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 19- Out of the Frying Pan...
Arlong had just finished a lavish breakfast and was preparing to pay a visit to his "guest" in the basement when Chu returned, dusty and in a foul mood. The men who had brought in Roronoa reported that he had followed after the gunman's unidentified companion.
"I expected you to bring some company," Arlong prodded carefully. "What happened? Did he prove to be too elusive?"
"It's the strangest thing," Chu explained in a dark tone, eyes narrowed. "I followed straight behind him into town, but he was nowhere to be seen. Care to guess who I did meet?"
"Tell me." Arlong's voice never lost its rather playful quality, but every man in the room could tell that someone was in for a world of hurt.
"Nojiko." Chu spat the name like a curse. "She told me she hadn't really seen anything, and that the stranger continued all the way through Coco. I searched all over the other side of town, but I couldn't find so much as a hoof print. It's almost like he was never there." Chu was one of Arlong's best trackers. If he said there had been no sign, it was certain that there hadn't been.
"You think he's still in town?" Chu shook his head in response to the question.
"I circled the whole place, looking for signs of a rider. It looks like a horse headed up toward Nojiko's place last night. She doesn't own one, does she?"
"No," Arlong's eyes glinted dangerously, "I don't believe she does." The fool in the basement could wait. "Perhaps we should pay her a visit."
"I noticed something else on my way back through town," Chu added in a deceptively casual manner. "Our favorite former lawman has something very interesting hanging on his wall."
"So," Arlong chuckled, "old Genzo's at it again, eh? I've changed my mind about our visit. There's an example to be made..."
***
The cell in the basement wasn't the worst place Zoro had ever spent the night, but it might make it into the top five. The basement had been dug directly out of the dirt and had been finished only minimally. It smelled of dirt and mold, and even though the floor had been packed down, it was anything but level. A corner just big enough for pacing, or lying on the ground to sleep, was blocked off by two short walls composed of iron bars. The longer wall had a door. It appeared that the bars had been brought here from another location--probably the town's former jailhouse.
They hadn't even left him a guard to annoy to pass the time. Bastards. Zoro had kept himself busy trying to get his hands untied for a while, before he finally gave up on the idea, wrists chafed raw. Staring at the walls had gotten old pretty quickly, too. When he tried to get some sleep, the ceiling was only moderately more interesting.
Whoever had put in the bars hadn't done a very good job; there were several gaps between the edges of the bars and the ceiling and floor. If Zoro's chest hadn't still been bothering him, he might have tried knocking the bars out of place. He was actually contemplating doing it anyway, just for something to do, when he heard the door at the top of the stairs open.
"What are you doing here?" The question came out a little more hostile than he'd meant it; then again, the last time he'd seen Nami, she'd kicked him in the gut.
She ignored him and walked over to a table in the opposite corner of the room, where the keys and Zoro's guns had been left in plain view, and retrieved the keys. She drew the knife from her boot again and stood in front of the bars silently for a few moments.
"This feels familiar," she mumbled, then unlocked the door and slid it to the side. Zoro eyed the knife warily, but refused to show any other reaction. "Turn around," she ordered him, voice flat and emotionless.
"Why? Want to stab me in the back literally, too?"
"Just do it," she snapped. Deciding not to further provoke the knife wielding Nami, despite how amusing it was, Zoro obediently turned around. Nami cut away the ropes binding his wrists and he bit back a hiss of relief as they fell away.
"Thanks," he grumbled, flexing his hands and massaging the abused skin.
"If you want to thank me, get out of here. Now. Arlong's gone into town, so you have a chance. It's a long walk to any place friendly, so I'd get a move on, if I were you." She turned, without another word, and headed back upstairs.
Zoro wasn't about to just meekly do everything Nami said. First things first; he strapped his guns back in place. Then he ran a hand through his hair and scowled. One of Arlong's men had taken his hat. He really liked that hat...
He climbed the stairs and took an unplanned tour of the entire house while looking for the door. On the way, he found a quick breakfast of some fruit, an unlocked cabinet with an intriguing variety of booze, from which he liberated a small bottle of whiskey, and the lone sentry Arlong had left on guard. Unfortunately for the sentry, he was the one that had taken Zoro's hat.
Hat now back where it belonged and door located, Zoro whistled to himself as he walked toward the small corral where he expected to find his horse. Except the gelding wasn't there.
"It's a long walk to any place friendly..."
"Shit," Zoro seethed under his breath. "She stole my horse again."
With a resigned sigh, he followed the only road leading from Arlong's property and headed into town.
***
Usopp hadn't slept well at all. It wasn't that the room he had been given was uncomfortable, but he couldn't help but worry. It wasn't just about Zoro, either. If he stayed with Nojiko much longer, she could be in danger for helping him. He wasn't sure exactly what he was going to do afterwards, but he was certain it was time to go. He walked into the kitchen to find Nojiko gazing out the window with a frown, a mug of hot tea in her hand.
"I'd, um, like to thank you sincerely, for allowing me to stay here," Usopp began, voice gaining confidence as he continued speaking, "but I must be going. I would hate to get you in any further trouble by remaining here. I'll just-"
"You can't leave now," Nojiko cut him off.
"It's nice that you're so concerned about my welfare, but-"
"No," Nojiko rolled her eyes, "I mean you really can't. Arlong and most of his men just rode into town. If you leave now, someone's bound to see you."
"Oh... Do you think they're looking for me?"
"Maybe," Nojiko allowed with a slight shrug, "but they don't look like they're searching for anything. They seem to know where they're going..." she trailed off with a slight gasp. "That's Genzo's house!" she exclaimed, eyes wide. "I have to go see what's happening! Stay here!"
"Nojiko, wait!" he called after her, but she was already out the door.
***
"I thought we talked about this, Genzo," Arlong chided, clucking his tongue. "My men and I are the only ones allowed to possess weapons."
They stood in the street outside Genzo's home. A small crowd of townspeople peered past the ring of Arlong's men, trying to see the purpose of the hated sheriff's visit. Genzo was held immobile by two of Arlong's men, each holding one of his arms. Arlong stood in front of him, a sheathed cavalry saber in his hands.
"That's a keepsake from my service," Genzo growled, scowling at Arlong. "It's purely decorative. You know I wouldn't start any trouble..."
Arlong unsheathed the blade in one smooth motion, running a thumb along the edge. "It appears perfectly functional to me. Besides," the sheriff grinned maliciously, "this isn't about whether or not you planned to use this weapon; it's about following rules."
"I told you," Genzo retorted stubbornly, "I don't even think of that as a weapon."
"Well," Arlong sneered, "that's part of the reason why you don't make the rules anymore." Arlong extended his arm, tracing the tip of the blade along Genzo's throat. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to make an example of you, old man."
"Leave him alone!" a voice rang out clearly. Arlong's grin widened.
"How nice of you to join us, Nojiko," Arlong chuckled. "You've just saved me a trip." When the girl's expression changed from righteous anger to confusion and mild fear, Arlong elaborated. "Chu tells me there are signs that a horse rode toward your house. Tell me, why is that?"
"I... I was moving some supplies, so I borrowed a horse from the town stables."
"She's lying," Chu commented.
"I know," Arlong replied mildly, as he flicked his wrist, nicking Genzo's throat slightly. Nojiko gasped in horror. "Let's try that again. Why did a horse go up to your place yesterday, Nojiko?"
"There was a rider," Nojiko admitted. "He stopped briefly, on his way out of town, but he's gone now." It was only a half lie.
"I'm afraid I still don't believe you," Arlong sighed in a mocking tone. He pulled his hand back to run Genzo through. Nojiko screamed. Genzo flinched.
Two rocks flew seemingly out of nowhere, one striking Arlong's hand, causing him to drop the saber. The other hit him squarely on the bridge of his nose, splitting the skin. Arlong put a hand to the small cut, staring at the blood in disbelief before he saw red and his face contorted into a mask of rage.
"Who dares to strike me?!" he roared.
A lone figure wielding a slingshot leapt down from the low roof of a nearby building and took off at a full run.
"Hey," one of the scouts from the previous day mused aloud, "wasn't that the guy who was with Roronoa?"
"Find him!" Arlong ordered. "I'll kill that pipsqueak with my bare hands!"
Chu and several others took off after the outsider. Arlong backhanded Genzo viciously, venting some of his anger. The crowd of townspeople started to become agitated. Kuroobi knew a bad situation developing when he saw one.
"Let's head back home, Boss," he suggested placatingly. "Chu'll find that kid. Besides, you never got to interrogate that gunman."
Arlong allowed himself to be dragged away, glaring at the citizens of Coco as he passed.
"I've decided I'm making an example of all of you!" the sheriff snarled. "Enjoy your day off, it's the last one any of you'll get for weeks! That includes you, Nojiko, arm or no arm!"
End Notes:
If you've read any of my other work, you're probably aware already, but I like to recycle running gags. Hence the hat and the horse. It amuses me and I can't seem to control myself. (Same for the Zoro introspection and Zoro/Nami interaction.)
Just in case anybody's wondering, Hatchi will be in this, I just haven't mentioned him, yet. (It would just be unfair to have Kuroobi and Chu but not Hatchi!)
Also, if you haven't yet guessed the unoriginal title of the next part, you make me very sad indeed...