Disclaimer: Trigun is not mine.
Warnings: Same as last time. Major major fluff.
This is for all of you who asked for more. Thanks for the reviews!
The dream was familiar. She was in my arms- finally... I held her tightly against myself, pouring out the words I'd always wanted to say to her but never dared. She smiled lovingly, replying the same way, finally pulling my lips down to hers...
A ray of sunlight fell against my eyes and I groaned. It couldn't be morning. I snuggled down a little more under the covers, arms tightening around the pillow that I cradled in my arms. My eyes opened wide when the pillow made a sleepy protest.
Meryl. My brain supplied and then shut down for a brief moment in shock. Then it revved into high gear, trying to figure out what the hell had happened.
She was dressed- I noted with relief before noticing that she was wearing my pajama top. I had the bottoms on, I realized after a mind numbing second. Another part of me was enjoying the feeling of her in my arms, her warm length pressed against me, the soft feeling of her skin against mine...
Whoa boy. Focus! So, how had she gotten here? Think back- last night... went into the saloon with Wolfwood and the girls. Ah yes. Wolfwood and I had a few drinks, Millie matching us drink for drink, Meryl keeping to coffee. Then- was it Millie who started that silly challenge about who could drink the most? She must've been plastered. I must've been too if I'd agreed to it. After that... nothing. I looked at the girl in my arms. Her eyes were closed, mouth curved in a half smile. She was lovely. If something had happened I wanted to remember it, damn it! I shifted a bit and she blinked sleepily up at me. I prepared myself for a punch.
"Vash? Quit moving so much, okay?" She smiled up at me and my brain shorted out again.
"Uh...sorry, Meryl."
"It's okay. I'm just still tired." She leaned up and kissed my cheek, then rolled over and snuggled spoon fashion in my arms. "You should get some more sleep too. It's... still... early." She yawned the last sentence, her eyes closing as she moved even closer.
"Uh...okay." Her soft hair brushed the underside of my chin and I closed my eyes for a moment to savor the feeling. Then reality snapped back in. She didn't seem surprised to wake up in my bed. She had kissed me. Something must've happened- but what? She wasn't going to be happy with me, that's for sure, when she found out I didn't remember anything. My arms tightened around her. I wanted to remember! I pummeled my brain... nothing - a blank. No!
"Vash? Is something wrong?" Meryl asked, eyes still closed. "Can't you sleep?"
"Not really," I replied unhappily. Meryl opened her eyes, yawned and sat up, blinking sleepily. She looked down at me.
"What's wrong?" She touched my cheek gently. "You look upset." I covered her hand with mine, knowing that in a minute it would be punching my lights out. Meryl would never have anything to do with me again, but I had to be honest with her even if it ruined everything. If only I could remember- I'd be able to keep her with me- ah hell. I sat up next to her.
"Meryl... how, um... I don't remember..." To my utter surprise, Meryl smiled.
"You don't remember last night?"
"No," I replied and braced myself for the blow I was sure was coming. Meryl giggled. I opened my eyes cautiously. She wasn't mad? Meryl was laughing, my ears hadn't deceived me. She looked up at my face and her expression changed, the laughter vanishing.
"Poor Vash," she said softly. "What a way to wake up."
"It's not that! I'm..uh not upset that you're here..it's just..I want to remember! uh..I really am sorry Meryl...." I stammered, relieved to see a faint smile return at my words.
"It's all right Vash. You were really drunk. You lost the contest, by the way."
"I knew I would."
"That's true. But don't worry- Wolfwood lost too. Millie beat you both. At least you just put your head down and refused to drink anymore. Wolfwood passed out cold." Meryl grinned again. "Luckily for him Millie is pretty strong. Otherwise we would've had to leave him there. Between the two of you, we got him back here." A vague impression of hauling the cross punisher through the street surfaced in my brain.
"That's good, but how..." Meryl looked up at me and sighed.
"You really don't remember any of it?"
"No... I wish I did, Meryl, believe me." She slid an arm around my waist comfortingly.
"It's all right, Vash. Like I said, no problem. Well, our room was the first one in the hallway. Millie was getting tired, so she said she was just going to put him in there rather than drag him all the way down the hallway and up another flight of stairs." I remembered that the girls had gotten the last double room in the hotel on the first floor. Wolfwood had gotten one on the third floor, while I was on the second floor. "Well, we put him down on the bed. Wolfwood was already snoring by then. You told her that you couldn't see how anyone was going to be able to sleep in that room with that noise. She said she was used to people snoring after living with her brothers, and she promptly passed out on the other bed."
"She didn't?" I grinned in spite of myself.
"She did. And you were swaying dangerously too. I didn't want you passing out on the floor, so I brought you here."
"That was nice of you," I looked down into her big violet eyes. "So how did we...?" Meryl looked down for a moment and I put an arm around her shoulders. "I am sorry Meryl- I really am..."
"It's all right Vash." She leaned against my shoulder and I held her close to me, inwardly happy to have her to myself, in my arms for this space of time- even if she hated me afterwards.
"Well, I got you down here and you asked me where I was going to sleep. I told you that I was planning to go back and get Wolfwood's key so I could take his room. You said that I could have yours and you would go back for Wolfwood's key. You really were looking woozy and I didn't think you'd manage to be upright for much longer. I told you that you should lie down. I would be fine. But you pulled out your pajamas and told me I could have them and the bed too." Meryl giggled again. "I tried to persuade you otherwise, but you kept insisting." She sighed and turned pink.
"Did I do something bad?"
"Not exactly." She looked down so that her hair was hiding her face. "You insisted that this hotel was no place for a lady to be wandering around at night. I would've just taken you up to Wolfwood's room, but I didn't think I could get you up the stairs without an accident. I'm afraid.. I lost my temper a bit."
"Not surprising. I must've been really annoying."
"You were..." Meryl took a deep breath. "I snapped that you never thought I was a lady and that you should get into your pajamas and get to bed." She swallowed hard. "So, you did."
"Huh?" It was my turn to blush.
"You pulled off the rest of your clothes and put on the pajama bottoms." Meryl said quickly. "You get the picture." I groaned. Unfortunately, I did. Meryl looked up and giggled a bit at my expression.
"So how did you..."
"You leaned against the door and told me that it wasn't safe for me to be wandering around. So I should put on your pajamas and go to bed too." She looked at me, eyes wary. "Drunk or not, you can move pretty fast."
"Oh no..."
"I couldn't budge you from the door, so I asked you, nicely, to please just go to bed." She looked down again. "Then you started to cry- you were worried about me..." I blushed harder. "So I told you to turn around, changed into your pajama top and... got into bed. I was tired, Vash."
"I'm sure you were Meryl. I'm sorry."
"It's all right. I thought once you fell asleep I'd be able to sneak out. But..." Meryl paused again.
"But..."
"You..uh... didn't let me go. You said... some things and then fell asleep. So I stayed." I was quiet. Said 'some things' to her? Some things that made her stay with me last night. Some things that made her drop the "Mr." she always uses. Some things that would make her kiss me this morning. Some things that let her sit here in my arms and talk to me like this. I wouldn't have... Maybe I would. Damn- try to remember! I leaned back on the headboard and without letting myself think about it, I pulled Meryl onto my lap, burying my face in her hair, wrapping my arms around her. She leaned against me, body taut with tension. She was tiny, but she fit into my arms perfectly, just like I knew she would. I let my fingers glide down her spine caressingly.
"What... what are you doing?" Meryl asked a bit breathlessly.
"Trying to remember," I replied. She pushed at me a bit and leaned away.
"We..uh...didn't do anything like that..."
"Really?" I replied, amused at her blush. "Did I kiss you?"
"Uh..yes..." So I kissed her again. She tasted sweet, nearly like honey, which was surprising, given how sour Meryl could be at times. I let my mouth slide down the side of her face, onto her neck, tasting the sweet saltiness of her skin. She swallowed, and I felt her body relax more into my embrace. It wasn't jogging any memories, but at this point, I didn't care.
"Was it like that?"
"Uh, not exactly," she murmured, sounding distracted. So I kissed her again, deeper, and felt her arms slide around my neck, returning my embrace.
"Like that?" She shook her head no, and I smiled against her lips. "Help me out, Meryl," I murmured against her mouth.
She kissed me lightly, gently - a brush of lips that made me want more. So I claimed her mouth again, daring a longer kiss. When I pulled back, her eyes were half-closed and I had to smile at the adorable picture she made.
"Did I tell you that I love you?" I asked before I could help it. She flushed and I was hit by a sudden burst of memory. "I meant it, Meryl," I told her softly. Her eyes blinked open wider.
"You did?" Her voice was just as soft.
"I want to keep you safe. I love you."
We joined the others later on that morning. Wolfwood was hunched over the table, dark glasses on, rubbing his temples as Millie chattered at him. I had to hide my grin. Wolfwood would not enjoy me laughing at his predicament.
He glanced up as we sat down. "You're looking indecently healthy, tongari," he muttered at me. "How'd you manage to skip the hangover?"
"I didn't pass out," I informed him smugly.
"That doesn't explain Millie," he gestured in the big girl's direction. She was now chattering at Meryl, looking happy and not in the least bit hung-over.
"Well, that's just Millie, I guess," I told him with a grin. "You're the only one who can't hold his liquor."
"Guess so. You won't catch me accepting another one of Millie's challenges. I don't have the stamina to deal with the aftereffects."
I caught Meryl's eye and smiled for her.
"I don't know," I laughed. "Sometimes the aftereffects are pretty great." Meryl grinned back and Wolfwood looked at me as if I had lost my mind.
Maybe I had. But I didn't care.
The dream was familiar. She was in my arms- finally... I held her tightly against myself, pouring out the words I'd always wanted to say to her but never dared. She smiled lovingly, replying the same way, finally pulling my lips down to hers...
A ray of sunlight fell against my eyes and I groaned. It couldn't be morning. I snuggled down a little more under the covers, arms tightening around the pillow that I cradled in my arms. My eyes opened wide when the pillow made a sleepy protest.
Meryl. My brain supplied and then shut down for a brief moment in shock. Then it revved into high gear, trying to figure out what the hell had happened.
She was dressed- I noted with relief before noticing that she was wearing my pajama top. I had the bottoms on, I realized after a mind numbing second. Another part of me was enjoying the feeling of her in my arms, her warm length pressed against me, the soft feeling of her skin against mine...
Whoa boy. Focus! So, how had she gotten here? Think back- last night... went into the saloon with Wolfwood and the girls. Ah yes. Wolfwood and I had a few drinks, Millie matching us drink for drink, Meryl keeping to coffee. Then- was it Millie who started that silly challenge about who could drink the most? She must've been plastered. I must've been too if I'd agreed to it. After that... nothing. I looked at the girl in my arms. Her eyes were closed, mouth curved in a half smile. She was lovely. If something had happened I wanted to remember it, damn it! I shifted a bit and she blinked sleepily up at me. I prepared myself for a punch.
"Vash? Quit moving so much, okay?" She smiled up at me and my brain shorted out again.
"Uh...sorry, Meryl."
"It's okay. I'm just still tired." She leaned up and kissed my cheek, then rolled over and snuggled spoon fashion in my arms. "You should get some more sleep too. It's... still... early." She yawned the last sentence, her eyes closing as she moved even closer.
"Uh...okay." Her soft hair brushed the underside of my chin and I closed my eyes for a moment to savor the feeling. Then reality snapped back in. She didn't seem surprised to wake up in my bed. She had kissed me. Something must've happened- but what? She wasn't going to be happy with me, that's for sure, when she found out I didn't remember anything. My arms tightened around her. I wanted to remember! I pummeled my brain... nothing - a blank. No!
"Vash? Is something wrong?" Meryl asked, eyes still closed. "Can't you sleep?"
"Not really," I replied unhappily. Meryl opened her eyes, yawned and sat up, blinking sleepily. She looked down at me.
"What's wrong?" She touched my cheek gently. "You look upset." I covered her hand with mine, knowing that in a minute it would be punching my lights out. Meryl would never have anything to do with me again, but I had to be honest with her even if it ruined everything. If only I could remember- I'd be able to keep her with me- ah hell. I sat up next to her.
"Meryl... how, um... I don't remember..." To my utter surprise, Meryl smiled.
"You don't remember last night?"
"No," I replied and braced myself for the blow I was sure was coming. Meryl giggled. I opened my eyes cautiously. She wasn't mad? Meryl was laughing, my ears hadn't deceived me. She looked up at my face and her expression changed, the laughter vanishing.
"Poor Vash," she said softly. "What a way to wake up."
"It's not that! I'm..uh not upset that you're here..it's just..I want to remember! uh..I really am sorry Meryl...." I stammered, relieved to see a faint smile return at my words.
"It's all right Vash. You were really drunk. You lost the contest, by the way."
"I knew I would."
"That's true. But don't worry- Wolfwood lost too. Millie beat you both. At least you just put your head down and refused to drink anymore. Wolfwood passed out cold." Meryl grinned again. "Luckily for him Millie is pretty strong. Otherwise we would've had to leave him there. Between the two of you, we got him back here." A vague impression of hauling the cross punisher through the street surfaced in my brain.
"That's good, but how..." Meryl looked up at me and sighed.
"You really don't remember any of it?"
"No... I wish I did, Meryl, believe me." She slid an arm around my waist comfortingly.
"It's all right, Vash. Like I said, no problem. Well, our room was the first one in the hallway. Millie was getting tired, so she said she was just going to put him in there rather than drag him all the way down the hallway and up another flight of stairs." I remembered that the girls had gotten the last double room in the hotel on the first floor. Wolfwood had gotten one on the third floor, while I was on the second floor. "Well, we put him down on the bed. Wolfwood was already snoring by then. You told her that you couldn't see how anyone was going to be able to sleep in that room with that noise. She said she was used to people snoring after living with her brothers, and she promptly passed out on the other bed."
"She didn't?" I grinned in spite of myself.
"She did. And you were swaying dangerously too. I didn't want you passing out on the floor, so I brought you here."
"That was nice of you," I looked down into her big violet eyes. "So how did we...?" Meryl looked down for a moment and I put an arm around her shoulders. "I am sorry Meryl- I really am..."
"It's all right Vash." She leaned against my shoulder and I held her close to me, inwardly happy to have her to myself, in my arms for this space of time- even if she hated me afterwards.
"Well, I got you down here and you asked me where I was going to sleep. I told you that I was planning to go back and get Wolfwood's key so I could take his room. You said that I could have yours and you would go back for Wolfwood's key. You really were looking woozy and I didn't think you'd manage to be upright for much longer. I told you that you should lie down. I would be fine. But you pulled out your pajamas and told me I could have them and the bed too." Meryl giggled again. "I tried to persuade you otherwise, but you kept insisting." She sighed and turned pink.
"Did I do something bad?"
"Not exactly." She looked down so that her hair was hiding her face. "You insisted that this hotel was no place for a lady to be wandering around at night. I would've just taken you up to Wolfwood's room, but I didn't think I could get you up the stairs without an accident. I'm afraid.. I lost my temper a bit."
"Not surprising. I must've been really annoying."
"You were..." Meryl took a deep breath. "I snapped that you never thought I was a lady and that you should get into your pajamas and get to bed." She swallowed hard. "So, you did."
"Huh?" It was my turn to blush.
"You pulled off the rest of your clothes and put on the pajama bottoms." Meryl said quickly. "You get the picture." I groaned. Unfortunately, I did. Meryl looked up and giggled a bit at my expression.
"So how did you..."
"You leaned against the door and told me that it wasn't safe for me to be wandering around. So I should put on your pajamas and go to bed too." She looked at me, eyes wary. "Drunk or not, you can move pretty fast."
"Oh no..."
"I couldn't budge you from the door, so I asked you, nicely, to please just go to bed." She looked down again. "Then you started to cry- you were worried about me..." I blushed harder. "So I told you to turn around, changed into your pajama top and... got into bed. I was tired, Vash."
"I'm sure you were Meryl. I'm sorry."
"It's all right. I thought once you fell asleep I'd be able to sneak out. But..." Meryl paused again.
"But..."
"You..uh... didn't let me go. You said... some things and then fell asleep. So I stayed." I was quiet. Said 'some things' to her? Some things that made her stay with me last night. Some things that made her drop the "Mr." she always uses. Some things that would make her kiss me this morning. Some things that let her sit here in my arms and talk to me like this. I wouldn't have... Maybe I would. Damn- try to remember! I leaned back on the headboard and without letting myself think about it, I pulled Meryl onto my lap, burying my face in her hair, wrapping my arms around her. She leaned against me, body taut with tension. She was tiny, but she fit into my arms perfectly, just like I knew she would. I let my fingers glide down her spine caressingly.
"What... what are you doing?" Meryl asked a bit breathlessly.
"Trying to remember," I replied. She pushed at me a bit and leaned away.
"We..uh...didn't do anything like that..."
"Really?" I replied, amused at her blush. "Did I kiss you?"
"Uh..yes..." So I kissed her again. She tasted sweet, nearly like honey, which was surprising, given how sour Meryl could be at times. I let my mouth slide down the side of her face, onto her neck, tasting the sweet saltiness of her skin. She swallowed, and I felt her body relax more into my embrace. It wasn't jogging any memories, but at this point, I didn't care.
"Was it like that?"
"Uh, not exactly," she murmured, sounding distracted. So I kissed her again, deeper, and felt her arms slide around my neck, returning my embrace.
"Like that?" She shook her head no, and I smiled against her lips. "Help me out, Meryl," I murmured against her mouth.
She kissed me lightly, gently - a brush of lips that made me want more. So I claimed her mouth again, daring a longer kiss. When I pulled back, her eyes were half-closed and I had to smile at the adorable picture she made.
"Did I tell you that I love you?" I asked before I could help it. She flushed and I was hit by a sudden burst of memory. "I meant it, Meryl," I told her softly. Her eyes blinked open wider.
"You did?" Her voice was just as soft.
"I want to keep you safe. I love you."
We joined the others later on that morning. Wolfwood was hunched over the table, dark glasses on, rubbing his temples as Millie chattered at him. I had to hide my grin. Wolfwood would not enjoy me laughing at his predicament.
He glanced up as we sat down. "You're looking indecently healthy, tongari," he muttered at me. "How'd you manage to skip the hangover?"
"I didn't pass out," I informed him smugly.
"That doesn't explain Millie," he gestured in the big girl's direction. She was now chattering at Meryl, looking happy and not in the least bit hung-over.
"Well, that's just Millie, I guess," I told him with a grin. "You're the only one who can't hold his liquor."
"Guess so. You won't catch me accepting another one of Millie's challenges. I don't have the stamina to deal with the aftereffects."
I caught Meryl's eye and smiled for her.
"I don't know," I laughed. "Sometimes the aftereffects are pretty great." Meryl grinned back and Wolfwood looked at me as if I had lost my mind.
Maybe I had. But I didn't care.