#that's Kieran Duffy alright

[daisydood]

ingame characters who hate Kieran are so funny like why are you hating on this sopping wet cat

[abovesn4kes]

if the drawing requests are still open, maybe a kieran perhaps?

37 year old horse girl that brings me indescribable amounts of joy

[cowboyfromh3ll]

Henlo! If it's alright, could I request some headcanons for Arthur, Dutch, Hosea, Micah, and Kieran being told that their S/O has been killed by the O'Driscolls? But nobody can find their body because it turns out they survived and took care of the worst of their injuries before making it back a week or so later. I am a sucker for hurt/comfort content. Thank you for your time and hope you're doing well.

HC For VDL Boys Being Told Their S/O Was Killed By O'Driscolls Ft. Arthur Morgan, Dutch Van Der Linde, Hosea Matthews, Micah Bell, Kieran Duffy

Ohhh nice and angsty

Warnings: Mentions of death, mentions of violence, angst

Arthur Morgan

He would be absolutely broken

I don't think he'd go as far as to go out and kill O'Driscolls for revenge

But a new cavity in his heart would open up, and his hatred of the O'Driscolls would intensify

He wouldn't be able to get out of bed, would be incapable of taking care of himself, needs people to remind him to eat

Constantly scribbling in his journal about you

Probably the first time anyone in camp has seen him cry in a long long time

Only thing he'd get up for was to go in searches for your body

Is incredibly anxious the entire time they're looking for you and tries to mentally prepare himself for the sight of your body in who knows what state of decomposition

Once you return he'd think you're an apparition

He would be absolutely over the moon and crying tears of joy and relief

Interrogates you about your time gone but doesn't push it if the memories are too painful, you can visit that later

Helps mend any of your remaining injuries

Incredibly protective of you now and refused to let you go off on your own for a while

Holds you so so closely in bed the following nights, absolutely blots out the rest of the world with his body because he's scared if he lets go you'll disappear again

Dutch Van Der Linde

Like Arthur, he'd be destroyed as well

His mourning would cause him to jump to the anger stage immediately

Colm has already taken one lover from him, and now he's done it again? Tensions between the two gangs would be higher than ever before

He'd use the presumed death as an excuse to target Colm and the O'Driscolls for the week

Used the search for your body as an opportunity to interrogate and torture O'Driscolls. For once, he tells Arthur to back off so he can get blood on his hands

Despite everyone else's warnings, he just keeps on going and killing more O'Driscolls

When you finally return, he feels like he's hallucinating you because of his grief, and anger

Allows everyone else a moment to check over you before ushering you over to the privacy of his tent

Allows Ms. Grimshaw to follow so she can clean you up while he talks to you

Holds your hand the entire time and looks into your eyes while reassuring you that he'll never allow that to happen again

Insists you don't lift a finger for weeks afterward

Does NOT tell you about what he did while you were gone and simply speaks of his grief and his now relief that you're back

Hosea Matthews

He'd be grieving, but silently

He wouldn't be MIA like Arthur, and he definitely wouldn't be blinded by rage like Dutch

But he'd be a lot quieter, understandably, and you'd be able to see the deep sadness in his eyes

He didn't expect to lose a second lover, and his heart is heavy with feelings of loss

Would spend a lot of time talking about you to anyone who'll listen, mostly good memories

Turns down any of Dutch's suggestions to go out and take revenge, sees right through his attempts to use your presumed death as an excuse to kill a bunch of O'Driscolls

When you return he is all over you and is overjoyed by your presence

Takes care of all your injuries on his own and holds you sooo close the entire time

Reminds you how much he loves you because he feels like he didn't do it enough before he thought he lost you

Spends so much more time around you. If he wasn't attached to you by the hip before, he definitely is now

I don't think he'd doubt your ability to handle yourself; in fact, it'd probably be enforced by the fact you kept yourself alive for a week. But there'd be a lingering anxiety every time you go out

Micah Bell

Similar to Dutch, he'd go out and kill a shit ton of O'Driscolls

His grief translates to anger, and because I can't see him as a very sentimental person besides in terms of anger, that's the only way he'd express it

Probably wouldn't cry or show moments of vulnerability, but he'd be a lot more brutal in his killings

He'd spend a lot of time away from camp with Dutch probably looking for your body

Wouldn't return to camp for days

So you'd probably return to camp while he's gone, so everyone else tends to you before Micah can

When he returns he insists everyone else get away from you so he can take his own look at you

I wanna say you wouldn't receive a big welcome back gesture from Micah besides a rare shred of vulnerability where he tells you how happy he is to see you back

Don't get too mushy over it or else he'll backtrack

Kieran Duffy

He'd be HYSTERICAL

On his knees crying and wailing in the middle of camp while people try to comfort him

Would be the same level as MIA as Arthur and wouldn't talk to ANYONE

Spends all his time around the horses and doesn't talk to anyone

If anyone does try to talk to him he just stares off silently in the opposite direction

The gang could probably hear him sobbing silently at night while trying to sleep

Drinks himself half dead because he doesn't know how else to cope

Drinks so often that when you come back he doesn't think you're real for a few minutes

It's a huge moment of vulnerability between the two of you where you see each other at your lowest

But it would definitely bring the two of you closer! After the two of you have cleaned yourselves up and taken care of yourselves, you'd have long, deep conversations about what you went through and how happy you are to be back

Lots of reaffirming his love for you, never leaves your side

Insists he comes with you every time you go out. Thinks he wouldn't be able to do much in terms of protecting you, but the sentiment is so so sweet

Becomes more of a way of comforting himself and quelling his own anxiety

[robin-writess]

Could u do a Kieran x reader angst scenario where reader is attacked while patrolling because she wandered too far, they steal her horse and she stumbles back into camp with whatever injuries you decide!! Maybe she passes out as soon as someone starts yelling for help, but she stops really talking much (stops visiting Kieran in the mornings etc) so he takes it into his own hands to get her horse back cuz he is in love and would do anything do hwr 🥹

Yes ofc! Thanks for the request <3

🎀 Bruises and Apologies 🎀

Kieran Duffy x fem!Reader

Warnings: violence, blood, slight angst (reader ignores Kieran for a while)

A/N: Sorry if this isn’t the best, I’m not the best author on this app but I really hope you’re satisfied with it<33

You sigh as you stare off into space. You don’t know how long you’ve been out there, but you know it won’t be anytime soon for you to go back. This is exhausting. Standing around for hours at a time to guard camp. For what? Nothing ever happens. You’re just wasting time.

You’re too lost in your own thoughts to hear the group of men making their way to you. Each man carrying his own weapon. But you’re soon brought back to reality when one of them hit you in the back of your head with his gun.

You let out a grunt and quickly turn around to try to fight back, but the man hits you in the face before you could do anything. You could already feel the bruises forming, blood running down the back of your head to your back, staining the shirt you were wearing.

Your weapon falls from your hands onto the ground. You can see a few more men behind him, one of them running off with your horse. “Hey!” You yell after him, the man in front of you quickly covering your mouth so you don’t draw any attention to them.

“Shut your damn mouth lady,” he says and starts beating on you more. You can tell he’s an O’Driscoll by the way he talks and how he looks.

Whimpers and soft cries escape your mouth as you try to defend yourself from these men. He gives you a final strike to the face before him and the other guys run off.

Blood spills out from your nose, your left eye swollen and sore. Your face is covered in blood, bruises and cuts.

'What the hell just happened,' you thought as you stumble back into camp.

"Hey!" you call out, finally making it back. Your breathing gets heavier, and your vision starts to get blurry, black surrounds your peripheral vision.

"Oh my god, y/n, are you okay??" you hear Mary-Beth as she runs over to you.

She places a hand on your shoulder as she calls out for help. Before you know it, you're surrounded by people. Miss Grimshaw, Arthur, Dutch, Sean, Kieran..

Then everything went black. Your body hits the ground and Miss Grimshaw immediately picks you up and brings you to your tent.

—————

Mary-Beth nearly jumps out of her seat as you begin to stir in your seemingly forever nap. Soon you open your eyes, a soft grunt escapes your lips as you raise your hand to your throbbing head.

"You're awake," Mary-Beth says under her breath, resting her hand on yours. "Are you okay?"

You take a deep breath, and another soft grunt comes from you. "Mm, my head hurts," you manage to croak out.

"You passed out... Miss Grimshaw took care of you." Mary-Beth says, "I helped stitch up that cut over your eye there," she points towards the injury she mentioned.

"Thank you for that, Mary-Beth," you smile, trying to sit up.

"Hey, you're going to need more rest. You're not doing good right now, lay back down and I'll come check on you later, alright? I'll bring you some food and water." She says before walking out of your tent.

You sigh, annoyed at your condition. You absolutely did not want to stay in bed all day. It drove you crazy, bored out of your mind just lying there with nothing to do. Even worse, you don't know how long it'll take for you to heal enough to get up and be out there with everyone else.

Not long after, Mary-Beth came back with some fresh stew and a cup of water.

"Here you go," she sets the food in your lap, and you take the water from her hands, downing it almost immediately. "Kieran's real worried about you, y/n."

"I'll be fine," you say dismissively, setting the cup down and stuffing food into your mouth like you've never eaten before.

"Well whether you're fine or not he's still worried." She continues. "You should talk to him when you're better."

You sigh before nodding, "Okay."

She walks out again, leaving you alone. Your own thoughts eat you alive like they always do as you finish the food she brought you.

—————

The next day eventually comes, and you decide to finally get out instead of being stuck in your tent all day. Cool air hits you as you walk around camp. You look around, taking in the view. Some people were working, some were sitting around the fire laughing and talking, and others just relaxing. Your eyes soon land on the horses, you see Kieran with Branwen as he usually is, and then it hits you... they took your goddamn horse.

You were too annoyed at the fact that you had to stay inside all day to even remember that. It hurt, it felt like you lost a part of yourself too. That horse was special to you, he (or she) was like any other one you had. You sigh and roll your eyes, walking off to find a place to clear your mind.

A few hours pass and Kieran starts walking over to where you were. You hadn't moved, too lost to even think straight.

"Hey..." he says, twiddling his thumbs as his feet are restless, constantly moving from one spot to another.

You don't answer him, no, you just sit there, staring off into space just like you were hours earlier.

"uhm.." he grows antsy, fidgeting with his fingers more. "y/n..."

Still no response from you. This shocked Kieran, as you were usually always so happy to see and talk to him. A wave of sadness overcomes him, and he tries one last time to speak to you.

"Uhm.. I noticed your horse is uh.. missing..." he stammers out.

You let out a dramatic huff and roll your eyes before storming off, the only response he's had out of you. This just hurt him even more. Tears begin to well up in his eyes, but he doesn't let himself cry. He thinks he's just being a baby.

"It's okay, she just needs space..." he whispers repeatedly to himself as some sort of comfort.

He thinks that all you need is time alone, so he respects it, he gives you your space.

A week goes by and still no word from you... Then another week, and another. At this point he has no idea what to do. He's hurt, confused, and annoyed. He'll do anything to get you back.

Then he remembers your horse is gone. The horse you've always loved more than anyone.

Kieran doesn't even ask Dutch if he can leave camp, he just goes. Alone. He has no weapons, no protection, nothing. Just him and his desire to get your horse back. All he wants is for you to be happy.

No one even noticed his absence, not even you. That was until a day or two passed and Mary-Beth came to you out of nowhere and asked where he was.

"Y/n, do you know where Kieran might be?" She asks, "I haven't seen him anywhere around camp."

This gets your attention. "No... I don't know.." You reply.

Now you're worried. You feel horrible. Ignoring him for weeks, acting like he doesn't exist, and now he's missing...

You just wanted to curl up in your cot and cry. You get jumped by damn O'Driscolls, your horse gets stolen, and now.. your beloved Kieran goes missing... And the worst part is you don't even know if he's dead or not.

And so that's what you do. You run to your tent and just cry your eyes out. A million thoughts racing through your mind as you sob uncontrollably about everything that has happened.

It feels like forever has passed until your emotional breakdown finally came to an end. You just lay motionless on your cot. Your pillow soaked with tears, eyes puffy, tear-stained cheeks and mouth slightly agape. And there you are again, stuck staring off into space, except this time there were no thoughts eating at you, just a painful feeling of agony and grief. Your heart is heavy, and you're completely drained of energy.

You don't know how long you've been lying there, but you started hearing some commotion outside. Not normal chats between camp members, and you know they're not having a party. Part of you wants to go out and see what's happening, but you don't. Too tired to even care.

Not long after, the flaps of your tent open then close, and in walks Kieran. He's a mess, he's dirty, his old torn up clothes are worse than they were before.

"Kieran!" you quickly sit up, staring with relief and happiness.

"Hey, y/n-" he's interrupted by you practically jumping into his arms.

"Oh my God, Kieran!" a tear falls from your eye as you laugh with joy, "Where did you go?? What happened???"

You finally let go of him, looking into his eyes, smiling brightly, which earns you a smile back from him.

"I uh, got you your horse back..." He says with a soft smile.

More tears drop and you hug him again. "Thank you so much, Kieran.. Oh my God I was so scared, I didn't know if you were okay-" Kieran interrupts you, placing both of his hands on each of your shoulders.

"It's okay.." he says softly, "I'm okay, y/n, I'm okay."

He grabs your hand and leads you to your horse. "I fed him and made sure he was okay for you." he says, afterwards receiving another grateful response from you.

You smile and happily pat your horse, the large animal returning the affection by nudging you softly with his nose.

"Kieran..." you say, looking over to him. The same smile still plastered across his face, he's so proud of himself.

"I am so sorry.." you continue, earning a confused look from Kieran. "For ignoring you... and just.. I don't know, everything. I'm sorry,,"

"Hey," he says, "It's okay, I understand."

You smile softly. "I love you, Kieran."

"I love you too." He plants a soft kiss to your forehead and pulls you into a warm hug.

[allzelemonz]

Red Dead Redemption Scenarios: Kissing an injury

Pronouns: None Mentioned Physical Sex: None Mentioned Rating: M/Injury, references to sex Warnings: Violence, injury, fluff, kissing

Abe: 

He slipped, hit his head against a post as he fell and you found him groaning on the ground.

“Are you alright, Abe?”

He sits up a little as your hands hold him steady. “Just hit my head, I’m alright, hon’.”

You push his hand aside and press a kiss to his head. His face turns pink as you pull him back to his feet.

“We should get back to.” He says, smiling to himself. “Thank you.”

You return his smile and he takes an extra second to press a quick kiss to your lips before he returns to moving the hay bales. He thinks about that until he sees you later in the day and you give him a proper kiss before fussing over his head.

Bill Williamson: 

“It ain’t that bad.” Bill grumbles.

You have a rag held to his shoulder, trying to stop the cut from bleeding. Some savage man in the forest swiped him with a knife while you were trying to rob their camp. It started as a first fight between him and Bill, then he cheated and pulled out a knife. Bill still won, but he got this deep cut that he insists doesn't hurt.

“It’ll hurt if it keeps bleeding.” You say, pressing the rag a little harder against him. “Or if it gets infected.”

“I’m fine.”

Despite his protests, he makes no move to leave or stop you from helping him. He raised his shirt so you could fuss over him to begin with. You’re starting to think he likes when you fuss over him like this. As if you don’t dote on him enough without him getting hurt in the process. You lean down and press a kiss to his skin, just above the cut.

“That supposed to help er something’?” Bill mutters.

“Yes.” You say, pressing another kiss to the same spot.

Bill stills as you do. “Oh.”

“Sit still, quit complaining, and I’ll kiss you somewhere more interesting.”

You can see Bill’s ears turn red as he lets your words settle in. He doesn’t say another word as you attend to him, relaxing more and more as you press gentle kisses to his skin as you wait for the bleeding to stop.

Charles Smith: 

He winces as the whiskey hits the cut, a low groan filling his chest.

“Sorry.” You mutter, focusing on ripping a spare shirt from your saddle bag to make a bandage.

“Not like you cut me.”

“No.” You tie the fabric around his arm. “Just shot the man that did.”

“You didn’t have to.”

“He hurt you, Charles.” You say, leaning down to press a kiss to his bare skin above the bandage. “I’d do it again a hundred times.”

He catches your arm, pulling you down to kiss you properly. “I can handle myself.”

“Tell that to the gash in your arm, Mister Smith.” You push him back and he smiles as you do.

“I didn’t know you were so protective.”

You cup his cheek. “Of you, of course I am.”

Colm O’Driscoll: 

He only lets you patch him up anymore. The bigger camps have medics but Colm doesn’t trust anyone more than you. So you’ve learned a lot of first aid and a few standard things that outlaws need. This one is easy, a bullet graze. At least it’s not a bullet hole. It barely got him, but he still winces as you give him tonic and look him over. You press a kiss to his arm, just above the wound in an unconventional attempt to get that look of pain off of his face.

He hums. “Come here, sugar.”

You follow as he beckons, leaning over him as he presses his lips to yours. His good arm lifts so his hand can grip your hair and hold you in place. You happily kiss him back, holding his face and relishing as he bites at your lip.

“Yer too good to me, sweetheart.” He muses against your lips.

“Stop getting shot, please, Colm.”

He smiles, his hand smoothing out your hair from where he messed it up. “Ain’t makin’ no promises.”

You press another kiss to his lips, a short one, before you return to dealing with his wound. He watches you, eyes half lidded as he imagines what he’ll do once you’re done.

Kieran Duffy: 

He tries to hide it when he comes into your tent, but when he tries to sit down the pain shows. He winces as he holds his ribs and you look at him with confusion.

“Are you hurt, Kieran?”

He shakes his head as he settles on the ground. “No, no. I’m, uh, I’m fine.”

“Kieran.”

“Really, I’m fine.” He gives you a small smile. “It ain’t nothing ya gotta worry about.”

You make your way over to him and sit down. He doesn’t stop you from resting your hand against his cheek, he smiles at you and leans into the touch.

“Don’t lie to me, Kieran.” You say, trying to seem gentle. “Please.”

He looks away from you as he thinks. Then he slowly lifts his shirt to show a heavy bruise on his torso.

“What happened?” You ask gently.

He shakes his head. “It weren’t nothin’. One a’ the horses got spooked. It was my fault, I shouldn’t a’ came up to ‘em so fast.”

You kiss his cheek and he quiets down, taking a deep breath. Then you lean down and press a soft kiss to the outer edge of the bruise.

“What’re ya doin’?” He asks with a smile on his face.

“Sometimes it feels better if you kiss it.” You explain, coming back up to kiss his cheek again. “And tonics, you need tonics too.”

Kieran leans in and presses a kiss to your lips. You happily return it before getting up to see Strauss about the medicine.

Micah Bell: 

Micah tries hard not to wince as you dab a clean rag over the cut by his hairline. He focuses on glaring at Baylock, who threw him right into a thorny bush. Being injured in such a way is unbecoming of the hardened outlaw.

“Quit looking at him like that.”

Micah huffs. “Stupid horse.”

“You don’t mean that.”

“Suppose not.” He mumbles, looking over the now calm horse.

You press a kiss to the edge of the cut as you finish with the rag. “You love that horse, Micah. Quit glaring at him.”

He grabs you by the waist and tilts his head slightly. You take his signal and press another kiss to the edge of his cut.

“A proper one now.” He mumbles.

You oblige, pressing your lips together. He pulls you closer and deepens it as your hand finds his hair. A distressed noise from Baylock makes Micah pull away. The horse trots away from the area he was in, nervous.

“I got a yella horse now?” He mutters to himself.

You playfully push him. “Go see what’s wrong.”

Micah presses a quick kiss to your lips before he wanders over to Baylock and calms him. Based on the affections he gives the poor horse he’s not upset with him anymore, if he ever really was at all.

Sean MacGuire: 

“You didn’t have to punch him.” You mutter as you dab a wet rag over Sean’s knuckles.

“Course I did.” Sean says, his leg bouncing from the energy left of the fight. “Turd was talkin’ bad about Dutch.”

You stare at him for a minute as he chews the inside of his cheek, still irritated. Slowly, you bring his hand up and press a gentle kiss to his battered skin. Sean looks over at you quickly a smile forming on his face.

“Gonna make it better, are ya, love?” He lifts his hand back up. “Go on then.”

You press another kiss to the injury and Sean grins. He leans in and kisses you properly, his high energy still very apparent as his hands wander lower and lower until they find what he wants.

[jewels-writes]

how i think rdr2 characters would react to you getting injured in a fight

Featured characters: Arthur Morgan, Dutch Van der Linde, John Marston, Charles Smith, Sadie Adler, Lenny Summers, Sean Macguire, Kieran Duffy

WARNING: some people might consider this a little graphic, you've been warned.

(If you want your own custom story with any character from any fandom, please support me on fiverr https://www.fiverr.com/share/vP6NwZ)

Arthur Morgan

You and Arthur had been fighting off a group of bandits, but things took a turn for the worse when one of them landed a blow on you with his axe. You screamed out in agony as the pain coursed through your body, and Arthur quickly came to your side.

"Stay with me, Y/N," he urged, pressing a hand to your wound to try and staunch the bleeding. "You're gonna be alright, just keep your eyes open."

But despite his best efforts, you kept slipping in and out of consciousness. Every time you faded away, Arthur's heart raced with panic. He couldn't lose you, not like this. He needed to get you to a doctor, fast.

Desperately, he tried to keep you awake, talking to you, asking you questions, anything to keep your mind focused. He even resorted to slapping you lightly on the cheek to rouse you when you started to drift off.

As he worked to keep you conscious, he also tried to assess your injuries. He knew that you were bleeding heavily from the wound in your side, but he also noticed that you seemed to have a concussion from hitting your head on a rock during the battle.

"Y/N, can you hear me?" he asked, his voice thick with worry as he gently prodded at the lump on your head. "You hit your head pretty hard, but we need to keep moving. Can you sit up?"

With his help, you managed to prop yourself up against a nearby tree. Arthur carefully examined your wound, tearing off a piece of his shirt to use as a makeshift bandage. He knew it wasn't ideal, but it was better than nothing.

"Alright, Y/N. I need you to be strong for me," he said, his voice firm and determined. "We're gonna get you out of here, but you need to stay with me, okay?"

You nodded weakly, but your eyes kept drooping closed. Arthur knew he needed to act fast if he was going to save your life.

He hoisted you up in his arms, grunting with the effort. You were heavier than he anticipated, but he refused to let that slow him down. He carried you back to his horse, gently laying you across the saddle before mounting up behind you.

Arthur held you tightly as the horse galloped through the snow, his eyes never leaving your face. He could feel your body growing colder and weaker, and the fear in his heart threatened to overwhelm him.

"Stay with me, Y/N," he murmured, his breath warm against your ear. "You're gonna be alright, I promise."

It felt like hours before they finally arrived at the doctor's cabin. Arthur rushed in, calling out for help as he carried you inside. The doctor took one look at your injuries and immediately got to work, but Arthur couldn't bear to leave your side.

He sat beside you, holding your hand and watching as the doctor worked tirelessly to save your life. And when you finally opened your eyes, weak and dazed, Arthur felt like he could finally breathe again.

"You scared me, Y/N," he said softly, brushing a strand of hair from your face. "But you're gonna be alright now. I won't let anything happen to you."

Dutch Van der Linde

You and Dutch were in the middle of a heated battle against a rival gang. You had been fighting fiercely, taking down several of the enemy members. But in the chaos, you were hit by a stray bullet and fell to the ground, unconscious.

Dutch immediately rushed over to you, his heart pounding with fear. He had always been protective of you, and the thought of losing you was too much to bear. He checked for a pulse, and thankfully, you were still alive.

Desperate to keep you conscious, he called out your name and shook you gently, hoping to rouse you. But you remained still, and Dutch knew he had to act fast. He took off his jacket and wrapped it around you, trying to keep you warm in the midst of the battle and the chilly air.

He pressed his hand against your wound, trying to stem the bleeding as he looked around for a way out. He spotted a nearby alleyway and made a decision. He scooped you up in his arms, careful not to aggravate your injury, and ran towards the alleyway.

As he ran, he spoke to you softly, urging you to stay with him. "Come on, y/n," he whispered. "Don't give up on me now. You're going to be alright."

When he finally made it to the end of the alleyway, he spotted a horse and carriage parked nearby. He rushed over and spoke to the driver, explaining your situation and begging him to take you to the nearest doctor.

The driver hesitated at first, but the desperation in Dutch's voice and the sight of you, pale and still in his arms, convinced him to help. Dutch carefully laid you down in the carriage, trying his best to keep you warm and conscious.

As the carriage set off towards the doctor's, Dutch stayed by your side, his hand still pressed against your wound. He spoke to you constantly, telling you stories and memories in an attempt to keep you alert and awake.

When the carriage finally arrived at the doctor's, Dutch practically carried you inside, begging for the doctor to save you. He watched anxiously as the doctor tended to your wound, his heart racing with fear.

As the doctor worked, Dutch paced back and forth, his mind racing with thoughts of what could happen if you didn't make it. He thought of all the times he had spent with you, all the memories they had shared, and the thought of losing you was unbearable.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the doctor emerged from the back room with good news. You were going to be okay.

Dutch let out a sigh of relief, his body shaking with emotion. He rushed over to you, taking your hand in his and squeezing it gently. "Thank God you're okay," he whispered, his voice thick with emotion.

From that day on, Dutch made sure to keep a closer eye on you during battles, making sure that you were never put in harm's way again. He realized that losing you would be too great a loss, and he was willing to do anything to keep you safe.

John Marston

You and John were out on a mission with the rest of the gang, trying to take over a rival gang's hideout. But things went wrong and you got shot in the crossfire. John rushed over to your side and saw that you were badly injured. Your eyes kept fluttering shut, and each time you did, John's heart skipped a beat.

He knew he had to keep you awake until they could get you to a doctor, but he didn't know how. He tried talking to you, shaking you, and slapping your face lightly, but nothing seemed to work. He felt helpless and desperate.

"Come on, stay with me," he pleaded with you, his voice laced with worry. "You gotta stay awake, okay? We're gonna get you out of here and to a doctor."

He tried to keep you talking, asking about your favorite things and your childhood memories. He even tried to make you laugh by telling you some jokes, but all he got in return was a weak smile.

As he looked at you, he noticed how pale your skin was and how your breathing was becoming more labored. He had to act fast. He took off his jacket and wrapped it around you, trying to keep you warm. He also checked your pulse and monitored your breathing, trying to keep you stable until they could get to a doctor.

The journey to the doctor was a long and bumpy one, and each time the horse stumbled or hit a rough patch, John's heart would race with fear that you might not make it. He kept talking to you, telling you how much you meant to him and the gang, and how much they all needed you.

Finally, they arrived at the doctor's office, and John carried you inside. The doctor immediately tended to your wounds, and John watched anxiously from the corner of the room.

As the doctor worked on you, John could feel his heart in his throat. He had never been so scared in his life. He paced back and forth, wringing his hands and muttering under his breath.

When the doctor finally emerged from the room, John rushed over to him. "How is she? Is she gonna be okay?" he asked urgently.

The doctor gave him a small smile. "She's going to be just fine. She's a fighter," he said.

John let out a sigh of relief, his whole body sagging with the weight of the tension that had been building up inside him. He looked back at you, sleeping peacefully on the bed, and felt a wave of emotions wash over him.

He knew that he cared deeply for you and that he couldn't bear the thought of losing you. As he sat there, watching over you, he vowed to always protect you, no matter what it took.

Charles Smith

You and Charles had been fighting side by side in a fierce battle against a gang of outlaws. Despite your best efforts, one of the enemies had managed to sneak up behind you and deliver a devastating blow to the back of your head. You had collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Charles was immediately by your side, his heart racing with fear. He knelt down beside you and checked for a pulse, relieved when he felt it beating steadily beneath his fingertips. But as he watched, he could see that your breathing was shallow and labored, a clear sign that you were in serious trouble.

Without a moment's hesitation, Charles lifted you gently into his arms, cradling you against his chest as he looked around frantically for a way to get you to safety. He spotted a nearby horse that had been abandoned by its owner in the chaos of the battle and knew that it was your only hope.

He carefully laid you across the horse's back, making sure that you were as comfortable as possible, despite your injuries. He mounted the horse himself, holding you steady with one arm as he kicked the animal into motion.

As they rode, Charles talked to you softly, willing you to stay with him, to keep fighting. He could feel the weight of your body pressing against him, a constant reminder of how close he was to losing you. He kept his eyes fixed on the horizon, searching desperately for any sign of help.

Finally, he saw the faint outline of a small settlement in the distance, and he spurred the horse forward with renewed energy. As they drew closer, he could see a doctor's office and he let out a sigh of relief. He dismounted the horse with you still in his arms, bursting into the office and calling for the doctor.

The doctor rushed to your side, examining you carefully as Charles paced back and forth, his heart pounding in his chest. The doctor's face was grave as he spoke to Charles, telling him that you had suffered a serious head injury and that your prognosis was uncertain.

Charles sank into a chair, his head in his hands as he struggled to keep his emotions in check. He knew that he couldn't lose you, that he needed you by his side more than anything else in the world.

He stayed by your side throughout the long, difficult night, his hand clasped tightly in yours as he talked to you softly, willing you to wake up. When morning finally came, the doctor emerged from his examination room with a small smile on his face.

"You're a lucky man," he told Charles. "She's going to make it."

Charles felt the weight of the world lift off his shoulders as he let out a deep breath. He looked down at you, still sleeping soundly, and felt a surge of love and protectiveness wash over him. He vowed then and there to never let anything harm you again, to always be by your side no matter what the future held.

Sadie Adler

You and Sadie Adler had always been close. Despite the harsh life of an outlaw, the two of you had formed a bond that was unbreakable. So when you were injured in a battle with a rival gang, she was by your side in an instant.

You were barely conscious, your head swimming with pain as you struggled to stay awake. But Sadie's voice was a constant presence, urging you to keep your eyes open, to keep fighting.

"Come on, y/n," she said, her voice tight with worry. "Stay with me. You're gonna be okay."

You could feel her hands on your shoulders, shaking you gently as she tried to rouse you from your stupor. You wanted to respond, to tell her that you were trying, but your lips wouldn't move, your voice wouldn't come.

Desperate, Sadie began to slap your cheeks lightly, hoping to shock you awake. You winced at the pain, but it was enough to keep you conscious for a few more moments.

"You're doing great," she said, her voice softening. "Just keep breathing, okay? You're gonna make it through this."

As the world around you began to fade into darkness, Sadie's voice was the only thing that kept you anchored to reality. But soon, even that wasn't enough. You felt your body slipping away, your consciousness fading into oblivion.

But then, just when you thought all was lost, you felt a pair of strong arms scoop you up, cradling you like a child. It was Sadie, carrying you to safety.

"I've got you," she whispered, her voice strained with effort. "You're gonna be okay. I promise."

Despite her small size, Sadie was strong. She carried you for what felt like hours, her breaths coming in short, ragged gasps as she struggled to keep going. But she never faltered, never gave up.

Finally, you saw the lights of a town in the distance. Sadie carried you to a doctor's office, where they took you in for treatment. As she watched you being taken away, Sadie's eyes filled with tears.

"You're gonna be okay," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Please, y/n, don't leave me. I can't lose you."

Days passed as you lay in bed, your body wracked with pain. But Sadie was there, by your side every moment, her hand clasped tightly around yours as she prayed for your recovery.

Finally, the day came when you were strong enough to leave. Sadie helped you to your feet, her eyes shining with relief and joy.

"I thought I'd lost you," she said, her voice choked with emotion. "I couldn't bear it. You're my family, y/n. You mean everything to me."

You hugged her tightly, tears streaming down your face. You knew that without her, you wouldn't have made it through. And you knew that no matter what happened, you and Sadie would always be there for each other, no matter what the future held.

Lenny Summers

Lenny Summers had never felt so helpless before. He watched in horror as you collapsed to the ground after taking a severe blow to the head during a fierce battle with rival gang members. You were bleeding heavily and had lost consciousness, causing Lenny's heart to race with fear and panic.

He quickly rushed to your side and checked for a pulse, relieved to find it still present but weak. Lenny knew that he had to act fast if he wanted to save your life. He began to shake you, calling out your name in hopes of waking you up.

"Come on, wake up! Stay with me," he pleaded, desperation creeping into his voice.

When you didn't stir, Lenny started slapping your face gently, trying to bring you back to consciousness. But it was no use. You remained unresponsive, and Lenny felt his world start to crumble around him.

Thinking quickly, Lenny lifted you gently and carried you towards the nearest town where he knew there was a doctor. As he walked, he spoke to you, begging you to stay awake.

"Come on, keep your eyes open. You're going to be okay. Just hold on a little longer," he murmured, his voice breaking with emotion.

He could feel your weight becoming heavier in his arms with each passing moment, and Lenny knew he had to act quickly. He started slapping your face harder, hoping to rouse you from your unconscious state.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Lenny arrived at the doctor's office. He barged in and placed you gently on the nearest bed, calling out for the doctor.

The doctor rushed to your side, assessing your injuries while Lenny watched with bated breath. Lenny's heart sank as the doctor confirmed that you had suffered a severe concussion and that the situation was grave.

He knew that he had to stay strong for you, so he held your hand and whispered words of encouragement into your ear, urging you to fight and stay alive.

Hours passed, and Lenny stayed by your side, never leaving your side. Finally, you stirred, and Lenny breathed a sigh of relief. He was overjoyed to see you wake up, and he knew that he would never let anything happen to you again.

"Thank God you're awake. I was so scared I was going to lose you," Lenny said, tears of relief streaming down his face.

You looked up at him, weakly smiling, and whispered, "Thank you for being there for me."

Lenny smiled back, relieved and grateful that you were alive. From that day forward, he made a vow to himself to always protect you and keep you safe, no matter the cost.

Sean Macguire

You and Sean had been fighting for what felt like hours, the adrenaline pumping through your veins as you fired round after round at the enemy. But then, in a sudden moment, everything went black.

When you finally came to, you were lying on the ground, pain coursing through your body. You tried to sit up, but your head was spinning and your vision was blurry. You could hear Sean's voice in the distance, but it sounded muffled, like he was speaking through a tunnel.

"Hey, hey, stay with me," Sean said, his voice filled with panic. "Come on, keep your eyes open."

You could feel his hands on your shoulders, shaking you gently. You tried to focus on his face, but it was all a blur. You felt cold and shaky, and your body was screaming in agony.

"Sean, what happened?" you managed to say, your voice hoarse.

"You got hit pretty bad," Sean replied, his voice trembling. "Just stay with me, okay? I'm gonna try to keep you awake."

Sean's eyes were wide with fear as he looked down at you. He knew that if you fell asleep, you might never wake up. He had to keep you conscious until they could get you to a doctor.

He grabbed his canteen of water and poured some onto a piece of cloth, then gently wiped your face with it. The cold water felt refreshing against your skin, but it wasn't enough to ease the pain.

"Sean, it hurts," you groaned, clenching your teeth.

"I know, I know," Sean replied, his voice cracking. "But you gotta stay strong, okay? We're gonna get you out of here."

Sean knew that he couldn't carry you on his own, not with the enemy still lurking around. He had to get help. He quickly pulled out his whistle and blew it, the sound echoing through the battlefield.

Within minutes, a group of their fellow gang members arrived, and Sean explained the situation to them. Together, they carefully lifted you onto a makeshift stretcher and began carrying you away from the danger.

As they walked, Sean kept talking to you, trying to keep you awake. He asked you questions about your life, anything to keep your mind occupied. You could hear the desperation in his voice, the fear that he might lose you.

Finally, you arrived at a small medical tent, and Sean rushed inside, calling for a doctor. The doctor came over, examining your wound and shaking his head gravely.

"This is bad," he said, his voice low. "We need to get them to a real hospital, now."

Sean's heart sank as he heard the doctor's words. He couldn't lose you, not like this. He had to get you to safety, no matter what.

With the help of the other gang members, Sean carried you to the nearest town, where they managed to find a doctor who could treat your injuries. As you lay on the operating table, Sean sat in the waiting room, his head in his hands.

He didn't know what he would do if he lost you. You had become more than just a comrade in arms, you had become a friend, someone he cared deeply for.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the doctor emerged from the operating room. Sean jumped up, rushing over to him.

"How are they?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

The doctor smiled. "They’re going to be okay. We managed to stabilize them, and they’re going to make a full recovery."

Sean let out a sigh of relief, tears streaming down his face. He couldn't believe it. You were going to be okay.

Kieran Duffy

As the battle raged on, you found yourself in the middle of the chaos, fighting for your life alongside Kieran. The adrenaline pumping through your veins gave you the strength to keep fighting, but eventually, you took a heavy blow to the head, and everything went black.

When you came to, you were lying on the ground, your head pounding with pain. Kieran was kneeling beside you, his face etched with concern.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his voice shaky.

You tried to answer, but the pain was too intense, and you passed out again.

Kieran's panic increased as he watched you lose consciousness again. He knew he had to act fast to keep you alive. He grabbed a canteen of water and splashed it on your face, hoping to wake you up.

"Come on, wake up," he said urgently. "We have to get you out of here."

He quickly checked your pulse and breathing, relieved to find that you were still alive, but he knew that time was running out. He needed to get you to a doctor as soon as possible.

With all his strength, Kieran lifted you onto his back and began carrying you through the battlefield, dodging enemy fire as he went. He tried to keep you awake by talking to you, telling you stories about his past, anything to keep your mind occupied.

Finally, he made it to a nearby doctor's tent, where he gently laid you down on a cot. The doctor rushed over to examine you, his face grave.

"It's touch and go," he said to Kieran. "We'll do everything we can, but she may not make it."

Kieran's heart sank at the thought of losing you. He knew he couldn't bear it. He sat by your side, holding your hand and whispering words of encouragement to you.

"You're strong," he said. "You can pull through this. You have to."

Hours passed, and Kieran remained by your side, never leaving even for a moment. He watched as the doctor tended to your wounds, his heart in his throat with fear.

Finally, you stirred, and Kieran's heart leaped with joy. He watched as you opened your eyes and looked up at him, confusion written on your face.

"You're safe," he said, relief flooding his voice. "You're going to be alright."

You smiled weakly, your eyes closing again as you drifted off to sleep.

Kieran stayed by your side, watching over you until you finally recovered. He was grateful that he had been there to save you, and he vowed never to let anything happen to you again.

[salemwackysillyadventure]

She Loves Me

Mature Rating; lots of smut (and fluff, ofc).

Pairing; Kieran Duffy, Mary-Beth Gaskill.

Warnings; feminization k1nk, explicit sexual content

Kieran was not used to the amount of attention on him; from both the men of the camp antagonizing him, to the wonderful woman that reads to him daily. Although not all the attention was good, he loved feeling *seen*. To exist to other people, it was a funny feeling to him that he felt from his head to his tummy. Mary-Beth took quite a liking to him from the start, and he will admit that he'd never quite got attention from any woman like that before. He truly didn't see what she saw in him, but he wouldn't dare complain.

From late nights, drifting off towards the edge of camp where no one would hear or bother the two; awkward cuddles, hesitant touches, gentle embraces. 'Can I kiss you?,' 'u-uhm, s-sure,' 'is it alright if I touch here?,' 'please do.'

Mary-Beth wished Kieran would see himself the way she sees him, the beautiful man he is to her. One night, she breaks the embrace to look down at the man before her. His icy gray eyes looking up at her through ridiculously long eyelashes- she was a bit jealous at how pretty they were. Though the man had troubles trusting others, he fully trusted his lover with him tonight. Eyes full of questions, he watched as her hand caressed his cheek, slowly running down his neck. He swallowed nervously, his Adam's apple jumping from the action- Mary-Beth knew then just how to spoil him.

"Do you trust me?"

Kieran met her eyes for a moment, nodding hid head as he allowed the woman above him to undress him. He shivered when his bare bottom met the cool night's air, but heat quickly rushing to his cheeks with the way Mary-Beth looked at him, like he was the most beautiful thing on earth. She wasted no time marking her lover, deep red bruises appearing all over his collarbone, and making their way towards the inner part of his thighs.

She held onto both his hands with tender ease, "Do you trust me, Kieran?"

Again, he nodded, head whirling in pleasure and barely able to speak a single word despite having only been kissed. Quickly breaking from his thoughts once he felt a soft finger pressing against his entrance, he whimpered in surprise- wild eyes looking up towards the woman. He could hear her say something, tuning back into reality when another hand met his cheek.

"Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah," he pathetically replied, his cock aching as the finger inside of him stopped. Mary-Beth could sense the inner turmoil, a soft giggle escaping carefully glossed lips as she curled and pumped her single digit. Kieran was loosing his mind, biting his lip in order to stay quiet for his love- and a deep part of him wanted everyone to hear just how good she made him feel. The moment a second finger edged its way in, being quiet was the *last* thing Kieran thought of.

"Good girl, doin' so good for me, doll," Mary-Beth cooed, earning a whiny moan from the man below her. She had quickly discovered where his sweet spot was, and easily used it to her advantage; wanting to hear as much of her lover's cries of pleasure as she could.

"I-I'm gon--"

Before he could finish his sentence, Kieran was already pushed over the edge, spilling silky white all over his tummy. For some reason, this made him flush even deeper, as if the fingers buried in his ass wasn't the most humiliating thing- (he very much so enjoyed it.)

"Oh, sweet girl, made such a pretty mess for me," Mary-Beth admired her work from above, slowly removing her digits from her lover. Kieran could feel his cock twitch at the pet names, turning away from her in embarrassment.

The blonde woman gently eased him back to look at her, gently planting a kiss to his rough lips, "you did a good job. I'll clean you up."

[verdemoun]

Its irritating how Kieran is only mentioned once in a mission after dying in ‘Goodbye, Dear Friend’ and its by Dutch, who just name-drops him as part of his excuse to do something stupid.

Kieran surviving probably wouldn’t change anything about Colm getting arrested, so how would the mission play out with Kieran there in your AU where he survives? Same goes for ‘Mrs. Sadie Adler, Widow’.

It really depends on if in the Kieran survives AU he gets the Sean Macguire miraculous recovery is good by the end of chapter 4 or if he gets a realistic recovery gang still tentatively asking how he is and he kind of sighs and goes 'alright, i guess' in chapter 6.

I think Kieran living would actually improve his relationship with Sadie. She is more forced to recognize he is definitely not an O'Driscoll but also identifies with him in that they were both transformed by their interactions with the O'Driscolls: she sees herself as a monster, and Kieran sees himself as less than during his recovery especially while he's too injured to be useful to the gang. I'm on a Sadie-Kieran friendship agenda.

Similar to how Sadie tells Dutch about Colm, she would also tell Kieran. I think Kieran would insist on going despite his reduced vision meaning he really wouldn't be able to participate in the shootout, and Arthur would be very annoyed that a) Sadie told him and b) he insisted on going. But he would be able to help Arthur fight the O'Driscoll on the roof, proving to Arthur he had recovered enough to be more than a liability. He gets to watch Colm swing through binoculars and then mostly hides during the shootout.

Dutch would still say 'that poor boy, Kieran' only for Kieran to say 'um... I'm actually doing pretty okay, sir'.

Mrs. Sadie Adler, Widow has already been covered over here, but thank you very much for asking! You can find more about this general au under Kieran Duffy lives AU.

[azures-bazar]

Night owls 

I've been wanting to write a Kieran Duffy one shot FOR AGES. He's my ultimate fave along with Sean and Arthur and I deeply wish we could give him a good hug in game. 💔 OMG I MESSED UP WITH THE TITLE IT'S "NIGHT OWLS"

Next mission : Part 2 of Fairest of Them All ! I already have the whole plot, now I just need more time :')

Please excuse my aweful grammar mistakes. Like I said, I'm mostly writing these one shots by night due to my new job ! I can take requests if wanted, it might just take some time. ☀️

Kieran Duffy x GenderNeutral!Reader 

Word count : 2.5k

Short summary : You and Kieran are two night owls who found one another on the dock of Clemens Point to gaze at the stars.

Tags : cute, our favourite horse boah, Chapter 3, Clemens Point, Kieran being cute asf, insecurity, stargazing

"O’Driscoll."

Here’s what Kieran heard most of the time, in the most scornful tone. No matter what he was doing, no matter what he was looking at, no matter what he was talking about. He was an O’Driscoll boy, and almost everyone in the gang reminded him about his former allegiance, even little Jack. He always felt safe around horses, they would not yell at him for a simple mistake, or openly pick on him like Sean would do. Kieran was a shadow, hiding from the rest of the gang despite Bill’s or Arthur’s best efforts to have, at least, one beer with him. Kieran was scared of many gang members, but certainly not of you. 

Since Arthur brought Kieran, first tied up in Colter’s stable, you had been overwhelmingly kind to him. You had given him food and had the right to untie him for him to relieve himself. You hated Dutch’s decision to keep him tied up and not having the right to feed him, but your own motives won over his orders. You could not stand Kieran’s endless cries for food, you just wanted him alright. Since he was free and taking care of horses, Kieran kept offering you his gratitude by picking a few flowers nearby, carefully placing them on your cot. He was too shy to directly give his bouquets to you… and you never knew who gave you all these gifts. 

Just like Mary-Beth, you had fallen for him. When you were not on guard duty, you enjoyed looking at him from enough distance for him not to spot you. You were too shy to talk to him, somewhat intimidated by his gaze. His large green and arched eyebrows always made him look like a lost puppy, which was quick to make you forget about what you wanted to tell him. But one thing was quick to make your heart rate increase in a mere blink of an eye : whenever your gaze met his, he would quickly blush and smile at you. He was deeply fond of you and, despite being quite awkward with the rest of the gang members, was quick to show his emotions to you. 

That night, you were resting by the dock of Clemens Point. Not a sound could be heard but the faint noise of campfire’s burning logs, or Arthur’s snore as you passed by his tent. Even Dutch was silent after his numerous arguments with Molly, which were now a routine. You had wandered around the tents to see if there were no other lost souls, night owls like you… but everyone was asleep. You had walked to the dock and sat there, taking your boots off and pulling your trousers up, allowing your feet to rest in the cold water. You were facing West, taking time to appreciate how beautiful the sky was, with the Milky Way showing its most beautiful stars above your head, giving you a beautiful picture to enjoy. Gazing at the sky by night was something you often cherished as it was relaxing. 

"M…M-May I join you ?" 

You turned your head to your right, noticing that Kieran was standing there, dressed in his underwear. His voice was so faint and calm that you had barely heard it. You could tell he was blushing, his hands clenching on the bottom of his shirt, nearly tearing it in the process. You shivered, still intimidated by his presence, gently nodding while patting an empty space beside you.

"Sure." you smiled 

It had taken about two or three days for Kieran to make this first move with you. He had mentally rehearsed his speech, from his moves to his facial expression, deeply scared of making you run away. He awkwardly moved forward and sat beside you, the tip of his feet touching the water. His heart rate was incredibly quick, he could not come out with any decent word to make the conversation. In fact… neither could you. His sole presence felt calming enough for you to enjoy the moment, but you were terrified of saying a word, believing he would also run away from you. How wrong the two of you were ! 

"Crap! It’s cold !" Kieran gasped, quickly dragging his feet out of water

"C’mon, it ain’t so cold." you smiled as Kieran turned to face you

"It is !"

His reaction was heartwarming enough for you to chuckle. The simple fact that he wanted to do things like you, plunging his feet into water despite its temperature was not hot enough, made him look adorable. You had seen Kieran trying to fit in with the rest of the gang by mimicking them on a daily basis, often trying to hold himself like Arthur, sitting by the fire like Sean or helping Ms. Grimshaw with morning chores by repeating her tasks with her proudly watching him do better than the girls all-together. He had genuinely believed the water was somewhat warm when he saw you bouncing your legs back and forth and wanted to join you into this harmless activity. 

As soon as he noticed you laugh a little, Kieran blushed and turned his head down. He believed he had ridiculed himself before you, and was wrong ! He turned his head back to you and smiled as he quickly understood he had no right to be ashamed, judging by the comforting glance you gave him. He was so confused and charmed at the same time, enough for him to smile even more. At this moment, he understood that there was nothing to be scared about. In fact, he felt comfortable enough to speak again. 

"You… you like gazing at the stars, right ?" he asked 

"Yeah. I find it relaxing, especially after tough days. What about you ?" 

"Same for me. I love watching stars move above my head… it makes me realise how actually small we are compared with what’s up there." 

Your eyes open wide to this statement. Just like you, Kieran loved watching the sky, acknowledging how tiny humans were, and how vast the universe was above you. Centuries ago, you would have been called mad by believing something existed beyond Earth and probably burnt at the stake for heresy. What was above your head was fascinating enough for you be feel lost in your thoughts, but never could you have imagined that Kieran felt the same as you, especially since he could neither read or write. 

"My mammy used to say we’re tiny beings." Kieran restarted. "She used to bring me to fields to gaze at the stars and often told me stuff about constellations. Can’t but think about her when I look at the sky now." 

"What we she like ?" you asked

"Beautiful and kind. She had her ways, but she loved things that weren’t good for ladies. I was ‘bout six when I lost her and pappy to cholera." 

"I’m… I’m sorry." 

"Don’t be. It ain’t your fault."

You could help but feel bad about Kieran’s past. The way he childishly called his parents mammy and pappy made you remember your own life, how you had lost your family at a young age too. Having been left alone in the streets of your hometown for years, Dutch and Hosea finding you felt like a miracle, providing you with a family you never expected to have, with Arthur and John as your two older brothers, watching over you since your induction into the gang. Kieran was certainly not as lucky as you, having joined the army for some time before leaving, living on his own before the O’Driscolls got him. Poor Kieran had it worse than many folks of your gang, being an outcast for most of his life. 

As far as you remembered, you were still young when Colm and Dutch’s feud occurred and had time to see how cruel the leader of the O’Driscoll boys was with his men. Dutch had shielded you from him, not allowing you to be nowhere near Colm or one of his men. You could remember Arthur and John never leaving you alone when Colm was walking by, even dragging you behind them when he was glancing towards your direction. You felt terrible you heard Kieran speak about him by the fire, how cruel and merciless he was, how many of his men he killed to just replace them, believing he went through hell while riding with the O’Driscoll Boys. At least he was safe with you ! 

"B-by the way… it was me." Kieran mumbled 

"You ?"

"I… I-I’m the one w-who puts flowers on your cot." 

You shivered and blushed at this sudden confession. It might have taken so much courage for Kieran to admit such thing to you ! You had been questioning a few gang members for weeks about these gifts, not knowing who would give you flowers and why someone would even gift you something anyway. You were close to mostly everyone, but probably not enough for anyone to give you flowers. 

"You’re the one who’s been bringing me flowers all this long ?" you blushed, feeling your heart rate increase 

"Y-yeah… You’re so kind to me, and… you know, you didn’t treat me like a monster. And… well… you…"

Kieran kept loosing his words, turning his head down. Saying he was the one who was secretly giving you these beautiful flowers was already such a big step forward ! He could not even think about what he could say next, being overwhelmingly terrified about your rejection, still being somewhat aware that you were receptive to his sweet charms. Kieran kept his head down for a moment as his large eyes twitched a little towards you.

"You’re really attractive…" he mumbled 

Your heart stopped beating for a second. If Kieran had told something like this during the day, he would have seen you turning red. Your mouth was half-open, you could not even respond to his sudden compliment. How sweet and genuinely kind Kieran was ! Enough for you to completely forget about your surroundings, and about Dutch who had been woken up, looking at the two of you between his tent flaps while Molly was asleep. The rest of the world did not matter much as you and Kieran, two night owls gazing at the stars above, finally found each other. Yes, finally.

"You… it’s alright… you can tell me to stop…" Kieran mumbled, shyly turning his head away while closing his eyes. "I ain’t probably the one you expected…"

"N-no ! Don’t ever stop, please." you gasped. "Don’t !" 

Despite feeling a vast amount of butterflies and bubbles inside you, you could not hold it any longer. You took a deep breath and dragged your feet out of water, moving a little closer to Kieran. Your hand rose to his directly, you lifted his face by gently holding his chin. What a move ! You could feel him shiver as he quickly opened his large eyes to look at you, still surprised. He even looked a little scared… like the lost puppy you thought him to be. 

"Y/N…?"

Your other free hand made its way to his cheek, his eyes opened wide. Nobody had even been so gentle towards him, so kind ! And there you were, there you were. His sunshine, his wildest dream. He would have never expected you to be this receptive to his words and act so gently with him. His eyes got filled with tears of happiness, he even moaned of pleasure as you rubbed his cheek with your thumb. The very last time someone had touched his face so gently was his mother herself, on her deathbed. It felt good enough for him to smile, bending his head for you to keep going while looking deep into your eyes. 

"You’re such a treasure, Kieran…" you smiled. "My treasure… I’m so glad I found you… "

"I’m… I-I’m happy I finally f-found you too…" Kieran stuttered

As you looked into his eyes, you had not noticed that Kieran’s hands had moved to your waist. He rose a little, moving his legs aside as he dragged you a little closer to him, carefully enough not to scare you. He did not want you to run away, he could not allow this… neither could you. You had found each other, and it felt like the beautifulest dream anyone of you could ever imagine. 

"I... l-love you." he whispered

You had no time to respond to such a beautiful sentence, Kieran had quickly moved forward to passionately kiss you. Your hands moved to his shoulders, you clung onto his shirt as you were softly pushed down, laying beneath Kieran who could not back away anymore. He kept kissing you so passionately that you even forgot about time and your surroundings. Nothing else mattered but the two of you, finally fusing into one being  beneath this endless star-filled sky. Kieran rose a little above you as you gently caught his face between your hands, gazing into his beautiful eyes. 

"I love you." you smiled 

Kieran smiled and arched his eyebrows, being overwhelmingly thrilled by what you had just said. No one had ever told him such thing ! He wanted to cry, but having you so close to him, ready to receive another kiss from him made him forget about all these negative and nostalgic thoughts he usually kept for himself. He kissed you one more time as you heard someone walk on the dock, causing the two of you to quickly stand up. Dutch was there, his arms crossed on his chest. You and Kieran stood still, turning your head down like two children who had been caught red-handed after messing around, which made Dutch smile. 

"What are you doing here ?" he asked 

"Gazing at the stars, Dutch." you responded

"We weren’t doin’ anything wrong, S-sir." Kieran added

"You sure weren’t, now go to sleep. Y/N, you’re on guard duty tomorrow, and we need Kieran to take care of horses." 

The two of you nodded, causing Dutch to chuckle a little as he watch the two of you walk away in line. Right before separating, you dragged Kieran inside your tent and closed its flaps. In no way could you just leave Kieran sleep by the tree alone again ! You allowed him to lie down on your cot first. He opened his arms to greet you into his embrace. 

"Cuddles ?" he whispered

Your heart melted one more time, you could not resist. You obliged and lied next to him, wrapping your arms around his waist. Your head quickly nuzzled in the crook of his neck as he placed a blanket above the two of you. 

"All good ?" you asked

"All good." 

It had been such a long while since Kieran did not get the right to lie down and enjoy a bed, even a bedroll, anything more comfortable than the bare ground ! He was quick to feel a relaxed, slowly drifting into sleep as he snuggled into your thin mattress. You rose a little to kiss his cheek, causing him to moan while holding you closer to him, held into your embrace on a comfortable bed, hiding under a warm blanket. He had forgotten how great it felt to have covers above him, how great it was to be loved. And, with you, he would remember what love felt like. 

"Goodnight, Kieran." you whispered

[zanazirafanfic]

WIP Wednesday

Alright, I think I've finally worked out a WIP/publishing schedule I like a little bit more. (Or it's more realistic, at least.)

Here's what I'm working on now, and what I've got planned for the rest of January. (I've got fics on the list from now until almost the end of the year, but I don't want to put out that big of a list just yet.) Everything is listed by planned date of publication. :)

1/24/24 - 25DCC, Ch. 11 - "Going Ice Skating" - 1885, young John, Arthur, Dutch, and Hosea having a (mostly) fun day out on the ice.

1/25/24 - Whumpcember Day 11 - "Infection" - Micah Bell H/C feat. Simon Pearson, Susan Grimshaw, and Orville Swanson. "Tiny tree, big splinter, HUGE problem."

1/27/24 - "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" - Baylock whump w/ Kieran Duffy + Micah Bell friendship

1/28/24 - 25DCC Ch. 12 - "Tucking Them In" - 1910, Kieran and MaryBeth Duffy tell their children a bedtime story, which may or may not have its roots in true events.

1/29/24 - Whumpcember Day 12 - "Touch-Starved" - Karen Jones grieves Sean's passing once the dust finally settles after the Braithwaite raid. H/C feat. Arthur Morgan.

[my-st0ff]

Love and Paranoia

Chapter Two

Fandom: Red Dead Redemption

Pairing: Kieran Duffy x female reader

Chapter Song: Dress - Taylor Swift

You'd spoken what you know to be thoroughly with the stable master in Valentine. But to Kieran's ear, you two were blabbering and not getting down to the important things about buying a horse. You were just being friendly with a man you see fairly regularly. He seemed in high spirits this morning. Your orders were accurate. The only issue in this situation was Kieran's chronic nervousness / worrying - which you could see becoming exasperating.

"You just wait there, I'll go out back and see what I've got"

You smile and thank the man before taking a seat on a rickety wooden bench, brushing off a stray few pieces of hay before doing so. The barn smell infected every inch of the area.

You: "Sure is fresh smellin', huh?"

You smile in an attempt to dampen Kieran's disheartened thoughts and feelings.

Kieran: "Yeah, sure is"

He answers promptly in a tone that leaves you with slimmed eyes, wondering why the hell he didn't seem sarcastic.

You: "I was- you like the smell of horse shit?"

He sits silent for a moment.

Kieran: "I'm... used to it"

His voice pitches up in a reasoning tone. You can't help yourself from bursting into laughter.

You: "Oh, boy"

You chuckle. You calm yourself down a bit and peer over at Kieran again. He sat awkwardly smiling in an attempt to not let you notice how unfunny this really was to him.

You: "Hey, what's the matter wi'chu'?"

Your smile completely faded.

Kieran: "Nothin Mi- y/n"

You: "It's alright. Now your a free man, sort of"

You grumble at 'sort of'.

You: "You can go and have yourself a nice long soak in the lake, can't ya'? No more menuire smell"

You smile grimly in a teasing manner.

Kieran: "Oh, I don't know about that"

You: "Why?"

You shuffle in your seat to face him, who is sat beside you. You boot stomps on the ground when doing so, making Kieran jump ever so slightly.

Kieran: "I don't really feel like gettin' out all my bits in front of everyone"

He huffs in laughter.

You: "No, dummy. Someone'll take you a bit away from camp and so you can do it there. I'm sure. That's what everyone else does, heads off a bit and bathes in the lake. Other than Bill and Uncle, maybe"

You chuckle.

You: "You'd just have to be supervised is all, for obvious reasons"

Kieran hums in displeasure and grimices at the idea.

You: "Fine, whatever"

You brush away your moment of helpfullness and face forward once more to carry on waiting.

"Just getting some tacking and whatnot"

The stable master calls from the yard. You wait for a few moments longer, fairly peaceful until the trembling hands of Kieran enter your peripheral. You turn your head and blatenly stare at them. Kieran obviously notices.

Kieran: "Sorry, my hands are shaking from all of this silence and patience"

He huffs in laughter but speaks in an apologetic tone.

You: "You nervous?"

Kieran: "Yes, y/n"

You: "Well, I must say. I ain't never seen a grown man desperately waiting for anything like this... you really love horses, don't ya'"

Kieran: "I just-... what if he screws me over?"

He whispers, under the assumption that the stable master who was all the way across the barn from you both was going to be able to hear him.

You: "What? Christian? He'd never screw me over, you kiddin'?"

You answer with a volume that makes Kieran utterly uncomfortable.

Kieran: "I-"

He hesitates, whipping his head over to Christian, who is contently whispering as he gathers supplies. He then looked back into your eyes with deep brown and emotional ones. His eyes were always full of feeling. It was as if he felt every emotion more intensely than others.

Kieran: "Not us, he might screw me over. You saw the dirty looks he was giving me, surely"

You slap a hand down onto his knee in an attempt at compassion.

You: "He, now, I get it, kid. It's tough being different from everyone around ya'. Either for being a woman in a gang a' stinkin' men"

You smirk and laugh.

"Or for being... well... kind hearted"

You peer to the ground beside him for only a moment, gathering yourself after a small flutter of joy emerged in your core. One that carried realisation that Kieran Duffy was nothin' but nice.

"They key - you just gotta act confident. Be strongheaded, ya' know? Everyone thinks that they know us, but they don't know the first damn thing, kid"

Kieran: "All due respect, you make it look easy"

He lets out a sort of relieved huff of laughter.

You: "It ain't"

You add, finally reeling your arm back in and leaving it at your side. You face forward again. That's when Christian calls.

Christian: "You're lucky, few breeders tried to take this fella' off my hands a few days ago. He's got one hell of a coat, if you don't mind riding a pretty boy of the horse world"

He chuckles, bearing yellowed and chipped teeth. A tall and wide animal led beside him, one with a muscular build that still carried a healthy and warm amount of chub. This horse had a lightly coloured torso. This colour stopped abruptly at his cheeks and some spots of his legs, replaced by a golden brown. His eyes lay half-lidded. He was not aware of his magnificence and never would be... damn, maybe I'm starting to get why Kieran loves these stinkers so much. You ponder. Kieran peers over at you for some sort of permission. When you shoot him a look of reassurance, he approaches Christian and the horse.

Kieran: "Can I take him off your hands?"

He asks politely, and Christian passes him the reigns. Kieran brings the palm of his right hand to meet the horses forehead and softly rubs the spot.

You: "Wow, Christian. You sure?"

Christian: "Course, just if you by any chance have him breed with a mare, I'd love to take a look at those little golden eggs"

He grins.

You: "You got it, sir"

You give him a firm and dominant handshake.

Kieran: "Those markings are just amazin', really amazin'"

He pipes up, yet his focus remains on the horse.

Christian: "Sure are, you better take care of him, son"

He almost threatens.

Kieran: "Don't you worry one moment, sir, I'll give him the best life you could imagine"

You could hear the giddiness he was doing his very best to conceal in his voice. Resulting in one of the corners of your lips to curl upwards smugly. You felt quite... proud? Of yourself for bringing such bliss to your otherwise rather miserable tag-along. Once you had collected all the things you needed for Kieran's new friend (best friend by the looks of things as he couldn't keep his affectionate touches away from the gentle giant), you eventually made your way out of the stable. You stood outside the front of the desolate stables together, divided by the horse, who looked contented enough to stand still for the rest of the evening.

You: "Right, now now the hard part"

You explain, walking around the the front of the horse and giving him a nose scratch.

Kieran: "Namin' him?"

He smiles, and you respond with furrow brows. He feels inclined to awkwardly mumble "joke" with a grin. You take a deep breath before breaking the momentary silence.

You: "Well, go ahead"

You take a few steps back, pinching the bridge of your nose. You'd felt a little sweet towards Kieran for a moment back there but had now remembered yourself. Kieran strokes the forehead of his companion. He whispers something with compassion and then moves to the side of the horse. He puts a foot into the closest stirrup and then pats the horses back before moving onto the next step. He pushes himself up with support from the saddle and flips his other leg over, successfully slipping it into the stirrup with the trouble. Kieran laughs in relief whilst petting the mane.

You: "Alright, this ain't his first rodeo for sure"

You erase the distance between you and the horse, from where you had stood back just in case. You stroll over with one hand comfortably on your hip. You utilise the other grab ahold of Kieran's reigns. Without warning, you begin moving at a considerate pace out of town. The horse doesn't seem to mind, but your tag-along decides to make a fuss anyway.

Kieran: "Hey!"

You: "Yeah?"

Kieran: "Weren't ready"

He mumbles.

You: "What was that?"

Kieran: "Nothin'"

He sighs.

You: "Just bought you a whole horse, it better be nothin'"

You'd rode gently through the forests near Valentine for barely that long, and it already felt like hours to you.

You: "God damnit, Kieran. Are we even close to the herbs?"

Kieran: "Matter a' fact, just across that swamp"

You peer up at him from where he sits upon his relaxed and obedient horse to see him pointing forward. Distraught is the only way you could describe your reaction. You crouch to rest your elbows on your legs, face in hands.

You: "Let me up on your horse"

You speak into your hands.

Kieran: "Huh?"

Your head whips up at him. You exclaim your demand through grit teeth.

You: "Let me up on your horse!"

Kieran: "Oh, uh, course"

He shuffles up the saddle. Upon approaching the saddle, you see the horse antsy for the first time. Hooves trotting in place and grunting uncomfortably as your long leather jacket brushes his leg.

Kieran: "Ah, ah, ah"

He gives soothed scratches to the horses neck. Each time you try to get close enough to the horse to get up, he shuffles to the side, away from you.

You: "What's the matter with ya', boy?"

Agrovation evident in your voice.

Kieran: "I don't think he likes the feel a' the leather"

You: "The wha-, oh c'mon. Don't be silly, boy, it's a god damn jacket"

You speak directly the horse.

You: "Just do it swiftly, he won't even notice"

You reach an arm up and pace towards him.

Kieran: "I- I ain't sure, y/n"

You widen your eyes, communicating urgency as you get close. He lets down an arm for you to grab, but his expression is the epitimy of anxiety. And his hands are shaking from all this, again. The horse freezes completely for a moment when you manage to sit flat behind Kieran, your hands on his waist.

You: "Ha!"

You exclaim in proud excitement.

You: "See, kid, what did I tell-"

Your speech is cut short when you shuffle and your jacket falls completely over the horses' thigh like a blanket. The animals screeches like it's in physical pain before sprinting forwards only to panic so much more when it's ankles are fully enveloped in thick mud, sinking a few good centimetres into the swamp that now sat around you. It's legs then tensed as it used all of its might to kick itself up from the mud and water. This inevitably knocked you both off. Your body made an unpleasant slap when it slammed down into sinking mud.

You: "Ow"

You whined in defeat.

Kieran: "I told you"

You hear Kieran speak. His voice travelled through the wind as he lay in a similar position from quite a bit away. The horse had retreated to a patch of grass on the other end of the swamp, to make matter so much worse.

You: "You what?!"

Your voice strains to a shout.

Kieran: "I told you he didn't like the leather!"

You: "Don't you talk back to me!"

You manage to get yourself halfway to a stand before falling ass first back into brown and mossy green sludge. Kieran, who's sat on a harder section of still wet mud holding his lower back, couldn't help but let out a few genuine chuckles.

You: "Somethin' funny?!"

Kieran: "Sorry, oh my- sorry"

He pushes out between intensifying laughter.

You: "Oh, that's it!"

Kieran just could not bring himself to feel any bit threatened for once as you pulled yourself finally onto your feet and cautiously made your way to him. The quickest you could as your legs were inches deep instantly when you took each step. As you finally got to where he was and towered over him, he brought his hands up in surrender.

Kieran: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I mean it now c'mon"

A small smile paints his rosey cheeks. You sigh and extend an arm. He takes your offer just so that you can pull him halfway to your level and then chuck his body back into the wetter part of the mud you had just trudged through. The wobbly shriek he lets out immediately knocks the anger out of you. You burst into laughter, having to bend over and support yourself with your hands on your bent knees as you watch Kieran flail about in the mud, doing all he could to stand up without one successful attempt. His entire body was covered head to toe in brown slime by the time he'd gotten up, out of breath.

You: "Oh, god, that is so funny"

You wheeze as you make slow steps towards where the horse casually grazed across the whole obstacle. Kieran trotted his way quickly beside you as you walked past a pool of dark yellow water. You pat his back with unintentional hardness.

You: "I'm sorry, kid, I couldn't help it"

You giggle.

Kieran: "Me neither"

He mumbles.

You: "Huh?"

Before another word, you are flung with one hard push into the ickiest collection of water you'd ever seen. Luckily, it's shallow enough to prevent any struggle in making your way to the surface. When you do, you find Kieran crouched near the edge, looking down at your helpless self. A dynamic you never thought would see the light of day.

Kieran: "You alright?"

He chuckles. You glare up at him for a second before the angry pressure releases and your lips curl into the smallest smile.

You: "You're a real shit, y'know that?"

He bellows out in laughter before extending an arm. You pull yourself up just to discover the two of you are now matching, covered head to toe in mud. Some of his now quickly drying to chips of flat earth on his skin that would crack at movement.

You: "I hope you know this is our first and last ever trip into town after this shit. You want more clothes, ask John to take ya', or Dutch"

You tease.

Kieran: "I think I'd rather walk around with a leaf covering my crotch"

You knees struggle to bend correctly in the swamp to make your way to the dry(ish) land. Kieran quickly notices and brings an arm up under your arms so that he can support you and you him as you mirror his action. Usually, you would shrug off the help of others, but you could not stand the thought of falling another time. You eventually, with many groans and heavy breaths between the two of you, made it to grassed over dirt.

Kieran: "Here, boy! Hey, c'mere ya' big moron"

He calls out to his horse and awkwardly waddles in it's direction, squelching noises emitted from each step. You take this time to yank off each of your boots and tip the water along with a few clumps of dirt out onto the ground. You almost regretted doing so when the horrible cold dampness meets your socks upon sliding them back on. Soon enough, Kieran returns to you with an unbothered horse trailed behind him by the reigns. His half-lidded eyes as they were before, and his jaw moving up, down and side to side slowly and lazily as he grazed. Kieran fiddles with a satchel attached to the saddle before figuring our how to unclip it.

Kieran: "Right, they grow in little clusters"

He searches the perimeter with his gaze, then angles his head down to face his feet.

"Like this"

He adds, leaning over and bunching more than a dozen small thin stalks covered in light blue pearls of herb in his fist before yanking them out of the soft earth. You observe the plant, then take a look for yourself around where you stand, only to be met with not a single dash of blue among the emerald green of tall forest grass.

You: "Oh, c'mon, this is gonna be impossible"

Kieran raises his eyebrows, packing the satchel with the contents he had just acquired.

Kieran: "It ain't"

He extends his vowels.

Kieran: "I found some just now"

He attempts to convince you.

You: "That"

You point at the satchel.

"Was lucky"

A good quarter of an hour passed whilst you busted your back bending over to pick out blue plants. Kieran did the same. Though he enjoyed the simple task, you took a moment to stretch out each limb after filling the satchel a bit higher with a load that you had found. Whilst doing so, you observed Kieran, who had just now discovered a large deposit of herbs that collected around the base of a tall, thick royal tree. He plopped himself next to the group of herbs, and with crossed legs, he began to carefully pick out the healthiest ones. A look of bliss glazed over his eyes and his skin shon in the now retreating sun.

You: "Alright, time out for me"

You yell over. Kieran does not flinch nor cower. He nods with a small smile, only gracing you with a split second to look into his chocolate brown eyes illuminated to a honey colour by the sunshine before bringing his attentions back to the patch of pretty plants. You decide to take this time to make up with Kieran's horse. You approach the animal slowly, It only looking up at you for a moment before lazily dipping its head back to continue grazing.

You: "Hey, boy. What d'you say us two have a little chat?"

You speak quietly. Some of the hidden browns in the horses eyes that would be usually covered by a sooty colour shon through to the surface of his glimmering eyes.

You: "Yeah, your alright, ain't ya?"

You ask rhetorically before placing your right palm on his forehead and stroking down his long face. But when you reposition your hand to scratch his cheeks, part of your leather sleeve brushes his short, smooth fur - pulling a grunt out of him.

You: "Woah, you don't like the feeling of leather, huh?"

The horse whines softly as if he can understand you.

You: "Well, you're gonna have to get used to it, boy, you're my ride home"

Unexpectedly, Kieran speaks from beside you, you not even noticing his approach.

Kieran: "I'd just take it off if I were you, y/n"

You: "huh?"

You ask, a hand to your chest as you do your best to cover up being startled by his sudden presence. Kieran loads up the satchel with a massive bunch of herbs as he speaks.

Kieran: "Your jacket, just hold it on the way back"

An anxiety you hadn't experienced in longer than you remember stirs in your stomach.

You: "I'd rather not... he'll get used to it"

Kieran laughs softly.

Kieran: "That's what you said before"

He moves out his arms and looks down at his own body as an example as he speaks, caked in mud. You do the same.

Kieran: "Here, lemme' get it for ya'"

He says and moves behind your body, placing a hand on each one of your shoulders. You jolt away from his touch.

You: "I said I'm alright"

Kieran furrows his brows ever so slightly in confusion.

Kieran: "You alright, y/n?"

You: "I'm covered in mud. My boots are wet and cold, and my ass hurts from getting bucked. No, I ain't!:

Sounds of people are completely removed from the alive sounding environment you stand in for a few moments. Kieran's eyes dropping to the floor.

You: "Sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to- look let's just get home"

You say quickly and turn to the horse, who scurries to the side and grunts a little when you approach him. You take a deep breath, peer back at Kieran (who is looking over at you and his horse with utter silent concern), and then groan in frustration. Balling your fists and then bringing your hands up to your jacket to shimmy it off your shoulders and folding it in your arms. As you do this, Kieran watches the (fair/tanned/olive/sweet chocolate) skin of your arms, untouched by mud, reveal with every inch of leather removed. His eyes jump over all of the big and small scars that dotted themselves all up and down your arms. Your head peers over your shoulder at him, your eyes vulnerable. Unable to portray the annoyed feelings you were experiencing as they were overwhelmed by nerves.

You: "What?"

You attempt to speak bluntly, but your voice comes out a tender sound.

Kieran: "N-nothin'"

His eyes flick away from your body immediately. You chuck your jacket to Kieran, who catches it and re-folds it attentively after your botched job whilst you push yourself onto a farther back part of the saddle.

You: "I fought a bear"

You side-eye him with a tiny smirk, breaking the tension as he resisted to ask anything about your hundreds of marks. He huffs in laughter, and your smile grows bigger. He strolls over and hands you back your jacket before straddling his horse and grabbing ahold of the reigns. Your hands loosely and gently clasp around his waist. When he begins the horse to a trot, he peers down at your wrist discreetly, analysing one of the whiter scars going down the top side of your arm.

Kieran: "Don't tell me, that's why you never take that thing off?"

He asks light-heartedly.

Kieran: "You look so cool, I'd be showing that off!"

His heart fills with pride and content when he hears a small laugh erupt from behind him. A flutter fills him from his abdomen to his chest as he looks into the sunset you ride towards paired with the sound of your gentle laughter. The sensation was something he could not label, similar to excitement. Either way, he likes the feeling.

By the time you make it back to camp, your eyes lay half shut, and the moon lights your way. Nobody seemed to be up, and lights were out. You made your way to your tent as Kieran hitched his horse.

Kieran: "Hey, y/n!"

He calls across camp. Making you tense up and shoot him a look of agrovated shock. Kieran mouths 'sorry' before quickly bouncing over to you whilst you chuck your boots and jacket into your tent.

Kieran: "I thought of what ima' name him"

He speaks low.

You: "oh, yeah?"

Kieran: "Branwen"

He smiles, you shoot him a confused look.

You: "Certainly unique"

Kieran: "Alright, negative nancy, I'll have you know that name actually means-m-"

He trips over his words and then fully stops in his tracks before clearing his throat and turning around once you suddenly pulk your white tank top off and chuck it into your tent also.

You: "It means?"

Kieran: "Uhh-"

You: "You going for a soak or what?"

You put casually, pulling off your trousers now. Kieran stood completely stunned as he stared at the sky. He remains silent other than infrequent 'uh's.

You: "What's the matter with ya', boy?"

Kieran: "I'll leave you to your uhh river- bath- whatever"

He says and then takes quick desperate steps away from you.

You: "Your sleeping like that?"

The dry mud piled on his skin is causing itchy spots over his body, and he is fully unsure of what to do.

Kieran: "I, um, well no, well yeah. I'll go in the morning"

You: "Alright, but everyone'll be pretty busy, so it'll be John who has to take ya' away from camp for it"

Kieran pinches the bridge of his nose and takes a long, shakey inhale when the thought is forced into him of John 'gun to his head' Marston watching him bathe himself.

Kieran: "I think I will actually-"

He says but stops when he turns to see you'd silhouette already close to the lake, wrapping a blanket around your body.

Kieran gently places the ragged blanket he had around his bare body on the sandy shore that contained spots of grass poking through the grains. He walks his way into the water as cautiously as he can to not make a sound. Gripping his fists into balls as he prays you don't turn around and see his entirely naked figure. Luckily, you only noticed the disturbance to the surface of the water when he was half submerged, the water stopping just above his naval. You turn instinctively away from the view of the dark horizon and shoot Kieran a small smile. Your heart beats faster as it's suddenly an uncomfortable atmosphere. Your body is sunk deep enough to only be exposing your shoulders and collarbone.

You: "Sorry we ain't got no soap out here"

You huff in laughter.

Kieran: "I'm just glad to have fresh water on my skin"

He sounds genuinely relieved as he sinks down further, still a fair distance between you both. You submerge your head fully to bathe your scalp, only to bob back up in a different spot, a bit further from Kieran and with your back to him. You take a deep breath and start to run the water up and down your skin, doing your best to complete this proficiently as you usually do. Though you can feel Kieran's resisting stare like a tickle on your back. You turn back around in a casual movement and see Kieran washing himself in your peripheral, currently trying to get dirt out of the shell of his ears.

You: "God, you're a jackass"

You break the silence with a smug remark.

Kieran: "Huh?"

He smiles.

You: "This is all your fault"

You laugh, your sarcasm was being taken completely seriously.

Kieran: "What is?"

You: "Why we're both covered in swamp"

You laugh.

Kieran: "Shut up"

He bellows a genuine laugh as you, more comfortably now, approach closer to him.

Kieran: "You ain't funny"

You: "Then why you laughin'?"

You chuckle. Kieran laughs as he brings his head down into the water and scrubs his hair back and forth. When he comes back up, he keeps scratching at his scalp, looking frustrated as he can't get any of the mud to slide off of his locks.

Kieran: "God damnit"

He mutters.

You: "What is the goal here?"

You tease, washing the last bits of dirt out of your own hair.

Kieran: "This stuff is stubborn. It's Inescapable, I'm not even gonna try"

You: "Hey, don't just scratch your head, jesus"

You huff and come closer to Kieran. You raise your arms out of the water, revealing a tiny bit more of your skin as you bring one of your hands to his hair and gently run the fingers through whilst you use your other to cup collections of water in your hand and pour it over his hair. This is most likely the closest you'd ever been face to face with Kieran, his skin glimmered with millions of beads of pure light from the moon's reflection on the droplets of water. The water around you illuminated with the face of the moon also. It felt like the light was focused on just where the two of you stood. It was like an aura. You did all you could to not peak down at his glistening collarbone and neck and pay attention to his hair. A sigh of content unintentionally fell from his lips when your fingers gently massaged where some of the dirt sat at the base of his scalp. His head bowed and eyes shut, sort of in embarrassment. For the next minute, you both stood in comfortable silence and took in the noises of the drips and swishes each time you moved your arms.

You: "There you go"

You speak low, almost in a whisper. Kieran's tired eyelids separated to reveal the look of pure bliss he was portraying. In this moment, you wished for the artistic skills of Hosea just for tonight so you could capture his expression forever. View it whenever you like. God, now why the hell am I thinkin' like that. Pull yourself together, woman, you think. You bring a thumb to his cheek and push the pad of it across his face to wipe a remaining smudge of dirt.

Kieran: "Thanks, feels a lot better"

He smiles. You're only just noticing his height over you, the discreet dimples that form in the transition between expressions he makes, how his skin looked so soft to the touch and how licks of his hair popped out almost every time he moved. Your entire body stiffens in place when his hand brushes and then clasps your lower arm gently beneath the water.

Kieran: "You alright?"

His brows stitch in concern.

Kieran: "You look worried"

You: "I'm just fine"

You muster up a small smile. Your whispered voices and close warm bodies all contribute towards the ever building tension around the both of you. Kieran other hand is balled up in his best effort to keep holding back from you.

You: "Um, today was actually real fun, Kieran"

Kieran: "Yeah"

He smiles and huffs a small laugh from his nose.

You: "You tell Dutch I said that and I'll skin ya', ya' know that?"

Kieran laughs.

Kieran: "Very irresponsible of you to be running around with an O'Driscoll, y/n"

You laugh a little before clearing your throat and, in a sudden coming to your senses, back off from Kieran, his hand slipping from your arm.

You: "I'll see you tomorrow, don't get yourself into no more trouble"

You say as you wade towards the land.

Kieran: "y/n"

You: "yeah?"

Kieran: "You're very pr-... you're beautiful... don't worry about hiding those battle scars you got"

He speaks with genuine tenderness. You had stopped in your tracks, your back to him as you now stood with your full top half exposed, but you did not look at him nor say anything. You'd rather just acted out a single nod. He watched you emerge for a moment before looking away quickly when your entire body was touching the air. You wrapped yourself in your blanket and shivered as you made your way back to your tent.

You'd gotten a head start on the sun this morning, being up and dressed before it had a chance to bathe the camp fully. A few of the gang were up, but a lot were still snoring in their tents whilst you waited for your piping hot cup of brown to chill enough to be drinkable. A familiar sound of footsteps haunted you as you sat under a tree by yourself. You knew who it was just by the sound of wicked large spurs clunking.

"Well, g'mornin', honey"

You: "Mornin', Micah"

You spoke monotone, gripping onto the slim hope he would for once in his life get the hint and leave whoever he's boring the hell alone.

Micah: "Glad to see your all clean"

You look up from your cup, staring straight forward whilst Micah leans on the tree.

You: "Huh?"

Micah: "I'll tell you what I was sleepin' like a baby till' you two got back last night. And I woke up just in time for a show"

He chuckles, disgusting you to your core.

Micah: "Don't worry"

He waves his hand in front of his face.

"I let you two get your privacy, I ain't no creep"

Sure

"But I saw enough to be able to make demands"

You: "to what?"

You glare up at him.

Micah: "See, they know nothing about you two's little adventure in the lake"

He points discreetly at a group of camp members sitting at a table.

You: "Oh, hell, Micah, we didn't- it's not what it looked like"

Micah: "Well, I only know what I saw, and what I saw is too naked folk touching up on eachother, now what would you label that as, y/n?"

You: "Get outa' here"

Micah: "In that case... time for some harmless gossip with Dutch"

You: "Wait"

You demand in a low and vexed tone.

Micah: "Yes, sweetheart"

You: "What do you want?"

You ask through grit teeth.

Micah: "I want a go at ya'"

He grins.

You: "Oh, for the love of god, Micah. Your disgustin'"

Micah: "Now I wake up by your side tomorrow, and my lips might not be so loose"

You: "Forget it"

Your tone rough and spikey. Micah inhales slowly through his nose.

Micah: "Fine"

Your head flips back and forth as you do your best to resist watching him smugly walk over to the group he had pointed to, with a hand on his belt. Most of the expressions you're catching are not so bothered, but when your eyes land upon Ms. Grimshaw, the look of pure outrage is enough to make a grown woman shit herself. You know, for a fact, she is on her way to speak to Dutch the moment he leaves his tent.

In your best efforts to make yourself invisible, you fold your arms and hunch over as you scatter to your tent. Making yourself physically smaller and subconsciously mirroring how puny you felt inside.

"Y/n!"

You hear the all too familiar voice of your troubles say your name and everything just stops. Including you, mid stride.

"Y/n, can you help me with Puncher, he don't wanna eat these her-"

You: "I'm busy!"

You snap back across the space dividing you. Mindlessly gaining even more side glances than you were already dealing with. Your visions does almost a full 360° as quickly as you can, it does not take long to soak in all the stares. You pace urgently towards Kieran, closing the gap.

You: "Gimme' those"

You hiss, snatching the balled up herbs from his gentle, long fingers.

You: "Wha- get outta' here"

Your teeth are grit as you growl under your breath, your heart thumping extraordinarily as more and more time passes where you are in the company of your assumed secret.

Kieran: "Sum'n wrong, y/n?"

You: "As a matter a' fact, yeah. You're in my god damn way!"

Your hand strikes outwards, gesturing towards your horse hitched up by your tent.

Kieran: "Right"

He momentarily complies, standing aside. But his leaving y/n alone streak of 2 seconds is broken when he turns around and plods after you.

Kieran: "Did I do somethin' to upset you?"

His tender, concerned little voice leaves you having to take in an outstretched and stuttered inhale before confronting him before your tent.

You: "I can't have you followin' me around like no damn puppy. I helped you out. You did the same for me. You made your mark on me and my reputation, now beat it!"

Kieran does not look in any other direction other than forward, but his eyes somehow still convey a perfect portrait of lowness, mixed with confusion and self-deprication. It wasn't, it couldn't have been. But it sure as hell felt like the camp was dead silent for those few moments.

Kieran: "Sure thing"

He musters without a single wobble or crack and makes his way back to his duties swiftly. You watch his figure grow smaller and smaller for a moment as the distance increases, with balled fists and frustrated lines upon your forehea, but soon, catch yourself. You shoot a threatening glare at the few folks that had been an audience to your encounter so that they turned away promptly in some terribly put-together false claim that they were never looking in the first place.

You lower yourself with a grunt beneath your breath next to your horse. You glanced into Puncher's somehow knowing eyes with suspicion before presenting him with the herbs that he apparently refused to accept. The animal, who was starting to regain his strength already, immediately nuzzled his snout into the palm of your hand. You kept your hand there so that Puncher could take his time and enjoy the plants. It was quite the mission to acquire them after all.

You: "Atta' boy... not eatin', my ass"

You mumble.

You: "You just not like him or somethin'?"

You smile and lean in close when you ask, under your breath like he was going to gossip back.

You: "Nah, you'd trust a starved dog starin' at ya' thighs, wouldn't ya'? Ya' big, dumb sweetheart"

The sun was coming close to the stage of setting where it is at peak magnificence. Just like how we saw it last night, you smile, watching the clouds near the sun morph. 'nough of that, you reaffirm in your mind and take your spoon to your bowl of flavour-lacking stew. The log you sat on was bumpy, and the dinner you ate was mediocre. You envied the man your view had shifted to. Kieran brushed each horse so attentively, but none had received such an amount of cooing and smiles until he made his way to Branwen. Though he seemed happy enough, he'd exhaust himself if he still didn't eat, even now he had the option.

You: "Night, boys"

You send your fairwells to your company, Arthur and John. You covertly scooped up another bowls-worth of stew. Thank god stealth was a strong suit of yours, or Pierson would have your head on a spike.

You: "Eat"

You let out a flat word as you offer, rather force, a bowl of stew towards Kieran. Who you had made your way over to, to inevitably make him jump.

Kieran: "I ain't hungry, thanks"

You: "Yes you are"

You sigh.

You: "Don't you dare waste this now"

You scolded with raised eyebrows. Kieran takes the bowl and spoon from you, only to place it on a log beside him.

You: "Kid-"

Kieran: "I ain't gonna waste it, I just gotta finish up"

He doesn't make eye contact once as he speaks.

You: "Kieran, can we talk"

You place your hands on your hips, swallowing your pride. Though nobody in camp was facing the two of you, you were silently making the decision to embrace your new reputation as you did this.

Kieran: "Th-that's what I was hopin'"

He answers breath-ily, still brushing Branwen's back, but gracing you with glances as he does.

You: "Look, it's real rough being taken seriously as a woman in this trade sometimes and... and I... uh... I regret... I regret how I were with ya' earlier today"

The tiniest smile tints his cheeks.

Kieran: "You tryna say your sorry?"

You: "Uh... yeah, that"

You struggle. Kieran laughs at your now familiar and almost comforting stubborn nature.

Kieran: "It's quite alright. Maybe we can work on those outbursts together"

He seems so pleased with himself to be able to shoot jabs at you without the fear of you drawing on him or letting one of your burly friends know if you were feeling lazy. He seemed pleased upon the thought that he trusted you enough, and had somebody to joke with.

You: "Y'know what it'd probably do me some good, kid"

You roll your eyes.

You: "What's the matter now?"

The phrasing of your question is blunt, but your tone is gentle as you nod to his hands as they shake again.

Kieran: "I um... My hands shake, I can't explain this- it's just always happened to me. Since I was a boy, I suppose"

You: "Don't help you with your workin', I bet"

You notice him struggle to keep a firm and straight movement as he holds the horse brush to Branwen's side. You peer down at the other few brushes on the ground, biting your lip in debate before failing to resist and grabbing one in your left hand. You bring it up to a different spot of the broad animal's body. Right before you place it to his fur, you see your jacket sleeve below the hand you're using. You squeeze the wooden brush and then take a deep, long breath. In a swift movement, you drop the coat off of your shoulders and onto the dirt. You freeze in place after beginning to brush when you feel the caliced but warm palm of Kieran land on your bare shoulder.

Kieran: "Thank you, y/n... for everything"

Your eye contact is so deep for such a short note of speech.

You: "Y-yeah, no worries, kid"

Your breath hitched before and after your comment, quickly bringing yourself back to focusing on the horse in quite an awkward state.

You both silently milk the amount of time it takes to groom Branwen's short and not too unkempt coat so that you can watch the sunset as you do. Making off comments but mostly living in comfortable silence.

[21witnokidz]

IN THE GHETTO

Chapter 22

Warning: Smut

“I’m ready to get outta this damn snow!” You complained.

“There’s a lot of things I can do dear girl, but changing the weather is not one of them” Dutch explained.

You could hear Abigail begging Arthur to go and look for John.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if Micah killed him before he got back here” you half joked.

“You got a problem with me girl?” Micah threatened.

“Yea I do-“

“Well no one gives two shits about you bitchin’ and moanin’ about whatever it is you bitch and moan about behind my back”

“You watch your damn mouth!” Arthur growled.

“Woah there cowpoke. Just because you’re fucking her don’t mean you gotta get aggressive”

“The nerve of all three of you!” Hosea yelled. “One of our members are stuck out there and we need to bring them back. Y/n and Arthur you go with Javier to retrieve John. Micah sit down and leave everyone alone”

“Hey to be fair that bitch came at me first. If she never said anything we wouldn’t have a problem” Micah put his hands up.

You went to lung at him but Arthur held you back and dragged you outside with Javier behind.

“Some morning huh?” He chuckled.

“Exactly! It’s literally 7 in the morning! The day just started and he’s already starting shit”

-

“This way. Last I know, John was headed up the river” Javier lead.

You guys made it up a mountain and started calling for him.

Not long after you found John on a ledge.

“Little John” you greeted him.

“Look can you just make fun of me later so we can get the hell outta here?”

You and Javier helped John onto Arthur’s shoulder and walked to the horses.

From the corner of your eyes you could notice a pack of wolves coming down the mountain.

“I got it” you took out your shotgun and shot the wolves while the boys got John on a horse.

“Y’know John we ought a put a whistle on you for whenever you get lost from the gang” you joke.

“Or when you try to run away again” Arthur includes.

“Y’all will never let me live that down will you?”

“It was a dick move John”

“And I apologized for it. Besides didn’t you say you two would work on each other?” John referred to you and Arthur working on your relationship.

“Just go to sleep Marston”

Blackwater

“Josiah Trelawny” you greeted Trelwany who was laying on his stomach looking at the prison in front of him. A few of us were in blackwater now ready to get Sean back.

“Ike skelding’s boys are moving him to a camp nearby”

You all came up with a plan to just go to the camp and get Sean while Josiah makes a distraction.

“How’s the family Josiah?” Arthur asked.

“Not too bad. What about you? We’re around the same age yet you’re not even married”

“Well I guess there’s a time for everything”

Josiah went down to make his distraction while you, Arthur and Javier went up the mountain taking out the guards.

Finally you got to Sean Maguire. You cut him loose and untied his hands.

“Miss y/n. Still as pretty as a picture”

“Oh don’t let Molly hear you say that”

“But it’s true. Or are you just saying that because Charles is here and you don’t want to make him jealous” Sean was aware of your past relationship because the girls in the gang love to gossip “was it Charles or Arthur? I always get them mixed up”

“Sean there’s nothing that means more to me than this gang. It’s the realest thing to me. I would kill for it and I would happily die for it” Arthur put his hand on the young man’s shoulder “but I would’ve left you here to rot if Charles hadn’t stopped me”

“I don’t believe a word of that”

Then Sean just went on about how Arthur was a good man. Of course Arthur denied it. You hated how Arthur would talk to himself sometimes it really made you upset because of how much he meant to you.

“Alright you all go on back to camp. Me and y/n will catch up” Arthur sent them.

“Come on Arthur what are we doing harboring an O’Driscoll?” You demanded to know why Arthur had bring back an O’Driscoll boy named Kieran Duffy “and to put more salt in the wound, our newest girl hates O’Driscolls”

“Well that’s great maybe you and her can play pin the donkey with him”

“Pin the donkey?”

“Yea. Y’know cause he’s Irish and you can pin him with a knife- oh forget it”

“No Arthur it was just a bad pun. If you can even call it that”

“It wasn’t bad you just need everything to be explained to you”

Back at camp

Sean was finally back and everything was the same again. He was telling some stupid joke that didn’t even make sense but you didn’t care. Sean was naturally funny and that’s why you enjoyed having him around.

Everyone was having a good time and you saw Javier sitting at a table writing something.

“What’s that Javier?”

“Nothing!”

You looked and saw a quick glance of his paper. All the words were written in Spanish but you saw Tilly’s name a few times.

“Are you writing about Tilly”

“Hey” he looked around “let’s just keep this between us ok?”

“Oh my god you’re writing poetry? I never knew you were sweet on her”

“No one can know. It’s already embarrassing enough”

“Let me help you. I’ll go tell her to give you a chance right now”

“No!” He grabbed your arm “you can’t say anything especially to her. Promise me”

“Ok fine” you stuck your pinky out.

“I don’t get it what’s with the pinky?”

“You’re supposed to link yours with mine. To seal a promise”

“Must be an American thing” he shrugged and linked his pinky with yours.

“But I won’t forget about this. We’ll talk later”

You got up to look for Arthur. You haven’t seen him the whole night. You just found him in his cot writing in his journal as usual.

Before the Blackwater incident, Mary-Beth had suggested Arthur try journaling since he didn’t like talking about his problems he could just write them down.

“Arthur” you made your presence known.

“Hey I’m just finishing up” you looked to see him drawing a picture of a wolf. Identical to the one we saw on the mountain.

“I don’t know how you’re so good at this”

“Me neither. But it’s really calming” he closed his book and set it aside.

“You really think we could make it back to blackwater and get that money?”

“Hell no. But lord knows Dutch won’t dare forget about it. I just wish I could’ve saved a little some of it for the gang”

“It’s not just your fault we were all there”

“No I should’ve done something. I don’t know… nowadays I just kinda feel useless. You know how back in the day I used to be this gang’s most useful asset. Now I’m like a firefighter helping people get outta mess”

“It’s not like that. People just trust you is all”

“You even heard Josiah. I ain’t married yet. Do you think.. maybe we’ve been wasting our lives with this?” He said referring to the gang.

“No. I mean we’re all a family and we have each other. You don’t have to marry people to live your life. And that’s coming from a woman”

“There’s just this clock inside me that’s been ticking ever since. Like I need to discover something soon”

You stopped him and kissed him on the lips.

He looked at you in the eyes and you stared back.

He grabbed your jaw and kissed you this time.

“I could feel a clock ticking too. I’m done beating around the bush with you Arthur”

You slammed your lips on his again.

“Let’s go someplace else”

He led you into the forest away from the party.

You walked to a tree and leaned your back against it. Arthur stared at you like you were his meal and walked slowly towards you.

He grabbed your hips and pulled them to his and he began softly kissing your neck.

“I missed this. I missed you so much”

He pulled took off his jacket and laid it on the floor for you to lay on. He climbed on top of you and kissed you once again and grabbed your hand.

“I don’t want you to think about Charles” he whispered from the crook of your neck.

“What?”

“When I’m making love to you. I want you to forget how Charles ever did it”

“Me and Charles never had sex”he lifted his head to look at you “you’re the only man who’s ever touched me Arthur”

This made Arthur incredibly happy. He would literally be kept up at night thinking about the chance that Charles probably had you but he didn’t. “Me and Mary never did it either” he explained.

“I’m so glad”

You kissed him again and he pulled your dress up and you ran your fingers through his hair.

He unbuckled his belt and pulled down his pants just a bit to release his already growing member.

He aligned himself with you and you squeezed his hand. He pushed himself in and you both moaned at the same time.

“Oh Arthur I-“

Arthur couldn’t get his own words out neither. It’s been too long without each other.

Your body automatically knew how to respond to his. It’s like everything about him was engraved into your genetic code or something. His smell was everywhere. The noises he made filled your ears. The way he touched you sent shivers down your spine and all over.

He continued thrusting into your hot pussy and he finally was able to construct a conceivable phrase.

“I love you y/n. I really love you”

“I lov- I-“ you couldn’t even get it out before your orgasm came crashing down on you.

Arthur was not far behind.

You two were just laying there catching your breaths. He laid his forehead on yours and closed his eyes with his dick still deep inside of you. Cum spilling out of your pussy you didn’t care.

“Hey when was the last time you came before me?”

Your joke caused y’all to laugh and Arthur pulled you on top of him.

“Why are we such fools?” He whispered.

“We were just young”

“We’re you really in love with me back then?”

You took your head off his chest and looked at him.

“I loved you ever since that day we spent at the camp alone. I never stopped since then”

“I loved you ever since I saw you dance in that bar” you smacked his chest. “What I’m being honest”

“Let’s just stop fooling around and making ourselves miserable”

Arthur kissed your forehead again and began to sit up.

“I really don’t want the rest teasing us when we get back. Let’s hurry now”

[oblongblockofsteel]

On a small patch of wildflowers

Part Two

Bill confesses to Kieran, but the lad turns him down.

Trelawny comes in to talk to him, and Bill learns a lot more than he bargained for.

A/N - This story ran away from me, I'd intended a sweet 'first kiss' one shot and this came out. Still, I hope you all enjoy!

It's not that he's surprised, really. 

He never really expected someone as, well, sweet as Kieran Duffy to hook up with an old bastard like Bill Williamson. It didn't really stop him from trying, as stupid as that was. Everyone calls him stupid, and they're probably right. Asking a pretty lad who could have any girl he wanted to be his, that had to be real damned stupid. Who in their right mind would choose him: a big, dumb bastard, over anyone?

Currently, sat on a log far away from camp, he feels at least safe to wallow in the tepid waters of his emotions. The trees don't judge nor do they prod and poke. They've probably seen a great deal worse than a stupid man with a stupid crush. Heard more than confessions, rejections and subsequent acceptances under the veil of kindness. 

"I'm sorry mister, um, Bill. I just... don't feel that way about, um, you," he can still, even now, see those silvery eyes, wide and terrified shimmering in the summer sun. Watch those fine brows crumple into pity and feel that sting of rejection rushing up to meet his anger. He hadn't yelled.

That surprised him, too. He's always so goddamned angry. Kieran had been sweet about it, because of course he was. He's Kieran, sweetest lad on the bloomin earth. His heart agrees eagerly to the sentiment, almost beating with a need to tell him again, just to be sure. But Bill half-wishes Kieran had yelled, at least then he can have a reason to be angry about it. He knows how to handle anger. All he feels now is depressed.

Ugly, unwanted, pathetic.

All sentiments his heart seems to agree with, too.

The white petal crunches between his fingers, rolled up into a ball and tossed to the ground. Each one is ruined, the poor daisy turning into an ugly stalk. His fist curls, crushing it beneath a hand strong enough to break a man's neck. He'd once left a few daisies near Kieran's tent. He wonders if he's figured out it had been Bill. A wash of embarrassment slams his eyes shut and Bill grits his teeth. He hopes he doesn't. 

"Mr Williamson!"

The tension rushes out in a weary sigh. 

He looks up only to glare, to make his figurative tail rattle at the intruder. "What do you want Trelawny?" 

The magician is dressed less flashy today. His coat is missing, shirt sleeves rolled up, and sporting a deep blue cotton vest - a surprise as silk seems to be magnetized to his skin. But the shoes shimmer in the sunlight, and he can see the golden pocket watch catching the sun as he walks. Not overly simple either, but then Josiah Trelawny is not close to being simple or ordinary.

"Nothing, my dear boy!" he cries, walking over with a light spring in his step, "Honestly, I come here to think when I need to! I was simply surprised to find you here!" he pauses to look around, "It is a lovely area, isn't it?"

Bill glances around. The small hollow is protected by oak trees that groan with age, the leaves creating a canopy of green, streaks of golden sunlight spills down from above falling on a small patch of wildflowers made up of bright, vibrant colours. He knows it's beautiful, that's why he'd asked to meet Kieran here.

What a waste.

"Sorry," he mumbles, pushing to get up. "I'll get outta your way."

A firm hand grips his shoulder, and Bill startles, sitting back down hard and coming face to face with Trelawny who's expression has fallen into one of uncertainty.

"Mister..." he stops, "Bill, are you alright?"

The cold despondency is replaced by a whip of anger, and he yanks away, dislodging the hand.

"I'm fine, ya damned snake," he gets up, using his size and weight to loom over Trelawny who at least has the savvy to step away from him. It satisfies some primal urge raging within, and he moves in, forcing the man to step back again. "I might be dumb, but I aint stupid Josiah. Why the fuck are you here?" 

Josiah's eyes flick away for a moment, a flash of guilt cutting over his face, too quick to stay but clear enough to see, and like that the anger is unleashed. 

Bill steps forward, grabs him by his vest and slams him into the rough bark of the Oak Tree. Josiah winces, and it sends another pool of satisfaction down to his belly. "I should whip your ass for this, you fucking cockroach! Did ya come here to laugh? Get some shit for the boys ta make fun of me?"

"No!" Trelawny snaps, grabbing both his hands but his eyes are still wide with fear, "I only wanted to speak to you, Bill! I know -"

"I don't want to talk to you, Trelawny! I don't ever wanna talk to you!" he shoves him away, Josiah thuds into the tree again and he swiftly shakes his head, other than that he doesn't move. "He said no, ya fucking asshole, cause he don't care about me or how I feel! Ya fucking happy?"

Trelawny does not reply and remains pressed up against it, his hands splayed out against the bark, his body turned away slightly from him. Bill stares him down, ensuring the fucker doesn't try anything more before turning away with a sneer of disgust. As if that pansy ass slippery eel actually cared about anyone but himself -

"You know him."

Bill stops, turns and glares his anger still rumbling in his chest like a readymade volcano. "Yeah, I fucking know Kieran, so what?"

Josiah smiles, it's strained more of a grimace, and Bill instantly narrows his eyes, wondering where the slippery bastard is heading to. He likes to play with people, string them along, grabs what he wants and then disappears before you can figure out what he took. Bill shoots people in the head, he murders people in cold blood, but Trelawny and Hosea, their scams and cons? They can cause damage to entire towns. Leave it ruins for years. And all with words and papers. To be honest, it can be terrifying at times.

"Not, Mr Duffy, no," he clears his throat, and stands a little straighter. "The man that I... also care for."

It takes him a solid moment to figure out what he means, and by then Bill is vaguely aware of a rushing in his ears. The words don't sound right, they sound foreign - a different language all together. Trelawny is like him? He looks at men? Bill just never would have thought that he would....

Sure, he's a funny guy, a little queer, if he's honest, and here he is, roughed up, nervous and admitting that...

"You... like men?"

Trelawny smiles, like a crack in a rock's surface it feels too sudden and sharp. "Yes. One in particular, but ah... he doesn't know."

Some of the tension washes away, leaving Bill empty and a little confused. Hesitance is not something he can ever associate with the magician. Boisterous, confidence, arrogance, playfulness, certainty, but uncertainty or hesitance is as foreign on his person like cheap cotton. It feels wrong, almost alien in its implication. Like Trelawny isn't quite himself.

Maybe he isn't.

"You never told him?"

Here he laughs, a little closer to his normal voice and BIll relaxes a little, surprised to find that Trelawny's demeanor had even been stressing him out. 

"Oh no!" the smile softens, then sharpens again, almost like it's trying to hide something, "He thinks I'm a snake."

Bill snorts, "To be fair, everyone does."

Again, the smile sharpens, "True," Trelawny sighs and turns his head upwards to the canopy. Bill shifts, suddenly uncomfortable, and goes to lean his shoulder against a tree and crosses his arms. He's dumb not stupid and Trelawny has something more to say. So, he waits. Not because Trelawny is like him or because he feels safe around him, here hidden in the comfort of the trees. No, he just wants to hear what he has to say. That's all, he thinks, that's all.

"Essentially, I suppose, I know what you're going through," another pause, and Bill stays quiet for lack of anything better to do. "It's difficult, yes, but not impossible to ..." he shakes his head, "I'm not saying what I'm meaning to say."

A pocketknife appears in his hand in a slick twist of the wrist. It glitters in the sun and even from the short distance, Bill can see it's a fine make - silver and intricate. The blade is hidden, but he can bet the edge will be sharp and high quality. Trelawny doesn't buy cheap.

"I bought this for him when he'd needed one three years ago, I'd fancied the idea of giving it to him and declaring my undying love," he laughs, and Bill feels a wrench at the sound, too shattered and pained.

"Why didn't you?"

"Same reason as you, I suppose. Fear," he snorts. "That and he does not think very highly of me."

Bill thinks about that. No one at camp really thinks highly of Trelawny, bar maybe Strauss and Hosea. Strauss is a creepy little bastard, but Hosea? Everyone knows he's got a brilliant judge of character. And he likes Trelawny. Bill briefly considers his interactions with the magician. The man's mostly annoying, but sometimes, when he grows quiet and introspective, he can be quite soothing. Almost companionable. But getting to know Trelawny it's like pulling teeth. He rarely answers truthfully. The few times Bill has tried he's gotten answers that sound about as real as the Moon being made of cheese. 

But with Trelawny, you never really know.

"Does he know you?"

Trelawny frowns.

"Yer a hard man ta read, have you taken the time to let him get to know you?"

"A little," the knife is twirled between his fingers, catching the sun in shimmers. "Just enough to think ill, I suppose."

Bill snorts. "That's not the way it works. Ya can't say people don't like ya if they don't know ya! That's not exactly fair on them or you!"

"True," Trelawny is looking at him, eyes expectant and smile coy.

Oh.

Oh.

"I...." he looks down. He's never really given Kieran the chance to get to know him, has he? He's shuffled and hidden away, snapped and cut him down. But has he ever sat down and just spoken to him? Let Kieran get to know him, and Bill in turn learn more about the sweet lad? No, he thinks, never. He's too damned uncomfortable in himself to do that.

"So, you're saying I should let Kieran get to know me?"

"That's the general idea, yes."

But what if he finds out he doesn't like me?

"It's a risk we take, Bill."

He glances up, a burst of surprise making him frown and in turn, making another pulse of anger bubble. But Trelawny is shaking his hand, waving the animosity into the wind. 

"You're easy to read, and it's not difficult to see what you're thinking."

Bill shifts under the gaze, an intense vulnerability making his anger spike again. Damn that magician! 

They listen to the trees rustle, each lost to their own thoughts for a few moments. Then, Trelawny stands dusting himself off, not that there's much dusting needed. "Well, I hope the conversation helped you, at least Mr Williamson."

"Yeah... sure..."

"Good," with a flourish and a bow he starts for the treeline, but stops right next to Bill, "You can have this."

He holds up the small pocket knife, the silver almost magical in the discs of light. Bill makes to shake his head, but Trelawny rolls his eyes.

"Just take the damned thing, would you?"

But still he hesitates. It don't feel right, taking a token meant for another. It feels wrong.

"I don't know..."

Trelawny's smile goes soft, "I won't be needing it, dear boy. I'd appreciate it, to be honest. At least it will get some use, yes?"

Again he looks at the small knife, his hand feels heavier than usual as he lifts it and tentatively takes the small thing. It fits almost too snugly in his palm.

"Thanks..."

But Trelawny's walking away before he can say anything else. The knife is gorgeous, the silver is carved with a detailed image of a bear standing near the water, the eyes shining in the sunlight. The work must have cost a lot. A pang of sadness bites into his heart. Trelawny never even gave the man a chance. Three years, pining for three years, what a damned long time. Well, he thinks, tossing the knife between his hands, I'm not going to pine after Kieran for three years. I'm gonna be less of coward than Trelawny.

He flicks open the blade and freezes.

The initials B.W. are carved into the blade. 

Bill's heart practically stops.

[internetfriend]

f/o list below the cut :) i included my littlespace headcanons as well !!

minthara baenre - baldur's gate 3 (caregiver)

bolded = hyperfixated on . orange = not alright with sharing .

karlach cliffgate - baldur's gate 3 (caregiver)

shadowheart - baldur's gate 3 (flip between cg and little)

lae'zel - baldur's gate 3 (caregiver)

reverand rod putty - moral orel (recluctant caregiver)

erik destler - phantom of the opera (2004) (little, with a kinkier dynamic)

john hancock - fallout 4 (caregiver)

kieran duffy - red dead redemption 2 (little)

charles smith - red dead redemption 2 (flip between cg and little)

arthur morgan - red dead redemption 2 (caregiver)

rabbit - steam powered giraffe (flip between cg and little)

AM - ihnmaims (caregiver)

edgar - electric dreams (1984) (little)

cardinal copia - the band ghost (flip between cg and little)

PARENTAL F/Os (always thinking about these guys but i dont talk about them much)

deadpool (comics + mcu)

shadow the hedgehog (modern sonic the hedgehog games)

[wafflecarton]

WaffleCarton ‘s Masterlist

DEAD BY DAYLIGHT

—

Tarhos Kovács

My Lady (wip)

1 , 2 , 3

-

Frank Morrison

House Party (oneshot - wip)

-

Danny ‘Jed Olsen’ Johnson

N/A

-

Ji Woon Hak

N/A

IDENTITY V

—

N/A

HOGWARTS LEGACY

—

Sebastian Sallow

And I Love Her (wip)

1 , 2 , 3

Seeker

1 , 2

-

Ominis Gaunt

Something (oneshot - wip)

If I Fell (wip)

1 , 2 , 3

RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2

—

Javier Escuella

All You Need is Love (wip)

1 , 2 , 3 , 4

-

Sean Macguire

Whiskey Lover (wip)

1 , 2

-

Kieran Duffy

Self Care (wip)

1 , 2 , 3

-

Arthur Morgan

My Girl (wip)

1 , 2

Who I May Trust (oneshot - wip)

-

John Marston

Lonely Husband (oneshot - wip)

Sugar High (wip)

1 , 2 , 3

DC

—

Dick Grayson | Nightwing

N/A

-

Jason Todd | Red Hood

• Safety in Arms (oneshot - wip)

-

Tim Drake | Red Robin

• The Importance of Sleep (oneshot - wip)

-

Damian Wayne | Robin

• The Littler Things (oneshot - wip)

• Dates (wip)

1 , 2 , 3

-

Bruce Wayne | Batman

• Playboy Party (oneshot - wip)

-

Clark Kent | Superman

• Mornings in Metropolis (oneshot - wip)

-

Conner Kent | Superboy

N/A

-

Selina Kyle | Catwoman

• Kitty care (oneshot - wip)

-

Pamela Isley | Poison Ivy

• Plant Mother (one shot - wip)

-

Harleen Quinzel | Harley Quinn

• Bubblegum Baseball Pop! (wip)

1 , 2 , 3 , 4

-

Jonathan Crane | The Scarecrow

• Workaholic (oneshot - wip)

-

Garfield Logan | Beast Boy

N/A

-

Bart Allen | Impulse

• Quick Trips (oneshot - wip)

MODERN WARFARE 2 (2022)

—

Simon “Ghost” Riley

• It’s Alright Now (oneshot - wip)

-

Johnny “Soap” Mactavish

N/A

-

Captain John Price

N/A

-

Kyle “Gaz” Garrick

• Matching! (oneshot - wip)

-

“König”

• Trust Fall (oneshot - wip)

• Steady Hands, Steadier Heart (oneshot - wip)

-

Farah Karim

• Girls Night (oneshot - wip)

-

Alex Keller

• Shaving (oneshot - wip)

-

Colonel Alejandro Vargas

• Homemade Cooking, aka the best (oneshot - wip)

• Home At Last (oneshot - wip)

• Dahlia Season (oneshot - wip)

• Sleeping is the Best (in Your Arms) (oneshot - wip)

-

Rodolfo “Rudy” Parra

• Young Love

1 , 2

[allzelemonz]

Red Dead Redemption Scenarios: Falling asleep with his head on your lap

Pronouns: None Mentioned Physical Sex: None Mentioned Rating: T/References to sex Warnings: Fluff, sleeping, kissing

Abe: 

It’s just that he’s been so busy on the ranch and you’re so comfortable and your voice is so nice to his ears and he loves how you were playing with his hair. He just happened to nod off. You admire him as he sleeps and he sleeps very soundly with you. When he wakes up it takes him a moment before he realizes you were talking to him.

“I’m real sorry, I knew you was talkin’, I was just- well I- I mean-”

“It’s alright, Abe.”

He lays still for a second, enjoying the feeling of your fingers in his hair. “It was rude of me.”

You chuckle lightly. “Do you wanna go to bed?”

He nods, giving you a sheepish smile. “I am sorry, really.”

You bend over him and press a kiss to his forehead. “Don’t be.”

Bill Williamson: 

He wouldn’t be caught dead like this infront of anyone. But you’re in your tent, secure and private. He feels safe here. This is something he does often. Whenever he needs a nap he always likes to take it with you, have a nice time cuddling and being cozy. If you’re busy with something he’ll fall asleep however close you’ll let him, hoping he’ll wake up with you next to him. This time you just needed to get a few papers together to help with the ledger, so Bill settled onto the ground with his head resting gently in your lap. He watched you work for a while, but his eyes get heavy quickly and he falls. You give him the occasional loving look as you run a hand through his hair or over his hairy face, but the work takes longer than his nap. He wakes up and watches you for a while before he slowly gets up, gives you a quick kiss, and returns to the duties of camp.

Charles Smith: 

It’s not an uncommon occurrence and he doesn’t care about others seeing it as much as he might other forms of affection. Usually it’s on the edge of camp anyway. He’ll rest his head in your lap when neither of you have much to do, partly hoping that you’ll play with his hair. You usually do, it’s hard to resist. The feeling of your fingers lightly brushing or loosely braiding makes him close his eyes to enjoy it and he ends up drifting off. Sometimes you’ll just look at him, admiring how peaceful he looks when he sleeps, other times you’ll read or find something to occupy your hands until he wakes up.

Colm O’Driscoll: 

You would kill to have a camera. The ruthless gang leader looks like an old Irish dog when he sleeps. He snores lightly and his face is as peaceful as it will ever get. You have half a mind to try and get one of the boys’ attention so you can get a photo to remember this, but getting caught wouldn’t be good. Colm has his reputation, he holds it very close. He hardly ever even shows a soft side to you, it’s a rare occurrence just like this. So you bask in it, timidly letting your fingers run through his hair. You occasionally catch a tangle because he never brushes it and you have to carefully pull it apart. He stirs, blinking up at you.

“Sorry, Colm.” You mumble. “Didn’t mean to wake you.”

He sighs, low and halfway a groan. “What time is it, sweetheart?”

“Afternoon.”

He settles back against your lap, closing his eyes again. “I got a job around sunset, wake me then.”

“Of course.” You say, smiling to yourself as you resume untangling his hair.

Kieran Duffy: 

He finds whatever time he can to sit with you at the campfire. Javier will often make a comment, telling you to get a room or something. It makes Kieran nervous, but you tell the outlaw off every time. Tonight it’s just Uncle telling his stories to a few of you. Kieran laid down, tired but not wanting to miss the old man’s story. You don’t notice he’s asleep until he twitches and you look down to see his closed eyes. You have your arm draped over his middle, so you tighten it because he likes to be held securely. He says it helps with the nightmares. Uncle goes on with his story and Kieran wakes up periodically before falling back asleep. It’s only once you’re tired that you lightly shake him and tell him it’s time to retire. He nods sleepily and allows you to pull him along.

Micah Bell: 

He’s always touching you in some way. So it’s no surprise when lays his head in your lap to attempt to distract you from cleaning your knife. It doesn’t work. He’ll often try to distract you, usually he’s more bold. He might run a hand up your thigh or kiss your neck, maybe even pull you close from behind so you can feel why he wants your attention. But today this is all he wants, to be close to you. When you finish your knife he hands you his and you take it without question, wanting his rare sweetness to continue. So you clean his knife and by the time you’re done he’s asleep. You set it to the side and admire him for a moment. His hair looks much more blond in the lighting, almost a true gold. You softly run your fingers through it, feeling the layer of grease that’s there even after he has a rare bath. When Micah sleeps it’s always light, so he feels you. He wakes up but he doesn’t show it because he wants you to keep admiring him and playing with his hair, but he’d never admit it.

Sean MacGuire: 

He could listen to you read to him for hours, but today it’s warm and things are slow. He falls asleep within a chapter and you happily save your place and make sure he’s comfortable. You rest a hand on his chest, messing with his shirt’s buttons while you look down at him. He’s peaceful, a small smile on his face. Time passes much quicker than you like and he wakes up even sooner. He smiles up at you, blinking the sleep from his eyes before he drags a hand over them.

“Nodded off, didn’t I?” He asks, yawning through the words.

You nod, running a hand over his face to push a few stray hairs away.

Sean sighs, stretching slightly. “Want me ta make it up ta ya?”

“How’s that?” You ask, matching his smile.

Sean sits up, turning so he can pull you in for a kiss.