Disclaimer: I do not own Cowboy Bebop or the song 'The Sound Of Silcence'
by Simon and Garfunkel. Don't diss the duo, dude.
A Life Full Of Saturdays: The Sound Of Silence
Faye lay on the dusty bed that had been given to her by Vicious. The entire trip to where ever it was he placed her consisted of nothing but empty threats about escaping and a cold grasp on her arm. She had hoped that he would give her to one of his many followers, but no. He had led her to her own personally guarded bedroom himself, not once glancing down at her. Perhaps if he had looked at her, she could persuade him with a pout or a tempting grin.
She surveyed the small area, not knowing what to do. There were no windows and only two doors- one leading to the hall and one leading to the bathroom. And the bathroom was worse than the one on the Bebop. The shower was covered with mildew and the toilet seemed in even in worse condition than the shower. The sink seemed clean enough, except for the broken mirror above it. Great, Faye thought, Now i'm stuck with seven more years of bad luck. She collapsed on the sorry excuse for a mattress, causing a cloud of dust to form over her head.
Spike cruised the galaxy for any sign of Faye. He asked strangers if they had seen her around, but it proved to be effortless. It was a big galaxy and he was trying to find two fleas on a very large dog. In other words, Faye and Vicious could be anywhere. Spike finally decided to try Mars. Sure, Faye was never really fond of the planet but Vicious called it home. Maybe he could dig up something from there.
She fell into a restless sleep. The kind where you can sense everything around you but still be able to dream up impossible schemes. But Faye began to panic when another body weighed down the old bed and feared that Vicious would live up to his name through her. However, it wasn't the cold form she expected. The person's body was warm and familiar and seemed inevitably far away. The fear returned as soon as a pair of lips brushed at the nape of her neck, causing the tomboy to shiver with a rude delight. She couldn't help but be turned on by the stranger. It was as if she had known those lips before...
"What did you get yourself into now?" Faye nearly leapt ten feet into the air at the sound of his voice. He was dead. She was sure of that. No man could live to be that age and still feel as if he were twenty again.
"Spencer!!" He chuckled at her horrific expression. He had expected her to be surprised but scared was out of the question. He ran a hand through his green mane, only a few inches shorter than the present Spiegel Faye had fallen for.
"You'd think you'd be happier to see your old flame."
"Hardly a flame. But you got old right. What are you doing here? How did you get in here? And how the hell are you still alive?!" Spencer Spiegel leaned back on the oversized pillow, lightly dusting off a spot for his head. Even apparitions like to maintain a sense of cleanliness next to godliness.
"Yeah right. You were crazy about me and you knew it. And i'm not alive. I'm a figment of your imagination. Well, not really. But the only way I could communicate with you was through your brain. Which is very small, might I add...." Spencer Spiegel may have been a product of too much alcohol and stress, but Faye still wanted to pound the jerk six feet under - again. Faye settled in next to him like they had done for years before.
"So why are you here instead of heaven or something like that?" Faye thought she could sense the smell of cigarette smoke, yet Spencer wasn't smoking.
"Or something like that.....I came to check up on you."
"What?" The smirk on Spencer's lips grew wider.
"Oh yeah, I watch you every now and then. You know, to see who you're with, what kind of trouble you're getting in. I was there when you met Spike. I was there when he saved you from that retarded cult....what was it...Brain Scratch? I was there when you got your memories back...." Faye cringed at the last remark.
"I was in the shower when I got my memory back..." Spencer sighed.
"Yes well.....i'm still a man. And a man has...." Faye's thin eyebrow began to twitch nervously.
"Watch your words Spiegel..."
"Anyway...I also hear your thoughts sometimes. And I heard that you're giving up on Mr. Spike." Faye rolled over on her side. Why did he have to bring his offspring into this?
"Shut up Spenc. Even as a ghost you're annoying."
"Feeling's mutual. The point is...your eyes give it away. You're smitten for him." Faye finally twisted about the sheets to face her former best friend.
"You're cra-"
"You hopelessly, helplessly, recklessly in love with the guy."
"Don't make me lau-"
"You crave his touch, wish for his kiss, and hope that your love will be returned." By now, it was no longer a vision of Spencer hovering above her, he had turned into a replica of Spike himself. Faye's cheeks reddened as her fantasy began to come true as the image of Spike leaned down, his lips brushing her own. "Wake up." Faye's kelly orbs popped open to see Vicious leaning on a loose beam in the corner, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"It's time." Faye pulled her legs up to her chest. She didn't like not knowing what was in store for her.
"For what?"
"Your first assignment."
They had parked three streets down from where the intended target would be. Vicious explained that police look for the closest getaway car first. At least they would have a fighting chance to get away. Faye was even more shocked at the mark that was chosen : Chuck Sukimoto. Of all people, Faye had hoped that she would never run into the redheaded bastard ever again. Yet here he was, a few feet below her and unguarded. More than anything, Faye Valentine wanted to shoot the man who took her away from her Spike and introduced her to Blair into the next universe. But the moral part of her warned her that he was following orders, probably from Vicious. But that didn't excuse what he did to her. Faye straightened out her shooting arm and took aim at the crimson haired man and soon enough, his body matched his hair.
It had felt good to rid the world of another petty man like Chuck Sukimoto. So why did she have such a nauseating feeling overcoming her stomach and working its way towards her throat? She never intentionally killed. It had always been for protection and self defense. She never killed in revenge. It just didn't sit well with her. Maybe if the man was someone like Vicious and carried a vendetta against her....no she couldn't even see herself doing that. She cowered underneath Vicious' grip, defiance beginnning to boil deep within her body. And before she knew it, she was pointing the gun at the area where his heart would've been if he still had one. But he just stared at her as if she were a common moron for defying him. He moved towards her slowly so that the mouth of the gun pushed into his chest.
"You want to kill me?" Several small clicks were thrust from the gun, but no bullets would follow. Vicious knew how her mind worked more than she did and knew she would use the one bullet for Sukimoto. Faye's legs began to tremble like melted rubber underneath her weight. She never knew that Mars carried that much gravity. She fell to her knees in blubbering heap of woman. "Pathetic."
"Bastard...." Her words were nothing more than sobbed whispers, but Vicious heard it just fine. He knelt down in front of her, offering his hand to help her up.
"You really want to hurt me?"
"More than anything." Her forwardness was something Vicious wasn't used to. A few moments ago, she was whimpering like a small child and now she was standing with confidence written clear on ehr face.
"Then you're welcome to try." Faye's fist flew through the air at lightning speed. But it wasn't quick enough. For every punch was a slight move to the either side, dodging Faye's efforts entirely. Vicious finally had enough and at the last launch of strength, pulled her delicate arm behind her, crushing her muscle and causing a small scream to pass through her rouge lips. "You are something else Ms. Valentine." He then proceeded to push her into the nearby wall, punishing her with pain from her still fresh wound. Faye squirmed in the monster's arms, wanting to wake up from the terrible nightmare. Vicious' grasp tightened, before crushing his mouth against her in putrid kiss of death. And then her world went black as his fist crashed upon her skull. She wouldn't wake up for a good two hours.
Spike had contacted Edward an hour ago to make sure she kept her end of the line open, in case Vicious popped up. Spike would have the adavantage then for Ed was surperb at determining locations by hacking into his aversary's communication system. Now he was just waiting. Waiting for the light on his screen to shine and see his former comrade's wretched face appear. And then he would find him and bring Faye back where she belonged. Where she belonged? Spike grinned to himself and himself only. Faye had slowly become a part of him whether he wanted her to or not. Part of it had to do with lust. The woman had a body that most women would kill for. But there was something else to it. The little spark she held in her firey green eyes that captivated every man, including Spike. It was the way she stood up for her crewmates when it came down to it. It was the way she lived in the moment rather than a set path that others wanted her to take. She was her own person. So why couldn't Spike see that until it was taken from him?
"Hello Spike."
"Vicious." Spike was calm, but inside he was a raging maniac, ready to tear the man limb from limb."Where's Faye?"
"She's fine, for now. Meet me at the warehouse where the Syndicate would conduct their drug runs."
"How do I know this isn't a setup?"
"You don't.." The screen was now black. Spike had no other choice but to meet Vicious at the desired location.
Faye awoke with a start in a large tank with no opening. She banged on the glass in hopes that someone might spot her and free her from the glass tomb, yet there was no one. She quickly scanned the area, noticing that they were in some kind of warehouse. She also noticed that she had been placed into a red evening dress. How sick can one man get?
"I'm glad to see you're awake. You wouldn't want to miss your reunion with Spike." Faye slid down the glass. She was going to see Spike?
The warehouse was just how he remembered it : dirty and worn out. The only difference was that it was a little more dirtier and was now falling apart. Two men met him at the front door, leading him into a room filled with armed gangsters and a slender tank. Inside the tank, lay a forlorn looking Faye. Like the warehouse, she too looked as if she were going to fall apart. But as soon as their eyes met, the spark returned. He hastily ran to the capsule, before being held back by a pair of thugs when he had reached the tank.
"You always were the one to rush into things, Spike." Vicious moved up beside his former friend and traced Faye's outline with his gloved finger.
"Let her out!"
"Now, now. This isn't a time for making demands. This is a time for negotiation." Spike slacked off his force, knowing that any wrong move could set off a round of bullets and a nice slash from Vicious' katana.
"Go ahead." A flick from Vicious' wrist sent a rush of water flowing into the tank, dousing Faye at first before she realized what the man intended for her. Spike's mismatched irises grew at the sight of the tank filling with no way for Faye to escape. And it was filling fast.
"It seems that Faye used to be aquainted with a former Syndicate member who didn't learn from his mistakes when we killed his wife. He held a power that the Red dragons craved. A blueprint for biochemical weapon that can't be seen with the human eye. A powerful tool, if you ask me."
"I don't know anyone from Faye's past!" That part was mostly true. She had lied the moment she came aboard the Bebop and the only thing he actually knew about her was that she couldn't remember a single thing about her life before her accident and that she had been tricked by a man named Whitney. But that was about it. The rest was a blur to him. The water was now at the top, barely giving Faye enough room to breathe. Time was running out for both the cowboy and his vixen.
"I suggest you learn, and soon." The tank was now completely full, Faye's oxygen at a low. Vicious turned and nodded for a man to drain out the water. "For this is only a warning Spike. You have forty eight hours to give me that blueprint or I will personally see to it that Faye is disposed of." Faye spit out the water that had found its way into her throat and struggled to gasp for air. She had overheard everything. What had Duke gotten her into?
"Allow me time with her."
"Fine but Spike, this is your own test."
"Why not let her find the damn guy?!"
"And risk her disappearing? It seems she's very good at that." Spike kneeled before the fallen Faye, wanting to grab her and run away in a blaze of glory.
"I'll get you outta here."
"Hey Spike? I got a bad feeling about this one, so do me the favor and watch 'Fort Apache' for me. It's my favorite movie. And that John Wayne...may he rest in peace. I hope he talks to angels." Spike quirked an eyebrow. Had the oxygen left her brain while she was in there?
A Life Full Of Saturdays: The Sound Of Silence
Faye lay on the dusty bed that had been given to her by Vicious. The entire trip to where ever it was he placed her consisted of nothing but empty threats about escaping and a cold grasp on her arm. She had hoped that he would give her to one of his many followers, but no. He had led her to her own personally guarded bedroom himself, not once glancing down at her. Perhaps if he had looked at her, she could persuade him with a pout or a tempting grin.
She surveyed the small area, not knowing what to do. There were no windows and only two doors- one leading to the hall and one leading to the bathroom. And the bathroom was worse than the one on the Bebop. The shower was covered with mildew and the toilet seemed in even in worse condition than the shower. The sink seemed clean enough, except for the broken mirror above it. Great, Faye thought, Now i'm stuck with seven more years of bad luck. She collapsed on the sorry excuse for a mattress, causing a cloud of dust to form over her head.
Spike cruised the galaxy for any sign of Faye. He asked strangers if they had seen her around, but it proved to be effortless. It was a big galaxy and he was trying to find two fleas on a very large dog. In other words, Faye and Vicious could be anywhere. Spike finally decided to try Mars. Sure, Faye was never really fond of the planet but Vicious called it home. Maybe he could dig up something from there.
She fell into a restless sleep. The kind where you can sense everything around you but still be able to dream up impossible schemes. But Faye began to panic when another body weighed down the old bed and feared that Vicious would live up to his name through her. However, it wasn't the cold form she expected. The person's body was warm and familiar and seemed inevitably far away. The fear returned as soon as a pair of lips brushed at the nape of her neck, causing the tomboy to shiver with a rude delight. She couldn't help but be turned on by the stranger. It was as if she had known those lips before...
"What did you get yourself into now?" Faye nearly leapt ten feet into the air at the sound of his voice. He was dead. She was sure of that. No man could live to be that age and still feel as if he were twenty again.
"Spencer!!" He chuckled at her horrific expression. He had expected her to be surprised but scared was out of the question. He ran a hand through his green mane, only a few inches shorter than the present Spiegel Faye had fallen for.
"You'd think you'd be happier to see your old flame."
"Hardly a flame. But you got old right. What are you doing here? How did you get in here? And how the hell are you still alive?!" Spencer Spiegel leaned back on the oversized pillow, lightly dusting off a spot for his head. Even apparitions like to maintain a sense of cleanliness next to godliness.
"Yeah right. You were crazy about me and you knew it. And i'm not alive. I'm a figment of your imagination. Well, not really. But the only way I could communicate with you was through your brain. Which is very small, might I add...." Spencer Spiegel may have been a product of too much alcohol and stress, but Faye still wanted to pound the jerk six feet under - again. Faye settled in next to him like they had done for years before.
"So why are you here instead of heaven or something like that?" Faye thought she could sense the smell of cigarette smoke, yet Spencer wasn't smoking.
"Or something like that.....I came to check up on you."
"What?" The smirk on Spencer's lips grew wider.
"Oh yeah, I watch you every now and then. You know, to see who you're with, what kind of trouble you're getting in. I was there when you met Spike. I was there when he saved you from that retarded cult....what was it...Brain Scratch? I was there when you got your memories back...." Faye cringed at the last remark.
"I was in the shower when I got my memory back..." Spencer sighed.
"Yes well.....i'm still a man. And a man has...." Faye's thin eyebrow began to twitch nervously.
"Watch your words Spiegel..."
"Anyway...I also hear your thoughts sometimes. And I heard that you're giving up on Mr. Spike." Faye rolled over on her side. Why did he have to bring his offspring into this?
"Shut up Spenc. Even as a ghost you're annoying."
"Feeling's mutual. The point is...your eyes give it away. You're smitten for him." Faye finally twisted about the sheets to face her former best friend.
"You're cra-"
"You hopelessly, helplessly, recklessly in love with the guy."
"Don't make me lau-"
"You crave his touch, wish for his kiss, and hope that your love will be returned." By now, it was no longer a vision of Spencer hovering above her, he had turned into a replica of Spike himself. Faye's cheeks reddened as her fantasy began to come true as the image of Spike leaned down, his lips brushing her own. "Wake up." Faye's kelly orbs popped open to see Vicious leaning on a loose beam in the corner, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"It's time." Faye pulled her legs up to her chest. She didn't like not knowing what was in store for her.
"For what?"
"Your first assignment."
They had parked three streets down from where the intended target would be. Vicious explained that police look for the closest getaway car first. At least they would have a fighting chance to get away. Faye was even more shocked at the mark that was chosen : Chuck Sukimoto. Of all people, Faye had hoped that she would never run into the redheaded bastard ever again. Yet here he was, a few feet below her and unguarded. More than anything, Faye Valentine wanted to shoot the man who took her away from her Spike and introduced her to Blair into the next universe. But the moral part of her warned her that he was following orders, probably from Vicious. But that didn't excuse what he did to her. Faye straightened out her shooting arm and took aim at the crimson haired man and soon enough, his body matched his hair.
It had felt good to rid the world of another petty man like Chuck Sukimoto. So why did she have such a nauseating feeling overcoming her stomach and working its way towards her throat? She never intentionally killed. It had always been for protection and self defense. She never killed in revenge. It just didn't sit well with her. Maybe if the man was someone like Vicious and carried a vendetta against her....no she couldn't even see herself doing that. She cowered underneath Vicious' grip, defiance beginnning to boil deep within her body. And before she knew it, she was pointing the gun at the area where his heart would've been if he still had one. But he just stared at her as if she were a common moron for defying him. He moved towards her slowly so that the mouth of the gun pushed into his chest.
"You want to kill me?" Several small clicks were thrust from the gun, but no bullets would follow. Vicious knew how her mind worked more than she did and knew she would use the one bullet for Sukimoto. Faye's legs began to tremble like melted rubber underneath her weight. She never knew that Mars carried that much gravity. She fell to her knees in blubbering heap of woman. "Pathetic."
"Bastard...." Her words were nothing more than sobbed whispers, but Vicious heard it just fine. He knelt down in front of her, offering his hand to help her up.
"You really want to hurt me?"
"More than anything." Her forwardness was something Vicious wasn't used to. A few moments ago, she was whimpering like a small child and now she was standing with confidence written clear on ehr face.
"Then you're welcome to try." Faye's fist flew through the air at lightning speed. But it wasn't quick enough. For every punch was a slight move to the either side, dodging Faye's efforts entirely. Vicious finally had enough and at the last launch of strength, pulled her delicate arm behind her, crushing her muscle and causing a small scream to pass through her rouge lips. "You are something else Ms. Valentine." He then proceeded to push her into the nearby wall, punishing her with pain from her still fresh wound. Faye squirmed in the monster's arms, wanting to wake up from the terrible nightmare. Vicious' grasp tightened, before crushing his mouth against her in putrid kiss of death. And then her world went black as his fist crashed upon her skull. She wouldn't wake up for a good two hours.
Spike had contacted Edward an hour ago to make sure she kept her end of the line open, in case Vicious popped up. Spike would have the adavantage then for Ed was surperb at determining locations by hacking into his aversary's communication system. Now he was just waiting. Waiting for the light on his screen to shine and see his former comrade's wretched face appear. And then he would find him and bring Faye back where she belonged. Where she belonged? Spike grinned to himself and himself only. Faye had slowly become a part of him whether he wanted her to or not. Part of it had to do with lust. The woman had a body that most women would kill for. But there was something else to it. The little spark she held in her firey green eyes that captivated every man, including Spike. It was the way she stood up for her crewmates when it came down to it. It was the way she lived in the moment rather than a set path that others wanted her to take. She was her own person. So why couldn't Spike see that until it was taken from him?
"Hello Spike."
"Vicious." Spike was calm, but inside he was a raging maniac, ready to tear the man limb from limb."Where's Faye?"
"She's fine, for now. Meet me at the warehouse where the Syndicate would conduct their drug runs."
"How do I know this isn't a setup?"
"You don't.." The screen was now black. Spike had no other choice but to meet Vicious at the desired location.
Faye awoke with a start in a large tank with no opening. She banged on the glass in hopes that someone might spot her and free her from the glass tomb, yet there was no one. She quickly scanned the area, noticing that they were in some kind of warehouse. She also noticed that she had been placed into a red evening dress. How sick can one man get?
"I'm glad to see you're awake. You wouldn't want to miss your reunion with Spike." Faye slid down the glass. She was going to see Spike?
The warehouse was just how he remembered it : dirty and worn out. The only difference was that it was a little more dirtier and was now falling apart. Two men met him at the front door, leading him into a room filled with armed gangsters and a slender tank. Inside the tank, lay a forlorn looking Faye. Like the warehouse, she too looked as if she were going to fall apart. But as soon as their eyes met, the spark returned. He hastily ran to the capsule, before being held back by a pair of thugs when he had reached the tank.
"You always were the one to rush into things, Spike." Vicious moved up beside his former friend and traced Faye's outline with his gloved finger.
"Let her out!"
"Now, now. This isn't a time for making demands. This is a time for negotiation." Spike slacked off his force, knowing that any wrong move could set off a round of bullets and a nice slash from Vicious' katana.
"Go ahead." A flick from Vicious' wrist sent a rush of water flowing into the tank, dousing Faye at first before she realized what the man intended for her. Spike's mismatched irises grew at the sight of the tank filling with no way for Faye to escape. And it was filling fast.
"It seems that Faye used to be aquainted with a former Syndicate member who didn't learn from his mistakes when we killed his wife. He held a power that the Red dragons craved. A blueprint for biochemical weapon that can't be seen with the human eye. A powerful tool, if you ask me."
"I don't know anyone from Faye's past!" That part was mostly true. She had lied the moment she came aboard the Bebop and the only thing he actually knew about her was that she couldn't remember a single thing about her life before her accident and that she had been tricked by a man named Whitney. But that was about it. The rest was a blur to him. The water was now at the top, barely giving Faye enough room to breathe. Time was running out for both the cowboy and his vixen.
"I suggest you learn, and soon." The tank was now completely full, Faye's oxygen at a low. Vicious turned and nodded for a man to drain out the water. "For this is only a warning Spike. You have forty eight hours to give me that blueprint or I will personally see to it that Faye is disposed of." Faye spit out the water that had found its way into her throat and struggled to gasp for air. She had overheard everything. What had Duke gotten her into?
"Allow me time with her."
"Fine but Spike, this is your own test."
"Why not let her find the damn guy?!"
"And risk her disappearing? It seems she's very good at that." Spike kneeled before the fallen Faye, wanting to grab her and run away in a blaze of glory.
"I'll get you outta here."
"Hey Spike? I got a bad feeling about this one, so do me the favor and watch 'Fort Apache' for me. It's my favorite movie. And that John Wayne...may he rest in peace. I hope he talks to angels." Spike quirked an eyebrow. Had the oxygen left her brain while she was in there?