I'll miss the winter

A world of fragile things

Look for me in the white forest

Hiding in a hollow tree

[Come find me]

I know you hear me

I can taste it in your tears

--Evanescence, My Last Breath

Heyz! Long time, no update, huh? Well, I'm sorry about that... I can't tell you my excuse because there isn't one... *sigh* But any ways, I'll be updating a lot more now! I can almost promise you! Oh, and I'm putting warnings up on the content of the chapters from now on. Oh, and Ice Blue Eyes, you don't have to read this chapter if you don't want to. If you do read it then I can explain it later... *runs and hides*

*I don't believe in disclaimers.

*This chapter contains language, violence, and ADULT themes common in most western movies or books.

Chapter 3: Taken

Usagi awoke to the brightness of the sun heating her face. Shadow lay on the end of her bed, tongue lolling in unconscious sleep. Duo's leg lay sprawled across hers and his other folded awkwardly off the edge. She lifted his leg and took care not to stir him out of sleep, then walked quietly to the window.

She saw a tall man with feathers braided into his hair and buffalo skin pants, riding a brown horse with a beautiful mane. The horse's mane was streaked with white hairs, his coat a chestnut brown, except for one solitary spot on its haunch, in the shape of a coyote howling, for the mark was disheveled from the second story window.

She watched as more of these men on brown, white, and butterscotch colored horses paced behind him. They were Indians. They had been coming into town more and more often. They were of a very small number, it was rumored. They were asked for their clan's name upon their first arrival four months ago. Their answer was 'Black Wolf.' Usagi had kept Shadow at a very short distance from her, not wanting them to take her beloved pet.

These Indians were unwanted by the sheriff. He was a very ugly, old man, but he was ferocious. This tribe had never been mentioned, had never been heard of before that day. He pushed them out of the town, and they came again two weeks later. They traded their tools of bone and some of their buffalo skin clothes for pots and pans. They had little business here, just small things and then they left town.

"Are they here again?" She heard the voice grumble out of sleep.

"Yes, the so called 'heathens' according to your father." She lowered her eyes to the window frame, "I think they're beautiful people. I wish I could adorn myself in unpolished leather and fur, it must make you feel so free."

"Don't listen to my pa, he don't know nothin'." Duo's voice bit through the air.

"I wonder if my mother is with them..." She looked at his blue eyes and could see he had nothing to say on the subject. He had lost his mother when he was seven; she died in the way of a bullet. She had protected Usagi from a shot from the sheriff, the head of the house, Duo's dad, her husband, so many names for one thing. Distaste, abhorrence, detestation, loathing, disgust, revulsion, dislike... all name the keyword: hatred.

Usagi could remember Duo weeping over the coffin that smelled of fresh wood. The tears that fell down his face. The anger and hatred of the look he gave his father. The voice he used to assure her it wasn't her fault. The ladies in frilly black dresses that held a conversation of why she ever married him. The one lady in a black veil that, for a second, held a look of sympathy, but then a look of detest upon seeing the traits of Indian in her skin and face.

"Usagi, for all we know, she could have sailed across the seas and gotten eaten by a sea monster from Greek mythology. Who gives a fuck about their moms?!" Duo was bitter at the mention of a mother. He could walk down the street and see a mother and young child and even talk to the child or mother. He could tease the little children about being good for their mother or he'd have to lock them up. But every time Usagi saw him after the mother had parted from his presence, he looked more hurt than bitter.

"Obviously you don't." She said in a terrible tone of voice. She looked at him through her crystalline blue eyes. He couldn't stand the eye contact, he put the pillow over his sun-tanned face. His arms were muscular and the six-pack that patterned on his stomach was more than delicious, his chest held the most grace, with his now hard nipples. She couldn't resist apologizing, but she wanted him to give in to his harsh words.

"I'm sorry." He finally said, he paused then gave a forced laugh and began another sentence, "I just realized that we both have the worst luck with moms."

"Yeah, but I know it must be hard to see your mother die...I mean, I don't know if my mother is dead or alive, so it could go either way... I don't remember her that much anyways." She held sympathy in her eyes. Duo loved that look, he wanted to hold her tight so he could forget his mother.

"My mother did something good on her death." Duo whispered in voice barley audible. Usagi moved closer to him.

"What? What good did she do by dieing? She saved the little-slave-wretch- half-heathen-girl? That's not anything good." She whispered in a voice louder in tone than Duo's but he motioned for her to come closer. She walked up to the side of the bed where he lay. He motioned for her to come even closer. She leaned down and put her ear forth so the words could creep through the air slowly to her ear. He motioned once again for her to come closer. She put her hands on the bed and leaned to where the words would barley part from his breath. "Go on." She urged.

Duo grabbed her shoulders and slung her on the bed. She gave a gasp of surprise then she lay stiff. "I needed and extra pillow," He said laying his head on her breast. She gave a small laugh then ran her fingers through his undone hair.

"Were you going to say anything at all?" She asked with a smile.

"I was going to say that she didn't save the little-slave-wretch-half- heathen-girl, she saved you. And she's given me one of the best things there is."

"What?"

"She gave me you. I would have never turned out the same without you."

"Well, that's really sweet and everything, but I want to get on the subject of pillows. I don't think your head is on a pillow." She looked at him through the corner of her eye. His hand slid down her leg and found them hem over her tattered night dress. He lifted them hem slowly up her legs and over her head. He pushed her underwear down to her ankles and let his finger run up her leg lightly, sending a chill up her spine.

Duo still had his head upon her breast. He slid his hand over her naval, then over her hip bones. He could hear her heart beating faster by the second. He slid his other hand under her neck and played with her hair. She could not suppress the whimper that came from her throat.

Shadow's ears pricked. He crept off the bed and out of the window silently, as Duo explored the warmth and wet of the thing every man lived for. He crossed the roof to the lattice and jumped onto the lid of the water barrel. Then he crossed the yard, went through the tomatoes, crossed a patch of grass no bigger than four yards across and freshly cut by Usagi only days ago, and came to grass that was tall enough to cover him.

The wolf finally reached grass tall enough to see over, he sniffed the ground. He paced a little forward while sniffing. Then he raised his ears and looked around for the origin of this fresh, new scent. A gray and white wolf stood at the top of a hill. It howled, and Shadow returned it with the depth of a bottomless pit.

~Later~

"Shadow?" Usagi called to the darkness, "Shadow?! God, where are you?! Shadow!" Her voice cracked in the darkness. Her cries filled the moon with distress; it hid behind the clouds to recoil from the pain. Dou watched as it hid itself and he knew that the tranquil night it had always lingered over had broken, and it couldn't be as brave as all the souls it had inspired to live one more night, to give it one more try.

"Usagi, the moon's gone; we've got to get inside now." Duo said putting his hand on her shoulder and turning her way from the field beyond the grass.

"No! Not until we find him. He could be dead. I'm not leaving!" She opposed.

"Listen," he said in as comforting a voice he could muster, "What happened when the last Shadow disappeared?"

"He had mated and had a litter." She replied, uncomforted.

"And what about the one before that?" Duo asked again.

"He mated too." Her spirits rose enough for her tone to change. "But I didn't even see him leave." She lowered her head to her hand and brushed her hair back. He tugged on her shoulder again, this time she let him lead her away. "I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen tomorrow."

"Don't be so pessimistic. Nothing's going to happen tomorrow, it's going to be a normal, sun filled day without the head. He'll still be in that other town."

"No, not him...Something's going to happen and it's not going to be good. I saw the white wolf hiding behind my eyelids when I closed them for sleep this morning." She sighed and wiped the back of her hand across her forehead. She kept in step with Duo.

"So what? It might have been a figment of your imagination or something. You can't see wolves hiding beneath your eyelids anyways." He doubted that she had seen anything; no trouble ever came around this town. The only trouble would be if the gang the Sheriff always bragged about came around. He bragged he had killed one of them, and that they were now afraid of him, even though they threatened to come kill him.

"The white wolf is a signal of danger. My mother saw it the day before my father died. I don't dare not to believe it." She paused in her tracks for a second and looked at the moon; it peered around the clouds to see if the chaos had ended.

Duo examined the door where the loud crack had originated from the night before. Shadow had busted the door handle and all to get to Usagi's side. The loyalty from last night lay in the spoils of this mess.

"I assure you Usagi; he wouldn't leave you and not come back. You remember the first Shadow died defending you." He patted her shoulder.

"Yeah, but if the head gets him, he'll kill 'em. And it's not even mating season." Usagi kicked the broken door ferociously.

"Tell Shadow that."

"But you don't understand! If it's not mating season, then how am I going to feed the pup? I can't breast feed it and there aren't any piglets I can stick it with. It'll die! And this is going to be more than a litter of its size if he stays more than three days. They'll all die of the heat-" She began to talk faster and faster until Duo had to remind her that there was nothing she could do.

"Usagi, he'll come back. Nothing or nobody's going to die." He petted her hair. The pups would all die. Duo had not cared for the pups, he had not wandered the town against a murderous man's will in order to feed a wolf pup. He had not felt the anger of losing something to the man who killed your father and stole you from your home. But he had felt the anger of his mother...

"Your scars are getting infected. Let's go get them cleaned up." Duo followed her up the flight of stairs as her thoughts drifted to the Indian tribe that was visiting town. She cleaned his cuts and sent him to his room down stairs. When the door was shut, she lay face down and sobbed into the pillow, wondering if she could ever survive if Shadow didn't come back. This felt different.

~*~*~*~

"Usagi! Come here, I need some help!" Duo cried as she fumbled down the stairs, "Quick, look outside. It's a big gang of criminals, it looks like."

"Don't go out Duo. They're probably just passing through. Get a beer and a whore and then go on their way. Don't go out and get hurt, just keep an eye on them. And for heaven's sake don't get killed, please."

"Yes, mother, I'll play nicely with the other children." He replied flatly.

"Good boy." She replied as if he were serious. But he looked in the mirror and saw the scars that lay on his face.

"I'm still debating on that name you gave me. So many choices. 'Braided Scars' being one of them."

"Well, I want you to choose the name you want, not the one I suggest. If the name I suggested gives you doubts, change it before it's too late." She took his hair and folded it above his head and put his hat over it.

"Forget it. I'm not chopping it off." Duo said yanking the hair from beneath the hat.

"I'm not suggesting you cut it. I just wanted to see what you would look like." She pinched his butt. "Get your panties out of a wad. Take a joke."

He had nothing to say, he planted a peck on her cheek then walked to the door. "I'll see you when I get home darling." He said in a voice that suggested this was their house. "I've got to go to work now. Sweep up the floor and wash the dishes and I'll go round up some volunteers to dust that old cell."

She gave a smile and watched him leave. He walked up to the ten men and proceeded to have what appeared to be a friendly conversation.

~*~*~*~

The roof of the house began to sizzle and crack underneath the flames that flew freely above the whole town. They had been criminals. They had been what Duo had thought of them. They had burned down the law houses first. (Court houses, jail house, etc.) Then they moved to the saloon and then pillaged the rest of the town, taking what they desired of the town's belongings.

They gathered all of the town's people in one spot under the church. Duo, who was helplessly planning what should be done behind a tombstone in the grave yard, had taken Usagi and ran. The town's people were holding their children tightly.

"Hey, kid," what appeared to be the leader said, "How old are you?"

"I'm-I'm..." She looked at her mother for reassurance, the mother nudged her in fear, "I'm 9 ½, s-s-s-s-sir."

"Good. Men, I want you to go around and collect the children, bring them here." His horse reared as he pointed to a statue of Jesus crucified on the cross. The statue was very large in size and a drop landed under Jesus' eye as it began to rain. The statue appeared to be crying.

"Give me all the girls separate from the boys." The leader ordered. The men did as told and put the girls at the statue's feet. The tallest girl was twelve and her forehead barley reached the platform where the cross began. The statue was immensely thick and the marble and stone it was made of was worn by the little rain and dust they had.

"Have at it, men. Rape 'em, kill 'em, what ever pleases you." The men looked around cluelessly. They would rob, they would burn down things, they would murder, and they would ruin the town the Sheriff lived out of hatred of the Sheriff... but they wouldn't rape little children, they would kill them, not rape them. They wouldn't rape the innocence not of age to understand such a thing. But the town women were a different story, they knew what sex was, they had preformed the act...these children had not.

"What are you standing around for, move it!" The leader shouted in anger. The men braced their horses and began to shift nervously on the saddles. The rain was beginning to come down harder

"We won't do that, boss." Said a young man, about Duo's age, He had blonde hair and blue eyes with a serene look; he wasn't suitable for this group. "They're kids and don't know nothin' about it. Ain't no pleasure gonna come from a kid. A kid breaks our honor code."

"I don't give a fuck about your honor code. Now stand back while I take target practice or be a target. Quatre, as your uncle, I don't want to have to kill you but I will if I have to." The young lad tugged on the reigns slightly, making the horse turn around and take place among the other bandits. The horse's metal shoes began to suck and churn the earth. The boy did not want to be here in the first place.

"Which kid shall it be first?" He silenced and looked around the small girls. "How about..." He found the twelve-year-old girl and aimed his gun at her head, "you."

The little girl hid her face and began to cry. Then Duo couldn't stand it anymore, enough was enough, he couldn't hide any longer. Usagi watched the water rolling off his hat and knew what he was thinking. He sprang from behind the tombstone and began to race towards the girls. She grabbed his shirt without thinking. "Please, be careful." She begged. Quatre saw the man and the arm holding him from behind the tombstone, he kept quiet.

"I love you, don't miss me too much." He said in a sorrowful voice. She watched the man transfixed on the girl and Duo springing to her rescue. Those were his last words to Usagi, she knew it, he knew it. There was nothing that could be done now. The rain rolled down her face blending with her tears.

"Stop! In the name of this town, stop!" Duo yelled as the person in charge's finger was tensing on the trigger.

"Says who?" The leader asked, looking up through the rain.

"Says me, deputy of this town," Duo answered, "Let the kids go, girls and boys. Don't you have a heart?"

"No, the one pounding in my chest has turned cold. And I see the badge on your breast has gone to your head. As the town turns to ash, you stand here and protect the people who have nothing but their lives. There isn't a point in protecting them."

"They have their lives, and that is why I will protect them."

"Stop with the Heroics! You're making me laugh." The man gave some chuckles and signaled for the other men to do the same. They only laughed weakly with fakeness blandly showing.

"Preacher, preacher, come forth and you can save these children." The leader screamed. A man with a cross in his hands almost stumbled forward.

"Sir, how may I save these children?"

"I want you to read Mr. Deputy his funeral."

The preacher shot an uneasy glance to Duo. He nodded and let the preacher know that it was okay, he was ready. Usagi wept in the graveyard, watching and listening to every word spoken. The rain had soaked her through, her white maid's dress stuck to her body with the rain.

When the funeral had been completed, two shot rang through her ears, followed by what seemed to be thousands more. The two shots fired first were the leader and Duo's. They both stood for a second, and then fell in the mud. She didn't want to look at Duo fall, but she saw him land on his knees, and then his face covered in the mud. The next shots were the ruthless group killing everybody in the town but their teammates. Usagi began to cry and weep helplessly.

All of a sudden, a horse's hooves were slapping the mud in her direction. She dare not turn around, but she found the boy named Quatre stretching a hand out to her.

"Come, quickly!" He urged. She sat, confused. "I was forced by my father to join my uncle in this line of work! I'm totally, honestly, good. Now, please, come!"

She didn't know what to do. Duo being presumably dead, she bent down and ripped the ankle-length dress to her upper thighs on both sides, then she grabbed his hand and straddled the horse. She wrapped her arms around his waist and held him tightly as they flew past the statue of Jesus, where lay Duo's body at the foot. Usagi only caught a small glimpse of the face, but she could have sworn that the statue was crying...blood.

~*~*~*~*~

Okay, I hoped ya'll liked the chapter, but don't think this will be the last mention of Duo! Hiiro might be coming in the next chapter... I'm not sure who else might be. But I hope ya'll's attention is caught by this chapter and I'll be looking forward to my next upgrade!