A/N: I am absolutely reeling from the last few chapters of Rise of the Silver Stars. This is honestly the closest I've ever come to sobbing after reading a fan fiction. My heart has been completely and momentarily obliterated by that story (but it's still amazingly awesome...that's what makes it so heart-breaking). Anyway, I started out planning to write some fluff, but realized after that story that I didn't remember how to.

So...without further adieu... the second-to-last chapter (penultimate, if you will) of Can't Wait Any Longer...

Jim dropped her off at the door. He asked her if she wanted him to walk her in, but she declined. There had been some bounty hunters in town who had caught wind that Vash was around, so he was feeling antsy about leaving her alone, especially at the place those jerks were hoping to find. She, however, reassured him that she was a professional, and while she did appear innocent, was quite capable of handling a few bounty hunters. So, he respectfully watched from a distance as he made sure she got in the house. She waved from the screen door and watched as he drove off. She sighed a little. Jim was nice, and cute, and... She sighed again.

She walked in and noticed a few things were amiss. There was screaming coming from upstairs, there was a note on the counter, and perhaps most telling, there was no Mr Vash and there was no Meryl. Dinner sat on the stove, already prepared. A tray for Knives which was perfectly cold sat undelivered. She sighed and picked the note up. The top half looked like it was written in Mr Vash's handwriting, but it had been neatly and efficiently scratched out and Meryl's efficient and business-like cursive was all that remained.

Milly,

We are in town at the saloon. I recommend you join us.

Meryl

At the bottom something else was scrawled out haphazardly:

And Vash TS

PS KNIVES MAD.

Well, she thought to herself, that was simply put. For Meryl to agree to go to the saloon, she must have wanted out of the house at all costs. Something major had taken place while she was out. She looked at the stew that was left on the stove and decided to heat it up.

She didn't see any point in leaving Knives mad and hungry. She was pretty sure it would only make him sourer.

She balanced the tray as she made her way upstairs and actually looked down the hall. The screams and curses had slowed to a trickle of mutterings. She knocked on the door frame with the back of her hand. Knives instantly leveled his gaze at her and threw the most threatening glare he could muster. She, however, was impervious to such optical intimidation, and so made her way over the broken door and into the room. She attempted small-talk, but the angry man in the bed wasn't being very receptive to having company. She looked around at the damage, realizing she really hadn't been in this room much since Knives moved in. She ignored his half-hearted curses as she placed the tray by his bed. A string of words that left his mouth did, however, catch her attention, and suddenly she was filled with a righteous fury.

"...unworthy sorry excuse for a brother, should have killed him with the rest of the humans when I had the chance..."

Seeing absolutely no good reason to control herself, her hand suddenly drew back into a fist and she backhanded Knives as hard as she could. The plant sat dazed for a moment. He touched his hand to his mouth several times, seeing blood on his fingers. He looked at her with all the hatred he had in his body and was met with an equally intense stare of her own.

"How DARE you!" she seethed. "He's your BROTHER. He's your FAMILY." She spoke as if all the other hatred that he had stored up in his body could actually be justified.

He looked at her dumbly, not quite knowing what to do as the human continued to rage.

"After all the hurt, and the pain, and the... All he's ever wanted for you was the best! He's the only reason Sempai hasn't shot you herself! He trusts us and we trust him. He's the only reason any of us have given you a chance! Because we know what a good person he is. He believes in you, and if he sees some good, it must be in there. "

The nerves in Knives' bloodied mouth began to respond. "Filth, don't even speak to me!"

She couldn't stop herself. She had to say her piece. "You...what is this all about? What is all this hatred you have? How are you any different than the people you despise? You're so scared...so scared of the humans...and why? Because you're worried they'll treat you like a weapon to use against each other? Because they'll see you as...as...a battery!" She could feel the heat in her cheeks, but she couldn't stop. "You're afraid and you react with violence. What is so different between you and us? What is so different? What is so superior? The power you wield? That doesn't make you superior! That just makes you a bully!"

Knives wanted to kill it for what it was saying, but the surge in his arm led to the burning sensation in his shoulders and his legs were too weak to run. Too weak to run away from this human's words.

"And why would you possibly want Mr. Vash dead? What could you possibly gain with the death of your own brother...your own twin? He's your family, and all you want to do is cause him suffering, cause him pain, cause him to lose hope...to lose his ideals." She started crying. "Well, I've seen Mr. Vash with no hope! I've seen what he looks like when he thinks all is lost, and it's not something I ever want to see again!" She rubbed at her eyes with her hands, but maintained her gaze. "I'm a human, and I have more compassion for your own kind than you do! I don't even want you to suffer, though you definitely deserve it by your own standards! I just want you to...to...to..."

She let out a sob and continued.

"To GET OVER YOURSELF!" She finished in a roar. She stood there crying and staring at him. Their gaze never broke. She finally calmed down. "I hope the food is still warm. You'll need to eat to get your strength back. If not for yourself, please do it for Mr. Vash. He cares about you more than anything."

She stepped over the door and into the bathroom, where he could hear her continue to sob.

Normally, the sound would have been music to his ears, but not tonight. Not tonight. How dare it jump to conclusions like that! How dare it assume he really wanted his brother dead! The words he spoke weren't even said in half-seriousness. They were simply borne out of...well...fear. It was fear, wasn't it. He was stuck in a house all by himself, abandoned by his own brother, defenseless against whatever ruthless human happened upon him, although he knew that even Vash wouldn't have been able to protect him from its weapons...they were simply words, after all.

He waited until Vash and his pet had made it back. Knives feigned unconsciousness. Vash walked by the room and Knives could tell he was looking at him. Knives could feel the uncertainty rolling off of him. And that's when he felt it, when it really hit him. Vash didn't trust him. The spider had been right. Vash didn't know if Knives was better off dead or alive, and while Knives had been, "talking out of his ass," as the colloquialism went, he never doubted that he wanted his brother alive and by his side. All he wanted was for Vash to be strong, to be safe, to be protected, to be loved and cared for. He had only ever wanted the best for his brother. Now he realized that while Vash might hesitate at first, he would shoot to kill. Knives was not Vash's savior, he was his greatest liability.

He had to get out of there.

The next morning was like most other mornings. Milly got up and got ready for work without a second thought devoted towards Knives. Vash and Meryl slept in. They heard the front door open and close, signaling Milly's departure to work. Breakfast was waiting for them when they got up. Aside from the door that would need new hinges, everything seemed normal.

Milly's morning was turning out to be a text-book example of what should have happenen to Milly on any given workday. She headed out of the house with a smile on her face and a container of breakfast for Jim. The general store was her first destination, like always, to retrieve some pudding cups for later. She paid the clerk and chatted a bit about what was new in her life, but mostly she talked about what was constant. She left the store, but she didn't realize someone had overheard her conversation.

She didn't realize someone was following her.

She didn't realize that someone meant to do her harm.

She felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up straight, and she turned around in time to see Knives standing in a crowd behind her. She watched him as he fluidly pulled a gun out of a stranger's holster. She watched as he began to fire the gun in her direction.

Knives smiled once the firearm was in his possession. It was a small object, but still contained the power over life and death. He looked at the spider and pointed the gun. He squeezed off a few rounds.

Blood splattered on Milly's face, she was covered in it, her eyes went wide with terror.

He shot a few more rounds, just to make sure the spider was as good as dead. He couldn't leave it wandering around in pain like that, now could he?

Milly saw him walking away as she sank to the ground. He tucked the gun back into the stranger's holster, the man completely befuddled. Nobody made a move to do anything. She didn't have the strength to do anything but stare.

Knives laughed to himself as he walked to the edge of town.

What will you make of this, dear brother?

A/N: Uh oh...bad Knives. Looks like an excellent moment for badassVash to pop out, doesn't it? Yes, I was thinking the same thing...

I feel a little better now, but I really need some fluff. Hey Pottachu! This would be a perfect time to update The Favor...:) Anyway, review please. The last chapter will be posted...soon...

Cliffhanger...MUAHAHAHAHAHA!