#morgan i guess you fell asleep……….i’m posting it anyway— | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

shemarmooresfedora · 4 years ago

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Menagerie

Summary Quote: “Don’t you get it? It’s all been a lie, Spence. Since the moment we met, our entire relationship has been founded on a carefully crafted lie and since then, we have been tricked into thinking this was love...but maybe that was a lie too.”

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem! Reader

Genre: Angst with happy ending, Fluff

A/N: this fic has already been completed! it’s 25 chapters and just over 40,000 words. i don’t plan on posting all the chapters on to here but i have included the first two and the ao3 link to the rest is at the bottom if you are interested!

Chapter 1

You woke up from your peaceful slumber to hear a loud crash followed closely by someone yelling “FBI”. You screamed, alerting the agents of your presence thinking you were in danger but once the agents had reached your bedroom, you were being put in handcuffs and read your rights.

“W-What is happening? Is this some sort of sick joke?” you stuttered.

“Do you think killing three men is a sick joke?” the muscular intimidating agent spat back.

You were in utter shock. You barely even left the house let alone go out on a murderous rampage.

“I-I don’t know what you think I did b-but I can assure you I-I didn’t kill anyone or do anything illegal,” you tried to stay as calm as possible but you were shaking profusely.

The other agent that was the back-up in your apprehension seemed to notice this and took some sympathy on you by lightening his grip on your cuffs as he led you out of your front door that had been kicked down.

You sat in the chilly interrogation room wishing you had something else on rather than a thrifted oversized t-shirt with stains on it that said “Best Dad Ever” and sweatpants. They removed your handcuffs, I guess you weren't considered that much of a threat in a locked room in FBI Headquarters. Although you could not see past the one-sided glass, it was obvious the agents from before and possibly others from their team were standing on the other side, observing you.

“Well she is definitely not what I was expecting,” Prentiss was the first to break the silence as the whole BAU team watched you through the glass.

“She was sleeping when we apprehended her. Her facial expressions and body language showed clear signs of distress but I can not be certain if it was because we have the wrong person or she is scared she finally got caught. In her apartment, we found nothing in the slightest bit incriminating, mostly just lots of books,” Spencer spoke, while he was trying to remain impartial, he had admired your taste in literature as he was looking for evidence.

“I’m not convinced. I think this is whole ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about’ thing is an act,” Morgan stated as he strolled to the door leading to the room you were being held in.

The door opened and your eyes flickered up. Much to my dismay, it was the muscular agent rather than the tall, lanky agent who seemed a lot friendlier to you, given the circumstances.

He took the seat across from you and spoke firmly, “I am ready to take your confession whenever you are.”

At this point, you were just getting frustrated. You were ripped from your bed in the middle of the night given no explanation other than you had supposedly killed three men and he had the audacity to ask for your confession to something no one would even tell you the details of. So against your better judgment, you opened your mouth which has been known to get you in trouble from time to time.

“Well, considering no one has even told me what I am formally being accused of or the details, I can’t do that. Do you even have any evidence to keep me here? Oh wait...you don’t...that’s why you need a confession because all your evidence so far has been circumstantial. Only too bad for you...I know my rights. So, you have forty-eight hours to find some real evidence against me, that doesn’t exist if I may add, before you have to let me go.”

The agent looked back at the glass with his jaw dropped.

“I watch a lot of crime TV shows,” you huffed and crossed your arms.

“Okay this may be harder than we originally planned, folks. We are going to need everyone on call for the next forty-eight hours until we find some incriminating evidence,” Hotch spoke.

The agents began to depart from the room to review old case files and dig deeper into your personal history. Spencer stayed back for a few minutes and saw tears start to roll down your face when you thought no one was still watching you. You quickly wiped them away and wringed your fingers together. Spencer didn’t know if he should or not yet but he felt bad for you.

Chapter 2

The door opened again but this time, you just kept your eyes down at the table so the person could not see your watery eyes.

You have been trying to put up a brave face but every time, a different agent comes in to question you about your routine, friends, family, and personal life, you just feel exposed.

Traces of your DNA had been found on the bodies and they had all visited your bookstore but that wasn’t enough to convict you I guess. You didn’t know the victims personally but you still felt bad for them.

A cup of coffee was placed gently into your line of sight. You wrapped your hands around the warm paper cup and mumbled your thanks.

“I didn’t know how you liked it. I can add more creamer or sugar if you like,” the voice spoke.

You glanced up tentatively and it was the tall, lanky agent. Your lips turned up ever so slightly into a small smile but it was the most you could manage at the moment. You took a sip.

“No it’s fine, thank you. It really helps. I appreciate it,” you said.

“I’m Spencer, by the way”

“Y/N, but you probably already know that by now.”

He chuckled at your joke. Silence filled the room once again.

“I didn’t do it, Spencer...and I know I can’t really prove that but I wish I could. Most of my friends live in another state and so does my family so I don’t go out too often. I don’t have a boyfriend. I own a bookstore so I spend most of my time there. I don’t really know why this is happening to me,” you started to get choked up again so you stopped talking.

Spencer involuntarily blushed when you stated you didn’t have a boyfriend.

He really needed to get it together as much as he wanted to believe you.

You could be a murderer for all he knows...but a really pretty murderer with a great taste in literature and probably even a bigger collection of books than him.

Stop it, Spencer, get your head in the game. He smiled softly once more at you cradling your drink and exited the room.

The forty-eight hours were up. They had nothing solid against you. If anything, the team had less of a case against you.

The bodies were all dumped on the opposite side of town from where you lived but it was clear they had been transported there. Garcia’s digging showed you had no car and you weren’t lying when you said most of your friends and family live out of state so the chances of you borrowing someone else's car were unlikely.

Credit card receipts showed you hardly ever went to that side of town and they had profiled the unsub would know the area well.

The victims did come into your store a few times but they also visited all the shops on that street occasionally as well. It didn’t make sense for you to kill your customers. That would just be bad for business and easily linked back to you.

The team agreed that they believed Y/N was no longer a suspect.

An officer drove you back to your apartment where luckily, your door had been fixed.

You ordered takeout and took a shower to hopefully rid yourself of the stress of the past two days. Shortly after your dinner, you fell asleep hoping your door would not be busted down again by the FBI.

A few days had past and you were opening up the store for the morning. You were in the back organizing the nonfiction section when you heard the soft bell chime of the door opening.

You walked to the front expecting to greet one of your regulars. Once you saw who was standing shyly at the front desk, you stopped in your tracks.

“Spencer?”

“Uh h-hi-hello Y/N. How are you?”

“Good...unless you are here to bring me back in for more questioning”, you said half-joking half-seriously.

“Oh! Um no, you’re all set. I am truly sorry about that. But I do have a question for you”, he was nervously wringing his hands just like you do, looking anywhere but your eyes.

“It’s okay kind of sounds like the wrong thing to say because I would preferably not be dragged out of my bed in the middle of the night and then held for forty-hours but I understand, you were simply doing your job. Anyways, ask away,” you replied.

His eyes finally made contact with yours and he opened his mouth like he was about to say something but completely lost his confidence.

“Do you...um do you...do you have a nonfiction section?” Spencer blurted out.

You didn’t understand how the nonfiction section could make someone so nervous. He looked as if he was going to say something else but thought better of it.

“Of course! I was just organizing it! Right this way!” you chirped with a smile that seemed to untense his shoulders just a little bit.

Spencer perused the section a bit before deciding on a hefty book about the different plants and flowers native to the East Coast. When he made his way up to the front desk to check out, you praised his choice.

“Aw! I love reading about plants. I have some many succulents in my apartment. It's honestly more of a jungle. Have you ever seen forget-me-nots? So lovely!”

Spencer smiled and nodded, knowing if he tried to speak it would be gibberish because he could not focus on anything when he was looking at your radiant smile.

“Did you do it?”, Morgan asked as Spencer entered the bullpen with a brown bag.

“No but now I have a book on plants and flowers. I actually am excited to read it. Did you know that some plants like orchids do not require soil to grow they get their nutrients from-”

“You chickened out”, Derek sighed.

“She is so pretty! She was just standing there in all her radiance smiling at me and I couldn’t take the rejection. We dragged her out of her bed and put her in handcuffs only to find out two days later, she is innocent. I can hardly believe she is still being nice to me despite it.”

“Well believe it or not, the first night I met a girl, she was in handcuffs in her bed with me so it’s not always a bad thing,” Morgan smirked.

“Not appropriate, Morgan,” Spencer scolded.

“What are we talking about? I don’t like to not be included in the gossip!” Garcia ran over in her pink heels with Prentiss right behind her.

“Pretty Ricky here went to visit Y/N at her bookstore but then chickened out about asking her on a date,” Morgan informed them.

“Awwwww! I like her! She’s so pretty! Plus, I have already done a background search on her and she is squeaky clean now that we have proven she isn’t a murderer,” Garcia excitedly rambled.

Prentiss was nodding her head in agreement, grinning at Spencer.

Spencer had already chugged his morning cup of coffee during this conversation just to have an excuse to go get another cup and leave this conversation.

“You can’t run away from your feelings, Boy Wonder!” Garcia shouted.

Chapters 3-25

#spencer reid fluff #spencer reid x you #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid fanfiction #cm fanfic #reid x reader #spencer x reader #spencer reid #criminal minds

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slut-for-a-cowboy · 5 years ago

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(So this is gonna be pretty damn long. I hope you enjoy it tho. Basically a hunting trip goes wrong. You've seen it a thousand times, but here's my take on it.)

COTORRA SPRINGS

ARTHUR MORGAN X CHARLES SMITH

"Charles. Will you come here a second?" Charles lifted his head from the arrows he was fletching only to see Pearson waving him over with a smile. Charles set his stuff down on the table, taking in a huge breath of the fresh rain that fell last night. It was early, round six.

He stood up and walked over to the man, "What is it?" His voice was still hung over with sleep. Might grab a cup of coffee.

"I over heard some fellas talkin. Talkin about up north near Cotorra Springs there's something big. Something that would keep "them" eating for days and how they were gonna go soon. So I was thinkin that just maybe you wouldn't mind going up there and seein? It sounds like it could be a really big elk. We are really running low on food and that sounds like it would help."

Charles nodded and thought for a second. He doesn't know where that is, "where?"

"Just follow Dakota River north until you find the train station. Go west of that and Im sure you'll see it. Take someone with you if you go. It's a big haul, I'm sure at least."

"Okay. I'll check it out." Charles spoke. He's a man of few words. Not one for talkin much. Especially in the mornings.

"Thank you Mr.Smith." Pearson said with a smile earning a nod from Charles. Walking back over to the table he picked up his arrows and was headed to the hitching post with them. He put them into a quiver on Taima's saddle so that he could draw them quick when he needed too. Now, who to bring...?

He wants to bring Arthur, but he's always so busy and he doesn't wanna bother him if he has any sorta free time. But then again hunting isn't stressful and he does enjoy being outta camp. Charles decided he'd ask if Arthur wanted to come so he looked around for him.

He wasn't asleep, usually up this early anyways. Sometimes he sits on that tree stump facing the mountains and writes in his journal. He was this time too. The sight was beautiful. The sun just rose and it's light seemed to drape over the mountains like the sheet of snow did. It looked innocent and peaceful but after just coming down from there they can all say it isn't as nice as it looks.

Arthur looked to be drawing something. His hat sat in the grass next to him, this time he was sat up against the tree stump with his knees pulled in so that he could prop his journal up against his thighs. Charles couldn't help but smile, but shook it away before it was noticeable.

"Goodmorning, Arthur," he walked up beside him. Arthur didn't close his journal. He continued drawing. When anyone in camp would walk up behind him when he was doing anything in his journal he would shut it immediately as if he held all the worlds secrets in it. Made everybody around him all the more curious. Charles was proud to have that kind of trust between them; didn't wanna lose it. He tried not to look too much, but the drawing looked like a buck. He had just started so it was hard to tell, but the way the lines came together and the way he morphed the graphite into whatever he wanted seemed genius in a way. Shows he thinks a lot more than what people believe.

"Mornin' Charles." His voice was rough and worn but it sounded content with the other's company.

"Would you like to come hunting with me? Pearson told me something about Cotorra Springs and said I might need help." Charles asked. Hoping he'd say yes.

"Y'know. That sounds really nice right about now," he put his journal is his satchel and grabbed his hat. Charles offered him a hand which Arthur gladly took. He whispered under his breath "anything to get outta here for a day or two... What are we hunting?"

Charles only chuckled as they walked towards the horses to saddle up, "I have not a clue what we're hunting," Charles said as he threw Taima's saddle over her and began to strap it down, "Pearson said he over heard some guys talking about something big around there that they were gonna go hunt. He reckons it's an elk, but it could be anything. Might as well look."

Arthur mounted Biscuit and waited for Charles to do the same, "Well if we don't find what we're looking for we can always get something from there. There is plety of game wondering around up there." Charles mounted Taima.

"You've been there?" He asks. Arthur nods in response, "yep, not too long ago. It's beautiful. I can lead the way if you want me too?"

"Sure." Charles answered and Arthur got in front. His horse trotting down the path through the thick trees and bushes that covered the camp pretty well. As soon as they got on the main road Charles pulled up beside Arthur as they found a steady trot, "what were you doing up North?" He asked.

"Well. I found a sorry man near Dakota River. He's full of himself. Claimed to be famous, but I didn't know him." Arthur chuckled to himself, "He sold me a treasure map because he didn't have enough time to look for the treasure. I'm a fool for taking it, but I did. It was from the Jack Hall Gang. Supposedly to have hidden gold? So far I've been led to the springs, but I was having trouble finding the other map. Said I would go back up there some time."

He hung his head down, his hat blocking his face, and all Charles could see was his shy grin, "You'd like it up there" Charles tried not to get lost in his thoughts about that smile.

"I didn't figure you for a treasure hunter." Charles joked. Arthur lifted his head back up. "Me neither"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By the time they got there it was late afternoon. It was obvious they were in no rush to get there and back. They both enjoyed each other's company and surely didn't wanna leave It.

The air was warm and crisp. Breathing in this air was so nice. Arthur stopped Biscuit near a shady spot in the thick woods, hitching him to a tree and Charles hitched Taima next to him. They got off and Arthur grabbed his bow, Charles doing the same. The two pushed through the few bushes to reveal the springs. Pools of vibrant green and blue waters where everywhere amd geysers that smoked. Charles truly never had seen something like this in all his years. Guess it's a one of a kind thing. Although it did smell of sulfur which was one downside of it.

"We're here." Arthur said while throwing his bow around his shoulder. After Charles had taught him how to use it, with a bit of practice, it became his first choice when hunting.

"You were right. This is beautiful. Little barren might I add. What would be hanging around here?" Charles practically marveled at it, but his eyebrows knitted in confusion. There was much here he had never seen before. Like the bright colors that stirred in the pools.

They both walked through the springs and the trees seemed dead. The ground was just dirt, dry dirt at that, "Why is there no grass or leav-" a geyser errupted making Charles nearly jump outta his boots. He accidentally backed into Arthur and stayed put against him as it shot water high. They weren't near it, but he could feel the water mist down on them as it was cool now, but it clearly exploded in heat.

Arthur laughed, his ears turnning red at the contact that they made, but he still found it funny that he jumped so hard, "You've never seen the hot springs before I'm guessing?"

Once it stopped he pulled himself away only just realizing that he was pushed up against Arthur. He was a little embarrassed it scared him like it did, "No apparently not. It's weird. Why does it do all that? Seems a little obnoxious and... a tad bit scary if you ask me." He practically whispered that last part not wanting to admit it, but Arthur still heard it.

"Im not entirely sure. All I know is that it is scalding water. Heard about some kids playing a game, seeing who would get closest to the geyser, one got boiled alive. The pools around here feel nice though. I may have fell in one the day I was here and it scared the devil outta me. I was afraid that I was gonna be burned to death, but to my surprise it was a pleasant warm." The thought of Arthur slipping and falling into one of these things was kinda funny. A little scary but cute. He's absurdly clumsy, flat footed.

They walked on, looking around, almost forgetting what they were doing before Charles walked away to go check the bushes and around the wooded area. Surely this huge animal would be able to be seen miles away with the flat and dead ground of the hot springs. It was smart to check the woods. That was until Arthur saw something. It looked like a trail.

He looked down and saw a paw print. It looked huge. He squatted down and put his hand in the print and he marveled at the size. It was as big as his hand. His face became pale, but then he became curious. A little too curious.

"Charles?" he asked as he followed the trail, "I think we might have a problem."

Charles walked over and saw the prints, "you think that's our animal..?" It was a stupid question, he was just in a bit of disbelief. That's a wolf's prints.

Arthur continued on the trail as it was getting closer to the undergrowth. Charles' eyes widened and blood began to rush to his finger tips, "Arthur this isn't a good idea." It's like it didn't get through to the man that this was stupid. Charles had the strongest feeling in his gut, he felt the eyes that were stalking them, "Stop moving, now." His voice was stern and hushed this time.

Arthur stopped before the bushes and stayed put. He could feel it now. It was close and he knew he made a stupid decision. This wasn't gonna end well and he knew it. Charles seemed to be focused on every noise he heard, completely still. Arthur heard a growl right in front of him. He really did mess up didn't he. A couple of wolves came out the bushes in front of him. They snarled and walked towards him, slow and cautious.

"Back up towards me. Slow.." Charles whispered. Before they knew it they were surrounded by five normal looking wolves, but as they backed up a huge wolf emerged from the bushes, fresh blood on it's face, snarling. Clearly it was the leader of the pack, and he had his eyes on Arthur.

They're backs met. Charles could feel the deep breath Arthur took before whispering in that growl that he can't control, "You seem to have a plan."

"Let them think they have us and then start shooting once I do. Just try to keep our backs together. Don't wanna let them get us." Charles' hand was steady on his sawed-off shotgun, ready to pull. Arthur did the same. The drooling beasts closed in a bit more. The adrenaline pumped in their veins. It was about to get scary yet they knew they had to fight. It's what they did best.

BAM

That was all Arthur heard followed by the whine of dog. He whipped out his shotgun from his front holster and unleashed hell. He shot the first one, down.. The second one, down. He had to reload. He felt Charles be pulled away and heard him yelp in pain. Without thinking he turned around to try and help only to see another dog pulling him by the arm he held his gun in. Arthur finished reloading and pulled his gun up but before he could pull the trigger he was slammed to the ground; his gun was knocked outta his hand, hat flying off as well. He quickly turned over to face the thing. This wolf was huge.

Everything slowed for a second. The wolf's nose wrinkled up. Blood and saliva dripped from its mouth onto Arthur's face. It's nose was a copper color and it's fur was a dark grey. Arthur's eyes went wide, hands pushed into it's neck. Fear began to strangle him. This is not how he wants to die, but he had a feeling it might be.

Everything started happening so fast all of a sudden. All he could see were teeth and fur. It was trying to get his throat. He grabbed it's snout trying to muzzle it, but he then realized his hands were far too small and weak for its jaws. It opened its mouth clamping down on Arthur's hands. It started pawing at him, ripping his shirt and cutting him up while chewing up his hands. He desperately tried to keep the wolf away. All he could smell was blood. Heat rose from his chest and his hands were being chewed on like a damn dog bone as he kicked and squirmed to get out from under this thing.

Charles slung the wolf that had clamped onto his arm off and shot it. He turned around only to see Arthur getting mauled. It was huge. It was bigger than Arthur which was new to see in anything really. He lifted his gun and pulled the trigger only to hear a click. He quickly reloaded before he saw the teeth that were dug into Arthur's hands dug into his neck. He aimed his gun and shot. The wolf flinched, but wasn't dead, it was relentless. Charles shot again and then the wolf turned and looked at him. He had to reload again.

Arthur saw how the animal was distracted and pulled out his knife. With all his strength, he rammed it into the wolf's throat and dragged it across. Blood shot in his face as he ripped the knife out. It fell on top of him choking for air, suffocating.

Charles huffed and practically ran, sliding on his knees next to Arthur. He pushed the heavy ass wolf off with a grunt, "Are you okay?"

Charles was breathing heavily, the gash in his arm was huge. Arthur had not a clue what he looked like, but he's sure he was one ugly bastard now, 'even uglier' he thinks. Arthur scoffs and let's out a breath of hot air as the adrenaline faded and pain began to kick in, his voice was rough, "still breathin', aint I?"

Charles helps Arthur up, ignoring his smart ass answer, he wraps one arm around him, pulling them both up. Charles walked them towards the horses, setting him down against the tree he tied Taima against. He began to search his bag for water and ointment, "do you have a needle in your bag?"

"I-.." He swallowed, tried to though his mouth was dry, " I do. I also have some fishing line.." He raspped knowing what Charles was looking for. Charles' arm stung as he held it against him. Grabbing what he could from both their bags, he layed the stuff down in front of Arthur as he sat down to face him. He began to unbutton Arthur's shirt that was ripped to shreads, exposing his chest. The sun had just started to go down. The sky was yellow and fading to an orange. It was starting to get cold.

He opened the canteen of water, "You got a pretty bad bite there, Charles. You need to clean that before you worry abou-" he hissed and bit his torn lip as he felt the cold water run down his chest.

"Don't worry about me, I'll be okay." Charles spoke as he continued to pour the water. He took a rag that he found in his saddle bag and wet one side with water. He began to whipe off the blood and dry his chest.

"Please Charles.. At least pour some water on it for now." His blue eyes were pleading. Charles stopped for a second and met his eyes. They were full of worry. Charles' felt his fingers twitch at the state of the man and the pain that shot from his arm to his fingers.

He looked at his arm and poured some water on it. It was bigger than he remembered but shouldn't be hard to stitch up. The water stung. He closed his eyes and then returned to Arthur as soon as the sharp pain began to leave.

"Let me see your hands." He didn't wanna ask that cause he was afraid to see them. He lifted his hands and they were full of dirt, wolf hair, and saliva. Not to mention the holes that the animal left in them. They were dripping with blood. He had to clean and wrap them fast. He cringed at the sight.

He didn't have too much water left but it should be enough. He rinsed Arthur's hands off the best he could and used the wet side of the rag to get what was left.

Even if Arthur was in a lot of pain the feeling of Charles holding his hands and touching him all over made butterflies flutter in his stomach. He could feel his face getting red, or was that the heat of the scratch on his cheek? He tried to relax as best he could, but it didn't feel nice everytime Charles touched his wounds.

Charles put the rag down and opened some strange looking medicine and picked up a few bandages, "this is gonna sting at first but trust me, it works." He opened it and grabbed a good bit of the stuff and lathered it on to his hands. Arthur could feel a few tears prickle in his eyes. Charles wrapped his hands and stood up. His hands lingering on Arthur's as if he didn't want to let go, but he did.

"Do you think that water is safe to drink?" Charles asked as he dared not make eye contact with the other man.

"Heared it was perfect water. The rocks clean it or something crazy like that." Arthur said as he went to get up but Charles stopped him.

"You're not going anywhere." Charles said holding him down by his shoulders.

"But it's getting cold. I could start a fire. I'll be okay. You're hurt too y'know." He insisted. Charles only sighed and gave in, nodding and walking away with the canteen. Arthur got up and searched for the wood that was dry enough for a nice fire.

Charles walked back out into the springs getting chills when he saw all the dead wolves and blood shed on the ground. He saw Arthur's hat and gun laying out next to that big wolf and it made the image of Arthur laying under that wolf, trying with everything in him to get away, flash back. His eyes wide with fear and arms flexed with the adrenaline that pushed him through the whole thing.

Charles picked up Arthur's hat and gun but noticed that he only had two hands and one wounded arm. He also didn't wanna make a second trip with the love of his life bleeding by himself. Charles can feel his face flush with shame when he realized he just thought that. The love of his life. A tinge of sadness hit him.

He looked at Arthur's hat for a long second. He put it on. He could feel a warm feeling stir in his stomach. He shook off the warmth and walked to one of the pools, feeling his canteen. He walked back to the woods and found Arthur facing the fire he just made, against the same tree. The horses were untethered and free while both bed rolls were layed out. He sure did make quick work of things didn't he?

The sun was all the way down now and it was cold. Especially with being up north. He sat back down in front of Arthur and set the shotgun down beside him. Arthur smiled at him and let him work on him. He grabbed the fishing line and needle and stiched up a few of the big gashes, especially the one on his cheek. He soaked those with the same stuff he used for his hands.

"You.. look good in my hat." Charles completely forgot he had it on. He took it off quickly, but then Arthur objected, "No no.. Keep it on." Shyly, trying to hide a smile, he put it back on.

"Do you have a change of clothes in your bag?" Arthur thought for a second as Charles stood up.

"No. I don't. I meant to put them back in this morning but I forgot." Arthur said as Charles walked away. Charles opened his bag and grabbed his shirt that he usually wears. He was wearing his white one today beings he just washed the one he has in his hands. He walked back over and dropped it in his lap and continued walking so he could get close to the fire.

Arthur seemed a little taken away by this act. It smelt like him too.. "I'm sure I'll be okay without it.." Arthur spoke quietly. Charles didn't say anything. That means he isn't gonna take "no" for an answer.

Arthur sighed and put in on. It was so soft. It was clean too. The shirt was a long sleeve, blue and polka dotted, he always wears it. Arthur would usually roll the sleeves up, but he was really cold so he didn't this time. It was big on him, it felt really nice.

"Will you let me fix up your arm now?" Arthur asks. Charles turns around and meets his eyes. He breathes in and then nods. He was tired. Arthur could see it in his eyes.

Charles sat back down in front of him and showed Arthur his arm. The man picked up the rest of his fishing line and needle and began to stitch his arm up. Charles hissed once the needle pierced his skin and he could feel the thick line pull through it.

Arthur was quiet as he worked and all Charles could do was admire him. His shirt looked nice on him but he hated the way his cut seemed to bruise his face and his lips shown dried blood. He didn't like seeing the rings under his eyes from multiple sleepless nights. Guilt hit Charles heavy. Arthur was still one hell of a sight to look at though. He was beautiful. He particularly liked the way his fingers moved. He saw the way Arthur held the needle. He was making sure not to hurt his hand much more. His other hand held Charles' arm up.

He finished rather quick, making sure that everything was neat and right. He picked up that stuff Charles used on him earlier. He was right, it does help. He put it on Charles' arm and began to wrap it up with the rest of the bandages.

"There." He smiled as he set the stuff down. Getting up, he grabbed everything and started putting stuff up before Charles could. He came back, holstering his shotgun, and sitting on top of his bed roll staring at the fire. His knees were close to his chest, arms wrapped round his legs, wanting to push himself further into the man's shirt if at all possible, yearning for his touch.

Charles did the same, sitting on his bed roll. It was quiet. All you could really hear was the crickets and frogs singing. The geysers went off every now and then. It wasn't often. Though it was quiet, words wanted to be spoken. You could feel it.

"I'm sorry about bringing you along on this. I know better than to just go by hear say." Charles said. He hated that Arthur got hurt the way he did. Christ, he could was almost killed.

Arthur only chuckled, "I'm glad you brought me out here." He breathed in Charles' sent. He was content, though his body stung.

"Seriously, you were nearly mauled half to death?" Charles questioned.

"I'd rather be here and go through that than find out you became some beast's supper. I'd gladly go through it again. For you of course." Arthur felt like he said too much as he felt his ears start to flush red. He bit the feeling back. What he said was true and he wasn't gonna take it back for his own sake.

Charles felt his heart beat quicken. That may have been one of the nicest things he's heard in a long time. Maybe even the first time, "I'd do the same for you."

Arthur smiled as he relaxed. That was a nice thought to hold onto. Nice to know Charles thinks the same. Though Arthur feels like he doesn't deserve that. He ain't no good.

Pushing those thoughts to the back of his head he closed his eyes feeling the heaviness of sleep weigh on him. That was until a cold breeze ran up his spin. Arthur was shivering now, it was so quick. Even the fire didn't seem to help. Maybe he was getting sick? He crossed his arms cautiously, didn't wanna ruin the handy work of the man that sat next to him.

Arthur looked over at Charles who was watching the fire. He was in his own world, but he looked like he was doing alright, "y'know," Charles blinked once or twice then looked at Arthur, "you could make it up to me if you want to. I have an idea."

Charles was more than glad to do such, "What do you have in mind?"

Arthur hesitated. His eyes drifted to the side as he bit the inside of his cheek starting to regret what he was gonna say, "I'm really cold.."

Charles looked at him for a second. He was stone faced as usual and quiet. He debated it. Arthur became more red by the second. The anticipation killed him. He was now terrified. Charles stood up and Arthur avoided all eye contact. He flinched when Charles stopped right next to him. He hated how small he felt just because the man never answered. He's the only person that could do that to Arthur.

Charles sat down behind Arthur and wrapped his arms around him, "as you wish." Arthur could hear the smile in his voice. He perked up as if he were a dog hearing a supper bell. He felt like a kid again, new to the feeling of being loved. Or was this actually new to him? He couldn't tell.

He sank into the other's arms. He was still shivering, but he thinks it was more because this was actually happening rather than him being cold. Charles felt it and squeezed tighter. Arthur almost fell asleep, but wouldn't let himself. Three days of almost no sleep is really getting to him. He should probably start sleeping right.

"If you want me to I can move my bed roll over here." Charles practically whispered as he found a nice spot in between Arthur's shoulder and neck to rest his head.

"No no.. Well, not if you don't want to. I jus-" Arthur began to ramble but was cut off before he could continue.

"Arthur.. I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want to. Also it wasn't much of a question. I was gonna do it anyways." He chuckled as he got up and grabbed his bed roll bringing it over to Arthur's.

Arthur kept quiet. Charles was always straight to the point which he was more than greatful for, sometimes. Setting Arthur's hat down beside them, Charles laid his roll out next to Arthur's and laid down on his side. Arthur laid down as well, back towards Charles yet it didn't feel right. His heart beat quickened as he turned over on his other side, carefully. Charles had the warmest smile. Arthur just about melted at the sight, but felt relieved.

He took another risk, but at this point he felt like Charles wouldn't mind. He curled into Charles, face burried in his chest. He tucked himself neatly underneath the man's chin, scooting down a bit so that his hair wasn't in the other's face. Charles wrapped his arms around him only to feel the man relax to his touch. Charles sighed, content, it felt nice to hold him. Something he's longed to do. He hasn't smiled this much all week.

The fire light was dying down as they drifted to sleep, keeping close to keep warm. Arthur was out first with soft snores, not even snores. Just even breaths and an occasional soft mummer or sigh. It was always so quiet and gentle it didn't bother Charles at all. If anything, he really liked the sounds he made. It was a little exciting to see the man that was made for a brute, with a harsh tounge, and no empathy for anyone in his path, blush and stutter, becoming a mess without realizing it.

After awhile of thinking and listening to Arthur and the crickets he fell asleep. He doesn't remember when, but that was okay. The two slept the best they slept in days and even slept in an hour late.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arthur woke up first, he was sore and in a lot more pain than he was yesterday, but at least he wasn't bleeding out. He had no intetions on moving yet anyways, especially when he felt Charles' arms still around him. Arthur scooted up so that he could see Charles, the man didn't stir. Arthur gently brushed the hair that was in his face behind his ear, admiring him in the faint morning sun. He was beautiful. Arthur smiled.

#charthur #arthur morgan #charles smith x arthur morgan #arthur morgan x charles smith #charles smith #gay cowboy #hurt #hunting trip gone wrong #jkjk #they did get lovey dovey tho #ngl

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ta-daaaaaaaaaa · 4 years ago

Text

‘Drunk’

Gif not mine

I’M BACK!!

Sorry it took me so long to get to you request!

Requests are open!

Requested - Yes

Warnings - maybe some curse words

@fandoms-ruined-my-life

Hey, I just saw your post! I didn't see the asks open, so I'm going to send my request here if you don't mind. I'm requesting a fem!reader of the fandom Criminal Minds. <Imagine Hotchner taking care of the reader after she gets way too drunk while partying with the team after a long case.> And this is up to you, but could you possibly add that they both have a thing for each other and maybe after she sobers up they get together oh and FLUFF.

Also I’m not old enough to get drunk so if this is portrayed completely wrong I am sorry.

Not based on any one season, somewhere after Hailey dies.

After a particularly hard case, with the first victim ending up being a copy-cat, Garcia decided it was a smart idea to go get a drink or two. Aaron was being the only responsible one and switching his beer for Coke ever couple of beers. By the end of the night Spencer, Aaron ,and JJ were the only sober ones. They each pared off to each take one. Spencer took Morgan, JJ took Garcia and Prentiss, Rossi swore he only had a couple and insisted on driving himself, which meant Aaron had you.

~~~

“Come on, (Y/l/n).” Aaron said hoisting you arm over his shoulder. His arm wrapped around your waist.

“Food?” You asked half asleep with you head on his shoulder.

“Let’s get you home. Then we’ll worry about food okay?” Aaron said pulling out his phone to call the sitter. He knew he’d be getting home late before, but now he had you to take care of.

“M’kay.” You mumbled as you fell even deeper into sleep.

You woke up when Aaron went to look for your house keys. Groggily you pulled them from you bra (where every good lady keeps everything) and handed them to him.

He made a confused face but went with it and lifted you up. “I know how to walk you know.” You mumbled into his shoulder, where your head was resting.

“I know, but your still tipsy, so this is easier.” He said as he reached the door. He set you down so he could unlock the door. He then slowly guided you to the couch and walked towards your kitchen. You heard him fumbling around until you heard you coffee maker turn on.

“Food?” You asked loud enough for him to hear.

The chuckle that was barely heard was soon drowned out by more fumbling. He the walked towards you with a sandwich and a cup of coffee. “Here.” He said as he sat beside you and handed you the items in his hands. After you were a little less drunk, with a full stomach, you set you plate down and leaned on his shoulder.

“You didn’t have to take care of me, Hotch.” You mumble while trying to to fall asleep. “You need to get home to Jack.”

“I need to make sure your in bed first.” He said rather seriously.

“M’kay. I’m heading that way now.” You stated as you stood up, wobbling a bit. “Thanks for helping me, Hotch.”

“I said I’d see you into bed, so come on.” He said as he lead the way to your bedroom. Once at the door he sat on the end of your bed and waved his hands. “Get dressed.” He then proceeded to cover his eyes with his hand. He knew you had a bathroom right there, right?

You laughed at his antics, but listened anyway and grabbed pjs and went to the bathroom to change, still wobbling. You took off you makeup, brushed you teeth, reapplies deodorant, and changed clothes before walking back into your bedroom.

“You can open your eyes now.” You stated as you walked towards him. He removed his hand and laughed at you pajamas. “What’s wrong with it?” You look down at you tweetybird sweater and your yellow Polka-dotted pants.

“Nothing.” He said supressing his smile.

“It’s obviously not nothin’, mister.” You said as you booped his nose.

“It looks like something Jack would wear.” He stated swatting your hand away.

“Well, Jack does have great style.” With that he just looked at you funny.

“Did I not get all my makeup off?” You asked rubbing your cheek.

“What? No.” He said recovering from whatever state he was in. He finally catch a glimpse of a real smile.

“You should smile more often.”

“It’s not a common occurrence in our line of work, is it?”

“Depends in who it is I guess. Morgan tends to smile when teasing Reid or talking with Garcia. Prentiss when talking about her cat. JJ when Henry or Will are in the room. Garcia when talking some metaphor or doing something fun on her computer. Reid when talking about basically and tiny piece of knowledgehe knows we don’t know. Rossi when he finally gets to host that party he wanted to. And you, when Reid is talking at a unprecedent rate or looking at the team when you think no one notices or even when your having a conversation with Garcia about a new computer game that just came out...”

Without even thinking you leaned down and kissed him. He pulled away just as quietly.

“I’m sorry, Hotch. I I just couldn’t stop my...” this time it was you cut off. You were surprised to say the least.

Once you two broke apart and rested your foreheads on each other, he answered your silent question. “I pulled away because your drunk, I’m not gonna take advantage of you.”

“What’s the saying, ‘drunk mouth speaks the sober thoughts’ or somethin’ like that. Your not taking advantage of me, Aaron.”

“I like it when you call me Aaron.” He suddenly changed the subject.

You ‘hmmmed’ at his statement, and leaned in to kiss him again.

3 Months Later

“Are you sure your ready to tell the team, (Y/n)?” Aaron asked as you both sat in the car on the way to the BAU. You’d just dropped Jack off at school.

“Aaron, their a team of profilers. I’m sure they already know, like we knew about JJ and Will.”

“That does sound like them.” He said as he grabbed you hand from across the center console.

#aaron hotchner #aaron hotch hotchner #hotch imagine #criminal minds

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prettyboyspenceee · 5 years ago

Text

Chapter 2 - Saved

A/N: Yay! Part 2! I hope all you like it! Keep liking and reblogging!

Description: Olivia’s hidden talent and sleeping arrangements are revealed.

Character Appearances: Olivia Morales, Spencer Reid, Jennifer “JJ” Jareau, Emily Prentiss, Aaron Hotchner, David Rossi, Penelope Garcia, Derek Morgan

Disclaimer: I don’t own Criminal Minds, sorry to disappoint! I do own Olivia Morales and other surprise characters.

Word Count: 1,548

Posted: October 27th, 2019

---

5 Months Later

Olivia took cases with kids hard. The case that the team had just closed reminded her that she just couldn't save everyone, no matter how hard she tried.

Usually, after a case, Olivia and Spencer had a tradition of getting takeout from their favorite Mexican restaurant and eating in one of their apartments. It was something that they had between the two of them, separate from the team.

Dinner was at Spencer's apartment tonight. He was playing Beethoven on his radio as they ate.

"Hey, Liv, are you okay?"

Olivia looked up from her food and gave Spencer a weak smile, "I will be."

Spencer nodded. He felt the same way.

After the pair finished dinner, Olivia went back to her apartment. Spencer couldn't help but feel worried for his friend, his heart ached when he saw her in pain.

---

Olivia slipped on her oversized Georgetown shirt and her way too short sleep shorts. She took a deep breath and drifted to sleep.

On the other side of the hallway, Spencer was in the middle of his third book of the night when he first heard the screaming. He threw his book down, grabbed his gun and rushed out into the hallway.

When he realized that the screaming was coming from Olivia's apartment, his blood turned cold. He quickly grabbed the spare key and rushed into Olivia's apartment.

He found her in the bedroom, screaming.

"Olivia! Liv! Wake up!" Spencer said, frantically shaking her awake.

Olivia sat up and looked at Spencer with wide eyes that were filled with tears.

"Spence?"

"Hey, Liv. You're okay, it's going to be okay."

Spencer pulled Olivia into a tight hug and she let out gut-wrenching sobs.

As Olivia calmed down she pulled away from Spencer and wrapped herself in the covers of her bed, "God, I'm so sorry, Spence. This is so embarrassing."

"Don't ever apologize. We all get them."

She nodded, "Oh no. Your shirt is soaked."

He smiled, "It's fine. I like my shirts soggy anyway."

"Let me get you another shirt," Olivia untangled herself from the bedsheets and went to get Spencer another shirt.

Spencer was a gentleman, but he couldn't help but stare at the exposed leg of his coworker. His heart raced when he saw her every morning on their way to work, but this was different. Spencer felt like his heart was on fire.

He was sucked out of his train of thought by a shirt being thrown in his face, "Hey!"

He heard Olivia laugh, "You're welcome!"

Spencer quickly pulled off his wet shirt with ease, completely forgetting he was in Olivia's bedroom.

Olivia sucked in a breath, Spencer had abs. They weren't six-pack abs like Derek's, but they were abs. Olivia never noticed how defined his muscles actually were. Olivia's heart soared when she saw Spencer, but now her heart was racing.

She was thankful for the dimmed light in her bedroom so Spencer couldn't see the blush that was slowly rising to her face.

"Uh - I'll guess I'll head out then?" Spencer said.

"No!"

Spencer looked at Olivia with concern, "I mean... can you stay?"

"Of course,” Spencer was never one for physical contact, but he felt safer with Olivia, he welcomed all physical contact with Olivia, big or small.

Olivia smiled and crawled back into bed, "Lay down, Spence. I promise I don't bite."

Spencer laughed, "I really hope you don't."

Needless to say, both Spencer and Olivia slept like babies.

---

"Hey, Mouse? Late night?" Morgan asked Olivia.

Olivia smiled, "Something like that."

Garcia came rushing into the bullpen before Morgan could reply, "Hey guys, we have a case."

By Garcia's expression, Olivia could tell it was a bad one.

"Garcia, what do we got?" Rossi asked.

"Orlando, Florida. Elle Newbury, Michael Yung, Patrica Martinez, and Lauren Marks were all killed 2 weeks apart. All were found 3 miles away from each other, and they were all," Garcia shuddered, "missing their tongues."

"Well, the unsub crosses gender and racial lines. The removing of tongues could be symbolic, he might want to silence them," Olivia said.

"Or he could just be some sicko keeping the tongues as souvenirs," Emily mentioned.

"Aren't they all sickos?" JJ asked.

The team hummed in agreement, "What do you think Reid?" Morgan asked.

"Liv took the words straight out of my mouth."

"Spencer Reid? Speechless?" Olivia laughed.

"Since when does Reid call you Liv?" Emily said with a smirk.

"Since Morgan has been calling me Mouse," Olivia replied with a smirk that could make Emily's wither with shame.

"Alright everybody, wheels up," Hotch announced.

---

The team had been in Orlando for a week and Olivia hated it. The body count for this unsub was racking up and the team couldn't figure out why.

Olivia and Spencer were working the case on a couch in the local police department and they were both running on no sleep, just coffee. It wasn't long before the pair fell into their habits and they fell asleep together.

"Oh my god," Emily whispered.

"Garcia is going to have a field day with this," JJ said with a quiet laugh.

"Do we wake them?" Derek asked.

"Let them be, we'll brief them later," Rossi said, entering the conference room.

"Okay. But what about Hotch?" JJ asked.

"It's fine. They need rest, their minds are overworked," Hotch said as he entered the conference room.

Olivia turned in her sleep and the team watched as Spencer unconsciously pulled her closer to him.

"Oh god, JJ, please tell me you got that on video," Morgan pleaded.

"I'm sending it to Garcia as we speak."

---

"It's the unsubs personal vendetta!" Olivia announced.

"How do you know, Livvy?" Emily asked her.

"It was bothering me that the victims seemed to have no connection, so I had Garcia do some digging. It turns out that all of the victims were a part of the same AA group."

"How did we miss this?" Hotch asked.

"AA is anonymous. The victims never told their families and Garcia said it never showed on their records because they ALL used aliases. Anyways, I called some members of the group and although they were reluctant, they gave me the information we need. It turns out that one week before the killings started, a man named Max Gerard lost his 10-year sobriety chip, he came in screaming saying that it was the group's fault."

"That has to be the trigger," Rossi said.

"Do we have an address?" Spencer asked.

"Yup, Garcia just sent it over now," Olivia replied.

---

"Reid, Rossi, and JJ, I want you to go through the back. Morales and Prentiss, I want you to watch the windows, we have to assume that he's armed and he's willing to shoot his way out. Morgan, you're with me," Hotch gave his orders and everyone followed.

It wasn't Olivia's first takedown but for some reason, she was uneasy.

Olivia took the right side of the house while Emily took the left side.

"Gerard has Reid. Does anyone have a clear shot?" Olivia heard JJ through the coms.

Olivia felt her heart drop, "I don't have a clear shot," Emily said through the coms.

The rest of the team confirmed that they didn't have a shot, "Morales? Do you have a shot?" Hotch asked.

Olivia took a deep breath, "I do. Tell me when to take the shot."

"Now!"

Olivia took the shot and she watched as Gerard fell to the floor.

She rushed into the house, "Spence! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

---

After the week-long case, the team was finally back on the jet.

"Hey, Mouse, where did you learn how to shoot like that?" Derek asked.

"I taught myself. Scored a 100 on every firearms test."

Derek scoffed, "Who knew that our 5'2 resident princess of the BAU was such a good shot."

"We all did," Rossi said.

The rest of the team nodded and laughed at Derek's expression.

The team occupied themselves with their own activities Olivia moved over to the couch Spencer was on.

"Can I join you?"

"Yeah, of course," Spencer scooted over so Olivia could have space.

"Liv, I - I wanted to thank you, for saving me."

"Spence, earlier this week you saved me from a nightmare. Every time we sleep in the same bed, couch or chair, you save me. We save each other Spence, you don't have to thank me for that."

Spencer nodded, "I guess we really do save each other."

Olivia yawned, "Hell yeah we do."

"Are you tired?"

Olivia nodded, "Just a bit."

Spencer readjusted his position so he and Olivia could lay comfortably on the couch, "Sleep for a while. I'll wake you up when we land."

Olivia smiled, "Thanks, Spence."

Olivia rested her head on Spencer's chest and she couldn't help but feel safe when Spencer wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer.

Once again, Spencer and Olivia fell asleep in each other's arms. The team couldn't help but smile as JJ took another photo.

"Hey, JJ, I feel like we should make a scrapbook of these," Emily suggested.

"Don't worry, Pen's already working on it."

---

Little Rock, Arkansas was where the first victim showed up. Richard Monroe was missing a pinky. He would be the first of many.

---

tags: @reid-187

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ellana-ravenwood · 6 years ago

Text

“I don’t play games, Mr. Morgan” - Arthur Morgan x Reader (x the entire gang really)

Well. I have been playing too much Red Dead Redemption 2. And I kinda... fell in love with Arthur. I know none of y’all asked for this, and that it’s not from the usual fandoms I post about but…I’m late to the RDR2 party and just finished the game, and was left with TOO MANY feelings not to write something about it. Plus, Arthur Morgan deserves all the love. I hope you’ll like it :

WARNING : Long ass fic. Like. LONG AF. If anyone read it all...wow. I...kinda got carried away. Also, some slight chapter 3 spoilers. Nothing too big.

My master list : @ella-ravenwood-archives

__________________________________________________

******

“What are you thinking about, (Y/N) ?”

You jump a bit in the air, startled. You were once again lost in some day dream and was definitely not expecting anyone to come and talk to you at this hour ! It was quite late at night, and most of your friends were asleep already. Plus, you were a bit away from the camp, sitting in the grass, looking at the stars, hard to spot in the darkness.

So when Arthur came and sat down beside you, asking you that...You jumped up in surprise. He smiles mischievously at you, giving you that damn smirk you loved so much, and ads :

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare ya.”

“Oh it’s ok. I didn’t expect anyone to find me here. And I definitely didn’t expect you to be back so soon.”

“Yeah, Lenny and I were able to wrap things up quicker than we was thinking.”

“Good. Are you staying a little bit or...”

“I’m staying tomorrow, and leaving the day after that. I think.”

You smile at him, happy to know he’ll stay at least for a day. Both of you were constantly send on jobs and missions by Dutch or Hosea (or anyone in the camp really, it seemed neither of you knew how to say “no”), it was difficult to catch up.

For once, it looked like the two of you would be in camp at the same time. Not that it meant much anyway, you’d still...You know, act as if neither of you was incredibly attracted to the other.

“So, what was you thinking about, my lady ?”

You knew he called all the other women at the camp that too, but whenever he used this term of endearment on you...your heart fluttered in the most wonderful way.

You smile at him a little more, and you wonder if it’s wishful thinking that makes you discern in the faint moonlight, the slightest blush on his cheeks ?

Maybe he just drunk a bit before coming to see you. Yes. That probably explained his little blush. Not the fact that you smiled at him. You turn your gaze back up at the sky, unable to see the disappointment in his eyes as he can’t quite see your face anymore.

“Nothing in particular. Was wondering if we’d ever travel to the stars one day. Things like that.”

“Traveling to the stars ? That would be something.”

“Wouldn’t it ? I bet the Pinkertons wouldn’t follow us up there...”

There’s a few seconds of silence, where you can feel Arthur staring holes into you. Fixing his gaze on you thoughtfully, and God forbid you’d turn around to hold his stare. You fear it might break whatever is happening now.

You can see his hand rise, and start to reach for your shoulder...but before he can touch you, he raises his arms and act as if he was just stretching. Damn it. This always happens. He always gestures to touch you, but never goes through with it. And in that moment ? You wish he had.

Talking about the Pinkertons brought some more fear back in your heart. He can see that, of course. That you’re scared and worried. And he wishes he had the guts to reassure you, and to hold you in his arms. But he does no such things. Instead, he looks up at the sky too, wave his hand dismissively and says :

“Aaaah, Dutch will think of a plan.”

It’s your turn to stare at him for a few seconds, thoughtfully. He can feel your gaze, and at the same time, his heart starting to beat wildly. And he can’t say anything else. He wishes he could. He wishes he could tell you everything will be alright, and that he’d always be there for you (a promise he never made to anyone else before, but knew he wanted to to you). But he doesn’t. Instead, he stays silent, and tries to ignore your eyes fixed on him. And then you sigh, shake your head, stand up and say :

“I s’ppose you’re right Arthur, I s’ppose you’re right. Anyway, I should get to bed. Lots of things to do tomorrow. Night.”

“Right. Night, (Y/N).”

He tries to hide his disappointment as he sees you leave already. He just came back from a job Hosea asked him to do, and was exhausted. He wished nothing more than to go to bed...Well, actually, that was not true. When he saw you, sitting in the field, all his exhaustion vanished and he just had to come to talk to you before going to collapse on his cot.

And now you were leaving. Already. Before you two could have your usual little nightly conversation.

He sighs, he knew why you left. It’s because he blew it once more. He could’ve been there for you, reassure you and comfort you. Instead, he told you things you already knew, cut the conversation short and made you leave because of his awkwardness. What was his problem ?!

Oh, but he knew what his problem was. His heart told him to reach for you and embrace you. But his head warned him to do no such things.

Because if he did ? Then he’d give you the wrong idea. Then you’d hope he felt the same than you did...Ah. Because Arthur Morgan was pretty sure he was a dumbass, but he wasn’t so dense as to not notice the way you looked at him, or sought his conversation often.

Hell, he did the exact same things. Because if he didn’t want to get your hopes up, it wasn’t because he didn’t feel the same. It was because he couldn’t allow himself to feel the same, and to drag you down with him. To curse you with his love. Because he breaks everything he touches...There was a reason, why everyone left him.

He was no do gooder. And though you were part of the gang too, you deserved better than someone like him. A bad person can’t expect good things to happen to them. He did too many awful things in his life to deserve your love, your warmth.

Oh he would kill to have it...But that was the problem. His thought process. “Would kill”. The first words that came to his mind, and oh how revealing it all was. He robbed one too many time, lied more than he should have. Killed, too. And so for the rest of his days, he didn’t deserve to have someone like you, beautiful, smart and oh so warm, love him.

Arthur used to think that Mary was the only one who could confuse him, and play him like a fiddle... But he was wrong. You entered his life and he forgot all about her. Well, not quite. She was still his first love, and a constant reminder of why he couldn’t go through with it with you.

Yes, Arthur used to think only Mary could make him feel things like that. But then you came in. And you ? Oh you were something else alright.

But as he looked upon the stars, and heard your footsteps died down towards the camp, he scolded himself for the hundred time not to get close to you. Not to spoil you with his badness. Because his feelings for you were all wrong, his uncontrollable love was tainted, and he could never deserve your warmth.

************

Arthur didn’t quite understand yet, that you had already been spoiled. By life. By other people. And that you could be, and have been just as “bad” as him.

Living like an outlaw is all you ever knew. And all you ever wanted to know.

Maybe it was bad, that you did’t want to learn new, safer ways of life. Probably, actually. There was a high chance that you’d die young, and violently. But…

Freedom.

“Freedom” was the first word you said, according to your daddy (granted, he wasn’t a reliable source as he had the terrible tendency to exaggerate everything when telling stories).

And ever since you were young, both your parents nursed this idea in your head. “Live free. Don’t let anyone tell you what to do.”

Well, except maybe for them. You still had to go to bed when they told you to...flawed logic in your opinion. When you told that to them once, when you weren’t even ten, they both laughed for a very long time, vexing you to no end.

Your father ran his own little gang, and your mother knew exactly what he was and accepted him fully. She even embraced that life all heartedly. Which was understandable, as she lived her early years sheltered in a golden cage.

She too, wasn’t fit for a life in the « civilised » world, where women had no rights and no voice. And your daddy ? Your daddy was offering her opportunities where she could wear pants if she wanted, or go hunting, or basically do everything everyone always told her she couldn’t do.

Your ma’ was born into high society, and it’s only luck that made her met your father (well, you’re not sure your grandfather would call it « luck » but hey, from what you heard he was a controlling asshole).

To your mom, meeting your daddy was her destiny. It changed her entire life, for the better. She often told you the story of how everything came to be : She had been kidnapped, and guess who her very rich father called to get her back ? Your gangster of a father.

This was a time when the Wild West was still just that, wild. And the Law had not much grasp on it. Most of the time, people handled their problems on their own, and it more often than not ended in bloodsheds.

Your grandfather refused to pay your mother’s ransom…but paid a handsome prize to your daddy so he would get her back.

Pride is an awful thing, your ma always said.

Now she never quite recovered from the fact that her own father would have rather she died than paying a ransom to “savages” like those who kidnapped her. Only to pay another gunslinger to get her back. With the risk of her dying.

When she learned of the deal her father struck with your daddy, she decided she’d never go home to him. She couldn’t. Her own father placed more values in his pride than in her life. Who would want to go back to a kind of life where she was clearly just another piece of merchandize for him to do as he saw fit ?

So, she never went back home.

Your daddy often said that he didn’t quite know at the time why he decided to help her. Why when she said : “my father is a wretched man, I will not go back. Ever.”, he accepted to take her with him far enough from it all.

It was clear that this decision would bring him more bad than good. Taking a rich man’s daughter away from him like that ? It would come to bite him in the ass someday. And yet he took her amongst his gang without a second thought.

Ah but who was he fooling ? Already at that time, he was absolutely crazy about her. The fact that she had a calm life, a peaceful path already forged for her, and that she decided to throw it all away to live in the wild ? It made him instantly drawn to her.

And so here you came into the picture, daughter of a high society woman who refused to follow conventions, and of an outlaw on the run.

Raised into a gang, raised in the wilderness of the Wild West. Often moving or in hiding. But always, always feeling this freedom.

You met the Van der Linde gang when you were around 10, as both them and your daddy’s gang had eyes on the same target.

It could have, just like a lot of things in the West, end up in blood…but your daddy and Dutch went along so well that they did the hit together, and shared the amount won.

Both of the men had the same vision of things, and they gave most of the money “earned” away to the poor. You reckon they both fancied themselves modern Robin Hoods…Aah, those were simpler times.

When the Wild West was still wild.

You met up occasionally with them, whenever you crossed passed in the huge open space of the West. You liked them, but never gave them much thought as at the time, you were to young to know better. All you remember is that Dutch and Hosea often brought you books. You liked books.

You did a few hit with them too…Well, “you”.

You were actually just a child, and most of the time at camp doing boring chores (so much for freedom…). Then again, both your parents had a way of putting said chores into perspective. They were boring, but necessary, and you felt like a heroe when you were doing them and the members of the gang came home thanking you for your hard work, giving you candies and chocolate !!

Life was good. It didn’t mean you never knew hardship, sometimes life with the gang was tough, and growing up in those conditions wasn’t always ideal…But it was the only life you knew, and you liked it.

Life, was good.

And it remained good and careless for 18 years. A feat in your line of work really. 18 years of near bliss in a gang of outlaws ? You never heard of that anywhere else. You were definitely a lucky one. Once again, everything wasn’t always easy, but in your eyes...It was good.

That’s when Colm O’Driscoll came in and ruined everything.

Your parents were talking about disolving the gang. Or rather, pass it to someone else. That someone else being, of course, their beloved daughter. Who was born an outlaw, and who they were sure would do wonder with a gang of her own.

They knew they couldn’t take you away from this free life just yet, but they wanted out. Which was understandable.

You often imagined that, once you’d reach a certain age, you too would like to live a more peaceful life…Still free, in the open space of the West, but not robbing folks no more. Or at least, not as often as you used to.

By the time your parents decided they wanted to retire, you were 18 and often joined in the robberies. Chores weren’t as boring as they used to…Your specialty was to scout ahead, and report to your daddy.

Life was good.

But before your parents retired, they had one last coup in mind, so they could live their new life without worrying about money. Ever.

They suddenly fancied themselves as ranchers of some sorts. You made fun of them a lot, but secretly thought this would be good for them. They weren’t getting any younger for sure, and it would be nice, if they could die of old age and not in a shoot out.

You supported their decisions, and you’re the one that found that last big hit.

There was a small town, not far from where you settled for the moment. It was full of nouveau riche and though there weren’t many inhabitants, all of them were loaded and new to the West. The town didn’t even exist barely two years ago, it was founded by rich easterners in quest of adventures.

They had no experience of how ruthless the West was, and a bank full of gold. A lot of naiveté and a few guards. Easy peasy.

Only you weren’t the only gang that had eyes on this tremendous prize who was suppose to be an easy job. Dem O’Driscolls were also interested. Their patriarch however, Colm O’Driscoll himself, quickly realized that it would be even easier if he paired up with your daddy’s gang.

Your dad was a smart, but much too trustful man. He agreed. This was his last job, he wanted things to run smoothly, and sure enough, having more hands to help would be very welcome to do just that.

Plus, he knew that Dutch was a friend of Colm, and your pa’ was by then a very good friend of Dutch and Hosea. So a friend of a friend...

Yeah. No. The motherfucker double crossed all of you. Ran with the money after butchering most of your gang, and left you behind fightin’ against the people you thought were helpless, but that were resolutely decided to defend their new home. The O’Driscolls had decimated most of y’all already, and you weren’t enough to defend yourself anymore. You saw everyone you loved die one by one.

Worst, so that you could survive, so that you could live and escape...Your own parents sacrificed themselves as you ran away. Not by cowardice, but because it was your ma and pa’s last wish. What good would it be if all three of you died ? They said. And so they made you run, as they sacrificed themselves for you.

It felt like you had murdered them yourself. Patricide, matricide, those were really big sins, apparently...maybe that’s why you got cursed and hit a streak of bad luck after that ? Why Colm O’Driscoll captured you when you tried to exact your revenge on him, and held you captive, hurting you every day for his own amusement ? You probably deserved all this pain. Because of you, your parents died. Because of you...

Seven years. Seven years of misery, and getting lost in this World, not knowing what to do with your life now that everyone you ever loved was gone. Was freedom really worth all this blood ? All this pain ?

Seven years of wandering, lost. Until you saw Colm O’Driscoll in a saloon once. Followed him, and intended to kill him, but got caught first...And things started to suddenly look up.

It might sound completely contradictory that you the day he caught you and you became the punching ball of his gang started to change your fate for the best but...Being with the O’Driscolls really saved you in the end.

By that time, Colm had also betrayed Dutch Van der Linde, killing the woman he loved (granted, Dutch killed his brother first..), and whenever him and his gang got wind of an O’Driscoll camp, they’d raid it.

That night, fate decided that they would raid the one in which you were held captive. And that Hosea would recognize you as being one of his best friend’s daughter. He heard about your gang ultimate demise and...

And that’s how you ended up joining in the Van Der Linde gang.

************

This happened three winters ago.

After years of wandering the West with nothing to live for, and yet stubbornly holding on to life...you found a family again, in the shape of the Van der Linde gang.

Now sure, you just went through a very rough patch, what with the event at Blackwater, loosing so many friends, and having to run away from Valentine’s, followed too closely for comfort by the Pinkertons.

But still. Wether it was here at Clemens Point, or anywhere else, You were family. No question about that. And this would never change.

There was Dutch of course, whom you always liked (he really did bring you great books when you were a child and he met up with your parents’ gang), he had just such a charisma you know ? It was hard not to follow him and drink his every words. Not to trust him that he would find a way to get you all out of this mess.

Hosea, full of wisdom and great stories. He reminded you a lot of your father, and where Dutch was overdramatic and grandiloquent, Hosea was discreet and insidious. Great actor. In another life, he could have been something else. You liked to just sit by his side and listen to him talk about his past.

Uncle, whom you were pretty sure used to be the best gunslinger in the West in his younger years, but that now was a drunk who liked to sing dirty songs and laughed too loudly...You liked Uncle. Whenever you felt down, you could be sure that being around that old man would cheer you up.

Miss Grimshaw, who yelled at you more than once when she caught you daydreaming one too many times, but who was also always kind and fair.

Bill, who was a big dumb man whom you liked to annoyed because he had no self-control. It was too easy to rile him up and then watch him getting yelled at by Grimshaw, or Dutch, or Hosea etc etc...for not being able to control himself.

Pearson, the camp cook. You were pretty sure he always sweated in the stew, which never really stopped you from eating it. It was still good. Plus you had eaten much worst things in your life as an outlaw.

Strauss, the Austrian bookkeeper. He kind of gave you the creep, and you usually stood clear of him. There was something in him that you just didn’t like, without really knowing what.

Molly, who could act all high and mighty but was actually a nice lady. She just wasn’t very lucky when it came to matters of the heart...As much as you thought Dutch was great, you definitely would never like to be in a relationship with him. Yikes.

Tilly, kind and too pure for this world...Except that you saw many times that she had a much darker side that was kinda terrifying, and you learned not to get fooled by her appearance. She seemed so nice and forgiving, but then you saw her a few times getting in skirmishes and she could be ruthless.

Sean, Irish lad with a big mouth. He always made you laugh though, with his dumb jokes. At the same time, he often annoyed you too, as it seems he could never shut up.

Karen. Sweet on Sean. But also one of the best conwoman you ever met. She could made diversions like nobody, and no one ever suspected her to pull a gun on them. Element of surprise was sure always on her side. Plus, she had a way with words and could make anyone talk about things they shouldn’t talk about...

Mary-Beth. A genuine sweet lady. She liked romance book and to write, and always had kind words for those who needed it. At the same time, she let nobody walk on her feet and if she had to run her mouth to defend herself, she would without hesitation. Got her in some bad predicaments more than once but...That’s just how she was.

Reverend Swanson ! He both made you laugh and made you very sad. You often pitied him, but you always lend him an ear when he starts to ramble while in a drug haze. Funny haircut. Quotes the Bible randomly, and at no one in particular ?

Lenny. Young and eager. Suffered already too much for his age (but didn’t you all ? If any of y’all had a happy/normal childhood, you wouldn’t be here). You predicted a bright future for him, and hoped he found his way one day. He was always of good company, and you were pretty sure he had a crush on you, as he constantly got flustered when you gave him more than ten seconds of your attention.

Charles. Fascinating man. Half-black, half-native. He always had amazing hindsight about things, and though he wasn’t part of the gang since a long time, he was already one of your closest friend. He had a way to see the World that spoke to you on a spiritual level. Plus, he was rather easy on the eyes, which was a nice bonus.

Javier. You loved his accent and his guitar. He was a very vain man, seriously you never saw a guy pay that much attention to his clothes and such...but also a very attractive one, on more than one side. He was easy to talk to, always up for some shenanigans, and could really liven up a party with his music. He was also always keen to share with you his culture, when he discovered how interested you were in it.

Micah Bell. Now here’s a guy you didn’t know what to think of. Sometimes, you wanted to punch him with all your might, and some other times...There was something in his eyes. Something that told you horrible stuffs must have happened to him. Made him that way. That he became such an asshole for a reason. Didn’t excuse any of his behavior, and most of the times you wanted to kick him in the nuts, but there were those rare occasions where you wanted to give him the benefice of the doubt, and try to understand where he was coming from...Ya must be crazy.

Sadie was very new, but you quickly became friend. You had a common enemy. Colm O’Driscoll. He was the reason your family died, and she lost her husband because of him. You were there when she was at her lowest, no matter how much she rejected and insulted you. And you knew that from that point and on, when she finally opened up ? She’d be there for you. Always. It was a gut feeling, and your gut feelings were always right.

Trelawny was in and out and you always kind of were...suspicious of him. He was fancy and used big words, and he was too much of a charmer to be honest. Then again, who was honest in that family of yours ? You were all thieves, murderers and conmen. But Trelawny ? He was a step above everyone else, on the conman ladder. It just seemed like he always found a way back on his feet, and was an extremely lucky person.

Abigail was a tough one. She always spoke her mind, and clung to her independence, but she was also affection starved (which is probably why she always ran after John, yet running backward and always snapping at me...with reasons, of course). She dreamt of something bigger than this outlaw life, you knew it. And you kinda understood it. Especially with a kid...

Talking about the kid. Little Jack was probably one of your favorite person ever. Four years old, sweetest little bean in the world. Would rather make flower crowns than learning how to survive, but still the cutest of them all. You’d give your life without thinking twice, if it meant saving that boy. You and him were very close, whenever it was too much for Abigail to have to take care of him alone (when John left), and sorrow overtook her...you’d take little Jack and read him fairytales and other things.

His father, John, was a little younger than you and such a whiney baby. He came back to the gang about the time as you joined it, after apparently over a year of absence. And he clearly had some difficulty to know what he truly wanted. You understood him though, and knew that just like Abigail, he somehow aspired to more than just this outlaw life...But man could he act more childishly than his own four year old son !

You still weren’t sure on which feet to stand with that Kieran kid. He saved Arthur apparently but...He used to be an O’Driscoll.

Oh. Talking about who he saved. Last but not least...Arthur Morgan himself.

You could write entire essays, about that man. Unfortunately so.

Each member of the gang was like family to you. They were all dear to your heart, in a certain way. But Arthur ? Arthur was something else.

Sure, you thought Charles or Javier for example, were attractive and enticing fellers. You loved their personalities and if Arthur didn’t exist, you’d surely have taken a bite out of one of them. Possibly both. Bonus point if it was at the same time.

But because Arthur Morgan was living and breathing...it was an impossible thing for you to even see other men.

Three years ago, he’s the one that found you in that tent, bruised and abused, and untied you. Took you in his arms and help you ride back to the gang’s camp.

He’s the one that nursed you back to health, even if it wasn’t something he was used to do ? He’s...at first, you thought you had a little crush on the man because he was the one who did all that. The one that technically saved you.

You thought because in your subconscious he was your savior, that it played tricks on your heart. You quickly realized, however, that this wasn’t the case at all.

Arthur Morgan and you ? You understood each others more than anyone else.

You knew why he became who he was, why he was such a rough and ruthless man. Just like you, he was born in an outlaw world. His daddy too, wasn’t such a nice man. And though you idolized your parents (in the same way Arthur would follow Dutch to the end), you never were foolish enough to ignore the fact that they weren’t particularly good people, in the end. After all, they robbed, killed, lied...And sure they would play “modern Robin Hoods” and never kill “innocents”, but it didn’t take away the fact they weren’t “good” people. You’d never lie to yourself and say they were decent, not with the kind of life you and them lead.

Which is why you understood Arthur.

Why you understood him when he constantly repeated he wasn’t a good man, even as he did good things. Or when he seemed, at times, to completely and utterly hate himself. Why he always pushed some people away, and guards his heart so ferociously.

Because you too, hated yourself (you were still feeling guilty for your family’s death, and the fact you were the only survivor). You too, did pretty horrible things to survive. You too, robbed, murdered and lied. You too, chose this life of freedom yes, but also of great sacrifices, blood, and dated ideals. You too, lost everything you cared for...

There were moments, when Arthur confided in you. It was usually after a long day of work, and the fatigue made the walls he build around himself smaller. It would be just you and him, sitting a bit farther from the camp.

He told you about Eliza and Isaac. About loosing them. How it hardened him further. And hell you couldn’t imagine the pain of loosing a child...Worst, the pain of loosing a child, and the insidious feeling of being so sure it was your fault.

That you could have it all, but were too foolish to take the opportunity at the time, only to lose everything.

He also told you about Mary, and honestly ? You couldn’t blame her, and you didn’t pity Arthur for his heartbreak. He chose this life, just like you did. You both chose freedom over...Whatever a woman like Mary could give him.

She wasn’t like him. Or like you. She aspired to things that were much different. She could never understand Arthur’s ways. Some things are never meant to be, and though those two were deep in love at a time, it could just never have worked out. They were too different. They never quite understood each others.

And in the end, was it really true love if neither of them ever made compromises ? Arthur never even tried to get out of his way of life, and Mary never tried to understand him. They loved each others but weren’t willing to try everything in their powers to make it work. Both of them. Not just one changing. No, both walking towards each others. For love.

Aaaah, but that was only wishful thinking on your side, right ? That maybe Arthur wasn’t that deep in love with Mary Linton, and you still had a chance somehow...Mm. Right.

Well. You had always been a hopeless dreamer.

************

Hopeless dreamer you might be, but Arthur always send you such mixed signals ! Like that day, when you were looking at the stars a bit away from the camp and he came to ask you what you were thinking about...Or like tonight.

It was Sean’s welcome home party, and you were so drunk you could barely stand. You were singing along to one of Uncle’s dirty song, gently swaying to the voices of your friends.

You rarely drunk alcohol, so it didn’t take you much to be in that state, but who cared really ? You were happy Sean came back, and was having fun with yer friends ! And that’s when you spotted him, as Uncle’s song ended and everyone applauded and laughed.

Arthur.

He was standing on the other side of the camp fire, and staring at you. Given the shade of his cheeks, he was clearly not in his normal state either. You smiled and waved at him, and he smiled fondly back at you. Giving you a sweet smile that you rarely saw on his face...

Clumsily, you start to walk towards him, and he looks pleased to see you’re making the first move (even drunk, his head kept telling him to stay away, a feat he never seem to quite achieve...).

But then Mary-Beth approaches him, and asks him if he wants to dance with her. Dutch had just put his gramophone on, and was dancing lovingly with Molly (both were also drunk). And your heart sunk.

Mary-Beth was so much more beautiful than you, and charming, and smart, and...You could feel your smile fade away, and your steps slow down.

Oh but Mary-Beth was a great friend. She followed Arthur’s gaze, as she saw he wasn’t paying much attention to her (ever since you came in the gang Arthur didn’t pay much attention to any women but you, really), and she smiled knowingly, changing her speech up :

“Or rather, would you dance with (Y/N) ? (Y/N), would you dance with Arthur ?”

Mary-Beth had read enough romance novel to recognize the sort of situation you were both into. You clearly were head over heels for each others, but some dumb reasons stopped you from admitting it. Your friend wasn’t about to let it happen passively, and so she made the first move on you for Arthur. Sneaky, but very appreciated.

You blush, and hope this will pass on the account that you’re very drunk, and you say a bit shyly :

“Um, sure. If he wants to.”

Arthur, in the haze of the alcohol, forgets that he’s no good for you and smiles dumbly, saying :

“Oh he wants to alright. C’m here.”

He opens his arms, and it’s only when you put your hands in his, and flush your body against him (or rather fall on him, too damn drunk...but in his eyes, he felt you gracefully flush against him as he saw everything you did as being perfect), that he’s reminded why he can’t do this. Your warmth a wake-up call as to why he could never have you.

He fleetingly thinks that he should push you away right now, so that you’ll think he dislikes you or something. But the mere thought of you thinking ill of him makes him physically sick. Once again, a large array of contradictory emotions attack him, and...They all melt away as he looks down at you, and at how happy you look, there, swaying lightly in his arms.

“I didn’t know you could dance, Arthur.”

“I can’t.”

And yet he swirls smoothly around, with a drunk you in his arms. Your heart flutter pleasantly at how close he is, and you can’t help but give him your best smile. This makes him melt, and unconsciously, he squeezes you a bit closer.

You raise your head, and you just look too happy. Arthur can’t quite wrap his head around the fact that he’s the one giving this sort of feeling right now. Or maybe it was the alcohol ? No. No he felt it in his bones, it was because he was dancing with you, that you were happy.

Something so simple...he wanted to make you happy every day of your life. Oh if only this moment could last forever. But Dutch’s gramophone stops, and you’re still in his arms.

Your face is so close from his. He would just have to slightly tilt his head to touch your lips with his. And oh lord, does he want to. Slowly, both of you are drawn to each others. And there’s a moment, a perfect moment, where he can truly feel your warmth...

But as your soft and warm lips softly brush against his rough and chapped ones, the voice at the back of his head telling him that all of this is wrong is screaming at him to stop. To not do that to you. He does not deserve your warmth, your love. And his own love for you will taint you...

And so he jumps back, letting go of you all at once, and you trip backward. He gestures to reach and catch you so you wouldn’t fall, but Charles is faster than him. The man was standing not far from the two of you, and saw you topple down...

Charles’ hands on you drives him crazy, and that’s his queue to leave. Jesus. He can’t believe he let all of that go this far. Dumb fucking Morgan. This was because of the alcohol fogging his mind, his reason. He swore he would never drink again, as he walks away to his cot without even saying good night to you, and leaves you behind, utterly confuse and sad. Why was this always happening ?

One step forward, four steps back.

************

“You’re an idiot, Arthur Morgan.”

“Wow. If John Marston himself tells me I’m an idiot, it definitely means something, seeing as he’s the dumbest man I’ve ever met.”

“Ha ha, you think you’re funny don't you ?”

“I have my moments.”

There’s a long silence installing itself, and John just glares at Arthur without adding anything. Vexed. The man was vexed. Which amused Arthur to no end, but curiosity as to why John thought he was an idiot overtook his amusement, and so he asked :

“Are you going to tell me why I’m an idiot, or do I have to guess ? Unless you just wanted to compliment me out of the blue like that ?”

“You damn well know why.”

“I do not. Or I wouldn’t ask.”

“You have a girl like (Y/N) in your life, and you act like she means nothing to you ? You’re an idiot.”

Arthur narrows his eyes at John, and Mr. Marston knows he just struck a nerve when his friend says :

“You’re the one to talk, Mr. I-Walk-away-from-the-woman-I-love-at-the-first-sign-if-trouble.”

Typical self-defense. Turning John’s words against himself. But John isn’t about to give up, not when he sees how sad it’s making you, and how much Arthur is being a goddamn idiot. John always liked you, even when you teased him about being a whiney baby.

He kind of saw you as his little sister, even though you were older than him. And seeing you sad while everyone damn well knew you were both hopelessly in love drove him mad. It made him incredibly angry too, to see Arthur refuse himself some happiness because he thought he deserved none.

And so John says :

“Exactly Arthur. I’m not one to talk about such a subject. But ya know what brother ? I don’t want you to do the same mistakes than me, I don’t want you to take so long to realize that what you’ve always wanted is standing in front of ya ? It took me some times. But now, I know what I want. I know I love Abigail, and Jack. And that I want to give them a better life. I know I’m no good man, and they probably deserve better. But for some crazy reasons they chose me, and it’s my responsibility to be there for them now. And (Y/N) ? Her heart clearly already chose you, and playing with her like you do is cruel.”

“I’m not playing with her !”

“Oh you’re not ? Then why don’t you just cut all ties ? Tell her you don’t feel the same ? Why do you dance with her, stare at her, almost touch her so many times ? Why don’t you truly walk away, instead of going back to her over and over again ? Why don’t you leave her alone, if she’s so much better without you ?”

Arthur doesn’t answer, and once again, John knows he struck a nerve. It was time for the coup de grace. The last words that hopefully, would knock some sense into Arthur’s thick stubborn skull :

“Now, you know what they say ? When dumbass John Marston thinks you’re an idiot, it must mean something. And when he reads you better than you read yourself...Ya know what they say.”

Arthur looks at John leave, confused. The hell did THAT mean ? Tt.

But John had indeed struck a nerve. Only, it was having the opposite reaction of what the man was trying to do, as Arthur’s gaze slowly moved to you once more.

One last look. Before he finally cut all ties, before he tells you he knows you’re in love with him, and lies to your face saying that he doesn’t feel the same. Before he makes you truly hate him by saying that he was just playin’ with ya indeed.

It already breaks his heart, to just think about you hating him. But he can see now, after what John said, that it is necessary. If even dumbass Marston can see how he feels about you, then...Then he really had to do it. To go and break your heart. So you could move on, go away from him. He wasn’t good for you. He didn’t deserve your warmth and love.

He stands up, and slowly walks towards you...But is stopped by Dutch. The first few words the man tells him fly right above his head, until Dutch shakes him by the shoulder and he finally tears his eyes off of you, and listens.

What was that about a peace treaty with Colm O’Driscoll ?

************

You feel all life leaving you as you see him topple down from his horse, wearing nothing but an union suit, and clearly badly injured.

You rush to him, following all your friends. Everything goes by slowly, and in a blur, as they carry him to his cot. You barely hear Dutch telling Miss Grimshaw to keep an eye on him...but then you hear his voice, weak and pleading :

“(Y/N)...”

He whispers your name a few time, and everyone turns to you. Susan stands up, and gives you the chair next to Arthur’s cot. You sit down on it without hesitation, and get close to him.

Weaker than you ever saw him, and for the first time ever, he reaches for your hand. He takes hold of it, and brings it against his chest.

And he refuses to let go, even as Reverend Swanson is trying his best to patch him up. He holds your hand with all the force he has left. And makes tiny whining sounds every time he thinks you’re about to leave.

It makes your heart almost jump out of your chest, as you slowly lower yourself down next to him, kneeling next to his coat, your head resting on his stomach, revealing in the reassurance that it slowly moves up and down as he breathes.

************

Arthur is in a complete daze. For a long time, he thinks he must be in Heaven or some place like that, as all he can feel right now is this excruciating pain coming from his shoulder, but also your warmth.

Whenever he opens his eyes, you’re there. Holding his hand firmly. And he thinks this must be it. He’s dead. He’s dead and he’s in Heaven.

Because you’re there, and he finally feels your warmth. But wait, this isn’t Heaven...this is Hell. Because every time he wants to feel you more, run his fingers through your soft hair, reach to dry the tears running down your cheeks, brush the back of his hand against them, hold you closer to him, hold more than just your hand...he can't find the strength in him to do so.

Everything hurts, his head is so warm and ringing. And you’re right there, so close, but he can’t quite reach you, doomed forever to feel part of your warmth, but not its entirety.

“(Y/N)...”

He hears himself say weakly, and suddenly you’re there, so close to him, bending above him. But he still can’t reach you. And it’s pure torture.

He can see your eyes though, and your face...And once again, he hears himself say, in a weak and husky voice :

“I love you.”

The truth. Finally. He said it and it feels like a giant weight had been lifted from his shoulders. And maybe that’s all it took for him to access Heaven ? Finally saying the truth ? Being honest, and feeling nothing else but a deep love ?

Because suddenly, he feels your warmth all around his body as you wrap your arms carefully around him. And when you whisper “I love you too”, Arthur just knows he must have died and went to Heaven.

************

For the next few days, you nurse him the best you can, trying to get his fever down unsuccessfully unfortunately. More than once, you and Reverend Swanson fear that you’re going to loose him...But Arthur always pulls through, as if he found a new strength to survive.

He always seems stronger when you touch him, and so you never leave his side. You couldn’t have anyway...A few times, he whispers to you again that he loves you, more than anything in the world. And he seems to relax each time he feels you holding him carefully...

************

“Forget what I said, (Y/N).”

He whispers in the night, and you straighten up. Your neck hurts like hell, as you’ve been slepping kneeling next to him for the past few days. You didn’t hear what he said, but as usual you reach for his forehead and...

His fever finally broke. Thank god. A large smile crosses your face, and you reach to caress his cheek softly. But he looks the other way. Uh ? What happened ? Maybe he forgot he ever confessed his love to you...Which didn’t matter anyway, now that you knew, you were all too willing to make the first step. You’re about to say something, when he repeats :

“Forget what I said.”

“Fo...Forget what you said ?”

“It was the fever speaking. I didn’t think it. I...don’t love you.”

He says, but the way he avoids your eyes tells you everything you need to know. Because you weren’t stupid either, and this time, you were sure of his feelings. And oh, oh you’ve just had about enough of those games.

All this flirting, then backtracking, almost kiss, then running away for a few days, dancing only to push you away (quite literally). All those times he came to you first to talk to you, and then pushed you away when things got too personal. All...all...Everything !

“I’m not going to forget, Arthur. Unless you tell me you don’t love me while looking at me in the eyes.”

You say resolutely, and on his face there’s only pain. You’re afraid he might suffer from his wound too much to speak, until he says :

“I’m no good for you. Walk away while you still can. End this.”

And you understand. It’s not his wound, that pains him, but his self-hatred.

You and him ? You understood each others more than anyone else. And you knew how he felt about himself, as you had similar feelings towards yourself. But where you sought solace and redemption in your love for him, he only dug himself deeper...You knew since a long time, that he was refusing himself any happiness.

That after Eliza and Isaac, he closed his heart as best he could. After Mary, too. Realizing he didn’t deserve good things, because he was a bad man.

Where you knew that you weren’t a particularly good person (even though just like him, you were born into it and never really had a choice...?) and seeked happiness to counterbalance all this self-hatred, and to maybe try to find a better way of living, knowing that love could save someone...he just stubbornly denied himself any good thing happening, thinking he didn’t deserve it.

And maybe he indeed didn’t. Maybe you didn’t either. And the world was just being cruel to make you two fall in love only to later tear you apart...But you wanted a shot at it. Happiness.

You hadn’t felt happy, truly happy, in so long. And only him made you feel at ease, and made everything make sense. Only him made you want to change your ways, and be a better person.

You weren’t about to let that go, as selfish as it could be. Hey because after all, you weren’t such a good person either. Selfish you could be.

“You deserve better. I’m no good man. Forget what I said, and walk away.”

He says again, and this time, you roll your eyes at him. You say :

“I’ve done bad things too, and you know it. You’re putting me on this weird pedestal where you think I’m better than you are, but the truth is that I’m not. I know you think no good thing can happen to bad people, and maybe you’re right. And yet, here I am, in love with you. Now if you don’t love me, then say it. Say it while looking in my eyes. And then I guess your theory about no good thing happens to bad people will be confirmed.”

Arthur turns his head quickly towards you, his head spinning a bit as he moved to fast, and looks deep into your eyes :

“You’re not a bad person. You’ve done good things.”

“So did you.”

“No I-”

You’ve always been a very stubborn woman, and never took anyone’s shit. You weren’t about to let Arthur have his stupid ways of “you’re better off without me”. Not now. Not now that you know he feels the same than you do. And confirms that he loves you seconds by seconds, as he still doesn’t deny anything and tells you you’re good.

“Shut up Arthur. You shouldn’t speak anyway, you’re still weak. And I fear that saying such stupid things might weaken you further.”

He looks at you again, and finds the slight smug smirk on your face irresistible. Did you just ? Yeah you did. In a few words you made your stand. You weren’t about to give up on him.

It made his heart both happy and sad at the same time. You seem to understand his struggle however (you always understood him the best) as you add :

“Say it. Say you don’t love me. While looking at me in the eye. Tell me. End this then, if you truly don’t love me.”

But he can’t. He wants to. But he goddamn can’t. Because somehow, he cannot lie to you. He was never able to. And so he doesn’t answer, and looks away...but you’re not about to have that.

You softly lay your hands on each side of his face, and force him to look at you, saying :

“I love you, Arthur Morgan.”

“Don’t...”

He feels his resolve slowly melting away, and curses himself. No. No he can’t. He doesn’t deserve your warmth. He doesn’t. Damn this wound that weakened him, and damn this fever that made him speak the truth. Mercilessly , you repeat :

“I love you, Arthur Morgan. And I think you’re the best man I’ve ever known. Knowing my past, it doesn’t mean you’re a good man, by the way. And yet I still love you.”

“Stop...”

He knows you were also born an outlaw. That you did bad things. That you lived the same life he lead. That you lost people because of this. And yet he still feels like he doesn't deserve you. That you deserve someone better, someone good, that can save you, instead of dragging you down further.

“I love you, Arthur Morgan. Together, I know we can get better. On many aspects. I know you can heal my wounds...The one others can’t see. The one making my heart bleed. I know you’re the only one that can do that.”

Unfair. You’re being unfair. By saying he’s the only one that can mend you, the only one that can save you...So unfair. Because what monster would he be, if he walked away now ?

“I love you, Arthur Morgan. Let me in. Let me try and heal you too. And if I fail, then at least I tried. It’s better to feel pain, than never feel at all.”

Oh but you already healed him more than you could ever know. Because whenever he’s with you, his heart flutters happily, his stomach is filled with butterflies, he can’t help but smile stupidly, his worries seem to vanish, and no matter how hard he tried, he was never truly able to push you completely away.

“I love you, Arthur Morgan, and I-”

“Stop it. (Y/N), stop.”

“No I’m not going to stop. I lo-”

“Listen to me, please.”

He turns his face to you, and bore his beautiful blue eyes into yours. He felt so weak, those past few days. He felt like he couldn’t move at all, like he wasn’t strong enough to.

But here, with you, he feels like he can do anything. He feels stronger than before, though his body is still weak. And slowly, but surely, for the first time in days, he reaches his hand up and...

This time he doesn’t withdraw, or act as if he didn’t really mean it.

He cups your cheek, and tells his head who tells him to not do this to shut up. He can barely hear that pesky voice at the back of his mind anyway, over the thunder of his heartbeats.

Both you and him...you ain’t really good people. And normally, good things doesn’t happen to bad folks. But maybe, just maybe...That together, you can get better ?

Double negative makes a positive, right ?

It’s like something finally snapped inside him, after years and years of denying himself any sort of happiness. But this happened only because of what you said. Only because he realizes that your happiness now depends on him.

That you smile because he smiles, and that you feel good because he’s there. Never in his wildest dreams would he ever thought that he’d make someone feel like that. Worst, that he’d BELIEVE that he was making someone feel all of that.

There was no voice inside his head, saying that he was fooling himself. On the contrary, the voice was instead threatening him to not fuck this up, because now...Now your happiness depended on him.

And his happiness depended on you.

Double negative makes a positive, right ?

“I...love you, too.”

He finally says. And it’s the most honest he’ve ever been in his life. Because yes, yes he does. He loves you. With all his heart. He loves you so much that he was willing to let you go. And he loves you so much that he finally sees that maybe, just maybe, he isn’t so bad after all ?

If he was able to bring you happiness somehow, maybe it was all worth it ?

And as he brought your face to his, you were thinking exactly the same thing.

Double negative makes a positive, right ?

When two bad people love each others so much that their soul slowly heals, it can only means...Oh but your lips are on his now, and for a split second, he wonders if he really died and by some mistakes ended up in Heaven.

But no. This is reality. And he’s finally kissing you. And you’re kissing him back, eagerly albeit maybe a bit carefully as he’s still rather weak from his wounds.

Your lips move in perfect sync, and it’s like your pain flies away.

Both you and Arthur still have a long way to go to love yourselves, and maybe you’ll never be able to achieve this feat...But it’s ok, because you finally found someone who loved you fully and unconditionally for who you are.

The end (?).

__________________________________________________

Um. I realized that 1. the first part of this story might be boring as I’m setting up a backstory for the reader and it might be too long, 2. That the entire story is probably too long overall and 3. I never posted for this fandom so my “usual” followers might be completely uninterested and lost if they don’t know RDR2 but...I had to write something with Arthur. And I hope that for those who know nothing about Red Dead Redemption, you were still able to read this as a sort of stand alone story and understand who the characters are ? I wrote it very late at night while sleep deprived (sorry for any typo, also my Frenchness gets out when I’m tired so I might have made awful grammar mistakes...), but still had fun doing it so, I hope you somewhat enjoyed it.

As usual, feedbacks = life, and reblogs are always great to show your appreciation and share my stuffs.

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elcorhamletlive · 6 years ago

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fandom: MCU (post-Endgame) ship: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, Morgan Stark & Steve Rogers, Morgan Stark & Tony Stark tags: POV outsider, fluff, domestic

summary: Morgan doesn’t really know Captain America.

Morgan knows Mom and Dad are getting divorced way before they tell her.

To be fair, at first it was more of a guess – she noticed how their bickering grew less friendly with time, how Mom was travelling more, how Dad spent more time in the garage. Morgan didn’t say anything, though, because she could tell both of them didn’t want her to know – always pretending everything was fine when they knew she was looking – and she thought saying anything could potentially make things worse.

She had been hoping they were going to work it out together, for a while. Then, as the fights grew sharper, she started just hoping that they were going to work it out, period, because it felt like walking on eggshells sometimes, and that wasn’t a feeling she was used to.

So when they do sit down in her room, both of them sitting at each of her sides, holding her hands, Morgan already knows what they’re going to say.

She cries, a little. It’s stupid - Morgan knows several children in her class have divorced parents, and she’s a big girl now, she shouldn’t cry over silly things. But both Mom and Dad tell her it’s okay to cry, and they hug her and rub comforting circles over her back, and it helps, a little.

She tells them she doesn’t want to stop seeing Dad. They both hurry to assure her this isn’t going to happen. They explain to her the concept of shared custody, how it works, how they’re still friends and they both still love her very, very much; and nothing can change how they feel about her.

Morgan nods. She already knows this, too, but it’s nice to hear.

Morgan knows all of the Avengers by name, has since she was very, very little. She knows them from some of Dad’s stories, but mostly from interviews and newspaper stories on Dad (that he doesn’t know she searched for), from excited conversations with her classmates, and from a few comic books (Dad says none of them are accurate, but Morgan thinks they’re pretty fun anyway).

It takes her a while to know most of them personally. Eventually, though, she gets to it: Thor takes her flying whenever he’s around; Bruce makes some fun experiments with her in his lab; Clint brings Nathaniel to play with her. They all, at one point, tell her about Black Widow, the woman who inspired Nathaniel’s name – so Morgan feels like she knows her a little, too.

Morgan has never given it much thought, really. She knows they’re heroes and important people, but she has known them for too long to let this fact affect her.

So when Dad moves to the Avengers’ compound, Morgan is excited to go spend the week with him, but she isn’t really geeking out at the idea of living with the Avengers. She just wants to spend time with Dad.

And that’s what they do. Morgan spends the day hanging out with Dad – they watch movies and play games and he lets her change DUM-E’s circuit. It’s awesome.

By the end of the day, Morgan is pretty tired. She won’t admit it, though, because Dad promised to take her for ice cream, and she knows that if she doesn’t fall asleep, he will, because Dad always keeps his promises.

So Dad says okay, he just needs to take a shower, and Morgan nods and sits on the living room couch to wait for him.

That’s when Captain America shows up.

Morgan doesn’t really know Captain America. Technically, she has seen him before, when Mom asked her to save Dad from a conversation, and once when she was a baby, but neither of those times really count, because she didn’t speak to him.

So when he comes inside the living room, Morgan doesn’t know what to say.

He doesn’t say anything either. Instead, he walks inside with fast strides, his attention turned to a tablet in his hands. Morgan wants to say hi, but he doesn’t look at her, going straight to the couch and sitting down on the opposite corner to hers.

For a moment, they just stay there in silence. Captain America looks very serious, his brow furrowed, his tall back slightly crunched forward as he examines the tablet. Morgan feels torn, because she thinks it’s kind of rude to not say anything, but he seems to be working, and maybe interrupting is not a good idea. Mom hates when Morgan interrupts her work.

Eventually, though, it gets too awkward, so Morgan decides to break the ice by saying: “Hey, can I have the remote?”

Captain America jumps, head snapping towards her. His mouth drops open.

“Oh.” He says, blinking. He has very blue eyes that make Morgan think of Elena Preston’s puppy, that comes with her to class because she needs it. This helps Morgan smile at him. “I’m—I’m sorry, I. I didn’t realize you were here.”

“It’s okay,” Morgan says, nodding. She wants to ask for the remote again, but he’s still staring at her as if her being here is something really impressive.

“I. Uh,” he says. “I don’t think we’ve ever been properly introduced. I. I’m Steve.”

He waves, and it’s very, very awkward. He’s still looking at Morgan like she’s got two heads.

“Hi,” she replies, a little hesitant. “I’m Morgan.” Which you already know, she thinks. She doesn’t say it, though, in the hopes of not making everything even weirder.

“Uh. Yes, of course,” Captain America – Steve now, Morgan supposes– says. Then, almost by a miracle, he remembers her original request, and turns to fish out the remote from between two cushions. “Here!” He extends his hand to her.

“Thanks.” Morgan picks the remote up.

“You’re, uh. You’re welcome,” Steve still sounds a little flabbergasted. Morgan wonders if he’s sleepy. She gets a little silly when she’s sleepy. “Are, are you--?” He gestures aimlessly. “Are you going to watch TV?”

“Yeah,” Morgan says slowly. “That’s... why I wanted the remote.” Then, because he looks so uncomfortable she feels a little sorry for him, she adds: “I’m waiting for Dad to finish his shower. We’re going to get ice cream.”

“Oh.” He smiles. “That’s great.”

“Yeah,” Morgan says, happy because the conversation makes a little more sense. “I love ice cream, but I can’t eat a lot of it because I’m lactose intolerant.” There’s a pause, and she adds, helpfully: “That means I can’t digest lactose well, so milk makes my tummy hurt.”

“Oh,” he says. That’s something he really likes to say, Morgan thinks. “I get it. I… I used to be, too.”

Morgan grins. “I know. Dad showed me your movies.”

Steve raises his eyebrows, his eyes widening. “Uh. Really? He did?”

“Yup,” Morgan replies. To be honest, she fell asleep during a couple of them, but she decides to not mention that. “You were really small.”

He blinks, looking so much like Elena’s puppy that Morgan wishes she could take a picture to show her later. Then he smiles. “Yeah, I was.”

Morgan nods in agreement. She rarely gets to call other people small, so she appreciates the moment.

“I liked your song,” she says. She and Dad had spent a while humming it to each other while he drove her home, the night they watched the first film. “It was very catchy.”

“Thank you.” Steve smiles. It’s still a little weird, but Morgan kind of enjoys it. Adults are rarely awkward around her – they usually try extra hard to not be, so Morgan likes Steve a little just for not trying to pretend.

She smiles back, then turns to the TV. She turns it on and they watch part of a show about tigers, without speaking, until Dad finally shows up and Morgan stands up to leave.

“Bye, Steve,” she says, over her shoulder.

From the corner of her eye, she can see that Dad makes a weird expression, but she doesn’t really know what it means.

Steve waves. “Bye,” he says, his smile growing. “Nice to meet you.”

read the rest on ao3!

#stony #stevetony #superhusbands #morgan stark #stony fic #endgame #endgame spoilers #a4 spoilers #avengers 4 spoilers #avengers endgame #avengers: endgame #avengers endgame spoilers #avengers: endgame spoilers #ae spoilers #av:e spoilers #my fics

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multiplefandomfics · 6 years ago

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Elevator

Hey guys so this is our first fanfiction to be posted ever so be nice. We appreciate any feedback and hope you enjoy it. This is going to be a blog with smut so 18+ only.

Norman Reedus x Reader

Words: 2646

Warnings: smut, cuteness overload, fluff, claustrophobia, Norman Reedus & Jeffrey Dean Morgan (because they need a warning :D),

It was a sunny day in Berlin, Germany even though it was just April. A friend and I had planned this trip for over a year. We met at the hotel we were gonna stay in. we went all out on that vacation and rented a good one. The town was also nice and the people very helpful and courteous.

One morning we wanted to meet in the lobby because we were staying on different floors. I was a little late cause the evening had been long and I didn’t hear my alarm. I quickly got dressed while writing a message to my friend and storming out the door a second later. Fortunately I had packed my stuff the day before. I stormed the elevator and hit the button for the lobby. Completely out of breath and focused on my phone I didn’t even notice the doors opening at a different level and two men stepping in. “Nice shirt!” one of them commented suddenly with a deep voice. I looked at my The Walking Dead shirt then at the guys and almost passed out. In front of me stood grinning like idiots Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Norman Reedus. I was paralyzed and for a moment I was sure I was still asleep and dreaming. My next thought was (Y/F/N) would be so jealous when I stepped out of the elevator. “You got a name?” Norman asked. “(Y/N)” I stuttered. “Nice one. You from around here?” I was just about to find my voice and reply that I wouldn’t be living in a hotel if I were citizen of Berlin as the elevator jerked violently and then stood still. “what in hell…?” Jeffrey Dean Morgan said more to himself.”It’s not moving. Why is it not fucking moving?” I panicked. “Keep calm sweetheart. You claustrophobic or something?” Norman asked worriedly. “Or something...” I replied. I was not afraid of tight spaces the two gorgeous man trapped here with me were the problem. “I’m gonna press the help button.” so I did. Suddenly a voice came through the speakers.

“Hallo, Sie haben die Notfallhotline erreicht, wie kann ich Ihnen helfen?“

(Hello you reached the help hot-line what is your emergency?)

„Ja hallo wir stecken hier im Aufzug im Mercury Hotel in Berlin. Er bewegt sich seit ein paar Minuten gar nicht mehr, die Türen gehen auch nicht auf und hat vorher ganz schön gerappelt.“

(yeah hi we are stuck in an elevator in the mercury hotel in Berlin. It hasn’t been moving in few minutes, the door won’t open either and it jerked hardly before it stood still.)

„Ja ich sehe es im System aber ich kann keine Ferndiagnose stellen oder es beheben. Ich werde einen Techniker schicken müssen aber das wird etwas dauern. Leider fehlen uns momentan helfende Hände.“ at least she sounded sorry.

(Yes I can see it in my system but I can’t perform remote diagnosis. I’ll have to send a mechanic but that is gonna take a while. Unfortunately we are short handed at the moment.)

„Alles klar. Wir lange wird es ungefähr dauern?“

(Alright. How long is it gonna take approximately?)

„Vermutlich ein paar Stunden.“

(Maybe a few hours.)

„Okay wir können ja eh nicht viel machen. Danke für Ihre Hilfe.“

(Okay we can’t to much anyways. Thanks for your help.)

„Natürlich. Ich wünsche Ihnen trotzdem einen schönen Tag.“

with those words she hung up.

(Of course have a nice day anyways.)

“What did she say?” Jeff asked.

“Seems like we’re stuck for the next few hours. She’s gonna send a mechanic but that’s gonna take a while.” I answered.

“I would have never guessed that you’re German. Your English is flawless. Sounds almost like a native.” Norman remarked which made me blush. I had always loved English.

“Somebody got an idea what to do?” Jeff sounded already bored and we had only been stuck for 5 minutes. “I think I got everything we need in my purse.” I said hesitantly, opened it and pulled water bottles, snacks and a card game out of it. “Oh but I should call my friend first. She’s waiting in the lobby for me. One second.” I took my phone out of my pocket and hit dial on the video chat. I wanted to scare the living daylights out of her. I swear I was a good friend. After two rings she took the call. “Hey (Y/N) where are you?” “I’m sorry (Y/F/N) I’m stuck in one of the hotel elevators and the lady at the hot-line said it could take a few hours till a mechanic is gonna fix the problem and get us out of here. But I have some great company here. You wanna see?” I was so giddy I couldn’t even wait for a response. I just turned around and took the guys with me into view. “What the…?!” (Y/F/N) almost fell over. “You alright sweetheart?” Jeff asked worriedly as she almost hyperventilated and I laughed my ass off. It was almost the same reaction I had had when I saw them first. “Why in hell are you guys even in Germany?” she finally spat out. “We are filming Ride here. We’re touring Europe at the moment.” Norman let on. “What a damn coincidence. I am not complaining. (Y/F/N) It seems we are not getting out of here anytime soon. Could you inform the people at the reception if they haven’t already? Then you should maybe go to a cafe or busy yourself otherwise. I won’t be able to stay on the phone the whole time my battery is gonna die then.” I explained to her. “Okay sure thing. Talk to ya later when you get out of that steel trap. Bye sis.” she replied. “Yeah bye. Love ya.” with that I hung up. “So she’s your sister?” Jeff asked. “Soul sister.” I replied happily. “We’d do anything for each other.” We sat down on the floor and I took hold of the UNO cards. “UNO? Seriously?” Norman laughed. “Yeah UNO. I like the game and I can’t play poker.” I admitted a little embarrassed. So there I was sitting on the floor of a stuck elevator with Norman Reedus and Jeffrey Dean Morgan playing UNO and eating snacks. “So you’re here for vacation?” The conversation stayed casual. “Yep we’ve been here for a week now.” We talked like we’ve known each other forever. It started to feel normal after a while. We made photos and laughed while eating and joking. I had no idea how much time had passed by when the double doors f the lift finally opened and revealed hotel staff, (Y/F/N) and a team of mechanics and tech support people. It seemed almost comical the way I was sitting on the ground with two grown ass men playing cards. “Oh hi, thanks for getting us out but couldn’t it have waited a few minutes longer I had a winning hand?” I sighed. “Betcha didn’t!” Norman challenged me. “Oh the bet is on Reedus!” I replied. (Y/F/N) only stared at me as if she couldn’t believe that we had gotten so close in only three hours. In the end I really had the win on my side and he had to surrender. I gathered all my things and we stretched our limbs outside. Felt good to finally walk again on more than six square meters. “So guys that is (Y/F/N) you met her briefly on the phone.” “Yeah hey nice to meet you” she was blushing like hell and that amused me a lot. “So it is too late to film now. You guys wanna hang out and show us parts of the town you have discovered yet? Maybe grab a bite somewhere?” Norman suggested. “Ehm yeah definitely!” I took the opportunity to be with them a little while longer. “Great our bikes are in the garage.” Jeff interjected. We made our way to the garage underneath the hotel. “You wanna ride with me?” Norman asked me shyly. It was adorable. “Sure thing but only if you let me drive for a while as well.” “You drive motorcycles?” he looked stunned but somehow also in awe. “Yes I have a bike at home. Been driving two wheels since I was 15. always loved the feeling of freedom that comes with it. And around my hometown there are alot of cool biker routes.” I raved. “Maybe we can drive a tour together sometime.” he offered. “That would be amazing. I’d love that a lot.” this time it was my turn to be stunned. He gave me his spare helmet as did Jeff to (Y/F/N) and sat up front on the Triumph. I put my foot on the footrest and swung my leg over the seat like I had dozens of times in my life before. I wasn’t sure where to put my hands so I just laid them on my thighs but he noticed and grabbed them to put them around his muscular middle. I wasn’t gonna object. He was a good looking and nice guy. We drove kinda aimlessly through town and when it turned late I heard through the com in my helmet that was connected to the rest of the group: “Hey guys I’m hungry. Let’s find a place to eat.” Jeff’s voice sounded strained. Well I remembered we had only eaten the few snacks at lunch time and in that moment my stomach rumbled too. “Good idea you know a good pizza place or so?” Norman asked and I felt him talk earlier than I heard him. That was kinda sexy. “Yes actually there is a restaurant just drive left there then the next right and you can park in front of Alfredo’s. We found it last Wednesday.” (Y/F/N) sounded through the speaker. Said, done. Five minutes later we stepped of the bikes and into the pizza place. It was rather small and not too crowded also no one seemed to recognize the guys which was a relive. “Thanks for taking us with you today.” (Y/F/N) said with a dopey smile on her face. I knew that she’d always had a crush on JDM. The whole day had been one big coincidence but the odds were in our favor. Sometimes fate seemed to be on our side. “order whatever you want. It’s my treat tonight.” Jeff gave us his signature smile again which made me melt. “Cheers everyone! To new friendships!” Jeff toasted. “Slainté!” I tasted back. We sat in that restaurant till about 10.30 pm that evening. We had so much fun. Even (Y/F/N) loosened up eventually. “By the way guys, if you wanna come to my hometown to go for a ride some when here’s my number. You can call anytime you want.” I winked at them but didn’t expect a number back. Then I got surprised by Norman. “Want mine too? Gimme your phone.” I willingly handed him my phone opening the display lock in the process. What I totally forgot about was my crazy background screen with a photo of him and Jeff. I smiled a little embarrassed but he seemed to think it was cute. Quickly he typed his number in and handed it back to me. I had to really restrain myself from completely fangirling right then. After eating we drove back to the hotel and grabbed a few drinks at the hotel bar. It was quiet at the hotel probably because it was out of season so we had the bar mostly to ourselves. After a few beers and shots the guys found out that I could really hold my liquor. (Y/F/N) was the one who ended it at around 2 am. I was still only slightly buzzed. “Let’s get to bed you guys gotta film tomorrow. Maybe we can watch?” she asked carefully. “Watch? You guys are gonna be part of the episode.” Norman assured us. Together we went to the elevators but took a different one that time. (Y/F/N) was the first to reach her floor. “Good night everyone see ya later.” she slurred and walked away. Jeff was next: “Night darling.” “Night Jeff” with those words the doors closed behind him. The second the doors touched Norman turned toward me and pressed his lips to mine. I was shocked but positively… if that is possible. “You want this?” he asked me breathless. “Oh god yes!” I exclaimed. We arrived at his floor and with a ding the doors opened. Because of the late hour no one was in the hallway as he pulled me further towards his room. He fumbled with the key-card and after some teasingly long seconds the door to his bedroom finally clicked open. We were still kissing like teenagers. He shoved the door shut with his foot and pushed my jacket from my shoulders. I helped him out of his clothes as fast as he undid mine and soon enough we were naked and I was writhing under his touch. I needed him so bad I was already dripping and he hadn’t even touched me yet. “Please Norman. Take me. I need it.” I whispered in is ear and he shuddered at my dirty words. “on the bed hands and knees.” he commanded. He was in charge and I knew and loved that so I did what he demanded and kneeled on the bed my soaking wet pussy on display for him. I heard him groan and shuffle behind me before I felt the bed dip. I was getting so much wetter in anticipation. Without warning he plunged two fingers in my pussy and they directly hit my g-spot. He was a master and when he buried his tongue into my folds I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. It was impossible to describe. He drew little figure eights on my clit that send electrical shock-waves through me. I was coming undone seconds later. He pulled his fingers out of me and before I could object his cock pushed in to the hilt. He was bigger than anyone I ever had before so the pleasure was combined with a bit of pain as well but I liked that. It was so amazing. I could feel every stroke of his dick so deep inside me he almost pushed through my cervix. “Norman deeper please.” and “oh god yes right there.” was all I could come up with. My brain was like mashed potatoes. I just felt him and nothing more. He grunted and his strokes became erratic “come with me baby.” he panted and that was all the encouragement I needed and I squirted all over the bed sheets. I had never done this before. Completely spent we laid on the bed next to each other breathing heavily. So fucked out. It was pure bliss. “Thanks for that.” I panted out. “For what? I really wanted you since I stepped into the elevator this morning.” he admitted. After some more silent minutes I asked “Norman? What is this between us?” “I honestly don’t know. Let’s just enjoy what we have here for a while. See where in brings us. I definitely want this to continue.” I was so happy about that statement that I just cuddled up to his chest for an answer.

The next morning we sat together at breakfast. Well when Norman and I came downstairs hand in hand we saw Jeff and (Y/F/N) sitting there next to each other looking completely in love. I made a mental note to ask her later what had happened between them. When she saw our intertwined fingers she smiled at us knowingly. I knew I had to tell her everything when we had time. This was the best vacation of my life by far and I was happy to have been stuck in an elevator for the first time ever.

Part 2 is gonna hit later

#the walking dead #norman reedus #jeffrey dean morgan #smut #norman reedus x reader #elevator #fanfic #reader insert

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twdmusicboxmystery · 6 years ago

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4x11: Analysis

Once again, wow! We again had lots of interesting symbolism in this episode of Fear. I don't think I enjoyed it quite as much as last week’s, but I'm very excited for where the story line is going. I'll reiterate what I said before: Morgan will eventually make it back to Rick and TF. It might take him the rest of the season or longer to get there. If they wanted to, they could keep him going back and forth across the country for a few seasons. I don't think they'll do that, but he's obviously not to make it back to Alexandria next episode, either. So let's get going on symbolism.

***As always, spoilers abound for Fear 4x11 in this post. Don’t read until you’ve watched! You’ve been warned!***

We saw the peanut butter protein bars again. I mean, seriously? What are the chances that everywhere Morgan goes, he just happens to stumble across the same kind of food? It’s obviously symbolic. And remember that Beth ate peanut butter in Alone, and Daryl ate it just before escaping the Sanctuary.

I will say that I thought the whole Morgan-falling-sleep-and-not-realizing-he’d-been-driven-several-hundred-miles thing was weird. Falling asleep is one thing, but how would he not wake up when he felt the truck moving. It’s pretty unrealistic. So I think one of two things are going on here. Either the protein bar was laced with something, and he was essentially drugged. Or this is highly symbolic of something. Not sure which yet.

First, we had some definite Bridge symbolism going on here. We saw a total of 3 bridges in this episode (rule of 3s).

1) Morgan first decided to head back to Texas to pick up the Fear crew. He stopped on the bridge and decided not to go back to Texas. Later, he said it was because he was a coward.

2) The second bridge is the one where Wendell and Sarah decided to stop and unload the truck. The interesting thing here is that Jim accidentally knocked Morgan off the bridge and he fell down the embankment. That was interesting to me for two reasons. A) As I've talked about another bridge metas, we often see things were people falling off the bridge. Daryl and Carol off one in Consumed; a walker fell off one with Abraham in 6x06; a walker fell off one and almost hit Dwight in 7x03, etc. B) More than that, this reminded me a lot of what TF did in 5x10, Them. The walkers went tumbling off a very similar bridge in a very similar way. Could something about that sequence have foreshadowed Morgan in some way? Not sure yet.

3) The third bridge is when Morgan met them the last time and they finally agreed to take him back to Texas to pick up Team Fear Family before going on to Virginia. A plan is officially in place for Morgan to return to Alexandria. (Yea!)

There was a lot of beer in this episode. When Morgan gets to the truck stop, he turns on the lights and there are lots of signs for beer. Later in the episode, he meets Jim (who actually kinda looks like Jim from S1, if you ask me) who brews beer for living. There's a lot of talk about beer, about brewing beer, we see beer bottles, we see ingredients and equipment to brew beer. It just goes on and on. Moonshine, by definition, is home brewed beer. Now were looking at a guy who wants to go to Alexandria to brew beer for the people there. Are we seeing some connections?

Let's talk about the broadcast. Morgan spoke to someone on the radio when he got to the truck stop in Mississippi. It had kind of a sinister feel to it, very much like Terminus. Then, when we found out that Sandy and Wendell weren’t who they said they were, it seemed that perhaps whoever was broadcasting were the “good people” after all. But at the end of the episode, we see a very sinister-looking woman who sounds a lot like the one Morgan talked to on the radio. So, chances are whoever was broadcasting, assuming it was her, is not going to be a good thing for Morgan and his group. Note to TWD survivors: never trust the voices on the other end of a random radio broadcast.

Wendell is in the wheelchair. This could possibly be a fulfillment of something in the Governor’s S4 episodes.

Let me just say I'm thinking more and more that Beth could show up in fear. Obviously, I don't know for certain, but it's feeling more and more plausible to me. If that's true, and if something about Wendell leads to her, then what I'm about to say will be true. If not, then it might be.

Remember back in 4x06, after the Gov met Tara and Lily, he went upstairs to get the backgammon game for Tara's father. While there, he went into the bathroom and found a wheelchair. This reminded me a lot of that for a couple of reasons. 1) In both cases they were in a bathroom. 2) In both cases there was a wheelchair, and by extension somebody who couldn't walk.

We’ve also had a bathroom motif in Beth symbolism during past seasons. It wasn't anything quite this obvious (Morgan on the toilet), but we especially saw it in 4b (of regular TWD).

In the pudding house, a walker came out of the bathroom and almost got Carl. He shot in the head, exactly in the spot where Beth was shot, and the walker jumped up and was not killed by that shot.

Later, when Rick is trying to escape the Claimers, he goes out through the bathroom (holding scissors, btw). I know there were other times we saw the bathroom motif, but can’t think of them off the top of my head.

I'm won’t go too much into this right now because I haven't posted my theory about it yet. In our group, we talked about how there's been a motif for cooling devices on the show. You can trace it back to season five, such as when Glenn found three silencers stashed in a mini fridge. Or even Still because while looking through the golf club, Beth and Daryl are in a walk-in refrigerator at one point. But we've seen it a lot, including around Morgan. He and Henry talked about the HVAC cooling system in S7. Anyway, we saw more of it here. I also noticed a refrigerator in the opening sequence, which isn’t always there. More on that to come.

There were at least two bear references in this episode (Bear Symbolism). The woman broadcasting to very truck stop called for someone named “Polar Bear.” Obviously she wasn’t referring to Morgan, and we don't know who Polar Bear is, but I thought that was interesting. Especially because of the Polaris/North Star connection.

Later in the episode, on bridge #2, a group of walkers showed up and Wendell says, “Bear in the Bushes.” So yeah, interesting bear references.

Let’s go into some details.

The broadcasting voice also said, “Sweet syrup on a short stack.” It reminded me of all the Bisquik references we've seen, including one at Grady. And of course Abraham’s famous line about Bisquick and pancakes.

While on the toilet, Morgan looks at a dog magazine. (Toy Dog, dog with sunglasses, even a hotdog on the back. True story.) Now, remember the Sirius/dog symbolism is all about a return. So, does this mean Morgan will eventually return…to the toilet? Maybe. (Just kidding.) It really could be about him returning to TF, though. I could see the symbolism of applying to him. There was no obvious reason for it to be applied to Alicia in 4x10, especially as it used specifically Rottweilers. So, it’s still suspicious that we’re seeing dog symbolism so much in Fear this season.

When he first meets Wendell and Sarah, they start explaining about the trucks and we see a shot of three open trailers with boxes in them. First, there’s three (rule of threes; we saw lots of threes in this episode actually). It also reminded me a whole lot of the Wolf trailers in 5x16. Think, “How the Harvest Gets Home.”

I also noticed several possible references to orange soda. Wendell said they’d been hauling the truck since the "soda was flowing." What he said was a lie, but still, soda reference. Later, with when Morgan met Jim, Morgan could smell the alcohol on him. He said it was “particularly floral IDA with hints of citrus.” Again, just reminded me of orange and then combined with soda reference made me think of Denise, who was a Beth proxy. (And because of Jim, we can also throw in the alcohol reference.)

Morgan saw a walker stuck in a mud bog. Nothing came of it this episode, but I had some thoughts. We saw something similar in 4x07 with the Governor: walkers in a bog blocking the road. I also noticed that in the trailer for next week, we see something similar. So, not sure what this walker is leading to, but I'm sure it's foreshadowing of some kind.

We saw Morgan with a grocery cart. I wondered if it was a callback to 7x13 and the grocery carts there. Remember, Richard use them to block the road and take the melon which led to Benjamin's death. It makes sense for callback like that to be in this episode because Morgan still running from his grief over Benjamin's death.

Let's talk about the mile markers. We saw a lot of different numbers and mile markers in this episode. I doubt I got them all written down. The interesting thing is that most of them add up to either 9 or 10. More often 10. For example, Sarah tells Morgan to meet them on route 91 (9+1 = 10), mile marker 64 (6+4=10). When Morgan tells them gives them fake directions to Alexandria, he tells them to get on I 81 (8+1=9) exit 77 (okay, that doesn't work so well) and then to go 10 miles.

I could go on, but I wonder if this points to S9 and/or S10. It could mean that Morgan will return to TF in S9/S10. Given that he is trying to get back to Virginia, that would make sense.

Oh, and at one point they mentioned the Christopher Columbus Transcontinental Highway. I figured such a specific reference must be important, so I looked it up. Yes, it’s a real highway that goes from California on the west coast to Florida on the East. (I’m not super familiar with it because it’s a ways south of where I live, so I never drive on it.) Anyway, guess what route this highway is? That’s right: Route 10. Just saying.

It is also interesting that the boxes are only left at mile markers that end in four. S4, perhaps?

When Jim and Morgan talk in the back of the truck, he said, "I get it." So we have a guy that brews his own beer (kind of like moonshine) and says, "I get it." Hmm. Who could I possibly be thinking of? ;D (He also says he grew stuff up on his rooftop, kinda like at Grady.)

Jim also says, "We’ve turned back time here, Mister. History is built on beer." Time references. A history of alcohol. Sounds like Beth references to me. He also mentioned bunch of civilizations that had alcohol, including Egyptian, Sumerians, Babylonians, and a few others. did he say Romans? It caught my ear because a lot of the symbolism in the show comes from these civilizations. For example, the Sirius/Dog Star has major ties to ancient Egypt, the Nile, and how it flooded and Egyptian beliefs about that.

Morgan being on the top of the car, under a bridge, next to a river really caught my attention. Think about it: he fell off a bridge near some water and found himself stuck in/on a car and surrounded by walkers. Sounds a whole lot like what we think happened with Beth. Oh, and he gets left behind there by his group. Just saying. I also had the thought that the car he is trapped on top of looked a whole lot like the car Enid was and when her parents died. Don’t know if that's thing. Just a stray thought.

At one point, Morgan even loses his shoe.

Morgan says, “You can come back,” to Wendell and Sarah. They do come back, though only because Morgan lied about how to get to Alexandria. Still, they did the right thing by coming back to get him and now Morgan is going to do the right thing by going to get the other members of Team Fear Family

When he escaped the walkers, there's more interesting symbolism. He uses the mile marker signed to fight them. (A whole lot like Maggie in Alone, one of our red-letter Beth episodes.)

When he looks over at the box that was left of the mile marker, check out the shot:

There’s a water bottle (Beth carried water bottle), a truck that looks a whole lot like the Wolf truck and the one Morgan is now traveling in, as well as a knife. It isn't particularly like Beth's knife, but Morgan uses it to escape. (In other words, he saves himself.) Just interesting.

After that, we see his feet as he walks back toward Texas. I thought this was really interesting in terms of Morgan’s story line. Remember that back in 4x01 when Morgan left Alexandria, we saw his feet running as he headed toward Texas. It showed the same thing here—his feet constantly moving toward Texas—but it’s the opposite. Before, he was running away from his problems. Now he's walking toward Texas to help with the people there. He’s actually trying to get back to Alexandria, but he's going to do the right thing and go get his friends in Texas first. He’ll bring them back to Rick's group where he believes they'll have the best chance rebuild the world and survive. So his motivations are the opposite here.

I almost think this is the end of an arc. Remember, the end always mirrors the beginning. This is the end of Morgan's running away arc and from now on he’ll be moving forward, toward Alexandria (even if is going back to Texas first) in a positive way. So I’m very interested see what happens next in the show.

Overall, I really did enjoy this episode. I think some exciting things are happening with Morgan and there still a very good chance he could run into Beth on his way back to Alexandria.

This next part is as much head canon as anything else, but I've been thinking about a lot this week and the more I think about it, the more sense that scenario makes.

1) Remember that Morgan/Lennie James was seen at the cabin where Emily filmed in S5, which is part of the missing scenes. Just the fact that Morgan was there is super significant to me. Well gotta keep an eye out for that cabin and see if it shows up in Fear.

2) Morgan bringing her back to Alexandria would fit well with the D.S. al coda structure and what happened when Daryl and Aaron met Morgan and brought him back to Alexandria in 5B.

3) Earlier in the season, we saw Morgan looking into cars for survivors and trying to help people he found. Between that and all the other symbolism we've seen in Fear the season, it just makes sense that maybe that’s where it's going.

I’ll say again that there were a lot of tens in this episode. If Morgan doesn't return to TF until S10, there's a chance Beth may not either. But of course that's even assuming I'm right. If I'm totally wrong about this and she shows up some other way in TWD S9, this will all be a moot point. This is just what I'm seeing and why it’s making me excited.

Okay, I'll shut up now. How would everyone else like 4×11 of fear?

#beth greene #beth greene lives #beth is alive #beth is coming #td theory #td theories #team delusional #team defiance #beth is almost here #bethyl

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