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Vash felt so numb.
He was sitting next to Wolfwood on that godforsaken couch. Wolfwood wasn't breathing, his heart wasn't beating and his skin was slowly turning cold. Vash sat there for a moment before tears started running down his face. Wolfwood didn't deserve to die, Vash didn't want him to die. Maybe it was selfish, Wolfwood had been one of the few people that wasn't disgusted by his scars, he fought by his side no matter how ugly things got.
They should have spent their tomorrows together.
Maybe all of this was just a bad dream, maybe if he focused hard enough he'd wake up and Wolfwood would tell him everything would be alright.
Vash slowly turned to Wolfwood, carefully touching his face only to find it feeling cold. He brushed Nicolas’ hair away from his eyes only to find them looking empty, lifeless.
This wasn't a dream, the reality started breaking down on him and Vash couldn't help himself, he hugged Wolfwood close as he sobbed. He didn't care if anyone saw him like this, crying over a corpse.
He didn't realize it at first, the way feathers sprouted from his face, how his tears had a soft blue glow and how his hair darkened ever so slightly. He didn't care at this moment, he finally allowed himself to feel sad and it made everything else turn into a blur.
“Spikey..”
Vash heard it, Wolfwood saying the silly nickname. He must be hearing things, Wolfwood was dead, he was still holding his corpse.
“Vash”
No, he wasn't hearing things. That was Wolfwood calling his name loud and clear. Vash looked up, his eyes meeting Wolfwoods. Nick's eyes looked empty, he looked pale and he overall still seemed like a corpse but he was moving. Corpses don't move.
“Wolfwood..?”
Vash asked carefully as he dried his tears a little and took a bit of distance. This wasn't real was it? It couldn't be but Wolfwood sat up, turning towards Vash.
Before he could do anything more Vash was hugging him again. Vash didn't care what happened, maybe Wolfwood hadn't died after all, maybe he'd been wrong about not feeling a heartbeat.
“I thought you died.. never scare me like that ever again! That wasn't funny.”
Wolfwood didn't reply, that was.. odd. Wolfwood was hugging him back but normally it wouldn't have been without any snarky remarks, that's what made him.. him.
Vash looked up to Wolfwood again, he still looked like a corpse. This wasn't Wolfwood was it? Not with his usual personality at least. He looked very dazed but he seemed to recognise Vash at least. Wolfwood was still in there, he had to be and Vash refused to give up on him.
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Vash wasn't sure exactly how Wolfwood got like this, Nick had very clearly died. He came back after Vash poured his soul out to him, the black hair certainly explained he had something to do with it. It didn't matter although Wolfwood was very much acting like one of those Zombies Vash had seen in a movie ages ago, although Wolfwood wasn't violent or hungry for brains. That was a relief at least.
In the span of a few days Vash had managed to start moving on slowly, Wolfwood never strayed too far away from him and even if he went into the wrong direction just taking his hand and telling him to go the other way worked. Vash was starting to miss the old Wolfwood, the way he would've yelled at Vash for leading them into the wrong direction or the way he always smelled like cigarettes. Vash has seen Wolfwood grab a cigarette out of his pocket a few times but he would just hold it in his mouth without actually lighting it.
Vash sighed as they made their way through a mostly empty street. He usually loved teasing Wolfwood but it wasn't much fun if the only response you'd get back was just a low groan.
It was then they heard yelling, a bounty hunter proudly announcing they were going to be the one to capture Vash the stampede and earn those sixty billion double dollars. Vash wanted to run, to at least get Wolfwood to safety but Wolfwood seemed off, he seemed much more alert and was staring right through the bounty hunter.
Before Vash even had a chance to react Wolfwood charged towards the bounty hunter, he got shot multiple times but that didn't deter him, even without his vials the wounds healed instantly. That wasn't what worried Vash though, Wolfwood wasn't just attacking the bounty hunter, he was mauling them.
Vash was stunned by what he was seeing, he'd seen Wolfwood kill people with his gun before but this was different. Wolfwood was using his teeth to rip skin from bone and the more the bounty hunter screamed the more aggressive Wolfwood seemed to get. Normally Vash would've gotten involved, tried stopping Wolfwood and come to a more peaceful solution but right now he was scared. He didn't know this Wolfwood, he wasn't convinced Wolfwood wouldn't rip him to shreds too and for the first time in a while he felt genuine fear.
While other townspeople fled away from the scene, Vash stayed at a safe distance and waited. It took over an hour before Wolfwood seemed somewhat calm again, he was standing over the disemboweled remains of the bounty hunter, their body was nothing more than a bloody mess and their face was unrecognizable. Vash carefully approached Wolfwood, trying not to aggravate him again.
“H-Hey Wolfwood, it's me, Vash.. you want to come with me and take a ride on Angelina?”
Vash wasn't sure why he was lying, they left Angelina long ago but it seemed to work. Wolfwood turned away from the bloodbath he had caused and got back to Vash's side as if nothing happened. Wolfwood was absolutely covered in blood though, this all wasn't right.
Vash managed to disguise both of them well enough to get an inn room with running water. First off Vash helped clean all the blood off of Wolfwood and his clothes before thinking of a way to prevent incidents like this from happening again in the future.
Wolfwood seemed to like laying on the bed, hopefully that would keep him occupied long enough for Vash to step out for a moment. He made sure to lock the door so that even if Wolfwood suddenly got aggressive he wouldn't be able to leave.
No matter how hard Vash thought about a solution all he could come up with was to get some rope and duct tape. Even after everything he also got a pack of cigarettes, despite Wolfwood not smoking anymore he didn't want him to run out.
After getting everything they needed Vash returned to their room, praying nothing had happened while he was gone and for once he got what he wanted. When he unlocked the door and stepped in Wolfwood was still on the bed and only seemed to have gotten tangled in the sheets. It would've been cute under different circumstances.
Vash helped untangle Wolfwood before pulling out the supplies he had just bought. “I'm sorry Wolfwood.. it's for your own safety.” Vash spoke as he tied Nick's hands together before duct taping his mouth shut. “I hope it's not too uncomfortable.” Vash said as he put the extra cigarette packet in Wolfwood's pocket.
Vash had expected Wolfwood to struggle and snap at him but he didn't, Wolfwood didn't struggle or try to get out at all, it looked like he understood why Vash was doing this and replied with a simple nod. Maybe the old Wolfwood was still in here after all.
As days turned into weeks and weeks into months they fell into a new rhythm. They traveled around together again and no further incidents occurred. Wolfwood got set off a couple of times by screaming people or crying children but despite his simple restraints he was now defenseless enough for Vash to prevent him from hurting anyone.
Wolfwood had shown no signs of turning back into his old self but Vash refused to give up, he'd take the most subtle signs of affection as proof that the old Wolfwood was still in there but after so much time the lines between the two began to blur.
It didn't matter though, Wolfwood was still here with Vash instead of six feet under. That was the only important thing.. right?