Remnants of an old home, with a fallen-in roof and weathered sideboards greets them as they arrive. A group of grim-faced cowboys huddle in a circle, watching as Soul leans over a small opening in the ground.
"What's happened?" Maka asks slowing Kippy down and catching her breath.
Justin pulls his horse up as well, his voice almost snatched away by a sudden gust of wind.
"We were out tracking cows when we came upon this abandoned homestead. Tad, against my warning went to explore the place out. The poor fool wasn't paying attention and fell down a well.
"Oh god." Maka breathes.
Maka and Justin dismount and rush to the well, a nagging sense of despair in the air.
"Tad! Tad! Can you hear me?!" Soul shouts down, but Tad doesn't answer.
"Shit!" Soul yells, throwing his hat down. "We need to get down this well! He might just be unconscious. Give me your lariats."
The men hustle to gather whatever rope they can find, none of them voicing their worry or doubts. Soul takes their rope and quickly ties them together, making one long rope out of many. He ties a hasty loop around his midriff, preparing to go down into the old well. Justin reaches out and stops Soul from tying off the knot.
"Boss, you're never going to fit down that well," Justin says gently.
Soul shakes his head in denial.
"I have to try, we can't leave him down there. I know he's alive damn it!" Soul growls, trying to push past him.
Justin grabs his arm firmly.
"I'm not saying we have to leave him, but we should send someone smaller down to fetch him."
Justin turns to look at Maka and Soul's eyes follow.
"No way. I'm not sending the kid down into that pit. End of story." Soul practically growls.
Maka steps forward, her body is trembling, but her voice is controlled and demands attention.
"I'll go down and get him. I'm the smallest one here. It should be me."
"Out of the question! I can't have you getting hurt too." Soul barks, his eye flashing strangely.
"We don't have time for this! We need to get him now and I'm the only one who can do it."
Soul's face looks pained, but his head jerks in agreement. Soul unwraps himself and transfers the loop around Maka's middle. He snugs the knot tightly, and Maka's stomach jumps as the rough braiding scrapes against her shirt. Soul bends down and ties a separate rope around her left ankle.
"If the one around your middle snaps, we'll still have you." He explains as he checks the knots one more time.
"If that was supposed to reassure me, it didn't."
Soul locks eyes with her.
"I won't let you go kid. Do you trust me?"
Maka nods without hesitation.
"With my life."
A look of surprise passes over his face before he quickly masks it.
"Are you ready then?"
"Yes."
They creep to the edge of the well and peer down into the dark depths. Dirt sifts in. Maka takes one look at the narrow, deep hole in the ground and swallows hard. It's pitch black, and there's no telling how deep it really goes.
Soul clears his throat before speaking, a nervous trait that she has picked up on.
"We'll have to send you in headfirst. There's not enough room for you to turn around once your down there."
"Smashing." Maka laughs nervously.
"For once, that scrawny body of yours is just what the job calls for." Soul jokes.
He's about to toss her down an abandoned well and he's cracking jokes, trying to ease her nerves with humor. It's sweet enough to make Maka smile despite the situation.
"Men! To the ropes! Nice and easy now." Soul commands as cowboys Maka doesn't even know grab a fistful of rope. Soul is at the front, and Justin is behind him, both men look ashen but determined. It's enough to steel her own resolve. Maka draws in a deep breath before sliding in, hands first. For a brief second, she fights the instinct to back out of the tight space. She swallows her fear, thinking of Tad's little face, and scoots in further. The harsh bite of the rope chews the soft skin of her stomach and her ankle, but still, she crawls deeper. She uses her hands to steady herself as she descends and to navigate as the light quickly fades. She can't see a thing, and her stomach clenches in fear as it grows darker every inch she is lowered.
"You're doing great kid!" Soul calls from above.
Maka wants to yell back, but the amount of dirt falling in her face is enough to keep her mouth shut. She is grateful to hear his voice though. She slowly breathes in and out of her nose, the silence of the well more terrifying than any quiet she has ever heard.
How much longer would she be lowered before she found the bottom? What would she find? Monsters? Or worse, the broken body of little Tad?
Maka's eyes sting with dirt and tears as she wiggles through a narrower space. It makes perfect sense that they didn't dare send anyone larger down. Wider shoulders would have gotten wedged tight a long time ago.
Maka stills as an ominous creaking fills the small space. She tries to look back up but she can't see anything past her own body. Without warning, she feels the rope snap and her body is plummeting headfirst into the abyss.
"Kid! Answer me!"
Soul's voice floats somewhere in the murky corner of her subconscious.
Was this heaven or hell? Where was she?
There was something important she needed to do, but her eyes felt too heavy to open.
"I swear to everything that's holy, you better not be dead or I'll come down there and murder you myself!" Soul's voice bounces angrily against her skull, like a swarm of buzzing katydids.
Maka's eyes snap open, but total darkness is all that she sees. She spits out a mouthful of soil, gagging before she can answer.
"I'm here!" She yells.
"Oh thank God! Are you ok kid?"
Souls voice is distorted this far down, but she can hear the obvious relief there.
"I'm fine!"
In reality, she is not fine, but she doesn't want to worry Soul. The second rope around her ankle has probably saved her life, but the pain that radiates from its vice-like grip is excruciating. Dizziness assails her as all the blood rushes to her head. There is a ringing in her ears, so loud that she almost misses the quiet sound of a muffled moan.
"Tad?!" Maka shouts, her voice echoing back to her.
She strains her ears listening for any signs of life. Then she hears a far-off whimper.
"Lower me down! I've found him!"
Up top, the men cheer as they lower her down as easy as they can, but to Maka's poor leg it feels like she is being swung wildly by a hangman's noose. She is lowered several more feet before her hands come in contact with something cold and wet. There is water at the bottom of the well. Maka hesitates, her imagination loud with thoughts of monsters lurking beneath the cold dark surface. Things that have scales and long claws, things that live deep down in forgotten wells. Maka grits her teeth, pushing her fright down. She doesn't know how deep the water is, but she pushes forward anyway.
"There's water down here, I might have to swim. Can you cut the line?" Maka hollers up the well.
This far down the opening is nothing but a pinhole in the encompassing gloom.
"Are you fucking crazy?! There's no way I'm cutting this rope! We don't have any more with us. We'd have to go all the way to camp to get more. You'd be stuck down there!" Soul shouts back, his voice sounding oddly strangled.
Maka swallows hard, the thought of being stuck down the well longer than necessary is a daunting one. Before she loses her courage she yells back, "Just do it, Evans! I'll find Tad while I wait!"
"I guess we don't have much of a choice. You be safe Kid, I'll be back as soon as possible!"
There's hesitation there in his voice, but she can feel the rope vibrating around her ankle from a knife sawing through the cord up well. She takes a deep breath and wills her heart to slow. This time, when the rope breaks she is expecting it, but it still causes her stomach to clench with uncertainty. She drops into the water with a loud splash, but she touches the bottom of the well quickly. She feels a rush of relief that the water isn't as deep as she had imagined, only coming thigh high. The space at the bottom is bigger than the well-shaft, so she can stand right side up.
"Tad, are you here?" Maka calls softly, her voice loud in the small space.
A small incoherent moan is all she gets in return.
"Don't worry, I'm coming to you," Maka reassures as her hands feel along the dirt walls. She can't see a thing and the space is larger than she thought, but she's bound to run into him soon.
The fact that Tad has survived the fall in the first place is amazing, the fact that he survived being knocked out and not drowning is a pure miracle.
She finds him quite by accident, his body wedged between the water and an indention in the wall. Maka scoops his limp body into her arms.
"Tad, please wake up sweetie," Maka begs running her free hand across his face. She feels him stir in her arms. His face scrunches up in pain under her hand.
"Ow." He mumbles more clearly.
"Oh thank God," She exhales.
"Maka?" He asks, his voice wobbling.
"Yes, I'm here Tad. Does it hurt anywhere?"
"Everything hurts." He whimpers softly. "My arm, it hurts real bad."
"It's ok sweetie, we'll get you out of here soon." Maka murmurs.
"I can't see anything. What's happened to me?" He asks more alert now but sounding a little dazed still.
"You fell down a well. Don't worry though, I've got you."
He starts crying quietly in the dark and Maka's heart breaks at the sound.
"Please." He begs, between sobs. "Please get me out of here."
Maka pulls him to her chest and holds his little body tightly.
"We're going to get you out of here. We have to wait for Soul though. He's bringing us some rope, we have to be patient. Can you do that for me?"
She feels him nod against her shoulder, tears running down her arm.
"You won't leave me? Right?" He asks his voice quivering.
"I'm not going anywhere."
"You're not lying to me are you?"
"I would never."
"You promise?"
"I promise. I'll stay with you for as long as it takes. Cross my heart."
"Thank you." He sniffles, his sobs subsiding.
He's just a kid, he has every right to be scared, but Maka is a little worried by how limp his left arm is and by how docile the boy is being. He must have hit his head pretty hard on the way down, keeping him awake and alert is the most important step until they can get out and examine him closer.
"Tell me about yourself, Tad. I feel like I don't know anything about you." Maka asks, trying to keep him engaged and talking.
"Why should I? I don't know anything about you either? He retorts.
Maka smiles to herself, relieved by his prickly remark. He's sounding more like himself again.
"I was born in London, on a rainy day. My favorite food used to be blueberry scones with afternoon tea, but now it's Tsubaki's cinnamon rolls with her doctored coffee."
"What are scones? I know what blueberries are, but I ain't ever heard of a scone."
"It's a pastry, dense but flaky, sweet, almost like one of your American biscuits."
"I think I'd like to try one. Some day." He says wistfully.
"I don't know where to get blueberries, but maybe I could try making you some when we get out of here," Maka says with a smile.
"Oh I know where to find blueberries, they grow down by the river behind the house. You pick em' in the summertime." He says, sounding very confident in his blueberry gathering skills.
"Well it's settled then, as soon as the blueberries are ready, we'll make scones."
They talked quietly in the well after that, a wall that had once been there crumbling in the small and damp space they now shared. They spoke of simple things, like horses, cakes, Katydids, and how Soul was the worst for taking so long. Talking of the little and unimportant things kept their minds off the severity of their situation.
Tad starts to shiver, the cold seeping into his little body. Maka is just as cold, but she pull him tighter to her, willing what body heat she has to him.
"Where are your parents?" He asks after awhile, his voice sounding sleepy.
"They've passed on, they're in a better place now." Maka whispers. She runs her ice-cold hands up and down Tad's arms and back, trying to warm him.
"My Ma is in heaven too." He says softly.
Maka's hands still, shocked at the little boy's confession. Black Star had said he never spoke of his life before coming to the ranch.
"Why'd you leave your home?" He asks, shaking her out of her surprise.
Her hands start back up their work before she replies.
"I wanted to start a new life."
Tad shakes his head against her shoulder.
"I can tell you're lying. Your heart sounds loud. You promised not to lie to me, remember?"
"Sorry, that's the story I'm used to telling people who ask." Maka lets out a slow breath before continuing.
"I ran away."
"Why?"
"I was going to be forced to marry someone I didn't love."
"Yuck."
"Yes, very yuck." Maka chuckles softly at the boy's obvious disgust.
"I don't blame you for leaving. I'm never getting married!" The boy declares.
"Yeah me too, Tadpole," Maka says, her heart stinging at the loneliness of the statement.
"It would have been much cooler if you ran away because you were hiding from the law." He says matter of factly.
"Oh, Is that so?" Maka laughs. "I'm sorry to disappoint you with my boring runaway story."
Tad doesn't laugh with her.
"Are you ok?" Maka asks the unusually quiet boy.
"I guess I ran away too." He says, his voice wavering.
Maka couldn't see the boy's face in the darkness of the well, but she could feel the sadness and regret in those words.
"Why'd you run away?" She asks gently.
"My Ma got real sick. Pa spent a lot of money on the doctor. After she passed my Pa had trouble finding work. My brothers and sister were getting skinny. Their eyes too big, and their cheeks sunken in. I left so they could have my share of the food."
A few tears run down Maka's cheek and she swipes them away before they can drip down on the boy's face.
"That was a very brave thing to do, Tadpole."
"I didn't feel very brave at all. I felt like a coward running away, but I know it was for the best. You know I get paid working for the ranch?"
"I didn't."
"I keep a whole dollar for myself and send the rest to my Pa. He never writes back, but I hope it helps."
Overwhelmed by the boy's grief Maka hugs him closer, and this time he hugs her back with his good arm.
"Hell fire!" The boy exclaims suddenly, causing Maka to almost drop him.
"You're a woman, ain't you?" He says, pulling back from their embrace.
Maka's heart slams into her throat and there's a horrible ringing in her ears.
"Yes." She says without thinking, not able to lie to the boy.
She's so very tired of all the lies.
"Huh, well shit." The boy says, his voice bordering on shock and acceptance.
There's a long awkward pause, neither of them knowing what to say. Maka is just about to defend herself and her motives when the boy cuts her off.
"I won't say anything, promise." He says, snuggling back into her arms without further comment.
"Are you not angry I lied to you? To everybody?" Maka breathes, completely confused by the boy's reaction.
"No. Sometimes we have to lie. Getting hitched against your wish, it sounds like you have a good reason to hide. Besides, Stein would throw you out right away if he knew you were a girl."
Maka sighs in despair as yet another person learns her secret.
"I'd be real sad if you had to leave." He says somber, causing Maka to smile despite herself.
"I thought you said you hated me and I'm dull as dishwater," Maka reminds him.
"Oh I'm sorry about that, I didn't know you were a lady yet." He says sheepishly.
"My Ma would have had my hide if she heard me talking to a woman that way."
"You shouldn't be talking to anyone that way." Maka chides.
"Yes ma'am. Sorry." He says ruefully.
"It's fine Tadpole, all is forgiven." She squeezes him to her, her heart feeling a little less heavy despite being trapped in this dark well.
"How did you know? What gave my gender away?"
"My Ma used to hold me like this." He says softly.
"You're gentle like her."
Maka smiles in the dark.
"That's very sweet."
"Well, that and your breasts are smothering me." He declares, an edge of mischief in his voice.
Maka groans, completely mortified.
"If you weren't injured, I'd drop you right now."
The boy laughs, but it's cut off by a violent cough. Maka pulls him closer, his teeth chattering.
How long had they been down here?
She didn't know how much more body heat she had left to give the poor shaking boy.
"Hold on Tadpole. Soul will be here soon. Everything is going to be alright."
"Promise?" He says drowsily.
"Promise." She replies, holding him tight.
She prays desperately that she's not lying to him.
Cowboys scatter, horses neigh, and cows bawl as Soul rides into the middle of the camp. His horse is frothing at the mouth, covered in sweat, and breathing hard.
Soul doesn't fare much better from his mount. The ride here was hard on him physically and mentally. Dark thoughts of Tad and the kid down in that well, all alone, with so many unknown variables. Horrible thoughts had dogged him the whole way here. The kid's face before he went down that hole, pale from fright. The feel of the rope snapping in his hands. These visions dance behind his wind-stung eyes, putting his stomach in knots.
"Boss! What the hell is going on?!" Black Star bellows as he runs to Soul's side.
"Rope. I need rope." Soul pants heavily.
Without further question, Black Star runs to the supply wagon and pulls out several coils of rope. He throws them up to Soul who catches them and turns his horse hard, heading back towards the abandoned homestead. He lets the reins go, giving his horse his head and the pinto, despite being winded, lengthens his strides. Prairie grouse and bush quail take flight from the tall grass as he thunders past, their quiet homes encroached upon by a mad man chasing the wind. Soul leans forward as the wind whips at his face and threads his hands into his horse's mane. He hugs his legs around his horse's side and feels the strength in those muscles as he runs. He feels a small pang of pity for his horse, who is not used to running such distances, but he doesn't hold him back. The only thing that matters is getting Tad and the Kid out of that damn well.
Soul silently prays to God, the universe, and even to the natives' gods for good measure. He urges his horse faster with his heels, hoping someone, anyone, is listening.
"I'm so very tired." Tad mumbles.
"Tad, sweetie, you have to stay awake for me, ok?" Maka pleads.
Tad tries to nod his head, but Maka can feel it lull listless against her shoulder.
Maka holds him close, her hands still busy trying to bring warmth back to his limbs.
"It's not so cold anymore." He sighs with contentment.
Maka bites back the fear clawing at her insides.
"Damn it, Evans." She whispers, her heart lodged painfully in her throat.
"As soon as we get out of here, let's have hot chocolate and scones. Doesn't that sound good Tadpole?" She says, trying to keep him awake.
Tad doesn't reply and the sudden silence is deafening in the narrow space.
"Tad?" Maka asks, running her trembling hand down his face.
The boy in her arms is quiet.
"Oh God, no!" Maka wails, the sound of her voice hollow as it echoes back from the void.
He feels so terribly small and frail as she puts her head against his chest, straining for any signs of life. His heartbeat is there, but faint, like a tiny bird fluttering in his chest. Tears of relief leak from her eyes at the sound, but it is a short-lived feeling.
Their time is running short.
"Soul! Where are you?!" Maka cries up to the only speck of light in their dark prison.
Something moves over the opening of the well, blocking what little light there was, and even though she couldn't make out who it was, in Maka's heart she knew it was him.
"Kid! I'm here!" His voice was distorted by the cramp confines of the well, but to her, it was the most beautiful of sounds.
"Hurry! Tad needs help!" Maka shouts back, fighting the panic she feels at how unresponsive he is.
Something falls down the well, raining dirt down on her head. Maka coughs and reaches a blind hand out, searching, until at long last she finds it. The rope feels course on her fingertips, but it's the lifeline she has been praying for. Maka grips Tad's prone body to her and with her other hand, she tightly winds the rope around her midsection. Black Star had previously taught her to tie a few simple knots, but in the dark, with her hands cold and shaking, she dearly hopes that her meager knowledge would be enough to hold them aloft.
"Ready!" She shouts.
Once again she whispers a prayer before being jerked from her feet. Her descent had been very controlled, but the ascent is fast and wild. Dirt showers down around them and Maka swallows down a scream as the rope saws at her flesh.
Maka holds fast to Tad, even though her arms feel like they are a thousand pounds.
The rope groans and creaked as it bares their weight. This time she hears the ominous sound of the rope starting to fray.
"Hurry! The rope is going to snap!" She yells, panic taking hold of her.
Maka knew they wouldn't survive this fall a second time.
Upwell the men haul the rope with reckless abandon. The twang of the rope unraveling one braid at a time is loud in Maka's ears as they rushed towards the opening. Maka squints through the dirt and with the very last of her strength, she hefts Tad aloft, believing that if the rope dose give way at least there would be time for someone to grab him. If Tad was safe, that's all that mattered.
Just as her arms were sure to give out from the strain Tad is taken from her and the rope gives way.
That split second, half a heartbeat, suspended in the air, she closes her eyes, accepting her fate with a quiet resignation.
As fate would have it though, it was not her time to go.
A pair of strong hands seize her by the shirt collar and haul her up and out of the well. She hits open-air and gasps as Soul falls backward bringing her with him. He hits the ground with a groan and she lands atop him, connecting with the unyielding and strong form.
The sunlight is dazzling after being in the darkness for so long, but she leans up on her elbows and blinks down at the man who has once again saved her life.
He coughs once and cracks a single crimson eye up at her.
Everyone cheers and hollers and suddenly she is being lifted off of Soul. A dozen hands pat her on the back and slap her in congratulations. Everyone starts talking at once, all in awe of her daring rescue.
"Where's Tad? Is he ok?" Maka shouts above the din of merriment.
Justin appears next to her, cradling Tad in his arms. Tad looks awful, covered in dirt, and cuts, but he's awake. He gives her a weak smile and her heart contracts painfully.
"Thank God." She whispers. Maka manages a shaky grin, but tears slide down her cheeks.
They both made it. Solid ground never felt so good, and being under the big blue Texas sky was like coming home.
"Give the Kid some space." Soul orders as he gets back on his own feet. The men step back, to let him through, but not by much, their excitement palatable.
"Aw don't cry, kid. Everything is fine now." Soul reassures, ruffling her hair fondly.
"I'm not crying." Maka sniffles scrubbing at her face. "I've got so much dirt in my eyes, I'm probably half-blind now."
The men all hoot and laugh at her response and she flashes a triumphant smile.
"You did well today, Kid. I'm mighty proud of you." Soul murmurs near her ear, almost too quiet over the cheers and ruckus.
Maka inhales sharply, his words hitting her on the chest like a ton of bricks. Her eyes stray to Tad and she comes to terms with how narrowly he had cheated death today. Maka looks over her shoulder, at the gaping mouth of the well. She shivers at the thought of going back down there, but she realizes that she would go in again. For Tad, or for any of the men who crowded around her. These people, her misfit family. And the knowledge that they would do the same for her, without hesitation, well, it's enough to make her cry again. This time with a smile.