#john martson
Text
delicate
Pairing: High honour Arthur Morgan x F!Reader
Summary: When Arthur and the gang are out in Valentine, you can’t help but notice that he left his journal by his bedside, unattended. You’re aware that Arthur is never careless enough to leave something so valuable to him in camp and see you see it as an opportunity. Upon reading his journal, you discover something that changes everything…
Word count: 2,000
Author’s note: My first Arthur fic! It’s been a long time coming. This is also cross-posted on my AO3. I do not consent to my fics being posted anywhere else, or translated without permission. If you enjoyed this fic please reblog as it helps increase support!<3
Masterlist
You saw it as an opportunity.
Arthur, John, Micah, Javier and Sadie were out in Valentine, following Dutch’s well-convoluted plan to rob the local bank. They’d been gone for three hours already and with Micah part of the team, you dreaded to think how they were getting on. Dutch and Hosea had gone to scout out a manor northwest of Lemoyne, in Scarlet Meadows. Hosea was following a lead he’d heard from a guy at Emerald Ranch – that apparently, a well-off family were residing over there. An excellent opportunity for a cash grab, Dutch was also sure. Lately, any possibility of getting money, Dutch got excited over. You didn’t understand why because the ledger appeared more filled out than ever. Perhaps it was merely nothing more than a sin of greed, although you were in no position to question it.
Mary-Beth, Tilly and Karen were doing laundry as Miss Grimshaw supervised, and Miss Molly O’Shea was napping in Dutch’s cot. She’d been sleeping a lot recently, you’d noticed. Uncle was nowhere in sight, probably sleeping or drunk or getting himself killed by Raiders. And Abigail was with Jack, nursing him back to health as influenza he’d developed after your time in Colter hadn’t yet subsided. The camp was empty. Not a soul in sight.
There was a small crate in the corner of his tent and organised neatly atop was a framed photo of his mother Beatrice, a small vase of flowers that were native to New Hanover, and a beat-up leather journal that he kept close to his bedside. Arthur was so protective of his journal, you’d often tease him for it. Sometimes, you’d admire him from afar. After a hard day, he’d often sit by the lake, slumped against a tree, jotting down his thoughts or filling the pages with doodles of his ventures.
And this time it was calling out to you.
You wondered why he hadn’t taken it with him. Had he really just ‘left’ it at camp? Forgot to put it in his satchel before he left this morning? You were hyper-aware that you’d more than likely never get this chance again. The curiosity was begging to be explored and you took one final glance around camp before slowly inching towards the crate by his bedside. Arthur’s tent was really just a canopy and once you were under you felt a pang of guilt in his heart. You shouldn’t be snooping around his business like this. He had done nothing to warrant you doing that.
It wasn’t malicious. It was harmless. Just a little peek…
You sat on the edge of Arthur’s cot and picked up the journal, feeling the worn leather between your fingers. Undoing the clasp, you pulled it open midway and were greeted with an illustration of a girl. It was the back of her, so there was no way of making out her face, but as you took a closer look at the pattern on her ranch boots, you couldn’t help but recognise the embroidered swirls and shapes. They were your ranch boots, and Arthur’s illustration was a depiction of you. It was dated noon, 5th July 1899, just a few weeks ago. It appeared to be a drawing from observation, and you were pictured helping Pearson put away an assortment of canned goods.
It took a moment for it to dawn on you. He’d drawn you.
Now you were invested. You turned to the next page to see a verse of words:
‘Sometimes I wonder when she sleeps
Is she ever dreaming of me?
Sometimes when I look into her eyes
I pretend she’s mine all the damn time’
To the left of the words was another illustration of you but this one had a lot more detail. A delicate flower was placed in your hair and this time, you could see your face. You could see the shape of your nose and the creases in the corner of your eyes when you smiled. It had never been so clear. Your gaze flicked back towards the words as you reread them over and over again. Could they have really been about you?
Surely not. Arthur had never done anything to suggest that he’d had these feelings for you. As far as you were aware, he was still hung up on Miss Mary Linton. You’d never met her before. You’d only heard tales from Hosea, how Arthur was sweet on her and she broke his heart to the point he didn’t want to leave camp for days. You couldn’t imagine Arthur that way. You supposed that since then, he had changed, and maybe since meeting you, he’d changed again.
On the outside, Arthur was rough. His skin was sun kissed and his clothes were old, his boots were muddy and he could go months without shaving. You’d heard stories of his questionable temperance but with you, he was patient and soft and gentle. You’d seen him be kind around little Jack too, and that relationship spoke volumes since John was mostly absent from his son’s life. Arthur was a good influence on Jack. Hell, you could argue he was the best influence around camp in general. Although he was often gloomy and he would, on occasion, pick fights with Micah or Bill, you saw through that. He had a good heart, wether he believed it, that didn’t matter.
A loud cough interrupted your thoughts. You froze, and it was like you could feel time moving. Arthur’s journal was still in your hands and you could feel the eyes of a cowboy bore into your back. You hoped and prayed it was anyone but Arthur. At least then you’d be able to potentially mangle yourself out of the fact you went behind your friend’s back. You wanted to put the journal down, hell, you needed to, but it was like your feet were glued to the ground and your hands were locked in place.
“What you doing snooping through my stuff, girl?”
Oh, it was Arthur. You winced under his question and took a deep breath. You carefully placed the journal back on his bedside, just as it was before you took it. Perfect. Like it hadn’t moved an inch. Not that it mattered anymore…
“Well?”
Fuck. You cursed under your breath. Say something. Anything.
“Arthur-I’m-so-sorry-I-don’t-know-what-I-was-thinking-I-just-saw-it-there-and-you-always-got-your-head-down-in-it-and-never-show-anyone-and-I-was-just-curious-and-I-know-it-was-wrong-but-I-just-“
“Now, why you talkin’ like that? Like I’m holdin’ you up at gunpoint? Turn around and look at me.” He cut you off, his question was rhetorical and his voice stern.
You immediately obliged and spun around on your heel. Your stomach was in knots. You wish you had never looked. Never betrayed him like this. Arthur’s eyes were a piercing blue like you’d never noticed, and his lips were curled into a frown. But still, he remained stoic. It’s like he was trying to appear unbothered, but you could see right through him.
“You know now why I let nobody look in here?” Arthur muttered, leaning over you and snatching the journal from his bedside.
You nodded apologetically and watched as he stuffed the journal into his satchel.
“I’ll be on my way now.” Arthur tipped his hat to you before turning around. He paused and when he was looking away he muttered, “’Am sorry if… you thought it was weird, miss…”
Your mouth felt dry as you watched him walk away.
Weird? He was worried that you thought it was weird.
You chased after him and caught up pretty quickly, placing the palm of your hand flat against the broadness of his back. “Arthur, what you wrote in there was the sweetest thing… not weird at all, I promise.”
Arthur stopped and looked down at you, still frowning.
“I just had no idea you felt that way,” You continued, shaking your head. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I overstepped your boundaries and we can just forget about it if that’s what you want…”
To clarify, forgetting about it was the last thing you wanted to do, but alas, this wasn’t about you anymore. You would do anything for Arthur’s forgiveness and if that meant pretending like today never happened, then so be it.
“Forget?” Arthur whispered. “You really expect me to forget about this?”
You pursed your lips together, holding back a sigh. “I don’t think you should. I know I’d struggle to forget what I saw in there… but also, I don’t want to forget. I… I’ve been sweet on you since the moment I met you, Arthur. Tilly and Mary-Beth would always tease me for it. Abigail knew too, but she said you’d never be interested in pursuing someone in camp. Hosea made it seem like you were still hung up on Miss Linton, and so I never said anything. Oh Arthur, you’ve always been so kind to me. So gentle and soft, you’re different to the others…” You placed a hand on his bicep and Arthur practically softened into your touch.
“I’m a bad man,” Arthur shook his head gruffly. “I’ve done bad things.”
“Haven’t we all?” you snapped back, exasperated. “I may just do the chores around camp but you forget my history, Mr Morgan. All of us are Van Der Linde’s and we are not good people. Hell, I struggle to even tell the difference between good and bad anymore. But when I’m with you, I feel good. Really good. I feel safe and protected and God, Arthur. When I saw you felt the same way… that you think about me in the same way…”
Arthur cut you off with a kiss. His lips were soft and plump and contrasted with the roughness of his stubble and quick-growing moustache. You let out a small gasp when his lips crashed atop yours but quickly melted into it, bringing your hands up to his head and running your fingers through his dark blonde hair. His tongue tasted like fresh mint and other herbs you couldn’t quite recognise, and you had never been closer to his musky familiar scent. Arthur’s big arms wrapped around your body and he held you tight against him. When he finally pulled away, he nudged his nose against yours and lingered for a moment, staring into your eyes.
“Forgive me for saying miss, but if it wasn’t already clear, I think I’m in love with you.”
The revelation made you giddy, your heart racing in your chest with the thrill of it all. You couldn’t believe it. Abigail…. Hosea…. They were all wrong. Arthur actually felt the same as you.
“I’m in love with you too,” you squeaked, tears filling your eyes as Arthur enveloped you in a hug.
When you finally pulled away from him, it was only to ask him another important question.
“Do you forgive me for what I did, Arthur?” you asked him sadly. Arthur could see the guilt; it was written all over your face.
“If you didn’t do that, none of this would have ever happened,” Arthur smiled, pressing his index finger to your chin and picking your face up so you were looking at him in the eyes. He was smiling. He was okay…
“I s’pose that’s true,” you shrugged. “I’m still sorry, and it won’t happen again.”
“I believe you,” Arthur said, lacing his fingers with yours. “Now let’s go grab some of Pearson’s broth and we can take it to the lake. I think we have a lot to talk about…”
You smiled, feeling your cheeks heat up. You and Arthur walked side by side to the campfire and the entire way you felt yourself bubbling with anticipation over what was to come next.
#Arthur Morgan#Arthur Morgan x reader#Arthur Morgan x you#red dead redemption#rdr2#red dead redemption 2#Arthur Morgan fanfic#John martson#dutch van der linde
492 notes
·
View notes
Text
Love how rdr2 shows that revenge is " a fool's game" yet how irresistible it can be.
Dutch has been consumed by it since the beggining of the game, justifying it by the death of loved ones and endangering the gang at every turn in the process. It is easy to critzices him as the player and because Arthur calls him out on it but things blur later one.
An ill-stricken Arthur can choose to go back to the loot despite his previous attempt at becoming a better man, just for the chance to get back at Dutch and Micah. After all that, it is tragic to see Arthur leaves his brother and head on the path of violence one last time. Tragic yet so powerful. Micah and Dutch destroyed everything that Arthur held dear, they made it so his life amounted to near nothing. How could we blame Arthur to give into the tempation of revenge then? After trying to do good for so long and being at death's door, can we blame for trying to take his ennemies down with him ?
And of course there is John. He goes against Arthur and Abigail's wishes and is willing to risk his own family's safety to hunt down one man. But that one man killed his brother and ruined his first family, can we blame John for it ? Wouldn't you do the same? Revenge might be foolish but when it involves family it might just be too big to forget.
#red dead redemption 2#spoilers#arthur morgan#john martson#dutch van der linde#micah bell#i understand choosing to go for the money can be counterintuitive for some players#but boy is it powerful story-wise#arthur's hatred of micah and dutch overriding everything else *chef's kiss*#rdr2
62 notes
·
View notes
Text
Yet another modern RDR2 AU, yeehaw!
Arthur was orphaned at a young age and bounced between foster parents and group homes before being fostered and subsequently adopted by Hosea and Bessie at ~13 years old
He had just been doing art to cope with the [gestures at everything in Arthur's life], but with Hosea and Bessie's encouragement, Arthur decided to pursue art and get a degree in art and art history
When Arthur was ~20 years old, Hosea and Bessie adopted another 13-year-old, John Martson. Despite the gap in ages, Arthur was quick to become fond of John and help him let go of the "I'm on my own and no one cares" mentality
Arthur, now 27, has a relatively popular art account on Instagram. His username is something generic like 'morgan.makes' or something. There are no pictures of his face or mentions of his gender/pronouns, so his followers have assumed Arthur is a woman named Morgan. He's aware of this and doesn't really care lol
He also works as a cashier at Dutch's pawn shop and sometimes evaluates things people bring in to sell. Dutch does run a shady side business out of the pawn shop (drugs or gambling, idk lmao), but Arthur isn't involved. Partly because he doesn't want to be, and partly because Dutch knows that Hosea and Bessie would not hesitate to kick his ass if Arthur got tangled up in illegal shit because of Dutch
Hosea and Bessie’s property used to be a bustling farm, but is now home to a handful of hens, a few cows, and horses. One is Hosea’s, a grey-coated Turkoman stallion named Silver Dollar, and the other is Arthur’s, a chestnut Arabian mare named Sweet Pea
Arthur also owns an old truck he calls Horse
More often than not, Arthur is the one who picks John up from high school, and he never tells John if it’ll be with Sweet Pea or Horse. John complains whenever Arthur rides up on Sweet Pea, but all of John’s friends think it’s so cool (John also thinks it’s cool but like hell he’s going to admit it)
John's friends are Javier, Lenny, and Sean. He has a huge crush on Abigail, a girl in his English class. Hosea and Bessie think it's very sweet and Arthur (lovingly) teases the shit out of John about it
I have lots of other thoughts about this AU, so if anyone has questions 👁️👁️ feel free to ask!
#rdr2#red dead redemption 2#arthur morgan#hosea matthews#bessie matthews#john martson#dutch van der linde#txt#am talks#rdr2 modern au
92 notes
·
View notes
Text
arthur is hosea’s favourite child and john is dutch’s favourite child BUT
when arthur first arrived dutch was the one who helped arthur adjust to their lifestyle. he was the one who would read books at night to help arthur sleep and help him realise that him that not all touch is harmful.
whereas when john first arrived, hosea was the one who helped him adjust to their lifestyle. he was the one who taught john how to take care of himself and taught john that it was ok to be calm rather than constantly hyped up.
but yet somehow each child ended up being the others favourite.
#pretending dutch doesn’t leave john to die#wdym he went mad?#they’re just a cute little family#a curious couple and their unruly son(s)#rdr2#red dead redemption 2#arthur morgan#john martson#hosea matthews#dutch van der linde
175 notes
·
View notes
Text
Happiness is having Charles and/or John greet Arthur first as he passes by and offers him a seat around the fire.
Like, anything for my two pookies
#rdr2#charles smith#john martson#arthur morgan#On my stomach kicking my feet around in the air everytime it happens#like they want to spend time together#I love them so much#Charles a little bit more tho#van der linde gang
40 notes
·
View notes
Text
Test run for my John Marston cosplay
Now down to the small details but otherwise I'm set
#john martson#cosplay#red dead#red dead redemption#rdr#yeehaw#cowboy#cowpoke#pat's post#rdr2#red dead redemption 2#my face#western
46 notes
·
View notes
Photo
Oh yeah boy-..
#red dead redemption 2#red dead redemption#rdr#rdr2#john martson#dutch van der linde#arthur morgan#red dead redemption gameplay#red dead redemption screenshots
33 notes
·
View notes
Text
Greasy boah.
If you listen close enough, you can hear the cogs in his head turning
#greasy Johnny Marston#so greasy even the wolves spat him back out#john martson#rdr2 john#rdr2#myart#fanart#if you strained his hair you’d probs get enough greasy to deep fry an entire hog
168 notes
·
View notes
Text
RDR2 Incorrect Quotes pt. 17
Dutch, giving one of his speeches: Are you an AmeriCAN, or an AmeriCANNOT?!?!
Josiah: Dutch, I’m English.
Molly: I’m Irish.
Javier: Mexican.
Strauss: Austrian.
Sean: Also Irish.
Dutch: How dumb do Hosea and Arthur think we are?
John: Sometimes they leave me pictures of food instead of a shopping list.
Dutch: So what’s your type?
Hosea: Ambitious, dark haired, dumb, good sense of humor.
Dutch: That sounds kind of like me. Too bad I’m not a woman.
Hosea: . . . Did I mention dumb?
Dutch: Yeah.
Hosea: Okay, just making sure.
Hosea: What a long day. I need a drink. Something to take the edge off.
Arthur, a sad boi w/ dark humor: Arsenic.
Hosea:
Hosea: Arthur, do we need to talk?
John: You’ve been giving Charles a lot of attention lately.
Arthur: He was injured in a robbery.
John: I was injured in that robbery too.
Arthur: Then go to a doctor.
Dutch: This is bothering me.
Hosea: Well, you ARE digging up a corpse.
Dutch: No, not that. That’s, uh, pretty par for the course, actually.
Arthur: I kidnapped your pet snake and won’t give it back ‘til you give me all your money.
Stranger: I . . . don’t have a pet snake.
Arthur: Oh. Well in that case, I broke into your house and removed a snake.
Stranger: Thanks, mister.
Arthur: . . . You’re welcome.
*Honor goes up by 1 point*
Young Dutch: I have high standards.
Young Hosea: *robs him*
Young Dutch: Oh shit, he’s meeting all of my standards.
Arthur: *patting his chest* I’ll keep all my emotions right here
Arthur: and then one day, I’ll die.
John: What’s going on?
Arthur: Dutch thinks “homophobic” means “scared of gay people”.
Dutch: *standing in the middle of the Saint Denis streets w/ Hosea* If I don’t have one million dollars in my funds box in an HOUR I swear I will KISS THIS MAN on the MOUTH in front of your children!
#Dutch is fucking stupid edition#rdr2#red dead redemption 2#reddeadredemption2#reddead#dutch van der linde#josiah trelawny#molly o’shea#javier escuella#leopold strauss#sean macguire#john martson#hosea matthews#arthur morgan#charles smith#young dutch van der linde#young hosea matthews#vandermatthews#charthur#incorrect rdr2 quotes#incorrect quotes
351 notes
·
View notes
Text
I know.
#art#drawing#digital art#artwork#drawings#kaylakillingtime#arthur morgan#john martson#red dead redemption two#rdr2
15 notes
·
View notes
Text
Hosea isn't an answer bc he would never be found in a situation of hand-to-hand combat with any of these people. He would have talked his way out of it.
#nemos thoughts#polls#red dead redemption 2#rdr2#dutch van der linde#john martson#arthur morgan#mrs grimshaw
22 notes
·
View notes
Text
Why are video game characters so attractive?
#red dead redemption 2#arthur morgan#john martson#dutch van der linde#rdr2#the legend of zelda#tloz botw#tloz totk#javier escuella#charles smith#bill williamson
14 notes
·
View notes
Text
Arthur totally not eavesdropping 😅🤣🤣🤣
#red dead redemption 2#rdr2#arthur morgan#john martson#dutch van der linde#clemens point#rdr2 photomode#rdr2 fandom#rdr2 community#ps4#rockstar games
36 notes
·
View notes
Photo
another attempt
65 notes
·
View notes
Text
Introducing a new OC for the Red Dead Redemption 2 game: Faith Verna!
Occupation: Outlaw, Hunter/Fisherwoman, Freelance artist
Significant Other: Charles Smith
After losing her baby, fiance, and best friend in one night, Faith flees her home in search of a better life. After nearly two years on the road, she has finally made a name for herself under the alias Marcia Lana, selling her paintings. One day she is chased into Valentine and nearing death at the hands of her pursuers when a muddy stranger intervenes, sparing her life for another day. With her lively hood stolen and no one to turn to, Faith takes up with the Van Der Linde gang, making unlikely friends and an unlikely romance with a reclusive hunter.
I'm hoping to put out a fic for her tomorrow but we will see!
And a link to the picrew I used!
Ill tag @pine4pple-b0i @captastra @strangefable @socially-awkward-skeleton @mediocre-life-span just for fun! I'd love to see your OC's on this picrew!
#Faith Verna#Charles Smith#red dead redemption 2#rdr2#arthur morgan#john martson#mary beth gaskill#Karen Jones#van der linde gang
25 notes
·
View notes
Text
John’s thoughts on college lol
Transcription:
Met a couple of real odd fish - strange names. Pair of twins trying to win the same girl. I ended up being their William TeM. Shooting bottles off their heads.
I think they was college boys. Guess education ain’t always the answer to mankind’s problems.
Nice enough boys, but odd, odd, odd.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lol, first they’re fish and no idea what their “William TeM’ means. If someone thinks I made a mistake transcribing, go ahead and tell me and I’ll fix it! Guess he’s still not sure about Jack going to college someday with Abigail being the opposite. (Then again, there are those scenes where they’re scared they’re going to be abandoned by Jack.: ( )
39 notes
·
View notes
Last Seen Blogs
monsterousarte
Come along with me
rabeeashour-blog
بلغوا عني ولو آية
octobertomarch
Cloud9 Sketches
yourl0calidiot
just some memes made by a simp 😪
karenfordonte
Caring For Donte