Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Principles know no Love ❯ Chapter 7 ( Chapter 7 )

Nu-hu. Long time no see, ne?!

"Thank you´s" for everyone who supported me up to this point. I´m very grateful and hope (because actually promising would make it a lie ^-^) that the next part comes out much faster than that one here.

And as always: Enjoy!

Chapter 7

A soft wind blew across the landscape, sending clouds of dust and sand to swirl through the air- dancing with each other, moving rhythmically in a pattern age-old and simultaneausly completely different- utterly new, incomparable in its uniqueness.

"Hey!, I´m gonna fall off that horse!!"

"Shut up!"

"If you wouldn´t ride so fast…"

"Aarg!"

"But…"

"Ssh!"

The sound was a mere whisper- urgent and insistent at the same time.

The sheriff forcefully pushed the comment back down that was just about to follow as he redirected his gaze outwards, his eyes narrowing in consideration as the nature flew by almost unnoticed, colours blurring freely together.

They rode on for a period of long, silent minutes- neither heeding nor looking at their respective companion.

Now and again Vegeta craned his neck, the Colt securely held in one hand, one time pointing at his captive some other gliding over the barren, desolated region- alternating constantly.

"Where are we?" Kakarott suddenly whispered, slightly titling his head to indicate his reawakened attentiveness.

"It´s Indian territory." The short, emotionless reply elicited a shocked gasp from the sheriff, his eyes widening noticably.

"We shouldn´t be here. Even I - agreenhorn- know that."

"But now we are. Cope with it."

Kakarott srewed his face up into a childish pout, glaring at the deserted landscape.

"I don´t like the way you speak to me!"

"You don´t have to- feel free to pout at any time- silently though!", the leader stated cooly, evectively cutting off any complaint Kakarott might have expressed.

Silence settled over them once again, occasionally disturbed by the low whistle of the otherwise sharp wind, the neighing of a horse, the trampling of several others, following shortly after …

Kakarott tensed visibly.

"We are not alone."

"Obviously."

With some difficulty the sheriff twisted his body around half-way, coming face to face with his captor, the unnatural posture looking highly uncomfortable and preventing him from breathing regularly.

"How can you be so bloody calm??" He almost - almost, though not quite- screamed at the leader.

Vegeta merely lifted an eyebrow- the gesture gradually becoming all to familiar.

"I bet that´s the first time you actually cursed at someone- I mean actually cursed out loud, isn´t it?" His countenance remained casual, unimpressed, his tone heavily laden with sarcasm- though a slight note of amusement was swinging within his otherwise strictly controlled voice.

Kakarott growled, the sound coming out more in the form of a gurgle though, owing to the wrenched posture he had forced his body into. "Just wanted to inform you…", his voice trailed off, the sentence ending in a grumbled murmur, barely clear enough to be understood.

He abruptly turned around, lowered his head slightly and glaring at the sandy, monotonously ochre-coloured ground, remaining silent in stubborn determination.

****

The sun was already setting when Vegeta finally reined his horse, straightening and stretching to loosen up his tired muscles into a more relaxed state. He looked at the sheriff´s back for a moment, staring at something unseen- only palpable in his own, private mind…

The seconds ticked by and still neither moved.

A slight frown slowly became visible, deepening as time went by and merring the leader´s features in rapid success, getting more defined by the minute. With an impatient growl he nudged the other´s back with a finger, waiting for a response- any reaction at all.

Kakarott blinked his tired eyes open, having already fallen halfway closed during the long, strenuous ride. He cocked his head to the side in a clearly questioning way- obviously:

"Wha-", his startled exclamation was cut short by a second - much rougher - poke to his backside, making him almost fall off the horse in his suprise.

"Move, damn it!" A gruff voice called out behind him, immediately getting his attention as he promptly turned his head towards its source, the smaller cowboy coming into his field of vision. He regarded the leader silently for awhile, angry eyes staring right back at him- inky darkness sparkling with an untamed intensity.

"Will you?!"

Kakarott frowned at the inquiry, his own eyes roaming the lanscape, gliding over sandy grounds, old, halfdead trees and hard boulders that were glaring down at them- standing hard and stiff, unmoved by the time, unbothered by their unbidden audience.

"Why did we stop?", the sheriff eventually asked, his tone a mixture of carefully laid-out casualness and honest curiousity.

Vegeta sighed in open exasperation: "Because we are staying here tonight. Now- get off already!"

Kakarott sucked in his breath sharply, staring at the landscape in an unseeing daze. "But we can´t! It´s Indian territory. You said that yourself-" His private, little tirade was broken abruptly before it even had the chance to transform properly when the sheriff suddenly slid off the saddle- the movement encouraged by one of the leader´s elbows.

"That´s the point. Nobody will search for us around here. Especially not at night. It should be secure of any bounty hunters so far."

He ended the conversation abruptly and undouptedly quite impolite by hopping from the horse himself and shoving his victim to a nearby tree, pulling a thick rope from one of the saddlebags and unceremoniously tying his victim to the thick trunk.

"Hope you don´t mind sleeping on the ground." Without waiting for any reply whatsoever he turned to the snorting horse, carefully securing it to another tree, letting the rope long enough to give the animal more freedom of movement, while almost lovingly patting its course mane.

Kakarott watched, only mildy interested, as the other male searched around for dry wood, finally piling it and setting it on fire. The ropes were bound tightly around his wrists, restricting any further movement and rubbing painfully against the tender flesh there when he tested its elasticity.

He stared at the flickering flames in impassive wonder- almost dully- watching them dance in erratical patterns- the rhythm unknown, the music inaudible for any living being.

A low rustle to his left brought his attention back to the other cowboy immediately.

They looked at each other- eyes locking for long, silent seconds.

Kakarott´s eyes slowly drifted sideways, breaking their eye-contact, roaming over the leader´s face, following dancing shadows, created by the burning light of flickering flames, cast unhindered of the planes and hollows that formed the other´s features.

A faint smile stole its way into Kakarott´s countenance, his eyes softening almost imperceptible. He shifted slightly, bringing his body into a more comfortable position, eyes still glued to the other´s face.

Vegeta blinked, the motion slow, radiating an utter calmness as he brushed a slender hand through his unruly shock of dark brownish hair.

He allowed their eyes to meet once more, slightly nodding his head as if to mentally confirm some decision he had silently made.

"We should sleep now."

-The spell was broken as suddenly as it had been cast over them-

Vegeta turned onto his side, drawing his knees up to his body, holding the Colt securely to his chest and closing his eyes.

Silence slowly settled over them as the sheriff watched his captor for long quiet minutes, the other having curled up into a fetal position, breathing deeply- rhythmically, lulling the sheriff into a lazy daze. He blinked from time to time, the motion slow and rarely, only out of neccessarity, his expression unreadable in its complexety.

He stood like that till deep into the night…

****

Everything had happened so fast- too fast. Unexpected. Absolutely silently at the beginning.

First there was nothing- no sounds at all- it was completely unnatural even for that region as it looked more dead then a corpse to the outstander...

With the dawn though there followed the attack.

Whizzing arrows and echoing screams from deeply tanned throats. A hand had hauled him up before he could even think about pulling the trigger, an arm laying itsself snuggly over his throat- squeezing roughly. Blackness was soon to follow. Just at the edges of his field of vision at first, but spreading swiftly like a epidemic, clouding his whole sight, emerging everything into darkness. His body went from sluggish to limp then, hanging loosely from the stranger´s grasp.

Kakarott was already unconscious when they brought the darker cowboy forth, their unresponding forms carelessly thrown onto worn-out saddle.

Too fast.

****

He woke with a start, his eyes darting over his surroundings, only casually noting how his body was standing upright despite his previously obvious state of mind, how it was tightly bound to a long, wooden post, the rope cutting into his skin painfully.

There was a low moan to his right side and he turned his head into its direction, his eyes widening almost immediately, but narrowing only mere seconds later: "See? Didn´t I say we shouldn´t have come here in the first place?!"

He stared at the other man sharpy.

"Didn´t I?!", his tone was demanding, his expression an odd mixture of steadily rising panic and stubborn triumph.

Vegeta glared right back, baring his teeth in an unamiguous warning: "It wasn´t your decision to make--" "But it´s my life threatened here." Kakarott countered, showing his hostility openly, his voice quivering with blind venom.

The leader lifted an eyebrow, unimpressed, replying nothing, just staring the other cowboy down mercelessly.

Kakarott´s forhead smoothed out somewhat, his demeanor cooling down slightly. "We shouldn´t have come here.", he muttered, confirming his own statement, thinking about it and reastablishing his frown, anger promptly boiling up again, increasing steadily.

"I don´t even understand why we had to hid at all." He looked the leader directly in the eye. "You killed them all anyway."

Vegeta looked at him, the corner of his mouth lifting in a mocking gesture. "You aren´t by chance alluding to my little firework, aren´t you?" When Kakarott merely nodded in reply, Vegeta broke out into light chuckles. "Come on, just bear in mind at which distance those bounty hunters were at the time. Even we were nearer to the dynamite then them." He shook his head in feigned resignation.

Kakarott watched the display incredulously, several different emotions crossing his face before settling for watchful distrust.

"You think me a murder, don´t you?"

The question was kind of unexpected, throwing Kakarott off. He stared at the leader - hard - his voice swinging with irrevocable conviction: "Yes!"

The words had left his mouth before his mind could intervene, thus being more of an automatic reaction than the result of any real consideration.

It was Vegeta´s turn to frown, his eyebrows lowering slightly: "To be quiet honest with you- I think even you´ve murdered more than me already."

The statement triggered off an indignant outburst on Kakarott´s part - not ceasing for several minutes.

Vegeta turned his head away with a heavy sigh, feigning resignation and reverting his attention back to their silent spectators, seated in front of self-made tents.

Suddenly his brows shot down and his eyes squeezed shut, a pearl of sweat slowly running down his contorting features. He balled his bound hands into tight fists, his body shaking- almost imperceptible as he tried to controll and reduce the motion.

A moan sprang forth before he could restrict it, however, and a thin patch of blood became visible through his shirt, colouring the soft material an even darker shade.

Kakarott averted his gaze back to the leader, alerted due to the ragged breathing, lungfulls of oxygen forcing itsslef erratically through the other´s lungs. He titled his head to one side, trying to get a better look, only succeeding in hurting himself as rough ropes chafed along tender skin.

Opening his mouth half-way, either in question or in mocking, he was distracted by howls and other strange noises coming from the largest tents across their posts. Shifting his position slightly he watched several bare-chested men, hair carrying striking bright feaders and bodies decorated with a mixture of different symbols, exiting the most impressive tent, circling around someone unseen in there middle.

Kakarott turned big, questioning eyes at his "companion". Vegeta´s darker orbs, however, seemed to be glued to the figure their captors were currently circling- the men chanting rhythmically in their apparent native language.

The sheriff pressed his lips together tightly, the surrounding skin becoming white and creasing slightly.

He alternated between staring at the approaching bundle of Indians and looking at Vegeta for any possible explanation of the situation. No such luck, as the leader was still not moving, eyes locked onto their captors.

The gutural singing had become unnerving loud, increasing in its tragedy the nearer they got.

Kakarott narrowed his eyes, wrinkling his nose in defiance.

Finally the group stopped- only a short distance away, a movement in their middle catching both captive´s attention. As the men slowly parted, creating a passage and standing proudly in a formation akin to a line, a small figure became visible, stepping out between them.

His person was embellished in the traditional version, various different feathers- from long white to short black, shining in a variation of colours and patterns- decorated his head, diverting the attention from sun-breached white hair that flowed thinly over a suprisingly broad back.

Despite his apparent age though, the man stood proud, his stance openly deflecting his position in the group- the glory and respect he had earned himself throughout his life, the body language of the other members only serving to confirm his high status.

Though his face remained scrunched up in uncertain waryness, Kakarott´s eyes followed the display with hidden curiousity. He pressed his back more firmly against the post as the man approached them, only this time the group stayed behind, watching, whispering among themselves and hunching together.

"Vegeta." Kakarott spoke up in a hushed voice, all previous -unpleasant- interaction with the darker cowboy seemingly forgotten.

The leader did not look at him though- face impassive, though missing the previous note of arrogance.

The smaller cowboy titled his head to the side, pressing his lips together firmly for a moment as a visible shudder shook his slighter frame.

Kakarott frowned, watching the leader attentive, the corner of his eye twitching- only once.

"Vegeta."

Kakarott´s head jerked to the side, keen eyes pinning on the old Indian immediately.

"Wise badger." The leader aknowledged, his tone peculiarly calm and even- strangely balanced.

The sheriff opened and closed his mouth repeatedly, shaking his head faintly, an erratical frown merring his fair features. Watching in utter silence as leader and native held a wordless conversation- meanings only transferred through eyes and expressions- he occassionally let his gaze wander to the huddled group, also staring and remaining oddly silent.

Kakarott´s attention soon swung back to its previous occupation as a conversation formed between the two men, vocals joining in a flow of tone and sound, unrecognized by the outsider.

And as much as the words did not make any sense to the sheriff and thus his features held an uncomprehending note to them, he still leaned forward, straining to hear whatever they were talking about.

Sometimes even the pitch of the voice could provide an indication to the theme…

Suddenly a smile sprang to the Indian´s face causing Vegeta´s serious look to lighten up a little, his posture becoming more relaxed, his breath following more regularly, changing from flat and faintly erratical to even and deep.

The native twisted around, throwing short, bitten-off commands at his companions, which in turn scattered immediately - some approaching their captives, cutting the ropes that held Vegeta securily to the post, others hurrying into their tents, a group of long-haired woman lighting a pile of wood, apparently preparing a meal.

Kakarott´s gaze followed the brisk goings-on in vivid interest, only becoming aware of the leader as dark, bottomless eyes settled onto his- locking and staying there for long, speculative moments. The sheriff stared right back, though more out of curiousity about the leader´s intentions than any actual reason.

The leader shook his head- the motion almost imperceptible as a heavy sigh found its way past his lips and Vegeta finally broke their eye contact to speak with the older Indian in hushed whispers.

The native looked up at Kakarott shortly, nodding once and unceremoniously taking out a previously hidden knive - an unnerving long and sharp knive. Kakarott´s eyes widened fractionally, his facial expression playing through several different emotion before setting for sheer panic while his eyes flickered forth and back between both men, finally fixing on Vegeta in silent accusation.

As the Indian advanced on him, the weapon held erect in one hand, Kakarott´s silent protests turned suddenly very vocal, heavily laden with all forms of threats and abuses, aimed solely at his previous captor.

Vegeta did not react though, just standing slightly off to the side, watching in impassive wonder and thoroughly unbothered, the polished blade occasionaly reflecting the bright sunlight, flashing ominously at its target.

The knive lifted unexpectedly, reaching its highest point and coming down again- the movement playing out in slow-motion before Kakarott´s startled eyes - the sheriff becoming agonizingly aware of his situation, the whole predicament he was undoubtedly in.

When the weapon had almost reached the sheriff, though not quite touching him yet, he closed his eyes tightly, an upspringing breeze blowing a stray lock of darkest brown out of his eyes- almost as if to sooth the paralysed man.

Kakarott stealed himself for the final blow- inwardly and outwardly bracing himself- waiting anxiously…

****

Never really thought I would actually write that part, but here it is- though to my greatest surprise! ^-^

I hope I haven´t lost all my readers yet as the story seems to drag on and on…

Still all comments are happily- greadely welcomed.

Come on, don´t be shy- state your opinion, ne?!