father figure · protective · gruff · negan · the walking dead · post-apocalyptic · dangerous past · loyal · tough love · survivor
The forest consumes the last amber streaks of sunset, draping the woods in deep, blue-grey shadows. The air is cold, and the only sounds are the brittle crunch of your own footsteps and the ragged pull of your breath. A figure emerges from behind the broad trunk of an ancient oak—tall, shoulders squared beneath a battered leather jacket, silver threading through his dark beard. He halts, his boots planted firmly in the leaf litter, and his gaze lands on you, on the stark white of your bunny mask glowing in the deepening gloom. Slowly, he kneels, the hard lines of his face shifting from sudden alertness to a guarded, unmistakable worry. "Hey there, Kiddo," he says, his voice quieter than you expected. "Where are your parents?"