#[gently pats her] this girl could be so branwen

[strqyr]

return of the floof ( ﾉ ﾟｰﾟ)ﾉ

[billythecryptid]

Braiding Kieran’s Hair (Smut) Female

Literally just gonna start posting these half written shit shows because they are just crowding up my documents. Some of these I might go back to but like this one I am so sick of Re-reading and editing and fixing, like I just don’t care, have it! 

Kieran requests something from you, but don’t worry he has a little something to give back. 

OR

I saw a porno where a girl braided her boyfriends hair while he ate her out and this was all I could think about the entire time....

--------

Kieran watched as your fingers moved deftly through your horse's mane making thin neat braids, hands moving impossibly fast, but most delicately. As you finished up the last one your horse turned nuzzling you fondly then snorting in your face causing you to laugh as you leaned in to kiss her nose.  Kieran loved that laugh, loved the way you treated your horse so kindly, loved you. When you looked over, catching him staring he blushed but held your gaze strolling over. You smiled as you wiped at your face with your sleeve. 

“Why Mr. Duffy I didn’t see you over there, how are you this fine morning?” you reach your hand out towards him and he takes it in his bringing it to his lips kissing your knuckles.

“Much better now that I’ve found you,” he smiles, enjoying the blush that comes over your cheeks. “Not that it’s hard,” he teases, reaching over to pat your horse in greeting before going over to say good morning to his own. “This is your first stop every morn-” he stops mid-sentence as he takes in the intricate pattern you’ve braided into Branwen’s mane. He gently runs his shaky fingers over it. “I swear you spoil my horse just as much as you spoil me, if not more.” You laugh then smile bashfully as a thought comes to you, you look down at your feet as you take a step closer. 

“Well I certainly do not give him quite the same kind of attention,” you place your hand on his chest  and peer up into his eyes. His face goes crimson as you lick your lips before leaning up to kiss him. You let your hands trail down his sides, gripping at his hips as he cups your face and deepens the kiss. “And besides…” you moan as he moves to kiss the side of your neck. “They don’t thank me the way you do.” Kieran laughs a hot breath into your neck and goosebumps spread down your arms.

“Ay! Ay! Ay!” Javier shouts as he strolls into the corral area. “Not by the horses! Sal de aquí!” 

“What?” Kieran jumps pulling back as you let out a laugh. 

“He said get out of here, and you know I think he has the right idea.” You smirk giving Javier a wink before taking Kieran’s hand and leading him towards your tent. 

“You want me to braid your hair?” you ask confused. He nods but bites his lip nervously shifting from foot to foot. “Well of course I will I just thought you wanted to-”

“There’s more,” he mumbled to his feet. 

“More?”

“To it, more to it… I want…” his face gets hot and his ears grow bright red. You furrow your eyebrows but give him a gentle smile. 

“You don’t have to be shy with me,” you reach for his hand but he shakes his head.

“I’ll just show you.” He slowly drops to his knees before you and you furrow your eyebrows breath hitching when he shuffles forward placing his hands on your thighs, firmly guiding them apart. You try to help him pull your skirts up, but grow frustrated standing to pull the fabric out from underneath you and wrestle it off over your head. Kieran’s hands slide up your legs until they reach the waistband of your bloomers. He pulls them down, waiting for you to sit so he can get them off from around your ankles.  Next he reaches over to the upturned crate by your bed to retrieve your comb and a leather hair tie, handing them to you, eyes lustily looking up into yours. He shuffles closer pushing your legs just far enough for him to be able to bury his face between them. You let out a startled gasp jerking back a little at the feel of his tongue brushing your clit so firm and direct. You realize he wants you to braid his hair and immediately feel your wetness and arousal grow. You let him continue for a moment, stroking your fingers through his hair, enjoying the tease of pleasure he was giving you.  Then you squeezed your legs and urged him to sit back up. He looked up confused, his large eyes peering up into yours like a hungry little puppy dog. You can't help but laugh fondly, leaning down to kiss the look off his face. 

“Don’t worry, I just need to get in a better position,” you coo, urging him back a little so you can lean back against the crate. He begins again, slow and teasing, and you hum in pleasure. It’s just enough to satisfy you but not too much that you are unable to focus. “Just like that,” you groan before you reach for the comb and tie. His hands tighten where they grip at your ass and hip his voice causing pleasant sensations as he lets out a pleased hum when the comb slips through his hair. 

“O-one braid or t-two, oh God baby,” you pause hand burying deeply in his hair as he does something particularly wicked with his tongue. He does it two more times before he goes back to his lazy lapping. “I can’t focus when you do that.”

“Two,” he hums against you, eyes peering up at you. You bite your lip, thighs clenching around his shoulders, his sideburns brushing and tickling, teasing your most intimate places. You smooth his hair back down, combing and parting it, your hands trembling slightly. You begin to braid the first side. He makes an obscene slurping sound that sets your face aflame, the low smoldering pleasure in your gut grows, your legs trembling as you try to keep them open. His tongue swipes down at your entrance, teasing as he moans once more into your sex. You can only let out small gasping moans hands stilling for a moment as you near the end of his braid and you have to tilt his head down, burying his face into you more. 

As you start the second one you falter, the hair slipping from your shaking hands, fingers numb from the pleasure. He peers up at you and you groan tightening your hold in his hair before you are cursing him as he pulls off, just enough to gasp out with a small cocky smirk,

“Is this too much?” he licks another teasing stripe. “You don’t have to finish-'' you push his face back down and feel him smile against you. As you near the end of his last braid you feel his fingers slide in and almost drop it. He buries two of his long digits right up to his palm. You squirm slicking his hand with your juices. 

“Almost there, almost there,” you gasp. “All done.” 

At your words he pulls up so he can kiss you, fingers working you towards a quick approaching climax.You fist your hands in his shirt, keeping him in place as you cry into your heated kiss, walls clenching around his fingers, he whines back like he’s the one receiving all the pleasure and you bite his lip in appreciation. 

The two of you were eating together at the edge of camp at a small table when Arthur strolled over slapping Kieran on the back, “Those are some mighty fine braids you have got going on over there Mr. Duffy.”

“Uh Th-Thanks Mister,” Kieran squeaked turning beet red, darker than you had ever seen him blush before, clearing his throat and shifting in his seat and ducking his head lower. “It was the Missus.”

“Oh I know,” Arthur winked with a smirk looking between the two of you, his voice dropping low and sultry. “Next time my hair is long enough, I’ll be sure to seek out your services.” 

“Sure but I will have you know I don’t do nothing without a little compensation Mister Morgan,” you tease, locking eyes with the outlaw standing above you, however some of your false bravado wavers as he leans down resting his elbows on the table  so his face is level with both you and Kieran’s. His voice comes out in a rumbling murmur, gritty with intent,

“Why I am sure you will find I have it in my abilities to compensate the both of you very well for your time and efforts.” Then in a blink he gives your chin a gentle cuff and one of Kieran’s braids an equally as gentle tug before turning and striding off. You both watch him go before turning back to each other red faced, simultaneously bursting into a kind of uncertain but tension relieving laughter.

[rwby-grimm-guardians]

RWBY Grimm Guardians Arc 3: Separated Union Ch 11

Side Black III: Coming Out

Welcome back to Separated Union! Here’s Side Black III and here, Blake and Gambol talk to Ghira and Kali about Beacon, their girlfriends, and themselves. Also, Ruby texts her.

Take note that Ghira and Kali may be portrayed differently than how they are in the show. I tried my best to make them similar to the show, but my memory is hazy on their personalities. I apologize for that.

As usual, please give constructive criticism and enjoy.

Disclaimer: Still own nothing. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(4:30 PM)

“You ready?” Gambol asked. Blake sighed, anxiously curling her fingers into fists. “Not really.” She said. Sun and Gambol looked at her, before the taller woman said, “You know we can wait until tomorrow to tell them about what happened. Right?” The black haired teenager shook her head, “No. It’s...best that we do it now.” After a few moments of silence, Gambol nodded, before knocking on the door to the Belladonna Family Home. “Okaa-san? We’re home…” She said loudly.

The three faunus then heard footsteps, before Kali opened the door, looking like she ran a marathon. Sun ultimately decided to back up from the three Belladonnas, knowing that they would need some space. “You’re...her, right? Gambol?” The elder woman asked. Gambol nodded, “Yeah. It’s me…” Her mother then rushed up before hugging her taller daughter, murmuring with a smile, “It’s so good to finally meet you, watashi wo musume.”

The taller woman felt herself feel lighter, before tightly returning the embrace. “You too, Mom...” She said. She then let go of her mother, before the two turned to face Blake. Said teenager, quite predictably, froze. ‘Oh fuck, here we go…’ She thought, before biting her lip. “Hey, Mom…” Blake said hesitantly, anxiety building up as she tightened her fists. She didn’t have to say more, as Kali went up and hugged her tightly. “That’s my baby girl…” She whispered, smiling as tears ran down her cheeks.

It took a lot of strength for Blake to not start sobbing right there, as she returned the embrace just as, if not more tightly, tears running down her own cheeks as well. Gambol stood next to Sun, placing a hand on his shoulder. She gave a tired smile, “Just give them a couple minutes. They’ll be okay.” “Somehow, I think it’ll be a LOT longer than that before they get better…” The blonde replied. “Same with you, honestly. No offense.” The taller woman nodded, “That’s fair.”

“Honestly, I’m more worried about my dad’s reaction to Blake’s and my relationship statuses.” She sighed. She knew that Kali would most likely be proud and happy for her daughters, as the elder woman was, from what Gambol knew, bisexual. As for Ghira…

…

Gambol sighed again. She knew there was no way to tell if her father would be happy or not. “Gods, I hope this goes well.” The taller woman said.

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After everyone settled in the living room, Blake and Gambol sat on the couch, before Kali smiled, “Aren’t you going to introduce me to your friend?” Gambol chuckled as she heard her sister swearing under her breath on how she forgot that Sun was with them. “This is Sun Wukong.” The taller woman said. “Met him at Beacon.” The elder woman nodded, before shaking the blonde’s hand. “Thank you very much for being my daughters’ friend, young man.” She smiled. Sun nodded, “You’re welcome, ma’am.”

“My girls are here!” The group heard as Ghira entered the room, before gleefully nearly tackling his daughters in a bear hug. Blake began laughing as she hugged her father back, “Hey, papi.” Gambol made a groan, “Dad… As much as I love you, could you please let go? Getting tight...” The larger man just puffed his face, earning a snort of laughter from his wife, “I haven’t been able to hug either of you for months, so please let me have this.” The taller woman just looked at him, before sighing.

“Fine. Crush our spines if you need too.” She said, before getting the air knocked out of her from the larger man tightening his hug once more. After a few more moments, he finally let go, before sitting next to Kali on the opposite couch. “I’m sure there’s some things that you wish to keep private.” He said. “Especially with...Beacon.” Blake nodded with a small smile, “That would be best. Thank you.” After she and Gambol sat down, the eldest of the two finally said, “There…IS something we need to tell you two though.”

The two first started off by introducing Sun to the original White Fang leader. The blonde looked more than amused by what he just witnessed. Much to Gambol’s annoyance. The two explained that they met him at Beacon, before Ghira thanked him for being friends with his daughters. Needless to say, the blonde was VERY stunned...but also honored by the man’s thanks. The two sisters were also stunned, but ultimately decided to not comment on it for now.

There was a bigger topic that needed to be addressed.

“Blake and I are...together with someone…” Gambol said, obviously hesitating due to her worry regarding her parents’ reactions. The teenager nodded slowly, saying, “I’m...with one of my teammates. Gambol’s with said teammate’s Weapon Spirit.” Kali and Ghira nodded, with the elder woman smiling, “I’m so happy for you, hun.” “We...feel like...one of you might not be…” Blake said, her voice getting quieter as she brought her legs to her chest. Her father raised an eyebrow, “Is...something wrong…?”

Gambol bit her lip, before saying, “We’re...in same-sex relationships.” There it was. She had just said the truth about . Now the two waited for the inevitable reaction from Ghira. Of course, the two were extremely anxious; Gambol more so.

So it was no surprise that the sisters were somewhat shocked when they felt their father lift them in his arms.

“I am SO proud of you...!” He nearly shouted as he tightened his embrace. Gambol immediately recognized the man’s scent as a sign of him being overjoyed. “You...don’t hate us…?” She asked, queuing Ghira to loosen his hug in confusion.

“Why would I?” He asked. “You two are our children. We’re supposed to love and support you.” Ghira then patted his daughters’ heads, chuckling, “Plus, your mother and I went through this situation when we were your age.” He and Kali then froze when they noticed tears running down their daughters’ faces. Neither had a chance to ask what was wrong as Gambol tightly hugged her father. “Kitten?” Kali called out as she gently held Blake in her arms.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. Just…” Blake started, before simply saying, “Thank you…” A feeling of realization washed over the older adults. Their daughters were happy that they were loved for who they were...as people. Ghira began rocking his eldest child with a smile, purring, “We're so proud of both of you.” He then chuckled when he felt Gambol tighten her hug around him. Kali smiled as she rubbed her youngest daughter’s back, “We’re so happy for you two…”

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After the two sisters had settled down, Kali gave them each a cup of tea to rehydrate, before giving a cup to Sun as well and sitting down in front of them. “So, what are they like?” She asked excitedly. “You haven’t told us their names yet.” Taking a sip of tea, Blake gave a tired smile, “Yang Xiao Long. She’s the older half-sister of our pure team leader, Ruby Rose. Yang’s Weapon Spirit is Ember Celica. Definitely the light and strength in our lives.”

A smile formed on Ghira’s lips, “Just so we’re sure, what’s Yang and Ruby’s parents’ names?”

Gambol raised an eyebrow in confusion, but answered, “Their dad is Taiyang Xiao Long, Yang’s mother is Raven Branwen, and Ruby’s mother is Summer Rose…” Kali chuckled, “Funny how fate works sometimes.” “Haven’t heard those names in quite some time.” She sighed with a smile. “Not since graduating from Beacon.” Blake raised an eyebrow, “You know their parents?” Her mother nodded, smiling, “Knew Summer and Raven back in Beacon. And by extension, Taiyang.”

“Then you...might not like what happened to them since then.” Gambol said, hesitantly. As her parents gave the two concerned glances, the taller woman explained, “After you graduated from Beacon, Raven had Yang with Taiyang. According to Summer, she left everyone to protect her family from her tribe.” “Summer had Ruby with Taiyang and had been trying her best to convince Raven, who she still has feelings for, to at least visit.” Gambol continued, noticing the shocked expressions on her parents' faces.

“Is she…?” Kali started asking, before Blake answered, “She’s alive...now. She...wasn’t from when Ruby was a toddler to almost a year ago.” Ghira let out a shuttered sigh; one with relief, but also anxiety, “So...how did she come back?” “Raven resurrected her via a ritual that turned her into a Weapon Spirit. Raven’s brother witnessed it himself.” Gambol explained. “She was without her memories until several months ago.” The elder man nodded, “Because of Beacon, I assume?”

Blake nodded, “Yang and Ruby have been giving us updates via text. There are still some missing, like some parts of adulthood and almost all of childhood, but Ms. Summer’s recovering.” Her parents nodded, though there seemed to be a hint of worry in their expressions. “May we...see pictures of all of them?” Kali asked. The two nodded, before showing her parents a picture on Blake’s scroll. “Ruby’s on the left in the red cloak and Yang’s the blonde.” Blake explained.

She could see the sparkles and joy in her mother’s as the elder woman nearly shouted, “Oh, they are too freaking cute...!” “Gods, they look a lot like their mothers.” Ghira said, receiving a nod of agreement from his wife. He then raised an eyebrow, “Who’s the white haired one?” Gambol averted her eyes for a bit, “That...would be Weiss Schnee.” Her parents looked at her both mildly shocked and confused. Blake huffed out a bit of a laugh, “Yeah, we know it’s crazy.”

She then explained, “But she’s becoming a better person thanks to us and her mom.” “Willow’s also a Weapon Spirit now?” Her father asked. Blake nodded, “Unlike Summer though, she has her memories….and she’s happier now that she’s out of her husband’s control.” Kali nodded, smiling, “Good. She deserves it. I’m sure she’s trying to help her children?” Gambol nodded, chuckling, “She’s certainly doing her best in every way she knows how.”

Her parents nodded, before Gambol pulled out her scroll. “Now, I’m sure you’d like to see what Summer and Willow look like as well.” She said, showing Ghira and Kali a picture of her, Ember, Willow, and Summer back at Beacon. “The blonde is Ember.” The taller woman explained. Kali nodded, “She really looks like Taiyang.” “Willow looks much younger.” Ghira said. Gambol nodded, “She hates it. Though Summer knows someone who might help her.”

Her parents nodded, before looking at Summer in the picture...and noticed that she looked like her OWN mother. “Fuck, what did she get into?” Ghira sighed, noticing the eyepatch and scars. Kali had her hands over her lips, before asking, “What does she look like now?” Gambol sipped through a couple photos, before showing Kali, “This was taken when Ruby, her uncle, Summer, and Team JNPR arrived in Mistral.” Kali’s eyes widened as she noticed Summer’s Grimm eye and scar, before sighing.

“What the hell has that woman gone through?” She asked. Blake sighed, “Hell, apparently. And that’s putting it vaguely.” “How much shit does she have to go through…?” Ghira mumbled, before nodding. He then said with a smile, “Well, we’re certainly looking forward to meeting them.” The two sisters could tell that their parents were worried about Summer, even though they really were looking forward to meeting their friends.

The youngest of the sisters diverted her attention briefly as her scroll buzzed, before checking it. “That woman is a mess sometimes…” Gambol said, referring to Summer. Kali nodded, sighing, “She was always like that. Even back at Beacon.” She then clasped her hands together, before giving a tired, but genuine smile, “Well, I’m really glad to hear about your friends.” “Looks like it might happen soon.” Blake said. “Ruby’s planning a virtual meeting, so you may get your chance.”

Her parents nodded, with Kali excitedly asking, “When?” Gambol and Blake sighed with some relief that their parents seemed in a better mood. Though they could worry about why the elder couple were anxious in the first place later. Right now, they needed to start planning for the meeting.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(That night…)

Ghira and Kali were still up, just entering their bed. “Summer Rose, Taiyang Xiao Long, and Raven Branwen, huh.” The former White Fang leader said. “Those are names I haven’t heard in ages.” His wife nodded in agreement, “What are we going to do? None of them know Summer’s heritage. Not even her own friends and family” Sitting on the mattress, the bearded man sighed, “I don’t know. We WILL have to tell Blake and her friends, as well as their families about Summer’s identity when they come over.”

“She might not be ready for that information. You know what our daughters said.” Kali said. “Summer died and was resurrected by Raven.” She then explained, “Blake even said she’s been regaining her memories, but Summer’s daughters told her that Summer doesn’t remember her childhood. She doesn’t remember her mothers.” Ghira knew how close Summer was to her mothers from Kali. And he ALSO knew that Summer was not only in Beacon to be a huntress...but also to get revenge on her mothers’ murderer.

Who the murderer WAS was anyone’s guess.

“We should only tell a select few.” He said. “We can’t just keep this a secret. She’ll be furious if we keep it hidden.” Kali sighed. She knew that this information was going to get out in the open eventually. She also knew how scary Summer could be when angry. “Raven, her brother, Willow, her daughter, and our own daughters then.” She said. Her husband nodded in agreement, “Two of her most trusted friends, one of which she still has feelings for, and the Schnees, who she and our kids trust.”

His wife nodded, “Then we are agreed.” She then sat next to him, before chuckling, “Funny how time changes a person. Summer’s changed a lot it seems, but Willow sounds like she’s in a better environment.” Ghira smirked, “Same with her daughter… As well as us.” Kali laughed softly, “Hopefully Raven is still similar to what she was like near graduation. She and Summer looked so happy together back then.”

Her husband nodded in agreement, laying down next to the love of his life. He then sighed, with a worrisome expression. “It sounds like Summer might have personal problems with her relationships.” He said. “She might feel like she has to choose between Raven and Taiyang.” Kali nodded, “Gods, I hope she’s alright. She’s already gone through so much.” Ghira nodded with a worried expression, before the couple sighed in unison.

That was a worry that could wait until tomorrow. Right now, they needed to relax. A lot of guests would be coming soon.

And they needed to be ready for that.

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God, I really hope I did the coming out part right. I really do.

So yeah, I MAY have written Ghira as more of a loveable papa bear than how he is in the show. Also Kali, in this AU, did know Summer and Raven (and by extension, Taiyang) at Beacon and talked about them with Ghira.

Ghira would know of Summer’s parents through political means, back when he was the leader of the White Fang.

But, yeah. Side Black is all finished. Now for Side Yellow III, where Yang gets a new arm, and chats with Ruby and Summer. Tai and Ember will also be present.

[norafike]

Despite All This, I still love you 24

Because ao3 decided to publish chapters a number ahead that means chapter 24 here is chapter 25 so technically speaking, this is the chapter that I have sorta been lowkey teasing for  a while. Hope y’all enjoy it regardless.. :)

Upon their return to Shady Belle, Grimshaw had forced Nora back to her corner to continue resting and wouldn't allow her to be sat alone without any supervision from one of the gang members for fear of her deciding to sneak away again. Nora didn't mind the company when it wasn't Bill or Micah but the days where they were forced to accompany her were one of the worse days of her life.

But after a few days of constant rest she was back to the old Nora they all grew to adore, walking fine and functioning free of any stiff movements. She still had a few scrapes here and there from that unfortunate night that wasn't completely healed but the stinging was manageable.

“Do you really have to go?” Mary-Beth asked as she followed behind the two as they prepared the horses for leaving. Lem's own horse was more than happy to finally leave Shady Belle but Branwen, who Charles asked Nora to take with her, did not want to leave so soon without his owner.

“Unfortunately, I have too.” Nora turned towards Mary-Beth and gave her a sympathetic smile. “Cripps has been left with my brothers for a bit too long, which is never a good sign.”

“Well ride safe, Nora… and don't get yourself caught by any O'Driscoll's again, please.” Nora chuckled at Mary-Beth's words and waved goodbye as she walked back down towards the house. When the other girl was gone did Nora finally turn towards Lem and Charles to help them with the stubborn horse.

“I don't think beggin' the poor creature is gonna help, Lemuel.” She joked, leaning against one of the hitching stations.

“It worked with Casper.”

“But Casper likes you, Branwen hardly knows anyone who isn't Kieran.”

“What do suggest we do then?” He sighed.

“Just be gentle.” Nora approached the stallion and gently placed her palm flat against the horse's muzzle. She half expected the horse to pull away but instead he only leaned further into her palm and let out a huff of air.

“He likes you,” Charles said.

“Most things do.” Lem returned before whistling his horse over. He looked at Nora for a moment and this sad look washed over his face, something that Charles raised an eyebrow to when he acknowledged it.

“Reckon he'll let you ride him?”

Nora looked over at the men and shrugged slowly before walking around to the horse's side. She would pat him a couple of times before mounting up and waiting for the horse to buck her off but he had accepted the new rider with no problems and Nora let out a long celebratory cheer.

“We have an answer.” She answered. With his job practically finished, Charles left the two of them and all that was left was for them both to leave but Nora was hesitant in doing just that.

“You're gonna be fine, Nora.” Lem called and she agreed, although rather reluctantly.

“Come on, when we get back I'll have Cripps make you a ‘Cripps special stew’ how's that sound?”

“Sounds lovely.”

“Come on then.”

...

“She's alive!” JB Cripps cheered the minute he spotted Nora coming in and she smiled towards him

“Hello, Cripps.” The older man ran towards the pair and Nora was barely off of her horse before he had pulled her in for a hug, very happy to finally have her back. Harry and James even rushed over and praised Lem for keeping her safe, which was very out of character for the brothers to do.

“Glad to see those two ain't killed each other yet.” Nora pointed at her brothers as they stood with their arms crossed near the group's tents.

“They came close. Poor Maggie Fike had to help with that.”

“What was so bad that you needed to get help for?”

“They had a knife fight in Valentine, nothin' too serious fortunately but I had to get Maggie and Marcel to pull themselves from each other.”

Lem gave Cripps a quizzical look, a bit curious to see how on earth Maggie, his aunt, was able to pull anyone off of someone with how bad of a state she was in. “How exactly did Maggie do that?”

“She didn't exactly separate the brothers, but she did almost shoot one of them with her cane.”

“Sounds about right,” Lem said before leaving Nora and Cripps to enter the groups camp.

“How are Maggie and Marcel anyway?”

Cripps wanted to mention how little hope Miss Fike had for Nora's return but chose that such a topic shouldn't be brought up and kept amongst the adults, but he forced a kind look and patted her shoulder. “They're good. Missin' you so you should go visit them soon.”

“I had plans too anyway.”

“Well, I won't keep you too long, it's great havin' you back though.” With that, Cripps left Nora to stand alone and instead of her brother's greeting her just as Cripps had done they simply regarded her with a subtle nod before leaving.

The only person Nora did enjoy talking too was Lem but he looked like he didn't want to be bothered any longer, sat at the campfire with a big frown on his face and so she only did the next best thing she could do, walk to her own tent and read a book for a few hours until something interesting was brought up for her to do.

...

“Hey, Maggie has a request for you.” Lem leaned into her tent, his hand planted on the rod that held the opening up and she smiled at the news of being needed for work so soon. Honestly, she was happy to finally be back on her feet so soon.

“Lovely,” Nora said in response, pulling herself from the cot and walking with Lem in tow over towards the horses. Casper let out a whinny when he saw Nora approach and she felt this surge of happiness well up inside her just from being reunited with her beloved horse.

“You may need this too.” She turned around and in his hand was the same schofield revolver he had gifted her before, the one she thought to be lost when those O'Driscoll's attacked her.

“God I got so upset when I dropped this.” She exclaimed as she took the weapon from his hands and holstered it. “It's a gun but damn it means a lot to me.”

“Does it?”

Nora nodded. “Of course it does, my best friend got it me.”

Lem's face only sank at her kindness and he looked away to hide the shame. She arched an eyebrow at the reaction and opened her mouth to ask him what was wrong but Lem only let out a long breath of air before saying his farewells and leaving her to get on with that business his aunt had prepared.

Nora watched as he walked away, turning towards Casper and shrugging as if the horse had asked what his problem was before mounting up herself. If he was in a better mood later she would ask him about it then, at least, if he was willing to talk.

...

The smell of berries and smoke from the basement was a pleasant surprise as she entered the shack. She welcomed it with a fond smile, lingering above the staircase just so she could continue smelling it longer.

“Nora, it's nice to see you alive and in one piece.” Maggie stood in the doorway, her cane held in front of her as she leaned against the doorway. Nora gasped in surprise and recoiled from the bannister, looking over at Maggie with a slightly annoyed expression.

“Y-Yeah, don't gotta scare me though.”

Maggie chuckled and turned around, hobbling back inside the room and expecting Nora to follow her. “I got an easy task for you since you've just come off of bed rest from what my nephew told me.”

“How easy?”

“If you can taint stills without gettin' caught, then easy. Sneakin' in and out'll be challenging though.”

Nora nodded as she took a sealed envelope from Maggie's hands that she handed over. “Lem asked me to give you this. Told me to tell you to not open it, at least, not until after you soured the rivals batch.”

“Why couldn't he hand it to me himself?” She asked as she tucked it away in her satchel, patting the bag gently following.

“I don't know.” Maggie walked around the desk and took a seat in the usual spot, giving Nora a proud grin as she leaned forward. “Fortunately for you, the rivals ain't too far.”

“Where too?”

“Butcher's creek.. nothin' you ain't dealt with before.” Nora nodded and headed for the door, pushing it open but not getting too far out before Maggie had called her back. She leaned into the room but was still halfway in the process of leaving, waiting for Maggie to say what she needed to add. “It's great to have you back, Nora. Didn't doubt you returning for a second.”

“It's great to be back, Miss Fike.”

...

She couldn't recall stealth ever being this hard or herself being this rusty at anything ever before, perhaps it was the time she had spent away from any action that faltered her skill or maybe she was just not good as what she previously thought.

“D'you hear somethin'?” One person asked once she took a step too far forward, snapping a twig. Nora gasped and quickly hid amongst the bushes and crates, praying the shadows concealed her enough as the guards came to investigate the noise.

“You were probably hearin' things again, Lyle.” Another replied but the one she alerted still looked around the area suspiciously.

“I don't know… seemed too real.”

“How the fuck-” The other guard let out a long groan and Nora found amusement in the frustrations she could relate too from living with her brothers. “you know what, I ain't dealin' with you today.”

“Whatever,” Lyle replied. He had inspected the area as best as he could and still missed Nora hiding there, walking away in annoyance with the false acceptance of his friend being right.

From what she could see there was only one vat set up which meant that as soon as the guards were gone she could sneak over, taint it and run; in and out. It seemed simple but they were not moving and Nora did not want to deal with killing two guys all at once, with her brothers this job would be a lot easier and she wondered why she didn't ask them to accompany her.

She lost count of how long she had been sitting there but eventually, one guy did walk away and from behind it looked like that ‘Lyle’ fella who had almost caught her earlier and so when he was far enough away she crept over, keeping an eye on the last guard who had his back to her and briskly poured in the mixture Maggie had concocted. Now, she just needed to get out of there.

She backed away, keeping her eyes glued onto the guard and when she felt she was far enough away she whistled for her horse. Unfortunately, it did alert some more people who were in proximity but they assumed it to be someone whistling while on the job and they chose to pay it no mind.

She couldn't mount up and gallop away, that would most definitely bring over some curious people but Casper was a good horse who followed his owner closely. There were a few huffs here and there and the one whinny but they were able to sneak far enough away from Butcher's Creek for her to pull herself back into the saddle and allow the horse to take her away.

“Let's go home, Casper.” She said, patting the horse's neck and urging him forward in a gentle trot. With the slow pace they moved at, she reached into her satchel and pulled free that envelope Lem had his aunt pass on. It was a little crumpled from being tucked away but wasn't ruined too badly and using her hunting knife she tore it open to pull out the letter.

When she read the note her heart sank and she could not believe the words penned on the paper. She had to pull on Casper's reins to get him to stop moving, still struggling to process what he couldn't talk to her about in person. A stray tear rolled down her cheek and she let out a sob once it all kicked in. Nora didn't cry when the O'Driscoll's attacked but what Lem had said did get to her.

“I still… I still have time.” She said softly, amidst the tears and spurred Casper into a gallop, diverting the route to Emerald Station where she presumed him to be. Maggie couldn't travel too far and that train station was the nearest to their moonshine shack, so it would have been the only logical spot they could go.

...

Her suspicions were confirmed when she saw Marcel helping Maggie onto a train carriage, Lem standing behind them with that same sullen face from earlier with Cripps only a few feet away. He was the first to spot her and the guilt kicked in the minute the recognition kicked in, but he couldn't bring himself to apologise; Nora didn't stay long enough to let him as she dismounted and ran to Lem's side.

“Lemuel!” She called and he froze in place. Maggie gave Marcel an awkward glance before having him move faster inside, not wanting to deal with this situation or be caught up in it.

“What's goin' on, Lem?” She asked but the male didn't answer, he only forced himself to finally turn around and face her and the consequences he brought upon himself from keeping as big a secret like this from his best friend.

“I-” All words were lost in that moment and he found himself incapable of offering an explanation even though she so desperately sought one.

“Nora, I gotta go.” He tried to deflect the situation itself and worm away but Nora didn't him too, she needed him more than either realised.

“Lem, you can't go- not yet.” Lem turned behind and looked as though he was contemplating something in those moments before he let out one final sigh, his decision had been made and he wasn't sure when an opportunity like this would arise again.

He dropped the suitcase to the ground and his hand moved to cup her cheek, his thumb wiping away some of the tears that began to fall.

Lem's head tilted softly to the side before he finally leaned in, closing any space between them as he finally caught her in a kiss and her arms froze awkwardly by her side, unsure of what to do with them or what to do with herself in this situation. But this was something Nora had wanted to do for oh so long and when he finally initiated it she didn't want to lose it, so gently she kissed back.

Minutes that felt like hours passed by before Lem did eventually pull away, his hand still on her cheek and now his forehead resting against hers. “I'll be back eventually, Nora. But there's s-something that I need to do first, that Maggie needs me for.”

“I wouldn't be upset if you told me what it is.” She whispered and Lem looked just as upset when she said this. He wanted to explain himself, but Maggie had given him strict orders not too, not even he knew the full extent of the reasons for their leaving.

“I have to go.” He didn't stick around too long, gathering what he had and pulling away from the girl. She stood there on the platform, watching as he boarded the train carriage and when he was finally inside and at the seats where his aunt was, did he look up and wave goodbye, still waving as the train pulled away.

The train was long gone as well as any sign of the Fike's but she still stood on that platform, holding onto those final moments shared Lem. Not willing to let them go.

“How long did you know?” She asked Cripps as she felt him creeping up behind her and he stopped dead in his tracks at the hurt in her voice, it feeling like a shot to the heart.

“Maggie asked me a couple of days ago, but they been planning this for a while now.”

“Christ, It's stupid of me to be upset over this isn't it?”

“Not at all.” Cripps placed a hand against her shoulder and gently squeezed it. “I was upset when Maggie an' I didn't get married.”

“You walked out on that, that was your fault.”

Cripps nodded slowly. “I know, was jus' trying to be helpful.”

“It helped a little.” She sighed.

“Come on, let's go home.” Cripps pulled his hand away and walked over to the wagon he drove over, leaving her to join him or ride back by herself when she was ready.

She stood for a minute longer before dragging herself over to the wagon, taking Cripps' hand as he helped her up. Casper was left untethered but she still whistled regardless so he could follow behind them.

“Cheer up, Nora. Maggie can't stay away for too long so they're gonna be back eventually... just gotta be patient.”

[albion-93]

Cake & Consolations

Short story inspired by @littlemisssquiggles, hope you enjoy!

            The days came and went quickly in the cold northern latitudes of the kingdom of Atlas. The sun often set as early as 5 o’clock in the afternoon, and naturally the freezing tundra winds swept into the lower city. Atlas had low-level shield technology to keep the worst of the considerable cold out, but down in Mantle it was either dress warm or freezing to death. This risk didn’t seem to faze Oscar Pine, who strolled through the streets, indifferent to the urban decay and restlessness around him. He was looking for a familiar shop, and knew that his departure from Atlas Academy via airship would raise alarm bells and eventual reprimand, but he didn’t care. He spotted his destination and quickened his pace, now realising just how cold he was getting, and discretely slid inside beside a tall departing customer before the door shut.

             Inside, the warm orange glow of Pietro Polendina’s shop made Oscar sigh in relief. He stared about for a moment before a warm, hearty voice caught his attention.

“Good evening, Mr Pine! I’m about to close shop for the day but any time is a good time for a friend of my daughter’s,” greeted Pietro as he ‘walked’ towards Oscar and shook his hand firmly but kindly.

“Hello, Pietro, nice to see you too. Honestly, just wanted to see a friendly face,” said Oscar with a faint smile.

“Well, I’m very much obliged,” chuckled the kindly old tech genius, “it’s not so often that I get friendly callers these days, maybe my luck has changed wouldn’t you say, Maria?”

Oscar felt a hard pat on his back, and the boy gave a high yelp of shock before turning to see Maria Calavera. She threw her head back and laughed loud and long, joined by Pietro’s hearty chuckles. Oscar too finally gave a small, if hollow, laugh when the inner tension defused.

“Oh honestly, Oscar,” said Maria as she finally stopped laughing and pulled him in for a hug with one arm, “You scare far too easily. But it’s lovely to see you too.”

“Thanks, Maria,” said Oscar, his brief smile couldn’t mask his morose and lost-looking eyes. Maria immediately picked up on that, but Pietro noticed something else.

“Now hold the phone, where are your friends?”

“It’s only me. My uh… companions are coming back from a Grimm-hunting mission at one of the mines, I heard they were victorious.”

“Huh, and here I thought you and the others were thick as thieves. Both literally and figuratively,” said Maria dryly.

“Oh my!” exclaimed Pietro, now looking more serious than before “Then it begs the question: what are you doing out here all by yourself? This part of town ain’t exactly the safest of neighbourhoods, especially not at this time of day, you could get robbed or worse!”

“I won’t be missed,” said Oscar in a muted voice. Both Pietro and Maria stared at him with stunned shock and confusion. “To be honest most if not all of them don’t think I should be with them.”

 “Who said that? Was it that greasy-haired birdbrained Qrow again?” demanded Maria angrily.

 “No! It’s not that, it’s…” Oscar paused; his eyes went back and forth between the floor and the two adults.

 “Oscar, we in this household have a strict rule about telling the truth,” said Pietro sternly, as Maria also gave him a warning frown.

 “Lately I’ve been getting this feeling that I’m not actually a part of the group. I found out today that Teams RWBY and JNR were awarded their official licences after a successful mission, Qrow and Penny were there, and the General left me at the Academy like… like it was nothing.”

 His voice had fallen into a low, broken whisper.

 “Now that you mention it, Penny did mention some official business of some kind and seemed very excited about it,” mused Pietro.

  “As soon as I found out, I wanted to be there to show my support for Ruby and her friends, us bonding with them and celebrating an achievement they rightly earned, and I’m... just left out? Am I part of this team or not?! Just-just… what the HELL?!”

 His voice rose with each passing word to an angry yell, and he started to shake from short ragged breaths. He felt a small hand tightly holding his, and another arm around his shoulder, as he went on his voice cracked further and tears fell down his cheeks.

 “I’m not a Huntsman, I get that. I’m just an out of depth farm-hand with a staff; I don't know what I was thinking.  I should never have left my home.”

 “Come on, let’s go into the lounge in the back,” said Maria gently, taking him by the hand and following Pietro through. Maria sat Oscar down on an old worn green couch with light brown cushions, and sat with him while he calmed down. When Pietro returned, he was carrying a wide platter with a bright orange cake with a white topping. Oscar’s eyes widened with amazement and a wide smile started to take shape.

 “Now, I was saving this for a special occasion, but I think we can break into it a little early. It’s a carrot cake topped with buttercream frosting; two layers,” said Pietro proudly.

 “No kidding! That’s my favourite!” said Oscar excitedly as he clapped his hands together.

 “Is it now? Then by all means, have a slice or two on me,” said Pietro beaming.

“Thank you… I-I really can’t thank you enough!” said Oscar with overflowing gratitude and newfound joy, and a new surge of joyful tears threatened to break loose. He got up and grabbed Pietro in an embrace, which Pietro gladly returned with his one available arm.

After cutting a generous slice each, the three settled around the coffee table, large mugs of tea and hot milk on either side of each plate. For a while, the adults exchanged anecdotes of cake recipes, and Oscar eagerly listened as it was finally something unrelated to their mission, until Pietro’s curiosity returned.

“So pray tell, how did you, both of you, get roped into all this?”

 Over the next several minutes, Oscar recounted how he first heard the voice of Professor Ozpin in his head, how this ancient soul told him to abandon his life on the farm and on a road to ‘greatness’ in protecting the world. He talked of his time at Haven and joining with Qrow Branwen and the young huntresses and huntsmen. He talked about how he trained with them, felt a connection to Ruby, Nora, Ren, and even Jaune despite their later difficulties. He mentioned the altercation at Haven Academy, and the Grimm attacks on their journey to Atlas. Recounting these events made him more animated and even happy at points, and Pietro listened with rapt attention. Maria added her own perspectives on the events leading up to Argus with quite a lot more flair than Oscar could muster.

 “My, my... That was quite the tale,” said Pietro, very much impressed.

 “Bah! If it weren't for me then you, your girlfriend’s team and her nincompoop uncle would be dried-up frozen corpses,” barked Maria indignantly,

 “W-What?! Maria, Ruby is not my girlfriend!” yelped Oscar worriedly.

 “Well sure, with an attitude like that she never will be,” she muttered to herself before clearing her throat, “Look, the point is that Iron-trousers didn’t bother to extend the invitation to me either, kid.”

 “That’s... actually a fair point. I’m sorry.”

 “It’s alright, I made my peace with it.”

 “Look, I get it. I’m not with them right now because I’m not a Huntsman. Without Ozpin in my head I’m nothing, I’m not a hero or somebody important.”

“Who says you’re not important?” said Pietro earnestly.

 Oscar paused, unable to come up with an answer.

 “I've traveled to all sorts of places, shook hands with all sorts of folks, from high-and-mighty statesmen to humble miners. And you know what? In all my life, I’ve never met anyone who wasn’t important. And that means you too! You risked everything to follow a group of strangers and jumped into the jaws of peril and emerged in one piece several times, and you keep sticking it out. You might not be a Huntsman right now but damn if you don't have the spirit of one, boy.”

 These words washed over Oscar, he looked back and forth and tried to process them, musing on carrot cake crumbs on his plate.

 “So everyone matters to someone, that’s your belief?” said Oscar at length, Pietro nodded, “then Ironwood would have left without me for some reason?”

 “Well, those mines are no picnic, and James takes a full escort wherever he goes. Maybe the General had his reasons and he trusted you enough to keep out of trouble. He’s probably wondering where you are right now.”

 Oscar flinched, remembering the Lamp of Knowledge. He had made sure to lock it up somewhere safe before leaving the Academy, but he still felt guilty about leaving it in some random cupboard. If Ironwood or any of the team were to find out he’d basically left his one job...

 “Here’s my two lien:” said Maria without her usual air of dry wit, “you got left behind, and that sucks, but being miserable about it isn’t going to make your situation better. You have to find another way: your own choices, actions and consequences. Do you really want to follow Ruby and her friends around like a puppy, or do you want to make the choices that feel right for you?”

 “You’re both right,” said Oscar with a calmer and clearer voice than earlier, “I have an idea about…”

“SAL-U-TATIONS!”

 Oscar rapidly turned about and stared; Penny was standing in the doorway to the lounge, all beaming smiles and waves. How that girl managed to be so loud and yet so discrete was both a mystery and triumph of Atlesian robotics.

 “Greetings, father! Greetings, Ms Calavera! I am happy to report that the graduation ceremony was a success, and my friends are officially licenced Huntsmen!”

 “Why that’s plum-terrific, darling!” said Pietro with his usual level of cordial enthusiasm as he pulled his daughter in for a hug, “Tell them I said hello would you?”

 “Of course! I’ve been sent to retrieve young Oscar,” she said a little more seriously as she turned and motioned Oscar to come with her, “Our transport is waiting outside. I believe Ruby and General Ironwood are worried for your safety, and Miss Valkyrie mentioned something about ‘he’s gonna get the grounding of a life if that boy isn’t back in five minutes!’ More or less,” she added the last part sheepishly, after emulating Nora’s voice to perfection.

 “Uh oh…” said Oscar, now quivering at the thought of a telling off from Nora and quickly rose, “I better go, but thank you so, so much for the cake, Pietro. This talk really helped.”

 “My pleasure, come by any time you like, as long as you tell your compatriots,” said Pietro as Oscar and Penny made their way from the lounge to the shop entrance, waving as they went.

 “Remember what we talked about, and good luck!” called out Maria.

[comfort-questing]

Hey there, lately online school has been kinda bad so I was wondering if I could order a Penny looking after a sick Winter to cheer up ? Because pure and innocent caretakers are adorable

“Hello? Miss Schnee?”

Winter’s head felt like something heavy was sitting on it, or maybe inside it. Opening her eyes was enough of a task, let alone trying to lift her head off the pillow. Above her, the pale ceiling tiles blurred gently. “Good morning, Penny,” she said, towards the ceiling. Her voice was hoarse in her dry throat. “Didn’t someone tell you - we wouldn’t be training this morning?”

“Oh, yes. Because you are feeling sub-optimal and hoping for additional time to rest.” Penny’s chirping voice was at least a little quieter than usual. “I know that. That’s why I came.”

“You don’t want to catch - “ Winter started, then realized the exceptionally obvious mistake she was making - “to take the trouble. I’m - “ she coughed, but that made her throat feel worse instead of better - “all right on my own.”

There was a thump like something being set down on a table, with the rustle of falling papers in its wake. “I assure you it isn’t any trouble, Miss Schnee. I always like to help my friends.”

Winter managed to turn her head at last, muscles of her neck aching and pulling, in time to see Penny fussing with a tray she’d set down on the desk. At least one stack of papers was strewn all over the floor, the tray having occupied their previous location. She coughed, harder this time, the painful harshness of her throat warring against the squeezed feeling in her chest.

Penny whisked her auburn hair back behind her shoulders with a motion of one gloved hand. Her eyes were wide, the pinch of her mouth worried. “I brought you toast with jelly,” she said. “And tea. All the things that the kitchen makes for people when they’re sick. Are you sure you shouldn’t be in the infirmary?”

“It’s just - just a cold.” Winter levered herself up on her elbows, gritting her teeth as the room rocked around her dizzily. “I’ll be fine here, Penny. They have more important things to worry about.”

Penny looked dubious as she walked over, carefully balancing a teacup and saucer in one hand and a plate in the other. “I think you’re pretty important, Miss Schnee.”

Trust Penny to say sweet things like that. Winter shivered and let herself back down onto the pillows, headache stabbing at her again as she changed position. “That’s as may be.”

“And Mr. Branwen isn’t here to make you go get checked in at the infirmary,” Penny said, demurely, but her face was hidden as she was busy finding a space on the nightstand. “So I’m looking after you instead.”

Winter didn’t have half enough energy to get onto that topic, so she let it slide, stifling a cough into the blankets. A moment later Penny’s arm inched its chilly way behind her shoulders and helped her tilt her head up again. A little humiliating it was, having to shake back her messy pale uncombed hair and sip from the cup the girl held, but the tea warmed her and soothed the ache in her throat somewhat.

“There,” said Penny above her. She was kneeling next to Winter’s bed, mouth still in its wistful confused twist. “You seem to be at a slightly higher temperature than the other humans are.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.” Winter tried to make the hoarseness in her voice sound commanding instead of pitiful. She wasn’t a little girl anymore, couldn’t afford to spend days having people fussing over her.

She might as well have not spoken, for all the attention Penny gave her words; the girl was already breaking off a bit of toast with careful fingers, bringing it towards Winter’s mouth. “Have this, too. You should eat.”

“I can get it myself, Penny. Thanks - thanks though - “ Winter fumbled towards the plate on the nightstand, hissing her breath in between her teeth as the cold outside the blankets gripped her. She nearly toppled the teacup and would have if Penny hadn’t grabbed it, but she did manage to find the toast.

Penny watched her eat, a small satisfied look creeping across her face. That kept Winter going, although she didn’t really feel hungry. And though neither was she really that thirsty, she did let Penny lift her up to drink more tea, and finish the second piece of toast and jam. Her headache had marginally lifted but her body felt weaker than before, shivers running through her even under the blankets.

She was tired. Too tired to make Penny leave - it might be impossible anyway - and the papers had already gotten scattered everywhere, and crumbs all over the bed. So it didn’t matter if she also let Penny bathe her forehead and put a chemical-smelling warm rag across her throat and chest, the strong scent of it easing the tension in her breathing a little bit. She might as well let it happen. Goodness only knew she wasn’t going to be doing anything else today at this rate... If the little Protector of Atlas had made up her mind, who was she to try to change it - and anyway it did feel good, having someone there..

The last thing she remembered before drifting off into sleep again was Penny sitting next to her, one gloved hand clumsily and shyly patting Winter’s hair, and by then she was definitely too tired to do something about it, even if she had wanted to.

[reddeadrevival]

Stealing Our Place in the Sun - Chapter 2

Warnings: None

A/N: Alright, here we go with Chapter 2. Lemme know what you guys think ^_^ We get to see some familiar faces in this one. I try my best to write out the accents of the characters but I don’t always get it just right, hopefully you can still hear the words in their voices despite my failed efforts ^_^

Previous Part | First Part

“Arthur! Can you help me unload all this?” Pearson asked as he got down off the supplies wagon and started to unhook the horses.

“Sure thing, Mr. Pearson,” Arthur replied as he stood from where he sat at the table in the center of camp. He walked around to the back of the wagon but stopped before he took anything off. “Uh, Pearson?”

“Yeah?” 

“Are you aware of the little girl in the back'a yer wagon?” he asked. The larger man came around back to see the small blonde girl waking up from the nap she’d been taking. “How’d you miss her?” Arthur held his hand out to motion to the girl. She was in a bright yellow dress with a pink bow. Her little fist rubbed her eye as the other held onto the ear of her stuffed rabbit she had been using as a pillow.

“Well, now she wasn’t there when I left,” Pearson insisted. Arthur let out a sigh and shook his head. 

“C’mere, let’s get you down from there.” He motioned her forwards with both hands extended. She scooted to the edge of the wagon. Arthur hooked his hands under her arms and gently lifted her up of the edge of the wagon. She playfully kicked her legs a bit before he placed her so she was standing on the ground; she stared up at him, following him with her head as he knelt down in front of her. “Now what’s yer name?”

“Wiwy,” she replied in a small voice as she held her rabbit to her chest. Arthur blinked.

“What?”

"Wiwy!" she repeated, louder than she needed, making Arthur and Pearson wince.

“I believe she’s trying to say Lilly.” The two men looked over as Dutch approached them. “Anyone care to explain?” he looked between the two but his eyes settled on Arthur.

“Uh, it was an accident, I swear, I didn’t know she was back there. She wasn’t there when I loaded the last crate,” Pearson explained. “I would’ve seen her!” Dutch held up a hand to calm the man.

“I believe you, Mr. Pearson. Now, Lilly,” he looked down at the child with a smile. She smiled back up at him, doing a little half rock in place. “Where are your parents, hun?”

“Da moon,” the little girl answered with a bigger smile. The three men looked at each other for a moment in silence.

“Let’s start with Valentine, Arthur, you ride in and see if anyone’s looking for her,” Dutch said as the younger man stood up with a nod.

“Alright.” He headed towards his horse. Lilly turned to watch him walk away with a small frown.

“In the meantime, Lilly will stay here. I’ll see if maybe Abigail can watch her for now.” Dutch picked up the girl, who giggled the whole way, and sat her on his hip. “Miss Roberts!”

🌻☀️🌻☀️ 🌻☀️🌻☀️ 🌻☀️🌻☀️ 🌻☀️🌻☀️ 🌻☀️🌻☀️ 🌻☀️🌻☀️ 🌻

“How could you just leave her by herself?” Lynnette snapped as she and Max walked through town, lugging their bags with them.

“I was trying to help you!”

“She’s only two years old, Max!” Lynnette practically screamed. “There’re horses everywhere what if she got hurt?”

“I’m sorry! How many times do you want me to say it?”

“Until we find her!” 

They asked everyone they came across if they’d seen a little blonde girl but no one had. Most people gave them weird looks and probably wondered if Lynnette had been drinking as her eyes were slightly red from crying, as well as her face from running around. She was close to giving up and having a full break down when a man approached them.

“Ya lost yer daughter Miss?” he asked. She turned to face him and if she wasn’t so concerned for Lilly’s safety, she would’ve taken the time to appreciate his looks. He on the other hand had no issues looking her over, his eyebrows raised high as he took in what exactly she was wearing. If his face wasn't already a bit sunburned his cheeks would be visibly glowing.

“Our sister, she's like two feet tall,” Lynnette started as she held her hand up to show the height beside her. “long blonde hair in pigtails-”

“She uh... happen to carry a little toy rabbit?”

“Yes! Have you seen her?”

“Yup.” He nodded. “She's back at our camp. Was on the back’a one’a our wagons,” he explained with a slightly amused smile.

"That'd be my bad," Max admitted raising a hand with a sheepish smile.

"But she's okay?" Lynnette asked.

"She’s fine. Last I saw she was playin’ with a boy we got there; few years older than her, I reckon."

“Oh thank god.” Lynnette let out a heavy sigh and ran a hand through her hair.

“I'll bring ‘er back to ya. Where abouts do y'all live.”

“We don't live here,” Lynnette said and lifted her suitcase a bit. He nodded.

“We’re lost; we don't know how we got here. We fell asleep on the train," Max told him bluntly. Lynnette turned to look at him with wide eyes.

“Max.”

“What? We did!” he shot back. Arthur looked between the two and held up a hand before they could start to argue any further.

“First things first, let’s get you back with yer sister then ya can figure out where yer goin’ from there. You'll have to come back with me.” He turned and started to walk to his horse, the two followed with their bags. “Gotta leave those here,” he pointed out without turning around. “Why don’t you go get a room and I’ll take yer sister to yer other sister,” he suggested with a glance at Max as he got up onto the horse.

“You want me to leave him by himself?” Lynnette asked in disbelief.

“Kids'not a baby,” Arthur said with a frown.

“He's 12.”

“I’m almost 13!” Max protested.

“I’m not leaving him alone here,” Lynnette reiterated, ignoring Max.

“Well, then yer leavin’ yer luggage cause mah horse ain’t carryin’ all that.”

“Why don’t we just get a room, put the bags in there then both go?” Max suggested.

“Because, Max, we don’t have any money,” Lynnette hissed quickly as she turned to him.

“Yeah we do, you have plenty! You have your credit ...cards...oh,” he trailed off with a sheepish smile.

“Yeah oh.”

“Credit cards?” Arthur muttered as he looked between the two. He let out a sigh. “Look,” The two turned to him. “I’ll pay for a room.”

“Why would you do that for us?” Lynnette asked with a slight frown. “You just met us.”

“Cause ya obviously need the help,” he said.

“Alright… thank you. I don’t know when I can pay you back.” He shook his head as he held up a hand.

“Don’t worry about it. Let’s just get you two ta yer sister.” He reached into his bag then handed Max a dollar. “Here, go get a room, I’ll wait here.” He motioned to the hotel.

“A dollar?” Max asked before he looked up at him. 

“Yeah, that’s what a room costs,” Arthur said motioning to the hotel again. Max looked at his sister then back up at the cowboy.

“A dollar?”

“Yeah! Yer ears work don’t they, boah?”

“Where we’re from it would’ve been a lot more… expensive,” Lynnette explained. The man scoffed. 

“I don’t wanna go there,” he muttered. “Go on.” He motioned for them to go again and they hurried inside with their bags.

When they returned Arthur helped Max on in front of him before turning to Lynnette who simply stood there with her arms crossed.

“And how exactly am I going to fit?” she asked. Arthur twisted in his seat and patted the horse’s behind.

“Righ’ here, hop on,” he said with a smirk.

“Very funny. How exactly do I do that without giving everyone a show?” she asked as she motioned down to her skirt and heels.

“Little late for that,” Arthur muttered as he looked down at them, following the path of her legs to the heels, before he looked back to her face to see her scowl. He didn’t even try to hide his eye roll as he held down an arm to her. She hesitantly reached out her own arm as she stepped closer. Lynnette resisted the urge to let out an actual squeak as he managed to lift her up and onto the back of the horse so she was sitting side saddle on the horse’s rear. She shifted herself and clamped her legs together before smoothing out her skirt. Arthur clicked his tongue and pulled the reins for his horse to turn. Lynnette grabbed the back of his coat. “I suggest ya hold on a bit tighter than that.”

 ... “So, what’re yer names?” Arthur asked. It wasn’t that long of a ride to camp but it was long enough that silence wasn’t something he wanted to deal with.

“I’m Max!” the boy said as he looked back at him with a grin. Arthur chuckled at his enthusiasm. 

“And you?” He turned his head slightly.

“Lynnette O’Callaghan,” she answered.

“O’Callaghan?” Arthur asked.

“Yeah?”

“You two Irish?”

“Is… that a problem?”

“No, not really. Just don’t sound Irish is all.”

“We’re not from Ireland,” Max told him. “Our grandparents are. On our mother’s side.”

“Alrigh’, didn’t mean nothin’ by it. And uh, yer sister’s name?”

“Lilly,” Max answered. He nodded. “And she’s our half sister.”

“Max,” Lynnette scolded with a sigh.

“What?” he whined. Lynnette let out another smaller sigh and thankfully Arthur didn’t say anything after that.

The rest of the ride was filled with an almost awkward silence, the one Arthur had been trying to avoid. It was only awkward to him however as the two siblings were too preoccupied with observing their surroundings.

...

When they arrived at camp, Bill was on watch and heard them before he saw them.

“Who’s there?” he called out as he adjusted his grip on his weapon.

“It’s me! Arthur!” As they rode closer Bill was able to see the two extra people on Arthur’s mare.

“Who’re they?” 

“The girl’s family,” Arthur answered, and rode passed the man before he could say another word. Though it didn’t look like Bill was going to say much considering his mouth fell open at the sight of Lynnette on the back, more specifically her legs.

They entered the camp and moved past a bunch of horses that were grazing. Kieran was busy brushing his horse, Branwen, when he heard them. He turned to greet Arthur and paused with his mouth open, very similar to Bill’s. Lynnette had her eyes forward, looking for Lilly, and didn't notice the man's face turn a bright pink as he dropped the horse brush he had been holding. They came to a stop in front of a hitching post and Lynnette slid off the back of the horse the moment she saw the familiar head of golden locks. She stumbled slightly on her landing, not used to such a drop in heels, no matter how thick they were, but managed to run over.

“Lilly!” Lynnette scooped the girl into her arms and let out a breath of relief. She didn’t notice everyone in the camp was watching, staring at her, from their various places around camp.

“You must be her mother,” Dutch said as he approached with a smile, keeping his eyes politely up at her face level. “Dutch Van Der Linde.”

“Lynnette O’Callaghan. I’m her sister, actually. That’s our brother Max,” she added as she nodded towards where Max was being helped off the horse by Arthur.

“You look nothin’ alike,” Uncle pointed out, looking between the two girls.

“She’s our half sister. Our mother remarried,” Max explained as he walked over while Arthur hitched his horse.

“Do you have to tell people everything?” Lynnette asked as she turned to glare at Max. He simply shrugged, not bothered by her annoyance towards him. “Thank you… all,” she spoke as she noticed just how many eyes were on them. “for looking after her but… we have to be going.”

“Where to exactly?” Arthur asked as he lit a cigarette, slowly walking over. “That room’s only for one night, ya know.” Lynnette looked between her siblings as she bit her lip. “Dutch, can I speak to you a moment?” Arthur asked as he took the lit cigarette from his lips.

“Of course. Why don’t the three of you stay a while, rest. Arthur will take you back to Valentine, before sunset, don’t worry,” Dutch said with an overly friendly smile before the two walked away to his tent.

Lilly started to struggle in Lynnette’s arms and the woman put her down but held onto her hand. The young girl started to whine as she tried to walk away.

“Stay with me, Lil.” The girl looked up and looked like she was going to start crying. Lucky she didn’t get the chance to as the person she wanted to go to came over to them. 

“Hello, I’m Jack,” Jack said as he looked up at Lynnette with a smile. “Can Lilly come and play?” Lynnette blinked down at the little boy before looking at Lilly who was pouting up at her, the girl had been gifted with the perfect set of brown puppy dog eyes to use against her. 

“I-I...I guess,” she relented with a nod and let go of Lilly’s hand. 

“You wanna play too?” Jack asked as he looked up at Max. The older boy frowned in confusion and shook his head. “Okay then!” The little girl made a happy sound as she and Jack ran off. 

“He’s never played with children his age.” Lynnette turned to see a dark haired woman walk up to her. “I’m his mother, Abigail.”

“I’m Lilly’s sister, Lynnette.”

“Where’re yer parents? She tol’ anyone who asked they were…  on the moon?” Lynnette started to laugh and Abigail joined her with a smaller laugh of her own.

“Our parents...our mother is on her honeymoon with our stepfather. Her father.” 

“I see.” Abigail nodded. “If ya don’ mind me askin’… yer clothes…”

“Yeah, uh. Where we’re from this is actually totally normal.” Abigail’s eyebrows shot up. “I’ve seen women walking around in less.”

“Really?”

“Yep. Had I known people dressed so differently, I wouldn’t have worn this.” She let out a small chuckle. “I'm sure I’ve got some jeans in my luggage though so it’ll be okay.” This didn’t seem to change the shocked look on Abigail’s face.

“Miss... O’Callaghan, was it?” Dutch asked as he and Arthur walked over.

“Just Lynn or Lynnette is fine,” she answered with a nod.

“Lynnette,” he repeated with a smile. “Now, we’re not good people, but we’re not as bad as the people that are out there.” He pointed out towards the edge of camp. “We rob and we kill but we only rob those who deserve robbin’ and kill those who deserve killin’. You’ll all be safer here than out there. You’ve only been here a short while, I know, but we’re lucky nothing happened to you while you were out there.” He pointed again. “You’ll be free to leave whenever you see fit. Arthur’s suggested you stay though, at least for a little while.” Said man looked like he wanted to hit the older man upside the head for adding in that last bit.

Lynnette chewed at her bottom lip as she thought it over. She wasn't expecting him to say so bluntly that they were bad people and that they've killed people. They hadn't hurt them yet, and they had women and children with them. Whatever badness that was out there, the three had yet to experience. Lynnette didn’t want to take the chance of something happening to either of her siblings because she turned down the offer of safety. Even if that safety was will people who openly admit they’ve killed people. The three siblings were in a completely foreign land that apparently was supposed to be the same land they came from. Seeing Mexico on the map the sheriff had given them showed they were in the vicinity of where Texas should be.

“We could really stay with you all? You have the room?” Lynnette asked as she glanced around at the tents scattered throughout the campsite. 

“We’ll find some,” Dutch said with a chuckle. “All I ask is you earn your keep around camp. You know, chores and the like.” Lynnette continued to chew her bottom lip in hesitation.

“Lynn!” Max suddenly shouted. “Lynn!”

“What? Max, why are you yelling?” she asked as she turned to see him holding a newspaper that Hosea had been reading. The older man looked concerned at the alarm on the boy's face. The other two men looked to the oldest for an answer but he simply shrugged.

“Lynn!” Lynnette walked over to Max. 

“What? What’s wrong?” He turned the paper to her. “What?” He pointed to the date. Lynnette grabbed the paper and stared. Her breath caught in her throat and she couldn’t hear anything around her but the sound of her own heartbeat. Suddenly everything was making complete sense yet none at all, all at once.

“Something wrong?” Dutch asked as he walked over, a small concerned frown on his face. Lynnette blinked a few times before she looked up at him, just as her vision tunneled.

 Okay what do you think? Please let me know how I’m doing. Am I writing everyone well enough? I’m always afraid I’ll make someone out of character…

I also did my best to avoid typos/mistakes but I might have missed some...

Next Part

(Master List)

[ma-lemons]

here’s to love, my rose, pt. 1

Taiyang deserves more love. He’s a great dad, and one thing I see lacking in the fandom is that no one acknowledges that he’s Ruby’s dad too and that he also was with Summer Rose, not just Raven. This is part 1.

————————————————————————

Taiyang watched the sizzling eggs in the pan, his mind elsewhere. It was a beautiful morning, albeit a dreadful one. Yang had taken Zwei out for a walk and Ruby was fast asleep.

He thought back to the question his youngest daughter had asked him last night.

“Dad...can you tell me about Mom? I...I have little memories of her... and you’re the only one I can ask who knew her well enough. Uncle Qrow clams up when I ask him. How did you two... how did you two fall in love?”

He sighed, scraping the eggs out of the pan and into the plates where they accompanied pancakes and bacon. Tai covered them up and shuffled over to the dining table, where he took a seat and held his head in his hands.

What was he going to tell her? He had told the girl to go sleep and that they would talk in the morning. He had held this question off to his own daughter for her whole life. She was 17, now, and she deserved to know. She deserved to know what happened between him and Summer.

As a parent, he had to put his children first. He had been depressed and holding in all the rage he had for Raven all these years. He tried to pick up the pieces his wives had left behind, but every time, he felt useless. He partly blamed himself for what happened. He had made the team fall apart.

It was so, so hard. It was hard to hold himself together, that his chest would hurt, and he found it hard to breathe when he thought about it. But he would never reveal that to Yang and Ruby. They already had the burden of Remnant on their young shoulders. They had just returned from Vacuo, and they were about to head back to Vale. This vacation was temporary. It was only a matter of time before they were thrust headfirst into danger again.

A tear trickled down his face as he thought back to a happy memory with the great Summer Rose.

Taiyang carefully shut the door to Yang’s room. The young girl was peacefully asleep now, after causing a mess in the kitchen with baby carrots. He sighed and smiled a bit to himself. He wasn’t sure how he had became a father. He was never really ready for it, but it had happened anyway.

He had fallen for Raven, just like Summer had said. It was magical, every moment of it. Every kiss, every touch, every careless whisper reminded Tai of a possible future with Raven.

And then Yang was born. Raven decided that she didn’t want to play the good guy anymore. She didn’t want to be a mother. She didn’t want to be with Tai.

No, what she really wanted, was to return to her tribe.

So she did. She disappeared with a “Sorry” and not so much of a glance at her daughter. A daughter that would grow up without her mother.

A few months had passed, and it turned into a year. A year with Summer, who had decided to stay with Tai and help him out. Qrow had left on a mission, but he promised he’d be back. Tai knew he would. Qrow was unlike Raven. Though they were twins, Tai could always sense that Raven had a darker aura then her brother. Qrow liked to act tough, but he was really sensitive at heart.

He should have seen it coming. He should have known that he, Taiyang Xiao Long could never, ever tie down the wild Raven Branwen. He just couldn’t.

“Tai,” a hushed voice called. Tai was seated on the windowsill of his bedroom, when Summer entered. Her face was partly covered by her white hood, one silver eye was visible to him. Taiyang watched as she gently pushed it back to reveal her silky black-red hair.

“Hey, Summer,” Taiyang smiled.

“Yang is asleep?”

Taiyang nodded and moved over on the windowsill. He patted the place. “Come sit with me.”

Summer obliged and came over, and sat on the sill, her legs tucked neatly underneath herself. There was silence between them. They both watched the Patch sunset, with its beautiful orange and pink hues.

“How do you do it, Tai?” Summer asked softly, her head downcast.

“How do I do what, Summer?” Taiyang asked.

“How... how are you so strong? How do you manage to keep yourself together? You...you loved Raven! Raven loved you! She loved you so much, she had a kid with you... and then she left!” Summer yelled. Tears were streaming down her face as her shaky voice got louder.

“Sum—“

“Tai! I.. I was the leader of our team! I couldn’t keep us together! Raven’s gone, Qrow barely comes home anymore, you’re heartbroken... and I... and I...” she hiccuped.

Tai wanted to hug her so badly.

“And I was the shitty leader who stood by while her team fell apart. Me. I’m the one who messed up.”

Taiyang had never... never heard A+ student, best fighter, badass Summer Rose curse before. She had to be really upset. He looked at her, shaking and trying to wipe her tears. She must have been holding it all in. She was so scared, but she tried to keep it in. For her team.

“Hey, hey, don’t cry,” Tai said. He carefully approached her and wrapped his arms around her. He felt his shirt getting wet but he didn’t mind, as Summer bawled into his shoulder. He rubbed her back, in circular motions, whispering comforting words in her ear.

“Summer Rose never once have you ever disappointed me. I love you so much and I’d do anything to have the team together again. This was just what happened, and it’s okay. It hurts me so much that Raven doesn’t... doesn’t feel the same for me as she used to. It’s fine. But that was over you control. Please... you’re the only one I can rely on, Summer. Please...don’t ever tell yourself you weren’t enough.”

The crying stopped. Summer, red-eyed, looked up at Tai. She looked adorable.

“You’ll always be enough for me,” he smiled.

Summer closed her eyes with a smile. She leaned her head on Tai’s chest. “Thank you.”

She raised her head again and looked at Tai again. Before he could blink, Summer had planted her lips on his. Tai was surprised, but Summer had her arms around his neck.

He decided to just go with it and took her head in his hands, deepening the kiss. He had no idea why she was doing this, and why he was going with it, but it felt so right. He needed this.

Summer lightly pushed his chest. The two let go and Tai stared at her in awe. The young woman only blushed and laughed.

“What... what was that Summer?” Tai asked.

“I dunno. I... I don’t know. For the longest time I was rooting for you and Raven. I... I planned out the whole wedding... you were like my brother. Then... somewhere along those lines... I think I saw you differently,” Summer said quietly.

“What does this mean for us?” Taiyang asked.

Summer smiled. ���I think it means that whenever you’re ready, I’m here for you. I don’t want to force you, if you feel nothing for me. It’s fine.”

Summer glanced out the window. The sun had disappeared and the moon was slowly rising out. The night was a beautiful shade of violet.

Summer stretched and yawned. “Goodnight, Tai. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Tai beamed. “Goodnight, Sum.”

As Summer was closing the door behind her, Taiyang called out, “I don’t know if I’d call it love just yet... but I feel something for you too.”

[invisibletoallbutfaeries]

Prayer

Family Focus: The O'Malley’s

Word Count: 2,220

Page count: Just over 7 pages

Brief: Now that the plague crisis is over, Hern is still adjusting to life on Gaia with knowledge of the magical. His family has gone with the village herbalist to buy a dog on Earth, leaving Hern to watch over Kyra’s dogs and wonder about how he will handle having a new dog of his own. 

    Hern went about his daily routine: feed the Yale, ensure that Hanon the stag is doing well and check the does to see if Hanon had been getting up to anything the night before. Clean what farm he had, eat breakfast, clean the house, chores from around the village, repeat. Usually he’d ask his children to help, but they’d been gone for about five days with their mother and the village herbalist to look for a pet dog. Domestic dogs hadn’t been found on Gaia yet, so they needed to go to Earth to see if there was an adoptable one from the few number there.

They’d been living on this planet for so long Hern himself had forgotten how things were back on Earth. He hoped well, things moved so fast there from what he remembered though. Time slowed here on Gaia. It was usually peaceful enough that he wouldn’t worry about having a dog or not. Especially in the last year or so.

Then his wife Brighid reminded him that they’d gone 20 years under a curse after their son ate the wrong berries. Recently more magical shenanigans had began appearing around the house due to faeries of all sorts deciding the farm was their playground. The pixies were the worst. Once they discovered that Yale could produce milk when they were happy and cared for rather than just for young they became insistent that they should have some as well. They’d even harassed the yale about it and broken into Hern’s store rooms to leave spilled milk everywhere in their quest for a thimble of it. Due to treaties he couldn’t hurt the Fae on his farm unless they attempted to physically harm him first, so he’d been going through a lot of salt in an attempt to passive aggressively dissuade them from messing with the farm as much.

After some time he couldn’t argue with his wife’s insistence to get a dog. If anything the biggest arguments for him were that it would help keep the children to be safe, and Bran out of trouble, and he could have help when taking care of the Yale herd or even hunting with Arkas and his nephew.

He still felt tired just thinking of trying to raise a 13 year old, a 10 year old, and a dog at the same time though. Especially when 10 year old Bran had a habit for mischief. He may look like he was in his 30s, but Hern was chronologically in his 60s. He felt he should be allowed to claim being too old for some things….if Brighid would ever let him. His bonnie wife was older than him, she probably wouldn’t. It was the 31st century though, maybe he could manage to convince her that tiredness of the soul trumped the youth of the body. She had a younger soul, that’d be his excuse.

    At the sound of yipping Hern looked up from washing his dishes. The herbalist, Kyra, had left him with her two dogs so he’d get used to having canines and so she didn’t need to look for a dog sitter. He spotted the little one, a small ball of fluff with fairly impressive eyebrows around his little black eyes. He was tiny, but still a puppy. Kyra said there was a good chance he was already at his full size though, making his eyebrows and the hint of a beard all the more impressive as he looked like a small wise man. He was pretty sure she’d said his name was “Marcus Alexander”.

The small dog began to bark when he realized Hern was looking at him, running up to him and trying to climb his leg in an effort to be picked up. He didn't make it very far after he’d climbed the man’s foot. Hern chuckled and dried his hands before picking up the black and white fluff ball, the puppy barely fitting in one hand. Which it began to incessantly lick. It was an excitable thing.

“Stop tha’ please,” Hern sighed, petting the top of it's head and gently trying to pull it's face away from his wrist from the pressure of the patting. Marcus seemed to get the idea and stopped, now just talking to him in small “awooo-oo-oo”s and wagging his curly tail. Hern laughed as the pup talked continuously.

“You’d be no good for huntin’, little guy. Too noisy. A Fae’d find ya right quick and scoop ya up, let alone a bunny or deer catching wind of ya before we spot it.” The fluff with eyebrows responded with a yip. Hern chuckled and decided to bring the pup with him for his other chores. He could probably watch him while he cleaned out Brighid’s smithy. He wasn’t sure where Sweets, Kyra’s giant hound, was. Nor did he know how the hound could disappear like he did, though he did make for a better guard dog than Marcus.

    After searching the house for Sweets, Hern figured the big dog could handle itself and instead carried Marcus outside to help him with cleaning the smithy. The little pup proved more useful than expected, as he was happy to carry any dirty rags to the buckets and make a big pile or to jump into beginning cobwebs, though Hern wasn’t sure if he did that on purpose or simply didn’t see the webs before trotting through them. Hern couldn’t help but laugh as he cleaned up his wife’s tools and working space, wondering how she could handle all the soot and dust. Then again he dealt with animals and their dung, so perhaps he shouldn’t question her grime of choice.

What if the dog they chose slobbered though? He would draw the line at slobbering. What if it was as much of a licker as Marcus? He watched the pup jump into a dust pile, yipping excitedly the whole while. What if the new dog was big but had the same energy as Marcus? Could he handle a teenage girl, an 10-year old boy, and an excitable bulldozer of a dog at the same time? What if it was a brand new puppy with no training whatsoever? Could he train a dog? Brighid would help him, maybe Kyra too, but how would he adjust to training a dog? How much could his children train it? How much would they have to adjust?

He was getting tired again.

As the sun reached the western sky, leaving everything in a soft orange glow of afternoon, he heard a loud, deep bark echo throughout the smithy. From the trills of the yale he figured they heard the menacing sound as well. Behind him Sweets had appeared, the black hound blending in with the shadows and staring at Hern with amber eyes that near reflected red in the afternoon sun. It stood, turning it's wolf like face towards the road leading to town, where a small group could be seen approaching.

    Hern grabbed a cloth and wiped his hands as he walked up to stand next to Sweets, barely registering how the dog began to lick soot off of Marcus when the pup followed. The group up ahead had several red-headed individuals and a brunette who he recognized as Sweet and Marcus’ owner. Next to her was a 10 year old boy who stood a head shorter than her, a slightly taller young girl, and a strong, beautiful, heavy set woman who he knew could not keep her smithy clean to save her life. His family. How he missed them. His wife was even singing in her bonnie voice.

Lead her to a place,

Guide her with your grace,

To a place where she’ll be safe

In five days he’d almost forgotten how often she sang that song. He really wished she’d learn a different one. There was only so many times one could hear “A Mother’s Prayer” throughout the day. Brigid was even trying to mimic the ancient singer Celin Dion, despite her heavy Irish accent getting in her way and not lending well to mimicking a Canadian one. He was already tired.

Walking between the group was a pale golden....dog? Small fluffy deer? It was tall as far as Hern could see, almost as tall as Sweets, who’s shoulder almost matched with Hern’s elbow. Hern was 5’9”, it wasn’t a small feat for the huge dog. It even had a similar barrel-body look, despite the long thin legs. It's head was small and almost looked like a crows skull, but with a big black dog nose at the end. The hound looked as tired as Hern felt though, he already felt a kinship with it.

He and the two dogs that were with him began walking to meet the group at the front door, Kyra greeting her dogs with pets and kisses as Marcus practically lept from Hern’s side into her arms and Sweets simply silently trotted up to her and licked her hand in kind. Bran and Branwen ran up to him, both excitedly telling him all about what they’d seen back on Earth, how Branwen was so happy she didn’t have visions, all the dogs they’d seen, etc. Neither could seem to agree on a subject to stay on, either with each other or themselves. Brighid began laughing, staying by their new dog and petting it's head as it sat down to rest.

“I’m so glad you’re all home! It sounds like ya all had an adventure, but you might wanna slow down before you gobble up your own words there.” At his teasing and laughter both children stopped. Before they could begin again he quickly asked “can ya introduce me to our new family member here?” He gestured to the dog, who looked up at him with big brown eyes. It's floppy ears lifted up a bit at being acknowledged and it's breathing sped up, it's big chest heaving up and down. Hern spotted a long fluffy tail wagging behind it as well. A straight one, unlike the dogs he’d been watching for the past five days. Brighid got her word in before their children could go into, what was undoubtedly, long winded stories of how they found her and probably long tales. Knowing Bran it probably included ninjas and pirates somewhere, and knowing Branwen an amazon or a Conan the Barbarian look-alike might appear in her story.

“She’s apparently from Borzoi and Afghan lines, started breeding them together to make them more healthy. They’re hunting and sighthound breeds though, so she’ll do well on the farm and watching the kids both.” The breed sounded fancy, but then again any dog on Earth was fancy now. Even Sweets, who was technically a mutt with a scary wolf face but silly curly tail. Once his children let go of him Hern approached the dog, getting a closer look at the tall little lady. She looked young, or at least like she wasn’t particularly old, but she looked to be full grown and intelligent enough. When he knelt in front of her she even stood up, her front paws pacing slightly a few times before she stood still and pretty, her big brown eyes trained on him. He could tell that behind her tiredness was an excitement that would probably have the tall girl running if she could. She was a pretty thing, athletic looking too. When her breathing got heavier he heard Kyra laugh to the side.

“I think she’s still getting used to the oxygen levels here. Should be ok, but I’d let her get some rest for a few days until she’s used to the easier breathing.” He looked over to see her standing now, one hand on Sweets while the other was smoothing the fur between his dog’s ears. The dog calmed a bit, but she was still staring at Hern in anticipation, blinking every so often.

“She sounds like a good girl,” the golden dog barked happily, leaning over and licking his face. He’d have to train her outta that. “She got a name yet?”

“I’ve named her Prayer,” Brighid proudly proclaimed. When he shot her a look she began laughing almost maniacally. “I’m going to go make her a water and food bowel! I’ll go to town and get help making a collar and leash tomorrow!” before Hern could protest, having JUST cleaned her smithy, she was already gone and bouncing excitedly off to work. She was even loudly singing “A Mother’s Prayer” the whole way, not quite keeping in key which meant she was purposely messing with him, despite having actually named the dog after the song.

Hern sighed, sitting fully on the ground and wondering how things could go from quiet to boisterous so quickly. Prayer walked up and layed next to him, putting her long slender head in his lap. He couldn’t help but smile down at her and pet her, causing her to wag her tail again, it hitting his back like a whip. The small upturn of her lips and the excited panting she did made it hard to get upset with the hound though, and instead he simply kept petting her. It was only moments before his children were sitting on the other side of the dog, Branwen hugging her neck and Bran petting her back. Both were excitedly talking about all the trips they’d go on with the dog, dismissing their father when he warned them from breaking rules. Kyra was laughing and excused herself to head home with her dogs, leaving the small family to sit on their front lawn, petting their new dog, and discussing the children’s trip to Earth.

By the time it got dark Brighid called them in for dinner. The children ran in but Hern slowly led Prayer in, letting her relax and get used to her surroundings first, even getting her one of their nicer bowels to eat in for the night since Brighid hadn’t finished Prayer’s personal bowls. When his wife mentioned she might have bloating troubles, Hern kept an extra eye on the hound to make sure she was drinking and eating nice and slowly. He didn’t want her to hurt herself. Brighid teased him about treating the dog like a baby. By bedtime Prayer joined the kids for a bit, though eventually she found her way to Brigid and Hern’s bed, curling herself between them at the foot. Hern was beginning to see that keeping Prayer around might be less of a change than he thought, and found himself enjoying his excited hound more and more every morning.

[norafike]

Despite all this, I still love you 13

Finally got around to updating this for y’all! Hope you’re all enjoying it and I walk like to apologise for the long wait. It’s more up-to-date on my AO3 but I will continue our Tumblr updates.

*******

“Dutch.” Nora greeted the infamous outlaw humbly, walking with him into the old house at Shady-Belle. Inside they met with Arthur and John, who looked no better since she had last seen him. “We were hopin' you could assist us in Saint Denis.” The leader explained and she raised a brow to push him to explain what he meant.

“How?”

“Angelo Bronte, you heard of him?” She nodded. “What about him?”

“The Braithwaite's gave young Jack to him. So we're going to get the boy back.”

“Angelo Bronte, huh.” Nora shook her head in disbelief, pulling the sleeves of her shirt down over her hands. “Guess I should've expected as much.”

“Will you help us?” John Marston sounded sad than the usual manner, she grew used to his snappy way of talking but he had lost his son. “Of course.”

“Thank you.”

In front of Dutch at the table was a map of Saint-Denis that she recognised well, it was outdated as the majority of the slums which were a later addition to the city hadn't been marked yet, but surely she noticed the mansion district and the very spot where Bronte lived. She pointed at the shape on the map, tapping it gently. “That's where our man lives.” She explained before running her finger along what was meant to supposed to be the roads. “Nearest bridge into Saint Denis, to us, is down here and we just need to follow the one road to get to his mansion.”

Dutch watched intently as she planned out the route and found himself impressed with her knowledge on the city, wanting to hear more she knew he had asked about any other important locations in Saint Denis for *future projects. “Don't know what interests you boys, we got a graveyard here and the trolley station down there.” She pointed at the spot and then dragged her finger up towards one final box marked on the map. “This, I believe, is the Lemoyne National Bank.”

“Bank?” His eyes lit up at the word and he leaned closer to the map, taking in the area closely to remember the layout of the streets to get there. “You heard correctly, Mr. Van Der Linde.”

“I say we wait until night for Jack, to arouse less suspicion.”

Arthur and John agreed but Dutch had a lack of interest in what she had to say, muttering a few words but really his eyes only remained on the paper. She spared a moment to glance towards Arthur who could only give a small shrug before leaving the house with John in tow. Nora prepared to speak with him but was cut off when a frantic Molly stepped in, looking more frantic than the usual and desperate for Dutch's attention. “Dutch, can I talk with you for a moment?” He frowned, pinching the bridge of his knows and squeezing his eyes tight. “I'm busy right now, Miss O'Shea.”

“You don't look busy.” Her eyes travelled to focus Nora who stood awkwardly in the room, excusing herself to leave but being stopped when Molly had grabbed hold of her wrist. “It's always gotta be about you, Molly O'Shea. You've had all this time to talk to me and you choose now.”

“I've not had any time because you're always so busy.”

“Whatever, Miss.” He pushed past the females, making an effort to push Nora behind him so he was standing before Molly. He towered over the female in comparison and shrouded her in his shadow to intimidate but she kept her ground and balled her hands into a tight fist. “I have work to do, something you don't know how to do yourself.” And with that final word the man walked away to leave them alone inside.

Nora couldn't believe just how cruel Dutch could be and it confirmed her earlier suspicions over the male, a source to not be trusted. “Forget about him, Molly.”

“It's easier said than done, Nora and I doubt you know what any of it feels like.”

“I don't, but I know people don't need to face that sort of shit. He's a bully it seems.” Molly squeezed her eyes shut to keep some tears from falling and raised her hand to dismiss the female, using fingers to wipe away a few stray tears. “Look you need someone to talk too, I'll be there an' you can write anytime.”

“Thank you.”

“I should get goin', see ya Molly.”

She left the house and frowned at the thick air, it somehow being a lot more thinner indoors. Relocating her may have been a poor decision solely based on how much warmer the territory was and Nora had to fan herself with her hand to cool down every-so-often otherwise she felt she was going to fate. She wondered how Bill or Arthur, even Lenny on occasion were able to walk around with their coats on.

“Howdy cowpoke.” She had found Kieran near the horses, his natural habitat and decided to stand near him while he ran the horse brush against Branwen. He smiled upon recognising her voice and turned slightly to face her, never faltering on his chore. “Mornin'!” He cheered.

“Seem a lot happier than usual. What happened?”

“Nothin' exciting.. guess started to slowly feel I belong. A lot of 'em started bein' nice.”

“You don't sound so nervous when ya talk too.” He chuckled and nodded slowly. “No, I do not.”

“I think I may be stayin' a little while and thought to keep my favourite cowboy some company.” She teased and Kieran smiled at the compliment, pulling out an apple from inside his coat pocket and handing it to her to feed the horse; as told by his pointing towards the creature. “Sure I just saw Arthur approach Pearson's chuck wagon. Probably be where you'll find your favourite cowboy.”

“Real funny.”

“Or you'll find Lem.” He paused to think. “Where would you find him?”

Nora shrugged, unsure of the answer herself. “Guess is as good as mine. When he ain't at the shack he's at my camp and when he ain't there he's at the shack.. but when he's neither, well it's hard to find him.”

“He ever say where he goes?”

“Not unless asked, but we don't ask him often.”

Kieran finished brushing the dirt from Branwen's coat before turning the brush towards Nora with a playful grin. “Your turn.” She chuckled, taking a step back from him. “You're gonna have to bathe first I'm afraid.”

“Oh, how funny.”

“I pride myself on my.. comedic nature.”

Kieran looked behind him and gave Mary-Beth a gentle wave once he realised she had been looking his way and once he did so the girl flushed a bright red before looking away, digging her nose into the pages of her book that sat open in her lap. “You're goin' with Dutch to rescue Jack, right?”

“Yes.” She answered, helping him out by picking up a bucket of dirty water not far from where they stood. He led them over to the wagons furthest from the hitching station and the pair talked quietly amongst themselves as they crossed camp; ignoring the odd looks sent their way from one person in specific. Everyone else seemed far too occupied to worry about the O'Driscoll, after all, he didn't feel like one to them anymore.

“How's the readin' going?” She asked to be polite and once before she had asked and he looked annoyed when she did so, but this time he gave her a bright smile. “It's okay.. doin' a lot better than a few months ago.”

She shared the joy with him and bounced on her toes and clapped her hands together simultaneously. “That's great, Kieran! I'd have to buy you a drink sometime to celebrate.”

“I doubt I'll drink, who knows what'll happen.”

“Nothin' bad might wake up the next day feelin' terrible but that's the worse of it.”

“We'll see I guess.”

She dumped the water out on the grass, a decent distance away from camp and returned back to the grounds. Kieran had waited by an old shack trying to light a match but failing in his attempts to do so. “Here.” She took it from his hands, her fingers brushing against his before striking it to alight. He held the cigarette out to her and waited for her to light it and once she had done she waved the flame out.

“When are you leavin'?”

“Eager to get rid of me?”

“Maybe.” He joked and Nora took to gently patting his shoulder. “Lovely, ain't ya?”

...

John and Dutch set out for Saint Denis days a few hours before they had, saying that they would keep an eye on the place before actually going in with their demands. They had no idea who they were going up against after all.

She left Shady-Belle last and made haste to the mansion district in the city, unaware of where the men could be waiting for her as they hadn't set an official meeting spot prior but it didn't take a drastic amount of searching to be able to find them, given they had sat in the community garden opposite and Dutch wasn't quiet when he talked to the men, instructing John to remain calm and for Arthur to keep a close eye on the situation...

She walked up the path to greet them and Arthur gave a gentle nod when he saw her and quickly the men rose from sitting on the steps; ready to talk with Bronte.

“Remember, we don't wanna go gun's blazin'.” Dutch warned them as they approached the gate. “Could risk harmin' Jack if we do.”

Upon finishing their walk, Nora noticed the guards all lined up along the path armed with guns and looking mean. They didn't seem pleased with the close proximity they were in and less so when Dutch had called over one particular guard to stand at the gate so they could talk.

“Run along now.” He muttered and the guard scurried off after he *negotiated with him. Dutch did momentarily tell him to return just so he could give back the taken gun and then they were told to follow on inside to speak with Bronte himself.

As soon as she stepped inside the house she was choked with the thick smell of fragrance and for a moment she could swear that they had walked into a greenhouse instead of someone's home.

The man himself sat surrounded by guards in a parlour, dressed in robes and drinking a glass of wine.

“Where is his son?” Dutch didn't jump to formalities and Angelo Bronte looked far from pleased as they cut straight to the point.

“Excuse me?”

And Dutch repeated himself, pointing at John. “Where is his son?” Bronte scowled at the forward approach and called over one of his guards to whisper something in his ear. Nora was told not to go in and start shooting but with the way things seemed to be turning out she began to worry that they would need to switch their approach.

“Who do you think you are, coming into my home with these demands and stinkin' of shit.” Nora's hand to move just above her revolver and Arthur moved in front of her to grip her wrist and not bring suspicion her way; he would let go if they needed to use it.

Bronte continued telling Dutch off while the three remained standing around in awkward silence.

“I like you-” Angelo raised a cigar and pointed his fingers in the direction of the man his smile big and yet sinister. “I do, I do like you. Please have a seat men and.. lady.”

The three on the seat took up all the space so unless she were to on one of their laps she chose to lean against an arm and balance herself there, sitting close to Arthur who looked equally as uncomfortable.

“I'll tell you what, you can have the boy back.” John's face lit up. “But I have.. a request.”

Arthur groaned and leaned forward, clasping his hands together in front of him and biting back the need to swear at the Italian. “What is it?” She asked, not shy to hide the frustration in her voice.

“There are graverobbers in the graveyard.”

“Well, that is a good place for it, the best.” Dutch quipped and Bronte laughed at his joke. “I like him, I like you.”

“Just clear them out and I'll give you back the boy.”

“Of course, I can have these three go and do that and you and I can talk a little more.” Dutch stood and motioned for the trio to leave the area but Bronte called them to stop. “Why doesn't the lady stay? I'm sure she wouldn't want to associate herself with those types of thieves.”

“Oh, I should really make sure these pair stay out of trouble.” She cut in quickly but Bronte wasn't having any of it, further insisting that she stay. Dutch placed his palm on the female's shoulder and his grip tightened ever so slightly. “I'm sure you can part with Arthur for a few minutes, Mrs Morgan.”

She raised a brow at the use of 'Mrs' but didn't want to raise any alarm regarding it. She nodded slowly and sat back down on the chair, with walking behind her. “Young couples, never can be apart.” He commented. “Never did see any use for marriage myself, but that didn't stop these two.” And now she was parading as a married woman.

“Oh, you are married?” Bronte asked Nora specifically, pouring bourbon into a glass and handing it to her. She took a sip and was about to answer his question before Dutch cut it. “To Arthur, yes.”

“Well, congratulations.”

Bronte clicked his fingers together and one of his bodyguards walked over; leaning down so the man could whisper in his ear. She tried listening to what he said but unfortunately for her he spoke in Italian possibly so they could not decipher what instructions he passed on.

“I wish for you to stay and chat awhile, but I am a busy man no? And I am sure that your husband and his friend will be back soon.” Bronte stood to escort them out, having one of his men hold the door open in politeness. Dutch turned, ready to ask about the boy before Jack ran down the stairs to join them.

“Uncle Dutch!” He cheered running to his side and the gang's leader crouched low to greet the boy before taking his hand and walking him outside. “Where's mama?” The boy asked but Dutch was reluctant to answer at first, only keeping an eye on the armed men that lined the gravel driveway towards the mansion.

She sat on the steps with him and distracted him long enough for the men to arrive and when John did return through the gates the boy took off and ran into his hands, this bright smile on his face. “How did it go?” Arthur asked Dutch and Nora specifically but neither provided a coherent answer, besides the subtle comment she made about them being married now.

“Excuse me?”

“My thoughts exactly.” She chuckled, walking around to Casper and mounting up alongside the men. “Will you be returning to camp with us, Nora?” Dutch asked as he took lead on The Count. “Not sure. If you wish me too then I see no harm in joinin' you fella's.”

“Please come with us, Nora.” Jack begged, his bright eyes silently pleading the woman to join them. Dutch scratched his nose, tilting his head over towards Jack. “It seems that the boy has spoken.”

“Alright, guess I will be goin' then.” Jack cheered and it livened up the evening for the group and having him back would mean that this turned to be the end of a very bad and stressful week.

...

“Abigail!” John hollered and the woman cave rushing over at the mention of her name, she faltered in her steps when she noticed her child in his arms and in no time broke into a sprint to reunite with her child.

“You got my boy back! You got him back.. thank you, thank you all.” She blinked away a few happy tears and quickly rushed the boy into camp and soon Dutch had departed while he told his dear best friend, Hosea of their little adventure. Nora turned towards John who looked longingly at his family, holding a cigarette between his lips. “Go over and sit with them, Marston.” She said and he nodded as if she were giving a command. He scurried off.

“So we're married?” Arthur asked as he escorted the female back into Shady-Belle's grounds.

“I was just as shocked too.”

“Who's idea was that?”

“Dutch's, I don't know why he said it or where it came from but Angelo Bronte didn't seem thrilled when we brought it up.”

Javier began to play a song on his guitar, one recognised well by the gang who all cheered once the first note was played. “That's a shame.”

“As much as it's been an honour, bein' your pretend-wife I am afraid that I am spoken for by someone else.”

“You are, are you?”

“Nope.” Nora chuckled lowly, scuffing the dirt up with her boot. “But I have eyes for someone.”

“Well I respect that, ma'am. I should leave you to get on with the party however, enjoy yourself.”

He said a humble goodbye before returning to his room for the night, deciding that he had enough excitement for the day.

She spotted Kieran sulking near the chuckwagon and decided that he was who she wished to take with for the evening, especially since he was one of the rare decent men around. She walked over and joined him at the table, offering a liquor bottle she picked up on the way. “How are ya?”

“I'm fine.” He mumbled and she noticed in the low light how his cheeks had flushed a red. “Good job on gettin' Jack back. Must've been fun.”

“Guess that could be said.” Nora brought the bottle to her lips and took a sip of the beverage, cringing at the bitter taste. “Didn't take too much work and nobody needed to die.”

“Well you got the kid back, it's w-what matters.” Gone was that confidence from before. The man took a long drink from the bottle, despite his earlier refusal to do so and she watched with curiosity, wondering what had happened while she was out. “Did somethin' happen to you?”

“No.” Kieran said bluntly. She didn't believe it, narrowing her eyes is suspicious before diverting her gaze over towards the scout fire where some members of the gang sat, unfortunately for her she met eyes with Micah Bell and he gave her a wicked grin that chilled her to the bone.

“Listen, I'm gonna talk to Mary-Beth for a short while. You need me I'll try not to stray too far from camp.”

Kieran nodded slowly. “G-Guess I'll do the same.”

Nora placed a palm on his cheek, running her thumb along the top of his beard before pulling away. He leaned into her touch and the minute it had gone he pouted like some child. Kieran moved to longingly watch her as she walked away from him to enter the old building, taking note of how she lingered in the doorway for a little too long before eventually disappearing indoors. “You got it bad for her too don't ya?”

Kieran shook his head to deny these claims, but Hosea only laughed as he saw through the blatant lie. “Jus' keep ya head on your shoulders an' everything will be alright.” He left Kieran alone after that and all he could do was sulk in his spot, both annoyed and confused with his feelings and how he struggled to come to terms with them. Nora was sweet and spoke more to him than anybody else, he always looked forward to her visits as they not only meant that he wouldn't be alone for a prolonged period but also because he could have a conversation with someone who thought of him as an equal and not some vermin. “How'd you end up in this mess, Duffy?” He muttered to himself, taking to drink again from the bottle and slowly he slipped into a dazed state of drunkness and tomorrow he would most likely regret his decision to so foolishly drink.