AN: Here we go, another little chapter.
I hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think!
111111111111111111111111111111111111111
The trip down to the love nest was longer this time than it had been in the past. That was owing, of course, to the fact that the lovely spring weather starting to show around them also meant an increase in the active Walker population.
During the winter it was relatively simply to make the trip down to get water, for example, and maybe see three Walkers the entire time. The warmer weather, though, meant that at least five greeted you before you got several feet beyond the gates.
Michonne didn't mind it, though. The influx of Walkers and the need to actually think of using her katana on a walk outside the gates, almost felt like shaking off the winter the same way the world was shaking it off.
"Seems to be less of 'em…" Daryl said from behind her as they slowly made their way toward the tree house, for lack of a better description of the place, that would serve as their rendevue. He'd been discussing, since they left the gates, the Walkers in some fashion or another.
Even though there were more than the winter had offered them on a regular basis, he was right in that there seemed to be less of them than they'd seen in the past.
"Well…maybe they're dying out…or they're not fully active yet," Michonne answered back, slinging her katana from side to side as she walked, lopping off some of the overgrown weeds that choked the path.
"Used to be more of 'em at the fences too," Daryl said. "You reckon they're just gonna die out? Like one day they just won't be there no more?"
Michonne considered it and hummed to herself. She caught a glance out the corner of her eye of one that was lurking nearby, still not having picked up their scent, and she walked toward it, driving her katana almost lazily through its head while the dumb thing walked right into it. She slung the blade clean.
"Maybe not," she said. "I imagine, though, with the population of this great nation, that we won't see them die out anytime soon…I don't think they'll be a novelty on our trip, if that's what you're thinking about."
Daryl chuckled from where he was standing, his crossbow still over his shoulder and his hand resting loosely on his hip.
"That's what the hell I was thinkin', 'Chonne," he responded.
Michonne snickered to herself and joined him again, finishing the ground between where they were and where they were trying to get to. She reached the tree first and caught two sides of one of the boards between her hands before she paused and looked at Daryl.
"Did you want to go first?" She asked.
Daryl smirked at her, already figuring out that she might be out to give him a hard time just for the entertainment value.
"Get'cha ass up the tree, 'Chonne…'fore we get some company," Daryl said.
Michonne raised her eyebrows at him.
"I could take care of the company," she responded.
Daryl didn't respond, he just pointed upwards and Michonne swallowed down the laugh that rose in her throat.
"Is this just a ploy to look at my ass?" She asked, not being able to resist ribbing him just a bit more, especially when she could tell by his expression that he was enjoying it, whether or not he'd admit it.
He scoffed and pointed upward again with more enthusiasm.
"'Chonne…" he said in the same tone of voice that he used with Hope when she was testing out whether or not he meant what he said.
Michonne chuckled and swung herself up, catching her feet on the bottom rung of the ladder that started partway up the tree and scurrying the rest of the way up. Once she was securely up, she leaned over the side to watch Daryl start his climb.
"When did we get pillows up here?" Michonne asked.
"That shit's a woman thing," Daryl said. "Don't ask my ass about it."
Michonne backed up, allowing him access to the space.
"You don't know anything about the pillows, because that's a woman thing," Michonne said. "But if I remember correctly you and Tyreese seemed awful fond of the idea of the quilts that ended up out here…"
Daryl snorted and moved around, taking off his boots. Because of the limited space of their little "love nest," things were pretty practical there. There wasn't that much room to bother coming out of your clothes entirely, so you shed what you really had to, and you did the best with what you had.
At least, though, even if it wasn't the romantic getaway of the movies they'd watched before the fall of the world that they'd known, the location provided an escape from the community. It provided a pretty nice setting, too…and the Walkers that always gathered at the bottom of the tree to wait on you to come down provided something that Michonne had tried to think of as "mood music" so that it didn't get on her nerves.
Instead of skipping straight into the romantic process of stripping off her shoes and pants for practicality, Michonne decided that they had at least a few minutes to "waste" on being together. She crawled on her knees over the quilted surface and straddled Daryl where he was sitting, bringing her lips to his softly.
Daryl responded by sliding his hands down her back, under her, and lifting her enough to readjust her so that she was in a more comfortable position…at least for him.
For a few moments, they lingered there, making out like they were in high school instead of like they'd been married for as long as they had. It was nice, sometimes, to remember that the "necking" as her mother had called it, was fun and exciting in its own right.
After a bit, though, Michonne's lips were stinging from the scrape of teeth and the sucking that passed back and forth between them. And it was becoming very evident, especially given her current position, that Daryl wasn't going to hold out for too much longer before the heavy breathing they were both enjoying turned into complaints about what the hell she was doing to him.
Michonne pulled off of Daryl, her breath coming in a little ragged, and went about the work of removing the clothes she'd be doing without during this little escape from the ordinary that they were enjoying. Daryl's job was much simpler, and she glanced at him while he only bothered to unbutton his pants and slide everything down, sitting there with a grin on his face like a king, waiting on her.
She snorted.
"This really isn't fair, you know?" Michonne responded.
"What ain't?" Daryl asked, looking concerned.
"We women have to come out of all of this and that's all you're doing for preparation," Michonne said. "If this thing fell…I'd be bare assed and running through the woods killing Walkers and all you'd have to do is pull your pants back up."
Daryl chuckled, seeing now that she wasn't really pissed off about anything.
"Hell, 'Chonne," he responded. "I reckon if this thing fell we'd have bigger damn problems than a bare ass…"
Michonne came back, joining him, pushing him down. At least if she was going to be bare assed in this whole process, and the only one who had to bother with removing and putting back on so much of her wardrobe in a cramped space, she wasn't going to be the one on the bottom running the risk of getting splinters because a quilt shifted too far out of place.
Daryl didn't protest, though. He hardly ever protested anything when it came to how she wanted to be with him…as long as she was game, he was game. Michonne kissed him, running her fingers through his hair to tug at it, and she felt his hands squeezing at her thighs, working their way up. He was trying to coax her on. When his hand found its way between her legs, teasing her, trying to spur into more, she kissed him harder and let him work for it a little while longer before she finally maneuvered herself and slid easily onto him.
The fact that the treehouse structure stayed put through the activities that followed was a tribute to how soundly built it was. The Walker population below them got stirred up and their growls grew louder in unison with the increase of noises that Daryl and Michonne let escape, not feeling the need out there to hold back or muffle anything for anyone else's benefit.
Michonne found her release first and Daryl followed shortly after. She rested herself on his chest, both of them panting, and closed her eyes for a moment when she felt the gentle pressure of him wrapping his arms around her, holding her in place while they both recovered.
Michonne didn't know how long they lie there, just resting together, their legs intertwined and Daryl holding her against his chest, but it was long enough that all the sweat had more than sufficiently dried and she was beginning to become aware, despite Daryl's body heat, that the new spring was still not warm enough for one to be comfortable long without their pants.
Daryl was beginning to snore softly and Michonne lifted her head up enough to look at him. She'd like to let him sleep…stay there for a while longer…but if he got into too deep a sleep then he'd be cranky when she finally did wake him and they did have to make it back to the community before too long. Zeb would be expecting milk, and even though Sadie could hold him over, he and Hope both wouldn't stand for their parents' absence lasting too long without complaining to any and every person that would pay them even a few moments of attention.
Michonne pulled away from Daryl to start dressing and the act woke him. He was disoriented for a moment, but then he finally spoke, his voice having already begun to take on the gravelly quality of sleep.
"Stay…" he muttered, despite the fact that Michonne was already "gone" and almost into her pants.
"We have to go..." Michonne responded. "We have children, responsibilities, and we said we'd check the traps before we came back…don't you remember, Daryl? We're checking traps."
Daryl chuckled and started to stir, getting himself ready again, even though it was evident his protests weren't going to be over.
"Hell…I know we checkin' traps, 'Chonne," Daryl responded. "They all empty…bad damn day for traps…good thing we got more'n enough food for supper back at the community. We can stay a while longer."
Michonne smiled at him.
"Empty or not, we're going to check them," Michonne responded. "I'm not opposed to a little fresh meat."
A smirk crossed Daryl's face and Michonne shook her head at him.
"Not that kind…I'm all full until later," she said.
Daryl smirked again and the smirk broke into a chuckle.
"Just so there's a later," he remarked.
"There's a later," Michonne said, finishing getting her shoes on and watching him as he tied one of his. She sat for a moment, her katana resting across her lap, and waited on him to take his time. When he was done, he ran his fingers through his hair and straightened the quilt back up where they'd moved it all over the place. Then he asked her if she was ready and took his crossbow, going down the tree slowly so he could drop the Walkers that were congregated there on his way down.
Once Michonne heard his feet crunch in the leaves below, she climbed down out of the tree after him and he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him while they set a leisurely pace.
They checked the traps, but Daryl must have cursed them because the only thing they caught in any of them was one sorry Walker who had walked right into a snare that Beau had set and was hanging upside down from a tree like a snarling, spitting piñata. He'd been so disgusting that they'd just cut the rope above where he was tied and decided to leave the trap for Beau to repair. No one even wanted to eat an animal that had been skinned and cooked if it had been in that close of contact with Walker mess.
By the time they were heading back to the community, it was later than Michonne had actually intended for them to be out. The air was cool and she could smell already the scent of fire and food cooking in the air.
Her stomach sensed it too because it rumbled loudly, causing Daryl who was walking a few steps behind to chuckle.
"Hungry?" He asked.
"Mmm hmmm…" she hummed, inhaling the scent that seemed to grow stronger the closer they got to the space they called their own.
"Must a' worked up a damn appetite…" Daryl responded.
"You could say that," Michonne said.
"We could swing by the house…ya know? Be a lil' late ta supper…" Daryl said, the teasing heavy in his voice.
Michonne turned and glanced over her shoulder at him, smirking.
"You're something else, you know that?" Michonne asked.
Daryl simply smirked and shrugged a little, making a face at her as his answer.
"We've got to get back…and I promised Carol I'd check on supper and bring her and Ty some…we've got Jude tonight," Michonne said.
She continued walking, keeping an eye out in the failing light for Walkers since if they were going to be active, now would be starting their favorite time of day to really get stirred up.
"Why we got Jude?" Daryl asked.
Michonne smirked to herself then. Daryl didn't know…but he was going to find out soon enough.
"Because I told Ty and Carol they needed a little alone time," Michonne said.
Daryl made something of a scoffing sound.
"An' we don't?" He asked, somewhat incredulous.
Michonne hummed in her throat and shook her head.
"Not tonight…Carol's pregnant…and Ty doesn't know yet," Michonne said. "I thought they needed it more."
Michonne heard the crunching of Daryl's footsteps stop and she turned back. He'd stilled in his steps for a second and then he started forward at a slower pace than before.
"The hell you say?" He responded.
Michonne chuckled.
"I think you heard me…Muh was right," Michonne said. "But don't say anything…let them announce it however they're going to…for the time being they're just having alone time and we're taking them dinner."
111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
"Jude…" Michonne called from the nursery as she was putting Zeb down. Hope was already in her crib, and even though she was still awake, she wasn't making any protests to get out or to get up. It appeared, too, that Zeb was ready for his night now that he was in clean pajamas and his stomach was full. Michonne smiled at the fact that his eyes were already closed to slightly open slits. He'd be asleep before she ever wrangled Judith into her bed.
Judith had escaped the nursery, duck in tow, and was making a run for it.
Michonne left her two to head to their dream lands and hung out the nursery door, searching for Judith in the darkness. It wasn't much of a search, by any means. She knew right where she'd be, and she was right.
Duck clutched in one arm, Judith was working the locked doorknob of her parents' room back and forth, knocking lightly in intervals.
"Jude…you'll see them in the morning," Michonne said. "Come on, it's bedtime…"
Judith turned to look at her, her hand still working the doorknob.
"No…no thank you," Judith responded. She shook her head and turned back to her work and Michonne fought to keep from smiling, which would ruin the whole authority thing she had going on.
"Judith!" Michonne barked.
Judith froze for a second. Then she turned, wide eyed, the fingers of the hand on the duck choking arm going to her mouth, a habit they'd broken almost entirely except for in moments of extreme drama, and she continued to work the doorknob, now sounding like she was also working on one of those great silent cries where, before bursting out into a wail, the child must first suck all the air out of the room.
The cry didn't come like Michonne expected it to, though. Instead, Judith just began to sob and say over and over, "No thank you…no thank you…" until Michonne thought it was absolutely pathetic.
Michonne was rescued from making a decision, though, when Jude was rescued from her desperate situation by the bedroom door opening.
Ty's head appeared, obviously connected to his body that was likely hanging off the foot of the bed.
"Judith!" Tyreese growled.
But he was as big of a sucker as Daryl was because the moment that Judith turned to him with the sobs she'd been sharing with Michonne and muttered "Daddy"…which she'd now taken to calling him…Tyreese reached an arm out and tugged her into the room.
"We got her…" Tyreese's head said.
Michonne nodded.
"OK…goodnight," she said. She stopped, just before turning. "And Tyreese? Congratulations."
Tyreese smiled.
"Thanks," he responded. "Night Michonne," he said, closing the door back.
Michonne slipped into the nursery again, smiling at herself over the fact that her little angels were both asleep. She kissed her fingertips and passed an extra goodnight kiss to each of them and then she blew out the lantern, heading toward the bedroom where Daryl was already waiting for her.