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The night was cold.
Vash could barely feel it through his temperature-controlled jacket, but the sand field breeze caused a shiver to go up his body. He had his arms behind his head, slightly uncomfortable with his prosthetics' hard surface, but he was used to it by this point. He would replace them for his bag when he sleep, but he wanted to look up at the sky some more.
The night sky was always clear, no clouds to be seen, so Vash could see the stars as they were. They were bright and clear to him, the only time he could take off his glasses and not feel the potential to get overwhelmed by everything. It was odd having them off when he had lived with them for so long, but he needed to have them off sometimes. To see the world in all its beauty and not through the tinted glasses that, in all essence, blocked his sight.
A noise made Vash glance to the side to see Wolfwood climbing on top of the car. He huffed and put his gun in front of Vash’s feet, out of the way. He dropped next to Vash without ceremony, and Vash scooted over without argument.
Vash made a very dignified squeak that Wolfwood scoffed at when he yanked Vash closer, putting Vash’s head and shoulder on his chest. Wolfwood put his chin on Vash’s head, and Vash didn’t move, not finding anything to give him a reason to move.
Ever since Vash and Wolfwood had their little tryst that wasn’t a tryst, Wolfwood made a point to get Vash to himself once and a while. Vash just thinks Wolfwood likes to see him embarrassed, but it was working. It was working quite well if that was his goal. Not like Vash didn’t enjoy it.
It felt… nice to be cared for. It had been just himself for the past decades, and he moved from place to place fast enough so he wouldn’t get attached. It always hurt to get ripped away from something he started to care for, so this whole ordeal was a fear and blessing for him. But as much as Vash hated it, Wolfwood was involved in this mess before he met Vash, so Vash couldn’t take the whole blame for what the future may entail. But that didn’t mean Vash took solace in that. Now that Vash let Wolfwood in, the anxiety and fears started to surface, always second doubting himself. Wolfwood may be involved, but this involvement was something different.
Vash never wanted to protect something so much and push them away because of how much he cared. He couldn’t bare separating from Wolfwood but couldn’t stop thinking about how this would all be destroyed.
A hand touched his face, and he looked up to see Wolfwood grinning. He used his thumb to brush the skin under Vash’s left eye where his beauty mark was.
“You have pretty eyes, sweetheart. You should show them off more.”
Vash felt his cheeks start to flush, and Wolfwood chuckled.
That was another thing. Wolfwood was fond of nicknames, and now in a relationship, it only worsened. Now it wasn’t just Needle Noggin and Spikey, but other cutesy nicknames that never failed to make Vash react. No one had ever said those to him before, only as a joke by passing people. And once Wolfwood found that out, he was on a mission to get the reaction out of Vash.
His face was hot when he spoke.
“It’s not on purpose. Just need my glasses most times.”
Wolfwood raised an eyebrow, surprise on his face.
“You can’t see without them?”
Vash shrugged, looking up at his partner.
“It’s the opposite.”
Wolfwood looked curious, and Vash shifted but didn’t leave Wolfwood. Vash waved his prosthetic in front of his face to make his point.
“My eyes are too good. Gets hard to see with everything, so the glasses help tone it down.”
“Huh.”
Wolfwood only made that sound but didn’t pull back from Vash, with no hesitation in his movements.
Vash relaxed, and if he could purr, he would be rumbling like an engine. There hasn’t been anyone who was so nonchalant about his non-human features before. It was like whatever Wolfwood saw, it was nothing to him. Like to him, it didn’t matter when it should. Vash knew better than anyone how unnerving he was in large doses. Most humans start to edge away from him even if they didn’t know what he was. It was just something that he radiated that screamed wrong to them.
Like an active powerline, the electricity sets off the flight or fight instincts. That the longer that people were around Vash, they would notice how off he was to them. How he walked, almost gliding over the sand, or how Vash could know everything about them the minute he saw them. Vash had gotten better at hiding those traits, but they slipped through sometimes. When he was younger and didn’t even have a bounty, people could tell that he was something different. Unworldly, some people called it, but that just made Vash feel more detached from the people on this planet.
Knives never tried to hide his traits, and that showed. He never cared for humans to fit in with them so Knives always gave off an atmosphere of danger and hostility while Vash radiated electricity and unsettledness. As said before, Vash toned that down decades ago, but with a careful eye, it could still be seen.
Wolfwood had those eyes, yet he hadn’t treated Vash differently. Even when he learned Vash was a Plant and not human, he just carried on with his day. Vash wished he had that amount of disinterest, to not worry about what was clearly wrong. Or maybe Wolfwood didn’t mention how it affected him. It was probably a mix of the two.
Under the calm night sky and the sound of the wind through the sand dunes, with Roberto and Meryl sleeping by the fire, Vash thought it was a good time to come clean. It had been a long time coming. And Wolfwood knew the important part already, anyway. Vash lifted his head and looked at Wolfwood, who met his eyes with curiosity.
“What is it, Spikey?”
Vash pinched his lips together but spoke no matter how wrong it felt to speak about this. He thinks this is the first time he ever told anyone what he was that didn’t already know. Vash sighed and scooted up, so he could lay his head on Wolfwood’s shoulder.
“You haven’t asked after that day when you met my sister.”
Wolfwood tensed, but relaxed soon, a hand coming up to brush Vash’s hair. Vash hummed at the gesture, the fingers creating a pleasant sensation. He never noticed how sensitive his head was until Wolfwood.
“Didn’t seem to be something I could spring on you. Decided to let you tell me on your own time.”
Vash let his eyes lower, not meeting the undertaker’s eyes. There was a sad smile on his face that Wolfwood tsked at. He seems to hate when Vash does that.
“Thanks, I appreciate it.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
Vash smiled, burying his head in Wolfwood’s throat. He enjoyed feeling Wolfwood’s pulse, hearing that he was alive and there. And it was comforting in a way Vash couldn’t put a finger on.
“I never told anyone before. It isn’t something I can say that won’t land me in a mental hospital or a dissection table. Not like I blame them. It’s not something people would think possible.”
Wolfwood tightened his grip on Vash when he said that, the light of anger that faded at Vash's gentle poking to get him out of his head. Vash knew Wolfwood had bad experiences on that same line, so Vash wanted to get past it fast. He knew those enhancements of Wolfwood’s would have been painful, so he must be thinking of that. Vash didn’t want to bring up bad memories. Vash moved on while taking a big breath.
“I’m a Plant.”
Wolfwood brushed the hair out of Vash’s face, no surprise on his face.
“I know.”
Vash huffed. Of course, he knew after that day. It would be hard not to connect the dots with how transparent they were. And Vash did nothing to dissuade him. He let the gunmen know the truth even though Vash knew how dangerous it was. If any human knew that, he was afraid they would try to hook him up to a dead Plant and use him like a normal Plant. It wouldn’t work, and Vash may love humans, but they gave him scars he didn’t regret. And worse was that if he thought it was possible, he would have sacrificed himself for the power he could provide. They deserved to live in some comfort on this barren planet.
“As you can tell, I am not the usual Plant, as is Knives. We’re called Independent Plants, Plants that can live without the liquid that is in Plant containers.”
Wolfwood looked thoughtful but wasn’t asking a question, so Vash explained while muffling himself with his suit jacket.
“Normal Plants can’t survive in nitrogen-rich environments, in simple terms, they can’t live in contact with air. That’s why the glass containers for Plants are fortified. If a single crack was in the glass, the Plant would die without being able to do anything.”
Vash sighed. He had seen that happen too many times.
“Independent Plants don’t have that weakness. We can walk and live in the atmosphere without fear of dying suddenly. But we’re not common.”
Wolfwood scoffed, “I would think so, I would be hearing a lot more rumors.”
Vash nodded, “In fact, we’re rare, to the point I know there was only one known before me and Knives. But she… died a long time ago. I never met her.”
Tesla was a sore spot for him. He hated thinking about his sibling, who was hurt so much. He knew that was the tipping point for Knives and his crusade against humanity. So he didn’t think about his sister. It hurt less that way.
Vash paused, and Wolfwood asked his first question, hand combing Vash’s hair comfortingly.
“How do you guys exist anyway? From what you said Plants can’t live normally, so how can you brothers exist?”
Vash shrugged, “Even I don’t know that answer. I have some ideas, but nothing solid. My leading theory is that one of the Plants had too much excess power and created Knives and me. At the time, the Plants were not used as much now, and there were more to pick up the slack.”
Wolfwood unpacked that and looked back down at Vash with no hesitance in his features. Vash relaxed, seeing that Wolfwood wouldn’t curse him for being something other than human.
“Vash.”
“Hmm?”
Wolfwood continued, “Don’t take this the wrong way, okay?”
Vash nodded, not moving from his spot. There was nothing Wolfwood could say he wouldn’t answer to the best of his abilities. That still didn’t mean the question didn’t give him a sinking sense of dread.
“How old are you?”
Vash tensed and then let out a deep breath. Vash looked up to Wolfwood, who cupped Vash’s cheek gently.
“Before you said it had been decades since Knives tried anything. Then you just said that Plants weren’t that used, but from history, that has never happened. Not on this shitty planet.”
Vash sighed and hid his face in Wolfwood’s jacket. Vash debated on telling him and figured why not. He knew everything else anyway.
Vash raised his flesh hand and pointed at one of the moons. Wolfwood probably followed his motion and looked back at him with confusion.
“I didn’t see that moon the first time from this planet. I saw it from space in the Project Seed ship.”
Vash glanced at Wolfwood from the side of his eye, and Wolfwood blinked, knocked off course. He blinked some more and opened his mouth.
“The Fall was a hundred and fifty years ago, Spikey.”
Vash chuckled self-deprecatingly.
He knew his age would be confusing at one. No human kid grew to the age of a ten-year-old in a year and could do complicated math that even adult humans would struggle with. He would have never thought that Vash was essentially immortal, never aging or showing signs that his end was near like humans. Vash didn’t even know if Independent Plants had a set lifespan. He didn’t know if he would drop dead from old age tomorrow or in the next thousand years. Maybe even later than that.
Vash nuzzled Wolfwood’s neck, trying to feel grounded when he was anything but. He didn’t know how many emotions would rise from the simple act of talking about how long he had been on this planet. He had never talked about it before.
No, shouting and screaming at Nai didn’t count.
Vash’s voice was shaky, but he answered the undertaker.
“Yeah. I was born on that ship, and I survived the crash. But… that’s a story for another time. I don’t think I can talk about it without freaking out.”
Wolfwood nodded, and the hand returned its movements, making Vash sigh in relief.
“Don’t talk if it makes you uncomfortable.”
Vash nodded, breathing heavily from how many emotions he was fighting. He would never forgive Knives for what he did, never forgetting. Even if he was his brother.
Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes, and Vash gulped, trying to swallow the stone in his throat.
“I… I don’t know why I don’t age. I haven’t aged since I looked like twenty. I don’t think I ever will.”
Wolfwood hugged Vash, and Vash melted in his hold, desperate for the touch of someone he knew would never hurt him. It was such a blessing that the fear of it disappearing was even more overpowering.
“Well, that’s good.”
Vash looked up to gap at Wolfwood, who was smirking. He whipped away with his tears and kissed Vash on the forehead, making Vash’s brain restart.
“That means no matter how old I get, I can still see your pretty face. Such a pretty boy.”
Vash pouted, his mood slowly disappearing.
“I’m not pretty. I am handsome.”
Wolfwood chuckled, giving Vash a chaste kiss that made Vash blink. He leaned in further, and Vash bit his lip to stop getting distracted.
“Cute. You look good in a blush, darlin’. I won’t rescind that statement no matter what you say. Very pretty.”
Vash smacked Wolfwood lightly on the chest, which he only laughed at. Vash loved hearing Wolfwood laugh. He sounded happy and unanchored. Vash wished he could listen to it forever.
“You’re impossible.”
Wolfwood chuckled in Vash’s ear, and Vash tried not to get distracted again. It was a losing fight when Wolfwood lifted Vash’s face and kissed him, causing Vash to forget everything, mind blank. Vash had no mental resistance to this, and Wolfwood used it to his advantage.
Vash felt like steam was billowing out of his ears along with a burning red face. When they separated, Vash gulped for air, and Wolfwood grinned in delight. Vash smiled slightly, warm and relaxed in Wolfwood’s hold. A kiss was pressed against his forehead, and his face was still red.
It didn’t matter that the wind still blew, Vash and Wolfwood were warm in the arms of the other, and nothing disturbed them.
And no matter how much Vash fought himself for letting Wolfwood in, he was glad he did. He had never felt this safe before. The callused hands and warm heat were all he needed to go into a deep, peaceful sleep.
Vash was warm the entire night.