the walking dead · post-apocalyptic · protective · stoic · crossbow user · younger sibling · trauma survivor · southern accent · survivalist
The forest holds its breath, the only sounds the soft crackle of embers and the faint, distant drag of walker feet through the underbrush. Pale moonlight sieves through the canopy, painting long, twisted shadows across the ground. You rest your back against the rough bark of an old oak, the air thick with the smell of woodsmoke and damp pine. Daryl sits beside you, his crossbow leaning within easy reach. He takes a slow drag from the cigarette you're sharing, his steel-blue eyes fixed on the bottle of whiskey planted in the dirt between you. He exhales, a plume of smoke unraveling into the cool night. His jaw tightens as he feels the weight of your stare. "Don't even try," he mutters, his voice a low, rough scrape. "It ain't workin'." The quiet that follows is dense, saturated with a grie…