"LILI! LILI! WHERE ARE YOU!" Vash ran screaming into the woods. He sped over the crisp spring leaves of the forests of his country. They were deep green and filled with a mix of oak and pine trees that towered over him. Shrubbery was dense but then he saw her after gaining a few scratches on his body, some bleeding.
"Lili!" He started to pant from running, sweat gleaming on his forehead.
"Vash! What happened! Why didn't you take the trail I made?" She flashed a silly smile that made him grin a bit but wince in pain from the cuts.
"Wh-what trail? Lili you can't go into the woods alone! It's dangerous out here!"
She twirled giggling at the butterflies around her. Her dress spun perfectly with every turn she made.
"Oh no!" Her ribbon fell out.
The ribbon swept through the breeze causing Vash to leap up and grasp it in his nimble fingers.
"Here you go Lili. Want me to tie it?"
"If you don't mind brother." She innocently smiled and ran her fingers through her honey blonde hair.
He tied it tightly causing her to wince.
"Sorry Lili. Here." He loosened it and tied into a perfect bow.
"Thanks Vash."
"Let's go inside Lili. I'll fix you some lunch."
"OK Vash!" She skipped along catching up to a fast Vash.
She reached down to hold his hand and he grasped hers holding it lightly. Delicately.
"You're so nice to me brother!" She spoke up randomly casuing him to be a bit taken aback.
"Of course Lili. I saved you."
"Thank you for doing that."
"You don't need to thank me. You tell me everyday." He looked ahead and she put her head down.
"Sorry Vash."
He saw how sad she looked and he patted her head, "Don't be sorry. Now, what do you want to eat?"
"Ummmm...can I fix lunch? Francis showed me a great soup recipe."
"Don't hang around him! He might try to touch you!" He grasped her hand tighter as they walked out of the forest.
"Why would he do that?"
"Because you're a pretty girl an-"
Her eyes grew extra big, "You think I'm pretty Vash?"
"Well of course Lili." He said sternly blushing a bit.
They walked into the quaint kitchen that Lili set up at his house. It was decorated with red, white and green themes and it looked...adorable in Vash's mind. But he never told her that. She started getting out spices and some fresh vegetables she grew. It made him wonder what he did to help her around the house. As she started bringing water to a boil while stirring a different broth, he said,
"Lili, can I uh...help you...you know...garden?"
Her eyes grew big again causing her to grin, "Of course Vash!
"Th-thanks Lili..." He looked out the window admiring the Swiss landscape he helped grow back when he was little. Before Lili. With Roderich. He shook his head trying to forget Roderich. He jumped a bit when Lili delicately set a bowl of soup down in front of him.
"Bon apetite! Or at least I think that's how Francis said it."
"Merci vilmal Lili."
"En guete." She knew what that meant. She was fluent in Swiss-German afterall.
As they both sat down to eat, he noticed that everything she does make her seem so doll like. She's pale with beautiful shiny hair and a fragile body. Everything she does, she does with slight hesitation but with grace. After slurping down the delicious soup, he took Lili's finished bowl.
"Vash I-"
"Let me get it. No worries." He smiled and moved aside the pile of guns he was going to wash and put the bowls in the porcelain sink.
"I have to go pull some weeds on the carrots, would you like to help?" She asked sweetly.
"Of course! What do we need?"
"I have all the tools out there, I'll show you." She took his hand daringly and led him out to the garden.
It was plentiful with vegetables yet modest with a simple picket fence surrounding it that he built to keep out rabbits. Carrots, lettuce and couple other vegetables were growing with their green leaves pulling towards the sun.
"Now let me show you how to do this." They both knelt down and Lili carefully pulled out a weed.
He tried to do the same but ended up just pulling leaves off.
"No Vash. Like this." She put her hand over his and pulled another weed from the root.
"Oh. I see. So like this right?" He pulled another weed from the root successfully making Lili smile lightly.
"Yes Vash. You're good at this." He smiled embarrassed that he would be good at such a sissy thing.
But he actually found himself sweating a bit in the sun. Lili didn't break a single drop of sweat.
"Lili, I uh finished with the weeds, what now? Do you mind if I...uh...take off my shirt? It's hot out here."
"Of course Vash. I'm going to change into a more spring like dress instead of this long dress." She unruffled her long red dress.
She went inside and he heard her close the door. He wiped his forehead and pulled off his shirt and saw his body gleaming with sweat from the surprisingly warm Swiss sun.
"Vash...you're so...strong..." Lili had come outside in a mid thigh length green and pink floral dress.
He looked at his body. Sure he wasn't like Ludwig but he had decent sized biceps and abs.
"Thanks Lili." He looked away embarrassed.
"Vash what do you think of my new dress?" She whirled around letting it flow lightly. She looked perfect.
"It's nice. You look great in it Lili." He smiled and admired her for a second.
"Now can you pick the lettuce? I can make a salad after for our hardwork with the tomatoes I'm going to pick." He nodded at her idea and picked all he could hold which was a lot while she held tons of little tomatoes.
Going into the kitchen, he cleared his guns away completely and set down all the vegetables. Lili washed them and Vash sat down wiping his forehead again and then wiping off his body with his shirt that he was too lazy to put on.
"Vash look!" She set down a salad in front of him that he just realized she was fixing.
It had a smiley face made out of tomatoes. He smiled and hugged her causing her to gasp.
"Vash!"
"Lili I love you so much. You're the best."
"Vash I love you too! You're quite...incredible." She was shy with words sometimes.
But not now.