Basics: So this was written in one night with little to no real thought process going on! Please be patient with me, guys... I'm going through a bland spot with my Larxel story. I'll try to get a new chapter up as soon as possible! (How many times have I told you THAT before?) Anyway, this story includes a new character I made up all on my own-- her name is Kai, and she's like... The representation of the Indians in America. Strange, huh? Well, this is just the beginning of the strangeness, my friends!

Pairings: Trail!Alfred and Indian!Kai. :3

Summary: While on the Oregon Trail, Alfred encounters an exotic Indian woman-- countless times. Who is she? And why does she infuriate him so much? AlfredxOC

Alfred F. Jones decided that sagebrush tasted good on the wind, especially beneath blue skies. He decided that perhaps he was ready to ride the Oregon trail-- if not for Manifest Destiny, for the beautiful scenery and the wonderful feel of being on the move almost constantly.

He was a man who needed to move, who needed to be able to go just as fast as everyone else, if not faster. He liked the way the wind rolled over the plains, the way it tumbled and tripped and fingered through his hair like a clumsy child. It made him feel more confident knowing he was more mature than the nature.

He didn't know how long it had been since they'd set out on the trail. Well, "they" meaning those people in the wagon train he traveled with. He had no real family to speak of, unless you counted that jerk Arthur, who didn't count. So why would you count him? Ha.

Arthur wasn't really a jerk. Just kinda sometimes. And the fact that they were both competing for the same territory didn't help the relationship between the two nations.

His horse snorted and shifted restlessly beneath him. He was restless too; the train had stopped because a girl had fallen out of her wagon and gotten hit by another. That was the problem with the Great Migration-- there was only so much time that could go by before someone got hurt.

"Alfred!" a voice called. He glanced over to see Louisa, a woman with curly brown hair, waving at him. She coughed and covered her mouth with her apron as he rode over, swatting away dust that rose up. "Alfred, the men say they've spotted some Indians up ahead on the trail. They don't know what tribe it is yet, and they want you to come with with them to go check it out."

"Sure thing, Miss Louisa!" he chirped, giving her a wide grin and a thumbs up before nudging his horse into a trot. After all, it would give him a chance to get moving again; already his body was restless from sitting for a while. And, he'd get the chance to see Indians-- real Indians! So far he'd only heard stories about them. Grinning from ear to ear, with bangs of gold falling into his robin's egg blue eyes, he cantered after the group of men who'd saddled up and were heading down the trail ahead of the wagon train.

Once again, he was on the open trail. If only for a little bit, it was still wonderful. Windswept clouds trailed soft, white kisses across a warm blue sky, illuminated by the sunshine that fell down from the heavens and caressed the earth. The land was barren, yes; with little to no foliage, and with the "little" foliage including sparse prairie grasses and sage brush, it looked empty. There was no shade, nothing noticeable to speak of. But he still loved it. Every piece of it. This is America's land, he thought with a smile.

He rode with a companionable sort of air with the other men, who chatted lightly of other subjects. None were all too excited to be greeted by a tribe of angry Indians; but they liked to imagine what might happen if the Indians turned out to be welcoming. It was an ideal prospect that would prove useful to both sides if they decided to trade or sell, because after all, their food supplies could only last so long.

When they broke over the crest of a prairie grass-dotted hill, they spotted the Indian camp just a couple miles away. As the sun was beginning to move across the sky, the land was changing colors, bathing the world in different hues. The silhouettes of the houses of the Indians were all they could really see, other than the faintly moving shadows amongst the camp. They waited, muttering amongst themselves to decide if they should approach first or wait to be approached. After all, it was a fairly reasonable question; who wanted to approach an angry tribe of Indians who wanted nothing more than to see you dead?

There was question was answered for them soon enough. Soon the silhouettes stopped moving, and instead waited for a moment. It was brief tensity; as if both sides were watching each other, debating. And then a few shadows mounted horses and began approaching.

"Let's meet halfway," one of the men, David, suggested. "That way we seem peaceable."

"But are we peaceable?" another one, Michael, asked. "If these Indians are hostile, we don't want to seem like we're going to let them push us around."

"We also don't want to appear arrogant," David countered. "I say we meet them halfway."

After a few more moments the debating between them men ended in deciding they would begin heading towards them but at a slower pace, so as to not seem agressive. The Indians seemed to be coming on easily enough, not too hurriedly, but none of them really knew the fighting style of the Indians-- only the stories.

As the Indians came into view, Alfred's gaze lit up with anticipation. He could see the group of Indians was led by a young woman; her hair was thick, ebony colored, trailing down her back and pooling where it met her horse. She had high, sharp cheekbones and a proud nose, and her eyes were a dark chocolate color. Her skin was perpetually sunkissed and looked smooth to the touch, a warm shade of caramel.

"You all are traveling to mountains?" she asked them. No formal introductions, of course. Just business.

"Yes," Alfred offered, speaking for the first time in a while. "We're heading over to the other side of the mountains."

She turned her gaze to him. Her eyes were like a hawk's. "Move quickly, then."

Alfred lifted his chin lightly. No way he'd take a tone like that from a woman. No way, no how. "Is that a threat?" he asked in a tone that could have been either disrespectful or just downright curious

The woman's fingers threaded through her horse's mane. "Not a threat. A suggestion," she replied in a tone that implied that she wouldn't take his tone. Was she telling them that she suggested they move quickly so as to avoid battle, if that's what they wanted? Or something about the weather they didn't know about? It was hard to tell.

With another word, the Indian girl blithely turned her horse around, speaking in an exotic language to the three other men who had come with her. The nodded, and Alfred couldn't help but watch her as she rode away. She was confident, elegant. But he didn't like the way she spoke to them, as if they were children.

"We will escort you back to your train," one of the Indian men said. "Not for our safety. For yours." They motioned for the Oregon Trail men to head back, and followed after them as they did so.

"What do you mean, for our safety?" Alfred asked one of the men, allowing his horse to fall back to walk beside him. The Indian man had a hooked nose and strong, firm chin. He seemed older than the other two, more serious, but looked at him with the mutual respect he was feeling.

"We keep you safe for trip through this area," he explained in slightly broken English.

"So you're staying with us until we reach the mountains? And what are you keeping us safe from?" he persisted, curious now. The hook-nosed man simply nodded again.

"We keep you safe," he repeated, indifferently, and Alfred felt that perhaps he shouldn't ask anymore.

x x x

Night came easier than the day. The wagon train stopped now, instead resting beside a small crest of hills and bluffs dotted with foliage. Alfred watched the sky turn from light blue to stormy midnight, watched as the the flecks of fiery ash flickered from the campfire up into the starry sky.

The lithe shadows of the Indian men lurked outside of the camps. As he listened to the others chat lightly of other things, he watched. He couldn't tell if they'd lied about helping them through the camp or if they were secretly planning an attack. Either way, they made him unsettled, slinking around out there.

He sighed and leaned back against the ground. As he stared up at the sky, he continued to think about the Indians. Who was that girl who was with them before? She didn't look exactly like that tribe. She had different eyes. These Indians had large, expressive eyes. Her eyes had been slanted and almond-shaped, like a cat. She had been more beautiful. More than beautiful, in fact.

But her attitude-- so aloof, so... Superior. It bothered him to no end. He wanted nothing more to prove her wrong. To see defeat on her face, to feel triumph with her at the other end. To defy her in every way possible.

Stupid Indian girl. He'd get her.

So this is fun! Rate and review, please? I hope you enjoyed this. I promise you that there will be plenty more Kai to be coming in. 3