Daryl and Michonne stared at each other for the third time within the last ten minutes. It was a quarter after seven. Rick was late, very unlike him. The man had a knack for being punctual. She had picked up on that attribute fairly quickly. "Did you see him when you left this morning?"

The hunter rubbed the back of his neck, awkwardly as he looked away. "I wasn't home." The sentence came out in a grunt, causing Michonne to arch her brow, curiously. Where the hell had Daryl been? And why was his face turning redder by the second?

Deciding that it wasn't her business to know, Michonne made the decision to give him a moment since he was so flustered by his thoughts. "I'll go see what the hol' up is. Can you make sure we're ready to go?" She let out a low breath once he gave a firm nod and headed down the block to the Grimes' residence. When Rick opened the door with bed head, red eyes, and a whining baby on his hip, she felt bad for him. It didn't look like he had gotten a wink of sleep. "Hey."

"Shit." He cursed realizing why she was at his doorstep so early in the morning. "I'm sorry. Judy didn't feel well last night." He bounced the baby soothingly on his hip. "I'll, um, wake Carl to watch her while I get dressed. Give me bout fifteen minutes." It was Saturday and she knew her friend had plans on sleeping in but Michonne also knew he would do anything for his dad and sister. But sometimes kids needed to be kids, so against her better judgement she reached for the baby. Judith stared at her hands for a moment before she lifted her arms up, ready to be taken away from her father.

"This is the second time she has been sick in a few weeks, Rick." Michonne held her hand against the baby's forehead. She was honestly concerned.

"She was up half the night crying." His cheeks were beginning to turn pink. He wasn't very hands on when Carl was this young, being busy picking up extra shifts at the station to make sure his son had everything he wanted and needed. Now he regretted that because he couldn't even figure out what was wrong with his baby girl. Carol hadn't come home last night, so the Grimes' men tried their best to handle it alone without much success. Judith cried all night, finally stopping an hour ago.

Michonne nodded as she realized the baby didn't have a fever. After inspecting the infant, she felt the hard belly, earning a loud whine from the baby. "She's constipated."

Rick let out a shaky laugh. "That's it?" the relief he felt was indescribable. "I didn't know what it could have been." His mind drifted back to the prison and the illness that swept through the cells. Judy wasn't hot but he was still concerned it was more severe than he was equipped for.

His eyes stared into Michonne's as she held his daughter close to her chest. The normal uncomfortable expression was there but it wasn't as apparent as her concern. "Rick, are you gonna let me in so I can help get Judy situated while you get ready?"

He didn't know how to respond as he stepped back, allowing her inside his house. "You don't have to. I can wake Carl."

"You've said that already." Her eyes remained on him. "Are you scared to leave me alone with Judith?" There wasn't any bite to her tone. She was genuinely curious.

Rick furrowed his brow in confusion, not believing she would ask him such a thing. "Not at all. I trust you. I just don't want you to do somethang you're uncomfortable with."

"I'm fine." She waved him off and navigated her way through the lower level of his house, finding the kitchen easily. She made her way to the sink, turning on the water. "Do you have any fruit?" She asked, knowing Rick had followed her. Michonne stuck her free hand under the water testing the temperature before she placed the stopper into the sink.

"Here you go." Rick drawled, handing over a banana.

"I'm going to give her a warm bath. It used to help Andre when he couldn't get a movement going." The sentence flew out of her mouth before she even had a chance to really think it over. "The fruit will help loosen it up as well. Can you go get some soap and a change of clothes?" Since he wasn't going to get ready, she decided to put him to work.

"Alright." He mumbled before finally picking up his feet and walking towards the stairs.

Instead of Rick returning, Carl had done the honor of gracing her with his presence along with the supplies she asked for. Judith laid her head against Michonne's chest the duration of the bath. After the baby girl was dried off and dressed in comfy pajamas, Michonne laid her on the couch and moved her legs in a cycling motion.

A big burp left the child's lips making Michonne and Carl chuckle. "If she doesn't pass a movement in an hour, get a warm rag and place it on her stomach. Feed her some of the banana and continue to peddle her legs."

"Got it." The teen replied.

Judith sat up as Michonne gently let go of her legs. The baby reached her arms up for the woman, catching the other two occupants by surprise. Michonne let out a low breath as she picked up the beautiful girl. Carl insisted on relieving her but this was inevitable. If she was going to be in the Grimes' life, that meant being in Judith's. It was time for her to get over this hurdle.

"I got it, Carl." The tears were already pooling in her eyes as she walked around the room with the baby's head on her chest. She began to hum a lullaby that used to get her son settled whenever he wasn't feeling well and it was working perfectly fine on the youngest member of this family.

Rick quietly made his way down the steps stopping once his eyes landed on Michonne and Judith. He could hear the soft sounds of her voice as the liquid was visible on her cheeks as she moved with ease. The dread slowly filled his body. He hadn't wanted her to face whatever she was running from if she wasn't ready but he really had no clue on what to do with his daughter for the past few hours.

"Daryl is probably pissed." He mumbled, not wanting to scare them as he made his presence known. There was no probably though. Daryl was definitely pissed.

"Definitely is." Michonne spoke his thoughts with a small smile. Upon seeing her dad, Judith waved her small hand before wrapping her hand around one of Michonne's locs.

The two continued to walk aimlessly around the lower level of the house until the samurai felt activity where he arm rested under Judy's bottom. She wanted to do a small victory dance but decided not to disturb the child's peace since she had finally nodded off.

"I'll take her." Carl spoke up, flashing a small smile. "You and dad really need to go."

That was the honest truth but now that she had finally given in and held the young girl, she didn't want to let go. Judith brought a form of comfort Michonne didn't even realize she was missing but she handed the child over without much protest. "You'll have to change her diaper."

"She did it?" A light sprankle shined in his light blue orbs as she stared down at his sister. "I always knew you were a miracle worker."

"Continue to follow my instructions and she'll be good to go...literally."

The young man chuckled lightly, nodding his head. "Got it."

Michonne's eyes lingered on Judith before she looked away and made her way into the living room, seeing Rick standing there placing his gun in its holder. When he noticed her approach, his eyes traveled over her face. "I'm okay."

He nodded his head but wasn't completely sure he believed her. He didn't want to press the issue though, so he placed his walkie on the table for Carl. The communication device was always left with his son whenever he left outside of the gate. The other members of the council had one, so the teen could get in touch with any of them if he needed to.

Rick kissed both of his kids on their foreheads, pulling Carl into a tight side hug, expressing everything through his actions that he couldn't speak through his words. "Carol will be home shortly. We shouldn't be gone longer than three days." The teenager knew this information already but his dad just needed to make sure he understood. "Listen to Carol and don't go over to Jessie's. I don't even want Ron in here." Before his son could react he continued. "You can still hang out, I just want you to be careful."

"I got it, dad." A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "I doubt he wants to see me anyways since my best friend almost beat his mom's ass."

Michonne tried her best not to smile but there was no way to hide it as her cheeks brightened and her teeth were on full display. "Language." She teased, pulling him into her own hug. "I'll make sure he makes it back." She placed her hand on Judith's back, creating a soothing motion before she pulled back and sighed.

"Make sure you both make it back."

She nodded her head, agreeing. "Nothing can keep us from making it back."

That answer seemed to satisfy the teen as he walked them to door.

The first few hours of the drive were quiet as everyone seemed to be lost in their own thoughts. Michonne's mind was filled with her son, Andre. It had taken her a long time to be able to casually think about him and not cry. Some days were tougher than others but her bonding experience with Judith today let her know it was okay. It was okay that she was able to finally move on from that trauma. Her son would never be replaced but new life was a blessing in this time. Seeing babies shouldn't make her sad, that small miracle should make her hopeful. The world wasn't going to end with them. It was going to continue and for that she was glad.

Children that were born or raised in this world would be more inclined to survive than anyone. That was just facts. Hell, Carl was a perfect example.

Her body tensed as Rick's head found its way to her shoulder. He had been dozing off for the last hour and now that he was finally getting the rest he deserved, she wasn't going to wake him. If this was going to work out as perfectly as they needed it to, the leader needed his rest.

She relaxed a little, keeping her eyes on the road as Daryl led the way to the abandoned farmhouse. The nagging feeling that was in the bottom of her gut was becoming more powerful with each mile marker they passed. She wanted the animals to still be there unharmed and free for the taken but she knew shit was never that easy.

"What?" Daryl growled. The man didn't say much but it was clear that she was making her concern crystal clear as she fidgeted with her hands. "Just wake 'em up and tell 'em to move." He grunted throwing his head in Rick's direction.

"That's not the issue." She kept her voice leveled. The last thing she wanted to do was wake him. "Are we sure whoever was at this farm is gone now? Something just feels wrong and I can't pinpoint what it is." If the animals were in the condition they stated that meant someone was looking after them up until very recently. What changed? Were they attacked? Why were the animals alone now? It was very odd to her. "What if the reason the owners are gone has come back to get the rest of the animals? Something is off."

"I ain't disagreein'." He responded. "But we have to try. We can use those animals. We have ta see."

Michonne nodded because she needed to see with her own eyes that the animals were gone and of the past. She wouldn't be able to live off of what ifs when definites were a very towns over. If it this was a blank trip, at least she knew for sure.

"We can make it there before night fall."

She nodded her head and tried not to focus on the heat radiating off of Rick's sleeping form as his body curled into her side.

The rest of the distance was quiet. She had found herself sleeping on and off for a few miles before she finally gave in and napped with her head on top of the brown curls. When the truck slowed down, her eyes opened slowly taking in the white two story house and the barnhouse. There were a few walkers outside of the barn doors but everything else looked in pristine condition and she was pleasantly surprised.

Feeling the vehicle stop, Rick stirred. He tilted his head up to Michonne as she looked from the view down to his puzzled face. He managed to look sheepish as he shifted away from her. "Sorry bout that."

"It's fine." She waved him off and reached down for her sword that sat between her legs. "I'll clean up that mess while you two clear the rest of the property."

Rick followed her line of vision before nodding and making his way out of the car. He grabbed his machete out of the duffle bag as Daryl grabbed his arrows. Everyone knew the drill. They would whistle if there was trouble but Rick still wanted to wish her luck...with a speech, hug, kiss. Hell, he didn't know but he had a feeling deep inside. So he waited until Daryl was no longer paying any attention before he moved.

"Hey, be careful." Michonne barely had time to finish her sentence before Rick's plump lips were on hers. Not much could rattle her but this action had her completely speechless and motionless. Before she could even return the action, the leader was pulling away with a light tint covering his cheeks.

"That was for luck." He mumbled, placing his trusty python on his gun belt, following the hunter.

She watched him for a few seconds but her attention was quickly drawn back to the scene as she heard the familiar growls since the walkers were now drawn to them. She unsheathed her weapon and went to work, taking down the dead two at a time. Her body moved on autopilot as her mind wandered back to the feeling of Rick's soft lips on hers.

"What the-" she mumbled as the barn's doors opened and a man emerged. His long brown tresses blocked her view of his face as his long, leather jacket flapped in the wind as he helped her take down the threat. Once she knew they were in the clear, she faced him with her sword pointed. "Who are you?"

The man placed his knives back in his belt before he finally lifted his head and faced her with wide green eyes. A small smirk was plastered on his face as he stared down at the pointy object. "I'm not here to cause you any harm but if you keep pointing that at me, I can't make any promises."

Now it was her turn to flash a smirk. "Don't threaten me." She stated with conviction. "It's better for you if you cooperate with me because the others will shoot you on sight." Michonne made sure he knew she wasn't alone while keeping the number of her group discreet. That wasn't any of his business...yet.

"You just saved me. I owe you more than you know." He decided, holding his hands up, surrendering. "I don't want any trouble."

"We'll see about that." She replied, slinging her sword to the side to get rid of the excess blood, not taking her eyes off of the man.

"I'm Paul but my friends call me, Jesus."

A low chuckle left her lips. "Are they friends? Sounds like they were making fun of you but whatever you prefer." She watched as his eyes lit up at her retort. "So Paul how did you end up here?"

He went on to tell her that his community was always scavenging for new things and people. He had ran into a herd and this was the first secure place he found within ten miles. "If I hadn't found this barn, I would have died from exhaustion. There was no time to climb a tree or even catch my breath." He explained as they walked around the barn, seeing the animals that were left. Two calves, three chickens, and one goat. If he wasn't a complete stranger, she probably would have cried because this was exactly what they needed.

"Your community?" He nodded a little skeptically. "I come from a community too. No need to worry." She quickly clarified. "And we need things. We scavenge as well."

Paul nodded before a throat clearing caught their attention. Rick stood there with a hand on his hip as he eyed the man next to Michonne. "Who the hell are you?"

Michonne's eyes trailed from the man over to Rick, who had that murder look in his eyes. She had seen it a few times and knew she had to step in immediately. "This is Paul. We helped each other out with the walkers."

"Is that right?" His head was tilted as he observed the man. Rick had seen Michonne take down at least twice the size of the small group outside by herself. This man didn't really help her. If anything she had helped him. Rick was sure of it.

She nodded and made her way out of the barn. Paul followed behind, keeping his eyes trained on the newcomer as he went. "Look I'm not here to cause trouble but I think we can help each other."

Rick's hand flinched as it rest on top of his gun. He didn't need this guy. He didn't need his help and that was a given. But Michonne stood there silently pleading with him to listen so he opted in. "How's that? We don't know you."

"And you don't have to take my word for it. I can show you." He suggested as his eyes landed on another man walking in their direction with a prominent scowl on his face. "I'm from a community and we have things. Livestock and a farm. We're pretty well off but we still need things. Maybe we can help each other." There was that phrase again.

Daryl was now positioned next to Rick, letting him know the house was clear. He nodded never taking his eyes off of the new man. "Somethang ain't right." His right hand reached up and scratched his chin as he stared the man down. So much was on the tip of his tongue but the way Paul was on alert let Rick know that the man was more than he let on, dangerous. And Michonne was right next to him.

Tilting his head to the side, he took one giant step and punched Paul square in the nose. The move would have knocked out a normal man but not this one. Paul jumped into a fighting stance. "I really don't want to hurt you. We can help each other."

"We don't need your help." Rick gritted, swinging again to hit the air as Paul dodged the hit and followed up with one of his own.

Michonne stepped back and watched the two go at it for a while before she shook her head and looked at Daryl as he shook his head, frustrated. He wanted to stop looking for new recruits weeks ago and this was the main reason why. These people are dangerous, Michonne. All of the good people are within these walls. He had spoken that same speech for weeks but still accompanied Aaron whenever he stepped outside of their gate.

"Enough!" She yelled tired of the scene. The sun had officially set and she was hungry and tired. "Paul if you want to stay you can but please don't make me hurt you. Rick, follow me."

The last thing she wanted to do was go off on him in front of a new man but he was acting completely irrational. She wasn't the type of person to put a lot of trust into a stranger but if Paul really wanted to hurt either of them it was clear he could. The moves he did were things she saw in Kung Fu movies that Mike used to watch. He was the real deal and he pulled his punches and his kicks. She had taken her fair share of classes to appease her boyfriend, so she was sure she could at least put up a better fight against the damn ninja if he tried something stupid.

"He's not stayin' with us." Rick's gruff voice cut into her thoughts as she opened the door to grab their bags. "I don't-"

"You don't what? Trust him?" She asked, placing a hand on her small hip. "Neither do I but I don't have a reason not to trust him either. Did you see the shit he just did? He couldn't have snapped your neck with a damn kick and he didn't. Everyone isn't bad, Rick. You know that." She handed over two bags while holding onto two herself. "This way we can keep an eye on him. I for one don't want his ass sneaking around."

"Fair enough." He conceded, making her brows furrow. Michonne was sure he would put up more of a fight. "I trust you and I'll do whatever you think we should do."

The kiss was a surprise but Rick giving in so easily was something else completely new and weird. She was prepared for a fight, had conjured an entire speech in her head just for him to say fair enough. Where the hell was Rick Grimes because the man in front of her was someone else. But she wasn't going to question it. She was going to count her blessings.

By the time the barn and house were secure, Michonne was really exhausted. She called dibs on the shower and made herself scarce as the three men maneuvered below her. Paul had deemed himself useful as he helped them make sure traps were set up for the night. Everyone kept a close eye on him and he didn't seem to mind it as he showed off how useful he was.

When she returned in a pair of pajama pants and a clean tank top, the three men were all in different corners of the living room. She chuckled lowly before grabbing her bag and heading to the empty section. "For the love of God, please go shower. I'm not working with ya smelly asses tomorrow."

Rick's lips twitched slightly as he opted to go next. Michonne watched as he disappeared up the stairs before she engaged in conversation with Paul regarding their communities. He didn't seem to trust them just as much as they didn't trust him, so all answers were vague and she respected that. If he tried to make it seem welcoming and offer up information willingly, it would have been suspicious. The world was different, worse than it was before the dead came back. Nothing was free and they all knew that.

As the night went on, the other two men, cleaned themselves as best as they could and dozed off, leaving Michonne and Rick up alone. He had volunteered for first watch and there was no way she was going to let him do it alone.

"It's been a long time since I've been this quiet." She spoke up with a small smile, eyes traveling from Rick as his left hand rested on the gun in his lap to Daryl, who was now alert, staring at the ceiling and Paul as he lightly slept.

"Yeah?" Rick asked, glancing in her direction. "What you want to talk about?"

"I don't know." She let out a soft sigh. "Anything really. I spent enough time being silent after everything happened. It was so lonely. Felt like I was losing my sanity." Shaking her head, she stared out of the window thinking of the days she spoke to her dead boyfriend as his dead corpse walked behind her. "I need something normal. People normally speak at sleepovers." She teased.

"Uh," Daryl groaned, earning a laugh. "I'm a man of few words if you ain't noticed." His tone was teasing as he started to play with one of his arrows. "You were a lawyer so talking is like a sport to you."

Michonne wasn't offended because he was correct. In her past life she was very outgoing; the life of the party type. "Let's play 21 questions." The man in the far corner groaned, saying he was about to go to bed. "Don't be a party pooper, Dixon. You just don't want me to ask where the hell you were last night."

That got Rick's attention as he shifted, slightly. It had occurred to him that the archer had been missing for the past few nights but he didn't put too much thought into it. He was just glad his group was settling in as nice as they were. "Somethang you want to share?"

"Nah," Daryl replied, wishing they would leave him out of their game. He would have a much better time if they focused on each other. There was a lot of tension between the two, mainly sexual but he knew they would deny it. So he got a great idea, remembering a game he heard Beth, Sasha, and Maggie play back at the prison. "I have a question, Michonne."

His tone threw her off a little but she never backed down from a challenge so she waited.

"Fuck, marry, kill." That definitely caught her off guard. "Rick, Heath, and Spencer."

"Oh come on. That's hard." She practically whined.

"Is it?" He countered, a wide smirk taking over his face as watched her fidget with her hands. He had caught their brief kiss earlier and now was the best time to explore it.

A few minutes passed and Michonne still hadn't answered. Rick was honestly curious as he stared at her out the corner of his eye. "You wanted to play the game. We won't tell. What is said in this house stays in this house."

"Oh shut up. You just want to know if I kill you or not."

He tilted his head, barely concealing his smile because she was correct. He wanted to know if she killed him. He was sure they were on better terms but her relationship with the other two men were far better so in all honesty he didn't know what her answer would be. He wouldn't be angry if she wanted to kill him. However, he would be very disappointed that her opinion of him was so low.

Michonne let out a deep sigh and turned towards them. "This does not leave this house."

"Scout's honor." Rick replied, smirking.

"I ain't gon tell another soul. Rick's right here."

That caused her to roll her eyes so hard because she knew he asked the question just to torture her. "Kill Heath, fuck Spencer, and" her voice got lower "marry Rick."

"Marriage huh? You have to at least let me take you on a date first. I'm a southern gentleman through and through. I gotta open all ya doors too. I take courting very seriously."

"Hm," A quip about kissing in dark garages and crowded parties were on the tip of her tongue but she resisted the edge. "Did you get some last night, Dixon?" Rick's head whipped in her direction. "Your face has flushed every single time your whereabouts have been mentioned."

Daryl damn near choked on his spit. He knew she was going to get him back but he didn't think she would do it in this way. Damn she was good. "Mhm," He hummed quietly, knowing they still heard him.

"Well well well. I'll admit I'm jealous." She was not giving up on her teasing. She was going to drag this out. Since he made her admit she had some feelings for Rick, she was going to be a pain in Daryl's side. Michonne shifted in her seat even more to stare directly at him. "Is it Sasha?" The red tint in his cheeks gave it away. Even in the dark she could see the shade change and couldn't wait to get back to share the newfound gossip.

Their teasing came to an abrupt halt once a pair of headlights flashed across Rick's face. "What the fuck?" He mumbled, gripping the gun in his lap before looking over at Michonne. "Upstairs."

She furrowed her brows ready to argue but the look on Rick's face let her know this was not a time, so she obliged but not before walking over to him and tilting his head. "For luck." Her mouth crushed against his before she pulled back.

For a brief moment he was stunned before his attention was pulled to Paul. "Daryl, wake his ass up."