A/N: Wow. It has been a while since I last worked on this one. Not as long as it has been with others, but all the same. I apologize for the delay. I tend to write as the mood strikes and sometimes it is a hit or miss. Thus the several million different writing projects I have going on at once. But I finally got past the hump of the opening scene (which had caused me massive migraines on how to handle it) with this one and so, here is the next installment. Hopefully the next chapter won't be quite so long in coming.
I do hope that everyone likes it. And as always, please review! I love reading all the reviews (even the critical ones as the help me tweek my writing).
Ormandria
"Meryl!" Millie exclaimed as she moved toward her friend.
The kids, meanwhile, gathered around Vash in awe, their stares flickering between him and the angry woman standing before him.
"Wow," Thomas breathed to his friends. "She looks mad."
"Mr. Vash must have been bad," nodded Kalla.
"Probably forgot her birthday," remarked another child named Patrick. "That's the same look my mom gets when my dad forgets. Then he usually has to buy her two new things to make it up to her."
Arnold looked down at Vash with pity in his eyes. "I think you'd better apologize Mr. Vash. That's what my parents say I should do when I do something wrong."
Vash let out a pathetic noise that was halfway between a whimper and a laugh. "Yeah, but the problem is, I'm not sure what I did wrong," he whispered back.
"Excuse me." Kalla tugged on Meryl's coat and waited until the woman looked down at her. At the sight of the small girl looking up innocently, Meryl felt her anger ebb away.
"Yes?" she asked the little girl.
"What did Mr. Vash do to make you angry? We need to know so we can tell him how to fix it."
Meryl smiled down at the little girl through gritted teeth. "It's a grown-up thing," she replied.
"Oh!!!" Kalla's eyes widened in understanding as she turned back to Vash and the boys. She walked over to her brother and began whispering urgently in his ears. Suddenly his eyes were widening as well as he let out a low "Uh oh." Within moments all the kids were huddled together in a tight group, abuzz with the mysterious news that Kalla had to pass on, all of them looking pityingly upon Vash and shaking there heads despondently. Vash, Meryl and Millie all watched the scene unfold in quite awe. It was almost akin to watching a bunch of mice scurrying around. When they were done, they broke apart and Thomas edged up to Vash looking very concerned.
"Flowers," he stated matter-of-factly, sounding more like an adult than the ten-year-old boy that he was. He then bent down and whispered conspiratorially to Vash. "It always works for my dad when he and mom have a fight."
"Wha?!?" Vash sat up, more startled than ever and at a complete lose for words. Not that it mattered much. The group of children, as though they were one entity, moved off, continuing to talk amongst themselves.
Meryl went bright red with embarrassment when she heard some of the comments that floated back.
"Flowers won't do him any good. She's madder than my mom has ever been," one remarked.
"Yeah. He's definitely sleeping on the couch tonight," another nodded sagely.
Knives didn't move from the table for a very long time. Instead, he sat there, cup in hand, sipping the herbal tea that Eleesa had given him, and let his thoughts drift. He didn't necessarily care where they drifted to at this point, as long as he stayed away from the thoughts of death, dying and anyone that was currently pissing him off. That meant no thoughts of Eleesa either. At least, not until he calmed down. He had no desire to find himself sick again or to deal with the pain that these thoughts caused him.
Unfortunately for him, most of his life had been a study in human misery, so that didn't leave much else for him to think on. He tried to focus his mind on the only time in his life that he had been even a tiny bit happy, without causing others harm. It was a short time, back when he was young. Back before he had discovered just how much Steve hated Vash and him. Back when he and Vash's whole world revolved around Rem.
The thought of Rem brought on a totally different set of emotions for Knives. Unlike the previous ones, there was no doubt in his mind that these were all his, though they were almost just as confusing. He hadn't been planned on killing her. He was going to save her, let her live, for Vash. At least, that was what he had always told himself.
He downed the rest of the tea in the cup before standing up and making his way to the tea pot on the stove.
Still, there were times, only a few, but still times, when his mind would wonder back and a small, deep hidden part of himself murmured that Vash wasn't the only reason he was going to let her live. Hadn't he, Knives, on some level, also wanted her to live for him as well? It was usually at those times that he found himself hating the woman even more. He was glad she was dead. As far as he was concerned, she deserved to die.
His grip tightened on the tea pot he still held in an attempt to pour himself a second cup. A surge of anger came over him though and instead he threw it across the room, spraying hot liquid over the entire kitchen. The tea pot landed, cracked and chipped, onto the floor at the base of the wall.
Knives fell to his hands and knees, laughing insanely and crying all at the same time. Try as he might, he couldn't seem to rid himself of the sick stench of death in his throat and lungs. His thoughts just kept taking him back to it.
"It's very nice to see you again, Mr. Vash," Millie chirped, with a bright cheery smile on her face. Vash nodded, as best he could, while holding a cold compress to his bruised and swollen cheek, where Meryl had punched him earlier. The trio were currently sitting around the table in Vash's room at the hotel.
"I'm sorry Vash," the shorter girl said, somberly. "I shouldn't have hit you."
"That's a'right," he sputtered. "I shouldn't have worried 'ou so much."
"Oh, I don't think it was that," remarked Millie. "True Meryl was worried, but she didn't get upset until after your telegram. You know the one where you started talking about Ele… Ow!"
"Millie!" Meryl went beet red again as she jabbed her friend in the ribs. She quickly calmed down. She turned back to Vash. "It doesn't matter why I was upset. I shouldn't have hit you and as I said, I'm sorry."
Vash put the compress down and looked at her seriously. "It's okay. Actually, I'm glad you're here."
"You are?"
"Yeah," he smiled. Meryl returned his smile, feeling more upbeat than she had in months.
"Um, Mr. Vash?" Millie looked around the sparse room. "Where is your brother?"
Meryl's head shot up. "Yeah, where is Knives?"
Vash's expression darkened just a touch, giving the girls the distinct impression that he was not exactly thrilled with the answer he was about to give them. "He's with Eleesa. She decided that it was best for his health if I weren't around while he healed."
"Healed? What happened?" Meryl asked.
"We fought in an oasis in the desert. I won, he lost. I spent a few days carrying him around while he was unconscious when I came across Eleesa's farm. It's located about half a day's drive from the town. Anyway, to make a long story short, Knives woke up while I was here in town and Eleesa asked me to stay here so that he doesn't work himself up too much and set back his healing."
"You mean that Mr. Knives is alone with that poor woman?" Millie asked, astonished.
Vash eyed her for a long moment. "Yes. Though I wouldn't be so quick to call her a poor woman. She's part plant. I have a feeling that if anyone can handle Knives, besides me, it's her."
"But you still don't fully trust the situation," Meryl piped up.
"That obvious?" Vash laughed.
"Well it only makes since," she replied. "She's an unknown factor, and he's … well, he's Knives. And who knows him and what he's capable of better than you?"
"I wish it was just that," Vash sighed. "I've been getting some bad feelings. I know this is going to sound strange, but I've actually been more worried about Knives than I have about Eleesa. I keep thinking that he's alone and frightened and hurting."
"So why don't you go back there and find out?" Millie asked.
"I was going to. I called first though, and they both insist they're fine. I just …" He paused for a moment, trying to figure out just what it was he wanted to say. "I don't know. He sounded so strange the last time I talked to him. He was agitated and angry."
"He's Knives, Vash. I thought he was always agitated and angry," Meryl said.
Vash shook his head. "Not like this. It was almost as though he was mad at himself for something."
"But he's still alive, right?" Meryl asked.
"Yeah."
"And so is Eleesa?"
"Yeah."
Meryl smiled. "Then I'm sure everything is fine. And if it worries you that much, call again."
"Alright," Vash nodded. It was odd. It wasn't much, but just the fact that Meryl and Millie were there, that he had someone to tell his own fears to, people who knew what was going on and what Knives was capable of, made him feel so much better.
"I'll do that then," he continued. "But first, I think I'll go have dinner. There's a diner down the street that makes the best food, and boy, am I hungry!" His stomach gave a gigantic rumble as if right on cue. The two women laughed as Vash blushed lighty.
"You go on Vash. Millie and I need to check in and get ourselves a room while we're here. We'll meet you at the diner when we're done."
"Okay," he grinned. "I'll see you there!" With that, he was out the door.
Meryl's own smile fell from her face and was replaced by a look of great concern.
"Are you sure that everything will be okay, Meryl? This is Mr. Knives we are talking about." Millie asked, echoing Meryl's own doubting thoughts.
"I know Millie. Chances are, if Knives really was that upset at himself it's because he hasn't found a way to kill this Eleesa person yet. But what am I suppose to do? Vash really wants to believe that there is some good in his brother. I can't just burst his bubble like that."
"I don't think there is any good in him and I won't ever believe there is until I see it," Millie mumbled, bleakly. Meryl could tell she was thinking of Wolfwood again.
"Well for all our sakes, let's hope you're wrong. For now though, we should follow Vash's lead and wait to see how things go. Just be ready to go at it at the first sign of trouble."
"Alright," Millie concurred.
Eleesa sat down in the barn, trying to collect herself, desperate to detach her own emotions from those of the man that sat in her kitchen. She could feel Knives clearly, even from this distance. Her body shuddered under a fresh torrent of torture from Knives psyche. His torment cut through her more cleanly and much more deeply than her own fingernails had.
She studied the wounds to her palm with detached interest. It hurt, but it was a minor pain. She had dealt with much worse in her life. Four small punctures from her nails. At least they were no longer bleeding. She hadn't even realized at the time that she had clenched her fists so tightly.
In a strange way, she was grateful for the wounds. The slight physical pain gave her something to concentrate on to get her mind off of the emotional pain that Knives was going through. It was almost like going through it all, all over again. The only difference was that this time she knew what to expect and therefore could ward of the majority of the pain and suffering that she was now sharing with Knives. He, on the other hand, had no such defense. He would have to go through it all, just as she had. She only hoped that she could do for him what Jake Millen had done for her all those years ago.
She took some small consolation in the fact that she had been right though. There was still at least a bit of humanity in Knives, or he would have fluffed it all off without a care in the world.
She looked out of the barn at the sun. It had been almost an hour since she had left Knives alone in the kitchen. More than enough time for him to wreck the entire place. She just hoped he hadn't taken any of his anger out on her plants. It had taken more years than she cared to count to cultivate all of them, since she had to do them a few at a time.
She readjusted the bandage on her hand, and stood up. Time to get back in and get the mess cleaned up. Both in the kitchen and in his room. It was, after all, going to be a very long night.
"Would you like some syrup to go with that, Mr. Vash?" Kora St. James said with a bright, cherry smile. The oldest of the five St. James children, Kora helped her mother, Edna, run the diner. In the few days that he had been there, the pretty eighteen-year-old had developed quite a fondness for the gentle gunslinger.
"Why yes. Thank you, Kora," he replied as she pour more syrup generously onto his pancakes.
"There you go. Is there anything else I can get for you?"
"No," he laughed nervously. Something in his gut told him that if Meryl were to walk in while he was talking to Kora, he would find himself in even deeper trouble than he had been this morning. "I think I'm fine, thanks."
"Okay. Let me know if you change your mind. I'll be right over at the counter," she replied.
"Kora!" Mrs. St. James yelled. "Leave the poor man alone and get back to work already!"
Kora sighed. "Yes, Ma'am." She returned to her place at the counter, but continued to keep a wistful eye on the tall blonde.
The door swung open, ringing the bell, as Meryl and Millie walked in.
The walked over and sat with Vash. Kora was about to use the opportunity of taking their orders to get closer to Vash again, when her mother moved in.
"Never you mind about those two, young lady. I'll take care of that table from now on."
"Yes, ma'am," Kora sulked.
Mrs. St. James went over to the table. "What can I get for you?" she asked the girls.
"Some eggs and bacon would be nice," Meryl replied.
"Ohh, I think I'll have what Mr. Vash is having," Millie said. "Those pancakes look absolutely scrumptious!"
"They should," the woman smirked proudly. "They're the best damn pancakes on this dirtball. Alright then, one order of eggs and bacon and an order of pancakes coming up."
She left, giving the three friends some privacy to talk. Something none of them seemed quite able to do at the moment.
"Well, we're all checked in," Meryl exclaimed, finally breaking the silence.
"Good," Vash replied. "I really am glad you two are here."
"Mr. Vash, you're not wearing your red coat anymore," Millie remarked.
"Oh that? I left it behind in the desert when I fought Knives. I just didn't think I needed it anymore."
"I liked that coat," Millie muttered under her breath, looking rather put out at Vash's senselessness.
"So, tell us more about this Eleesa person," Meryl spoke up before the Millie went into one of her tirades about wastefulness. She was positive that Vash would never be able to stand up under the scrutiny of Millie in lecture mode. Heck, Meryl was barely able to stand up to under the scrutiny of Millie in lecture mode.
"Not much more to tell I'm afraid," Vash stated between bites. "As I said, she's half plant and lives outside of town. Other than that, I don't really know much about her. She does seem rather nice though."
"Here you go folks." Mrs. St. James set down two platters of food in front of the girls.
"That was fast," Meryl said.
"We pride ourselves at not letting hungry people stay that way for long," Edna grinned.
"Hey," Millie looked up as a thought struck her. "Do you know Ms. Eleesa?"
"Of course I know Eleesa, dear. Everyone here knows Eleesa. Why?"
"Well, we were just wondering what you could tell us about her?" Meryl said.
"Let's see." Mrs. St. James thought for a moment. "Well, she comes into town about once a month for supplies and to visit folks. She loves telling the kids stories and playing with them. She owns most of the land here about's, save the town itself. And that's only because she gave us the deed on the town. She also owns all the water within a fifty mile radius."
"She owns the water?" Vash asked, perking up.
"Yup."
"That definitely explains the trees in town," he murmured. "I thought that whoever owned the water around here seemed awfully generous with it."
"You're joking, right?" Edna laughed. "Those trees are the reason Eleesa gave us the town to begin with. Her only conditions for letting us have the town and unlimited access to the water plant were that we plant start planting trees in town and taking care of them, and that some of the locals take to running the water plant free of charge."
"You mean the people here who work at the water plant don't get paid?" Millie was not happy at this news. "That doesn't sound very nice to me."
"I never said that they didn't get paid," Mrs. St. James interrupted. "Just not with money. You have to understand how this town runs. It's sort of a barter system. Eleesa doesn't actually have any money. But she does control the water and land around here. We give her supplies and assistance at the water plant, she gives us as much water as we can use, as well as seeds for plants and trees, and some of the arts and crafts she makes out on her farm."
"I did notice there seem to be a lot of plants around here," Meryl remarked in wonder. In fact, the trees lining the streets and in front of the hotel had just been the beginning. There were potted plants in the hotel and even some in the diner.
"Well, that doesn't even count the entertainment or the protection she gives us," The short woman smiled.
"Protection?" Vash inquired. "What kind of protection?"
"Why, protection from outlaws. She's a fine fighter when it comes right down to it. Most outlaws don't even bother with us anymore thanks to her. Of course the fact that this place is harder to find than a flea on a dog helps too. Still, the few times we've had trouble makers 'round here, she's gotten rid of them toot sweet."
Vash shook his head in amazement. He had known she knew how to take care of herself, and he had even figured she could handle Knives, but to learn that she protected a whole town was something of a wonder to him. She lived so far away from the town that it had never occurred to him to think she was so ingrained in the goings on of New Maine.
"What else can you tell us about her?" he inquired.
"Not much, I'm afraid. If you want the real scoop on Eleesa, you'd best ask Jake. He's the one that knows her best. Goes and visits her once a week, sometimes more. Anyway, I should get back to work now. Let me know if you need anything else."
"Will do," Meryl said. The trio sat in quiet contemplation, going over the conversation in their heads. Each one coming to a decidedly different conclusion about it.
Millie couldn't help but like the Eleesa person, even though she had never met the woman. She sounded as though she would do anything to help the people she cared about, much like Vash and Wolfwood did. To her, that counted for a lot.
Meryl, on the other hand, felt like she had just been punched in the stomach. This was the same woman that Vash had been gushing on about in the telegram. And from the sound of it, she was too much like Vash for Meryl's own good. What if Vash developed feelings for Eleesa. What was she, a lowly human insurance girl, suppose to do then?
Vash though, was busy wondering thoughts much darker than those of his friends. 'The few times we've had trouble makers 'round here, she's gotten rid of them.' That's what Mrs. St. James had said. But she hadn't said how Eleesa got rid of them. Did she scare them off? Did she handle them the way he and Wolfwood handled all the outlaws and bounty hunters they'd come up against? Did she kill them?
A cold shiver worked its way down Vash's spine as he recalled all his former worries about his brother and Eleesa being alone. Suddenly, they didn't seem quite so inane anymore.
Kreeker groaned as his eyes fluttered open. "Thirsty," he croaked.
"I'll get you some water," Kable replied. He turned toward the small little water hole in the oasis and dipped a cup, filling it to the brim with cool sparkling water. He then lifted his brother's head slightly and let him take a long drawn-out sip.
"Thanks," Kreeker muttered when he was finished.
"No problem."
"Where are the others?" Kreeker asked.
"On look-out. I didn't want to take any chances with you being injured," Kable informed his brother.
"Good," Kreeker said. "Kable?"
"Yeah?"
"I want you to find that bitch. I want you to find her and put an end to her."
"I will," Kable returned, smiling bitterly. "Believe me, I will."
Eleesa walked in and took note that Knives had not left the kitchen since she had gone out to the barn. Not that this was saying much. He was currently sitting on the floor, his back to the stove, his knees pulled up with his arms draped over them and his head bowed down in what appeared to be pure exhaustion, physical, emotional and mental. He didn't even bother looking up at Eleesa as she entered the room. It didn't surprise her. This kind of thing could drain a person faster than a year's worth of hard labor being done in a single day.
She had worked it all out years ago. According to Eleesa's calculations, the human body could only hold so many tears and so much rage at any given time. When those were expended at an expedient rate, such has had happened to her once and was now happening to Knives, it left the person all but unable to function until the stores were refilled, as it were. That usually took a few hours in and off itself.
That meant, in all reality, that she would get nothing but a low-emanating hatred from Knives. Even bitter banter would be beyond his capabilities until he had recovered a bit from this fit. And once he was recovered from this fit, he would be far to busy with the next fit to even care about anything other than destroying anything and everything around him.
Eleesa looked around and saw that he had already started on that as he had availed himself to throwing quite a few mugs and various dishes at the wall. Most of them lay in small pieces next to the cracked tea pot.
"Oh well," she sighed, picking up the tea pot and looking at it in resignation. "I was tiring of that pattern anyway."
"Get out," Knives hissed from his prone position on the floor.
"What?" Eleesa asked, peering over at Knives. A rush of pure hatred hit her like a blast of hot air, as he looked up, staring at her. She held her ground against the emotional assault.
"Get out," he hissed again. "I'll kill you."
She took a slight step forward, fully intending to dare him to try when she saw his eyes widen as a sense of fear rushed over him. She stopped. Now was not the time to push his limits. Still …. She glanced down at his side and spotted the knife lying on the floor next to him, and abandoned attempt at self-injury to escape the pain she had inflicted on him. She knew though that he had not actually been trying to kill himself.
Even in this condition, Millions Knives was not the type to give up so completely. Eleesa imagined that he had merely been trying to break the bonds of the emotional snares he found himself entangled by. She knew he couldn't though. In the ruthlessness of adjusting his mind, she had also taken that away from him as well.
"Alright," she sighed. "I'll leave you alone for now. But I will be back in a bit. This place still needs to be cleaned up and I am going to want to eat dinner."
Eleesa went to the stairs and leaned her back against the wall, hugging herself tightly. Why did she feel so guilty all of the sudden? Was what she had done really that bad? She knew it had to be done, and it was better than killing him. It was giving him a chance to survive and start life anew. Yet, somehow, now, she felt like she was worse than Steve. From what she had garnered out of Knives memories, Steve had done what he had out of fear and a lack of understanding. But was she doing what she was doing out of necessity or revenge? She had been positive at first that it was out of necessity. But now that she had done it, now that she had seen him vulnerable, seen the fear in his eyes, and the children hiding behind them, she was no longer sure.
It was too late to change anything now though. She would just have to continue on, as the original plan had dictated. She walked quietly upstairs to clean up Knives room.
It never occurred to her that the guilt she found herself feeling so plainly might be coming from another source….