A/N:
Alright, alright. Most people...well, two people that I know of, didn't approve of my views on Vash and Knives. I reread this chapter, and decided yeah, some of it was a little, I repeat, A LITTLE harsh, like Vash hating Knives and stuff, and I guess I let that part slide. Well, I fixed it, but Knives is still as harsh, be warned. I MEAN, C'MON, HE HAS TO HATE VASH AT LEAST A LITTLE BIT WHEN HE PUT HIM THROUGH A LIVING HELL WITH LEGATO AND TRIED TO KILL HIM WITH TWO ANGEL ARMS. But Vash doesn't hate Knives. ^_^ Satisified? Argh, I'm being stupid again. I don't mean to sound so irritated...cuz I'm not really. *sigh* That's not what Anon and Rita wanted me to fix, but beggars can't be choosers and what's done is done. Onward!
~*~*~*~
Vash stared groggily at his reflection in the bathroom mirror. Yawning widely he began to scrub his face vigorously with his hands in an attempt to wake himself up. After repeating this morning ritual several times, he grumbled and began to brush his teeth. He moaned as he shaved, and swore violently at his bangs that refused to stay up with the rest of his spiked hair. When he finally finished cleaning up, he stared at his reflection again. Despite the morning grogginess that stubbornly stayed etched on his face, he smiled.
'So...I step out into another day with my mask in place. I suppose some things never change.'
Stretching a bit, he opened the bathroom door. Instinctively, the blonde gunman looked for Knives.
Vash found him leaning casually against the wooden dresser. Knives' eyes were closed, as if deep in thought. Opening one eye, he caught sight of Vash and grinned.
"Geez, Vash. You sound like a bear every time you go into that room. Don't you ever quit moaning?"
Vash gave his brother a flat look as he began to change into his clothes. "I wouldn't be talking, Knives. Weren't YOU the one who wanted to buy that thomas? Wasn't something like, 'If I have to travel, I'll make something else do the walking for me'?"
"True. But why should a higher life form be forced to walk like a human?" Knives spat the word "human" as if it was the most vile poison ever to enter his mouth. He then walked into the bathroom with the same arrogant swagger he'd always had and slammed the door. Inwardly, Vash sighed in relief. When ever Knives was in the room, he found himself uncomfortable and unable to sit still. Something about Knives made everyone around him feel edgy.
Shaking off the effect Knives had on him, Vash shrugged on his new black coat and began to struggle with the snaps.
"Stupid...ergh...buttons...they never seem...to want to....snap..." he gritted his teeth and pressed on the snaps with all of his strength. Finally, after fighting with his coat, he sighed and fell back on his bed. "Phew!" Sprawled out, Vash stared at the ceiling, eyes roaming each crevice and crack until it met a wall.
'I wonder how many different ceilings I've seen in my life. I never thought about it before.' Vash held his hand up and spread his fingers. A memory of Knives doing a similar thing flashed in his mind, and he drew his hand back quickly. It was bad enough having to live with Knives. He didn't want to do anything like him, even if it was such a simple gesture.
"Are you really that afraid of turning into me?" Knives' voice made Vash jump. Knives had always been able to sneak up on him, even if Vash was listening for his mysterious brother. Vash just smiled lightly and sat up.
"Not at all. I was just thinking about how much better this new cybernetic arm reacts than the last one. It's really amazing that the doctor could come up with a such a smooth model in such a short period of time."
Knives smirked. "Oh really? I guess I wouldn't know. I find it much easier just to regenerate wounds." Out of Knives' many talents, using each opportunity he had to mock his brother was one of them. Vash just continued to smile. He was very well aware of his choice in life, and he had no regrets.
"Well, then. Should he hit the road?" Vash hopped off the bed cheerfully and bent over to pick up his bag.
"Just a second." In the blink of an eye and the silence of a cat, Knives was right behind his brother. With a fluid movement he grabbed Vash's shoulder and spun him violently to face him. All Vash could see was the mad grin on Knives' face and his silver hair before a knee slammed into his head, rendering him unconcious.
~*~*~*~
Knives stared at the crumpled figure that was Vash. Despite the pacifistic life Vash had chosen, it shouldn't have made him so slow to react.
"You should have been able to block that one, dear brother." The tall man sniffed in disdain and turned to walk out the door. As he swaggered down the hallway, the innkeeper looked at him with kind eyes from behind his desk.
"Stepping out today?" the gnarled old man smiled gently and watched as Knives neared the door. His silver hair flashed as his hand hovered above the doorknob. He closed his eyes and began to chuckle. Snapping his eyes open, Knives' soft violet eyes swirled into a deep, crimson red. Smirking, he replied to the worried old man.
"Yes. But I won't be coming back this time."
He spun to face the innkeeper, palm to the man. A burst of psychic energy jumped from his hand to the gnarled figure. As Knives turned, he smiled, pleased as he heared a choked cry followed by a series of sickening cracks. Opening the door, Knives murmured under his breath.
"And so, the cycle continues, Vash. I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I will."
Grinning, he got to work.
~*~*~*~
Meryl Stryfe sat back in her chair and stared at the ceiling of her home. She couldn't help but think about Vash's last visit. He did't explain anything, but avoided her questions cautiously, like a cat observing a sand roach. The short woman bit her lip as she remembered his response to her confession.
"I love you." it had taken Meryl the entire time she had been with him to muster up enough courage to say those three words. After a long, and very uncomfortable silence, Vash opened his mouth to speak.
"I love you too, Meryl. Just like I love Milly, like I loved Wolfwood, and the same way I loved each person I ever came in contact with."
Meryl's hope that had kept her going from the start crashed into the ground at those words. She had felt her eyes fill, and she bit her stubbornly lip to keep from crying. She couldn't help herself but ask Vash, "But do you love Knives? Did you love Legato?" she had bit her lip harder as she saw his eyes dim with...was it sadness? Looking away, she silently scolded herself for brining up such a tender subject. "...I'm sorry."
Vash had given her a pained smile as he stood and held her gently. "That's what I should be saying, Meryl...and I am sorry."
Meryl felt her lip quiver as her recollection ended. "I'm sorry...Vash." she whispered to herself and let her tears fall. She hugged her legs and rested a cheek on her knees as she wept bitterly. "I'm sorry."
~*~*~*~
Vash moaned as his head throbbed. With every bit of strength he had, he forced his eyes open. He looked around the room, and, with effort, got on all fours and began to cough. His eyes widened as blood dripped from his forehead. With a jolty movement, he winced as his gloved fingers came into contact with a large, deep cut above his eyebrow. Slightly dizzy, he stood.
A sudden recolection of what had taken place forced Vash to plop painfully onto the floor again. His head was spinning, muddled with thoughts of Knives and his escape. Where was he going? What will he do? Vash felt a wave of nausea rush over his body as he thought of all of the possible answers to his second question.
Standing on unstable legs that he felt would collapse at any moment, Vash staggered over to the mirror and began to bandage up his cut with clean strips he found on the dresser. After getting a good look at himself, a choked back a cry. His reflection stared back at him with eyes as scarlet as his blood. He stumbled backwards, falling back onto the bed.
"What is this?! What's happening?!" Vash trembled as his haunting reflection continued to stare back at him. He blinked, and gasped as he suddenly saw Knives in the mirror, eyes narrowed in a cruel smile. Frantically Vash scrambled back towards the head of the bed, the mirror holding his terrified gaze with its own mocking stare. He blinked sweat out of his eyes, and then shook his head in disbelief as his own trembling reflection returned to the mirror.
Hugging himself around the shoulders, his breathing became labored and coarse. Regaining his courage, he slowly lifted his head to stare at his reflection. The Knives was back, the smile still in place. Vash turned his and yelped as he saw Legato standing beside the bed. Another blink, and he was gone.
"This can't be happening...wha...what's happening?!" he shouted as all of the Gung-Ho Guns returned, disappearing and reappearing with each blink. Vash cried out, and shoved his head under the pillow, his eyes shut tight. But it was not enough to escape Knives. Knives forced Vash to relive each horrifying moment he had ever experienced in his life; Rem's death, the murder of the mayor of July City, the numerous suicides he had seen, each murder he couldn't prevent, Wolfwood's death. Knives forced him to relive the moment he killed Legato. And his dream.
The dream played more vividly than ever. Eyes open or shut, he saw it. He felt the cold metal of his gun as he pulled the trigger again. He tasted his salty tears, and heard Knives haunting laugh. The madness that flashed around him made Vash cover his ears and shake his head violently.
Suddenly Knives seemed to appear at Vash's bedside. His smile was almost kind as he looked down at Vash. "Don't worry dear brother. I'll send another friend for you. He'll be just as fun as Legato was." With that, the vision of Knives disappeared, and the blonde gunman was alone again. Still shaking slightly, Vash sat up and clenched his teeth. Forcing himself to smile, he looked sadly down at his pillow.
"Yeah, I suppose some things never do change."
~*~*~*~
A/N:
Comments? Questions? Suggestions? More complaints about I still didn't get the view right according to you? Lemme know, and I doubt I'll re-edit this chapter cuz I like it the way it is now, but I'll see if it works out. No promises on updates, they've been really slow lately. Sorry 'bout that. If you still don't like the relationship between the two guys, please EMAIL ME on exactly what you don't like about it. Like, at which point did it get too harsh, yadda yadda. I'm not going to get into an argument with you. Chances are after I give you my answer and you start going on about this and that and why my view is so very, very wrong, I'm not going to reply.
Alright, alright. Most people...well, two people that I know of, didn't approve of my views on Vash and Knives. I reread this chapter, and decided yeah, some of it was a little, I repeat, A LITTLE harsh, like Vash hating Knives and stuff, and I guess I let that part slide. Well, I fixed it, but Knives is still as harsh, be warned. I MEAN, C'MON, HE HAS TO HATE VASH AT LEAST A LITTLE BIT WHEN HE PUT HIM THROUGH A LIVING HELL WITH LEGATO AND TRIED TO KILL HIM WITH TWO ANGEL ARMS. But Vash doesn't hate Knives. ^_^ Satisified? Argh, I'm being stupid again. I don't mean to sound so irritated...cuz I'm not really. *sigh* That's not what Anon and Rita wanted me to fix, but beggars can't be choosers and what's done is done. Onward!
~*~*~*~
Vash stared groggily at his reflection in the bathroom mirror. Yawning widely he began to scrub his face vigorously with his hands in an attempt to wake himself up. After repeating this morning ritual several times, he grumbled and began to brush his teeth. He moaned as he shaved, and swore violently at his bangs that refused to stay up with the rest of his spiked hair. When he finally finished cleaning up, he stared at his reflection again. Despite the morning grogginess that stubbornly stayed etched on his face, he smiled.
'So...I step out into another day with my mask in place. I suppose some things never change.'
Stretching a bit, he opened the bathroom door. Instinctively, the blonde gunman looked for Knives.
Vash found him leaning casually against the wooden dresser. Knives' eyes were closed, as if deep in thought. Opening one eye, he caught sight of Vash and grinned.
"Geez, Vash. You sound like a bear every time you go into that room. Don't you ever quit moaning?"
Vash gave his brother a flat look as he began to change into his clothes. "I wouldn't be talking, Knives. Weren't YOU the one who wanted to buy that thomas? Wasn't something like, 'If I have to travel, I'll make something else do the walking for me'?"
"True. But why should a higher life form be forced to walk like a human?" Knives spat the word "human" as if it was the most vile poison ever to enter his mouth. He then walked into the bathroom with the same arrogant swagger he'd always had and slammed the door. Inwardly, Vash sighed in relief. When ever Knives was in the room, he found himself uncomfortable and unable to sit still. Something about Knives made everyone around him feel edgy.
Shaking off the effect Knives had on him, Vash shrugged on his new black coat and began to struggle with the snaps.
"Stupid...ergh...buttons...they never seem...to want to....snap..." he gritted his teeth and pressed on the snaps with all of his strength. Finally, after fighting with his coat, he sighed and fell back on his bed. "Phew!" Sprawled out, Vash stared at the ceiling, eyes roaming each crevice and crack until it met a wall.
'I wonder how many different ceilings I've seen in my life. I never thought about it before.' Vash held his hand up and spread his fingers. A memory of Knives doing a similar thing flashed in his mind, and he drew his hand back quickly. It was bad enough having to live with Knives. He didn't want to do anything like him, even if it was such a simple gesture.
"Are you really that afraid of turning into me?" Knives' voice made Vash jump. Knives had always been able to sneak up on him, even if Vash was listening for his mysterious brother. Vash just smiled lightly and sat up.
"Not at all. I was just thinking about how much better this new cybernetic arm reacts than the last one. It's really amazing that the doctor could come up with a such a smooth model in such a short period of time."
Knives smirked. "Oh really? I guess I wouldn't know. I find it much easier just to regenerate wounds." Out of Knives' many talents, using each opportunity he had to mock his brother was one of them. Vash just continued to smile. He was very well aware of his choice in life, and he had no regrets.
"Well, then. Should he hit the road?" Vash hopped off the bed cheerfully and bent over to pick up his bag.
"Just a second." In the blink of an eye and the silence of a cat, Knives was right behind his brother. With a fluid movement he grabbed Vash's shoulder and spun him violently to face him. All Vash could see was the mad grin on Knives' face and his silver hair before a knee slammed into his head, rendering him unconcious.
~*~*~*~
Knives stared at the crumpled figure that was Vash. Despite the pacifistic life Vash had chosen, it shouldn't have made him so slow to react.
"You should have been able to block that one, dear brother." The tall man sniffed in disdain and turned to walk out the door. As he swaggered down the hallway, the innkeeper looked at him with kind eyes from behind his desk.
"Stepping out today?" the gnarled old man smiled gently and watched as Knives neared the door. His silver hair flashed as his hand hovered above the doorknob. He closed his eyes and began to chuckle. Snapping his eyes open, Knives' soft violet eyes swirled into a deep, crimson red. Smirking, he replied to the worried old man.
"Yes. But I won't be coming back this time."
He spun to face the innkeeper, palm to the man. A burst of psychic energy jumped from his hand to the gnarled figure. As Knives turned, he smiled, pleased as he heared a choked cry followed by a series of sickening cracks. Opening the door, Knives murmured under his breath.
"And so, the cycle continues, Vash. I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I will."
Grinning, he got to work.
~*~*~*~
Meryl Stryfe sat back in her chair and stared at the ceiling of her home. She couldn't help but think about Vash's last visit. He did't explain anything, but avoided her questions cautiously, like a cat observing a sand roach. The short woman bit her lip as she remembered his response to her confession.
"I love you." it had taken Meryl the entire time she had been with him to muster up enough courage to say those three words. After a long, and very uncomfortable silence, Vash opened his mouth to speak.
"I love you too, Meryl. Just like I love Milly, like I loved Wolfwood, and the same way I loved each person I ever came in contact with."
Meryl's hope that had kept her going from the start crashed into the ground at those words. She had felt her eyes fill, and she bit her stubbornly lip to keep from crying. She couldn't help herself but ask Vash, "But do you love Knives? Did you love Legato?" she had bit her lip harder as she saw his eyes dim with...was it sadness? Looking away, she silently scolded herself for brining up such a tender subject. "...I'm sorry."
Vash had given her a pained smile as he stood and held her gently. "That's what I should be saying, Meryl...and I am sorry."
Meryl felt her lip quiver as her recollection ended. "I'm sorry...Vash." she whispered to herself and let her tears fall. She hugged her legs and rested a cheek on her knees as she wept bitterly. "I'm sorry."
~*~*~*~
Vash moaned as his head throbbed. With every bit of strength he had, he forced his eyes open. He looked around the room, and, with effort, got on all fours and began to cough. His eyes widened as blood dripped from his forehead. With a jolty movement, he winced as his gloved fingers came into contact with a large, deep cut above his eyebrow. Slightly dizzy, he stood.
A sudden recolection of what had taken place forced Vash to plop painfully onto the floor again. His head was spinning, muddled with thoughts of Knives and his escape. Where was he going? What will he do? Vash felt a wave of nausea rush over his body as he thought of all of the possible answers to his second question.
Standing on unstable legs that he felt would collapse at any moment, Vash staggered over to the mirror and began to bandage up his cut with clean strips he found on the dresser. After getting a good look at himself, a choked back a cry. His reflection stared back at him with eyes as scarlet as his blood. He stumbled backwards, falling back onto the bed.
"What is this?! What's happening?!" Vash trembled as his haunting reflection continued to stare back at him. He blinked, and gasped as he suddenly saw Knives in the mirror, eyes narrowed in a cruel smile. Frantically Vash scrambled back towards the head of the bed, the mirror holding his terrified gaze with its own mocking stare. He blinked sweat out of his eyes, and then shook his head in disbelief as his own trembling reflection returned to the mirror.
Hugging himself around the shoulders, his breathing became labored and coarse. Regaining his courage, he slowly lifted his head to stare at his reflection. The Knives was back, the smile still in place. Vash turned his and yelped as he saw Legato standing beside the bed. Another blink, and he was gone.
"This can't be happening...wha...what's happening?!" he shouted as all of the Gung-Ho Guns returned, disappearing and reappearing with each blink. Vash cried out, and shoved his head under the pillow, his eyes shut tight. But it was not enough to escape Knives. Knives forced Vash to relive each horrifying moment he had ever experienced in his life; Rem's death, the murder of the mayor of July City, the numerous suicides he had seen, each murder he couldn't prevent, Wolfwood's death. Knives forced him to relive the moment he killed Legato. And his dream.
The dream played more vividly than ever. Eyes open or shut, he saw it. He felt the cold metal of his gun as he pulled the trigger again. He tasted his salty tears, and heard Knives haunting laugh. The madness that flashed around him made Vash cover his ears and shake his head violently.
Suddenly Knives seemed to appear at Vash's bedside. His smile was almost kind as he looked down at Vash. "Don't worry dear brother. I'll send another friend for you. He'll be just as fun as Legato was." With that, the vision of Knives disappeared, and the blonde gunman was alone again. Still shaking slightly, Vash sat up and clenched his teeth. Forcing himself to smile, he looked sadly down at his pillow.
"Yeah, I suppose some things never do change."
~*~*~*~
A/N:
Comments? Questions? Suggestions? More complaints about I still didn't get the view right according to you? Lemme know, and I doubt I'll re-edit this chapter cuz I like it the way it is now, but I'll see if it works out. No promises on updates, they've been really slow lately. Sorry 'bout that. If you still don't like the relationship between the two guys, please EMAIL ME on exactly what you don't like about it. Like, at which point did it get too harsh, yadda yadda. I'm not going to get into an argument with you. Chances are after I give you my answer and you start going on about this and that and why my view is so very, very wrong, I'm not going to reply.