Sovereign Moment #5-Tasha and Rick have a talk
This happened about a year or so after the war. Rick spends some time with Tasha and Rick learns some interesting information.
I figured I would drop a Sovereign Moment since they are pretty much done and edited while we wait for Chapter 5 of Fate. I hope it makes sense because I scanned this one in lieu of a final edit since I am working so much on Fate, which I think I have a firmer grasp of so chapter 5 of Fate should be out end of next week! It is another long one though…welp.
If you see a bunch of errors in this moment, let me know and I will fix at some point.
Philly Girl52 this one is dedicated to you! I hope you think better of Rick and Tia with this one! I mean, they are still a crazy nonsensical mess, but maybe, in this one, they are a tiny bit redeemable? Let me know!
Enjoy!
Sovereign Moment #5-Tasha and Rick have a talk
"Hey, I'm gonna run over to Tasha's," Rick stated after giving his wife a kiss on the cheek and popping a chunk of mango into his mouth that Michonne was cutting up for a fruit salad.
"Why?" Tia asked as she popped up from the couch where she was currently trying to take a nap.
"None of your business Tia, worry about yourself and take a nap at your own house," insisted Rick who rolled his eyes at his daughter that always seemed to be in his house and starting some mess.
Rick eyed Tia because it seemed she forgot what Rick was up to and that was because Tia was terrible. She was supposed to help him and Tasha but claimed that she was going to be busy on some Council of The People business. Rick sucked his teeth at her lie. Rick decided not to remind Tia. He was excited to spend some quality time with Tasha, just the two of them and did not want Tia intruding on their time.
Tia rolled his eyes and laid back down and got even more comfortable on the sofa. Rick's instinct was to stomp over to the couch and dare his defiant daughter to roll her eyes at him again, but he resisted because Rick wanted a peaceful day. A Tia free day, which it seems was not going to happen, but Rick could still salvage the rest of the day and was pleased with that thought. Rick erased Tia from his mind and replaced it with where to take his second oldest for lunch, them smiled at the prospect of Tasha cooking. Tasha was a hell of a cook and an even better baker and Rick salivated just thinking about what may be in her oven at that very moment. With that in mind, Rick was about to create a portal to her home and leave all the bedlam behind for the day, but before Rick could, another of his children portaled into his living room instead.
When Paul arrived, and per usual, he almost tripped in his hurried efforts to get from the living room to the kitchen to kiss and greet his mama. Rick shook his head at his son and pursed his lips. Paul had never grown out of being a mama's boy no matter how much time Rick spent with his son camping, or playing sports, or any other boy stuff and thangs that fathers and sons do together. It seems to have gotten worse since the twenty year separation.
"Is that big titty baby kissing Mom yet?" Shouted Tia which made Rick almost choke on his second piece of fruit that he was currently chewing.
"Hush Tia," answered Michonne, "There is nothing wrong with my son giving me hugs and kisses."
Rick reached for some water to clear his throat and spewed it back out and all over the counter with Tia's next comment.
"Better watch out Dad! Paul is trying to take your woman!" Taunted Tia who was now in a fit of giggles.
Paul had enough of his sister's taunting and like most times, it delved into a fight between the two siblings.
"Shut up Tia!" Yelled Paul who took several steps towards the couch.
"Come make me mama's boy!" Hollered Tia who sat up to challenge her brother to his face.
Fighting and bickering was Tia's and Paul's favorite thing to do with each other. They enjoyed it immensely. They meant no malice and harbored no anger or ill-will towards each other either before, during, or after their little squabbles. It was their love language. It was the same when they were kids. Rick would pull them apart as they were pushing and shoving each other, only for them to laugh and ask why Rick refused to let them play. Michonne tried to convince her two little brutes to play other fun and nonviolent games, and they tried, but most times it ended in a fight anyway. Tia claiming Paul was cheating, or Paul claiming Tia was a sore sport. Neither ever got their feelings hurt, and it never progressed to a real fight. They just liked to tussle and wrestle to see who could claim dominance then fight again the next day to reclaim or keep their Best Fighter title. Tasha would look at the two and shake her head.
"STOP! THE BOTH OF YOU!" Hollered Rick, "Paul, what are you doing here?"
"Just visiting Dad, Jeez, Is Tia the only one allowed over?" Inquired Paul who wanted to narrow his eyes at his father but thought better of it.
Paul was a lot of things, but defiant with his parents was not one of them.
"She ain't welcome either!" Spat Rick who wanted to walk into his living room, or any room in the house for that matter, and enjoy his wife minus any if not all of his kids just once.
Michonne laughed and informed her oldest son that he was always welcome in their home. Paul side-eyed his father and made his way to the couch. Rick huffed out a breath and chomped on another piece of mango. A Grimes kid was ALWAYS there, even when he tried to shove them off on other family members. A few times he would make the trip to Hilltop to drop off the four that lived with him only for one to have portaled back before he made it home. Rick hated that Carl and Andre figured out how to portal. RJ was too young, and Judith, well…. Rick and Michonne informed Carl and Andre they were not to portal without permission and were ready to keep a close eye on RJ. Rick learned his lesson with that portal mess when Tia was a child. It about scared the shit out of Rick and Michonne when they found out their five-year-old little girl was portaling to the park alone.
The times the kids did manage to stay overnight elsewhere, Tia would ruin his quiet time by showing up for some craziness or another. Paul and The Twins too. Rick's home was never quiet, and he was NEVER alone with Michonne in the house. Michonne would remind him that they still had the sanctuary of the bedroom, and Rick reminded her of all the times their kids would knock on their door and ruin that too. The Twins younger siblings would often tag along more and more frequently. All of his kids or grandkids were accounted for on a daily basis. All of them except for Tasha. She came to visit of course, just not as much as the rest.
"MOVE!" Demanded Paul as he looked down menacingly at his sister then tried to move Tia's legs off the couch when she would not budge.
"NO! I WAS HERE FIRST! Screamed Tia and started kicking her legs at her brother trying to push him away.
"FINE," spat Paul and proceeded to sit on top of Tia making sure to fidget around so that his sister was as uncomfortable as he could possibly make her.
"GET OFF!" Hollered Tia as she pushed her brother's shoulders and then popped him a few times on the side of his head while he tired to block the blows.
Paul did a good job dodging the worst hits. One could tell this was not their first warfare showdown with each other.
"Paul, get off your sister and Tia, quit laying on the couch and sit up. Again, this is NOT your house so don't lounge on OUR couch!" Commanded Rick thinking that would be the end of it as he popped another piece of fruit in his mouth garnering a hard blow of breath from Michonne.
Rick was about to ask Michonne what her problem was with him eating HIS food, but Tia's answer distracted the hell out of him.
"NO!" Answered Tia who normally would not disobey her father, at least not directly disobey for real to his face, but this was war between her and her brother and nothing could come between them finishing and declaring an official winner.
Not even Rick Grimes.
"Say what now?" Asked Rick with tilted head and strolling into the living room.
Rick could not believe one his children told him NO directly to his face! But if would be any of them, he was not surprised it was Tia, but usually just told him not through her actions. He looked incredulously curiously at his wife who chuckled, and Rick pursed his lips and cut his eyes at his Michonne.
"I was not bothering anybody until this maniac came over and started shit! Why do I have to move?" Inquired Tia slightly out of breath from being sat on by her brother.
"Because I said so!" answered Rick, "AND LANGUAGE TIA! DO WHAT I SAY!"
"NO!" Spat Tia in a childish voice while still trying to push her brother off the top of her, "MOVE PAUL! YOU ARE HEAVY! MICHY! Hollered Tia who wanted Michonne to take her side and end the fight and declaring her the victor.
"MICHONNE, YOU HEAR HER TELL ME NO?" Asked a shocked Rick who actually wanted to jump in and wrestle a YES out of both of his grown ass children to show who was really in charge.
"Tia, you, and Paul stop!" Michonne said calmy thinking that would put an end to the melee.
"NO!" hollered Tia and Rick gasped and clutched his imaginary pearls and looked at Michonne.
Nothing could come between them finishing and declaring an official winner.
Not even Michonne Grimes.
Rick was acting dramatic clutching his imaginary pearls and standing there with his eyes wide, and mouth gaped open and staring at Michonne. Rick wanted to laugh and point at her but decided to not get Michonne more riled up so that she could keep her anger focused on Paul and Tia. Rick would laugh at and mock his wife later.
"Her first!" Answered Paul to his mother who then rolled himself and Tia off the couch and were now full-blown wrestling on the floor.
"Say what now?" Asked a disbelieving Michonne with tilted head and strolling into the living room.
Rick followed excitedly to witness the beatdown that was about to occur. Michonne was ready to expand her wings and put a stop her two defiant children with a bit of feathery aggression after hearing them tell her No. In her mind, telling Rick No was one thing. Michonne thought Rick played too much with the kids and that is why they never took him seriously. But telling her no? OH HELL NO! Michonne took a step towards the bedlam but was stopped when The Twins portaled in, saw the chaos and of course, jumped right in and began to tussle right along with Tia and Paul.
Michonne huffed out a breath and walked back to finish chopping up her fruit before Rick could eat it all. Carl, hearing the commotion from his room upstairs, came running down the steps and seeing the four rolling around on the floor, raced across the living room and jumped on top of The Twins. Michonne rolled her eyes and looked at Rick to put a stop to the pile-up of bodies in her living room.
"All right. I'm leaving. Save some mango for me please," requested Rick happy to get away from the shenanigans and replace it with some peace and quiet with his only sane adult child.
"You can't leave me here alone with them!" Huffed a stunned Michonne waving the knife around that she was just cutting the fruit with.
Rick was not going to be intimidated by her or that knife.
"Watch me," answered Rick and with that, he left thorough the portal leaving the pandemonium happening in his living room for Michonne to deal with alone.
All he heard was Michonne yelling for her wings to "get em" then the screams of terrified children before he fully reached the other side of his portal to Tasha's home. Rick knew they did not stop the wrestling, because he knew is wife all too well. Michonne joined in. They were all probably still rolling around on the floor. After greeting his daughter and giving his granddaughters Zoey, and Caitlin who was visiting, a firm hug and kiss on the forehead, Rick sat next to Tasha to do what he came to accomplish.
"I know I'm not Tia, but I hope I will do for today," stated Tasha matter-of-factly to her father.
Rick was perplexed and eyed Tasha trying to figure out exactly what she meant by her off-putting comment. Rick breathed out a breath. There would be no peace yet. Tasha was upset about something, and she was just like her mama. Tasha would not tell Rick directly what was wrong and now he would have to try and figure out the problem on his own and come up with a solution to fix it. Rick thought this was going to be an easy and serene visit. He was incorrect.
"Of course you will do! I love you and I am always excited when you can find the time to spend with your old man. Do you doubt that?" Asked Rick who was confused as the where Tasha's statement was coming from.
Rick and Tasha were supposed to spend the day sorting through old pictures of the family and choosing the best ones to make a collage as a birthday present to Michonne from all the kids. Tia was too impatient, and Paul would have just chosen pictures with only him and Michonne in them. Carl did not have the attention span to sit and shift through photos all day and Andre would probably over analyze photos and discuss correct camara angles and the best lighting to make the pictures better next time. Tasha was the perfect person for the job. Rick did ask Tia to gather as many pictures as she could find, but Tia as usual, declined by way of faking a story concerning her busy schedule. Tia was just trying to get out of helping her father with something she thought was boring. Rick shook his head.
Since they all reunited after a twenty-year separation, Tasha felt like she was second choice between her and the rest of the kids. But Tasha wanted to spend some quality time with Rick and figured she would take what she could get. She guessed if Rick needed someone to help him with his project, she would gladly volunteer if it meant some one-on-one time with her father. Tasha never felt this way before they bound their parents, and she would often wonder why she was experiencing this unusual distance once they reunited.
"No, I know you love me, Dad. I'm just saying that I know you prefer to spend time with Tia, or Carl, or Judith, or, Andre, or, RJ, or even Paul. The 'fun' kids," Tasha said annoyingly using air quotes and rolling her eyes.
"Well, Paul is iffy. Whenever he is around, he is up under his mama," laughed Rick who quickly noticed that Tasha smiled tensely at the joke that had a lot of truth to it and should have made her laugh.
"Yeah," responded a lackluster Tasha.
Rick eyed is daughter and thought about the time he spent with her over the last year as compared with the others, and he was woe to admit that it was sadly lacking by comparison. Rick decided to fix that stating right then and there.
"Come over here and sit next to me Tasha," requested Rick as he sat on the couch in her living room and pat the seat beside him.
Tasha meandered over and sat next to her father with her arms crossed and took a deep breath. Rick pulled her into a hug and then looked Tasha in the eye and prepared to explain, but not excuse his less than fatherly actions.
"I think I spend more time with the rest because they are ALWAYS at my house, mostly messing shit up, or eating shit up. The younger kids live with me, and I can't do nothing about them, although, if you would like to take Carl and Andre off my hands, I would gladly let them go," chuckled a halfway serious Rick.
"Oh no, I had enough of Andre and his need to correct me all day to last a lifetime. He is your problem now! And Carl? NOPE. I definitely don't need another Tia running around here. One is enough," laughed Tasha.
"Well, unfortunately, Tia lives in Alexandria with us, and she is always around managing to disrupt my day one way or another, and quite frankly, it seems where Tia is, Paul is never too far behind. Those two are something else. As for Tia specifically, she is only half a step from being a child herself. Sometimes I forget that she is an adult and I tend to feel the need to watch over her and make sure she is ok," stated Rick.
"Yeah, I know what you mean," Tasha thought thinking about the extreme lengths she had gone to in order to make sure her older sister was safe during the past twenty years.
"And I admit, I was not the most strictest father, or even the most rational one after Tia came along. I made a lot of mistakes with her that I rectified with the rest. Some things I can admit that looking back I am ashamed about," reflected Rick.
"Like the boot cookies?" Laughed Tasha.
"Yeah, and I am embarrassed to say that it gets worse. There is something your mother does not know, and you have to promise to keep it to yourself! This is a secret between just me and you," Rick stated and watched as Tasha nodded extremely interested in what her father was about share.
"Like I said, the effects of the boot cookies kinda got out of control for a little while," Rick declared.
"Really? I absolutely can't imagine how that could ever be?" Chuckled Tasha sarcastically.
Rick side-eyed his daughter then continued on with his story.
"When Tia was little, Michonne took her to the doctor to see if she was ok, you know, up here?" Rick clarified by tapping his finger on his temple.
"What?" Laughed Tasha who was intrigued by the story and had her father's full attention.
"Tia loved sweets, still does, but back then, Tia used to always shrug her shoulders like she was dancing but with no music. At first, nether one of us knew what Tia was doing. She would just stop and start shrugging her shoulders up and down. Michonne was worried and thought it was something wrong with her, like maybe she had a tic or something. But after I watched her, I realized it was because I was feeding her boot cookies and she would get excited about it and start dancing in anticipation," Chuckled Rick thinking back to his little greedy Tia.
"So, instead of telling Mom why she was shrugging her shoulders, you just let her think Tia had a tic and said nothing when she took her in for tests? That is hilarious!" Tasha exclaimed.
"No, that was wrong Tasha. And by the time I realized it, Michonne had already made the appointment. And I always felt guilty about it. Of course the doctor said she was fine, and I was relieved," Rick admitted, and Tasha saw the guilt that crossed his face.
"But that was not the end of the boot cookies, because I remember when you tried to offer me one, yuck," blanched Tasha.
"No unfortunately that was not the end of the boot cookies," Rick chuckled, "She told on me you know. To your mama. But I got her back. I told Michonne about her little side business back in the day," Rick laughed.
"Ohhh, mama knows that Tia was selling her feathers?" Asked a wide-eyed Tasha.
"Yup, and Michonne grounded her. Tia had to come over to the house for two weeks pretty much while Michonne cut her eyes at her all day," laughed Rick.
"Good!" Laughed Tasha, "You did the right thing Dad. No more secrets."
"Yeah, good," smiled Rick who pulled his daughter into a tight hug, "Tasha, I love you so much and you are right. I get so caught up with the rest the loonies that sometimes I let you slip by, and I am wrong for that," Rick released her from the hug and looked her in the eye, "When you were little, you were like this tiny adult watching over everybody and making sure your siblings were acting accordingly. Sometimes I would even forget you were a child. You remember when I was in the kitchen making sugar cookies that night you stormed in and blasted me with lightning bolt?" Asked Rick smiling at the recollection.
"You were always in the kitchen making sugar cookies Dad, mostly in the middle of the night. Now I know why you were hiding it!" laughed Tasha.
"Yeah, but one time when you were about five, you stormed out of your room, and when I say stormed, I mean STORMED. You had not exhibited any abilities yet and me and your mother were beginning to think that only Tia and Paul had them. But that night, in that kitchen, you demanded that I stop making Tia eat cookies from my boot. You said that Tia was not that smart and to stop taking advantage of her. I laughed and tried to usher you back to bed and you struck me with a lightning bolt. I was so shocked!" Gasped Rick.
"Oh my God, I remember that!" Laughed Tasha.
"Yeah, I do too! I will never forget how you were standing there looking just like your mama and folding your arms across your chest demanding I put those cookies in the trash. You know, the way you were scowling at me, I almost did, but then I thought about all the times your sister would scratch my ankles and it felt pretty darn good," Laughed Rick, "But mostly, I will admit, after a while I couldn't stop because by then I had spoiled Tia so bad that those cookies were one of the only ways I could get Tia to listen and act right. I was not going to stop, although your face made me think twice about it," laughed Rick.
"Yes, that was the night you promised to take me to practice the abilities that I did not even realize I had exhibited. You took me outside in the middle of the night and asked me to concentrate and do it again. I was confused about what you were even talking about, but I remember I liked being out there with you. Then we practiced for weeks until I finally was able to make lightening. By then I forgot all about those boot cookies!" Giggled Tasha as she remembered the time her and Rick would spend practicing her abilities.
"I remember that night too. You lit up the sky over our house blue. I was so proud," Rick smiled thinking back to that evening, "I called your mama outside, and we sat and watched you until we realized we were keeping you up well past your bedtime."
"Yeah, I stayed home from school that next day and Tia had a fit that she could not stay too," chuckled Tasha.
"Yes, we made a day of it. Just us three. We went for ice cream and when we got back home, you spent an hour afterwards talking to me about how to be a better disciplinarian to Tia and Paul. You evidently had been thinking about it and went to your room and brought back a list of possible punishments and demanded that I try every one of the consequences on the list," laughed Rick.
"Did you?" Asked a curious Tasha.
"Yes, and most of them worked well! That's why I was ok with stopping with the boot cookies!" Rick laughed then paused for a second in reflection, "Tia, I spoiled, and that was only because I was a new father, but I got better," smiled Rick looking lovingly at his daughter, "I did better, eventually."
"You did," Tasha assured, and Rick grinned and gave his daughter another hug, "but what you said about Tia, is true, I will give you that. She is like you Dad. She runs in headfirst and swords blazing, without thinking sometimes. During the time we bound you, I watched Tia. She was all fight and nothing else. Paul and I already settled down and had children before everything happened and once, we bound you, Tia never really had the opportunity to find someone to settle down with. It was just one fight after another, for her. The Council would not let up, and Tia took the brunt of it, and I know she did it because Paul and I also had the responsibility of our spouses and kids. And I owe her big time for that, but she also scared me a lot. Especially after she went missing," Reflected Tasha and she became quiet and then took a deep breath.
"Missing?" Asked a worried Rick.
Tasha did not want to talk about that dark time just yet and decided to skip that part and lighten the mood.
"Yes, but we found her, and it was not good. Paul and I came to the same conclusion that you did. She needs to be watched. You know we have a tracker on her right?" Stated Tasha to her father trying to change the subject.
"WHAT?" Replied a disbelieving Rick who was taken aback by the news.
Tasha got up to retrieve a small tracking device and sat back down next to her father. Rick watched as Tasha turned it on and showed Rick a map with a red blinking dot. Rick looked at Tasha waiting for an explanation.
"That dot right there, that's Tia, and those numbers right there are her coordinates. She does not know Paul and I track her, but after that last fiasco when she disappeared for that month and came back all broken, we did not want to take the chance of losing her again. So while she was out cold and recovering, we shook her until we got her tats to show and placed a tracker right under her left butt cheek, where her cheek and thigh meet. She has a lot of junk in the trunk, so we figured that spot would be inconspicuous to her. Now she has a little tattoo of a tracker under her ass," smiled a proud Tasha.
Rick was stunned. And impressed. He wanted to ask about the time she was missing but decided that Tasha was not ready to discuss it, so he dropped the subject to be picked up another time.
"And she don't know," Asked a stunned Rick.
"Nope, and since it's now one of her tats, it is only visible when she exposes them, and I guess she don't look back there when she does, and I don't think Brigg will see it and ask her about it unless he has a tattoo fetish or something," answered Tasha and chuckled when she saw her father's eyes widen and face contort in disgust when he realized the implications of her statement.
"Too far and Too Much Tasha, I didn't need to hear that!" Spat Rick trying to actively scrub the comment clean away and out of his brain.
"Sorry. Anyway, we figured once Tia became a little more responsible, we would secretly take it out, but…as you can see, that has not happened yet, and my decision to track her was solidified once I found out what Tia was up to after battles with strange people. All they had to do was lure her with food. You and mom did not do a good job teaching Tia about stranger danger," breathed Tasha shaking her head.
"Yeah, I talked to her about that a few months ago. Paul too, I swear those two are something else," Rick sighed, and Tasha nodded in agreement.
Rick sat back on the couch and reached for the phone, then looked at the blinking dot.
"So, any of us can add a tat to her?" Asked Rick already thinking about some devious pranks for his daughter.
"Well, no, not exactly. Placing it was not easy. First, she has to be unconscious, and for Tia to be like that, that is terrifying to me, and I don't like it when that happens. But she has to be knocked out for it to work. Tia being unconscious made it even more difficult. We were shaking her pretty hard but could not get them to appear at first. It was Sean and Yanya that really made the whole thing happen. They told us to try whispering TATS over and over in her ear while we shook her, and it worked! I guess the message was subconscious. Then I tried to place it but again, it would not work. So Yanya told me to put the tracker in Tia's hand and place her hand where we wanted it."
"Those two are devious," said a slightly afraid Rick who now understood why Tia was a little scared of The Twins.
"Yeah, Paul and I worried for a while exactly which side of good and evil those two would land on," Tasha responded with an anxious chuckle, "but they are really good kids who just think like very conniving people."
Rick eyed Tasha and laughed. He would need to have quite a few talks with his kids and grandkids.
"Anyway, Sean said to whisper in her ear, 'make the thing in your hand a tat' over and over and, it worked! Voila. Tia was trackable!" Grinned Tasha.
"Glad to know that you two have been watching out for her, she is definitely a handful, always has been. Even when she was little. But you are not like that Tasha. Even when you were a baby, you were always somehow responsible. Sometimes you would walk around like a little adult telling me and your mama what to do and bossing Tia around. Then when we had Paul, Michonne had to constantly remind you that you were not his mother and you could not discipline him," Rick laughed, "One day we walked in on you about to spank him with your little sparkly unicorn belt."
"I remember that! I was so mad when you stopped me. Whatever he did, he deserved a whipping!" laughed Tasha.
"Yeah, that's when Michonne made me stop threatening y'all with belts. She told me it was an empty threat anyway since I would never actually spank you with one," Rick chuckled.
"Yeah, mom more than made up for it though," Smiled Tasha remember all the times she witnessed Michonne jack Tia up for doing anything and everything but the right thing.
"I was successful with you and Paul, but I still had to threaten Tia with the belt behind Michonne's back, and now Carl too. Tia and Carl are both so alike it's scary," laughed Rick thinking about how much they have in common from their looks to their personality to their love of shenanigans.
"Yes, they have grown pretty close those two. The Twins love Carl too. They are always there with y'all," uttered Tasha who brought Rick back around to the reason he sat Tasha down.
"I want us to spend more time together. You and me. I will admit that sometimes I see you as so independent and self-sufficient and I forget that despite all that, you still need your daddy just as much as the others do. I want, no I need to do better with you, and I promise that I will," assured Rick and gave his daughter a tight hug finished with a kiss on her forehead.
"I know daddy," stated Tasha and laid her head on Rick's shoulder, "Sometimes I forget too."
"Remember when we used to have Father/Daughter/Son Field trips?" Reflected Rick.
As they sorted through the photos, Tasha, and Rick both reminisced about how Rick would take each of the three kids separately to the same location at least every other month. The zoo was Tasha's favorite, and not because she liked the animals per say, mostly because she could become a teacher and inform her father about the eating, hunting, sleeping, and other habits, rituals, and general tidbits as they strolled around the habitats. Rick laughed at how different the three siblings were during those outings. Tasha would teach him about the animals.
Paul, on the other hand, would oooh and ahhh at all the different species and Rick often had to stop him from creating projections of each animal who would then disrupt the other animals and the eventually the entire zoo. Although Paul's animals were just pups and cubs back then, his projections would do what kids do, no matter human or animal, they play and sometimes cause chaos. And boy did they run amok. Paul would mimic the roars and then his pups would get all riled up and start roaring too. Bedlam would ensue with the whole damn zoo would soon be filled with roaring and screeching and barking all at the same time. It would get almost unbearably loud. Paul's cubs would enter the cages and cause the animals to become disoriented which would make the zoo animals roar even louder in protest. It was a mess. One time the manager begged Rick to leave. Rick thumbed up his nose at the man and refused to leave and acted like there was not pandemonium going on around him and his son. Paul loved the zoo, and Rick was not going to deny his son.
Tia's antics were much more disturbing and more often than not, both were often kicked out. No asking or begging, but rather literally given the old boot to the ass by zoo security. On time, Rick had to jump over the exhibit fence, grab Tia off the ostrich that she was riding like a horse around the enclosure. Then Rick, with is head up high, proudly exited the zoo immediately with Tia held firmly in his arms.
"Yes! I take the kids, but they hate going with me. They call me a fun-killer," Tasha sulked.
Tasha still wanted to be a teacher again and inform her kids and nieces all about the history of wherever they were visiting. The kids would secretly roll their eyes and beg for her to stop and just have a little bit fun.
"Well, I used to enjoy all the learning, so we can go together," smiled Rick.
"OK!" Excited Tasha, "Just us two. They will all be jealous," stated Tasha.
"Look sweetheart, I promise to do better. I love you all so much and equally, but I will admit differently. Tia is the oldest but acts like the youngest and she needs something different than what Andre may need. And Andre needs something different than what you need," informed Rick.
"I can take a guess about what Andre needs. I love that boy and I raised him for a few years but damn if he aint NEEDY! He NEEDS to correct your errors, He NEEDS to show off how smart he is, He NEEDS constant assurance. But God I do love my little brother to pieces and would not change him for the world," admitted Tasha.
"Aint he needy!" Laughed Rick, "but he is a good son, and I love him just the way he is. However, I will admit that I could stand for him to be a little less smart mouthed! Sometimes I just want to shake him!"
"Tia already did that. About nearly scrambled his brain!" laughed Tasha.
"Yeah, I remember when you told that to Michonne that night back when we found out that we were bound, and you were actually our kids. She was not happy about Tia doing that. I was trying not to laugh at the time because i did not want to get in trouble," admitted Rick.
Tasha cackled at her father's admission. Seems the kids were not the only ones was scared of Michy!
"Ok, so what should our first Daddy/Daughter field trip be?" Asked Rick.
"The zoo of course!" Excited Tasha, "But first let's finish this project for Mom. You know Tia would not have really done this with you. She would have left all the work to you, while she complained and ate whatever you had on hand."
"Yeah, I figured. She is terrible aint she? Speaking of Tia, Where is she now?" Asked Rick wanting to test out the tracker.
Tasha picked up the tracking device and Rick looked on excitedly that he now had a way to keep track of his wayward daughter.
"How many of those doo-hickies do you have?" Asked Rick and Tasha narrowed her eyes at her father.
"It came with three. Dad, I am going to tell you like I told Paul. This is not a toy and is not to be used for fun. This is for emergency use only," Tasha uttered hoping her Dad understood her meaning.
Rick did not. He had already made it up in his mind that he was not leaving Tasha's without one of the trackers.
"Well, since Michonne and I are her parents, we should have one don't you think? Does Paul have one?" Asked Rick trying to take the device from his daughter.
Tasha moved it out of reach.
"Paul absolutely does not have one because he would abuse it. I will think about giving you one, But…" Tasha stopped when she heard the alert, "Oh Snap! Tia's close and should be here in just a few seconds, informed Tasha, and they both looked at the wall where a portal appeared.
"She knew I was coming here; she was at the house causing trouble when I left. I had a feeling she would eventually follow with her nosy butt," smirked Rick.
Rick's hunch was correct. The moment he told Tia to mind her business, she had made it up in her mind to head to Tasha's too. When Tia walked through her portal all eyes were on her and she glimpsed that Tasha had a particular device in her hand and shook her head.
"WHAT?" Smarted Tia as she eyed her father and her sister with suspicion.
Tasha and Rick burst out laughing and Rick got up and gave his oldest a pat on her butt, which made Tasha laugh even harder. Tia sucked her teeth and elevator eyed her father and sister as she walked into the kitchen looking for food, just as Tasha predicted.
"What are you doing here Tia?" Asked Rick
"Your wife is whipping everybody with her wings, and them feathers ain't soft. They sting so I got the hell out of there," answered Tia.
"Dad, I'm gonna go upstairs and check on Zoey and Caitlyn, I will be right back. Tia, please don't eat all the cookies. They are for Zoey's school function," Tasha cut her eyes at Tia and pointed to her sister in warning before leaving to check on her daughter and niece who was a little too quiet for her liking.
"Cookies, OH, OH, OH, are they the ones you put crushed up potato chips in? Those were salty sweet little disks of goodness!" Excited Tia moving fast towards the kitchen.
Rick followed Tia to make sure she paced herself. After Tia took a big bite, and with a mouth full of potato chip chocolate chip cookie, she asked her father a question.
"You think I don't know I have a tracker in my butt," smirked Tia with a head tilt and was amused when she watched Rick's eyes grow big, "And before you deny it, I know you know. You can't keep a secret to save your life dad. You are so obvious. First off, I the device and second, you pat on my butt which you have not done since I was like ten when you used to hurry me along, and finally, you and Tasha cracking up after said pat were all dead give-a-ways."
"How did YOU know about it? It was supposed to be a secret from you. And If you know, why did you keep it? Why didn't you tell Tasha you knew?" Asked a curious Rick.
"A lot of questions there, Rick," Laughed Tia.
"Tia," Rick responded in his Rick stance.
"Sorry, DAD, anyway. I felt it as soon as I tatted up after it was placed. When I display them, I can not only see them, but I can also feel them too. At first, I was like what the hell? And went to a mirror and took it out and when I noticed it was a tracker, I took it straight to Delveon. He just told me to put it back. When I refused, he told me he gave it to Tasha as a means for her to keep track of me. I know I scared her when I disappeared, that on top of all the other crazy crap that I do. I know I worry her and if a secret tracker helps her stress less, then so be it. So it put it back," Shrugged Tia.
Rick grinned widely.
"You are a good sister Tia," Rick stated and gave his daughter a hug and kiss on the forehead.
Rick wanted to ask Tia about her disappearance but decided to wait another day for that story. He was just happy that thanks to Tasha, it would not happen again.
"I am a GREAT sister!" Tia corrected, "And I know you and mom are going to try and get your hands on the tracker. Can you please use it wisely and not to spy on my every move, please?"
"I wasn't…" Rick started.
"Don't insult my intelligence daddy, I know you and Michy all too well. You both will have suckered Tasha to lend it to you and probably will have played with at least ten times before you go to sleep tonight. So once again, please use it wisely and not like two lunatics with a new spy toy, PLEEEEEASSSSSSEEEE," requested Tia, "or I will take it out."
"FINE," agreed an annoyed Rick knowing full well he was going to still go with his PLAN A which was to call Tia and force her to move around all night so he and Michonne could follow the dot and guess where she was.
Rick had an even bigger appreciation of the brilliance of Tasha and all the protections she put in place for Tia. He puffed out his chest deciding to take partial credit for her expert safety tactics. Tasha was his daughter for goodness's sake. He taught her well. Once Rick focused back on his less precautious and more perilous daughter, he took a step and knocked the excessive number of cookies out of Tia's hand.
"You had enough Tia, no more. Those are for Zoey," Rick commanded.
Tia rolled her eyes and picked up the cookie that fell to the floor and was about to shove it into her mouth when Rick grabbed her hand and looked appallingly at his daughter.
"You aint gonna eat that are you? It was on the floor!" Spat Rick.
"You had no problem with me eating your boot cookies? And this floor is clean, unlike your feet!" Responded Tia.
"Yeah, thank you for telling your mama about the boot cookies Tia, she is still on my ass for that," Rick spat rolling his eyes at his traitor daughter.
"Well you returned the favor Rick and I had to sit and watch Mom give me dirty looks and was forced to say nice things about her wings all day for two weeks. And you know I hate that right one. Not to mention be a babysitter while she went to lunch and dinner with Tasha or you!" Spat Tia.
Rick then tried to aggressively take the floor cookie from Tia and Tia resisted which resulted in father and daughter damn near wrestling in Tasha's kitchen.
"What the hell are you two doing?" Asked a perplexed Tasha walking into more shenanigans, "never mind, I really don't care."
"Dad, next weekend? Zoo? Just me and you?" Confirmed Tasha trying to ignore whatever was going on with Rick and Tia.
"Yes," Responded Rick, "And before you ask Tia, no, you can't come. It's just Dad and Tasha time."
"I don't even WANT to go," Tia lied, and Rick smirked reading right through her fib, "And besides, I can't go anyway. I have been banned from most zoos. Evidently, they don't like it when you are interactive with the animals. The last one kicked me out and told me never to come back."
"They have her picture up at the entrance. And that is a natural consequence for trying to ride the animals, Tia!" Chastised Tasha.
"From when you were a kid?" Asked an incredulous ready to go to every zoo and curse them for banning his daughter for so many years.
"No, last time was about a year ago, when she was a grown ass woman," informed Tasha and shaking her head at her sibling.
Rick breathed out a heavy breath and eyed Tia and thought with his daughter's antics, the tracker was the best idea ever. He was ready to leave and tell Michonne about the new spying development concerning Tia, but before he left, he whispered in Tasha's ear.
"Hey, ask Delveon if there is a gadget that we can put on Tia that will allow us to give her a little shock when she is up to her crazy antics," requested Rick, "buzz her a little when she gets out of hand."
Tasha laughed, then stopped and shook her head at her father when she realized Rick being was serious.
While Tasha was busy placing the cookies in little plastic colorful baggies, Tia whispered to her father out of her sister's earshot.
"I took precautions. My alter AND my swords will never allow anyone to place tats on me while I am incapacitated again. But good luck trying," smarted Tia who heard Rick's loud whisper and laughed when Rick pursed his lips at her.
"Trying is the fun part! Now go home and let me finish my day with Tasha please. And by home, I mean YOUR home Tia. Remember I can track you now!" responded Rick and cut his eyes at his oldest daughter before strolling back to Tasha to help her fill the plastic bags with cookies for his granddaughter class.
Tia narrowed her eyes at both Rick and Tasha before she portaled back to see if her mother was done with her winged tomfoolery.
