A/N: I would like to thank all those that have reviewed me lately. Its nice to know that this story is being enjoyed and those reviews give me the little boost i need whenever i start to feel discouraged with my writing. Thank you.
Chapter Fourteen:
Acceptance
By the time that the storm had settled dawn was rising on the horizon. The battery in the old helmet had died out hours ago, leaving the entrance to the mine shaft shrouded in darkness. But now the rising of the sun had bathed the stone walls in golden light. Out of all the years he had lived through, that night was the single most longest night in his life.
The morning light didn't reach beyond the bend in the cavern that they had taken shelter in, but the light reflecting off the walls gave him enough light to see by. He still held her, only letting go once to remove his jacket and cover her with it. Somehow, she had lasted through the night, but he could tell that time was quickly running out. He just didn't know what to do…He didn't know whether to stay here with her or go out and hunt for the others. But he knew that telling everyone else what had happened may very well be the last thing he would ever do. But whatever their judgment may be, he solemnly resolved, he would accept it quietly. This mountain was littered with entrances, and they were probably searching through them now.
Slowly and gently, he set her down on the floor and painfully stood. Wearily rubbing his face, he stepped outside. The light from the sun was almost blinding after being enclosed in the darkness for so long. Before his eyes had time to adjust there was a shout and the sound of somebody running towards him.
"Where the hell have you been? Everybody's been freaking out thinking that you got caught in the storm or something." Wolfwood said, coming up to him. "Hey have you seen…" He trailed off mid sentence, a hard look coming over his face. "What happened?" He asked coldly. Puzzled by this abrupt change in behavior Knives followed his line of sight. His hands…They had dried blood all over them.
"It was an accident…" He said quietly, looking away. Wolfwood stared at him for a long moment as if he didn't understand. Before he could question Knives further, Millie and Vash had spotted them and were running up as well. Part of him wanted to turn and run…run away so he wouldn't have to face this confrontation. But he forced himself to stay put; it was long overdue that he take responsibility for his actions. But still he couldn't bring himself to look up at them.
"We've been looking everywhere for you!" Millie exclaimed, the relief evident in her voice. "I got stuck alone and I've been worried to death all night!"
"Knives…" Vash asked cautiously, noticing his strange behavior. "What's wrong?"
"It was an accident…I didn't mean it…" He quietly pleaded, still refusing to look at them. He tried to brush the dried blood off of his hands, the damming evidence of what he had done.
"What did you do?" Vash asked him, fear creeping into his voice. Knives cringed slightly at the question. Wordlessly, he pointed to the entrance of the cave. Vash ran on inside with Millie at his heels. Wolfwood remained where he stood, watching him. From inside he heard Millie give a horrified cry, he winced at the sound of it.
"What happened?" Wolfwood asked him again.
"I don't think you would believe me if I told you…"
"No. I don't think I would…" He said sternly. Millie ran back out in tears and latched onto Wolfwood.
"Oh Nic! You gotta come see if you can help! Please! See if you can do anything!" She cried out, pulling him towards the entrance of the cave. Wolfwood gave Knives one last look then followed her inside. With nothing left to do but await his probable execution, Knives sat down in the sand and hid his face in his hands.
After a few minuets had passed, he heard someone walk up and stop right in front of him. He didn't look to see who it was, he could fairly accurately guess, and they didn't speak. A moment later there was the sound of a gun being drawn.
"Give me a reason not to." Vash commanded, voice harsh with grief and rage.
"…I can't. You have every right to kill me and I won't try to fight you. But…if it means anything…I'm sorry…" Knives said softly, and waited.
"You…" Vash said a moment later, barely keeping control. "Why? Why did you do it? Am I not allowed to have anyone in my life other than you? Do you have to take everyone away from me!"
"Is she…" Knives tentatively asked.
"No. But we're stuck out here. The car's buried. We'll never make it to town. I'm going to have to watch someone else die…" His voice broke.
"I…I didn't mean to…it was an accident…"
"Don't Give Me That! I saw what you did to her. The bruises…There is no possible way that that was an accident…" Knives couldn't say anything to his defense, because it was true. He had meant to hurt her…but that was before…But it was too little too late.
"Are you going to kill me?" Knives asked after a moment of tense silence.
"…I hate you…I really do…I've tried my hardest with you, sacrificed so much, but it was all for nothing…I hate you and would gladly kill you right here and now…but I know she wouldn't want that. So I want you to leave and I never want to see you again. Ever." Vash said with a cold finality and turned and walked away. Knives looked up to see him disappear inside the cave.
Wolfwood and Millie stood at the entrance, having watched the exchange. Millie gave him one last hurt look then went inside. Wolfwood stood, gun by his side, blocking the way from him. From the look he wore, Wolfwood didn't accept Vash'es decision but was ready to enforce the command that Knives stay away. In fact, he looked as if he hoped that Knives would challenge it.
Abandoned and broken, Knives turned and walked away. Away from the people that he had grown to care for so much and those he had hurt the worst. Once again he had gotten off with less than he deserved, and he hated himself for it. It was just one more thing to hate himself for…
Once he had found the road again he stopped and sat down hard in the sand. If only they had killed him earlier then they wouldn't be going through such grief now. He didn't know whether he wanted to laugh or cry at the irony of it all. They had put so much time and effort into trying to make him see and now that he did he had been run off. And he would never, ever, get the chance to tell them that he was sorry. He finally decided on what to do, and it wasn't to laugh.
-L&P-
They all sat in the darkness of the cave, not wanting anything to do with the bright sunlight. No, they wanted the darkness because soon never again would things seem bright. He heard Wolfwood and Millie sitting quietly somewhere behind him, but he didn't care. All his focus was on the small figure stretched out before him and the tiny hand held in his.
He couldn't get her to wake up. He wanted to talk with her one last time but she was far too tired. She was still alive, the soft breathing and faint pulse told him so, but she was so cold. He had covered her with his coat along with the grey jacket but it wasn't enough, and he knew how she hated being cold.
Silently he cried, and blamed himself for all of this. Everyone had told him otherwise but he had refused to listen to them. They had all said that his brother was too dangerous to be left living, but he wanted nothing to do with that thought. He had been too hung up on his ideals and hopes to give in to them. But he now saw that they were right. They always had been. He should have killed him. As soon as he saw what Knives had done he should have killed him. Yet he couldn't bring himself to. The way he had acted…he had truly seemed repentant…
No, Vash thought harshly, he had just been afraid. And the whole 'I'm sorry' act had just been to save his life. How could he! He wanted to take back his decision to spare him and kill him. Not shoot him but with his bare hands. He lightly touched the bruise on her face. This was no accident; it had been an indirect attack on him. To hit him where it would hurt the worst. And it had worked. Knives was now free to go do whatever he wanted. He had won…
"Isn't there anything we can do?" Millie quietly asked Wolfwood. "We have to try something…"
"I'm sorry but there's nothing. We're not doctors and that's what we need right now." Wolfwood told her.
"We might make it to town if we go now. I mean…its better than nothing…"
"No." Vash told her, not turning to face her. "It's a long way to either town, especially on foot. To move her around so much and to be in the sun would only make her suffer more. It's just too far…"
"Would you like us to step outside for a while? Give you a moment alone?" Wolfwood asked him. Vash silently nodded in reply and heard them leave. Sadly, he looked down to the little hand in his. At the little ring.
"Most of all I would like to say I'm sorry." He quietly told her. "I never seem to be around when you truly need me. I only seem to show up after the fact. Somehow I've always managed to fix things but I don't think I'll be able to this time. And I'm sorry. If only I had been there for you, this time and all those times before. If only I had held on a little tighter…but I didn't and now I'm about to lose you. But not forever. It'll just be a little while…I promise." He then broke down. He cried hard but silently. He cried for her. Their friends. And for himself.
Once again the urge to murder his brother rose up. He regretted not taking action that night all those years ago. How many would have been spared if he had just killed Knives? He thought back…wondering how it would have been if he had just thrown down the rock. Then he paused, becoming quiet.
What had happened to him? Such thoughts were not him. He may very well be justified but that still did not make it right. Not at all. What was he becoming? No…he didn't want this. He did not take back the hatred he had expressed, it was still there, but he took back the desire to kill. He didn't want things to end that way. He repented of what he had thought…no…what he had wanted to do. She wouldn't want that. Neither would Rem. Neither did he.
"I'm so sorry…I should never have…While killing him may be justice, I want to stay the man you fell in love with. Please forgive me…" He told her quietly.
"Hey! HEY!" Wolfwood shouted running back inside. Vash looked back at him over his shoulder in annoyance. He was being too loud. "You gotta come out here and look! Someone's coming!"
"What?"
"A bus! Help us flag them down."
As it turns out no flagging was necessary. The bus had abandoned the path of the road and now was navigating the rough terrain. Its destination was unmistakable. The three of them watched in quiet astonishment as it pulled right up to them. The door opened and a figure leaned out.
"Common." Knives told them, beaconing them in. Vash turned and ran back inside. He gathered Meryl up as gently as he could and hurried back outside. When they saw him coming Wolfwood and Millie climbed on in the back of the bus where he soon joined them.
Vash slipped into the nearest seat available. He looked around with a mixture of suspicion and confusion. There were no other riders on the bus, it was just them. Knives told the bus driver that that was all of them and the man immediacy whipped the bus around and began heading for the road.
"I don't understand…what's going on?" Vash asked.
"We're getting her to a doctor, that's what's going on." Knives told him.
"You folks are sure lucky I had to get an early start this morning because of that storm yesterday. Who knows when someone else would have been driving by. That and I spotted this pathetic feller sitting by his lonesome." The middle aged bus drier called back to them. Knives sat in the seat directly behind him. He looked back at the crew but quickly looked away. "I stopped to see if he needed a hand and he practically jumps on board and demands that I drive out here to get ya'll. At first I thought it was a trick and he though he was one of the bandits that had jumped you guys. I was about to floor it out of there but there was something about the way he asked me. That and he told me that a lady's life was on the line."
"Thank you so much for coming. Without you things would have been hopeless, now she actually has a chance." Vash gave his heartfelt thanks, actually beginning to hope once more. "I don't know how I can thank you."
"Yeah well just glad to help ya know? Not that I'm gonna charge ya or anything but I am gonna be very late for my stop…"
"May the lord bless you for your kindness dear sir. We don't have much but we'll gladly give you all we have. But it's hardly what a saint like yourself deserves."
"Aww it was nothin really…" The driver said, thoroughly buttered up by the preacher slash conman. "You don't hafta give me nothing. I'm just glad to help. Oh and hey, in that compartment is a fist aid kit, go ahead and take it back there to them son." The driver told Knives.
If he was annoyed at being called 'son' by the man when Knives was old enough to be his great grandfather, he didn't show it. He fetched the kit and walked back to where they all sat. Nervously, he handed it over to Vash, then sadly looked down at Meryl. He hadn't got a proper look at her since the mining light had flickered out, and he wasn't too happy with what shape she was in. After a stern look from Vash that said 'get away from her now', Knives retreated back to his seat behind the driver.
-L&P-
The driver sped along faster than was safe, but the trip was still excruciatingly long. And it was mostly spent in silence. Every now and then there would be quiet conversation up front between Knives and the driver but no one else said a word. During the course of the trip Vash stared hard at his brother, trying to figure him out. He sat with his back towards them, still avoiding turning to look at them. His scars were plainly visible as well as a slight sun burn, being run off without any sort of protection for his skin. Even under the threat of death he had come back…what was going on with him, Vash wondered. This was not the same man from yesterday. That man was cold, nearly emotionless, and had murdered three others without a second thought or flash of remorse. But this one…he didn't know. And whether or not he found out depended on if the little life he held in his arms was saved.
Ten minuets ago she had actually stirred. He had felt that she was getting too warm and was trying to gently remove one of the coverings over her, when her eyes had slowly flickered open. He had so many things that he wanted to say to her at that moment, things that he thought he would never again have a chance to tell her, but he had been rendered speechless by just being able to look into her eyes again.
She had blinked a few times, disoriented, and then finally focused on him. Seeing that she was with him, she gave a small contented smile that nearly broke his heart. She tried to reach up to his face but he took her hand before she could exert herself too much. By their sharp inhalations, he knew that Wolfwood and Millie had noticed that she was awake as well. Meryl gave him one more smile then softly nuzzled up against him and was quickly asleep once more. And he had cried.
Despite his questing from money, the driver was a good natured soul and drove them right up to the doors of the local hospital. In a whirlwind of thanks and blessings, the crew rushed out and into the hospital. All except for one.
"Despite whatever happens now, I truly want to thank you for your kindness." Knives told the man. "If there is anything I can do for you please, name it."
"I already told ya, it's alright. You don't have to be thanking me. Now I don't want to seem like I'm running ya off or anything like that but I'm running way late and need to get going."
"Of course." Knives nodded and stepped out.
"Hold on a sec!" The driver called out to him.
"Yes?"
"I think one of ya'll forgot something." He said pointing to the back of the bus. Knives climbed back on and went to see what it was. He picked up the familiar item from where it had been draped over the back of the seat and put it back on. They had left his jacket for him. It wasn't much…but it was a start.
-L&P-
The sun had gone down about two hours ago. Knives lurked in the shadows beside of the hospital. He hadn't once set foot in the building, he knew better than that. It was too soon to let his presence be known, although he wondered if it ever would be time. While flagging down the bus and sending it to find them may have helped his case, it fell woefully short of redeeming him but, unable to pull himself away, he had hung about. He listened outside of windows, catching occasional snippets of conversation, and watched the door. From what he had learned they had arrived nearly too late. But the bullet had been removed and the bleeding stopped in time. That had been about six hours ago though, and she had been moved to one of the upper floors where he couldn't eavesdrop in. All he had left was to wait. And think.
The threat of her dying had temporarily put his grief and horror on hold enough so he didn't take any further action against himself. But during that long vigil in the darkness he had plenty of time to ponder over his countless sins. If she hadn't been so adamant about him living he would have been tempted to try again to keep the memories from overflowing him. That and he had the overwhelming need to apologize.
Knives knew that whatever apologies that he offered would never come close to covering it, but he still felt the need to do so. But he had no idea what he would say. A simple 'I'm sorry' would never suffice, but what else could he say? What else could he do? She had told him to live and atone, but even if he spent every waking moment from now until the day he died working on that he could never set the scales even. He was lost…he didn't know what to do. Was there anything he could do?
He sighed and slowly rested his face in his hands. It was so cold out here; he was on the verge of shivering. But he refused to move from his little space between the buildings. Whatever misery, however minute, God decided to bestow upon him he would accept. Quietly. As downcast as his current state was, it was also in a strange way…liberating. The serenity was a welcome relief to the raging tempest of his life thus far. It felt nice to turn away from the chaos he had created to something calmer, even if the price was his control over his life.
A prickling feeling on the back of his neck told him that he was being watched. He slowly looked up to see someone standing at the entrance of the little alleyway. For the most part they were bathed in darkness, but Knives instinctively knew who it was. They stared at one another for a few moments until Knives couldn't take the silence any longer.
"Is she alright?" He hesitantly asked.
"She'll live." Vash flatly told him, moonlight reflecting ominously off of his glasses. For the first time in hours Knives allowed himself a small sigh of relief. That was all he needed to know. But there was something now he needed to do. And it just might be the most difficult thing he would ever have to do.
"I…I suppose you want to know what happened?"
"Something like that."
"I'll tell you, but you please have to let me finish. Alright?" Vash said nothing. Knives took it on faith that that was an agreement and continued. "I hadn't intended on getting stuck with her. Actually I had been trying to go off on my own. But she clung to me and I was too preoccupied with getting inside to shake her off. I was…angry. Angry at what happed that day. Angry at you. Hell…I was angry at myself. I was angry and I wanted to take it out on someone and there she was. I don't remember how it started…I just remember I couldn't control myself…" Knives told him, cringing at the memory of what he had done. He expected his brother to fall back in a rage but he just silently stood there in the shadows.
"…And?" Vash asked him a moment later after Knives had been quiet too long.
"I…hurt her, scared her, but when she still tried to talk to me I couldn't take it anymore and…and was going to kill her…but I couldn't…it was the way she looked at me Vash…it reminded me…it made me remember…It made me realize." Knives trailed off, finding it increasingly difficult to speak. But still his brother remained silent. Why wasn't he saying anything, he wondered. Why was he just standing there? He tried to calm himself and regain control of his voice. He needed to say this, even if it killed him. "It…made me realized that I was wrong. That I…what I…it was wrong…Everything I had ever done was wrong. You have no idea…how that felt. How it still feels…I couldn't take it. I was…I was going to…" Unable to say it, he indicated a gun with his hand and demonstrated the action. "But she wouldn't let me. She tried to stop me. We fought over the gun…and…and…I didn't mean it! I didn't! I didn't deserve to be saved it but she wouldn't let me! I tried to push her away easy but she bit me and I jerked and…I didn't mean it…I'm sorry! I'm sorry for everything. For stranding us here, for Rem, all the awful things I have done to you and have made you do. I…I just wanted to tell you that. That I was sorry. You don't have to say anything…If you still want me to leave then I'll go…If you still want to kill me I understand and I accept it." Knives finished miserably. He stood from where he had been sitting and waited.
"You would accept it if I tried to kill you?"
"…Yes." He said and tensed, waiting for it to come.
"Why?" Vash asked him. The question caught Knives off guard.
"Huh?"
"Why would you accept me killing you?"
"Because…I deserve it…"
"Why would you think that I would even want to?"
"What?" Knives asked him. He was getting confused. Leaving his spot at the end of the ally, Vash walked to him.
"Meryl woke up about an hour ago. She told me everything. I came out here because I wanted to hear it from your own mouth. My brother, who I thought was lost, has finally come back to me. Something no one ever thought was possible, recently myself included. And you think I want to kill you? Like I told you before…how can someone so smart be so stupid?" Vash asked him, the ice finally leaving his voice. "And I don't want you to leave either." He said with a smile. "I just got you back. I plan on keeping you this time." Knives couldn't fight it any longer. He took his brother in a hard embrace and cried for all the lost years. And right with him Vash did the same.
-L&P-
Before letting Knives in, Vash had to sit down with Wolfwood and Millie in the waiting room and explain the situation. the last thing he wanted was for them to see him and automatically attack, like he knew they wanted to. Even the usually mild tempered Millie was in an avenging mood for her best friend. First he had told them what had happened when Meryl had woke up.
Some of the first words to come out of her mouth were to ask if Knives was alright. This had confused him as well as it did them. She had then grown afraid that one of them might have attacked him or he had harmed himself. To calm her down Vash had quickly assured her that no one had touched him, they just ran him off. But she hadn't calmed down like he hoped, she began to cry quietly. Before she had gotten too upset she had begun to tell him what happened.
The narration had taken quite some time. She had to take breaks often and had to halt his temper at first before it got too out of hand, but he soon didn't need to be told to listen. He had told Wolfwood and Millie what she had said and they listed with the same quiet shock that he had. After telling him what had happened she had fallen back asleep, severely exhausted. He then told the two of them what happened when he had gone out to confront Knives. They were completely astounded at what they were being told. Silently, they listened to it all. Finished, he sat back to await their reactions.
To the shock of the other two, Wolfwood started to laugh. "Well it's about damn time!" He joyously said. "I was wondering when it was gonna happen. I knew it was coming. I could see it; I went through the same thing after all. He sure took his sweet time though. But hallelujah and praise the lord that it finally happened…he repented." He laughed and picked Vash up in a bone breaking hug. "Well where is he? What are you waiting for?
"…air…"
"Whoops!" Wolfwood said, dropping him.
"…uwah…Well…I wanted to let you guys know so you wouldn't attack him. Honestly he's a little afraid to come in here and see everyone."
"Well he should be afraid after what he did." Millie said, in an uncharacteristically dark tone. The men froze, shocked. "Just because he was mad is no excuse. What will happen the next time he gets angry? And how do you know he's telling the truth? He could be lying. Again."
"But Millie…Meryl told the same story. This proves he's telling the truth." Vash said, hurt.
"Ok but…but I still don't trust him!"
"Millie why?"
"Because! I trusted him before. Completely. And look what happened! I knew he was cranky but I thought he was good…I believed in him. I don't want to trust him again and be hurt again. I don't think I can take it." She finished in tears. Before Vash could say anything in his brothers defense Wolfwood intervened.
"Aww Millie sweetheart…don't cry. I know it's hard to trust someone after something like this, but will you please try? You trusted me again after I made that big mistake."
"It's not the same. You were trying to save us…"
"No it's not the same. But Knives has made a lot of mistakes, worse than any I've ever made. It was hard enough for me to change from what I was, imagine how hard it is for him. All of this is new to him. It's really no surprise he's screwed up. And if he's gonna get through this he's gonna need all of us helping. Please don't give up on him. Not when he's so close, and now that he's actually sorry. That's something he wasn't before. That's a good sign for us to hope. Will you please give him another chance?"
"…I guess so…" She said quietly, wiping her eyes off on her sleeve.
"That's my girl." Wolfwood said hugging her.
Vash left them and went to fetch Knives. When he returned Millie was looking a little better but there was still something hidden in her eyes. After a moment of hesitation Knives went and quietly sat down in one of the waiting room chairs, avoiding eye contact with any of the others. It strongly reminded Vash of the time back at the ship when Knives had joined them for that first breakfast. But this time around, instead of ignoring them, Knives seemed anxious, if not slightly afraid of their reactions. And he looked rough too, hell, they all were, but that was no wonder considering the last forty eight hours had not been kind.
Vash remained standing at the entrance of the waiting room. It almost felt as if he were stuck to the spot until something happened. Despite the positive reactions that he had gotten from them all he was still plenty anxious about this moment.
"Um…I…" Knives hesitantly began then faltered. He pleadingly looked to Vash for a little help. Vash thought over his many little tactics for breaking a mood but everything paled against the gravity of the situation. But he and Knives were spared from finding something to say by Wolfwood. He rose from his seat beside of Millie and walked over towards Knives. Vash sadly noted that Knives cringed slightly when Wolfwood stopped in front of him. Knives slowly looked up from his gaze on the floor to see Wolfwood extend a hand towards him.
Hesitantly Knives stood and took it. Just a second into the handshake Wolfwood pulled Knives hard towards him and embraced him, which the shocked man slowly returned. Vash just wanted to shout out 'Awww' but he refrained. Wolfwood released him a moment later and stood aside. Millie nodded to him but made no other move and said nothing. Knives understood and nodded back to her.
"I'm…sorry. I am." He said quietly.
"We know man, you don't need to say it." Wolfwood assured him, clapping a hand on his shoulder. For someone who had held Knives at a distance for so long he sure warmed up to him quick, Vash thought happily amused.
"Yes I do." Knives said more strongly. "I owe each and every living soul on this planet an apology. Who knows what kind of world we would have had if it weren't for my foolishness. But instead I've sentenced everyone to this sandy hell…I'm sorry…"
"If I know anything about human nature Knives, it is that we would have made it a hell even if the planet was pure paradise."
"Small mercies…" Knives muttered. Wolfwood fell into an uncomfortable silence. There really was no way to try and consol him on the matter without Knives calling his bluff. The man was too damn smart for his own good. Vash decided it was time to step in.
"You're probably wanting to know how she's doing. How much have you heard from eavesdropping in?"
"You knew I was out there?" Knives asked, genuinely surprised. Vash smiled and tapped the side of his head.
"Residual abilities. Although thanks to genetics I kinda doubt they'll ever fade."
"Huh?"
"You mean you didn't know?" Vash asked his brother, completely shocked. "But you were the expert on that sort of thing! How could you not know?"
"I'm lost here…" Wolfwood said. Millie agreed silently.
"I…I thought that all my abilities where gone. I've tested them! How?" Knives demanded, for once in days seeming like his usual self. It was a true relief, Vash thought with a smile.
"Not the mind slash power control. I made sure specifically that those were gone. And even the telepathy, for the most part anyway. I'm talking about the stuff you've never paid attention to. It's deeper than conscious thought. Sensing's another's presence for example…it's more like reading emotions rather than reading thoughts…" Vash said, slightly embarrassed although he had no idea why.
"Teach me." Knives demanded, his curiosity aroused. "But not tonight…"I want to know…how she's doing. I didn't do any…permanent damage, did I?" He asked, once more falling into the hurt repentant state. "I mean…the wound wasn't too low?"
"No" Vash smiled at his concern. He could tell that Knives was afraid that he might have ruined any chance of Vash having the family he had always wanted. "But if it would make you feel any better we can have the doctor tell you everything. I've already questioned him half to death…go ahead and finish him off for me." Vash joked. Knives snickered halfheartedly and followed him out of the waiting room.
The nurse stationed at the desk watched all of this with quiet fascination although with an air of apathy. She had listened to their conversations with growing curiosity (and confusion). But now that she was dying to know what was going to happen next, her shift was about to end. Figures, she sourly thought.
-L&P-
Everything was hazy and fuzzy as she came to. Meryl had lost track of how many times she had woken up and fallen back to sleep. And only heaven knew what day it was because she sure as hell didn't. And every time she woke up it seemed that someone new was sitting with her. Vash, Wolfwood, Millie…Meryl was glad to see that they were all doing well but there was someone else she needed to see at the moment. She had to know and see for herself that he was truly alright. So the next time she woke and was able to string complete sentences together, she asked Vash if she could see him.
"I'm not sure Meryl. That would be up to him. He's been avoiding coming to visit you. He's afraid that you'll be angry with him for what happened." Vash told her, holding onto her hand. Ever since the doctors allowed him to come see her he could hardly bear to be separated from her. While some would have found it annoying after a while she only thought of it as sweet. Honestly, she felt the same way. She held onto his hand tighter.
"He can't avoid me forever. Besides…he would be smart to get it over with now while I can't beat the life out of him." She muttered, trying to keep the world in focus. Vash smiled at her.
"I'm sure that'll make him come running. We all know that you're good on your threats."
"You had better believe it mister…And don't you forget it." She said shaking her fist at him. "But seriously…I just want to see how he's doing for myself. Can you try and convince him to come see me? Honestly it kinda hurts that he's avoiding me. But if seeing me hurts then I understand…"
"I'll see what I can do." He said, leaning over to kiss her of the forehead. He then got up and wordlessly left the room. Meryl waited, and waited. She was on the verge of falling asleep when her door opened up slowly. She expected to see an apologetic Vash standing there, but instead it was an apologetic Knives.
"Hey. How are you doing?" Knives asked her, coming and sitting down in the chair beside of the bed.
"Mmmm…much better than the last time I was shot. I didn't have diddly squat. Now they've got me on the good stuff." Meryl mumbled. She really didn't feel anything, much less pain. In fact, she was wondering why she hadn't floated away yet. Knives chuckled quietly.
"Yeah. I know the good stuff. Try being on it for about a month. Its no wonder I'm crazy." He tried to joke but fell into a heavy silence. And it didn't pass her notices that he had not looked at her once since coming in.
"Hey…" She said, becoming slightly more alert. "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine. They didn't hurt me. But just barely. They didn't for you. Personally I think you all are too soft on me."
"No." She said, struggling to sit up some. "I mean…" She said tapping the side of her head, hoping that he would catch her drift. She watched as he slowly looked up at her down and away. Meryl waited but he didn't answer.
"I don't know." He said after a long moment. "I really don't know…Meryl? I just want to tell you that…I'm sorry…I'm so sorry for what I've done. I wish you hadn't had gotten hurt on my account. It should have been me…"
"Could you…come a little bit closer? I have something to tell you but I don't want any eavesdroppers to overhear…" Meryl said quietly with a glance towards the door.
"…Alright…" He said with a quiet sigh. Slightly curious, he leaned in close.
She then slapped him as hard as she could. He jerked back in shock.
"How dare you try and pull a stunt like that mister!" She lashed at him. "What were you thinking! Trying to kill yourself! So help me Knives if you ever try to do something that stupid again I'm gonna kick your ass! And if by some chance you do succeed…I'm gonna call a séance and give you such an earful you'll be begging to be exercised. Got that? Your problems can't be solved that way idiot! That's what we're here for. In the future, if you have a problem, just come to us with it. Or better yet, come to me! How stupid!"
Knives sat back in his chair as she went on partially stunned, partially amused. He hadn't had a tongue lashing such as this since he was still trapped in that cell. He just let her have at him and tried not to smile. But he was losing. She saw him fighting it and got even angrier. She hated it when people didn't take her seriously. And this was serious.
Meryl tried to sit up and emphasize her point but he scolded her and made her lay back down, quietly laughing that she had so much fire even while drugged. While he was helping her do so she slapped him again for laughing at her which only made him laugh harder. Eventually she had to ease up. Her outburst had drained what little energy she had. That along with the drugs made her become extremely drowsy quickly.
Eventually the nurse caught wind of her little tirade and started on Knives as well for disturbing the patient. Before he was comically pulled from the room via his ear by Nurse Butch, Meryl stopped them.
"What I said Knives, I meant it…Promise me you won't try and do something like that again." She said, fighting to stay alert.
"…I promise." He told her then was mercilessly pulled away. A few minuets later Vash came back in and took his spot in the chair.
"I hope you didn't exert yourself too much." He said, the amusement evident in his voice.
"What do you mean?" Vash pantomimed a slap to the face.
"That red mark was suspiciously shaped like your hand." He smiled at her.
"Well he deserved it." She huffed. "Going and trying to pull something like that. I'd slap him again if I had the energy for it."
"I'll let you have at him later, but for now you need to rest."
"I know…But can you do me a favor though?"
"Anything." He said taking her hand and lightly kissing it.
"Don't leave him alone. I'll be fine. He needs you more right now than I do. I'm afraid if he's left alone for too long he'll get to thinking too much…"
"Ok…You just go to sleep now. I'll go get Millie to sit with you then I'll go to him." He said tucking her in.
"Thank you."
"No…Thank you."
-L&P-
It seemed that fate never wanted to give them a break. Back at Bastion Ridge their funds had already been running dangerously low. The fiasco at the bank had effectively put a stop to their job hunting. To make things worse, they had lost just about everything they owned along with the car. The only money that they had to their name was a fifty that Wolfwood had tucked away on himself, and all that was going just for food, much less a place to stay. Not to mention that they now had a nice hospital bill thrown on top of the mix.
The doctor, having compassion on them, told them that they could work off the bill by helping out here at the hospital. Having experience with this sort of work, Millie volunteered immediately. But to everyone's surprise Knives refused. He insisted that because it was his fault that he should be the one to work off the debt, and him alone. They tried to reason with him but he was adamant about doing it himself. He had even gotten angry when the kept arguing with him, so eventually they let the issue drop and let him have his way.
With Knives doing odd jobs around the hospital and Vash staying with Meryl, it was up to Millie and Wolfwood to bring in the money. And Millie was thankful for the excuse to be out and about. If she had to sit around any longer worrying she was going to go crazy. But job hunting was proving to be a little difficult, well for her at least.
Wolfwood had reeled in a job down at the saloon almost instantly, but she was having difficulties finding one for herself. She went from shop to shop asking, trying to be on her most politest bestest behavior, but she kept coming up empty handed. She had even begun stopping at people's homes offering house cleaning services or babysitting, but no dice.
Frustrated and discouraged, she slowly made her way back to the hospital. That was the only place she hadn't asked yet. Millie knew that Knives had already staked his clamed as the worker there but there could be a job there that she could possibly do too. And the small vindictive part of her wanted to find a job there just to see if he would say anything about it. She was still angry with him, although not violently.
It felt strange being the only one to keep him at a distance while the others had taken him in. It was like the complete opposite of what things had been before. She felt a little guilty about how she felt but she couldn't really help it that she felt this way. She just didn't know how to feel about Knives anymore. She had always trusted her heart to tell her what to do in situations like this, but now it seemed as if she were torn in two directions.
Pondering these things over, Millie was about to enter the hospital but paused when she heard a familiar voice. There was a steady stream of frustrated curses coming from out of sight on the other side of the building. Curious and slightly amused, she slowly peeped around the corner and tried not to laugh at what she saw.
The decrepit little old maintenance man of the hospital had assigned Knives the duty of giving the place a new coat of paint. Knives had stuck to his orders but he was making more mess than progress. Instead of taking smooth paint strokes, he was trying to get as much paint over as wide of an area as possible. Good in theory…poor in execution. And adding to his temper was the fact that he seemed to be getting more on himself than on the building. Despite her huffiness at him, Millie couldn't help but laugh at the sight. Unaware that he had an audience, her laughter nearly startled him off of his perch on the ladder.
"You've never painted before, have you?" She asked, walking around to look up at him.
"Plotting genocide doesn't leave much time to learn about home improvement." He said tiredly. Frustrated, he tossed the brush back down in the can and scowled at his 'handy work'.
"I know that you want to do this on your own, but would you care for a few pointers? I've been doing stuff like this since I was a little girl." She politely offered to him. Knives hesitated for a moment.
"Alright." He reluctantly agreed and climbed down.
"Hehe…you've got paint on your face…" She giggled, wiping away a spot on the tip his nose. "Ok! Painting is easy to learn once you've learned how to do it." She announced in a school teachers voice.
"Wait…what?"
"No arguing with the teacher…Now face the wall…Give me your hand…pretend you're holding a brush…Now it's back and forth easy like this. Smoooth even strokes. Don't try to glob it all on at once. It may look faster, but it just makes things more difficult and it looks bad. Now give it a try." She said releasing him. He climbed back up and did as she had told him to. "See? Isn't that better?"
"Yes it is easier to do. Even if I do feel like a fool now." He said, trying to smooth over the messy areas.
"Why do you say that? You didn't know any better. Nobody knows how to do everything."
"I know. But not knowing how to do something as simple as paint is embarrassing."
"Don't worry about it. You just have a lot of catching up to do. That's all." She said simply. Knives paused a moment, then put the brush back in the bucket and climbed back down.
"Are you still angry with me?" He asked her up front. Mille was slightly taken aback by the abrupt question. But in a way she admired his ability to face the problem headlong instead of trying to avoid it like some people do.
"I…suppose I am and I'm not at the same time." She answered slowly.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm angry that you betrayed us like that and I'm very angry that you hurt Meryl but I also know you didn't truly mean it and you didn't know any better."
"Yes I did." He said quietly, looking her in the eye.
"I know that you knew better…I meant that you didn't know better." She said. She could see that she was just confusing him so she tried to explain. "You know right from wrong just like the rest of us, but you've spent most of your life around awful people so you really didn't know how to act any differently. That and you've been very confused for a long time…Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"
"I believe so. But I don't want you or anybody else trying to make excuses for me. There is no excuse. All I need to know is if you will forgive me." He asked her. Millie quietly thought for a long hard moment. He waited patiently until she made up her mind.
"…I will…but on one condition." She said sternly, holding up a single finger. She saw his heart fall at this but she also saw acceptance in his eyes. "I will forgive you if you promise to change a little more each day to the man we all know is inside of you."
"How do you know there is such a person?"
"We can see it. We always have, even if you didn't."
"…I promise…And thank you." He told her.
"You're welcome." She said brightly, her heart at peace now that it had made up its mind. Knives managed to give her a small smile then turned to get back to painting before it dried, but ended up tripping over the black cat that had come to inspect his shoe. He latched onto the ladder for balance and ended up spilling the whole bucket of paint on himself and falling anyway. Millie was able to resist it for all of two seconds before she burst out laughing.
"Ahahaa! Oh you poor thing! That was a brand new shirt too! Hahahaaa! I'm sorry…I'm sss-sssoorry!…I g-guess clumsiness runs in the family! Aahahahaa! Sorry!"
-L&P-
Wolfwood slowly walked to the hospital from his job at the saloon, thankful to be away. It was by no means the most pleasant job, nor was it fitting for a priest, but it paid. Millie had gotten a job working for the hospital as well so the extra income helped things out greatly. After staying their second night there the hospital staff had kicked everyone out other than Vash who they allowed to stay with Meryl. But the other three had to find a place to stay.
It had taken every ounce of smooth talking he could muster but Wolfwood managed to convince the owner of the saloon that he was working in to let them stay in the guest room upstairs until he received his first pay check. But it was a very tiny room above a very noisy bar, with one very tiny bed with three above average sized people. Naturally they had given Millie the bed without a second thought, but she felt guilty about it and wouldn't accept it without a fight. They managed to talk her into it but only on the condition that they take the pillow and blanket.
So she got the bed using her coat as a blanket and a wadded up sheet as a pillow. Knives, despising the cold, had naturally latched onto the blanket and had chosen to sleep against the far wall in the patch of moonlight. And that left Wolfwood with a flat deformed pillow and the cold hard floor by the door where it was the noisiest. Oh the wonderful life of the wanderer…
Wolfwood dreaded trying to get some sleep tonight, as he did every night. He was sorely tempted to crawl into bed with Millie where it was warm and comfortable, but considering that there was a third roommate it seemed inappropriate even by his loose standards. But that was not the only problem in having to share a room with Knives.
It really wasn't unexpected to Wolfwood, but it was still troubling none the less. Soon after they had moved into the little room Knives had taken to having nightmares. The first time it had happened it had scared the life out of Wolfwood and Millie. Wolfwood had immediately gone to wake him up. Not recognizing him, Knives had lashed out at him and got him good. He soon came to his senses, then upon seeing what he had done, had locked himself in the bathroom until morning.
None of the nightmares were as severe as that first night, but they were still there. Wolfwood and Millie gently (and cautiously) woke him up whenever they caught him, but it was mostly troubled tossing and turning that they slept through. And the poor sleep along with all the hard work was beginning to take its toll on Knives as well. But hell, he wasn't dong much better, Wolfwood thought tiredly.
After a long and particularly exasperating night at the bar, all he wanted to do was get to the hospital, drop off the bag of food since needle noggin would sooner starve then leave Meryl for even a few minuets (not that he would do any differently, but that was beside the point), and then get to bed. He couldn't wait until Meryl was well enough so that they could bid this place farewell. As he walked along in the moonlight thinking about snatching a bottle of whisky when the bartender wasn't looking, Wolfwood noticed someone sitting off in the desert by themselves. And judging from that pale shade of blond and the color of the jacket he could guess who it was.
Knives sat by himself staring out across the sand. The different hues of the moons giving the sand an almost kaleidoscopic unreal color. It was not like hadn't seen the desert at night, but he had never really paid attention to it before. There were a lot of things he was seeing for the first time recently. It was really amazing how much he had overlooked in his one hundred and thirty years of living…
He looked away from the desert down to his hands. They were dirty from hard work and they were beginning to blister in places. That in itself was a wonder to him. He had never before had blisters. He had always thought such work was degrading and had always gotten someone else to do it. But now he felt differently. There was something strangely gratifying by working hard then stepping back and observing what all your own hands had accomplished. To create instead of destroying. He was skilled in creating geo plants but this was different…His observations were cut short as he heard someone approaching. The wariness faded quickly when he saw it was only Wolfwood.
Wolfwood walked right up to him. "Is this seat taken?"
"Go ahead." Knives said, indicating the ground beside of him. Wolfwood anchored his gun in the ground before sitting down. They sat in silence like that for a long time. One moon rose higher in the sky while another began to set. Eventually it was Wolfwood to break the almost eerie silence.
"You know…you've been awfully busy lately…The bill's already been paid off but yet you're still at it. Are you avoiding us by any chance?"
"No. Not you all. Just myself." Knives said darkly without looking at him. "I want to keep busy. I don't like to stay still; it gives me too much time to think. I don't like to go to sleep either."
"The nightmares?"
"How do you know that?" Knives asked him.
"We sleep ten feet from each other Knives. It's hard not to know when you're having a nightmare."
"…Sorry. If I'm bothering you two I can try and find somewhere else to stay."
"Or how about you just talk about it…Might help." Wolfwood suggested.
"I highly doubt that." Knives said, his tone slightly bitter.
"It did for me. Believe it or not Knives, I went through the same thing you're going through. I admit that it's not to the same degree but out of all the others I believe I understand you the best." Knives didn't reply but he looked at him with a mix of curiosity and expectancy. Wolfwood took that as a sign to continue. "Vash told me about what you two had to endure on the ship. Did you know I committed my first murder when I was seven? It was my so called 'guardian'. You can fill in the blanks because I refuse to say anymore about him. It was because of him and my hatred that I got involved with the gung ho guns anyway. I know you already know this but I was taught that murder was no big deal…a necessity. Theeen I met your brother…" Knives snorted in dry amusement. "I eventually began to see myself for what I truly was…and I hated it. I despised being forcibly reminded of what I was. But I began to change. It was the then that I learned that it's easy to forgive others for their transgressions…but it's another matter altogether to forgive yourself."
"I wouldn't even know where to begin. And…I'm not sure I even want to."
"Amen. I understand that completely. But you can't keep holding onto it. It's eventually going to tear you apart."
"What I've done isn't so easy to let go of Wolfwood. Not when I am constantly faced with the reminder of it. Hell, even the very air I breathe is a reminder. The whole world is…" Knives snapped. He scooped up a handful of sand and watched as it slowly trickled away between his fingers. "It's because of me that we're here…And that's only scratching the surface."
"I know that Knives. But the point that I'm trying to make to you is that you don't have to endure it alone. I didn't do it alone and you don't have to either. You have one helluva weight on your shoulders. Let us help out a little, ok? And just take it one day at a time, and I don't mean by working yourself into the ground either." Wolfwood scolded him.
"How then Wolfwood? How do I learn to live with something like this?" Knives despondently asked him. Wolfwood took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. He then began to tell him, from experience, what all he had done, everything that carried him through. He told him about how as time went by and after successfully making it from one day to the next how the load would get lighter. Slowly, painfully, but it would ease. It would never leave, but it would become bearable. But only over time.
-L&P-
It had been a happy day when Meryl had finally been released from the hospital. She was slow and slightly shaky as she had walked out. Every one of them would have willingly carried her but she wanted to walk out under her own steam, and every one of them knew better than to argue with her. But all of that had been about a week ago.
It was now a bright and serene morning. There had been no possible way that the five of them could have stayed in that single room above the saloon without murdering one another so they winced at spending the extra money and got a small apartment. Meryl and Millie sat at the table enjoying a cup of coffee while the brothers did the cooking. Wolfwood, having had drawn the short straw, had been last in line to use the bathroom and was still in there.
It had taken a joint effort on their part to try and drag Knives out of the depression that he had fallen in. Half of the problem was that he didn't want to feel better. He felt as if he deserved to be unhappy and suffer. The first step they had taken had been to get him to quit abusing himself.
He wasn't actively hurting himself; he was just wearing himself to the ground. He would hardly eat, hardly sleep, and then would work nearly non stop. It was actually the doctor that had been the one to finally put a stop to this behavior. He had been observing Knives ever since he and Vash had talked with him that one night, and he could see that something was deeply troubling the young man. He had accepted his rather poor, although well intentioned, work at the hospital in the hopes that it would help him shake it off. But he had promptly put his foot down and would not allow him to work there anymore once he saw his condition to continue to degrade. After a lecture, which everyone else was excluded from (much to their displeasure and amplified curiosity), and a free sleep aid the doctor bid him his best wishes and farewell.
The next step was much harder. And that was to get him to gain some sort of equilibrium emotionally. They each spent one on one time with him, almost in shifts it seems. If all the extra attention annoyed Knives he didn't show it. He was just too quiet. They all wanted the spirited and somewhat (ok…very) sarcastic Knives back, and they let him know it too. But the problem was how could they discuss his depression with him without bringing up its source? They couldn't just tell him 'there there…it's ok…it's not your fault' because it was, and they were not going to insult his intelligence by insisting otherwise.
Vash would take him out for walks out into the desert. Sometimes they wouldn't return to well past midnight. It was during these walks that they would talk, brother to brother. It was Vash who did the majority of the talking with Knives throwing in a comment or question periodically. He told him of the good things in life worth fighting for. He told him of his hardest moments and how he thought that he wouldn't make it through, but did anyway. But most of all he talked of the future, and how he wanted Knives to be a part of it.
While Vash'es view of the future focused around having a home in a nice town with everybody, family, and friends, Knives'es view was more expansive. He never for a moment believed in the possibility of him finding someone to live his life with. He primarily wondered about the future of the human race as a whole. This made him think of how he had horribly sabotaged them. And he would wonder how he could possibly right that wrong.
Millie's tactic to try and help him was to distract him. She would drag him off grocery shopping every chance she could. She happily noted that he was no longer tense around people, but still wisely held a degree of caution. Lacking a chess board, they couldn't play their favorite game together, but she often made him play old maid with her. Or they sometimes built card castles together. He was really good at it, but would get annoyed whenever that stray black cat would send it crashing down.
And even though she didn't understand half of what he was telling her, Millie got him to tell her all sorts of technical stuff that only he knew about. Things like astronomy, chemistry, electronics….She tried to avoid the topic of plants, knowing that it upset him that the others were trapped, but pried for anything else that sounded interesting. He was reluctance at first to talk so much, but gradually became more accustomed to it and became more comfortable speaking again.
Wolfwood was more subtle with his methods. They never would talk to one another very much. A quiet sort of understanding seemed to pass between the two naturally. He was reluctant to accept it but finally agreed to take it out of necessity whenever Vash finally gave him back his gun. Occasionally, Knives and Wolfwood would go out and shoot for a while in the evenings. Again not much was said, but there really wasn't any need to. Wolfwood taught Knives some of the newer songs on the piano while conversely Knives taught him a few of the old ones.
Despite whatever progress they made with Knives, he would always seem to revert back whenever he spent time with Meryl. She could see the remorse hiding in his eyes whenever they talked together. And it was only made worse by her still weak state. On more than one occasion she had assured him that he was forgiven and that he shouldn't dwell on it, but he refused to let something go. Despite her efforts to take it easy on him she had finally lost her temper and demanded to know what he was thinking.
He then confessed to her, that even if she was fine, he was still hurt over what he had done to her. Not accidently shooting her, not hitting her, but the kiss he had forced on her. He quickly went on to tell her that he had not meant anything nor had he planned on taking it further, he had just wanted to scare her. Neither of them had told Vash about it yet. She was willing to forget about it and leave it buried in the past, but the feeling of deep betrayal was eating at Knives. She told him that she had already forgiven him for it, but if he needed forgiveness from Vash as well then he knew what he had to do. He reluctantly had agreed. Knives had got off easy with only a black eye and the silent treatment for half a day. After that was over with, he seemed to be doing much better. Not completely, but better.
Now here they were in their tiny little apartment. Everybody was itching to get on the road again but both Vash and Knives refused to leave until they were absolutely content that Meryl was in top shape again. Everything would have seemed normal (as normal as they can manage anyway), but Meryl noted that Millie had been acting rather odd lately. And it was particularly bad this morning. She kept fidgeting and avoiding looking anyone in the eye. Finally curiosity got the better of Meryl.
"Millie, what's up with you today?" Meryl asked, trying to act nonchalant.
"What? Oh…nothing! Nothings up with me. Ehehehee…" Millie rambled out nervously. Meryl cocked an eyebrow up at her.
"You're hiding something…" She said suspiciously.
'No I'm not." Millie said quickly. Too quickly. "What in the world could I be hiding?"
"I don't know but you are hiding something. I can see it."
"Huh? What am I missing? Who's hiding what?" Wolfwood said strolling on in, towel drying his hair. He reached over and snuck a drink of Millie's coffee. Meryl noted that Millie's fidgeting increased whenever Wolfwood sat down by her. Suddenly a thought struck her. An unexpected one but a completely possible thought. And boy would it mean big news…
She leaned in close to whisper her suspected question to Millie. Millie began to blush furiously and quickly launched into a denial.
"Oh no no no Meryl! It's not that believe me."
"It's not what?" Wolfwood asked, curious but oblivious.
"I'm not acting strange because I'm pregnant" She frankly told him. Wolfwood spat out his drink of coffee everywhere.
"You're what?"
"What's that?" Vash asked peering around the doorway, Knives looking a second behind him.
"Pregnant."
"What?"
"No no…she's not…at least…"
"Well congratulations!"
"Wait…I thought you took…"
"I hope it's a girl!"
"No!" Millie shouted exasperatedly. "I'm not! That's what I'm trying to tell you."
"Then what is it?" Meryl asked. "What are you acting so darn weird and uptight about?"
"It's just that I wanted to talk about something with you guys but I didn't know how to bring it up. There's somewhere I want to go but I don't want to seem selfish or make any of you go out of your way for me…"
"Don't be silly Millie…" Vash laughed. "It's not selfish. If you have somewhere you need to go then we're there! Its not like we have anywhere pressing to go at the moment."
"Are you sure?" She asked hesitantly.
"We're sure hon. Now where is it that you're wanting to go?" Wolfwood said, looking immensely relieved. He would go to the moon if she asked him to, just not that…Well, not yet anyway.
"A little place called Cira."
"Wait…Cira outside of December?" Wolfwood asked intently.
"Why yes. Have you heard of it?"
"Have I heard of it? It's only the neighboring town to Gloria…where my church is!"
"You're kidding me! You mean we were neighbors this whole time!"
"Would this be classified as irony or fate?" Knives asked no one in particular.
"Oh my gosh! That's so nifty!" Millie gushed excitedly, jumping up and down. "Our homes are so close to each other!"
"You want to head back home?" Meryl asked her.
"It's been so long since I've seen my family. They're probably worried to death about me. That and I kinda have another reason…" She said abashedly. Everyone looked at her in expectant silence waiting for her to continue. "Well…in a few weeks they're gonna hold the Thompson family reunion. And I was kinda wondering and hoping that we could go. I want you to meet them and I was kinda wanting to show you off to them."
"Awww…." Vash cooed. Knives rolled his eyes.
"Well I umm…" Wolfwood avoided, uncomfortable.
"You don't want to go?" Millie quietly asked him, hurt.
"I do! But it's just that…I've never had a real family. I have no idea how to act! And what if they don't like me?"
"Hehe." She giggled. "You're so silly Nic! Of course you have a family…us! And if I know my family I know that they'll love you just as much as I do!"
"Even if you are a sarcastic smartass." Knives playfully jabbed at him. Wolfwood was about to throw a stinging remark back at him as well but he just settled back in his seat and smirked. This confused everyone at first until they noticed what Wolfwood had…smoke beginning to waft out of the kitchen.
"Oh no! They're burning!" Vash cried out running back into the kitchen.
"I thought you turned it off!" Knives snapped at him, close behind.
"But you were the one using this eye!"
"You were teaching me! It's your fault!"
"Don't try and push this one off on me!"
"Well I didn't do it!"
"You did do it!"
Wolfwood shook his head sadly. How can two individuals, having lived as long as they had, with supposed superior intelligence, screw up something as simple as cooking breakfast? It was one of life's many wonders….