Ohayou, My Dear Chapter 0011, a trigun fanfic

Trigun Fanfic

The following fanfiction was written by me (Chiruken) and is intended for the sole purpose of shared entertainment and not intended for publication or sale.

--Ohayou, My Dear—

Trigun Fanfic Featuring Vash and Meryl. "Pervert!" "Wh-what are you doing in my bed?" "Put some clothes on for God's sake!"

By Chiruken

Chapter 11

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    Meryl crossed her arms over her chest and scowled out the side window as the vehicle bounced over the rough terrain. She'd been surprised when Knives had led her to an obviously well-traveled jeep and curtly told her to get in. She wasn't feeling particularly comfortable with sitting so close besides humanity's number one enemy in nothing but her night shirt. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye and gritted her teeth. "Quit oogling me, you pervert!" She snapped irritably.

    "Who's oogling? It isn't my fault you give such a generous view." Knives carefully kept the grin from curving his lips upwards. His captive was very entertaining when her temper was roused, like it was now. Her face turned a remarkable shade of red while her grey eyes narrowed to glittering slits, the rage clear to see. She didn't dare do anything to retaliate since she was so terrified of him, but he had a feeling that if he pushed her far enough her sense of self-preservation would take a back seat to her infamous temper.

    "Of all the--!" She growled and jerked her eyes back to the non-descript scenery outside her window. "So, where are we going?" She finally asked, fighting to keep her tone as even as possible.

    "Arksville." He answered shortly as he checked the position of the suns and altered their course a little to angle to a more westerly direction.

    "Arksville?" She turned to him in surprise. "Why are we going there? What could possibly be there?" To the best of her knowledge it was a small town that barely eked out an existence not having had the luck to acquire a Plant when it was first founded.

    "Business." He glanced over at her briefly before reaching under the seat and producing a canteen which he tossed to her. "Here. Drink. I don't want to deal with you if you get dehydrated."

    She caught the full canteen and stared at him in surprise a moment before removing the stopper and taking a delicate sip. "Thanks." She muttered ungraciously. **Why is he being so nice? What's he up to?** "So, Knives…what kind of business do you have in Arksville?" She asked after taking a final sip and replacing the cap. She set the canteen on the seat between them and half turned to face him.

    "Well, it isn't to liberate the Plant, if that's what you're asking." He gave her a cold look before returning his attention to the barely visible road meandering through the sand dunes. "But of course you already knew that Arksville doesn't have a Plant of their own."

    Pursing her lips in annoyance she tossed her head and shifted uncomfortably on the hot seat. "That didn't tell me much, you know."

    "Yes, I know." He smirked and glanced down at her bare legs meaningfully. "If you don't want anyone looking, stop presenting such a prime opportunity."

    "Wha--?!" She followed his gaze and felt her face heating in embarrassment. "It isn't my fault you kidnapped me while I was in my night clothes! You could've remembered to grab me something decent to wear, you know." She shifted and pulled her night shirt down as far as it would go. "I still don't know what you want with me…"

    "It isn't you I want." He squinted into the distance and frowned, seeing a blur begin to materialize on the horizon, rising up out of the heat waves over the desert. "I want Vash."

    "I should've known." She rolled her eyes and finally sighed, slumping dejectedly in her seat. "I'm not sure he'll come, you know."

    "He'll come." He retorted confidently. "I know my brother, woman. He'll come."

    "I have a name and it isn't 'woman' or 'human' or 'spider' or any other irritating label you can come up with. My name is Meryl as you full well know."

    He didn't answer. Instead he took one hand off the steering wheel and drew his gun, idly checking the chamber though he already knew that it was full. Setting the black gun on the dash he leaned to the side, closer to his unwilling passenger, and reached under the seat to withdraw a shotgun. "Know how to use one of these, Meryl?" He asked conversationally.

    She glanced over the weapon disdainfully. "Of course."

    "Good. You're going to need it very soon." He handed it to her. "Just don't shoot me. I wouldn't like that very much." He reached for his gun again.

    Meryl stared at the shotgun she now held and then slowly looked up to stare at her abductor. "Um…Knives…why did you just give me a loaded weapon?"

    "I already told you. You're going to need it." He nodded to the front. "Look there. I doubt they're the friendly type of road blocking bandits."

    She followed the direction of his gaze and gulped. "Oh boy…this could be bad. There has to be at least twenty of them." She squinted and recounted. "Make that twenty-five."

    "There are thirty, actually. It's the Arksville Crew. Not your typical run of the mill bandits. These bastards like to take prisoners…especially **female** prisoners. So get ready, Meryl, 'cause I'm not covering your ass."

    "You mean they're…slavers?" She asked softly, hunching down in her seat a little more.

    "Something like that." He glanced over at her and sighed. "You're more trouble than you're worth, you know that, don't you?" He shrugged out of his coat and tossed it at her. "Put this on."

    She looked at the coat she'd caught and blinked in surprise. "Um…thanks." Setting the shotgun to the side she quickly shoved her arms into the too-big garment and did her best to not feel ridiculous with the sleeves flopping over her hands. Sighing, she pushed them back and reached for the gun again. "Okay, Knives. Why are you going to Arksville again?"

    "Told you, business." He slowed the jeep as they approached the blockade. "Keep your head down, Meryl. Things could get ugly fast."

    Before she could form a reply he'd stopped the vehicle and jumped out, taking his gun with him. "What's he doing?" She scowled and peeked over the dash. He appeared to be talking to some of the men but whatever he was saying wasn't going over too well. The next instant all hell broke loose as bullets whizzed by the jeep and ricocheted of the metal. Meryl 'eeped' and ducked down again. "Oh man…this is a nightmare!"

    Gritting his teeth as he focused his concentration, Knives raised his hand. The men closest to him were thrown back several feet to land with cries of shock and pain on the rough, hard packed sand. His gun remained holstered at his side as he stepped forward. "We can do this the easy way…or the hard way. I don't much care which you choose. Either way your 'fun and games' are finished." He spoke quietly, his voice a cold monotone as he continued to stride forward.

    "Who the hell are you?!" At the terrified shout, Meryl peeked over the dash again and did a double take. Nobody was dead yet. **What the heck?!**

    Knives smiled coldly and reached inside his vest, withdrawing something that glinted in the sunlight. "Does it matter who I am?" He asked softly as he pinned the shining object on the left lapel of his vest. "Does it really matter at all in the end?"

    "Son of a bitch!" The men began to scatter, terror crossing their faces as their bodies suddenly refused to obey.

    "You are foolish to resist. You're pathetic beasts preying on your own kind. You deserve everything you're about to get and then some." He smirked and folded his arms across his chest. "But you're going to be good now, aren't you? You're going to do the right thing and march your way to the sheriff's office in October City and turn yourselves in."

    "Go to hell!"

    "I imagine I will eventually." Shrugging, he turned his back on the men and waved his hand casually, giving the mental command that would force them to walk until they reached the destination he'd assigned to them.

    Meryl stared in numb disbelief, her eyes focused on the shining metal attached to Knives' vest just over his heart. "Oh. My. God." As he drew closer she could make out the writing on the badge. "M-m-marshal?!" She whispered, her heart hammering painfully against her ribs.

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