A/N: I'm surprised by a lot of the feedback I've gotten for this one! Everyone has different things that they want to see and it's awesome. Either way, we all agree on one thing; Rick and Michonne need to be together!

Sorry this one is so short, but it's straight to the point.

It did not matter how many times one had ventured out into the world, or how long one had spent on the outside; the sight of a living breathing person being torn apart by walkers was still one of the most jarring and frightful things anyone could witness. The bloodcurdling screams coupled with the sight of sinking teeth and shredded limbs was the stuff of nightmares, yet this was not a nightmare; this was the life that they lived and the harsh reality that they knew. This is what happened when they had to take risks. It never got easier.

Michonne sat in the back of the vehicle, pressed against the door with her head resting on the cold glass of the window. She remained quiet as she felt Glenn's eyes on her; she knew he had to continue to be vigilant. They had already lost the young man who had accompanied them on the run. Dieter; that was his name. They did not even have any remains to bury; the walkers had consumed him wholly.

Michonne held the torn piece of fabric from Glenn's shirt over the deep scratch on her arm; neither knew if it was from the group of walkers that had ambushed them as they loaded the building supplies into the truck, or if, amidst the fray Michonne had been injured by said materials. Either way, they were on their way back to their sanctuary.

"You feeling okay?" Glenn asked as he waited for Michonne to turn and face him; she did not.

"Not really," she said plaintively. "I don't feel feverish or anything like that, but I don't feel good either."

"We'll be home soon. If things change or you cha…we'll be home soon." Said Glenn as he sadly turned his head back to the front of the car.

xXx

The day was drawing to an end and Rick knew the crew he had sent out on a run would be making an appearance at any moment. He had almost finished his walk around the perimeter of the Safe-Zone when he heard the heavy metal gates being opened; he hoped that it was the crew since they had left the day before. He hoped that they had been successful in procuring the materials that they needed; he hoped that Michonne was okay.

The vehicle, loaded with supplies, came to a halt just inside of the walls as Rick and a number of other people made their way over. Rick searched the truck and realized they were a man down.

"What happened? Where's Dieter?" he asked, feeling relieved when his eyes fell upon Michonne in the backseat.

Daryl shook his bowed head sadly.

"Didn't make it," he said in hushed tones. "A small herd came up on us. Nothin' left of him to bring back."

Rick cursed under his breath and patted a sombre looking Glenn on the shoulder.

"There's somethin' else," Glenn started. "Don't freak out too much, it's probably not what we think it is…"

"What is it?" Rick asked as his eyes shot straight to Michonne who he noticed did not look well.

"Michonne was scratched," said Glenn, taking an unintentional step away from Rick.

Rick's face dropped as he made his way over to her.

xXx

"Hey, don't look so sad," Michonne said to Carl with a smile as they sat in the living room of the Grimes residence.

Night had fallen and Michonne still had not felt any fever come over her; though, to be safe, she was under house arrest. Time was getting on and while she wanted to spend the rest of the evening with the Grimes children, she knew they had to leave shortly.

"I can't help it," was Carl's quiet reply. "If anything happens to you…"

"Let's not think about that now, buddy. Let's just think about the good times, yeah? Deal with everything else in the morning."

Carl nodded and offered her a weak smile. Michonne kissed the top of Judith's head and then looked plaintively at Rick who was sitting in the corner watching them. He had not spoken a word since Daryl had explained what happened; he was angry, and they all knew it. His face was drained of color and the tiny vein on his temple was still quite visibly pulsating; he was angry.

Michonne looks from Rick's worrisome face back to his children and smiled widely at them.

"Okay, time for a hug and then y'all need to head over to Glenn and Maggie's," she said as Carl made his way over to her.

She placed Judith on the floor and the small girl began to cry and reach her hands up to Michonne.

"Mimi!" she called as she squealed loudly.

Rick stood up and scooped up his daughter, who was now writhing and trying to break free of his grasp.

"Mimi!" she cried louder this time. "No, Daddy! I wan' Mimi!"

Michonne let her eyes fill with tears as she smoothed down Judith's hair and kissed her; she then drew Carl into an embrace.

"I love you, Baby Girl," Michonne said as Judith tried to grab her, still crying.

"I love you, too," she whispered as the teenager gripped her tightly.

"I know. We love you," Carl returned before taking Judith from Rick and walking out the front door.

xXx

Michonne sat in Rick's room and wiped away the last of her tears; she felt tired after such an emotional day of losing a friend and then not knowing whether she was going to become ill and have to be put down. She did not feel sick, feverish or suffered any hallucinations; but no one really had a set timeframe on how these things went. Some died after the fever took hold and changed right away, others took hours, even days; either way, the end was always horrible. Michonne was glad that Rick was with her presently; silently sitting on the floor of his dimly lit bedroom with his knees raised and his arms resting on them. He was still quiet.

"Thanks Rick, for giving me time with the kids, in case, ya know," Michonne said softly, annoyed that her voice sounded sad and had betrayed her.

Rick cleared his throat as he watched her lie down and curl up on his bed; the bed he wished to share with her every day for the rest of their lives.

"It's fine," he said hoarsely.

"And thanks for bein' here with me," she added.

Rick just nodded, not trusting his own voice not to betray him.

They sat in the silence a moment longer before Michonne shattered it, and Rick's heart.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I wanted a home here with you and the kids…"

"Michonne…"

"And I let my pride get in the way. We could've had a home together. Could've had another chance…"

"Michonne, please don't…" Rick said tiredly.

"And now…" she sighed loudly. "Now we probably won't."

Suddenly, she felt a weight on the bed behind her and knew it was Rick; he moved closer to her so that he was lying with his body pressed against hers. He then draped his arm over her waist and gripped her tightly; placing a soft kiss to her shoulder.

"Shhh," he offered. "Don't worry about all o' that. Let's just lay here and rest. I got you."

Michonne could hear that his voice was shaky; she knew this, the uncertainty, was hard for him as well. She knew he would stay with her and do what needed to be done should this whole incident not work out in her favor. She turned, brushed her hand over Rick's cheek and placed a gentle kiss to his mouth. She then went back to her previous position, sighed out of relief and exhaustion and let her body relax into his. Soon, sleep found her as Rick heard her breathing become deeper; it was then he let the tears fall onto his pillow.

Not a night goes by I don't dream of wandering through the home that might have been

I listened to my pride when my heart cried out for you; now every day I wake again

In a house that might have been

A home