Chapter Two:

"It's enough. That should hold them over for a while"

Rick eyed the back of the truck for what felt like the hundredth time. He believed Aaron, it looked like enough for them, but not the saviours. To make matters worse, his people needed those supplies and they needed the food, but he needed Negan off his back more.

"Leave it here", He ordered firmly as he began to walk away from the vehicle, "They can take it when they leave, they won't need to come any further"

"Got it", Aaron agreed, beginning to walk in the opposite direction.

Everything about Rick's Body hurt. He was sore, tired. The thought of being able to go home and lay down made him shudder in delight. Recent events had kept him busy, and not to mention in a constant state of distressed. Even if he did go home and rest, it was only helping him physically. Mentally, he couldn't find peace, not with the threat of the Savior's hanging over his head.

He had only opened his front door by an inch when he was hit by the smell of vegetable casserole. Lori's panic dish. His nerves were already tense so he couldn't contract them any further, but he knew something was wrong. It seemed that whenever she was experiencing some kind of discomfort for whatever reason; that was what she cooked. Rick wasn't sure if it was because it involved handling sharp knives and a lot of cutting, but she would fly around the kitchen like a bat out of hell preparing it, trying to take her mind off of whatever was bothering her. He would have groaned if he had the strength.

"You're back", She breather, a hint of surprise in her tone, "How did it go?"

Rick walked straight towards the armchair, eager to rip his boots off, "We got some stuff. Should be enough"

She released a sigh of relief as she sat forward on the couch, "Thank God"

He yanked one of his boots off as he gave her the once over, "Carl alright? Judith?"

"Fine", She insisted, nodding as she glanced towards the staircase, "They've been fine."

He continued to stare at her as he pulled off the other boot, "So what's the problem?"

Lori was going to lie. He could see it. She began to shake her head but stopped. Her big brown eyes rolled a second time, but not out of relief, "I just want everything to go smoothly tomorrow"

He didn't believe that. Well, he believed that she did want their trade with the Saviors to go well, but he didn't believe that it was what she was thinking about. He was too tired to probe, "It will. It has to"

She stared through him with glazed eyes, "...Things aren't great right now, but… if we just continue the way we have then… Carl will live. Judith will live. Our family will survive- we can keep this place going, Rick"

She had his full attention, he wanted to know what had inspired her speech, "You worried about somethan'?"

Her eyes focused on him, "I just… I need you to promise me that you won't...you won't-"

"I won't what?"

Lori's shoulders fell as she peered at the space around him, "You listen to me now Rick. I don't feel like… like we're in two different worlds anymore. I feel like you've finally realised that I do want the same things as you, and that I want to protect everyone here just as much as you… And I don't want anything or anyone to change that. I need you to promise me that"

It was Rick's turn to stare at her with glazed eyes, his mind working overtime as he gave her a robotic reply, "...I have always listened to you, Lori"

"No… that's not true. For a while you didn't, but it's not like that anymore and I just want you to…to remember that I'm here", She placed a lean hand on her chest, "And we will get through this together, but only if you remember that"

Rick felt oddly uncomfortable, still unsure of the reason for his wife's declaration and having seen that she was eager for reassurance from him only made him frown even more. He cleared his throat quietly, "We will get through this together. All of us. Tomorrow will go smoothly and after that we'll continue to do what we did before; we survive"

Lori nodded slowly as her gaze crept away, "Yeah. We survive. That's what we need to focus on…"

Anyone else may have felt the need to ask their spouse more questions if they detected a disturbance in their character, but Rick didn't. He found it pointless when it came to Lori.

His wife had a tendency to withhold things from him until forced to open up. Whether that was because she was battling with the idea of speaking with him or because she wanted him to chase her for the answers, he wasn't sure. He just knew that he was tired of it.

It was no secret that they had grown apart, he knew it and she knew it. The outbreak had put a strain on their marriage and neither of them held the ability to bounce back. He knew that she didn't agree with any of the choices he had made in the past and he couldn't always understand her way of thinking, so they had been on opposing sides for quite some time but when he had others nearby that were on his side, it didn't really matter.

He had Glenn, he had Daryl, and most of all he had Michonne. They were three people that he trusted whole heartedly, without a shadow of doubt. He could count on them, turn to them, and he could easily admit that he felt indestructible with those people at his side, but that was no longer the case.

Glenn was gone, which was probably what hurt him the most because he'd never see the other man again. Daryl and Michonne were gone, and he had no idea if he would see either one of them again. He could seek a tiny bit of solace in the fact that he knew where Daryl was, but not Michonne. He didn't know where she was or if she was safe, and it was one of the most prominent thoughts that kept him up at night.

He stayed on the couch with a busy mind long after Lori went upstairs to bed, and he was only able to sleep for a few short hours. The community were to expect their second visit from Negan that day, and he needed it over and done with. Having to play nice with the man who killed two of his own was near enough demoralising. He wanted nothing more than the chance to make Negan suffer for all he had done, but he couldn't. They were outnumbered, and like he had said many times before, he couldn't afford to lose anyone else.

"Good morning, son", He called tiredly as he trudged into the kitchen, noticing Carl by the fridge.

The teen muttered something back as he closed the door and moved towards the cabinets, making no attempt to look back at his father and Rick didn't expect him too. He knew his son wasn't happy with his approach to Saviors; he had made that clear at every chance he got. He wasn't the type of boy that would mince his words and Rick admired that about him, but he didn't have time to argue.

"I want you to hang back here today, look after your sister", Rick instructed firmly once he had drank a glass of water, "We need to get this over with"

Carl shot his father an unforgiving look as he carried a bowl of oatmeal out the kitchen. It wouldn't have been so bad if his son was sporting his eye patch, but seeing the empty socket where his right eye used to be always pained Rick. It was a brutal reminder to him that he couldn't always protect his family.

Cooing echoed throughout the home, signalling to Rick that Lori was busy bathing Judith so he took a shower in the downstairs bathroom and prepared to leave his home. He needed everyone ready for the upcoming visit.

The Safe-zone was deathly quiet once again. It was nothing knew, and possibly why they hadn't had any walkers at the wall for some time. Rick passed Gabriel in the street, who held his machete close as he patrolled. He saw a few other residents doing the same and he was thankful that they already knew what to do, and it made his job easier.

"Rick", Tobin called, sprinting towards him from the pantry as Rick passed the home, "You have a minute?"

Rick stopped, looking the tall man from head to toe, "What is it?"

Tobin huffed when he stopped, lowering his voice considerably, "I uh, I hope you don't mind but I hid some stuff… food, medicine…"

Rick felt rage begin to bubble in his stomach, "What?"

"Not a lot but just enough to get us all through the-"

"Put it all back", He demanded, pointing towards the pantry, "Now."

Tobin's shoulders fell in defeat, "If they come in here and take even half of that stuff then we'll all-"

"If they search this place when they get here and find out that we were holding out on them then someone could die", Rick spat back, "You want that hanging over your head? Or will you step forward and say that you did it?"

Tobin exhaled tiredly as he looked to the sky, "...We don't have much left"

"You think I don't know that? You think I haven't been in there?", Rick rolled his knuckles as he surveyed the area around them, "We'll leave as soon as they're gone. We'll head up to the Hilltop and then the kingdom… see if they can help us out"

"Right", Tobin scratched the back of his head as he followed his lead, but his eyes found a strange sight and stayed there, "Who's that?"

Rick glanced at the tall man and then peered in the direction that caught his attention. Rick had to frown when he spotted the curly haired young man sat on the steps of one of the townhouses, removing the wrapper of something without a care in the world. Rick didn't stop frowning, "I don't know. Go put the stuff back, I'll check him out"

Tobin simply nodded at the command, but didn't take his eyes off the boy as he backed away. Rick marched towards him, wondering if things had gotten so bad at Alexandria that just anyone could walk in and no one would question it.

"...Uh", The boy uttered nervously when he saw Rick stepping towards him, lowering his chocolate bar and looking up towards the house nervously. He looked to be around the same age as Carl, but nowhere near as hardened as his own son.

Rick stopped by the bottom step, "You here with someone?"

The teen nodded, "Yeah."

Rick stared at him, obviously waiting for him to continue.

"Uh, Michonne? She used to live here…"

Rick almost drew back in surprise. He didn't need the boy to repeat himself because he heard him loud and clear, but he still found himself uttering, "Michonne?"

"...Yeah", He nodded a second time, looking even more anxious than he did seconds before.

Rick inhaled carefully as he peered up at the home, then back and forth up the street. He didn't know what to say or do with himself, but he forced himself to concentrate, "What's your name?"

"Mickey", The teen looked back towards the house again as he used his thumb to point towards the door, "Should I go get her?"

Rick shook his head immediately, "Nah, go on. I'll come in"

Mickey hesitated for a second but did as he was told, skipping up the remainder of the steps. Rick followed him while trying his best to put his racing mind at ease. The person who he had the most trust in had returned. The woman who had saved his life, his families' lives, countless times was back in the safe zone and only a matter of steps away. He was stunned to say the least.

Everything went to hell after she snuck away in the night. He didn't blame her for doing so, everything would have still gone to hell if she had said goodbye, but he would have appreciated some kind of explanation. He could have encouraged her to stay so they could have worked on her demons together. She had offered that kind of help for him on numerous occasions and it felt only right that he'd do the same in return. He wanted to help her, he would have given anything to piece together whatever puzzle she needed whole, but she robbed him of any chance to do so. She was as stubborn as she was selfless and he knew that once she had made up her mind there was little anyone could do to sway her.

"Michonne?", Mickey called as he walked into the house, heading towards the stairs, "Michonne?"

"Yeah?", She called back from the open plan living and kitchen area, her tone relaxed and friendly.

Mickey pointed to the doorway, "She's in there"

Rick eyed the boy strangely, as it was pretty obvious that she could only be in that room, but he figured that Mickey was doing all he could to stay on anyone's good side, so he gave him a brief nod as her mumbled, "Thanks"

Michonne was frozen in place when he walked into view, holding a cup in her hand and leaning against the kitchen counter. Her expression was pensive, as if she wouldn't say or do anything until he did, so Rick used it as an opportunity to look her over; she was wearing a black tank top and black pants that looked as though they'd been cleaned but were still well worn. She had found herself a new black and white, patterned scarf for her hair, which she wore like a crown. She looked fine, perfectly fine, nothing to indicate that she had been in any trouble at all. Warmth washed over him.

He sniffed as he began walking towards her again, "Where'd you go?"

"...A few places", She replied in a soft tone, slowly lowering her cup to the counter.

"Yeah? In Virginia?", He raised an eyebrow at her.

"No. We were at sea for the most part."

His eyebrow arched even further, "At sea?"

She gave a little nod for confirmation, "Yeah."

Rick was genuinely amazed to hear that, "How'd you end up at sea?"

"I met a group. They had been out for a while and they stopped to search for supplies", She explained, dropping her brown eyes to the cup in front of her.

"Is that how you met him?", Rick reached the opposite side of the counter and stopped.

"Yes…"

He bit his lip as he examined her from close range, "What made you come back?"

She gave a little shrug of her shoulder which indicated to him that she was lying, her eyes rolling up to meet his, "Just felt it was time to come back"

"You just woke up one day and decided to come back?", He challenged, his eyes narrowing at her.

"Something like that", She tapped her finger against the cup, "I saw Lori. I haven't seen Carl or Judith, yet"

Ricks face fell blank. All of a sudden his wife's strange behaviour from the night before made sense, "Is that so?"

"It is", She shifted her weight from one leg to another, "...This all feels pretty formal…"

He smirked as he bowed his head and scratched at his brow with his thumb, "I guess I'm just in shock right now"

"You shouldn't be. I wouldn't have stayed gone forever", She insisted lightly, "You still owe me twenty dollars"

A chuckle burst from his lips as he lifted his head, "I do, don't I?"

"You do", She smiled, and if it was as if all of his problems vanished in thin air, "You know how hard money is to come by now-"

"Why'd you leave?", He ejected, his own smile slipping away, "I need to know, Michonne"

In a split second his problems returned. She clammed up, her shoulders stiffening, "It doesn't matter. I'm here now"

"It matters. You matter", He pressed, inching closer to the island, "And I'm not sure if I told you that enough before but you do-"

"I'm not ready to talk about it, Rick", There was an edge to her tone, but she appeared to remove it when she spoke again, "Maggie told me what happened"

He stopped moving, his nerves standing to attention, "Yeah."

"I'm sorry", She breathed, her eyes darting all over his face.

"So am I", He felt the need to look elsewhere, "Listen, thangs aren't… they aren't the way they were before-"

"I know.", She mimicked him, looking down at her cup, "Why is that?"

"...Because I can't afford to lose any more people", He explained, raking his fingers through his hair, "I can't afford for us to lose this place. We're up against somethan' that could take everythan' we have away and we've fought too hard to get here. It's… it's not an option. Fighting isn't an option"

He could see her fine brows begin to knit together, "...It's not?"

"No, Michonne. It's not. Not this time", He dropped his hand to his side, "We need to focus on surviving, and if that means we… we don't fight back then that's what we do. We have too much to lose, and it's not worth it. Losing anyone else is not worth it"

"...Maggie lost her husband", She brought her gaze up to meet his, "She thinks it's worth it. Sasha lost Abraham… she thinks so, too"

Rick exhaled tiredly as he took half a step backwards, "They aren't here. I can't stop them from doing anythan'... and I don't blame them for wanting to do somethan'-"

"But you won't do anything", She summarised in a defeated tone, "We won't do anything"

"Because we can't"

"Because you're afraid to try", She lifted her cup from the counter and started toward the sink.

"I am. I'll admit that", He retorted defensively, "I'm afraid that trying will get Carl killed. Or Daryl, or Maggie- now you're here I have to worry about you, too. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if one more person dies because I didn't prevent it. Doing nothing is preventing it, Michonne, so if that's what it takes then that's what we do."

She sat her cup down in the sink harshly, "So they come, they take, they leave you with nothing… and we do nothing."

Rick had to control his breathing, so he looked away as he did so. He wasn't surprised by her reaction.

"That doesn't sound like the kind of survival that I'm used to.", She sighed again, resting both hands on the counter top as she looked out the window, "And I don't think it's something I can get used to. You can't make it this far just to give up… We didn't fight every single step of the way just to give up. We didn't lose so many people along the way just to give up here…"

He met her back with stony eyes, "It's not worth anyone's life, and I need you to see that"

"None of anything that we've done was worth someone's life", Her dreads wiped through the air as she spun around to look at him, "But those were the risks that we took"

"Well we can't take risks anymore", He raised his hand to stop her, "We just can't"

Rick knew her well enough to know that she couldn't be more against his views if she tried. Her dark brown eyes examined his once more before she turned around again, not uttering another word.

He ran a hand over his face in frustration, "Did you get back yesterday?"

"...Yeah", She answered quietly as she turned on the tap at the sink.

The last thing Rick wanted was to argue with her so soon into their reunion. Up until a few minutes beforehand he didn't even know he would ever see her again, but now they were face to face and the community's current situation was already driving a wedge between them. He huffed, feeling deflated, "Carl would love to see you. He'd be glad that your back"

She stilled for only a second, but continued to turn the tap off and head away from the sink, "I'll see him."

He held out his hand to stop her from walking past him. She did, and he almost regretted doing so as he struggled to find the right words to convey just how happy he was to see her, "He's missed you. We all have"

She finally softened, no longer standing rigidly in front of him, "I've missed you all to"

The moment felt right for him to pull her into an embrace, and as soon as he felt her warmth he knew he was right. He sat his head on top of hers as he sighed, "I can't believe you've been at sea this whole time"

He felt her giggle against him, "Yeah. I thought I'd give it a try…"

"Did you bring any fish?"

"Did you bring my twenty dollars?"

He snorted at her, "I don't think I'll ever see one of those again, Michonne. I didn't even think that I'd see my best friend again. "

She snickered, "Don't get all sappy on me, old man"

They broke away from each other, and Rick couldn't resist tugging at her scarf as he did, "You went shopping, too?"

She playfully swatted his hand away, "Get off. I lost my old one"

He shook his head, "You didn't. It's still here"

Her eyes lit up, "Really?"

"Yeah.", Rick swiftly remembered that he had to do one more lap of the town before manning the front gate, "...I have to go. They're coming…"

Michonne slipped back into defensive mode, "Today?"

"Today.", He confirmed as he backed away.

She began to move, "I'm coming"

Her admission both pleased and worried Rick, but he didn't say anything as they made their way to the opened front door, where Mickey had placed himself back on the step. The teen stood up in haste when he noticed them, shoving the last piece of chocolate he held in his mouth, "Uh…"

"Come on", Michonne ordered, closing the door behind her as she stepped out the house.

Rick stopped on the steps to look back at her, his light brows rising in question.

"He's not staying there on his own", She explained, dropping her voice to a low mutter as she hopped down the remaining steps.

Rick tore his gaze away from her and looked at Mickey, who gave him a small, nervous smile, "Cool."

Rick inhaled slowly as he descended the steps, reminding himself that Michonne had a habit of adopting children. He had witnessed her do the same with his son for a short while, and he could understand why Carl was so drawn to her; there wasn't much of an age difference between her and his wife, but Michonne had a very different approach to the boy.

Lori still desperately tried to make Carl remain a child, even when it was clear that he did nothing to suggest that was the case. She resented Rick for giving him a gun and teaching him how to use it. She didn't like the way he tried to give their son some sort of responsibility, and it was the root of many of their arguments, so he gave in. It was easier to do so when he realised they couldn't defeat the Saviors, and a good excuse to keep his son out of harm's way, though it fractured both he and Lori's relationship with the teen.

Michonne on the other hand, had a much more relaxed approach to Carl. While she had always been fiercely protective over him, she still offered him little bursts of freedom when he was with her. Rick still didn't have a clue what they bonded over, but he knew they had their secrets and that didn't bother him. If anything, it made him glad that his son had someone to talk to if it wasn't himself or his wife, but it was just one of the many things that lined the underlying tensions between Michonne and Lori.

Rick understood why the two women would always be on opposite ends of the playing field, and while it annoyed him that his wife hadn't informed him of Michonne's return earlier, he realised that her old fears had been unearthed and she did need reassurance more than ever because she was threatened by a woman who was completely oblivious to the role she played in their marriage. As far as Michonne knew, she and Lori where at odds because they couldn't see eye to eye on how to protect the group. She had no idea that it might be because of anything else, and Rick could only hope that it would stay that way.

He stayed ahead while Michonne walked with Mickey, and the two of them had their own little private conversation. He could see more residents outside of their homes, mulling around but not straying too far, prepared for another anxious day. Some looked at him with ease and some didn't. There had been a divide in the community from the moment he started to make himself known, but after their encounter with Negan the divide grew even further. He didn't expect everyone to agree with the things he did, and he had no doubt in his mind that there were some that thought of him as a terrible leader, but that didn't matter to him. He saw it as his duty to protect them, so he would.

"We're gonna' wait up here…", Rick declared, tipping his head towards the watchtower by the gates, where Aaron was already standing guard. He shared a brief exchange with Michonne when he saw them but was eager to keep watch, as was Rick, "Everythan's in that truck, so I don't want them to go any further than the lawn"

Michonne looked at the old truck that was parked nearby, squinting due to the sun, "...Did they go further before?"

He peered down at his old boots as he shifted his position, "They have done."

"...Is that why nobody has any guns?", She continued to squint at him, though she turned her back to the sun.

"Yeah", He replied regretfully.

Michonne let out a small sigh as she crossed her arms, mumbling something along the lines of, "...No wonder we can't fight back"

"It's more than just that Michonne…", Rick began, but stopped when he remembered that they weren't alone. He eyed Mickey, "You wanna' head up there?"

Mickey looked at the ladder that led to the tower and shrugged, "Sure"

Rick waited until the teenager was out of earshot before he continued to speak, "He has more people than we originally thought. Even if we did try anythan' then we'd be out numbered-"

"The Hilltop? Have you forgotten about them?", She countered, using one of her hands to shield her eyes as she looked up at him, "And what about that other place?"

"The kingdom?", He frowned at her, "Have you been over there?"

"No, I haven't-"

"Well its run by some guy that thinks he's a king, and everyone there plays along with it. He sits on his little thrown with a damn tiger beside him and they all talk weird", Rick hissed, "There, I just saved you the trip"

Michonne stared at him, "What?"

"You heard me", He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck furiously as his gaze sailed over the community, "I told you, there's a whole lot more going on than what you think"

"Then tell me", She urged, her eyes glued to the side of his face, "I need to know-"

"They're here!", Aaron announced, peering over the metal wall with Mickey nearby. He glanced back over his shoulder to look for Rick, but he was already making his way towards the gate.

"Get up there", Rick instructed to Michonne as she followed him. He could already see a truck in the horizon, and he knew to expect at least a handful of vehicles but he still only opened the gate halfway, hoping to stop them in their tracks, "I mean it Michonne, go on"

"No", She didn't move, instead she stood right by the gates with her arms crossed over her chest defiantly, her gaze stuck on the upcoming vehicle.

Rick was hit with a reminder of how stubborn she could be, and luckily for her he didn't have time to argue. The first truck came to a rolling stop only a few feet away from the gate. Rick glanced behind him when he heard footsteps approaching, and several residents crept closer, including Rosita, Tara and Heath. He raised his hand to stop them, not needing anyone to come any further.

"What on God's green earth is this?!", Negan boomed from somewhere between the trucks.

Saviours had begun to pour out of their vehicles, quickly filling the narrow driveway that led to the Safe-Zone. Rick eyed the ones that he could see, trying to memorise some of the faces that had taken joy in terrorising them, when he saw a familiar face in the crowd.

Daryl looked worn out, wearing a dirty sweatshirt and pants, his hair stuck to his face and neck. A breath hitched in Rick's throat as he tried to catch the other man's eyes but Daryl wouldn't look up. He kept his head low and his gaze even lower. It didn't take long for Negan to appear, swinging his bat up and onto his shoulder as he strolled carelessly towards the gate. He wore a confused look, his eyes combing over Rick and then the gate, "Um, excuse the fuck out of me, but what do you think you're doing?"

"Everythan's in that truck", Rick used his thumb to point at the vehicle behind them, "Take it."

Negan scoffed, followed by a disbelieving chuckle, "Well thank you, but I think it's actually pretty rude that you're trying to stop us from coming in"

Rick slowly inhaled, "Everythan's in the truck."

Negan's smile tightened as he dropped the bat to his side and stepped closer, lowering tone as he asked sinisterly, "Is your wife in the truck, too?"

Rick bit his tongue as he looked over the taller man's shoulder. Despite everything he was trying to accomplish, he still wanted to hurt Negan. In fact, he wanted to be the person to kill him, but he couldn't and nothing aggravated him more.

All Negan had to do is raise his hand, and his people began to move. One person proceeded to open the gate and the others poured in, and soon enough the trucks engines roared to life again as they slowly made their way into Alexandria.

"Did you forget about my generous proposition?", Negan sighed as he rocked his hand back and forth, his bat swinging from side to side.

Rick tore his attentions away from the traffic moving past them, "No."

"Of course not, because that would be stupid", Negan snickered, his eyes dancing with amusement as he looked behind Rick, "Well, hello there? Who's this?"

Rick ignored the man's question, knowing he was more than likely looking at Michonne, "There's more than half in that truck. Take it."

Negan was no longer amused when he peered down at Rick, and his faux charm vanished almost instantly, "I will take it. I will take the truck and now, I think I'll take your wife, too"

Rick immediately froze, unable to utter anything else but, "No-"

"Yes", Negan growled, his devilish smile appearing again as he leaned in closer, "Now go and get her".