's drunk," Carl said. He had finished ferrying boxes filled with jars of applesauce to the Kingdom cafeteria and was now seated atop a brick wall, swinging his feet and enjoying the reward Carol had gifted him: a can of flat orange soda.

"How do you know?"

He handed the can to Enid and pointed across the courtyard to where his parents stood, glued to each other. They were standing in the middle of the dance floor, locked in a stationary embrace while the people around them at least attempted to move to the music. "He's smiling like an idiot," Carl snickered.

"What's drunk?" Judith asked from her spot on the grass in front of them. She had been quietly pouring invisible tea into a few red plastic cups that Carol had also conjured up from the back of the supply closet. She was pretending to serve Carl and Enid the beverages, along with the cookies she had been pretending to bake.

Enid rolled her eyes at Carl. "Forget you heard that, Judy, or your brother's gonna be in more trouble."

"What is drunk?" she repeated, this time standing from her job and placing her hands on her little hips to demand her answer.

"Who's drunk?"

Carl turned his head to see Rosita walking toward them with Tara at her side.

"My daddy," Judith said proudly, her little chest puffed out. Carl rolled his eyes at his sister's assumption that anything said about Rick was a gushing compliment. Though, he supposed his old man had earned that as of late.

"That was quick," Tara said, hopping up onto the wall beside Carl.

"Judith, this is one of those things we don't repeat, ok?"

Judy looked hard at her brother, her eyes narrowing to a squint that matched their dad's so perfectly all three of the women began to chuckle. "So daddy being drunk is family business too?" she asked Carl who could feel his heartbeat start to speed up as Tara and Rosita each raised an eyebrow in his direction.

"Something like that," he said, jumping down and grabbing her hand. "Hey, I see Daryl. Why don't we go show him your new dress?"

Judy's scrutinizing look turned to excitement as she spotted her honorary uncle and took off running, while Carl tried to keep up.

…

"What's new, Little Asskicker?" Daryl asked, scooping Judy up as she ran full force and leapt from the ground.

Judith giggled at the nickname that was only to be used when her mom was outside of hearing range. Her dad let it slide most of the time, but mostly it was her and Uncle Daryl's secret, like a codename or a secret password. Come to think of it, she should add it to the list of secrets she was doing a wonderful job at keeping. She hadn't once repeated it in her parent's company.

She stored that example away for later use and got to work contemplating his question. "My dress is new," she offered. She pulled at the hem to show off the pretty red and white.

"Just like your mama," Daryl said with a chuckle. "Just as fancy as you are fierce." He tickled her sides and Judith beamed. She like the idea of being just like her mama.

Carl caught up to them then, greeting Daryl with a high-five. "Good party," he said, taking in the look on Daryl's face that matched his dad's; glassy-eyed and grinning more than he had in a long time. Maybe ever, when it came to Daryl.

"Not a bad way to spend the night I guess. Speaking of spending the night, where'd your parents head off to?"

Carl pointed to the spot where he had just seen them, ready to make a joke about his dad's ridiculous grin, when he realized they had disappeared. He shrugged, turning back to Daryl. "I don't know," he said. "Hey, think I can get one of those?" he gestured to the beer Daryl had in his hand and pressed his luck, given the fact that he was parentless for the moment.

Daryl shook his head and tipped the bottle back, finishing it in one sip. "Nice try."

"Carl, I want to show mommy that I didn't get any mud on my dress yet. Can we find her?"

"Alright, Judy," he sighed. "Come on, maybe I can get a break for a little while."