Chapter Text
"Whatchu doin' here gurlie?" Arthur asked as Lilly hitched her Hungarian half breed to the nearby post. She smiled at the affectionate nickname the man who she'd grown to love as a brother had gave her almost a decade ago when he, Dutch & Hosea had saved her as a frightened 15 year old who refused to give her name.
"Pleased to see you too Morgan" she playfully punched his shoulder. "I was gettin' kinda lonely sittin' in that room all by myself, so I thought I'd come and see some friendly faces..." she paused before landing the punch line. “...and your ugly mug too.”
He chuckled “well you ain't wrong there” he replied scratching his scar lined chin before taking an oatcake from his satchel to feed her horse "You make sure you weren't followed?"
"Well as I left Blackwater, I hollered over to the sheriff & his men my exact destination, and then made sure the group of men trailin' me could see me clearly as I rode ahead” Unimpressed with her sarcasm he gave Lilly a steely gaze "No Arthur, I made sure, I promise" He huffed before teasing
“Well with that head of wild red hair, you'd be easy to spot anyway.” It was now Lilly's turn to shoot a dirty look in Arthur's direction as he chuckled "Well me & Hosea are gonna be finalisin' our plans in a bit if you wanna take a look with us" Casting her eyes downwards she shuffled her feet.
"Not real sure Hosea wants to see me at the moment" she mumbled causing Arthur to raise an eyebrow.
"When has he never wanted to speak with you, you're practically like a daughter to him"
Lilly blushed "maybe because...he...er...walked in on me"
"That's it? You know he's seen a woman before Lil'" Arthur chuckled "he was married to Bessie for 30 years"
"No, he walked in on me" Lilly emphasised but the look on Arthur's face showed he still wasn't getting it "...with a gentlemen friend" She thought it was in everybody's best interests to stay vague with the details for the time being.
"Oh...er...right" he replied scratching his neck, blushing slightly "well, that makes more sense"
An awkward silence now filled the air between the two of them. Neither wanting to look the other in the eye, Lilly kept looking at ground – hoping it would swallow her up, while Arthur focused on feeding and patting her horse before clearing his throat
"So....err...okay then...I'll catch you later" he stuttered while walking away towards to his tent in embarrassment.
Feeling bemused by the whole situation, and not really wanting to encounter Hosea just yet, Lilly walked in the opposite direction towards Pearson's wagon.
"Lilly Mae James, you ain't gonna say hello?" A pleasant voice greeted her as she walked past the dominoes table.
"Tilly!' Lilly turned to greet her pulling her friend into a warm embrace "How's things?"
"Oh you know, nothing much changes around here" she giggled picking up some dirty plates from the nearby table "here grab some of these before Grimshaw clips our ears for loitering" Obliging, Lilly walked alongside her towards the wash bowl. "So...what's this I heard about a gentlemen friend?"
"Miss Jackson, were you eavesdropping on my private conversation?" She jokingly mocked
"Oh please, Like you wouldn't do the same in my shoes - you're the queen of listening to things that don't concern you” she laughed placing a dish in the water "So tell me all about him then"
Lilly felt her face redden. "There's not much to tell"
"You're tellin' me you disappear for weeks, and that has nothin' to do with a man?" Lilly rolled her eyes
"Firstly I didn't "disappear", I was out looking for leads on Dutch's orders - as you well know. Secondly, it's complicated"
"Complicated?" Tilly passed her the clean plates to dry "What is he married or something?" Lilly nodded gently trying not to look at the disappointment upon her friends face "Oh! Sorry I didn't...”
"I should have known the reason no work is getting done is down to you two standing around engaging in idle gossip"
"Well hello to you too Susan" Lilly greeted the camp matriarch who now stood before the pair with her hands firmly on her hips.
"We have been doin' work" Tilly foolishly argued, gesturing to the clean bowls still in Lilly's hand.
"Well not quick enough" Grimshaw barked "Get a move on girls, Mr. Pearson has nearly finished preparing supper and people will want feeding" she barked "and don't forget Miss Jackson that there is a pile of laundry that still needs doing" she added before marching over to her next victim "Miss Jones, that bottle of whiskey in your hand seems to be stopping you from your needlework..."
As soon as she was out of earshot Tilly placed a reassuring arm on Lilly's, whispering “I don't understand why you have to go & do somethin' stupid like that? A married man?”
Shrugging her shoulders Lilly simply replied "You can't help who you fall for I suppose"
Tilly sighed gently as she passed the last dish over. Turning to look at her oldest friend in camp she smiled “But at least you seem happier now"
“I am” Lilly beamed.
"Ladies" John greeted the two girls "I heard the food was nearly ready - any spare bowls?". Lilly nodded handing him one from the freshly cleaned pile. Catching his eye giving him a small discreet smile to which he returned his own.
"That's how you're gonna greet her?" Tilly teased earning herself a confused look from John. "You two were inseparable before you both decided to go wandering and you welcome her back by askin' for a clean dish?"
“errr welcome back then I suppose”
"Just ignore her" Lilly chuckled "We all know Mr. Marston ain't one for outward shows of affection. I suppose I should just be glad he's actually spoke to me in the presence of an other"
"Hey!" he laughed
"Miss Jackson, will you hurry up" Grimshaw's voice roared from across camp
"I better go, but our conversation ain't over" Tilly warned as she hitched up her skirts to run back to the waiting pile of laundry.
"What conversation's that?" John inquired walking closer so they could talk quietly
"Never you mind" Lilly teased before looking around to make sure nobody else was around "Has Hosea said anythin' to you yet?"
John shook his head "After what he saw this mornin' I've been keepin' my distance. I can't deal with another lecture this week"
“Best thing for it I guess” Lilly nodded, wondering what else had been said to John.
"Nearly 10 years of running with you guys & I've never seen that look of disappointment on his face before"
“Well part from Williamson does something stupid” he joked trying to make light of the situation
“Does this make us as big as fools as Bill?” Lilly asked in mock terror, clutching a hand to her chest.
“Nah, that ain't possible” he chuckled “Suppose it coulda been worse”
“Worse than Hosea catchin' us in bed together? I don't see how”
“I think once he's calmed down, We'll be able to talk him around, especially if it's you doin' the talkin'. She raised an eyebrow “Everyone knows you're the only person who he lets get away with shit” Lilly opened her mouth to protest, but John carried on “Anyway, you mentioned last night that it was meant to be Arthur meetin' you in town this morning”
“Dear Lord!” Lilly eyes bulged “You're right, Hosea givin' us the silent treatment, but Arthur? I can see him beating the livin' daylights outta you before reading me the riot act!”
"Well, it ain't like he hasn't been lookin' for an excuse to kick my ass either” he sighed “He still ain't really talked to me since I got back, yet he's always the first to have a go when somethin' goes wrong”
“Give it time, you know he'll come around eventually, just keep provin' that you're still loyal to the gang ” Lilly took John's empty hand into her own “You know he's just hurtin' still –“
“Well it don't help that every time Abigail has problem with me, she goes runnin' to him like he's her knight in goddamn shinin' armour” he vented
Lilly tensed at the mention of name of the girl who had come between her & John “She just knows he's got a good heart that's all”
"You know I was thinkin' - maybe all of this...” he gestured “..it's a sign. A sign about us" Lilly titled her head in confusion "After we've finished up here in Blackwater, maybe we should just run away together again" he paused looking deep into her eyes “Actually do it this time”
“are you mad?” Lilly hissed “We tried running away last time and it didn't stick”
“No, you got scared and ran back to Hosea & Dutch after 5 minutes away from camp” seeing the hurt cloud he face he closed his eyes and shook his head “ but it's different this time”
“How?” she sulked
“You've spent weeks down here by yourself before you wrote to Hosea. Maybe this time you're ready”
“Well what about the boy?”
“That kid could be anybody's” he protested
Rubbing a gentle thumb over the back of John's hand, Lilly tried to comforted him “That as well be – and let's be honest she could've chosen anybody to trap but for some reason she named you though.”**
"Shit Lil', you know I dunno how to be a father” He placed his plate back on the table and gently moved Lilly's chin with his hand so her gaze met his. “...at least not without you by my side"
Tilting their heads, each slowly moved closer to the other with their lips parted in expectation, before being startled by a gentle "Ahem"