3rd Shot - A Lady, a Gentleman, and a Fool

I'm...moving...I must still...be on the train... It was just a dream...

Lara smiled and nestled closer to her seat, breathing in deeply. A warm, musky scent mixed with salt filled her lungs and stirred her thoughts, lifting the veil of sleep. With her eyes still closed, but her senses more aware, she could feel a pair of strong arms holding her, supporting her back and her legs. Fear, once again, involuntarily welled inside her. She flinched in disgust, drawing her transport's attention.

"Ah! So you're awake."

That voice...!

Once again she found herself looking up into snow-burdened skies. "Feeling better?"

Lara screamed and pushed herself out of his arms, landing painfully on her rear. "Are you alright?" he asked. He sounded earnest.

"Stay--" she scooted away. "--away from me."

Undaunted, he reached out his hand. "Let me h--"

"NO!"

He watched curiously as she stood and brushed herself off.

Oh... I hope I didn't damage my gun... If anything's happened to it I'll make him pay for it personally!

The King of Bandits began to laugh softly. "What's so funny?" Lara snapped.

He smiled apologetically. "Nothing. I'm just relieved. You seem to have made a full recovery. I was worried that maybe you would have trouble standing. I certainly wasn't expecting the big guy to pull out that chain."

Lara froze and stared at him, her fury coloring her cheeks. "You were watching...?"

"Only from when those two guys tried to grab you."

"Are you stalking me?!"

"What-- No!"

"Where were you taking me just now?"

"Uh--"

"I knew it! You were taking me to their base! You're one of them!!"

He nervously ran his fingers through his hair. "Hey, now do I really seem like the kind of guy who would pretend to be nice to gain someone's trust?"

She sent him a scrutinizing glare. "I wouldn't know, I just met you."

"Well, I'm not." His gaze swept through her, nearly cracking her well-polished facade. Although she was doing her best to hide it, she felt as though at any second the ground beneath her would disappear. She had thought that after years of pursuing this boy she was prepared to confront him. She now realized how unprepared she was.

Lara glanced away, breaking eye contact. "You wouldn't be the first."

I have to focus! I can't afford for him to be suspicious of me...

He grinned, consenting defeat. "You're not very trusting, are you?"

"I have a habit of running into the worst people." she explained nonchalantly.

"I'm not one of them," he replied. "You can trust me."

"Can I?" she answered skeptically.

He smiled. "I'm Jing. My friend, the feather duster here--"

"Kir. At your service." The bird from before once again appeared before her, seemingly from nowhere, and attempted to kiss her hand. Jing pulled him away.

"It's probably best that you ignore whatever he says."

"C'mon, Jing! Stop trying to give the lady a false first impression of me." Kir snickered before continuing. "Really, if you want her that badly just say so."

"See what I mean?" Jing said, ignoring the indignant look on Kir's face.

Lara laughed. "I'll keep that in mind."

Jing observed Lara with a mild sense of wonder. "You have a beautiful laugh."

She stopped. "Thank...you...?"

"You haven't told us your name yet," he added.

She smiled and, with a flashy bow, answered, "Lara."

Kir once more offered her a rose, this time with an emerald ring on its stem. "Pleased to make your acquaintance."

Accepting the flower, she replied, "No, I assure you, the pleasure is mine."

"So, Miss Lara, where are you headed?"

"Moonshine," she stated over Kir's flirtatious comment about the ring matching her eyes, "but I need to find--" Lara gasped and began to look about their surroundings frantically. "Oh no! The alley! I only know how to find the stable from the alley-- Ow!" She dropped the rose and brought her left middle finger to her lips.

Jing stepped towards her. "It's alright. Calm down. I kind of guessed that was the case, and since we were headed there ourselves I brought you along. It should just be at the end of this street."

She turned to look in the direction they had been traveling. Sure enough, she could see a large wooden building at the end of the road, which, as it turned out, led to the edge of town. She turned back to Jing. He was holding out her rose. She gingerly reached for it, first checking whether her finger had stopped bleeding. To her surprise, the thorns had been cut off. She looked at Jing, puzzled, but he only smiled innocently. "See? I wasn't taking you back to those thugs."

"How did you know I was going to Moonshine?" Her voice was once again tinged with distrust.

He easily dismissed this subtle attack against his integrity and replied, "Why else would someone like you come here but to see the Blue Moon Festival?"

Lara raised an eyebrow. "'Someone like me'?"

"A beautiful and confident young woman," he explained.

Lara smiled as she tucked a bit of loose hair behind her ear. "My, aren't you a smooth talker? The two of you must be quite the ladykillers."

Jing and Kir glanced at each other then, in unison, replied, "I guess you could say that." She laughed and rolled her eyes. As she turned and began walking towards the stable, she carefully slid the ring Kir had given her into a hidden pocket in her vest.

"I think she likes us, Kir."

"...I don't know. I don't like her."

Jing stared at his airborne friend in bewilderment. "No? I thought she was exactly your type: two arms, two legs, two eyes, two X chromosomes..."

"Well, ha-ha -- aren't you clever. You know I don't go for just any girl."

Jing smiled devilishly. "Oh yeah, I forgot. They have to be cute too."

Kir scowled. "It isn't that. There's just something about her that feels...off. And not that it matters, but I prefer my girls to be a bit less aggressive." With that, he flew off after their new acquaintance. Jing considered Kir's words for a moment before he too followed.

"I'm sorry. I only have one horse left. All the others have already been rented."

The three travelers stared blankly at the young woman who ran the stable.

"Um, I'll just leave you to discuss it. When you've made a decision, I'll be in the back." She turned and walked further into the building.

Kir flew after her, calling, "Oh, Beauteous Vision! Where have you been all my life?"

Lara cleared her throat. "A gentleman would let the lady have the horse and go on foot himself."

"And a fool would take the horse without a second thought towards the lady's plight," Jing casually replied.

She glanced at him. "Which are you?"

He smiled and met her gaze. "Neither." He gestured for her to follow him.

When the stable girl noticed their approach, she ran to meet them and exclaimed, "That was fast!" She seemed a bit too happy. "What's your decision?"

"We'll take it," Jing answered with his seemingly ever-present smile.

"What?" both Kir and Lara responded.

"Both of you?" asked the stable girl.

"Yes."

"But Jing--" Kir interjected.

"If you're worried that we'll prove to be too heavy a load, I assure you we won't." Jing continued. Lara blushed.

Oh, he would know that... Jerk, who said you could carry me, anyway...?

"N-no!" the girl stuttered. "That's not-- I just didn't think--" She looked from Jing to Lara, back to Jing, once more at Lara, then, flustered, turned around. "If that's what you've decided, then follow me."

They followed her to the back of the stable area where one lone horse stood patiently. As the girl bustled about, preparing for her customers' journey, Lara inquired, "How much do we owe you?"

"You're going to Moonshine, right? My brother runs the stable there. You'll pay him."

"That's very trusting of you, but then what is there to stop someone from stealing the horse?"

The girl smiled warmly at her. "All of the stables in this region are run by my family; I have a lot of siblings. Well then, I wish you safe travels!"

She headed for the door, but Kir followed. "Wait! Don't I get a farewell kiss?"

"No!"

"You don't mind riding with me, do you?"

"I really don't have much of a choice, so it doesn't matter either way."

Jing smiled and helped Lara mount. "True, but it isn't as though we're inconveniencing each other. After all, we are going to the same place."

"Are we?" she asked as he mounted behind her.

"Of course. Why else would someone such as myself be in this little station town?"

"Hmm."

"What?"

"You certainly have confidence, but I never would have guessed you were a girl."

Jing smirked at this reuse of his own words. He responded by causing the horse to rear on to its hind legs. This caught Lara by surpise, and she fell back into Jing. "Hang on tight." They started forward. "Come on, Kir, or we'll leave you behind!" Jing called. "Fine with me!" was his response. As they rode past the irrepressible flirt and the rather distressed stable girl, Jing grabbed a hold of Kir's tail and pulled him away.

They had been travelling for a few hours, and the town was no longer visible behind them. The sun had begun to disappear beneath the horizon.

"Sheesh! That girl sure can sleep," Kir grumbled from his perch on Jing's shoulder.

"Still don't think she's cute?"

Kir took off, batting his partner's head with his wings in the process. "Will you drop that! Yes, she's cute, but I still don't trust her."

Jing considered Kir's doubts, but quickly dismissed them. "...I like her."

Kir settled himself back onto Jing's shoulder and replied, "Well good luck to you, Romeo. Just be careful. I think this girl's got just as much experience in playing with hearts as you do."

A nearly-full moon shone brightly in the nearly-cloudless sky. Outside of an inn, Jing carefully shifted Lara's weight, freeing one of his arms in order to open the door.

"Excuse me, but would you happen to have any available rooms?"

The woman at the desk looked up. Pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose, she answered, "I'm sorry. They were all reserved at least a week in advance."

"The same as all the others..." Kir sighed. "Why didn't we make a reservation, Jing?"

"What? You don't like sleeping outside?"

"Sir, is she alright?" The woman gestured towards the unconcious girl on Jing's back.

"Oh, yes. She's only sleeping... Ma'am? Do you have a reservation under the name 'Lara'?"

"Lara?! Is she...?" Jing nodded. The woman let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness! We've been worried sick! The mayor has been calling every half-hour." She came out from behind the desk and took Jing's bag from his shoulder. She started up the stairs. Jing and Kir followed. "We weren't sure whether or not she would be bringing a guest, so we went ahead and reserved two rooms."

Jing smirked at Kir. "So, do you like her now?" Kir turned away.