A few more notes.
Hey there. Um, the first chapter is intended to fool readers at first, though I think it makes sense at the end…? I don't know, but in any case, the injured one was Rinzei, the one sitting in the room with her was Rinaza. And then Vash comes in, and then I thought it was clear. Rinzei was injured in a Rinaza-caused incident involving a Thomas… though I haven't figured out a lot about the girls yet, I do know that Rinzei gets inured in Rinaza-caused incidents too often for her own comfort.
Additionally, whenever you see text between some ~~~~~ thingies, it is a flashback.
Onward?
Chapter 3-
~~~~~
Meryl angrily clenched the letter in her fist, the full meaning of the words settling in. Its words repeated in her head once more.
Agents Meryl Strife and Milly Thompson,
Thank you for your timely and extensive reports concerning the events involving Vash the Stampede. The purpose of the letter is to inform you that the content of your reports shall be summarized and published to be made available to the public. It is the belief of the company that it would do the public a great service to know the details behind incidents such as July and Augusta, as many have suffered losses as a result of the actions of Mr. Vash the Stampede and Mr. Millions Knives.
Your contributions will be noted in the publication.
This was horrible. Sure, they had a point. People did deserve to know what happened, but at what cost to the family she was beginning? With this sort of thing as public information, how would that their lives be affected?
When the information was published despite a protesting reply from Meryl, she did one thing that, a few years earlier, she would have deemed impossible; she wrote her resignation letter to the Bernadelli Insurance Society. Milly, of course, followed suit.
~~~~~
Vash had been quiet since he'd come back from the school, quietly pondering the events of the past few years as Milly happily fixed tea for the two of them. Meryl was off at her job, working as assistant manager for the general store. After they'd moved to the town a few years ago, she'd become a cashier there, and her dedication quickly gained her promotions to the respectable position. Milly, on the other hand, at first found herself in odd jobs that didn't seem to last very long, but after a few months, decided to work at the local orphanage. Vash, of course, knew exactly why she made this choice, and to be honest, he almost cried when she told him she got this job. But she'd been successful at it, and found it rewarding work.
'He would have been proud…' he found himself thinking about his friend again, as he so often did. But he quickly shook the thoughts from his head, knowing that Milly was not the person to get all emotional about this particular topic in front of. His thoughts returned to Rinzei, and the event he'd witnessed. He was worried about her, honestly, and his thoughts turned bitterly to the insurance company that had seen fit to make his life public knowledge.
"Mr. Vash?" Milly interrupted his thoughts, and Vash looked up, smiling. But after years of that smile, the girl had learned to see through it, and she frowned. Seeing this, he allowed it to fade from his face with a sigh.
"What's the matter?" Milly asked, sitting down across the table from him, placing a cup of tea in front of each of them.
Vash looked down into the tea, slowly perching his fingertips on it, and spoke softly into the ginger-tinted liquid, "Rinzei..."
Milly grew puzzled, "Rinzei? What's the matter with her?"
He shook his head, "Nothing's wrong with her, I just… I saw something happen when I went down to the school to bring that book for Rinaza…"
"What happened, Mr. Vash?" Milly leaned forward with concern, "Is she okay?"
"I don't know…" Vash stated honestly, "Physically, she's fine…" he allowed himself a little smirk now, "if not still a little bruised up after the incident with the Thomas."
Every trace of a smile disappeared as he continued on, "But there were these guys talking to her in the school, and the things that they said…"
An inquisitive tinge mingled on Milly's face with the concerned expression, "What… what did they say to her?"
Vash looked up at Milly, his expression hurt, "They said… they called her a freak, and then they called Rina a creature, and… they said some things about Knives."
"What did they say about Mr. Knives?"
"They said…" Vash's gaze returned to the tea, "They were making fun of her. She was asking them to leave her alone, and they asked if she was going to get her 'genocidal psychopath father' to kill them for her…"
Milly's expression fell, "Oh, that's awful! She must be so upset…"
"I don't know what to do," Vash muttered, "She's never really been happy and I can't blame her with her past." A pause ensued, and Vash switched topics slightly, "You know, at first Knives really seemed to be doing better. Sure, he wasn't hugging every human he met, but he didn't try to kill them all, either. And he really did seem happy when he was with her mother, and he found a way for her to live outside the bulb and everything. But then when it all went wrong… you know he blamed himself, and though he wouldn't admit it to any of us or to himself, he blamed Rinzei. He wouldn't even look at her for the last few weeks he was here after it happened. And then… just like that, he was gone. And here we were, suddenly, with both of them to take care of. I don't think I ever knew what I was doing."
Milly frowned, "Of course you know what you're doing, Mr. Vash! You're a great father and a great uncle! Those girls love you, and you treat them very well!"
Vash smiled slightly, looking up at the other again, "Thanks, Milly…"
Milly smiled, nodding, and then glanced down at his untouched beverage, announcing firmly, "You should drink your tea, Mr. Vash, or it's going to get cold!"
Vash laughed and picked up the cup, "Yes, of course, ma'am!" He downed it quickly, and then released a happily refreshed breath.
At that moment, Rinzei came through the door, alone. She looked perfectly normal, any trace of emotional suffering clearly gone from her face. It was blank, as she always made sure it was; she didn't like to let people know if she was upset. She thought it made her seem weak somehow. She dropped her books on the counter and smiled at the occupants of the room.
"Hi Milly! Hi Uncle Vash!" she announced cheerfully.
"Hey Rinzei," replied Vash.
"Hi there, Rinzei!" Milly could not hide the concern on her face if he tried, "Are you doing all right?"
Rinzei blinked, once… had she shown some trace of her emotional state? She reassumed her impassive demeanor.
"Of course, Milly, I'm fine," she replied evenly. She walked to the refrigerator and removed the makings of a sandwich.
"Rinz, where's Rina?" Vash asked, clearly puzzled.
Rinzei chuckled as she made her sandwich, "I didn't think summer vacation was long enough for you to forget, Uncle Vash. She's in detention, of course. Like every other school day."
Vash let out a slightly disappointed sigh, "What did she do this time?"
"I don't know, really," Rinzei replied with a shrug, "Something about a fire in the science lab. It didn't sound too good. I swear, destruction follows that girl everywhere she goes."
Rinzei grabbed her books and sandwich, and made her way into the living room to study.
"Well…" Vash offered himself aloud, "At least now she won't be around for Meryl to lecture her."
"And why is that?" asked a voice as its owner entered the room. There stood Meryl, placing some bags of groceries on the counter. Vash stood and made his way over, examining the contents of each bag thoroughly.
"Well," he said as he foraged through it, finding mostly health food that he set aside after giving them disgusted faces, "She's got detention today."
"What!?" Meryl's outraged response was just about what Vash was expecting, so he didn't jump… not too much, at least. "Detention already! And it's only the first day of school. What for?"
"Rinzei said something about a fire in the lab or something," replied Vash, happily finding a box of cookies and walking out of the room with his prize. Meryl groaned at the visualization in her head, but shook it away.
"When she does get home, I'm going to have to speak with her right away!" she announced, then turned to Milly, "Milly, do you think you could give me a hand with these groceries?"
"Of course!" responded Milly brightly, walking over to join Meryl, and pointed out, "You know, Meryl, Rinaza sure is an awful lot like Mr. Vash."
"I know, Milly…" Meryl said with a sigh, "And god, I love the man, but that poor girl…"
Milly's only response was a slight giggle.