[ Eventually they'll get on the road, as is their wont. They're both rootless wanderers, and to eventually move again is their lot but things are a little bit different now. No imposing final fortress to land on, only their blank ticket.
Well, mostly. They had a stop in mind after all, so it's only natural they would go. It'll be several days' of travel but Vash knows the way home and Wolfwood has a fairly decent memory. They can cough up funds for a sandsteamer part of the way and then switch between hitchhiking and walking for the remainder, especially the last to protect the sanctity of Ship Five's hiddenness. No more Knives, but old habits die hard. ]
How often do you actually visit them anyway?
[ While they're going up the stupid. What are they called, the mountain car zipline thingy. That for some reason exists to take them up the giant land structure leading up to the sandstorm that hides the ship. ]
[ There's no urgency for the trip this time... No Gung-ho Guns threatening the innocent lives of the colony. They can have a leisurely trek back with a couple of stops to enjoy the scenery. Maybe have a drink, stock up on cash, buy souvenirs, then make their way to the ship without a heavy heart. Even the air is easier to breathe...
No more apocalypse. No more Knives.
In the rising cart, Vash is sitting a little closer to Wolfwood than their first rodeo on the zip line. They aren't locking arms or holding hands or anything... He just... Wants to be close, though discreet about it. ]
Haven't been to the colony since the last time we visited. [ Which sounds awful, so he raises his hand and gestures with a pointed finger. ] But I saw a lot of them when we were preparing to face off Knives at Octovern!
[ He says that like it'd make him a good son when it has been some months since the end of the dark ages. Incorrigible, he's a bad son. ]
[ The first time up was pretty rough -- heavy-handed conversations laced with the thin air of careful defensiveness from both sides. The air was bitter and more hostile then, back when he still didn't respect nor believe Vash's way of life was real and the words he laid out to justify his survivalist way of life: I'm only human, after all.
Funny how things turn out, with him now casually tipping over to lean closer to Vash's personal space. Just a little bit. ]
I remember that girl complainin' that you don't visit often enough. Thought she was gonna start announcin' that she was gonna marry you when she's all grown up over the breakfast table.
[ Which, like, suggests Vash is gone for years at a time, so. Not having gone back for a year or a little over is nothing, and understandable besides when the literal goddamn apocalypse was happening. ]
[ They've changed as people since then... Because of each other, whether they want to admit it or not. Vash had always been stubborn and stood to the sea of time as a steadfast pillar. It took years for him to develop his ideologies after losing all he had, push them to their limits with each scar and stitch, and yet Wolfwood had tested them. He'd remind him again of reality and, while Vash clung on to his rose-tinted glasses, he was forced to face that reality in time.
Despite the plunging darkness, he's grateful to have learned a lesson and understand the worldview unlike his own—it let him love more. Grateful despite the guilt that weighs on his shoulders as they approach the ship. He has more blood on his hands than the last he's seen his family and the time spent on the cart is spent quietly repenting for it. It's spent asking for forgiveness in silence. What is this place if not a confessional? There's even a priest beside him.
But... Seeing the other man from the corner of his eye, how he leans closer to, it lessens the weight of the cross he tried to bear. Vash feels his spirits lift and shifts closer so that Wolfwood could lean and rest against him, if he wanted to. With Wolfwood, he feels he belongs more than anywhere else. It's selfish, he knows. ]
Don't remind me... [ There's a weary sigh as he rubs his neck. ] She might actually start talking about wedding plans this time.
[ It isn't that annoying or inconvenient for him. Just another thing to dodge, but he turns to face Wolfwood now. ]
Feeling all right?
[ Since the orphanage is temporarily staying here until they rebuild. ]
[ Wolfwood has never been delusional about Vash being the cause for his change. He just doesn't say it to his face, most of the time. He's never denied it when someone else has suggested the thought to him though.
He'll take the grace and annoyingly press his shoulder into Vash's, hardness against angled bone, but the gesture itself softer. ]
Yeah, fine. [ The car rattles a bit as it passes over the cord wheels, but he's not particularly concerned. ] Still think this is an insane place for a Earth ship to stay hidden.
[ Again, he understands the reasons, and also understands that it's not like the crash survivors got to choose where the ship went, but he still feels like he has to quip. ]
[ Even though Wolfwood says he's fine, Vash takes his hand since they're this close already. There's a comforting and reassuring squeeze, but he doesn't touch on the subject more. He can only hope that Wolfwood understand that he's here for him. Always. ]
It's not like they got to decide. It just... Happened.
[ The placement to be over the sand sea may be deliberate, but the ship crashing nearby wasn't. It mostly worked out for them until Emilio the puppeteer showed up. ]
Want me to ask them to give you your own room?
[ Since they mostly used the infirmary with beds divided by curtains... Didn't even stay that long before bolting, either. ]
[ He's QUIPPING Vash!! Anyway just lets him deal with his weight for a while as he looks outside at the scenery slowly rattling on by. ]
Don't gotta push it if they don't got the space. I'll make do with sleepin' on the couch if it calls for it.
[ The massacre by the Puppetmaster was one thing, but now they're hosting his kids and all that. He doesn't want to be any more trouble -- not that he thinks he's trouble. More of just you know, a gesture thing. The ship has done a lot more for Wolfwood than anyone probably realises. ]
[ It's true that they normally would have more space after the massacre, but now they also house an orphanage on the ship. Won't know the occupancy count to bed ratio until they're there.
When Wolfwood brings up sleeping wherever they can, Vash's eyes light up. ]
Hey. There's no reason for you to be suspicious. [ He gently shoves him with his shoulder. ] We can go camping on one of the grassy platforms! Maybe roast some s'mores under the stars.
[ It's MUNDANE, Wolfwood. Nothing worth worrying about. Sure, they camp in the desert sometimes, but it's different when they have a patch of grass and a couple of trees.
[ Sometimes... The fake outdoors is nice? And you don't feel like having a room when your favorite isn't going to be nearby, but you don't want to voice that and get assigned clingy (Vash does think he's being a little clingy). The ship capsules are also not very big, so it'd be difficult to share one.
He feigns offense by jostling their joined hands a bit. ]
I'd be sleeping outside because it'd be fun. [ Corrects him with half-truth, a little lie. Oh. ] We can tell stories to the kids around the fake campfire, too.
[ Not specifically the orphanage kids. There are plenty of kids on the ship, so it's kids (general). ]
Aw... I'm sure if you dress it up a little, they'll think it's cool—like getting swallowed by a giant worm and finding our way out! Or how you broke me out of jail!
[ Crimes, but it's not like the colony here doesn't know Vash gets into trouble. ]
[ Vash trusts the colony kids because they think of him as a pitiful weird uncle whom they love dearly. Everything he does is some level of cringe to them.
Look at Brad. He doesn't respect Vash, but has to. ]
I'll make sure to mention it's dark, damp, and smells like pee or something!
[ The unfortunate part is that unlike Vash's kids who think of him as a loser (fond), Wolfwood is unfortunately the Cool Big Brother Who Left Home that they want to be like and he cannot let anyone be like him. He sucks!! He's very much the guy who writes the 'don't try this at home' placards. ]
Exactly. Keep it at that and no cool breakout stories. Tell 'em the worst trouble you get into on the regular is fallin' off toma.
[ Vash gently shakes their joined hands, swaying it side to side on the car as it approaches the peak. They can see the towering ship past the clouds now. ]
... I think it would be fine for you to embellish a bit. Make yourself a hero for one story. [ While Vash knows about his bloodied hands, he also knows of the good he has done. ] You can snatch me by the collar before I fall flat on my face into the dunes and get swallowed up by quicksand.
No thanks. Besides, you're the one who's whole planet's saviour.
[ And he's the one who came to their rescue in the most dire moment behind white wings. He's their angel as much as he's Wolfwood's, and he has very little objection to that. He lets their hands get swung around -- it's the pleasant and little things. ]
How 'bout nobody drowns in sand, huh?
[ Sand sucks, it's coarse and gets everywhere . txt etc etc. He pulls his weight off as the car rumbles again over some line wheels. He's been counting them subconsciously even as they've been talking and he's fairly sure they're right up at the end if his memory serves right. He gives Vash one last thoughtful look... and then pulls his collar a little because they've spent enough time being a bit soft and he needs to be mean again. He's straightening it out. ]
Since when? What I've been hearing is that I'm this planet's menace.
[ And he doesn't say that with a heavy heart. Maybe, in the silence of a lone room, he'd crumble just a bit, but overall—he feels at home. It's the wisp of nostalgia of simpler times before the dark age. The people may be gone and he must move forward, but... It's familiar and comfortable. It reminds him there will be more peaceful moments full of warmth and love. He would be fine despite the horrors he suffered.
It's a little different now. His days are brighter and tomorrow is on his mind all thanks to the man beside him who's wrestling his collar into looking presentable. He doesn't struggle and fixes Wolfwood's in return. Not as roughly, though. ]
Right back at'cha.
[ Though Vash is popping Wolfwood's collar, making sure the creases are clean and sharp, then... I guess he will button his shirt up by one notch. The car finally rolls up to the resting spot at the top with a creak and crank. ]
[ You can be a little shit and also a hero, these things are probably not mutually exclusive and the world isn't a fairytale. He ughs when Vash fiddles with his collar, the shirt that's literally never buttoned up to the top. He always dishes it out and then complains when others do unto him.
He looks down at his shirt getting buttoned up by one row and raising his brows at Vash like again?? You are so obsessed with my buttons. Doesn't stop him. He only bothers moving once the car stops, the entire thing -- rope included -- shifting with the weight of losing two tall men, one prosthetic, and a very large cross. Wowie. He squints into the sands. ]
I know it's a bit late to ask, but they know we're comin', right?
[ I don't know how that cart can carry them while looking that flimsy, but all right. They roll out of the zip liner to the entrance of the ship.
Vash takes some strides before turning to look over his shoulder at Wolfwood. The question has him sweating a little. The small chuckle from him is nervous, in that obnoxious knowing way. ]
[ Hey most real zipline cars can carry a lot more people.Together they're like... 5 men. Because the Punisher is like 1.5-2 people on its own. ]
Seriously?
[ Seriously. He isn't surprised but he still has to judge a little. But also it means he's sweating a little bit too because what's worse than showing up from the dead to your estranged family of children? Showing up from the dead, unannounced, to your estranged family of children. ]
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LONG WAYS HOME
Well, mostly. They had a stop in mind after all, so it's only natural they would go. It'll be several days' of travel but Vash knows the way home and Wolfwood has a fairly decent memory. They can cough up funds for a sandsteamer part of the way and then switch between hitchhiking and walking for the remainder, especially the last to protect the sanctity of Ship Five's hiddenness. No more Knives, but old habits die hard. ]
How often do you actually visit them anyway?
[ While they're going up the stupid. What are they called, the mountain car zipline thingy. That for some reason exists to take them up the giant land structure leading up to the sandstorm that hides the ship. ]
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No more apocalypse. No more Knives.
In the rising cart, Vash is sitting a little closer to Wolfwood than their first rodeo on the zip line. They aren't locking arms or holding hands or anything... He just... Wants to be close, though discreet about it. ]
Haven't been to the colony since the last time we visited. [ Which sounds awful, so he raises his hand and gestures with a pointed finger. ] But I saw a lot of them when we were preparing to face off Knives at Octovern!
[ He says that like it'd make him a good son when it has been some months since the end of the dark ages. Incorrigible, he's a bad son. ]
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Funny how things turn out, with him now casually tipping over to lean closer to Vash's personal space. Just a little bit. ]
I remember that girl complainin' that you don't visit often enough. Thought she was gonna start announcin' that she was gonna marry you when she's all grown up over the breakfast table.
[ Which, like, suggests Vash is gone for years at a time, so. Not having gone back for a year or a little over is nothing, and understandable besides when the literal goddamn apocalypse was happening. ]
So, she'll be happy to see you I bet.
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Despite the plunging darkness, he's grateful to have learned a lesson and understand the worldview unlike his own—it let him love more. Grateful despite the guilt that weighs on his shoulders as they approach the ship. He has more blood on his hands than the last he's seen his family and the time spent on the cart is spent quietly repenting for it. It's spent asking for forgiveness in silence. What is this place if not a confessional? There's even a priest beside him.
But... Seeing the other man from the corner of his eye, how he leans closer to, it lessens the weight of the cross he tried to bear. Vash feels his spirits lift and shifts closer so that Wolfwood could lean and rest against him, if he wanted to. With Wolfwood, he feels he belongs more than anywhere else. It's selfish, he knows. ]
Don't remind me... [ There's a weary sigh as he rubs his neck. ] She might actually start talking about wedding plans this time.
[ It isn't that annoying or inconvenient for him. Just another thing to dodge, but he turns to face Wolfwood now. ]
Feeling all right?
[ Since the orphanage is temporarily staying here until they rebuild. ]
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He'll take the grace and annoyingly press his shoulder into Vash's, hardness against angled bone, but the gesture itself softer. ]
Yeah, fine. [ The car rattles a bit as it passes over the cord wheels, but he's not particularly concerned. ] Still think this is an insane place for a Earth ship to stay hidden.
[ Again, he understands the reasons, and also understands that it's not like the crash survivors got to choose where the ship went, but he still feels like he has to quip. ]
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It's not like they got to decide. It just... Happened.
[ The placement to be over the sand sea may be deliberate, but the ship crashing nearby wasn't. It mostly worked out for them until Emilio the puppeteer showed up. ]
Want me to ask them to give you your own room?
[ Since they mostly used the infirmary with beds divided by curtains... Didn't even stay that long before bolting, either. ]
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[ He's QUIPPING Vash!! Anyway just lets him deal with his weight for a while as he looks outside at the scenery slowly rattling on by. ]
Don't gotta push it if they don't got the space. I'll make do with sleepin' on the couch if it calls for it.
[ The massacre by the Puppetmaster was one thing, but now they're hosting his kids and all that. He doesn't want to be any more trouble -- not that he thinks he's trouble. More of just you know, a gesture thing. The ship has done a lot more for Wolfwood than anyone probably realises. ]
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When Wolfwood brings up sleeping wherever they can, Vash's eyes light up. ]
I have an idea. I think it'll be fun!
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[ He doesn't move off of him but he's glancing at him from over his shades. The heck kind of plan you got. ]
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[ It's MUNDANE, Wolfwood. Nothing worth worrying about. Sure, they camp in the desert sometimes, but it's different when they have a patch of grass and a couple of trees.
Kind of like back in the UG. ]
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[ Snorting. Even if it's the little indoor curated artificial gardens, it's the concept of just forsaking being in a room altogether.
S'mores sounds nice. ]
You don't gotta sleep out just 'cause I might be.
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He feigns offense by jostling their joined hands a bit. ]
I'd be sleeping outside because it'd be fun. [ Corrects him with half-truth, a little lie. Oh. ] We can tell stories to the kids around the fake campfire, too.
[ Not specifically the orphanage kids. There are plenty of kids on the ship, so it's kids (general). ]
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I ain't got any cute stories to tell. I'll fry your s'mores and you can tell tall tales.
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Aw... I'm sure if you dress it up a little, they'll think it's cool—like getting swallowed by a giant worm and finding our way out! Or how you broke me out of jail!
[ Crimes, but it's not like the colony here doesn't know Vash gets into trouble. ]
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[ No cool stories about jailbreaks!! What if the kids also go out and get roped up in crimes!! ]
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[ The kids know not to do what Vash does at this point... They apparently do not know how to stop having crushes on him. Children, honestly. ]
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[ They cannot think jail is a cool thing!! You have to tell them it sucks and it's full of men who smell, Vash!! ]
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[ Vash trusts the colony kids because they think of him as a pitiful weird uncle whom they love dearly. Everything he does is some level of cringe to them.
Look at Brad. He doesn't respect Vash, but has to. ]
I'll make sure to mention it's dark, damp, and smells like pee or something!
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Exactly. Keep it at that and no cool breakout stories. Tell 'em the worst trouble you get into on the regular is fallin' off toma.
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... I think it would be fine for you to embellish a bit. Make yourself a hero for one story. [ While Vash knows about his bloodied hands, he also knows of the good he has done. ] You can snatch me by the collar before I fall flat on my face into the dunes and get swallowed up by quicksand.
[ That escalated. ]
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[ And he's the one who came to their rescue in the most dire moment behind white wings. He's their angel as much as he's Wolfwood's, and he has very little objection to that. He lets their hands get swung around -- it's the pleasant and little things. ]
How 'bout nobody drowns in sand, huh?
[ Sand sucks, it's coarse and gets everywhere . txt etc etc. He pulls his weight off as the car rumbles again over some line wheels. He's been counting them subconsciously even as they've been talking and he's fairly sure they're right up at the end if his memory serves right. He gives Vash one last thoughtful look... and then pulls his collar a little because they've spent enough time being a bit soft and he needs to be mean again. He's straightening it out. ]
Gotta look presentable.
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[ And he doesn't say that with a heavy heart. Maybe, in the silence of a lone room, he'd crumble just a bit, but overall—he feels at home. It's the wisp of nostalgia of simpler times before the dark age. The people may be gone and he must move forward, but... It's familiar and comfortable. It reminds him there will be more peaceful moments full of warmth and love. He would be fine despite the horrors he suffered.
It's a little different now. His days are brighter and tomorrow is on his mind all thanks to the man beside him who's wrestling his collar into looking presentable. He doesn't struggle and fixes Wolfwood's in return. Not as roughly, though. ]
Right back at'cha.
[ Though Vash is popping Wolfwood's collar, making sure the creases are clean and sharp, then... I guess he will button his shirt up by one notch. The car finally rolls up to the resting spot at the top with a creak and crank. ]
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[ You can be a little shit and also a hero, these things are probably not mutually exclusive and the world isn't a fairytale. He ughs when Vash fiddles with his collar, the shirt that's literally never buttoned up to the top. He always dishes it out and then complains when others do unto him.
He looks down at his shirt getting buttoned up by one row and raising his brows at Vash like again?? You are so obsessed with my buttons. Doesn't stop him. He only bothers moving once the car stops, the entire thing -- rope included -- shifting with the weight of losing two tall men, one prosthetic, and a very large cross. Wowie. He squints into the sands. ]
I know it's a bit late to ask, but they know we're comin', right?
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Vash takes some strides before turning to look over his shoulder at Wolfwood. The question has him sweating a little. The small chuckle from him is nervous, in that obnoxious knowing way. ]
Telling them would have been a good idea.
[ He did not tell them. ]
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Seriously?
[ Seriously. He isn't surprised but he still has to judge a little. But also it means he's sweating a little bit too because what's worse than showing up from the dead to your estranged family of children? Showing up from the dead, unannounced, to your estranged family of children. ]
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