"Don't baby me. I can take it," gritted Tongari. "Remember? Ancient plant alien thing?"

"Sure you can, idiot," growled Wolfwood, even as his cock dug deeper into Tongari's ass. "You're so good at taking things, your whole body is covered with it. Looks great, by the way."

"Why

do you have to be such

an asshole

all the time,"

Vash ground out in time with Wolfwood's incursions.

"You leave me no choice," Wolfwood said firmly. "Someone's got to tell you what an insane blockhead you are, you walking flaming power plant. You're lucky you've got a nice, patient man of the cloth like me on your side."

Vash about poops him out right there but thinks better of it. "I'd keep my mouth shut – at least more shut-er – if you wanted to continue having sex today," he intones.

"It's all a matter of perspective," Wolfwood responds, grinning. But he seems to get serious and leans forward for a minute, spreading his warm torso over Vash's riven back. He catches the lobe of Vash's ear in his mouth, sucks on it, tastes the salt. "You feel fine to me."

"I asked you for a fuck, Wolfwood, not your opinion how my ass feels. Now, are you going to use that dick of yours, or do I have to do everything for you?"

"Hey, you started it. I'm just following your lead," Wolfwood says. He grabs at the muscle on Vash's butt, massaging it, feeling the lean and wiry strength it contains. Vash can't help but hump up against him, whether trying to get away from it or get more, he's not sure. Wolfwood treats the other side in the same manner, then ghosts his hands up over Vash's narrow, scarred hips and starts to pump inside, gentle but regular.

Vash sighs because this is what he wants, this is what he signed up for, just him and Wolfwood and the spreading pleasure. He's chosen this position because it's easy for Wolfwood to hit the right place like this, and Vash knows enough to be able to move so that he gets it where it feels good.

Wolfwood's silent for a minute. Then-

"Tongari. Can I spank you?"

"Well-" Yeah. "Yeah."

"Okay." And Vash waits for the first drop.

Wolfwood waits just long enough, and when it comes it's glorious – a fat, open-handed slap, right above the meat of his ass, and he clenches and arches his back downwards without meaning to, shoving himself onto Wolfwood's hungry cock.

"You like that, Tongari?" Wolfwood says with a hint of surprise.

His voice is a little muffled now, as if he's talking around something. "Wolfwood, are you – are you smoking while you're fucking me?"

"Geez, is that a crime?" opines Wolfwood

"What the – you – " and Vash tries to turn around despite his precarious position, but Wolfwood pats him consolingly on the bum. "Sorry, bud, didn't think you'd mind. Hand me the ashtray and I'll put it out."

Vash is livid. "I hate you so much right now," he hisses, but passes the tray back.

"Thanks," Wolfwood says, obediently stubbing out the fag. He tosses the metal tray casually to the floor, earning him (had he been able to see it) the dirtiest of dirty looks from Vash.

"Can we get on with it now without your stupid habits distracting us?" Vash asks nastily.

"What? You call my addiction stupid? Tongari," and Wolfwood rolls his hips lazily into Vash, "that's the only thing keeping me even halfway decent to you."

"Pretty indecent priest with his dick up my ass," Vash mutters.

"What's that you say, I can't hear you over the sound of," thrust, grunt "how hard you're moaning right now, needle-noggin."

"Hey, maybe if you moved a little more I'd pay more attention, you shady excuse for a holy man."

"Aw, c'mon, you can be nicer than that. Ask and you shall receive, y'know?"

"Fine, Wolfwood, I am asking you to actually fuck me before your dick falls off from lack of use."

"Like you have any idea what my dick gets up to, loser."

That is it vow or no vow, he has to die-

Vash is ready to call it quits, turn around and throttle this horrible friend slash shitty lover, but Wolfwood strokes his thigh consolingly

"Vash – I'm sorry," he says quietly. "I'm not used to being with someone I – know, ya know?"

Vash sighs. "Hold on," he says, sliding off Wolfwood and turning around. "Sit down, would you?"

"Can I smoke?"

"GOD, yes, you can fucking smoke. Christ," Vash fumes. "Look, Wolfwood. You told me yesterday you wanted to spend the rest of your life with me."

Wolfwood looks shocked. "WHO has been spreading these LIES about me?!"

"YOU have, idiot! Last night, in the bar! Do you not remember?" Vash almost screams.

"Remember what?" Wolfwood looks genuinely puzzled

Vash stares at him with a look of disbelief on his face. "You stood on top of the bar and told the entire town we were getting married."

"I was joking?"

"You kissed me!"

"I kiss a lot of people, ok!"

Vash gives him a look.

"Okay, okay, so it's more of an aspirational goal. So shoot me."

"Am I an 'aspirational' goal, too?" Vash spits out.

Wolfwood almost loses his cigarette. "Vash! No! I mean…"

"So you do remember!"

"Vash! Okay...Yes, so I like you, all right? I like guys, and I like you."

And now I'm going to die, Wolfwood thinks to himself. I have fallen for the dumbest man on the planet and therefore I have a death warrant.

Well. What else is new. 'Least Tongari's not a raging psychopath. And how the hell am I so good at screwing myself over?

Wolfwood blows out a thin stream of long-held smoke. "Okay, Tongari, you need to pay attention and listen to somebody for once in your life. There is one goddamn thing I care about enough to die for in this godforsaken world, and it's not you, and it's certainly not Knives. It's the kids at my orphanage."

"I like you. Heck, I might even love you, because apparently my head is on backwards, but loving you is a death sentence for them, so here's the deal. We are going to fuck – once – and then I go back to die for them, and you go back to stop Knives."

"Wolfwood -" The word catches in Vash's throat. "What if - I don't want to save the world if you're not in it."

Wolfwood's face is impassive. "No go, Tongari. I know you better than that. You'd die to save a dead dog, if you could." He glances at Vash's body. "Sometimes, I think you've tried."

Vash has tears in his eyes now. "You can't be right! There's got to be another way!"

Wolfwood sighs. "You always do. Tell me if you find it, huh?"

He sticks the cig in his mouth, turns around and leans against the window frame. Dawn is coming. Dawn, and he's still got so much to do before the suns rise. Including Vash, if they ever get around to it, now.

"Wolfwood…" Nick turns around. "I don't know what's going to happen, but – right now – I think I want to be with you."

Wolfwood's eyes are clouded, and unreadable. After a long moment, he stubs out the smoke and comes back next to the bed. He runs his thumb along Vash's bottom lip.

"Yeah," he says quietly. "Me too."

It's quieter now, now that they've gotten all that out of the way. They both still want it - they want something more, too, a lot more, but sex is what's on offer and sex is what they'll take.

Wolfwood looks wrecked. His eyes are wide, dark, and he has a deep flush high in his cheeks.

Vash is dead to the world, or maybe alive to it. He knows when it's good, and this is very, very good, despite Wolfwood's inexperience and his own hurried desperation.

"Wolfwood - can you just - harder-" he moans.

"Hold on, Tongari. Are you sure -"

Vash doesn't wait for him to finish, just grabs for Wolfwood's wrists and *slams* onto that cock. Wolfwood grunts, half in an agony of desire and half still, desperately, trying to hold back.

"I know what you are, Wolfwood. It doesn't matter. Fuck me," Vash says.

"FFFF-" Wolfwood's patience has worn thin, and now it's basically nonexistent. "Fine."

Now it comes hot and hard and Vash's head dips and he breathes out long and low, a growl that's existentially deep. Wolfwood isn't stopping now, he's pinning Vash's wrists to the sides of those howling hips as Vash cries into the mattress and Wolfwood's cock destroys him, ripping back his barriers one ragged black stitch at a time, until all Vash can do is attempt to breathe and wait for release.

Wolfwood is losing his mind. Vash is so hot and open and he's in so deep and it's so good, better than he even dreamed - and he's got a real active imagination and shit, Tongari's been in his head for months now and he never thought he'd actually be doing this -

But it's too good, too good to last, although Wolfwood tries his best to draw it out - think about the desert, think about thirst, think about the Eye of Michael for the love of God, don't come until Vash is done - and as he teeters on the brink he lets go of Vash's hands and reaches around for his dripping cock and Vash shudders and screams into the bed and finally comes, hot and messy and pulsing around him, and that is it, Wolfwood is done, he pulls most of the way out and slams back in, for good this time, and that's all it takes, he's painting Vash's insides white with his seed and it's all he wants, all he wanted…

Wolfwood stops moving and notices he's shaking all over, feeling the buzz from fingertips to toenails, and he focuses his eyes on the stained ceiling and works on remembering to stay upright long enough to make sure Tongari's okay.

Said Tongari's eyes are bright and unfocused, a heady shade of green, and Wolfwood pulls carefully out and then collapses, all gleaming muscle and tousled black hair. Vash is facing away from him and he puts a big hand on his torn-up bicep, carefully.

"Tongari," he says. "Did you…"

"Shut up, Wolfwood. Just shut up for once."

But Vash still manages to thrash himself over and set his nose in the hollow of Wolfwood's neck.

"...Thank you," he says. "That was…"

Wolfwood squeezes his eyes shut and puts his hand up to tangle in Vash's messy blond hair.

"Yeah." he says. "It sure was."

And that's all there ever was, or ever will be. Except...

"Vash." Vash opens an eye. Odd of Wolfwood to use his actual name.

"Vash," he repeats, and his heart pounds hard in his chest, and it's not just from the sex.

Get it out get it out get it over with.

"Vash, I love you," he blurts out.

Vash actually looks surprised and blushes. Idiot - Wolfwood's only saying what they're both thinking, what they're probably both thinking, right?

"Vash, I love you, but I have to protect my kids."

Vash frowns and closes his eyes. "I know, we already discussed this, remember?"

Wolfwood buries his face in Vash's hair, almost whispers. "Fight with me. Help me defeat the Eye of Michael. Let me…" his voice chokes. "I don't want to die anymore."

Vash's face softens. "I don't want you to die. I don't want anyone to die. But, maybe, especially...not you."

He looks distant for a second. "You'll have to hide for a while. At least until I defeat Knives. Because if he knew - if he knew what you were to me - " He breaks off.

"Yeah," Wolfwood breathes. "But. Come with me. I swear to God - if we're together - I swear we can do it - "

Tears are coming into Vash's eyes too. "Yeah," he agrees. "No one can stop us if we're together."

Wolfwood crushes Vash to his chest, silently sobbing, and Vash lets him, breathing in his scent, breathing in the relief of Wolfwood being reasonable for once, he doesn't have to lose him, he doesn't have to -

"One thing, Wolfwood."

Wolfwood catches a shaky breath. Tries to regain his cool. "Yeah, Tongari? What is it?"

"Next time? I'm on top."

"As if, Spikey. I'll trust you to take care of Knives, but my ass? That's another story."

"Coward."

"Say that to my face, dumbass."

"Takes one to know one, doesn't it."

"Can it, wouldja? I am way too tired."

"Hey, Wolfwood?" Vash's voice is slow and sleepy.

"What is it, Tongari," Wolfwood replies evenly and with a decent show of interest.

"I'll see you in the morning. Right?"

"Yeah." Wolfwood squeezes him closer. "I'll be here."