The Traveling Adventures of Mister Fox and Miss Mouse
Few days ago, I was playing a FMK style ask game with @lorei-writes. One of the choices was who I would take a six hour train journey with. And, after I had given the other two choices some thought, Mitsuhide got the train ride choice. After that, the image of traveling in the old American West with him sparked in my mind.
And I tried my best to steer myself away from thinking too much about that concept bc time and energy levels wouldn't allow to make something completely coherent and complex.
And yet here we are, still thinking about an Old West traveling story with Mitsuhide.
Might as well see where this thought leads us.
Warnings: raw, unedited writing. Haven't done a whole lot of research into the old American West so details are bound to be incorrect. Reader will be referred to with she/her pronouns and other feminine aligning terms (Miss, missy, etc).
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No one has ever said that the life of a detective was ever a glamorous one, especially when a man needed to put food in his belly and a roof over his head. Mitsuhide Akechi was also no stranger to the odd job he didn't care for but needed the cash it provided.
This current job, well, it may have just taken an interesting detour.
Back east, a sleazy gentleman had come to him to find and return his runaway bride, an oil heiress whose family he managed to swindle her out of. He knew this type and, quite frankly, didn't want to take the job because of it, but with the threat of bankruptcy of his business over his head, he had no other choice.
Instead, he took the job of recovering this runaway heiress, finding her trail laughably easy to trace. A common trend of runaway brides had started when the government started offering handouts to whoever wanted to move out west to desert and mountain country, hoping to settle it more with American citizens. Women were especially needed as schoolteachers, so it was his first thought of where he could find his runaway heiress.
Luckily (or unluckily), his hunches were rarely wrong.
He soon found himself on a train bound westward, sitting a few booths down from a young woman with a deep purple bustle dress, her white collar high on her neck and her hat decorated with sprigs of lavender. She matched the description the sleazy gentleman had given him so perfectly, it almost tore his blackened heart that he had found the girl so quickly.
But, he didn't have the time or luxury of moral dilemmas when money was on the line.
He then saw the young woman being boxed in by two other gentlemen, likely either hired by the same sleazy gentleman that had hired him or opportunists seeing a woman alone and sought to take advantage of her. Either way, he wasn't about to have his quarry taken from under his nose, especially not by amateurs.
"Please," he heard her meek voice, trying to be brave in spite of her terror, "m-my husband will be back soon, so please leave."
A perfect opportunity, Mitsuhide thought, as he grabbed the untouched dinner from his table and walked towards them.
"I don't see no diamond ring there, missy," the scoundrel smirked, "you best not be lying to me about no husband-"
"Sorry I'm late, dear." Mitsuhide said, sliding the plate of food in front of her. "The cook was busy with all the orders, and I'm afraid the waiter said they just ran out of your favorite chardonnay."
The girl turned to him, her face still nervous, but glad that someone was helping her.
Her companions, however, were not as pleased.
"Who are you?"
"Why, I'm this wonderful woman's husband." He said cordially. "The meat hadn't been cooked to the way the lady liked it, so I went to get her a fresh one."
His voice dropped lower in the next beat.
"Now, may I ask what business you gentlemen have with my darling wife?"
His hand moved subtly to his belt, brushing back his white overcoat slightly to reveal the holster and pistol at his side. The holster, decorated with stitched bellflowers, gave a not so subtle hint of who he actually was.
The boys paled.
"J-just saying hello, sir."
"Y-yeah, just saying hi, sir. N-not looking for trouble or anything."
"Good," said Mitsuhide with a smirk, "I hope you enjoy the rest of the trip, gentlemen."
The boys moved away from the lady's booth, grumbling but knew when they had been beat. You sigh with relief.
"Thank you, for stepping in."
"No trouble at all, Miss Mouse." he tipped his hat. "They shouldn't be giving you any more problems."
"…'Miss Mouse?'"
"Sorry, just came to mind when I saw you trembling."
You turned your face away, cheeks turning a light pink.
"Is it really that obvious, how nervous I am?"
"A woman travelling alone rightfully has every reason to be fearful." He took the opportunity sit in the seat across from you, giving a small push to his plate of food towards you.
"But, that's your-"
"I lost my sense of taste years ago, Miss Mouse. Complex flavors that are in likely there are wasted on me."
"Still, you need to eat too, Mister…?"
He paused, weighing his options of using his real name or coming up with a fake one on the spot. You would likely figure it out once he seized the opportunity to take you back east regardless, but, luckily (or unluckily), you just giggled and finished your own sentence.
"Mr. Fox."
"Mr. Fox?"
"Yes, if you insist on calling me Miss Mouse, I feel you should be able to take your own medicine, correct?"
Mitsuhide chuckled.
"Very well. Miss Mouse, may I introduce myself as Mr. Fox, a westward-bound traveler seeking opportunity in the wide, wild world?"
You giggled again.
"You introduce yourself well, Mr. Fox. I'm an up and coming teacher moving to the West. The Oda company is hiring in California and with my grant, I'll be ready to start my new life soon!"
A bullet couldn't have hit his heart harder. She was giving him the usual excuse for why runaway brides run from bad marriages these days. His hunch was, unfortunately, becoming more and more correct.
"A teacher? That sounds exciting. All the way out here for a teaching job."
"Y-yes." You turned your face away, looking at the passing scenery. "The Oda company pays well. They're even giving me housing and everything."
"Sounds like you're all set for life, Miss Mouse."
"Yes, yes, I am." Your voice trails off, still paying more attention to the passing scenery.
Mitsuhide turns to look out the window as well, seeing the grassy greenery and pale blue skies passing at a leisurely speed.
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