arthur Spots Her Instantly.

part of arthur expected hope to reject his idea. scoff at the idea that a high-society girl like her should DEVOLVE into the hobbies of an outlaw like him. but that was just a brief flash of a dreadful fantasy - one arthur had partly hoped would come true before remembering who hope baxter was.

& even if she said no .... well, arthur couldn't quite rid his mind of the image of her holding his revolver with quivering hands. he'd looked over to her as soon as the shot rang out, half-expecting to see her body crumble to the dirt. instead, hope was quickly regaining control of the gun - eyes wide & chest heaving with FEARFUL adrenaline.

arthur would much rather see the latter, should this happen again.

❝ a'ight ... well, good. you gotta be able to PROTECT yourself. we had a close call - next time, we might not be so lucky. ❞

his voice rumbles out - as hard & serious as looming thunder. all the girls in the gang knew how to shoot, at least. he'd taught tilly himself. it should be no different.

with a jerk of his head, arthur leads away from camp & the river toward a tall, thick oak in the middle of a clearing. he makes his way over, pulling out his hunting knife & a rag as he goes. in one quick move, he impales the rag against the trunk of the tree at head height.

❝ there's your target, ❞ he says, unsheathing his revolver as he returns to hope's side. ❝ now, a shot in the shoulder is a good start. but if your life's in danger, you gotta give 'em somethin' more permanent. ❞

finally  he  looks  up  ,  &  if  her  heart  had  been  straining  before  she's  pretty  sure  it  just  𝑺𝑯𝑨𝑻𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑬𝑫  .

she's  not  an  idiot  ,  hope  knows  that  her  hired  chaperone  isn't  remotely  like  any  of  the  pious  law-abiding  gentleman  from  back  home  (  &  despite  herself  ,  that's  exactly  what  intrigues  her  so  much  about  him  )  .  he's  seen  things  ,  certainly  done  things  she  can't  even  imagine  .  even  so  ,  she  just  can't  ignore  her  instincts  .  there's  𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆  to  mr  .  morgan  than  his  circumstances  dictate  ,  &  the  tragedy  of  it  all  is  that  he's  so  damn  sure  there  isn't  .

hope  isn't  exactly  known  for  her  𝑹𝑬𝑺𝑻𝑹𝑨𝑰𝑵𝑻  ,  &  as  much  as  it  pains  her  ,  now  isn't  the  time  to  get  into  it  .  still  ,  she  tucks  away  his  reaction  to  her  reassurance  ,  choosing  to  voice  her  convictions  at  another  time  .

allowing  him  to shy  away  from  her  absolution  ,  she  quickly  picks  up  what  he  is  putting  down  &  visibly  perks  up  at  the  offer  .  it  shouldn't  excite  her  so  much  ,  but  the  prospect  of  learning  something  new  ,  something  so  𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒛𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒚  contradictory  to  everything  she's  ever  been  taught  to  be  .  .  .  just  the  concept  has  an  eagerness  bubbling  up  inside  her  chest  .  ❝  -  really  ,  y'mean  it  ?  ❞

realistically,  when  would  she  ever  get  an  opportunity  like  this  again  ?  in  a  couple  of  weeks  she'll  be  stuck  in  this  role  that  has  been  written  for  her  .  her  whole  life  she  has  felt  caged  ,  wings  𝑪𝑹𝑨𝑴𝑷𝑰𝑵𝑮  under  the  desire  to  spread  them  wide  &  fly  far  .  soon  they  will  be  clipped  forever  ,  &  she's  never  even  gotten  off  the  ground  .  a  tightness  forms  in  her  throat  that  she  tries  to  ignore  ,  to  shove  down  &  bury  deep  .

this  is  all  for  her  family  ,  she  has  to  keep  reminding  herself  of  that  .  they  have  so  little  left  .  this  marriage  is  the  only  way  forward  .  the  only  one  she's  ever  known  ,  anyway  .  never  once  has  she  veered  from  the  path  laid  out  before  her  .  .  .  𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒃𝒍𝒂𝒛𝒊𝒏𝒈  her  own  had  never  occurred  to  her  ,  it  wasn't  even  a  possibility  .

until  now  .

❝  that  would  be  -  i  mean  ,  just  .  .  .  ❞  now  it's  her  turn  to  babble  ,  she  stops  herself ,  shaking  her  head  at  her  own  overzealousness  .  don't  make  him  regret  this  ,  hope  .  ❝  -  yes  ,  ❞  she  finally  manages  , offering him a grateful smile . 

❝  that  sounds  like  a  𝑮𝑹𝑬𝑨𝑻  idea  .  ❞

archer & the nx01

poe dameron tag drop.

joel tag drop.

open to mutuals !

      ❝ i’m not supposed to advocate for violence. as captain, i disagree with what you did. ❞

      jon knew the small brawl would bring nothing but trouble. starfleet headquarters will DEFINITELY have a thing or two to say about it - they’ll pressure him to punish the one responsible. but he was also VERY WELL aware that these particular aliens were less than polite. 

                ❝ but ... how did it feel ? ❞

     ❝ pleasure, ❞ thomas replies easily. the initial SHOCK of seeing hope had begun to wane, so it was a little easier to relax & loosen up & remember his cover. there was still a worm of worry in the back of his mind - encountering someone who knew the real will riker so well & may very well see through his facade. ❝ stopping by for a visit while awaiting transport to risa. ❞

     the explanation tumbled out in an easy, practiced way. thomas brings his drink up to take a sip. lets his gaze sweep the patrons. repositions his feet as he leans against the bar. ANYTHING to distract himself from truly meeting hope's eyes.

          maybe then she won't be able to read him. maybe then he can make himself FORGET how she used to look at the real will riker.

     ❝ you know doctor crusher - show the slightest signs of stress & she drags you on the transporter pad herself for leave. ❞

hope almost turns on her heel to high-tailed it back out of quark's the moment she catches sight of those 𝑭𝑹𝑼𝑺𝑻𝑹𝑨𝑻𝑰𝑵𝑮𝑳𝒀 recognizable broad shoulders . lulled into the security of her predictable routine here on the station - as predictable as it gets on deep space nine , anyway . . . will's presence is enough to jolt her right out of auto-pilot .

surely he would have had the forethought to let her know he was visiting . . . or wouldn't he ? it's not like she lays any more claim to the place than anyone else , but it is 𝒉𝒐𝒎𝒆 now , & he knows that . as they say , curiosity kills the cat .

so , she finds herself floating over to get the 𝑨𝑾𝑲𝑾𝑨𝑹𝑫 part over with - & perhaps to stick her freckled nose into why he would be here SO suddenly , with no warning .  ( not that he owes her a warning or anything , but admittedly it would have been nice . ) she doesn't miss the way his brows furrow slightly . . . surely , he should have expected this encounter - right ?

𝒖𝒏𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 , her racing thoughts all melt away when he smiles , & it's like meeting him on the enterprise for the first time all over again .

❝ well enough i suppose , ❞ the corners of her lips lift naturally , her voice carrying the 𝑾𝑨𝑹𝑴𝑻𝑯 of familiarity . she continues with a light chuckle , ❝ & as you've read , very busy . . . speaking of - what brings you all the way out here , stranger ? ❞

♡ for a starter / memes from arthur morgan

ray tag drop.

jon dips his head in a single nod to acknowledge her words, though he's heard them from her before. his reply was normally to ASSURE her it wasn't a problem & they enjoyed having her here.

instead, he tosses the alien-fruit back into the container. ❝ making a good meal out of these is all the repayment we need. ❞

jon continues winding through container after container - only stopping to occasionally SKIM through a manifest report here & there. his focus was mainly on ellie. ❝ though, i hope you don't feel like you need to be helping out. i'm not going to maroon you somewhere because you aren't preparing dinner for us. ❞

｡･:*:･ﾟ🐬 BODY RAISES SLIGHTLY ... onto the balls of her feet , so that she can look into the containers as well. a bright smile crosses her lips as she pulls out a cucumber looking veggie - blue eyes look up at jon and her head nods , before she focuses back on the cucumber like food. ❝ these are great. ❞ chef had indeed ended up trusting her enough with the shopping list - just a little test. ❝ it's okay , captain. ❞ ellie replied , placing the cucumber back into the container and standing flat on her feet again. ❝ chef and i had a talk the other day. i'm not trying to push him out of his own kitchen. ❞ there was a laugh. ❝ but i don't want to just sit around in my room doing nothing , if i can do something to repay you guys for helping me. ❞