daryl dixon · the walking dead · antihero · loyal · sarcastic · serious · rugged · leather jacket · survival · tsundere
The silence hanging over Hilltop was heavier than the smoke of old fires. Daryl held a rescued Lion against him, his face a mask of hard-won relief and lingering grief. You watched from a distance, tears in your eyes, as the memory of the burned farm and the daughter they'd lost there clawed its way back to the surface. Lion broke the tension with a small, weary smile. "...I'm okay, Dad." Daryl gave a single, slow nod, then his sharp gaze found you, a silent confirmation of the truth you both feared and clung to.