Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Gundam Wing in the Wild Wild West ❯ Gunslinger Heero ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter 5: Gunslinger Heero

On the way across the street from the saloon to the hotel, they were confronted by the angry loser from the card game. He charged up to them with his gun in his hand and waved it wildly at Duo.

“It's your fault, you bitch!” he shouted. “Because of you that low-down varmint got away with my loot!”

Duo stopped and put his hands on his hips. “I think you got that wrong, mister. The other players took your money when you left it on the table. You should have paid more attention.”

“But that Gree fellah was cheatin' and you were in on it!” the man cried.

“Now what makes you think that?” Duo replied calmly. “I lost to him same as you.”

“But, but…” the cowboy blinked in confusion. “But you won a bunch too! It was the two of you, workin' together!” Having convinced himself, the cowboy pointed his gun at Duo's face. “So you just hand over what you stole from me right now!”

Duo drew himself up with a glare. “I don't think so, buddy! Sore losers like you shouldn't gamble.”

“Why you…!”

“I suggest you drop your pistol,” Heero growled. He stepped next to Duo and faced the cowboy with a harsh glare.

“I'll just shoot the lot of you…!” the man began and Heero stepped forward and punched him in the face. The man staggered backward, his free hand clapped over his bloodied nose. “Sonuvabitch!”

Heero reached out, snatched the man's gun from his hand and clubbed him across the side of the head. “Keep it up and I may lose my temper,” he stated flatly.

The man staggered and fell to one knee, blood trickling down the side of his face and running out of his nose. “Dammit!” he choked out. “This ain't finished! You cheated! I demand satisfaction!”

“You demand satisfaction?” Treize immediately perked up, his eyes gleaming. “That sounds like a challenge. Are you challenging us to a duel?”

“That's right!” the man shouted. He stumbled to his feet. “Gimme back my gun! We're gonna do this proper, like men!” He snatched his gun out of Heero's hand and gestured up the street with it. “I'm goin' up there a ways. Whichever one of you dare's, step out in the road and we're gonna shoot this out like decent men!”

“This sounds like fun,” Zechs murmured. “Too bad there's only one of him.”

“I think this is a bad idea,” said Quatre.

“I'll take care of it,” Heero said.

“Don't kill him,” Trowa said quickly. “He's just misguided. You should just wing him.”

“He's irritating,” Heero growled.

“But the fact is Duo and Hieronymus were cheating,” Trowa pointed out quietly, “so it really wouldn't be fair to kill him for noticing.”

“Oh, all right!” Heero snapped. “I won't kill him. But I can't promise he won't be maimed.”

“Close enough.”

Heero stamped out into the road and turned to face the waiting cowboy. The others all stepped back up onto the sidewalk in front of the saloon to watch.

“This should be interesting,” Duo noted. “I'm not sure Heero knows how to not kill someone. He might hurt himself.”

“Don't be rude,” Wu-Fei murmured.

Cries of excitement broke out as the townsfolk became aware of the impending gunfight. Excited spectators burst out onto sidewalks and scrambled onto rooftops to get a good view.

“We'll draw on the count of three!” the cowboy yelled. “You ready?”

“I'm ready.”

“Good!” The cowboy positioned himself, his arms slightly akimbo and his right hand hovering near the butt of his pistol.

Heero stood casually with his hands hanging at his sides. “Someone else should count.”

“Fair enough,” the cowboy agreed.

“I'll count,” Zechs volunteered. He stepped forward. “One!”

The cowboy shifted his feet nervously. Heero didn't move.

“Two!”

The cowboy twitched his fingers and flexed his knees slightly. Heero didn't move.

“Three!”

The cowboy's hand flew to his gun and he snatched it free. In a blur of movement he raised it toward Heero, but he never got to fire because Heero, moving faster than the eye could follow, drew and fired in a single fluid motion. The cowboy's gun flew out of his hand and he cried out in pain.

“Wow!” someone shouted. “He shot the gun out of his hand!”

“No, he didn't,” Wu-Fei remarked. “There was no ricochet.”

“Very clever,” Treize said with a smile. “He shot him in the wrist as he was raising the gun. A ricochet might have injured a spectator.”

“I didn't think Heero was that thoughtful,” Quatre commented.

“Shut up!” Heero grumbled.

The cowboy clutched his wrist, howling in pain.

“That was a lucky shot!” someone called out. “You couldn't do that again in a thousand years!”

Heero frowned. “Are you saying I didn't hit what I was aiming at?”

“That's exactly what I'm saying!”

Heero shoved his gun back into his holster. “Then get out in the street and prove it.”

“What?!”

“You heard me,” Heero snapped. “Get your butt out there and prove that I didn't hit him exactly where I meant to.”

“Well… uh… I…”

“It's too late now, Clem!” another man shouted. He clapped the first man on the shoulder and shoved him unceremoniously off the sidewalk. “You're always talking about how good you are with a gun. Show us how good!”

Clem looked around unhappily as he stepped out into the road, egged on by the cheers of his comrades.

“I think Clem there should have kept his mouth shut,” Wu-Fei said. “Are you going to shoot him in the same place, Heero?”

“Of course.” Heero faced his new opponent with a scowl on his face.

Clem took his place in the street, checked the freedom of his gun in its holster, and then faced Heero nervously.

“Go ahead, Zechs.”

“Right. Everybody ready?”

“Yeah.”

“Uh-huh.”

“One! Two! Three!”

Clem managed to get his gun completely free of the holster before Heero shot him. He shouted in surprise and pain as his arm was struck just above the wrist.

Heero frowned. “I would've hit you in the exact same place if you had drawn faster. You're slower than that other guy.”

“What?!” Clem yelped as he clapped a hand over his wound.

“You're slow,” Heero repeated.

Clem's friends howled with laughter. “You dog, Clem! And all this time you've been letting on like you're a big shot gunslinger.”

“Shut up!” Clem shouted. He stumbled over to the sidewalk, still clutching his forearm. “If you think that's so funny, you get out there and try it!”

“I got nothin' to prove!”

“Well, I say you do!” Clem cried. He jumped up onto the sidewalk and used his shoulder to shove his friend into the street. “Or are you a dang coward?”

“I ain't no coward!”

The other men in the group began to laugh. “Clem's got ya now, Judd. Better just do it and show what kind of a man you are.”

“This is getting ridiculous,” Heero exclaimed. “How many more of these idiots am I going to have to deal with?”

“You started it with the fancy shooting,” Duo chuckled.

“Trowa said not to kill him! What was I supposed to do?”

“You could have shot him in the leg.”

“But then his gun would have gone off and some bystander might have been hit. Excuse me for being careful.”

“I think Heero must be mellowing in his old age,” Zechs said. “A year ago, he wouldn't even have noticed the bystanders.”

“That's not true!” Duo said. “Heero has always had a big heart. As big as his…”

“Shut it, Duo!” Heero stared down the street at Judd, his new opponent. “You've got skinny wrists.”

“That's not very nice!” Judd pulled his shirtsleeve down. “My wrists are plenty thick.”

“It's gonna be tough getting the bullet to go between the wrist bones. It might heal badly. Maybe I should shoot you in the shoulder instead,” Heero offered helpfully.

Judd stared.

“You shoot him just where you shot me!” Clem shouted. “I don't believe you can hit a man in the wrist three times in a row.”

“I thought you were my friend, Clem!”

“That was before you got me shot!” Clem nodded toward Zechs. “Go ahead, start counting!”

Zechs grinned. “One!”

Nervously, Judd hovered his hand over his pistol.

“Two! Three!”

Judd snatched out his pistol, but the outcome was inevitable. He yelped in pain as his wrist was plugged just like the others. He dropped his gun, clutching his bleeding wrist gingerly.

“I guess his wrist wasn't too skinny,” Duo said. “Can we stop now? I'm starving.”

“Yeah, I'm done.” Heero put his gun away. “Let's go have dinner. I'm hungry, too.”

They started across the street in the midst of excited comments and applause.

“Papa Heero, can you teach me to shoot like that?” Roku asked excitedly. He bounced up and down on his toes. “That was really cool!”

“Sure,” Heero began, but flinched under Quatre's stern glare. “But we'll do it in a safe and sane manner under careful adult supervision.”

“That let's Duo out,” Wu-Fei remarked.

“Hey! I'm a safe and sane adult!”

Wu-Fei snorted. “You miss on all three counts!”

“You're so mean.” Duo pouted.

Wu-Fei rolled his eyes and took Duo's hand. “Don't take it personally. You're still a nice guy… um, I mean, girl.”

Duo giggled. “I knew you still loved me!”

Wu-Fei sighed.

In the hotel dining room, they took over a long table and immediately ordered everything on the menu, which was beef stew, barley soup, roast chicken, corn on the cob and fresh bread.

“They don't have much variety,” Wu-Fei complained. “You'd think in a supposedly big town like this one, they would have more food options.”

“I told you it wasn't a big town,” Duo said around a mouthful of chicken.

“San Francisco should be much better,” Treize said. “I imagine they will have a number of restaurant options. They might even have a French restaurant,” he added wistfully.

“There should be some Asian restaurants, too,” Quatre pointed out. “A lot of Chinese and Japanese immigrants came though San Francisco.”

“That's true.”

“That just makes it worse,” Wu-Fei said mournfully. “I still have to get through this meal.”

“I think it's good, Uncle Wu-Fei,” Alexa chirped. “You can mash it up with your tongue.” She put a big spoonful of barley soup in her mouth.

Wu-Fei tentatively tried a spoonful of soup. “Hey! This isn't too bad.” He ate another spoonful and grinned at Alexa.

“This would be easier to eat without the spoon,” Roku mumbled.

“But you're wearing less of it so keep using the spoon,” Quatre replied.

Roku sighed. Then he pointed with his spoon at a group of women eating at a nearby table. “Those pretty ladies keep looking at us.”

Quatre glanced at them. “They appear to be `women of ill repute', as they were once called.”

“What does that mean?”

“They're prostitutes,” Duo said cheerfully. “Maybe there's a brothel in the hotel.”

“Good thing Duo's a girl right now,” Wu-Fei remarked.

“Hey! I'm never so hard up that I have to pay for it.”

“But, as Roku said, they do appear to be watching us,” Zechs noted. “I wonder why?”

“It has to be one of two things,” Trowa said with a chuckle. “Either they are so overwhelmed by our innate beauty that they are considering offering us freebies or they think we have money.”

At that moment, one of the young ladies at the neighboring table got up and walked over. “Excuse me, gentlemen,” she said with a friendly smile, “but my companions and I are wondering how long you're planning to stay in town.”

“Until the train to San Francisco departs, dear lady,” Treize replied graciously. Zechs frowned slightly.

“How nice! Perhaps you would care to spend some of your time visiting at Madame Bouvant's Tea Parlor, which is just next door. We all work there as hostesses.”

“A tea parlor?” Treize raised an eyebrow. “I would not have expected such a refined establishment in a frontier town like this.”

“Oh, sir!” the young woman tittered, “it's not really a tea parlor, although we do serve tea.”

“Indeed?” Treize favored her with a seductive smile. “I imagine you have cakes and other sweetmeats on the menu along with tea?”

Zechs' frown deepened as the young woman nodded vigorously. “I think you would find our offerings very much to your taste, sir,” she said. She turned her smile on the others. “We would love to entertain you. We don't often see so many attractive men all at once in these parts.”

“He's married!” Zechs snapped. He leaned toward Treize. “You don't want your wife to find out you've been getting entertained elsewhere do you? She might get quite upset with you.”

Treize blinked. “I would never violate the sanctity of my marriage vows,” he said quickly. “But tea and cakes would still be nice.”

“Oh, really? Well, I don't need dessert. If you'll excuse me, I'm going up to my room.” Zechs rose from the table and stalked away.

There were sighs of disappointment from the ladies' table at his departure, but the young woman speaking was still determined. She focused her attention on Hadeya. “How about you, sir? Would you care to join us for a little tea and entertainment?”

“Oh, I, uh…” Hadeya stammered. His cheeks flushed.

Duo, who was sitting next to Hadeya, flung an arm around the young man's shoulder. “My nephew is studying for the priesthood, Miss,” he chuckled. “He'll have to decline the entertainment, but it wouldn't hurt him to visit. He can tag along with this gentleman.” Duo grinned wickedly at Treize.

“Are you trying to get me in trouble?”

“Somebody has to supervise Hadeya.”

“Heero can do it,” Treize said.

“But then who would supervise Heero? You know how flustered he gets around women.”

“Hey!”

Duo snickered. “But maybe you should go too, Heero. That one girl looks a little bit like you-know-who. Maybe practicing with a look-alike will make it easier when she finally gets into your pants.”

Heero paled. “Don't say things like that!” He put a hand over his heart. “It gives me palpitations.”

“Anyway, Wu-Fei can keep me company, so I think the three of you should go.” Duo grinned at Quatre. “I know better than to suggest Trowa go.”

“Damn right.”

Trowa looked relieved.

“So it's settled!” the young woman said excitedly. “Come on over as soon as you're finished. We look forward to serving you,” she concluded with a suggestive leer. She hurried back to her companions and the group quickly left.

Duo winked at Treize. “Have fun, now. Make me proud.”

Treize hung his head. “You are determined to put me in the dog house with Zechs, aren't you?”

“It will just make him more possessive.”

“Assuming he doesn't kill me.”

“He would never do you any permanent harm. And scars are manly.”

Treize groaned.

“Off you go!” Duo said brightly. “We'll baby-sit the kids. I'll teach Alexa how to play five card stud.”

“Oh great! You send me to a brothel and then corrupt our child! Zechs will kill me!”

“Quit whining!” Heero snarled. “If I have to go, you have to go! Come on, Hadeya, let's get this over with.”

Hadeya blinked nervously. “Do I have to?”

“Yes!” Heero hauled the young man to his feet. “It'll be educational.”

“But what if they want me to...?”

“You're a demigod, for crying out loud!” Heero whispered fiercely. “It's not like they can push you down and violate you.”

“Although that can be fun when you're in the mood,” Duo pointed out.

“You didn't say that when the blind duke's daughters were having their way with you,” Quatre chuckled.

“That was different!”

“Oh?”

“Yes!”

“I see.”

“Hmph!” Duo humphed. “Come on, kids. Let's go play cards.”

“Ok!”

“Goody!”

Roku and Alexa grabbed Duo by either hand and escorted him from the dining room.

“Come on, Treize,” Heero grumped. “Let's go.”

“Can't we just skip it and tell Duo we went?”

“I think it would be better if you went,” Trowa advised. “It will look suspicious if you don't go. We don't want to draw too much attention while we're here.”

“I think we're already past that point,” Quatre said dryly.

“Nevertheless…”

“Fine!” Treize snapped. “We'll go! But if this comes up tomorrow, you guys are going or Zechs won't speak to me until we get back to Mars.”

Trowa, Quatre and Wu-Fei watched him trail morosely after Heero and Hadeya.

“He's just being silly,” Wu-Fei said. “Zechs forgives him every time.”

“Yes, but he has to earn that forgiveness with a lot of kissing and fondling,” Quatre said.

“Zechs is no fool,” Trowa chuckled. “He has Treize exactly where he wants him.”

“Yeah,” Quatre snickered, “right between his legs.”