This one-shot takes place about two months after All-Out War is finished. I wasn't sure where to put this exactly, but I thought it would sort of fit into the What Carl Wanted story somewhat. I wrote this based on a prompt by irmise on tumblr, where she wanted to see the scene that was shot for episode 8x16 of Rick, Michonne, and Judith at Carl's grave that was cut from the final episode. I hope this didn't disappoint!

Rick, Michonne, and Judith approached Alexandria's graveyard, and walked slowly through the rows of markers until they came upon the cross that marked Carl's grave. The ground and trees around the graves had been scorched from fire, ash, and debris that had rained down on them from the houses when they were still burning, but now, everything in the ghost town was just still, and silent. Michonne paused for a moment with Judith, as Rick continued forwards alone, and stopped in front of his son's grave.

Rick took a breath, and breathed in the burning smell that still permeated throughout Alexandria. Ironically, everything had been destroyed except their home, where Negan had waited patiently for Rick. But what was once destroyed could be rebuilt, as long as the townspeople were around to build it, and the reason that people were still around was lying in the grave in front of him.

Rick slowly bent down and crouched next to Carl's grave, pulling up some weeds that had taken root. Rick fidgeted with the crooked cross until it was straight again, and ran his fingers through the loose soil.

"I know it's been a while, since we've been able to come back. We had to clear out the walkers, and fix the gates so they couldn't come back in. And we had so much to straighten out at the other communities before we could even do that. But I came as soon as I could. You deserve to know, we did it," Rick said softly. "We ended it. It's over." Rick paused for a moment and shook his head, letting it hit him that this war that seemed to last forever really was over.

"It was a big fight, and we lost some more people along the way, but we won. The Saviors don't exist anymore. We just have four communities of people. Just people, who are willing to work together, and trade, and help each other for the betterment of everyone."

Rick pressed his finger against his eyes to stifle the tears that were threatening to trickle from them.

"It took me a while to understand what you wanted Carl. I didn't want to know. I didn't want to hear it. I didn't even want to read your letter. I… I didn't want to save Negan. Ever. Not after what he did. What and who he took from us." Rick paused and rolled his neck and then wiped tears that had escaped from his eyes.

"Deep down I knew what you wanted, but I was so full of rage I didn't care. But I knew I was starting to lose myself. I was starting to become everything that I hated about Negan. I was cold, calculating, manipulative. I gave my word to some Saviors and then I killed them anyway. And they deserved it, but I saw myself in the mirror, and I thought back to the man I used to be. The man that you called dad, the man who you used to brag to your friends about how I made the world safe from bad guys, the man you wrote about in your letter. And then I thought about Judith. What could she brag to her friends about? That her daddy slit Negan's throat? That her daddy slaughtered all the Saviors? That her daddy wiped the Sanctuary off the face of the Earth? I didn't fully understand the impact that I had until I slit Negan's neck and saw the Saviors watching me. I saw Michonne watching me. And I realized that this couldn't be the start of the New World. There had to be something more than killing."

Rick lovingly ran his hand over the dirt. "Negan is done. He's not dead, but he'll never hurt anyone again. You saved us Carl, physically, but you saved me mentally too. You saved the children who come after, who can look at this moment in history and say this was the start of compassion, and goodness, and morality after the world ended. You saved the world for Judith too, because hopefully she'll know the same dad that you had. I'll try to stay that way, for her, and for you. We'll rebuild this place, the houses, the streets, we'll make it the way you saw in your mind. We'll make it real like I promised. It's just…" Rick's voice broke.

"I miss you so much" he sobbed.

Michonne, hearing his words, slowly approached Rick and placed a hand on his back. She then knelt down in front of Carl's grave, and placed Judith in her lap.

"We both do" Michonne added, "We miss you every day. Sometimes I don't know how to move forward. But I remember that I promised you I'd be strong for your dad, and Judith, and I'll keep my promise."

Michonne leaned down a little closer so that her face was a few inches from the ground. "And I have a secret to tell you Carl" Michonne whispered, "We're going to have a baby."

Rick smiled through his tears, and Michonne leaned over and placed her palm on Rick's cheek, slowly rubbing her thumb across it and wiping away his tears. Rick leaned into her palm, her touch already making him feel a little better.

"Don't cry daddy" Judith said.

Rick smiled at his daughters words. "Okay Judy, I won't" he confirmed.

"Do you want to give Carl the present we brought for him?" Michonne asked Judith softly. She nodded excitedly. Michonne pulled out a small box she had brought with them from Hilltop. Inside were flower bulbs that had just begun to grow.

"We're going to plant these right here near Carl, and every time we come to visit him we can see how much they've grown" Michonne said.

"And they'll be pretty?" Judith asked.

"They'll be beautiful" Michonne said, "Carl will love them."

Rick, Michonne, and Judith made small holes on the perimeter of Carl's grave, and planted the flower bulbs in a semicircle. When they were done they wiped the dirt from their clothes and stood, Rick holding one of Judith's hands, Michonne holding the other. After a few seconds, the clouds parted in one section of the sky, producing a narrow beam of sunlight that shone directly on Carl's grave.

Rick and Michonne turned to look at each other, seeing if the other noticed the strange coincidence, but it was Judith who vocalized their sentiments.

"See daddy, Carl likes it!"

Rick let out a chuckle that sent another tear down his cheek. "Yes princess, I think he does."

Rick led Michonne and Judith away from the graveyard to what used to be the orchards before Negan's men firebombed it. The old crops had withered and burned, all except a young tree that had miraculously survived.

"This has to be it" Rick said to Michonne.

Michonne nodded and said "it has to be."

Carl had told her in her letter about a tree he'd planted with Judith, and seeing as though this was the only tree small enough to fit that description, she was convinced. She turned to Judith.

"This is the tree you planted with Carl. You see how little it is now?" Michonne asked. Judith nodded her head.

"One day it will be really really big, just like those flowers. Just like you. And you can tell everyone that you planted that tree with your brother."

"How big?" Judith asked.

"Bigger than you, even bigger than me" Rick said.

"Wooow" Judith said excitedly. She ran her fingers through the small tree's leaves.

"C'mon, there's something else you need to see" Michonne said to Judith, and the three of them headed over to their home. Michonne walked up on the porch and Judith followed behind her. Michonne crouched down in a corner of the porch, and Judith followed her curiously.

"See that?" Michonne asked, pointing to two palm prints that had been pressed onto the porch floor in blue paint.

"Uh huh" Judith confirmed.

"Do you know who made those?" Michonne asked.

"Me!" Judith said loudly.

"And do you know who made the other ones?" Michonne asked.

"Carl!" Judith said.

"Yes, he did. And this is our home, we're going to come back here to live one day. Those prints that you and Carl made mean that this is our home forever. And you, me, daddy, and the baby will live here. And you can tell the baby about Carl too. Right?"

"Right!" Judith repeated.

Michonne looked up and saw Rick smiling at them at the bottom of the porch steps, hope and peace shining in his eyes.