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It was their first night together, and Kane was certainly adjusting to having company with him.
Kane could be defined with many words, but most of them were synonymous. Wanderer, loner, traveler, nomad, he was there in his own world. He also had a job quite unlike many other Westerners, too.
He was a magician.
But because of his job, it was exactly why he had to be on the move so much. Not many people around the 1860s or 1870s took very kindly to magic, and even if Kane didn't consider himself something like a witch of any sorts, there were still quite some skeptics, and you know how they were with witches, nonetheless magic itself. “Pagan” was starting to become something with a demeaning context, and boy was Kane being met with it. He kinda fell into a miscellaneous category, in the same space that fortune tellers or tarot card readers got put in, where it was on the ball of being frowned upon, but there were some people turning to the idea of it not being all so bad. It was a ‘sensitive’ topic, one might say. If Kane stuck around too long in one place, he didn't want to find out what might happen, and he tried to ignore the questions he had about whether if somewhere, some town, perhaps had wanted posters of him hanging. Even with all of this being beared, it didn't stop him from wanting to wear his strikingly iconic purple button-up and his white cowboy hat. He could at least cover his shirt with his jacket.
So, really, to put it shortly, the sudden presence of having to spend essentially each moment and action with someone else now, was quite the shift. Even if it had only been for a short amount of time, Kane still had a lot of thoughts going around in his mind. But really, he had been asked to tag along for a reason, and it was for his trickery skills that he possessed. Not to mention, magic tricks could make for quite a distraction. People also frequently placed bets on the outcome of some of Kane's tricks, which led to Kane getting caught up in a lot of stolen goods and concerning amounts of money being handed his way.
Kane had been just about to leave, he had bundled up all his stuff into the few bags that were attached to his horses saddle, and he was making sure he wasn't leaving anything behind in the small cabin that he was momentarily crashing in before he went off again. A knock at the door had interrupted his thoughts, and he felt a familiar sinking feeling in his gut. He didn't want to know who was approaching him, what they were asking for, or what they were going to say, but he went to answer either way; because at the very least, he didn't want an end result of coming out later to all the goods from his horse being robbed.
He opened the door with a rather fierce and slightly uneasy look, and tried to keep his composure. You'd think for someone who dabbles in poker, they'd be a bit better at saving face and staying rather unreadable.
However, he was met with a rather unusual guest. Or at least, unfamiliar to him. He couldn't tell if it made him more uneasy or more relaxed, but either way it left him distracted and his southern hospitality had taken over, so he side-stepped and allowed the guest entry, and they shut the door behind themselves. They were wearing a shirt and vest, along with an overcoat, and some suit pants that matched the vest. They also sported a white cowboy hat as well, which all the former made sense; but it was the black eye-bandana mask that had struck Kane as interesting.
Kane stepped back a little, “How can I help you?” He asked intruiged, and folded his arms in front of himself.
“I think you might be able to help me with someone I'm looking for.” They spoke as though they were implying Kane WAS that someone.
Kane only cocked his eyebrow higher and ever so slightly tilted his head, “Yeah? How so?” he questioned after a pause of silence.
“I heard someone here might be able to help me with something- someone- that I am looking for, and I'd really appriciate having their assistance.”
Kane was caught off gaurd by their rather polite tone, and his expression reflected it. He glanced around the small cabin and paced back and forth a little, “Right.. and who are you looking for, exactly?”
“Well.. I reckon you're who I'm lookin’ for.” They ever so slightly tilted their chin up, and rested their hands on their hips.
Kane sat down in a chair that was at a desk, which faced towards them, and he sighed, “Okay, well, what exactly for?”
“It's a rather long story, but I'm looking for something important, and I've heard you might have come across it,” They were quiet for a moment and glanced Kane up and down for a split second, “You- are Kane, right?”
Kane couldn't help but fail to fight off a grin at the sound of his own name. He wasn't the egotistical type, but it was refreshing to hear his proper title every now and then. Kane rested his elbows on the desk and clasped his hands together, pressing them to the tip of his nose. From the new angle he was at, he caught the glimpse of a sheriff badge that they were wearing, and for whatever reason that made his stomach churn, “I am.” he said, hoping this wasn't someone out to get him for his magician career.
“Good,” They said, sounding rather relived, “If you'd like, I'd really appriciate if you took the time to work with me a little bit and help me out, then. I promise I'll make up for any time that gets taken up,” they bowed their head down.
Again, Kane was a little perplexed by the courteous tone and demeanor, “Okay, I mean-, yeah, sure, why not?..” Kane didn't really know how to respond as he stood up from his seat. They smiled, and turned towards the door, indicating for Kane to follow them.
Then they suddenly stopped in their tracks, and silently stared at Kane for a moment.. and Kane stared back at them in bewilderment.
“Sorry I just… thought you'd be taller.” They said rather quietly.
Kane huffed and immediately started sulking, “I was literally standing up earlier. And me? Taller? Really? What are you? Like… tall enough to have your hat knocked off when you walk through a doorway? Sure, fine, even if I am on the short end of the spectrum you have to at least admit you're kinda tall.” Kane was too busy being upset to play his usual game of trying to tiptoe around calling himself short.
They seemed a bit sorry and apologetic for their words, and turned for the door, trying to dismiss the conversation.
However, Kane was rather curious about all of this, and the sound of someone requesting for his assistance got in his head faster than any logic, or perhaps overthinking, could. They stopped once more in their tracks just before opening the door, and turned back towards Kane to face him, and reached out a hand for a handshake.
Kane didn't really like handshakes, he didn't really like touching other people very much unless he was very very close with them, but this one seemed okay.. probably. Maybe. He wasn't in the mood for the response he would get to trying to explain himself anyway, so he shook the hand.
“I'm am.. the Lone Ranger,” they spoke with a hint of a triumphant tone.
Kane glanced away as he tried to pretend like he didn't have to fight off another smirk of a grin. Well, he supposed that explained the mask.
“John,” They stated as clarification, “but I try not to tell people that, it sort of ruins the whole..” He gestures a hand over his face and mask, “identity thing. But if we are going to be working together I think it'd be good to know eachother's names.”
Kane was already mulling over teasing him to the point of irritation with calling him Lone Ranger, among other things, but he kept that all to himself. “Kane, that's my name,” he paused for a moment and furrowed his brows, “Euhm- uh- I suppose you already knew that one, didn't you?” He let out a half-hearted chuckle.
John chuckled in return, and took his hand out of the shake and stepped outside. Kane, when he was positive John wouldn't see, stared at his own hand blankly for a moment before making a gesture of brushing his hand off on his own clothes. Kane glanced around once he was outside, and smiled at the sight of his own horse. John was already approaching him again, but this time he was holding a worn and well-folded piece of paper in his hands. He displayed it to Kane, revealing that it was a map, and started gesturing to different symbols on it.
“We're here, I think it'd be best to head up East to this next town, it'll take us a day or so to get there, but I at least know that there is an Inn there and it'll make a good breaking point,” John spoke as he pointed to different things on the map.
Kane looked a little unsure as he momentarily reconsidered this whole idea. Sleeping under the stars wasn't something new to him, but it took quite the amount of trust for him to fall asleep in front of others. Anytime he had spent the night at someone else's house, he was well awake till dawn was calling, typically only going to sleep for a couple hours because he decided it wouldn't be good to be running on 24 hours of no sleep.
John had taken Kane's silence as an agreement, and had already saddled up on his own horse. “Are you coming?” It felt like he was silently asking, and Kane met his gaze with a thoughtful one, before he turned to his own horse and saddled up as well.
It wasn't a very eventful trek, which was arguably a good thing, considering how out in the open they were in the vast sandy land. There wasn't much for them to talk about, but it wasn't particularly tense or anything either. The air between them was a little thick, but that was merely just because the two of them were still strangers and still getting used to each other. At least their horses didn't seem to mind one another.
“You.. have a nice horse,” John commented with a side-glance, “I was a little surprised to see it was yours.”
Kane chuckled, “Thanks, yeah, I gotta get around somehow, I'm quite on the move a lot, and it's impossible to survive out here without one.”
“I heard about you being on the move a lot. You're really out here traveling all alone?”
Kane gave him a funny look, “Aren't you out here on your own too?”
John didn't reply, but he did have a bit of a smile.
“I guess you got your horse, right? Horses are good company,” Kane said while patting his horse on the back of the neck.
Now it was Kane's turn to be on the receiving end of the funny look, “Are they?” John asked.
“Uh... yeah? Do you not enjoy your horse's company?”
John sighed, “If you're gonna be the second person to tell me to talk to my horse, I'm not doing it.”
Kane laughed, “What? Why not?! Who else are you going to talk to out here?”
“I'd rather talk to myself.”
Kane was thoroughly amused by the idea that someone could seem to have such.. little interest in bonding with their horse. Isn't a bond with a horse supposed to be one of the more important things?
“Well, fine then,” Kane said with a smile, “I'll just befriend your horse for you, then.”
“It's all yours,” John replied.
Kane still couldn't get over the idea of someone not having any interest in getting close to their horse. Surely that is how you bond with them and build their trust? Trusting each other was very important between a horse and their rider. He kept wanting to press further about it, but a proper sentence wouldn't form in his mind.
The path they took to the next town was a rather quiet one, there wasn't much going on and Kane spent a lot of it attempting to sight-see and internally fussing over the heat of the sun. He couldn't help but glance over at John a few times, who seemed more determined if anything, and it almost presented him as unfazed by anything that could have driven him to madness out here. Something about his presence and how he carried himself intrigued Kane's curiosity. He only glanced a couple times, he didn't want to be caught staring, or perhaps worse, completely get away with staring because who does that!?
Kane looked at his pocket watch a couple times throughout the day, enjoying the quiet ticking from it. The silence of the West was nothing new to him so he didn't feel too forced to try and engage in any conversation to carry the day along. Not that he knew what to even begin talking about, anyway. It wasn't until the sun was beginning to set that they stopped just by a woodsy area to set up a camp. Sunsets only lasted so long, yknow.
They were right next to the woods, so getting firewood wasn't any trouble at all. Kane decided it was probably best if he restrained showing off his collection of fun lighters for another day. John had sat himself down across from the fire and criss-crossed his legs. Kane cracked a smile at the sight of it, and after doing a little thinking and considering to himself, he turned to his horse and pulled out a blanket from one of the bags. The temperature could drop a lot when the sun sets out here. He walked over to John and approached him with the blanket neatly folded in his hands.
“I got a spare blanket,” Kane said, “You can use this one, if you'd like. It gets awfully cold out here at night.”
John seemed like he didn't expect such an offer, and he happily accepted, and jumbled out a “Thank you.”
Kane smiled, he felt a lot more at ease about the whole situation when it was becoming more and more clear to him that John wasn't as intimidating of a problem as he had initially thought. Or at least, so long as he stayed off of his bad side. People don't become sheriff-rangers for just any reason.
Kane watched for a moment while John pulled the blanket around his shoulders before he turned to step away and grab the other blanket out of his horse's bag for himself. Kane made sure not to sit too closely as he didn't want to make the other man uncomfortable, and he also wrapped himself up in his blanket by the fire. And that was it, and they sat like that for a little while quietly by the fire, as the sky got darker and darker.
“Hungry?” Kane eventually spoke, breaking the rather peaceful silence.
John looked at him with interest.
“I got plenty of food in my bags and-”
“No. No,” John cut off Kane's statement and waved his hands dismissively, “It's okay, really. You need those for yourself. It can be a lot to have to suddenly start trying to feed two people, anyway.”
Kane turned his gaze back to the fire, “Are you sure?”
“Positive. I got my own stuff, don't worry,” his tone was soft, but firm.
Kane decided not to push the matter any further, but he couldn't deny that there was still a lingering feeling in him of wanting to make sure that the man didn't go hungry. I mean, it's not like he couldn't afford the expense anyway..
The silence continued, and Kane thought about many things. He thought about asking for more details on why his help was needed, who or what they- or moreso John- was looking for, small mindless questions like why the mask or why didn't his horse also have a matching mask, or who even was he? Kane was just itching to get to know more and it was nearly reaching the point of almost disturbing himself for why he was seemingly so invested and intrigued by this sudden stranger.
“You okay?” John asked, who had been looking at Kane and noticed his expression.
Kane looked up in surprise, not even realizing that he had been making a face until he felt his eyebrows unfurrow and the corners of his mouth relax, “Oh, yeah, I'm good! Sorry, I didn't even realize I was making an expression..”
John softly sighed and leaned back a little, “I'm sure you got a lot going on right now, it's not every day that you're suddenly on the road with someone else.”
Kane smiled a little, “Yeah, you could say that again. Company is not something I'm used to.”
John titled his head curiously, and it almost seemed as if he was a little concerned, “You're really out here on your own? And always traveling?..”
Kane could hear what he was implying, how that meant that there probably weren't many familiar sites or faces to him. His smile fell as his awareness was brought back to his absence of company, “Well… That's how it is, yes. But, I like to think that things happen for a reason, right time and right place sort of stuff. Like the universe or.. whoever is up there- is kind of playing a game of chess with everything. If this is how it is for me at the moment, then so be it. I hope I can learn whatever there is for me to learn from it.”
John listened, finding Kane's sudden wistfulness unexpected. He quietly stared at the fire for a little bit, “I think that is a fine view to have on things. Makes it feel a little less..lost, doesn't it?”
Kane nodded. It was his belief, it felt like the truth to him, really, “Yeah, I quite like it..”
Kane's gaze had ended up wandering as their conversation drew to an end, and he stared quietly at John's horse. It almost felt like a fairytale horse as it was completely white. The hooves, the mane, the everything, white. There wasn't much on the horse either but a rein and a saddle. He turned back to face John.
“Does your horse have a name?” His words were mumbled, as his voice had gotten used to the quiet.
John gave Kane a questioning look, “...’Course it does.”
Kane looked at him expectantly, silently asking him to go on ahead and say the name.
John turned his head up to look at his horse as well. “Silver,” he said.
Kane smiled, that was a fun name for a horse, “Silver..” he echoed.
John nodded, sighing contently. But he looked at his horse as if it was something he was perplexed by.
Even though the horses were several meters away from them, Kane still reached out his hands and waved it at the horse, as if it would somehow get the attention of the horse. He knew it wouldn't, but the idea of his actions amused himself too much for him to not do it.
John studied Kane, carefully watching his silly gesture, “Maybe you really should befriend my horse..” he said it as though he was implying something.
Kane grinned and slowly lowered his arms, “And are you supposed to be implying something with that statement..?”
“You'll see,” John said as he adjusted the position he was sitting in to be a little more comfortable.
Kane, still grinning, grew quiet as he was pondering whether he should do something or not, or if it would be something off of impulse, “I'm going to throw my blanket at you if you keep saying things like that,” he decided to say it outloud, so he could gauge the reaction he might get.
“Oh, I wouldn't do that if I was you. Haven't you ever heard the saying ‘What comes around, goes around’?” John had a playful tone to his voice.
Kane balled up his blanket in his hands, and raised his arms back as if he was preparing to do it. He ignored the shiver that ran through him from what little warmth he had built up leaving, “I'm gonna do it…”
John stretched his arms out behind him and leaned back, “Well, at least I don't have to worry about you doing it too hard.”
Kane happily threw the blanket square at his face, and he didn't try to be very gentle about it, either. Though, it was a soft cotton blanket, and so only so much force or whip could be put into it, anyway. Kane was giggling until John had stood up and balled up the blanket like he was going to throw it back, and even if it was all in a playful manner Kane still squealed a little and scampered to his feet, slightly regretting his choice. Perhaps if the other man wasn't over a foot taller than him and had a fairly decent build, then it would be less of a problem for poor Kane.
Kane kicked up a little dirt as he tried to make a sad attempt at escaping, but he was still pelted by the blanket being thrown at him, and it draping over him like a sad attempt at a ghost for Halloween costume. John laughed at Kane's sudden stillness of defeat after he had seemed like a rat trying to run out of a cage. John precariously approached Kane and slowly tugged the blanket off of him. As he couldn't see Kane's reaction, he only hoped that he wasn't actually upset over his retaliation.
But to his relief, Kane was thoroughly amused by all of it, and had loved the little game that they had played.
“Go to bed, John,” Kane said between giggles with a wide grin, pushing the blanket back into the other man’s arms.
Kane returned to where he had been sitting, and laid down on the ground blanket-less as if he was going to be fine throughout the night just like that. John smiled and stepped back over to where his blanket had sadly laid all alone. He went and stood over Kane, and held the blanket out by two corners as if he was going to make a bed, and gently draped it over Kane.
Kane giggled and clasped his hands together over his chest, “This is where I lie,” He said, as if he was reading out his own gravestone. Kane turned to see John pulling his own blanket back over himself, “Sure you'll be fine without someone tucking you in?” Kane said daringly after he had mulled over if it was a good idea to say in the first place.
“Well, I'm not you, so I think I'll do just fine,” Kane didn't need to be looking at John to hear the smile in his voice.
Kane playfully gasped, acting offended to such a claim. Though he did feel a little funny that it was essentially what John had just done for him. “Do you normally tuck in your camp-mates when going to bed?” Kane quickly recovered from the pricklingly feeling he was getting.
“No, just you. Seems like something you'd need to go to bed,” John spoke with a playful undertone, and rolled over on his side with his back facing towards Kane. His hat had been tipped over his face.
Kane silently chuckled to himself. One of his favorite things to remember when he was stressed was that it's impossible for someone to be intimidating if you picture them asleep. Or eating ice-cream. And that saying had been confirmed once more for him. Kane turned over on his side too, his back also facing towards John, and he sighed, the corners of his mouth ever so slightly tugging down into a frown. Even if he felt pretty okay and well now, his eyes didn't feel the slightest of sleepiness! Which, he had expected, anyway.
Kane laid there quietly and stared off into the vastness of the empty dirt and rocks, the woods just being at the ever so edge of his vision. He had assumed that John was already peacefully asleep. Kane at least managed to entertain himself with his thoughts and looking at the stars in the sky, the stars where always so bright and gorgeous and sometimes it felt like you could see the swirls of the galaxy, even if it was just his mind making it all up. And he laid there like that, thinking, till he lost track of time.
At some point, the daint sound of quiet, careful hoofsteps approached Kane, and Kane jerked his knees up over his abdomen and braced his arms over his chest, not wanting to get tredded on by a horse. Though, fortunately, this horse had noticed him there on the ground. Perhaps noticed him a little too strikingly.
Kane stared blankly at the horse and gawked at it as he stared back at him like it had an empty mind. It wasn't his horse, his horse wasn't fully white. Kane turned to look at the sleeping figure of John with a bit of a glare, as if somehow this interaction was his fault.
“Silver.” Kane grumbled out, feigning an irretance.
The horse didn't say anything. I mean- of course it didn't say anything. It was a horse.
“Don't you look at me like that!” Kane whisper shouted, trying to stay quiet so he didn't rouse John, as if the horse would understand him.
A few quiet moments of ‘intense’ eye contact, and Silver turned to leave as though they had lost interest in Kane, and Kane let out a sigh as he questioned what sort of interaction he had just had with a horse. Except, he had let his gaurd down too soon, and Silver came back to him again, and Kane curled up again to protect himself from horse hooves, but this time Silver leaned down and bit the end of his hat, swiping it from him.
Kane jolted up to his feet, the blanket falling off of him, not even entirely processing the wave of sudden cold that had hit him. He glanced over at sleeping John again before trying to step very closely towards Silver so he could do more whisper-shouting at them, but for some reason the horse seemed intent on taking Kane's hat in the direction that was away from him.