Author Time:
Sorry about the delay on this chapter. I've been at camp for a while, and then recovering from it when I got back. Hopefully there won't be too much delay until the next update.
Oh yes! And much love to everyone that's sent me such awesome reviews. I would thank each and every one of you individually but it would take too long, so I'll just give one big THANK YOU! You guys are so awesome. You've given me confidence in my own writing.
Now onto the story!
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Darkness; bleak, comfortable darkness. A car. A rumbling old car that had just taken a heavy beating by a dark-haired maniac. Now it lay idle, waiting in the sands, resting while it had the opportunity.
Its passengers were idle too. Waiting. Breathing. Sitting across from each other, somehow afraid to reach out and seek the comfort they both needed.
Vash hadn't even batted an eyelash at Meryl's reckless driving. She was grateful. They had ended up pretty close to their destination in a ridiculously short amount of time. However, the suns had not been on their side. They had dipped below the horizon early, leaving them in darkness so thick that it wouldn't be smart to even perform a sneak attack in. Not even the stars pierced the black, all of them seeming to have gone to bed early.
They had decided to stop for the night. However, along with the darkness, a thick blanket of silence had fallen with it. It was a silence that neither of them understood. The whole night seemed to ebb with a dark, unreadable feeling.
Something bad is going to happen.
Vash breathed in and out, trying to mute it as best he could. Even the sound of his own breathing seemed loud in the shelter of the steel cage commonly referred to as a 'car'. He ached so badly to reach out and hold Meryl, to tell her everything would be all right. Maybe his unease came from knowing he had to leave her here and go to fight alone. Maybe it was the fight itself. He was afraid of death, now. Afraid of leaving Meryl behind now that he knew the extent of her devotion for him. It frightened, and touched him at the same time. He knew that if he lived through this that she would become a target as well as he. He knew that bounty hunters, assassins, and anyone else who had developed a dislike for him would get to him through her. But he had vowed never to leave her. And he intended to keep his promise. No matter what it took.
Meryl could imagine her fingers wearing an imprint into the steering wheel. She knew that if she let go her hands would move to touch him.
And what's wrong with that?
It was wrong because.well, something's not right here. Something was different. Maybe it was the air around them. It smelled different. It stunk of danger.
Meryl was afraid. Yes, the fearless Derringer Meryl.or, wait, Pistol- whip Meryl was afraid. She was terrified that the love of her life would go into that mansion, and he would never come back out. The death song played in the air, as real as any radio wave. Meryl flexed her fingers, as if the motion would keep the tears from coming. Amazingly enough, Meryl never feared for her own safety, though she innocently believed that she was still going with him.
Vash's gaze was torn from the eternal black in front of him when the car's other passenger made a soft noise. It sounded suspiciously like a sob, a sound he had never before heard from Meryl. Having now heard it, however, he wished he could erase it from his memory, because it tore at his heart.
"Meryl?" Vash asked blindly, staring in her general direction, "What's wrong?"
At first there was no answer, only more noises identical to their predecessor. Vash slid carefully across the seat until his hip met with that of his insurance girl. His arms went around her. She was rigid.
"I haven't."
It was barely a whisper. Vash leaned in closer.
"What, Meryl?"
"I haven't cried in so long," she said, almost apologetically, her voice muffled as she hid her face in the folds of dust-scented coat that covered his battered chest.
He held her tighter, waiting for her to continue.
"I don't want to lose you, Vash. I have too many times before," her own crying caused her voice to crack, "what if something happens when we go in there?"
Her concern touched him. He was silent, though he could almost feel the air waver as she waited for a response with him. He, however, was waiting for a response within himself. He had promised that she could go with him, but yet.
The answer came. He couldn't take her with him. It would be risking too much. It would be risking everything, really. This delicate flower that he held in his arms was rapidly becoming everything to him.
It was foolish of him to fall in love. What kind of future would he be able to offer her? Following around an outlaw, becoming a target? Just being around him was dangerous. Besides: he was immortal, and she wasn't. Would he be able to take it, watching her die? Holding her hand as she breathed her last breath? And what about children? Would he ever be able to have children with her? If he couldn't, how would she react? Meryl deserved a family, not what he had to offer...
A sharp elbow suddenly came into contact with his tender side. He breathed in sharply.
"Don't brood," Meryl whispered, stirring against his chest.
He smiled in the darkness. How did she know?
The important thing was that she did. She understood him. She was definitely one of the first. She never questioned his reasoning (well, not lately anyway), and she was always behind him. Vash knew that Meryl's love for him was pure. If he disappeared on her, even if it were for her own good, would she move on? Would he even be able to walk away in the first place?
"Meryl, love," he began, hesitating, "you're going to be angry with me"
He felt her sit up a bit.
"I want you to promise me that you'll stay here."
"What?"
"Please, don't argue with me Meryl. I need you to stay here while I go and fight," he blindly groped for her hands, which were now clenched, and squeezed them "I'm going to have to use all my concentration in there, and if you were there I would be worrying over your condition. Please, love, promise me you'll stay here. I couldn't bear the thought of you getting hurt"
There was silence. He braced himself for a punch that never came.
"Alright"
Now it was Vash's turn to be confused.
"What? That's it? No argument?"
He heard Meryl sigh.
"I was..anticipating this. I thought about it while we were driving. I think that with an ace gunman like you, I could only be a hindrance"
Vash caught the hint in her words and once again held her close.
"No, love. Never a hindrance."
She smiled into the fabric of his coat.
"I'll stay here, I promise"
Vash smiled, relaxing. He leaned back against the seat, bringing Meryl with him. They lay together like that, each lost in thought, but happy to be in the others company. It wasn't until Vash was almost asleep that Meryl's voice filtered to him through the mist of his own drowsiness.
"Promise me you'll come back."
He snuggled her closer.
"I promise"
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Millie began to wake from a dream. The sunlight streaming in through the sole window of her room battered against her eyelids, bullying her into consciousness.
She could still feel the path of her own tears, now dried on her cheeks like a deserted riverbed. She let out a sigh, as if trying to dispel all of the stress with a single breath. It didn't work.
It was so hard to be optimistic when everything kept trying to break you down. Millie didn't even feel like herself these days. She felt like she was in a dark, dirty abyss with no visible method of escape.
Apparently it hadn't been enough that she lost Wolfwood. She also had to endure this transformed version of what he used to be.
Millie began to cry as the last tendrils of unconsciousness fell away. It stopped abruptly as she realized that her bed had suddenly gotten a lot smaller.
No. It hadn't gotten small. It had just.gained another occupant.
Millie was tempted to scream until she recognized the all too familiar frame of her former lover.
Now that she thought about it, Wolfwood had been acting awfully strange the night before. Then he had passed out, and she had to drag him to her bed. For an extra precaution of his safety (or at least she told herself that was the reason) she had crawled in next to him. He hadn't moved since.
Millie watched as his chest rose and fell in a steady pattern. He was alive, that was for sure. As alive as he could be, considering he was a shell of the man he used to be. She wanted to hate this creature that she once had loved, but she didn't have it in her.
She really missed Wolfwood sometimes. She always saw some insignificant thing that stirred up a dusty memory. She missed his smile, his carefree attitude, the way he could be so gentle and loving when no one was around. She just missed him, that was all there was to it.
Tears welled up in her eyes again, despite her best efforts to banish him. She had often wondered if Wolfwood ever missed her too. She supposed that he couldn't now. He didn't even know who she was anymore.
Millie began to move, but stopped. Her eyes drifted over his sleeping form, resting on his face. His expression was almost like that of his former self. Perhaps she could content herself to watch him while he slept. Lying back down, she flipped to her side and studied him.
They had planned to get married. His whispered proposal in the darkness on the night they had shared before his death had been met with a bone-crushing hug and shrieked, "Yes!"
It was going to be a spring wedding, by Millie's request. That way she could invite her whole family to come. She had been excited to introduce her family to him. They would love him, she was sure of that. He could become a part of her family and never have to be lonely again.
Perhaps watching him sleep wasn't such a good idea after all. It brought back too much pain. She started to rise up to leave when a large, calloused hand wrapped around her wrist, pinning her in place. She raised wide eyes to meet with dark orbs that were very, very awake. She gasped at what she saw in those eyes. It was so familiar.
"Millie honey..I'm so sorry. Can you forgive me?"
Sorry about the delay on this chapter. I've been at camp for a while, and then recovering from it when I got back. Hopefully there won't be too much delay until the next update.
Oh yes! And much love to everyone that's sent me such awesome reviews. I would thank each and every one of you individually but it would take too long, so I'll just give one big THANK YOU! You guys are so awesome. You've given me confidence in my own writing.
Now onto the story!
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Darkness; bleak, comfortable darkness. A car. A rumbling old car that had just taken a heavy beating by a dark-haired maniac. Now it lay idle, waiting in the sands, resting while it had the opportunity.
Its passengers were idle too. Waiting. Breathing. Sitting across from each other, somehow afraid to reach out and seek the comfort they both needed.
Vash hadn't even batted an eyelash at Meryl's reckless driving. She was grateful. They had ended up pretty close to their destination in a ridiculously short amount of time. However, the suns had not been on their side. They had dipped below the horizon early, leaving them in darkness so thick that it wouldn't be smart to even perform a sneak attack in. Not even the stars pierced the black, all of them seeming to have gone to bed early.
They had decided to stop for the night. However, along with the darkness, a thick blanket of silence had fallen with it. It was a silence that neither of them understood. The whole night seemed to ebb with a dark, unreadable feeling.
Something bad is going to happen.
Vash breathed in and out, trying to mute it as best he could. Even the sound of his own breathing seemed loud in the shelter of the steel cage commonly referred to as a 'car'. He ached so badly to reach out and hold Meryl, to tell her everything would be all right. Maybe his unease came from knowing he had to leave her here and go to fight alone. Maybe it was the fight itself. He was afraid of death, now. Afraid of leaving Meryl behind now that he knew the extent of her devotion for him. It frightened, and touched him at the same time. He knew that if he lived through this that she would become a target as well as he. He knew that bounty hunters, assassins, and anyone else who had developed a dislike for him would get to him through her. But he had vowed never to leave her. And he intended to keep his promise. No matter what it took.
Meryl could imagine her fingers wearing an imprint into the steering wheel. She knew that if she let go her hands would move to touch him.
And what's wrong with that?
It was wrong because.well, something's not right here. Something was different. Maybe it was the air around them. It smelled different. It stunk of danger.
Meryl was afraid. Yes, the fearless Derringer Meryl.or, wait, Pistol- whip Meryl was afraid. She was terrified that the love of her life would go into that mansion, and he would never come back out. The death song played in the air, as real as any radio wave. Meryl flexed her fingers, as if the motion would keep the tears from coming. Amazingly enough, Meryl never feared for her own safety, though she innocently believed that she was still going with him.
Vash's gaze was torn from the eternal black in front of him when the car's other passenger made a soft noise. It sounded suspiciously like a sob, a sound he had never before heard from Meryl. Having now heard it, however, he wished he could erase it from his memory, because it tore at his heart.
"Meryl?" Vash asked blindly, staring in her general direction, "What's wrong?"
At first there was no answer, only more noises identical to their predecessor. Vash slid carefully across the seat until his hip met with that of his insurance girl. His arms went around her. She was rigid.
"I haven't."
It was barely a whisper. Vash leaned in closer.
"What, Meryl?"
"I haven't cried in so long," she said, almost apologetically, her voice muffled as she hid her face in the folds of dust-scented coat that covered his battered chest.
He held her tighter, waiting for her to continue.
"I don't want to lose you, Vash. I have too many times before," her own crying caused her voice to crack, "what if something happens when we go in there?"
Her concern touched him. He was silent, though he could almost feel the air waver as she waited for a response with him. He, however, was waiting for a response within himself. He had promised that she could go with him, but yet.
The answer came. He couldn't take her with him. It would be risking too much. It would be risking everything, really. This delicate flower that he held in his arms was rapidly becoming everything to him.
It was foolish of him to fall in love. What kind of future would he be able to offer her? Following around an outlaw, becoming a target? Just being around him was dangerous. Besides: he was immortal, and she wasn't. Would he be able to take it, watching her die? Holding her hand as she breathed her last breath? And what about children? Would he ever be able to have children with her? If he couldn't, how would she react? Meryl deserved a family, not what he had to offer...
A sharp elbow suddenly came into contact with his tender side. He breathed in sharply.
"Don't brood," Meryl whispered, stirring against his chest.
He smiled in the darkness. How did she know?
The important thing was that she did. She understood him. She was definitely one of the first. She never questioned his reasoning (well, not lately anyway), and she was always behind him. Vash knew that Meryl's love for him was pure. If he disappeared on her, even if it were for her own good, would she move on? Would he even be able to walk away in the first place?
"Meryl, love," he began, hesitating, "you're going to be angry with me"
He felt her sit up a bit.
"I want you to promise me that you'll stay here."
"What?"
"Please, don't argue with me Meryl. I need you to stay here while I go and fight," he blindly groped for her hands, which were now clenched, and squeezed them "I'm going to have to use all my concentration in there, and if you were there I would be worrying over your condition. Please, love, promise me you'll stay here. I couldn't bear the thought of you getting hurt"
There was silence. He braced himself for a punch that never came.
"Alright"
Now it was Vash's turn to be confused.
"What? That's it? No argument?"
He heard Meryl sigh.
"I was..anticipating this. I thought about it while we were driving. I think that with an ace gunman like you, I could only be a hindrance"
Vash caught the hint in her words and once again held her close.
"No, love. Never a hindrance."
She smiled into the fabric of his coat.
"I'll stay here, I promise"
Vash smiled, relaxing. He leaned back against the seat, bringing Meryl with him. They lay together like that, each lost in thought, but happy to be in the others company. It wasn't until Vash was almost asleep that Meryl's voice filtered to him through the mist of his own drowsiness.
"Promise me you'll come back."
He snuggled her closer.
"I promise"
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Millie began to wake from a dream. The sunlight streaming in through the sole window of her room battered against her eyelids, bullying her into consciousness.
She could still feel the path of her own tears, now dried on her cheeks like a deserted riverbed. She let out a sigh, as if trying to dispel all of the stress with a single breath. It didn't work.
It was so hard to be optimistic when everything kept trying to break you down. Millie didn't even feel like herself these days. She felt like she was in a dark, dirty abyss with no visible method of escape.
Apparently it hadn't been enough that she lost Wolfwood. She also had to endure this transformed version of what he used to be.
Millie began to cry as the last tendrils of unconsciousness fell away. It stopped abruptly as she realized that her bed had suddenly gotten a lot smaller.
No. It hadn't gotten small. It had just.gained another occupant.
Millie was tempted to scream until she recognized the all too familiar frame of her former lover.
Now that she thought about it, Wolfwood had been acting awfully strange the night before. Then he had passed out, and she had to drag him to her bed. For an extra precaution of his safety (or at least she told herself that was the reason) she had crawled in next to him. He hadn't moved since.
Millie watched as his chest rose and fell in a steady pattern. He was alive, that was for sure. As alive as he could be, considering he was a shell of the man he used to be. She wanted to hate this creature that she once had loved, but she didn't have it in her.
She really missed Wolfwood sometimes. She always saw some insignificant thing that stirred up a dusty memory. She missed his smile, his carefree attitude, the way he could be so gentle and loving when no one was around. She just missed him, that was all there was to it.
Tears welled up in her eyes again, despite her best efforts to banish him. She had often wondered if Wolfwood ever missed her too. She supposed that he couldn't now. He didn't even know who she was anymore.
Millie began to move, but stopped. Her eyes drifted over his sleeping form, resting on his face. His expression was almost like that of his former self. Perhaps she could content herself to watch him while he slept. Lying back down, she flipped to her side and studied him.
They had planned to get married. His whispered proposal in the darkness on the night they had shared before his death had been met with a bone-crushing hug and shrieked, "Yes!"
It was going to be a spring wedding, by Millie's request. That way she could invite her whole family to come. She had been excited to introduce her family to him. They would love him, she was sure of that. He could become a part of her family and never have to be lonely again.
Perhaps watching him sleep wasn't such a good idea after all. It brought back too much pain. She started to rise up to leave when a large, calloused hand wrapped around her wrist, pinning her in place. She raised wide eyes to meet with dark orbs that were very, very awake. She gasped at what she saw in those eyes. It was so familiar.
"Millie honey..I'm so sorry. Can you forgive me?"