#terminus

Rick Grimes x Fem!Reader

Rick thought he had lost his daughter — and the woman he loved — until he saw them standing in the middle of the road.

The Walking Dead Masterlist

The first night it was just you and the baby, you didn’t cry.

You wanted to.

God, you wanted to.

But Judith was already crying enough for the both of you.

The smoke from the prison still felt like it was in your lungs. The fences had fallen. The gunshots. The screaming. The chaos of running and losing sight of people in the trees.

Rick had been ahead of you.

Then he wasn’t.

Then no one was.

And suddenly it was just you— and Judith.

You held her tight against your chest as you ran. She was so small. So warm. Too quiet at first. Then too loud.

“Shh,” you whispered breathlessly as you ducked behind a fallen tree. “I know, baby. I know.”

The woods felt endless.

Walkers groaned somewhere in the distance.

You pressed your forehead to hers, heart hammering. You didn’t know where Rick was. Didn’t know if he was alive. Didn’t know if anyone was.

All you knew was this:

Judith was.

And that meant you had to be.

You adjusted her in your arms and stood again.

“Okay,” you murmured, swallowing your fear. “It’s just us.”

—

The days blurred together.

You learned how to balance her weight while holding a knife in your other hand. Learned how to move quietly even when she whimpered. Learned which abandoned houses still had formula and which ones had already been stripped clean.

You barely slept.

When you did, it was sitting upright against a wall, Judith tucked against your chest, your arm wrapped around her like a shield.

You stopped talking much.

Stopped thinking too far ahead.

It was easier that way.

You didn’t let yourself imagine Rick dead.

But you didn’t let yourself imagine him alive either.

Hope was dangerous.

One afternoon, you found an old farmhouse with a working rocking chair on the porch.

You hadn’t meant to stay long.

But Judith was restless.

And you were so, so tired.

You sank into the chair, boots still on, knife within reach, and adjusted her against you. She squirmed, face scrunching as she started to cry again.

Your heart cracked a little.

“I know,” you whispered, brushing your fingers gently over her cheek. “I know, sweetheart.”

You didn’t even realize you were singing at first.

It just slipped out of you, quiet and soft.

“You are my sunshine… my only sunshine…”

The wind moved through the fields beyond the porch.

“You make me happy… when skies are gray…”

Judith’s cries began to fade.

“You’ll never know, dear… how much I love you…”

Your voice trembled slightly, but you kept going.

“Please don’t take my sunshine away…”

By the end, Judith was quiet.

Her tiny hand curled into the fabric of your shirt.

You closed your eyes for just a moment.

It was just you and her now.

And if that’s all the world had left for you, then you would protect it.

No matter what.

—

When you found Tyreese and Carol, you almost didn’t believe it was real.

Tyreese froze when he saw you step out from the trees, Judith bundled tightly in your arms.

For a split second, he looked like he’d seen a ghost.

“Judith?” he breathed.

You nodded, throat tight. “She’s alive.”

The relief that crossed his face nearly knocked you over.

Carol moved forward slowly, her sharp eyes scanning you first— making sure you weren’t bitten, weren’t bleeding.

Then she looked at Judith.

“She’s been with you this whole time?” Carol asked quietly.

You nodded again.

“It’s just been us.”

Tyreese stepped closer carefully, like he was afraid she might disappear if he moved too fast.

“She’s strong,” he said softly.

You looked down at her sleeping face.

“No,” you whispered. “She’s just stubborn.”

They shared a look.

The three of you stayed together after that.

But even then, even with them beside you, it still felt like it was just you and Judith.

You were the one who woke when she cried.

The one who fed her.

The one who sang to her.

You didn’t mean to drift from the others.

You just… didn’t know how to be anything else anymore.

—

Rick had stopped allowing himself to hope.

After Terminus. After the train car. After the blood and fire and escape.

He had held it together for Carl.

But when he thought about Judith—

When he thought about you—

His chest felt like it was being crushed from the inside.

He saw you both in his sleep.

Saw you running.

Saw walkers closing in.

Saw himself arriving too late.

He hadn’t told anyone that part.

Hadn’t told Carl that some nights he woke up convinced he had failed you both.

Again.

So when they reached that stretch of road and saw figures ahead—

Rick didn’t breathe.

He saw Tyreese first.

Then Carol.

Then—

You.

You were standing in the middle of the road, thinner than before. Dirt streaked across your face. Hair pulled back messily.

Judith was in your arms.

Alive.

Rick stopped walking.

His heart stuttered painfully in his chest.

You turned.

Your eyes met his.

For a second, neither of you moved.

You looked like you didn’t believe it either.

Then Judith made a small sound.

And that broke whatever invisible barrier was between you.

Rick ran.

He didn’t think. Didn’t care who was watching. Didn’t care about pride or composure.

He reached you in seconds, hands coming up to cradle your face.

“You’re alive,” he breathed.

You let out a sound that was half sob, half laugh.

“You’re alive,” you whispered back.

Judith squirmed between you, tiny hands grabbing at his shirt.

Rick’s eyes flicked down to her.

And he lost it.

A broken sound left his chest as he pressed his forehead to yours.

“I thought—” He couldn’t even finish.

You shook your head quickly, tears spilling now. “She’s okay. She’s okay.”

Rick’s hands slid from your face to the back of your neck as he pulled you into him.

And then he kissed you.

Hard.

Desperate.

Like he had almost lost you and couldn’t bear the thought of it happening again.

You clutched at his shirt with one hand, the other still steadying Judith between you.

When he pulled back, his hands were shaking.

He looked down at his daughter again.

“Hey,” he whispered, voice breaking. “Hey, little one.”

Judith stared up at him.

Alive.

Warm.

Real.

Rick pressed his lips to the top of her head.

Then he looked at you.

Really looked at you.

And something in his expression shifted.

You hadn’t just survived.

You had protected his daughter.

You had kept her alive.

And he would never forget that.

—

Alexandria felt unreal at first.

Walls.

Running water.

Beds.

For weeks, you kept Judith’s things packed.

You slept lightly.

Knife under the pillow.

But slowly, the quiet began to feel less threatening.

One afternoon, Rick stepped into the house and stopped at the sound of soft singing.

He followed it down the hall.

Judith was crying in the nursery.

And you were there.

Rocking her gently in your arms, swaying slightly near the window where golden sunlight filtered through the curtains.

“You are my sunshine… my only sunshine…”

Rick leaned against the doorway silently.

“You make me happy… when skies are gray…”

Judith’s cries softened.

“You’ll never know, dear… how much I love you…”

Your voice was steady.

Soft.

“Please don’t take my sunshine away…”

Rick felt something warm and aching bloom in his chest.

He watched the way Judith’s tiny fingers curled into your shirt.

The way your cheek brushed against her hair.

The way you looked at her like she was the most precious thing in the world.

And he realized something that both terrified and steadied him at the same time.

He didn’t just see you as the woman who survived with his daughter.

He saw you as family.

As home.

As the future.

Judith’s eyes drifted closed.

You kept humming softly.

Rick stepped into the room quietly.

You looked up, surprised.

He didn’t say anything at first.

He just reached out and brushed his knuckles gently along Judith’s tiny arm.

“She likes that song,” he murmured.

You smiled faintly. “It calms her.”

He looked at you instead of her.

“It calms me too.”

Your breath caught slightly.

Rick hesitated.

Then he said, voice low and thoughtful,

“You ever think about… more?”

You tilted your head. “More?”

He swallowed.

“A family,” he clarified softly.

Your heart skipped.

You glanced down at Judith, then back up at him.

“We already are one,” you said gently.

Rick stepped closer.

His hand came up, resting carefully at your waist.

“I know,” he said. “I just… when I see you with her…”

He trailed off.

You searched his face.

“When you see me with her what?”

His thumb brushed slowly against your side.

“I see somethin’ I didn’t think I’d ever have again.”

Your throat tightened.

“And what’s that?”

Rick leaned his forehead against yours.

“Hope.”

Silence settled between you.

Judith slept peacefully in your arms.

Outside, Alexandria was quiet.

Safe.

Rick pressed a soft kiss to your lips this time— nothing desperate, nothing frantic.

Just certain.

“You’re my sunshine,” he murmured quietly.

Your chest warmed.

“You and her both.”

And for the first time in a long time, the future didn’t feel like something to fear.

It felt like something to build.