Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Gundam Wing in the Wild Wild West ❯ Back Among the White Men ( Chapter 9 )

Chapter 9: Back Among the White Men

“How can Duo still be eating?” Zechs groaned. “If it wasn't for all the sex we had earlier, I swear I would have gained about ten pounds by now.”

“It's part of their fertility mythology,” Trowa reported. “Just accept a few bites from each woman; you don't have to eat everything you're offered.”

“Now he tells me!”

Trowa turned to Speaks-with-the-Wind. “Honored elder, my friends and I thank you for your hospitality, but it will be time for us to move on in the morning. The spirits tell me,” he winked at Quatre, “that there is a white man's settlement not too far in that direction.” He pointed toward the west.

“That is true,” said Speaks-with-the-Wind. “We don't hunt in that direction anymore because the white men think we eat their cattle.” He grinned. “Mind you, the meat's tasty enough when you can't get buffalo.”

“I dare say.”

“But we will be sorry to see you go. Our women have not been this eager for the blankets since they were maidens.”

“Always glad to be of service. Would it be possible to get a ride part way?”

“Of course. Indeed, even Falls-From-Horse may be glad to assist. His pony has been most well-mannered since you spoke to it. But he will undoubtedly still be glad to rid the village of strangers,” Speaks-with-the-Wind added with a sigh.

“We don't hold it against him.”

Hadeya stood up with a sleeping Alexa draped across his arms. “I am going to take Alexa to bed.”

Zechs scrambled to his feet. “I'll go with you!”

Treize stood up more slowly. “I will accompany you as well.” He put a hand over his mouth as if stifling a yawn. “I am also somewhat fatigued.” He put his arm around Zechs' waist and they followed Hadeya cradling Alexa against his chest.

“We should probably all retire,” Quatre said. “I think we should try to make an early start.”

“As you wish,” Speaks-with-the-Wind said. “But allow us to send you off with a final dance.” He climbed stiffly to his feet and clapped his hands. “My people!” he cried, “let us dance the Dance of Fire and Frost in honor of our guests!”

“Fire and Frost! Fire and Frost!” everyone began chanting. Men and women both bounded to their feet and swirled into a double circle; women on the inside and men on the outside. They began to sway and stamp, weaving an intricate pattern of steps where the circles crossed, merged and reformed, accompanied by chanting, clapping and drumming.

“This dance represents the flow of the seasons,” Speaks-with-the-Wind told them. “It reaffirms our place in the universe.”

The dance was exciting, beautiful and really, really long. Even Duo was gaping a yawn by the time the dancers stamped to a rousing finish. Roku was sound asleep, sprawled across Quatre's lap.

“Good lord!” Quatre groaned. “My legs are asleep. Roku must weigh one hundred kilos!”

“And he's only part-grown,” Trowa said affectionately. “I'll help you pick him up.”

“Pick him up?!” Quatre stared. “I just want to get out from underneath him.”

“You aren't just going to leave him there?”

“He's a tiger! What's going to bother him?” Quatre picked up a paw. “Have you seen these claws?”

“I suppose you have a point.”

“Damn right I do. Now help me get him off my legs. You can carry me to the lodge. I don't think I can walk at this point.”

Trowa helped Quatre roll Roku off of his legs and then he scooped the blond pilot up in his arms with a chuckle. “I guess Roku does outweigh you by about forty kilos now when he's in his tiger form.”

Quatre flushed. “He does not! I weigh way more than sixty kilos!”

“Of course you do,” Trowa said in a completely patronizing voice.

“Shut up!”

Trowa continued to chuckle as he carried Quatre into the lodge. Everyone but Roku followed them in and soon they were all settled down for the night.

In the morning, they were awakened by the sound of children squealing with delight and laughing hysterically.

Zechs sat up and looked around. “Where's Alexa?” He crawled to the tent flap and went out.

The others followed him and emerged into a scene of pandemonium. Roku, in best mock attack form, was charging at various children and leaping onto them. Once he had some hapless youngster pinned down, he slobbered all over his victim with his rough tongue. The suddenly soggy child squealed, giggled and struggled to keep some portion of his or her face dry, generally with no success. Once Roku had reduced a child to sopping laughter, he would pursue and pounce on another.

Alexa ran up to Zechs giggling. “Roku got me!”

“I can see that,” Zechs replied with dismay. “How many times must I mention that tiger spit is neither face cream nor hair conditioner?”

Alexa giggled some more as she used the front of her dress to wipe her face and hair.

“Alexa, dear,” Treize said, “try to show a little modesty. Not everyone needs to see your panties.”

“Oops!”

“Good morning, friends!” Runs-like-the-Wind greeted them cheerfully and not at all like a man who had been dancing half the night. “I have two dozen men who will be happy to carry you on their ponies today. As soon as we eat, we can go.”

“Thank you, Runs-like-the-Wind,” Trowa said. “Your hospitality has been most appreciated.”

Everyone in the village crowded around to wish the visitors farewell and to offer them gifts. They received jewelry made from beaten silver and set with brightly colors stones, woven head and arm bands dressed with painted clay beads and dyed feathers, and other small items. In return, Roku dug into his storage space and produced wooden blocks and cloth dolls for the children. He also gave Runs-like-the-Wind a knife and a Meerschaum pipe to Speaks-with-the-Wind.

Heero frowned. “I understand the blocks and dolls, and the knife makes perfect sense. I have a few of those tucked away myself. But where the hell did he get that pipe?”

“I don't want to know,” said Quatre.

But then, with all the goodbyes said and the gifts exchanged, the Gundam pilots, Alexa and Hadeya mounted up behind various natives and the party set out. Roku elected to walk and Quatre watched him suspiciously as the young tiger ranged to either side of their path.

“I just know he's stuffing all manner of things into his storage space.”

“He's got room,” Duo said absently. He shifted uncomfortably. “I feel really fat.”

“A woman in full flower is a beautiful thing,” said the native who was transporting Duo in front of him. “You could still choose one of us as a husband,” he added hopefully.

“No thanks.” Duo pushed on his side. His little passenger pushed back. “She's bruising me on purpose!”

“Quit mashing on her,” Wu-Fei advised.

“I just want her to extract her foot from my liver!”

“Just deal with it. She'll be out of there soon enough.”

They rode until just past midday and then Runs-like-the-Wind called a halt. “This is as far as we can take you,” he said. “If we get too close, the white men get all worked up.”

“This is good,” Quatre said and they dismounted. “The town is just a few hours walk from here.”

“I can smell the town,” Roku announced. “There's smoke and stuff.”

With whoops and waves, the natives galloped off and the Gundam pilots set out for town. Alexa rode on Treize's shoulders and Roku led the way. They trudged through the scrub brush at a steady pace and two hours later came across a rutted dirt track. Since it was heading in the direction they were going, they followed it and after another half-hour, the town loomed up ahead of them.

“At last!” Duo exclaimed. “My feet are killing me.”

“You better change back into a human, Roku.”

“Yes, Mama.”

The town was a little smaller than Riverton, but it also had a train station.

“Would you look at that!” Zechs pointed excitedly. “The train's still here. They should have left here the day after they stranded us.” They hurried to the train station. As they climbed the narrow steps up onto the platform, a woman's voice called out.

“Look! It's the missing passengers!”

Several people hurried to meet them, among them Hieronymus Gree.

“My dear friends!” Hieronymus greeted them with a delighted smile. “I am so glad to see you're not dead!”

“Why is the train still here?” asked Treize.

Hieronymus winked at them. “As it happens, the man who owns this railroad is an old gambling buddy of mine. I telegraphed him about your unfortunate abandonment when we arrived and he replied that the train had to wait for paying passengers or else. He's not a man to cross lightly, so the engineer refused to leave until your fate had been determined. Riders were sent out to look for you since there are bandits and Indians in the area and there was a good chance you were already dead.”

“How thoughtful!” Heero drawled sarcastically.

“But now that you're here, we can resume our journey.”

At that, a boy in a telegraph operator's vest and hat dashed off the platform, shouting that the train was leaving. A moment later, the engineer let out a long blast on his steam whistle. People began appearing from all directions, hurrying toward the train with luggage in hand.

“The engineer must not have been planning to wait all that long if he kept the steam up,” Wu-Fei noted.

“You'll be glad to know,” Hieronymus said brightly, “that you've been offered the hospitality of the private car for the remainder of the trip to compensate you for your trouble.”

“Doesn't that Mr. Jefferson own the private car?” Duo asked. “He's the one who stranded us in the first place. Why should he offer us the use of his car now?”

“Well,” Hieronymus chuckled, “it seems Mr. Jefferson has political aspirations and he can't afford to lose the support of the railroad barons. And wealthy men hate nothing more than a sore loser who tries to renege on a gambling debt.”

“It seems we were fortunate to have you on board the train, Mr. Gree,” Treize said. He inclined his head. “We are indebted to you for getting the train held for us.”

“All aboard!” the conductor shouted. “All aboard for San Francisco!”

Passengers crowded onto the train and Duo lead the way to the private car at the end of the train. A broad-shouldered man with a broken nose and a scowl on his face was waiting for them on the little platform outside the door.

“I believe we're expected,” Duo told him airily.

The man's scowl deepened but he pushed the door open and led the way into the car. They all crowded inside after him and found a beautifully appointed interior that seemed more like a comfortable hotel room than a train car. The front half of the car was a lounge, with overstuffed leather couches and chairs, oil lamps hanging from the walls and a large round card table with six straight-backed chairs with padded seats. The rear of the car contained four sleeping compartments; two on each side stacked one above the other.

There were five men seated in the car. Four, including Mr. Jefferson, looked like gentlemen of means. The fifth man, like the one who had led them into the car, was obviously a bodyguard. One of the gentlemen, however, was the first to speak.

“Honestly, Jefferson!” the man exclaimed. “This won't do at all! I shan't be able to sleep properly with all these people in the car.”

Jefferson stroked his goatee. “Well now, Simpson, you've brought up a valid point. With only four beds, we can hardly accommodate so many guests comfortably. I think you and the others will have to leave.”

“What?!” Simpson's mouth fell open.

“You are only here at my invitation,” Jefferson continued smoothly. “That invitation is now rescinded. My new friends,” and he beamed at the Gundam pilots, “will be traveling with me for the remainder of the journey.”

“I… I…” Simpson's face went bright red as his mouth worked in consternation. “This is outrageous!” He shoved his way toward the door and flung it open. “This insult will not be forgotten, Jefferson!” he shouted. He stormed out, leaving the door open.

The other two men rose with resigned expressions. One man inclined his head to Jefferson and the other shrugged his shoulders. They also left the car and the broken-nosed bodyguard closed it behind them.

“The accommodations will be a bit cramped, I'm afraid,” Jefferson said. “But I'm sure we'll manage.” He stood up and bowed to Duo. “Of course, I am happy to offer my own bed to this lovely lady.”

“Damn right you will!” Duo snapped. He plopped down on a couch and pulled off his boots. “I have blisters, thanks to you.” He stuck out a foot. “I think you should wash my feet.”

Jefferson's eyes opened wide. “What? I… uh…”

“That sounds fair to me,” Heero growled. He glared at Jefferson. The two bodyguards edged forward and Heero shifted his angry stare to them. “I don't think we need them,” he snarled. “With us in the car, everybody's safe as houses.” He took a step toward the nearer guard. “Why don't you get out? It's crowded enough in here as it is.”

The two guards threw questioning looks at Jefferson. Jefferson just shrugged his shoulders and smirked. “Why don't you find seats in the next car?” he suggested. “I'll call you if I need anything.”

The guards didn't look happy, but they vacated the car promptly.

Treize sank into a chair with a smile. “This is nice. I find this much more comfortable than the public car.”

“Me too, Daddy.” Alexa climbed into his lap.

Zechs sat down on the arm of Treize's chair. “Don't you have a cook, Mr. Jefferson?”

“I do, but he doesn't stay in the car with me. He uses the dining car at the front of the train to prepare my meals.”

Zechs stroked his fingers through his long hair and fixed Jefferson with his deep blue gaze. “Then perhaps you should go find him and tell him you need a basin of warm water with a little witch hazel in it, so you can attend to Miss Maxwell's feet.”

“You don't really expect me to…” Jefferson trailed into silence when he found ten pairs of eyes regarding him with expressions ranging from expectant to potentially dangerous. “If you'll excuse me…” he managed in a sickly voice and hurried out of the car.

There was an explosion of laughter as soon as he was gone.

“I think I'm going to enjoy the rest of this trip,” Zechs chuckled.

Wu-Fei wandered into the rear of the car to examine the sleeping compartments. “It's a little tight, but I think we can manage two to a bed.”

Heero sat down next to Duo. “I'll sleep on the couch so I can keep an eye on our host.”

“I can sleep on the other couch,” Hadeya immediately volunteered.

“That works,” Quatre said. “The rest of us can double up in the beds. Jefferson can sleep on the floor,” he snickered.

“I think he's going to regret having offered us his hospitality,” Trowa murmured.

“It's his own damn fault,” Duo declared. “If he hadn't run off and left us, we would be sitting in the public car and he would be relaxing in private.”

There was a loud clank and the car jerked forward.

“It's about time!” Heero grumbled.

“I guess he had enough steam for the whistle but not to drive the wheels,” Wu-Fei remarked.

“Yippee! We're moving!” Alexa hopped out of Treize's lap and raced to the window. Roku stuck his head out the neighboring window and they waved furiously to the town's people as the train pulled out of the station.

“I wonder how long it will be before we reach the mountains,” Zechs said.

“I don't know, but Jefferson owes me dinner as well as a foot bath!” Duo complained.

At that moment, Jefferson returned leading a dark-skinned man carrying a pitcher with a basin tucked under his arm. “Set it beside the lady, George” Jefferson said, pointing at Duo. The black man set the basin at Duo's feet and filled it with warm, scented water from the pitcher.

“I put a little bit of lavender oil in with the witch hazel,” George said. He had very dark eyes that sparkled when he talked. “It should soothe your feet real good.”

“Thank you!” Duo favored George with a brilliant smile. “Are you the cook?”

“Yes, ma'am.”

“Please go make us some dinner. Mr. Jefferson can wash my feet.” Duo blinked sweetly at Jefferson.

“Now, see here…!” Jefferson began.

Heero growled at him. “Just do what the lady says! Or do you need help getting started?” He rose threateningly and Jefferson paled.

“No!” Quickly, he snatched up a piece of cloth that was draped over George's arm. “Go prepare our meal!” he ordered, his voice wavering between angry and alarmed. He settled stiffly onto his knees at Duo's feet and lifted Duo's left foot into the basin.

“Ahh!” Duo sighed. “That's nice. Put the other one in too.”

Jefferson had a comically offended but worried look on his face as he lifted Duo's right foot and settled it into the basin.

Behind him, George was grinning widely. “I'll just be about getting your dinner, then, Mr. Jefferson, sir.” He left the car, closing the door carefully behind him.

Duo settled back with a sigh. “Take your time, Jefferson. After dinner, maybe I'll give you a chance to win some of your money back.”

Heero sat back down with a frown. “You don't need to do any more gambling.”

“I don't gamble because I need to, Heero,” Duo said lightly. “I gamble because I like to. It's like you and killing; it's how I let off steam and relax.”

Jefferson's back stiffened and his expression became even more alarmed.

“You're frightening Mr. Jefferson, Duo,” Zechs said casually. “You shouldn't mention Heero's pastimes.”

“You talk like I spend all my time killing people,” Heero said. “I haven't killed anyone for days.”

“That's true, since you didn't kill any of the bandits during the train robbery,” Duo acknowledged. “By the way, how come you didn't hit anybody? They weren't very far away.”

Heero frowned. “I hit a couple of them. I just didn't have a good angle for kill shots. I would have gotten them when they were riding away, but the train leaving distracted me.”

“Heero let something distract him from killing an enemy?” Zechs exclaimed in mock horror. “That must be a first.”

“Oh shut up!” Heero growled.

“Hey, look what I found!” Wu-Fei, who had continued to explore the train car, straightened up holding a violin case. “Do you play the violin, Mr. Jefferson?”

“Um… no, I don't. That violin is a collector's item. I'm planning to sell it in San Francisco.”

“A collector's item?” Quatre's eyes lit up. He took the case from Wu-Fei and opened it. Inside was a beautifully crafted violin, it's darkly polished wood and perfectly fitted inlays gleaming like water. “How lovely!” Quatre lifted the violin from case.

“Please be careful with that!” Jefferson exclaimed.

“Keep washing!” Duo snapped.

“Oh!” Jefferson resumed washing Duo's feet with the cloth, but his eyes were pinned on Quatre and the violin.

Quatre strummed the strings carefully, producing a rich mellow sound that filled the car.

“That's really beautiful,” Treize said. “Can you play it?”

“Of course.” Quatre took the bow from the case and settled the violin onto his shoulder. He thought for a moment and then began to play. The music filled the car and everyone settled down to listen. Alexa climbed back into Treize's lap and Roku sat on the floor at Quatre's feet. Jefferson's hands went still, but Duo didn't notice. Everyone was enraptured by the incredible sound coming from the violin. When he finished, they applauded loudly.

Trowa sighed with a dreamy look on his face. “I just love it when he plays. It makes me want to…” He stopped in mid-sentence and blinked. “I mean, I just love how talented he is.”

“Good save,” Duo muttered. He splashed his foot. “Back to work, you. You can dry them off now.”

“Oh, uh…” Jefferson looked around, obviously flustered because he didn't have anything to dry Duo's feet with.

“Use this,” Roku said and he tossed a thick blue towel at him.

Jefferson stared at the towel. “Where did this come from?”

“My storage sp…” Roku started to say, but Quatre overrode him in a loud voice.

“I had it. Now finish up. When will your man have dinner ready? We're hungry.” Carefully, Quatre returned the violin to its case.

“It should be soon,” Jefferson replied.

“Good!” Duo exclaimed. “Because now I'm really hungry.” He leaned over to stare into Jefferson's face with a sweet smile. “Why don't you go help him? My husband will come with you to make sure you don't get lost.”

Jefferson paled as Heero rose to his feet. “Come on!” Heero said grumpily. He grabbed Jefferson by a shoulder and jerked him to his feet. “Let's go!” He shoved Jefferson toward the door. “Hadeya, come with us. We may need an extra pair of hands.”

“Yes, Father.” Hadeya followed Heero and Jefferson out of the car.

Duo picked up the basin and dumped the water out a window. Then he returned to the couch and stretched out on it with a contented sigh. “Now this is more like it! Traveling in style.”

“It's certainly better than what usually ends up happening,” Zechs agreed. He moved to a plump chair with a footstool and put his feet up.

“I wonder if it will be cold in the mountains.” Wu-Fei speculated.

“It shouldn't be too bad if we keep the windows closed,” Treize said. “There's an iron stove in the corner.”

“But how can we look out if the windows are closed, Daddy?”

“I'm sure we'll manage.”