Venom (Arthur Morgan x Fem Reader)

Fatherhood

"Listen, I've got some business out near Van Horn, but I should be back by tomorrow." Arthur placed his hat on his head as he held onto the reins of his horse. "What sorta business is this?" You stood on your toes to place a kiss on his cheek.

"Don't worry, just scooping out something." Arthur swung himself onto his horse and looked down at you before he rode out of the camp. "That man always has some sorta business." You muttered as you walked away from the hitching posts and towards the area Jack and John were playing.

"Ah Miss Y/N! Just in time." John quickly ran over to you, shoving a thin stick into your hand. "Occupy Jack for a little bit will ya?" He winked as he looked over to the kid that stood in front of you.

He was gripping a long, thin stick in his hand as he looked up at you. "What, were you playing knights or something?" Jack nodded his head as he stood back and held up his stick to you. You giggled as you dug your leg back into the dirt, holding out your stick in front of you as you got ready to duel with Jack.

He hit his stick against yours, moving back and forth as you flicked your stick around. As you continued to battle, a big smile formed on Jack's face as he giggled everytime you missed and he was able to pierce your stomach.

"When did you get so good at this?" You asked as your stick was flung out of your hand and you surrendered to Jack. "My papa's been helping me." Jack stood in triumph as you sat on your knees.

"Do you always beat your dad?" You looked back at John, who was busy sleeping under the shade of his tent. "Sometimes." Jack shrugged his shoulders and dropped his stick to the side. "I'm going to mama." Jack waved goodbye to you as he raced off towards Abigail, who was down by the river.

You stood up from the ground, brushing off the dirt on your knees. "John Marston." You called out his name as you walked towards his tent. You heard a distrubed grunt as you got closer. "I know you ain't ignoring me." You placed your hands on your hips and bent over John, disturbing his peace and quiet.

"I ain't ignoring nobody." John scoffed as he opened his eyes and looked up at you. "You been hanging around Abigail too much?" John rolled his eyes as he sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Oh shut up." You sat down on the ground next to John as he turned to look at you.

"You finally being a father to Jack?" You asked as you looked back at the boy, who was running around Abigail. "Whatcha mean by that L/N?" John followed your eyes and looked at Jack and Abigail.

"I ain't been in this gang long, only 2 months or so, but when I got here you barely hung around Jack and now you're playing swords with him." You smiled as John just shook his head. "Don't worry about my family business." John stood up from his open tent and helped you off the ground.

"I'm not trying to get in your business, I'm just saying the boy seems happy when you actually spend time with him." You patted John on the back and headed off towards your tent. There wasn't much to do besides relax today.

Dutch hadn't organized something in a while, but it was probably a good thing, since that bank heist caused an uproar with the lawmen in the area.

You opened the canvas of your tent and plopped yourself down on your cot. You laid your head on your hands, turning to the side as you began to close your eyes. Now would be a great time to catch up on all that sleep.

***

By the time you woke up, the birds were already wide awake and making a bunch of noise. Your eyes felt heavy as you tried to open them and wake yourself up.

It took a while before you were able to open them fully and pull yourself out of bed. You sat on the edge of your cot as you looked over at the sliver of light that was getting through your tent. It must've been early in the morning.

You stood up from your cot and pushed your way out of the tent. You stretched your arms up towards the sky and pushed your shoulders back until you felt relief from the stiffness.

You looked around the camp and your eyes fell on Arthur's tent. You couldn't tell whether it was occupied or not, but it was worth a try. You headed towards the tent, moving the opening of the canvas a crack to peek into the tent.

To your pleasure, Arthur was laying dead asleep on his cot. He was still in his clothes from the day before, his shirt loosely unbuttoned and his hat thrown to his side. You smiled at his peaceful face as he slept.

You quietly made your way into the tent, kneeling down beside his cot. You brought your hand up, gently pushing your fingers through his messy hair. His eyes fluttered open from your touch and his lips curled into a smile.

"When did you come in?" You asked as you continued to mess with his hair. "A while ago. I didn't wanna wake you up." Arthur stared at you as you concentrated on pushing his hair out of his face.

"How'd everything go?" You looked along his body, making sure there wasn't any torn clothing, blood, or signs of wounds. "Just fine." Arthur slowly rose up and you removed your hand from his hair.

"I may have to go over there often though." Arthur leaned over and picked up his hat off the ground. "And you ain't gonna tell me what you're doing over there?" You bit your lip as you thought back to the Mary Linton situation.

"Ah don't be like that. I just don't need you worrying. It's not nice business." Arthur played with his hands as he looked down at you. "When is it ever nice business with you?" You stood up from the ground and Arthur's eyes followed you. "Just trust me for right now. You'll know in time." Arthur placed his hand on your hips, giving you a tight squeeze.

"I promise it's worth the secrecy."