A/N: Halfway through watching Trigun for the first time, so any OOC-ness of Vash is entirely my fault. Not really set in any specific time for either of the source materials, though perhaps in the first half of Trigun (while the antics are stills screwball) and after you've gathered the entire Tethe'allan party in ToS.
EDIT (5/12/11): Somehow, *somehow*, I screwed up one of the most iconic quotes of my most favorite video game of all time. For some reason, I was convinced it was "goodness and love will always win" as opposed to "justice and love". Fixed it now. *sheepish*
The blond man's smile seemed sadder the wider it got, Lloyd noticed after sitting with him for over an hour. It looked a little like Colette's smile when she was hiding something. Like how she'd smiled the entire time she had been suffering.
As if he felt Lloyd's eyes on him, the man stretched out his legs and folded his arms behind his head, leaning back against the wall of their shared cell.
"Not too roomy, are they?" he said, tapping his feet against the opposite wall. Lloyd just shrugged. More than anything, it was just really hot. The desert was like that.
"I'm sure they'll let us out soon," the man continued merrily, as if he didn't notice the heat or the fact that he was in jail. "Nice-looking guy like you? Probably all a misunderstanding."
"No, actually, it's not," Lloyd said, scratching at the back of his head.
"Oh, so you're the one from the poster." The man pointed through the bars at the wall plastered over with faded drawings of mean-looking bandits. Right in the middle, on crisp new paper, was a splash of spiky hair and red clothes.
"Oh, not that thing again." Lloyd groaned and leaned his head back against the wall.
"What, you really some sort of wanted criminal?"
"Sort of."
"Me too."
The man didn't look like a criminal. Sure he was long and lean and he wore a red duster that covered most of his face and he had had a gun before the prison guard had taken it away, but he had been so cheerful about it all.
"What'd you do?" the man asked, his eyes closed and his hands still knit behind his head, but somehow still looking totally interested. "You kill someone?"
"Well-" He had killed people. People had died by his hand, people who might have wanted to see the world regenerated as much as he did. But, he hadn't meant -
"You don't look like a killer," the man continued, opening his eyes. "I'm Vash, by the way." He extended one long-fingered hand. It was cold, even through the layers of his brown gloves and Lloyd's red ones. But it was firm and he shook enthusiastically.
"Lloyd," the boy replied.
"Your friends will get you out of here soon, Lloyd," Vash said, readjusting his yellow glasses before he put his hands behind his head again.
"You know about my friends?"
"Mm, that cute little blond girl? She'll get this worked out."
For some reason, that just made Lloyd worry more. What if someone else had seen him with Colette and connected them? What if they dragged everyone else in here too? They could hold their own in a fight, but what if some villager tried to arrest them? They wouldn't hurt people if they could help it, but sitting in a cell wasn't going to be helping anyone. At least Regal was keeping a low profile, because a man in handcuffs hanging around with the kid from the wanted posters wasn't going to be treated too nicely.
"What are you in here for?" Lloyd asked, trying not to think about the others.
"Y'know, I'm not sure." Vash had a smile on his face. Well, he'd always had a smile on his face, but this one almost seemed real. "The people 'round here hadn't even heard of the Stampede. Though they wouldn't listen to a word I was saying, so they probably think I'm you."
Instead of calling for the guard to explain the misunderstanding though, the man just settled back against the wall yet again, this time with a smile that was definitely genuine. "Kinda funny, actually."
"It's not funny," Lloyd insisted, standing up. "They're keeping an innocent man in here."
Vash just looked up at him.
"Oh, I'm not innocent, Lloyd. A lot of people in the past have been hurt because of me."
"But-"
"It's all right, okay?"
Lloyd just shifted uncomfortably. They were both quiet for a minute, and then Lloyd slumped down on the cot across the cell from the man.
"You're not going to try to get me out of here?" Vash asked, peering at him from underneath raised brows.
"Hey, if you don't want to leave, I'm not going to force you."
"What about you?"
Lloyd scratched at the back of his head for a moment, then shook his head.
"I probably deserve to be in here, but I have something important I need to do. I can't just sit in here and do nothing."
"So what are you going to do?"
"I dunno."
The cell was sturdy and they'd taken his swords away. Unless, as Vash had said, Colette and the others came to get him, he was trapped in here.
Vash himself was watching Lloyd. He didn't realize until he looked up from his lap and saw the man's eyes flick away.
It was quiet for a long moment and Lloyd realized that it made him uncomfortable. He wasn't used to quiet anymore. There was always some conversation bandying around the group; Zelos and Sheena arguing, Raine lecturing, Colette apologizing. Even Presea, usually the quietest out of all of them, wasn't entirely silent. At night, Lloyd always went to sleep surrounded by the breathing of other people. He had forgotten how it was to be on his own.
His stomach growled then, loud enough to fill the tiny cell space. Lloyd stiffened, but Vash just chuckled a little.
"Hungry, huh? Me too. Haven't eaten in ages." There was a moment of silence again. The man was wearing his sad bright smile again.
"If you don't want to talk to a guy who you just met in a jail cell, I understand," he said suddenly, the smile growing wider.
"N-no, it's not that," Lloyd said, raising his hands apologetically. "I was just thinking. You remind me of a friend of mine."
"Ugly mug like me?"
"Yeah. I mean no. I mean, she's pretty. Not that you're ugly. I mean, I don't know any pretty guys but... Well, I know one guy who thinks he's pretty, but-" His voice wasn't enough. It didn't make up for the lack of seven others.
"No, it's okay, I gotcha," Vash laughed. "You're okay, Lloyd."
For some reason, that made Lloyd grin. He scratched at the back of his head.
"You're okay too, Vash."
Vash smiled and leaned his head back, looking up at the ceiling.
"Did I say something wrong?" Lloyd asked.
"What?"
"I just... You looked sad."
"Oh, don't mind me. Just a little tired, that's all."
"Do you have anyone to come and get you?"
"Well, maybe to collect some debts." But somehow the man's face didn't look so sad. He looked like he was remembering something fondly. He propped his elbows on his knees and grinned absently at the floor for a moment before looking over at Lloyd.
"So, you just passing through here too?"
"Yeah." Lloyd felt like he had just seen something he wasn't supposed to, something private. "I mean, we've been through here a few times. I don't know why they picked now all of a sudden to arrest me."
"I can see why it took so long. That poster is awful."
"Heh, I know, isn't it?"
They chuckled together for a moment.
"So," Vash said finally, "what do you need to do that's so important?"
"I'm, uh, on a journey." Lloyd stared at the floor, not sure how to explain anything. How much was he allowed to say? He wished the Professor were there. "There's a lot of bad people out there." His hand drifted to his exphere, brushing it gently. "I have to stop them."
Vash regarded him for a moment, then took his glasses off and used a corner of his duster to polish them. He looked much younger without the frames over his eyes.
"Sounds like a big job."
"Yeah. But I've got my friends to help me."
o-o-o
"All right everyone, give me your sections," Raine said, holding out her hand as if she were collecting homework assignments. Everyone dutifully lined up, just like students handing in said homework assignments. Page by page, the papers to accompany the bail money for Lloyd's release were gathered into a stack.
"Thank you Colette." She sifted through the stack, skimming each sheet for completeness. "Very nice, Sheena, Genis. Excellent, Presea." She frowned as she came across a certain red-head's portion. "Zelos, is that... Are those hearts?" She held up a page scribbled over in neat if rather frilly handwriting.
"What? I had to fill out the pledge of good character and I had to make it good." Zelos grinned and put his hands behind his head. Sheena elbowed him in his exposed ribs and Genis rolled his eyes, but Raine just shook her head.
"Well, it seems to be in order, but honestly, Zelos, can you please take this a little more seriously?"
"I take everything seriously, my dear Professor," he replied, oozing with charisma. "Anything for my good friend Lloydster."
Raine just sighed. "And you, Regal?"
The man handed her his sheet. "Do you mind if I look over them, Professor?" he asked. "I do have some experience with this sort of thing."
Raine couldn't quite tell if it would be appropriate to laugh, but then the corners of Regal's mouth quirked gently and she smiled back.
"Please do. I would hate for this to fall through because of some oversight on my part."
She handed him the neat stack and he turned to let her read over his shoulder as he awkwardly sorted through the pages with his shackled hands.
"Looks complete and accurate to me," he said finally. "So long as they don't object to the Chosen's hearts."
"So we can go get Lloyd now?" Colette was practically bouncing with impatience.
Raine looked away from Regal's smile and directed her own smile at her student.
"Yes, Colette. We can go get Lloyd now."
o-o-o
"Dwarven vow?"
"I find them kind of stupid, but yeah." Lloyd grinned sheepishly. "You just reminded me of them with that 'love and peace' thing."
"I'm glad."
"It's hard, sometimes, y'know? I just want everyone to be happy. But some people aren't happy unless other people are suffering."
"Mmm."
The silence was growing a bit more comfortable every time it fell. It still made Lloyd want to say something, to fill the emptiness, but it was shorter each time and it just didn't feel quite so heavy anymore in the cell.
"'Justice and love will always win,'" Vash said, as if testing the words out. "I like it."
"You think it's true?"
Vash leaned his head back and stared at the ceiling.
"I can't say, Lloyd. But I like to think that it is and I live my life as best I can to make it a reality."
"'Hunter of peace,' right? I like that too."
"It's nice, isn't it? I think that there are good people in the world, Lloyd."
"Yeah, I know that. I just wonder why suffering has to exist at all."
"Like you said, some people just aren't happy without it. And think, because you've suffered, you know what being happy feels like, don't you?"
The silence wasn't so bad.
"I'm surprised your friends haven't come yet," Vash said after a while. "A nice guy like you? I mean, it's been quite a few hours, hasn't it?"
Suddenly it hit Lloyd. A trap? What if he'd been captured to use as bait for Colette and the others? And they'd been coming to get him but had been caught too?
"What's the matter?" Vash asked, seeing him straighten up.
"I have to get out of here."
"What's your rush?"
"I need to -"
The door leading up into the offices swung open so hard that it slammed into the wall behind it.
"All right, all right already," the guard was saying to someone outside. He hurriedly pulled a ring of keys from his pocket and unlocked the door for Lloyd and Vash's cell.
"Seems we had a bit of a misunderstanding," the man said, in the same tone of voice someone being held at gunpoint uses even though there was no one else around. "You." He jabbed a finger at Lloyd. "Let's go."
"What about-"
"Don't worry about me," Vash said, shooing him along with a hand. "Get a move on."
"Take care of yourself, Vash."
"You too. Maybe we'll see each other around sometime?"
"I'd like that."
"Justice and love, eh?"
"Right. Love and peace."
"Go on. Your friends are waiting for you."
They were. Raine and Colette and Genis.
"Lloyd!" Colette cried, running to embrace him before the guard had even let go of his arm.
"Colette! Guys!" Lloyd caught Colette in his arms. "Is everyone else okay?"
"We're all fine," Genis said, grinning. "How about you, are you all right?"
"I'm fine."
Colette let him go from her hug, but held one of his hands in both of hers. He squeezed her fingers. Raine accepted his swords from the guard.
"You certainly had us worried, Lloyd Irving," she said sternly as he took the belt and scabbards from her.
"Heh, sorry Professor." He would have scratched at his head, but one hand was full of his swords and Colette still held the other. Raine just smiled at him.
"Let's be off," she said. "The others are waiting at the inn."
As they made their way to the door, two women burst in. One was a giant of a woman and one was petite, but the tall one wore a sweet smile and nodded to everyone as she passed and it was the tiny one who marched right up to the guard's desk and slammed her hands down determinedly.
"Who is in charge here?" she demanded, waving a sheaf of papers around. "I have a complaint to lodge about the sheer idiocy of this paperwork and an innocent man I demand be released."
"Not another one," Lloyd heard the guard groan as the door closed behind him and he smiled. Seemed like Lloyd wasn't the only one with friends.
A/N: This could probably best be described as a crack idea, even if I tried to play the situation straight. Pretty much got started when I noticed how (if rather superficially) similar Lloyd and Vash were: both wear red clothing with ridiculous amounts of buttons and belts, both have spiky hair, and both have catch phrases (if somewhat reluctantly on Lloyd's part) about love. And hey, that wanted poster was so terrible that if you squinted sideways in the dark, you could say it's a picture of Vash. And Tales of Symphonia has a desert, so I figured if you don't think about the exact logistics too much, it works.