Standard Disclaimer: I don't own TWD or TOWL or any of the people mentioned here.
Author's Note: I recently locked into the greatness that is TWD via TOWL and was inspired by the love of Richonne to explore what their re-integration as a family looks like post-TOWL. This will be a WIP that has different drabbles about how they (re)learn each other and settle into life after the CRM and all the other crap that their universe has tossed their way.
Day 1
It felt a bit odd, all of them being under the same roof. Not a bad odd in that she was unhappy about the arrangement (how could she be? It's what she had been longing for for years), but a good odd in that it was proof of magic, a miracle of unbelievable proportions. (Was this too good to be true?)
As Michonne looked around the table at the people she loved the most, the sight was almost overwhelming. Perhaps this new reality was a reward for all that they had lost. (It was time—finally time—for them to win a little. Surely anyone who knew their story would agree.)
It had been a few hours since she and Rick ran across the field and embraced their children (embraced them) and the instant their feet touched the grass she found herself growing more and more annoyed with blinking. It seemed as though the short bursts were robbing her of important moments, so she resolved not to blink at all and instead allowed herself to just watch. (Because yes, all of these moments were important, now more than ever. It had been nearly a decade without him and more than a year without their kids. She couldn't bear to lose another second.)
So now, seated for dinner, in between the laughter and the conversation and the passing of food, she was still taking them in. She watched.
She saw how Judith kept looking between her and Rick, eyes sparkling with memories of Family Fun Days that were rewards for doctor visits.
She watched as RJ took shy glances around the table, moving from Judith to her and back again for some sort of confirmation before landing on his father. The Brave Man. A real, living, breathing person that leapt from community legend to their dinner table, filling the chair—his chair—that used to sit empty.
And oh, the most beautiful sight of all—
She looked at Rick—her love, her protector, her heart—and saw that he wasn't blinking either. She saw his eyes take in each of them individually and then together all at once, committing their features to memory before moving towards the living room. She didn't have to follow his gaze to know what it was seeking: the slab hanging on the wall, Carl's handprint safe and preserved in the dark.
His gaze lingered for a moment before meeting hers again, conveying all the love, protection, and emotion he felt. Then he took her hand in his, squeezing it tight.
And it was then and only then that she allowed herself to close her eyes to savor the moment, a smile gracing her face when she opened them again.
Because there they were, in their home, under the same roof. Together.