Elephantine.
There's a large tree in Franklin County. Huge tree actually. Its trunk was about the length of a car. In fact, the town's people fondly dubbed the tree Elephantine. It was a common challenge among the town's people to climb the mammoth tree. No one ever made it to the top. They were either too frightened to go any higher for the tree was far higher than most of their buildings, or they became too tired to finished the climb. Not to mention the dangers of climbing a tree in the first place—some people have fallen and become seriously injured. One person even died.
The tree became a bit of a frightening challenge then. People outright denied the childish challenge. Some even called Elephantine cursed, that no one would ever reach the top. It wasn't meant to be.
Arlene was ten years old when her brother Jason dared her to climb up ol' Elephantine.
She had always been headstrong and stubborn, that Arlene Fager. Being the youngest child with three older brothers, she always felt the need to prove herself. Her mamma did her best to raise a proper little girl, but since the moment she could walk, Arlene followed her brother's around like a lost pup.
So when Jason dared her to climb up Elephantine, she walked over to that tree with sturdy feet, head held high, and a determination in her eyes that had everyone stepping out of the girl's path.
Despite being the one to initiate this, Jason had practically begged Arlene to come down as she began climbing the massive trunk. He knew very well that word was going to get to their mamma and then they were both in for hell. But Arlene climbed and climbed, and she didn't stop. She didn't stop for nothing. Not when her mamma came along and hollered up at her, not when the Sheriff came demanding her to stop, not when the sun sets and the sky begins to turn dark. She didn't stop until she was at the top of that tree.
Ten-year-old Arlene was the first person to ever successfully climb to the top of Elephantine. That very fact had the girl lifting her arms up and cheering in victory as she straddled on a branch. Her cheering had become louder when she heard the cheers of the town's people who gathered (minus her mamma and the Sheriff) to watch her climb.
It was the girl's proudest moment and she didn't regret a damn thing, not even when she got a stern talking to from the Sheriff or when she returned home and got a hard spanking from her mamma.
Fifteen years later, Arlene was a significantly different person than her ten-year-old self. Some of her dearly departed mamma's lessons had stuck with her and she became more ladylike. She wore dresses, fancied up her dark wavy hair, and painted her face with some make-up. Yet that stubbornness never left Arlene Fager. Her determination to prove herself never disappeared.
And she's still the only person to ever climb the top of massive Elephantine. Not to say no one ever tried after her. Many people tried climbing the top of that tree. After all, if a ten-year-old girl could do it, why couldn't they? But not one of them had her determination.
Determination was Arlene's motivation in everything. Such as winning over Howard Bondurant's heart. Everyone thought her crazy when she set her eyes on Howard—when she began talking and visiting that mentally deranged Bondurant. Even her brother's demanded she stay away from the man, telling her that he wasn't right in the head. That there was something wrong with that alcoholic. Hell, even Howard warned her about himself!
Arlene didn't listen. She never did. She had made up her mind on what kind of person Howard was when she saw him in the hospital after his brother Forrest had his throat cut and even after the shootout on the bridge. She determined how guilt-ridden the man was—that he took his brother's pain and suffering and made it his own. She saw how much he hated himself that he was left untouched while his brother's were filled with bullets. She saw, as she volunteered at the hospital, how he would much rather be in a hospital bed dying rather than have his brothers in that position. She saw it and she wanted to soothe him. She wanted to make all of that pain go away. She wanted to take his pain and soothe him.
She was determined to do so.
Arlene had never believed in fate or love at first sight. Those were fairytales that silly little girls clung to, and she had never been a normal girl. But the moment she had seen tired and pained Howard refusing to leave that hospital until his brother's left, she knew that she loved him. Did she think herself a foolish child for thinking such things? Of course, but since the moment she laid eyes on Howard Bondurant, he never left her mind. Not once.
As she passes by ol' Elephantine now, grocery bag in her arms, she thinks on how much that tree was like Howard. Like the eldest Bondurant, it was large, intimidating, and even a bit frightening looking. But Arlene had never been afraid of this tree, and she was not one bit afraid of Howard.
"Well, if it ain't little miss Arlene Fager." A voice slurred from behind her.
Arlene rolled her eyes as she turned to face Bobby Westling and his two friends whose names she never cared to remember. They were two years older than her, her brother Jason's age. Jason hated them. They were troublemakers, these three.
"There something I can help you with, Bobby?" She asked not bothering to conceal her annoyance.
The man smirked, as did his friends. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes again. They looked like a bunch of idiots.
"You gonna make some dinner for your dirty Bondurant boy?" He asked nodding towards her grocery bag. "Somebody's gotta feed the ol' drunk, right?"
Arlene didn't dignify that with an answer and she began walking away from him and his cronies.
"Come back 'ere, Fager. I ain't finished talkin' to ya!" Bobby yelled but she kept walking. "Oh, I get it. You in a hurry to fuck your dirty ol' drunk!"
Arlene swiftly turned and glared daggers at him. "You watch your filthy mouth, Bobby! You're a grown ass man!" She yelled back to him, and she felt like a fool because this is exactly what the creep wanted—a reaction.
Bobby and his friends laughed. "Oh, so sorry, miss Arlene." He said sarcastically. Arlene's look was deadly. "Come on now, girl, I'm jus' playin'. Relax."
"You're disgusting." She said after a long moment of just glaring hatefully at him. She started walking away again.
"Oh, look at you. All mature and thinkin' you above everybody else. You ain't all the, Arlene!" Bobby called out to her. "Bet you can't even climb ol' Elephantine anymore!"
That stopped Arlene completely in her tracks. She tells herself to walk away, that this isn't worth it, that she's an adult and not some little kid trying to prove a point. But she turned back slowly towards Bobby and his two equally idiotic friends. There's that crazy determination in her eyes again.
"What… what did you jus' say?" She questioned in a voice that somehow didn't sound like her own.
Bobby was smirking again. "Ya heard me, girl."
And something in Arlene snapped then. She dropped her grocery bag to the ground without a care and she stomped towards Elephantine with such purpose in her step that just like fifteen years ago, the townspeople got the hell out of her way.
She hiked up her dress to her knees and tied it in a knot behind her back to keep it in position. She began to climb the base of the trunk with ease.
Once again, Arlene was going to prove this whole damn town wrong. There was no obstacle in the world that could stop her. Arlene Fager was strong and she was determined. It's what drove her to get exactly what she wanted in life.
Howard Bondurant was the type of man who liked to forget. He wanted to forget about the war, his parents, the fateful night Forrest's throat was cut, Cricket's death, and the bloody day on the bridge. He just wanted to forget it all. A nice jar of moonshine helped with that—at least for a moment.
Lately, it wasn't just blood or death he attempted to rid himself of. Mostly it was Arlene Fager these days, though she was a ray of sunshine compared to what's usually on his mind.
But he wanted to forget. He needs to forget that sweet smile, those warm chocolate eyes that seemed to look right into his soul, that melodious voice that sounded like a soft song, those dark tendrils of hair that seemed to fall in front of her face no matter what she did to keep it back, and oh, he just hand to forget that creamy skin that was tanned from too many days in the sun.
He needed to forget about that damn woman because she was distracting! Not to mention he was beneath her. So completely and utterly beneath her. The woman deserved so much more than a useless drunk like him. And he had told her just that, but did she listen? No. She still adamantly tried making conversation with him every time she saw him, still came to the station for lunch when she knew he would be there, still smiled that damned tantalizing smile at him!
He had no damned clue what a woman like her wanted with a man like him. And he didn't want to think about it. He wanted to forget about it. He wanted to forget about Arlene Fager.
Which was exactly why he was downing his fourth jar of moonshine as he watched over the station while Forrest and Maggie were out doing 'errands'. However, it seemed that it didn't matter how much moonshine he consumed—Arlene was face that refused to leave his mind. It made sense, he supposed, she's as stubborn as an ox.
"Goddamn, woman." He muttered slamming the jar down onto the counter, startling a man who was eating there. Howard made no apology.
It was just then Jack bursted into the bar shouting, "Howard! Howard!"
"I'm right here, Jack. Lower your damn voice!" Howard growled at his little brother.
Jack rushed over to the bar, nearly colliding with the man who was sitting there trying to eat his lunch. He was trying to catch his breath and say something at the same time. Howard's patience was running thin.
"Boy, breathe first then talk." He stated sternly.
Jack does as he's told and caught his breath before chirping on again. "It's your woman, Howard! She's climbing to the top of ol' Elephantine!"
"How many goddamn times do I have ta tell ya that Arlene ain't my wo—wait, she's what!?" The eldest Bondurant shouted, Jack's words finally sinking in.
"Yeah, Bobby Westling dared her or somethin' and now she's climbin' the damned thing!" Jack confirmed with wide eyes. It was common knowledge that Arlene Fager had climbed the tree once before, but she had just been a kid then!
Howard didn't need to hear anymore. He ran out of the station and shouted to Jack to watch over it and then shouted something about that 'goddamn idiotic woman'.
Howard drove into town as fast as his car could take him. He was almost afraid that he would destroy the engine, but that was honestly the farthest thing from his mind as he slammed the car in park by ol' Elephantine. He saw Arlene half way up the tree and he saw Bobby and his friends looking up at Arlene with amusement. And then he saw red.
"Ya son of a bitch!" He roared jumping out of the vehicle, storming menacingly towards the now frightened man. "Mother fucker, what you think you're doin'?" He yelled grabbing Bobby by his shirt collar and lifting his arm up to punch him.
"Howard, stop!"
He immediately froze when he heard Arlene shout down to him. He shoved Bobby into his friends and stepped away, turning his attention to the brunette in the tree.
"Arlene, what in the hell you doin' up there?" He shouted at her. He can't comprehend why she's in this damn tree.
"I'm climbin' the tree!" She called back down, giving him a strange look. She thought it was pretty obvious what she was doing.
"I can fuckin' see that, woman!" He yelled frustrated. He could already feel the massive headache coming. "What the hell for?"
Arlene pursed her lips. "I'm tryin' to prove a point to that idiot." She said nodding to Bobby.
Howard glared daggers at the man in question, to which Bobby slowly backed away. "What the fuck you need to prove to this jackass? He ain't worth the damn time."
"You wouldn't understand, Howard." She responded after some contemplation before climbing again.
"Arlene, come down!" He shouted, but she doesn't listen. She never did.
Howard ran a hand through his hair roughly and paced the bottom of the tree like a lion waiting for its dinner.
He doesn't understand what point she's trying to prove by climbing this old tree. He knows she's done it before when she was child, but he doesn't understand why as a grown woman she was climbing Elephantine to prove a pint to some idiot and his friends. Only the morons of this town tried climbing this tree, and most of them ended up in the hospital. And the last thing Howard wanted was to see sweet Arlene in a hospital bed—especially over something so stupid!
Yet there wasn't much Howard could say to stop her. Arlene was a stubborn woman and the moment she set her mind on something, there's no stopping her. And it's then Howard realizes that she's never going to leave him.
That realization hits him hard and he paused in his pacing. Arlene wasn't going to leave him no matter what anyone told her, no matter how hard he pushed her away. She saw something in him. Something that no one except maybe his brother's saw—and she wanted it. She wanted him. And everyone in Franklin County knew that Arlene Fager always got what she wanted.
Howard would never understand it—how anyone but his family would want him. But Arlene wanted him… and he damn well wanted her too. It took him to this very moment to finally admit that to himself. He always knew he wanted her—Arlene is a beautiful and fiery woman, he would question the sanity of any man who didn't want her. And that's all those men could do now—want her. Because the moment Arlene came down from that tree, he was making her his. He already belonged to her. He realized now that he belonged to her the moment she said hello to him in that godforsaken hospital after the bridge incident. When she not only checked on his brothers, but on him as well. When she made sure that he ate everyday that he was there. When she draped a blanket around him after he fell asleep by his healing brothers.
Arlene already had him before either of them knew it.
His thoughts are interrupted when he heard cheering. He looked up to see Arlene at the top of Elephantine and now the crowding townspeople were cheering for the woman's victory. Howard let the faintest smile spread on his lips. He's still pissed that had done something so foolish.
It takes Arlene a total of twenty-eight minutes to climb back down the tree. Howard counted. She lost balance once nearly falling and giving the eldest Bondurant a heart attack, but she had managed to catch herself and merely cut her hand and scraped her legs some.
She jumped to the ground once she reached the bottom. Howard was immediately storming up to her and he tried to ignore how damn beautiful she looked even with her hair all askew, dress incredibly rumpled, and knees scraped. She raised her hands up in defense. "Now, Howard, I know you'r—mph!" Her words are muffled when he grabbed hold of her face and crushed his lips against hers.
Arlene has only been kissed twice before in her life. Once when she was a young child, and that's exactly what it was—childish. Then once when she was a teen and it was sloppy that resulted in her getting a cut on her bottom lip. Neither of those kisses could ever match up to this. Howard kissed her like she was the only woman in the world. Like if he didn't kiss her, his life was going to be empty and meaningless. It was the best damn kiss she's ever received and she easily got lost into his touch.
The kiss didn't last long enough for her however, because Howard pulled away when he heard the impatient coughing of the Sheriff.
"What the hell you want, Sheriff?" He questioned the stuttering man angrily. He did not like being interrupted. Especially considering what he was doing with Arlene.
"Miss Fager, I… you know you can't be doin' things like that!" The Sheriff sputtered at the woman earning a harsh glare from Howard. "I'm gonna have ta take you down to the station," the Sheriff smartly takes a step back when Howard moved forward, eyes blazing with fury, "next time. The next time you do that, I… I have ta take you down."
Arlene glanced between the Sheriff and Howard, who had taken to standing protectively in front of her. Gently, she rested her hand on the tall mans shoulder and she smiled softly. "Understood, Sheriff. It won't happen again, promise." She told him in the most reassuring voice she could muster, and it wasn't simply for the Sheriff, it was for Howard too.
As the Sheriff nodded and made himself scarce as to not bring out the fury in Howard, the eldest Bondurant turned back to Arlene and grabbed her face again, this time gently. "Don't you ever do that again, ya hear?" He told her firmly and she saw it all now. She saw that lingering worry in his eyes, and she thought she saw fear as well.
She smiled softly and nodded in his hands. "I hear ya, Howard."
As Howard took hold of her hand and lead her away from the damned tree, Arlene wondered if maybe she should climb up ol' Elephantine more often if these were going to be her results.
A/N: So, this was pretty much my interpretation of who Howard's wife could have possibly been. I don't really know where this came from, but it just hit me and I needed to write it. I've been thinking about making this into a series of one-shots, but I wanted to see how people felt about Arlene first. Please feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think. Thank you!
EDIT: I fixed things up a bit on this so the format was only in once tense, past tense. I apologize if it's still a confusing format for anyone.
Disclaimer: I do not own Lawless or any of it's characters.