RDR2: 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒆𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝑻𝒘𝒐 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒔

A Humble Abode

Judging by the way the sun sunk until it hung lazily just above the horizon like a golden medallion on a necklace, one could have guessed the ride had lasted approximately an hour or two until the two unlikely companions had finally reached their destination.

It was apparent that Valentine was nothing more but a humble town among the many humble towns in the country of America and on the planet Earth. Mud was a very abundant part of life in this town and you would be hard pressed to not see horse shit laying in the middle of the road. If you could call it one. It was more of a long and broad streak of mud and manure beat down repeatedly by hooves.

But, for whatever odd reason - the occupants of said town loved it dearly and claimed it to be home sweet home. And so, the two riders strolled on through this mud hole right down the main mud road before stopping abruptly in the muddy center. Noticing her cue to get off, the girl awkwardly slumped and stretched her toe till she slid off the horses behind. It was clear that an equestrian she was not.

She glanced around at her surroundings looking to be in a slight daze. Arthur sat idly for a moment, waiting for indication that his services weren't needed and he was good to go. The beginnings of a farewell formed on his lips when she finally piped up with an odd suggestion.

"I don't exactly have money at the moment but I do have something better."

Arthur, a bit perplexed but intrigued, decided to entertain the suggestion with a question, "And what exactly might that be?" The sentence rolled out in his naturally gravelly tone.

"Well.." she seemed hesitant, "This is a bit of a long shot, and I'm not expecting you to believe me... But I do know where you could find some treasure. You'll have to take me along, though."

Arthur huffed in slight disbelief. This day seemed to get ever so much longer. "An' what kind of treasure you talkin' 'bout exactly? The nonexistent kind?"

Anne gave him a sharp look before stating flatly, "No... More of the two gold bars kind." She continued on with her statement, her eyebrows still knitted a little from annoyance. "Of course, if you're truly not interested, I'll just be on my merry little way." She turned to walk off, but her head still tilted in his direction. Awaiting an answer.

Feeling the pressure to respond before it was too late, Arthur began with a hasty, "Alright.. Alright... Ya got me. You can hop back on."

She threw him a sly grin, knowing she had won - but she made no effort to get back on his horse. "It's getting a bit dark, don't ya think?" Anne plastered a hand on her hip as she made the statement, as if trying to prove a point.

Arthur scratched at his beard in thought. He could continue the journey at night, but he certainly would prefer not to. He also wasn't sure how LONG the journey would last. Could take days. Or even a week. Hopefully not, though. He wasn't sure if two gold bars would be worth that much riding.

However, he wasn't too keen on having to pay for a hotel room, which, in his opinion were too expensive for their own good. There was also, of course, the question of where the girl would sleep. She clearly couldn't provide for herself yet, as she stated before. And what's the likeliness she'd be content with sleeping out in the open country under a tent? Arthur didn't even have an extra cot for her to lie on anyway. He wasn't left with much option. More money down the drain along with his patience.

"I guess we could hunker down for the night. There's a hotel down the road. I could buy us two rooms..." the resignation in his voice was almost palpable. However, much to his surprise, the girl frowned a bit at the sentence.

"Nah... I've slept in too many hotels for my own good. Besides, the night sky looks pretty tonight." There was no denying her claim, as an array of stars speckled the night sky like daisies in a field. Her eyes shined in wonder as she gazed at it.

"You sure?" Was the only response to escape him. She snapped out of her star-befuddled state and looked at him. "Positive."