In hindsight, Wolfwood should’ve given it more thought and not been too surprised by it.
‘It’ being Vash’s non-human biology and the Plant abilities that come with it. He didn’t give it much thought. Not when he found out Vash was a Plant after the sandstreamer incident or in July—Lost July now. Not during the two years it took to find Vash, who was Eriks during those two years. He didn’t think about what Plant things Vash could do other than the luminescent white lines that appeared on his face and the enhanced regeneration whenever he got injured. And the whole telepathy or communication thing he does with other Plants, like on the sandstreammer and when he hears a Plant’s voice from afar.
Wolfwood has been travelling with Vash for a couple of months after finding him as Eriks. During those months, Vash has heard plenty of Plants in need of his help and he willingly goes. Wolfwood has never been in the same room with Vash whenever he communicated with other Plants. It’s probably the reason why he doesn’t think about Vash being a Plant or anything more than a human.
Vash does a good job of pretending to be human. Not that he’s trying to pretend. Vash is probably the most genuine and peace-loving idiot amongst humanity on this shitty planet and he shows more emotion than half of the people they come across. And continues to do so despite all the scars and shit he’s been through. It can be hard to see past the mask if you aren’t around him long enough—probably a reason why Vash doesn’t hang around a town for too long.
Hiding on the other hand, Wolfwood can assume Vash does not want his inhumanity to be known, which is something Wolfwood can sympathize with, having his own past demons. It became an unspoken rule to Wolfwood to not talk or think about Vash’s inhumanity and also pretend Vash was more human than Plant.
Wolfwood didn’t think one of the many hidden Plant abilities would include this of all things.
It happens when they are in Meryl’s car.
Meryl and Milly picked up both men at the town that they were passing through. Meryl had radioed Wolfwood—one of the many ways they communicated during Vash’s absence—about passing by a town of similar description and found out they were nearby. It had been a month since they’d seen each other and Meryl insisted on driving them to the town they were heading to next.
The girls and Vash had excitedly hugged each other when they arrived—Wolfwood eventually got dragged into the hug—and Vash went on a spiel about the towns they had visited the past month. Vash had Meryl and Milly laughing about a getaway he and Wolfwood had to do that involved escaping from an ill-prepared group of gunmen trying to get Vash’s bounty. While they chatted, Wolfwood attached his motorcycle to Meryl’s car and they shortly departed as Meryl chimed in and talked about her stories of the past month.
“After gathering all the information from interviewing half the town, it was clear that the one who did it was the sheriff himself and his buddies! And he kept crying about how it wasn’t him after showing all the evidence!” Meryl whined.
Milly patted her shoulder in sympathy as Vash laughed. “So what did you do?”
Milly continued the story with a smile, “We had to convince some people in the town while avoiding the sheriff.”
“With Milly’s abilities, I have no doubts that you convinced them”, Wolfwood said with a grin. Meryl glares at him and sticks out her tongue at him in the rearview mirror.
“Excuse you! I also helped convince them!”
Wolfwood reaches over to the front seats and purposely ruffles Meryl’s hair to make it messy.
“I’m sure you did. And probably nipped their heels at the first sign of doubt, Shortie.” Meryl’s determination and confrontation sometimes miss the mark while Milly’s warm and friendly demeanor butters people up. They complement each other.
Meryl squawks and slaps his hand away. One less hand on the wheel makes the car swerve slightly.
“Don’t mess up my hair! I’ll kick you out and leave you to walk through the desert!” She won’t.
Wolfwood pulls back and leans heavily against the car seat with a satisfied smirk. Vash chuckles as he leans over and tries to placate Meryl by fixing the mess Wolfwood made on her hair so she can keep both hands on the wheel. He combs her hair with his fingers and pats down the frizz. Milly also joins and tries to smooth out her hair.
Wolfwood closes his eyes and leans against the car door to his left. The hum of the car and the chatter of the company put him in a calming mood after a tiring week. He slouches further into his corner, sunglasses slipping down the bridge of his nose. Between the shitty hotel beds, unlucky encounters with bandits connecting Vash’s bounty to his face, and sleeping in the desert to avoid said bandits, their sleep schedule is more fucked than usual. So the unexpected free ride was more than welcome for both of them. Moreso for him than Vash, since he’s the one that has to stay awake and drive the motorcycle while Vash’s pretty little head sleeps in the sidecar.
Wolfwood swears he’s gonna teach Vash how to drive without crashing one of these days.
Wolfwood opens his eyes and peaks a look at Vash on his right. There’s no doubt that he can see the weariness in Vash’s left eye that is visible to him and his profile—slightly slouched on the car seat and comfortable. A sign that this week has caught up to him and he can afford to relax for a bit until they reach the next town.
Vash catches him looking and turns towards him with a soft smile and a raised eyebrow, questioning why Wolfwood is looking at him. Wolfwood ignores the question and grunts as he closes his eyes again, deciding to get some shut-eye. They have a couple of hours of driving until they get to the next town at sundown. Wolfwood soon falls asleep.
Midway through the journey, Wolfwood is slowly pulled out of unconsciousness by a strange sound he hasn’t heard before.
The novelty of the sound is probably what alerted his brain to wake up and figure out what it was. With eyes closed, he doesn’t notice the sound at first. He groggily recognizes a few noises immediately: whatever soft conversation Merly and Milly are having, the low sound of the radio, and the car engine. He hears something else that makes him furrow his eyebrows trying to understand what the noise is and where it’s coming from. Or who it’s coming from.
It’s coming from his right. As he’s gaining awareness of his surroundings, he feels pressure on his right arm and shoulder and up against his side.
Vash.
Wolfwood opens his eyes to look at him. The sound is most likely coming from him but Wolfwood can’t discern what it is. It’s almost like a humming sound, that moves along the slight vibration he can feel against his side. Wolfwood lifts his left hand to touch Vash’s pulse on his neck and sure enough, he feels the vibration much stronger and most definitely coming from within Vash’s body. He was purring.
Huh, Wolfwood thinks. A cat.
Honestly, Wolfwood should've been more surprised or curious about this discovery. He should've woken up Vash and asked about it but he didn't give a shit because of how tired he was.
The pressure from Vash leaning heavily back against Wolfwood's right arm was a bit uncomfortable. He moves his arm up Vash’s back and drapes it properly across his shoulders. Wolfwood then closes his eyes and goes right back to sleep.
By the time he and Vash were dropped off and waved their goodbyes to Meryl and Milly, Wolfwood had forgotten all about what happened in the car and the purring. It's not like he needed an explanation, nor was Vash going to give him one without a vague answer or self-deprecation smile.
Vash was skittish about his Plant biology. Wolfwood had asked one time about the illuminated markings Vash got on his skin when he communicated with other Plants.
"It’s just a normal body response of being a Plant!" Vash laughed nervously as he raised a hand to rub his neck in embarrassment. Wolfwood didn’t question it further.
So, Wolfwood was not going to force an uncomfortable conversation about purring. He didn’t need to anyway since the purring didn't happen again the next time Vash slept. Or the next.
He doesn't mention anything to Vash.
Wolfwood knows he’s dreaming since he has experienced this numerous times before.
It’s a nightmare really—the kind that leaves you aware enough that you know something is wrong but you can force yourself to wake up from it so you are left with riding the motions of whatever images your brain conjures up.
The Eye of Michael’s enhancements and harsh training have left their marks on his mind. The experiments on him especially; he’ll take a beating over being strapped to a table. Seeing any sort of medical equipment or doctors they’ve come across in towns always left him with goosebumps.
The nightmares he ends up having are always about the damn medical table, but instead of being barely a teen when it happened, he’s as old as he's now. It leaves him feeling useless—trapped—as he feels the phantom pains of whatever substance or medical instruments they put in him. Turning him more into the monster he already was.
Wolfwood wakes up with a gasp, covered in a cold sweat and shaking.
He lays on the bed for a moment. Gathering his bearings and telling his brain that he’s fine, he’s safe in a shitty hotel room. Wolfwood evens out his breathing, inhaling and exhaling in set intervals, and wipes his sweaty palms on top of the thin bed sheet he covers himself with. Suddenly, he hears a thud next to him on his right that scares the shit out of him and his breathing picks up again.
“Ow, shit, sorry, I’m sorry, everything is okay!”
It’s Vash.
Wolfwood doesn’t respond as he tries to calm himself down. The room is dark but he hears Vash's footsteps moving closer. He turns to look at Vash’s silhouette standing next to his bed.
“Hey,” Vash whispers.
Wolfwood clears away the knot in his throat with a swallow. “Hey,” he rasps.
“Are you alright?” Vash says with concern in his voice.
“Yeah. Did I wake you?” Wolfwood hopes not.
Wolfwood sees Vash shaking his head. “I was already awake.” Vash’s own demons must have given him a restless night too.
Wolfwood’s eyes slowly adjust to the darkness. He sees Vash fidgeting with his hands, looking over his prosthetic hand, and looking down.
Vash opens his mouth. “Does it happen often?”
“What?”
“The dreams.”
Wolfwood sighs. “Not that often for me to lose sleep on. I don’t dream most of the time, so it’s nothing for your spikey head to worry about.” He lies. Wolfwood does dream regularly, but he forces himself to wake up when he has ones that spook him enough to leave him awake for hours. He keeps his eyes closed on those nights to get some sort of rest, making up for the deep sleep he can’t get.
Vash pouts, probably seeing through the lie but doesn’t say anything. He continues fidgeting with his hands.
“Is it okay if I…” Vash starts with a nervous hint in his voice. He gestures at the bed. “Can you move over a bit?”
Wolfwood moves over the left side of the bed as much as he can. Vash then climbs onto the bed and curls up on his side since the bed isn’t big enough for two grown men. Vash’s face is a couple of inches away from his.
“Is this alright?” Vash asks.
Wolfwood nods. “Yeah.”
Vash gives him a sleepy smile. “Being near someone when I sleep always helped me.”
If Wolfwood wasn’t feeling exhausted, he would’ve teased Vash about that. Instead, Wolfwood thinks melodramatically. Vash has been alone for most of his life and isn’t that a sad thought? Wolfwood hopes his presence provides some solace for Vash when he sleeps. He turns away to look at the ceiling and closes his eyes.
“Goodnight, Wolfwood,” Vash mumbles.
“G’night.”
Wolfwood knows that he’s not going back to sleep. He resigns to his sleepless fate and listens to Vash’s breathing right next time like he has done many times before. Wolfwood can partially agree with Vash about how being near somebody helps with sleeping. Especially with somebody as capable as Vash who can hold his own and then some when trouble comes lurking even when he attracts said trouble.
Wolfwood thinks melodramatically again. Even though he’s been travelling with Vash for a couple of months and before Lost July, a part of him is still not used to sleeping near someone, let alone right beside someone. It’s also the part of him that thinks he doesn’t have the right to be near anyone—be near anyone as good as Vash.
Wolfwood thinks it’s been about half an hour since they’ve said goodnight when he hears a humming noise coming from Vash. He’s purring.
It starts low for a minute before it picks up to how it sounded in Meryl’s car. It’s been a while since then. Wolfwood can hear it in its entirety unlike when they were in the car, the engine obscuring the noise. Vash really does sound like a cat from the few instances Wolfwood had pet one. They aren’t very common on No Man’s Land.
Vash hasn’t purred since that car ride–it’s been a month since then. Wolfwood doesn’t understand what it’s supposed to mean and Vash hasn’t mentioned anything about it. Is it a Plant thing? Is he to tell Vash and be like hey, you sometimes purr in your sleep, is everything okay? But Vash would’ve said something if something was up. Or maybe he’s getting a good night’s sleep.
Whatever it is, the sound doesn’t bother Wolfwood. It's pretty soothing so he focuses on the sound and empties his mind.
After a while of listening, Wolfwood gets drowsy enough that he falls asleep.
He dreams about a warm smile and familiar blue eyes.
The next time it happens, it's after they get baited and ambushed.
Wolfwood should’ve known. Meryl had even said it sounded suspicious with the way the information was mentioned on the radio that a Plant suddenly malfunctioned. Especially now, since all of them tried to keep track of towns that have Plants and ones that needed to be checked sooner or later—to support Vash and his neverending need to help others. They started tracking after Vash tried to sneak off alone one day which ended with him getting shot at and getting a scolding from both Wolfwood and Meryl.
But Vash had insisted on going to this one, even though he didn’t hear the Plant was in pain.
“It wouldn’t hurt to check,” Vash said with a smile. Wolfwood relented easily with a sigh. God help him.
Wolfwood and Vash arrived at the moderate-sized town, on its way to becoming a city. It was lively enough that any town with a functional Plant could be; with people walking around, some children playing outside, and people generally ‘living’ instead of just surviving.
Wolfwood parks his motorcycle in the outskirts, hidden in an alleyway. He takes hold of the Punisher as Vash gets out of the sidecar and they both start making their way there.
Vash had a smile on his face as he watched people going about their days as they walked through.
“Do you hear it now that you're closer, Spikey?”
Vash hummed, tilting his head. “I hear her, but she’s not crying out for help…maybe someone accidentally sent out the wrong message?”
Wolfwood grunted. “Well, if nothing is wrong, we can just do a quick check and be on our merry way with no trouble.”
Quick check and no trouble. Thinking back on it now, if the aftermath wasn’t so bad, he would have laughed that he jinxed them.
The building that housed the Plant had abandoned residential buildings and fewer people around, which made it easier to scout out ways of getting in without raising suspicion. They end up finding a back door, unlocked, and they move quickly inside. The unlocked door had alarm bells ringing in Wolfwood’s head that he probably shouldn’t have ignored. He should’ve been a bit more cautious about the bastards that live on this planet.
They quietly make their way up the stairs where the Plant is. They reach the top and see the big glass container and the Plant inside it, curled up.
“Alright Spikey, do your thing quickly so we can get the hell out.”
Nodding with a serious face, Vash walks forward to rest his forehead against the glass and brings his hands up to touch it. He closes his eyes and Wolfwood looks away. Wolfwood never looks when Vash communicates with Plants, giving him—them—some privacy. Wolfwood lights a cigarette and takes a drag in the meantime.
After about ten minutes and after Wolfwood snuffs out his cigarette on the floor, Vash pulls away from the glass.
“She’s healthy and not experiencing any issues but I gave her some of my energy to keep her strong,” Vash explains. Wolfwood turns to look at him. He sees evidence of Vash’s nature from communicating with the Plant via the lingering luminescent markings on his cheekbones. In a few seconds, they fade away.
Wolfwood readjusts his hold on the Punisher to reach for another cigarette in his pocket. “Great, let’s go.”
As soon as he finishes speaking he freezes, hand mid-way in his suit jacket pocket. Wolfwood feels a presence behind him that’s way too close. His eyes snap to Vash’s eyes which are widening in fear. A second later, Wolfwood feels the barrel of a gun up to his left temple.
“Well if it isn’t Vash the Stampede.”
Oh for fuck’s sake.
The voice isn’t coming from the person holding the gun to his head. A figure walks forward in front of Wolfwood, walking towards Vash with a gun directed at him. Another person stops in front of Wolfwood.
Great there’s a bunch of them, Wolfwood thinks.
The man in front of him, who Wolfwood assumes is the leader, is ugly based on his objective opinion. Rough-looking face, greasy hair, and missing some teeth from the smile he’s giving Wolfwood.
“And his pet,” the man finishes. Wolfwood takes offence to this. Between him and Vash, Vash is the pet in the way he runs around and makes Wolfwood want to put a leash on him to keep him in his sight.
Wolfwood gives grins that's all teeth. “I’m just a wandering priest.”
The leader stares at him and then at the Punisher he's tightly holding. Wolfwood feels another presence flank his right side, assuming another gun is pointed at him. Wolfwood glances at Vash, who is shock-still. The person who walked towards Vash had the barrel of their gun aimed at Vash’s temple as well.
Vash speaks, “We don’t have to fight. I know my bounty is high but we can compromise.”
The leader looks away from Wolfwood to stare at Vash. “Bounty?” He grins. “We don’t care about the bounty but we can compromise.”
Vash gives a wobbly smile.
The man pretends to think. “How about,” he pauses. “You show us your powers, yeah?”
Vash’s smile vanishes, and then he pretends to look confused. “Powers? I’m a Plant engineer!”
The ugly bastard sneers. “We know you are hiding something. Doing whatever you did with that thing inside.” He points at the Plant in the glass container.
“We heard rumours about Vash the Stampede being in town at the same time a Plant magically heals itself, so I thought, why don’t we set up a fake report about this town’s Plant malfunctioning?”
Vash is no longer looking like he’s willing to compromise—they’ve been setup.
Wolfwood growls. This isn’t good. When Vash communicates with Plants, his energy levels are lower. Either passing out or being sleepy after it depending on how much energy he gives to a Plant, Vash is in no condition to fight these goons. Wolfwood scolds himself, His guard was way too low for these bastards to get the jump on him.
The leader turns his sneer at Wolfwood. “Easy there big guy, I don’t think you want to make things harder for him.”
Like hell Wolfwood is going to give in.
He throws the Punisher—three hundred pounds and all—at the guy to his right. He moves his head to dodge the bullet to his temple as he kicks the legs out from under the guy on his left, making him and the gun fall. The man on the right narrowly dodges the Punisher, a resounding bang as it hits the floor, and points a gun at Wolfwood’s leg. He can handle a single shot, Wolfwood thinks, and braces for it as he turns towards their leader, getting ready to jump him.
Only that the shot feels like a small pinch on his thigh. What the-
Wolfwood looks at his right thigh and sees a dart. A fucking sleep dart. For an amusing second, Wolfwood wishes it was a bullet.
His brief moment of confusion gives enough time for the man on the floor to get up and point his gun back at him. Wolfwood lunges at him to grab the hand holding the gun to direct the bullet away from him as a shot rings out. He also punches the guy to get him to let go of the gun.
Wolfwood hears another gunshot, and this time, a bullet does hit his right thigh. His legs buckle.
“Wolfwood!”
The leader has shot him, gun pointing at him. Wolfwood sees Vash being held back by one of the goons, an arm around his neck and the gun still pointed at his head.
The guy he just punched gets his hand free from Wolfwood’s hold and brings his gun down onto the side of his head, knocking off his sunglasses. Wolfwood’s knees hit the ground and his vision blurs. He feels another sleep dart hit him on the back and that’s when he starts feeling the effects of whatever drug they put in it. He curses.
“Looks like tough guy is all bark,” the leader sneers.
Wolfwood snarls at that. His body is succumbing to the substance inside, breathing heavily and dizzy. The leader crouches down in front of him and grabs hold of his hair, forcing Wolfwood to look at him.
“Let go of him!” Wolfwood hears Vash yell distantly.
The leader glances at Vash and then back at Wolfwood. “Don’t worry, we won’t hurt him too badly.” After saying that, he pushes Wolfwood’s head down to the floor hard, Wolfwood moving his face to avoid a broken nose and hitting the side of his head instead.
Drugged and concussed is not a good look.
Wolfwood hears Vash shout. Before he becomes unconscious, he feels the side of his pants to find the two-way radio he and Meryl share. He finds it and presses the side button three times to send a distress signal.
The last thing Wolfwood sees is Vash getting knocked out unconscious and he passes out.
After that, it’s a blur. Wolfwood briefly wakes up in a cell, drugged and concussed. The Punisher is nowhere near him and he doesn’t have his suit jacket along with his serums and cigarettes. Bastards. At least they didn’t take the radio.
He sees that his right leg is still bleeding from the gunshot wound and takes out the bullet in the couple minutes of awareness he has before he passes out again. The next time he awakens, it’s to the voices of two men talking. Wolfwood can’t hear what they are saying. One of them opens the cell door and walks in. They grab Wolfwood’s throat and breathe rancid air into his face.
“It seems you also have some freaky healing powers since your leg doesn’t look as bad as it should be, so I’m giving you another dose. Can’t have you throwing a hissy fit.”
Wolfwood thinks, his enhanced metabolism would have made the wound a shallow scrape by now, but judging the way it feels, it’s still inflamed and slightly bleeding. The sedatives are slowing him down.
With that, he feels a needle get jabbed in his throat and the guy slams his head against the wall to knock him out.
This happens three more times until they leave him alone long enough for him to be somewhat conscious. He's still concussed, feeling a pounding headache, vision blurry. Wolfwood doesn’t know how many hours he’s been in here. There are no windows—he's in a basement. Wolfwood has his eyes closed and tries to breathe evenly to keep himself awake. Sometime after his breathing exercises, he hears something.
Distantly, he hears hurried footsteps approaching. Footsteps that he recognizes but also something dragging-
“Oh thank god.” Wolfwood hears Vash whisper in relief.
Vash finds him half-conscious and concussed in the cell. Vash hastily jabs a key into the cell lock, opens the barred doors, and throws the keys off to the side as he walks in. Wolfwood knows he looks and feels like hell but Vash…
He looks like he flew out of it.
Flew out of it in the sense that he could vaguely see two dark masses of wings in the dim lighting. Wolfwood had only seen one wing before, and only once. Back in July, when Vash fought Millions Knives. There were a few times he saw a glimpse of the dark mass materialize—never a whole wing—behind Vash during their travels when they were in a pinch. When Vash gets desperate. He never needed them as the situation would always turn in their favour when that moment happened.
This situation didn’t turn out in their favour.
The wings—they were in such a mess—were dragging on the ground as if Vash didn’t have the energy to lift them and he didn’t in the way his chest was heaving. This makes him notice Vash’s signature red coat, sunglasses, and fitted black turtleneck are missing. All of his scars are visible with the addition of recent cuts and bruises. The next thing Wolfwood notices as he tries looking at Vash’s face is his eyes.
His eyes are glowing with illuminated Plant markings. Some markings are also visible across his cheekbones. But that is not what catches Wolfwood’s attention.
Vash’s eyes look wild; a mixture of fear, pain, adrenaline, and a bit of relief from finding Wolfwood.
Wolfwood grunts trying to sit up properly. “You should’ve gotten the hell out and ran, Spikey,” he slurs.
“And leave you?” Vash growls, eyes and canines flashing something fierce. Wolfwood’s eyes widen in surprise. Vash doesn’t growl. Not like a wild animal. “No.”
Vash crouches down to where Wolfwood is slouched, grabbing his arm to put it around his shoulders and wrapping his arm to hold Wolfwood by the waist. Wolfwood notices the only positive in this situation is Vash’s having his left prosthetic arm.
Wolfwood gasps when he feels Vash’s body temperature is way too high. Almost scorching as Wolfwood feels it through his suit and dress shirt where he's pressed against Vash’s side.
Vash lifts him to stand, carrying most of Wolfwood’s body weight as the effects of the drug are still annoyingly in his system.
Wolfwood coughs and wets his chapped lips. “Seems unfair that I’m the only one who got drugged to hell in this dump.” Vash doesn’t respond as he tries to secure Wolfwood against his side.
Wait-
“You can’t be serious?”
Vash is also under the effects of whatever drug the fuckers gave them. That’s why he’s behaving like a wild creature. He’s pushing through it with his Plant shit.
Vash walks them out of the cell to a hallway that ends with stairs going up. A door sits at the top.
“You can’t carry us both out, you need to leave.” Wolfwood snarls.
Vash inhales sharply beside him, almost holding back a sob.
“I can’t, I won’t- they said they would- I’m not leaving you here.” Wolfwood can only guess what the lunatics must have said to Vash for him to be this upset. Usually, his resolve is just as strong as Wolfwood's when it comes to these dire situations. The drugs and being in Plant mode aren’t mixing well.
Vash struggles to carry Wolfwood towards the stairs, using the hand railing as support to make their way up. When they reach the top, they enter a barely furnished living room, with two musty couches and a table in front of them. Two guns and empty bottles were haphazardly scattered on the table. To the left, there is an entryway that presumably leads to the foyer of the building and to the right, a split staircase leading to the second floor. Doors flank both sides of the stairs. Vash turns towards the split staircase.
Huh.
“Where the fuck are you going,” Wolfwood grunts. He doesn’t get an answer.
Vash trudges on, going up the stairs. He stops when he reaches the top, catches his breath, and adjusts his hold on Wolfwood. Wolfwood hears yelling somewhere in the abandoned house. Vash ignores it and they move towards the nearest room on their right. Opening the door reveals an empty room that ends with double glass doors that lead out to a balcony.
Wolfwood hears someone yell, “Where are they?!”
Vash curses. He locks the room door and moves quickly as best he can while holding Wolfwood to the balcony. They approach the edge of the balcony as multiple footsteps can be heard running up the stairs.
“I hope you have a plan, Spikey.” Vash gives him an empty smile as he situates Wolfwood in front of him. Vash puts Wolfwood's arms around his neck and his own arms around Wolfwood’s middle, tightly. Wolfwood stutters out an exhale.
“Hold on tight,” Vash says, looking ahead, behind Wolfwood.
“What are-.” Wolfwood cuts himself off when he sees Vash’s wings spread out their entire length. A beat passes and he’s in the air.
Wolfwood clutches Vash as best he can in his pitiful state. Vash’s arms keep him steady as they fly—jump—to the roof of the next building. Vash lands heavily on his feet, legs bent at the knees. Vash jumps again to the next building with the help of his wings. Vash jumps for the third time. He lands but the roof of this building gives away from their weight and they both tumble down. Vash shifts so that he’s under Wolfwood to cushion his fall before they hit the floor. Wood and debris fall around them.
Vash wheezes as he sits up, bringing Wolfwood up with him. Wolfwood is left dizzy from the jumping and falling, his entire weight leaning on Vash. Vash holds onto him as he shifts onto his knees and he tugs Wolfwood to lean against the wall. They're safe for the time being.
Vash pulls away, taking the heat with him and Wolfwood shivers. Wolfwood opens his eyes slightly, the dark room is illuminated slightly by the hole they made in the roof, and turns to his right. Wolfwood sees Vash sitting in a corner. A bit too far for Wolfwood’s liking from where he’s sitting. Vash pulls his knees up his chest and hugs them, curling into himself.
"Spikey," Wolfwood calls out. Vash curls further into himself.
"Vash." Wolfwood hears a muffled what.
"What happened?"
After a few seconds, Vash says, "Nothing."
"The fuck you mean 'nothing'?"
Vash exhales sharply, not responding. Wolfwood, who's fed up with their predicament, tries getting onto his knees so he can move closer to Vash. He ends up falling on his side.
"What are you doing?!" Vash scolds him.
Wolfwood rolls his head to look up at Vash, who gets up from his corner and quickly walks over. Vash crouches, hands hovering over Wolfwood. His hands are trembling, wanting to help Wolfwood up but stopping himself from touching. Wolfwood doesn't miss the fear in his eyes. Wolfwood reaches for Vash's flesh hand.
“Hey, I’m gonna be fine.” Wolfwood tries reassuring him. Vash’s eyes water.
Vash cautiously helps Wolfwood sit up. He then moves away to sit next to Wolfwood. Vash puts enough distance between them that still concerns Wolfwood. He’s also back to curling within himself. Wolfwood is about to say something but Vash beats it to him.
“I’m sorry.”
That's the last thing Wolfwood wants to hear from Vash when he saved both their asses.
Wolfwood turns his head to look at him. “What the fuck are you sorry for?”
Vash struggles to answer. “I’m sorry you have to see me like…this.”
Is he talking about his Plant shit? “Spikey, y’know your Plant shenanigans don’t bother me. You got us out.” Vash hums but he doesn’t sound convinced.
“Isn’t it weird though?” Vash whispers.
“I really don’t care. If anythin’, I think it’s cool,” Wolfwood says nonchalantly. Placate him so he doesn’t freak out.
Vash ends up not liking that response, frowning and furrowing his eyebrows.
"Doesn't it scare you?" He's agitated.
"What're you trying to get at?" Wolfwood starts. "Do you want me to say yes?"
"No, I-."
"Am I supposed to be scared?"
Wolfwood is trying his damnedest to stay coherent through this conversation.
"Wolfwood, it's not normal and I'll understand if-"
"So what," Wolfwood cuts him off, raising his voice but it comes out raspy. "After seeing you more Plant than human, you think I'll be scared and leave you?!"
Vash’s bright eyes—with Plant markings—and fangs flash at him.
“Yes, you should!” Vash yells at him. He flinches back right after, eyes wide.
Wolfwood pauses, startled. “Do you not like it?” Wolfwood asks, referring to his Plant nature. It’s a genuine question, but he knows Vash’s answer to it.
Vash’s face becomes miserable, eyes watering. “I-.” He swallows. “When it makes me look like a monster, no. It scares me.” He hides his face between his knees.
They both sit in silence.
After a while, a low beeping sound can be heard from Wolfwood’s pocket. Fucking finally.
"Get the radio in my pocket. It’s Meryl."
Vash looks up, eyes widening in fear. He doesn’t want Meryl to see or hear him-
"I'll talk."
Vash slowly gets the small radio in his pocket and brings it up to Wolfwood’s mouth.
"Hold the side button." Vash presses it.
"Shortie, it's about damn time," he slurs a bit into the radio.
Meryl ignores the nickname. "We've just arrived in town. What's your status?" Straight to the point.
After Lost July, Wolfwood and Meryl kept in touch using their private radio. They used a colour system to quickly explain their current situation when things got rough and they needed each other. It was mostly meant for Wolfwood who got into trouble the most. Meryl pestered him enough to use it.
Green meant everything was fine; yellow meant needing some help but not urgently; red meant very bad, can't get out.
Red only happened once during Vash’s absence.
Wolfwood didn't hesitate. "Red."
Vash’s eyes start to water again and he bites his lips. He also knows the colour system from overhearing a conversation about it. Wolfwood hears Meryl try to cover a sharp inhale on the other line and hears Milly say something in the background.
"Where are you located?" Her voice is steady.
"Y’know where the Plant is located, yeah? We’re two, three houses away from it. Most of the buildings are abandoned. We’re in the one that has a smashed roof. Some bastards are outside probably looking for us." Wolfwood breathes heavily as he finishes.
"Okay, do you need anything urgent?"
He pauses. "A fuckin’ smoke." She exhales a snort. Wolfwood sees Vash manage a watery smile out of the corner of his eye.
"We're on it." And the line cuts off.
Wolfwood sighs—closing his eyes—and leans further against the wall to get comfortable, or tries to. Vash leans back as well, back to his previous position with his knees drawn up and arms around them. Now that help is on the way and they are more or less safe, Wolfwood feels cold. He feels how much he’s freezing now that he doesn’t have to worry about those bastards or Vash’s anxiousness. He should have also asked for a blanket as he shivers. No wonder Vash felt scorching to him earlier.
Both men don’t say anything for a few minutes as Wolfwood tries to hide his shivers as best he can. It’s a losing battle between his body being out of commission and Vash being perceptive.
Vash hears his teeth chattering.
"You're cold," Vash whines, turning back towards him. He lets out another whine when he goes to touch Wolfwood’s hand that's lying on the floor with his flesh hand. Vash then lifts his prosthetic hand to grasp Wolfwood’s hand between both of his.
Wolfwood shivers against the heat on his hand and sighs heavily. "I’m fine. My circulation is just not gonna be working for a while." His eyes are still closed.
Vash doesn’t reply to that. Instead, Wolfwood hears Vash shift and then he feels a very warm presence approaching on his right side. One second he’s freezing and the next, he’s engulfed in a blanket of heat that dispels the cold. His eyes open in shock and he lets out a gasp from the sudden, uncomfortable temperature change that leaves a prickling sensation on his skin. From what Wolfwood could feel, Vash had wrapped his arms around his shoulders. Wolfwood feels something behind him for what he can assume is one of Vash’s wings, wedged between the wall and his back as it ends to curl on his left side. Wolfwood can see Vash’s other wing spread out along his chest and legs, literally like a blanket. All in its purplish black and otherworldly glory.
“Christ! Warn a guy, would you?” Wolfwood coughs as his body tries to adjust to the heat, shivering against Vash’s hold. Vash answers him by tucking his head between Wolfwood’s shoulder and neck. Wolfwood’s skin prickles for a different reason. Vash is too close. A stark difference from his behaviour just moments ago, adamantly staying away from Wolfwood and trying to hold himself together.
“You aren’t feeling great right now, you don’t need to do this.” Vash doesn’t respond.
Wolfwood tries jostling the shoulder that Vash’s head is lying on. “Hey, I’m talking to you!” Vash whines as he tightens his hold around him. Wolfwood almost misses it when he hears a low shut up.
“Hah?!”
“I said shut up.” Vash sniffles and lets out a huff against his neck. “Just let me do this for you. This is the only way that can help me feel like I’m not crawling out of my skin. So, please just- just think of it as me only helping myself.”
Wolfwood lets out a sigh. “Fine, suit yourself.” He closes his eyes again and settles down.
The heat does help; his shivers are dying down. He becomes uncomfortable with something else now. The hug is too encompassing, too soft for someone like him who’s only received and dished out violence. They have shared hugs before and the same bed too throughout their travels but not like this.
Not like how they both desperately needed it.
Wolfwood stops his thoughts and focuses on staying awake until Meryl and Milly find them. Controlling his breathing now that he’s not shivering to death. Wolfwood feels Vash get comfortable, bringing Wolfwood closer to him and breathing evened out.
Some time passes. Wolfwood is dozing off until he hears a gunshot and a shout in the distance. He would’ve thought Vash was asleep if it wasn’t for instant alertness half a second later; head up and body going rigid. He hears Vash let out a low hiss and feels him relax his body, but his head stays up and alert. The noise wasn’t too close but it’s not far away enough. A couple of minutes pass.
All of a sudden, he feels Vash rip away—heat and everything—and instantly moves to kneel up in front of him, facing the lone closed door that’s on the other side of the room.
“Vash, what the f-.” Wolfwood is interrupted by a low growl and wings fanning out to block his view of the door. Wolfwood freezes.
Did someone get inside their building without him hearing it?
A second after his thought, he hears a familiar voice calling out. “Vash? Wolfwood?” Meryl and Milly are here.
Relief washes over him that makes him smile and he manages to respond, “Upstairs!”
Wolfwood is smiling in almost delirium—finally getting out of this hellhole—then sobers up when he sees Vash not moving away or lowering his protective stance.
“Hey Spikey, you okay?” The only response Wolfwood gets is Vash lowering his wings slightly and his breathing picking up.
“Vash, it’s Meryl and Milly. We’re fine.” As if a spell was broken, the wings shutter to tuck against Vash’s back and he sits back against his folded legs underneath, relaxing a bit.
“Sorry.” Vash chokes out. “I don’t know what came over me.”
Vash looks over his shoulder at Wolfwood with a smile that looks more like a grimace. They both hear a knock at the room’s door.
“Is it alright to come in?” Meryl asks in a soft tone.
Vash answers this time. “You can come in.”
The door slowly opens to reveal Meryl’s worried expression and then Milly’s likewise expression. They both take a second to see the state both men are in. Meryl gasps as she races over them. She crashes into Vash with a hug, kneeling on the floor.
“Oh my god, are you okay?! What happened?” Meryl releases the hug and holds Vash by the biceps to look him over, seeing the cuts, bruises, wings, and stress on his face. She brings her gaze over to Wolfwood, who honestly feels as pitiful as he probably looks judging by Meryl’s concerned face becoming more prominent.
Wolfwood grins and tries to give a friendly salute but fails. “Howdy Shortie.”
Meryl scrunches her face as she points at him. “You need help immediately.” Rude.
Milly makes her way over and kneels next to Meryl to hug Vash as well. Her face is also laced with concern but smiles at them. “Hi Mr. Vash, Mr. Preacher.”
“Hey Big Girl.” Wolfwood greets her.
Meryl pulls out a flask that is most likely water. “Here, I was only able to bring water on me. You both look like you need it.” She gives it over to Vash, who pushes her hand away and shakes his head.
“Wolfwood needs it more than I do.” Wolfwood groans.
“Spikey, just take a sip.”
“No.”
Vash takes the flask he refused and quickly brings it up to Wolfwood’s mouth with a hard glare. Wolfwood retaliates with his own glare but he knows it’s a losing battle since he can’t physically stop Vash from shoving the flask’s lid against his mouth. Wolfwood grumbles as he relents and drinks the entire contents of the flask with Vash’s help. It feels so refreshing against his parched mouth and throat. He sighs when he finishes and Vash moves away.
“Good boy,” Vash says.
Wolfwood scrunches his face and feels it flush hot with embarrassment at that. “Yeah, whatever.”
Vash is on a roll today with making him feel things, and he doesn’t need an audience to witness it. Meryl coughs into her hand and Milly’s smile widens.
Meryl stands up, brushes the dust away from her pants and puts her hands on her waist. “Well, I would like to bring you guys somewhere safe but Milly and I have to take care of those guys who are still lurking around. We can’t risk it while we carry Wolfwood.”
She turns to Vash. “Do you know where your gun and coat and his big gun are?”
Vash brings a hand up to his nape. “I’m pretty sure they have them in their hideout. It’s about three houses down behind this one.” He looks down. “I should’ve gotten them while getting out.”
Both Wolfwood and Meryl open their mouths to scold him but it’s Milly who speaks first.
“You did your best. You got Mr. Wolfwood to safety and that’s all that matters.” She puts a comforting hand on his shoulder and gives him a serious but warm expression. Vash looks at her, blinking away tears.
“Thanks, Milly,” Vash whispers. Milly pulls away and goes to stand next to Meryl who is smiling.
“See you guys in a bit. Don’t get too comfortable!” Meryl says as both girls turn to leave. Vash waves them off.
Vash sighs. He turns towards Wolfwood and goes back to his previous position of keeping him warm. At this point, his Plant markings are barely glowing but he still has wings out—keeping Wolfwood warm. Wolfwood’s skin still prickles at the intimacy.
“Do you think they will be okay?” Vash whispers.
Wolfwood hums. “I think they’ll be fine.”
It's almost comical the way Meryl and Milly—with their respective small and big gun—were able to take out a gang that got the jump on Vash the Stampede and Nicholas the Punisher. Wolfwood thinks it took an hour until the gunshots stop and he hears Meryl’s victory shout. The girls deserved better than busting them out of whatever hell hole they had gotten themselves into. Wolfwood will treat them to a free dinner sometime later.
Both men see Meryl and Milly come back with some sand on their clothes. Meryl has a huge grin on her face while Milly gives them a thumbs-up. Vash runs over to them to give both of them a hug.
Wolfwood grins at them. "I had complete faith in y'all."
Meryl snorts. “We got both of your stuff outside.” She looks at Wolfwood. “We found your big gun in the Plant room. They must’ve left it there since it’s so damn heavy.”
Vash releases them from his hug and the three make their way over to where Wolfwood is sitting. Wolfwood looks at Milly.
“Do you mind givin’ me a hand? I don’t think Shortie will be able to help and Blondie is tired.” Meryl lets out a huff and Milly giggles. Vash complains with a I’m not that tired.
“Of course.” Milly moves over to his left side and pulls his arm over her shoulders as she brings an arm around his waist. Vash’s wings dissipate and disappear back within himself as he moves to flank Wolfwood’s other side.
“For someone who looks like shit, you’re sure running your mouth the same as usual,” Meryl grumbles, crossing her arms.
Vash and Milly lift Wolfwood off the ground. He grunts as he tries to plant his feet on the ground with shaky legs. Wolfwood leans heavily on Milly and Vash from the exertion.
“We got you,” Vash whispers to him.
They slowly make their way out of the room with Meryl guiding the way. Outside the room, a descending stair is seen at the end of the hallway. Wolfwood is trying his best to not put his entire weight on Vash and Milly as they descend the stairs but his body is so tired and he’s starting to break out into a cold sweat. The journey down the stairs takes an embarrassing couple of minutes.
“Please tell me there’s a bed outside waiting for me.” Wolfwood pants. Meryl gives him a concerned look.
“My car is just outside. We’re almost there.”
The group exit the dark building and Wolfwood groans, squinting his eyes as the bright sun almost blinds him.
“Hey, you four!” Oh for fuck’s sake.
Vash stiffens and Meryl steps in front of them. A lady who looks like to be in a marshal uniform approaches them, three other men are tailing behind her.
“Did you folks happen to run into a group of crooks? We found two lads tied up across the street that’s a part of them and reports of gunfire from the locals nearby.”
Meryl puffs up her chest to respond. “Me and Milly here had to take care of them. They captured two of our friends here when we arrived in town.” A white lie.
“I’m mighty sorry about that, we’ve been having issues reeling these guys in. We’ve recently put a bounty on all of them since they’ve been terrorizing some of the town’s folk and our Plant engineers. Young lady, did you say you took care of all of them?”
Meryl perks up at the word ‘bounty’. “Yes, we did! We can show you their hideout, but first-!” She points at Wolfwood and Vash, more so at Wolfwood. “Since we took care of their bounty, can we get somewhere to stay so my friends can rest for a while?”
The marshal woman nods. “Of course sweetheart. I’ll have Michel here escort them to the finest hotel. Michel! Go get the car!” The man named Michel stammers out a yes ma'am and hurries off.
After the exchange, Wolfwood is at his wit's end from trying to stay standing. His legs start to buckle and he pats both Vash and Milly to get their attention.
“I’m going to pass out.” He grits out.
They quickly bring Wolfwood to the ground and let him sit against the building they got out of. Wolfwood’s head slumps down to the side with eyes closed. His eyes slightly open when he feels hands grab his face; one flesh and the other prosthetic. The hands make him look at Vash.
“Are you okay, Wolfwood?”
Vash’s face and tone convey how worried he is. Wolfwood tries to respond but only lets out a hum and his eyes are back closed.
“Okay, you can rest now.”
And Wolfwood passes out.
He gains consciousness some hours later. The darkness of the hotel room he’s in and the feel of the late dusk air entering from the open window tell him that he’s slept all afternoon and well into the evening. Wolfwood blinks to clear his vision. He doesn’t have his shirt on, feeling the bed sheets touching his bare skin and the bandages wrapped around his torso. There are also bandages around his head and temples. Wolfwood feels like his body has been run over but remarkably better now that most of the drugs have worn off in his body. He sighs in relief.
Wolfwood tilts to look around the room. That’s when his eyes immediately fall upon Vash, sitting on the lone chair by a desk at the corner of the room and wearing fresh, clean clothes. He has his legs folded up on the chair seat and arms wrapped around them. He’s looking out the window with a blank stare.
“Vash.”
Vash visibly startles and turns to look at Wolfwood.
“Wolfwood.”
Vash quickly gets up and sits on another chair beside Wolfwood’s bed. “How are you feeling?”
“A lot better than earlier.” Vash smiles at that.
Vash grabs a glass of water by the bedside table. Vash brings the glass up to Wolfwood’s lips and he drinks it. The empty glass is placed back on the side table.
Wolfwood looks around the room for a moment and whistles. “Looks like we got a good room.”
Besides the desk and chair at the left corner, he sees a coat hanger by the door that houses both his suit jacket and Vash’s coat. The Punisher is right next to it. The right corner has a dresser and the bathroom from what he can see looks white and clean. The bed was even king-sized—luxury from having a Plant.
Vash chuckles. “Some town’s folk insisted we have something nice after they heard Meryl and Milly were able to bring down an entire gang and the hotel manager demanded that all of us stay here.”
Wolfwood grunts in response.
“I also got you something to eat in case you were hungry.” Vash gets up to grab a wrapped sandwich that’s on the desk.
Wolfwood’s stomach starts to growl at the mention of food and sits up against the bed’s headboard. Vash gives him the sandwich and Wolfwood immediately starts devouring it after unwrapping it while Vash stays standing as he watches him eat. Wolfwood quickly finishes the sandwich and tosses the wrapper on the bedside table.
Wolfwood looks over at Vash. Vash is wearing all-white; baggy pants and a T-shirt. His spikey hair is down, drooping in front of his eyes, and he’s playing nervously with his hands as he stands. Wolfwood can see the eyebags and tired smile.
Wolfwood frowns. “Have you not rested yet, Spikey?”
Vash shakes his head. “I’m fine, really!” Wolfwood’s frown deepens.
“You’ve been through a lot too. It wouldn’t kill you to rest for a bit now that you aren’t waiting for me to wake up.” Wolfwood knew Vash waited beside him, only leaving to get a new change of clothes.
Vash’s smile turns into one he doesn’t like. Fake. “I’m fine. I just need to freshen up a bit!” Vash turns around and starts heading to the bathroom. He’s not even getting any of his toiletries, Wolfwood thinks.
He’s hiding.
Wolfwood sits further up and swings his legs over the edge of the bed.
“Spikey.” No response.
“Vash.” That gets Vash to stop moving but he’s not looking at him.
Wolfwood can see Vash is shaking. Wolfwood curses at his wobbly legs as he tries to stand and he places a hand on top of the side table for balance.
He hears a sob. “I’m sorry.”
Wolfwood whips his head to look at Vash’s back. He can see Vash’s arms are up, hands covering his face.
“The fuck are you sorry for? You got us out!”
Vash whines out another I’m sorry and lowers himself to the floor. He bends his legs up to hide his face between his knees and hugs himself. Just like he did earlier today.
Wolfwood curses again and decides to walk on the floor with his knees, towards Vash. Wolfwood goes to kneel in front of him. Vash continues to shake as he cries quietly, only audible from being this close to him and hearing sharp inhales. Wolfwood brings up a hand to touch Vash’s knee but pulls away when Vash visibly flinches.
“Hey, hey, it’s okay. What are you crying for?”
Vash takes a deep breath. “We shouldn’t have come here…when nothing was wrong.”
“This isn’t our first rodeo, Spikey.”
“Then I should’ve come by myself.”
“We’ve all agreed that you are never going by yourself again. You agreed and swore on your stupid pinky.” Wolfwood hisses. They all agreed to assist Vash whenever there was a Plant that needed his help.
“Why the hell are you changing your mind now?”
Vash brings his head up to look at him with a pained expression—baby blue eyes watery and cheeks with tear stains.
“Because I wasn’t myself!” Vash breathes heavily. “Did you not see me? I could’ve hurt you and everyone around me! They said they would try to break and use you to get me to use my powers. I knew I should’ve waited longer for an opening but the fucking drugs wouldn’t let me think straight and I panicked!”
Vash goes to clutch his hair. “I used my powers like they wanted anyways! And once I got passed them I didn’t check to see if they were okay.” He ends with a whisper. Vash always checks to see if the undeserving bastards they come across are alive after a scuffle.
“I don’t want it to happen again. I don’t want July to happen again.”
Oh.
“So please, let me figure out how to deal with it alone.” Vash goes back to hide his face in his knees and hugs his legs.
Wolfwood lets out an exasperated sigh. “Vash.” He hears a mumbled what.
“Stop doing shit alone.” Wolfwood grabs Vash’s flesh arm that's around his legs. Vash tries to pull away but Wolfwood is not letting him go. Vash looks up to glare at him and, honest to god, hisses at him.
“Did you not hear me? I want to be alone.”
“I heard you loud and clear and decided not to listen.”
“Wolfwood, I’m being serious!”
“I’m serious too.”
Vash gives him a hard stare that starts to wilt. Vash must see something in his eyes as he then looks away.
“Why are you like this?” Vash’s face starts to crumble, tears gathering in his eyes.
“I don’t know what you mean.” Wolfwood grins at him.
Wolfwood shifts his legs to bracket around Vash. He lifts his arm and puts a hand on Vash’s nape to bring him close to him while his other arm wraps around Vash’s shoulders. Vash also moves, parting his legs and moving them to bracket Wolfwood as well. He leans into Wolfwood—sighing against his neck and fingers clutching his shirt. Tears follow soon after.
A couple of minutes pass as Wolfwood massages the back of Vash’s neck and he hears him sniffle every so often.
“You good?”
He feels Vash nod. “Yeah.”
“You should get some rest,” Vash whines as he rubs his head against Wolfwood’s neck. Wolfwood huffs at Vash’s hair tickling his neck.
“C’mon.” Not drowsy anymore and having some feeling in his legs, Wolfwood moves his hands to Vash’s Vash’s sides to lift both of them to stand. Wolfwood stumbles a bit but Vash holds him steady with hands on his waist. Vash exhales a laugh at his clumsiness. Wolfwood tries to part away but Vash quickly moves his arms around him and clings to him, refusing to move. Wolfwood grumbles at the clinginess, tolerating it just for today, and tries to wobble his way towards the bed. The bed hits the back of Vash’s knees.
“Oi, are you gonna let go and get in the bed?” Vash slowly lets go of him. Wolfwood sees Vash pouting as he pulls away.
“Are you sleeping too?” Vash mumbles.
Wolfwood ruffles Vash’s hair in exasperation. “Yes, you big baby, I will. Since the bed is big enough for both of us.” Vash smiles at that.
Both of them get under the bedsheets and settle down. As expected, the bed is big enough for them to lie on their backs without touching. Wolfwood turns off the nightlight illuminating the room and gets comfortable against the sheets, closing his eyes. He can feel Vash becoming restless on his left, moving his hands and legs as he tries to find a comfortable position. This lasts for a couple of minutes until Vash gives up.
“Wolfwood?”
Wolfwood hums.
“Can I…” Vash pauses.
Wolfwood knows what Vash is going to say so he saves him from the embarrassment of saying it out loud. He turns on his side facing Vash. In the dark, Wolfwood can see Vash’s head is already facing him, looking at him. Wolfwood brings his arm around Vash’s waist under the covers and pulls him closer. He senses Vash is smiling and moves to bring his own arm around Wolfwood. Vash tucks his head under Wolfwood’s chin and lets out a happy sigh.
“Better?” Wolfwood questions.
“Yes.”
Vash is entirely lax in his hold, rivalling the restlessness he was having a moment ago. Wolfwood is a bit stiff, still not used to this closeness. Wolfwood evens out his breathing, trying to relax, and moves his hand to Vash’s lower back. Vash tightens his hold in response.
It’s when he starts to doze off that he hears and feels it. A full body purr coming from Vash.
Wolfwood startles awake. He can feel the full force of vibration against him considering Vash’s entire front is pressed against him. Wolfwood also feels Vash is asleep judging by the deep, even breaths touching his neck. It is an unconscious response while being asleep? Is it only when Vash is really comfortable since he doesn’t do it all the time? Wolfwood would have to ask him to know the answer.
For now, Wolfwood just sighs, easing back into the bed and falls asleep while listening. Maybe he could get used to it.
A question for another day.
"You haven't explained why you purr when you sleep," Wolfwood says out of the blue.
It’s been two days since that night and they’re still in the same town. Both men are outside on a bench waiting for Meryl and Milly to finish their errands before they start heading out towards their next destination.
Wolfwood hears Vash choke on his donut. Wolfwood turns to give him a shit-earing grin through his cigarette as Vash glares back, catching his breath.
"Do you mind? I'm trying to eat in peace." He huffs.
"Don’t avoid the question."
"Don't ruin my lunch."
"That’s a poor excuse for a lunch." Vash sticks out his tongue at that.
“Yeah, well, at least my dessert isn’t a cigarette.” At that, Wolfwood goes to steal a donut out of the paper bag between them and takes a big bite out of one. Vash squawks and takes the bag away to hug it against his chest.
“Those are mine!” Vash sulks.
“Sharing is caring,” Wolfwood says through a mouthful of donut and finishes it.
Vash huffs while still protecting his goodies and continues to eat. Silence descends upon them.
Wolfwood takes a drag from his cigarette, letting it settle in his lungs for a moment, and then exhales the smoke. Both men watch the townspeople moving about through their days as they sit on the bench. A couple of middle-aged women are talking under the shade of a building, probably gossiping. Some other folks are gathered around the food market, where Vash had gotten his donuts. Instead of buying sweets, people are buying vegetables and raw ingredients from food stalls. Wolfwood sees kids playing in the distance, roughhousing. One kid has pinned another to the ground, letting out a victory screech that gets cut off as a third tackles him to the ground.
Wolfwood guesses he isn’t getting an answer.
Wolfwood breathes out a puff of smoke from his lungs again. He sees Vash finish his last donut out of the corner of his eye, his hand touching the bottom of an empty bag. Vash pouts. Another moment of silence passes between them.
Vash’s pout turns into a contemplative look as he stares at the inhabitants of the town. Then suddenly, Vash stands up from the bench. Wolfwood sighs as he believes Vash isn’t going to answer his question but then Vash speaks.
“It’s similar to cats.”
Wolfwood is confused for a second, eyebrows furrowed, thinking, what does that mean? But then Vash answers his thoughts.
“It means it feels happy and safe.”
Wolfwood can see Vash’s ears are red from admitting what it means.
“And for the record, I’m not always asleep when it happens.”
Suddenly, Wolfwood’s face feels hot. There’s a brief pause until Vash starts walking away, heading towards the stand selling the donuts. It’s almost like running away from the scene and the cringing honesty.
It’s not until much later that Wolfwood truly understands.
Wolfwood fucked up.
Remember when he thought he could get used to the closeness? Well, that was a fucking lie. It had only been a month since that night—the cuddling and the purring—and he was losing his goddamn mind.
Vash’s clinginess has increased tenfold. Wherever they go, Vash touches Wolfwood, whether it’s a side hug or leaving a lingering touch on Wolfwood’s shoulder or hand.
It drives Wolfwood nuts—he doesn’t know what to do about it. His body doesn’t know how to respond besides bracing himself or flinching away unless he can see it a mile away. Wolfwood knows Vash can see him do that but doesn’t say anything besides expressing a confused or pained look. Until today.
It was after an easy and successful bounty when he fucks up. Successful in the way that there were no gunshot wounds and they barely had any scratches. They were given enough double dollars to last them two weeks, even if they splurged a bit since some town folks wanted to pay them more in thanks. They also got a free stay at a hotel for the night. It was such a feel-good moment that after the town’s people had relaid their gratefulness, Vash jumped on him from behind to hug him, face pressed against his exposed nape.
Wolfwood was caught so off guard that he noticeably flinched away from the touch. He also accidentally let go of the Punisher, hearing a dull thud when it hits the sand below. Vash would have laughed at the rare clumsiness if it was any other moment.
Instead, Vash sobers up instantly and moves back as Wolfwood turns around to look at him. A pained expression is seen on his face for a second until he schools his features into a blank stare. Then it morphs into a smile Wolfwood hates.
Wolfwood can take a lucky guess on what tonight's conversation will be about. And he’s not going to like it.
They go to the bar next door to their hotel to have free dinner, courtesy of the owner. Vash’s chattering about today’s events fills the silence. Wolfwood gives half-assed answers and noises to show he's listening but his mind is elsewhere. His mind is already waiting in their hotel room.
They finish up their dinner and make their way out of the bar towards the hotel and their room. By this point, Vash has quieted down. Wolfwood knows Vash can sense that his mind isn’t with him but doesn’t call him out on it. Vash unlocks the door of their hotel room with the keys the owner had given them earlier and he enters first with Wolfwood right behind. Wolfwood closes the door and sets the Punisher right next to it. He takes off his shoes and places his suit jacket on the hanger beside him, making sure to grab his cigarette pack and lighter before moving away. Vash does the same; putting his gun holster and sunglasses on the room’s lone table, taking off his boots, and dropping his long coat on a chair haphazardly—leaving him only in his black pants and equally black fitted shirt. Wolfwood keeps his sunglasses on.
There are two decently sized beds in the room. Wolfwood goes to sit on the one close to the window to air out the smoke from the many cigarettes he knows he’s going to need to get through the conversation they are about to have. A cigarette is taken out and he puts it in his mouth, lighting it. He places the pack and lighter on the nightstand and turns on the nightlight before shifting to look at Vash. Vash's side profile is visible from where he is, not moving from the chair he placed his coat on.
“Can we talk about what happened today?” Vash begins.
“You already did.”
Vash gives him a face. “You know what I mean.”
Wolfwood inhales the nicotine from the cigarette, then exhales the smoke, blowing it towards the opened window.
“Go ahead.”
Vash takes a moment to gather his thoughts, his eyes skittering across the room while he thinks. His eyes finally stop and stare at Wolfwood.
“Is it because of me?”
Wolfwood furrows his eyebrows in confusion. “What?”
Vash clears his throat. “Is it because I’m the one touching you?”
“No, it’s-” It’s because Wolfwood gets nervous when someone touches him with anything close to affection. It’s because of the look of fondness Vash gives him when Wolfwood is caught staring as if he’s something, someone special. It’s because he doesn’t know how to deal with the emotions he’s been having for the past couple of months and suppresses them by pushing Vash away, half-hoping Vash can see that Wolfwood is incapable of being anything else besides a tool used for violence and deception.
Wolfwood doesn’t say any of that.
Instead, he says, “It’s because I don't like being touched. It doesn’t have anything to do with you.” Like an idiot.
It's not entirely false, but Wolfwood knows Vash is not going to like that answer. He hopes Vash will accept it and give him an out from this conversation. Vash just gives him a look of disbelief, knowing Wolfwood is lying and is not putting up with his bullshit. He doesn’t say anything for a moment.
Vash then opens his mouth and stares directly at Wolfwood. “That’s not true.”
“That’s my answer.”
“Then I’m right that it’s because of me.”
“Did you not hear me? It’s not because of you.”
“Then what am I supposed to think? Every time you move away it’s like you are scared of me! Is it because of my nature? Who I am? You said you didn’t care about it!”
“Not everything is about you being a Plant!”
“Then what is it?!” Vash raises his voice. “You touch Meryl when you mess up her hair or pat her head, you let Milly hug and fuss over you, but when I touch you, you move away like you’re repulsed! ” Vash deflates right after the outburst, seemingly having no energy left. He’s breathing heavily—shaking and eyes rapidly blinking away tears.
“I thought I was overthinking it but I noticed you started acting like this after what happened over a month ago.” Vash mumbles, looking miserable. “You can just tell me you don’t want to be around me anymore. You don’t have to spare my feelings, I know I’m a lot. I can handle being alone.”
That's not it at all.
Wolfwood really needs Vash to understand that it’s not about him or his Plant nature but he can’t even begin to describe what he feels.
“Vash.” Wolfwood stands up to take a step forward but stops when Vash backs up frantically, creating more distance between them.
“I’m- I’m gonna take a walk.” At that, Vash quickly puts on his boots and leaves the room.
Wolfwood feels cold all over as if Vash took the heat with him. Maybe it was for the best, for Vash to realize and not get way over his head about their friendship or anything more. Wolfwood goes back to his previous position on the bed, facing the window. His cigarette is almost done, the flame just barely touching the filter. He snuffs it out on the nightstand and goes to get another, lighting it up.
Wolfwood thinks about Vash forgetting his coat before he leaves. And how Vash's body runs hot and doesn’t need it to keep himself warm against the chilly night air. After those thoughts, Wolfwood purposely keeps his mind blank as he stares out the window and smokes.
Two hours go by before Wolfwood hears the door open.
Wolfwood doesn’t look over, keeping his face directed towards the window. He hears Vash slowly walk in and close the door. Wolfwood hears an exhale, boots being taken off, and then footsteps.
Vash approaches him, near the foot of the bed. Wolfwood slightly moves his head so he can see Vash out of the corner of his eye.
“I’m sorry. I should’ve let you explain before yelling at you.” Vash says, head down.
Wolfwood stills. What? “What?”
Vash looks up at him with a weak smile. “I want to listen before I jump to conclusions.” Vash walks over to sit right next to Wolfwood on the bed, waiting for his response.
"Wolfwood."
Wolfwood sighs. He puts out his cigarette on the nightstand like he has done a couple of times already. He keeps facing the window.
"Please Wolfwood, I just want to understand." Vash pleads.
Wolfwood doesn't even understand himself. Why does Vash even want to understand him? Vash was supposed to be mad at him and realize Wolfwood had nothing to offer him beyond being the equivalent of a bodyguard. Wolfwood is only good for violence.
"I-" Wolfwood starts. Swallowing away the knot forming in his throat. "I wasn't lying when I said I didn't like touch."
Vash doesn’t say anything, waiting for him to continue.
“I don't know how to explain it besides saying that I’m fucked up,” he says with a grimace.
Vash frowns. “Don’t say that about yourself.”
Wolfwood chuckles humourlessly. “You’re giving me too much credit, Spikey. I was with the Eye for years, surviving by hurting others. The complete opposite of your shtick.”
He scowls. “So it’s fucking laughable when you say I don’t want to be around you when it should be the opposite.”
Vash takes a moment to understand what he said. “You think I don’t want to be around you?”
“You shouldn’t.”
Vash’s face turns to one of anger, shaking his head. “Wolfwood look at me.” He doesn’t.
“What has happened in the past doesn't matter to me. You’ve changed and you've proved that.” Vash insists.
Wolfwood wants to believe Vash, he really does, but he probably needs years to unlearn his way of thinking with the amount of blood on his hands. Thinking he doesn’t deserve anything good on this planet.
Wolfwood was too in his mind that he didn’t see the hand moving towards him—Vash’s flesh hand touches his that's clenched in his lap. He recoils, wanting to move his hand away but Vash keeps his hold.
“Wolfwood.”
Wolfwood just wants to go to sleep and pretend the entire evening never happened. Pretend Vash didn’t see him like this.
“I’m going to touch you,” Vash states.
Wolfwood exhales heavily, defeated in the face of Vash’s stubbornness. “Do what you want.”
And Vash does. Vash brings his prosthetic hand up towards Wolfwood’s face. The hand hovers for a bit, gauging Wolfwood's reaction, and then he takes off the sunglasses still on Wolfwood’s face. Vash leans over to put them on the nightstand. With Sunglasses gone, Vash moves his hand back to Wolfwood’s face and rests it on his cheek. Wolfwood doesn’t flinch at that.
Vash continues to look at him. “Nicholas,” Vash says his first name. Nicholas closes his eyes.
Vash moves Nicholas’ head with the hand on his cheek and a thumb under his chin.
“Look at me.” He still doesn’t.
Nicholas hears Vash huff. Vash’s flesh hand reaches for Nicholas’ clenched fist on his lap and pries it open. Nicholas’ hand is guided towards Vash’s face—touching Vash’s cheek. Vash leans heavily into the curve of his palm and closes his eyes.
Nicholas hears purring.
Nicholas inhales sharply and opens his eyes.
It means it feels happy and safe.
Nicholas looks at Vash who is leaning on his palm contently. He can feel the vibration of the purr from where he's touching Vash’s face. Vash opens his eyes to look at him, smile widening and baby blue eyes sparkling when he sees Nicholas. The hand on Nicholas’ face pulls away to reach over and grab his other hand, having Nicholas turn his body to fully face Vash. Vash guides the hand to rest on his waist. Nicholas tries to keep his touch feather-light but Vash firmly presses down, thumb rubbing his knuckles.
Vash looks into his eyes. “It’s okay.” He reassures. Nicholas exhales.
Vash’s eyes look around Nicholas’ face for a minute; prosthetic hand touching Nicholas’ face and the warm flesh hand on top of his where it’s on Vash’s waist. The hand that’s on top of his soon pulls away to wrap around Nicholas’ shoulders as Vash leans forward towards him, pressing his forehead against Nicholas’ temple. Nicholas can feel Vash’s breath touching his left cheek and his heart skips a beat.
Vash starts nuzzling the side of his face. Like a fucking cat. Vash hums as he rubs Nicholas’ cheek with his own and down towards the stubble on his jawline. Nicholas lets out a snort when Vash’s hair tickles his face and he feels Vash smile against his neck.
“Can I kiss you?”
Nicholas’ heart definitely skips a beat as he almost choked at the question. He tries nodding with the hand and face on him. Please.
“I need an answer.” Vash snickers.
“Yes.”
Nicholas tenses slightly, anxious waiting for Vash. Vash, who senses his anxiety, presses a light kiss on Nicholas’ jaw, then another on his cheek and the corner of his eye, melting away the tension. Nicholas exhales a wet laugh, feeling silly for being nervous when it’s Vash.
An angel who wants to stay with him.
Vash pulls away slightly to look at Nicholas and then leans forward to press a chaste kiss to his lips. It’s just a light press on the lips but Nicholas feels like he’s floating, clutching Vash’s waist as he reciprocates the kiss. Nicholas couldn’t have imagined Vash kissing him, wouldn’t let himself imagine it to avoid the bitter taste of wanting something unattainable. But now, now that he understands what Vash is telling him—what he has been telling him for a while now—he feels giddy. He ends up puffing out a laugh into the kiss.
Vash pulls away. “What’s so funny?” He’s smiling, one that is Nicholas’ favourite.
“I’m such an idiot.”
“Yeah, but you’re my idiot.”
Vash puts his other arm around Nicholas’ shoulders, hugging him, and pushes Nicholas to lie down on the bed. Vash lays on top of him, head on Nicholas’ chest. Nicholas wraps his arms around Vash’s waist.
“I’m really sorry for yelling at you,” Vash whispers.
Nicholas pinches him. “I deserved it but I forgive you.”
“No, you didn’t,” Vash whines into his chest.
They bask in comfortable silence in each other's arms. Nicholas can feel Vash's purring on his entire front, through the thin fabrics of their shirts. Vash's needle-like hair is tickling his chin, so he shoves his face into it. Soft unlike the implied nicknames he gives him. He smelled like the night air when he had taken a walk earlier. Vash pushes his head up against him in response.
"We should probably go to sleep,” Vash says. Nicholas hums, not moving. Vash laughs.
"What, you're never gonna let go?"
Not if I could help it, Nicholas thinks. And he vocalizes it.
"No."
Vash lifts himself on his forearms to look at him. He brushes the hairs falling on Nicholas' face, eyes crinkling when he smiles.
"Okay." Vash looks behind and sees their legs falling off the side of the bed. "We should get comfortable though."
Nicholas grunts, reaching over to his left to turn off the nightlight. He turns back and swings his legs properly onto the bed, bringing Vash’s legs with him, shifting to lie on their sides. Vash wraps his arms around Nicholas’ middle with a content hum, purring all the while. Nicholas mimics and puts his arms around Vash.
“Are you sure you aren’t a cat?” Vash snorts into his neck and doesn’t humour him with a response.
“Goodnight, Nicholas.”
Nicholas grins into Vash’s hair. “Goodnight.”
Nicholas thinks he could get used to this.
Their morning is disrupted by a beeping, Meryl calling on the radio.
Nicholas groans into Vash’s hair, not wanting to get up from his comfortable position. Vash shifts in his arms, sighing as he starts to wake up from the noise.
“You should get that,” Vash rasps, half-awake.
Nicholas groans again. “Shortie should know my ass isn’t awake this early. She’s doing it on purpose, probably has a story to tell and has no patience.”
The beeping stops. There’s a moment of silence until the beeping picks up again.
“Oh my god.”
Vash laughs at him, pulling away. “Guess it’s time to get up.”
Nicholas doesn’t let Vash move away, instead, he pulls Vash back in again and shoves his face back into his hair to make it a point that he’s not getting up. Nicholas indulges in nuzzling his face into Vash’s hair.
“Who’s being a cat now?” Vash huffs.
Nicholas pauses for a moment, suddenly having a thought. Then, he tries making his own purring noise as he rubs his face into the hair. It ends up sounding like snorting instead of purring. Vash bursts into laughter.
Nicholas will never get used to his laughter.