Disclaimer: All the characters herein, with the exception of some random extras, are the intellectual property of Eiichiro Oda and all the companies involved with publishing and production of the One Piece manga and anime. I just twisted 'em a bit.
Spoilers/Warnings: This story will eventually encompass the entire first season of the anime, which is up to about halfway through volume 11 of the manga, just so you know. This is an AU, so many things have been changed/altered/warped to suit my needs. Also, there is some language and violence.
Pairing: None. However, I like subtext, so you can probably find hints of just about anything, if you look for it.
Dedication: To the OP at the fanforall at LJ, for requesting a cowboy AU and spawning this in my brain. Many thanks to Dandy Wonderous for beta-ing.
A/N: Name order for all characters has been westernized. Don't like it? Tough cookies! I do not claim to be an expert on anything involving gun fighting, the old west, or the cavalry. I did some very basic research for some of this, but I probably got lots of stuff wrong. Humor me.
Part 6- Dawn Breaks
Usopp took the others back to his home "to plan," but things didn't turn out quite as expected. Zoro was the first to fall asleep, and after that, no one could really be sure. It wasn't until Usopp's elbow slipped and he fell out of his chair with a crash that panic set in on the small group.
"What time is it?" Usopp howled, horrified. "What if we're too late?"
"It's still mostly dark," Nami soothed, gesturing toward the window. The lightening of the eastern sky was only false dawn. "If we hurry, we can still make it by dawn."
"We'd have to ride at full gallop." Zoro frowned. "I'm not sure the horses can keep up that pace with two riders apiece." The "especially Luffy's" remained unsaid.
"Guess we'll have to split up," Luffy shrugged. "Two of us can ride ahead with the horses, and the other two can follow on foot."
"I'm going with the horses," Usopp declared, firmly. "I need to know that Kaya's okay."
"I'll go, too," Nami volunteered. "If we're quick, maybe we can bring Kaya away with us, so she won't be in any danger."
"Shouldn't at least one fighter go?" Zoro scoffed. "What are you two going to do if you run into trouble?"
"We're not totally helpless! Right, Usopp?"
"Uh, right!" Usopp agreed, rather hesitantly. "Besides, maybe we can slip through easier because we don't look threatening!"
"Exactly! We don't have time to argue anyway, so let's go!" Nami grabbed Usopp's arm and dragged him out the front door.
"Wait just a dang minute!" Zoro called after the pair. He would have followed them outside immediately, but he tripped over Luffy, who had rushed toward the doorway at the same time. The two men untangled themselves in time to see Nami bolt past on Zoro's gelding with Usopp close behind on Luffy's shockingly spry old mare.
"I just got that horse back..." Zoro huffed in irritation. Luffy darted by out of the corner of his eye.
"Hurry up, Zoro," he called back over his shoulder, "or we'll miss out on all the fun!" Then he disappeared around the corner of a building.
Zoro headed for the edge of town and frowned at the view before him. How had he ended up at the river?
On the other end of town, Luffy was contemplating a familiar, rocky outcropping.
Usopp and Nami skirted the main entrance, instead heading for a small stretch of fencing that Usopp remembered had fallen down and never been repaired. They dismounted and led the horses in through the back door of a large barn near the main house. Usopp tied the animals to an old wagon in one corner of the building and gestured for Nami to follow him.
"Let's head for the loft," he whispered. "We should be able to see everything from there."
The loft was accessed by a rickety ladder. Usopp pressed down on a rung with one hand and winced as it bowed slightly beneath the pressure.
"Ladies first!" Usopp offered.
"I couldn't possibly," Nami countered. "I'm wearing a skirt. You have to go first!"
"What if I promise not to look?" If looks could kill, Usopp was certain he'd be stone dead. "Right, then! I'll go first to make sure it's safe. If anything should happen to me-"
"Just go!"
A few, tense moments later, they had both made it up to the loft safely. They crawled over to the loft doors and peered out at the grounds. The main gate could only just be seen in the distance to the north, but it was impossible to make out the presence of any people in the dim light. The main house stood across from them, dark and silent.
"Kaya's room is the last window on the right, on the second floor," Usopp informed Nami in a breathy whisper. She gave him an odd look, one eyebrow raised. He rolled his eyes. "She showed me which window was hers while we were out walking, once."
"Look," Nami gasped, pointing, "someone's on the porch!"
A familiar figure in black was leaning against the porch railing, looking at the eastern sky. Klahadore's head turned slowly toward the north as the edge of the sun peeked over the horizon. The light glinted off the lenses of his glasses. He stood and began to walk away from the dwelling, passing by the barn on his way. The former bandit paused in the doorway.
"There's nothing you can do." Both Nami and Usopp jumped at the low comment that was clearly addressed to them. How had he known where they were? "If you leave now, perhaps I'll allow you to live. It would be unfortunate if a meddlesome local were to be caught up in the attack today." Klahadore continued on his way, footsteps nearly silent.
Usopp swallowed audibly, momentarily stricken speechless by the unexpected threat. Nami rested a hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently in a silent show of support. They both watched their foe walk toward the gate.
As the dawn light crept further, they could make out a cloud of dust near the main gate. Something was definitely going on over there!
Usopp sat up, pulling out his slingshot and a bag of stones. Nami scanned the area for anything she could use as a weapon, eyes finally settling on a wooden handle that had likely once belonged to a shovel or pitchfork. She gripped it tightly in her hands and took up her position next to Usopp once more.
"Are you ready for this?" she asked.
"I have to be," Usopp replied, jaw set in a determined expression.
In a stroke of good luck, Luffy and Zoro had both found the road toward the ranch at about the same time. They hurried forward at a brisk pace. Zoro looked at a conspicuously unoccupied spot at the other man's hip.
"You don't have your gun," he noted.
"I'm not real good with it, yet. I figure it's probably safer if I don't press my luck," Luffy explained.
"It may be, at that," Zoro nodded. "You have any sort of weapon on you? The Black Cat Gang is going to be armed. From what I've heard, they tended to favor knives in the past, but I wouldn't be surprised if there are guns today." Zoro stopped suddenly and crouched down. He pulled a sheathed knife from his left boot and held it out to Luffy. "Here. You can't go into this unprepared."
Luffy looked like he wanted to argue for a moment, but then he took the proffered weapon with a simple, "Thanks." He tucked the sheath into the waistband of his pants, at the small of his back. Even if he wasn't sure he'd actually use it, its presence was reassuring.
When the main gate of the Bar K came into view, so did a small group of five people. The first was the man with the strange spectacles from the day before. The next two men were more or less unremarkable, if a little scruffy. The final two men were a study in opposites. The first was of average height, though it was masked slightly by a pronounced slouch, and wiry, while the other stood a full head higher than the others and was almost as wide.
Jango frowned at the unexpected arrivals. What were these boys doing walking around this early in the morning? It could be trouble if they got nosy, and Ku- the Boss had been pretty insistent that there be no hitches in the works. Then he noticed that the taller one was armed.
"Good morning," Jango offered cautiously. "It's awfully early for a stroll, isn't it?"
"We're going to the ranch," Luffy stated simply.
"We're... meeting some friends," Zoro added, one corner of his mouth curving up into a smirk.
"What a coincidence," Jango smirked back, "so are we." He locked gazes with Zoro and the tension level rose.
"Who are you meeting?" Luffy wondered.
"It's not important. All you need to know," Jango sneered, taking a better fighting stance, "is that you're in the wrong place at the wrong time. This is your last chance to turn around and walk away."
Luffy's smile never faltered, but his tone was no longer quite so cheerful. "Sorry, but if you want us to go, I reckon you're gonna have to make us."
Jango cocked his head at the mismatched pair. "Sam, Butch, keep an eye out for the Boss." Then, his attention turned to his remaining cohorts. "Billy, Clyde, this is a great opportunity to prove yourselves."
One of the two stepped forward. "I'll take the one who fancies himself a gunman, Clyde," he taunted. "Of course," the next comment was addressed to Zoro, "wouldn't be very sporting of you to shoot an unarmed man..."
"Oh, you're armed." Zoro watched the other man move closer. "Not that I need my guns for a clown like you. That'd be a waste of a bullet I might need later."
Luffy gave the other man, his own opponent apparently, an exasperated look. "Are you gonna talk a whole lot, too? It's boring..."
"No," Clyde retorted. It was the only word he managed to get out before Luffy was suddenly in his face, the boy's right fist buried in his gut.
"Good." A left hook to the jaw, and Clyde was down for the count.
Zoro looked over to admire Luffy's technique. Billy took the opportunity provided by the distraction to pull a knife and lunge toward Zoro. The gunman caught the movement in his peripheral vision and side stepped, latching onto Billy's wrist as he overbalanced. The two men went down in a tangle of limbs, dust flying. After a short tussle, Zoro stood victorious, if very dirty and missing his hat.
The black cowboy hat had landed near Luffy's feet, so he obligingly bent over and retrieved it. He held it out to Zoro, who was cursing creatively under his breath as he tried to brush some of the dust from his clothing.
"Jango," Sam called over his shoulder, "the Boss is coming this way."
Jango chewed his lower lip as he surveyed the current situation. He had no time for damage control! Maybe, if he was lucky, the Boss would take his years of loyalty into account and make his death quick and relatively painless.
"Jango," he started at the familiar cold, sneering tone, "this is very disappointing."
"Sorry, Boss," Jango apologized as he adjusted his glasses, an unconscious nervous gesture. "I guess I should have planned for interference."
"Indeed." Klahadore looked over the "interference." He recognized them as people he had passed on the road the previous day. Then, they had been with the girl he had seen in the loft with the long nosed boy from town. Perhaps he had underestimated the threat posed by Kaya's meddlesome friend.
"I'll take over here," the Black Cat Bandit declared. "You know the task I've assigned you, Jango. The other hands have taken a short leave of absence, so you needn't worry about them. Kaya should still be in bed in the main house. The only remaining servant is... 'indisposed' at the moment. Take Sam and Butch with you; they can handle a small pest problem in the barn."
"Certainly, Boss." The three men walked through the gate and toward the barn and house.
"How come he gets to be called 'Boss' but I don't?" Luffy asked Zoro.
"We've got bigger problems here, Luffy." Zoro massaged the spot between his eyebrows. He let out a long-suffering sigh. "If I agree to call you that, will you shut up about it?"
"Yup," Luffy nodded, grinning broadly.
"In that case, Boss, I suspect there are two pests that are gonna be needing help. You okay here with this guy?"
"I think so."
"Good luck."
Zoro kept his eyes locked on Klahadore, as he carefully walked around him and headed after the others at a brisk pace. The outlaw ignored him, his own eyes trained on Luffy.
"So," Klahadore sneered, "you're the boss, are you? I must say, you don't seem like much to me."
Luffy stood lightly on the balls of his feet, ready to move in any direction circumstances might require. He brought his hands up into a defensive pose, grin stretching impossibly wider.
"No? Keep watching; you might be surprised."
End Notes:
If anyone cares, this part and the next used to be one massively long chapter, but it's been split because it was, well, massively long compared to all the other parts. Don't hate me for the cliff-hanger, there are worse ones later... Besides, this update's a twofer.