Hi guys! Hermes here! PLEASE READ THE BOLD?
Okay first off. Thanks to my lovely reviewers, Dalonega Noquisi and Sam0728! Your faithful comments make my day, just so you know, and they keep me writing. The rest of you know who you are you lurkers you. I see your views don't think I don't.
SEcond! I have made a poll! PLEASE GO AND VOTE ON IT MY LOVELY READERS! Tessa is going to be shipped with someone because I am a romantic and I can't resist. The poll is on my profile, or it should be. You've got four options, go nuts. Please?
This is kind of a filler chapter, but necessary because I am a stickler for detail and like, Tessa is my gal, I gotta show her off. I aim to avoid having all the guys fall in love with her, because ew Mary Sue, but she is going to interact with them all, because hello character development. That being said, I feel like Faraday flirting is well in line with how I've been writing that goof.
All that being said, on with the show~!
"I've got to get something inside me.
Some coffee or something.
And then the world will somehow be better."
Terry Prachett, Men at Arms
She closed her eyes for a few minutes and woke roughly to the sound of Nick pounding on her door. The gun she'd carefully hung on the side of the bed, (safely holstered of course) the night before was in her hand and cocked before she'd fully opened her eyes.
"Tess!"
All the breath left her in a rush. Tessa sagged back against the mattress and pressed a hand to her pounding heart. Usually Joe woke her. She had forgotten Nick's...aggressive methods.
"We're having breakfast in the saloon Tess! Hurry up! I'm not going to save you any."
"You'd better at least save me some coffee!" she threatened, shoving her weapon back into its holster.
Her brother laughed quietly on the other side of the door but his light tread vanished down the hall with no more comment. Tessa rubbed the sleep from gritty eyes and made her way to the basin on the far wall with unbalanced steps. She didn't waste time with the mirror; she scrubbed the sleep from her skin and tamed her hair by way of two thick braids.
Tessa grabbed her binders and cringed as she eyed the long strips of linen; they were stiff with sweat and had become a beige color she associated with dirt. Or a general state of uncleanliness. The state of them! She shook her head and began the laborious process of wrapping herself, pushing up and tucking what she could. Tessa tried not to hurry. If she did it wrong, they would just get looser and looser until she might as well have worn nothing at all under her shirt.
A series of lunges and stretches assured her the chest binding was as it should be and she quickly shrugged the rest of her clothes. A quick glance showed her writing satchel right where she left it. Tessa scooped it up quickly and made for the door. Even as she did she ran the sensitive pads of her fingers across her belt and noted the rough, cracked feel of the leather with a wince. Evidently, her linens were not the only things in need of some upkeep. She ran the town through her mind, considering where best to get the things she might need and swung the door open.
"Oh!"
Tessa snatched for her gun and forced herself to stop just as quickly. Mrs. McClay stared at her, blinking her watery blue eyes rapidly in the face of such a surprise as a customer exiting her room. The younger woman sucked in a deep breath and offered her most polite smile. "Good morning ma'am, I apologize if I startled you. I'll just be on my way now. Have a pleasant morning."
She brushed gently past the other, drawing the door firmly shut behind her as she did so. By then the woman had recovered from her shock and was eyeing her shrewdly.
"Don't you own any skirts girl?" she demanded.
The tone as much as the words drew Tessa up sharply and she paused on the step. Slowly, as slowly as she dared she turned to look at the lady. Her mouth was probably a pretty mouth when it wasn't all puckered in disapproval, Tessa noted absently. One foot tapped impatiently and the hand that wasn't occupied with a basket of bed linens made an impatient gesture. Tessa blinked.
"I beg your pardon," she began slowly.
"It ain't decent," interrupted the esteemed Mrs. McClay. "And mark my words missy, this is a decent establishment." She sneered and wagged a long finger under Tessa's nose. "Just because your brothers are fighting for our town doesn't mean you get to flounce around like some of them heathens across the way. So missy, you start acting decent, act like a proper lady, and I won't have my husband throw you out."
Where on earth had that come from?
Tessa blinked again and gently moved the accusatory finger from her general space. She touched her guns, equally gently, and loosened the knife in its sheath as if to check it was still there. She did all this, very carefully, while making eye contact. Mrs. McClay did not get the hint, but raised a still dark eyebrow at her, waiting. She shut her eyes and sighed.
"You seem to be laboring under some delusions. Mrs. McClay, so allow me to clarify," Tessa gave her a polite smile and held up three fingers. She ticked them off as she spoke. ". . Firstly, I will be leaving, I'm sure the Elysium has a corner I can sleep in. Second, these guns are not for show. And thirdly," she leaned into the others space, and the pulse hammered in the older woman's throat. "I can wear pants if I damn well please to."
Mrs. McClay gasped and clutched her proverbial pearls, nearly spilling her clean laundry in her upset. Tessa grinned. "I'll be back some time today to move my things out of my room. If you leave everything just as it should be, I'll leave a generous tip."
With a wink she left the gasping fuddy duddy at the top of the stairs and sauntered out into the sunshine.
"Did you get lost?" Nick snarked but he slid a plate and a cup of coffee across the table to her.
"I met Mrs. McClay." Tessa replied shortly and gave a general nod to the rest of the table as she sat. Half the table didn't even glance up from their plates.
"Oh." Nick gave her a sheepish smile.
"Yes, oh." Tessa shot him a knowing look. She surreptitiously sniffed at her plate and tried a bite. With a shrug she tucked in. Better than beans for certain.
"What oh? Why oh?" Faraday flashed her a grin around his mouthful of breakfast and Tessa raised an eyebrow at his apparent friendliness but didn't comment.
"Mrs. McClay of McClay's boarding house has decided that I am an indecent woman because I wear pants." she explained and took a tentative sip of her coffee. It was hot but not scalding and it seemed Nick had managed to scrounge up some sugar. She gave him a grateful smile.
Faraday shook his head and swallowed his mouthful. "Ah to hell with her. You fight decent and you can't fight in a dress."
Tessa's eyebrows couldn't have gotten any higher if she'd tried. The onslaught of support was pleasant but entirely unexpected. "I can fight in a dress," was all she said and Vasquez snorted from his place.
"I would have like to see that." he mumbled through a mouthful of food.
"No you wouldn't." chorused Joe and Nick quickly. Tessa glanced at them sharply and neither met her eye.
"What's that like, fighting in a dress?" Faraday leaned on elbow on the table, into Billy Rocks' space. The other glared at him but gave her a curious look as well.
Tessa considered a moment, flicking her gaze from her brothers to the newly watching eyes at the table. "Breezy," she said finally.
A few things happened in quick succession. Robicheaux snorted so hard he spat coffee onto his plate, Vasquez choked on his food, and Horne shared a despairing look with God while her brothers laughed. The noise edged on desperate. Faraday blinked at her, mouth agape and quickly dissolved into a gleeful belly laugh, while Rocks just shook his head and went back to his food.
This was the scene Sam Chisolm walked into, resignation in every line of his body. He looked at Tessa. "I'm not going to ask. You come up with anything last night?"
"As far as strategies?" Tessa sipped her coffee, meeting his eyes over the rim of her cup. "I have a few things here, but nothing concrete."
"Well we'll need all the help we can get," Chisolm said heavily and sat down with his own plate. Tessa slid him her satchel.
"Open it," she said encouragingly. "That's the list of supplies they found, things we can use. Our biggest challenge is shortening the amount of ground the enemy can use." He nodded slowly, eyes scanning her scribbles with a promising scrutiny. She chewed quickly and went on, "I'm thinking if we can't find ways to bottleneck them, then we're done for."
He found the last page, scanned it quickly and and his eyes widened. The expression on his face when he met her eyes was a strange one, page raised in question. The others made curious noises at him but Tessa met his gaze squarely and calmly explained. "Shrapnel like that can stop a whole troop of men."
The wagons began to roll out before they'd even finished breakfast. Tessa watched Joe say goodbye to several painted ladies, all of whom looked genuinely sad to be leaving him, as the others talked quietly behind her. She huffed softly and drained the last of her coffee. When had he become such a ladies man? Joe helped the last girl into the coach and waved her off, hat in hand and over his heart in a move that should have been theatrical, but actually came across as sincere. How he managed it, she would never know.
"You're brother has quite the way with the ladies."
She turned slightly to regard Faraday who was watching Joe with begrudging admiration. She couldn't help but smile. "Well you aren't wrong. He can be charming when he wants to be."
"What about you?" He turned to her, voice abruptly low and silky.
Tessa cocked her head warily, blinked. "I don't follow…"
"Can you be charming Ms. Newell?"
Faraday fixed her with a steady gaze that smoldered, and Tessa realized with an abrupt sense of dismay that he was handsome. Her belly fluttered and heat flooded up her neck. "I-I don't-" His smile unfurled like a peacock's tail as she scrambled for a coherent answer.
Oh, seven hells.
A heavy hand clamped on her shoulder and Tessa threw an elbow back sharply. She realized a split second too late who it was and Nick wheezed slightly. She was pretty sure Faraday snickered but she was so busy apologizing she couldn't confirm. She also missed the entire parade of townspeople willing to fight. Tessa turned to face the building next door, cast a pleading look to heaven, and fought to get herself under control. So,Faraday was flirting. He was probably drunk again. She was a professional, and she needed to focus. She could not afford to get distracted by a pretty face.
With a firm nod, Tessa drew in a deep breath and was about to go after Chisolm when a hot puff of air across her ear had her freezing in place.
"That wasn't very charming was it?" Tessa fought to disguise her full body shudder, but from the extra puff of air she felt, she hadn't succeeded. When in the hell had her neck become that sensitive?
"Oops! Sorry Faraday!"
Tessa narrowly escaped being taken down with Faraday as Nick somehow managed to trip over thin air and accidentally shove the other man off the porch. Concerned, she grabbed his face in her hands, studying his pupils and his color anxiously. "You're not getting sick are you? You're not usually so clumsy."
Nick gently pried her hands off his face and patted her shoulder. "I'm fine Tess, nothing to worry about." He smiled thinly down at Faraday who was glaring up at him. "Sorry again friend. Accidents happen."
The smile Faraday sent back was more of a grimace and Tessa glanced between them, uncertain. "No harm no foul. It's like you said, friend. Accidents happen." They didn't break eye contact, smiling sharp little smiles.
"Okay," Tessa announced, slowly taking a step back. Neither man so much as glanced in her direction. "'m just...going to, you know, look over my notes. Talk to Chisolm."
"I believe he and Mr. Robicheaux have agreed to take the men out shooting." Horne gestured to the general area behind the Elysium by way of explanation. Tessa nodded her gratitude but couldn't contain the small sound of frustration.
It wasn't how she would have done it, but Chisolm was in charge. Scowling (not pouting) she made her way back inside for more coffee. Might as well go over her notes again.
Tessa sank back in her chair with a groan, muscles protesting the move. She frowned up at the ceiling. It wasn't enough to teach the men to shoot, though that was absolutely necessary. They didn't have enough ammo, and they didn't have enough guns. Even if they managed to funnel the men into the breach, that didn't mean they could hold them off long enough to whittle their numbers down to a manageable size. Figures whirled through her head as she tried to make it work.
With a growl, she ran a hand through her hair, realized it was braided and swore softly under her breath. She rubbed furiously at her forehead and straightened.. Tension had built up in her shoulders while she was hunched over and they made their displeasure known very clearly as she changed position. Tessa flicked open her battered watch. She'd been at it for an hour and a half, and every hour was important, but she needed a break. Mind made up Tessa plopped her hat on her head, rolled her satchel up and made for the practice field.
Guns were sounding periodically and as she rounded the corner of a small shed she almost ran into a group of men heading towards the makeshift shooting range. They were grumbling under their breath as a whole and she only caught a word here and there, something about "impossible" and "better off shooting" or the like. She watched them go, baffled as to what had gotten them so worked up on the first day.
"If you've come to see a show, don't bother, I'm going to help teach them to shoot." came Billy Rocks' low voice. Tessa turned, eyebrows raised.
"What on earth did you do to them?" she questioned, trying not to laugh. Rocks gave her a flat look and wiped one of his knives off with a handkerchief before he sheathing it.
"I tried to show them how to use knives. They did not find it as easy as I do."
Tessa folded her arms, appraising the straw dummies and noting the slash marks where Rocks had obviously demonstrated his prowess. She nodded appreciatively. "I doubt many do Mr. Rocks. You're a regular artist. I like knives myself, but I've never come close to doing what you do."
Rocks head tilted slightly, black eyes intent on her face. Tessa couldn't read him (which was more than a little unsettling) but she returned his study placidly enough. Then she made a decision. With a little sigh (he was probably going to take it the wrong way) she reached into her shirt and into the top layer of her binders and pulled out her favorite push dagger. By then the man's eyebrows had disappeared under the brim of his hat but there was a curious spark in his eyes. Tessa snorted and curled the dagger into her fist.
"I use knuckle dusters if I want to make a point, but if I'm in real danger I use this. I'm not fancy but it makes my punches count."
"May I?" He held out a gloved hand, and Tessa smiled, flipping the tool so the wicked little blade lay balanced across her fingers, handle towards him.
He picked it up carefully and curled it into his own fist. His hands were bigger than hers but it still fit, leather wrap on the handle and all. The leaf shaped blade looked totally incongruous in his clenched fist, but then he made a positively balletic move, slashing and spinning. Suddenly her little blade was dangerous. A wild, bright grin split Tessa's face.
"Can you teach me that?" she demanded, practically vibrating in place, and quickly remembered her manners. "Please?"
To her utter surprise, the stoic man gave a quiet laugh. "Sure. But we'll start with these first." And he drew one of the many long knives from his belt and hand it to her handle first. "Slash, stab, there's nothing to it."
"Oh sure," Tessa agreed brightly, testing the blades balance. "But there's always something new to be learned."
The look Rocks gave her was inscrutable but he seemed concerned, and Tessa just smiled widely. She was feeling better already. It was shaping up to be a nice day.
