Reviews:

BabySlothXYaoi- Ahhh, sorry not sorry! I'm sorry I made you sad... but I'm happy you felt such strong emotions for the chapter, really means a lot to know! Yet another example as to why I enjoy writing things slightly more open to interpretation... I love that you saw Rhys choosing to smile for Ty, whereas in my mind he didn't even know he did it until Tyreese had gotten his wish... we shall never know the true reason, only what we make of it. Love that. I agree, guess it all depends on the adult, Michonne listens to Carl more because of how close they are, she values Rhys because of how much Carl trusts him (among other reasons). And Ty listened to Rhys because of how close they were. Ahh, thank you!

-Carl's POV-

"We look not at what can be seen, but we look at what cannot be seen."

Sasha trembles beside me, both of us standing with the others, a few feet from where her big brother is lowered carefully by dad and Glenn into the ground, beneath a willow tree. A tree bent so low it could be offering its comforts to us, its long limbs reaching out in solace, pale pebbles scattered around its base. We all listen to Gabriel's eulogy, which he reads from a small leather bible.

"For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal."

Everyone takes turns shoveling clumps of dry earth into the grave, watching as they patter atop Tyreese's covered body.

"For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made from hands, eternal in the heavens..."

Rhys sits beside the grave the whole time, observing each person who passes him, watching as they drop dirt into the shallow hole.

"In the heavens."

Sasha is the last to drop dirt into the grave, passing the spade to Rhys when she's done, dropping it beside him as she stumbles back to the road, getting away from the sad willow.

Rhys takes a moment before picking up the spade and pouring a small amount of dirt into the hole, whispering something that I can't hear.

Dad comes by to take over shoveling, but Rhys says he can do it. Sounding desperate, like he needed to be the one.

Dad nods, standing back with his hands in front of him, honoring Rhys' request and waiting respectfully.

It doesn't take long before Rhys starts to struggle, his still-healing body not as strong as his steadfast will. Dad picks up a longer shovel, carefully helping Rhys to fill the grave, not saying a word as he does it. I'm not sure I've ever seen dad be so gentle, so thoughtful in each movement.

When the grave is filled, Dad goes back to the road, joining the others at the cars. Rhys just sits down again, resting a hand against the upturned soil.

I watch, still standing a few feet away. I haven't moved since giving my ounce of dirt. Holding Judith as she cries silently. I've never seen my sister do it before, silent crying. It's like she knows how sad everyone is and also knows how important the silence is, their balance stopping either from overwhelming us.

I feel a tap on my shoulder. I turn to be faced by Carol, holding out a small knife in one hand.

"It was Tyreese's," she swallows, "Lizzie's before." Carol looks like she hates the blade, holding it as close to the edge as possible, running a hand through her short gray hair impatiently. "I thought he might want it."

"Thanks, Carol." I take the knife from her, handing Judith over in return. My sister looks relieved as she's taken away from the grave.

I approach Rhys, making sure to step on a dried twig so that he knows I'm here.

He looks up and over his shoulder, his eyes puffy and red as they meet with mine. Snot and tears are across his face, a mess of emotions that have beaten him for hours.

He nods, giving me permission to join him in the grass.

Once I'm sat, I hand him the small knife. "Carol gave it to me," I whisper. "It was his."

I know he knows that already, as he takes the small hunting knife. Its handle is wrapped in a dark cloth. Rhys holds it for a moment, taking in a shaky breath before he delicately lies the knife onto the grave's soft dirt surface, letting it rest below a hand-made cross.

Tyreese's deep blue beanie sits on top of the cross, blowing in a gentle breeze. I remember how Rhys used to wear it, how he would tug on it when he got nervous.

Rhys opens his clenched fist, unveiling the silver bracelet Tyreese gave him at Karen's grave. Rhys had told me what it meant to her, what the words etched into the tarnished metal stood for. I can tell he's tried to clean it, but a tint of red still stains the metal. He places the bracelet over the knife, both of them resting on the earth.

I watch as he stands up, shaking as he moves closer to the willow tree. He bends down, collecting the gray pebbles from around its base, lifting them in a net made from the front of his bloody poncho. I know better than to help him. I know that will only make him feel useless. I keep watching him as he sits back where he was beside the grave, slowly piling the pebbles over the bracelet and knife until the smooth stones stack over them, encasing them securely in a rock cairn, keeping them safe from the world.

We sit beside the mound, no one bothering us. I wait patiently as Rhys remains beside Ty's grave. Time passes, the sun spilling shadows through the hanging branches of the willow tree. Rhys goes to stand, and I place a gentle hand against his back, guiding him to his feet at his own pace. I let my hand drop once we're stood, following Rhys when he makes for the road. Letting the bracelet rest with Tyreese beneath the mourning willow tree.

A/N

Rest In Peace to the kindest man in the apocalypse.

Didn't feel appropriate to put lots of notes or anything at the end of the last chapter besides the song credits, so I'll put the last chapter's notes here...

The song under my skin was also the song Ty sings at breakfast way back in chapter 4, I never specified it, but that was the song he sang in my head.

Also, a small change from the show that I made in the last chapter, Michonne fought for the idea of staying at Shirewilt for a bit longer than in the show. Seemed odd to me how quickly she gave up in the show.

I always found it heartbreaking that Ty never got to see Karen in the show while he hallucinated the people that had such effects on him. I think in some ways, Rhys got to be that for him, letting Ty, in his dreamy state, see her one more time when Rhys entered that room.

Finally, a note for this chapter- Deciding to leave Karen's bracelet was hard. Part of me wanted to keep it with Rhys, but I decided that bracelet has never been for Rhys, he's always been holding onto it for Ty, and I'm happy that he finally got to give it to him. Like Maggie says in the future, we don't need things to remember people, we have each other.