"Can you cook?," Vulpes asks, appearing from his venture out into the desert.
They had been traveling the past two days to destination unknown. When asked, the only response she receives is "this way." They finally stop beside a large outcropping of large boulders, that provide much needed shade. Vulpes instructs her to set camp before simply walking away.
"Yes?," Agnes responses, eying him warily.
"Good," he says throwing a lump of something warm onto her lap.
Agnes squirms away from it, setting Vulpes into a fit of laughter.
"The fuck," she curses, brushing the unknown lump from her lap as she narrows her eyes at him.
Vulpes points to the bleeding thing that lay in the dirt, "I don't want sand in my food," he sniffs before walking away.
.
Agnes curls her lip at his back, cautiously picking up the lump of flesh. Careful examination tells her this used to be a Molerat, a young one judging by the size. Its head is crushed and rolls loosely from its thick neck. She feels further and is dismayed to find the ribs are also crushed. Hopefully none of the organs ruptured otherwise all she could get from the creature would be it's haunches.
"What the hell Vulpes, you kill this thing with a rock?" she mutters to herself as she positions the body on a nearby boulder, ready to dress the animal. Agnes is relieved to find that none of the internal organs were ruptured. After cutting cut up the creature, she peels the label off a can of beans, nestling it in the coals. Agnes looks up from her work and notices Vulpes missing. Looking around, she did not see him but is certain he would pop up at some point.
.
Walking North, Agnes leaves the camp to bury the refuse the camp. About fourth paces out, she is aware of eyes upon her.
"Fuckin' shit," she curses under her breath, hurriedly digging a hole to bury the bloody entrails.
A rock lands beside her, causing her to jump. Another rock hits the ground next to her and then another.
"Knock it off," Agnes says loudly.
A much larger rock flies through the air, almost hitting her.
"You son of abitch," she hisses, running to where the rock came from.
.
The man she found was not Vulpes Inculta.
He could have been a mercenary before the drugs took him. Garbed in dirty clothing, the bearded man gives her a crazied look before advancing towards her, holding a rather large Bowie knife.
"Hey man," she says, holding up her hands. "No hard feelings about the rocks."
The man doesn't respond.
"Are you hungry?," Agnes ventures, eying his thin face. "I'm cooking some fresh meat. You want some? I know you can smell it."
The skinny man sniffs the air.
"You can have all you want," she continues, her eyes never leaving his face.
The silent man indicates for her to led the way back to camp. Agnes walks stiffly in front of him, hoping that Vulpes would be back at camp. Much to Agnes' dismay, he was not there. She curses his worthless hide under her breath.
Agnes turns to talk to the man, only to find him gone. Bewildered, she looks around the small camp. A noise to her immediate right has her looking yet finds nothing. When she looks back, the junkie is suddenly before her. The man smiles maniacally at the surprised look upon her face. Agnes gasps, pedalling backwards, almost falling into the fire.
.
She is saved when the junkie seizes her arm, pulling her towards him. Seizing the opportunity, Agnes jumps upon the man. Landing heavily upon him, she begins to punch with fervour. Despite looking drugged out of his mind, the man has no difficulty in blocking her attacks, in fact, he smiles up at her. Agnes snarls as she pulls deep, hitting him squarely in the jaw, smiling at his grimace. She feels his body tense below her and realizes she has to move quickly.
Pulling the pearl handled knife from under her vest, Agnes raises her arm back in order to strike. A firm grip on her wrist stops her cold. Startled, she looks to see Vulpes holding her wrist.
"That's enough of that," he announces, taking the knife from her. Agnes looks from Vulpes to the man she sits atop. The drugged look is gone from his eyes, his gaze clear, showing amusement.
"I suggest you let Cato up but then again its probably been a while since he had such close female contact," Vulpes smirks.
"No worries Dominus, I'm just fine down here," Cato replies, winking up at her.
Agnes huffs before climbing off the man. She makes sure to plant her knees in his ribs as she rises, Cato issues a soft noise at the discomfort.
"What is wrong with you?!," she partial yells at the still smirking Vulpes.
"The meat is burning," he says, pointing her blade at the charring meat.
Agnes fumes as she attends the food, ever aware of the laughter from the pair.
...
Cato and Vulpes sit across from Agnes, enjoying their fresh meal.
"Not bad," Cato says. "Better than your cooking," he adds, addressing Vulpes.
"Does she speak Latin?," Cato asks Vulpes quietly.
"She says she doesn't."
"Think she'll sleep with me?", Cato mummers in Latin to Vulpes.
Vulpes fixes him with a steady gaze.
"She is a Legion agent, not a traveling whore," Vulpes hisses.
Cato looks down as Vulpes chastises him,
"Forgive me Dominus, I meant no disrespect."
Agnes stares at the pair as they converse in Latin. Cato snarls when he notices that she had witnessed his rebuke.
"Don't you lay a finger on her," Vulpes warns. "Besides, she doesn't understand what we are saying."
"Is that so?," Cato smirks.
He calls to Agnes and in Latin, describes in vivid detail how he would love to fuck her. Agnes looks confused as he speaks, her eyes darting between the scruffy man and Vulpes.
"I don't know what you are saying," she admits.
Cato grins widely. "I was just saying how pretty you are."
Agnes looks to Vulpes for confirmation and receives only his steady gaze.
"Thank you?," she replies with uncertainty.
.
Agnes understood what that bearded pig had said to her. Disgust was her initial reaction but she had to hide it. She got the impression that Vulpes did not believe her initial "confession" on not speaking Latin. It was a partial truth, her speaking was poor but she understood the language. Pater drilled her and Mother on the subject ever day. He even taught her a few phrases in his native tongue. Pater encouraged his children to be educated, despising ignorance.
Agnes stares at the campfire, wondering what Pater would think of all this. Would he be proud?
A nudge brings Agnes out of her thoughts. Vulpes stands next to her, her knife in his hand.
"We'll be back," he states, handing her the blade.
"Let the fire die and stay out of sight."
Agnes takes the blade, happy to have it back. He watches her sheath it under her vest. She opens her mouth to ask a question but his firm gaze has her nodding instead.
"As you wish," she says, bowing her head.
Agnes watches as the two men slip off into the darkness.
...
Agnes is woken by the sound of footsteps. She curses herself for falling asleep in the shadows of the boulders. Their gear lay hidden in a crevice nearby. Agnes freezes as she hears whispers as whoever is there stands near the remains of the fire.
"Its cold," she hears.
"Those bastards were here," another says.
"Well, they ain't here now," a third man responds. "Let's keep movin."
Agnes watches from the shadows as the men in light colored uniforms, NCR soldiers she realizes, walk by. She is fortunate to be covered by a dark wool blanket, its dark hue helping her blend in with the shadows.
Agnes sits as still as possible, terrified that the soldiers will come back and find her. What would happen? Would she go to jail? Boone, her mind provides. Boone's a soldier, he's well known around these parts, Agnes thinks. She is certain he would help if she was picked up by a patrol.
.
A bird calls, stopping Agnes's rampant thoughts. The "bird" calls again before Agnes gives the response. Two shadows come out of the night and lope into camp. Agnes continues to sits among the shadows, hesitant to come out. A pebble rolls to her feet. Taking this as a sign, Agnes stands, folding the dark wool blanket. The men approach, faces smudged with dirt.
"How many?," Vulpes asks.
"Three," she says. "They went that way," pointing West.
Vulpes nods his head before stepping back to converse with Cato.
Vulpes returns to her.
"About a hundred yards North of here, there is a rock formation with three spires. You can't miss it. Take the bags and make camp there."
He hands her a pistol. "This has six shots. Only use it if you can't stab it. Understand?"
Agnes nods her head.
Vulpes and Cato run off into the night, heading West.
Agnes's head swims as she wonders just what she got herself into. I love my family, I love my family, she chants as she carries the gear to the new camp site.
...
As she nears the rock formation, Agnes hears the soft patter of feet behind her. She walks faster, her hand settling on the handle of her knife. A thick cloud passes before the moon, dimming the Mojave. Agnes breaks into a sprint towards the spires. Footsteps pound after her, dread flooding her heart.
Agnes is knocked off her feet as she is tackled from behind. She struggles as her assailant tears the bags from her grip, rolling her into her back. Agnes swings her blade as she is turned. A man clad in a light colored uniform grunts as he leans back from her swing.
"Stop that!," he snarls as he pins her arms to the ground.
"Let me go!,' Agnes commands.
The soldier hesitates when he hears her voice. The tilt of his head says it all. A woman? The moment of distraction is all Agnes needs as she rolls him off of her. The man lands on his back with a solid thud.
Agnes scrambles to her feet when she hears the soldier make a strange gurgle. Looking over, she spies the dark form of another man leaning over her attacker. The man stands as the moon shines brightly upon the Mojave once again. It's Cato, teeth gleaming in the moonlight.
"And that makes three," he calls out.
"That's all of them," Vulpes says from behind her.
Agnes jumps, hearing his voice. Cato barks out a harsh laugh at her reaction. Vulpes picks up the bags and hands them to her, a slight smirk upon his face.
"Thank you," she says quietly.
"Come on," Vulpes says, "Let's go."
Agnes follows closely.
...
With the evening's previous engagement, Vulpes does not allow another fire to be built. Agnes settles with her dark wool blanket, hugging her pack in effort to keep warm. Despite being a Courier for the last five years, Agnes did not sleep outside often. Especially not wedged between cold rocks and in the company of a man that looks like he wants to eat her.
"Are you cold, little lamb?," Cato asks as he sits across from her.
Vulpes is away, keeping first watch.
Agnes shakes her head. "No, I'm fine."
Cato tsks, "I can see you shivering."
"I'll be okay," she responds.
"Come sit with me," he offers with a wide grin, patting the ground beside him. "I'll keep you warm."
Pig, she thinks as she hugs her pack tighter and thinks of warm things.
...
Agnes startles awake at the sensation of her foot being kicked. When did she fall asleep?
Cato glares down at her.
"It's your turn," he says.
"Okay," she grumbles. "Give me a moment."
Cato nods his head, taking a step back.
Agnes realises that she is not alone in her small nook. She looks to see Vulpes sitting next to her, encased in his own blanket.
"Hurry up," Cato hisses.
"I'm going, I'm going," she snaps. "Give me a fuckin' moment."
As soon as she stands, Cato takes her place, wedging his larger frame into her vacated spot. Vulpes looks at her briefly before murmuring something to Cato. Cato stands, glaring at Agnes as he bids her to resume her former location before storming away. The murderous look he gives puts her on edge as she sits down in the now cool spot.
"He'll get over it," Vulpes drawls smoothly as he inches closer to Agnes. "Besides," he whispers, "you don't smell like you a sweaty Molerat."