Chapter 17: Today Was a Good Day*

A/N: A different tone to previous chapters.

The sun, though new, shone brightly through the window. By the time that Rick had crawled out of his small, lonely bunk, Judith was already awake; she kicked her sock-covered feet and lifted her chubby little legs as high as they would go into the air. Her small murmuring alerting her father to the fact that she was ready to start the day, just as he was. Rick pulled on his socks and boots and approached her crib, greeting her warmly before picking her up. She baby clung tightly to her father's shoulder as she made the usual sounds that meant she was hungry; she was a good baby and hardly ever cried anymore. Rick mused that she was somehow aware of their predicament in the world. He pressed a soft kiss to her temple, picked up her discarded bottle and then they left his small cell and proceeded to walk towards the mess hall.

When Rick and Judith entered the room, a few people were drowsily making coffee and eating their breakfast; Rick was surprised to see Carl in there at that hour of the morning. He approached his son who seemed to be in good spirits.

"Hey," said Rick. "What are you doin' up so early?"

"Oh hey, Dad," Carl replied before reaching out his arms to take Judith into an embrace; he tickled her tummy and peppered kisses over her plump face. "Just packing our lunch for today."

Rick set the bottle down, unlidded the formula and then placed two scoops into said bottle; he poured the hot water in next and gave it a thorough shake. He glanced over at his children and then raised his eyebrow at Carl.

"You're on the ball today, son," he offered.

"Yeah, well I can't wait to actually go out today," replied Carl excitedly. "Plus Michonne is coming with us, so that's gonna make it ten times as awesome."

Rick could not help but smile at his son's reasoning because he was in agreement with him; having Michonne with them just made everything seem better. He nodded his head and then went to take a seat.

"I hear you," said Rick as Carl handed his little sister back to their father and gathered up the lunches he had made and placed them in his backpack before he took a seat.

"So the two of you are okay now?" asked Carl; Rick was slightly surprised by the question. He knew Carl was privy to some issues regarding his estrangement from Michonne in the first instance, but he thought that them keeping their distance was only between them. It seemed, however, Carl had noticed.

"Yeah," replied Rick. "We're good. Why d'ya ask?"

"I don't know," Carl answered. "Just feels like you don't hang out together as much as you did before she left."

"We've been pretty busy with the newcomers and tryin' to get this place fortified. Plus she ain't been in the best of health," Rick explained as Carl listened.

"I'm glad she's better now," said Carl. "That way we can hang out together and do things like we used to. I really missed her, Dad."

Rick smiled, "Yeah, son. I missed her too."

xXxXx

The area surrounding the prison fence was surprisingly quite that morning as Michonne and Rick walked at a steady pace with Carl between them; each alert as they sound of twigs snapped underfoot. Rick carried the materials they would need to set some more snares, Carl carried their packed lunch, and Michonne's hands were free; she mused that it was a nice day to go for a walk. Rick stepped ahead of them as the path narrowed and led them to a place that was just off the track.

"This looks like a good spot," he said in hushed tones as he kneeled down to the ground. "Come here."

Carl walked over to where Rick was as Michonne scanned the area once more to ensure they were safe, she then made her way over to father and son. Rick smiled up at her as she lowered herself down to get a closer look at the spot he was examining; she responded in kind.

"So, why this spot?" asked Michonne of Rick.

"Well," he started. "See here, this is their natural path."

"This trail here?" asked Carl as he gestured with his hand to the cleared area that ran through the shrubbery.

"Yeah," said Rick. "That's it. What we do is tie this loop, fasten it to something secure like a tree or log, and then wait for a rabbit to run through and get caught. There's nothin' to it, really." Michonne and Carl nodded their heads and looked at each other, both thinking that day was going to be pretty easy going.

"Okay," said Michonne. "I think we've got a fair idea of how this all works, wouldn't you say, Carl?"

"Yeah," replied the boy. "We got this."

Rick chuckled at how they seemed to play off of each other with their confidence.

"So, where are these other traps you set?" asked Michonne.

"Just up along the way," Rick replied. "Carl, follow the path up ahead and see if you can see somethin'. That's what we do; just follow along this path."

Carl nodded his head and did as he was asked; he was pleased that his father trusted in his ability enough not to be hounding him. Most of the other children who were Carl's age were not as adept as he was at taking care of himself or a situation.

The adults, while keeping an eye on the boy and their surroundings, fell back a few paces and walked side-by-side. Rick took the opportunity to steal a glance at Michonne; she looked to be contemplating something and spoke before he could ask her what she was thinking.

"You're good at all of this," she offered. "Hunting and trapping. I always thought it was more in Daryl's purview. I never really gave it much thought how good you were as well."

She spoke in hushed tones and kept her eyes on Carl just ahead of them.

"Where did you learn?" she asked, genuinely interested; there was no need for small talk between the two of them, so if Michonne was asking then she really wanted to know the answer.

"Just a thing that most of the kids I grew up with knew, I guess," Rick said as he looked sideways at Michonne, appreciating her profile. "We used to ride our bikes down to this path along the river where we had some traps set. I must've been thirteen or fourteen at the time. We'd catch 'em, skin 'em, take 'em home for eatin' and then sell the pelts to Jackson's Saddlery. Ten bucks for the hide from a full grown rabbit, five for the kits. It was a good little enterprise there for a while. Those were some good times."

Now Michonne looked at him; the smile he wore was one of nostalgia and a hint of sadness. She hesitated a moment, before reaching her hand out and placing it to his upper arm where she gave a gentle squeeze and then let her hand drop back to her side.

"It's kind of funny, isn't it?" she asked.

"What's that?" was Rick's response.

"How little you and I know about each other," she offered. "How little we know about one another before we met."

Rick nodded his head; "Would you tell me if I asked?" he queried.

Michonne shrugged as she replied, "Probably. Just maybe not today."

She smiled sweetly and walked along ahead of him; she turned and looked back at Rick.

"Would you even be interested in knowing more about me?" she asked, holding his gaze.

"Yeah," replied Rick earnestly. "Yes."

xXxXx

"It's so good to be outside of the prison," said Michonne as she stepped out from the backdoor of the house she and Carl had just cleared. "I know it's great for safety reasons, but it's just so…I don't know, depressing."

Rick looked up from the place in the backyard where he had set up a couple of chairs at a table.

"So, was I right?" he asked as Michonne and Carl ambled over to where he sat with a bundle of dead rabbits tethered together atop the plastic garden table.

"Yeah," said Carl. "It's much nicer out here in the sun. Something really stinks in there."

"But if we are gonna eat out here, you've gotta put those dead bunnies away, Rick," said Michonne; father and son laughed as she scrunched up her nose.

"Okay," said Rick as he removed the animals and took out the lunch that Carl had prepared for them. "And we've gotta make it quick before the bunnies start to stink."

Carl and Michonne rolled their eyes at Rick's poor attempt at making them laugh. They instead focused on the food that Carl had packed; there was some salt-cured meat, pickled onions and bread that was cooked in a camp oven. There were a few stale crackers and some tomatoes included in the hamper as well. Carl passed around the bottles of water as Michonne served up the food while Rick washed his hands under the garden hose.

"This looks good," Rick said, taking up his seat once more. "I'm glad we decided to come out here today."

"Yeah," said Michonne as she took a bite from the bread. "Me too."

Carl made a sandwich and then went and found a place in the shade under a tree; he took one of the comic books he had found inside of the house when he and Michonne cleared it and began to read the story slowly, savoring the moment. Rick smiled over at his son before turning his attention to Michonne.

"How are you feelin'?" he asked, sipping from his water.

"I'm good," she replied amicably. "Like I said, it's good to be outside."

Rick did not want to press her for any further information on her emotional and physical state, instead he wanted to just enjoy her company away from prying eyes.

"Looks like he found somethin' to his liking," said Rick of Carl's reading material; this caused Michonne to smile.

"Yeah, he's just lucky he saw them before I did," she joked as Rick chuckled.

"You'd still would've given 'em to him," said Rick as Michonne nodded in agreement.

"True," she replied, breaking another piece of bread. "He knows we always share."

Her simple words filled Rick's heart with a full warmth that he had not felt in some time; he gave her a gentle smile, nodded his head and swallowed his food. They fell into a comfortable silence as a solitary bird sang its song in the treetops not far from where they were seated.

…..

"How'd you get so good with that sword?" Rick asked as he and Michonne walked slowly behind Carl on their way back to the prison. "It's just that I never really asked you 'bout it, but I always wondered."

"I didn't have it before…all of this," she started, keeping her gaze forward. "Found it after. Ammunition was scarce, so it really was the best choice in weapon for me. And I got good from having to use it all of the damn time. I suppose it just came naturally for me."

"Well, you're damn good at it," replied Rick, in awe of Michonne. "Anyone would think you were trainin' with it all o' your life."

She said nothing, but offered him a smile; "You're amazing," Rick finally said.

"Rick," she said, not wanting to be praised at that moment.

"I mean it," he said. "I've never met anyone like you, Michonne."

Even after all that they had been through, Rick still had this way of making her skin grow warm and her heart race.

"I don't know if I've ever told you, but I do appreciate everything you've done for me and the kids," he offered sincerely.

"I don't think I've done all that much to make things easier for you, Rick," she said. "I've probably given you a lot of headaches."

She tried to make a joke, but Rick was serious in what he was trying to communicate.

"No, not really," he admitted. "You made me believe in myself, in my decisions. You came here at a time when everyone was lookin' to me to lead when I was in a bad place. You never judged me for that. You tried to be patient with me and I pushed you away and for that I am sorry. You helped me to heal."

Michonne felt a lump in her throat when she thought of what they had all been through; even after she and Rick had found one another, things were not always right between them. He did not realize that he had brought her back. She stopped in her tracks, causing him to do the same.

"You helped me too," she said, trying to steady her voice. "After everything I've been through, you and the kids helped me to open my heart again. I never thought I could, but I did; and I owe that to you."

They stared into each other's eyes for a moment but said nothing; the understanding between them did not need to be explained. The respect they both shared was as strong as their bond. Tentatively, Rick reached out and took hold of her hand; he felt it shaking and immediately felt worried for her.

"Michonne?" he asked as he noticed the tears that were filling her eyes.

"I…ah, I had a son, Rick," she whispered.

"What?" he asked, feeling his stomach drop at the realization of what it meant for her.

"I had a son."

A/N: In the next instalment, they're going to talk about her Peanut and I'm already crying!

*Today Was a Good Day by Ice Cube