Richonne (Short Love Stories) Reminisce Part II (Chapter 16)

A/N: At the request of Babe Malf.

Rick offers his arm, his eyes dancing at just the thought of spending time with her. "Can I escort you to dinner?"

Michonne smiles as her stomach seems to flutter with butterflies. She takes his arm, wondering what it is about this man that would even make her consider whatever it is she is considering. "I'd like that."

They stop to wash their hands then make their way to the mess hall. The buzz of chatter and laughter reach them as this is always a time of togetherness and joy at the prison. Everyone is happy to have another meal and someone to share it with. The chatter levels down considerably as Rick and Michonne walk into the hall arm in arm. He escorts her to a table after telling her that he'd get plates and water for them.

Michonne is unsure of how she feels about all of this, but Rick has taken her by such surprise that she is willing to let him lead right now. She watches as Shane makes his way over to Rick with a smile on his face.

"What's this, brother?" Shane asks as Rick is retrieving dinner for himself and Michonne.

"What's what?" Rick counters.

"You come waltzing in here like you're escorting your prom date and you don't think anybody's gonna notice?" Shane inquires.

Rick scoffs. "What's to notice? We're just having dinner. Same as everybody else."

"Yeah, right. What's up, man? You hitting that?" Shane looks to Rick with anticipation and dread. Anticipation because he wants details and dread because he thought he might have had a chance with the beautiful lady, although she never gave him that impression.

"Excuse me. Michonne's waiting for her dinner," Rick says as he walks away from Shane.

"Oh, it's like that, huh?" Shane rubs his head as Rick looks back at him with a smile.

Carl is seated next to Michonne as Rick returns with their dinner. "Hey Dad. You joining us?"

Rick smiles as he was about to ask Carl the same thing. "I guess I am." He takes note as Carl would normally sit with Beth and Judith for dinner. "Why don't you bring your sister over?"

Michonne's look is a little panicked at the mention of bringing Judith over, but she relaxes quickly. Not before Rick took notice though. He ponders on it for a while, but decides to file it away for another time.

Thirty minutes later, they are into their dessert and Carl and Rick are the ones keeping the conversation alive as Michonne is quiet and stealing longing glances at Judith. Rick is about to comment on it when Judith spits up all over her brother. Carl jumps up, holding Judith away from him as she starts to cry loudly. Rick rushes over to help and notices Michonne has closed her eyes as if Judith's cries are disturbing her.

"Hey, Michonne? I…um need to get her cleaned up so…." Rick trails off as Michonne meets his gaze.

The look in her eyes is pained as she says, "It's fine. I'll clean up here and see you later." She gives him a slight smile as she moves off to get something to clean up the mess at the table.

Carl and Rick exit the area with a crying Judith.

For the next couple of days, Rick notices that Michonne is trying her best to avoid him. He knows he hasn't done anything wrong. Hell, he hasn't had time to, so he wonders what is really going on. He knows it has something to do with Judith and he wants to confront her about it, but realizes their relationship if it's a relationship isn't at the stage where he should be making such demands of her. He has to tread carefully or she will cut him off completely.

Meanwhile, Michonne is in her cell, contemplating leaving the prison. She didn't sign up for this. Seeing Rick Grimes again, realizing that whatever she thought she was feeling for him years ago was just lying dormant in her system. Now is not the time for attachments, especially if that attachment has other attachments. His children. She can handle Carl. They talk about comics, movies, sports, weapons, they play games together, kill walkers together…..he makes her feel better about her current situation. As for Judith, she wants so badly to hold her and stay far away from her all at the same time. Judith represents what she can never have again and that pain eats at her, making her remember things that are better left alone. She makes up her mind right then and there that she has to go. Maybe not permanently, but she has to leave if only for a few hours to clear her head.

Moments later, she is strolling out of the prison gates, her backpack and her sword her only companions just as before.

Rick was so busy that he didn't take notice of her absence until she didn't show up for dinner. He was expecting her to walk through the door at any moment, but after an hour and she still hadn't shown her face, he started wondering what was going on. He figured she was avoiding him, but to miss a meal? That was a bit much. He asks Beth to look after Judith as he makes his way to Michonne's cell. He knocks several times and after not receiving an answer, pushes the curtain aside and steps in. Her bed is made up and everything seems to be in place. He does note that her backpack and her katana are missing. The katana isn't a surprise as she takes it with her everywhere like an extra appendage. It's the missing backpack that worries him. He remembers that Carol was on watch earlier, so he makes his way back to the mess hall to find out if Carol has seen her.

What Carol tells him makes his heart drop. "And you let her go?!"

"She said she was only going out for an hour or so. I thought it would be ok," Carol returns.

Rick takes a deep breath and tries to remain calm. "No one goes out alone. You know that."

By now, the others have noticed Rick's agitation and move over to assess the issue. Carol relays everything to them, letting them know that Michonne assured her she would be ok and Carol took her at her word.

"Well, what's done is done now, but Carol you need to let somebody know when you're making decisions like that. It affects us all as I'm sure Rick will want to search for her. My suggestion is we give it until the morning. If she's not back by first light, we should try and find her," Herschel states.

Rick nods with reluctance and retrieves Judith from Beth as he and Carl make their way to his cell.

"She'll be ok, won't she Dad?" Carl asks.

"I hope so, son. We'll go looking for her first thing," Rick assures him.

The hour is early but Carol makes her way to Rick's cell. She took it upon herself to help Tyreese with guard duty in the watch tower. She wanted to be the first one to lay eyes on Michonne in case she made her way back to the prison. Her relief was palpable when she witnessed the woman walking up to the gates as if she was just returning from a Sunday evening stroll. She checks her anger as she approaches Michonne making her way through the gates as they close quickly behind her.

"Glad to see you're back. You know I got yelled at for letting you go, so that won't be happening again," Carol informs.

"Yelled at? By who?" Michonne scoffs.

"You have to ask? Look, I don't know what's going on between you two but I don't want to see him like that again so maybe you should consider sticking around or at least letting him know what you're doing," Carol suggests.

Michonne is a little taken aback by her suggestion. "I don't have to tell him what I'm doing."

Carol reaches out to place a hand on her arm. "That's where you're wrong. This is a family here and we care about each other. We care what happens to the other. Honestly, I thought you had talked things over with Rick. That's the only reason I let you go today. If you're going to be part of this family, you have to abide by the rules. No more lone wolf crap or whatever you were going for today."

Michonne narrows her eyes at Carol, wanting to argue, but she takes a look around and realizes she made her way back to the prison for a reason. She could have kept going, but she came back. She nods slowly, acknowledging Carol's words as the two women walk up the hill.

Carol watches as Michonne keeps walking to her cell. She knocks rapidly at Rick's cell and is not surprised when he pushes the curtain back. Somehow, she knew he wouldn't be asleep. He is already dressed and apparently waiting for a little more light before he goes out to look for Michonne. "She's back."

Rick narrows his eyes with a tilt of his head as he nods to Carol. "Thank you." He immediately walks out of his cell and moves directly down the way to Michonne's. He sighs with relief as he notes the light coming from her lamp, her silhouette illuminated in shadow against the curtain. He reaches for the curtain about to step inside and suddenly remembers he should knock. He does so and is relieved when she pushes the curtain aside and allows him in.

Carol smiles as Rick enters Michonne's cell. She looks in on a sleeping Carl and Judith and makes her way to her own cell.

Rick and Michonne stare at each other in silence. She is wondering why he appears to be so upset and he is wondering why she doesn't seem to care.

"We…I was worried about you. Surely you know how dangerous it is going out by yourself like that," Rick reminds her.

"I was perfectly fine. I've been by myself for a long time, so I learned to adapt. It's not as hard as you think," Michonne returns.

Rick frowns. Is she being flippant about this? "We just handle things differently around here. No one is supposed to go off alone. If something had happened to you, we wouldn't have known. You just shouldn't take risks like that."

Michonne wants so badly to fight against what Rick is telling her, but she knows in her heart that he's right. "You're right. I shouldn't have gone alone, but it was something I needed at the time. I'll try to be more…considerate next time."

Next time? "There won't be a next time. You're not going outside those gates by yourself. Bottom line." He stares her down until she acknowledges his words. He is relieved when she gives a slight nod of her head and turns her back to him, turning down the blankets on her bunk, preparing for bed.

"I'm pretty tired. I'm going to sleep now," she tells him, still not facing him.

"I'm glad you're ok," Rick says as he exits her cell.

The next couple of weeks are a little off for them. Michonne is trying to keep Rick at bay while he is trying to engage her in everything he does. Despite the push and pull, they continue to have decent conversations and get to know more and more about each other every day.

Rick, Shane, Daryl, Glenn, and Tyreese are preparing to go on a run and Michonne sees it as a perfect opportunity to go on a little solo run of her own. She smiles as she sees them off, promising herself that she will be back in time before their return.

She sneaks off through unchartered territory of the prison, making her way through a breach on the far side away from prying eyes. She had to dispatch a few walkers, but that was needed exercise to keep her sharp and at the ready. She makes her way through the woods, finding her secret hideaway in a little over an hour. It's a small run down cabin, but it offers quiet solace. A place where she can be alone with her memories, talk with Mike and cry if she needs to. She had a particularly bad episode today as her feelings for Rick are growing stronger and stronger and she finds herself not wanting to fight it anymore. It feels like a betrayal to Mike, but how can it be when he was the one who betrayed her?

Hours later, she is making her way back to her cell. She didn't have time to check on Rick's whereabouts, so she was hoping he hadn't made it back yet. She gasps in surprise when she steps into her cell and sees Rick sitting on the bottom bunk. She immediately tries to play it off. "Hi. Did you guys have a pretty good run?"

Rick is silent as he takes in her mud caked boots, splatters of blood and mud on her pants. He is sure if he were to unsheathe the sword, he'd find traces of blood there too. This was a deliberate betrayal of his trust and he refuses to keep pretending that this woman wants anything to do with him.

Michonne notes that his body language, his silence, the refusal to look at her indicates how angry he is. She quickly tries to make amends. "I'm sorry. I know I was wrong, but I was having a bad day today and I just needed some time alone…to think things over." Her heart is beating erratically as she is unsure if he will even acknowledge what she just said.

"So why not just tell me that? Why wait until I'm gone to sneak off? Look, I realize that something bad happened out there. You'll tell me when you're ready, but I'm not going to let you punish me for something I had nothing to do with. I'm not trying to hold you or keep you under lock and key. I just want to protect you. I want you to be ok, but you keep putting yourself at risk and I'm not going to deal with that." He finally meets her eyes and Michonne realizes that she just might lose him.

She panics quietly as she doesn't know what to say to make this right. An overwhelming sense to grab him overtakes her as she watches him walk toward the door. "Rick? Wait…"

He stops just in front of the doorway and looks back at her.

She walks over to him slowly and whispers, "I'm sorry." She kisses him softly, cautiously. When he doesn't pull away or move, she kisses him again, stepping closer. They search each other's eyes as Michonne places a hand on his cheek and leans in for yet another kiss.

Rick wraps an arm around her waist, pulling her to him as he deepens their kiss, opening his mouth to get a better taste of her. He moans as he feels her open up for him, her hands moving to his back, pressing him to her. They get lost in each other for what seems like a long time, but was only a matter of minutes.

Michonne pulls back slightly. "Do you forgive me?"

Rick smiles. "I forgive you."

Several weeks have passed and Rick and Michonne have grown even closer.

Sasha is in the tower with Daryl as they both witness Michonne giving Rick a kiss at the gate as she leaves on another solo run.

"You see that? He practically yelled at Carol for letting her go out and now he lets her go whenever she gets ready," Sasha acknowledges.

Daryl shakes his head. "Yeah, love can do some strange things, can't it?"

Moments later, Sasha smirks. "Look at that. Is he following her?"

"Damn, is he whipped too?" The two of them share a look and a laugh.

Michonne has been walking for about thirty minutes when she detects someone following her. She doesn't panic as she is sure it is Rick. She stops by a nearby tree. "When you agreed to this, you didn't say anything about following me."

He moves into her line of vision with a smile. "I thought I'd figure out what it is you do out here when you're gone. Do you mind?"

She offers her hand and they walk in companionable silence, arriving at the cabin after another thirty minutes or so. She opens the door, looking back at him as he follows her inside.

"Welcome to my little shack."

Rick looks around, taking in how she has taken the time to kind of spruce the place up. "How long have you been coming here?"

"I found it on my first outing after I came to the prison. I haven't seen many walkers nearby and I just need to get away once in a while, clear my head." She grabs her backpack and starts removing items one by one. "How about some lunch?"

Rick agrees. "Thank you for sharing this with me. I know you didn't have to."

"It's fine." She leads him to the large pieces of carpet on the wood floor and sits down indian style. She smiles as he does the same and they commence to eat, talking about the walk over and maybe bringing Carl and Judith one day.

The mention of Judith brings back unpleasant memories for Michonne, although she has gotten much better in her dealings with Judith. She can actually hold her now and attempts to spend time with her. She realizes maybe, just maybe that means she is healing.

She looks over at Rick and sighs. "I…I had a husband and a son. Mike and Andre. I lost them."

"Michonne, you don't have to…."

She interrupts him. "Yes, I do. I need to tell you. We got out together with our friend Terry. We ended up at a camp and I went out on a run. When I came back, the fences were down. Mike and Terry had been bitten and Andre…" She tears up, but continues. "They're gone now and it was really hard for me to accept. Judith…she reminds me of what I'll never have again. It was hard…to be around her, but she's such a good baby. She just kind of drew me in, you know."

Rick smiles, picturing his baby daughter. "I'm sorry."

Michonne nods. "I'm getting better. Do you mind if I ask you about Lori?"

"No. I'm sure Carl told you how she died, what happened. I…I felt such guilt because I was an asshole her entire pregnancy. She was….unfaithful and I didn't know if Judith was mine or not, but she is. I know she is. I just hate that Lori died before I could make things right, you know."

"We have to remember the good times though. They outweigh the bad, right?" Michonne asks.

"Right," he agrees.

"So you think we should head back?"

"Yeah, in a minute. I just want to talk a look around. I know it's not much but there are what…two other rooms?" Rick acknowledges with a short laugh.

Michonne giggles as she begins clearing up their lunch and repacking her backpack. She glances over as Rick moves to a standing position and walks through the little run down cabin. She can't help admiring his physique. They've had a few heated make out sessions but have yet to consummate their relationship. It's been so long for her she wonders if she'll even know what to do when the time presents itself.

She stands, adjusting her backpack preparing to place it on her back when Rick walks up behind her. She looks back over her shoulder at him. "Find anything special?"

He wraps his arms around her waist. "Yeah, right here in my arms."

She smiles as she turns to face him and they share a nice, long kiss.

Later that night after dinner and after the kids are asleep, Rick and Michonne are spending more time together in her cell. They laugh as they talk about the possibilities if things had worked out between them when they first met.

"We'd be married with three kids in the zombie apocalypse," Rick laughs.

Michonne is moved by the fact that he would include Andre in their little equation.

Hours later, she is awakened by a soft snore right next to her ear. She lifts her head and realizes that she and Rick had fallen asleep. She watches him quietly, noting how peaceful and more youthful he appears. She leans over and kisses him softly on the lips. She takes the time to look at him, all of him, letting her eyes travel from the full mass of curls all the way down to his sizable sock covered feet.

An overwhelming need takes hold of her and she decides right then and there, she's ready to dive in and take their relationship to the next level. She zeroes in on his partially exposed chest as a button or two on his shirt must have snapped open while he was sleeping. She grabs the collar of the shirt and pushes it away from his neck as she leans down and starts placing tiny kisses along his neck and exposed chest.

She knows the exact moment when he opens his eyes as she can feel his heartbeat and breathing quicken. She looks up at him and smiles as she covers his mouth with hers in a passionate kiss.

He returns the kiss with enthusiasm then pulls back, looking into her soulful brown eyes. "Are you sure?"

She nods. "Are you?"

"I've never been surer about anything in my life," Rick admits.

She quickly moves on top of him, resting between his legs as they continue to kiss and caress each other slowly. She unsnaps the remaining buttons on his shirt, revealing his chest before she begins to lave his body with her tongue.

He pulls at her tank top impatiently trying to remove it. He watches as she stretches a hand over her shoulder to her back and pulls the top over her head, revealing a red lacy bra underneath. All coherent thought leaves him as he zeroes in on her chest, softly placing his hands on her breasts, closing his eyes as she feels so nice, so warm, her breasts filling his hands just right. His eyes flutter open as he feels the material loosen and drift away, revealing her bare, beautifully formed mounds. He cups them gently, rolling the nipples between his fingers, eliciting an erotic moan from her. He moves closer to her, going in for another kiss, his hands never leaving her.

Their eagerness to be together intensifies as they hurriedly shed the rest of their clothes, relishing in the feel of skin on skin, hands grabbing, pulling, touching, lips locking, tongues colliding and finally bodies connecting in the most intimate, sensual, stimulating way.

Much later, they are resting in each other's arms, totally exhausted, more than ready to get some much needed sleep.

Right before they drift off, Rick calls her name softly. She snuggles closer to him with a "Hmmm?"

"I love you," he announces. "I didn't think I'd ever feel this way again, but I do. I love you."

She smiles as she looks up at him, resting her head on his shoulder. "I love you, too. I'm tired of fighting it and you're obviously not going anywhere so…"

His body shakes with laughter. "Oh, I'm not, huh?"

"No, coz I'm not going anywhere either. I'm going to stay right here with you and Carl and Judith and the rest of our family," she states.

"Our family?" He asks.

"Our family," she repeats.