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A gunshot sounds and the red dirt of the frontier kicks up behind the hooves of Archie. Daniel doesn’t look back and neither does his partner, Rorschach. Their horses, Archie and Blair, respectively, gallop as fast as they can through the countryside with the now previous Deputy Dreiberg and Sheriff Rorschach of Old York. A mile away behind the barrel of a smoking gun stands Richard Keene, one of the newfound “politicians” of the frontier. The way Daniel and Sheriff Rorschach dealt with outlaws wasn’t the way Keene liked. It seemed what Keene liked was to find someone else for the job. Someone who broke less bones and fired fewer bullets than the duo. Ammo wasn’t cheap these days, and because the men chose not to kill the outlaws, makeshift hospitals and jails were overflowing with criminals. Wooden graves were cheaper than bandages it seemed. As it seemed, duo were run out of Old York with nothing more than they could quickly scavenge from their homes.
The flat earth of Old York quickly became the dirt roads of the frontier, leading to the west. Rorschach could see his partner turn back his head to see their homes become a speck in the distance.
“No use looking back. Nothing there for us.” he said behind the black and white bandana over his mouth.
Daniel looked toward him. He hoped his sad eyes would meet those of his partner’s, but it seemed today, like many days, was one where Rorschach wore his hat low enough to cover them.
Behind the mask, he could see the outline of a jaw move. “Don’t forget. You wanted this.”
Daniel didn’t look back again. Rorschach was right. Daniel was the one who wanted to leave. There was no use dying and fighting over a town that no longer wanted them. There was nothing left in Old York but memories of their old selves.
They followed the dirt roads, made by thousands of people carried by horse or wagon. They watched as the grasses became taller, the flat lands into hills, and the eastern sun began to set in the west. Rorschach gently pulled the reins of his horse to a slow trot.
“Ground is flatter here. Should set up camp.” He nodded his faceless head toward the sky. “Dark soon.”
Daniel slowed down Archie and hopped off. His boots hit the ground and sent a tuft of dirt into the air. Unloading his bags from his horse, he tossed them down and moved to tie Archie to a nearby tree. Dan jolted as Rorschach came up next to him to tie Blair to the tree as well. If there was one thing Daniel knew well about his partner by now (and few things were known as it was), it was that he had no sense of personal space. After years of having his homestead being broken into by Rorschach, despite him being in possession of a key, the closeness felt warm and familiar. Like home wasn’t as far away as it felt. Like they hadn’t lost everything in a day. Like they were each other's to lose.
It was hard to tie with their elbows and arms so close. The back of Daniel’s gloved hand brushed Rorschach’s and Rorschach’s brushed Daniel’s. Physical touch used to repulse the other man- it still does, but gloved, or with Daniel, he didn’t seem to mind as much anymore.
The two men finished tying their knots side by side and went to set up camp. Like they had done it a thousand times before, Daniel grabbed their blankets to sleep on and set them up under a tree long dead from the heat. Rorschach looked for rocks and sticks for the fire.
“Why did you come?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why did you come with me? You could’ve stayed. Fought Keene yourself. We both know you would’ve won. I’ve seen you shoot, you’re a better shot than him and me. So why did you come?”
Rorschach tilted his hat up slightly. Blue eyes met brown for the first time in weeks.
“Because you asked me to, Daniel."
He tilted his hat back down and crouched to grab more rocks and sticks. Daniel was left silent and busied himself with unpacking their tin coffee mugs and boiling pot. He looked up occasionally to see Rorschach, or more specifically, Rorschach’s covered face turned toward him, which would quickly turn back to his very interesting sticks. After a few minutes of the back and forth, Rorschach dumped his gatherings in front of Daniel and knelt down. Together, they made a pit with the rocks and set up a nice teepee of dry wood for their fire. Daniel took a piece of flint out of pocket and struck it against one of the rocks. A spark lit the wood to life, and as the sky darkened, they were bathed in the orange glow of the fire.
Dan took off his boots and placed them away from the fire. He tucked his knees close and rested his arms on them. It had been a long day.
“Could you grab me a can from the packs? I want to heat up something to eat.”
Rorschach handed Daniel two cans of beans from his pack.
“Thought you liked these cold?” Dan said, tilting his head.
“Can be warm today.” Said the gruff man beside him, folding his arms and leaning back against the tree trunk behind them.
Dan shrugged and warmed up the cans. Soon, the day’s tiring events even got to Rorschach, as he joined Daniel and took off his dusty boots, tossing them next to Daniel’s, knocking them over.
Dan rolled his eyes playfully.
“ Thanks . When I step into a scorpion tomorrow, my death is on your hands.”
Rorschach shrugged and reached to grab their warm cans. They ate together slowly, the masked man obviously struggling to eat under his bandana.
“You can take that off you know. I won’t look.”
They were silent for a beat and out of the corner of his eye, he could see Rorschach next to him move to take off his bandana. Daniel kept his eyes straight and focused on his beans instead of the face of his partner.
“Can look.” The gravelly voice next to him was one he knew well, but was softer and quieter than the gruff one he knew.
Daniel did not move to view his partner’s face.
“No longer Sheriff and Deputy. No need to hide. Not from you.”
Dan turned his head to see the bottom half of his partner’s face for the first time. He saw thin lips, a small nose, and a surprising amount of ginger stubble along his sharp jaw. The most surprising however, were the freckles he could see peeking out from under the brim of his friend’s hat. As if sensing his curiosity, Rorschach tilted his hat up to show Daniel his whole face. Daniel took it in in its entirety, following the freckles on his cheeks up to his intense eyes staring back at him. Rorschach’s eyes flickered down to Daniel’s lips for a second, and the moment became far too intimate.
“Can I take your hat off?”
Rorschach hid his eyes under the hat and nodded. Dan reached and slowly took it off and set it to the side, revealing fiery red curly hair.
“Huh,”
Rorschach looked up at him.
Dan continued. “I knew you were a redhead, but I never expected it to be so,” He twirled his finger. “…curly.”
The redhead’s face turned the same as his hair under the scrutiny. He scrambled to grab his hat, but a hand stopped him.
“No! No! I like it! It’s nice! It’s just unexpected!” Daniel said in a panic.
“Hm.” Rorschach moved his hand from under Daniel’s and away from the hat.
The two sat in silence in front of the fire. Eventually, Rorschach grabbed his journal out of his pack and began writing. Dan leaned his head back against the bark of the tree and closed his eyes.
“Thank you for coming with me.” He said softly, almost a whisper over the crackling fire.
“Of course. Are partners.”
Thank you for asking, Rorschach thinks.
Rorschach’s Journal. August 14th, 1879, Sundown.
Have been run out of town by Keene. Chose to follow Deputy
Rorschach erases ‘Deputy’ and replaces it with ‘Daniel’.
Chose to follow Daniel to the west. Unsure of what is in “the west” he speaks of. Will make list of west’s importances at later date. Blair seems upset with change. Is happy with Archie. Daniel brought sugar cubes. “For the horses” he says. Always been bad liar. Thankful despite deception.
Rorschach puts his journal down and turns to his partner, now softly snoring in his sitting position. For a moment he hesitates before resting his head on Daniel’s shoulder. His masks, both physical and metaphorical, are gone. They are no longer Sheriff Rorschach and Deputy Dreiberg of Old York. They are something new and evolving.
The next morning, when Rorschach wakes up to the pastel sunrise and the fire smoldered out, the warm body he is plastered against is a reminder of the new future they have yet to make.
When Daniel’s eyes open, nothing stops Rorschach from reaching out and pressing his lips to his partner’s.
Rorschach’s Journal. August 15th, 1879, Dawn.
There is no more Old York. There is no more Sheriff or Deputy. Have found important thing in west. Daniel Dreiberg.