#wayhaught dialogue

[girl4music]

A lot of people in the WEARP fandom seem to be having issues with the WayHaught narrative in the ‘Vengeance’ special. Specifically with the dialogue used of Nicole “holding Waverly back” and “keeping her on the hook” and being blamed for Waverly’s miscommunications about her desires and ambitions.

I feel like I need to address this because I think people are taking it WAY out of context based on the specific dialogue used by the characters and I want to throw some perspective into people’s opinions with this.

Wynonna saying what she does to Nicole is just Wynonna being Wynonna. Those are just her words and accusations. They’re not a statement of fact about Nicole or even an accurate account of how Waverly thinks or feels about Nicole and her treatment of her. It’s literally just Wynonna talking aggressively to Nicole because of what she’s got going on in her head at that moment. It’s not a true reflection of what’s actually happening. Wynonna’s just taking her stress and frustration out on Nicole because she can and because that’s what she does and because she loves Waverly so very much and is worried that she’s letting married life change her. Waverly has not egged Wynonna on or got her to fight her own battles or anything like that. Yeah,… she’s talked to her sister about the way she’s feeling. She’s talked about her anxieties. But none of that has anything to do with Nicole or how she believes Nicole is treating her. Wynonna has just perceived it that way because she always takes things to heart and blows them out of proportion. That’s just what she does. Especially when it comes to the people she loves. Especially Waverly.

Nicole, however, has taken in what Wynonna has said personally and thought about how having Waverly around 24/7 is actually hindering her growth and not helping it. She realizes that she kind of has been holding her back. Obviously, it’s not in a selfish way. It’s just in the way that she was not aware of what Waverly wanted or needed because Waverly just had trouble being open and communicating that with her - which also isn’t something that should be taken as a reason to blame either of them for their contention. This is a completely natural and normal thing that all real life married couples go through and the special is just representing that because it’s just an interesting subject to explore. Especially between two women.

There’s no animosity there. There’s no aggression there. That’s all Wynonna butting in and just being her usual flawed emotional hot mess self - which we love because that makes her real and raw and compelling.

There’s no one to blame with any of this really… and why do we even need to blame anyone anyway? 💁‍♀️

This is just interesting storytelling that probably just needed a little more time to really explore properly so that this subject wouldn’t be taken so out of context.

I mean people can interpret what goes on in the special any which way they like but why they have to think of it as more serious or dramatic than it is I…

I honestly do not see it that way myself at all. I just see it as a realistic representation of very natural, normal and interesting to explore storytelling of married life. At no point did I see any of this narrative in the special look toxic - as if they were on the verge of a break-up. What I saw was partners very much in love figuring out equal partnership in very early years of their marriage. The “drama” or “conflict” between WayHaught came about very naturally and it was resolved very naturally.

[theveganearper]

Dialogue in Fanfiction |Wayhaught|

I’m a dialogue writer. Yep, I’m finally owning it. While I’ve dabbled in smut and have gotten plenty of compliments for it (a bow and a thank ya) my absolute favorite part of fic writing with Wayhaught is the dialogue. Specifically, when they’re just being goofy with one another in teasing tones. I’ve been doing so much writing recently for quite a long fic that I’ve been working on, and I’m loving the dialogue so much. Sometimes it’s not necessary to write anything to follow up dialogue. For example:

“Nicole, can you please change the channel?”

“Why would I do that?”

“Because you love me and Rue Paul’s drag race comes on in 2 minutes.”

“Oh, you’re pretty confident that I love you, huh?”

“I’d say so, considering you know, you married me and all.”

“Mmm… Yeah, I definitely did that. Didn’t I?”

“Yep. I even have the photo to prove it. What is it that they say? Caught in 4K?”

“4K is pretty clear…”

“It’s crisp. I could make out your face and everything. Would you like to see it? Or is my word enough for you.”

“I mean… I guess I can take your word for it. This time. Now, next time I guarantee that I’ll be so nice about it. But since you said I love you and all, I think I can make an exception.”

Through dialogue like that, it’s not always necessary to follow it up with “Waverly said in a teasing tone” or “Nicole replied sarcastically.”

And it wasn’t until recently when proofreading a chapter before sending it to a friend that I thought about it. Some fics will have a follow up to dialogue on every line and I found myself debating on whether or not it was necessary because as I was reading it, I was catching onto the tone.

Other times a “she bit back a laugh.” Or a “she asked skeptically.” Makes complete sense to capture the tone of the “scene” being written, but my views on dialogue have changed massively in the past few months and it’s honestly changed the way I read and write fic. In fact, I’m enjoying it even more now. So whether you’re just a reader or both a reader and a writer, try paying attention to the dialogue next time you’re reading a fic. Or maybe you’ve even caught onto this already.

If so, did it change the way that you read or write fic? If you feel inclined to leave your thoughts below, feel free! I’m genuinely curious to see if this changed anyone else’s viewpoint on dialogue in fic. Not just what I wrote, but catching onto this is when it comes to fic dialogue in general.

[haughtshotgun]

24, if you please! 😬😬

Thanks, Levi!

24: “Quick, pretend we’re on a date.”

All she wanted to do was get a drink after class. Her schedule had been hell as of late. Papers and projects followed one after another, suffocating her in work and leaving her no time to breathe. Nicole didn’t even mind drinking alone. She was perfectly content with sipping her whiskey in silence until she felt a hand on the small of her back. She turned her head to find the pretty brunette, the one with hair for days and a drop dead gorgeous smile, from her literature class by her side.

“Hey, so my ex is across the bar and he is creepily looking at me so quick, please, just pretend we’re on a date?” Waverly asked with desperation. Nicole instantly felt a spike of protectiveness run through her. She looked over her shoulder to find Champ Hardy eyeing Waverly like a piece of meat. Disgust rose in her and she turned her attention back to Waverly.

“What are you drinking?” Nicole asked with a smirk. Waverly flashed that signature smile Nicole had found herself daydreaming about more and more as of late, and she knew she was in it now. She bought Waverly her wine as the brunette settled on the barstool next to her. The redhead turned her body to face Waverly as they began to talk and “fake” flirt. Nicole found it easy to slip into the role. Waverly was stunning, and kind, and so, so smart.

After their second drink their hands began to explore their “date’s” body. Waverly squeezed the muscle of Nicole’s thigh. Nicole tucked a loose strand of chestnut behind Waverly’s ear. They had shifted closer and closer until their knees were touching and Nicole swore small fires raged at their junction. There had been many nights where Nicole wondered what it would feel like to be in this very situation, minus being a decoy.

Nicole’s bliss was broken when she heard Champ say, “Hey, Waves,” as he strutted over to them. He reeked of cheap beer and cheaper body spray, the combination was nauseating. “You’re looking great…” he trailed and as his eyes wandered over Waverly’s body. Nicole’s blood boiled in her veins and reddened in the face at his possessive gaze. “How about we head back to my place for old times sake, eh?” Champ attempted to rest an arm on Waverly’s shoulder but the brunette shrugged him away immediately.

Waverly scoffed and rolled her eyes. “I’m clearly on a date, Champ.... Please leave,” Waverly said and pointed to Nicole. Champ’s face shifted from confused to angry. It made Nicole’s skin crawl as she bawled her fists up at her sides.

With a scoff Champ said, “With her? That’s fucking disgusting.” Nicole stood up instantly. A spike of rage rolled through her and she got in Champ’s face before logic could tell her otherwise. She could feel Waverly’s hand at the small of her back, just pressed gently into, it acted like a tether keeping her grounded.

“The lady said leave. Now go before I kick your ass and embarrass you in front of your idiot friends,” Nicole hissed through gritted teeth. Champ sized her up for a moment before grunting and turning away. She felt a tug at the back of her shirt and she turned around to find Waverly staring up at her with wide, cloudy eyes. Nicole felt an immediate wave of shame over her display. “I’m sorry... I know you’re tough and can handle yourself, I just really-”

She was cut off by hands on her cheeks pulling her forward. Next she knew, her lips were on Waverly’s. It was slow and soft but still enough to knock the wind out of her lungs and fill her soul at the same time. When they pulled away their eyes met and Nicole felt like she was flying.

“Your place?” Waverly asked with a smirk and toyed with the collar of Nicole’s flannel.

“Yes, ma’am.”

[mayasdeluca]

[avassharpe]

I did have something planned...

[clarkentbutgay]

Watch the Sara Lance cosplay Wayhaught fics start pouring in, and I am here for it

[wynonnaearptheories]

*Doc and Waverly in the Garden, trying to find a way out*

Waverly: Doc, have you found something that can help us?

Doc: No, but I found some baby carrots.

Waverly: *starts crying*

Doc: ...what did I do now

[haughttopics]

39 and 74?

39: survival/wilderness fic  74: huddling for warmth

waverly had been having a very rough time. she recently found champ deep in the throes of passion with yet another woman, and this time she’d decided enough was enough. and her uncle curtis, the only man she’d ever considered to be a real father figure in her life, had died

she decided she needed some space to clear her head, so she set out on one of the hiking trails she and curtis had taken many times times together

waverly was a very experienced hiker, she prepared her backpack with everything she could possibly need, she checked the weather reports (a storm was due that evening, but she’d be back at her shift at shorty’s before it was due) and informed gus where she was heading off to

a few hours into the hike, waverly felt slightly more at ease. she recalled some of her fondest memories she had here with curtis, but instead of the expected tears, she couldn’t stop smiling. her chest felt lighter than it had done in days

she continued further up on the trail getting higher into the peaks, and the path became more narrow and dangerous. suddenly, some of the rocks dislodged under her feet and she fell off the side of the trail. luckily, she didn’t fall too far down, but noticed she’d landed in a small valley to the side of the path

after giving herself a minute to let her head settle from the dizziness she felt, she tried to stand up. but immediately her ankle gave way and she fell down again. perfect, she thought. she pulled out her cellphone but quickly realised she had no signal…

meanwhile, gus was starting to get worried as waverly’s shift should have started ten minutes ago, and she was never late without warning. she thought about the trail she mentioned she was hiking, and remembered a storm was due that evening. she quickly picked up the phone

officer nicole haught had been having a slow day. the radio was uncharacteristically quiet and her pile of paperwork was dangerously close to being completed. she sighed, and her mind drifted to when she’d last seen her favourite bar maid, wishing it had been under more fortunate circumstances than the wake of her uncle at shorty’s

suddenly, sheriff nedley appeared by her desk. ‘haught, there’s a chance that waverly earp may have run into some trouble on the hiking trails. i know you’re a very experienced climber, so get your gear together and see if you can find her. here’s the route you’ll need to check, she told her aunt this morning it’s the one she’d taken. make sure you take one of the radio relay kits for your cruiser, your radio won’t reach back here without it. oh and be careful, a storm is expected to be rolling in this evening’

nicole didn’t need to be told twice. she always kept her climbing gear in the trunk of her police vehicle, and she was grateful that she lived so close to the station so she could pick up a few additional bits of kit she might need. a dread started to take hold from within, she wasn’t a religious woman by any means, but she silently prayed that waverly was okay

the deputy make quick work of advancing up the trail marked out on nedley’s map, and not for the first time she was glad that she spent so much time working out. she kept her eyes trained on the surroundings, looking for anything to indicate any signs of struggle

waverly was exhausted. she’d tried yelling for help every time she heard something above, but it was to no avail. she knew she needed to conserve her energy, so quickly gave up each time when she realised nobody was there. she’d managed to shift to the side slightly to perch herself under a large tree to take advantage of the little shelter it provided. she closed her eyes, trying to stay as calm as possible, when she thought she heard it. ‘waverly!’

nicole had reached a narrow part of the pathway and could tell that some larger rocks had been dislodged recently, very recently by the look of the freshly disturbed earth they’d revealed. she dropped her backpack to the ground and carefully looked around the area. peering over the edge, she noticed some of the fresh mud on sharp rock edge ‘waverly!’ she shouted

the young earp thought her mind was playing tricks on her, wanting to hear the voice of a particular red head who’d occupied her thoughts since the day they first met. how she longed to see her again… ‘waverly! are you down there!’ this time the voice was louder, and she opened her eyes. looking back up to where she’d fallen from. ‘nicole? is that you’ the hopefulness ever present in her tired voice. ‘yes! stay where you are, i’m coming down!’

nicole instantly berated herself for the poor choice of words. ‘of course she’s not going to go anywhere idiot’ she mumbled to herself. she took out the ropes and hooks she’d need to get down to waverly, estimating that the drop was just shy of fifty metres. she felt the weather change as she started the descent, and as quickly as she wanted to get to waverly, she knew she had to be careful

the deputy finally reached the bottom of the small valley and instantly began to detach herself from the ropes. she threw her bag to the ground, ran over to waverly and dropped to her knees ‘waverly! are you okay? what happened?’ the brunette looked down sheepishly, starting to feel slightly embarrassed. ‘some of the rocks gave way and i lost my footing. next thing i know i’m down here’ she said with a small chuckle

nicole closed her eyes for a moment, thanking her lucky stars that the earp girl was okay. remembering the quickly changing weather, she said ‘i guess you can’t walk very well if you were stuck down here. the storm is almost upon us and i don’t want you to get hurt more trying to get back down in that weather. i have an all purpose tent in my backpack, so i can pitch it up and we can wait it out until it’s safer to get back down okay?’ waverly quickly grew warm at the thought of sharing a tent with the officer, and realising she hadn’t yet responded gave a quick nod of her head when her voice betrayed her

after radioing nedley back at the station to let him know she’d found waverley and that they were going to wait out the storm, nicole quickly went about securely setting up the tent. the younger brunette could only sit and watch in awe, and her mouth was getting a little too dry

just as nicole had gotten waverly and everything else inside, the rain started to come down hard. ‘i think it’d be a good idea to try and get some sleep, you must be exhausted. i only had room in my backpack for one sleeping bag, but it is a double so there’s plenty of room for the both of us, if you’re okay with sharing?’ the red head said nervously. ‘i’d be really grateful. thank you nicole, for coming to find me’ waverly said so queitly that the deputy almost missed it.

nicole gently helped waverly into the sleeping bag before sliding in next to her, trying to give the smaller girl enough room in the already small space. she stared at the top of the tent, realising that every inch of her was very aware of how close she was to the girl of her dreams. suddenly, she felt waverly shiver and snuggle into her side and asking ‘is this okay? i’m just really cold’. nicole replied wrapping her arms around her, ‘more than okay waves’.

just as she thought waverly had fallen asleep, she heard a quiet voice ‘i’m really glad you found me. i was worried i’d never get to see you again’ nicole’s heart started to race, and she gently lifted waverly’s chin to look into her eyes. ‘i’m glad i found you too, i don’t know what i’d have done if i lost you’ the deputy whispered. feeling a sudden sliver of courage, waverly raised her head slightly to capture nicole’s lips in a gentle, lingering kiss. she then lowered her head onto nicole’s chest and quickly fell asleep.

nicole still felt wonderstruck by the feeling of waverly’s lips on her own. she couldn’t believe that the younger girl had kissed her, and she couldn’t wait to (hopefully) do it again. but that would have to wait. she closed her eyes and tightened her grip around waverly, content just to hold and protect her until the end of the storm. as she also finally drifted off, she knew that she wanted to hold and protect waverly for as long as she’d have her

fanfiction trope MASH-UP

[please-say-nine]

I got you mom! How about one where it’s not Wynonna that embarrasses Alice in public but instead it’s the aunts. (Cuz let’s face it even Wynonna is embarrassed when they get all cute in public)

god I’m emotional over wayhaught as aunts ok

-idk why they’re going out. grocery shopping. who knows

-wait no. prom dress shopping. that’s the one. 

-and wynonna’s happy to just let Alice do her thing and get whatever she felt best in and of course waverly and Nicole feel the same

-but they’re also like YES TIME TO SHOWER OUR BELOVED NIECE IN ATTENTION. 

-so every time Alice would be trying on a dress and a cute boy/girl/person would walk by, one of them would inevitably wink and be like she’s single

-and Alice kept being like omg no please no more

-Alice you know we don’t have our own kid to embarrass in public. this honor falls on you instead

-or they kept asking people what they thought of Alice in the prom dress she was wearing and Alice would get all shy and bury her head in her hands

-meanwhile wynonna’s in the corner eating a soft pretzel 

[easemymindgirl]

Waverly: You would do that for me?

Nicole: I would do a lot of things to you

Waverly: You mean "for" me?

Nicole: ...yeah that too

[girl4music]

Watching ‘Wynonna Earp’ all over again because I love it that much. And I want to learn more about the story.

First impressions on a second watch on the first episode that I never picked up on my first watch:

Clock turned 12, Wynonna turned 27 and became the Earp Heir. That’s how she was able to defeat the Revenant without Wyatt’s magic gun - peacemaker. Because it’s not about the gun, it’s about the Heir and the supernatural abilities they hereditarily acquire. In ‘BtVS’, Buffy doesn’t even get a special weapon until almost the end of the show. It’s not really necessary. It’s just a cool tool to have in their arsenal anyway.

Champ came on to Wynonna even though he was dating Waverly. What a fuck boy. Wynonna led him on to get information out of him about what happened to her uncle, which was the only reason she was in town. I’m used to female protagonists using their feminine wiles to get their way. Xena and Buffy did that too. Anyway, Waverly comes barging in with a shotgun to save Champ from the skank she thinks is trying to seduce him and her dialogue cracked me the fuck up:

WYNONNA: “You’re in this with me now, ‘Champ’. And no-one else is gonna save you.”

WAVERLY: “Oh! Except his girlfriend, you skank! Why don’t you slip into something more comfy, huh? Like a coma!”

What a great way to bring this character in. Loud and proud. Brash and crash. That’s absolutely Waverly! She loses a lot of that as the show continues. Her self-confidence and self-assertiveness diminishes bit by bit when she finds out that’s she’s not an Earp. And so her Earp-like behaviour sort of just fades out as the episodes go by. But of course, it was never her being an Earp why her behaviour was like that. It was her mom. As her dad said, the best parts of Waverly came from her mother. As fucked up as that woman was - she was a survivor because she was resilient and determined to do what she believed she needed to do. And they’re all behavioural traits and characteristics of Waverly. She is her mother’s daughter, absolutely! So all of that so-called “Earp behaviour”, for her, actually had nothing to do with being an Earp at all. And I also believe that if Wynonna looked inside herself a little more she’d also realize the very same. Hereditary supernatural abilities aside, much of her behaviour and personality isn’t because she’s an Earp and certainly isn’t because she takes after Ward or Wyatt in the gene pool. That’s Willa. It’s not Wynonna.

A few scenes later when Waverly realizes it’s Wynonna:

WAVERLY: “What are you doing in town? I mean, besides my boyfriend?”

WYNONNA: “I wasn’t gonna ‘do’ anyone, least of all, that man-child. I’m trying to find out what happened to Curtis. Oh, and you can do better.”

WAVERLY: “Well, small town, limited dating options.”

WYNONNA: “Yeah, I remember.”

I like the foreshadowing here to the next episode when she meets Nicole and feels attracted to her. It’s like: Yeah, limited dating options unless you go bi babe. That’s the great thing about being bisexual. You have a much wider scope for love and romance than others.

Also I love how much Wynonna does not approve of Champ but approves of Nicole once she knows she’s dating Waverly. She just brushes off the fact that Nicole is a girl and is like “Much better, baby girl.”

Andras always made sure to put as much positive focus on WayHaught as possible with the way the people surrounding them reacted to their relationship. Initially surprised, which is expected. But immediately supportive, which isn’t always how it goes down. But it reminds me of Willow’s coming out scene to Buffy. How Buffy is taken aback by it but is then supportive. Some may say “that’s not realistic” that that would happen - at least not straight away. But who cares?

I don’t want to see blatant homophobia on my TV.

Anyway, since this watch is more about learning the lore of the Earp Heir and focusing more on Wynonna I’m gonna try and keep WayHaught talk to a minimum. That’s going to be a challenge and a half. Of course I could just not cover it. Even more challenge because I am freaking obsessed with this show now. It’s shorter than what I’m used to but it’s still a significantly decent sized show that ends properly. No cancelled and left on a cliffhanger bullshit. I hate that. I know they tried to do that with it but the fans went damn hard to bring it back. You know, as fans, we really shouldn’t have to put in that kind of effort just to have something we watch continue. The industry is backwards. It takes what works and is successful away and lets something that’s done to death and completely decomposed creatively go on and on and on and on. I mean Riverdale got 7 fucking seasons and you could tell by the 4th season that they had nothing left and they were just pulling episodes out of their ass for the sake of just milking that shit for all that it was worth. They never let an actual good show go on for that long because they can’t control the narrative. The fans do instead. And there was so much fan service in that last season of ‘Wynonna Earp’ that you couldn’t not be proud of it. Fan service is much better than network service but I would still rather have it be the creator’s vision predominantly because the storytelling is the most important and if you go trying to please people that’s when things go wrong and the storytelling suffers. There was a few things in that last season that was clearly contrived and biased but it was still conclusive. It was still a proper ending. You rarely get that now. You’re lucky if the show lasts long enough to get that because the TV network/streaming service couldn’t give a toss these days. Cancellation benefits them because they can just write it off, redact contracts and move on to something else that they’ll do the very same with unless it’s fully in their creative control what it is. And it’s almost always a soulless, heartless, AI-made pile of piss what they’d rather have you watch instead.

Nah, the really good shows are all done. They become cult classics and a timeless, nostalgic revisiting show which just all the more proves how fucking good they are. But because of the way the art/entertainment industry is now - even decent shows don’t have half a a chance to become good or even great shows with compelling storytelling and memorable characters. There’s plenty of room for it. They just don’t care because as I said,… There’s more financial profit in throwing everything at the wall for consumption and then just dumping it when it gets eaten up. It’s like attempts to discover and fund cancer cures. There’s more financial profit in letting the bitch kill people and pretend as if there’s no way to prevent that when that’s not true. That’s probably a bad and insensitive analogy to use, but fuck it, I feel that way so why the fuck not? I just don’t bother with the “new” and “fresh” because I know exactly what will happen. Some say that’s counterproductive but I say that it’s counterproductive to put your time, money and faith in something produced and distributed by the very same fucktards that axed the last thing you loved watching. I’d much rather put my efforts into supporting something that might be done but has a community that is in solidarity with my beliefs and existence. That makes sense to me and seems smart.

You know because we’ll never get the cure otherwise.

[earpdearp]

not just a sister

Wherein Waverly (with help from Wynonna) chases down a missing Willa. On top of being super frickin’ exhausted and processing a lot of complicated frickin’ emotions, Waverly gets shot when the Homestead is attacked. And has to tell an already-worried Nicole about it. 

Takes place in 1x11. Utilizes Road to Purgatory content for flavor. 

Trigger warning for abuse mentions of Waverly’s history with Willa/Ward. Also describes Waverly dealing with getting shot. Also on AO3. Approximately 7,847 words.

Other WayHaught “not just friends” fics in this series: not just any first date | not just a secret | not just heavenly | not just a long day | not just best friends

“Oh balls oh balls oh balls oh balls oh balls oh balls oh—“

Waverly had been muttering the same phrase under her breath for the past three hours. First while freezing cold running around the Homestead, then freezing cold driving around the Homestead.

It was an ungodly hour of the night and Waverly’s nerves were shot. She was perpetually hovering on the verge of tears/panic, but couldn’t bear the thought of returning to the Homestead even to check her phone. She didn’t want to have to face telling anyone the truth.

She had lost Willa.

Their big sister, back from the dead. A brainwashed cult victim struggling to remember who she was… and Waverly had driven her away.

It had been an accident. An awkward conversation gone awry.

Her intentions had been good. Waverly gritted her teeth and tried to do what Nicole had suggested.

“Try talking to Willa. Get to know her, maybe? Or at least let her know you?”

So Waverly had brought out her memory box… well, one of them. She had one for Momma, one for Daddy and one for Willa (Momma’s was the smallest). Pictures, newspaper clippings, ribbons and some toys of Willa’s. It had also once held Willa’s necklace: a green crescent moon on a gold chain. …But that was in the hands of Bobo Del Rey now.

They had sat together on Willa’s bed and gone through some of them, mostly the pictures. Willa had been oddly fascinated with the copy of her death certificate and asked about her own funeral. Waverly offered up the program as well, a small folded paper with a faded picture of a 13-year-old girl on the front.

Those funerals were one of Waverly’s few vivid, early memories. She had hoped the story would make Willa happy(? In a way?), though it hadn’t turned out that way.

“I saw the little white coffin but I knew you weren’t actually in there,” Waverly had said, the memory almost foreign in her mind. It had been surreal for a six-year-old, like someone was playing a game she didn’t understand. “They’d filled it with sandbags.”

“Was it a nice service?” Willa seemed genuinely curious, her face soft.

“All I remember was…” Waverly paused to reflect. Aunt Gus came to mind, as did Uncle Curtis, their faces contorted in despair as they held each other. “…a lot of crying.”

Something else came to mind, which made a sad smile pull Waverly’s cheek. “And the food. The grown-ups let me eat as maaany marshmallows as I wanted.” Ugh. “…I threw up all night long.”

A sad sigh was heavy in Waverly’s chest. She’d tried to dull the pain that day with marshmallows and it had gone terribly.

Willa’s voice pulled Waverly out of her thoughts, soft and scathing and cold. “Gee. That must have been so hard for you.”

The rebuke awoke a fluttering in Waverly’s chest, dormant for so many years. An anxiety that had been sitting just under the surface since last night. She felt an immediate need to please, to undo it, to make Willa just understand that was not what she’d meant. Waverly’s shoulders tensed and a breath caught in her throat.

“…I’m sorry, it’s just… it’s really intense. You guys killed me,” Willa intoned almost emotionlessly, like she didn’t really mean it. She tilted her head at Waverly. “What did you bury in Daddy’s coffin?”

Waverly had inhaled deeply before answering. “…Daddy.” A pair of tears sitting just on top of her eyes threatened to spill over.

There was a pause as Willa closed her eyes, her expression briefly tortured. She started to sway forward on the bed, a breath catching in her throat.

As Waverly asked if Willa remembered something, Willa had reached out to steady herself on Waverly’s shoulder. Except that fluttering anxiety made Waverly pull away, those tears trickling down her cheek. She flinched at Willa’s touch… and Willa had definitely noticed.

“Are you scared of me?” The woman’s face contorted amid a mixture of emotions. First confusion, then a cold sneer, then begrudging acceptance. With that, Willa pushed off the bed and took off down the hall.

Still sitting, Waverly was too stunned to move. She mentally kicked herself for her lack of reaction… mostly because the answer was “Yes.”

“Yes, Willa. I’m scared of you. I’ve always been scared of you.”

How could she say that? That was worse than saying nothing.

The slam of the front door roused Waverly from her brief brooding.

She couldn’t have—did Willa just—?

“Oh balls!”

She couldn’t take it back, so all she could do was make it right. Waverly finally gave chase, but the front porch light was too dim. She couldn’t tell what direction the woman had gone. A pair of snowy tracks led straight out from the Homestead, but beyond that?

Oh balls.

For the next couple of hours, Waverly had hit every single hiding spot on the Homestead and surrounding land five times, calling Willa’s name the whole time. The barn, the pond, the pet cemetery, the wood shed, the grove, the border fence, the fallow field on the other side… not a sign of Willa.

Not that Waverly was much of a tracker in the first place.

God, I wish Doc were still here.

He’s probably halfway to Alaska by now. …the big dummy.

It was close to four in the morning by the time Waverly finally went home. The nap at Nicole’s earlier was the only reason Waverly wasn’t dead on her feet. She was both angry and relieved to find Wynonna still wasn’t back yet, though it didn’t change the ugly, gnawing feeling in her stomach.

She was dismayed to find her phone was dead, but Waverly was too tired and upset to deal with it. After throwing it on the charger, she collapsed face-first onto her bed and fell asleep immediately.

Waverly awoke a few hours later to Wynonna pulling on her ankle and hissing in her ear. “Hey! Hey Waverly! What the shit? Where’s Willa?”

Oh shitballs.

Groaning into her pillow, Waverly told Wynonna the whole story. Her sister took it surprisingly well. All Wynonna did was tilt her head back, swear at the ceiling, sigh loudly, then yank Waverly’s ankle again.

“I’ll make coffee. You get your ass in the shower. Then we go find her. …Also, you’re buying donuts.”

Oh God, Waverly was so tired. She toweled off her hair with her eyes closed, her eyelids impossibly heavy and grainy after such a long, stressful night.

The past week—two weeks—month?—had felt like an eternity. There was just this exhausted twinge in her shoulders and back, and every yawn reverberated through Waverly’s jaw and into her chest. A dry, stinging pain had taken up residence in her eyes and a dull headache sat at her temples.

The only saving grace to the nonstop Revenant shit-show (and now Willa shit-show) had been her brief reprieves spent with Nicole.

…Oh shit! Nicole!

Reaching for the phone on the nightstand (glowing with 100% battery life again), Waverly counted six missed calls and four missed texts.

[Waverly says: “She tried to touch me and I accidentally flinched. She freaked out and ran”]

[Nicole says: “I’m so sorry, Waverly”] (Read: 11:17 PM)

[Nicole says: “Are you doing okay? Did you make up with Willa?”] (12:09 AM)

[Nicole says: “I’m still at the Poker Spectacular, but I could come by after?”] (1:42 AM)

[Nicole says: “Did you find her? Call me when you get a chance”] (2:26 AM)

[Nicole says: “Hey Wave, just seeing how you’re doing? I’ll catch you in the morning?”] (3:14 AM)

A couple of voicemails echoed these thoughts, mostly Nicole’s uncertainty if Waverly wanted her to come by to help or not. And that she was keeping her phone close by in case Waverly needed her.

She’s just the best, Waverly sighed before tapping out a response. She desperately wanted to call, but not with Wynonna listening in.

[Waverly says: “Oh God, I lost Willa”]

[Waverly says: “And I’m so sorry!!!  my phone died and i was out all night looking and”]

[Waverly says: “Wynonna’s back and we’re gonna go look now”]

[Waverly says: “I’m so so sorry if i worried you!”]

[Waverly says: “I hope you had a good night at the poker thing!”]

[Waverly says: “I can’t talk right now but I’ll call you later! Promise!! And you can tell me about the Poker Sspectacular”]

She sent a kiss emoji for good measure in the hopes it would seem reassuring.

A “…” appeared almost immediately. Her phone vibrated with Nicole’s responses.

[Nicole says: “Okay. I’m off today so let me know if there’s anything I can do to help”]

[Nicole says: “I’m here for you, Waves. Whatever you need”]

A pair of hearts followed that final text, which Waverly repeated back.

Just the best.

Wynonna and Waverly parked at one end of the short Purgatory downtown and made a plan to divide and conquer. Wynonna took one side of the street, Waverly the other. They’d meet at the next block. Keep phones close. Go Team Earp.

A quick circuit of the grocery store was Waverly’s first target, though it was made unnecessarily long because of all the Purgatorians wanting to stop and chat. Mostly to ask how she was doing and how much they missed her face behind the counter at Shorty’s.

“Oh, uh, yea. New management and all. And I was thinking about—um—applying to grad school,” Waverly had deflected as her eyes skimmed the aisles.

A chorus of “Good for you, Waverly”s mixed with “Oh, you’re not leaving, are you”s were muttered along with well-wishes.

One older woman even expressed her condolences that Gus was leaving in the form of an odd platitude: “God doesn’t give us more than we can handle, but sometimes He is telling us to find a new place to handle it.” Waverly wasn’t sure if she was supposed to agree or be grateful for that sentiment, and instead opted to give Mrs. Brimley what she hoped was a thoughtful smile.

It all might have been touching if Waverly didn’t have a missing sister to find. She escaped the grocery store and exchanged a head shake with Wynonna who had just exited the liquor store across the street (a distinct brown bag tucked into a jacket pocket).

God Damn it, Wynonna. At a time like this?

…what better time to start drinking, actually? Maybe I should pick something up.

I’d probably fall asleep.

The older Earp nodded her head at the diner while Waverly gestured towards the pawn shop next door.

Oh God… the pawn shop.

The shop was just as cramped as it always was. Flickering fluorescent lighting, an odd leather and mildew smell, all crowded together in cramped aisles with poorly organized shelves.

If you knew where to look, there was still some evidence the pawn shop had been the site of a hostage stand-off only a few months ago. A hole in the wall a trio of Revenants had torn through was haphazardly patched with cinder blocks and a shelf stacked with trucker hats.

A dark stain on the floor still lingered near a center aisle… Shorty’s blood.

Sighing, Waverly quickly glanced down the remaining five short rows. Only a pair of patrons were in the pawn shop, neither of them a young (probably angry) woman. Those two older men were haggling over a pair of antique shotguns with the grizzled owner and paid her no mind.

Waverly didn’t want to linger here any longer than she had to. That anxious feeling in her chest was starting to fray around the edges from stress/exhaustion. She just felt so tired. Before she had just been tired of the Earp Curse, but now it was a different kind of tired. She was tired of saying and doing the wrong thing.  

Losing Willa had been bad enough, but finding Willa again? That inevitability almost felt worse (and made Waverly feel terrible about feeling that way, creating a cycle of guilt). And now, piled on top of all that, was a pang of longing for how much Waverly missed Shorty. How much she missed her old life before Shorty had died, before Gus was leaving, before Willa had come back.

What about before Wynonna came back? …no. I wouldn’t trade her for anything.

Before Nicole? …definitely not. Nicole is my best—well, she’s the best.

Waverly had a vague memory of being in this shop as a child with her father and sisters. She remembered Willa begging Daddy for a guitar she’d seen in the window. 12-year-old Willa wanted to learn to play while Daddy disagreed because she needed to focus. Wynonna had been fascinated by a wall of various military knives (just what every 10-year-old girl needed).

A 5-year-old Waverly had spent the entire visit with her face pressed against the jewelry case. She loved jewelry (still did, as evidenced by her large collection of earrings, necklaces and bangle bracelets). Little Waverly had wanted a pretty ring like Momma or a pretty necklace like Willa. She didn’t get one that day. Instead, Willa got a new switchblade.

…Willa… Willa’s necklace…

Ugh. Stupid Bobo.

Waverly had the faintest of hopes that maybe—maybe—Bobo had hocked the small crescent moon at the pawn shop. She made her way over to the glass case opposite the gun racks. But a quick skim of the low shelves revealed no familiar gold chain or green medallion.

Which means he’s keeping it as a trophy. Gross.

She almost slammed a fist against the glass counter but stopped herself (and pounded the top of her fist on her thigh instead). Yet another thing that wasn’t going right.

Turning on her heel, a different display caught Waverly’s eye. Not the necklaces, but the trays of rings. There, in a recessed box, were a pair of matching gold rings with tiny green jewels at their centers.

The elderly pawn dealer, finished with the two men, smiled at Waverly. He called over to her as he slid along the opposite side of the counter. “Find somethin’ you like, darlin’?”

She checked her watch. Surely Waverly could spare a minute. Willa had been gone all damn night, after all.

And Wynonna had stopped for booze.

Gesturing to the two rings, Waverly asked to see. Something about them spoke to her. They were simple, lovely, sweet.

The man, Ernest, pulled on a pair of half-moon spectacles hanging from a black cord on his neck. Blinking, he pulled out the box and examined the rings. He recalled a Navajo artist who used to come to the Ghost River Triangle and sell her jewelry at the county fairs. A small hand-inscribed card indicated these were “Lucky Stones” that could “bring peace and balance.” To exchange rings of green jade was to “heal the wearer and purify your energy field with loving acceptance.”

Ernie winked at Waverly as he slipped his glasses off. “I don’t know about all that, but they are fourteen carat gold.” He quoted her a price.

Before she even knew what she was doing, Waverly had pulled out a credit card. Even Ernest seemed taken aback, but he accepted her card and hustled over to the register. “Got someone in mind for one of these?”

“I think I do,” Waverly smiled back.

Waverly tucked the small box into a pocket of her brown quilted coat and quickly headed back outside. 

Waiting at the intersection was a still-scowling Wynonna, hand slipping an opened bottle back into her puffy black jacket. Waverly met Wynonna in front of a florist and they walked down the street together, eyes peeled for Willa.

Wynonna kicked at the ground with her boots, frustration raw in her voice. “What were you thinking, showing Willa her own scrapbook of death??”

Waverly balked at the accusation. “Wha—She was curious! Wouldn’t you be curious?”

“Well, it freaked her out!” Wynonna snapped back, eyebrows arching.

All Waverly could do was sheepishly mumble. “…yea, more like pissed her off.” She scanned the few people out and about down the street. Still no Willa.

“I wish Doc were here.”

When Waverly shot her a glare, Wynonna begrudgingly clarified. “He bailed on me… on us. …But he’s a hell of a tracker.”

“Yea, good point,” Waverly admitted. She felt that pang of frustration again. “How are we gonna find a girl we know nothing about?”

Waverly had spent most of the night trying to find the sister she thought she knew, but that was her first mistake: this wasn’t their Willa.

Glancing over at her sister, Waverly was confused when she saw Wynonna looking past her. A turn of Waverly’s head revealed a large yellow flier taped to the lamppost. It was an advertisement for half priced drinks at Shorty’s-slash-Bobo’s.

Ugh.

Wynonna growled with disdain. “What is that musk-ox playing at?” Her eyes suddenly lit up with realization. “Hey! …you think?”

It took Waverly another second to figure out what Wynonna was getting at.

“She is an Earp,” Waverly agreed with a nod.

Eyes widening in almost-panic, Wynonna smiled slightly. “Bet she drinks ‘em dry in 20 minutes.”

Waverly sighed loudly. “Come on.”

Willa was indeed hiding out at Shorty’s/Bobo’s trying out various beers and liquors. Waverly had been apprehensive about confronting her sister again, but this time Wynonna patted her arm and stepped up. Instead, Waverly had run back to get her Jeep to take them home.

She relished the excused to retreat, honestly. There was something about Willa that reminded Waverly of Daddy (and not just because of the cold, coiled way she drank, like she was half-asleep but could fly into a rage at any moment). 

That last thing Waverly had heard over her shoulder before exiting the bar was a glass slamming down.

“You shouldn’t be here,” Wynonna had said in a hushed voice.

And again that cold, accusing voice of Willa’s. “And you shouldn’t have shot our daddy.”

A shudder crawled down Waverly’s spine as she jogged down the block to her car. It was the same feeling from last night, a sense of smallness in Willa’s cold presence. Wrapped in that smallness was that familiar, irrational desire to please, to make Willa understand what was going on.

Hopefully Wynonna would have better luck than Waverly did.

Climbing into her Jeep, Waverly slammed the door and savored the quiet for a moment. Unfortunately, along with that peace crept in the exhaustion she’d been keeping at bay with coffee and a prayer. She took a few deep breaths and shook it out of her shoulders before turning the ignition and cruising over to the alley behind Shorty’s.

Waverly idled there and lolled her head against the head rest for a minute before pulling out her phone. Her thumbs tapped out a quick message.

[Waverly says: “Found Willa drinking at Bobo’s. Waiting on Wynonna to pick her up now”]

Closing her eyes, Waverly rested her forehead against the cool steering wheel and let the heat warm her toes. A text message chime brought her head back up.

[Nicole says: “That should surprise me but it doesn’t”]

Waverly snickered and gave an assenting nod to herself.

[Waverly says: “That’s fair”]

[Waverly says: “Remember the days when we could go 5 mins without drama?”]

[Nicole says: “No drama? In what Purgatory do you live in? Mine is chock full of drama :P”]

[Waverly says: “Lol true enough”]

[Waverly says: “I miss you. Having a good day?”]

[Nicole says: “Miss you too. And it’s been good. Pretty quiet”]

[Waverly says: “How’s my little foot warmer?”]

A long pause. This time, a SnapChat pinged back with a picture of Calamity Jane curled up on Waverly’s blanket draped over the couch. The text caption read “I can’t tell if she misses you or just really likes your blanket.”

[Waverly says: “Aww!! Obvs she misses ME”]

[Nicole says: “Lol totes obvs”]

The sound of glass shattering roused Waverly from her blissful few minutes talking to Nicole.

Oh God… Wynonna.

Or Willa.

Leaving her Jeep idling with steam clouding around the tailpipe, Waverly threw open the car door and headed in through the side entrance. She was just in time to see a Revenant screaming in agony as he was dragged down to hell in flames.

Yes!

…No! Wait! Bad! That’s bad!

Glancing over, it was Willa staring down the end of Peacemaker in her hand.

Oh God. It is true. She’s the real Earp Heir.

The bar was descending into chaos (though over the gunshot or the Revenant-sent-back-to-hell, it was hard to tell which). Stools were kicked away as bikers backed off, some with glowing red eyes. Waverly shouted at her sister and waved them over to the back entrance. “Wynonna!!”

Wynonna gave a nod before she started arguing with Willa. Waverly didn’t stay to watch, she just ran at full speed back to her Jeep and maneuvered it as close to that door as possible. Her heart was pounding in fear, her fingers drumming on the steering wheel.

Oh balls oh balls oh balls oh balls oh balls oh balls oh—What if something happened? What if a Revenant comes out that door? What if Bobo comes out that door? What if Wynonna got hurt? Or Willa? Or a regular person? What if they lose Peacemaker in the confusion? What if—

The side door flew open to reveal: Wynonna! With Willa right behind her!

Oh thank God.

Waverly waved them into her car, keeping her eyes peeled in case any Revenants followed.

“That was amazing!” Willa exclaimed breathlessly as she crawled into the backseat.

Jumping into the passenger seat, Wynonna shouted in agreement before shooting Waverly an uncertain look. “…Dolls is gonna kill us!”

The drive back was awkward. Waverly was quietly miserable the entire time, her eyes on the road. Wynonna and Willa were only talking to each other, gushing over what a rush that fight was. Wynonna was also listing off some of the Revenants she’d killed since returning to Purgatory.

It was just—Waverly didn’t know what to say. She felt like she should apologize to Willa, but just not why. Plus, it felt like it would ruin the banter Willa and Wynonna were sharing—like it would bring down the moment or something.

Ugh.

What Waverly really wanted to do was have a damn second to herself to call Nicole. She found herself needing to hear a friendly voice.

Finally arriving back at the Homestead, Waverly saw Dolls’ black SUV parked in the long driveway. Oddly, she was relieved by the thought of his presence (in spite how pissed he’d probably be about shooting Revenants in broad daylight at Shorty’s/Bobo’s). Maybe he would know what to do about Willa? Or at least yell some sense into her? Maybe?

The stern military operative greeted them at the door, though Waverly slunk past while mumbling about putting on a kettle for tea.

Safe in the kitchen, away from everyone, Waverly allowed herself a deep breath. That was about all the time it took before the shouting started (instigated by Willa). Busying herself with dragging the metal pot from under the cabinet and filling it with tap water, Waverly could only sigh.

Willa was doing an impressive impersonation of Daddy as she admonished Dolls about the Earp Curse. How he wasn’t one of us. Dolls growled back about civilians. Waverly dug around in the pantry to look for tea while Will and Dolls screamed about nukes and instincts.

The sound of a chair being kicked and a door slamming made Waverly flinch.

This whole day had been doing a bang-up job reproducing memories of Waverly’s childhood she’d tried really hard to forget. Right down to Wynonna running away from everything. Oh God, how Waverly wanted to go with Wynonna this time. But, like when they were kids, it was Willa who took command while Waverly hid away.

“I’m her sister. I got it,” Willa said as she brushed Dolls aside and headed outside. To the barn, probably. It was the only real place to go at the Homestead for privacy (hence why Waverly had claimed a Spot at the Reservoir as far from home as possible).

That constant, exhausted shiver in Waverly’s shoulders was accompanied by a hollow ache in her chest. Just an overwhelming sense of feeling out of place… that she didn’t belong here.

Grasping for her phone, Waverly craved some human contact. But Dolls was right there, damn it. Can’t she get some frickin’ peace and quiet in her own frickin’ house? She settled for yet another text.

[Waverly says: “Sooo they kind of started a bar fight”]

[Nicole says: “Are you okay??”]

[Waverly says: “Oh I’m fine, I was outside. Wy and Willa probably kicked some ass tho”]

[Nicole says: “You Earps, I swear to god ;)”]

…Us Earps, indeed…

That’s right. I’m a frickin’ Earp and Wynonna is my frickin’ sister, too.

Inhaling a deep breath, Waverly squared her shoulders and pulled the whistling kettle off the stove. She strode past Dolls lurking in the living room to the front door and pulled it open.

The afternoon chill on the Homestead was biting, even with the sun so high. The surrounding snow was piled deep and in no immediate hurry to melt. Two pairs of footprints angled away from the sets around the porch and led to a large barn looming nearby.

Waverly would talk to Wynonna, too. She had been there for her sister the past few months, dealing with all the Earp Curse shit together. They would get through it. Together.

Except… not together.

Waverly had slipped into that barn to the sound of laughter. Willa and Wynonna, sharing a memory.

“We were two peas, you and I,” Willa said. “It’s always been you and I.”

No, not always. What about me?

Eyes glassy with tears, Wynonna cheek twitched fondly. “Yeah. I remember.”

Leaning in, Willa’s smile was warm with promise. “It can be like it always was. And different, too. In all the right ways. You’re not alone anymore.”

“Anymore.”

“Anymore??”

Say something, Wynonna. You weren’t alone. You had me. For 15 years we’ve had each other.

Remember?

Say something.

Say something!!

But she didn’t. Wynonna just sighed and let Willa—Willa—hug her. Comfort her.

This time when Waverly took a deep breath, she didn’t feel better. She felt empty. Alone.

Slipping back out the barn, a cold breeze stung Waverly’s eyes (and lungs with each shallow breath). It was her turn to want to run as far away as possible. A few (dozen) drinks at Shorty’s—Bobo’s—sounded really good right now. Too bad someone had started a bar fight and killed a frickin’ Revenant in broad daylight.

It was just like being a little kid again. Willa and Wynonna together always with no room for Waverly. That was always clear. She wasn’t wanted.

What if—what if they didn’t need her anymore? To help break the curse? She was third in line to be Heir (again). What did she have to offer?

Willa had Daddy’s training. Wynonna had been around the world and killed a bunch of Revenants already. And Waverly? They had her research. Her contribution was pinned to a board or piled into neat stacks at the BBD office. She might as well not even be there.

Waverly returned to the kitchen and made tea in bitter silence. She brought an additional cup over to Dolls, who was zoned out at the kitchen table staring at his cell phone.

“You’re quiet,” Waverly remarked, retreating to her old standby: polite small talk.

The Deputy Marshall actually smiled back as his fingers spun the teacup on the round table. “Yea, I’m just thinking. There’s a lot going on right now that just doesn’t add up.”

I couldn’t agree more.

Dolls scratched at the close-cropped hair on the top of his head. “Like, if Cryderman is dirty: that means someone is feeding him some BBD intel.”

“Someone we know? Or someone you work for?” Waverly asked.

The significance of the conversation wasn’t lost on her: if he suspected her, he wouldn’t be telling her. That meant Dolls trusted Waverly.

At least—at least someone does.

“I don’t know. Black Badge isn’t just a—a job for me,” Dolls admitted with a sheepish grin.

A bitter sigh of a laugh caught in Waverly’s throat. “Yea, no kidding.” She smiled at Dolls what she hoped was encouragement. “I get it. Feeling like you’re about to lose something…”

…Or everything…

The man adjusted in his chair and leaned forward, elbows on the table. His voice softened to an almost-whisper. “It’s okay if you don’t like her, you know.”

That struck a defensive chord. But this time, Waverly could actually try to explain to someone else who might listen. “I’m happy she’s back. I really am. It’s just—I never really knew her, y’know? …still don’t.”

Dolls peered at her with intensity. He promised, “We’ll get to the bottom of it, alright?”

“We.”

Right.

What “we?” Two Earp Heirs, a Deputy Marshall, and the little sister no one remembers exists?

Right.

Deflecting, Waverly smiled politely and took a sip of her tea. “Yea, I’m sure you will.”

“All of us,” Dolls corrected, his dark eyes holding hers significantly. He nodded his head slowly. “You’re good at what you do.” Smiling, he then shook his head. “Doesn’t matter how many Willas come back. Doesn’t.” His hand slapped the table as he leaned back in his chair. “We’re still gonna need you, Earp.”

…Earp…

“You called me Earp,” Waverly echoed, her cheeks suddenly hurting from a pleased smile.

The sullen man brushed it off with a grin. “Yea, I did. Don’t let it go to your head.” But there was a twinkle in Dolls’ eye. He sobered before asking, “…There’s only three of you, right?”

Waverly laughed for real this time. The first time all day.

And then everything went batshit insane. The next few minutes were a total blur of noise, acrid smoke, and pumping adrenaline.

Broken windows, smoke bombs(!), popping gunfire, Dolls shouting orders, and then just crawling. Waverly squealed out blasphemies and curses as she crawled through the Homestead, lamps shattering and wood splintering all around and above her.

She remembered grabbing her shotgun from the kitchen table, the popping still echoing around her. There was a feeling of resentment at Dolls wanting her to hide in the basement while she clutched her shotgun. Bowls, apples, the teacups, everything was just exploding into bits around her as she hid behind the kitchen cabinets and waited for an opening.

That resentment boiled over into white-hot rage. This whole day—week—month—had just been too God Damn much and Waverly was God Damn sick and tired of it. If it wasn’t Revenants, it was witches or zombies or a long-lost sister and now assholes with guns and—you know what?!

“Eat shit, shit-eaters!” Waverly shouted as she unloaded her Winchester into the nearest Asshole in snow camo wielding an assault rifle. But the man, hunkered behind a woodpile, recovered and aimed back at her.

Waverly’s rage was immediately replaced by agony as she landed hard on her knees. Her whole right side radiated with a sharp pain that made it hard to breathe. Clutching her side, Waverly’s fingertips came back crimson with blood. She managed to stand and tried to walk over to the dining room as she heard her sisters’ voices at the front door, alive and angry.

Nope. Nope. She couldn’t do it. Waverly took a few steps forward, trying to hold the pain in. But it was too much. “Uh, guys? I think I got a little bit shot.” And with that, Waverly collapsed to the floor.

Willa’s angry shouting was hard to make out in the background. But Wynonna’s worried face swam in Waverly’s vision, calling her name and telling her it was going to be okay.

Oh God oh God oh God it hurts it hurts it hurts

“It’s just a graze,” Dolls informed her as he pulled back part of her sweater caked in blood. His probing fingertips made her hiss in pain.

“’Just??’” Waverly quipped back, her breathing getting shallow as she struggled not to hyperventilate.

Wynonna’s head snapped up at the front door slamming. “Shit! Willa!” The panic in Wynonna’s face made Waverly grip her sister’s wrist.

God damn it.

“Go,” Waverly said with a shaky nod. “We can’t lose her again.” She shouted “Go!” again and pushed Wynonna away.

A pattering of gunfire sprang Wynonna into action. She slapped Dolls on the shoulder and said softly, “Take care of her.”

Then everything swam for a bit.

Oh God, how it hurt.

Dolls was there, whispering reassurances. There was a hard pressure against her ribs that just pushed all the pain inward. She remembered muttering “Oh God” a lot and whimpering. All Waverly could do was whimper. There was so much blood and her head hurt along with her side. It was just dizzy, aching misery that seemed to last forever.

Waverly was just so so tired. She probably would have passed out already if the pain hadn’t been so sharp and reverberated all the way into her teeth.

She remembered asking Dolls if she should go to the hospital. “For stitches? Or something?”

“Hospitals are gonna ask a lot of questions,” Dolls reminded her as he helped her into a chair at their now-splintered kitchen table. Pock marks of bullet holes covered the wooden surface. Packing the wound with gauze and taping over it, Dolls said, “You’re gonna be okay. Keep pressure on it and the wrap clean and it’ll be okay.”

A second later, his phone rang. Wynonna. Both sisters were safe and so was the Homestead.

Crouching on the floor next to Waverly, Dolls examined the wound before nodding, satisfied with his triage. He then slung an arm under her shoulders to get her to a comfortable position on the couch. “Get some rest, then I’ll go check the perimeter.”

His hand covering her wrist, Dolls smiled. “You did good, Earp.”

After the door slammed shut behind him, Waverly was struck with how oddly quiet the Homestead was. For the first time since early this morning (minus her screaming “Willa!!” every 10 seconds or so), the Homestead was still.

Waverly didn’t want to be alone or “get some rest.” She felt around in her pockets, a section of her pants already stiff from dried blood. But she found her cell phone, undamaged from the attack.

An unread text from Nicole sat on the screen.

[Nicole says: “Hope you and your sisters are getting along okay”]

Oh God. Nicole.

Waverly glanced down her herself, her white sweater tattered and spackled with blood. Even worse was the rest of the living room. Windows shattered, bullet holes riddled in every surface, tufts of fluff wafted in the air from the couch and chairs. The living room and kitchen were both a literal wreck.

I can’t hide this from her.

But how do I explain this?

I’m just so tired. Tired of keeping everything in. I just… need to talk to someone.

Waverly’s finger found Nicole’s number before she could even stop herself. She winced as she switched hands to hold the phone to her left ear. Elbow akimbo and sticking off the sofa, Waverly’s right hand pressed as best it could against the bullet wound to keep the pressure on.

Bullet wound. I was shot. Oh God I got shot.

On the third ring, a warm voice answered.

[“Hey you!”]

Sighing with relief, Waverly struggled to find words. “Hey, I—I just—I was just—“

Keep it together, Earp.

The warmth chilled to worry. [“Waverly. What’s wrong?”]

There was a fluttering panic in Waverly’s throat at how terrible an idea this was and how close she was to just bursting into tears. But she was just so tired. Tired of holding everything in.

“So, I—I need to tell you something, Nicole. You have to—have to promise not to freak out…”

Oh good one. Now she probably thinks I’m breaking up with her.

[“Okayyyyy…”] Nicole sounded skeptical but played along.

“So there was—there was kind of a thing… at the Homestead…”

[“What kind of thing? A party? …A house party with psychos? You promised I was invited to the next one!”] Nicole started off serious but devolved into teasing. There was still a strain in her voice, though.

Waverly stared up at the ceiling and tried to gather her thoughts. “Um… sort of? No, that’s not it. Look, so I’m okay and Wynonna is okay and Willa is back—she’s okay, too—and Dolls is okay. We just—there were people… and they, uh… So Dolls and Wynonna and Willa took care of it and everything is okay but—“

[“Waverly.”] Nicole interrupted. [“You’ve said ‘okay’ like five times. Something that ‘okay’ usually means it isn’t. Please. What’s going on?”]

Sighing, Waverly muttered into her phone. “The Homestead was attacked.”

[“What??? What do you mean attacked?!”]

“We’re okay! Some sort of—I don’t know… government turf war? I don’t know. But Dolls and Wynonna took care of them—it.”

[“Did you call the police??”]

“No! No… we can’t, Nicole. There could be something—someone—dirty. We don’t know who. We gotta take care of it ourselves.” Waverly chewed her cheek and tried to suppress a groan. She had shifted her torso slightly and was rewarded with another sharp pain.

Oh God, what if it could be Nicole?

…really??

There was a long pause at the other end before Nicole sighed. [“…okay. I mean, I don’t like it, but I get it. As long as you’re safe…”]

Adjusting her right hand, Waverly noticed her fingers were starting to feel damp. She raised her hand above her eyes and took note of the smear of red across them before tucking the hand back at her side. This time, she did groan. “Uh… well…”

[“Waverly?”]

“Don’t freak out, okay?”

[“Waverly!”] Nicole’s voice was a warning.

“Okay!” Waverly scowled. She took a deep breath. “I—I got hit.”

[“What do you mean you ‘got hit?’”]

Cringing, Waverly said through her teeth, “Shot. I was… shot.”

[“Oh my God! Waverly!”]

“Shit! I meant—it—it was just a graze!”

[“Are you okay?”] An increase in volume along with stress.

Someone actually asked.

It was all Waverly could do not to just open the floodgates and dissolve into a puddle of exhausted tears. “No… no I’m not, Nicole. But—It just—Everything hurts and today sucks balls and I’m just—I’m about to… I don’t know…”

[“Are you going to the hospital? Because I will meet you there and—“]

“Nicole…”

[“—and I think there’s a specialist—I can’t remember her name but I will call them and make sure she’s—because you’re—“]

“Nicole!”

The rambling stopped immediately.

“Nicole… we can’t go to the hospital. Whoever did this might be looking for us there and—and we’re safer at the Homestead, okay? Just trust me, please? Dolls is taking care of me.” Waverly actually felt a warm sense of reassurance. For once, Dolls had been completely on Waverly’s side. And come through for her when she needed him.

[“I’m coming over.”]

Yes!

No! Wait! Oh God there are probably bodies everywhere and the house is a wreck and I’m a wreck and it might not be safe and—and—

“No, wait!” Waverly started to roll off the sofa but a sting made air hiss through her teeth. Her head was starting to throb again, along with her entire right side starting at her ribs.

Nicole pleaded. [“Waverly. Please let me see you. I’m your—I—I care about you and I need to know you’re all right. Please.”]

“I want to see you, too! But I don’t know if it’s safe and everything—everyone—is a mess and high strung and—please. Just… just wait.”

There was a long pause at the other end of the phone.

[“Can I—can you at least send me a picture? Because I am freaking out a little and I’d feel better just knowing that you’re—you’re—“]

“Okay,” Waverly interrupted. “Promise. Right now. And I’ll talk to you later when everything’s calmed down a little. Because I do want—need—to see you. Okay, Nicole?”

There was a long, jittery exhale on the other end. [“Okay, Waves.”]

“Miss you.”

[“I miss you too.”] Nicole’s tone was soft and there was a hint of shaky breathlessness that made Waverly feel fluttery (and finally in a good way).

With an exchange of goodbyes, they hung up. Waverly sighed and tapped over to SnapChat and opened the selfie camera. Other than deep circles under her eyes and her long hair fanned out in tangles on the pillow, Waverly didn’t look terrible (all things considered). She gave a weak smile and snapped a picture.

She then tried to hold the phone as far back at arm’s length as she could manage (a much harder feat). The surrounding chaos of the living room made it look like the war zone Waverly was trying to avoid. Snapping a photo of her wound, Waverly angled away to crop out the bled-through bandage. It just looked like a small scratch on her side.

[Waverly says: “See? I only look a little like shit”]

[Nicole says: “Liar. You are still beautiful <3”]

[Nicole says: “Thank you, Waves. I feel better. Take care of your self”]

The Earp sisters eventually made it back to the Homestead just as the sun was setting. Willa busied herself with cleaning up. There was still something about her demeanor that made Waverly want to apologize or help or do something to make her happy. Possibly the odd, furtive glances Willa kept shooting her.

The side glances intensified when Wynonna sat down with Waverly at the kitchen table. They were joined by Dolls. Waverly had managed a shower and a change of clothes, though the wound at her side was already starting to seep blood down her side.

She felt awkward sitting at the table with her shirt hiked up almost above her sports bra with Dolls’ hot breath on her ribs. He explained to Wynonna how to wrap the injury and then mumbled about how he was going to do a final sweep of the perimeter and come back.

A little trial and error, but Wynonna figured it out pretty quickly. Dabbing at a fresh gauze pad with antiseptic, she gave Waverly an encouraging smile. “Dolls said you kicked some ass with your shotgun.”

Squinting skeptically, Waverly tilted her head. “When? Before or after I got shot?” She mumbled, “I wish everyone would stop telling me to hide when shit hits the fan.”

“We just want you safe, babygirl,” Wynonna replied. She reached over to apply the pad. “Put pressure here.”

Waverly hissed at the pain. It was hard to see over her hands/breast in her way. “Do you think it’ll scar?”

The older Earp winked and gave a slanted smile. “Dudes dig scars.”

Hmmmm…

Before she could stop herself, Waverly found herself asking: “Do chicks?”

For a moment, there was confusion in Wynonna’s eyes. Just as she opened her mouth to ask, the door slammed. Dolls had returned.

It was worse than they thought. These human mercenaries had top-shelf gear and were ex-military. And their target was Deputy Marshal Xavier Dolls.

There was definitely a traitor in their midst. Someone who had infiltrated Black Badge or Judge Cryderman’s office or both. And there was no way of knowing how far to the top the conspiracy went.

Willa returned and interrupted the BBD crew’s worried theorizing with a doozy of a request: “I need you to tell me everything you know about Bobo Del Rey.”

“Do you remember something?” Wynonna asked, eyes crinkling with concern.

“I don’t know. But I want to,” Willa replied. She chewed her cheek, her blue eyes distant.

Dolls raised a hand, his jacket whispering with the movement. “I can help with that. We can try a few techniques.” He started counting off his fingers. “There’s guided imagery, hypnosis, even some drug-induced—“

Willa interrupted him. “I’ll do it.” She shot Wynonna a significant glance, her mouth a hard line. “Whatever it takes.”

“Okay,” Dolls said, head bobbing forward in agreement. “We’ll start in the morning.” When Wynonna started to balk, he gave her a shrug. “It’s important, right? And you’ll be with her every step of the way.”

The former Heir gave begrudging nod. Smiling, Wynonna patted at Waverly’s injured side and ran a finger through her sister’s hair. That motherly glint had finally come back. “You. Get some rest, yea? I’ll be up in a minute with a bottle of the good stuff.”

Exhaling in a laugh, Waverly narrowed her eyes in disapproval. “Wynonna…”

“Fine, the bottle’s for me. Just a shot for you, then. And a couple painkillers.” Brunette locks tossed as Wynonna gestured at the stairs with her head. “Bed. Now.”

Waverly nodded and accepted the dismissal, though that fluttering resentment returned when Willa took her chair at the table. The two older sisters clustered together carefully as Wynonna started from the beginning.

With a sigh, Waverly crawled into her bed properly for the first time in a few days. The exhaustion from the day gave way to a deep yawn. She felt it all the way down her shoulders until it met the throbbing ache at her side.

Before falling asleep, Waverly pulled out her cell phone.

[Waverly says: “Dolls cleared the Homestead though he wants us to stick close tonight”]

Thankfully, Nicole answered immediately. She’d been so quick to respond all day. So sweet and attentive.

[Nicole says: “Tell me you’re okay again”]

Waverly smile was a slanted, crinkled thing.

[Waverly says: “I’m fine, I swear”]

[Nicole says: “Okay. What about now”]

[Waverly says: “Still fine”]

[Nicole says: “Are you sure?”]

[Waverly says: “YES OMG”]

[Nicole says: “You were SHOT”]

[Waverly says: “I was GRAZED”]

There was a pause. A series of “…” appeared and reappeared for close to 30 seconds.

[Nicole says: “I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to you”]

[Waverly says: “Me either”]

[Waverly says: “I’m okay. Honestly <3”]

[Nicole says: “<3”]

[Waverly says: “I’m gonna go to sleep. About to pass out. Come by tomorrow?”]

[Nicole says: “First thing. Should I bring breakfast?”]

[Waverly says: “Please”]

[Nicole says: “Any requests?”]

[Waverly says: “I’d kill for a breakfast taco”]

[Nicole says: “You got it, baby”]

[Waverly says: “Thanks, baby”]

[Nicole says: “Sweet dreams <3”]

[Waverly says: “Definitely”]

She fell asleep with her phone on her chest. Waverly was dimly aware of Wynonna coming in to drop off a glass of water. She felt a kiss to her forehead and a pat to her shoulder, but it could have been her imagination.

The next sound Waverly heard was the doorbell.

Nicole was here.

[haughtshotgun]

Hi! I’m enjoying these prompt fills!

Could you try prompt 63 please?

Thanks, Anon!

63. “You didn’t tell me you’re friends was cute! Now what am I going to do?”

Waverly sat at the bar with her sister, the older Earp was already a whiskey into the night. The smaller of the brunettes looked around the bar, apparently Wynonna’s friend was meeting them, but the woman was almost 20 minutes late.

“Are you sure she’s coming, Wy?” Waverly asked slightly annoyed and took a sip of her Chardonnay.

Wynonna waved her sister off and said, “Nicole is a lot of things, baby girl. She is bossy, can be uptight, and cares for rules too much for my liking, but late without reason is not part of her makeup. I bet her cat got out or something.” Waverly eyed her sister quizzically and sighed. She toyed absentmindedly with a coast, running her fingers along the edges when a slap to her arm startled her.

Waverly rubbed the spot her sister had just hit and whined, “Ow.”

Wynonna rolled her eyes and pointed at the doors, “Nicole’s here.” Waverly noted the genuine excitement on Wynonna’s face and it made her smile, knowing that the loner had a friend. The petite brunette looked up and felt the bar around her fade, all but Nicole. Her mouth dried like a desert and she found herself reaching for in wine in a desperate attempt to easy her thirst. The woman was tall, easily four or five inches taller than herself, with a lean yet sturdy build. She was wearing dark wash skinny jeans, a blue and white flannel, and navy beanie over her long, auburn mane.

“You didn’t tell me your friend was cute, Wynonna!” Waverly scream-whispered in her sister’s ear as Nicole spotted them at the bar. The ginger’s honey eyes lingered on Waverly for what felt like an eternity before her booted feet walked down the stairs and towards them. Next to her, Wynonna stiffened and turned, eyes wide and mouth agape. “Now what am I going to do?” Waverly asked, only half teasing.

Wynonna scolded, “You will do nothing, She will do nothing. You both will do fucking nothing. You hear me?” The older Earp scowled and took a sip of her whiskey but Waverly had no intentions of following Wynonna’s rules. Her eyes tracked Nicole as she ordered a whiskey before walking over to them. Next to her, Wynonna was muttering under her breath but Waverly was far too preoccupied, her gaze never leaving the ginger.

“Hey, Wynonna!” Nicole greeted her sister cheerfully before settling on the only empty barstool next to Waverly. The smaller brunette became hyper aware of how close Nicole’s leg was to her own and she took a sip of her wine to distract from the heat she felt. “Sorry I’m late… Calamity Jane, that minx, snuck out when I was trying to leave. Chased her around the damn neighborhood like a fool until I could corale her back in,” the ginger explained with a sigh then took a sip of whiskey. Waverly watched how plump, pink lips pressed against the glass and she wondered how they would feel pressed against her own.

Wynonna got into Waverly’s face and laughed, “Ha! Told you her damn cat escaped. My baby sister here was ready to write you off as a no-show.” Waverly felt her cheeks flush and turned to face Nicole, ready to explain herself to the stranger.

Nicole gasped dramatically and put her hand over her heart. “Well, Miss Earp, I hope we didn’t get started on the wrong foot now.” The ginger held out her hand and smirked at Waverly, like she knew what she was doing to her with that grin, and introduced herself, “Nicole, Nicole Haught.”

Waverly raised an eyebrow and took the ivory hand into her own. When their skin brushed together there was instant heat and Waverly noted the way Nicole’s mouth opened slightly at the touch. “Waverly Earp,” Waverly smiled and slowly pulled her hand back, wishing for an excuse to keep them attached. Something about her sister’s friend drew her in, like there was a magnet deep in her gut pulling her closer and closer to Nicole.

Wynonna looked between the two of them, her eyes jumping back and forth wildly, and she downed her second whiskey. “I am too fucking sober for this,” she hissed and stood up from her spot. They watched as she walked over to the other side of the bartop, right in front of the bartender, and sat down facing the man. “Keep ‘em coming. Pretty sure my sister and best friend are gonna fuck later, so WyWy needs her whiskey,” the older brunette announced loud enough for Waverly and Nicole to hear, as well as many patrons sitting at the bar.

An instant heat licked at her cheeks and Waverly looked down for a moment. When she looked up Wynonna’s piercing, icy eyes were locked on Nicole, mouthing what she imagined were threats. With a deep sigh she took Nicole’s hand and gave it a soft squeeze. “Hey, she invited us here to meet each other right? So… why should we let her ruin our night?” Waverly asked with a small, coy smile and Nicole turned her attention away from Wynonna and to her. Her eyes were a dark, golden brown like wildflower honey and she gave Waverly’s hand a squeeze back.

“You’re right, she did. Do you want to move to a booth for privacy? If she decides to join then good… if not,” Nicole trailed and bit her lip, “then great.” A Cheshire Cat grin crawled along Nicole’s lips and Waverly wanted to grab her by the cheeks and kiss it off.

She took a deep breath in and nodded. Waverly turned to look at Wynonna, to see if she was still steaming, but instead of finding an angry older sister, she was met with the sight of Mercedes sitting on the taller brunette’s lap. “Yeah, I don’t think she’ll be following us,” Waverly chuckled and tilted her head in the direction of the older Earp. Nicole followed the movement and Waverly laughed when her eyebrows shot up in surprise. Waverly shrugged and said, “Lead the way,” signaling to Nicole that she was ready for a little distraction.

“Right!” Nicole said and smiled, standing up with their hands still interlocked.

Once they made it to an empty booth, conversation began to flow easily between them. Waverly watched in wonder as Nicole talked about all of the places she had traveled to and explored. Nicole held her hand as she explained how hard it was when Wynonna went away. They shared laughs, more drinks, and by the third one, their hands toyed with each other on the table top and their feet occasionally knocked each other underneath. Waverly felt like she knew Nicole in her bones. Her laugh was a melody she knew the tune of. Her smile was a work of art she’d study before. Her touch was a comfort she felt at home with. There was something powerful and unexplainable about Nicole. All Waverly knew was her desire to learn more, explore more, and feel more of the ginger.

Nicole cleared her throat and ran her hand up Waverly’s forearm, goosebumps blooming in her wake. “So is Wynonna right?” Nicole asked and Waverly tilted her head to the side in confusion. She searched her brain for what Nicole could be referencing but found it empty as ivory fingers skated along the length of her arm. It was embarrassing how quickly the sexy and confident woman in front of her turned her useless. “Are her little sister and best friend going to fuck tonight? Because I would sure love to introduce you to my pussy,” Nicole deadpanned and smirked like a devil when Waverly choked down her sip of wine. The ginger leaned in, her honey eyes dark with want, and chuckled, “Cat that is. I’d love to introduce you to my pussy cat.”

Waverly put down her wine and looked at Nicole. The rest of the bar faded around them as only one thing echoed in her mind, Nicole. Waverly leaned the whole top half of her body over the top of the table and grabbed the ginger by the collar of her flannel. She pulled Nicole in for a kiss, firm and stagnant at first, both women afraid to make another move. But Waverly felt a flickering of a fire, like a match was lit inside of her. In an instant, she moved her mouth against Nicole’s with need. The ginger followed suit and soon they were in an ebb and flow, forgetting completely that they were making out in a crowded bar. When they pulled away their breathing was uneven and Waverly dropped her hands to Nicole’s shoulders. She massaged the built muscle there and chuckled, smiling like a fool. Soon, Nicole was laughing too and Waverly pulled her in for a quick peck before pushing her away playfully.

“Go pay the tab,” Waverly ordered, feeling a sense of accomplishment when Nicole’s eyes lit up in gleeful understanding. The ginger sweetly pecked her cheek before slipping out of the booth. Waverly hummed at the touch and stared at Nicole's well-defined ass as she sauntered over to the bar. Wynonna accosted the ginger as she tried to pay her tab, Mercedes played with the older Earp’s hair and whispered in her ear in an attempt to calm her down. Waverly scooted out of the booth and waited for Nicole at the front door. She waved at Wynonna when she looked her way but the older brunette only gave her a halfhearted gesture, her eyes distracted by her phone.

Nicole all but sprinited up the stairs, making Waverly giggle, and said, “Ready, Waves?” The brunette broke out in a big grin, it being the first time Nicole used the nickname, and held out her hand.

“Ready,” she confirmed with a nod and laced their fingers together. Nicole set the pace for their walk, both of them enjoying the easy silence until Waverly felt her phone vibrate and heard Nicole’s go off. While they walked they checked their phones, both of them stopping in their place as they read the message.

Wynonna Earp created a new group chat: Break Her Heart and I’ll Break Your Face 🥊

Wynonna: Did the two of you really think I didn’t see this coming? I’m stupid but I’m smart. You dummies just got set up! Haught, read the group name, read it again. This is your first warning. Tomorrow we have the full shovel talk. Baby girl, go easy on her okay. She just had a rock climbing accident like eight months ago. Anyway, have fun, use a condom, bye!

The women turned and looked at each other, mouths agape in shock. Wynonna set them up. She wanted them to like each other. Nicole broke first, howling in laughter as she doubled over. Waverly followed, shaking her head at the ridiculousness of it all. Once they collected themselves, they continued their walk to Nicole’s apartment. She rested her head on the ginger’s shoulder and felt at ease. They took in each other’s energy, enjoying the night, until Nicole’s curiosity bested her.

“So, what should our safe word be?”

[geekystorytelling]

Nicole: I'd do a lot of things to you.

Waverly: ...for me?"

Nicole: Yeah, that too.

[malum-19-blog]

Champ: Waverly, you're like... an unknown variable.

Waverly: Well, you find out what an unknown variable is by isolating it. So leave me alone.

[anonfanfic]

Dialogue Prompts

Send in a ship and a number. You can also add details such as, genre, side characters, and/or situations for the short prompt. 

1. "Am I supposed to be scared now?"

2. "We could get arrested for this."

3. "Midnight, on the bridge. Come alone."

4. "Oh my God. You're in love with her."

5. "Did you enjoy yourself last night?"

6. “I have a surprise for you!”

7. “How long have you felt this way?”

8. “This isn’t the first time I’ve had to make a quick escape.”

9. “You’re cuter when you’re not speaking.”

10. “I think I could love you.”