#vasquez

- Going on the run with him, even if you've never committed a crime in your life.

-He's the OG mom friend. He always makes sure you eat first, not too cold, not too warm. Are you comfortable? Is this an okay place to camp? You're constantly having to remind him you aren't made of glass.

-PDA. So. Much. PDA. Small touches as you pass one another, nudging your feet together under the table, kisses for no good reason.

-You can never be apart from Vasquez for too long. At the very least, stay in his line of sight. It's not that he doesn't trust you. Everything good in his life has been ripped away from him, and you're the one thing he can't bear to lose.

-Dates aren't spent at the dance hall, or the saloon, or even the town square. You both ride to the outskirts, start a campfire, and you snuggle up under the stars.

-Him teaching you to speak Spanish (if you don't already know) for the sole purpose of talking shit.

-He is the little spoon. No debate.

-He likes to watch you as you go about your day. Not in a creepy way, but more in a "how did I get so lucky" way.

-Bickering constantly, because he's used to people being intimidated by him but you're not taking any of that crap from him.

-When you do get into arguments, no one really apologizes. You just move on. You could be screaming at each other, but an hour later you're snuggled up like nothing happened.

-Despite his gruff exterior, Vasquez is actually quite the romantic. Expect a small bouquet of wildflowers for no good reason, brushing down your horse so you don't have to, and packing up camp in the morning so you can sleep a little longer.

-You like to play little jokes on each other. You tie his lasso into a dozen knots, he hides your shoes in a bush. You undo his saddle before he wakes up, he tosses your gun belt into a tree.

-He gets into moods sometimes where he's like cat. You know how cats lie on top of whatever you're doing until you give them attention? Yeah, that.

-You get separated during the battle, and once you find each other you can't hold each other close enough.

Synopsis: Vasquez has met his match.

"You two, go to Volcano Springs, and find Goodnight Robicheaux. He should be able to help us." Faraday nodded, and he and Teddy departed. Chisolm turned to you. "You two with me." You rode off in the opposite direction. Eventually, the prairies and mountains morphed into pine trees and rivers, and after awhile you stopped at a run down old cabin in the middle of nowhere. You all dismounted and tethered your horses. "Stay with the horses." Chisolm told you, before taking Emma and disappearing into the house. You stood around awkwardly, waiting for them to come back. As you were fiddling with the straps on your saddle, you heard rustling. You turned around just in time to see a stranger draw his gun and step inside the cabin. Drawing your own pistol, you followed. Your sister screamed, and you skipped the steps and peered inside. Emma was on the ground with a lasso around her ankles, and Chisolm's hands were in the air.

They were talking, and from the sounds of it, it wasn't going well. You caught Emma's eye, and she shook her head. But you couldn't just sit there and do nothing. The man was loosely holding his gun up. As fast as you could, you snatch the gun out of his hand and held your own pistol to his neck.

"Let my sister go," You said lowly. He laughed shortly, before slowly raising his hands up and dropping the lasso. You threw his pistol as far as you could, before ducking under his arm and kneeling next to Emma. You loosened the rope and helped her up. When you were both up, Chisolm and the man were talking again.

"Vasquez's in." He told you. You raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. "And we need to get going." He walked out the door. Emma followed, and then you. You shoved Vasquez's lasso into his chest as you passed, and you heard him wheeze from the impact. As you mounted, you called to him.

"I think your pistol is somewhere over there." You said. He shrugged.

"Wasn't mine." You looked at him curiously.

"Don't ask." Emma said. You raised an eyebrow, but shrugged and dropped it.

…

After an hour or so of riding, you stopped at a nearby creek. You took your and Emma's horses and tethered them while she went to collect water from the creek. When you finished, you sat down on a log and watched the prairie. A moment later, Vasquez sat beside you. "No one's ever been able to sneak up on me like that before." He commented. You shrugged as you took a bite out of some bread you kept in your saddle bag.

"First time for everything." He let out a short breath of amusement.

"Yeah, I guess so," He grinned and you cautiously returned it. You were about to say more, but Vasquez suddenly stiffened and turned. You followed his gaze, and saw four riders approaching on the horizon. He whistled. Emma trotted back up to your camp, and Chisolm came to stand in front of the three of you.

He hugged the first man to dismount –Goodnight, he later introduced himself as—and an obviously drunk Faraday slid off his horse and staggered over. You went to help Teddy and the other man –Billy, Goodnight told you—tether up the other horses. When you came back, you saw Faraday walking over to Vasquez.

"Oh great, we got a Mexican," He began mocking him, and you could see the anger mounting in Vasquez. If he reacted, it would just make it worse for him.

"Oi." You snapped as you checked Faraday with your hip as you passed. "Don't be an ass." Chisolm noticed the commotion and grabbed Vasquez by the shoulder, leading him away from the drunk.

"And what are you going to do about it, little missy?" Faraday grinned drunkenly, and you glared at him with your hands on your hips.

"Need I remind you that she is technically your boss, and if she doesn't want you here, then you don't get paid?" Faraday opened his mouth to protest, but the realization dawned on him. He closed his mouth, and nodded dumbly, with a small "yes, ma'am," Before walking off to drink some more. You shook your head in exasperation as you opened your canteen. You cursed under your breath when nothing came out, and wandered over to the creek. You knelt down next to the water as you held your canteen under the water's surface. You heard footsteps, and you turned as Vasquez sat down next to you.

"No one's ever stood up for me like that before," He said as he stared out at the land.

"First time for everything." He laughed loudly.

"Is that your answer for everything?" You shrugged.

"You'll have to stick around and find out." With a wink, you stood up and made your way back up to the others. He looked out at the land with a grin, before spitting out the grass stalk he was chewing and following you.

Synopsis: You and Vasquez decide to mess with Faraday.

"Oh great, we got a Mexican." You rolled your eyes as you watched the stranger saunter up to Vasquez. He splayed out his arms and you could see Vasquez tensing up. Before you could put your saddle down and intervene, the other man—Chisolm, you recalled— put his hand on Vasquez's shoulder and led him away. They stepped to the side to talk, leaving the third man standing alone. And then his eyes landed on you.

Mierda.

He tipped his hat to one side, pulled up his gun belt, and began making his way towards you. You spotted Emma sitting by the creek, and you moved to approach her, but you were cut off by the man.

¡MIERDA!

"And what's your name, beautiful?" You sighed. If this was your fate, you weren't going to make it easy for him.

"¿Qué?" The man blinked, clearly not expecting that.

"You...you do speak English right?"

"¿Donde está la iglesia?" You had to fight the urge to smile. "Porque estoy muy cansada." You heard footsteps and turned just as Vasquez wrapped a possessive arm around your waist.

"What's going on here?" He asked gruffly. You smiled up at him innocently.

"Does uh, does your sister here speak English?" Vasquez glared at him.

"Sister?" He stiffened, and nodded after a moment. "This is my girl." Vasquez put a hand on his gun, but you laid a hand on his arm and stopped him. He looked at you in confusion.

"Está bien," You told him. He raised an eyebrow. "Si hablamos Español, podemos decir lo que sea." Seeing he didn't understand where you were going with it, you turned back to the man. In the angriest voice you could muster, you cried, "¿Cual es tu libro favorito?" He jumped, and Vasquez figured it out. Suppressing a snicker, he followed your example.

"Quiero comer los zapatos." Vasquez growled.

"¡Pero quiero nadar!" He looked between you both, before throwing his hands up in exasperation and stalking off to sit with Chisolm. When he was out of earshot, you ad Vasquez burst into laughter.

"His face!" You gasped as you held your stomach. Vasquez watched you laugh as he chuckled. You stopped when you noticed you were the only one laughing. You looked up to see Vasquez smiling at you softly. "What are you looking at?"

"I don't think I've ever heard you laugh like that," He said simply. You thought about it. You and Vas had been on the run for as long as you could remember. A life like that didn't leave much time for leisure, and you never had the time to let loose, at least, not since you met Vasquez. He squeezed your hand. "It's nice."

Synopsis: you’re tired of being treated like you’re fragile.

"No."

"Vas—"

"I said no." You crossed your arms with a huff and glared at him.

"But I want to fight. I'm a great shot!" Vasquez put down the pistol he was cleaning and glared at you.

"I don't care. I am not letting you out there. It's too dangerous." You scoffed.

"You're not letting me?" He didn't meet your gaze. "Vas, I am not some child you can order around! I'm capable of making my own decisions based on my capabilities!”

"I don't care!" His sudden outburst shocked you into silence. He took his hat off and ran a stressed hand through his hair with a loud sigh. Then he stood up and walked towards you, gently placing his hands on your upper arms. "Look," He began. "It's not that I don't think you're capable. I think you're better with a gun than most of the idiotas we're going to face out there. I just..." His grip on your arms tightened. "I just want you to be safe. You're mi chica. If anything happens to you..." You nodded.

"I understand."

"You do?" You nodded.

"I get that you're worried. I do. But I'm worried about you too, and I don't want to just sit around and do nothing." He nodded too.

"I know. But you have a job to do." He smiled cheekily. "Someone has to protect las mujeres y los niños ." You sighed.

"Okay." He smiled in relief. "I just wished I could do more."

"Trust me. You're doing enough." He looked like he wanted to say more, but at that moment Chisolm grabbed him and hauled him out to discuss the plan. You sat down on the crate Vasquez had been occupying and twiddled your thumbs. That didn't last long either. Emma came in, grabbed you by the arm, and hauled you outside.

"What are you doing?" You asked.

"You good with a gun?"

"What?" She stopped and turned to face you with a huff.

"Chisolm said you were good with a gun. That true?"

"Oh. Oh, yeah!" You confirmed. She nodded in satisfaction.

"Good, we can use you."

"I'm supposed to watch the women and kids."

"They'll be fine; we built a hiding place. Now come with me, I'll fill you in." She pulled you into the saloon and up the stairs.

...

Which is how you found yourself in your current position. Hunkered down behind a pile of grain bags as you hid from flying bullets. You quickly sat up and took out one of Bogue's men. You ducked down to avoid more bullets, but one found its mark in your upper arm. Blood poured out the wound and drenched your sleeve as you gasped in pain. You went to pick up your rifle as you tried to ignore the pain. Before you could take aim, you and Emma were hauled up by a man with a white beard as he pushed you inside the saloon, shielding you from half a dozen bullets in the process. You and Emma collapsed against the wall as you heard footsteps enter the building. You cautiously looked over the edge of the balcony but retreated as soon as you caught sight of Denali. He looked up and saw you. Emma picked up her pistol as you looked for your rifle, cursing under your breath when you realized it was still outside. Denali crept up this stairs, his eyes locked on you. Emma fired her pistol, only for it to be empty. She tried again and again, hoping there was one round left, but to no avail. You wrapped an arm around Emma and she did the same, preparing to meet your fate. I'm sorry, Vasquez. You closed your eyes and prepared for the final blow. You heard scuffling and opened your eyes just as Red Harvest hissed something in Comanche to Denali and pushed him off the ledge. You and Emma continued to hold each other as you sighed in relief. Red Harvest helped the two of you up, and you descended the stairs. A round of shots prevented you from leaving. The Gatling gun had been fired again. The three of you dropped to the ground and waited for it to pass. When the firing ended, you all stood up. You went to follow them, but Red Harvest stopped you. He looked at your arm.

"You are hurt," He said in broken English. "Stay here." You made to protest, but Emma cut in.

"He's right. You can barely move it," She ripped a piece of her skirt off and tied it around your arm. "Here. This should stop the bleeding. Now, go hide. We'll get you when it's over." You nodded reluctantly, just as an explosion rattled the town. Emma looked out the window, and she stiffened. "On second thought," She grabbed a rifle propped up next to the door. "I'll be right back." You watched her exit the saloon and enter the burnt church after Chisolm and a clearly terrified Bogue. A lone gunshot broke the silence moments later. You suddenly felt the strength leave you as you slumped to the floor. Red Harvest grabbed your waist and hauled you upright.

"It's over," You breathed with a grin. He nodded, and slowly helped you out of the saloon and into the streets. You looked around. Bodies littered the street, and barricades still burned. You recognized Jack's prone form, and spotted Goodnight in the grass next to the Church. Faraday and Billy were nowhere to be found. Chisolm and Emma left the church, and you couldn't find Vasquez.

Your heart dropped to your toes. Oh God. What if he...?

You were snapped out of it by the sound of someone screaming your name. You pushed off from Red Harvest and turned around to see Vasquez sprinting up the street towards you. He was uninjured for the most part, though one of his sleeves was drenched in blood. "Y/N!" He grabbed you and kissed your face over and over. "What are you doing here?! I thought you were with the women and kids! I went to find you, but you weren't there. I thought...I thought—I thought you were dead, chica! ¡Eres tan tonta!" He pressed a rough kiss to your forehead. He tightened his grip on you and you winced. He noticed immediately and pulled back to investigate. His eyes were immediately drawn to your bloody arm. He blanched. "¡¿Que pasó?!" You followed his gaze to your arm.

"It's nothing," You reassured him. "Just a graze." His face hardened and he glared at you.

"If you had just done as I asked this wouldn't have happened.”

"I wanted to help!"

"You could've helped protect the others!"

"I was!"

"It's true," Emma interjected. "She saved a lot of innocent men today." Vasquez whirled on her.

"You were a part of this?!" She stared him dead in the eye. "I'll get to you in a minute." He growled. "How could you let her do this?!" Your temper flared.

"Enough!" You shouted and he turned back to you. "No one 'let' me do this; this was my choice and mine alone!" He opened his mouth to speak, but you cut him off. "Let me finish!" He closed it and listened quietly, albeit reluctantly. "I know you didn't want me to, but I didn't want to sit around knowing you were risking your life and I wasn't doing anything! What if our positions were flipped? I can bet the clothes on my back you would do the exact same. I understand you're upset I decided to fight, but I was mad at you too! You didn't trust me! You know I'm capable of handling myself, but you treated me like a baby! Well I've got news for you: if something like this happens again, I'm not sitting on the sidelines. So you've got two options: let me help you, or just watch as I help you anyway." You crossed your arms and looked up at him. He was staring at you, before a dopey grin slowly spread across his face. Chisolm and Red Harvest were snickering off to the side. Vasquez slowly pulled you closer and brushed his lips over yours.