A/N: Wow, it's been a while. My b, people, my b. Please enjoy though! I was stuck on this chapter, and I think I finally got it right, after so many writer's blocks and rewrites! Tell me what you think! P.S. Just discovered the "Meanwhile in X" Hilarious. My tribute title is to those pictures.

Chapter 5: Meanwhile, in the Desert

Benjamin turned his head into the wind's path. Even through watery and squinted eyes, he knew what a sandstorm looked like. He felt the color drain from his face, and goose bumps rose on his arms. If he had his briefcase, this wouldn't be a problem, but he hadn't seen his expensive Alliance wear since he and this felon were in a tumble in the first place. He looked around, the horses becoming frantic.

There was nowhere to go.

Jessie swore loudly as Bullseye reared up. She didn't even hesitate to fire a round at the thick hemp rope that bound the two together, which made Buttercup jump. Ben grabbed the reins, mostly in order to not fall off the horse. "Time to go, partner!" Jessie pointed her gun at the sky and shot another round into the air, spooking his horse into a run. Ben yelled, bouncing up and down in the saddle, heading towards only open space. He was about to try and stop the crazed animal, but Jessie rode up along side of him.

"We ain't got time to argue anymore!" She shouted over the wind. "Follow me if you wanna live, cowboy!" Then she let out this strange battle cry, snapping the reins and pushing her horse forward, faster.

Ben mimicked her actions without thinking, and Buttercup moved into a full on gallop. Together, the two rode with the wind; rode for their life. He managed to glance behind him, noticing that the wall of sand was growing closer. No matter how fast they were going, the wind was somehow faster. He wondered if their efforts would end up in vain.

"Where are we going!" Ben shouted, not seeing much of anything out in the middle of the desert, except for maybe a few hills of sand taller than the others.

"See that bump on the horizon?" Jessie hollered back. "Just beyond is a big ol' landmark of solid rock! There's a little cave we can hole ourselves in till the storm settles!"

Ben glanced back again. "I don't really think we'll make it in time!"

Jessie looked back at him, and he saw a flash of something dangerous in her eyes, almost as if she was accepting a bet. "Well, then! Maybe you shouldn't think and just ride!"

Ben bit his tongue, cursing everything he could think of. His luck, his stupidity, the Wastes, the sand, this damned Outlaw. He didn't even care about the job anymore. Once he made it to the Sheriff, he'd reconsider his choices in life. Maybe he'd just retire... well, assuming that he made it to the Sheriff alive.

Though, now that he thought about it, they weren't as far from the hill as he thought they were. Either that or their horses were remarkably quick. Not much further now. He looked back again, then immediately cried out. That wall was no father than 100 meters from their asses. And on top of that, Buttercup was running as fast as he could. The poor creature wasn't meant for speed. Jessie looked back as well, then hurriedly fired another two bullets into the air. The cracks must have been the last push his horse needed, because Buttercup whinnied, his pupils dilating with fright, and bolted. Ben was barely able to hold on.

Actually... he kind of didn't.

The next thing he knew, Buttercup had unexpectedly jumped the last stretch of the journey, propelling him upwards as they all sprang over the hill, then down... way down. At first, he hit the sand, the particulates cutting into his face, but he rebounded, toppling over himself, and continuing to fall. The next surface he hit was not as soft, but in fact rather hard. A string of swear words left his mouth as he rolled a bit more with the momentum, another nice hard surface finally putting him to a halt. The breath was knocked out of him, and he was momentarily paralyzed, opening his eyes only to see grey spots and small sparkles of light.

"Buzz!" he heard Jessie calling for him from nearby. "Buzz, hang on!"

As he was beginning to regain his sight, he felt a pair of strong hands under his arms, yanking him sideways. The wind wasn't hitting his face anymore, and was actually beginning to sound distant. After a minute or so of grunts and being dragged into more darkness, he was placed against another wall. He blinked hard a few times, but still couldn't see much. He managed to see a fiery red braid run around a corner, into a grey light. He tried taking deep breaths, coughing when he realized that there was some sand in his mouth.

Jessie came back, tugging the two terrified horses behind her. She was grumbling, "Come on, critters! We're right here!" Once she was in the safety of the alcove though, she changed tactics and calmed down. "Shhh. Hush now, darlings, it's alright. I'm right here, see? We're alive, ok? Shhh, everything is just fine." Remarkably, the animals quieted. Though there was another snort and stomp from Buttercup. "I'm sorry I fired my gun atcha, boy. I really am. I needed to make sure Buzz was gettin' to safety."

Ben looked at the Outlaw, eyes adjusting slowly to the dark. For a while, no one said anything. They just listened to the wind howling outside. Ben focused on breathing, knowing that, once again, his ass was saved by a wanted criminal... and he wasn't exactly happy with that. He kept a wary eye on her as she pet the horses, gave them water, then settled her gaze upon him.

"You ok, cowboy?" she asked, her voice quieter than usual.

He nodded, and she went back to Bullseye. He ran a hand through his dusty hair, mind still reeling over what had just happened. He figured, under the circumstances, he could have been a little nicer. He had no idea where he was, no food or water of his own, and no way to get home. Yet despite everything, this complete stranger hadn't hesitated to feed him, clothe him, and take care of him. She had put him before the horses. Hell, she had apologized to him for being a bad captor...

After a moment, Ben stood, knowing what he had to do. Begrudgingly, he walked over to Jessie, who was holding onto Bullseye's neck rather tightly. He exhaled, then extended a hand to her. "I owe you a debt of gratitude for saving my life back there. I... wouldn't have made it without your help. So... thank you."

Jessie didn't move. She didn't respond to his sentiment at all. Ben awkwardly lowered his arm. He shifted his weight, uneasy with the fact that this made him feel guilty. He forced himself to try again. "I'm sorry... For what I said earlier." She made no response at this. "... Honestly, you're one of the... nicest captors to have ever held me hostage... I'm... It's all very new to me. I wasn't expecting you to... I don't know... I just... I'm sorry, alright?"

Still nothing. It was then that Benjamin got the innate feeling that something was very wrong with the normally loud, rambunctious cowgirl. He swallowed, but ventured to put a hand on her shoulder. She jumped away from him, scaring both Bullseye and Ben. When he looked at her, he saw something different from the Outlaw he knew. This was... a little girl. She hadn't even pulled out her gun.

"Get away, Buzz," she said, her voice alarmingly weak and missing its tell-tale edge.

If Ben was clueless before, he was now absolutely helpless. "Are you... alright?"

Jessie was trying hard not to breathe heavily, her hands making themselves busy by tugging at her hair. "Not really, Buzz, no. So jus' go on back to sittin' over there and let me be."

Ben found that he didn't much like this version of Jessie. It's not that he was offended, he was just completely taken aback. He had seen this woman get shot in the arm with his laser, punched in the gut, cut, bruised, insulted, and she stood tall after all of it better than a grown man would. And here she was, shrinking back against everything, as if the entire world was closing in around her.

"This is... kind of alarming," he said before he could stop himself. "How am I supposed to act like an AER Official when your personality just took a complete 180?"

Jessie simply looked at him. Why did she look as useless as he felt? "... If I tell you, you'll use it against me."

Well, he wasn't expecting that. He took a moment to think. Yes, the knowledge of Bazooka Jane's weakness could really help with effective information extraction. But seeing the paralyzing fear in this woman's eyes made Ben's heart pound against his ribs. Whether it was from shame or something else, he wasn't sure. However, one thought rang loud and clear in his conscience: He never wanted to see Jessie like this ever again. It was too... too strange, too unclear, too... painful?

"Jessie," he said, his volume matching hers. "I am sworn under oath to tell the Alliance any number of things. If I don't, I loose everything... But Larry, on the other hand... Larry isn't even real. If you tell Larry something, he won't have to tell anyone. He is the creation of someone's imagination, therefor can not speak, but anything that Larry knows doesn't hold substance because Larry and Larry's brain don't exist... Do you understand?"

She stared at him, her mouth slightly open. "... I... I don't believe you."

He wasn't sure why he felt so horrible at hearing those words, but she had made her decision. Ben exhaled and nodded, then slowly returned to his spot against the wall. He watched her water the horses, the shaking of her hands not unseen. He sighed and began fiddling with a rock at his feet. He'd toss it in the air and catch it. Then he started scratching the floor with it, just to see if he could. By about the third stick drawing, he noticed the pair of boots right in front of him. He looked up at the Outlaw, who was holding onto her own arms like they were her last grip onto life. Her face was white.

"Larry?" she whispered.

Ben gulped, trying to force his heart to stop beating so quickly lest it should pop out of his chest and bleed all over the cave bottom. "Yes?"

Jessie bit her lip, fidgeting. "I'm..." Was she trembling? "I don't... like the dark very much."

Oh.

He blinked. "... You're afraid of the dark?"

She shut her eyes tightly and sank to the ground, as if she thought she was going to explode. "Yes... it only gets bad when I'm in small spaces though... like this here."

He thought for a moment. "We could light a fire."

"With what?" she asked, scared and miserable.

"You still have my business suit, don't you?"

He was surprised when she gave a small snort, "I'm not gonna burn your suit."

"No," he started. "But that suit was specially tailored and made for me. It has an illumination feature."

She picked her head up and looked at him like he was crazy. "... You're suit glows?"

"It's designed to be undetectable police wear," he explained. "It really only slows down bullets, is fireproof, and has that light feature. My body shield does that and is far more efficient, but seeing as how you probably didn't bring that along, we can just use the suit."

Jessie was stunned. "That's rather impressive technology you got."

Knowing what she was hinting at, Ben shrugged. "We've put the best of the best people in charge of the technology department."

The cowgirl glared at him, but decided against a challenge. She stood, carefully, taking deep breaths, and Ben had the sudden urge to get up and help her. She slowly made her way to Bullseye, each step seeming to carry just a hint of pain. She dug around in a bag, pulled something out, and flung it at him. As he caught it, he heard the click of the hammer of her gun.

"No funny business," she declared. He was slightly impressed with how calm she sounded.

He fiddled around with the bundle of cloth, until he reached an inside pocket and felt a certain, tiny trigger. He pulled and was quickly blinded by the white light his suit provided. He blinked, tossing it on the ground in front of him, then holding up his hands for Jessie to see. The light wasn't incredibly strong, but it was enough.

"There."

Jess stood still for a moment, then began to breath normally. She looked at him, then to the suit, then back at him. At last, a small smile stretched her lips, and she laughed a little. She shook her head and moved towards him, taking a seat. She relaxed, the fear and shaking now nowhere to be seen. Ben, relieved at seeing the old Outlaw back to herself, leaned back, keeping his eyes on the mesh of fiber-optics and fabric. Well, until Jessie said his name, then he looked over at her, his breath catching when he saw the dancing light reflecting in her eyes.

"Thank you."

Uh oh. "... You're welcome."

She offered him a small smile. "Perhaps the tin man's got a heart after all."

Oh, he was in trouble.

x*x*x*x

The sandstorm was followed by a rain storm, which brought with it thunder and lightening. Ben stood next to Jessie at the opening of the cave, frowning. With the storms, he had no idea how much their schedule had been cut back. Though Jessie said they actually weren't too far. Due to their small detour, they had gone halfway through a shortcut. She said the rain wouldn't last too long. With any luck, it'd be over in an hour or so, and they'd be on their way. If they traveled quickly, they'd still be able to reach the pit stop by dark.

She took a seat right there, shedding her black coat and extending her bare arms into the rain. A soft, warm breeze was blowing against them, and Ben looked out in the grey landscape. He wondered how far from civilization he really was.

"What's on your mind, space ranger?" Jessie asked, bringing him to attention.

He spared her a glance, but continued to look out into the distance. "Just thinking of the AER. They might send a few men after me once they realize I've gone missing."

"You're a lousy liar," she hummed, unfazed.

He was only slightly impressed. "Yes, well... I wasn't trying very hard."

"Uh huh." She turned her arms over, watching the droplets fall over her exposed skin. "Lemme guess... you were thinkin' about home?" Ben shoved his hands in his pockets, opting to stay quiet. She looked at him, then back out, heaving a sigh. "And here I thought we were makin' some real progress."

He thought for a moment, then said, "I'll tell you something if you tell me something."

Jessie paused, looking intrigued. She lowered her arms back into the cave, then leaned back on them. "Alrighty then. What're you lookin' to know exactly?"

Feeling lucky, he asked, "Where did you learn to fire a gun like that?"

She smiled proudly. "Milly taught me everything I know. Uncle Andy showed me a few tricks, as did my cousin, but aside from that, it was all Milly. Your turn."

So female gunslingers ran in the family, Ben mused, assuming Milly was either a parent or a sibling. "The only family I have is my father, who is head Securer of Peace under the Alliance. I don't see him very often, though. He's a very busy man."

"Is that why you became a member of the AER?"

He shrugged. "More or less. What were you in town for?"

She shrugged as well, flicking at a pebble. "Business matters. Picking up supplies of sorts. How long you been with the Regime?"

"Twelve years," he answered, not knowing why such a thing would interest her.

This seemed to shock her. "Twelve years? Hell, you can't be much older than me!"

"I'm 29," he said, confused as to why she was making a fuss. "Why do you ask?"

"You've been in the Regime since you were 17?"

"Yes. I started in the junior training program when I was 14."

"Lord almighty," she whispered to herself.

Ben cleared his throat, unsettled. "How long have you been an Outlaw?"

Jessie shook her head though. "No. I don't want to know anythin' else."

"Well that's hardly fair," He protested, irritated. "Why don't you want to know more? Because you think the AER was my entire life? Because you think I have nothing else to talk about?"

She looked up at him in opposition. "Prove me wrong."

He gritted his teeth. "First of all, I don't think there is anything wrong with being heavily involved with my job, most especially since it involves upholding the Law. Second of all, I have other interests besides catching criminals. I'll have you know that I am quite the skilled mechanic. When I was younger, all I wanted to do was work with automobiles and machinery."

The cowgirl looked genuinely surprised. "So why didn't you become a mechanic?"

He shut his mouth momentarily, unaware of when the conversation had become this personal. "W-well... that wasn't really good enough for my father. He wanted me to become someone important. So he enrolled me in the Academy." She kept her eye on him, but he refused to look at her. He scratched the back of his neck. "Stop that. It's rude to stare."

She blinked, then smiled. "My apologies, ranger." She looked outside the cave once more, then said, "Momma always wanted me to become someone important too. She thought I'd be a great veterinarian someday."

"Didn't you go to school?"

"Yeah, well... I had problems with authoritative figures," she said, smiling sheepishly. "Plus, I stopped goin' to school when I was nineteen."

"Why is that?"

She grew intensely quiet at this, her face hardening and the familiar flash of anger striking in her eyes. "... No reason."

Startled by the sudden turn-around, Ben tried to change the subject. "Why did you choose sharp-shooting?"

This seemed to distract her. She lifted her eyebrows, thinking. "Well... I dunno... It's effective, practical, cleaner than a knife, though I know how to use those too." Ben noted the sly tone of her semi-threat. "I mean, there's somethin' real nice about being dead accurate with a weapon that's deemed outdated. To be good with an old gun, you have to be very well-trained. I feel much more prepared an' dangerous with my weaponry... Plus-" She flashed him a smirk. "I couldn't get by on just my good looks. Girl's gotta learn to do somethin' useful nowadays."

"That's why you should stay in school," Ben pointed out.

Jessie snorted. "Thanks, mom."

He let out a quiet chuckle. "What about your dad?"

She rolled her eyes, responding with, "My father's a dick."

Ben's breath hitched in his throat, and he coughed, surprised. "What?"

"He was never around when I was a kid 'cause of the divorce," she explained. "But whenever he showed up, he kept tryin' to send me off to this boarding school overseas. He was an inconsiderate, impatient, loud, fat ball of grease."

He nodded and chose not to speak. She heaved a sigh, then, with a new question, turned to him and asked, "Ain't ya got any friends back home?"

Ben made a face. "Why would I need friends?"

He really should have expected it, by that point in time, but she reacted with such fervor that it caught him off guard. "WHY! Why? Because, Buzz! You need people! You need someone to have your back, someone to be there when you need them the most. You need someone to laugh with, to cry with!"

"I'm doing quite well on my own," he pointed out.

"But it's not the same!" she pushed. "You need a friend to solidify who you are when they're not around, and exaggerate you to your best qualities when they are. You need s friend to break down the walls you put up. Hell, you need a friend just so half of the time, you're not talking to yourself."

Personally, Ben wasn't in the mood to be lectured. He decided he didn't need the drama or the unnecessary weight or stress that relationships provded. He had a friend, once, but that ended horribly, and since then, Ben was alone by choice. With tight lips, he snapped, "Forgive me, but I've never been fond of clichés."

He instantly regretted it.

Jessie stopped cold, taken aback and insulted. For a moment, Ben thought she would just shoot him. She opened hr mouth, as if to say something... but she stopped once more, then turned and looked back out at the rain.

Even though he felt as if he had been too harsh, Ben was under the impression that, due to past experiences, he had a right to be bitter. So he made up his mind that he wouldn't apologize.

He wouldn't.

He had done nothing wrong. Actions: justified. Rights: approved.

...

No, seriously.

...

"Ok, ok, stop!" he blurted out, breaking the silence. Jessie didn't look at him, but he saw her raise an eyebrow.

Pained, Ben tried to think of the right thing to say. This woman had some sort of moral power over him, and, try as he might, he actually... maybe... sort of appreciated her existence. It was purely the fact that she had been such a different captor! Ben had never met captors who had treated him humanely. He was confused, that was all...

... But, still...

"I... I'm sorry. I had... I had a bad experience..." He fell silent, having nothing else to say.

The air held a sort of tension, thick with secrets. Neither was sure how much time had passed, but the rain was slowing down when Jessie finally stood up. With purpose, she turned, looked Ben right in the eye, and slowly, carefully, extend her hand towards him. He found himself completely paralyzed as he watched her hand open and close gently on his shoulder. She squeezed it firmly, never breaking eye contact.

And, even though Ben knew he was undoubtedly insane for thinking so... he could tell that Jessie was sorry simply by looking into her eyes.

They spent several minutes like that, staring at each other, until Jessie offered him a small smile. "I understand, partner," she said quietly, as if she feared her voice would ruin something. She then let go of his shoulder, stood up, and turned heel to tend to the horses.

Ben watched her go, crazily thinking that this outlaw was some sort of goddamned temptress who had the capabilities to enchant him with powerful love spells... but that was nonsense.