Disclaimer: Yeah, not sure about them being in every chapter...but just to be on the safe side... These aren't my characters, and I don't claim they are...in fact...I disclaim them...Thus, this is a disclaimer...they belong to the creator of Trigun. Thanks

Chapter 3: A place with nothing but peaceful days...

Every day, Knives was fed soup and carefully tended to until his wounds healed. Finally he was able to stand. And with this he walked slowly to the spot where Vash stood thinking always, the cliff where the memories lay.

"The ticket to the future...is always open..." He sighed and got up, walking around town some more until he heard a cry of terror. Quickly he rushed to see what the problem was, not fueled by the will to kill nor the will to save, merely curiosity

As he arrived, he saw what it was; a group of local thugs were having a war. Knives pondered on what to do, finding no solution he rushed back to the house to tell Vash.

He entered the doorway to see Vash putting on a holster and an old revolver, Meryl was weeping.

"Vash! You can't! I can't let you do this again! You've given up that life! You aren't anywhere near in the condition to fight and you know it!"

"Condition?" Knives asked, fear slowly rising

"I...have a small heart problem...nothing really..."

"NOTHING! Vash! The Doctor said you're lucky to be alive! He said even the slightest exertion could...could...."

"Meryl, he's fine...with being a plant...he has the ability to heal any wound and is near immortal... But...he still shouldn't fight like this..."

"And what do you suggest?" Vash asked

"That I take your place"

"What! You aren't ready...you can't decide whether to-"

"Then let this be my final test! I want to show you I can change, little brother!"

Meryl had already gained a respect for Knives, and knew he had changed. But now, she realized to what extent he had changed.

"Alright...but promise me...that you won't kill anyone..."

"Right, Vash..." Knives dawned the holster and gun that Vash had begun to wear and rushed back into town.

He arrived finding nothing but chaos and now no one was injured. He knew how Vash did it... Slowly, he walked between them all, not realizing that Vash had one advantage when he walked through them; his speed was greater from practicing this multiple times. So, as Knives walked, he was immediately hit with many bullets, he drew his gun in reflex and fired at the heads of all those he could target in his stupor. He gazed upon the bodies of the dead, slowly realizing what he had done.

"No..." he whispered, pain rising in him. He had finally earned Vash's trust...He was finally his true brother...they were brothers... But Vash would never trust him after this... He would never believe he had changed. Knives glanced at the chamber. One shot left. Surely they would not let him leave alive now. He was not fast enough to dodge all of the bullets as Vash could. They would fire upon him and he would be dead within moments. He knew all of this. Slowly, he raised the machine of death one final time, and with a deafening shot, he had escaped.

Vash ran into the city, hearing all of the gunfire and knowing instinctively what the gun he had given Knives sounded like; he followed the stench of death. Damn him! I told him not to kill anyone! He hasn't changed at all!!! DAMN HIM! It was then that Vash reached the site of the battle. The bodies of five men lay scattered about. Then, he noticed that there was another man who had blonde hair, just like his...

"NO!!!!!!!!!!" He screamed, looking at the position of the gun in his hand, he knew what had happened.

Slowly, he walked to his brother and wrapped his arms around him, sobbing as the crimson liquid stained his white shirt and drenched his hands and face.

"Knives.... no...." he uttered through broken breaths. "It wasn't supposed to end this way...You.... you shouldn't have gone...I knew you weren't ready....I...I'm sorry...."

He picked up his brother and carried him slowly back to his room, the liquid, which was the color of the geranium Rem loved, the geranium, which symbolized determination and courage, drained out of his irreversible wound.

As he laid him upon his bed, Meryl and Milly looked on, tears streaming from their faces and their shoulders shaking from sobs suppressed. Vash looked to Milly, and then to Meryl, then back to Knives; there was nothing he could do. He walked to the shower and drenched himself In the water, attempting to wash away both the blood of his brother and the guilt of his words; and for a split second, he thought of drowning himself. These thoughts were pushed away as he stepped out of the shower and walked into the bedroom to once more stare at his dead brother. He sat on the adjacent bed as before but now softly stroking Knives' hair.

"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry Knives...I...I shouldn't have tried to...I...I..." He laid his face in his hands as he sobbed, and slowly Meryl sat by him, wrapping her arms around the man she loved, wishing to take away all his pain, but knowing she couldn't she silently let him cry onto her shoulder, his tears drenching her shirt.

"Meryl....I shouldn't...I shouldn't have pushed him...It...it was just like Wolfwood....I..."

She stroked his head, her fingers running through his hair soothingly

"Hush, love... It's all right...He chose his own path and that's all you can ask for, right? "

"But...he...he thought I wouldn't forgive him...so...he...he shot himself..."

"Vash...you can't control his actions...you never could... What happened could not have been changed..."

"But...it could have...there are infinite paths to the future...Rem said so..."

"But you believe your own logic now. You said so, right?"

"I..."

"Right?"

"Yes...yes that's right..."

"He...he left...because of his own logic... you couldn't have changed that...."

"But...I could've....I could've told him I accepted him...that...I loved him despite what he did to Rem..."

"Then tell him"

He turned and stood over Knives, Meryl holding his hand and squeezing it gently, reassuring him that she was there for him.

"Knives...I'm sorry... I didn't mean for you to die... I would have forgiven you...if you asked me...I already forgave you for Rem...I hope...you can finally rest now, big brother..."

Meryl stood up and led Vash out of the room, never letting go of his hand.

Later that week, a funeral was held for Knives and Vash gave the only Eulogy, knowing him more than anyone else could have.

"Knives was a gentle soul, despite any actions he took, any pain he caused, he never wanted anything but peace. He couldn't find the means to achieve this peace in his life. Though he tried with numerous attempts. Then, as his life was about to reach its peak, and peace was to arise, it was taken from him. So, let it be known, that Knives the brother, of I. Let it be known, that he tried to create a paradise in life, and let us hope he has achieved it in death. Rest in peace, my brother."

Everyone clapped, it was a small funeral, but those who attended were greatly appreciated by Vash.

Later that year, Vash and Meryl were wed. And not long after, Meryl Gave birth to a beautiful boy. With blonde hair and green eyes. They named him Nicholas Knives Saverem. And Milly became the Godmother of Nicholas, tending to him as if he were her own son. She never forgot Wolfwood or Knives. None of them did. They all remembered everything in vivid detail. From Dankin town, to the town they lived in, they never forgot a thing. They told Nicholas of all the things they'd seen, and left some parts until he was old enough to hear them. It was three years after Nicholas was born that they had another child, a girl with brown hair and blue eyes. They named her Remembrance. The name suited her, as she was the carrier of their stories, as they all got older. Vash called them both by the people who they'd been named after every once in awhile. They didn't mind. Nicholas liked the sound of Wolfwood. And Remembrance liked the sound of Rem. And that, as they say, is that.

The end, obviously. Read and Review, please. Thanks.

-Vash