Chapter Two: And then All Was Dark
written by Neko-B
neko_briefs@hotmail.com
**
Author's Note: I want to thank all of you guys for the positive feedback on the first
chapter, it really boosted my self-esteem! I didn't originally intend
to write a second chapter, but I realize that I did leave the end as a
cliffhanger of some sorts. Usually I leave my writing as it is, but
so many questions went unanswered at the end of the first chapter, so I
figured I'd answer those questions. Enjoy!
**
The next -- and last -- thing that Vash saw was only darkness.
But soon
that darkness faded and he was floating in... well, nothing. He looked
around and realized that he had entered an empty void of some sorts when
he died. Nothing surrounded him -- no color, no scenery, nothing. There had been times when Vash had sat up late at night just wondering
exactly what "nothing" would look like, and he came up with some pretty
interesting theories and mental images, but no thought could come close
to what he was seeing now.
He looked
into nothing, and saw nothing.
That's
when Vash realized that he wasn't alone. Staring off into the blank
void next to him was Meryl, who still had a blood-covered shirt and a tear-stained
face. She stood next to him, saying nothing, and a curious look was
plastered on her delicate features. Vash looked at her and wondered
out loud.
"Meryl...
is this the afterlife? Are we dead?"
She turned
her gaze to look up at him, and managed a sad smile. "I think so." Meryl took Vash's hand and squeezed it lightly. "But you know what?"
"No...
what?"
"I'm
not afraid, Vash," she whispered. "I have no reason to be afraid
anymore. And it's all because I'm here with you."
Vash
looked down at their joined hands, and a question formed in his mind. "Meryl... why is it that you love me?" he asked her. "You knew that
I was going to outlive you, that I was going to appear as a young man while
you slowly aged... didn't that bother you at all?"
She shook
her head. "No, it didn't bother me," she replied. "It's because
you made me happier than I ever thought I could be." Another tear
slid down her face as she spoke, and Vash carefully wiped it away with
his thumb.
All he
could do was smile. "I love you, Derringer Meryl," he told her.
Her response? "I love you, Vash the Stampede."
They
kissed, holding one another tightly, enjoying the warmth that each of them
thought they'd never find.
Milly
Thompson was in absolute shock. The tears wouldn't stop coming, and
no matter how much she tried to will them away, the pain was too much for
her to keep bottled up inside her. She looked up at the platform
where she just witnessed two innocent people being murdered -- those two
people were her lifeblood. Meryl gave up her life to save Vash's,
and although she didn't do as well as she had hoped... she had succeeded.
And despite
all of the sadness, Milly somehow managed to smile. They were together
now, in a world where they wouldn't have to worry about Vash being stalked
for the bounty money, where Meryl could finally relax and enjoy life as
it came.
After
a moment of deep thought, Milly looked down at her feet. Most of
the crowd had left after the two had died, so she was left alone, save
a couple of stragglers. She didn't have anybody now -- Vash and Meryl
were dead, Wolfwood was dead... she had cried many tears for Wolfwood,
but the sadness that she experienced that day still lingered in her heart.
Milly
dropped to her knees and buried her face in her hands, sobbing uncontrollably.
She cried
for Wolfwood, the priest who in the end, turned out to be nothing that
resembled Godliness.
She cried
for Meryl, who gave up her life to save her love, and who never really
knew that one shouldn't take life for granted. Maybe she knew now,
wherever she was.
And most
of all, Milly cried for Vash the Stampede. Everybody that he had
ever cared about had died, and he was the one who had to witness it all. He somehow managed to live with so many burdens on his shoulders, and yet
somehow, he also managed to wake up every morning with a goofy grin on
his face and a shining attitude. Although Milly didn't know Vash
as well as she would have liked, she knew he was happier, wherever he was
now.
After
a moment, Milly wiped her eyes and looked up at the sky. The sun
was blazingly hot that day and it streamed down on the world in deadly
rays. The heat was almost unbearable.
But she
could take it. Standing up and dusting off her knees, Milly turned
around and began to walk slowly back to her apartment, which was going
to be empty when she got back.
She'd
survive. As she thought of how to break the news to the staff at
the Bernardelli Insurance Society, she remembered a conversation that she
had had with Meryl when Wolfwood died.
"Shh,
sweety, don't cry," Meryl said. She scooped up her friend and partner
in a soft hug. "Don't cry for him."
Despite
the comfort, Milly still cried. "Why'd he have to die?" she sobbed. "He was special; he understood me. And he was taken from me!"
"Milly,
listen to me." Meryl held Milly out at arms-distance and looked up
at her with a sad smile. "Don't cry, okay? Try not to, anyway. You're one of the strongest people I know. Life has thrown you many
hurdles and somehow you leap over them like nothing. Don't think
of this as a loss -- thing of it as an escape."
Milly
sniffed, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. "An escape?"
Meryl
nodded. "An escape from any pain that you would feel. Wolfwood
wouldn't want you to cry for him, would he?"
"No...
I guess not."
"That's
my girl," Meryl said with a smile. "Now, perk up, we have lots of
work to get done today."
"Yes,
ma'am!"
Milly
smiled as she thought of this. As she walked down the street, that
sentence ran through her mind.
"You're
one of the strongest people I know."
Thinking
of this, Milly Thompson held her head high and walked slowly back to her
apartment. She had pain in her heart, but a smile on her face.
She's such a trooper, don't you think?
(owari)