Sometimes, as he slept in some unfamiliar motel at night, he could hear them.
Across the endless sandy planes their whispers carried. They spoke of the curious beings that loved and destroyed them. Of the pain and happiness of serving others.
The plants whispered… and Vash listened. They could sense his presence as much as he could theirs. He saw how they saw him: a brother who was free. Who could explore the world around him and interact with their creators in ways of which the rest could never dream.
One day, their whispers grew to a noisy chatter. Vash sat up from his current bed and stared out of the pane-less window in the building. He stared at the scarred face of the moon. His scar. His sin.
The plants heard his anguished thoughts. In his mind, Vash saw them reaching out, welcoming him, forgiving his past mistakes. They admired his bravery for existing outside of their protective glass confinements and acknowledged his fear as only natural; humans were confusing creatures, after all.
Vash felt the comforting arms of his thousands of sisters enclosing around him. Inviting him to join their blissful ignorance of humanity and its dangers. For a moment, he was tempted. Tempted to forget everything around him and be absorbed into the beings that embraced him so calmly, so naturally…
Rem had embraced him like that.
Vash felt the plants retreating from him with disappointment. They were not angry or hurt, they simply didn't understand, couldn't understand his connection with the humans. They had not felt a human's touch, the sound of a human's laughter, the warmth of another's presence.
Vash knew he would never be able to do it, to let go of humanity. And yet, at the same time… he would never truly be human. He was caught between two worlds: each willing, but neither entirely comfortable with accepting him.
Vash sighed and looked away from the moon's vibrant glow. On the other side of the room, he heard the rustling of sheets.
"Yo… Spikey…" Wolfwood's groggy voice bubbled from the darkness. "What're you doing?"
Vash smiled despite knowing that Wolfwood wouldn't be able to see it. "Nothin'. Can't sleep is all."
Wolfwood grumbled, "well, lay down or something. Your hair is like a beacon up there."
"Yeah, yeah, sorry." Vash fell backwards and put his hands behind his head and stared into the darkness.
He could still hear the whispers…