Chapter Ten:

"...I like this spot. It's nice"

Michonne looked in Elodie's direction, but not directly at her as she replied, "It is nice"

Colette stood up from her place in front of the tall oak tree and brushed the dirt off her acid wash jeans, "How does it look?"

Michonne eyed her daughter's handiwork; she had carved a 'D' into the wood, as well as a small sunflower beside it. She smiled, "It's perfect"

"Yeah. I like it", Elodie added, moving closer to her mother and daughter, "It's pretty"

Colette snorted at her twin, "It wasn't meant to be pretty-"

"But it is- why can't you just take the compliment?"

"Why can't you just take the compliment?", Colette moved her head from one side to the other as she mimicked her sister, "My name is Elodie and I-"

"Mom!"

Michonne slowly inhaled as she looked from one twin to the other, speaking in a dangerously low tone, "Let's go"

Both of her girls kept quiet as she led the way back to the safe zone. She didn't know whether to be glad at the fact that they felt safe enough to bicker, or if she should ask Olivia for a set of ear plugs.

The woods were quiet, and it was still quite early in the morning so the sun peaked at them through the trees. Michonne chose the morning to go out with her daughter's, as she would rather it only got brighter than darker when they were out. They weren't far from the safe-zone, less than a mile, but the community had only just been attacked a few days beforehand so she wanted to air on the side of caution.

"Can I get it?", Colette asked in a whisper as they slowed, noticing a male walker heading in their direction.

Michonne had already pulled her Katana free, and knew she could probably get it out of their path in a manner of seconds, but both of her daughters were capable of handling one or two on their own, so she gave her a nod of confirmation.

"...With your sword?", Collette kept her eyes on the walker as she made the request.

Michonne should have known. She held the blade out to her daughter, "Remember-"

"I've seen you use it enough mom", She insisted, taking the handle carefully as she passed her mother, "I remember."

It pleased Michonne to watch Colette move forward with the blade low, each step quick but purposeful. The man growled and raised his arms when he was close enough, but Colette brought the katana up just in time and managed to impale him through the jaw and up into the head.

"Crap…", Colette cursed as the man fell, taking the blade with him, so she put her boot on his chest and pulled it free.

"Always pull away back before they fall!", Michonne reminded her sternly as they approached her, "If there was another one here and that was your only weapon-"

It was as if Michonne had jinxed the girl, as a second walker appeared, seemingly out of nowhere and lunged for her daughter. From that moment, everything appeared to move in slow motion, and Michonne felt as if she wasn't running fast enough. She was sure that she was, because every single nerve in her body compelled her to get to her child as quickly as possible, but by the time the walker sank its teeth into Colette's forearm, she knew it was too late.

Elodie screamed the same second her twin did, as if she had felt the bite too, and it was then that time seemed to catch up. Michonne grabbed the walker by the head, rage fuelling her attack as she dug her fingers into the decomposing skin on its face until it released her daughter's arm. She shoved it away and grabbed her blade that Colette had dropped. She stabbed the squirming walker so hard that she had to rip her katana from the earth again.

"Mom!", Elodie screamed, already at her sister's side and looking at her with panicked eyes.

Michonne knew what she had to do, and she couldn't give the idea a second thought, "Hold her down!"

Colette was in shock. Her hands trembling, sweat beginning to pebble on her forehead. She hadn't said a word but she didn't need too. Tears streaked her cheeks, and her eyes darted around with alarm before Elodie covered them with one hand and held her bicep with the other. Michonne had to kneel so she could make the perfect cut, saving as much of her daughter's arm as she could but far away from the affected area. Fear drove her to do it quickly, and there was some delay but Colette reacted with a blood curdling scream that would have woken everything within the forest.

With Elodie in front of her, Michonne sprinted with her limp daughter in her arms, her fresh wound wrapped tightly with the remaining material of the blue sweatshirt sleeve and a belt. She could remember seeing it done to a young boy at a camp they had stayed at long before. She hoped it helped. She assumed it did, as the wound wasn't what killed the boy in the end. She could hear Elodie whimpering and panting a head of her. She wanted to say something to calm both girls but she needed to focus on not falling, or drawing attention to themselves.

"The gate! Open the gate!", Elodie yelled when the walls were in sight, "Open it!"

They had to run along the walls before they could get to the front entrance, and it was only when they were close enough that Michonne heard the metal gate scrap across the gravel.

The man with the mullet appeared panicked, "W-what-"

"Where's the infirmary?!", Michonne barked, adjusting her hold on Colette as she stopped for a second, "Which way?!"

"Come on!", The man Michonne knew as Daryl gruffed, climbing out of a car that was stationed nearby.

She followed him as he began to sprint. Her biceps were beginning to burn but she wouldn't dare let that deter her from getting her daughter help.

"What happened?", Daryl quizzed, glancing back at them, "She bit?"

"She was- on her arm", Elodie answered as she ran beside him, "But we cut it off- she's bleeding-"

"Alright, come on", He turned a corner, almost colliding with two residents who jumped back in time.

Michonne hoped all the movement was keeping her daughter awake. She knew she was breathing and she could see her eyes fluttering, so she knew that was a good sign. She cut as far away from the bite as she could, but she questioned if she should have cut further. Her worry began to betray her.

"In here!"

She couldn't hear anything else after she put Colette on a bed. It was as if someone had put their fingers in her ears.

"Don't bleed out… don't bleed out", She repeated to herself, eyes glued to the girl as two women worked on her, removing the makeshift wrap from her wound. The blood was a clean, dark red, and it wasn't gushing everywhere like it previously did. They kept her arm elevated while trying to rouse her daughter awake, tapping on her face gently and repeating her name.

Michonne felt something in her hand, and it took her a moment to realise it was another hand. Elodie's. She watched helplessly, still crying uncontrollably. Michonne pulled her against her and held her tight, trying to comfort one while watching the other.

Just the thought of losing her girls was enough to make her sick to her stomach. She couldn't bear the thought. She wouldn't bear it. They were all she had left, and they were the only reason she had to want to fight for survival. Knowing that there was even the slightest possibility that she could have lost one of them shook her to the core.

They had just finished cleaning and covering Colette's wound when the door to the infirmary burst open. Michonne knew it was him, as no one else had a reason to storm in the room. She didn't look away from Colette, but she heard his boots hit the floor as he walked further into the room. He said something, and someone answered. He said something else and he was given another reply. Elodie had calmed down, but still sniffed against her mother's chest. Michonne rubbed her back tenderly, her head resting on top hers. She soon had to look at Rick because he placed himself in front of her.

He looked floored, as if all the wind had been taken from his sails. His eyes glistening and all the life drained from his skin. He reached out a hand and sat it in Elodie's shoulder as his mouth hung agape. Michonne didn't know what she was expecting him to do or say, but she certainly wasn't expecting him to put his arms around both of them, nor was she expecting to cry when he did. He held the back of her head gently when he kissed her forehead, then resumed holding the two of them against him.

Her memories of the events after that were a blur. She couldn't bring herself to leave the infirmary, and Elodie point blank refused to. She wouldn't force her daughter to leave her twin anyway. Rick appeared periodically, bouncing between the infirmary and his own home. Michonne didn't particularly notice when he left or when he came back. She and Elodie hung around all night on either side of Colette. Michonne almost screamed with relief when the girl woke up, though it was only for a few minutes, it was a sign that she was okay, and that was all she could ask for.

"...His name was Hershel. He was kind of like… everyone's grandpa… he got bit and dad had to cut his foot off… but he got the hang of it…"

Michonne watched Carl as he spoke, listening intently to his little tale. It came as no surprise to her that the boy would be one of the first people to turn up at the infirmary the next day, with Judith being the third.

"...I know it's not the same as a hand but… she'll get the hang of it too, right?", The boys blue eyes watched her back with a certain degree of uncertainty, "She has to?"

Michonne gave him a small nod, "She has to, and she will"

He nodded back as he looked back towards the door that stood between them and Colette, "Can we hang out here until she wakes up again?"

"Of course…And it doesn't look like she's ready to leave anytime soon", Michonne tipped her head towards Judith, who was sat on the floor playing with a set of red solo cups.

"Cool", The boy replied with a sigh, "Unless you guys need anything? I can go get it?"

"It's okay, don't worry about it-"

The door clicked open, and Rick strolled out the room, giving them a view of Elodie at her sister's bedside. He signalled for Carl to have his turn, "Go on"

Carl hopped off the counter and burst into a sluggish sprint past his father and into the room, being sure to leave the door ajar behind him.

"...I hope you don't mind…", Rick began softly as he tore his face away from the door, "But I told Elodie that she could stay with us… you know when you have to send her home… instead of her going back there by herself-"

"Its fine", Michonne replied back in an equal tone.

He eyed her for a few moments before he nodded, "Alright."

"Da..dee", Judith sang as she beamed at him with the sweetest smile, rocking side to side.

"Hey, sweetie", He smiled back down at her with pure adoration. Michonne looked away, feeling as if she was intruding on a private 'father/daughter' moment, but she was forced to look back when Rick spoke again, "You alright?"

"Fine", She insisted, followed by a mutter, "Just fine."

"Have you eaten anythan?"

She shook her head, "I'm fine"

"Have you said anythan' else but 'fine'?"

She slowly inhaled as she dropped her gaze to Judith, "I am fine"

He shifted his stance as he tilted his head, "You know I can take over here? If you need a moment? I'm meant to- I'm meant to be here, too. I know you're used to do going it alone when it comes to them but that shouldn't be an option anymore because I'm here now. I'm where I'm meant to be and you should take full advantage of that"

It was a sobering truth. It hadn't occurred to her that he should be there too, or that he would even feel the need to be. Having spent years as a single parent, she had settled into a certain way of thinking, and it dawned on her that Rick wasn't Dominic. He was the twins' father and he did have to be there. He wasn't someone that was choosing to be there because of circumstance, he was someone that was meant to be there because she was her child just as much as she was hers. The realisation had a profound effect on her, and all she could reply was, "You're right"

His gaze remained glued to her, "Go get your stuff, you both can stay with us. We're closer and you can go there when you need anythan'. Go on, if anythan' changes then I'll send Carl"

Michonne was surprised to feel her legs begin to move beneath her, but she did what he said. She could use a shower and she needed to get something for Elodie to eat, and if she was being honest with herself, she was in fact leaving Colette under the watchful eyes of the only other person she trusted in Alexandria.

"Hey"

Michonne slowed down as she crossed paths with Glenn, who she had only ever spoken to once, possibly twice. She gave him a quick nod, "Hey."

"Heard about your daughter…", He gave her a sympathetic look, "How is she?"

"Better.", She answered in an even tone, "Thanks for asking"

He slowly nodded as he dropped his gaze for a second, "...Is Rick over there?"

She held her breath, not sure if he was asking out of curiosity or otherwise, but she still replied, "He is"

Glen slowly nodded again as he dropped his gaze for a second time, "If you need anything then let us know"

"Thanks. I'll remember that."

Michonne hurried back to her home after her short talk with Glenn, rushing around the house to gather things for herself and Elodie, as well as a few things for Colette. She figured that it was a good thing that they had so little, as she didn't know how long she'd have to stay in the infirmary so grabbed almost everything and raced over to the Grimes home.

After finding an empty room on the ground floor of the house she made use of the bathroom, washing the dried blood from her skin and clothes. She only allowed herself to cry while in the shower so it didn't feel as if she were. New fears had manifested in her mind and all she could think about was how her daughter would cope. There was a large possibly that she wouldn't accept the change well because Colette could be unbearably proud at times, feeding off of her accomplishments greedily, especially when her twin couldn't perform the same. The fact that she would have to learn how to look after herself all over again seemed like a task that would require maximum effort, and Michonne was prepared to see that effort made in small drips from daughter.

"...How are you feeling?", Olivia asked softly as she inspected the fresh bandage on her arm.

Colette shrugged as if the answer was obvious, watching the woman with an intense gaze, "Like I don't have a hand anymore?"

Michonne squeezed her daughter's wrist from the other side of the bed and gave her a knowing look when she got the girls attention.

Colette sighed as rolled her eyes up to the ceiling, muttering under her breath, "Give me a break"

Olivia cleared her throat, "Well I think she can go home soon, I don't think we have to keep her here longer than necessary, but maybe bring her back to get her bandages changed for the first couple days so I can see how she's healing- whoa, what are you-"

Michonne gave Colette a confused look as the girl snatched her limb away and began to climb out of bed. Colette pointed to Olivia, "She just said I can go home"

"Soon", Michonne repeated with a little firmness in her tone, "Not yet-"

"Let me just explain a few more things and then she can go", Olivia reasoned, holding her hands up surrender.

Colette slumped back down on the bed and looked at Olivia with bored, uninterested eyes as the woman explained all the aftercare required to help her heal. Michonne's fears were confirmed.

The second they were free to go, Colette pulled on a sweatshirt that her mother had brought for her, but Michonne was surprised to see that the girl only put her unharmed arm though the sleeve, keeping her other limb out of sight. It crushed her to see but she said nothing, allowing her to leave however she felt comfortable.

"Where's Elodie? She's meant to be here", The teen quizzed as they stepped out the infirmary.

"She's probably still at your father's", Michonne responded, looking back and forth up the bright street, "She needed to have a shower… We can go over there? I'm sure they'd all love to see you"

Colette shrugged for a second time, "Whatever"

Michonne stared at her daughter.

"I mean sure, okay", She corrected, dropping her gaze to the ground.

Michonne put her hand on her back as she led her to the Grimes household. The girl who usually walked with her head held high now kept it low, though her bright blue eyes studied everything and everyone they passed. Her mother tried to lighten her spirits, "You know… Carl was telling me that a friend of your dad's brought him back some whipped cream…"

Colette peaked at her mother from the corner of her eye.

"It got me thinking about that time that Dominic got it up his nose…"

The smallest smile appeared on the teens face, "...When he was trying to make us laugh…"

"And ended up blowing cream out of his nose for a week"

Colette smirked, "He always tried so hard to be funny back then… Remember when he said he was taking us Disney land?"

Michonne groaned at the memory, "Oh God"

"But we were really just going to work with him? That was mean"

Michonne snickered, "You girls were so mad when you got home that day"

"We did nothing but sit there and watch him type for eight hours", Colette relayed in an annoyed tone, "We fell asleep twice"

"I know. You told me all about it… plenty of times-"

"Hey, you're out already?", Carl greeted cheerfully from the front porch of his home, "We were just going to come over there"

Michonne noticed Colette slowly inhale before she replied, "Yeah… I'm out"

"Cool.", He nodded, "Do you want to see those comics I was talking about?"

Michonne scoffed as she playfully nudged her daughter out the way, "I hope you were talking to me because I definitely need to take a look"

"Very funny, mom", Colette snorted, though her small smile had returned.

It seemed that once the teen was back around her siblings she began to brighten up again, and Michonne could breathe a little sigh of relief. Despite all that had happened in the short time that they had been in the Safe Zone, they were still fortunate enough to be given the chance to expand their family. Both of her girls adored Carl and Judith, and she was sure that brother and sister felt the same towards them. They no longer had to go through the usual trials and tribulations of this new world with just themselves, and Michonne couldn't be more grateful.

It was dark outside when she heard the front door open, signalling Rick's return. He had told her the previous night that he and Daryl were going on the run that they had postponed due to Colette's accident, so she was expecting him back at some stage.

"...Judith's asleep, so is Colette… I think Carl and Elodie are up reading…", She informed quietly as stood from the couch.

Rick slowly nodded as he walked further into his home while dropping a backpack on the floor, "Were you sleeping?"

She began to shake her head but stopped, "Well, almost"

He eyed the couch, "Go on, and sit back down"

She did, but sitting up bolt straight, feeling a little embarrassed for making herself so comfortable previously, "What did you get?"

He threw himself down nearby and ran both hands over his face, "A truck full of stuff"

"A truck?", She raised her dark brows at him, "Nice"

"And a guy", He continued flatly, "He tried to steal the truck from us"

She stared at the side of his face, "You brought him back? Alive?"

He slid his gaze over to her, "Yeah. We'll question him in the morning"

Michonne nodded as she looked towards the fireplace, "Right."

"...How's she doing?"

"...Good", She answered, knowing he was asking about Colette, "She just needs to take this one step at a time"

He sniffed as he sat forward, resting his forearms on his knees, "Do you know somethan' that I should know about?"

She blew out a breath as she thought of a way to trim down a reply, "...This might be a little difficult for her, that's all. Same as it would be for anyone else…"

"But?"

"...But… She's angry. I know she is. Probably at herself…", Michonne took in a long, uneven breath, "I just have to see how it goes"

"We just have to see how it goes", Rick corrected in a low tone.

She should have known he's correct her. She nodded once again as she looked around aimlessly, "Well she might be a little more comfortable when we're back home. I might need to go out and get her-"

"You don't need to leave", He interrupted coolly, "You can stay"

Michonne turned to look at him, her brows knitting together, "Stay here?"

He sat up a little straighter, "Yeah"

She already felt uneasy for making herself at home in his absence, but the atmosphere grew ever more awkward under his intense gaze. She began to shake her head, "This was only meant to be-"

"I'm not used to having my family split in half", He announced diplomatically, "I don't like that. I haven't liked that. You said so yourself that Colette's going to have a tough time with this and if that's the case then she should be surrounded by people that want to be there for her."

Michonne closed her eyes as she absorbed his argument, "I know that, but-"

"Have you taken a moment to realise just how lucky we are? That in all of this, we somehow managed to find each other? When everyone else is losing people, their families… Yours is growing? And even still, there was a chance that Colette might not have made it out that the way she has. Believe it or not but we have been lucky, and I don't want to keep testing that luck or sit around waiting for that all to change", He scratched his brow with his thumb as he looked elsewhere for a second, "I thought I wanted you to move closer but… this- having you all under the same roof… it feels better. It feels right"

Michonne realised she was holding her breath and discreetly exhaled, "...I don't want to agree to anything without speaking to them first"

"But you do agree?", He quizzed, tilting his head forward as he stared at her.

She involuntarily squirmed, "...I can see how it could be good for them… but I don't think I can say the same for us"

He raised a light brow at her, "You don't think it's a good idea for you and I to live together?"

She shook her head at the notion, "No."

Based off what she had witnessed from Rick, she would have expected her reply to offend him even though it wasn't her intention, but instead he continued to stare at her with his ice blue eyes, refusing to blink as he asked, "...You afraid of what could happen?"

She frowned, feeling the urge to rebuke his claim but stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the corner of his mouth curl up to present a crooked smile.

"You know, when you told me that you wanted to brush that kiss under the carpet, I thought understood why. I thought that made sense and it was the right thang to do but… I don't think I believe that anymore", His eyes fell to her shoulder for a brief moment, "I get it. I do… And if we ever cross that line then it'll be because you took us there. I don't want to make you feel forced into doing anythan' you're not ready for. My timing was off last time and I… I don't wanna' mess that up again"

Michonne was sure her heart had migrated to her throat. Maybe that was why she found it difficult to swallow.

He glanced the other way, looking further into his home before he slowly rose to his feet. She hoped that he would leave right away so she could have a moment to collect her thoughts but he couldn't leave without a few parting words, "Take as long as you want, I'll be waiting".