First chapter of Life of An Outlaw
Enjoy!
The wind howled and nipped at the horse's ears while the sun beat down on the two figures standing in the dust. A woman braced her hat against the wind as the dust swirled around her bandanna, trying to find a way to get past the barrier. She clicked her tongue at her Camarillo and urged the animal into a trot, kicking up their own dirt to feed the angry swirl of dust, sand, and dirt, disappearing on the wind, a trail of footprints the only sign of them being there at all.
Ichigo bolted up in bed in a cold sweat, eyes wild as he tried to remember where he was. He shakily ran his hand through his matted hair, breath coming in a gasp. He sighed in relief as he took in the familiar boring boarded walls and not the plastered white. It'd been two months since it started and the dream still haunted him. He still remembered vividly the sound his mother's body made as she hit the ground, revealing a pointed gun where she had stood, remembered the insane cackle of the faceless man, the gunshot that echoed through the street as a small girl tried to stop the man from killing Ichigo, shot down in the leg as she fell beside his mom, his tears as he sprinted to his mother, tripping on his own feet, too caught up in the panic to notice the girl limping away, a small trail of blood following.
He shivered and shook off the memory, deciding to get dressed for the day. He had just put on his shirt when an angry yell came from outside.
"Ichigo, get your lazy, fat ass out here now!"
The teen grumbled a few choice words as he put on his belt with his two holsters on, sliding his black dual handguns, his most prized possessions, in to their designated places.
He strode over to the door and leaned against the frame eyeing the four eyed pastor's son.
"Insulting me isn't going to make me move any faster for your satisfaction, Ishida." He stated, crossing his arms with his characteristic scowl.
Ishida pushed up his glasses and huffed impatiently. "Well I certaintly hope you're not that slow when it comes to your chores, Kurosaki."
"What do you want?"
"What do I want? I want you to control your damn monster, that's what! I found him in my fields for the third time this week eating my crops!"
Ichigo grinned lovingly at the huge black Frisian and walked over to it, patting it's rough coat. "I don't know about that. I can try to lock him up better so he won't run but I can't promise anything."
Ishida threw up his hands. "Keep the thing on a leash then! Just keep it away from my fields or I'll shoot it."
Ichigo threw back his head and laughed. "Good luck then. Zangetsu has been trained to immediately run at the sight of someone pulling out a gun. By the time you have it cocked and ready, he'll be chasing the breeze."
Four eyes just humphed and stormed off, kicking up dust. Ichigo gripped the horse's mane and tugged it so they were eye to eye. "I know you enjoy getting Ishida there all mad and everything but for now you should keep a low profile, you stupid horse."
Zangetsu just nickered and went back to grazing. He chuckled and led the horse to the stables, firmly locking it in place.
Throughout the day Ichigo did his chores. He cleaned each stall of their four horses, poured grain into each trough, and mended the fence.
At sundown, Ichigo made his rounds, checking on each horse. Satisfied, he hurried out the stalls and strode through the buildings and homes of the small town of Karakura. He nodded his head to the deputy, who stood on the porch of the jail. The deputy nodded in turn and went back to nailing up wanted posters. Ichigo continued on and saw the lights of his own home, he quickened his pace.
"Ichigooooo!" A figure launched himself at Ichigo but he merely stepped aside, his father landing hard on the ground. He stepped inside and warmth immediately washed over him. "I'm home."
"Ichi-nii!" Yuzu called from the kitchen and ran out to embrace her brother, Karin only nodding at him, coming from the stairs, no doubt lured by the smell of a good meal.
"Hey, Yuzu." He said and patted her on the head, glancing up to nod in turn to her twin.
She pulled back and wiped off invisible dust from her apron. "Dinner's all ready so go freshen up!"
Ichigo smiled and headed up the stairs to change clothes.
Rukia was in a rage, though she did not show it, her perfect mask still in place. She was currently sitting in a formal dinner prepared so that her brother could discuss politics and the like with her current suitor, who she lovingly named shit breath because of his foul breath. She hated these dinners. The dresses were stiff, uncomfortable. She loathed the heels gracing her feet even if they made her taller. Her back ached from sitting so straight. She hated it.
She absentmindedly slouched and brought her elbows onto the table, twirling a silver fork through her fingers. A warning glance from Byakuya had her correcting her mistakes, inwardly growling. A voice calling her name brought her attention back to the two men.
She blinked up at shit face. "I'm sorry but I didn't quite hear you?"
He chuckled and his foul breath wafted over to her sensitive nose. Fighting to wave off the stench, she forced a smile.
"I was talking about my ranch. It's simply amazing! Lush green pastures, horses grazing in the fields, always nice weather, and we have a small herd of deer that graze at night that are quite simply breath taking. You'd absolutely love it, I'm sure."
She absolutely disagreed. Sadly for him, she'd already seen enough of his ranch to want to never go there again. The pastures were the exact opposite of green, having crouched in the hard packed ground while watching the poor underfed horses pick up their feet wearily, revealing overgrown hooves and rocks stuck in the grooves. Day and night it was freezing, having to stake out for a day to look at the routines for the servants and the sweaty guy himself. Unbeknowest to him, or not, she had crept into his little money vault and made off with most of his money, probably something her brother didn't know about, what with the lies spewing out of his mouth constantly.
Byakuya cleared his throat and interfered. "Rukia, I have to say I agree with him. You would probably enjoy yourself, what with your love of horses."
Shit face immediately launched into a description of his "fine" horses. Rukia fought back a grimace and abruptly stood from her seat, cutting off the conversation. She faked a smile. "I'm a little tired now. I wish you a fine meal, gentlemen."
She made her grand exit and all but raced to her room, disgustedly flinging the dress to the floor and digging for some trousers and an old shirt. She grabbed her hat from the back of the closet. She hastily slung on her belt with the holster, slipping in an old handgun, before slinging a rifle around her shoulders. She put on her gloves and tied her bandanna around her neck, violet eyes peering into the gloom seen through her window. She unlatched the lock and flung the sill up, making sure to lock her door before jumping out the window, hands grasping a hanging branch and swinging herself down with practiced ease.
She quickly tuned her ears in for any sound of followers before darting into the brush. Rukia glanced around once again before she whistled softly.
A beautiful white Camarillo trotted softly out of the surrounding woods. Resituating the rifle on her back to fit more comfortably against her shoulder blade, she swung herself up into the saddle as the horse passed by, checking her surroundings she led the the horse deep back into the brush, carefully pushing oncoming branches out of the way. She paid special attention to each groove in the tree, having marked a path to their hideout. She clicked her tongue and urged the horse into a trot.
Soon the trees started thinning out, most young saplings now. Finally they ceased all together. She clicked her tongue again and the horse broke into a gallop, the thick grass muting the sound of the pounding hooves along with masking their tracks, save a footprint every now and again. She glanced up at the sky and groaned, the sound sending a flock of birds into the sky. She was late and Renji was going to kill her. She sped up the pace, hat tipped against the wind, hair catching the breeze.
Ichigo reclined back into his pillow, sighing in contentment. The food had been as good as ever, due to Yuzu's amazing cooking. He cursed as he realized he hadn't given Zangestsu his daily treat. He gingerly left the warmth of his bed, hand on the door and praying his dad wasn't behind it. He was so not in the mood. He carefully opened the door a crack, the door creaking to which he winced, his position given away. His dad raced up the stairs, "Ichiiiiiggggoooo!"
Ichigo brought up his foot to land it square in his old man's face, "Hi, dad." and made his way down the stairs, pausing to grap two apples from the basket.
He put on his shoes and jacket and left the warm house in exchange for the biting wind. He ducked his head and made his way to the stables, the metal shingles flapping in the wind, an obvious sign of an oncoming storm. He stepped up his pace and breathed a sigh of relief as he entered the stalls, Zangetsu's loud banging on the door reaching his ears from the other side of the stable. Ichigo winced. Zangetsu wasn't in a good mood. He petted each horse he past before coming to Zangetsu. The animal huffed impatiently and stared accusingly at Ichigo as he dug in his pockets. Ichigo clicked his tongue and huffed along with him.
"I'm sorry, ok? I screwed up, but to make up with it I brought two this time so be grateful." He held the apples up to the horse, who eyed them thoughtfully before turning away, huffing once again. Ichigo growled and slapped his rump, to which he whirled around, baring his teeth. Ichigo, completely unfazed, glared at him.
"Listen here, you ungrateful lump. I just braved that stupid wind to bring you not one, but two apples. I don't give a damn if I was late or not, you're still getting them so deal with it!" The animal glared back before caving, taking the apples from his hand, purposefully biting the held out hand. Ichigo howled and brought the hand to his chest, glaring daggers at the horse.
"For that you're not getting any for a week!"
"Talking to the horses now? Oh dear, you're more delusional than I thought, Strawberry." A feminine voice called out. Ichigo turned around, about to yell at the stranger before he realized who it was.
Rukia Kuchiki stood leaning against the doorway, dressed in beige trousers and a beige shirt, a teasing smirk on her face, playing with the reins of a hanging bridle. Ichigo smirked and strode up to her, leaning in. "I'm not the one dressing in men's clothes, midget." A sharp punch to his gut knocked the breath out of him, making him fall to his knees holding his stomach. A hand latched onto his hair and bent his head back, angry violet hues staring angrily into his amber. "Let's get this straight. I'm not a midget, Strawberry, and there is nothing wrong with me wearing these clothes." Ichigo pulled her hand away from his hair and stood, easily towering over her frame.
"And let's get this straight, Kuchiki. My name doesn't mean Strawberry! It means 'one who protects.' And to the clothes I was just kidding, god."
Rukia just waved aside his words and stared at the horses. Ichigo's eyes softened. "Byakuya still hasn't bought you a horse yet?"
Startled eyes glanced back to his before staring at the floor. "No, he still doesn't think it's 'ladylike.' I want one though, bad."
Ichigo crossed his arms. "Why won't you let me buy you one?" Rukia shook her head. "I couldn't ask that of you. You've told me you want to get out of here, travel the world. You'll need money for that. I'd like to get out of here too, but I will buy my own horse by myself, whether Byakuya approves or not doesn't matter, I'll be eighteen soon enough."
Ichigo nodded in defeat. Rukia was always independant, she's never changed in the four years he had known her. He raked his eyes over her again before asking, "What have you been doing that's got you covered in leaves and dust?" It must of been the glare of the overhanging lights but he thought he had seen a faint blush staining her cheeks. She coughed.
"I jumped out the window and into the tree beside it." Ichigo threw his head back and laughed gleefully. "You had to go to that length to get out?"
She coughed in annoyance again. "Byakuya had another lousy suitor for me. I left the dinner and escaped through the window."
Ichigo laughed again before quieting down, noting the heavy silence out in the night. "I better get home before dad thinks up some perverted reason why I'm not home."
She nodded, appearing suprised to see how late it was. "Same here. I better get home before Byakuya finds out I left again. See ya... Strawberry." She raced out of the stable before Ichigo could come up with a comeback.
Biting back curses, he fluffed his jacket and ventured back into the wind. As he passed the jail, he saw the wanted posters flapping in the wind. One broke from its staples and flew to rest by his feet. Curiously he picked up the paper, big eyes gazing up at him. His breath caught as he took in the image.
The view was taken to the side so he could only see one side. The person seemed to be about his age, the artist drawing in every detail, down to the smudges of dirt on the person's face. The shape of the face proved the figure feminine, a lone piece of hair resting to cover one eye. Musing, he realized Rukia hair was exactly like that, but that's where the similarities ended. The eyes spoke volumes, revealing a dangerous gleam, filled with some knowledge no one could guess at. Her eyes spoke of danger and excitement and adventure, all rolled into one, where as Rukia's were thoughtful, full of a deep meaning of understanding. He was captivated by those eyes. A smirk played at her lips, revealing cockiness and taunting some unseen force, a carefree attitude. Her hat was tipped slightly, hinting it might have been windy when the picture was drawn. He traced over her features when a hand clamped on his shoulder. He tensed up in alarm and prepared to beat the stranger to a pulp but when he spoke, he recognized the voice of the deputy. "Mighty pretty, isn't she?"
Ichigo only nodded, still trying to calm down. The hand patted his shoulder before he felt the air shift as the deputy stood to his side, pointing below the picture. "Might want to be careful though. She's got a dangerous record. Eight cases of breaking and entering, two murder, and three assault. Worth alot, she is. Could fetch a hefty penny if you really wanted to. Ten thousand or more, depending on her condition. The higher up's want her for questioning, so dead is out of question. She's part of a gang that's been giving us alot of trouble and supposedly she's one of the leaders."
Ichigo frowned and pointed to a man framed in a wanted poster next to hers. "Why's he worth more? He hasn't done nearly as much as she has?"
He laughed and said, "But look at his record. What he's done is so much worse. He has six murder cases, one being right here in Karakura, two assault, and three rapes."
Ichigo nodded, scowling as he read the obvious murderous gleam in the man's eyes. The deputy patted his back again before walking up the steps. "Night, Ichigo."
Ichigo waved goodbye as he head back home, the wanted poster of the girl clutched tightly in his hands.
Preview for Chapter two:
She gasped as the two bullets entered her arm and shoulder, using the momentum to whirl around and emptied her gun at him, two hitting him, dead before he hit the ground. She fell hard on the hard packed earth, gasping as the shock jolted her even more. Ichigo ran to the fallen girl, hands waving across her form. "What do I do, lady?"
"Dig the bullets out!" She gasped, biting back a scream of pain as his knife sunk into her skin, worming the bullet free. Heart pounding, Ichigo worked the bullet out and dropped the bloody little piece of metal to the ground before working on the other, the woman who saved his life finally passing out in exhaustion.
Fighting the temptation to take off the bandanna, he worked out the last bullet, the sound of hounds baying and shouts of men reaching his ears. He grasped her by the waist and slid a hand behind her neck before picking her up, carrying her suprisingly light form to gently swing her over Zangetsu's back. He swung himself behind her and urged the horse into the woods.
So was it good? Bad? Critisism is very much appreciated...
