Once upon a time in the West
So, I'm trying something a bit different again here, and putting Kings Landing and its characters into the Wild West. I've always had an interest in that period in American history and thought the characters would fit in quite nicely in their own version of one of those infamous western towns. I am still in the process of working out which character to pair our reader with, so if anyone has any preferences please let me know; if not, I'm sure that I will come up with someone suitable 😄 I hope you enjoy.
Sheriff Jaime Lannister sat outside his office, watching as the town's folk went about their day in the ever expanding Kings Landing. Like many places in the west, the wannabe city didn't have to best of reputations, rivalling Tombstone and Deadwood in the number of gun battles and murders there had been when it had first sprung up; but slowly Kings Landing was becoming a slightly more law abiding town, and apart from drunken miners, arguing gamblers, and the occasional outlaw that made their way through town; Jaime and his deputies had managed to make Kings Landing a place that families could be happy to raise their children, much to the delight of his father, Judge Tywin Lannister, and the town's mayor, Robert Baratheon.
The Baratheon's and Lannister's were both well to do families from old money, that had made the long journey west to create what was growing up in the east of the country, hoping to build a great city like New York, and now that the local cemetery was not receiving new inhabitants every day, Robert was pushing to make his town one of the first great cities in the west; but despite the seeming calm of the town, there were always people from the outside that neither Jaime, his father, nor the mayor could influence and that was where (Y/n) came in.
(Y/n) had grown up in Kings Landing, her father had been the sheriff when the town had first sprung up, the man making quite a name for himself as someone that didn't take any shit, and was not averse to shooting first and asking questions later. (Y/n) had been brought up without a mother, and as her father didn't know much about raising children, especially daughters, he raised her in the only way he knew, and she had learnt everything a boy would be expected to learn, becoming a crack shot, an expert tracker and horsewoman from a very early age.
When her father had been killed, (Y/n) had taken it upon herself to track down his killer, eventually bringing the man in to watch him be tried and hanged by Judge Lannister; but despite Mayor Baratheon offering her the position of sheriff, she had instead decided to become a bounty hunter, dedicating herself to finding other men that had killed the innocent and good people of the west who were simply trying to make a new and better life for themselves.
Over the years, (Y/n), just like her father, had made quite a name for herself, bringing in some of the worst of the worst, and that was one of the reasons that Jaime was now waiting outside his office for (Y/n) to make an appearance.
(Y/n) had always been hard to find, spending most of time in the vast expanses of the plains hunting down her quarry, only appearing in a town when she had her man and wanted her bounty; but with the new problems that had found their way back to Kings Landing, Judge Tywin had told his son to send out riders to find the elusive bounty hunter, the bounty hunter that the local Cherokee tribe called Onacona, or White Owl, believing that the woman could hunt her prey even in the dark.
To Jaime's utter amazement, one of his men seemed to have quickly found her, returning to Kings Landing to inform the sheriff that (Y/n) was already on her way, and would be back in the town in a matter of days; so now Jaime, along with others waited with anticipation for their old friend to return.
A sudden scurry of activity alerted Jaime to a disturbance further down the long main street that lead to the main part of town; straining his eyes he could just make out two figures on horseback riding slowly into the township, the pair of riders ignoring the people that were calling out to one of them as they passed.
Getting up from his chair, Jaime smiled to himself, there were only two people that could cause such a ruckus, and that was (Y/n) and her partner, a young Cherokee warrior by the name of Waya, and given the townsfolks dislike for the local tribes, Jaime could only presume that it was the presence of the Indian that was causing all the raised voices.
Slumping back into his chair, and putting his feet up on the hitching post in front of him, he smiled as he placed his hat over his face and waited for his old friend to get to his office.
"There you go Waya, a perfect example of a sheriff; sleeping in the afternoon sun with not a care in the world as they let the bounty hunters do all the hard work for them." A beautiful voice said jokingly, causing Jaime to chuckle to himself before he raised his hat to look at the two people in front of him.
"Well howdy sheriff, I didn't mean to ruin your beauty sleep, the lord only knows you could do with every last second you can get." (Y/n) laughed, as she got down from her horse and walked over to greet her old friend.
"How are you Jaime?" (Y/n) asked, as the two embraced.
"I'm good, (Y/n); I should have known it was you two causing all the commotion. Can't you pair ever make a quiet entrance?" Jaime asked, looking over at the Cherokee that was now stood just behind (Y/n), the two nodding respectfully to one another.
"You know me, Jaime; I was always a show off, and Waya here cuts such a dashing figure that he just can't help but attract attention." (Y/n) told Jaime, as she took his arm and led him into his office, leaving the warrior to watch over the horses.
"So, where have you been this time?" Jaime asked, handing (Y/n) a hot cup of coffee as he pulled out a chair for her to sit on.
"Been up north, the Bolton's have been making a nuisance of themselves around Winterfell again, shot up a stagecoach killing the driver and one of the passengers; the Stark's sent for us to catch that little bastard Ramsay and his boys, needless to say that the lot are currently under lock and key waiting for a judge, and probably the gallows." (Y/n) informed Jaime, as she blew on the coffee before taking a sip of the hot brown liquid.
"Now, as much as I love reacquainting myself with you, I know that you and the judge didn't just call on me for my stunning good looks and my witty conversation, so why do you need me?" (Y/n) asked curiously, as she looked over the top of her tin mug.
"The Walkers." Jaime said quietly, watching as (Y/n) placed her cup down on the desk in front of her.
"What are they doin back here? I thought they'd left for good when I had their daddy hanged; they can't really be that dumb." (Y/n) growled, gazing over at a very uncomfortable looking Jaime.
Jaime knew that this was a lot to ask (Y/n), Pa Walker had been the man that had killed her father in cold blood, and he knew that if (Y/n) and the Walker boy were even in the same state it could end badly, but having them all back around Kings Landing was sure to end in bloodshed.
"We haven't had any problems with them since you ran them outta town, but recently they've come back and been causing problems in the gold fields, robbing and killing miners for their money and gold, they even come riding through the town in the night, shooting up everything as they go through." Jaime informed the angry looking bounty hunter, who had risen from her seat, and made her way over to the window, watching as the townsfolk passed by outside.
"The Walker's were never the brightest bunch, but why do you need me? Surly you can deal with those two idiots; you have enough deputies." (Y/n) said, looking back over at Jaime.
"We've tried, but its not just the two boys, they seem to have got themselves quite a gang, and I've already lost one man, shot dead in the street outside. Father and the Mayor don't like the idea of losing any more of our men, so they told me to send for you." Jaime confessed, a confused look growing on his face as (Y/n) began to laugh.
"So, the judge calls on us because Waya and I are dispensable, a bounty hunter and an Indian, with not the hint of a connection to the Lannister name between us. I know your father too well, it is better to have someone like me get my hands dirty, and possibly get killed than lose his son or one of his precious men, and given that I already have a grudge against the Walkers he knew that there was no way I could say no." (Y/n) chuckled softly, as she walked back over to the chair, shaking her head as she sat down.
"Wants in it for us. I mean apart from the satisfaction of killing the rest of the Walkers; Waya and I can't live on fresh air, so there better be a bounty for our services." (Y/n) said, picking up the coffee cup and swallowing the contents in one gulp.
"Robert is offering $500 for each of the Walker boys, alive or dead; but if you bring them in alive and he gets a big show trial, and a good hanging, you'll get an extra $500. The others, he'll give you $50 for each one, preferably dead." Jaime told her, as (Y/n) seemed to muse for a moment.
"And Robert is good for this money? I know he spends the stuff like water, from what I've heard his lavish spending is nearly making Kings Landing bankrupt; new music halls, fancy hotels and townhalls don't come cheap." (Y/n) said knowingly, as she looked at her old friend across the table.
"Robert might not be good for it, but you know that the Lannister's are, and a Lannister always pays his debts. My father will give you the money you can be sure of that." Jaime told her, watching as (Y/n) rose from the chair and made her way over to the door.
"You can tell the judge that I'll take the job, and he and Robert will get their show trial; but I want $500 up front as a show of good faith, if Waya and I are gonna risk our lives then I want to enjoy myself before I go getting shot at. Now, I need a warm meal, a hot bath, and a soft bed, so if you will excuse me, you will be able to locate me over at Miss Ruth's place, where I presume that I will already be able to find your brother and Bronn. Oh, and if any of your boys even looks at Waya in a way I don't like, I'll shoot them myself. I don't care about people's opinions of Indians, he's a good man and my friend, so if you want me here, then he's here too. I'll be seeing you around, Jaime." (Y/n) told him with a soft smile, as she opened the door and made her way back outside.
Jaime got up from his chair, and watched out of the window as (Y/n) and Waya led their horses over to the stable, he knew that his father wasn't going to like her demands, but he also knew that given the situation, Tywin would have no choice, and one way or another, the bounty hunter would have her money.
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: AzTruyen.Top