Chapter Text
The New Jorvik saloon was a quiet place, at least, compared to some of the other places that Daine had visited in his travels. As he walked into the saloon, the air hazy with cigarette smoke and the dust motes caught in the sunbeams of late day sunshine, Daine didn't attract too much attention. But that was just the way he liked it. The less people who noticed him, the less questions he'd have to answer. The less people he had to talk to. He could simply come in, ask his questions, look for a familiar purple coat (or top hat, or simply a gaggle of admirers) and leave after downing one whiskey.
Tonight seemed to be no different, at first. Daine took a seat at the bar, ordered a whiskey, and scanned the room while the bartender (a woman whom he'd heard several patrons refer to as "Wolf") poured out his glass. A few times, he saw purple, but it was never who he wanted it to be- the purple flash of a girl's skirts, a purple feather in a hat, a purple coat hanging on the coat rack. This last one gave him pause, but it, too, amounted to nothing. At last, with a sigh, he turned to the mysterious Wolf.
"D'you... happen to know any of the patrons here?" Daine asked. Stupid question, she probably knew everyone here. It was in the job description of bartenders to quickly and painlessly extract the deepest secrets of everyone who came through their doors, be they local, traveller, or someone on the run.
"Depends who's asking," said Wolf, raising a dark eyebrow over a dark brown eye. She braced her palms on the bartop, leaning over towards him. "Who wants to know?" Daine sipped his whiskey, stalling. He hadn't recognised any insignia of the Scarlet Soldiers here, New Jorvik seemed like too good a town for bandits or gangs.
"Just a lonesome traveller," said Daine. It wasn't too far from the truth. He looked down into his glass, and then up at Wolf again, at her dark hair falling over her shoulders and reaching down to her elbows. There was something... familiar about her. Daine had never seen this woman before in his life, and he may prefer the company of gentlemen, but he would remember those striking eyes, her particular facial structure, the curl of her hair. No matter how hard he racked his brains, though, he couldn't quite put his finger on where he'd seen her before. Never mind.
"Then yes, I know everyone here, far better than they know themselves, I should think," said Wolf. She straightened, picking up a glass to begin polishing it. It looked spotless to Daine, but maybe it was just a bartender thing to polish an eternally spotless glass. Or maybe it was a nervous tic. "But I don't know you." Her gaze seemed to pin Daine in place, but that was probably just his anxiety talking. He definitely didn't remember her from the Soldiers, so then why, why did she look so darned familiar?
"Like I said, I'm just a traveller," said Daine. His eyes scanned the room again. Wolf placed the glass down, bracing her hands on the bartop as she gazed at Daine again, her expression more serious now. Her dark brown eyes were like steel.
"Who are you looking for?" Wolf asked. "You'd best not be looking for trouble, mister. I just got this bar, and I happen to like it and this town a whole lot. So if you came here looking to stir up trouble, you can just keep on walking."
"Understood," said Daine, giving a nod once he managed to unfreeze himself. "I'm looking for a man. Ydris." He took out a piece of paper, sliding it over the bar towards Wolf. The woman picked it up, looking at the poster. A flicker of recognition flashed in her eyes before she passed the paper back.
"I know him, but he's not here," said Wolf. "What business do you have with that showman?"
"It's personal," said Daine. He may be desperate to find this man, but he wasn't about to give the sordid details to the first stranger who asked. Wolf looked at him again, probably taking in the dust that had settled on his duster, the dusty brown cowboy hat that he'd taken off, the tangled mess of his raven-coloured hair, the sudden vulnerability in his golden eyes as the truth sank in. Another bust, but at least Wolf knew him. That was something, at least.
"Alright, I believe you," said Wolf, nodding. "Good luck with your search."
"Thank you," said Daine, tucking the all-important poster back into the pocket of his duster. He knocked back the last of his drink and then rose to his feet, making his way out of the saloon after tossing some coins onto the counter and picking his hat up.
From her spot at one of the tables in the saloon, Louisa watched the stranger leave. He'd looked different to most other strangers, scanning the room like he was looking for something. Or someone. Wolf ran the bar a lot differently to how Jack had done things, and that had been a little difficult to get used to, but the atmosphere was still the same. Nice and cozy, still people scattered around card tables losing all of their money on cards or enjoying the delicious meals that Wolf was able to whip up with the help of some staff. Louisa had been offered the job as cook again, but she'd had a better reason to refuse it this time. She was far too busy working on her tiny ranch, settling into life living with her girlfriend. She and Lisa had only become closer after the Battle of New Jorvik, as had many of the couples. Sadly, that hadn't been the case for all of them, especially with-
A crash, a frightened neigh, and a cry of alarm sent Louisa jumping to her feet. She recognised one of the horses' whinnies, knew it well now. It almost sounded like he was laughing.
"Excuse me, pardon me," Louisa said quickly as she darted among the patrons and finally burst out the front doors of the saloon. She pushed her glasses up her nose, wincing as she beheld the damage.
A greying horse was sprawled on the ground, struggling to rise to his feet while a man knelt over him, fussing over the downed horse. And, not very far away, stood the cause of this latest batch of mischief, his black tail flicking in amusement as he tossed his head.
"Trouble!" Louisa scolded, snatching Trouble's dangling reins from where he'd pulled himself free of the hitching post and then come crashing into the barrels that lined the side of the saloon. They were still rolling about the place. The man from before turned on Louisa and Trouble once his horse had managed to stand again, his expression thunderous as he laid a reassuring hand on his horse's dark grey neck.
"Is that your horse?" the man asked, golden eyes flashing.
"Yes, I'm so sorry," said Louisa, looking around for a safe place to tie Trouble. "I wouldn't have even brought him, except-"
"You need to learn to control your animal," said the man. Louisa's heart pounded in fear, but she told herself that it was fine- the man was clearly just protecting his horse, and his horse had been hurt, and it was Trouble's fault and by extension Louisa's fault for bringing him, and-
"I know, I'm sorry," said Louisa, her eyes filling with tears. If she had Goldie with her... but right now, Trouble was her only form of transport, and Lisa was spending the night at the clinic with a patient who needed to be overseen, and Louisa didn't trust Trouble alone.
"You okay, buddy?" the man crooned softly to his horse as the gelding tried to take a step and stumbled. He held his front right hoof in the air, shaking.
"We should get him to the vet," said Louisa. "My girlfriend is the physician for humans, but I know the one for animals. I can take you to her, if you want."
"Please," said the man, keeping his gaze on his horse. Louisa could see the pain in his eyes, the heartache. She knew that pain all too well.
Together, the small group travelled the short distance across town to where the veterinary clinic was located not far from Mayor Sigry's house. Sigry was in, thankfully, and fetched her partner at once.
"Louisa? Oh dear, what did Trouble do now?" Dr Eiren asked, looking from Louisa to Trouble. "And who is this stranger?"
"I... don't know," said Louisa, blushing. "A-anyway, Trouble hurt this man's poor horse so I decided to bring him straight to you."
"Good idea," said Dr Eiren, nodding. "That darn horse. Bring your horse out to the paddock, sir, and I'll have a look at him."
The prognosis wasn't good, though Louisa noticed the way that the man kept a careful eye on his horse, making to surge forward whenever his horse so much as gave the slightest snort of pain.
"Well, Mr...?" Eiren began.
"Daine," said the man, and now Louisa remembered. Not that she'd been eavesdropping, because that would be rude.
"Daine," said Eiren, nodding. "Your horse has sustained a minor muscle tear in his right front leg. He'll be okay, he just needs some rest." Daine's face shuttered, though not before Louisa caught a glimpse of panic.
"Great," said Daine.
"But don't worry, this is a nice little town," said Eiren. "Of course, I might be biased, dating the mayor, but hey. Crime is low, the food is nice, the people are just as nice..."
"Don't exactly have money for a room at an inn," Daine muttered. Louisa saw him clenching and unclenching his fist.
"You can stay in my spare room, if you'd like," said Louisa, wringing her hands together. "You know, as an apology for my horse hurting your horse. And I'll pay the vet bill, of course."
"Fine," said Daine. What was a few hours? Everything. He knew exactly how far one could travel in a few hours, especially in a wagon...
"Careful, Louisa, people might talk," said Eiren, a smile on her lips and a glitter in her green eyes as Louisa walked back to where she'd left Trouble under the strict gaze of Mayor Sigry.
"God, no," said Daine, a familiar curl of disgust curling his lip. And suddenly, Louisa knew exactly why this man was searching for Ydris. She could put two and two together.
As the two rode back to Louisa's ranch under the deepening indigo sky, Louisa dared to speak up to the man who sat behind her on Trouble's back.
"I saw you talking to Wolf earlier," said Louisa. "Are you... looking for someone or something?"
"Someone," said Daine. "You're a local, do you know him?" His voice went a little higher in sudden excitement, which Louisa noticed.
"A fan?" Louisa asked.
"Something like that," said Daine after a pause.
"Yes, I know him," said Louisa. "He broke my friend's heart, made him leave town." Daine's silence was extremely telling, but Louisa didn't seem to pick up on it. Good. She didn't need to hear his racing anxiety.
"Oh," said Daine after a too-long pause. "Guess I asked the right person, then?"
"By some miracle," said Louisa. "A lot of people were fond of Jack, myself included, and none too fond of Ydris after what he did." She could feel Daine tense behind her.
"I-I might just go, then," said Daine, his voice tight and high with anxiety. "Or lay low until Cloud's recovered. Or come back for him or- can I hide on your ranch?"
"Woah, partner, calm down," said Louisa, turning her head back to look at Daine. The poor man looked terrified, she could feel the anxiety pouring off of him in waves. "It's okay, why the fear?"
"Nothing- just- I need to find him," said Daine. "Before he gets too far away, before-" Louisa wanted to stop Trouble, turn around, and hug this man to ground him again.
"Breathe," said Louisa, glancing back at the road ahead to steer Trouble away from the ditch that he'd been about to walk into. "We'll get back to my place, get some food into you, and then a good night's sleep should clear your head."
"Even though I'm looking for the man you hate?" Daine asked. "Or is this just because you feel bad for hurting Cloud?" He'd hit the nail on the head there.
"Maybe I just like taking in strays," said Louisa. "And I don't hate him. I don't have it in my heart to hate anyone. Except for the man who stole my Goldie, of course."
"Oh," said Daine, guilt swamping him. "Sorry, I didn't realise-"
"It's fine," said Louisa. Maybe helping Daine, in whatever way she could, would help to take her mind off of losing her beloved horse to the horse thief.
The rest of the ride to Louisa's ranch was made in silence, followed by a dinner that was just as awkward (the meal, though, was better than any of the meals that Daine had eaten in a long time). And, following dinner, Louisa watched the glow of Daine's cigarette as he stood outside in the front yard while she stood just inside the screen door that served as the front door of her house. Trouble was a bright spot in the darkness, over in his paddock, the moon highlighting the white patches in his bay tobiano coat. This man had a lot of secrets, she was willing to bet her ranch on it. And, though she might not be a bartender, Louisa hoped that Daine might be willing to tell his story to her. And that she might be able to help him.
Anything was better than seeing the empty spot where Goldie had once grazed.