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May. 22nd, 2023 at 8:56 PM
[So this is how he gets away with it, then. Cruz, a skeleton, with a skeleton horse, lives in a skeleton of a house with a skeletal barn attached - and he remains unseen, his home apparently abandoned, all the way on the outskirts of this thing that's barely a town.
Well, you do what you gotta do, and Johnnie won't turn down a kind offer of a safe place to stay the night. He can't help but grin at Chrissy having such a good time riding that bony horse as he pulls the bike in through the barn door and parks it to the side, then hops off.]
Hey man, we owe ya for this. Here.
[See, this is yet another reason it's good to stock up on alcohol. He finds their most recent stolen bottle of tequila and pulls it out as he saunters over to their host and offers it in an outstretched hand.]
On us. Uh, if you drink, that is. You do drink, right?
[Normally that would be a dumb question to ask but the guy appears to be actual bones. But, bones that can smoke, without lungs, so he can probably drink without a mouth, right?
That earns a laugh from Cruz.]
I sure do, fella. You don't have to, though. I'm not looking for any kind of repayment, just helping out a couple folks in need.
[Johnnie shakes his head and waves that attempt off.]
Nah, it's all yours. Or if you really insist, we can all split it tomorrow, the three of us an' the rest of your crew. Can't wait to meet 'em. They all skeletons too?
Well, you do what you gotta do, and Johnnie won't turn down a kind offer of a safe place to stay the night. He can't help but grin at Chrissy having such a good time riding that bony horse as he pulls the bike in through the barn door and parks it to the side, then hops off.]
Hey man, we owe ya for this. Here.
[See, this is yet another reason it's good to stock up on alcohol. He finds their most recent stolen bottle of tequila and pulls it out as he saunters over to their host and offers it in an outstretched hand.]
On us. Uh, if you drink, that is. You do drink, right?
[Normally that would be a dumb question to ask but the guy appears to be actual bones. But, bones that can smoke, without lungs, so he can probably drink without a mouth, right?
That earns a laugh from Cruz.]
I sure do, fella. You don't have to, though. I'm not looking for any kind of repayment, just helping out a couple folks in need.
[Johnnie shakes his head and waves that attempt off.]
Nah, it's all yours. Or if you really insist, we can all split it tomorrow, the three of us an' the rest of your crew. Can't wait to meet 'em. They all skeletons too?
Comments
[That might be tricky. Can you ride a horse you can't see? Probably not. All the stories he used to hear about ghosts made it seem like they could go right through you.
Another few floorboards get whacked into place, meanwhile.]
Don't think this thing's meant to go fast anyway, walking oughta be all right if it means gettin' outta that shitty situation. I'd do it.
[Well, he'd do a lot of other things too, like slit some throats and set fires, but hypothetically, he'd walk.]
She holds up a hand and passes the hammer over to him, and takes a leap out of the wagon. As soon as she lands, she takes off at a jog to go back outside. Sure enough, the fields are being worked. And yeah, there's a lot more than eight people out there. She knows Johnnie's said other people can walk, but she only hopes that they can work together to buy these people enough time to get away.
Her hand is held up over her eyes as she tries counting how many people there are, and it's then that she spots a woman and two children staring across the expanse over toward her. She waves both arms up high and the children wave back. Gasping, she calls out for Johnnie.]
I think they can see us! Should we try going to talk to them? Or is too dangerous right now?
[Maybe they should wait until after they know how they're going to start the fire, so the people there can help them with pulling it off.]
Now's good while there's only one guard an' he's way over there, but I dunno the patrol. Lemme go see if I can get a closer look, maybe keep him occupied if I have to, while you sneak in there an' see about talkin' to those people. That work for you?
[Now, that means they can't agree on a plan together while talking it through. But by now Chrissy has a good head for how to tackle burning shit, he trusts her to come up with details if she has to. He has to keep her safe.]
Okay. I should be able to do that.
[Her knife isn't on her, but he likely has his gun and a knife. If it comes down to it, he'll be able to keep them both safe. She's small and fast, and good at being quiet. With how tall the crops are in the fields, she should be able to stay hidden well enough.]
Be careful. [She warns, voice soft as she pulls him in for a quick kiss. There's not any fear about doing this, but she's still cautious as they make their way in closer toward that farm. They separate about halfway there, and she waits for him to make his way in closer to look for the guard before she starts to sneak in.
She makes her way toward a group of women first, and puts her finger to her mouth to signal to be quiet as she stays low.]
Tonight, there's going to be a fire. A really big one. Run toward that old house out there and -
[One of the women gives her a look of terror.]
That haunted one? No m'am, ain't gonna be -
[Chrissy fixes her with a desperate look and reaches out to gently touch at her arm.]
Listen to me, okay? I need you to tell as many people as you can, so everyone knows. When the fire starts, run to that house. A wagon will be there, and you'll be able to get somewhere safe. Somewhere free.
[She doesn't wait to hear if the women will help. She just moves further into the crops and finds a few other groups to gather and talk to. But it's as she's speaking to the fourth that she hears the sound of someone approaching on horseback. She ducks down low as she can as the horse stops right nearby. Johnnie's not there as far as she knows, and she isn't sure what to do if she's spotted.]
All the warnings the guys had given him keep echoing in his head, which is some bullshit. Mostly Cruz was worried about him being seen with Chrissy, but the root of the matter is that these fuckers will take one look at him and think some really shitty things no matter what. But if that's the case, why do anything but be shitty right back? If they're expecting trouble, he'll give 'em trouble, he's not here to win friends. If they see a brown kid creeping around in the bushes, fuck it, whatever. Better than them finding Chrissy talking to the people they're keeping captive.
One of those shrubs is actually dense enough for him to sit behind and watch for a while. The guard nearest him has a pretty simple patrol, north and south along the field border. There's another he can see now too, making his way down a farm road in the middle of the fields. Sort of where he'd thought Chrissy was headed, but he can't see her from here to be sure. Hopefully she's well hidden.
Or maybe he can get the attention of a few of those assholes at once, keep them from going any farther that way. He's tempted to shoot at a tree just to make a noise, but they'll probably find him too easily. Instead, he looks around and finds himself a forked stick, grabs a hefty rock, loads it onto the fork and uses it as an extension of his arm to throw that rock hard at the nearest dude on horseback, then lays flat and watches.
The rock misses, but it hits the horse instead. Startled, it pins its ears back and crashes forward into the fields, scattering a couple of people in its way while the rider struggles to regain control of it. That ought to get people looking that way - maybe slow down some of the other patrols, as they first figure out what the fuck happened over on this side.]
You there! Stop!
[And like an idiot, she skids to a stop and glances back at her. The man on the horse points at her, spotting her. And as her heart starts to race and her fear takes over, the look on his face contorts into something...afraid. Like he's looking right through her.
Unsure if that means she can't be seen any longer, she takes off at a run. She must be flickering in and out of visibility, because that man on horseback ignores the way his horse is protesting, and raises his gun to take aim at her. The first shot hits the ground near her, and she shrieks. The sound must spook him enough to fire a second shot shortly after. This one clips her heels and she just keeps going.
By this point, the slaves have gathered at the edge of the fields to watch what's going on, and Cruz and his gang are out at right past the fire to see what all the commotion is. As Chrissy runs as fast as she can toward them, Cruz grabs her by the back of her shirt to stop her from crashing into them.
And as her eyes glance up toward him, he doesn't look very happy. In fact, he looks like he's capable of spitting fire at her any given second. She cowers, much like she did when faced with her mother's temper, and finds she can't really say anything at all. She doesn't the entire time he drags her back into the barn, either.]
You stay here until he gets back. No more big ideas, you hear? Stay put, if you know what's good for you, girl.
[The barn door definitely slams as he leaves, and she hears a lock click into place. And as she feels her eyes fill with tears, she can't help but think they're definitely in trouble. She climbs into the wagon to wait for Cruz to bring Johnnie back, and tries to figure out a defense for why they thought it was a good idea to just run off and cause trouble like that.]
The trees come to an end, leaving just open land for him to walk across, but with nobody following him he'll just walk and pretend he wasn't part of any of that. It's Chrissy he's worried about though, and he doesn't see her right away. Instead he sees Cruz, heading right for him with some serious stomp to his pace.]
Hey, did you see - ow, what the fuck?
[Cruz grabs him by the back of the jacket like a mother cat with a kitten in her mouth, and drags him a few short feet before Johnnie manages to wriggle free of his jacket and spins on his heel to face his apparent attacker, knife in his hand.]
What the fuck got into you, man?
[Cruz almost drops the jacket, but then thinks better of it and holds onto it as he backs toward the barn.]
You two are seriously going to put this whole plan in jeopardy before it even gets off the ground. Miss Cunningham is fine, no thanks to you.
Let me out! Cruz? Do you hear me? I know Johnnie's back, let me out!
[Cruz doesn't turn his back on Johnnie though, not when he's getting worked up. Chrissy's left struggling with the doors, up until Cruz has had about enough of the both of them and goes over to unlatch the lock. The next slam of the door sends Chrissy toppling out on her face, where she's silenced by eating dirt.
All eyes stay on Johnnie though, and Cruz tosses his jacket back at him to try and keep the peace.]
This won't happen if you two go off by yourselves like that again. Got it?
[All right, all good will, gone. No way is he gonna trust some dickhead who locks Chrissy in a barn, that's fucked up. If there weren't seven dudes all standing around he'd show Cruz exactly how he feels about that.
Instead, he gets a dark look before he folds his knife and tucks it away, then kneels down to help Chrissy up and wipe a smudge of dirt off her face.]
Hey babe, you okay? What happened? I couldn't tell where you got to when I saw those guys lookin' around, I just heard shots.
[There's a lot of tension out here right now, and it makes her very uneasy. She had really wanted Cruz to like her, but it feels like she's ruined that by being impulsive and reckless. Still, she tries to smile a little for Johnnie's sake, because she doesn't want him to be mad.]
It was me they were shooting at. But I kept running.
[Cruz glances down at them before going back into the barn. She thinks things are just going to be left there, but he comes right back out a second later, pointing a bony finger at her.]
We told you how dangerous a place like this is for her. And you still let her go off and put herself in a situation she doesn't even fully understand. Do you know what could've happened to the both of you? What would've happened to her if she had been caught? I locked her in there for her own damn safety, boy.
[Chrissy glances up at Johnnie, frowning. She's pretty sure her lower lip is a little busted, because she tastes blood along with dirt. But it's nothing that bothers her too much, though her fingers do touch at her new belly button piercing. That's starting to throb, and she probably just got it really dirty and gross.]
I guess...I was only thinking about helping those people. Not about what would happen to me.
[He stands and grabs his jacket from where it was dropped earlier, and throws it back on.]
And she's not an idiot, and don't you dare fucking talk like that again, asshole.
[It's a culture thing, he knows that, but it's stupid and wrong to think Chrissy or any other girl isn't perfectly capable of making decisions and taking action. She's not his pet, she's not a kid, she's right here and she just got locked in some fucker's barn as some kind of shitty punishment for misbehavior and that is fucked up.
With a flick of his wrist, his knife is back in his hand, blade open again.]
C'mon. You and me, one on one. Right now. You don't go locking my girl up for any fucked up reason an' think you can get away with it.
Oh.
This is really bad. Chrissy feels something tugging her in two directions. One is definitely her heart fluttering because he's standing up for her and is being protective and that's really attractive to her. But the other is upset, because she doesn't want to fight with Cruz. And she isn't sure Johnnie would win in a knife fight, because Cruz is a skeleton.
The swooning wins out, and she feels like he's probably able to feel her heart eyes that she's making as she watches this dangerous situation unfold. She's blind to everything and everyone else but Johnnie, even as the other men circle around in an attempt to be a part of the action. No one seems to really want to, since they like both Johnnie and Chrissy. But they also clearly aren't going to back down from helping one of their own, either.]
You think a knife is going to hurt me?
[Cruz is definitely giving Johnnie one of those skeptical looks, and it breaks through Chrissy's swooning in a way that makes her angry.]
You know what? You...you...stupid skeleton! Let him defend my honor, all right? It's really sweet and romantic, and he can stab you if he wants to!
[Who's that picking up a nearby rock to throw at Cruz? Yeah, that's Chrissy. And the second it hits him in the chest, he stares down at the rock in disbelief.]
Chrissy's interjection makes him smile a little, but he holds a hand up - toward her, but also the fucking rest of them who apparently have zero honor.]
This is between me an' him, okay? If I see any of you skeleton boys try to get a dirty hit in, this is gonna get a lot worse.
[Johnnie is standing coiled like a spring, ready to strike, while Cruz is still slightly stunned this is even happening. He holds one hand up to his friends, but one to Johnnie.]
I knew you were trouble, Redmayne. But you're not stupid. We can talk this out, come up with a plan that leaves us all happy and then you and Miss Chrissy here can go on your way. Nobody has to get hurt before we've even begun.
Her hands anxiously knot together, and she watches Johnnie look like he's going to lash out at any second. She still isn't sure if a knife is the best tool to be using here, but she knows Johnnie is fast and strong, and that he's vicious when he has a cause to be fighting for.]
I told those people we'd make a fire and they could come here, and we'd help them escape. We have to figure out a way to be able to work together long enough to do that.
[A big, warm breeze blows over the area then, making dirt kick up in the air. Chrissy shields her eyes from the dust before tipping her head to glance up at the sky. What was once a bright and sunny day is starting to get cloudy. A storm must be planning on rolling in at some point. Maybe some rain would help diffuse the tension that's built.]
I apologize for locking up your girl. Miss Chrissy, it won't happen again.
[Cruz tries one last time to diffuse Johnnie's anger, before he has to resort to a fight.]
You heard her yourself. Those people are counting on us.
[Probably. Obviously there's a lot of spontaneity to it. Anyway, it sounds to him like Cruz is pleading to get let off, and while the apology doesn't exactly ring sincere or complete to his ears, there's no joy in beating a guy who doesn't even want to be there. He takes a breath, smells the oncoming rain on the breeze, then shakes his head and folds the blade of his knife back into the grip with a snap, then walks right up to Cruz and stares him in the eye. Which... means he has to look up, but, whatever.]
You play at cop one more time an' that's it, you hear me? If you got a problem with us, fine, but we deal with it like decent people, not fucking pigs.
[He shakes his head as he turns and pushes his way past the ring of cowboys, back toward the barn. They have a wagon to fix.]
She doesn't speak right away, and instead gets back to work. It's while they're finishing up securing some boards that she reaches over to touch at his hand, trying to get him to pause for a second. They're both crouched in the wagon, huddled close together. The others still haven't come back yet. It's the perfect moment to try and talk.]
Thank you. [She whispers, leaning in closer to him.] For defending me back there. It was really brave. [Leaning in a little more, her nose brushes against his, and her lips hover in close to his without making contact right away.]
I love how protective you are. I always feel safe with you, you know? [It's important to her that he hears that and knows that, before the others come back and interrupt the moment. She kisses him then, something soft and tender and not meant to do anything more than reassure him that she values what he does for her.]
Te quiero. [Her hand cups his cheek, and she kisses him one more time.] Siempre. [She's picked that up somewhere, maybe from hearing him. She's pretty sure that means always. If not, hopefully he gets the sentiment behind it.]
But he pauses for Chrissy, and lets out a sigh as he slumps against her a little, like she's the one who can finally drain all that anger out of him with just a few words and gestures.]
Love you too.
[He lets his forehead touch hers, then reaches an arm around her and holds her close.]
I saw you run, an' I heard gunshots. I'm real glad you're okay. Dunno why Cruz flipped his lid but I guess he's used to doin' things his way. Once we get that farm dealt with tonight, we're outta here. I don't wanna hang around these people.
[They're all right, really, he doesn't hate any of them even if he's mad at Cruz for how he reacted to the whole thing. But clearly they rub each other the wrong way if they do anything more than hang out and chat, and he and Chrissy have places to be. More than ever, he wants to be back with his people, where they all fit together just fine.]
Everything's already packed. Before we head out tonight, we can load everything up on the bike and store it in here. As soon as we're back, we can head out. It smelled like rain out there though, so I bet all these dirt roads will be mud.
[She says it with a laugh and a groan, because they'll wind up filthy and covered head to toe in mud again. Oh well, it's just a reason for them to get to shower together whenever they settle somewhere else. Which gives her plenty to look forward to, and soon enough she's smiling again.
Her hands move to rub circles against his back, and she kisses him one more time before leaning back enough that he can see her smile.]
You know what though? I think we should steal their hammer.
Such a little fuckin' thief. Mi querida ladronita.
[Oh man, she lends herself to too many cute nicknames. Also, she's absolutely right. His hammer now.
There's the sound of boots and chatter finally as the others make their way into the barn. They still sound uneasy, but maybe they'll lighten up as repairs and preparation get going again.]
Guess we oughta get back to work. Hey, I'm gonna see about fixing this tongue thing, you think you can get me some wood to splint it?
[She gets one more kiss and a smile, and then he crawls forward over the jockey seat to have a look at the long stretch of wood extending from below it.]
It's Guillermo that joins them first, followed by Diego and Oliver. The others keep their distance for the time being, keeping to the other side of the barn working on something for the horses. Chrissy helps where she's able, holding wood in place for Johnnie and grabbing things as the skeletons call them out.
Eventually though, she's left studying the front of the wagon. The bench seat will look empty to everyone but them, and she's pretty sure that will scare them. But what if they were able to create something to really scare people and keep them from wanting to apprehend the wagon?]
Hey, Cruz? [She calls out his name as she jogs over toward him.] Do you have any spare tarps or blankets? We should create a really tall cloaked figure that will scare the heck out of anyone that sees the wagon going by. They'll think it's a demon driving away!
[There's enough spare wood to build some kind of quick frame. And they could make lanterns for eyes to really give it a cool look. It would be so cool, and the cloth could help provide shelter and warmth for everyone in the wagon after they make their big escape.
Cruz seems less convinced it's a great idea, but isn't about to argue with her. Instead, he nods over toward a stall in the barn that's filled with blankets and thick linen tarps.]
Take what you need. You might want to lay a bunch of them down in the wagon too, to make the ride easier on whoever's back there.
[Smiling, she nods and hurries off to grab as many as her arms will carry. They get brought back to the wagon and tossed up inside the back before she climbs up to start laying things out.]
Does anyone want to help me build a demon?
[She's more than willing to move past what's happened between them in favor of building a real cool demon to drive this thing.]
There's thunder outside from somewhere far off, and rain strikes the dust where it slips between slats in the decaying roof. Johnnie gives his repair a thunk with the hammer, decides it's sturdy enough, then backs away to look at the overall effect Chrissy and the other two are busy creating.]
Oh yeah, that's fuckin' terrifying. Looks like a giant goat in a shawl, sure, but at night? Fuck, we gotta give it a torch it can hold too.
[The tarps are ready to be hung, and she holds them and stares up at the head all the way up high.]
Can you lift me up high enough to hang this though?
[She could ask anyone, but she directly asks Johnnie to do it. There's no one else she wants to lift her up high, and maybe it's an excuse to get his hands on her. And maybe it's to also have him get part of the satisfaction of creating a really amazing demon. That's sure to put him in a really good mood.]
[There are probably better ways to do this, but whatever, she wants a lift, he's more than happy to give her one. He kneels down to get her to sit on his shoulders, then carefully stands up while holding on to her thighs.]
See? Who needs a horse, you got me.
[Man, she wasn't heavy at first but the weight of a whole human does add up over time. Worth it, though; he'll stay put as long as she needs to do her decorating. And he'll try not to do anything distracting like kiss her thighs, even though it's very tempting right now just to make her squirm.]
I'd rather ride you than a horse, anyday.
[It's whispered so only he can hear, though her laughter is probably evident to everyone nearby. She realizes that she's probably getting pretty heavy though, so she has him help her back down on her own two feet. They're still standing inside the tarp she's hung up at that point, the two of them all tangled up in the fabric.]
Hey. [She grabs him by the hand before he has a chance to step out.] Are you still angry?
Yeah? Kinda. I'll work with these guys to get this done but Cruz fucked up, man, that was some real dumb shit from him. Why d'you ask?