For the past year, ever since the passing of Nicholas D. Wolfwood, Milly Thompson felt old. She woke from a restless sleep to find her pillow still moist with the tears of longing. In the beginning, when she had set out with Meryl on the mission, seeking Vash the Stampede for the Bernardelli Insurance Society, life had been as sweet as jam and honey on her mother's raisin toast.
The death of Nicholas left a bitter taste in her mouth.
She took solace in the fact that she was not dead and that Meryl was with her, and would be for always. It did not change the fact that Nicholas had left her with a broken heart—at first, she hated him for that—but then it came to pass that she accepted his sacrifice as an act of honor, for it eventually brought Mr. Vash some semblance of peace.
She would always love him, even if she would never be able to hold him.
That day on the bus, when they had slept side by side, had been a day she had thought a lot of since his passing. That had been the day Vash and Nicholas had saved a little girl from certain death in the desert from the security system onboard a long lost ship that had crash-landed one hundred thirty years ago.
Back then, on that fateful day, they had known very little of Nicholas D. Wolfwood, but in the time following, Milly had grown to care deeply for the traveling priest. The adventures they shared were memories she would forever treasure, for it was those memories by which she best remembered him. It had been a trying time, with herself and Meryl so caught up in work and Vash troubled by a past that he would never share. The gentleness she found in the priest, along with the playfulness of Vash the Stampede and the joy they brought her, were the only escapes from her duties.
The tears on her pillow were becoming commonplace. Even if she went to bed joyful the night before, she always awoke with a wet pillow. She could never remember the dreams that coaxed them from deep inside—Milly hated to see anyone cry—though she knew her tears were all because of Nicholas.
With a soft groan, the young woman finally forced herself from beneath the covers and rose out of bed. She stretched, and as always, dipped her hands in the fresh tub of water on the nightstand to wash the tearful sleep from her face. It had become a ritual to her, an escape from the somber dream world to reenter the land of the conscious. She left the bedroom with a big smile on her face; she didn't want Meryl to see that something so sad could remain in her heart for very long. She knew her friend was already gone when she found half of a box of danishes waiting for her on the table. Meryl had left a note next to the box, and Milly read it aloud to herself: "Went to town square for the morning. Coffee on stove. Help yourself. I'll be waiting at the fountain." The coffee in the pot was still hot and fresh, and she soon found herself indulged in the morning meal.
After breakfast, Milly finished dressing, collected her stun gun and the money, and left the room. She headed out to do her morning chores, including a stop at the general store for groceries and supplies. She put her heart and soul into her duties for Meryl. She put her heart and soul into everything important in life. Especially when it included Meryl and their impossible quest.
It's what the priest would have wanted.
Life had an odd way about it. One moment you were strolling along, just lapping up life like a spunky puppy with a lust for excitement, and the next you simply fell flat on your face.
The priest's death had that effect on Milly. She supposed she'd let herself get too close, that maybe her heart was too vulnerable, but that's simply the kind of girl Milly Thompson was. She tried not to let the heartache show, but it was hard. For a girl who tried not to let the bad things in life overshadow the good, everything had changed with the death of Nicholas D. Wolfwood.
Mr. Vash's disappearance had brought all of the heartache back. She tried not to let it show. Maybe Meryl had never seen her pain, though deep in her heart-of-hearts, she knew her secret couldn't be safe forever. If it was still a secret at all. Milly had a way of revealing the intricacies of her heart even when she didn't want to, and Meryl had a journalist's nose for the truth. That was a telltale combination.
She left the general store with a bagful of groceries. Meryl hadn't said anything about getting food, but, then again, Meryl hadn't been her boss since they'd broken their relations with Bernardelli. That was a great as far as Milly was concerned, because she had grown tired of the work the job demanded.
Milly sighed and brought out that honey-sweet smile that she preferred people to remember. She headed out to find Meryl at town square, eager for the new day to begin. Perhaps their search might end this day, and they could stop being on the run all the time.
Meryl was always on the run. It was tiring, but Milly loved her anyway. They were the best of friends, and Milly would walk through fire to make her happy.
Meryl Stryfe looked up from her place in the center of town. In her lap was a worn, leather-bound book, her right hand placed lightly on the page she had been reading while the other guarded her eyes from the bright glow of the morning sun. Milly Thompson was nowhere in sight and she was late, no doubt enjoying the day talking with children, as usual.
She had to smile to herself. Milly was like that, kind-hearted and sweet—a heart so large it included everyone. Meryl gazed about the town, but saw nothing so far, only the ordinary. She sighed and returned her gaze to the book in her lap.
She eagerly awaited Milly's arrival so they could make new plans for the day. It was time that the two of them found some work. She was tired of unemployment, and even wearier of the funds they had depleted over the past four months.
Very shortly she heard the familiar scuffling of her big friend approaching. She glanced up to see Milly, a big bag of groceries tucked into her left arm. She was beaming with joy, as always.
"Good morning, Meryl! Did you sleep well?" The big girl plopped down next to her at the fountain's edge, watching Meryl a sparkle in her eyes that matched the curiosity in a child's gaze. "I bought some groceries. There is bread and salami and cheese and mustard, a tomato, lettuce, and all the pudding you can eat!"
Meryl sighed and put her book down again. At first, she thought the look on her face should be one of annoyance, but with Milly it was hard to stay mad, or any other emotion that wasn't happiness when it involved her gentle friend. Milly did every she could to make everyone around her happy. Usually, she succeeded, though Meryl could remember a few times that Milly had been down in the dumps and the thought bothered her. Anything but joy just didn't suit her friend, and Meryl could only hope that now, despite all that had happened, she could stay happy.
She took a quick peek into the bags. She wasn't much of a pudding fan, but there was no reason to tell Milly that. Instead, she shook away her worry and smiled. "I slept well, Milly, thank you," she said, and slipped her book in the bag for safe keeping. "I take it you had a good time with the children in the market?"
Milly gave her best "innocent-girl" look, her grin spreading as wide and true as the most beautiful sunset. "Oh, yes, Meryl. There certainly are a lot of children here. I was thinking that I might never want to leave." She sat back and stared up at the sky. Twin suns sparkled like diamonds in the morning sky. "It's such a beautiful morning. I don't know if I've ever seen such a blue sky."
Meryl glanced to her friend. Milly hadn't mentioned the sky in over a year. It surprised her. She wondered if the big girl might finally be moving on. Or maybe it was the possibility that they were off on their own again, searching for Vash.
She looked up, her face somber and serious for a moment as she gazed to the sky with her friend. There was only a single cloud, far to the east.
"Yeah," she whispered. "It is beautiful."
They had come here to Black Rock the day before, arriving in the late afternoon, to investigate the rumors that had reached her ears, but it seemed once again they were wrong. Milly didn't seem to mind. For her, it just meant that they would have to look elsewhere. Meryl, on the other hand, had grown fearful of what seemed to be inevitable.
"Milly, do you think we should stop looking for Vash? I mean…maybe he's…" She stopped herself and glanced over to her friend. Milly's eyes were still locked on the twin suns overhead. The girl seemed oblivious to the situation, as usual. Meryl really didn't want to burden her with such worries, so she changed the subject. "You really do like kids, don't you, Milly?" She forced her worries to the back of her mind with a smile.
Milly nodded eagerly. "Oh yes, I do! With all my heart. I hope to have many of my own someday. As my big big sister always says, there is nothing more satisfying in life than a big family who loves you and cares for you." She, of course, had been born into an enormous family, the youngest sibling in all. She'd also been one of the first to strike out on her own. Meryl smiled at the thought, convinced the big girl would always be with her, even if Vash the Stampede would not.
But soon the smile faded and Milly turned her attention back to her partner.
"What about Vash, Meryl? Maybe he's what? Are you afraid Mr. Vash is…dead?" Meryl could see the torrents of emotion cycling through her friend, but she somehow managed to hold herself in check. The last thing she wanted to think of was the possibility that they had lost another friend. Meryl didn't blame her. The thought that Vash was gone for good had been eating away at her for a very long time. "We're going to find him, Meryl," she decided finally, her smile returning. "Even if I have to drag you to every corner of the planet."
Meryl leaned back again, her long, black hair spilling down so that the tips rested in the water of the fountain. She let the sun rest on her face and warm her spirit. Milly was right. She had no right to instill her fears into the girl. "I just wonder sometimes," she sighed. "We haven't heard a word of him until recently. We followed the rumors here, but there hasn't been a single sigh of him. The rumor was never even true. I mean, maybe we're just clinging to hope that isn't there at all."
Milly shot her a look of concern. Meryl was speaking her mind, her heart. It was how she was, how she had been long before she had even met the girl who was to be her partner. The young woman closed her eyes, thinking back to that day, one year ago, when she had last seen Vash. He had seemed refreshed, walking away with in his red coat and Wolfwood's Cross Punisher over his shoulder.
She wondered, was that really meant to be the day that she would last see him. Had she already seen the last of the man she had come to care so much for? She didn't want that to be the case, but right now anything else seemed to be impossible. Vash was gone, and the thought made her ill at ease.
With a sigh, Meryl shook the thought away and looked back to Milly. Tears seemed to be filling the girl's eyes already. I'm doing this to her. I'm causing her pain. But what if I'm right? Do I have any right to comfort her now? Meryl reached out and took Milly's hand in her own. She felt ashamed that she had brought up the thought that Vash might be dead. Milly was the one who cared about everyone and everything, and now Meryl was responsible for forcing bad feelings on her.
She gave the big girl's hand a squeeze. "You're probably right, Milly." She drew a deep breath and suddenly realized how clean the air seemed today. The smell of the crisp, cool water from the fountain could only help, she thought. A fresh sense of determination took hold, and Meryl's smile returned. "No, you're absolutely right. We'll find him. Any day now. I don't know what I was thinking."
Milly glowed and crushed Meryl's hand in a death-grip. "You're darn right I'm right!" Her smile was nearly too much to hold. Meryl clenched her teeth, lost somewhere between pain and pride for her friend. She could see it in Milly's eyes: Vash is alive. I'm certain he is. "So, where to next, Meryl? The next city is over a thousand iles away. I really don't want to walk a thousand iles. Do we have enough money to take a bus?"
Meryl grimaced, turning her attention to the groceries Milly had set at their feet.
Maybe we would have, but I really doubt it.
Oh well. There was no reason to hurt the girl's feelings.
"I guess we'll have to find some work," she said finally. She gave her friend a look out of the corner of her eye. Milly rolled her eyes, delivered with a silent sigh at the mention of a job. Meryl smiled. "Otherwise, a bus is definitely out of question."
Milly groaned. "I guess if we have to."
"It'll only be for a few days, until we can make enough to get us to Los Alamos."
Her big friend nodded her submission, and the girls fell silent.
The morning sunlight caressed their souls as they sat there, waiting for something seemingly more distant now than before their arrival less than a day ago. For Meryl, it seemed a never-ending journey. Then again, maybe that was exactly as it was meant to be.