*Author's Note*

Thank you for all the follows, faves, and reviews.

Young Tragic Love

Jessa POV:

About an hour or so after Roseanna left Tolbert and his brothers came home. Tolbert, of course, was in a bad mood. During the very short ride to our house all he did was bitch about Roseanna and Johnse. The hate was so thick in his voice that it unnerved me. Of course, he got upset with me when I told him that I wasn't disappointed or mad at Roseanna; that I had no right to be either. He just grumbled a nasty, but smooth, 'I ain't s'prised ya even said that.', before clenching his jaw shut.

The whole Roseanna getting disowned incident happened a couple of days ago and since Tolbert's calmed down some, I'd decided to go to Mate Creek (under the guise of buying beef stew meat) to talk to Shaw about Roseanna and Johnse. Whenever I pulled to a stop in front of Shaw's office, I noticed that Sully was sitting on the stoop of the nearby schoolhouse, watching his young students run around and play during their recess. He just nodded and gave me a small wave, which I returned in kind before climbing down from my wagon with my 15-month-old son perched on my hip.

Swiftly, I walked up the plank sidewalk and over to the door of the livery. Like always the open sign was hanging in the window. I opened the door, causing the chime to go off, and walked right on inside. Shaw's golden-brown hair covered head popped up and a small lined smile crossed his face as he greeted me with, "Hey, wasn't expecting you to come by so soon."

"Yea, well, I wanted to talk to you about something." I told Shaw while walking over to him.

"Okay, what'd you wanna talk about?" He asked as I reached his side.

"Roseanna and Johnse." I simply answered Shaw while handing Silas over to him. He just nodded while setting Silas on his lap. I took a seat in a chair across from him at the desk before going on to say, "I don't want to see her get hurt and I know he's going to leave her; choose his family over her since that's what's in the history books." Looking Shaw right in his honey eyes, I told him, "I need you to talk to Johnse, make him understand that he needs to be with Roseanna no matter what the Hatfields think since he loves her. That someday his family'll come around."

"Oh" Shaw blinked his honey eyes, looking a bit taken aback. Once he got over his slight shock he honestly admitted, "I wasn't expecting you to be aboard the Rohnse ship considering your McCoy outlaws ain't."

"I see things differently then the rest of the McCoys do. They don't understand what Roseanna's going thru."

"But you do which is why you don't want to see her end up with the broken-hearted fate we read about in my dad's history class." Shaw stated while bouncing our son on his lap.

"Yes, but I just don't understand what she's going thru, I lived it." I remarked, watching Silas turn his head to look up at his daddy. "Hell, Shaw, she came home Wednesday morning beaming and saying that Johnse loved her; wanted to marry her too." I let out in a heavy sigh, watching Shaw ruffle our son's golden-brown hair while bouncing him on his lap.

"Oh, well, that's pretty similar to what we talked about in the afterglow of our first time." He told me with a shrug. A smirk suddenly appeared on his face as he quickly added in, "You know, me wanting to marry you and stuff."

"Yes, I know." I deadpanned before quickly moving the subject of Roseanna and Johnse forward with, "She's so sweet and innocence and happy right now. I just don't want to see her hurt, end up pregnant and alone with only some old aunt as her only family."

"She ends up alone cause she chooses it, honey."

My brow furrowed curiously. "What?"

"You didn't pay that much attention in class cause if you did you'd know that Perry Cline offers to marry her and raise the baby as his own so that nobody knows she's knocked up by Johnse, but Roseanna tells him no cause she's in love with Johnse."

"Oh…" Fell on of my tongue in a long lingering tone. Yea, I must've zoned out the day Sully gave a lecture about Roseanna and Johnse.

"Mhm…" Shaw hummed as our son turned around and stood up on his lap. "Can I ask you something about Tolbert?" He asked while holding our son and letting him pat his shoulder.

"Um, sure." I hesitantly answered; a bit nervous about what I was going to be asked since it could very well be anything.

"Why ain't you and him legally married? Was it Tolbert or you that didn't want to get married?" Oh, good god, he would drop that bomb on me and now too.

After a few silent moments and an inquiring look from Shaw, I finally answered him honestly with, "It was me. I was pregnant with your baby, Shaw, so it just didn't feel right to be getting married to Tolbert by a preacher."

He just nodded, his poker face breaking slightly and a soft look overcoming his honey eyes. After a second he began to make goofy face at our son, trying to make him laugh, while telling me, "I'll talk to Johnse about Roseanna, but just so you know I'm already in their corner."

"So, you approve of them?"

"Yep." Shaw popped his tongue. "So does my dad; he's actually trying to soften Devil Anse's hardened heart." Really? Wow, I wasn't expecting to hear that.

"Shaw, do you think maybe you could work on him too? I mean he might soften if you talk to him considering you've got an insight that your dad doesn't."

"Of course, I've got an insight on this shit. I had you and our kid torn from me cause we're from opposite sides of the goddamn Tug, Jessa." He told me with deep edge to his voice as he was playing a high-five gave with our son (you know teaching him how to do a high-five).

"Please, Shaw, don't bring up that up." I requested. Holding my head, I heaved out a sigh of, "It's already in the forefront of my mind due to everything that's happened over the last couple of days."

Shaw just nodded his head. A sad, but reminiscent look appearing on his face as he softly told me, "They remind me of us before my mom died and everything got fucked up."

Oh no, this conversation's getting too heavy. I told him I didn't want to talk about the breakup, god doesn't he listen? "How's Lydia doing?" I quickly asked as a way to lighten things up since I didn't want to go down memory lane and hash up some sad stuff.

"She's doing good." Shaw told me with a smile before proudly adding in, "She just started teethin' with her first tooth."

"That's good. So is Olga doing better with her?"

"Honey, nothings changed with Olga in the last couple of days." Shaw told me before his voice took on a slight edge and he revealed in a low spat, "She's, sad to say, a lazy stupid crazy bitch. I come home some times to Lydia crying in a highchair or just sitting on the floor crying while Olga's off in her own little word."

"And you let her live with you; take care of your kid?" I asked incredulously, not able to wrap my head around why he was even letting that woman take care of his baby for if she was such an incompetent mother.

"What else am I supposed to do, Jessa?" Shaw asked before shaking his head and telling me, "I gotta go to work, make a living. My dad works too so I got nobody to watch her."

"What about the Hatfields?" I asked, more or less suggesting that he let those people watch his daughter when he was at work. I mean they were his kin so I don't see why they couldn't help him out with babysitting.

"Oh, hell, Levicy's got enough of her own kids to worry about and Allie's a bitch that doesn't like me so I doubt she's going to watch my kid."

"Shaw, don't call her a bitch. She's actually nice." I scolded, cutting my indigo eyes at the man sitting in front of me.

"Honey, I hate to break it to ya, but she's a bitch." Shaw told me in one of those 'don't kill the messenger' type tones. While Silas was smacking his little hand against his dad's shoulder; saying dada, Shaw told me, "She even bitched at me for no damn reason, got mad when I told her about Abel and Nancy too." Oh no, she's being snippy with him cause he told her about her brother. That's not good. Shaw smiled at our son and ruffled his hair before giving me a serious look and telling me, "Allie's best friend with Vera since their husbands are best friends and both of them are friendly enough with Olga." Shaw pressed his lip into a firm line before letting out a drawling sigh of, "Olga was giving Roseanna nasty looks the other night so…"

"So, you think they're going to give Roseanna a hard time?" I asked, a bit worried for my friend's mental and emotional welfare. I didn't want her to get snubbed or treated badly, she was too sweet or that.

"Maybe, I dunno." He shrugged while our son smooshed his cheeks together, giggling as he did.

Shaw chuckled and smooshed our son's little chubby cheeks back while I told him in an imploring way, "Just try to watch out for Roseanna for me if you're around, okay?"

"Okay." He nodded before making a fishy-face at our son, making him laugh.

Standing up, I told him, "I better get going." I needed to get out of here, everything's just too much. I accomplished what I came to do, Shaw agreed to help out when it came to Johnse and Roseanna.

Shaw POV:

"You don't have to go if you don't wanna, honey." I softly told Jessa, piercing her with my honey eyes, as she walked up to me.

"Shaw…" She sighed heavily while taking our son from me.

I took her hand in mine as she balanced Silas on her hip. Giving her a soft and melting look, I told her in a heartfelt, but deep, tenor, "Jessa, honey, all of our talking got suppressed feelings surfacing and honestly, I don't want you to go. Not when I know in my heart there's a chance for us, a real chance for us to reunite and be a family."

Jessa pulled her hand out of mine while snipping, "I've got obligations, I can't just stay here with you."

"Even tho you love me you're gonna go back to him cause of an obligation. Damn, honey, that's rich."

Her indigo eyes widened for half a second before she composed herself, telling me, "I never said I loved you, Shaw.", with a slightly clipped attitude.

I leaned back in my chair and looked up at her with tenderness in my honey eyes. "You don't have to; your eyes say it for you with how you look at me."

Jessa didn't say a word, just turned around and rushed out of the office. Well, looks like I'm getting under her skin. She should be my Christmas present if things keep going like they are. Ah, I can almost taste sweet victory. Problem is now I need to start figuring out what to do with Olga. I mean I can't have her in my house for too long, especially since I'm so sure that Jessa's gonna accept my offer and just come home with me one day. Hell, I don't want to spend the money to ship her to San Francisco since I kinda want to save my money in order to buy nice things for Jessa and Silas once they move in someday (and someday soon). Maybe I can just give her some money to strike out on her own with. Yea, that's what I'll do.

Allie POV:

I had gone to Shaw and Olga's to pay my friend an afternoon visit, but it turns out Doc wanted her to go check on Levicy since she was in the early stages (a month or so) of pregnancy and given her age he wanted her looked in on. She invited me to come with her to help watch Lydia and I agreed, which is why I'm currently driving us to the main Hatfield house. "You know Roseanna's most likely going to be at the house, so try to be nice to her while we're there." I told Olga as we got closer to my in-laws' house.

"Don't worry, I don't plan on talkin' t'her to even be mean." Olga assured me with a thinly lined look. Clearly she misunderstood me cause I said to be nice not to cold shoulder the girl.

"Olga, giving her the silent treatment's a bit mean tho. Especially when she doesn't even know why you're doing it."

"Oh, I'm sure she knows why I won't be talkin' t'her. Damnit, she knows 'bout Shaw fatherin' that sister-in-law of her's baby."

"Olga, you got to stop bein' jealous about that. Shaw did have a life before you came here."

"A life he lied 'bout. He told me he'd been havin' a hard time forgettin' 'bout her, not that she had his bastard."

"Olga, stop, you're starting to act like a jealous shrew instead of the sweet girl you really are." I bluntly told my friend, furrowing my brow at her. I didn't care if my remark offended her or not, she needed to hear it. "I already told you, leave him before shit gets too bad."

Shaking her head, causing her limp brunette curls to rustle around her cream shawl covered shoulders, Olga vented with a bite to her dulcet tone, "I know leavin's the smartest thing t'do, but why should I run 'way from my home? I got a job 'ere an' friends, even a family."

Looking over to my friend, I rhetorically asked, "Do you really think Shaw's going to let you stay here without turning you into a villain?" Shaking my head and placing my attention back onto the road, I let out a heavy sigh before bluntly telling my friend, "Sam's Hill, Olga, he's trying to make you look like an unfit mother by keeping Lydia with him during public events; he's even doing it during family dinners too."

"I'm a good ma, just had a slight depressed spell at first's all." Olga said a bit defensively as my in-laws' large house came into view.

"A spell that he's manipulating to his own means." I said knowingly before going on to bluntly, but truthfully tell my friend, "Olga, Shaw's a wolf in sheep's skin and you need to forget any hopes of making things work with him. He'll twist, turn, and tear you apart until you're too mad to think straight and he's admitting you to the mental hospital in Charleston."

Olga didn't say a word to me about my blunt, harsh, but true remarks. She only pointed to the large cabin we were pulling up to and announced, "We're here."

I didn't say a word, just nodded and pulled the wagon up to a stop in front of the main Hatfield house's porch. After I pulled the brake, both me and Olga climbed down from the wagon with our babies on our hips. She grabbed a midwifing bag out of the back of the wagon before walking with me over to the porch. Quietly, we walked up the porch steps and over to the front door.

A few seconds after knocking on the door, it was opened by none other then Roseanna. Oh boy… "Hi, come on in." The blonde cheerfully smiled, moving aside so we could pass thru the door.

Olga just stormed into the house, not even bothering to look at or say a greeting to Roseanna. God…she's making herself look bad. "Hi, we didn't get to talk much the other night, but I'm Allie, Cap's wife." I kindly told Roseanna with a smile as I walked into the house.

"Nice to officially meet ya." Roseanna told me as Olga seat Lydia down on the floor next to Elias M. (Levicy's toddler and my baby brother-in-law), who was being watched by his other siblings.

"So, you've moved in then?" I asked, walking into the main room with the fair-haired girl while Olga went into the kitchen to talk to Levicy, who was sitting at the table busy shelling peas for dinner.

"Yes, I got throwed out by my poppy so Mr. an' Mrs. Hatfield's lettin' me stay here." Roseanna told me as we made out way over to the sofa.

Sitting down, I asked her, "So, you're with Johnse then?"

"Yes, but Mr. Hatfield won't let me use their family name." Roseanna told me, smoothing any wrinkles out of her tartan skirt after sitting next to me on the sofa.

"Oh…" Shit, that's not good. Anse doesn't approve of Johnse and Roseanna since he won't let her use the Hatfield name. He was fine with me using the family name; even pushed for me and Cap to marry, so he clearly approved of us. Shit, Sully's got his work cut out for him when it comes to softening up my father-in-law.

"She doesn't like me, does she?" Roseanna asked, tilting her head towards where Olga was at with Levicy by the kitchen table.

"Who, Levicy or Olga?" I asked, trying to play off the blonde's original question like I wasn't sure who she was talking about.

"Olga." Was Roseanna simple one-word answer.

"No, but it's because of Jessa and Shaw having a baby together; it has nothing to do with you."

"Jessa said she'd visit me, what if she's here when Olga's checkin' up on Levicy?"

"Don't worry about that happening cause I doubt it will." I told Roseanna since I didn't think Jessa would actually come thru on her word and visit the blonde at the Hatfield house. Hell, she picked the McCoys (and Tolbert) over and over again so I doubt she'll pick somebody aligned with the Hatfields now.

I was finishing up dinner and Captain W. was playing with some toys while sitting on a small blanket on the floor whenever Cap walked into the house. "How was your day, darlin'?" He asked while taking off his hat and coat; hanging them up on the wall hooks near the door.

"Good." I smiled before expanding my answer with, "I went to visit Olga and ended up taking her to check in on ma for Doc."

"I heard from pa that Johnse's McCoy bitch's livin' there now. Been since the other day." My husband told me with a cold edge to his deep timbre as he walked into the main room and picked up our son off the floor.

"Cap, don't call her that." I scolded him as he went over to his sitting chair and sat down. "Roseanna's actually a real nice girl." I told Cap since (after spending a good part of my afternoon talking to Roseanna) I really did think she was nice. She was very sweet and innocent too, posed no threat to the family at all.

Cap's lips turned up, making his mustache slant, as she snarled, "I don't care how nice you think she is, the bitch's no good for my brother and my parents need to boot her outta the house."

"Don't say that, she's your brother's girlfriend and if your parents didn't take her in then she'd be homeless." I told Cap while stirring the greens in the cast iron skillet so that they'd continue to cook evenly.

"I doubt she's be homeless." Cap scoffed before telling me, "She's got grandparents and old aunts, other kin miles 'way that'd take her if need be. Roseanna just doesn't want to leave Johnse and vice verse's all."

I looked over my shoulder only to see Captain W. climbing down from Cap's lap. While my son made a beeline towards the blanket his toys were on, I asked my husband, "Cap, why are you so quick to dislike her for? Johnse loves her, can't you try to be nice and accept Roseanna?"

"No, I won't accept Johnse's fling with Roseanna cause I know when it's over my brother'll be just as crazy if not crazier then Shaw is right now cause of his shit with Jessa." My husband told me in a deep, cold, timbre that was hard and unmoving. I knew he meant business, that he wouldn't be budged from his mindset.

Getting my husband to soften up about Johnse and Roseanna's relationship would be impossible. I can see that Cap won't try to talk Johnse into doing the right thing. Hell, sight now he'd be trying to talk his brother into leaving Roseanna. I hope that Sully can wear down Devil Anse otherwise a lot of the things we're trying to prevent will most likely happen anyways.

Sully POV:

A few times a month I'd go over to Brenton's house for some whiskey and cards. Since we were from feuding families, we couldn't be seen budding it up at a tavern or bar together, so we just opted to hang out at his house. Tonight, was one of those times I was sitting at Brenton's card table (which was in his kitchen instead of an actual kitchen table) playing poker with my best friend while a bottle of shine sat within reach on said card table. An ashtray sat between us as we smoked on cigars during our card game.

"So, how's your son doin' these days? Has fatherhood driven the lil shit man yet?" Brenton asked around the cigar stuck in the corner of his mouth while cutting the deck of cards and shuffling them.

"No, fatherhood hasn't driven him mad yet." I dryly told my friend, tipping my cigar into the nearby ashtray. As he starting to deal us some hands, revealed, "I think he's doing better then he was since Jessa took their boy, Silas, to see him today."

His eyes bulged out of his head as he placed deck of cards on the table. "What?" Taking a draw off of his cigar he added in, "She brought the baby, that Tolbert's passing off as his, to your son's office for a visit?"

"Yea, I saw it while watching my students during recess this afternoon." I told my friend, putting some coins into the middle of the table to start the prize pot.

"Why'd you think she did that for?" Brenton asked, motioning for me to start the game.

Placing a card on the table and grabbing one to replace it, I answered my friend with, "I think they might be trying to work things out, but I'm not a hundred percent positive tho."

"Why'd they be trying to work things out for?" Brenton asked, his face askew, as he discarded a card. Picking one up, he remarked, "I thought your son was with that New York girl, the midwife he knocked up last year."

Taking a drag off of my cigar and exhaling a waft of smoke, I told him, "They're not actually together." While talking my turn I expanded on my answer with the explanation of, "Olga's just his housekeeper; even tho she's the mother of my granddaughter she doesn't act like it since Shaw's always tending and caring for Lydia."

"Ah, so you think Shaw and Jessa's going to dumb their partners, get back together, and raise the kids?" Brenton asked with a raised brow, tipping his cigar ashes into the tray and taking his turn in our poker game.

"Honestly, with how miserable my son's been, I hope that's what they do since it'd make him happy." I told Brenton, raising the stakes and adding to the pot before tossing a useless card on the table and picking one up from the deck.

"Hmm…" Brenton hummed, matching my bet. "Well, at least my daughter gets along with her husband. They're even expecting again." He told me, placing a card on the table before taking a fresh one from the deck and adding it to his hand.

"Looks like we'll both be grandpas to two grandchildren now." I grinned at my friend, checking my hand.

"Reckon so…" Brenton nodded, taking his turn since he didn't like his hand.

AN:

Well, looks like Shaw's agreeing to help Jessa in regards to Johnse and Roseanna. Do you guys think he's doing it out of the goodness of his heart or does he have ulterior motives? Also, who do you think really holds Jessa's heart, Tolbert or Shaw? Allie's in Roseanna's corner, wow who saw that coming? Do you guys think Allie's right, that Shaw wants to make Olga out to be crazy and that she (Olga) acting pissy with Roseanna's only going to help him do that? Also, what do you guys think about Sully and Brenton's talk?

Shaw's going to get between Tolbert and Jessa (making them get rocky) in the next chapter. Uh oh… A few other things are going to happen too (like maybe some lemons).