Hello guys, I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and an even better New Year. I am really thankful for you all reading my fanfiction, I really love getting reviews and reading them. I'm glad for every single one's review, but I'm really grateful for FuchsiaGrasshopper, FanFicGirl10, and SilverAdvenger12. They are the ones who review this story the most and I'm really glad they take the time to review most of my new chapters. Thanks.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead.

Diary of the Dead Days

Part 1.5: Ryder Ranch

Chapter Eight
Stealing Thunder

Our destination was unknown. We left the streets of Atlanta behind us, traveling along the interstate and then venturing into some of the back roads. I kept checking my gas gauge, it was half-way and it wouldn't be long until the mini van would run out of fuel. Rose sat in the middle, twiddling her thumbs with boredom and Ripley was napping on the floorboard. Daryl's pick-up truck had ran out of gas a ways back, so he ditched it and replaced his ride with his brother's loud, roaring motorcycle. Loud noises as such were unsettling to me, they drew unwanted attention.

"Hey, that's my old school!" I heard Rose call out with excitement.

I glanced to my left, noticing her old elementary school. It was abandoned and had an ominous aura to it, though that wasn't what worried me. I should have noticed it earlier, the roads were beginning to look oddly familiar. It wouldn't be long until we passed our old home. That fact made my heart pound against my chest. Rose's eyes were glued to the window, staring at the old sights we use to see everyday. Of course, it wasn't long until we would pass our old dirt road.

"Stop! Stop! I wanna stop by our house!" Rose yelled, doing something I wasn't expecting of her. She grabbed the door handle and slid the van door open while I was driving down the road. If I hadn't abruptly stopped, she would have jumped out. Rick almost rear ended my mini van, his brakes screeching behind me followed by Shane's stopping as well. I honked my horn twice, notifying the RV in front of me that we had stopped. Our old driveway was a long, winding dirt road and Rose was almost half down it. Ripley had followed her too, tail wagging playfully as he probably recognized the scenery. I stumbled out of the driver's side.

"What's going on?" Daryl yelled, parking the motorcycle and approaching my van. Others started pouring out of their vehicles as well.

"That's our old house!" I cried out, my voice cracking with fear.

I raced after Rose, who was slowly disappearing in our old front yard and was dangerously close to the porch. Daryl understood why I had been so fearful of Rose going inside, the rest were unsure about what was going on, but they all dashed for the little girl. As I came closer to the old, white house, I saw Rose enter through the screen door with ease. Our parents must have kept the door unlocked.

The scream I heard told me everything, my body froze as everyone else raced pass me. Rick was the first one in, with Daryl closely behind him as well as Shane. Their guns ready for any walkers that may had wandered in the house. Lori slowed her pace and ended up beside me, her hand placing itself on my shoulder. Her eyes were mixed with concern and confusion as she led me to the front porch. Death had such a horrible stench, though the constant smell of walkers had made my nostril use to the scent, but I wasn't ready for the scene before me.

Rose was crying, crying harder than I ever seen her before. She was knelt down at our father's side with her hands wrapped around his. Carl tried talking to her, but his voice was drowned by her painful sobs.

"Oh my God." Lori muttered beside me, her hand covering her mouth.

Everyone piled into the cramp living room, Andrea had been the last to appear. She was silent, but I could tell she was as shocked as the rest. Shane didn't spend much time gazing at what was before him, he instead scouted the rest of the house to make sure it was safe and that we weren't in store for a surprise attack. Rick did the same, entering the kitchen.

"Damn." Daryl hissed. He had tried his hardest to catch up to Rose, to stop her from seeing this, but she was fast and had a head start.

I hadn't imagined what my parent were going to look like after they opted out, but it wasn't a sight I was mentally prepared for. Blood was splattered behind the walls and there were small nicks where the bullets had landed. The pistol my father had used to end his life had fallen from his limp hand and was lying on the floor next to his boots. He didn't dress up for the occasion, just wearing his usual flannel shirt and torn jeans that he worn when he was out working on the farm. My father had chosen the reclining chair that he favored, the one that was always off-limits during TV time. My mother laid on the couch, she wore a simple sundress and her gun was resting in her lap.

"Lily?" Carol's voice barely reached me. I hadn't realize the immense stream of tears flowing from my eyes. My whole body was quivering, my parents laid dead before me.

"I hate you!" Rose screamed at me suddenly. I don't know why I was shocked, I deserved it, "You lied to me! You said they were safe! They're not safe, they're dead!"

She threw the lamp sitting of the end table near our dad's body at me, it missed and landed at my feet. Rose was probably in so much rage, she couldn't aim correctly. Carol tried calming her down, as well as Sophia and Carl, but she raced upstairs, upstairs to her old room. I stared down at the shattered lamp near my boots, not able to make eye contact with the dead bodies before me. She slammed the door just as Rick and Shane returned.

"This place is clear," Rick said, "We'll set up a proper burial for them."

The area around me felt suffocating, everyone's sympathetic gazes were smothering me. Lori was rubbing my shoulder and Carol was touching my hand. Dale lowered his gaze to the floor, frowning in sorrow. Andrea was still bitter about something that had happened between her and Dale at the CDC, but she also gazed at me with sadness. Daryl was quiet, I noticed the scowl he made at my parents. Probably still believing they were horrible for choosing death and letting two helpless girls to fend on their own.

"I think Rose and I just need to be alone for awhile." I swallowed hard, my voice cracking and my tears wouldn't stop.

I headed for the stairs and went up to my old room. It was across from Rose's, but I didn't bother knocking on her door. She didn't want anything to do with me. I twisted the knob, opening what use to be mine. I was greeted with a stale stench, my room had been untouched since I left. Or so I thought. I noticed on my bed, in the center laid a diary. It was the diary my mom had gotten me for my birthday a few years ago. I never used it though. The cover had puppies on it, three adorable golden retrievers, and a pink, flowery background. I would have felt bad if I threw it away, so I kept it.

It was stashed away in my closet, but it appeared as if someone had dragged it out. I opened it, revealing the first page. It was a letter from my mom.

Dear Lily,

I am so sorry for leaving you and your sister in such a horrible world. Your father and I were too weak, we couldn't handle it so we decided to end it before things got worse. I cried for hours after you left with Rose. I'm scared. I'm scared God will punish us for giving up, but I know He will understand. Please, Lily, please, if you ever read this, protect Rose no matter what. Don't let her die. I know you are strong enough to survive this world, but she isn't. She's still a child. I love you two so much, and I'm proud of you both. I'm sorry for letting you down, please forgive me ...

"Mom ..." I sobbed violently, clutching the diary in my shaking hands. My heart ached so much that my chest was starting to hurt, I pressed the book close to me in an attempt to relieve the pain. I cried out for my mom, whining and wishing she was here and alive. The rest of the letter was hard to read due to the tear stains, the dry ones were once my mother's while the damp spots were my own.

My room was much cleaner than I had left it. My bed was perfectly made, stuffed animals decorating it beautifully instead of slung around like I usually had it. The mess that use to be the top of my dresser was neatly organized and the mirror was wiped clean. I wanted to crawled into bed, cradling my stuffed animals but I didn't want to mess up what my mother worked so hard to perfect. I continued to sob on the floor, holding my diary like it was my mom.

I don't know how long I laid on the floor, but my eyes and nose was burning intensely. A knocking on my door was the only thing that had caused me to stir. I answered it and it was Carol on the other side.

"The funeral is ready. Rose is with Sophia and Carl." Carol informed, "I'm so sorry about what happened."

"It's fine." I waved away her sympathy, "I just couldn't tell Rose, it's all my fault."

The funeral was given in the backyard, two graves were dug and the bodies that laid hauntingly in the living room were now gone. Everyone was already lined around the graves. Rose didn't pay me any attention, her gaze was set and focused on the grave markers before her. I stood next to Andrea, Carol went to stand beside her daughter and I knew Rose didn't want me near her. Daryl was on the other side of me, he seemed to noticed the book in my hand but didn't mention anything.

The silence was broken by Rick, who was standing beside his wife, "I've actually been here before, when I was first heading to Atlanta. I borrowed one of your horses, I'm sorry I wasn't able to bring him back."

He seem like he was trying to lighten up the mood, Rick's attention was gazing over towards Rose. She frown at the mention of one of the horses, she loved them the most. When we were first leaving the house, she wanted to bring the horses along with us, but I told we could only bring Ripley. Looking around, I noticed Ripley was missing from the scene but it turned out that T-Dog had put him up in his old pen, so he wouldn't slip away or get in any trouble while Rose and I weren't watching him.

"Which one was it?" She inquired softly.

"He was a chestnut color with a white streak on his face." Rick had laid a hand on Rose's shoulder, kneeling down to her level. Lori smiled at her husband's kindness.

"His name was Thunder, he was my favorite." Her voice was barely above a mutter. Rick gave her another apology before standing to his feet.

"Is there anything either of you want to say?" He asked for any final words. Rose remained silent, her puffy eyes still fixated on the graves.

"I'm sorry, Rose. I knew that if you figured out what mom and dad were doing, you wouldn't have left with me. Everything I did was to protect you, I had to keep you safe." My words fell on deaf ears, Rose refused to look at me or even acknowledge my words. I rubbed my eyes with my free hand, forcing them dry before more tears fell. "I'm sorry."

For the rest of the short funeral service, everyone bowed their heads. After that, Rick and Shane approached me and asked if there were anymore supplies left. I had cleared out as much as I could before I left, but my van only could fit so much and we had extra canned goods we always kept around in case of emergencies. I told them that they were welcomed to any supplies they could find but not to go in any of the bedrooms inside the house.

"Fair enough." Shane nodded, scouting towards the stable. I pointed out that the horse stable would most likely have some more weapons stashed inside.

Our farm was mainly for animals, not so much as crops. Many of the people from town often referred to it as the Ryder Ranch and would even bring kids for their birthday parties. Most of the cattle had been picked off by walkers and the rest of the horses were gone. Thunder was probably the last one until Rick came by. Rose was always excited about learning how to ride horses, but now she would never get the chance. I was never interested in horses, and I feared them because of their large size. I was more of a dog person, therefore Rose always got presents with horses and then I would get presents with dogs all over them. Like the diary.

Rose ended up showing Sophia and Carl her old room, she even let Carol look inside. I watched her lead the small group back inside the house while I stood next to my parent's graves.

"I always wondered what the room of a badass archer, like yourself, would look like." Daryl snickered, sarcasm obviously present in his voice.

"No, I rather you not ever see my room. Ever." I turned around, softly laughing.

Ripley was glad to see me when I approached his dog cage. He had so much freedom lately, he didn't like being coped up in a cage. I unlocked the hatch and let him out. He raced around the front yard, almost like he was ecstatic about being home once again. I also placed my diary securely in my bag in the van, I never wanted to lose it. Even though Rose hated me, I had to keep her safe no matter what. It was my mother's final wishes. I sighed, the others started to approach the clusters of cars in front of the abandoned dirt road.

"There wasn't much left, but we got some more food and three more pistols." Shane explained, packing the supplies into the RV.

I breathed deeply, trying to calm myself as I knew two of those pistols were the weapons my parents ended their life with. I knew we needed firearms, but I felt sick thinking about using them. Andrea, Glenn, and Dale entered the RV. I slid opened the van door, allowing Ripley to jump in. I turned to my little sister, waiting for her to follow Ripley.

"Carol, Lori, um, is it okay if I ride with Sophia and Carl?" Rose asked, ignoring me completely. My heart dropped at her request, she hated me so much that she didn't want to ride in the same vehicle with me.

"I don't know, it's up to Lily ..." Lori wasn't sure what to do and looked to me for an answer.

"It's fine." I waved it off as nothing, "I know it's boring for her to ride in the van, and she would rather be able to talk with her friends."

As I entered the driver's side, I sighed. I deserved everything that was coming to me, I didn't blame Rose at all, but I still felt bitter about her treating me so harshly. She was just kid and didn't realize how much her actions affected people, how much it had hurt me. I thought that during the ride I could try to talk to her but that wasn't going to happen.

I gazed at the dirt road one last time, noticing walkers were slowly making their way towards the ranch. There wasn't enough to pose a threat, only three wandering aimlessly. They perked up once we started our cars but they couldn't keep up once we took off, leaving behind my parents and my old home.

We could have camped out there, but no one mentioned it. They probably didn't want to cause anymore unnecessary pain for my sister and me. As I drove, old memories flooded my mind. Like the day when Rose first came home and she was just a baby, my mother was so happy. Or how joyful Rose had been when got a puppy for Christmas one year. Or even the simplest memories of Rose falling asleep on my shoulder as we watched late night movies on the weekend.

I felt a wet nose nuzzling my elbow, I shifted my glance down towards Ripley. It was almost like he could sense my sorrow. I then focused my attention on the empty roads ahead of us, no matter what, I had to be strong even if I felt weak.

"It'll be okay." I assured Ripley as well as myself.

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