The Seven: Wanted Dead or Alive

Title: The would be orphan

Author: Hairann

Prompt: Journey

Rating: M

Genre: Action/Adventure, Western, Yaoi.

Word count: 499

Warnings: None in this part, but will be violence and harsh language in later parts. 

Characters: Young Bankotsu. Bank/Jak pairing in the future, others to be announced.

Summary: Part 1 of The Seven: Wanted Dead or Alive which is an AU story set in the 1800s of how the Band of Seven, the notorious outlaws, came together.

Prompt Summary: Late one night, a little boy witnesses the arrival of unexpected guests.

Long after dusk had settled over the desert, the landscape covered in darkness as no moon shown in the night sky, a boy of eight years was awaken from a deep sleep as a strange feeling gnawed at the edge of his mind. Confused by the sudden intrusion, he wiped the crusted sleep from his eyes before glancing around the dark room and waiting for them to adjust; his only source of light an almost dead fire burning its last log in the hearth.

As the feeling began to grow increasingly stronger, he glanced toward where his parents slept before turning his attention to the window on the far side of the room. Climbing to his feet, careful not to make a sound, he made his way over and using the ledge, pulled himself up enough he could see outside. With only the stars shinning above him, he could see little more than the shadows of cacti and the outline of the fence that surrounded their family's only mare.

About to give up the feeling as having been his imagination and head back to bed, the boy caught a flare of light from just beyond the edge of their property. Confused, he turned back and watched as the small flame danced around some feet off of the ground as it grow ever closer to his home. Glancing from the flame to the fireplace and back, the boy realized just what it was he was seeing; a torch. One that was apparently being carried on horseback.

As he watched in awed silence, wondering who could possibly be calling on them at this late at night, the torch was joined by many others as they got close enough for him to see. A bit worried now, unsure why a knot was forming in his throat at the idea of so many riders being there, the boy let go of the window ledge and made his way over to where his parents remained unaware. “Papa,” the boy called out as he gently shook him.

Both confused and annoyed at the sudden wake up call, the older man shooed the boy off with his hand without bothering to open his eyes. “Get back to bed, boy. It was just a nightmare. You're getting to old for them. It's time you grow up and be a man,” his father insisted before rolling back over and trying to fall back asleep. Not wanting to suffer his father's wraith in case he decided to bring out the switch, the boy was just about to give up and go back to bed when he remembered just how many torches were on a journey toward his home at that moment.

There was no innocent reason he could think of for men to be heading to their house late at night and in such large numbers. Deciding it was worth the punishment if he turned out to be wrong, he pushed on. “Papa, men are coming.”