Author's note: The name thing was just a mistake on my part. It's hard to remember that Axel doesn't know Roxas' name. But since I did it…
The next morning, Roxas received his due share of admiration and gratitude.
Right after the attack, everyone was too busy and shaken to make much of him. But the next day, it occurred to everyone how remarkable and intelligent he was. They found the gate unlatched and knew it had been locked up the night before, so Roxas had somehow unlocked it. Then he'd attacked a group of men and stomped out flames. It all showed amazing intelligence and Roxas found himself being petted, groomed and treated all through the day. Axel put a firm limit on the number of cookies he could have, to Roxas' annoyance. But eventually, he remembered that horses couldn't throw up. A bellyache wasn't a nuisance for a horse, it was life threatening. What would happen if he colicked? Roxas suspected the spell might break. But if it didn't, he'd be dead. It didn't seem worth the risk. Even Demyx brought him something, to Roxas' surprise. He eyed the blonde evilly as he was offered a slice of apple.
"I'm sorry I snapped at Gemma." Demyx whispered and Roxas winced to himself. Dem's eyes were suspiciously moist. "And I'm sorry I tried to ride you. I was just worried…"
Worried about what? Roxas didn't really expect an answer. So it surprised him when Demyx continued.
"That Axel won't come with me when I go." That was almost whispered but Roxas pricked his ears forward in interest. Demyx was going somewhere? Where? And did Axel know about it? To his frustration, the blonde walked away.
Roxas sighed to himself and just enjoyed the pampering until Axel came to get him. Something strange occurred to him as the redhead saddled him. Axel had called him by his name. So had Terra but he thought the ex-crusader had said it after Axel. Just as he was considering that, Terra walked up and leaned against the fence.
"I see you named him." Terra commented and Axel paused, an air of puzzlement around him.
"I guess I did." Axel said slowly, petting Roxas on the nose. "Roxas. It's a strange name." Roxas snorted to himself. But to the people living here, it probably was an odd name. He was from very far away.
"It's from the East. I haven't heard it in a long time… it's not that popular a name." Terra mentioned with deceptive casualness. Roxas didn't like the thoughtful look on his face. Although if Terra suspected he wasn't what he seemed, what did it matter? He didn't have the magical ability to break the spell. Terra's powers were largely a talent. Very powerful but a bit limited. "I've thought about what we should do." Terra said abruptly and Axel paused in saddling him. "We're having a meeting tonight at the long hall, tenth hour. Make sure you're there."
"Of course." Axel agreed. Roxas had to be content with that as the redhead took him out. Today he was learning how to pony a young horse. Roxas had to tolerate youthful shenanigans and let Axel discipline the youngster, rather than taking care of it himself. That part was annoying and Roxas had to resist the urge to give the mare a bite or kick. Axel seemed very pleased with their progress when he called a halt to it. "I told Terra you could do this." Axel said to him as he took the filly back to the mare's paddock. There was a paddock for the mares close by the ranch, but on the opposite side from the stallion paddock. That was to keep the boys from spending all their energy flirting and trying to jump the fence. "He thought I was crazy. Usually we use a gelding for this, but you behave more like a gelding than any stallion I know." That made Roxas a little uneasy. Lately, Axel had been going out on the range to check all the pregnant mares with his talent. He'd already found one that had conceived twins and Terra had used his earth magic to make her abort. What if the three mares they'd put him to weren't pregnant? That would be a relief in a way but they might consider gelding him again. "I wonder if that might mean you're infertile?" Roxas started at the strange echoing of his thoughts and Axel continued, oblivious. "Well, not to worry. You're well behaved, so might as well keep the twins."
Oh thank the gods. Roxas felt faint with relief and playfully nudged Axel. The redhead responded with a light slap on his neck before remounting. Where are we going now? It was still fairly early. His leg hardly hurt at all, thanks to Terra's magic, and he wanted a bit more exercise.
"I think I'll take you on a short ride down along the river. I need to work with some of the young colts, but I don't want you to get out of shape." Roxas obediently set off towards the river as Axel talked to himself. "That grey is going to be a problem…" Roxas listened with interest as Axel talked about his training. He wasn't really surprised. After living in the paddock with them, he knew the personalities of all the colts and the grey was both stupid and stubborn. He savoured the time with the redhead, listening to his soothing voice. It ended all too soon and Roxas snorted as he was released back into the stallion paddock. He followed Axel along the fenceline until the redhead took the grey into the arena. Then he stared at the arena, thinking.
If Demyx is going somewhere, and you don't, then… I could have a chance. But if Axel didn't leave with Demyx he certainly wouldn't go with Roxas. He'd have to stay here and he was no horseman. Of course, it wouldn't be too hard for him to learn now. Roxas laughed to himself as he thought about it. His forced education in horse body language would be helpful. Of course, there was the problem of his prior profession. Most people didn't want assassins around and for good reason. Well, that's easy enough. Describe myself as a mercenary. The expensive kind of mercenary who took only unusual commissons. It was even sort of true, since he took those jobs on occasion. The only worry was that Terra might see through him, but the ex-crusader probably wouldn't mind an ex-assassin. It would be very hypocritical if he did.
Roxas wished he could find out what was going on at the meeting. All he knew was that when Axel came out, he took a different horse, a chunky bay mare and rode away with Terra. Roxas was tired but stayed awake waiting for them to get back. They finally did when it was twilight and Roxas snorted, trying to attract Axel's attention. Surprisingly, it worked. After the mare was back in her paddock the redhead came to his and leaned against the fence.
"Roxas." He whispered and Roxas nudged him. It was hard to tell in the dark but he thought the redhead was pale and looked almost shocked. "I didn't know he could do that."
Do what? Roxas asked him impatiently. Axel was in no hurry to speak though and he submitted to having his ears scratched. It was like Axel needed reassurance and grounding.
"He made a homunculus." That would have made Roxas frown, if he could have. He'd heard mages use that word when they were referring to earth and stone golems, and also small earth messengers. What use would that be? "A tiny one. He used Gemma's blood and – and a finger to bind it to the person who killed her. Then he made it into a plague carrier." Roxas reared his head back in surprise and Axel almost chuckled. "I could swear you understand me… the disease won't spread but the man who killed Gemma will die horribly. We'll hear about it and then we'll know for certain who was behind this." Axel sighed and Roxas heard the weariness in the sound. "It has to be the Broken Bone ranch, but Terra wants some proof before we take revenge."
That's not taking revenge? Roxas felt a bit shaken. He'd never known a golem could be used to spread disease. It was a horrible way to kill someone. On the other hand, it was just vengeance. No one could deny Terra had a right to retaliate. No wonder his friends thought he might be corrupted. That was the darkest application of earth magic he'd ever heard of. And the use of blood and the finger of a murdered woman hinted that it was death magic as well.
"He used my power to help fuel it. I'm tired… I should go to bed." Axel murmured and Roxas could only agree. "Hopefully you'll be well enough to come when the man dies." Roxas hoped so too. He really didn't want to let Axel out of his sight, now more than ever.
He was seriously considering making a new home here, with the man who had captured his heart.
Roxas was hazy on time now, but counting the days was easy enough. Five days after the attack, Axel was changing his bandage when Terra walked up behind him.
"Is he healed enough to go on a long ride?" Terra peered at the wound and grunted. "Looks almost completely healed."
"It is." Axel agreed as Roxas turned his head to look. It was shockingly swift, but they were both right. There was only a small crusted mark where the wound had been. "He's not showing any sign of pain or lameness. I think I can take him out. You've gotten some word?"
"You could say. Mort just got back with word that there was a death on the Burnt Mesa Ranch." Terra's tone and face were expressionless but Axel jerked before giving him an incredulous look. "Apparently it was gruesome. No one wants to talk about the details but they're giving warnings in case there are other incidents."
"Burnt Mesa! But that makes no sense." Axel exclaimed. Terra shook his head and Roxas could read the disagreement on his face. "We've had no problems with them and they don't want our water. Do they? And they couldn't be behind the rustling. It's too far."
"It is." Terra agreed then smiled grimly. "That was probably Broken Bone. They might be working together but probably not. I think this is a bit personal." Axel and Roxas both stared at him, silently willing him to elaborate. "At first I thought it was Broken Bone too." Terra admitted. "But then I started thinking. There's plenty of people who envy us and while Broken Bone is doing the worst, there are others who are nearly as badly off. And the crimes seemed a bit different. Rustling… that's for profit… but this was just destruction. I have a bit of a history with them. The owners' son wanted to marry my wife, back before I arrived here."
"Oh. I see." Axel said slowly. "It seems a long time to carry a grudge though." Terra grinned, a touch evilly.
"We might have had a few words at the horse fair." Terra said so blandly that Roxas was certain he'd been utterly vicious. "About market trends, boring things like that." Axel lifted his eyebrows and muttered something Roxas couldn't make out, but thought it was relating to Terra being a bastard. "He said there'd always be a market for plain riding horses and I said, yes, there would be and it'd be a cheap one. Guess who can't afford a deep bore well?"
"We couldn't afford a deep bore well without a loan." Axel said and Terra nodded.
"But I could get a loan." He pointed out. "You lot probably wouldn't be making anything but board and basic wages for a year or two, and we'd all be tightening our belts, but I could do it if I didn't have the river." Axel nodded, green eyes thoughtful. "It would take Burnt Mesa ten years to pay off that kind of loan and their people wouldn't stand for it."
"I'm actually kind of glad it isn't Broken Bone." Axel said with a sigh. "A few cattle doesn't really hurt us too much, and we'll have to live beside them after the drought is over. It can't go on for too much longer." Roxas wondered if that was true. How long had the drought been going on? It could be a permanent change in the weather. But Terra nodded.
"That's what everyone's praying for. But anyway, catch a nap after you look at the bay mare. We're going to be going on a long ride tonight." Axel nodded and finished bandaging Roxas. Roxas thought he could probably go without, but it was better safe than sorry.
Later that night, near sundown, Roxas and the other horses were saddled and ready. Saddlebags were added and Roxas shifted uneasily at the smell coming from one of them. Was that gunpowder? The other horses didn't care but they weren't smart enough to recognize it. What were they planning to do with that? They moved out quickly at first and Roxas noted that they were taking some very out of the way, scraggly looking trails. The pace slowed as soon as the sun really set. The horses couldn't see well in the dark so their riders let them pick the pace. Roxas concentrated on the trail and where to put his feet, ignoring almost everything else. Axel, Terra and the others could see to any wolves or predators.
The men rode silently and it seemed like forever before a harsh whisper was passed back and forth and they were pulled to a stop. To his frustration, Roxas and the other horses were tied up in a small copse of trees as the men slid silently through the grass. Roxas felt Axel's hand against his shoulder, reassuring warmth before the redhead left with the others. As the other horses dozed, cropped grass or watched for predators, he gazed after then and strained to see in the dusk. There was a full moon which helped, but he really couldn't see anything. Roxas shifted uneasily as he waited, trying to figure out how much time was passing. It seemed to be quite a lot. Hopefully they were going to be-
There was a loud yet strangely muffled explosion. Some of the horses didn't care at all, a few were interested and only one was startled. Roxas strained even more and made out the light of something beginning to burn. Not very much though, and the flames were quickly snuffed out. What had they blown up? A barn? Roxas was sure Terra would get the horses out first but destroying a stable or barn would be a pointed message. If there was any sound of battle he couldn't hear it. When the men came back they weren't trying to be quiet, though, and headed out far more swiftly than they'd come in. Roxas had to work hard to keep his footing steady on the trail and one of the other horses stumbled, making his rider swear. They rode in silence until they were back in their own lands. By that time Roxas was dying of impatience. What had they done?
"Well, that was hair-raising." Axel said, his tone as bland as if he was talking about the weather. "Let's do it again sometime." There were laughs all around and Roxas flicked his ears, willing them to keep talking.
"I still say we should have killed that dumb bastard." One of the men, an older fellow with slate grey hair, groused. Terra shook his head. "I know, I know, he was just a boy. But this bloody well hurts."
"I think we should have taken a few of those mares." One of the younger men chimed in. Roxas remembered his name was Stephen and he was younger than Axel, just barely past being a teenager. Terra shook his head more emphatically.
"Why? They're not up to our standards and we'd still have to feed 'em. And if you're fancying a steak, that's just daft." He said firmly.
"Why? I was thinking about steaks, actually. That river fish is fine but it gets old." Roxas considered biting him but the young man was too far away. Steaks? He'd never eaten horse in his life and the thought made him a little sick. Although he wasn't too surprised to hear that the ranchers would eat the horses they had to cull. If nothing else, the carcasses couldn't be left on the range. They could attract predators. Still…
"Oh please. You know how Merilee goes on when we have to slaughter any horse, even if they're sick and old. Imagine how she'd put on if we tried to slaughter a healthy one!" There were mutters of agreement and the young man grimaced before nodding, conceding Terra's point. "And those mares weren't even well tended. Half of them were sick, from I could tell."
"They were." Axel said seriously. "I'm not sure what disease it was. We should probably put these into quarantine when we get back and make sure all our clothes and the tack is well washed." There were groans and Roxas sighed to himself. That would be a nuisance. And it looked like he wasn't going to find out exactly what they'd done. For a moment he cursed the Baron and wished him a particularly nasty afterlife. Being a horse was really a trial.
When will this be over? How long has it been? Roxas guessed it had been at least two months. Fall would be coming soon and the horse fair would start. Would he be going to that? There was a minor chance he might encounter a mage powerful enough to break the spell there. Not likely though. Roxas sighed to himself and hoped the spell broke sometime soon. Although he'd survive walking to the ranch from the stallion paddock, even naked in the middle of winter.
The sun was just starting to rise when they got back to the ranch. Everyone was just getting up and Roxas resigned himself to no Axel as one of the teenagers began unsaddling him. The redhead gave him a quick pet and a mint along with a murmured 'good boy' before going to take a nap. Soon Roxas was in a separate quarantine paddock and closed his eyes, trying to get some sleep. It had been a long day and he was dead tired.
Hopefully, the other ranch would get the message.