ON MY MIND // MOLLIE

[freddie]

[align=center][div style="background=transparent; borderwidth=0px; bordercolor=; width: 400px; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 125%; text-align: justify; font-family: arial; color: black"]

— it felt like everything was falling apart. flintlock had to say goodbye to the kids and the carers. the group was on the verge of war with bluestem, and tensions rose within the group with every passing moment. everyone was disturbed, and shocked, and scared. after all, nobody prepared themselves for the moments like these, where everything was falling apart all around them. everyone shied away from the imminent and daunting change. though in some ways, freddie felt like he was born for it.

there were nights he’d stay awake late into the night - not out of fear, but out of sheer anticipation. he was going to make flintlock proud with their war plans, he just knew it. they would make a name for themselves and come out of it victorious. all because of fred… it gave him a rush to think of all the bloodshed that would paint the ground. to think of him standing on top, praised and revered… if it meant all of these pillars surrounding him and flintlock had to fall away, then it would be worth it, he figured. in some ways, he enjoyed watching everything around him get torn apart.

though when everything around him fell apart, fred looking around at the rubble and smoke, there was something that stood standing among the ashes and ruins. there she always was,  looking him right in the eyes with a familiar look. his lips wanted to twitch into a genuine smile every time he saw her.  mollie hawthorne. who knew that a name alone could be so powerful as to make frederick stirling of all people feel weak? everything was changing, but his and mollie’s friendship… it was only ever-growing. he couldn’t deny any longer how he felt about her.

freddie was in love. and he was goddamn terrified.

”when did i sign up for this?” he muttered halfheartedly, turning to look over his shoulder at mollie seated peacefully on the top of a sled. all while he slaved away, pulling on the rope to travel through the fresh snow. he turned his head to look at the blanket of white ahead of them. “this should be jimmy’s job, really.” as much as he seemed to be giving mollie a hard time, he had to admit that he genuinely was having fun. it was grueling - or he was just being over dramatic - but it felt worth it. there was a gentle racing of his heart, gentle laughter stuck in his chest, his cheeks dusted with gentle red from the cold breeze... he huffed as he continued to drag the sled along, heading for what looked like a promising hill to sled down. 

then, a sudden, smug look came across his features for a brief moment. he then spared a glance towards mollie - her only warning before he turned to face her, grip tightening around the rope as starting to pick up speed. “would jimmy do- this?” he jested, a grin on his lips as he started to shake the sled around, jostling it this way and that. his gaze only occasionally looking up to look at mollie, gauge her reaction - as if, if she wasn’t enjoying it, he would actually stop. usually he teased people to annoy them. to hurt them. though, it looked as if he was careful with mollie. as if he never wanted to hurt her.

he didn’t try to get under her skin. besides, him and mollie were so close already, he didn’t think he could get any closer to her if he tried (and it terrified him. it terrified him that the only direction they could go from here was downwards). he tried to dismiss the thought with a quick shake of his head, grinning as he kept tossing the sled this way and that. “think you’ve had enough, hawthorne?”

/// i'm so sorry for how bad this post is y i k e s

[MOLLIE.]

[align=center][div style="width: 430px; text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; font-size: 6pt; letter-spacing: 2.5px; word-spacing: 0px; line-height: 12px; color: #000"]Mollie Hawthorne was never a woman to stay in one place for too long. The reservation to settle down anywhere stemmed from the mere fact that she didn’t have anywhere to call home anymore. Whilst, in some ways, this fact was a tragedy, it also opened up a treasure chest of opportunity. The farther she travelled, the more of this world she got to discover, the more people she got to meet and the more she could thrive in this world where everyone knew her name yet never had the chance to really know her.

Until she found a home in another person. This softness was unfamiliar to her, daunting even, but a part of her so desperately wanted this to be the start of a broken habit. No more roaming the lands if she had a home here, not in Flintlock but in Frederick Stirling. The man people only warned women like Mollie to stay far away from. But they weren’t Mollie.

Mollie, the headstrong woman who would do just about anything in her power to rebel against any sense of authority. If anyone warned her to avoid the Stirlings, she’d only linger closer, inspired by their darkness and curious about their notorious ways. Some would say that Frederick was a bad man — he had done terrible things to people that didn’t deserve it — but the worst thing about love was the way that the warning signs sometimes only felt like her heart skipping a beat.

She’d only recently come to the understanding that perhaps she loved him, and that that was okay. Freddie wasn’t her parents; even though he could be obnoxious and stupidly insensitive, he wasn’t the kind to neglect her and make her feel as if she didn’t deserve to feel safe and loved. Right? She could and would never rely on him, but it felt good to have someone to look over to whenever she fretted, someone to fall asleep next to at nights, someone to hold onto and kiss whenever she wanted affection… Despite this all, she refused to admit that maybe she wanted them to be more than friends. But, Freddie never seemed the type to label the way she felt, and so she’d keep her thoughts to herself. Men — she’d ponder — so simple yet complex all the same.

❝ When did I sign up for this? ❞ Fred grumbled, Mollie smiling smugly as she slouched comfortably on the sled. ❝ I know you love it really. Getting to show off for all the ladies. ❞ She wagged her brows playfully. Knowing Freddie, she probably wasn’t too far off the truth. Soon, Freddie began to pick up speed, an ominous comment passing his lips before Mollie’s grip tightened on the sled. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what Freddie was planning on doing.  ❝ Freddie, ❞ She exclaimed in warning but it was to no avail as he then rushed forwards, jostling the sled from side to side. ❝ Freddie! ❞ Mollie barked through a fit of giggles, clutching on as the sled as it lurched around. In their relationship, Mollie was used to Fred’s playfulness and it was exactly what she loved about him. The way he kept life exciting, borderline reckless.

It was as if he were her soulmate.

With a sharp gasp, the next wild tug of the sled sent her toppling over the side and into the snow. She rolled onto her back with a loud and unrestrained guffaw, nose wrinkling up and eyes squeezed shut as she laughed. Eventually, laughter subsided with a heaving sigh, eyes then blinking open to peer over towards Freddie who stood nearby.

❝ You’re an asshole, Freddie Stirling. ❞ Mollie pointed out matter-of-factly, yet her lips could not deny the hilarity she felt in his reckless ways, a smile twisting at her lips. And, to finish off her self-assured statement, Mollie then lifted a handful of snow in a cupped hand before tossing it at Freddie. She refused to pull herself up to her feet on her own, holding her hand out for him to assist. ❝ Help me up, else I'll beat your ass, Freds. ❞ Even though her statement was undoubtedly true at the worst of times, she couldn’t ask for a better asshole to spend her time with.