The Ballads of Rebirth (Arthur Morgan x Reader)

And Miles to Go Before I Sleep

It had been two days, two days after you had ran away from Lee's home. You set up a small camp about four miles from the city, the wildlife was abundant so you had little trouble finding food. It took some getting used to the gamey meat and the tortuous action of hunting, it had been awhile since you had the need to hunt after all. The nights were mild, as summer was quickly approaching again. Just over a year ago you lived a completely different life, with completely different people, but now the main person in your old life had returned, disrupting the one you were currently building.

You tried not to think of Arthur or Lee, the wedding was 12 days away, and you were sure you would be back before then, but Lee would be furious with you. He had changed when Arthur arrived, it scared you to no end. He was vicious and jealous, nothing like the sweet and goofy Lee you knew.

Arthur was different too, but in a good way. He wasn't overcome with illness and stress and you could see it in the short time you were with him. He held himself to a higher standard. There was so much to catch up on.

The woods were freeing and left you with lots of time to think. Perhaps you should have gone out farther, but truth be told, a part of you wanted to be caught. The woods were no place for a newly turned city girl, but your roots lie in the trees, as they always would.

You went fishing in a small creek with a makeshift spear. Survival activities were the only thing keeping you from boredom, no wonder you always went on odd jobs with Arthur while living in camp. There was nothing to do. Atleast your job with Lee kept you busy, it was fun work too.

The sun was high in the sky, it's warmth radiated onto you and made the clear waters glisten in the rays. It was peaceful.. the perfect remedy for a jumbled mind. After missing a particularly large fish you threw your spear down with a thud. You sighed heavily, looking out towards the city.The creek was on higher ground, which overlooked the fields between you and Richfield, and then you noticed something in the distance.

Around fifteen men, clad in blue trotting along to your hideaway. They had bloodhounds too, expert tracker dogs, you would have to be smart to hide your scent. They looked to be about two miles out. The police were searching for you now, you had to be quick to hide. You knew Lee would send an army to find you, you were surprised Arthur hadn't found you yet.

You cursed under your breath, you picked up your spear and knife that you kept hidden underneath your skirt, you quickly doused yourself in the water in hopes to lose a bit of your scent. You rushed to your temporary home, feeling the cold bite of your dampened clothes. You kicked dirt over the unlit bonfire, attempting to hide the charred timbers. Luckily, your camp was hidden behind a thicket of trees and was hard to spot and far off the main road. But there were tracks from the mud made during the storm, and hopefully they wouldn't give you away just yet.

There was nowhere to hide that you new of, your best bet would be to cross the river you knew of that many travelers used to get into Richfield as it led to the pier. But the river was at least another two miles, you were unsure if you could outrun fifteen men on horseback. These men were police however, not manhunters, they wouldn't find you as easily as a bounty hunter would. If it resorted to that, Lee would put a bounty on your head if they couldn't find you, eventually. You wouldn't drag it on that long, just enough to clear your head completely. Or perhaps it was just stubbornness.

You packed what little belongings you had in the satchel you had taken with you, and began sprinting towards, what you hoped, was the river. Pure adrenaline rushed through your veins as you understood the gravity of the situation.

It felt like forever as you ran, effortlessly avoiding the main trail, the brush of trees made it somewhat difficult to follow but you still managed. The further you went into the forest, the darker it got. It was silently eerie, the only sound was the crunching of the forest floor underneath your feet.