Back in the gang days a raid goes wrong and Dan learns his purpose.

Hidden Stars isn't posted in chronological order, some stories take place before Redcliff's founding and Dan's sheriff-hood and others take place nearly a decade after. This story takes place a good 10-15 years before Gone By Morning back when Dan, Kit, Lupe and Eddie were just a group of young outlaw brothers in a gang led by their father figure, Obadiah Roach. They're still a little green and learning the ropes but forging their brotherhood that follows the four of them for life.

Ages in this are approximately: Dan: 16, Eddie: 16, Kit: 18. Lupe: 20, Roach: Late 40s

A visual for all 5 can be seen in Lupe's Ghost Story: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/51455080/

CW: Old west style gun violence

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story time

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It was sweltering hot under the broad-leafed lettuce plants as Dan pressed himself flat to the damp earth and tried to steady his breathing. From nearby he could hear the shouting of the farmhands as they ran down the rows. Some on foot, others on quailback, all carrying weapons and looking for them.

He could hear his mouse brother, Kit, breathing through his nose next to him in quiet wheezes as blood matted from his nostrils to his muzzle but didn’t dry in the muggy heat beneath the plants. Kit had taken several big hits before Dan had been able to reach him in the barn and pull him out of the fray.

They had been here to raid the farm for money and whatever else they could find while the owners, the wealthy mouse family Blowden, had been overseeing the shipping of their produce at the train station.
The two of them hadn’t counted on the farm’s success meaning that they had spent some of their fortune on a large security team. He and Kit had been sent to check out the pickling barn while Lupe and Eddie kept watch at the edge of the field and Roach went to check out the house.
Roach hadn’t brought Vernon, the largest member of the gang, a foul-tempered rat that liked breaking bones and painting the walls with the insides of all that got in his way. In Roach’s words, this was a simple and subtle raid that left Vernon’s talents wanting.

Dan didn’t like Vernon one bit but he hated to admit that right now, he actually did want his talents put to use.
He held his breath as a pair of security guards raced past their lettuce on quailback, shouting at the edge of the field to see if the perimeter guards had seen where they went.

“No one’s left the property, they’re hidin’ here still! Check under the plants! Blast them if you have to!”

“But the crops…” A younger voice said uncertainly.

“I wasn’t hired as no farmer, I was hired to kill the low-lifes that break in. If that means blasting some salad leaves then that’s what I’ll do!” snarled an older, gruffer voice.

Dan risked peeking out from under the broad leaves, flattening his face into the rich, damp soil that clung to his fur and made him feel even hotter than the heat and the muggy plants already did. He crushed the soil in his hands as he peered down the row. He could see four guards a short distance away at the end of the field. He recognized the loud, gruff-voiced rat buck from the pickling barn, and with some satisfaction saw that his mouth was still streaming blood over his pale fur from where Dan’s fist had knocked out a tooth. He had pushed over a shelf a pickling jars on him too; the tremendous crashing sound of falling wood, shattering glass and rat bellows had alerted the rest of the farm. Then things had truly gone sideways.

Dan and Kit had run from the barn to make it back to the lettuce field to use as cover as they made their escape. Lupe and Eddie were waiting with their mounts. They had loaded up and took off halfway across the field before Dan realized Roach was still in the house. He had swung his quail around to ride back into the fray but Kit had turned and rode in front of him to bar his path, telling him to leave it, and that Roach could find a way out. They were supposed to leave! Dan’s quail had crashed into Kit’s quail broadside and thrown both of them from the saddle and crashing into the towering lettuce plants and soft dirt.

Dan had recovered first, he heard the gunshots and yelling of the security team and knew if they remounted at this range their heads would be perfect targets. He had instead, slapped the wings of both birds to send them racing out of the field through the larger plants and grabbed Kit, muscled through the lettuce to another row and dove under their current lettuce. The pursuers had gone after the empty-saddled birds rustling and running off through the thick-leafed rows and he and Kit had been sweating it out in their leafy shelter for nearly a quarter of an hour since.

Dan kept his eye on the guards as they fanned out and felt Kit’s hand on his leg. He angled an ear back to catch his whisper.

“How many?”

Dan held up four fingers slowly. He made his way back under the plant, taking pains not to touch any leaves and cause a rustle.

“Lupe? Eddie?” Dan mouthed to Kit, who shrugged and pressed a finger to his bloody muzzle hearing the footsteps of approaching quail.

“We’ll get you! You bastards!” Snarled the pale rat, who must have been in charge of security. “The field is surrounded!”

Kit shut his eyes with an exasperated frown then shot Dan a frustrated look. Dan pretended not to see it. Although it was hard to tell with the two of them being a rat and mouse, Kit was older. Dan should have followed his older brother’s lead to get out while they had the chance. Now they were trapped here, Roach was probably holed up inside the house still, and who knew what had become of Eddie and Lupe. Dan hoped they had the sense to run and regroup. He only hoped they didn’t bring back Vernon from camp and turn the lettuce fields into a bloodbath.

Kit and Dan tried to lay as still as they could hearing the calls from the security team, the smash and crack of long poles thwacking against the huge lettuce leaves and the occasional call from a quail. He stiffened when he heard a call in the next row over where they had crashed.

“I found some boot prints! They’re close!” shouted the voice. Dan’s eyes darted to Kit. Kit was slowly moving into a crouch and had a hand on his pistol. Dan sighed silently, it was going to be a bloodbath after all. He could hear the others coming, they were gathering in the other row. It would only take seconds to follow the clear boot tracks in the soft soil right to them. Dan reached down to grip his gun when there was a sudden explosion from the other side of the field in the direction of the farmhouse.

The quail mounts shrieked and took off, throwing riders and sending up a commotion among the search team. In the panic, Kit yanked at Dan’s vest and they both rolled out from under the plant into the next row and scrambled to run out of the field.
“Hey!” A stout ground squirrel at the end of the row spotted them and fumbled to draw his side arm but Dan raced ahead of Kit and tackled the large rodent flat on his back.

“Come on!” Kit rushed past him and out into the open road that rimmed the field. “We’ve gotta go!”

Dan clubbed the ground squirrel across the temple with the butt of their own pistol and they crumpled into an unconscious heap.

“What about Roach?” Dan panted, getting to his feet and followed Kit out and across the road into the ditch on the other side.

“That blast was him.” Kit breathed raggedly as he ran, fresh blood streaming from his muzzle. “I’m sure of it! We gotta put some distance between us and…” Kit skidded to a halt and Dan had to sweep the mouse off his feet and stumble in a semi circle to keep from flattening him. The top of the ditch was suddenly lined with four security rodents on quailback, the pale rat with the bleeding mouth was at the end with a rifle drawn.

“One more step and you’ll both die in this ditch like the scum you are.”

Dan looked at Kit then set him down and kept his hands visible. Beside him Kit had gone stone still, glaring at the pale rat above. Dan could only hope he was thinking of a plan, when suddenly there was the sound of a gunshot and a red mist sprayed from the pale rat’s shoulder and set him toppling off his bird with a yell. The startled bobwhite ran into the ditch and Dan seized the reins, nearly letting the bird crash into him.

The security team above wheeled about as a second and third shot rang out. One from the other side of the ditch and one from behind them. Another security guard, a mouse, was felled from his quail and crashed lifelessly into the ditch. Dan already had a foot in the stirrup and had swung a leg over the saddle. He wheeled the startled bird in place until he could grab Kit. He threw the smaller rodent across his lap and charged the bird over the steep lip of the ditch and they made a mad dash through the grass and over the side of the hill.

Kit clung to Dan’s leg, drawing his gun to shoot a warning behind them. Dan steered the quail through the brush, trying to lose their pursuers.

“I think we’re in the clear!” Kit called to Dan.

“Thank goodness!” Dan sighed out then a shot rang out and Dan fell from the saddle, taking Kit with him as they crashed into the hard clay and pebble strewn earth.

“Dan!” Kit winced, pushing himself upright as Dan gasped and tried to push himself upright. A crimson stripe was oozing from under his vest just above his hip.

“Shit…” Kit hissed and scrambled over on his hands and knees.

“It went through.” Dan had a hand clapped against his front and struggled to sit up. From behind him came the sounds of shouting, more shots and running quail. “Get out of here!” he told Kit.

“I’m not leaving you!” Kit snapped and tried to get under his rat brother’s arm and help haul him up but Dan yelped and pushed him back.

“I can’t run.” Dan panted. “But you can! No sense in us both getting caught! Go!”

“No.” Kit said firmly and drew both his pistols, standing in front of Dan. There was a flurry of movement through the brush in front of them and Kit raised both guns to fire but cracked a grin instead as the grizzled white-blazed face of Roach tore through the grass on quailback in front of them.

“The hell you boys lyin’ around for? We gotta go!”

“Dan’s shot.” Kit gestured worriedly. There was another rustle from the other side of Roach and Lupe rode out on his sleek black button quail followed close behind by Eddie on his masked bobwhite.

“Well mount up! Lupe and I can hold them off and buy some time.” Roach swung a leg and hopped off the quail and gripped Dan’s hand, pulling him upright. “Get outta sight ‘til I come for you!”

Dan winced and struggled to stand, he was still twice Roach’s height even when he was bent over from the pain. Roach helped him sling himself across the saddle while Kit doubled up with Eddie.

“Awe man, I wanted to stay and shoot some more!” Eddie scowled. Kit cuffed his hat.

“Don’t be stupid! Ride!”

Dan clung awkwardly to the quail from his sideways position as they rode out of the brush. Behind them he kept hearing gunshots and he wanted to turn and go back for Roach and Lupe at every sound. His wound bled freely from under his hand and the pain made him want to scream as the quail jostled him around. He wouldn’t have a chance in a fight now. He kept in sight of Eddie and Kit on the other quail but rode a ways off not to leave a clear trail through the grass. They rode until they reached a rocky hideout away from camp to rest and regroup.

“One of us should ride back and help!” Eddie was insisting. He was sixteen, the same age as Dan, but wild and headstrong, his unkempt curly fur stuck out in ginger tufts on his cheeks and beneath his hat. He spun his two shining revolvers on his fingers to show off.

“Roach said to lie low.” Kit growled at Eddie. “So sit down and clam up!” Eddie stuck his tongue out at the back of Kit’s head as Kit walked over to where Dan had dismounted and sat down on the ground with his back against the boulder. They were in a sheltered little dugout out of the sun and slightly below ground level to avoid prying eyes.
“How’s it look?” Kit gestured to Dan’s bloody side.

“Hurts.” Dan said flatly, pinning his ears and withdrawing a red hand from his front. “But I’ll live.” he added almost guiltily.

Kit inspected and wound and made a face, but didn’t counter Dan’s statement. He dug around Roach’s saddlebag and found an old neckerchief. It wasn’t long enough to wrap around him but it would staunch the blood better than Dan’s sieve-like fingers.

“I’m sorry for back there.” Dan rubbed the grime and sweat from his brow with the back of his free hand. “I just didn’t want to leave Roach behind.”

“Roach is perfectly capable of handling himself.” Kit said sternly, but seeing that Dan was avoiding his eyes his tone softened. “I wasn’t going to let you get killed for being soft-hearted.” he tried to counter. “Look, you haven’t been here that long. When things go sideways, our job is to make ourselves scarce so Roach doesn’t have to get us out of binds. If he can rely on us to trust that he’ll make it out, we’ll be grand. If something does happen to us, he’ll come get us, like at the ditch.”

“Yeah…” Dan muttered and rested his head back against the stone. He had only been with the gang for a year and a half. He hadn’t gone on many raids, but he knew his job was to make sure everyone got out. Everyone had included Roach, or so he thought. Even now, he just wanted to go back and get Roach and Lupe, but that was out of the question.

“Just rest up.” Kit pulled a package of cigarettes from his vest that he had swiped from the pickling barn and struck a match.”

“Let me get one of those.” Dan asked.

“You don’t smoke.” Kit raised a brow.

“Trying to start.” Dan said pointedly and held out a hand crusted with drying blood.

Kit sighed and lit a second off the end of his own and passed it to Dan. The three bucks settled in to wait for Roach and Lupe’s return.

Roach and Lupe arrive separately just after dusk. Lupe arrived first, slinking into the hideout like a shadow and berating Eddie immediately for not keeping better watch.

“It’s not my fault yer great shaggy black mass hard to see in the dark!” Eddie huffed as Lupe pushed past him roughly and found a spot to sit down.

“Are you hurt?” Dan asked, sitting straighter and wincing from the twinge in his side.

Lupe waved him off with a hand. Of the four of them, Lupe was the oldest at twenty; but being a relatively new addition to the gang, he still tended to default to Kit in terms of instructions and the passing of information.

“Nothing a night’s sleep won’t cure.” Lupe said vaguely and nodded to Kit. “Roach’ll be along. He’s fine, or least he was when I left him.” he turned narrowed eyes back to Dan. “He’s not pleased with you.”

Dan felt his guts clench and glanced at Kit but Kit was already shaking his head.

“None of that right now, things didn’t go according to plan, Dan’s new at this too. We’re all alive. That’s what counts.” Kit sat down across from Dan and lit another cigarette.

Dan; already feeling woozy from his wound, sick from his first cigarette and now flooded with dread from Lupe’s words, did not ask for a second. He wanted to ask Lupe a million questions but the dark-furred buck had already leaned back against the rock and pushed his hat down past his eyes.

They all waited in silence until Roach arrived ten minutes later. He gave a low whistle and Kit responded the fastest, getting to his feet and hurting out from under the rock. The sky was dark with a slow-dying sunset still glowing faintly in the west.
Roach looked exhausted. A hastily tied bandana wrapped a graze on his left forearm and the knees of his trousers were shredded. In the low light they could just barely tell how dirty and dusty he was. Clearly he had gotten into a scrape but he looked triumphant enough.

“How’s it, boss man?” Eddie cracked a wide grin as he exited from under the rock and pranced up to the two of them. “Didja kill them all?”

“Felt like it.” Roach grunted, swinging down from the saddle of the stolen bird he was riding. He cracked his back and twitched his mustache. “Didn’t kill no one I didn’t need to.” he nodded to Eddie.

“A rule you should follow.” Lupe materialized in the dark behind Eddie and gave his shoulder a jostle.

“Where’s Dan?” Roach looked around.

“He’s inside.” Kit said, then added hastily. “He’ll heal up just fine. It was just a bad accident.”

“Lupe told me everything.” Roach grunted and walked past them brusquely.

Kit shot Lupe a look that he didn’t see but made Eddie’s grin slip away instantly. The three bucks stared at the rocky hideout but decided they liked their chances better outside, and did not re-enter.

Dan felt like he was going to throw up when he saw Roach’s silhouette in the near darkness enter the cave. He didn’t know what to expect from Roach, his father figure, his boss. Had he messed up badly enough to be turned out of the gang? He hadn’t been with them long. Maybe Roach would just leave him under this rock to die. He shook his head and winced hearing the strike and hiss of a match as Roach lit a lantern and the small overhang blazed with light.
“Can’t keep the light going long, might have law on our tails.” Roach grunted as he made his way over and set the lantern down on the ground. “Go on, show me where you got yerself shot.” he said gruffly.

Dan could feel his heart pounding and knew he probably looked every bit as scared as he felt as he peeled away the blood-stiffened rag and the wound oozed sluggishly. Roach examined it and gave a snort through his nose.

“At least you had the sense to get shot through.” he said, as if Dan had had a say in where the bullet went. “Saves the trouble of digging around your guts for the damn thing. Hold this.” he gave Dan the lantern and he took it with a shaking hand. Roach reached into his pack and pulled out a cloth roll, setting it down he picked up a shining needle and a spool of thread. He wetted the end of the stiff thread and pierced the eye of the needle, tying it off. “This ain’t gonna feel good, let it be a reminder not to get in the path of a bullet in the future, eh?” He pushed the needle into Dan’s skin before he could possibly respond and Dan bit back a grunt of pain, the hand holding the lantern clenched and bent the wire handle.

“Quit your fussin’.” Roach huffed. “You want to bleed out?” he waited for an answer then cleared his throat roughly.

“No, sir.” Dan didn’t trust himself to speak louder, he wanted to cry, the pain was so sharp. He didn’t dare in front of Roach. He was already embarrassed enough from causing the whole fiasco of a day. He also knew this was Roach being nice. Roach was patching him up to help him. He didn’t know what to expect for punishment. He clenched his jaw as Roach closed up the wounds and tore both of Dan’s long sleeves off and flipped them inside out, he tied them together and cinched the makeshift bandage tight around his waist.

“Lupe says you broke rank out there.” Roach said gravely as he rolled the sewing tools up in the cloth one more and raised his sever eyes to Dan’s. “Why?”

Dan swallowed and tried to look away, maintaining eye contact with Roach was nearly impossible. But he knew Roach insisted upon it to check for lies. He fought the urge to stare at the ground and stared hard at the space between Roach’s blazing eyes instead
.
“I wanted to get you out of there.” he said weakly, fighting the burning in his throat. He couldn’t show anymore weakness to Roach today, he was already on the thinnest of ice and he could feel it cracking all around him with every tremble in his words. “I messed up in the barn, I got those hired guns turned onto us. You were alone back at the house I thought… I thought if we just left you would die.” Dan flattened his ears and blinked hard. “I didn’t want to be the reason you died.”

Roach listened; his older, grizzled face gave nothing away like the seasoned poker player he was.

“Right then.” Roach said. “Lupe said you ran back to get me and nearly got you and Kit caught. That was a fool move. He also said you got Kit out of there. That’s somethin’ I can appreciate.” Roach folded his arms. “So let's say this slow and get this carved into your brain for the next time. Those boys out there?” Roach spoke low and jerked his head towards the entrance of the hideout where Kit, Lupe and Eddie were waiting outside. “They are your responsibility. Whatever happens to me, you get them out. Whatever it takes.” he added in a severe growl. “Don’t waste lives doing a foolish thing like running into a fox den to rescue me when things turn sour. You get them and get out. Otherwise, I got no use for you. If you’re gonna make mistakes and get us injured trying to bail you out, then I got no use for you. Now, can you do your task or not?”

Dan nodded stiffly then cleared his throat. “Yes, Roach.” he rasped.

“Good.” Roach nodded curtly. “I’d hate to toss you out, son. I know we all make mistakes, but in our line of work we can’t afford to make mistakes on the job. Keep the heroics in books and fairy tales. Out here, the goal is survival. Don’t let me catch you breaking rank again.”

“I won’t.” Dan promised.

“Good.” Roach’s pose relaxed and he walked over and patted his shoulder. “I’m glad you’re alright, son. Take a few days when we get back to camp to heal up. Then we’ll try a raid somewhere else.”

“Yeah, ok.” Dan nodded, relief creeping back into his bones the nicer Roach’s tone settled.

“What are you boys standin’ around out there for?” Roach called over his shoulder. “Get in here, quiet bein’ owl bait.” he reached into his saddle bag as they all entered the cave once more. He started handing out shares of the money and goods he had managed to pillage from the house, even Dan got a cut. He didn‘t bother counting it, he was sure Roach might have pulled a cut from his earnings and he didn’t want to get into it with his brothers.

“Get comfortable, lights out soon. No fires either, can’t be a beacon in the dark tonight. Eat your trail cakes and we’ll have something hot back at the camp tomorrow morning. Lupe, take the first watch.” Roach blew out the lantern as they all curled up on the floor, luckily it was a summer night and they didn’t have to worry about the cold.

Dan rested on his back, staring at the ceiling. Eddie was on one side of him, snoring already. On his other side, he could tell that Kit was awake too.

“You two have a talk?” Kit asked.

“Mmhm.” Dan sighed out long and slow.

“Everything gonna be alright?” Kit asked.

“Yeah, of course.” Dan promised. He heard Kit shift and settle, finally his breathing slowed and he too was asleep.

Dan listened to the sound of Roach and his brothers all around him and replayed Roach’s words in his head. His brothers were his responsibility, whatever it took to keep them safe, that’s what he would do. The dull ache in his newly stitched side throbbed to his heartbeat. Finally, after an hour of fitfully replaying the day of everything he could have done differently in his head, he closed his eyes and let sleep take him.