𝑛𝑒𝑥𝑡𝐆𝐄𝐍

﹙ —❀— ﹚ ˑ ˑ ˑ 𝑒𝑑. / fuck! she should've known something like this would happen, should have anticipated THE LIKELIHOOD of carter intervening with some asshole dude who can't take no for an answer hitting on his sister- even though said sister was more than capable of handling herself. she's leaning against the truck outside the station with her arms crossed, booted ankle crossed over booted ankle and her index finger tapping on her elbow, when he walks out the door. he catches sight of her and beelines her way, but before he can even open his mouth, she's pushing away from the truck door and jutting her head to the passenger side. " get in. " ellie groused, her expression like her mother but her tone like her father as she pulls open the driver's side door and climbs into the cab. " you're welcome, by the way- " for paying his bail, for waiting till sun-up for the sheriff to let him out, and for pulling him off last night before he KILLED the guy. ellie reached over for carter's hand, forcing him to lift it up so she could inspect the damage to his knuckles. " jesus, carter. what were you thinking? " it's rhetorical. she knows what he was thinking. and it's nice, to feel protected. her mama grew up with brothers and ellie had always wondered what it would be like. she just didn't think it'd lead to a night in county jail. " ... you shouldn't've have done that. "

﹙ —❀— ﹚ ˑ ˑ ˑ 𝑒𝑑. / she loves dillon. granted, it's not the yellowstone. it's not the land she grew up on, the home she was raised in, with the people she's known all her life. but she loves dillon despite that. it's smaller than she's used to, but in a way that she thinks suits their needs ( it's exactly what her mom needed, that's for sure ) and it's cute. and, it's still montana. she's sitting on the porch step when her dad's truck pulls up from today's auction. ellie's already bounding toward him before his boots even touch the ground. " hey BIG GUY, " she says brightly, rising up on her toes to kiss him on the cheek under the brim of his hat. " can we go for a ride? please, daddy? " it should mean something that she waited for him to get home instead of just taking off on her own- which she used to do all the time. but they're still learning the lay of the land here and beth'll kill them both if she rides off alone. she's twenty-somethin' years old, but ellie figured out a long time ago that nothing mattered more in the world to beth and rip than their baby girl ... she'll be fifty and they'll still be watching her like hawks. it's not overbearing. not to ellie. she kinda lucked out in the parental department as far as she's concerned. " i already saddled up, " she croons as she steps away from her father to allow him space to actually get out of his truck. " mama's in town with carter, she said his hair's fuckin' her off so he's gotta go get it cut and the last time she cut his hair, it ... didn't turn out great. " that's an understatement. pout forms on ellie's lips, a sure-way to getting what she wants, as she adjusts her own hat a little to sit tipped back while subtly leading rip toward the stables. " and i'm bored. "