The red sun sat on the horizon as it rose in the east, Peter wasn't sure how long they'd been riding for but the sun was a good indicator as the group crossed a railway track "welcome to Washington" Colt laughed as reached over to help Peter straighten up on his horse. It was clear he was worn out and with good reason Peter not only broke loose from being tied up in a barn but also took on General Stewart and his men alone and won, not to mention being treed by an 800 pound bear then the team was one the run all night to reach a town they could re stalk on supplies.
"Hey Marek! Pete's pretty worn out let's find a place to rest up!" Colt yelled, Marek brought his horse to a full stop and turned back to Peter and Colt when his eyes fell on thin red line trickling down Peter's hand, "he's not tired Colt he's bleeding out" Marek dropped from his horse as he and Colt helped Peter off his horse and sat him down. The bullet fragmented in shoulder leaving a few shards of lead in the wound preventing his healing factor from completely kicking in "that wound will turn septic if it goes untreated Marek" Sasha said as she and the others caught up.
Peter tried to sit up right but found a strong resistance on his shoulders "easy cutie you're no good to me if you catch an infection" Peter looked up to see Laura smiling down on him but with he was too tired to come up with a remark for his predicament,
"Sasha pass me my bottle in my saddle bag" Marek ordered "Peter this going to sting…a lot" he whispered, Sasha handed Marek a bottle with a reddish brown liquid inside. He began with taking a small pair of plyer looking tools and soaked them in the whiskey one by one he began pulling the shards out. Peter winced and gritted his teeth it felt like Marek was digging into his raw muscle.
"Ahhh! Damn it Marek that freaking hurts!" Peter hissed,
"Jesus cowboy! At least try and be gentle with him" Laura snapped, ("ok is she for real? First she abducts the team and tries to rape me and now she's riding along with us playing the oh so gentle caring nurse maid")
Marek pulled the last fragment shard from Peter's shoulder "ok now comes the sore part"
Peter's widened as he tried again to sit up "sore part? You mean that wasn't the part that was supposed to hurt?" he gasped. Colt handed Peter the bottle trying not to snicker "better take a swig of this buddy…helps numb the pain" Peter pushed the bottle away, "have it your way" Colt sighed.
("Can burger king sue us for that?")
Marek poured the whiskey over Peter's wound it felt like he was pouring acid on his arm he jerked his arm free of Rawhide and James' hold "son of a… mother….what the hell is that? ACID god damn it!" Peter screamed.
"I warned you" Colt laughed,
Marek stood up and looked back towards the faint outline of town ahead of them "ok get him on his horse and find an inn so the kid can rest up and we can get our supplies"
"Sounds good…just give me second" Peter groaned as he fumbled with his saddle his arm was half dead and stinging like hornets were building a nest in it. ("Something is very wrong here I've been shot before and healed up overnight why this is so different?" Chibi Spidey appears in a shower behind a curtain covered in suds with a scrub brush "hey privacy! Even imaginary figments need some alone time!")
His eye lids were becoming heavier and the landscape was beginning to tilt to the side he hadn't really had a decent sleep since he arrived in this time, Peter was getting tired it wasn't just the bullet wound he was completely exhausted. "Hey easy cutie it's not fun falling off a horse" came Laura's voice as her hand braced against his side.
Sasha looked back despite her lack of trust in Laura Winchester the girl seemed to genuinely care for Peter which made her lips twitch almost into a smile,
"I saw that" Marek laughed "the kids growing on you isn't he?"
Sasha turned back to Marek "maybe a little but mostly he reminds me of you at that age…you know selfless, courageous, stubborn although he is cuter" she added. Marek chuckled at her last remark, "as I recall it wasn't my looks that you fell for but rather my irresistible charms" he boasted.
"Charms? Marek you were far from charming when we first met" she laughed,
"Hey now I was true gentlemen"
"you shot my father's right hand man because he was beating on a slave…don't get me wrong I liked that you stood up for Rhonda but still you blew his ear off"
"Exactly! A gentlemen, any other gunslinger would have either let him beat the poor girl or blown his head off, I simply fired a warning shot" he replied.
"A warning shot…" she snickered "that warning shot nearly cost you your life"
"And I'm still here while they keep fumbling over their own two feet trying to catch me" Marek laughed playfully catching a glimpse of Sasha's smile.
The team rode into town stopping at an inn Peter was coherent enough to notice this was a more upscale place "why are we in Washington when Kansas is west of us?" he groaned, Colt and Rawhide supported the drowsy Peter while they climbed the stairs to the rooms "we needed to throw the general and his confederate cronies off our trail so we took a detour" Rawhide replied "a day or so to recharge and stock up"
They laid Peter down on his bed "rest up buddy hell you've earned it" Rawhide and Colt left the room but their whispered voices could still be heard "can you believe this kid a shotgun blast to the chest, went one on one with freaking James Howlet nabbed by the Winchester sisters faced down a former confederate general and his men, takes a bullet rides all through the night bleeding out and he's still here… remind you of anyone we know?"
Their voices died off down the hall as Peter laid in his bed drifting off to sleep "at least it's a real bed this time" he yawned.
While Peter slept James and Marek sat down to a poker game to try and win some money for supplies while the kid duo tended to the horses leaving Sasha to keep an eye on their newest tag along.
They walked around Washington browsing the local shops in an awkward silence until Laura finally broke the silence "you don't like me very much do you?" she asked, Sasha was caught so off guard by that question she stumbled over a porch step quickly catching herself on the railing. "No I don't, you and your kin take me and my friend's hostage nearly brokered a deal with my father and not to mention what you tried to do to Peter! Just what the hell made you think we'd trust you?"
Laura quickly rounded back on her "your boss knows that my family has connections across the country so you need me you may not trust me but I'm staying and by the way I only kissed Peter and his male features seemed to like it, also that bit with your father we didn't send for him! He followed you! And everything else was just business!" the street went silent as the girls stopped arguing and saw everyone was staring at them. Seeing women argue in the streets was something of a spectator sport "we'll finish this later" Sasha hissed.
James and Marek were cleaning house in the poker game winning up to 200$ and the disapproving glares from the other players "you cheating sons of bitches!" the one man yelled jumping from his chair drawing his pistol, he was on his feet and his pistol inches outside his belt when a gunshot erupted from under the table blowing a large hole in the man's stomach knocking him backwards off his feet.
"Only cheaters feel cheated and lose their temper" Marek scoffed as he stowed his pistol back into its holster "and I thought Washington was a civil city" he chuckled as on looking eyes watched him and James collect the money.
"You spilled my drink and lost my cigar!" James growled, "Hey I told you to quit drinking didn't I" Marek replied. James started to snarl and growl at Marek when screams filled the air, black smoke rose from down the street more screams echoed as women and children came running from all directions, "what the hell?" James yelled running to the doors "Marek the church is on fire and there's kids trapped inside!"
The entire town seemed to be crowding around the burning church, the flames consumed the lower levels the door was blocked there was no way in the building would soon burn to cinders and ash "the children! Somebody please save the children!" a hysterical Nun screamed.
"Help! Sister Sarah help!" the crowd looked on watching this ravenous fire devour the church wisps of smoke poured through the windows powerless to do anything for the 3 children inside, the fire engulfed the building and the screams stopped. The crowd stood in fear women and church followers began crying until James and Marek caught a glimpse of a red blur leaping from the inn roof "Peter!" Marek's screams drew attention from all over including the rest of the team prompting them to join the crowd.
"What's that damn fool doing?" Colt gasped, as Peter disappeared into the flames "I don't believe it he went in!"
Peter jumped onto the church roof without his mask the smoke quickly filled his lungs and burned his eyes "awe man bad day to forget the mask" he coughed, Peter grabbed a set of robes from the alter before it caught fire and soaked it in the holy basin covering over his head before jumping to the second floor "hey kids are you ok in here!" he yelled through wall of smoke and fire. 3 little kids remained huddled in the corner by the bedroom door, "hey guys who's ready to get out of here?" he choked. He pulled the soaked robes off his head and draped them over the kids "these will help protect you from the fire…ok" he quickly scooped up the kids and ran for the window only to have a beam fall on him, his spider strength allowed him to catch it but nothing kept him safe from the flames burning through his sleeve scorching his skin ("ow…ow ok bad idea very bad idea!") "Hang on kids we're going for a ride" he forced the beam back and ran for what he was hoping was the window.
Outside the team and the growing crowd watched in fear "we've got to do something we can't just stand here!" Rawhide yelled, a fireball shot from the window bouncing off the ground,
"Chicago five can eat their hearts out" Peter coughed as he forced himself upright letting the 3 kids run back to the priest and nuns "I think they're going to be ok" he groaned. His arm was burned, his face covered in soot and shirt was singed and his hair was smoking like a chimney.
"Are you ok?" came a soft worried voice from behind him
"Yeah"
"You scared me half to death" the voice replied, Peter still hadn't looked to see but could hear genuine concern.
"Scared me half to death" he laughed and coughed, Laura shot passed him towards the saloon "did she…was she the one talking to me? What am I getting into?" he asked himself. Colt and Rawhide swarmed him astounded with what they'd witnessed "alright Peter!" they cheered thumping him on the back "ok guys ow, ow" Peter choked.
Laura came back with a cup of water "here drink this, you'll feel better" she ordered, Peter greedily guzzled the water the cool water felt great rushing down his throat bringing his repressed breathing to a calm, "thanks Laura" he breathed.
"No problem…but if you want to thank me…"
"Laura the kid was just caught in a fire give him 10 minutes before start trying to make a pass at him" Colt ordered cutting her off.
"Fine but he does need a bath he wreaks of smoke and ash" Laura snapped,
"He was just in fire!" the teens all looked back to see Sasha, Marek and James walking towards them Marek had a distinct look of pride on his face. "You did good kid…and I'll deny ever giving you a compliment" Sasha chuckled ruffling up Peter's hair, "but seriously you need a bath" she added.
("Are they serious right now?")
Peter sat in bath tub washing the soot from his face housekeeping had brought up new clothes red shirt with blue pants and freshly shined boots, "this is completely crazy even by my standards" he sighed sinking back into the warm water closing his eyes drifting off back to sleep.
Her body was warm and her skin so supple and soft, a waterfall of black hair flowed over his arms she was beautiful, "hey Parker you're staring at me again" she whispered. The music in the background was slowly fading out as Ava spun back towards him "I'm allowed to admire my girlfriends beauty" he chuckled back.
"true, but thing is neither of those statements can be true…because you're not here" Ava replied pulling out of his grip letting him free fall "Ava wait!" he cried, but Ava had vanished.
Peter awoke back in the bath tub to someone knocking on the door "Peter are you in there? Can we talk?" the door opened and Laura walked in, Peter's hand dove for his hat to cover his exposure "jeez don't you people believe in privacy" he shrieked.
Laura waved him off and sat down on the chair in the corner slightly smirking at the red tinge in Peter's cheeks "I was wondering…why did you save those kids?" she asked sweetly, Peter adjusted the way his hat was sitting as Laura's eyes travelled along his body thank god the deep water in the tub hid everything else.
"Because they were in danger, anyone would help a person in need" Peter replied, but Laura didn't seem to fully comprehend his answer,
"that's not what I asked Peter…why did you save them what can make a boy rush into a burning church without hesitating while you're at it explain your ability to stick to the roof" she demanded. Peter looked around the room hoping to find something to use as a distraction but found nothing he was stuck talking to the crazy chick who tried to rape him.
"I saved them because I had the power to, a wise man once told me with great power comes great responsibility and I will forever live by those words because doing nothing when you have the ability to do something will always have consequences" Laura saw the hurt in his eyes as he spoke, it was clear that philosophy Peter lived by was built on a lesson learned through pain. She felt bad for this boy whom she was starting to genuinely care for, Laura walked over to him and kissed his head despite Peter's recoiling protest "looks like the waters a little cold" she laughed leaving Peter alone in the tub ("ow…my pride")
"Everybody stop moving this is a bank robbery!" came a scream from across the street at the bank.
("Seriously! 5 minutes is that too much to ask I hate this era!")
A bank robbery, can Peter ever get some me time in this era?
a fire in a church draws out Laura's more caring sides but does she genuinely care?