50 lines: Ezra Standish (OW)
50 sentences about Ezra, taken from one of the 1fandom challenges.
I'll write a drabble to expand on any one of these sentences for the first five requests :)
01. Walk
There had been that one time when all his luck had deserted him, and even his horse was forfeit.
02. Beauty
He appreciated women and finely tailored clothes, of course, but it was gold which brought the answering glint in Ezra's smile.
03. Catch
The six men had offered him company, respect and friendship, but Ezra remained wary - nothing was ever offered without a price.
04. Speak
Ezra was fluent in French, Latin, Spanish and German; he could flawlessly mimic a New York inflection or a Texan drawl, but when he was overly tired, or drunk, or ill, he found it difficult not to return to his native Southern accent.
05. Lack
"It ain't that he don't have morals," Vin said slowly, "just that Ezra sees things mighty different to you and me."
06. Mine
At the time, he had traded the men's trust, their respect and his good name for just the possibility of finding gold - and he had thought it was a deal well made.
07. Laugh
If there was anything funnier than an illiterate bounty hunter trying to write poetry, it was perhaps this: a professional conman and gambler losing hand after hand at poker until even the shirt off his back was gone, while his friends and neighbours looked on with amiable jeers.
08. While
On a winter morning long ago: "Don't go away, Ma," begged Vin Tanner, aged five, and "Don't go away, Mother," whispered Ezra Standish, aged eight, and "Remember that you're a Tanner," Margaret Tanner said softly, "and that I will always love you, no matter where I may go," and "Why, you really are the most exasperating child," Maude Standish exclaimed, "and you know that I've paid Aunt Esther to take you in when Uncle Royal's welcome expires."
09. Youth
Who would have suspected that the subdued little boy, scarcely more than four years old, could pick a lock, divest a hotel room of its valuables, and slip away without the sleeping occupants even stirring in their beds?
10. Stay
Thirty days of impersonating a lawman was not too exorbitant a price to pay for the official pardon of his alleged misdemeanors, but Ezra swore to himself that he would vacate this unrefined, uneducated and uncivilized backwater excuse for a town before the clock had finished striking twelve on the thirtieth day.
11. Fill
Chris had poured him a glass of whiskey, but Ezra's hands shook so badly that he didn't trust himself to pick it up.
12. Distraction
"Not now, Ezra," Nathan said tersely as he bent over a patient, and Ezra tipped his hat and walked away, gritting his teeth against the pain.
13. Fear
It was the prospect of failure which made his hands sweat and his stomach clench.
14. Crash
Things would have been much better, Ezra thought dazedly, if the ground wasn't so inexorably hard.
15. Look
"People always see what they desire to see," Ezra said smoothly, "and I merely assist them with their desires."
16. Begin
Ezra never forgot the look of pride in his mother's eyes the first time he helped her with a con.
17. Second
"I agree with Mister Larabee," Ezra drawled, and grinned to see the shock on the other men's faces.
18. Violet
By nightfall, the bruises on his side had turned an alarming shade of purple.
19. Candy
It was common knowledge amongst the children and horses of Four Corners that Ezra carried peppermints in his pockets.
20. Nothing
"What can I say to make you believe me, Mother?" Ezra asked tiredly.
21. Familiar
The mistrust in their eyes didn't surprise him, in the end.
22. Show
"Ace of spades," Ezra said smugly, turning over his final card, "and that's a straight flush, gentlemen."
23. Day
He preferred not to witness sunrise unless it was at the end of a successful night of poker.
24. Ask
"Ain't nobody ever taught you right from wrong?" demanded Nathan in disgust.
25. Think
"You gentlemen seem not to realise," Ezra said mildly, "that we are equipped with brains as well as guns."
26. Hair
"First thing he asked for was a razor," Buck said, laughing.
27. Home
Not a question of where, but whom.
28. Loud
It surprised JD that Ezra could sleep through apparently anything.
29. Travel
"Darlin', I can't imagine what you see in this dusty little town that San Francisco or New York or even New Orleans doesn't offer."
30. Damage
Ezra was distraught: his flesh would heal, but his jacket would not.
31. Strength
He'd never stayed so long in one place all his life, and there were days when his instinct to keep moving almost - almost - won out.
32. Together
They rode out two by two: Chris and Vin, Buck and JD, Nathan and Josiah, with Ezra bringing up the rear, and Ezra silently tipped his hat to the men who'd unknowingly taught him of friendship.
33. Push
"He don't so much shove people away as convince 'em somehow that they didn't want to be there to begin with," Vin mused.
34. Safe
Nathan was beside him, and Vin had taken first watch: it took awhile for Ezra to identify the unfamiliar sensation that he felt.
35. Private
"It would be more gentlemanly to steal than to open another's letter," Ezra said lightly, but there was something hard and angry in his eyes.
36. Light
It would not be prudent to let them know that with this deck, he could play just as well in the dark.
37. Big
Ezra's inordinate fondness for his extravagant feather bed stemmed from the fact that he had slept all too often on hard-packed blankets, cramped bedrolls and narrow sofas as a barely tolerated guest.
38. Want
"Some of Vin's coffee," Ezra managed to reply, "and an unending supply of whiskey, if you gentlemen would be so kind."
39. Law
It was a strange irony indeed - although Ezra suspected his mother would use stronger words if she ever learnt of his acceptance to Judge Travis's offer.
40. Canine
There was gold even in Ezra's smile.
41. Truth
"But you didn't," Chris said simply, "you came back to save Mary's life."
42. Smoke
A cigar was a useful thing: it facilitated conversation between strangers, it attested that he was a man of means, and, at a pinch, it could be used to light the fuse of a canon.
43. Order
"I call into session the trial of the defendant, Ezra Standish, with the Honorable Orrin Travis presiding."
44. Feel
Ezra sank slowly into the tub of steaming hot water, and sighed as the warmth began to relax muscles that he'd thought had long frozen stiff.
45. Finish
"You just don't do that to a man!" Ezra protested as Chris hauled him away from what would have been a very profitable hand of poker.
46. Through
He was soaked to the skin and thoroughly bedraggled, looking nothing at all like the polished Southern gentleman who'd left Four Corners only that morning.
47. Race
"We been following the trail of blood since yesterday," Nathan said soberly, "and there's only so much a man can lose."
48. Need
"You did good, Ezra," Chris said in his quiet, firm way, "thank you."
49. Splash
It was a good thing, Ezra thought frantically as he hit the water, that he'd learnt to swim as a boy.
50. Thrill
He could have handled the miscreants on his own - he was used to looking out for himself - but Ezra didn't think he'd ever forget how he felt when the six of them stepped silently to his side, guns drawn and murder on their faces.
I'll write a drabble to expand on any one of these sentences for the first five requests :)
01. Walk
There had been that one time when all his luck had deserted him, and even his horse was forfeit.
02. Beauty
He appreciated women and finely tailored clothes, of course, but it was gold which brought the answering glint in Ezra's smile.
03. Catch
The six men had offered him company, respect and friendship, but Ezra remained wary - nothing was ever offered without a price.
04. Speak
Ezra was fluent in French, Latin, Spanish and German; he could flawlessly mimic a New York inflection or a Texan drawl, but when he was overly tired, or drunk, or ill, he found it difficult not to return to his native Southern accent.
05. Lack
"It ain't that he don't have morals," Vin said slowly, "just that Ezra sees things mighty different to you and me."
06. Mine
At the time, he had traded the men's trust, their respect and his good name for just the possibility of finding gold - and he had thought it was a deal well made.
07. Laugh
If there was anything funnier than an illiterate bounty hunter trying to write poetry, it was perhaps this: a professional conman and gambler losing hand after hand at poker until even the shirt off his back was gone, while his friends and neighbours looked on with amiable jeers.
08. While
On a winter morning long ago: "Don't go away, Ma," begged Vin Tanner, aged five, and "Don't go away, Mother," whispered Ezra Standish, aged eight, and "Remember that you're a Tanner," Margaret Tanner said softly, "and that I will always love you, no matter where I may go," and "Why, you really are the most exasperating child," Maude Standish exclaimed, "and you know that I've paid Aunt Esther to take you in when Uncle Royal's welcome expires."
09. Youth
Who would have suspected that the subdued little boy, scarcely more than four years old, could pick a lock, divest a hotel room of its valuables, and slip away without the sleeping occupants even stirring in their beds?
10. Stay
Thirty days of impersonating a lawman was not too exorbitant a price to pay for the official pardon of his alleged misdemeanors, but Ezra swore to himself that he would vacate this unrefined, uneducated and uncivilized backwater excuse for a town before the clock had finished striking twelve on the thirtieth day.
11. Fill
Chris had poured him a glass of whiskey, but Ezra's hands shook so badly that he didn't trust himself to pick it up.
12. Distraction
"Not now, Ezra," Nathan said tersely as he bent over a patient, and Ezra tipped his hat and walked away, gritting his teeth against the pain.
13. Fear
It was the prospect of failure which made his hands sweat and his stomach clench.
14. Crash
Things would have been much better, Ezra thought dazedly, if the ground wasn't so inexorably hard.
15. Look
"People always see what they desire to see," Ezra said smoothly, "and I merely assist them with their desires."
16. Begin
Ezra never forgot the look of pride in his mother's eyes the first time he helped her with a con.
17. Second
"I agree with Mister Larabee," Ezra drawled, and grinned to see the shock on the other men's faces.
18. Violet
By nightfall, the bruises on his side had turned an alarming shade of purple.
19. Candy
It was common knowledge amongst the children and horses of Four Corners that Ezra carried peppermints in his pockets.
20. Nothing
"What can I say to make you believe me, Mother?" Ezra asked tiredly.
21. Familiar
The mistrust in their eyes didn't surprise him, in the end.
22. Show
"Ace of spades," Ezra said smugly, turning over his final card, "and that's a straight flush, gentlemen."
23. Day
He preferred not to witness sunrise unless it was at the end of a successful night of poker.
24. Ask
"Ain't nobody ever taught you right from wrong?" demanded Nathan in disgust.
25. Think
"You gentlemen seem not to realise," Ezra said mildly, "that we are equipped with brains as well as guns."
26. Hair
"First thing he asked for was a razor," Buck said, laughing.
27. Home
Not a question of where, but whom.
28. Loud
It surprised JD that Ezra could sleep through apparently anything.
29. Travel
"Darlin', I can't imagine what you see in this dusty little town that San Francisco or New York or even New Orleans doesn't offer."
30. Damage
Ezra was distraught: his flesh would heal, but his jacket would not.
31. Strength
He'd never stayed so long in one place all his life, and there were days when his instinct to keep moving almost - almost - won out.
32. Together
They rode out two by two: Chris and Vin, Buck and JD, Nathan and Josiah, with Ezra bringing up the rear, and Ezra silently tipped his hat to the men who'd unknowingly taught him of friendship.
33. Push
"He don't so much shove people away as convince 'em somehow that they didn't want to be there to begin with," Vin mused.
34. Safe
Nathan was beside him, and Vin had taken first watch: it took awhile for Ezra to identify the unfamiliar sensation that he felt.
35. Private
"It would be more gentlemanly to steal than to open another's letter," Ezra said lightly, but there was something hard and angry in his eyes.
36. Light
It would not be prudent to let them know that with this deck, he could play just as well in the dark.
37. Big
Ezra's inordinate fondness for his extravagant feather bed stemmed from the fact that he had slept all too often on hard-packed blankets, cramped bedrolls and narrow sofas as a barely tolerated guest.
38. Want
"Some of Vin's coffee," Ezra managed to reply, "and an unending supply of whiskey, if you gentlemen would be so kind."
39. Law
It was a strange irony indeed - although Ezra suspected his mother would use stronger words if she ever learnt of his acceptance to Judge Travis's offer.
40. Canine
There was gold even in Ezra's smile.
41. Truth
"But you didn't," Chris said simply, "you came back to save Mary's life."
42. Smoke
A cigar was a useful thing: it facilitated conversation between strangers, it attested that he was a man of means, and, at a pinch, it could be used to light the fuse of a canon.
43. Order
"I call into session the trial of the defendant, Ezra Standish, with the Honorable Orrin Travis presiding."
44. Feel
Ezra sank slowly into the tub of steaming hot water, and sighed as the warmth began to relax muscles that he'd thought had long frozen stiff.
45. Finish
"You just don't do that to a man!" Ezra protested as Chris hauled him away from what would have been a very profitable hand of poker.
46. Through
He was soaked to the skin and thoroughly bedraggled, looking nothing at all like the polished Southern gentleman who'd left Four Corners only that morning.
47. Race
"We been following the trail of blood since yesterday," Nathan said soberly, "and there's only so much a man can lose."
48. Need
"You did good, Ezra," Chris said in his quiet, firm way, "thank you."
49. Splash
It was a good thing, Ezra thought frantically as he hit the water, that he'd learnt to swim as a boy.
50. Thrill
He could have handled the miscreants on his own - he was used to looking out for himself - but Ezra didn't think he'd ever forget how he felt when the six of them stepped silently to his side, guns drawn and murder on their faces.