Raven-Haired Companions
"Ready to go, Stampede?" she asks from the porch. I chuckle at the nickname only she calls me these days. With no bounty on my head, it felt good to walk free through the streets of any city without the fear of being gunned down or arrested. No one but my raven-haired companion called me Vash the Stampede. It was an endearing little thing she did to make me smile.
I take a deep breath and nod. She loads up the jeep with our stuff. We take off towards a place I thought I'd never see again.
It had been years since I had been here. I avoided this area because it brought back too many memories. But the missus insisted we confront this together. She explained it all very well to me, the need to let your past rest or something like that, but like usual, I forgot most of the important parts.
Either way, here we are, my old home. And as I predicted, old memories crept up on me. I couldn't escape. It was suffocating. She didn't understand. I didn't like to talk about my past, since it was so extensive and full of pain. I wanted to spare her the details.
We are currently exploring the ruined remains of what could've been a house or a Seeds space shuttle, one would never be able to tell by just looking at the outside. I shove a plank of wood and steel out of our path and find us in what appears to be a living room area. Instantly, I remember being here many years ago. I remember her, my dead love.
There are even a few of our possessions still here. There's a cracked mug from when she tried to reheat her coffee and nearly destroyed it. There's a tattered couch we used to sit and relax on as she hummed and combed my unruly hair. There's a photo frame… dear god, there's still a photo inside!
My current raven-haired companion sees this and picks it up with careful grace, scanning the old photo with sharp eyes. She smiles gently as she passes it to me. I see in the photo it was my dead love and I. Knives is there as well, but in the background sleeping. In the photo, I have such a carefree smile on my face, like nothing in the world could bother me. I wish things were that simple nowadays.
My current raven-haired companion seems to notice my change in facial expression because I feel her brush her hands against my arm in a comforting manner.
"Who was she?" she asks. Only one of the most important women in my life.
"She… she died." How else could I describe her?
My raven-haired companion only stares at me with sympathy. She's reading my expression, I can tell. I've become weak and easy to read lately. Somehow, being around her makes me drop my guard. When I'm with her, I'm not the Stampede. I'm just me. I haven't been this free since… since my other raven-haired companion left me for the after-world.
"You must miss her dearly." What an understatement. Of course I miss her. I loved her. It was so long ago, but I still miss her.
I don't trust my voice to answer properly, so I settle on a slight nod.
"You were close to her?" Again, an understatement. And again, I nod ever so slightly, as my eyes welled up with tears. I'm afraid if I nod too forcefully, the tears will spill over. Even in the dim light, she can tell I'm getting emotional, so she takes the photo from me and puts it into her messenger bag.
"We can turn back, if you'd like." I shake my head defiantly. I'm determined to lay my past to rest once and for all. Even if it means moving on from my dead love. She would understand.
In the next room was the greenhouse. It has become overrun with plant life while I was gone. I couldn't believe anything was thriving after so long. This was the room we often had picnics together, my dead love and I.
There's the tree I received my first haircut by her. I remember her fretting and complaining she had done a poor job, but I had assured her it looked fine. I approach it cautiously. If memory serves me, there should be a carving in the tree we made together. I frown when I find it. It's rubbed off somewhat over the years. All I can make out is an M and SH. My raven-haired companion is beside me staring at the tree-carving in wonder.
"You never told me her name," she states plainly. I hesitate a moment, still not trusting my voice.
"Rmmh…" I muttered quietly. She raises an eyebrow at me.
"I beg your pardon?"
"Meryl," I say again, my voice cracking. Saying her name causes a pain in my chest because associating Meryl with my dead love makes it real. It confirms that she is indeed dead, never to return to me. At this rate, I'll never return to her. I truly have no idea how long my own lifespan is, but I'm not about to throw my own life away either. After all, I'm against suicide.
"That's a beautiful name," my new raven-haired lady whispers. I smile.
"So is Danea." She smiles back at me.
"Ready to go home?" I shake my head and nod slightly towards the tree. "You do what you must. I'll wait." She holds my hand and kisses it before walking slowly backwards towards the doorway.
I kneel down before the tree with the carving and pull out the rose I've been carrying since we got here. I give the rose a tiny kiss before laying it down beneath the tree and saying a final goodbye to the woman I loved.
"Goodbye Meryl. I hope wherever you are, you're happy. Please say hi to Wolfwood and Milly for me." Before I can do anything else, a few tears trickle down my face. "I… I just want you to know, I'm not alone. I'm happy." I wipe the tears away and straighten up. Danea is waiting for me by the greenhouse door. A renewed smile finds its way onto my face.
I look one last time around the home that Meryl and I once shared. It breaks my heart to move on, but I'm sure Meryl wouldn't have wanted me to spend the rest of eternity sulk around like a lost puppy. While Danea is far from a replacement of Meryl, she still provides me with happiness I thought I had lost forever the day Meryl had passed away.
Hand in hand, Danea and I leave my old life behind and set forth towards our new life together.
A/N: So what'd you think? Who guessed that the raven-haired girl with Vash wasn't Meryl? Who was shocked? Let me know in a review!