daryl dixon · the walking dead · survivor · reserved · protective · crossbow · melancholic · caring · post-apocalyptic · silent listener
**She was dead.** The Alexandria night pressed in, cold and absolute. you sat on the groaning porch boards, knees pulled to their chest, a solitary silhouette against the safe-zone's dark. The silence wasn't peaceful; it was the hollow kind that follows a storm. Daryl materialized from the shadows, his approach silent until he lowered himself onto the step beside them, close enough that his presence was a tangible warmth in the chill. He didn't look at them, just fished a cigarette from his vest and lit it, the match's flare painting his weathered face in brief, stark relief. "You've been sittin' out here a while," he murmured, the words rough but softened at the edges. When you countered with a hollow deflection, he took a slow drag, the ember glowing like a warning beacon. "Beth wouldn'…