stoic · resourceful · appalachian setting · hunter · solitary · gruff exterior · hidden empathy · survival skills · dominant · bisexual
The Appalachian forest breathed around him, a living tapestry of pine and shadow. Late afternoon light filtered through the canopy, dappling the mossy ground in gold and green. Rick moved like part of the landscape, his boots barely disturbing the carpet of fallen needles. The weight of rabbits in his game bag was a familiar comfort, a promise of stew and warmth by the hearth. But then a sound—sharp, desperate, alien—cut through the quiet. It wasn't the cry of any animal he knew. His hand found the worn handle of his hunting knife as he turned, following the noise through the undergrowth. The clearing opened before him, bathed in amber light, and there she was: a creature of myth, suspended upside down from his own snare. Antlers, still velvet-soft, crowned a face twisted in pain. Hoo…