Between The Yees And The Haws

Vanilla Bean

Name: Vanilla Bean
Age: 24
Occupation: Jewish
Created By/Modeled After: Shannah Saul

"It is too goddamn early for questions like that, partner." Vanilla Bean said, pouring Ar a cup of coffee. "I'm not into philosophy."

"I ain't neither, just wonderin'. You ain't ever think about it?" Ar Yan asked her. She sighed.

"If there's anything more than this town in my life? Nah, I ain't ever really thought about it all that much." She handed the cup to Ar. "I know it'd make me sad."

"Why's that?" He asked her.

"Well...'cause I know there probably isn't. And that's something I don't wanna think about." She said as Ar sipped his coffee. He nodded.

"It's fucked up, ain't it? How we don't got nowhere to go."

"Yeah. At least in this town, I can be a Jew without someone givin' me shit for it. More or less." Vanilla poured herself her own cup of coffee.

"How'd you even end up here, Nilly?" Ar Yan asked her. She groaned.

"Again? I done told you this story before." She paused. "Granted, you was drunk of your balls."

"Me? Never." Ar joked. She rolled her eyes.

"There really ain't nothin' to it. Religious persecution and all that jazz drove me outta my hometown. I didn't have no family in other parts, so me and Ace...we just found Buckleton. And we liked it here." She explained. She seemed like she was done talking, awaiting Ar Yan's response.

"You...you still like it here, though?" He asked her. She shrugged.

"Even if I didn't, what good does that do me?" She chuckled. "Ain't gettin' out. So I guess I answered your first question. No. There ain't nothin' more in my life waitin' for me. Buckleton's about as good as it's gonna get." She did a half-smile. "It's fine, though. Really."

"But I mean...shit, now we got outlaws, Nilly!" Ar said, setting down his cup of coffee. "Outlaws!"

"The outlaws who come here ain't even all that dangerous." She laughed. Ar shook his head.

"I might get my dick shot off for this, but...Sanjay is here."

"Sanjay. Sanjay The Outlaw is in Buckleton? Yeah, you're fuckin' with me."

"I swear it! Says there's a bounty hunter after him, too."

"Bounty hunter..." Vanilla's eyes widened. "Oh, shit! I think I met her last night."

"Her?"

"Yeah, I think so! I think it's her! Moonshine got a cousin comin' all the way from West Town lookin' for Abigail or Yee Yee. Said she was lookin' for makeup or somethin'. But I knew there was somethin' goin' on. Somethin' else she was here for."

"Well, fuck. I done told Sanjay I ain't know nothin' about a bounty hunter." Ar muttered. Vanilla stopped.

"You...you spoke to Sanjay?" She asked him in awe. "And the motherfucker didn't kill ya?"

"No. I think he thought I was too pathetic." Ar laughed. Vanilla shook her head in disbelief. Her eyes suddenly widened with fear.

"Oh, fuckin' hell! I don't wanna be associatin' with you if it means you're a buddy of one of the craziest fuckers in the wild fuckin' west!" She yelled.

"I ain't no buddy of his, Nilly!" Ar told her. She shook her head.

"I think you best get goin', partner. I got a lot to do today, anyway." She opened the front door and gestured for Ar to walk out. Ar Yan got up from her table and sighed.

"This 'stayin' clean' thing ain't gonna work for much longer, ya know." Ar told her as he started to head out.

"What do you mean?" She asked him. He chuckled.

"Every time trouble comes your way, you drop off the map. Disassociatin' yourself with everyone and everythin' involved. You're a right coward, Vanilla."

"Get the fuck out of my house, you drunk bastard." She said quietly. Ar Yan stepped out, Vanilla closing the door in front of him.

   She huffed, walking back over to her table where she had left her coffee. She dumped out the rest of Ar's and put the cup on the wash rack.

"You really are a coward, ain't you Nilly?" She muttered to herself. "First sign a' trouble and your takin' Ace to the next town over." She sat back down at the table, staring into her cup of coffee. The heat from the liquid wafted into her face.

   No. She wasn't a coward. In fact, her whole life had been a dangerous adventure. Being born into the family she was, facing the religious persecution wasn't her fault. And having to find a way out on her own - that took someone with courage. But because of what has happened in her past, she's never been too happy about trouble coming her way.

   With Sanjay here, however, things might be a little different. Things might change. What if she helped Sally catch him? What if Sally split the bounty with her? She couldn't help but think of the possibilities, even if they were somewhat impossible.

   But maybe they weren't impossible. Maybe she could prove that drunk asshole wrong and fight for her own safety for once.

Maybe she could stop keeping her life so vanilla.