AUTHORS NOTE: This is my first chapter to this story in 4 years, I hope you enjoy.
As we began walking back to the bar, the 'All Clear' siren began to bellow. The sight of all the would-be "Outlaws" returning to the bar as if they didn't just run like cowards was sickening. The quality of outlaws has declined unbearably since I hung up my gun. None of these cowards could even piss in Vash the Stampede's direction, let alone try to kill him.
This long-named stranger and I were the best chance this planet had to rid itself of this so-called "Humanoid Typhoon" and everybody knew it. So it was no surprise that when we walked back into the bar, every single eye was on us once again.
We sat down at a table and ordered a bottle of Wild Turkey and 2 glasses, along with 2 dozen salmon sandwiches, and 35 doughnuts. Not that we needed all of that, but when death is more likely than living, what's money?
After about an hour of drinking and eating, the talk of the bar had gotten around about my previous skirmish with Vash the Stampede, and the jackass who pulled my gun on me earlier wouldn't even look at my boots.
As a quiet fell over the bar, suddenly the saloon doors swung open with a fury. Every head in the bar including this stranger and mine swung toward the doors, and I damn near started crying when I saw her walk in.
There, walking through the door was Arizona Turner, one of my oldest friends on Gunsmoke. She stood 5'8 with long flowing raven black hair down to her back and wore a midnight purple hide vest over an indigo long-sleeved shirt along with black pants and black riding boots. My immediate thought was to smile, but it was quickly overtaken by a sense of fear as she started walking over to us with that familiar look I remember from years ago.
"H-Hi Ari," I said nervously as she stopped 6 feet from our table. "Don't you 'Hi Ari' me, you son of a bitch!" She yelled still glaring at me. Her yell echoed throughout the saloon causing everyone to stare at us once again. Seconds later, a large drunk bandit came staggering up to Arizona.
"Hey, their little lady, that no way for a pretty young thing like you to talk," He said drunkenly smiling and trying to take her left hand. His hand had no more made contact with hers before a loud shot rang out and his head exploded like a water balloon. As I uncovered my ears, I saw her with a smoking Helix Repeating 12 gauge shotgun in her right hand. "Don't ever touch a lady without her permission!" She yelled at his corpse.
A second later she spun around putting her shotgun on her back holster as she did. "Now, you!" She said loudly glaring at me again. "She seems to upset with you, Billy," The Stranger said, leaning over and whispering to me. "Oh geez, you think so Val?" I said sarcastically back to him. He simply laughed and poured 3 glasses of Wild Turkey instead of 2, offering one to Ari.
Ari picked it up and nodded to him, smiling as she did. She then threw the glass of whiskey in my face and smashed the glass at my feet. "You got a lot of damn nerve showing your sorry face around here again Billy Mercer!" She said furiously at me as I wiped the alcohol from my eyes. "You're lucky I don't blow your god damn head off for what you did," She said still glaring.
"Oh come on now Ari, that was 12 years ago," I said as I finished. I could see her growing more and more furious by the second. "12 years or 12 minutes, you abandoned us for a fucking whore and took our loot with you!" She said angrily. "Ari, I know you're upset and you have every right to be but I'm only going to ask you once not to call Morgan a whore," I said sternly as I glared back at her. "Fuck you, you lying sack snake shit!" She said back as she turned around and started walking towards the door, stepping over the corpse as she did.
I sighed heavily and took a big drink of whiskey, knowing I was going to need it for what was about to happen. "Hey uh, Val. I, uh, I have something I need to do really quick. Order us up another 4 dozen sandwiches and a bottle, I'm probably going to need a big ass drink when I get back," I said with a sigh.
"Just be patient with her, she might be hurt but obviously she still cares about you," He said with a slight shimmer in his eye as he began to get philosophical. "Why else would she take the time to come all the way here? Just throw a drink in your face? I think not," He said as he put on his best guru of love face.
"Quite the love soldier aren't you?" I asked as I got up and took another drink. "I'm like a hunter of peace. One who chases the elusive mayfly of love... or something like that," He said back as he stared at an absolutely gorgeous girl with his Cassanova eyes.
I walked out of the saloon and found Ari at the bottom of the steps with a cigarette in her mouth looking for a lighter. I cautiously walked up to her and offered her mine, making sure she wasn't holding her shotgun.
"Here," I said as I ignited my lighter and lit her cigarette. She inhaled the smoke and blew it in my face, scowling at me as she did. "What the fuck do you want?" She asked, taking another drag. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I'm not sorry for leaving, but I am sorry for taking the money," I said.
Ari laughed condescendingly at me and hit her cigarette again. "Oh, you're sorry? Well, that's fucking great there Billy," She said with the same tone. "I wonder how much I can get for your apology at the bank?" She said. She looked me in the eyes again, then looked down, spat on my boots, and walked away.
I started to turn to walk back inside but suddenly I remembered my daughter, Serina. She had always been the most friendly and understanding child I had ever seen in my life. One thing she always used to say, almost religiously, was that anyone can make a mistake, but not everyone can forgive. At that moment, I wondered if maybe Ari could possibly forgive me with time.
"I can pay you back, all of you," I said trying my best to sound sincere. "Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news asshole, but they're all dead," She said harshly. "What, how?" I asked feeling a weight drop on my heart. "Oh yeah like you really give a shit. You haven't given a fuck about us in 12 years, you lying 2-faced son of a bitch," She said as she flicked her cigarette at me. "I'm sorry Ari, I truly am," I said dusting myself off. "My offer still stands though, I can pay you," I said looking back at her. "Oh really? Well, the way I see it, you owe me 3 shares of the loot then," She said as she mockingly began strolling toward me. "So if you plan on pulling $$12,000,000 out of your ass, you might want to bend over for convenience!" She yelled as she attempted to slap me. I caught her hand, catching her off guard, and looked into her eyes. "I'm not going to pull it out of my ass, I'm going after Vash The Stampede," I said, causing her to gasp and look at me with terror.
I hadn't seen Ari in 12 years. It's amazing how many things you forget in that time. Her eyes were still the same bright shade of green they always were, other than the length her hair hadn't changed a bit, and she still wore the same shade of purple lipstick. I could lie and say I only missed her as one friend does another but I would be lying. While I truly and deeply loved my dearest Morgan, Ari and I had attempted to be together more times than I can remember. I would also be lying if I said she didn't still have a place in my heart after all these years.