If somehow the Lord gave me a second chance at that moment, I would do it all over again.
Joel Miller in THE LAST OF US PART II (2020)
QUASTARI ; a mostly canon multimuse with a few ocs sprinkled in. private & low-activity.
FEATURING MUSES FROM ; star trek, rdr2, daredevil, gravity falls, & more!
this bar was just about the same as any other arthur has ever been to. patched up holes in the walls, flickering lights, mucked up floor from years of dirty boots & tobacco & dried blood. a offensively STALE smell hung in the air that would've had arthur wrinkling his nose in disgust if he weren't already used to bad smells.
perhaps due to hope baxter. he does not know if she brought along a bottle of that FANCY perfume the girls at camp are always raving about. or maybe that's just how she smells - like the treats arthur used to steal from a bakery stand when he was a boy. when he turns his head towards hope, he almost feels sixteen again. stuffing his face with a warm biscuit while dutch laughs & pats his shoulder in approval.
❝ what i'd do ? what, like be a FANCY banker or lawyer ? ❞ arthur answers with a laugh, bringing up his glass to down the rest of his whiskey. ❝ or- or a lawman ? somethin' like that ? ❞ there's another short laugh. it rumbles in his chest as he shakes his head.
arthur reclines back in his wooden chair, taking the chance to scan the room once again. he's been keeping his eyes on a particular guy in the corner - clad in dark clothes with a hat that goes over his eyes & arthur has been trying to decide if he was a THREAT or not. a drifter or a hunter. he caught a look at the man's hands when he bought a beer - large & rough & scarred. it was too easy to imagine him snatching hope right out from under him.
the brief moment of consideration passes before arthur's gaze returns to the woman beside him. he noticed how tightly her fingers grip her skirts. wonders why she seems all wound up when coming her was her idea.
❝ look, ❞ arthur continues, leaning just a little closer, ❝ fella like me don't get a lotta choices in life. my momma died real young. my father was an even WORSE man than me, if you can believe it. all things considered, i coulda made a whole lot worse choices. ❞
& then something dawns on him. a reason why miss hope was asking a question like this. she wasn't like bill - a fool who asks dumb questions for no reason.
he catches another whiff of her. it makes him lower his hat over his eyes & pull back. that helps him think a little clearer. ❝ ... what 'bout you ? ❞
hope completely understood his hesitance when she'd requested this small reprieve , she even assured him that she knows this is stupid . . . but she was losing her mind sitting in 𝑺𝑰𝑳𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑬 , crammed into that tiny room with him . unbeknownst to arthur , this was actually one of the less risky options for stimulation her wandering mind had concocted . the rest ? well , they weren't exactly decent thoughts - & would only serve to complicate things further .
the way he's caged her into this corner of the establishment all by their lonesome is causing something new & warm to stir within her, certainly not helping her with fighting these devilish thoughts. all her life she's been warned of this exact feeling, to never let a man overrule her devotion to the lord above - to take advantage of her 𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 . she'd always secretly scoffed at the notion , that her faith could be so shakable .
for the first time , she's beginning to understand the 𝑾𝑬𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻 of their cautionary sermons .
but arthur ... he isn't at all like the men she's been taught to be wary of . well , maybe he is , sometimes - but that's not all there is to him . the outlaw has never once made her feel uncomfortable or pressure her in any way . he's always kept a respectable distance , even if she quietly 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔 he wouldn't . all he's ever done is protect her , scaring off any wasted degenerate that so much as looked at her in a way he didn't like . she's been protected like a precious jewel all of her life , but not like this . sure, he's being well paid for the service , very well paid - but hope is sure there's something else contributing to his steadfast safeguarding of her . . .
or maybe she's just 𝑰𝑴𝑨𝑮𝑰𝑵𝑰𝑵𝑮 things she'd like to be true . it's hard to say with how little he gives away behind that ruggedly handsome countenance.
her gaze drifts past his broad shoulder, watching the bar's other inhabitants with the 𝒘𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 of a girl long sheltered from the world . this is just about the first saloon she's ever been inside of & while it's exactly the sort of den of debauchery she's been told it would be , similarly to her traveling companion , there's more to it than that .
men are laughing , smacking each other on the back in camaraderie & singing 𝑩𝑶𝑰𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑶𝑼𝑺𝑳𝒀 along to a slightly out of tempo piano accompaniment . there are couples scattered about too , speaking in hushed tones - smiling , blushing , & exchanging tentative touches . in fact , the two of them probably read to the rest of the room as exactly that : a man & a woman , just getting to know each other - still in that shy tentative talking stage .
there's a 𝒔𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒌 there , each of them too burdened by their respective albatrosses , suffocating them of the oxygen it would take to set it ablaze .
❝ i dunno . . . ❞ teeth sink into her bottom lip , sky blue gaze flickering back to meet his once more . ❝ different like , having 𝑪𝑯𝑶𝑰𝑪𝑬𝑺 i guess . getting to decide who you want to be , not just what people want from you . . . like that . ❞ she sets down her empty glass , running a dainty finger idly around the rim . ❝ any idea what you'd do ? ❞
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arthur's never . . . well, talking to women has never been a strong point of his. nor speaking in general, apart from little jabs that only serve to raise hackles & start brawls. a STRANGE shortcoming from a man raised by dutch van der linde & hosea matthews - two men whom arthur swears are hiding silver tongues behind smirking lips.
his head lowers as hope moves past him, now addressing her pretty little mare in an echoed tease of his own words. a snort comes from him, head wobbling in DISBELIEF, before turning to follow her to where their horses are hitched.
❝ if we keep good time, should be there in just a couple weeks, ❞ arthur says as he starts rummaging through a saddlebag. ❝ ridin' all day, stayin' in small towns where no bounty hunters might not think to look. might even have to ROUGH it some nights. ❞
a lantern is pulled from the leather pouch, which arthur flicks on to push away the nighttime blackness. the firelight, kept low & soft, dances across arthur's face to show his DEEP scowl. brows pulled tight together above a sharp, scrutinizing blue gaze. jaw clenched beneath a thick cover of facial hair that arthur didn't bother to clean up before taking this job.
❝ that okay with you, princess ? ❞
her approach is slow , reluctant - but not for the reasons he may think . what arthur perceives as the expectant steps of an eager bride might as well be a death march to miss baxter - & yet , she still does her best to offer him a friendly smile at the conclusion of her approach . this is usually what is expected of her , of course , to be nothing but docile & demure . a mask she's grown comfortable hiding behind , one that she 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒔 will make a good first impression . they will be traveling together for a long while , after all - she would like to set a positive tone for the journey ahead .
those desires are quickly dashed . her lips & heart both drop as he takes that warning step forward , sky blue eyes widening & chin lifting while attempting to approximate where to meet his gaze draped in shadow . despite his 𝑰𝑵𝑻𝑰𝑴𝑰𝑫𝑨𝑻𝑰𝑵𝑮 frame & no-nonsense attitude , she does not wilt in response , choosing to hold her ground in spite of the way her heart picks up its tempo as his words sink in .
she knows all of this already , her father may not have afforded her all of the details - but she has been informed of the 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕 things . he had been reluctant to send her off with someone with mr . morgan's infamous reputation , but they had been left with little choice & no time to be all that picky about it . anyway , a ruthless protector is exactly what she needs in the face of those who wish to harm her .
arthur doesn't surprise hope at all in his initial assessment of who she might be , it's what she's used to & she makes no attempt to argue - 𝑯𝑶𝑾𝑬𝑽𝑬𝑹 , there is a small displeased furrow to her dark brows before she responds .
❝ he told me enough , ❞ her voice is light & distant , switching up tactics placing a wall of aloofness between them . to his conditions , she gives a small dutiful nod , features 𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 with a curt , ❝ fine . ❞ she moves past his imposing form , choosing to focus on unhitching her horse's reins & offering some gentle affection to the animal before they take off . as if addressing her trusted mare rather than arthur , she continues with a new & lightly indignant edge to her tone ❝ - we'll be sure to keep the frolicking to a minimum , won't we girl ? ❞