Hello, Golden Promise here bringing you my very first Walking Dead story! now this story comes form an idea I posted to tumblr today and I got into it so I decided to actually write it. It starts before Atlanta but it will converge with the original story line but with my own twists thrown in. Don't know how often it will be updated. I'm not confident on these characters as I usually write anime fanfiction like Fairy Tail and Soul Eater but I wanted to give it a try.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead. If I did, a certain couple would be together already.

Let the story begin!

It had been a few days. Daryl stared at the computer screen, to a particular name in general on his chat. The name was shrouded in gray, stating the person was offline and Daryl felt a small muscle tick in his jaw. He got up from his chair and walked into his small kitchen. Looking around he frowned at the mess. Hadn't he just cleaned up the other day? Shaking his head at the mess he moved to his fridge, opened it and grabbed a can of soda of the top shelf before returning to his chair. His eyes were instantly drawn to that same name again and he felt taken aback as he noticed the name was now shrouded in green. As if by itself his hand grabbed the mouse and moved it to click on the name. He felt himself waver, wondering if he should bother her or if he should find something else to do. It was taken out of his hands when a chat window popped up and her name came on screen with a small message.

Having an interesting day? It read. Daryl's hand moved to his chin as he thought about it. Nothing particularly interesting had happened in his day. Wen't to work, worked, came home and sat at his desk. He felt his fingers move over the keys as he responded.

Depends what you mean by interesting,he wrote and pressed enter. A few seconds later her response popped up.

Well, anything out of the ordinary? Or different?Were her words.

Nothing. The usual. You?He asked her.

The usual,was her only response. Daryl felt himself frown at that.

Everything okay?He asked. He was pretty sure he would know the answer. Few days of silence was a pretty big indicator. His eyes flew to the signal of her typing in the bottom corner. It went on and on before stopping. Nothing came up in the chat as the signal for typing began again.

Everything is as good as can be expected right now, Came her response. Daryl felt another muscle tick in his jaw as his teeth clenched. It had to be that bastard again, if he lived closer he would have gone over there and straightened a few things out with the man himself. He had only known her a few months and was still surprised at the protectiveness that came over him anytime he thought of her abusive husband.

Sophia okay? He typed. He was a bit afraid for the girl, knowing first hand how hard that could be for a kid.

She's fine. Settled in for the night, came her response. A smiley face was tacked on the end which always seemed to make him grin. They had a funny habit with the emoticons and he grinned again as he sent one with it's tongue sticking out. This of course set off the smiley war as they continued back and forth with different emoticons. They talked for another hour of silly things before the conversation turned serious again.

Been more on the news about that sickness going around, she typed. Daryl felt himself frown.

More? Thought they had that stuff figured out already. He typed with a frown.

Apparently not. You should watch the news more often, then I wouldn't have to tell you all the time, she wrote with another smiley face.

No news is good news, he wrote back.

Not true. There is some good news out there, was her answer.

If you say so. Daryl leaned back in his chair and glanced at the clock noticing how late it had gotten. He heard a ping for a message and looked back to the screen.

Have to go for the night. Tomorrow? She wrote.

Tomorrow. He watched as her name icon went back to gray and got offline himself. He turned off the computer and got up to stretch. He was on his way to his bed when all the lights went out and he heard the first screams rise in the air.

XXxxxxxxXX

Carol let out a quiet sigh as she quickly moved the laptop and put it back in its place in the dresser drawer. She had heard the door open downstairs and so she quickly had to tell her friend goodnight. She hoped she could get on again tomorrow, depending on if Ed went out again or not. Carol moved back to the bed and got under the covers as quick as her aching bones would allow. She couldn't help the intake of pained breath as she lay down flat on the mattress. Her upper back still hurt from earlier in the day before Ed had stormed out of the house in a rage. It wasn't to bad but still hurt to have the pressure of her whole body put on it.

listening for the creaking of the door to signify if Ed was coming into the bedroom, Carol calmed her breathing so that it would appear that she was sleeping. She didn't want him to catch her awake at this time of night or else he would ask questions. He had already caught her on the laptop once before and she did not want a repeat. Carol felt the dip in the bed as Ed settled in on top of the blanket. He reeked of alcohol and Carol tried not to flinch at the smell. She managed to keep her breathing slow and even without gagging and relaxed more as she heard Ed's snores fill the air. With him asleep she didn't have to worry as much. Her thoughts, like every night began to drift toward her online friend. She met him online a few months ago in a local chat room. They haven't shared their photo's in all the time they have talked and sometimes she wondered who she was actually talking to. However,she did enjoy their talks when they were able to have them. It was really awkward at first and she was hesitant about talking with anyone online. She found though that she could be more open and it was easier to talk about herself with perfect strangers that she would probably never meet. Sometimes she wish she could meet him though. From what little they have talked about their lives they were quite similar. He made her feel better when she was down and it helped to have someone who understood. Carol let out a small sigh as she shifted her position to her side, facing away from Ed. She began to picture what it would be like to be far away from Ed. To take Sophia and get out, out and free from living under his abusive ways. She also imagined how it would be to meet her online friend.

Daryl. Carol stifled a laugh as she remembered how their names rhymed. They had laughed about it once. The first time he told her his name she made him guess what hers was. She was curious as to what he would come up with when she told him their names rhymed together. He came up with all kinds of names, even ones that didn't rhyme which would make her laugh. Finally she had up and told him that it was Carol. The conversation had went on from their as they continued on guessing other things about one another. She had told him about Sophia and her daily life. They talked about their hobbies, favorite pets, foods, and past time activities. She learned that he was good at hunting and tracking and loved crossbows. He told her about the different types of game you could get while hunting and she often felt bad for the squirrels he told her about. He talked about his brother a bit. She didn't know a whole lot other than his name and that he was the older brother as Daryl didn't talk much about him. Over the months of learning about each other Carol grow more and more attached to her online companion. She opened up more about her life which was how the talk of her situation with Ed and his with his family came about. They had talked for hours that time. Ed had been gone all day and with Sophia at school Carol had done all the household chores before sitting down at the computer. Daryl had been home that day as well and the talk went on for hours and hours until she had to go and pick up Sophia. Carol thought back to another time when she had left the laptop open and in the chat when she went to the restroom and Sophia had gone on. Carol had come back out to Sophia herself chatting with Daryl and Sophia had proceeded to ask all sorts of questions. It made for an interesting day until Ed had come home earlier than expected. They had both gotten off the chat quickly and Carol had changed it to a math website to pretend she had been helping Sophia with math. Ed had ranted about her being on the laptop but had quickly gotten a few things before leaving the house again. Carol had gone back on the chat to explain to Daryl before getting offline for the night. She and Sophia had then sat and watched a movie before having a small dinner. Sophia had then gone for a bath and then to bed when Ed had gotten back home. He was in a bad mood and refused the food Carol set in front of him at the table. He began ranting about his day and the laptop again and how everyone was out to get him and...

Carol shook her head as the memories turned from good to bad. She settled deeper into her position on the bed and brought up more happy thoughts as she finally drifted off into sleep.

Xxxxxx

The next morning Carol got Sophia up and the three of them had breakfast at the table. It was quiet on a Saturday and before to long Ed got up from the table and moved to his spot in his recliner to watch more TV. He had only just turned on the TV when a news channel caught Carol's eye. Ed hadn't turned it yet and she watched as he sat up straighter in the chair. Looking at the screen she could see a very panicked looking news person who was telling a story about a virus outbreak and how it was killing people quickly. Carol let out a gasp as she saw a person stalking up behind the news person and to her horror she watched as the person bit into the shoulder of the news castor. The screen quickly blacked out as an automated message came across the screen.

This is not a drill all citizens are encouraged to stay in their homes with locked windows and doors. Do not leave your homes until addressed otherwise. For your own safety do not exit your homes.

The message repeated itself constantly after it ended and Carol felt a bit of panic rise. Ed was grumbling about special effects but Carol could see the small bit of fear that flashed across his eyes. He turned to her.

"Pack our bags woman! It's time to leave" he hollered at her and Carol felt the blood leave her face. She knew better than to talk back to him and quickly grabbed Sophia to do as bid. With enough clothes packed to last them a while Carol sent Sophia downstairs with a large bag and cooler to fill with food and water. Carol's attention wavered on the laptop. She knew she couldn't take it but if she could just send a message. Looking out the bedroom door Carol quickly grabbed the laptop and brought up the chat. She typed in a quick message about what had happened and how she hoped he was okay. She had just finished sending the message before she heard stomping up the stairs. She shut the laptop and tossed it under the bed and rushed to the door. Ed had just entered the hallway when she got there.

"What are you doing! Let's go, haven't got all day" he huffed as he grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her with him. She quickened her steps and moved down the stairs. Carol was reluctant to go anywhere but knew what would happen if she refused. So when she was told to pack everything in the car she did so and as they drove away she couldn't help but wonder what would happen next.

So there's the first chapter. Dammit Ed, never listens to anyone. It's really hard for me not to just kill him off right away lol I dislike him greatly. Anywho let me know how I did. I wrote this now at 1am so I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes. Healthy criticism encouraged!

Golden Promise out!