Post by Meluivan Indil on Apr 27, 2006 16:07:39 GMT -5
I know some of you who are gonna read this have never seen this show, so I am including a link to the show's webpage describing the seven's backgrounds with pictures of each of them. I suggest that if you don't know the show to take a quick look. www.mgm.com/mag7/actors.html
Disclaimer: I do not own the Magnificent Seven Television series. MGM studios owns it, and I am just borrowing the characters for a short time and am receiving no monetary gain by doing so.
Author’s Note: One of my favorite characters on this show is one who is really underdeveloped as far as I’m concerned, so I am writing a little fic centered around Ezra Standish and his relationship with the other members of the seven. Rated T for violence and language. Ezra/OC.
Chapter 1
Pushing Away[/center]
“Well, Gentlemen. I do believe that will be all for me this fine evening,” the ever- smiling gambler said raking a pile of chips to his side of the table.
“Ezra, one of these days, one of us is gonna beat ya at cards,” Vin Tanner said leaning back in his chair and taking another swallow of his whiskey.
Ezra looked up to Vin and it was almost impossible for him to hide the smirk he wore. “That, Mr. Tanner, is highly unlikely.”
“I still say he cheats,” Buck Wilmington said shoving his chair back in exasperation. He had thought to use his winnings in the poker game to buy Miss Becky something nice for when he visited her the next day. Becky was the newest girl he had taken a shine to, and he believed it was always nice to lay the presents on thick early in a relationship.
“Now, Mr. Wilmington. You hurt my feelings,” Ezra said feigning hurt indignation. No one could tell that maybe his statement might be a little truer than any of them could imagine. “You ought to know by now that I don’t have to resort to cheating to pick the pockets of an overly inebriated man such as yourself.”
The youngest man sitting at the table broke out in uncontrollable laughter. J.D. Dunne may have been just a greenhorn kid but he had gotten to know a lot about the men he worked with in Four Corners. And he knew exactly how Buck would take an insult like that.
“Inebriated? I’ll have you know that I have had less than you to drink tonight, conman,” Buck said standing and nearly knocking over the table they were sitting at. It was plain to see that he was completely off balance. Yet again Ezra’s face showed no signs as to his feelings concerning his former occupation as a conman.
Ezra steadied the table and looked straight into the eyes of the man who glowered down at him. “That may be true, Mr. Wilmington, but some of us have better luck with controlling our own reactions while drinking. You on the other hand are easier to read than a book when you partake of a little too much of this establishment’s fine libations. May I suggest that the next time you sit down to a game of chance that you stick to coffee or maybe sarsaparilla?”
Buck had leaned forward with his hands on the table, and everyone present could see as his hands curled into fists as he listened to Ezra’s unwanted advice.
“Buck, I think you and I need to go relieve Chris at the jail. He’s watched Foster long enough,” J.D. suggested seeing the murderous look in his friends eyes. He could tell that Ezra was taking this baiting way too far. But then Ezra had been doing that for a couple of weeks now. No one was sure why, but it was almost as if he wanted one of them to attack him. He had already had run-ins with Nathan, Josiah, Chris and even J.D. himself had been tempted to slap the man just a few days before after some uncalled for statements were made about J.D.’s apparent inability to woo the opposite s*x.
“Yes, why don’t you run along and take over for our fearless leader. But just as a piece of advice J.D. You might not want to give Mr. Wilmington here a pistol. In his state he might mistake you for someone else and accidentally shoot you,” He had lowered his eyes as if the conversation was beginning to bore him and as he made this statement he never even looked up from the money he was counting.
This was the last straw for Buck. His fist sailed through the air connecting with Ezra’s jaw knocking him completely off his chair and to the floor scattering money in every direction.
Everyone half expected Ezra to come up swinging. He had never shied from a fistfight before, but instead he just looked up at his attacker as he held his aching jaw. “Well, Mr. Wilmington, I certainly hope that made you feel better,” was his only reply.
J.D. had stepped forward and was holding Buck back as Vin just sat calmly by watching the interesting skeptical. He had to admit that Ezra had it coming. He was the only person that Ezra hadn’t managed to upset that week, and he felt his time would soon be coming.
Buck finally pushed J.D. back and had shoved the table aside so he was standing directly over Ezra. “Don’t think you are getting out of this that easy, you yellow-bellied piece of …”
“I have no intention of fighting you, Sir,” Ezra said still seated on the floor. “We all have our strong points, Mr. Wilmington. Mine is gambling. Yours is fighting and carousing with loose women. I am not fool enough to willingly have a fist fight with you.”
Buck reached down and grabbed Ezra by the lapels pulling him to his feet. The statement about loose women was more than he could take. He had always respected every woman he knew no matter who or what they were. Hell, his own mother had been a whore and he had been raised by whores. They were just normal people like everyone else as far as he was concerned and he showed them the respect that they deserved. And the fact that Ezra was sitting there sneering at any woman was just too much for him. His fist landed into the side of Ezra’s face several times before Vin finally decided it was enough and helped J.D. pull him away but not before Buck landed a sound kick to Ezra’s side.
Something had made Vin curious though. Ezra had never once struck back. He had barely raised his own arms to block the blows he was receiving. Vin knew that Ezra was not afraid to fight. They had fought along side each other on many occasions. He had never before seen Ezra willingly take a beating. As they pushed Buck out the door Vin called out to Ezra. “You better have Nathan look you over.” He could see that Ezra was holding his ribs on his left side protectively and he had a busted lip and a long cut above his eyebrow that was bleeding.
After they had left Ezra turned to the downed table and saw his winnings scattered across the floor. He had thought about picking them up but instead grabbed a couple of coins and bought a bottle of whiskey and headed to his own room in the saloon without even bothering with the rest of his winnings. He thought about Vin’s advice to have Nathan check him out. “Thanks, but no thanks,” he said to the empty hall outside of his room. He had all that he needed in the bottle tucked under his arm. The next day was going to be a long hard day, and he would need the courage he knew was hiding somewhere in that bottle.
“What do you mean he and Ezra were fighting?” Chris Larabee asked seeing the bloody mess on Buck’s right fist.
“Well actually Ezra was standing there while Buck beat the crap out of him,” Vin said leaning against the door.
Buck looked up to Vin with anger showing on his face. “Don’t tell me you are feeling sorry for that sorry B*st*rd?” he asked. “He needs to learn to keep his opinions to himself.”
“I never said Ezra didn’t deserve it. I just said that he didn’t fight back,” Vin said casually. “But now that I think about it, if that had been me or Chris saying that stuff, would you have reacted the same way?”
Buck began to argue but J.D. cut him off. “Buck, he’s got a point. I’ve said those same things to you many times and you never pounded me for it.”
Buck looked slightly confused. His mind was still foggy but the exertion of the fight had cleared it slightly. “It’s not what he said exactly, but more how he said it.”
Chris looked from Buck to Vin and back again. He could see that they weren’t going to get anywhere that night when it came to settling the differences of the group. “Walk me back to the saloon, Vin,” he said heading for the door. Vin seemed the most clear minded those days when it came to Ezra and he wanted an objective opinion on their friends actions. When they were on the street alone he spoke again. “What is going on, Vin. Are we falling apart?”
“Not exactly falling apart, Chris. Everyone is doing fine with everyone else, except for Ezra. He’s starting arguments left and right, and I’m not sure why,” Vin explained.
“You say he didn’t even try to defend himself tonight?” Chris asked frowning.
“Nope. Barely even raised his arm to block the blows. It’s almost as if he wanted to be beaten. It makes no sense to me at all,” Vin answered shaking his head.
“Is he turning coward on us again?” Chris asked remembering their first job together as a team. Ezra had ran out on them when they needed him the most, but he had eventually come back to help them in the end. But it had cost the lives of many of the Seminole Indian villagers that they were trying to protect. Chris had never really trusted Ezra since then and Ezra new it.
“I don’t think so, Chris. I’ve seen him in plenty of fistfights. He’s not the worlds best, but he can usually hold his own,” Vin answered. “He just didn’t want to this time.”
“This is definitely the last thing we needed with what we have to do tomorrow.” Chris sighed in exasperation. They were all supposed to take the prisoner, Ely Foster, to Red Rock where he would stand trial for murder. Ely’s brother was a very powerful cattleman, who always had several hired guns on the payroll. There was a very real chance that they would try to free him on the road to Red Rock. He could not afford to leave any of the seven peacekeepers behind. He would need every gun he had.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Magnificent Seven Television series. MGM studios owns it, and I am just borrowing the characters for a short time and am receiving no monetary gain by doing so.
Author’s Note: One of my favorite characters on this show is one who is really underdeveloped as far as I’m concerned, so I am writing a little fic centered around Ezra Standish and his relationship with the other members of the seven. Rated T for violence and language. Ezra/OC.
Ezra’s Last Ride
Chapter 1
Pushing Away[/center]
“Well, Gentlemen. I do believe that will be all for me this fine evening,” the ever- smiling gambler said raking a pile of chips to his side of the table.
“Ezra, one of these days, one of us is gonna beat ya at cards,” Vin Tanner said leaning back in his chair and taking another swallow of his whiskey.
Ezra looked up to Vin and it was almost impossible for him to hide the smirk he wore. “That, Mr. Tanner, is highly unlikely.”
“I still say he cheats,” Buck Wilmington said shoving his chair back in exasperation. He had thought to use his winnings in the poker game to buy Miss Becky something nice for when he visited her the next day. Becky was the newest girl he had taken a shine to, and he believed it was always nice to lay the presents on thick early in a relationship.
“Now, Mr. Wilmington. You hurt my feelings,” Ezra said feigning hurt indignation. No one could tell that maybe his statement might be a little truer than any of them could imagine. “You ought to know by now that I don’t have to resort to cheating to pick the pockets of an overly inebriated man such as yourself.”
The youngest man sitting at the table broke out in uncontrollable laughter. J.D. Dunne may have been just a greenhorn kid but he had gotten to know a lot about the men he worked with in Four Corners. And he knew exactly how Buck would take an insult like that.
“Inebriated? I’ll have you know that I have had less than you to drink tonight, conman,” Buck said standing and nearly knocking over the table they were sitting at. It was plain to see that he was completely off balance. Yet again Ezra’s face showed no signs as to his feelings concerning his former occupation as a conman.
Ezra steadied the table and looked straight into the eyes of the man who glowered down at him. “That may be true, Mr. Wilmington, but some of us have better luck with controlling our own reactions while drinking. You on the other hand are easier to read than a book when you partake of a little too much of this establishment’s fine libations. May I suggest that the next time you sit down to a game of chance that you stick to coffee or maybe sarsaparilla?”
Buck had leaned forward with his hands on the table, and everyone present could see as his hands curled into fists as he listened to Ezra’s unwanted advice.
“Buck, I think you and I need to go relieve Chris at the jail. He’s watched Foster long enough,” J.D. suggested seeing the murderous look in his friends eyes. He could tell that Ezra was taking this baiting way too far. But then Ezra had been doing that for a couple of weeks now. No one was sure why, but it was almost as if he wanted one of them to attack him. He had already had run-ins with Nathan, Josiah, Chris and even J.D. himself had been tempted to slap the man just a few days before after some uncalled for statements were made about J.D.’s apparent inability to woo the opposite s*x.
“Yes, why don’t you run along and take over for our fearless leader. But just as a piece of advice J.D. You might not want to give Mr. Wilmington here a pistol. In his state he might mistake you for someone else and accidentally shoot you,” He had lowered his eyes as if the conversation was beginning to bore him and as he made this statement he never even looked up from the money he was counting.
This was the last straw for Buck. His fist sailed through the air connecting with Ezra’s jaw knocking him completely off his chair and to the floor scattering money in every direction.
Everyone half expected Ezra to come up swinging. He had never shied from a fistfight before, but instead he just looked up at his attacker as he held his aching jaw. “Well, Mr. Wilmington, I certainly hope that made you feel better,” was his only reply.
J.D. had stepped forward and was holding Buck back as Vin just sat calmly by watching the interesting skeptical. He had to admit that Ezra had it coming. He was the only person that Ezra hadn’t managed to upset that week, and he felt his time would soon be coming.
Buck finally pushed J.D. back and had shoved the table aside so he was standing directly over Ezra. “Don’t think you are getting out of this that easy, you yellow-bellied piece of …”
“I have no intention of fighting you, Sir,” Ezra said still seated on the floor. “We all have our strong points, Mr. Wilmington. Mine is gambling. Yours is fighting and carousing with loose women. I am not fool enough to willingly have a fist fight with you.”
Buck reached down and grabbed Ezra by the lapels pulling him to his feet. The statement about loose women was more than he could take. He had always respected every woman he knew no matter who or what they were. Hell, his own mother had been a whore and he had been raised by whores. They were just normal people like everyone else as far as he was concerned and he showed them the respect that they deserved. And the fact that Ezra was sitting there sneering at any woman was just too much for him. His fist landed into the side of Ezra’s face several times before Vin finally decided it was enough and helped J.D. pull him away but not before Buck landed a sound kick to Ezra’s side.
Something had made Vin curious though. Ezra had never once struck back. He had barely raised his own arms to block the blows he was receiving. Vin knew that Ezra was not afraid to fight. They had fought along side each other on many occasions. He had never before seen Ezra willingly take a beating. As they pushed Buck out the door Vin called out to Ezra. “You better have Nathan look you over.” He could see that Ezra was holding his ribs on his left side protectively and he had a busted lip and a long cut above his eyebrow that was bleeding.
After they had left Ezra turned to the downed table and saw his winnings scattered across the floor. He had thought about picking them up but instead grabbed a couple of coins and bought a bottle of whiskey and headed to his own room in the saloon without even bothering with the rest of his winnings. He thought about Vin’s advice to have Nathan check him out. “Thanks, but no thanks,” he said to the empty hall outside of his room. He had all that he needed in the bottle tucked under his arm. The next day was going to be a long hard day, and he would need the courage he knew was hiding somewhere in that bottle.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“What do you mean he and Ezra were fighting?” Chris Larabee asked seeing the bloody mess on Buck’s right fist.
“Well actually Ezra was standing there while Buck beat the crap out of him,” Vin said leaning against the door.
Buck looked up to Vin with anger showing on his face. “Don’t tell me you are feeling sorry for that sorry B*st*rd?” he asked. “He needs to learn to keep his opinions to himself.”
“I never said Ezra didn’t deserve it. I just said that he didn’t fight back,” Vin said casually. “But now that I think about it, if that had been me or Chris saying that stuff, would you have reacted the same way?”
Buck began to argue but J.D. cut him off. “Buck, he’s got a point. I’ve said those same things to you many times and you never pounded me for it.”
Buck looked slightly confused. His mind was still foggy but the exertion of the fight had cleared it slightly. “It’s not what he said exactly, but more how he said it.”
Chris looked from Buck to Vin and back again. He could see that they weren’t going to get anywhere that night when it came to settling the differences of the group. “Walk me back to the saloon, Vin,” he said heading for the door. Vin seemed the most clear minded those days when it came to Ezra and he wanted an objective opinion on their friends actions. When they were on the street alone he spoke again. “What is going on, Vin. Are we falling apart?”
“Not exactly falling apart, Chris. Everyone is doing fine with everyone else, except for Ezra. He’s starting arguments left and right, and I’m not sure why,” Vin explained.
“You say he didn’t even try to defend himself tonight?” Chris asked frowning.
“Nope. Barely even raised his arm to block the blows. It’s almost as if he wanted to be beaten. It makes no sense to me at all,” Vin answered shaking his head.
“Is he turning coward on us again?” Chris asked remembering their first job together as a team. Ezra had ran out on them when they needed him the most, but he had eventually come back to help them in the end. But it had cost the lives of many of the Seminole Indian villagers that they were trying to protect. Chris had never really trusted Ezra since then and Ezra new it.
“I don’t think so, Chris. I’ve seen him in plenty of fistfights. He’s not the worlds best, but he can usually hold his own,” Vin answered. “He just didn’t want to this time.”
“This is definitely the last thing we needed with what we have to do tomorrow.” Chris sighed in exasperation. They were all supposed to take the prisoner, Ely Foster, to Red Rock where he would stand trial for murder. Ely’s brother was a very powerful cattleman, who always had several hired guns on the payroll. There was a very real chance that they would try to free him on the road to Red Rock. He could not afford to leave any of the seven peacekeepers behind. He would need every gun he had.