-
"Hey!" Faye grabbed Spike's arm, yanking him a halt, as she pointed across the dirt street. "Look at that." Her eyes grew wider and she licked her lips in anticipation. "A place ... to get ... food." Her stomach growled at the very thought of it. Before Spike could remind her that they had no money that any merchant on this planet would take, Faye was across the street, throwing open the doors to Ali's Saloon.
As she entered the nearly empty saloon, she made a beeline for the woman behind the bar. Leaning against the counter for support, she waved her arms to get her attention. "Hey! Down here!"
Ali finished wiping a glass dry and she exchanged a glance with Will. "I've never seen her before," she quietly said. Her brow furrowed when she got a better look at how the stranger was dressed. "What odd clothing she has on."
Will took inventory of the dark-haired stranger. She was the most attractive woman he'd seen in ages. Not many women in April City were what a man could consider a "looker". Or he just kept running into the ugly ones. "She looks fine to me," he commented.
Ali rolled her eyes and went to the other end of the bar, forcing herself to smile at her new customer. "Hello. Welcome. What can I get for you this afternoon?"
Faye rubbed her fingers over her burning, dry throat. "Whatever you have handy." She watched Ali search for a bottle of liquor on the wall behind the counter. "If you have anything to eat back there, that'd be wonderful, too," she sweetly added.
As Ali served the drink to Faye, Will moved to Faye's end of the bar, bringing his drink with him. He took the empty stool next to Faye. He watched with interest as she filled, gulped down and then refilled her glass with the liquor Ali'd given to her.
"Never seen you in here before," he greeted with a smile when she finally took notice of him. He poured the next drink for her. "Not from around here, huh?"
Faye side-glanced at him as Ali dropped a plate of food on the counter in front of her. Instead of answering him, she picked up the strange meat and sank her teeth into it. Whatever it was, it tasted fantastic.
Will chuckled. "Haven't eaten in a while, I see."
Ali stood in front of Faye. "That'll be 10 double dollars, ma'am," she tightly informed her.
Faye stopped chewing as she met the woman's hard gaze. Shit. In her excitement of finding food and a drink, the money situation had completely slipped her mind. "Um ..." She swallowed down the bite in her mouth. "I'm a ... little short of cash." She nervously grinned at the barmaid.
Shaking her head, Ali reached for the plate and the bottle. "Then you don't get served. I'm not running a charity here, lady."
Will waved her hands back. "Leave it. I'll handle her tab." He grinned at Faye who eyed him warily, then went back to eating. "Ali's a nice gal, most of the time." He gave her another once over. "Not as nice as you ... "
Please. Spare me, she thought, rolling her eyes. I'm going to vomit this back up if he doesn't shut his trap.
Not ready to give up on her, Will leaned closer. "If you need money, I know of a couple ways someone like you could earn it," he murmured in her ear.
Faye looked down when she felt this sleazebag's hand squeeze her bare thigh. Her eyes lifted until they met his and Will wriggled his eyebrows at her, knowingly. "If you want to keep that hand, creep, back off," she evenly replied.
He glared at her as he pulled his hand back. "Hey, now. I bought you dinner. You could show some appreciation," he snapped.
"I am. You're still alive after pulling that shit." She nodded to his hand. "Get the hell away from me."
Will gritted his teeth in anger. "Just a second, you bitch - " He started to get up from his stool but a hand clamped onto his shoulder and forced him back down.
"Why don't you do as the lady says and back off?" Wolfwood suggested, his hand gripped Will's shoulder tightly. "You were decent enough to buy her dinner, now be decent enough to leave her alone."
Faye regarded the one who'd come to her aid with a certain amount of suspicion. As this asshole Will had proved, most people had an angle when they offered assistance. Even though she could've handled it on her own, she allowed the man to play the hero.
"I've had about enough outta you, priest," Will growled. He reached underneath his coat, pulled out his gun and shoved the barrel of it into Wolfwood's gut. With a satisfied smirk on his face, he added, "Now ... you back off. Or I'll send you up to your God."
Her eyes went from the silver gun jammed into the midsection of her would- be rescuer then up to his face. He had no fear; it was as though a gun wasn't even involved. This idiot's going to get himself killed with the theatrics, Faye thought, shaking her head a little. And he doesn't even care. Now where had she seen that attitude before?
Another gun clicked as its hammer cocked. A familiar piece appeared in Faye's line of sight, the end of it's barrel pressing into the back of Will's head.
Will's eyes widened when he felt the pressure of a gun to his skull. His fingers trembled and he tried to get a look at whoever was behind him.
"Isn't threatening a priest a sure path to bad karma?" Spike asked as he grinned at the idiot on the other end of his gun. He noticed the gun stuck into the priest's stomach. "Why don't you put that away before someone gets himself killed?"
The gun clattered to the floor and Will raised up his hands so Spike could see them. "S-see? It's gone. C'mon, guy! I didn't mean any harm." He tried to laugh but it came out as more of a frightened squeak. "Look at her." He gestured to Faye beside him. "You're tellin' me that you wouldn't have given it a shot?"
"I don't think that's a word you want to use to a man with a gun to your head," Wolfwood said. He caught Spike's eye for a second, noting the amusement on the other man's face. "If you would be so kind ... " He turned Will's head so he looked at Faye instead. "Apologize to the lady."
Will licked his lips, nervous. He had no idea what kind of psycho was behind him. At least no one else was in the saloon besides Ali. This was the most humiliating experience of his adult life. He closed his eyes when the gun barrel jabbed him, hard. "All right!" He opened his eyes and looked Faye in hers. "I'm sorry. I apologize."
Spike uncocked his gun and withdrew it from the man's head. "That wasn't so hard, now, was it?"
Wolfwood stepped back as Will straightened out his coat. The man was visibly irked that he'd been made a fool of by them.
"Maybe if the bitch didn't dress that way, a fella wouldn't get the wrong idea," Will snorted.
Wolfwood made a move towards Will but Faye held up a hand, stopping him. "I can handle this, thanks," she calmly informed him. Her gaze shifted to Will, who sat before her, smirking. With no warning, she drew back a fist then let a wicked right hook fly into his face. The force of her punch sent him ass over tea kettle and he landed hard on the floor. She flexed her fingers as she glared at him, lying there, out cold.
"I tried to warn him," Spike said as he holstered his gun.
"Bad karma," Wolfwood added at the same time Spike did.
Wolfwood picked up Will's gun then slid it across the counter to Ali. "Give him that when he finally wakes up, would you?"
She nodded then swallowed hard. During the whole incident, she couldn't move a muscle. She didn't want trouble in her place and Will had brought on plenty today.
"Sorry about that," Spike apologized, gaining the young blonde's attention.
"Oh ... don't worry about it. Will's usually a nice man. Until he has too many." She smiled sadly at Spike. "Maybe he'll learn a lesson this time."
Wolfwood dropped a few bills onto the counter. "For the lady's tab," he said, gesturing to Faye who finished off the last of the food on her plate.
Ali managed a smile then looked over to Spike, who was still behind her counter. "Would you like anything?" she asked. Before he could refuse, she quickly added, "It's on the house."
Faye narrowed her eyes at the barmaid. The young woman had stars in her eyes as she gazed at Spike. Not running a charity, huh? What a crock of -
"Sure."
Ali beamed. "It'll only take a minute!"
Spike looked to Wolfwood. "Never saw a priest do something like that before," he said. He offered a hand to him. "Spike Spiegel."
"Nicholas Wolfwood," he replied accepting it. "I'm not what most people expect in a priest, either." He looked down to Faye, a smile appearing on his face. "And you're definitely not what you appear to be."
She raised an eyebrow. "I'm not above knocking out a priest."
"I wouldn't doubt it, Miss ... ?"
"Faye Valentine." She poured herself another drink. She paused as Ali brought over a plate for Spike, not liking the way the blonde looked at him. She wasn't above knocking about some two-bit barmaid, either.
He sat down on the stool next to her then looked at Will lying on the floor. "D'you think we should pick him up?" he asked, then looked over to Spike.
Spike considered it. "I was taught to keep garbage off of the floor."
"So was I."
Faye groaned as she poured herself another drink. One Spike Spiegel was more than enough to deal with. This Nicholas Wolfwood was cut from the same cloth as he. We have to get off of this planet. We have to.
-
"Ein!" Ed looked underneath one of the shaded portions of ground near the Bebop. She frowned as she stood straight. "Ein! Where are you!" Hands on her hips, she "hmph"ed. "Where did that dog go?" she muttered to herself. Barking caught her attention and she jumped for joy. "Ein!"
As Ed came around to the other side of the Bebop, she skidded to a halt. Her eyes widened when she discovered what had caused the dog to bark. About a dozen or so men, dressed up like old-time cowboys and riding strange animals, leveled their guns at her. Ein growled at them as he put himself between the strangers and Ed.
Slowly, the girl raised her hands above her head. "Ed gives up," she said, grinning uneasily.
"I dunno, Talbert," said one of the men, leaning towards the leader. "She doesn't look like an alien to me."
Bob Talbert tightened his grip on his gun. "That's what they want you to think, idiot!" he snapped. "That they're human, like us. Probably sent this one out here, thinking we'd let our guard down because it's a ... kid."
Ein snarled at the leader then barked.
"And the dog?" asked another.
"All part of their ruse!" He took in the massive spaceship towering behind Ed, who still had her hands in the air. "Look at it, boys," he sighed. "Once we kill these aliens ... we'll make a fortune off of their technology."
The girl bit her lower lip. "Kill Ed?" She wasn't so sure these men were playing a game anymore.
-
Jet hauled himself up from the floor of the bridge then wiped away the sweat from his brow and reached for the container of water nearby. Since landing on this planet, the temperature in the ship had reached almost unbearable levels.
"Damn it," he swore as he remembered how Spike and Faye took off more than two hours before. They're probably in some sort of trouble by now, he thought then took a swig of the water. "What the - ?" He clanked the container on the table as he moved towards the forward window.
Down below, a group of heavily armed, strangely dressed me, had Ed and Ein at gunpoint. Ed held her hands in the air while Ein went crazy with barking that Jet couldn't hear. "Shit." He sprinted out of the room, headed for the main cargo hold. On his way, he stopped to grab a few of his weapons.
-
"Anyone else here with you?" Talbert demanded as he and other dismounted. He kept the barrel of his rifle pointed towards the ground but his finger remained on the trigger. "Answer me!"
Ed's legs trembled slightly with fear. She didn't understand why these men were so angry with her. She was only playing in their desert, nothing more.
"Bob, she looks awfully scared for an alien," a different man said, unsure about the whole situation.
"Shut up, Harry! Don't let that innocent face fool you." Talbert glared at Ed. "You'll find out just how 'human' it is when we blow a hole in it."
Upon hearing that comment, Ein charged Talbert. Baring teeth, he zeroed in on the leader. No one would hurt Ed.
Talbert waited until the dog was close enough before he kicked Ein aside. He fired a round at the yelping animal. "Stay away from me, goddamn you!" he yelled. He loaded another round into the chamber and aimed for the dog.
A shot from somewhere behind Ed startled the man and Talbert lowered his rifle as he and others searched for the source of it. Soon, Jet, reloading his own gun, emerged from underneath the Bebop. He came up behind Ed, his eyes scanning the crew assembled before him.
"Put your hands down, Ed," he quietly said. Once she did, Jet pushed her behind him. "A lot of firepower you have to harass one little kid, don't you think?" he addressed his unwelcome visitors.
"We know what you are, alien!" Talbert called out. He kept an eye on the weapon in Jet's hand. If that bastard so much as twitched ... "Saw your ship crash ... "
"So, what? You thought you'd come out here, wave your guns in a kid's face and feel better about yourselves?" Jet asked.
"That ain't no kid. You two aren't human! Nobody human has technology like that." He nodded to the ship behind Ed and Jet. "Since you won't be needin' that ship anymore, we'll just help ourselves to it."
Jet started to raise his gun to defend himself against these crazed locals, but another voice spoke. It came from above them all.
"I believe, gentlemen, that helping yourself to something that doesn't belong to you is more commonly referred to as 'stealing'."
Jet and Ed gazed up at the mysterious blonde man wearing odd sunglasses and a long red coat, standing atop the Bebop, looking upon them in an almost regal manner. "Who in the hell is this guy?" he wondered, not even realizing he'd spoken aloud.
Talbert glared at the idiot interfering with his mission. "Why don't you mind your own business, mister?" he called out. "Unless you're one of these alien creeps yourself. In which case, we'll put a bullet in you, too!"
"That has a name, also," Vash replied. He cased the crowd of men gathered before him; men who threatened the life of an innocent child, of all things. "It's called 'murder'." He sighed sadly as he shook his head. "I can't tolerate either one of these things, especially murder."
"Hey, Bob, maybe we should just leave?" suggested one of them.
"Shut up!" He pointed his rifle at the dissenter. "We're not goin' anywhere!"
"Ed, take Ein and go back inside the ship," Jet ordered, patting her on the shoulder. "Go."
She nodded, scooped up Ein in her arms and dashed for the safety of the Bebop.
"Get back here!" Talbert yelled when he saw Ed sprinting for the ship. He turned a bit as some of the others mounted up and prepared to leave. "Where the hell d'ya think you're going?"
"Home. And if you're smart, that's what you'll do, too." The man shook his head, cast one last glance up at the man in the red coat then headed back towards April City.
"Looks like your friends have more brain power than you do," Jet said as the last of the posse rode away. He used his thumb to pull back the hammer on his gun when Talbert turned back to him. "Don't make me use this."
"I don't need them. Not to take care of the two of you!" Talbert brought up his rifle, taking aim on Jet first.
Idiot, Jet sadly thought as he brought up his own weapon. Before he could squeeze his trigger, a single shot rang out and he watched as Talbert dropped his rifle onto the ground. What the ... ? He turned to look back up at the blonde man.
Vash, arm still extended, stared down at the rifleman. The late afternoon suns' light glittered off of the surface of his silver gun. He fired another shot when Talbert made a move for his weapon. The bullet struck the ground half an inch away from the man's left foot. "I told you before," he evenly said, gaining Talbert's attention. "I cannot tolerate murder. Leave the gun ... and go."
Talbert glanced from Jet to his rifle. His jaw clenched tightly as he backed away from it. After glaring at the man in the red coat, who still trained his gun on him, Talbert mounted his thomas and spurred it into a gallop.
Jet shook his head, amazed by what had taken place. It wasn't the fact that these cowardly sons of bitches had run, it was that they'd run and not a single person was dead in the aftermath. His gaze traveled back up to the blonde who'd helped them. The stranger expertly twirled his silver gun back into its holster.
Who is this guy?
Vash closed his coat, sighing at the same time. Wow, that was a close one, he thought. He was almost sure he'd have to relieve Jet of his gun as well. Luckily, the other man wasn't trigger happy.
"Hi-hi!" Ed cried out as she appeared out of nowhere behind Vash atop the Bebop. "Uh oh ... "
Vash fought to retain his balance after being startled by Ed. He wasn't successful, though. He fall backwards, landing hard on the top of the ship, but when he thought he was safe, he began to slide. And he kept sliding, right over the curve of the ship. Screaming like a terrified little girl, Vash plummeted to the ground until he landed with a loud thump on his back. After he coughed a few times, he lifted a hand to adjust his sunglasses which sat cock-eyed on his face.
"Twice in one day," he groaned. "This is so embarrassing."
Ed peered over the side of the ship. She grinned when she saw that Vash was still alive. Sitting on the hull, she cupped her hands around her mouth. "Look out below! Here comes Ed!"
"Ed!" Jet ran forward, a hand raised up in a vain attempt to stop her from what she was about to do. He came to an abrupt halt when the girl pushed herself away from the ship with her hands, sliding down the metal with a big smile on her face. He watched helplessly as she tumbled down to the ground, headed straight for Vash.
"Oh no ..." Vash whispered when he saw Ed falling towards him.
"Oof!" Ed opened her eyes and found herself face to face with Vash. She yanked his sunglasses off of his face and smiled brightly. "That was fun! I want to go again!"
Jet picked her up off of Vash and set her on her feet. "What is wrong with you? You could've been killed!" he snapped at her. The girl ignored him though, her interest on Vash's sunglasses. Looking to the man, he offered his left hand. "You okay?"
Vash accepted it and he pulled himself to his feet. His other hand went to his back and he laughed a little as he looked to Jet. "It's nothing. I'm just fine." He winced as he made himself stand straight. Something popped in his back and relieved the pressure.
Ed, now wearing Vash's sunglasses, sang a gibberish tune as she danced around him and Jet. "At least she's okay," Vash added, his hand leaving his back to gesture to the girl.
"I should say thanks, for what you did." Jet gestured in the direction the men had fled.
Vash grinned as he held up his hands. "Oh! No thanks needed! Just doing what I do." He shook his head, disappointment washing over his face. "Some people don't know how to show kindness to strangers. They're not all like that, though." He looked down when he felt something tugging at his coat.
"Strange man have anything to eat?" Ed inquired as she tried to see what Vash had underneath his coat. "All that fun made me hungry."
"Ed." Jet snagged her by the shirt and pulled her back. He offered an apologetic smile to Vash. "Sorry about that. I'm Jet Black, by the way."
"And Ed is Ed!" She heartily shook one of Vash's hands. She removed the sunglasses and examined them closely before she chomped at one of the stems with her teeth. She whimpered. "Ed needs food."
Jet glanced down at her, before saying "I never caught your name, though" to Vash.
Striking a regal pose, Vash cleared his throat. "Defender of the defenseless! A wanderer of this great land - " A sweeping gesture to the desert surrounding them. "Serving only those who require my assistance. A warrior for two -" He put up two fingers, shoving them in Jet's face. "- ideals!"
Jet looked from the two fingers to the man, wondering what happened to the suave gunman from five minutes ago. "And what would those two ideals be?"
"Love and peace!" Vash replied, his chest swelling with pride.
Please, don't let him break out into song, Jet beggingly thought as he stared at Vash. After a few moments, he flatly asked, "Do you have a nickname or something we could use? That's a pretty damn long title you have there." And he used to think Ed's name was a mouthful.
"Oh!" Vash laughed as he brushed one hand through his hair and let the other drop to his side. "Yeah. You can just call me Vas - AAAAH!" The introduction turned into a pained yell. He lifted his right arm and found Ed hanging from it by her teeth. "Is there a reason you're doing that?" he calmly asked her.
Ed wrapped her arms around his then let go with her mouth. "You taste weird," she told him. Her stomach growled and she frowned.
Jet, though, shook his head. Not at what Ed had done, but for the name the stranger had given them. Sure, he hadn't exactly finished saying it, yet it was close enough. He sighed as Ed continued to swing back and forth on Vash's arm. There's no way this is Vash the Stampede. No one this dense could possibly be the most destructive force on the planet.
"Hey! Give those back!"
Jet looked up. Vash chased a laughing Ed around the Bebop. She waved his sunglasses above her head, sing-songing, "Can't catch Ed! Can't catch Ed!" Ein joined in, jumping up and down, barking like crazy. Soon, Vash ended up tripping over the dog and he landed flat on his face. Placing the glasses top of her head, Ed straddled herself on Vash's back. "This is fun!" She poked him with her fingers. "Get up! Play another game with me!"
Groaning, Jet slapped a hand over his eyes as he leaned his head back. Who is this idiot!
More To Come ...
Song Title Used: "We Are Going To Be Friends" by The White Stripes