Cowboy Bebop
That's Why They Call it the Blues
Chapter 3 - Blind
"Now it seems you've got a different dream
Thanks for including me
You smell things so differently"
Once Faye and Spike reached the spaceport, finding the Bebop was not a difficult task. The old ship stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the classier, more expensive ships in that particular part of the port.
Spike chuckled to himself. "I wonder where Jet got the money to get such a nice dock." he mused.
"We did manage to catch some pretty decent bounties," Faye answered absently. "Though Jet was always stingy with the money… it is a wonder he picked this particular dock." She stared at the ship for a while before glancing up at Spike, who's focus, once again, was on her. "What?" she asked.
"You went back to the Bebop?" he asked quietly.
"Yeah," Faye answered. "I mean, where else was I going to go? I only stuck around for a year or two though. After a while, we just went our separate ways. It got too weird."
"What, you two had a thing or something?" Spike joked. The murderous look she gave him suggested otherwise.
"Can we get this over with?" she said, quickly marching towards the ship hangar.
Spike sighed in defeat, following behind her. There was just no talking to some people…
=====
Stepping into the hangar cautiously, Faye let her eyes roam around. It had been so long since she had stepped foot on the Bebop, and memories that were both good and bad came rushing back towards her.
Spike had just finished his own little inspection of the hangar. Jet still kept his ship in tip-top shape; he shouldn't really have expected otherwise though. Turning his attention to Faye, he noticed that she was standing between the Red Tail and the Swordfish II, though he couldn't tell which one her attention was focused on. He smirked slightly; Faye's car was the exact same color as the old racer.
"And you're sure he knows you're coming?" she was asking.
"Yeah," Spike answered. "Though he doesn't know it's me."
Faye turned back to look at him. "What are you talking about?"
"I told you already," he replied. "I didn't meet with Jet face to face. I sent him an e-mail under the name Skip Pliegees."
Faye blinked. "What kind of name is that?"
"What kind of name is Macy?" he countered. Faye gave him a dirty look. "But anyway, I just rearranged the letters in my name."
Faye sighed. "Idiot." Spike just grinned and shrugged. "Why the cover-up?"
Spike shrugged again. "I didn't know how he'd take it, so I just told him I'd meet up with him after I contacted you and Ed." he answered. "Though, I didn't expect I'd get held at your place."
"Well forgive me for not just following you like some loyal lapdog," Faye replied. "What'd you expect me to do?"
Spike frowned slightly. "I certainly didn't expect you to point a gun to my head. You really have a tendency to do that."
"You're lucky that's all I do. One of these days I might actually pull the trigger."
"Please. You don't have the balls to go through with it."
"As far as I'm concerned, neither do you."
"What the hell is going on in here?" The two bounty hunters looked up to see none other than Jet Black standing in front of them with a pissed off look on his face. After all, they were trespassing.
Faye stepped out of the shadow of the Red Tail. "Jet," she said. "It's me, Faye!"
Jet blinked in surprise, looking her over. "Are you sure?" he asked. She shot him a dirty look, eliciting a laugh from him. "Yup, you're Faye Valentine all right. Damn, girl, what happened to you?"
Faye laughed. "I grew up, I guess."
The old ex-cop smiled, patting her on the back in a friendly gesture. "Not too shabby. At least you're not going to get stopped on the corner anymore." Faye's face turned purple. "Well, I guess we finally know the answer to the riddle."
Faye quirked an eyebrow slightly. "Riddle?"
"How many woolongs would it take to get Faye back on the Bebop?"
"Shut up, you old turkey," Faye smirked. "If I recall correctly, it was you who said you wouldn't pay me to go back into space with you."
Jet looked slightly flushed. "So it was," he admitted, abashed. "Well, things change."
"They do, indeed." Jet looked up as Spike stepped forward, resting an elbow on Faye's shoulder, earning a low growl from her.
Jet's eyes widened in shock. "Spike…?"
The green-haired bounty hunter smirked, raising his free hand in greeting. "Yo."
=====
After the three bounty hunters entered the bowels of the Bebop, Spike split off from the others, saying something about seeing if his room was 'still intact'. Jet and Faye continued on to the living room where Jet plopped down in a chair, still stunned.
Faye glanced around the room; all the chairs had been replaced except the old yellow couch. She sat down as far away from it as possible.
Jet let out a heavy sigh, clamping his cybernetic hand over his eyes. "So that was Spike, eh?"
"Yup." She propped her feet up on the edge of the chair, hugging her knees slightly. "That was Spike Spiegel."
"Well, I'll be damned," he muttered. "I thought for sure he was dead."
Faye snorted slightly. "You and me both." she muttered. "Imagine how I must've felt finding him at my door this morning."
Jet sat up, casting her a serious look. "How ya handling it?" he asked.
She remained quiet for some time before speaking. "Okay, I guess," she lied. In truth, she still couldn't believe it.
"You know, you don't have to do this if you don't want to."
Faye looked over at Jet, his expression hadn't changed but she could still see a bit of concern hidden in his eyes. Though neither of the two would ever admit to it, they had become close friends after Spike's death. It had been tough at first, their personalities and tempers constantly clashing, but after a while, they managed to continue on with the surrogate family the crew had formed before everyone split up.
"No, it's all right, Jet." she finally replied. "It's better this way." Jet nodded slightly in understanding. "Besides, I need the money."
Spike entered the room and started to speak when he saw Jet rise and sit down next to Faye. He decided to remain quiet and stay where he was.
"You making out all right?" he heard Jet ask.
Faye chuckled. "Yes, Dad," she drawled. "Though I have to admit, with the bounties getting thin, working pro bono for IPPCS isn't a walk in the park."
"I told you working just Mars wasn't gonna cut it," Jet said with an 'I told you so' smirk. "You need to go back out into space."
Spike noted that Faye suddenly became quiet. "I'm going with you guys aren't I?"
"Yeah," Jet replied. "But that's only because Spike--"
"It's not because of Spike!" Faye interrupted, standing up. Spike frowned in curiosity. "I told you already that I needed the money."
It seemed Jet knew Faye well enough to know that she didn't want to discuss the matter any further, so he dropped the subject. "Suit yourself." he replied, as he began fishing a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket.
Faye nodded in return. "I'm gonna head back to my apartment," she replied softly. "Get a few things packed, you know… all that stuff." Jet nodded. "Uhm, I'll be back in a few hours."
"I'll be here." Jet called after her.
Seemingly catching the double meaning, Faye stopped and smiled slightly before heading off. She walked a few yards before coming across Spike, who had been listening to whole time.
"Hey," he replied.
Faye jumped slightly, startled. "Uh, yeah," she murmured before continuing on her way. Spike could only stare at her back, wondering what was eating her.
======
"Here."
Jet looked up to see an open lighter being held to the cigarette hanging from his mouth. He was a bit startled at first - not used to seeing the green haired bounty hunter, but accepted the offer nonetheless, taking a few short puffs after his cigarette had been lit. "Thanks."
Spike plopped down on the old yellow couch, absently noting the thin layer of dust that rested upon it. It disturbed him slightly to think that no one had sat on this couch in three years.
"I really am here you know." he replied, noting the look of disbelief Jet was giving him. "I didn't think I'd be getting this routine from you too, Jet."
The ex-cop grunted, puffing at his cigarette in agitation. "What did you expect me to do?" he asked.
"Whatever you want," Spike replied. "Just don't pull a gun on me, okay? I've had enough of that for one day."
Jet stared at him for a few moments before breaking out into laughter. "So, the shrew woman threatened to shoot you?" he asked, wiping invisible tears from his eyes as his gales of laughter began to subside.
"Nah," Spike replied, taking another cigarette out of his pocket and placing it between his lips. He fumbled around, searching for his lighter. "She just sorta waved it in my face while she yelled at me."
"Yelled at you?" Jet repeated. "About what?"
Realizing his lighter was sitting on the table where he had left it, Spike flicked it open, leaning forward to let the tiny flames dance over the end of the cigarette. As the embers formed on the end, Spike turned his attention back towards Jet. "Basically about how shitty her life was," he mumbled. "And how there was no way in Hell she'd help me."
Jet chuckled wryly. "And yet she came with you anyway?"
"Yeah well," Spike leaned back, letting his arms hang over the back of the couch. "She said she needed the money."
"Well, living on Mars ain't exactly easy." Jet replied, watching the spirals of smoke rise into the air. "You of all people should know that." Spike didn't reply. "So," Jet continued on,
"Where've you been all this time?"
"Around."
Okay. Time to try a different angle. "What made you decide to come back after all this time?"
Spike didn't answer that one either. Instead, he countered with, "What's up with you and Faye?"
Jet knew Spike would try to change the subject, but he hadn't expected him to turn the tables on him like that. He blinked. "Huh?"
"Faye had gone to Earth." Spike replied, staring up at the ceiling. "She only came back when I told her the Bebop was in trouble."
"Yeah, so?"
Spike's expression was pensive, almost as if he were trying to piece together bits of information, coming to his own conclusions before he even thought to ask the question. "Why'd she stick around?"
Jet snorted lightly, flicking the dead embers of his cigarette into the ashtray. "Your guess is as good as mine." he replied. "I stop trying to figure her out years ago. I'm surprised you haven't given it up yet."
"I wasn't trying to do anything," Spike replied brusquely. "She wouldn't tell me, so I was just curious."
"Ah-huh…"
Spike stood up, glancing at his watch. "Ed should be here either tomorrow or the day after." he replied absently. "We can get started when she gets here."
"And where're you off to now?" Jet asked, a curious yet amused expression on his face.
"Out." came the reply. "I'll be back in a few." The lanky bounty hunter disappeared through the exit hatch.
Jet put out his cigarette, chuckling lightly to himself. It'd been a long time since he'd felt this good - things were finally starting to get back to normal.
End of Chapter 3
That's Why They Call it the Blues
Chapter 3 - Blind
"Now it seems you've got a different dream
Thanks for including me
You smell things so differently"
Once Faye and Spike reached the spaceport, finding the Bebop was not a difficult task. The old ship stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the classier, more expensive ships in that particular part of the port.
Spike chuckled to himself. "I wonder where Jet got the money to get such a nice dock." he mused.
"We did manage to catch some pretty decent bounties," Faye answered absently. "Though Jet was always stingy with the money… it is a wonder he picked this particular dock." She stared at the ship for a while before glancing up at Spike, who's focus, once again, was on her. "What?" she asked.
"You went back to the Bebop?" he asked quietly.
"Yeah," Faye answered. "I mean, where else was I going to go? I only stuck around for a year or two though. After a while, we just went our separate ways. It got too weird."
"What, you two had a thing or something?" Spike joked. The murderous look she gave him suggested otherwise.
"Can we get this over with?" she said, quickly marching towards the ship hangar.
Spike sighed in defeat, following behind her. There was just no talking to some people…
=====
Stepping into the hangar cautiously, Faye let her eyes roam around. It had been so long since she had stepped foot on the Bebop, and memories that were both good and bad came rushing back towards her.
Spike had just finished his own little inspection of the hangar. Jet still kept his ship in tip-top shape; he shouldn't really have expected otherwise though. Turning his attention to Faye, he noticed that she was standing between the Red Tail and the Swordfish II, though he couldn't tell which one her attention was focused on. He smirked slightly; Faye's car was the exact same color as the old racer.
"And you're sure he knows you're coming?" she was asking.
"Yeah," Spike answered. "Though he doesn't know it's me."
Faye turned back to look at him. "What are you talking about?"
"I told you already," he replied. "I didn't meet with Jet face to face. I sent him an e-mail under the name Skip Pliegees."
Faye blinked. "What kind of name is that?"
"What kind of name is Macy?" he countered. Faye gave him a dirty look. "But anyway, I just rearranged the letters in my name."
Faye sighed. "Idiot." Spike just grinned and shrugged. "Why the cover-up?"
Spike shrugged again. "I didn't know how he'd take it, so I just told him I'd meet up with him after I contacted you and Ed." he answered. "Though, I didn't expect I'd get held at your place."
"Well forgive me for not just following you like some loyal lapdog," Faye replied. "What'd you expect me to do?"
Spike frowned slightly. "I certainly didn't expect you to point a gun to my head. You really have a tendency to do that."
"You're lucky that's all I do. One of these days I might actually pull the trigger."
"Please. You don't have the balls to go through with it."
"As far as I'm concerned, neither do you."
"What the hell is going on in here?" The two bounty hunters looked up to see none other than Jet Black standing in front of them with a pissed off look on his face. After all, they were trespassing.
Faye stepped out of the shadow of the Red Tail. "Jet," she said. "It's me, Faye!"
Jet blinked in surprise, looking her over. "Are you sure?" he asked. She shot him a dirty look, eliciting a laugh from him. "Yup, you're Faye Valentine all right. Damn, girl, what happened to you?"
Faye laughed. "I grew up, I guess."
The old ex-cop smiled, patting her on the back in a friendly gesture. "Not too shabby. At least you're not going to get stopped on the corner anymore." Faye's face turned purple. "Well, I guess we finally know the answer to the riddle."
Faye quirked an eyebrow slightly. "Riddle?"
"How many woolongs would it take to get Faye back on the Bebop?"
"Shut up, you old turkey," Faye smirked. "If I recall correctly, it was you who said you wouldn't pay me to go back into space with you."
Jet looked slightly flushed. "So it was," he admitted, abashed. "Well, things change."
"They do, indeed." Jet looked up as Spike stepped forward, resting an elbow on Faye's shoulder, earning a low growl from her.
Jet's eyes widened in shock. "Spike…?"
The green-haired bounty hunter smirked, raising his free hand in greeting. "Yo."
=====
After the three bounty hunters entered the bowels of the Bebop, Spike split off from the others, saying something about seeing if his room was 'still intact'. Jet and Faye continued on to the living room where Jet plopped down in a chair, still stunned.
Faye glanced around the room; all the chairs had been replaced except the old yellow couch. She sat down as far away from it as possible.
Jet let out a heavy sigh, clamping his cybernetic hand over his eyes. "So that was Spike, eh?"
"Yup." She propped her feet up on the edge of the chair, hugging her knees slightly. "That was Spike Spiegel."
"Well, I'll be damned," he muttered. "I thought for sure he was dead."
Faye snorted slightly. "You and me both." she muttered. "Imagine how I must've felt finding him at my door this morning."
Jet sat up, casting her a serious look. "How ya handling it?" he asked.
She remained quiet for some time before speaking. "Okay, I guess," she lied. In truth, she still couldn't believe it.
"You know, you don't have to do this if you don't want to."
Faye looked over at Jet, his expression hadn't changed but she could still see a bit of concern hidden in his eyes. Though neither of the two would ever admit to it, they had become close friends after Spike's death. It had been tough at first, their personalities and tempers constantly clashing, but after a while, they managed to continue on with the surrogate family the crew had formed before everyone split up.
"No, it's all right, Jet." she finally replied. "It's better this way." Jet nodded slightly in understanding. "Besides, I need the money."
Spike entered the room and started to speak when he saw Jet rise and sit down next to Faye. He decided to remain quiet and stay where he was.
"You making out all right?" he heard Jet ask.
Faye chuckled. "Yes, Dad," she drawled. "Though I have to admit, with the bounties getting thin, working pro bono for IPPCS isn't a walk in the park."
"I told you working just Mars wasn't gonna cut it," Jet said with an 'I told you so' smirk. "You need to go back out into space."
Spike noted that Faye suddenly became quiet. "I'm going with you guys aren't I?"
"Yeah," Jet replied. "But that's only because Spike--"
"It's not because of Spike!" Faye interrupted, standing up. Spike frowned in curiosity. "I told you already that I needed the money."
It seemed Jet knew Faye well enough to know that she didn't want to discuss the matter any further, so he dropped the subject. "Suit yourself." he replied, as he began fishing a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket.
Faye nodded in return. "I'm gonna head back to my apartment," she replied softly. "Get a few things packed, you know… all that stuff." Jet nodded. "Uhm, I'll be back in a few hours."
"I'll be here." Jet called after her.
Seemingly catching the double meaning, Faye stopped and smiled slightly before heading off. She walked a few yards before coming across Spike, who had been listening to whole time.
"Hey," he replied.
Faye jumped slightly, startled. "Uh, yeah," she murmured before continuing on her way. Spike could only stare at her back, wondering what was eating her.
======
"Here."
Jet looked up to see an open lighter being held to the cigarette hanging from his mouth. He was a bit startled at first - not used to seeing the green haired bounty hunter, but accepted the offer nonetheless, taking a few short puffs after his cigarette had been lit. "Thanks."
Spike plopped down on the old yellow couch, absently noting the thin layer of dust that rested upon it. It disturbed him slightly to think that no one had sat on this couch in three years.
"I really am here you know." he replied, noting the look of disbelief Jet was giving him. "I didn't think I'd be getting this routine from you too, Jet."
The ex-cop grunted, puffing at his cigarette in agitation. "What did you expect me to do?" he asked.
"Whatever you want," Spike replied. "Just don't pull a gun on me, okay? I've had enough of that for one day."
Jet stared at him for a few moments before breaking out into laughter. "So, the shrew woman threatened to shoot you?" he asked, wiping invisible tears from his eyes as his gales of laughter began to subside.
"Nah," Spike replied, taking another cigarette out of his pocket and placing it between his lips. He fumbled around, searching for his lighter. "She just sorta waved it in my face while she yelled at me."
"Yelled at you?" Jet repeated. "About what?"
Realizing his lighter was sitting on the table where he had left it, Spike flicked it open, leaning forward to let the tiny flames dance over the end of the cigarette. As the embers formed on the end, Spike turned his attention back towards Jet. "Basically about how shitty her life was," he mumbled. "And how there was no way in Hell she'd help me."
Jet chuckled wryly. "And yet she came with you anyway?"
"Yeah well," Spike leaned back, letting his arms hang over the back of the couch. "She said she needed the money."
"Well, living on Mars ain't exactly easy." Jet replied, watching the spirals of smoke rise into the air. "You of all people should know that." Spike didn't reply. "So," Jet continued on,
"Where've you been all this time?"
"Around."
Okay. Time to try a different angle. "What made you decide to come back after all this time?"
Spike didn't answer that one either. Instead, he countered with, "What's up with you and Faye?"
Jet knew Spike would try to change the subject, but he hadn't expected him to turn the tables on him like that. He blinked. "Huh?"
"Faye had gone to Earth." Spike replied, staring up at the ceiling. "She only came back when I told her the Bebop was in trouble."
"Yeah, so?"
Spike's expression was pensive, almost as if he were trying to piece together bits of information, coming to his own conclusions before he even thought to ask the question. "Why'd she stick around?"
Jet snorted lightly, flicking the dead embers of his cigarette into the ashtray. "Your guess is as good as mine." he replied. "I stop trying to figure her out years ago. I'm surprised you haven't given it up yet."
"I wasn't trying to do anything," Spike replied brusquely. "She wouldn't tell me, so I was just curious."
"Ah-huh…"
Spike stood up, glancing at his watch. "Ed should be here either tomorrow or the day after." he replied absently. "We can get started when she gets here."
"And where're you off to now?" Jet asked, a curious yet amused expression on his face.
"Out." came the reply. "I'll be back in a few." The lanky bounty hunter disappeared through the exit hatch.
Jet put out his cigarette, chuckling lightly to himself. It'd been a long time since he'd felt this good - things were finally starting to get back to normal.
End of Chapter 3