Hey people! I know what you're thinking. I've been gone for over a month and left my poor story to decompose under the stories of more dedicated writers who actually update! I'M SORRY! I didn't mean to! School just came in, and I am taking College Chemistry as a junior in high school! The insanity doesn't end there. I also have soccer every day and a computer that works when it feels like it. Please forgive me for leaving the story for so long, but I just haven't had the time. I've written in my notebook whenever I get 2 minutes, but I am just now getting a chance to type it up. So please be patient, my updating habits will improve with time! Enjoy the next chapter and thanx to the reviewers!

Liquid Sunlight

Chapter 5- Growing Family

"All RIGHT!" Vash shouted, jumping to his feet as Wolfwood and Milly came in the door, each carrying a bag of groceries. When Milly placed hers on the kitchen table, Vash pawed through it before yanking out his prize.

"Donuts!" he shouted, ripping the box open and grabbing one. "Thank you, thank you so much," he whispered and took a huge bite.

"Baka," muttered Knives from the corner of the kitchen.

"I heard dat!" said Vash thickly, his mouth full of donuts.

"Now now boys," Milly scolded them. She sounded exactly like a doting mother. She looked down at Vash who was now chewing on his second donut. "Where'd you sleep last night Vash-san?" Vash choked on his donut, hacking and coughing. Wolfwood, always helpful, smacked him on the back as his face turned blue.

When he had collected himself, Vash said, "Uh, I piled up some blankets in the living room!"

Wolfwood shook his head and gave Vash a strange look. "No you didn't," he said. "When I got up last night to get a drink of water, Knives was the only person there." His expression changed from confusion to frightening comprehension and he gave Vash a knowing grin; Vash cowered in his seat.

'Oh god!' he thought. 'Wolfwood knows! Crap!'

Knives grunted and said, "He should know. I was trying to sleep and he turned on the damn lights!" Wolfwood shrugged with a smirk. He had bigger fish to fry.

'I knew Vash had the hots for the Small Girl, but when she's injured…' Wolfwood thought.

"I know where you slept then if you didn't sleep in the living room," Milly said with a smile. She rubbed her stomach.

"Y-you do?" Vash asked, blushing furiously.

"Yes I do, and there's no reason to be ashamed about it Vash-san!"

"There's not?" asked Wolfwood and Vash together.

"Of course not silly!" she proclaimed with the same cheerful smile. "But I just don't understand why you chose the kitchen of all places!" The floor rattled as Vash, Wolfwood, and even Knives fell to the floor.

"Is she really that naïve?" Knives asked incredulously.

"It was the only other place in the house he could have slept and I didn't hear him leave last night so…" Milly trailed off as Wolfwood stood to whisper in her ear. The longer he spoke, the bigger Milly's eyes became and she covered her mouth with a gasp.

'Busted…' thought Vash. 'She's gonna give me hell now.'

Out loud he said, "We didn't do anything, honest! I just-" Milly interrupted him by throwing her arms around his neck and bursting into tears.

"Oh Vash-san!" she cried, wiping her face on her sleeve. "You were so worried about Senpai that you sat up in her room all night to watch her? How kawaii!" She pulled out a handkerchief as Wolfwood fell over again.

'Tongari's the only guy I know who could get out of a situation like that,' Wolfwood thought.

Vash scratched the back of his head and gave Milly his goofy smile. She grinned back and headed over to the stove. Wolfwood grumbled as he pulled himself off the ground, grumbling, and joined the other two guys at the table. Milly began to make pancakes.

"So, what's on the agenda today honey?" Wolfwood asked.

Milly answered, "Well now that Vash-san is back, we can finally get ready!" Wolfwood grinned.

Vash looked from one to the other, confused, and asked, "Get ready for what?"

"The wedding of course!" Milly proclaimed, spatula in hand. "You'll be best man, Senpai's the maid of honor and-"

"Uh, honey?" Wolfwood pointed at her pancakes, which were black and smoking.

"Oh my gosh!" Milly cried. She turned off the stove and stuck the skillet, pancakes and all into the sink.

"Who wants cereal?" Milly asked cheerfully as Wolfwood and Vash sighed. Knives glared at all of them, already sick of living with them.

"What's all the shouting about?"

Four heads whipped around to see the tiny figure in the doorway, leaning against the wall.

"Oh senpai!" cried Milly, jumping to her feet. "You're up! I'm so glad." Meryl had managed to put her good right arm into her pajama top and button it halfway up. Her left arm in its sling hung outside the shirt, the sleeve dangling behind her.

Meryl's eyes widened as she took in the sight of both Vash and Knives sitting at the kitchen table. "V-vash," she gasped in disbelief. "You're… you're really here!" She brushed away a tear.

"Why senpai! What's wrong?" Milly asked, alarmed.

"It's just- I had this really weird dream last night and now here he is!" Meryl said as fast as she could with tears in her eyes.

With a gentle smile on his face, Vash stood up and started towards Meryl, arms open. The next second, his feet seemed to freeze to the floor as Knives lunged at her.

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~ POV- Meryl ~

Ugh. It's those voices again. Can't they just shut up?! I feel so weak, and I'm trying to rest here! And I was having such a nice dream too, even though that scenario will never come true.

Sigh.

I can tell the high-pitched voice is Milly, but who's she talking to? The voice is so deep. Could it be…?

No. It's Wolfwood. He's using what I've named the "lovey-dovey sexy voice", which he uses to get Milly to do things she doesn't want to or shouldn't do. I heard the door shut.

'Time to get up,' I thought, opening my eyes and struggling to sit up. God it hurt!

"Meryl! Let me help you!" I looked around through tears of pain to spot Milly with an extremely anxious look on her face.

"Milly? Are you okay?" I asked, grabbing her hand with my right, which didn't hurt me.

"Yeah!" she said with a grin. "Just a little bump to the head." She demonstrated, smacking herself in the side of the head.

"And Wolfwood? He's fine?" I pressed.

"Yes," said Milly. "He's fine! You're the one who got shot and you're worried about everyone else!"

I released her hand. "I'm glad everyone's okay." As my hand slid across the sheets, it ran across a rougher material and finally landed on cold steel. I looked down.

"W-what?! What the hell?!" It was Vash's red coat, folded underneath his trusty silver six-shooter.

"Calm down Senpai," Milly said soothingly. "Bokushi-san found these things lying in the desert with his Cross-Punisher and thought you'd hold onto them for him. You'll probably have to give them ba-"

"MILLY! Let's GO!" Wolfwood shouted.

"Coming!" she yelled back, jumping from the chair. She gave me an apologetic look and said, "Sorry Senpai, but I gotta go get groceries. I'll tell you everything and bring you some breakfast when I get back." She ran to the door.

"Milly, I-" SLAM! "Dammit!"

I settled back on the pillows, taking a sip of water from the cup beside my bed. The glass made a dull clink as I set it back on the table and looked down at the folded material. Sunlight reflected off the weapon.

I stared down at the two items, thinking about their owner. I remembered my dream: Vash lying beside me, arms around my waist, wanting nothing but to just sleep with me. I smiled sadly as I thought of the impossibility that it would ever happen. I missed him so much, and not knowing his whereabouts was killing me. I held in tears.

Finally I picked up the gun. The steel felt warm in my hand, and it was every bit as heavy as I'd imagined. Wolfwood must have polished it off before bringing it to me because the outside was smooth and shiny, but it looked clogged with sand.

With some difficulty, I opened the cylinder and watched six shell casings and a pile of sand fall into my lap; Vash had used all his ammo before throwing the gun aside. I tried not to imagine his fate after such a tough fight, and set the gun down with the shell casings and sand.

Unfolding the coat, I buried my in it to gather the last traces of his scent that had been worn away by the sand and wind. Upon examining it more closely, I realized that in several places a darker crimson stained the red coat. He'd been injured. Tears threatened to overflow again.

My heart seemed to clench inside my chest. I pushed the coat and gun away, trying to mentally push away memories and thoughts of him, I cried into my pillow, sleeping again after awhile.

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~POV- Still Meryl ~

"All RIGHT!" I jerked up, gasping in pain and cursing whoever had felt the need to shout while I was sleeping. 'Who the hell could be shouting?' I thought angrily. 'That's it. It's time to rejoin the world.'

Stupidly, I looked down at myself. I wore pajama pants, but I didn't have a shirt on. Bandages were wrapped around my chest and my left arm was in a sling. Well, I could remedy the shirt problem easily enough.

I slowly turned to let my legs dangle over the edge of the bed. Ignoring how weak my muscles felt, I pushed myself to my feet and took an unsteady step. My head rushed and I felt so dizzy I was afraid that I'd fall.

'Okay, I'm up,' I thought, trying to coach myself. 'Now to get dressed… There.' I spotted the pajama top hanging in the closet only a few steps away. It caused my head to spin, but I made it and removed the shirt from its hanger.

Cautiously, I tried to move my left arm. Fiery pain spread across my chest, back, and arm. Not smart.

I gave up with a sigh and gently pulled the other sleeve onto my arm. Buttoning the shirt was hard with only one hand, so I only managed to get half of them done. While I was dressing, more shouts and crashes could be heard from the kitchen.

'What in the world are Milly and Wolfwood doing? Throwing a party?' I wondered as I shuffled slowly down the hallway, finally making it to the kitchen door. Sunlight slanting through the window blinded me as I leaned against the door facing.

"What's all the shouting about?" I asked, blinking and trying to clear the spots from in front of my eyes. I heard Milly gasp.

"Oh Senpai!" she cried. "You're up! I'm so glad."

My eyes finally adjusted to the light and I could see the three men sitting at the table. One was Wolfwood, the second a tall blond man that resembled the third man who was…

"V-vash," I choked out, hardly able to believe he was really here, sitting right in front of me as though he had never left. He didn't look any different except for the lack of a red coat. My eyes were probably huge at this point. "You're… you're really here!" I felt a hot tear trickle down my face and quickly wiped it away, embarrassed.

"Why senpai! What's wrong?!" Milly asked with that same concerned look in her eyes.

Now I was really embarrassed about the way I was acting. Meryl Stryfe doesn't get so emotional! She's cool, calm, and collected; she doesn't cry over some man who leaves her alone for months and doesn't care at all for her! "It's just- I had this really weird dream last night and now here he is!" I explained, talking so fast I could barely understand myself. I felt the tears rush to my eyes again.

Vash stood up and strode towards me, arms open. He had a gentle smile on his face and his handsome aquamarine eyes were just as clear and inviting as I remembered. At that moment, I wanted nothing better than to collapse into his arms and let my tears go. I wanted to tell him how much I missed him, how happy I was that he was back, and how I truly felt…

My path was cut off as the other blond man at the table flung himself at me. His hard, muscled body hit mine and he wrapped his arms around me, squeezing my tender wounds and causing me to cry out in pain.

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~ POV- Knives ~

Stupid humans.

I don't know why I'm constantly thinking that. Or why the presence of the priest or the tall woman makes me seethe with hatred. All I can do is wait until my wounds heal to escape this place.

The truth is, this burning hatred for humans is the only thing I remember. Sure, I remember basic things like the sky should be blue, how to walk and speak, and the names of objects. Details are what's fuzzy. I had no idea I had a brother or anything else when I awoke. I didn't even know how I came to be in the condition I was in.

I like the name Knives so I'll keep it, even if I'm being deceived and it is not my true name.

As I spend more time with my twin, I realize that physical appearance is the only likeness we share. He becomes more and more asinine in my eyes as the hours pass. Also, I get fragmented memories when he does certain things or starts that ridiculous love and peace stuff.

This morning, he sits at the table eating donuts. I've determined that he will do anything to get one. Idiot. He had little choice for breakfast, as the tall woman has burnt another meal. Suddenly, I heard a new voice.

"What's all the shouting about?"

I whip my head around and freeze. That woman… she's so… familiar. Memories flashed through my mind. I could even hear her voice, singing that ridiculous song.

My head pounded a I felt a deep guilt settle on my stomach. I'd done something wrong, terribly wrong. And I was apologetic beyond words.

Ignoring my injuries, I jumped up and raced past my shocked brother to embrace the woman. She gave a cry of pain that I both reveled in and hated myself for causing. Actual tears ran down my face.

"Rem," I heard myself sob, "Rem, I'm so sorry! I didn't want it to happen, I swear! I'm so sorry!" I squeezed her closer to myself, emotions running high and deep, shuddering sobs wracking my body. She gave a little gasp as my grip increased in force.

Suddenly, I was pulled away and shaken roughly, looking into my brother's eyes. I could tell he was angry and confused. I looked down at my hands.

Blood.

The sticky red liquid ran down my hand, the smell of it overpowering me.

As suddenly as it began, the feelings left me and I was empty once more. Looking down at the shaking woman, I realized her violet-gray eyes couldn't be those of the woman I had remembered, this Rem who filled my heart with a grief I must have held hidden for a long time. Rem was also taller, not as petite.

Staring into her eyes, I tried to remember; what had I done? What could I have possibly done to cause myself so much guilt and grief?

Confused and scared of the new memories, I tried to flee. To where, my panicked mind did not know. I only knew that I had to get out. In the living room, I tripped and fell, landing on the cot. For the first time I can remember, I fell unconscious.

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~ POV- Normal ~

Vash, bewildered, watched Knives try to run away, but fall onto the cot. He was still and Vash assumed he had fainted.

Meryl sat on the floor, gasping in pain and trying to reassure Milly at the same time. Milly was trying to check the damage to Meryl's back, as no blood had leaked through her chest wound. A little blood had gone through both the bandages and the shirt in the back. Wolfwood brushed past Vash on his way to get more gauze to stop the bleeding,

Vash kneeled down beside Meryl and took her hand. She gave him a weak smile. Milly was frantically rattling through drawers to find a pair of scissors.

"That must be your brother Knives," Meryl said, biting her lip.

"Yeah. I'm sorry. I was really surprised he acted that way; he's got amnesia and it seemed like he had no emotions up until this point," said Vash with a glance at the living room door.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do," Meryl said with a light smirk at Vash.

"I know." Wolfwood and Milly finally returned with the medical supplies.

Now to thank my reviewers had to wait a freakin' month because of my slowness…

Makya: Glad you enjoy it! Um, can't leave Knives in the shack, but we'll keep him there for awhile, ne? ^-^

Samara R: Yay! One person my plotless story doesn't bother! Yipee!

Chu-Chu13: Thank ya much! I'll keep going!

crystal-chan: Thanks for the compliment! Knives, get your butt back here! She deserves a hug darn it!

im vash at socom on aim: FYI, I am beautiful! ^_^ Anywho, here's exactly what you wanted with another on the way 'K?

Ryla: I'm so happy! YAY! You made me feel so much better, because I thought the way I had things happen was kinda ridiculous and stupid, but I'm better now! Please review again!

Thanx to everyone! C-ya!