#and i’m not a difficult audience either like i will laugh at the stupidest shit this is just ugh

[snowdog49]

Saving Mr. Mustang

ROYAI Week 2019

Day 4: Pinned (And picture prompt?)

Rating: General Audience

He’d been gone quite a while. That was the first clue. The young apprentice that her father had taken in was not normally late. Considering that he was the only one to make it past a month of her father’s mood swings and compulsions, she expected more from him. Her brown eyes looked at the heavy grandfather clock. He’d taken the shortcut. She knew because she watched him scurry into the woods with his knapsack and list. Maybe he got lost coming back? She heard her father grumbling from the hallway, so she got up and moved into the kitchen, trying to avoid his wrath. He had been in a particularly sour mood lately, and it was best for anyone to avoid him.

But Riza had grown fond of the young boy. He was older than her but was much gentler than the past boys that had come and gone. He paid attention to her, bringing her a flower, or maybe a candy from the store when he was sent out for whatever her father requested. It was nothing anything significantly special. At first, she thought of it more as a bribe for her positive outlook on him. But she didn’t care for that. She looked past his gifts and onto his habits. ONe significant habit was that the kid was always punctual. Riza’s little fingers scratched her arm nervously as she wondered where he was. She certainly didn’t want another punk to replace him because of a simple mistake. The way her father had been the past few days, she was sure that it would come to that. She’d have to go find him before her father noticed he was late.

Riza wasn’t allowed out of the house without a good reason. Even at 10, she was kept inside with her own studies. Her tutor wasn’t going to come for a few hours, and that left her with a small window to save Mr. Mustang if she could find him. The scrawny boy had probably tripped and sprained his ankle, she thought, annoyed that it’d have to be her to find him. She certainly couldn’t plainly tell her father she was going to rescue the kid that he favored over herself. That’d end well for both of them. She could hear it now. “That failure of an apprentice is worthless.” Her father would exclaim. “When will I ever have a competent person around here?” Riza sighed.

“I might as well try,” she grumbled. “At least we both shall fail together.” She grabbed her jacket and her small rifle. “Father, I’m going out. I’m going to try to get a game bird for dinner.”

She heard a loud mumble from the hallway.

Riza silently mocked his mumbled back at him and turned to leave. She stomped down the trail, glaring at the woods she trekked towards. Her fist tightened around the sling that held the gun over her shoulder. “You better be okay,” she grumbled.

The trail was even, worn from the travels of her and other children through the woods. Game trails, deer, rabbits, and hogs, created side trails like spider webs intertwining between the thick brush and trees. Riza did not consider Mr. Mustang was stupid enough to think a game trail would lead him to the Mercantile and quicker, however, he was rather book smart and not… life smart. He seemed naive at times; like things would eventually get better under her father’s apprenticeship. It wouldn’t. It was only going to get harder.

Coming to a fork in the trail, she stopped to listen, quieting her agitated thoughts. Somewhere in the deep dark parts of herself, she hoped that she’d find him crying. Then she could finally be the one telling him to grow up instead of vice versa. The wind swayed the trees while they moaned. The leaves chattered around her from the bushes. A woodpecker tapped away in his short spurts into a dead hollow tree, and a squirrel chattered madly on the other end of the trail. Riza closed her eyes, listening for any irregularities in the woodland song. Nothing. “I bet he’s still at the store flirting it up with Mr. Culpepper’s daughter,” she muttered angrily. “If he is, I’m leaving him there.”

Her steps were soft, nearly silent as she walked down the trail. There were a couple open areas that she passed, hoping to find him sleeping. He wasn’t there. He was going to make her look more like a fool when he beat her home and asked her why she’d ever go looking for him. “I’ll shoot him in the foot,” she snorted. Just as she puffed out her cheeks, imagining him teasing her, she heard a dog barking. There were a few dogs in the area. Most of the ranchers and farmers had a dog or two. Every so often, she’d come across one that had wandered into the forest, probably chasing a rabbit, but they always returned home. She was about to ignore it and continue when she heard another sound.

“Stupid mutt!”

“Yup,” she sighed. That was him. His scratchy high pitched voice was recognizable in her sleep. She looked down to see little paw prints in the soft dirt, smudged shoe tracks from Mr. Mustang running. “What did you do now?” She followed a game trail over a little knoll which he had shimmied up a tree for safety. The dog stood at the base of the tree, jumping up, lifting its front paws just an inch or two from the ground as it barked. The dog did look a bit angry, but not rabid. If she would guess, it was probably that new dog that the Murphy Ranch took in. It always did seem odd. It chased cars which was the stupidest thing she’d ever seen. However, it looked pretty harmless to her. Mr. Mustang, on the other hand, the alchemic prodigy, was pinned up in a tree, calling the dog names. She didn’t even feel she needed to save him, he could just carve a fancy circle into the tree and save himself.

“Riza,” he called out as he saw her. “Run! The dog is trying to get me!”

Riza raised her eyebrows. Run? It was a barking dog. It wasn’t even worth dropping the rifle from her shoulder. She sighed as she started walking towards the tree.

“No!” He continued. “It’s going to hurt you!” He waved his hand at her, urging her to save herself. Of course, he would. As much as her father made her life difficult, Mr. Mustang would not make it out of her home alive it anything was to happen to her.

The dog turned to see its new target, growling at her, barking a few times. Riza would have none of it. She stomped right up to the dog. “No!” She yelled pointing her finger at it.

The dog barked louder at her, lunging at her in a false charge.

Riza didn’t move. She stood her ground, staring the dog down. “No!” The 10-year-old girl stepped forward. “Go home!”

The dog stopped barking and tilted its head to the side.

“I mean it now! Go on!”

The dog growled a bit more before Riza extended her arm and gave the dog’s nose a good whack.

“Holy shit,” she heard Mr. Mustang exclaim.

The dog shook its head before turning tail and heading home rather quickly.

She turned to see the young man jump from a lower branch, looking at her with complete amazement. “How… How did you do that?” He stuttered as he brushed his shirt off absentmindedly.

“You just have to tell the dog who’s boss,” she replied simply in her cold and even voice as if it was nothing and common knowledge.

“I…I…” He blinked at her, still surprised that she had just sent the dog away like that. “But you didn’t say anything to the dog!”

“I told him I was boss.” She turned and started walking away as if her actions meant nothing. “Come on before Father finds out you’re gone too long. You know how impatient he is.”

Roy shook his head, still in disbelief of his rescuer. “You came to find me?”

“I won’t make it a habit either.”

He caught up to her and they followed the same well-defined path back home.

“What did you do anyway?”

Roy tilted his head.

“To anger the dog,” she continued, becoming more annoyed.

“Nothing,” he quickly replied. “Well…”

They both stopped. The sun filtered through the branches, and the cool hair played with her bangs.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of jerky. “I remembered that when we went shopping last week, you wanted one, but Master told you no. So I picked you up one.”

She blinked. He’d brought her back suckers and little candies. However, a slice of jerky was a bit more expensive. It was still a kind gesture; kind and generous. “It wanted the jerky?”

He shrugged. “And I swatted at it. When it nipped at my leg, I threw a rock at it.” He sighed, handing the dried meat to her. “It obviously didn’t like that.”

She looked at the dark brown dried slice of beef. She started to tear off a piece and gave it to him. “You probably need some after running so far.”

He blushed as he took it, sticking it in his mouth to chew on it. “Thank you,” he mumbled.

“Why didn’t you just draw a circle into the tree?”

“I…uh…” He lifted his hand behind his head with a sheepish grin. “I lost my knife in the run,” he admitted.

“You’re going to be in trouble,” Riza rolled her eyes. “This will be a sight to see. No fancy chalk, no knife… Looks like you are pretty useless without your magic tricks.”

He laughed as he started walking down the trail. “Ah, I don’t need any magic when I have you watching my back.” His strides were long, stiff-legged, as he puffed out his chest in a physical boast. The jerky between his teeth with a wide grin as he looked back at her.

“Mr. Mustang, you are going to need a whole army watching your back when you get older.” She pulled the rifle up on her shoulder more comfortably, and followed behind him

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