A/N: Sorry for the wait on the second chapter... Summer classes are ending with Major tests and projects coming due. However after this Friday, I will be done with Japanese class. I will have a week or so to make up for the two week wait for the next bit of the story.
Thanks for the reviews and emails! I can't wait to see what you think of the fic
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Sora sauntered out of the saloon. Her skirt seemed to mingle with the breeze as she pushed past the swinging doors of the building. The loose strands of her hair that had escaped the high bun also were moved by the wind. A red headed man stood waiting as she exited. Tipping his hat he wore to her, the man merely motioned for her to follow him. His clothes were nicely kept and signified he was no ordinary cowboy.
"Any developments?" Sora asked in a serious tone.
"I got you a very good lead." The man replied as he pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to her. Sora quickly snatched it and began to un-crumple it. The man watched a smile appear on her red painted lips as she skimmed the letter's contents.
"It's time isn't it? This is your chance- the one we've been looking for..." He asked only imagining what was going on inside her mind at the moment.
"We?" Sora repeated and mulled over the word's significance. "Gods, what would I do without you Izzy? Thanks! I owe you everything... I can finally stop this bastard for good."
"Sora, are you sure you're up to taking on all of these people yourself? I mean if anyone even suspects a thing..."
"I know, I'll hang from a tree.... I know the risks."
"Alright- but do stay alive... taking on Boss..."
Izzy was silenced from continuing his sentence by Sora pushing her lips on his quickly. Turning him so that she was leaning up against the closest wall, Sora continued to kiss the red head.
Feeling the dark presence of someone listening in on them, this was the only thing she could think of doing. Moving her lips over to Izzy's ear, nibbling lightly for appearance sake, she whispered in his ear the uneasy feeling she was having. When it came to thinks like this her feelings were never wrong. Ever since the day her family was slaughtered in front of her eyes, she began to trust her gut instincts more and more.
Letting her right hand run down his back, she could feel Izzy gulp and tense. Fighting his inner emotions that were churning, Izzy nearly fainted as he felt her lift her leg up to hip level. The blood that was threatening to gush from his nose was stopped as her hand left his lower back and went underneath the ruffles of her dress. Reaching for the small side arm that she had strapped to her thigh, Sora slowly retracted the tiny gun and took aim at the shadow that had been following them for sometime.
-
Tai had watched her every move. How she seemed to float down the twisting stair case, over to them and then out into the street. He still was looking at the door when everyone in the bar had returned to their activities. He even didn't notice as the blue haired man poured another round of tanish liquid into the empty cup. However it wasn't enough to wake the daydreamer, not even someone's throat clearing effect him.
"The inn is just down the street, otherwise there are a few rooms upstairs... but those aren't really for sleeping in much." Joe said with an uncomfortable look.
"Na, he's not here for that. Strictly a business visit, am I right?" Matt asked. Getting no response from the new guy sitting next to him, the blonde gave the other man a slap on the back.
Tai felt a slap to his back and crashed out of his internal dialogues.
"What?"
"Oh, so you might do a little 'sightseeing' while here... good luck with that one." Matt smiled downing his drink.
"That one's all business; it's a shame really..." The blonde sighed.
"Don't mind this guy," Joe spoke up cutting Matt off. "He's been trying to have a relationship with Ms. Sora ever since she first came to this town. The whole town either loves her or hates her. I don't complain either way- business is never dull around here with Sora around." Joe smiled.
"You mean... she's... she..." Tai couldn't comprehend how someone with such a pure and kind aura about them could actually be in such a profession. Yet the scantly clad, red head retained a good girl innocence to her.
"Don't make her should like she's some common whore!" Matt said standing up and balling his fists.
"Whoa! Hold it right there cowboy! I never said that." Joe said trying to calm the overreacting blonde. "You know I love Sora like a little sister. And I watch out for her when ever I can."
"Well it sounded like you were..."
"Matt, I know you've very protective of her, and so am I... everyone does what they have too to survive in this town... she was adamant about getting some sort of job herself from the start."
As the two men continued to converse about the mysterious woman who had caught his eye, Tai listened. After a time of listening, the lack of sleep began to finally catch up with him. His saddle-tired body also began to demand a soft mattress and a hot bath.
"Well, I think you'll want to be getting to the inn, you look rather tired." Joe said trying to change the conversation topic.
'Yeah, I think I had better turn in soon. I've got a lot of work to do tomorrow." Tai said as he stood.
"So, just what brings you to a town so far West anyway?" The blue haired man asked.
"I'm looking for someone... maybe you guys could help me out- have you both lived here long?" Both men nodded and Tai's hope grew that they might be able to aid him in his journey. "By any chance is there a man with a broken looking nose around these parts?"
"Not that I've seen. But we'll keep our eyes and ears open for you." The blonde said finishing his drink.
"Thanks." Tai nodded as he took a few coins out of his pocket.
"The drink was on the house." Joe replied before Tai could even try and offer the money to him.
"Thanks again. I'll see you both around then."
Leaving the saloon, Tai untied Yumi and lead her down the street. Following the directions Joe and Matt had given him to get to the town's only inn, he suddenly began to get an uneasy feeling. Turning a corner his feelings were confirmed as he saw a man crouching behind a large wooden box watching two figures up against a wall.
His large chocolate eyes went wide as he saw the man withdraw a revolver from his side holster and take aim at the couple locked in what looked like an intimate embrace. Doing the only thing he thought to do, he quickly reached for his gun. With in the few precious seconds it took to un-holster his weapon, Tai hear a shot being fired. Quickly he took aim and shot off two shots himself, ensuring the man would not be alive to try anything again.
-
Sora pushed Izzy off and quickly ran with her gun still in hand. Sprinting at full force she went straight for the area she had fired mere seconds before. She had specifically aimed at only his hand, wanting to extract any information she could out of the sniper. However she had heard two more shots. This was something that had caused her to rush. Assuming someone had sent the gunman to do her in, she needed to know if anyone suspected her or her intentions and just who shot off the other rounds.
Seeing a man with gun still in hand she stopped in mid stride. Pulling her gun up again as if on instinct she waited for the second man to move.
"Who are you?" She demanded sternly as the man didn't look away from the dead body at his feet. "Drop your weapon right now or else I'll put one right between your eyes."
"You shot his hand..." The man's voice mumbled as he turned suddenly. His movements scared her a little and her trigger finger twitched a little. That was until she got a better look at him. The brown hair and deep chocolate eyes looked familiar, yet she could not place him as a regular of the town.
"What?"
"Your shot... you were the one I heard, but I thought it was him and so I shot..." He said in whispers before he dropped his gun and backed away from the dead body. Seeing his weapon on the ground she quickly moved to kick it further away. Watching him closely she moved to stand over the gunman.
"He's dead..." She said disappointedly. "I had wanted him alive...Damn it!" She swore, getting a bit of a gasp from brown haired man. He was not use to women using such course language, and it was that curse that brought him back to the situation... he had just killed a man.
"You can't get information from a corpse, no matter how hard you try." Izzy said as he made his way over to the two.
"Damn it Izzy, and he had nothing on him either." Sora continued to search the dead man's clothes. "Don't suppose you could help a girl out with the body? I think Joe's going to have to stage another fight to cover this one up." She smiled.
"What?" Tai asked after listening to the conversation.
"You're new in town aren't you?" Izzy asked eyeing the other man suspiciously. Sora's crimson orbs also moved to look up at the man. Their eyes met for a moment. Deep chocolate and fire crimson orbs seemed to catch and be able to look away. In Tai's eyes he saw a beautiful and mysterious creature, to Sora, she saw a stranger. However, he was not only a stranger. He had attempted to assist them, even though he only ended up causing a slight delay in information gathering, the fact remained he had tried to help. Not many people out on the frontier commit random acts of kindness, and his gesture and sorrowful eyes struck her like none had done in a long time.
As Tai talked to the red haired man, he could not help but watch the crimson orbs of the woman next to him. His eyes went wide as she lifted up her skirts and re-strapped the tiny gun to her thigh. Her leg was a shade of silky cream, with muscles that told him life was hard for everyone out in the Wild West.
Resituating her skirts Sora pulled out a handkerchief and walked over to her friend.
"I owe you one Izzy." She said changing the subject as she wiped the lipstick off his cheek with her silken hanky. The blush on his cheeks made Sora smile.
"No... no problem... anytime." The red head stuttered as he remembered how close they had been only moments ago.
"They must be on to us... I want you to lay low for a while." She added slipping the piece of fabric into his vest pocket. "Keep it."
"But what about..."
"Forget it. Izzy I don't want you mixed up anymore in this than you are. I have to do the rest on my own." She said sternly.
"Well, I don't think your boyfriend will let you do that, especially if he heard what happened today." Izzy smirked with a light tone of voice.
"You're talking about Matt? Will you all get things straight, he's not my boyfriend... so we've spent time together, that was strictly business." She corrected the red head. "Now are you going to help with this guy or not?"
The dead man's body was heavier than it looked. It took Tai and Izzy both to lift him and with Sora watching for any onlookers they made their way into the back of the saloon. Leaving Izzy to talk to Joe and take care of the dead body, Sora sighed and began to walk towards the small single room apartment she called home.
She hadn't gone long when she noticed that the man with the deep chocolate eyes and wild hair was following her. Trying to not let it bother her, she continued to walk; yet her brain would not let the man's actions earlier go. Wondering why he had bothered to help a saloon girl out and not expect anything.
Stopping sharply she turned and looked the man right in the eye. Tai saw her stop and the expression of confusion and wariness caused him to also stop in this tracks. Neither Sora, nor Tai said a thing, both staring at each other trying to figure things out. The loud neighing on Yumi broke them out of the staring contest they had seemed to be having.
