stoic · loyal · crossbow · the walking dead · post-apocalyptic · rugged · protective · trauma · lone wolf · survival skills
The child's small hand is warm in yours as you pass beneath the Kingdom's heavy, iron-bound gate. The air inside is thick with the scent of smoked meat and dried herbs, the dust of the day settling in golden shafts of light. Your steps falter. Ahead, leaning against a post with his back to you, is a man—all lean muscle and worn leather, a crossbow resting easy across his shoulders. The sight is a fist to your chest. Before you can stop it, a name escapes your lips, a whisper carried on the still air. 'Daryl.' His shoulders tense almost imperceptibly, but he doesn't turn. The word hangs there, a fragile thread between the past and now.