A/N: PLEASE READ. This story will be four chapters long, as in I have already written it and will be posting a chapter a week.

Also, I wanted to tell people about my website which you can access through my profile. Please visit it! I would love to hear your thoughts and comments in my new forum. And the full version of the final chapter will be posted there!

And thanks to The Messenger of Glory, New Days Dawn, ShadowDemon-Gengar, Lily-chan, and Ana for reviewing!

Chapter 2: The Results

Previous Chapter

Now she dearly wished that she'd run after the two plants and badgered them until they confessed all. But now it was too late, and she and Millie would have to manage with the circumstances as they were.

Though it would have been nicer if they knew what they were dealing with . . .

Now

In Meryl's estimation the situation couldn't really get much worse. Maybe it was the humidity around her, but she found her thoughts drifting back to yesterday morning, when everything had been sane and normal...

Flashback

The two girls had been planning the twin's 135th birthday for over a month. They'd made a cake that held each of their favorite flavors; on the right was a glazed, white cake that reminded one of doughnuts, which was Vash's favorite, and on the other side was, of all things, angel food cake which Knives had finally (after much bugging) confessed was the flavor he liked best.

They had gone into town on the specific mission; to find them presents that would fit their individual tastes. For Vash they had gotten a coupon for $$200 for the doughnut shop he went to, along with an extra large bottle of hair gel.

Knives had been a little trickier; after all, he still hadn't liked to talk to them unless necessary. So for him they had gone to Vash for advice. He'd recommended they get him writing utensils and paper, for one. Knives, he had told them, was a prolific writer. He tended to write down all of his thoughts. They'd found a fancy shop that had boasted the largest collection of pens, pencils, paper, and other such things. Inside they had bought a few quills made from toma feathers, along with several notebooks, each with a different style of paper.

The two insurance ladies had been pleased with their gifts. Their only fear was that the two guys would not feel the same. Sure, Vash would pretend he liked them, but they didn't want him to have to make a pretense of enjoying what they'd gotten him. Knives, they knew, wouldn't give them that problem; he had no qualms about telling them exactly what he thought about anything.

After lunch, on the day of their birthday, Meryl and Millie had sent them into town to get a few things. It was an obvious ploy to get rid of them, but the guys had left anyway and the two ladies had gone about fixing up the house with birthday decorations.

All day long the two of them had been unusually quiet. Even Knives, who commonly said a few words, had said nothing. And then there were the looks they'd been giving the girls all day; they had been intense, long and unblinking stares. At one point Meryl had turned around and found Knives looking at her as if he wanted to devour her. She'd felt like prey and he had been the frightening predator. But then the plant had blinked and the moment had passed on, leaving only a slight tension in the air between the couple.

Both of the ladies had been glad to see them leave, for more than just to have the opportunity to set up their party.

The cake had been put on the kitchen table with the presents beside it. Everything had been set up; numerous streamers of gold, blue, and green covered the living room and kitchen. They had even blown up similar colored balloons and strewn them about the floor.

Each of the girls had also dressed up for the occasion. Instead of her usual suspenders and plain shirt, Millie wore a white blouse with flowers on it and blue jeans. Meryl had replaced her usual white outfit with a dark blue spaghetti strap top and matching skirt of the same material.

The guys had arrived a little after sundown and Meryl and Millie couldn't resist turning off all of the lights, covering the house in darkness. When the two of them had come into the door Millie had flicked the switch and both of them had yelled a loud, "Surprise!"

The two men had looked about themselves. One of Knives' eyebrows rose, but as he hadn't made a scathing remark they had taken it as a good sign. When Vash met their eyes, neither had been surprised to see tears shining in his eyes, almost making them look as if they were glowing.

A large-and true-smile had lit up his face. "Thanks guys."

The festivities had been long and joyous. The silence that the two men had had earlier that day seemed to have disappeared. The party had crept long into the night. At one point Meryl had looked at the clock on the wall and been shocked to see that it was almost ten o'clock. She had then glanced at the rest of the group. Vash and Millie had been sitting on the other side of the table from her and one look had told her that both of them had been as drunk as skunks.

She had inconspicuously snuck a look at Knives, who had been sitting on her right. He'd been like her all evening, only drinking marginal amounts of alcohol. He had appeared to be as relaxed as Meryl had ever seen him, so she'd taken the opportunity to strike up a friendly conversation with him.

Meryl had decided to start off the talk with a question one was regularly asked on their birthday. "I was curious, Knives. At exactly what time were the two of you born?"

He'd given her a narrow-eyed glance from the corner of his eyes, clearly expressing his annoyance. As such, she was surprised when he answered her. "Neither of us are positively sure, but I have estimated our birth to have been around eleven o'clock at night." He had taken another sip of his drink. "We were told that the crew had been asleep when the emergency system in plant room C had gone off, alerting them to a foreign object in one of the plant bulbs." He snorted into his glass. "The fools thought that we were a threat to them. Cowards, afraid of two babies. No doubt they would have disposed of us if it hadn't been for that naive woman."

Meryl had known to whom he'd been referring and had wondered if Rem still would have made the same choice, given the disasters the twins had created, or more specifically, Knives. She had told herself that she would need to ask Vash one of these days.

Vash had stood then, interrupting any further conversation between Meryl and Knives.

"Hey, Knives," he'd groaned, "could you help me outside? All of a sudden I don't feel right . . . "

Knives had sighed, but gotten up, and helped his brother out of his chair and outside the kitchen door with Vash leaning heavily against him.

Meryl had turned her attention to Millie and decided that her friend had had enough for the night. The big girl had mumbled about cakes and cookies as Meryl had led her into the living room.

She'd sat Millie on a chair, which had been facing the kitchen, when an extremely bright and blinding light had suddenly shone into the house. It had come from outside the building, in the direction of the backyard. When Meryl had shaken off the spots in front of her eyes, she had looked to her friend to confirm that that had just happened.

Apparently a bright light shining in her eyes had immediately sobered the big girl up, for when she returned Meryl's stare her eyes had lost their haziness and had been focused.

"What was that, Meryl?" she'd asked her partner in a small voice.

Meryl had taken a deep, calming breath. "I don't know, Millie, but we should go find out if Vash and Knives are alright."

The two of them had cautiously moved toward the kitchen, stopping off at a closet on the way where they held their weapons. They had learned that it was a good idea to come prepared for anything. For all they knew that light could have been another bounty hunter after Vash. Or even worse, Knives and him could have been fighting again.

As they entered the kitchen neither had heard even the remotest sound of a battle outside. If anything, the air had been dead silent.

Something hadn't felt right to Meryl and as she and Millie had walked closer to the door, she had felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. The air had almost felt electrically charged the closer they'd gotten to the backyard and where Vash and Knives had been.

Both of the ladies had crept up to the back door, careful not to make any noise that might have given their position away. Guns at the ready and with a nod to Millie, Meryl had grasped the handle. The door swung outward and with a push Meryl sent it flying open and with Millie at her heel had charged out the door.

One could only have imagined their surprise when they encountered absolutely nothing outside. There had not been a sign of any explosions or of a bloody battle. The entire area had even been empty of any people, including the two men.

They had slowly and dazedly walked out into the middle of the yard, looking every which way in the twilight for any indication of what had happened.

Meryl had stood there, hands hanging loosely at her sides and each still holding a derringer. Millie had walked up to her, just as confused as her partner.

"What's going on, Meryl? Where are Vash and Knives?"

She had been about to answer her question when something had floated down in front of her face. Meryl had watched with wide eyes as the white object had floated to the ground. She had bent down and picked it up, finding it to have been a beautiful and soft white feather.

"What in the world . . . " she'd uttered in amazement.

A sound from above had startled her from her musings and she had glanced up at the sky and froze.

Fallen angels.

That had been Meryl's first thought. With their blond hair, beautiful eyes, and superb bodies, scars or no, they looked as if they'd just come down from Heaven. Then, 'I didn't know that they could grow wings...' Feathers had covered their bare chests and the tattered remains of their shirts had littered the ground. The wore only their jeans One could have seen that the wings originated from their shoulder blades.

They were looking down at herself and Millie with bright glowing eyes of blue and turquoise. The only movement amongst them had been their wings, which were continually moving to keep them in the air.

She switched her gaze to Millie and had seen that she also had noticed them; her big blues eyes were wide in shock as she stared at the twins.

They hadn't felt threatening to Meryl, but neither had they been friendly, either.

When they had started to slowly descend she and Millie had taken a few steps backward, watching the two plants warily.

They had landed with more grace than Meryl had ever been able to boast and folded up their wings behind themselves. The girls had reached an unspoken agreement that they would see what the two men would do first.

Neither of them seemed inclined to speak. It had been as if they'd been assessing the two women, which made the short one think that they had not been their usual selves.

And so the four of them had stood in the backyard for a good five minutes before Meryl couldn't stand still any longer and took a tentative step backward. Vash had disappeared in a swirl of feathers and it had taken the frantically-looking around women a moment to discover that he had made his way behind them. They had been trapped between the feathered beings that used to be the twins.

And then they had slowly begun to step toward the girls. Their steps had been measured and even with the feathers that had covered their bodies, Meryl couldn't feel any real terror from their approach. But that hadn't meant that she had been going to just stand there.

Meryl had decided to try and talk to them. "Vash, Knives; just what in the world are you doing?" Or maybe yell at them.

Neither had given any indication that they had heard her. Millie tried also, but she'd received the same lack of response.

Then Meryl had tried to side-step around Vash and toward the house, but he blocked her by unfurling a single, long wing.

Meryl hadn't been particularly happy about the decision she'd made after her escape attempt, but she'd felt like they'd had no other choice.

She and Millie had developed signals between each other in case they couldn't communicate with words. So she had given the sign for her to shoot her stun-gun, and at Vash.

Millie had obviously been reluctant to follow the command and had hesitated. Both of the men had been within a few yards and Meryl had again told her to do it.

The sight of them closing must have hardened her resolve because in a quick move belying her size, she had fired off her large weapon. The hit had been directly on target and in a mass of feathers Vash had been caught off guard and propelled straight into the house. Because of how close he had been when hit, his body had crashed quite hard into the building, cracking the brick that had made up the outer wall.

Neither women wasted the opportunity to make a break for it. Hoping Knives wouldn't catch them, they had taken off through the house, grabbing the keys to the car on the way by. Millie had been lookout when Meryl had jumped into the vehicle and promptly started the engine. She had never been so glad to hear the sound of gears grinding and coming to life. But her glee disappeared quickly when she had glanced at the gas gauge.

The tank had been almost completely empty!

The young woman cursed Vash with every foul word she knew for not filling it before coming from town. But there had been a tank full of gas that they had kept in case of emergencies, had come the hopeful thought. A loud explosion rent the air Meryl had jumped out of the vehicle and watched as the roof of the shed flew through the air.

'There goes the extra fuel," she'd mused to herself, watching her idea go up in smoke. Then thought had stuck her. They couldn't have known about the car and their escape plan, could they? Then that would have meant that the two plants, even in their current state, were more than capable of capturing them.

They couldn't hide in the house, they would find them quickly in there. So the only other option open to them had been the cliffs. The two women had explored them before so that both of them had known where there were caves to hide in, and in the dark they might have had a chance to escape undetected.

Grabbing a hold of Millie, they had started out at a run toward the mountain of rock. They had looked behind themselves constantly, expecting to see winged creatures flying after them.

But they were over halfway to the base of the cliffs and there had been no sign of Vash or Knives. They'd slowed down their pace, no longer able to keep up their sprint, when the earth beneath them had begun to quake.

Both of them had stopped as they tried to keep from falling over as the shakes had grown consecutively larger. A light in the blackness of the night had caught their eyes and both had looked back at the house and seen that a bright light, like the one earlier, had completely engulfed it and had been coming their way. There had not been any chance to outrun it so they had braced themselves as they too had been covered in the white light.

The first thing Meryl had noticed had been how warm she'd felt. It hadn't been similar to the sun on a hot day, but more like she'd been wrapped in a warm cocoon. She'd never been so calm and comfortable before.

Then the light had passed and she and Millie had been left standing in the dark, staring at each other in amazement. Nothing seemed to have changed.

"Meryl," Millie had whispered in awe, "what was that?"

The woman in question had been about to tell her that she had no idea, when the shaking began anew; except this time the tremors were even more fierce. A loud cracking had split the air and they had turned their heads toward where the house stood. But they couldn't see their home. Covering it and most of what used to be desert were dark objects that had looked suspiciously like the trees and other vegetation that Meryl had only ever seen in geoplants.

And the dark green patch had been spreading across the sand toward them.

Erring on the side of caution, Meryl had risen to her feet and started to run toward the cliffs.

"Let's go, Millie!" she'd yelled at her partner.

The big girl hadn't needed to have been told twice. Both of them had scrambled around on the rocks that had been slowly getting large the closer they'd gotten to the mountain. But running had been a futile gesture. Just as they'd reached the first roots of the rock mountain the sand beneath their feet had miraculously turned into grass and trees were beginning to pop up out of the earth like Meryl had seen sandworms do. One second it had been a patch of grass, the next a large tree-a palm, she'd guessed-had sprung up and reached for the sky.

Another rumble had gathered right beneath where they were running and ahead of them Meryl had spotted a small dark, puddle of water that was growing ever larger by the second.

She'd felt a wetness on her feet and had looked down, surprised to see water forming amongst the grass. She had seen it spread very quickly and in a split second had realized exactly what had been going on.

She'd noticed that Millie had also noticed the water, but had not yet come to the same conclusion as her. Already the water had reached their ankles and was growing deeper at an alarming rate.

"Millie-"

Her warning had been interrupted by a roaring sound, rather like when a sand steamer was coming closer, and then a geyser of water spouted right between them. Both women had the sense to get as far away from the rushing water, but they'd had to dart off in different directions.

By the time they had reached higher ground and turned around, an entire lake had sprung up out of the earth between them, just as Meryl had feared it would. They had found themselves staring at each other from over a distance of one-hundred yarzs. Water completely filled the little valley that lay at the feet of the cliffs. The vegetation had completed its growth and dense vegetation had covered the land around the water.

As the two women stood gasping for air and thought over a solution to their situation, a sound had come from the direction of the house.

It had been the noise of beating wings.

In the distance both of them had made out the forms of two large, winged creatures making their way toward the lake. Looking back at each other, the two insurance ladies had known what they'd needed to do; avoid capture and hopefully they would be able to meet back up later.

End Flashback

That had been two hours ago. Originally Meryl had planned on sticking close to the lake, especially with the forest being so dark, but she'd realized that that would have made her an easier target. So she'd left the water behind and began trekking through the thick underbrush and trees.

Even with the situation as dire as it was, she'd taken the time to admire the beautiful scenery, bathed in the light of the moons. Plants of all colors and variety dotted almost every square inch of ground. The rest was covered in a soft carpet of grass that cushioned her feet with every step.

The air was moister than she'd ever thought possible. Eventually the humidity had forced her to strip off her cloak and she'd draped it over her arm, making sure that the guns secreted within were still readily accessible.

There were no animals in the newly created environment, but there were still familiar and soothing sounds for her to listen to; such as the wind running through the trees, rustling their leaves. She'd always liked that noise. And if she strained her ears, Meryl could hear the lake in the distance, lapping gently against the shore.

It was something of a comfort that all of this would not disappear in a few weeks. With the large supply of water, and if it had a strong and dependable source, this paradise could last for a very long time to come.

But even the scenery had not distracted Meryl from the question that had been bouncing around in her head: how had all of this come to be?

How did a forest and lake suddenly appear in a matter of minutes? And in what way did that bright light fit into all of this?

Eventually she stopped walking and leaned against a nearby tree trunk that was situated in a small clearing. She ran a hand wearily over her face and stared at the starry sky. Her body felt like rubber, a combination of stress, the humidity, and a lack of food and water.

It must have been nearing two o'clock in the morning and the last time she'd eaten had been around seven in the evening.

A groan escaped her lips. Oh why had any of this happened! One moment they were all having a good time (except maybe Knives), celebrating the twin's birthday, and the next she and Millie were having to run from the two men.

What could have caused all of this? Certainly there had been signs of...something, but why had it occurred today. The day had been like any other. The only difference was that Vash and Knives had turned one year older...

Wait! Maybe that had something to do with it! Who knew, maybe at the age of 135 going completely out of control and sprouting feathers and wings was normal for plants...

It was a possibility. A strange one, but nothing today had been anywhere near normal.

So lost in her thoughts, Meryl hadn't noticed that the air had changed. The humidity had gradually vanished, only to be replaced with a tense, charged atmosphere. And then she suddenly knew that there was someone on the other side of the tree she was still leaning against.

And they knew that she was there as well.

Meryl's body instinctively stiffened when she realized that she was no longer alone.

There were only a few options open for her. She could either try and make a run for it, or take her chances and face him. The twins, or at least Vash, had already shown that their speed far excelled her own, so she opted for choice number two. The young woman knew that there might be a point where she would have to use her weapons. The insurance lady girded herself and in as fast a move as she could muster, moved around the tree and pointed her derringers in front of herself.

And met nothing but thin air.

Her body sagged as her mind registered that no one was there. She'd been sure that there had been someone standing here...

Hands with grips of solid steel clamped around each of her wrists and wrenched her arms above her head.

Meryl gasped and began twisting her body around in an attempt to jerk herself free of whoever was holding her. The two guns were grabbed from her hands. Now unarmed, she used a well aimed foot and kicked the person in the knee.

A roar of pain and she was free and moving a few yards away, out of their reach. Only then did Meryl turn around and face her assailant.

She wasn't sure what, or who, to expect, but the sight of Knives standing there, one hand rubbing his injured knee, froze her blood. She would have much rather have had Vash. At least he didn't have a history of mass murdering people. And with the way both of them had been acting earlier, there was no telling what they would do.

He still had his wings, she noticed. But at some point he'd lost the feathers on his chest and his shoes. Clothing wise, only his pants remained. Knives had let go of his knee and was glaring at her, undoubtedly angry at her for hitting him.

Keeping an eye on him, Meryl furtively glanced around, looking for her cloak that she'd dropped after he'd grabbed her. She found it on the ground, right in front of Knives.

Somehow she had to get to those guns. Her mind working fast, she came up with the rough outline of a plan. Success was slim, but the young woman wasn't going to give up without a fight.

She slowly began to step backward until her back hit a tree. The insurance lady watched the plant, whose eyes were still glaring at her, the entire time. Taking a deep gulp of air and girding her loins, Meryl quickly slipped to the other side of the tree.

And came face to face with Knives.

His left hand was held up in front of him, palm facing and at level with her forehead. The breath was coming fast and hard from her lungs, both from surprise and the adrenaline that was pumping through her veins. Her eyes resembled saucers and her body had frozen.

Knives had a faintly smug smile on his face and Meryl felt her hackles raise as they always did when the plant was mocking her. Her anger gave her the courage to lash out at him with one hand closed into a fist. Which he caught easily in his crushing grip. A frustrated sound, like a growl, came from her lips as she was thwarted.

A faint frown formed between his eyes and he had an indecisive air about him. This and a faint crackle, like static, were her only warning. Feathers erupted from the hand in front of her and reached out and touched Meryl's flesh.

Memories and thoughts not her own assailed the young woman and quickly overwhelmed her. Her head felt as if it was being split apart from the amount of information being pushed into it. For what felt like an eternity she endured this torture until blessed unconsciousness brought relief.