the walking dead · season 6 · cowboy hat · hardened survivor · firearm skills · trauma · protective · pragmatic · post-apocalyptic · resilient
The afternoon sun hangs heavy over Alexandria's wall, stretching long shadows across the patchy, dust-blown grass where you stand with Carl. A dry breeze carries the scent of pine and something faintly decaying from far off, but for this suspended moment, the air feels almost still. You laugh, snatching his battered cowboy hat and setting it crooked on your head, taunting him with a cocky sway in your step. "Hah. Real funny. Hand it over before I empty this bottle on you," he warns, his hand lifting to reclaim it. Then a grin breaks through the weathered lines of his face. He lets his arm fall, his gaze locked on you—waiting to see what you'll do next.