Justified -- "Fiddle". Boyd Crowder, PG

[vanillafluffy]

Title: Fiddle
Authored by: vanillafluffy
Pairing/spoilers: Spoilers for season 3
Rating/Work-safeness: PG for canon violence
Approximate word count: 450
Disclaimer: All rights belong to Elmore Leonard and Graham Yost
Summary: Boyd's thoughts after the events of "Slaughterhouse". He's not dumb, you know he's going to figure out what's really going on....


Fiddle

Boyd's been quietly celebrating his release from incarceration by misguided law enforcement personnel. He's appropriated a bottle from behind the bar, and the level of its contents has gone down appreciably. The whiskey in his glass has blurred his thoughts, and his attempts to sort out recent events trouble him.

Foolish of them to think he'd shot that state trooper. He still has the goose-egg from being knocked out by the car bomb. Arlo owning up to that and Devil's murder, though...now that came as a pleasant surprise. He and Arlo have gotten close since poor Helen's death; having a common enemy will do that, although sometimes he's hard pressed to say whether Dickie Bennett or Raylan has been the bigger enemy.

Dickie, he reckons. Dickie's none too bright, and it's purely hell trying to predict what a stupid man will do next. Raylan, on the other hand, has a brain and uses it, which at least makes him a worthy adversary.

Not unlike Limehouse. Boyd frowns and takes another sip of the amber fluid. He's still disturbed by the involvement of the man from Noble's Holler.

The jukebox starts the notes of a Charlie Daniels song he's known for as long as he can remember. "...I'll bet a fiddle of gold against your soul, 'cause I think I'm better than you—"

Arlo's not too tightly wrapped these days, but he's been on the so-called wrong side of the law since before Boyd was born. No way he’d ever snitch on purpose. Shooting his mouth off about a killing? Hard to see it...not impossible, but none too likely.

Got to get to the root of it, Boyd thinks as fire flies from the devil’s bow. Because if Arlo didn't spill the beans about the killing...that just leaves one other person who was here that night. It couldn't be Johnny, he'd been the one to reveal Devil's treachery to begin with.

How better to gain his trust? Reveal the snake in the grass and present himself as loyal, all the while, planning...what? To frame him on a murder charge? So that he can do what, take over? Why? Hasn't Boyd already given Johnny back his bar, made him his trusted lieutenant? Isn't that enough?

Apparently not. Apparently Johnny thinks he deserves everything. Just like Johnny in the song, he wants that the golden fiddle beyond all good sense, and thinks his soul is a modest price to pay. Spurious reasoning at best; he'll never hold power without loyal people around him. He's got no people, and what’s worse, he's proved he’s capable of selling out his own kin.

Boyd values what family he has left, even if it’s just his sorry cousin Johnny. This is going to require some serious contemplation. Boyd would rather not sentence him to Devil's fate, but he’s not about to give up the golden fiddle.

He’s already surrendered his soul for it.

***

.

Comments

[gwylliondream.livejournal.com]

Nice job!

I really liked the last line of it.

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Boyd kinda breaks my heart, when I compare the season one version with the current incarnation. I think he's violated his own code, and that on some level, he really regrets it.


.

[chelseagirl47.livejournal.com]

Nice look into Boyd's thought processes . . .

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Boyd's always an interesting character to explore.


.

[kick-galvanic.livejournal.com]

Nicely done!

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Thank you kindly!


.

[cmk418]

Very nice. It's one of those things that Boyd's going to figure out eventually and it'll be fun to see it played out.

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I just hope Johnny survives it. I've liked David Meunier ever since his days on Jericho.

Thanks for commenting!

.

[xbedhead.livejournal.com]

I love it when I enjoy reading something I never would have even thought to write (edit)! This was a great take on what may or may not happen (though I can totally see Boyd's thoughts following this path)

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you enjoyed "Fiddle"! I love Boyd's deviously brilliant mind; he does awful things sometimes, but Walton makes him so darned appealing.

Thanks for commenting!

.

[jenthegypsy.livejournal.com]

Well done! Very Boyd-esque reasoning. Like the tie-in between Johnny, Devil and the CD song, as well as your writing style.

Only thing that's bothersome is that the departed officer, Tom Bergen, was a State Trooper, not a sheriff's deputy. I hate that he's no longer patrolling the back roads of eastern Kentucky...and that his little boy who's playing T-ball will never see his daddy again~

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Okay, fixed that detail...I didn't *think* sheriff's deputy was quite right, but I zoned on checking it. My bad!

I got the idea from a prompt over at comment_fic (Any fandom, any character, and it turned out that the poster wasn't familiar with Justified---I hope I awakened their interest!), and it seemed to suit Boyd pretty well.

Thanks for commenting!

.

[chicating.livejournal.com]

Hi, friend of friend here...new to the fandom, both anticipating and dreading writing Boyd. Nice job.

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

I find Boyd's easier to write than Raylan, but that's just me. Thanks for commenting!


.

I'm thinking

[chicating.livejournal.com]

I could get lost in one of his ornate sentences(Though, don't get me wrong, I love how he speaks) and never find my way out again. Maybe I should wear a light on my hat, too. :)

[skieswideopen]

Oooh, I like this. Excellent Boyd voice and the ending, with Boyd debating Johnny's fate, is perfect.

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Thank you kindly. I'm a wee bit concerned about Johnny's fate myself. I'm fond of the actor, and I was really pleased when they brought Johnny back mid-season-2. OTOH, Boyd does not suffer fools, so we'll see! Thanks for commenting.


.

[skieswideopen]

I'm definitely worried about Johnny. Boyd's a smart guy and what else can he do when he figures things out?

[jbkr73.livejournal.com]

You do a great job getting into Boyd's head. I absolutely love the last line. I think Boyd and Ava have both surrendered their souls...time will tell if it was worth it or not. But, if I was Johnny, I'd watch my back.

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

I think Boyd and Ava have both surrendered their souls...time will tell if it was worth it or not.

In some ways, I think Ava has strayed even farther than Boyd has. Yes, she's been a badass from the beginning, but she's gotten...harder. Going from being a hairdresser with crazycakes in-laws to supervising a string of hookers? Whoa...what a long, strange trip!

Boyd...I felt he was sincere during his evangelical phase. After everything that happened around the time of "Bulletville", it's understandable that he'd lose faith. Then he went to work in the mine, still being law-abiding, and that didn't work out, either. So he went back to unlawful activity as his default skill-set.

Plus, Boyd AND Ava? Together?! Amazing, after whattheir relationship was like first season---but I think they're terrific together.

Thanks for commenting!

.