Tomorrow Will Come

Thirty two

It was a month before any more normality arrived; once the grief was accepted, Siddiq and Jennie were doing better, and Mary's chest was better healed; it only hurt when she exercised too much. It had been four weeks, and winter was slowly creeping into Alexandria, each day getting slightly colder, with sniffles and colds and the flu starting, with children wearing hats and scarves to school, and keeping their coats on in the classroom, with jumpers and cardigans being the new necessity.
"Mary! You better be ready!" Michonne shouted up the stairs, "School starts in ten minutes! Gracie's waiting."
"I'm gettin' ready!" Mary bellowed back, rolling her eyes.
"Well do it quicker!"
"Yeah, Mary, hurry up!" Judith taunted, making Mary tie her boot laces even slower.
"Yeah, well, piss off and walk yourself, Jude," Mary muttered under her breath, "I wasn't this needy at your age."
Nether the less, Mary sped up a little, and went downstairs to grab a slice of bread and jam, being greeted by Jennie and Toby.
"You're late." Toby pointed out, as Jennie ate some oatmeal.
"Yeah, well, you're early."
"'Chonne invited us in for food. Not gonna say no." Jennie laughed, taking one last bite as Mary got her sandwich to go.
"C'mon. Mary! I wanna go! Yer takin' forever!" Judith shouted in annoyance, her voice petulant and whiney. Mary rolled her eyes, but got up and left, grabbing her jacket and bag by the door, taking RJ's hand as she walked through the door, Michonne shouting goodbyes as they left, alone in the house.
"Finally!" Aaron teased, as the three teenagers, Judith, and RJ left the house, seeing him and Gracie day on the lawn, waiting for them.
"Yeah, Mary was being stupid and took ten million years!" Judith retorted, walking away with Gracie, the pair arm in arm.
"Looking good for a ten million year old." Aaron smiled teasingly, Mary glaring back at him.
"Don't encourage her. She's so annoying."
"Sisters always are. Have a nice day." Aaron half laughed, hugging her before he went into his own home.
"It is sisters. They're annoying as fuck." Toby teased, getting a shove from Jennie, and lightening the mood, making the three teenagers laugh as they walked on for another day at school.

"Are you ready? To go tomorrow?" Siddiq asked Mary gently as he met her after class.
"Yeah. No."
"It's just Hilltop."
"It's not Hilltop without them. Without.... It's not the same."
"I know. I know." Siddiq soothed, putting his arm around Mary.
"I'm scared. All the time. That they'll go against what they said. That they'll come back again. Get Jude, RJ, mom, you, everyone else. I'm so scared all the time."
"Me too, kiddo. Me too." Siddiq nodded, kissing the top of her head, and hugging her even tighter, the pair walking the rest of the way to the infirmary in silence, Siddiq's arm around Mary, protective and firm and scared.

"Alright. Baby looks healthy." Mary grinned after giving Rosita her scan, the baby bump getting larger each day.
"Perfect. Perfect." Rosita smiled, taking Mary's hand.
"Yeah. Yeah, no worries. Excited for it. For the baby to be born."
"Aunt Mary."
"Super amazing aunt Mary." Mary joked, pausing for a second. John would be almost thirty now, Adam and Carl would be twenty three. John would probably have had children; she should be an Aunt Mary already.
"Hey. It's okay," Rosita whispered gently, taking Mary's hand, seeing the worry and pain in Mary's eyes, "you don't have to be Aunt Mary, not if it's too hard, or you don't want. You can be... Be their best friend."
"That's what I said about Tara. She wasn't my aunt. Not after her niece died. But she was my friend."
"That's who you can be. I... The thought of anyone being this baby's cousin, after my nephew died. It's a lot. I can't imagine what it would be like after Carl."
"It's all three of them, Ro. I don't know why, but I seem stuck on them. John should have a family. He should be here. If Negan never killed Glenn, if he had never taken me back to the Sanctuary when I was little, John wouldn't have shouted out. He wouldn't have made a scene. And he'd be alive. He'd have a family. He'd have me, and I'd have him. I couldn't have ever done anything to save Carl, and I don't even know what happened to Adam. I... I don't really even remember Adam. I don't know what happened, or how he died, not really. But I could have saved John. I'm not the big sister. I'm their little sister. Carl and John and Adam."
"Mary. You... You couldn't have saved John. Never. I wish he didn't die. Almost as much as you do, I promise. And he shouldn't have died. But tell me right now. Do you blame yourself for anyone else? For Carl? Glenn? Lori? Your dad?"
"No. No, they obviously weren't my fault."
"And neither is this. You couldn't have saved him, Mary. Listen to me now," Rosita insisted, grabbing Mary and hugging her tightly, "it wasn't ever your fault. Repeat that to yourself in your head everyday. It wasn't ever your fault. Never ever. And he loved you. He does still love you."
"Ro? I'll be their Aunt Mary. It's the biggest honour. I'm their auntie."