DISCLAIMER: Same as all the other disclaimers. I don't own Trigun, I don't
own anything. I'm a poor, worthless person who listens to the voices in
her head. And they don't own Trigun either.
SPECIAL THANK YOU's TO:
Lynda-chan, CardMistress Sakura, Lynderia, Miss Eriks, tenshi no ai, Akima The StampedeMaxwel, and Skittles! Thanks for reviewing chapter 3 guys!! ^.^
CardMistress Sakura: Sowy for taking so long to write these chapters! ^.^' I'll try to hurry up! Hehehe.. thx so much for the review!
Miss Eriks: Yes, Meryl does hate her phone… I think it's because it always rings when she doesn't want it to. Poor Meryl… ^.^ hehehe
tenshi no ai: hehehe… here's the cursed phone problem again. Meryl pays for her apartment by waitressing and doing other odd jobs… it just gets her enough money. So that's that. And don't worry, I will find away to get them together *lol* ^.~
Welcome to my 4th chapter people! Sowy it took so long… poor DFS got writers block and couldn't come up with anything. But now I have two chapters in mind and everything SHOULD be going a bit faster… (don't hurt me, I know I said that last time ^.^') Enjoy!
* * * * * * *
EVEN THE STRONGEST WALLS CRUMBLE
CHAPTER 4
Later that day Meryl found herself sitting at a table in a café near her apartment complex, surrounded by her friends. They had all arranged earlier to meet there and Meryl had quickly agreed, wanting to be with them. No matter how annoying they were, they were the only people she had to talk to. Despite this, she still hadn't said anything about her mother's death or the gang's threat. Some things in her mind had to be left unsaid. That didn't mean no one noticed her depressed mood, or the way she forced her smiles.
"Are you OK Meryl?" Milly asked, worried. Meryl gave her first true smile that day. Her friend could act dense sometimes, but she was really very smart and worried about everyone so much. It always made Meryl feel like she had a family, even when she wasn't with them.
"I'm fine Milly…" she replied, trailing off as Milly told Vash and Wolfwood to go grab some drinks for everyone. The boys gave Milly strange glances but finally agreed, getting up. Milly then gave Meryl a very sharp look, much to her friend's surprise.
"Something's wrong Meryl… I can tell. What is it?"
"It's-" 'It's nothing' Meryl was about to say, but stopped herself. She couldn't lie to her friend. So she decided to tell only half the truth. "I learned last night that my mother died. Remember how I told you she had cancer? Well, my father 'disowned' me, so he won't let me go to her funeral."
"What?!" Milly practically yelled, standing up. Despite her usually calm and innocent attitude, Milly had a very strong sense of justice and protectiveness for others. Meryl had to smile at the look on her friend's face.
"Don't worry, I'll figure it out. I'm more worried about my little sister right now."
"But… but…"
"But that's not fair!" Vash cut in from behind them, making both the girls jump. Milly blinked a couple times, Meryl's eyebrow did a triple twitch, and Wolfwood smacked Vash over the head so hard he banged his chin on a nearby table.
"OOooUUCccHHH!!!"
"You were listening?!" Meryl demanded, ignoring Vash. Wolfwood smile innocently, a large sweatdrop forming on the side of his head.
"Heh… um… yeah… it was Vash's idea. I'll go get those drinks."
Vash cringed from his position on the floor, still holding his head, as Meryl's death glare turned on him. He shot Wolfwood a nasty look. "Traitor!"
Wolfwood patted him on the head as he walked off, a triumphant grin on his face. "Don't worry, I'll bring flowers to your grave."
*twitch*
"You… two… are… SO dead!"
Vash made a loud gulping noise, sliding back slightly as Meryl stood up, her small frame managing to tower over him somehow.
"Vash…" she said, her voice seething. Vash slid back again, still on the floor, but this time his hand slipped and he fell backwards on his back, knocking his head on the tile floor… hard.
"OooOww-" he stopped, his eyes going wide, "HE-LLO!!"
He had somehow managed to fall right near a waitress, and now had a good view of what was underneath her skirt. The waitress didn't seem to appreciate this as much as he did.
***STOMP***
***KICK***
"PERVERT!!"
And somehow, a poor customer's double-decker burger ended up in Vash's face. He wasn't so happy anymore.
Surprisingly, Meryl was the one who came and saved him. Dragging the young man back to the table by one ear, and apologizing over and over to the angry waitress, Meryl threw him in his seat and sat down herself, crossing her arms. Milly was still blinking absently, confused on what had just happened.
"Mr. Vash, are you OK?"
Vash sat paralyzed, a piece of lettuce caught in his hair from the burger. His eyes were wide.
"That… hurt…"
"Of course it did you idiot!" Meryl stated carelessly. Wolfwood arrived just then, passing out all the drinks and sitting down. Finally his eyes met Meryl's.
"Are you sure your OK?"
Meryl realized he was talking about her mother's death and put on her best smile, shrugging her shoulders. "Yeah, I'm OK. My little sis is really upset though… I'm worried she might do something stupid."
"Why would she do that?" Vash asked, still recovering. Meryl remembered that Vash was new, so he didn't know her family history.
"My dad's a drunk Vash… he used to be abusive, and he yells at people all the time. When my mom got diagnosed with cancer he started drinking even more. He uses me and my sister to get drugs and money all the time. Now that me and my mom are both gone, my sister has no one to talk to or turn to. She's stuck alone in the house with that creep and she might try something stupid…" Meryl didn't have to explain what stupid things her sister might do… everyone already knew.
"That's not right!" Milly said forcefully, her lip quivering, "Meryl, we have to do something! Your sister can't live like that! We can't leave her there!"
Meryl smiled at her friend, her eyes clouding over as she remembered the meeting that was supposed take place later with the gang. "I know… but I don't know what to do. Jess is strong… she'll last awhile longer till I can figure something out."
They all talked awhile longer about nothing in particular, sipping their sodas. Suddenly Milly stood up, a stricken look on her face.
"I just remembered! My sisters wanted me to pick their stuff up at the Laundromat! Oh no, they're going to be so mad! I'll be right back!"
(INFO TIME: They all live in a very small town, no too far away from each other. So Milly could drop by the Laundromat, drop the clothes off at her house, and be back at the café within ten minutes. Yes, it is possible. Why? Because it's my story and I say so! ^.^ hehehe)
"I'll come with you." Wolfwood immediately offered, standing up and following Milly out of the room. Meryl and Vash watched them go, both silent for awhile. Finally Meryl shot him a sly glance, folding her arms.
"You think those two are EVER gonna get together?"
Vash shrugged, sharing the same look. "Who knows? They talk about each other all the time."
"Maybe we should do something about that."
"What do you mean?" Vash asked, "Lock them in an empty room and see what happens?"
"That might work," Meryl agreed, grinning. At that moment both of them realized they were actually having a normal conversation together and froze.
*twitch*
*blink*
Meryl looked over at Vash, trying to put a scowl on her face. She couldn't do it, however, because she noticed a piece of lettuce still stuck in his hair. Rolling her eyes and suppressing a smile, she reached over to pull it out for him. Right before her hand touched his hair he grabbed her arm, shooting her the most serious look she had ever seen on his face. He looked so different when he wasn't screwing around that Meryl paused for a second, giving him a strange look.
"What're you doing?" he asked, his hand still gripping her arm lightly. Meryl blinked, flustered.
"You have lettuce in your hair."
"What?!" he yelped, the serious mood gone immediately. Meryl yanked her arm out of his grasp and pulled the lettuce away, flicking it in his face.
"See, idiot?"
As Meryl turned back to the door, hiding her flushed cheeks as she searched for Milly and Wolfwood, Vash let a soft smile appear on his face. He casually dropped the piece of lettuce back on the table, giving the girl next to him a small glance as his hand brushed the place where hers had been a couple seconds ago. The smile immediately disappeared when she turned around again, a desperate look on her face as she glanced down at her watch.
"Shit! I don't have time for this! I wish she hadn't left!"
Meryl fished a pen out of her pocket, glancing over at Vash as she grabbed a napkin and hurriedly wrote something down. Then she looked up, a determined expression on her face as she shoved the napkin in his hands.
"Give this to Milly when she gets back… it's the address to where my little sister lives. I want her to try to get my little sister out of there for me."
"But-" Vash began, confused.
"No time." Meryl snapped, cutting him off. Then she sent him the prettiest smile he had ever seen, twisted with a hint of sadness. "See ya Vash… tell the others I said bye too."
Vash frowned, his eyes going dark as she ran out. Something about the way she said that brought chills up his spine… as if she were saying bye for the very last time. And why couldn't she get her sister out herself? Something was really wrong.
* * * * * *
"Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap, crap," Meryl half growled, half sang, hurrying out her apartment door. She had spent the last couple of minutes grabbing any items she thought she would need and calling up the restaurant she worked at to announce that she was sick and couldn't come today. The clock now read 5:45… and she wanted to get to the park early.
She had her pepper spray back in the pocket of her black jacket, along with a knife. She also had a small gun hidden in a secret pocket of her baggy jeans. (Yes, Meryl still has a gun! It was called a derringer in the anime, right? I don't remember but you get where I'm going here, right? *lol*) Yes, Meryl had a gun. No, she wasn't SUPPOSED to have a gun and she would probably get in TROUBLE for having a gun if she got caught, but if the gang was allowed to have guns why couldn't she? The only problem was her gun could only hold one bullet… so she had only one shot if she got into any deep trouble.
Meryl walked towards the park with her head bowed, trying to collect her thoughts as fast as possible. The sun was getting low in the sky already, sending a dim and dreary look to the city streets. Perfectly depressing.
Meryl cringed, aware of how scared she really was. No matter how much she tried to hide it, she couldn't keep from shivering every so often and stumbling every couple of seconds. An icy breeze blew her boyish brown hair back as she finally lifted her head, staring up at the entrance of the park.
She remembered the blue-haired young man telling her to meet them by the lake. The lake was in the far back of the large park, and half of it was hidden from view by large trees. And besides that, no one went close to the lake after 5pm. It was an unspoken rule, for various reasons. The main one was that it was widely known that the Gung-ho gang (umm.. did I spell that right??) used that area as their meeting place after 5. And no one wanted to wander into a gang's meeting place.
Meryl made her way slowly towards the lake. It took her 8 minutes just to get back there, and she wearily noticed how the crowds began to thin and finally disappear as she continued. Of course. No one to help her out if she got into trouble… and no one to protect her.
That last thought surprised Meryl a lot. Her whole life, she had depended on herself and her own abilities. Meryl had never wanted or needed anyone to 'protect' or 'save' her. But now… now that she was about to face one of her worst fears and possibly not come out alive, she wished more than anything for someone to come and help her… maybe even fight beside her. Or just take her away from this screwed up situation and make everything alright again. How had this happened anyway?!
But Meryl knew that right now she needed to depend on herself more than anything or else she wouldn't last 2 seconds. Taking a deep breath, the young woman cautiously approached the lake. At that same moment two teenage girls came out from a thick clump of trees, both with grim expressions on their faces. They were wearing all black, like all the other members Meryl had seen, and she recognized one of them from when she had been attacked in the alley.
"Come with us," one said, a sneer twisting her lips as she roughly grabbed Meryl's shoulder and led her into the trees. Meryl couldn't help but notice the shotguns both had strapped to their waists.
(ME: So sue me… I don't remember the people in the gung-ho gang! ^.^'
LEGATO: That's cause you're an idiot..
ME: That's not nice… .)
Meryl let herself be dragged into a small clearing, where she saw the whole gang lounging around. In the center she spotted the leader she had seen the day before, with the blue-haired young man standing by his side.
(ME: Hey Legato! There's you!
LEGATO: ….
ME: What? You aren't happy?
LEGATO: ….
ME: *grins evilly* OK then, just for that…)
The blue-haired boy was, at the moment, sucking on a lollipop.
(LEGATO: WHAT?!?! A lollipop?!
ME: Hey, I'm trying to write a fic here! Stop interrupting! *still grinning evilly*
LEGATO: 0.o )
All heads turned as Meryl approached, led by the two girls. When the leader saw her, he immediately grinned. This grin wasn't comforting at all, however. It looked psychotic.
"Look who's decided to show," Someone laughed from the crowd. Meryl didn't bother looking for the source of the voice, her eyes trained on the young man who was the leader of the gang.
"Who're you and what the HELL do you want?"
A couple people took a step back at the sharpness in her tone, but the leaders grin just grew wider. The blue-haired boy next to him glanced over at her as well, a seriously evil expression on his face. The lollipop, however, mellowed the glare, and Meryl was not impressed.
(LEGATO: Hey, stop it!
ME: Stop what? ^.^
LEGATO: . I don't like you DFS…)
"Our leader is Knives," The blue-haired boy said, keeping his tone even, "And I suggest you watch your mouth around him, little girl."
*twitch*
"I TOLD YOU I'M 18!! STOP CALLING ME LITTLE!"
Everyone jumped back except for Knives and the young man, scared of her already. Meryl continued to glare, her anger made worse as Knives, likewise, continued to grin.
"Watch your mouth," The young man said again, "You're in our territory now."
"Enough Legato," The leader said, finally letting his grin drop into a sneer, "I doubt she's going to listen. Midvalley!"
Another young man stepped from the crowd, waiting for Knives to continue. He was the only one there with a pink and black jacket on… very strange. (yup… that's midvalley)
"Search her, will you?"
Meryl stiffened as the strange young man stepped towards her, a bored look on his face as he padded down her pockets and relieved her of her pepper spray and knife. Meryl had a poker face on, refusing to let anyone see her emotions. Her confidence had been slightly shattered though, as she watched Midvalley take her items. Now all she had left was the gun… luckily she had hidden it well. But it only had one bullet. Finally Midvalley finished and turned back towards Knives.
"Do we need to strip search her?"
The laughing that had started up quickly stopped as Midvalley hit the ground, his face pushed deep into the dirt. Meryl commenced in stomping him flat, an enraged expression on her face.
"You come one step closer to me and your dead you pervert!!"
"I think you already pretty much killed him," Somebody pointed out meekly. Meryl finally left Midvalley alone, taking a menacing step towards Knives. No matter how scared she had been before, her anger usually outweighed her fear big time.
"Will you tell me what you want already?!"
Knives looked over at her, amusement obvious in his icy blue eyes. "I actually wanted you to come to give you an invitation… to join the Gung-ho gang."
At this everyone jumped in surprise, staring at Knives. Legato was startled so badly that he choked on his lollipop, doubling over. Knives had to whack him on the back quite a few time before he finally calmed down. Then they all stared at Meryl, waiting for her reply.
Meryl stared blankly at Knives for a couple seconds, as if pondering his question. Finally she gave him a chilling glare.
"Why?"
If Knives was shocked by this question, he didn't show it. Instead he walked closer towards Meryl, that psychotic look back in his eyes. About a foot away he stopped, looking down at her. Meryl glared up at him, folding her arms and trying to put on an unimpressed expression. Knives grinned.
"Because you're the most stubborn person I've ever met. You'd be a great edition to my gang, especially since you work for the high school newspaper and know a lot of people. A perfect spy."
"That's not what I meant." Meryl said, still glaring, "Why would I join?"
Knives blinked uncertainly for awhile, confused. "Why wouldn't you want to join? Who wouldn't want to be a member of the Gung-ho gang?"
Meryl sneered and turned around, beginning to walk away. "Great logic, sherlock, but no thank you. I wouldn't join if you gave me a million bucks and all of China!"
Just then a large hand shot out and grabbed her by the shoulder, pulling her backwards and almost making her fall. Meryl glanced back quickly to see Knives, a snarl on his face. When he spoke, his voice was low and dangerous.
"Did I forget to mention you either join or die? I don't forgive people that easily, girl… you're lucky I didn't kill you right away for trying to attack me."
Meryl started to get just a tiny bit scared as Knives yanked her quickly towards him, wrapping one arm around her waist and the other around her neck, which put her in a very nasty headlock. Meryl growled as Knives looked up, motioning with his head for Legato to come over.
"Tie her up, will you?" Then he glanced down at the short girl in his arms, his face so close that each breath hit the side of her cheek when he spoke. "You interest me little girl… you really do. That's why I wanted you to join. But I guess I have no choice now."
Knives's eyes suddenly went really wide as Meryl back kicked him in a place boys really don't like to be kicked. Her face was red as she struggled to break his grip.
"I'M NOT A LITTLE GIRL YOU BASTARD!"
Meryl broke free, kicking him again and then hitting him across the face. Somehow, to everyone watching, the little girl had become even more menacing in the past couple of seconds.
Before Meryl could get away, however, Legato caught her, picking her up off the ground by her waist like he had done in the alley. A couple other gang members came timidly forward, helping to tie Meryl up as she kicked and struggled. By the time they were done Knives had recovered. He glared at Meryl as Legato set her down.
Meryl was bound around her ankles and wrists, making it impossible for her to walk or cause any more physical harm to any of the gang members.
Heh… yeah right. Nothing's impossible, remember?
"You bastard!" Meryl growled, headbutting Knives so hard in the chest that he actually stumbled backwards. Which was surprising, since Meryl only came up to his shoulder.
Meryl always finds a way.
Legato held Meryl before she could cause any more damage, looking to Knives for instructions. Knives motioned towards the lake, a slight smirk forming on his face once again.
"I thinks it's about time you met the bottom of the lake, girl."
Meryl struggled at first, but stopped as they dragged her closer and closer to the lake. A resigned look passed over her eyes as she stared at the smooth service, the sunset above reflected in its glassy waters.
'Well, I can't get out of this now,' Meryl thought sadly, testing her bonds to see if any of them were possibly loose enough to come undone. None of them were. 'I hope Milly will take care of my sister for me… poor Jess….'
Suddenly Meryl felt a fist connect with her chin and she fell to the side, stunned. Then another hit her gut, and then her face again. Meryl quickly realized what was happening. They wanted to wind her so that she didn't have the strength to try to swim to the surface, even if she could with the ropes around her ankles and wrists. Meryl had to admit it was working pretty well. She took in a quick breath, cursing as her heart sped up. This was it. She didn't want to die, dammit.
"Bye pretty little girl," She heard Legato say as they shoved her onto the wooden dock and to the very edge. Meryl glared at them, her gray eyes sharp and angry.
"F*** you all!" She growled before Knives punched her in the stomach one last time, pushing her into the lake.
Meryl couldn't breath, winded from the blow, as the icy water enveloped her and sucked her down into the darkness. Without any air in her lungs she sunk immediately, head already pounding from lack of air as she struggled to reach the surface. No… she couldn't…. she couldn't die like this….
…Not like this….
Above the surface of the water, gunshots rang out.
* * * * * * *
TO BE CONTINUED!!!!
Yay! How was that ppl?! ^.^ hehehe… personally, I'm proud of this chapter.
*hides from angry readers with pitchforks*
um… what? What did I do? ^.^ you don't like my ending? Ok, so it's a bit of a cliff hanger-
*ducks away as very dangerous weapons are thrown at her*
OK! OK! It's a lot of a cliff hanger! Me sorry!!! ^.^'
***IMPORTANT*** The next chapter is not really a chapter… it's more like an extra scene ^.^ Then I'll get on with what happened to Meryl. The extra scene is going to have what happened when Wolfwood and Milly left to go to the Laundromat… hehehe… ^.^ Anyone curious?
LEGATO: A lollipop?? I had a LOLLIPOP??
ME: hehehe… yup! Cherry flavored!
LEGATO: 0.o …. You scare me.
ME: I scare myself. Hope you enjoyed this chapter peeps! CIAO! ^.^
My multiple-personalities are at war….. 0.o
SPECIAL THANK YOU's TO:
Lynda-chan, CardMistress Sakura, Lynderia, Miss Eriks, tenshi no ai, Akima The StampedeMaxwel, and Skittles! Thanks for reviewing chapter 3 guys!! ^.^
CardMistress Sakura: Sowy for taking so long to write these chapters! ^.^' I'll try to hurry up! Hehehe.. thx so much for the review!
Miss Eriks: Yes, Meryl does hate her phone… I think it's because it always rings when she doesn't want it to. Poor Meryl… ^.^ hehehe
tenshi no ai: hehehe… here's the cursed phone problem again. Meryl pays for her apartment by waitressing and doing other odd jobs… it just gets her enough money. So that's that. And don't worry, I will find away to get them together *lol* ^.~
Welcome to my 4th chapter people! Sowy it took so long… poor DFS got writers block and couldn't come up with anything. But now I have two chapters in mind and everything SHOULD be going a bit faster… (don't hurt me, I know I said that last time ^.^') Enjoy!
* * * * * * *
EVEN THE STRONGEST WALLS CRUMBLE
CHAPTER 4
Later that day Meryl found herself sitting at a table in a café near her apartment complex, surrounded by her friends. They had all arranged earlier to meet there and Meryl had quickly agreed, wanting to be with them. No matter how annoying they were, they were the only people she had to talk to. Despite this, she still hadn't said anything about her mother's death or the gang's threat. Some things in her mind had to be left unsaid. That didn't mean no one noticed her depressed mood, or the way she forced her smiles.
"Are you OK Meryl?" Milly asked, worried. Meryl gave her first true smile that day. Her friend could act dense sometimes, but she was really very smart and worried about everyone so much. It always made Meryl feel like she had a family, even when she wasn't with them.
"I'm fine Milly…" she replied, trailing off as Milly told Vash and Wolfwood to go grab some drinks for everyone. The boys gave Milly strange glances but finally agreed, getting up. Milly then gave Meryl a very sharp look, much to her friend's surprise.
"Something's wrong Meryl… I can tell. What is it?"
"It's-" 'It's nothing' Meryl was about to say, but stopped herself. She couldn't lie to her friend. So she decided to tell only half the truth. "I learned last night that my mother died. Remember how I told you she had cancer? Well, my father 'disowned' me, so he won't let me go to her funeral."
"What?!" Milly practically yelled, standing up. Despite her usually calm and innocent attitude, Milly had a very strong sense of justice and protectiveness for others. Meryl had to smile at the look on her friend's face.
"Don't worry, I'll figure it out. I'm more worried about my little sister right now."
"But… but…"
"But that's not fair!" Vash cut in from behind them, making both the girls jump. Milly blinked a couple times, Meryl's eyebrow did a triple twitch, and Wolfwood smacked Vash over the head so hard he banged his chin on a nearby table.
"OOooUUCccHHH!!!"
"You were listening?!" Meryl demanded, ignoring Vash. Wolfwood smile innocently, a large sweatdrop forming on the side of his head.
"Heh… um… yeah… it was Vash's idea. I'll go get those drinks."
Vash cringed from his position on the floor, still holding his head, as Meryl's death glare turned on him. He shot Wolfwood a nasty look. "Traitor!"
Wolfwood patted him on the head as he walked off, a triumphant grin on his face. "Don't worry, I'll bring flowers to your grave."
*twitch*
"You… two… are… SO dead!"
Vash made a loud gulping noise, sliding back slightly as Meryl stood up, her small frame managing to tower over him somehow.
"Vash…" she said, her voice seething. Vash slid back again, still on the floor, but this time his hand slipped and he fell backwards on his back, knocking his head on the tile floor… hard.
"OooOww-" he stopped, his eyes going wide, "HE-LLO!!"
He had somehow managed to fall right near a waitress, and now had a good view of what was underneath her skirt. The waitress didn't seem to appreciate this as much as he did.
***STOMP***
***KICK***
"PERVERT!!"
And somehow, a poor customer's double-decker burger ended up in Vash's face. He wasn't so happy anymore.
Surprisingly, Meryl was the one who came and saved him. Dragging the young man back to the table by one ear, and apologizing over and over to the angry waitress, Meryl threw him in his seat and sat down herself, crossing her arms. Milly was still blinking absently, confused on what had just happened.
"Mr. Vash, are you OK?"
Vash sat paralyzed, a piece of lettuce caught in his hair from the burger. His eyes were wide.
"That… hurt…"
"Of course it did you idiot!" Meryl stated carelessly. Wolfwood arrived just then, passing out all the drinks and sitting down. Finally his eyes met Meryl's.
"Are you sure your OK?"
Meryl realized he was talking about her mother's death and put on her best smile, shrugging her shoulders. "Yeah, I'm OK. My little sis is really upset though… I'm worried she might do something stupid."
"Why would she do that?" Vash asked, still recovering. Meryl remembered that Vash was new, so he didn't know her family history.
"My dad's a drunk Vash… he used to be abusive, and he yells at people all the time. When my mom got diagnosed with cancer he started drinking even more. He uses me and my sister to get drugs and money all the time. Now that me and my mom are both gone, my sister has no one to talk to or turn to. She's stuck alone in the house with that creep and she might try something stupid…" Meryl didn't have to explain what stupid things her sister might do… everyone already knew.
"That's not right!" Milly said forcefully, her lip quivering, "Meryl, we have to do something! Your sister can't live like that! We can't leave her there!"
Meryl smiled at her friend, her eyes clouding over as she remembered the meeting that was supposed take place later with the gang. "I know… but I don't know what to do. Jess is strong… she'll last awhile longer till I can figure something out."
They all talked awhile longer about nothing in particular, sipping their sodas. Suddenly Milly stood up, a stricken look on her face.
"I just remembered! My sisters wanted me to pick their stuff up at the Laundromat! Oh no, they're going to be so mad! I'll be right back!"
(INFO TIME: They all live in a very small town, no too far away from each other. So Milly could drop by the Laundromat, drop the clothes off at her house, and be back at the café within ten minutes. Yes, it is possible. Why? Because it's my story and I say so! ^.^ hehehe)
"I'll come with you." Wolfwood immediately offered, standing up and following Milly out of the room. Meryl and Vash watched them go, both silent for awhile. Finally Meryl shot him a sly glance, folding her arms.
"You think those two are EVER gonna get together?"
Vash shrugged, sharing the same look. "Who knows? They talk about each other all the time."
"Maybe we should do something about that."
"What do you mean?" Vash asked, "Lock them in an empty room and see what happens?"
"That might work," Meryl agreed, grinning. At that moment both of them realized they were actually having a normal conversation together and froze.
*twitch*
*blink*
Meryl looked over at Vash, trying to put a scowl on her face. She couldn't do it, however, because she noticed a piece of lettuce still stuck in his hair. Rolling her eyes and suppressing a smile, she reached over to pull it out for him. Right before her hand touched his hair he grabbed her arm, shooting her the most serious look she had ever seen on his face. He looked so different when he wasn't screwing around that Meryl paused for a second, giving him a strange look.
"What're you doing?" he asked, his hand still gripping her arm lightly. Meryl blinked, flustered.
"You have lettuce in your hair."
"What?!" he yelped, the serious mood gone immediately. Meryl yanked her arm out of his grasp and pulled the lettuce away, flicking it in his face.
"See, idiot?"
As Meryl turned back to the door, hiding her flushed cheeks as she searched for Milly and Wolfwood, Vash let a soft smile appear on his face. He casually dropped the piece of lettuce back on the table, giving the girl next to him a small glance as his hand brushed the place where hers had been a couple seconds ago. The smile immediately disappeared when she turned around again, a desperate look on her face as she glanced down at her watch.
"Shit! I don't have time for this! I wish she hadn't left!"
Meryl fished a pen out of her pocket, glancing over at Vash as she grabbed a napkin and hurriedly wrote something down. Then she looked up, a determined expression on her face as she shoved the napkin in his hands.
"Give this to Milly when she gets back… it's the address to where my little sister lives. I want her to try to get my little sister out of there for me."
"But-" Vash began, confused.
"No time." Meryl snapped, cutting him off. Then she sent him the prettiest smile he had ever seen, twisted with a hint of sadness. "See ya Vash… tell the others I said bye too."
Vash frowned, his eyes going dark as she ran out. Something about the way she said that brought chills up his spine… as if she were saying bye for the very last time. And why couldn't she get her sister out herself? Something was really wrong.
* * * * * *
"Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap, crap," Meryl half growled, half sang, hurrying out her apartment door. She had spent the last couple of minutes grabbing any items she thought she would need and calling up the restaurant she worked at to announce that she was sick and couldn't come today. The clock now read 5:45… and she wanted to get to the park early.
She had her pepper spray back in the pocket of her black jacket, along with a knife. She also had a small gun hidden in a secret pocket of her baggy jeans. (Yes, Meryl still has a gun! It was called a derringer in the anime, right? I don't remember but you get where I'm going here, right? *lol*) Yes, Meryl had a gun. No, she wasn't SUPPOSED to have a gun and she would probably get in TROUBLE for having a gun if she got caught, but if the gang was allowed to have guns why couldn't she? The only problem was her gun could only hold one bullet… so she had only one shot if she got into any deep trouble.
Meryl walked towards the park with her head bowed, trying to collect her thoughts as fast as possible. The sun was getting low in the sky already, sending a dim and dreary look to the city streets. Perfectly depressing.
Meryl cringed, aware of how scared she really was. No matter how much she tried to hide it, she couldn't keep from shivering every so often and stumbling every couple of seconds. An icy breeze blew her boyish brown hair back as she finally lifted her head, staring up at the entrance of the park.
She remembered the blue-haired young man telling her to meet them by the lake. The lake was in the far back of the large park, and half of it was hidden from view by large trees. And besides that, no one went close to the lake after 5pm. It was an unspoken rule, for various reasons. The main one was that it was widely known that the Gung-ho gang (umm.. did I spell that right??) used that area as their meeting place after 5. And no one wanted to wander into a gang's meeting place.
Meryl made her way slowly towards the lake. It took her 8 minutes just to get back there, and she wearily noticed how the crowds began to thin and finally disappear as she continued. Of course. No one to help her out if she got into trouble… and no one to protect her.
That last thought surprised Meryl a lot. Her whole life, she had depended on herself and her own abilities. Meryl had never wanted or needed anyone to 'protect' or 'save' her. But now… now that she was about to face one of her worst fears and possibly not come out alive, she wished more than anything for someone to come and help her… maybe even fight beside her. Or just take her away from this screwed up situation and make everything alright again. How had this happened anyway?!
But Meryl knew that right now she needed to depend on herself more than anything or else she wouldn't last 2 seconds. Taking a deep breath, the young woman cautiously approached the lake. At that same moment two teenage girls came out from a thick clump of trees, both with grim expressions on their faces. They were wearing all black, like all the other members Meryl had seen, and she recognized one of them from when she had been attacked in the alley.
"Come with us," one said, a sneer twisting her lips as she roughly grabbed Meryl's shoulder and led her into the trees. Meryl couldn't help but notice the shotguns both had strapped to their waists.
(ME: So sue me… I don't remember the people in the gung-ho gang! ^.^'
LEGATO: That's cause you're an idiot..
ME: That's not nice… .)
Meryl let herself be dragged into a small clearing, where she saw the whole gang lounging around. In the center she spotted the leader she had seen the day before, with the blue-haired young man standing by his side.
(ME: Hey Legato! There's you!
LEGATO: ….
ME: What? You aren't happy?
LEGATO: ….
ME: *grins evilly* OK then, just for that…)
The blue-haired boy was, at the moment, sucking on a lollipop.
(LEGATO: WHAT?!?! A lollipop?!
ME: Hey, I'm trying to write a fic here! Stop interrupting! *still grinning evilly*
LEGATO: 0.o )
All heads turned as Meryl approached, led by the two girls. When the leader saw her, he immediately grinned. This grin wasn't comforting at all, however. It looked psychotic.
"Look who's decided to show," Someone laughed from the crowd. Meryl didn't bother looking for the source of the voice, her eyes trained on the young man who was the leader of the gang.
"Who're you and what the HELL do you want?"
A couple people took a step back at the sharpness in her tone, but the leaders grin just grew wider. The blue-haired boy next to him glanced over at her as well, a seriously evil expression on his face. The lollipop, however, mellowed the glare, and Meryl was not impressed.
(LEGATO: Hey, stop it!
ME: Stop what? ^.^
LEGATO: . I don't like you DFS…)
"Our leader is Knives," The blue-haired boy said, keeping his tone even, "And I suggest you watch your mouth around him, little girl."
*twitch*
"I TOLD YOU I'M 18!! STOP CALLING ME LITTLE!"
Everyone jumped back except for Knives and the young man, scared of her already. Meryl continued to glare, her anger made worse as Knives, likewise, continued to grin.
"Watch your mouth," The young man said again, "You're in our territory now."
"Enough Legato," The leader said, finally letting his grin drop into a sneer, "I doubt she's going to listen. Midvalley!"
Another young man stepped from the crowd, waiting for Knives to continue. He was the only one there with a pink and black jacket on… very strange. (yup… that's midvalley)
"Search her, will you?"
Meryl stiffened as the strange young man stepped towards her, a bored look on his face as he padded down her pockets and relieved her of her pepper spray and knife. Meryl had a poker face on, refusing to let anyone see her emotions. Her confidence had been slightly shattered though, as she watched Midvalley take her items. Now all she had left was the gun… luckily she had hidden it well. But it only had one bullet. Finally Midvalley finished and turned back towards Knives.
"Do we need to strip search her?"
The laughing that had started up quickly stopped as Midvalley hit the ground, his face pushed deep into the dirt. Meryl commenced in stomping him flat, an enraged expression on her face.
"You come one step closer to me and your dead you pervert!!"
"I think you already pretty much killed him," Somebody pointed out meekly. Meryl finally left Midvalley alone, taking a menacing step towards Knives. No matter how scared she had been before, her anger usually outweighed her fear big time.
"Will you tell me what you want already?!"
Knives looked over at her, amusement obvious in his icy blue eyes. "I actually wanted you to come to give you an invitation… to join the Gung-ho gang."
At this everyone jumped in surprise, staring at Knives. Legato was startled so badly that he choked on his lollipop, doubling over. Knives had to whack him on the back quite a few time before he finally calmed down. Then they all stared at Meryl, waiting for her reply.
Meryl stared blankly at Knives for a couple seconds, as if pondering his question. Finally she gave him a chilling glare.
"Why?"
If Knives was shocked by this question, he didn't show it. Instead he walked closer towards Meryl, that psychotic look back in his eyes. About a foot away he stopped, looking down at her. Meryl glared up at him, folding her arms and trying to put on an unimpressed expression. Knives grinned.
"Because you're the most stubborn person I've ever met. You'd be a great edition to my gang, especially since you work for the high school newspaper and know a lot of people. A perfect spy."
"That's not what I meant." Meryl said, still glaring, "Why would I join?"
Knives blinked uncertainly for awhile, confused. "Why wouldn't you want to join? Who wouldn't want to be a member of the Gung-ho gang?"
Meryl sneered and turned around, beginning to walk away. "Great logic, sherlock, but no thank you. I wouldn't join if you gave me a million bucks and all of China!"
Just then a large hand shot out and grabbed her by the shoulder, pulling her backwards and almost making her fall. Meryl glanced back quickly to see Knives, a snarl on his face. When he spoke, his voice was low and dangerous.
"Did I forget to mention you either join or die? I don't forgive people that easily, girl… you're lucky I didn't kill you right away for trying to attack me."
Meryl started to get just a tiny bit scared as Knives yanked her quickly towards him, wrapping one arm around her waist and the other around her neck, which put her in a very nasty headlock. Meryl growled as Knives looked up, motioning with his head for Legato to come over.
"Tie her up, will you?" Then he glanced down at the short girl in his arms, his face so close that each breath hit the side of her cheek when he spoke. "You interest me little girl… you really do. That's why I wanted you to join. But I guess I have no choice now."
Knives's eyes suddenly went really wide as Meryl back kicked him in a place boys really don't like to be kicked. Her face was red as she struggled to break his grip.
"I'M NOT A LITTLE GIRL YOU BASTARD!"
Meryl broke free, kicking him again and then hitting him across the face. Somehow, to everyone watching, the little girl had become even more menacing in the past couple of seconds.
Before Meryl could get away, however, Legato caught her, picking her up off the ground by her waist like he had done in the alley. A couple other gang members came timidly forward, helping to tie Meryl up as she kicked and struggled. By the time they were done Knives had recovered. He glared at Meryl as Legato set her down.
Meryl was bound around her ankles and wrists, making it impossible for her to walk or cause any more physical harm to any of the gang members.
Heh… yeah right. Nothing's impossible, remember?
"You bastard!" Meryl growled, headbutting Knives so hard in the chest that he actually stumbled backwards. Which was surprising, since Meryl only came up to his shoulder.
Meryl always finds a way.
Legato held Meryl before she could cause any more damage, looking to Knives for instructions. Knives motioned towards the lake, a slight smirk forming on his face once again.
"I thinks it's about time you met the bottom of the lake, girl."
Meryl struggled at first, but stopped as they dragged her closer and closer to the lake. A resigned look passed over her eyes as she stared at the smooth service, the sunset above reflected in its glassy waters.
'Well, I can't get out of this now,' Meryl thought sadly, testing her bonds to see if any of them were possibly loose enough to come undone. None of them were. 'I hope Milly will take care of my sister for me… poor Jess….'
Suddenly Meryl felt a fist connect with her chin and she fell to the side, stunned. Then another hit her gut, and then her face again. Meryl quickly realized what was happening. They wanted to wind her so that she didn't have the strength to try to swim to the surface, even if she could with the ropes around her ankles and wrists. Meryl had to admit it was working pretty well. She took in a quick breath, cursing as her heart sped up. This was it. She didn't want to die, dammit.
"Bye pretty little girl," She heard Legato say as they shoved her onto the wooden dock and to the very edge. Meryl glared at them, her gray eyes sharp and angry.
"F*** you all!" She growled before Knives punched her in the stomach one last time, pushing her into the lake.
Meryl couldn't breath, winded from the blow, as the icy water enveloped her and sucked her down into the darkness. Without any air in her lungs she sunk immediately, head already pounding from lack of air as she struggled to reach the surface. No… she couldn't…. she couldn't die like this….
…Not like this….
Above the surface of the water, gunshots rang out.
* * * * * * *
TO BE CONTINUED!!!!
Yay! How was that ppl?! ^.^ hehehe… personally, I'm proud of this chapter.
*hides from angry readers with pitchforks*
um… what? What did I do? ^.^ you don't like my ending? Ok, so it's a bit of a cliff hanger-
*ducks away as very dangerous weapons are thrown at her*
OK! OK! It's a lot of a cliff hanger! Me sorry!!! ^.^'
***IMPORTANT*** The next chapter is not really a chapter… it's more like an extra scene ^.^ Then I'll get on with what happened to Meryl. The extra scene is going to have what happened when Wolfwood and Milly left to go to the Laundromat… hehehe… ^.^ Anyone curious?
LEGATO: A lollipop?? I had a LOLLIPOP??
ME: hehehe… yup! Cherry flavored!
LEGATO: 0.o …. You scare me.
ME: I scare myself. Hope you enjoyed this chapter peeps! CIAO! ^.^
My multiple-personalities are at war….. 0.o
