"Just one more." Celina stood up from the log she had been sitting on next to Lenny as everyone sat around talking amongst one another and enjoying the abundant beer which she and John had proudly brought back. She stepped over the log, nearly tripping and landing on her face but luckily finding her balance just in time to prevent the fall.
The night was still young, the sun having just started to set, everyone loosening up to the point John was getting nervous that Bill and Arthur were going to finally get into a fight. The story telling had brought up Arthur's, "Just one of those things" excuses which had rubbed Bill the wrong way drunk even more than sober. That tension had luckily died down but no one was convinced it couldn't or wouldn't come back easily.
Celina sighed as she removed a beer from the crate by Dutch's tent and leaned back to take a good swig of it. She was getting drunk- again, for the second time that week. Really, before, she hadn't been a whole lot of a drinker. Now though, considering the year she was in and the company she kept... and loved? Yes, she did love them, but sometimes to deal, she just had to get drunk.
The woman had secretly admitted to herself after only a week or two, she wasn't going to be going back home. She had actually came to that acceptance before she threw their record of debtors into the lake. She realized she wasn't going home both because she didn't know how, and... despite herself, she didn't truly want to. It was strange, but deep in her gut, she felt like this was where she belonged, with this gang. They were her freedom, as odd as it sounded to say so.
Dutch approached her, of course Dutch approached her. He looked a little drunken himself as he reached for another beer and dipped his head in greeting, "Miss Knoll, see you're enjoying yourself."
Celina took a deep breath and nodded, taking another drink, "This party was a good idea, Dutch. Thank you."
He smiled warmly and looked back over to where Molly was sitting talking with everyone at the campfire, "I was hoping you would benefit in it." He hesitated, rocking back on his feet and taking another swig, his rings clicking against the glass in the way that Celina loved so much for some reason or another. He looked her up and down for a moment, his eyes almost showing guilt, "I can't leave Molly."
Celina's eyes widened and she took a step back before glancing over at the group. He couldn't leave Molly? What was he saying? She grabbed his arm and led him back to where her tent was located, a good enough distance away to keep them from being heard, "I never asked you to leave her, Dutch."
Dutch crossed his arms and looked down at her, "I have enough experience with women to know when I'm subtly being asked to do something."
Celina wanted to argue, wanted to defuse his belief of her desire but shook her head, there was no use. She sighed and tapped her foot on the ground, "I know how I've been acting lately... I know I blew up on you earlier today. But-" she scoffed, gesturing back in the direction of Molly, "I care, Dutch-" She took another drink, hoping the alcohol would quickly work to change her mind about opening up to him, "I think I may- I think I may l-love you." The statement came out as more of a question than a statement, but nonetheless, she continued, not letting Dutch butt in, "I might. It wouldn't have been from only the time I've spent here, but from before, with Red Dead Redemption also. I know you Dutch. I know how you're going to react to things before even you do. I know what you're going to be going through and I love you dammit."
"-I-"
"-No, let me finish." Her voice was strong enough to keep him from speaking over her, "People, when they think of you, a lot of them either do... or will think of you as a monster." She dropped the empty bottle nonchalantly on the ground. "I, I see-" she put her hand over his chest, "I see the heart, Dutch." She took a deep breath, part of her wanting to shut up and go back for more beer, "I see the heart of a man who was put through way too much. I see someone who truly stands for something- for you, freedom. You stand for it and for it, you're willing to fight. I see a strong, free-spirited man who although is misled, does what he believes is right and is willing to do whatever it takes to protect his family, his gang." She teared up and sniffled just thinking about what lied ahead, "I see a strong, almost honorable man turned bad and driven to the point of madness when he could have had so much better."
Dutch went to take a drink too, only to find that his bottle was empty as well. In his state of mind, he wasn't going to even attempt to decipher all she was telling him regarding the future, "Celina, I-"
Despite herself, the young woman raised to her tip-toes and placed a gentle kiss on the leaders lips. She needed to feel his touch, to believe he could be hers and that she could save him and that everything would be alright. He had hurt her, but from the way he kissed her back, she could tell that he knew he had, for now, that was good enough for her.
His arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her in closer to him, her hands traveling up to tangle her fingers in his hair. It was perfect, and then-
"Dutch?!"
They both froze before pulling away hastily. Celina feeling as if her heart had stopped all together at the found of Molly O'Shea's broken voice. They had been caught, it was stupid. Of course she had known it was stupid to have a conversation to the likes of the one that they had had so close to the group... so close to Molly. It was of course even more incredibly stupid for her to go and kiss him.
"Molly- I-"
Dutch didn't get out what he had to say before Molly landed a hard slap against his cheek, "You bastard! I loved you, I love you and you- this is what you do to me? I knew there was something going on!"
Tears filled Molly's eyes, making Celina feel a pang of guilt, she attempted to take the heat off Dutch, "Molly, please, just listen-"
"No! You listen, bitch! I didn't uproot myself f-f-from my home just to... Just to have you s-s-steal him!"
Dutch took a deep breath, trying to block out the rest of the gang who had gathered around to see what the commotion was all about, "We were never exclusive, Molly."
Celina closed her eyes tightly, she didn't believe now was the best time for Dutch to say something like that, but- "You!" Molly stepped towards Celina and pointed an accusing finger at her, "You knew how I felt about him, it's obvious! And you are trying to steal him anyway!" She looked back over to Dutch, her voice cracking, "How dare you!" What Dutch had stated seemed to go over her head by a mile.
Celina took a deep breath again, trying to arrange her thoughts, "Molly, please-" she was cut off by Molly slapping her across the face just as she had done Dutch. Celina raised her hand to her face and stepped back, "Let's not do this, I don't-" Molly stepped forward again and slapped her once more, causing her to take another step back and shake her head, "I don't want to fight you, Molly. Please." No one in the gang was willing to get involved just yet out of curiosity of what would happen. Arthur looked on edge but Charles and Javier gently restrained him.
Molly landed another slap against Celina's face which was both redenned by impact and her rising temper, "Molly, I'm really trying-" She struck another slap across Celina's face, finally reaching the limit.
Celina shoved the red-head woman back, hard, almost sending her to the ground and followed after her, landing a right-hook on her jaw. Molly caught herself from falling and went to grab Celina's hair. To prevent the other woman from gaining leverage, she kneed her forcefully and directly in the stomach, sending the red-head to the ground on her back.
Celina straddled the woman just as Dutch rushed forward along with Arthur, Charles and Abigail. Before she could be reached, she had managed to land a couple harsh blows to Molly's face, finally getting off her just before Dutch drug her from her. As she stood up, Celina looked out at the shocked group, "You all saw what happened, I wasn't gonna hit her-she insisted!"
Everyone still looked too shocked to do anything other than Dutch who walked away, pinching his nose and shaking his head back to his tent. It sure had been some party, maybe the last party he would be hosting for the gang.
Charles picked Molly up bridal style considering she was almost unconscious and carried her away to lay her down somewhere.
As for Celina, she was being escorted by Arthur back to her own tent, her shirt splattered with blood that was proudly none of her own. She looked up at Arthur who had a bit of a smirk on his face, "Are you sure the two of us aren't related?"
Celina shrugged and laughed, "We very well could be some way, some how."
Arthur laughed back at her and upon reaching her tent, sat down on her cott beside her, watching as she attempted to clean the few splatters of blood from her face. "So, Dutch, huh?"
Celina hesitated for a moment before nodding almost awkwardly, "Yea, Dutch... there's just." She laughed humorlessly, "I'm just so romantically drawn to him, it's crazy."
"Yeah," He sighed, "I've felt that way before- Mary..."
She patted his leg comfortingly, she knew all about Mary, "Yea, I know about Mary, Arthur... my honest opinion, she isn't worth your time. If you really want her, now, after all of this? Well, that's on you but you need to remember what she put you through the first time you let her in. Do you want to risk that again?"
Arthur fidgetted with his hands thoughtfully, "I don't think I could live a life outside of this one. I don't think it would be enough for me."
Celina shrugged, "I think you would be fine living a rather civilized life. Maybe not with her, but with someone else."
Arthur chuckled, "Like who? Is that what you're planning for you and Dutch? Owning a nice little homestead out west? Raising pigs and growing corn?"
Celina laughed at the idea of Dutch being a farmer and living a civilized life, not surprising herself to find the idea rather appealing, "It's a pretty picture, but I don't know. Ever since I got ripped out of 2018, so much of my mentality has changed."
Arthur raised a brow, "How so?"
"I used do hate the idea of robbing, still hope I won't have to kill no one but... I mean, I was against it. Thought it was just wrong and that's not how things should be. In 2018's society, those things I suppose really shouldn't happen... but then I come here." She gestured around the camp, "It's 1899 for crying out loud and I'm not so concerned anymore as to what people should or shouldn't be doing. Don't feel like robbing and killing are out of the norm at all, heck, I feel like it's normal. It's life! I feel like if it's not us committing crimes, it's only gonna be someone else that steals from or kills someone. I feel like everything that we are led to do is just the story life has laid out for us... just the way things were always meant to go. I don't necessarily feel like what we're, or you guys are doing is wrong... just things that were set to happen. By that, I'm not sure anything can be changed from how the ending is supposed to be... for anyone." She met Arthur's gaze, "I'm not saying that we should stab eachother in the back and do things just for the sake of doing them. That, I'm sure would mess things up. I just feel like each of us needs to do whatever feels right in our hearts, for our own story and do everything we can to get to where we feel called to be. Everything will be fine."
Arthur was quiet for a moment. He took off his gamblers hat and set it on his knee, "I've got to say, that sounds like something Dutch would say, in less words though."
Celina laughed, "It does. But Dutch- Dutch isn't wrong." She swallowed, "Not now at least, and he will need everyone's help, not just mine, to stay on the right path for himself." She darted her tongue across her lips, "Arthur, in my heart, my dream is that all of us can be free together, away from all of this. That's my goal, that's what I'm willing to fight for, that's what I'm willing to die for. All of us, alive, and twenty years from now, together."
...
A/N: There's the thirteenth chapter! Please let me know what you are thinking so far. Everything? Anything? Throw it on out there.
Have a great day everyone!
Disclaimer: I do not own Red Dead Redemption 1 or 2 or anything associated with it.