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Water. That illustrious resource needed for every living thing, from the tiniest tardigrade and most poisonous fungi to the oldest elephant and sky-circling vulture. In the Old World, Earth, it was known as a renewable resource, it could naturally replenish itself over time through natural processes. On No Man’s Land every resource was finite: water, food, electricity, and especially the Plants that made it all. The only thing in abundance was death, it would never run out no matter how many people took it up.
Water was precious and expensive, in some places it was even used as currency. It could not be wasted on frivolous things like daily baths and fresh laundry. Larger towns that had a better handle on their resources and working Plants at their disposal or underground water wells could afford to use more water, but people still watched their meters very carefully. Plants were known to grow sick and die without warning and groundwater could always dry up.
Given that he wasn’t human, Vash didn’t have the same need for water as the average person. His body had developed to need it, yes, but only certain amounts. He could go nearly a month without the blessed substance and live. Granted, he’d be thirsty and in pain most of that month, but he would live. He wouldn’t die in the dry 3 days that would kill any other man. He could grin and bear it, and offer his cantine to someone who needed it more than him. Vash didn’t need water like a person did because he wasn’t a person, he wasn’t human; but he still needed it like a Plant.
Whenever he was in town with an ample water supply and time to spare, Vash liked to shower. On the surface, showering felt good because of the inherent luxury of water and because it wasn’t every day he was able to clean himself properly. On a deeper level, Vash loved to shower because it brought him closer to his sisters and what he truly was. Water transformed him from the man he pretended to be to the thing he never really understood. While Dependent Plants were kept in giant enclosures full of saltwater, prolonged contact with even freshwater awakened something within Vash’s genetic makeup. It changed him physically and mentally. It quieted the thoughts that plagued his mind and it made his body ache less. It made him feel comfortable in his own skin.
The showers, ones long enough to make his body undergo its Plant-like changes at least, were a treat Vash seldom allowed himself to have. It was a waste of water, he didn’t need it to survive, and he didn’t believe he deserved the peace they brought him. That’s what he thought every time he turned off the water before the blissful change could overtake him. On the days when he ignored his thoughts and let the water continue to rush over him… he felt clean and new, and for a moment he forgot the pain he was in.
Vash didn’t know how long he had been in the shower by that point, but the hot water had run out long ago. He didn’t mind, as long as he was surrounded by water it didn’t matter if it was warm or cold. He was huddled at the bottom of the tub in his hotel room while the cold water streamed over him like rain. He held his knees to his chest and rested his face against the shower wall that desperately needed re-grouting. His mind was silent and calm and he could hear the far away hum of his sister’s far clearer than he ever could when dry. Vash was not himself when he was like this, but he was also the closest thing to himself that he would ever be.
Despite how his eyes were closed, his eyelashes sealed with drops of water from the showerhead, Vash knew his body had changed. He did not need to see himself to know how the water transformed him. His sunburnt face and the rest of his skin had paled, his limbs and fingers elongated, and odd tendrils of ‘feathers’ bloomed from his hair and face. A memory played behind Vash’s closed eyes. The first time his mother had taken him and Nai swimming within the saltwater pool aboard the SEEDs ship. They took to it well, far better than she had expected. They had no need for the puffy floaties and life jackets she had worriedly made them wear. Rem had said something… called them something while she laughed from the edge of the pool, her bare feet dangling into the water. Fish. That was it. She said they swam like fish.
But they weren’t fish, they were Plants. Because the pool was filled with saltwater and not freshwater, the transformation had happened far quicker than it did in Vash’s lonely showers. It was the first one he and Nai had ever experienced. They didn’t expect it, they didn’t know. They were young and knew virtually nothing about their bodies… Rem knew more than them, but she didn’t know what would happen when they stayed in water too long.
Vash remembered floating on his back with his brother next to him. One second, the world was that echoey pool room, and the next it was a huge expanse of quiet chattering. His body melted away and he heard every single one of his sisters throughout the fleet of ships.
Rem had pulled them out of the pool the moment she had realized something had happened. Vash could barely hear her far away voice through the calm talk of his sisters. He was in their minds and they were in his. It had been a wonderful and overwhelming feeling of familiarity and closeness for Vash and Nai, but it had scared Rem. It scared her because she didn’t understand it and they didn’t know how to make her understand. It was the first and last time they went swimming.
Away from the memory, Vash took a deep breath and held himself in the present. His showers still brought him some of the comfort of the pool, but it wasn’t the same because it was freshwater. His sisters were stored in saltwater. He couldn’t reach that same plane of connection without also being in it, but that was okay. His rare showers still numbed his pain and cleared his mind, they just didn’t bring him as far as he’d like to go.
He was tuned in to the chitter of some of his sisters in November when a scare brought Vash out of his trance. The shower curtain had been ripped open with such a force that the curtains tore off the rusted rings holding them to the shower rod. Vash’s eyes jumped open and his heartbeat, which had slowed enough to kill a human, painfully cold-started in his chest. If it was a bounty hunter or anyone else with ill-intent, then he was absolutely fucked. Naked, defenseless, and slimy. All he could do was run around like a greased hog and hope no one had a net. What a pathetic sight he’d be then-
But then his eyes found Wolfwood looking down at him and all the fear fell away. Vash breathed heavily and relaxed once more, not minding his naked-ness or the inhuman appearance of his body… The shame for that could come later.
Wolfwood was looking at him, completely dumbfounded with his cigarette hanging dangerously on his lip. “What the…” He was still gripping the shower curtain, but all of his attention was on Vash. “Spikey?”
Vash knew he looked different, but the fact that Wolfwood still recognized him warmed something in him. He moved his tongue in his mouth, trying to accustom it to regular speech. It too, had grown, and he didn’t want to freak Wolfwood out more than he already had by fumbling over his words and exposing its new, snake-like length. With an arm far longer than normal, Vash reached out and turned the knob for the water until the shower stopped. “He…” He swallowed and clicked his tongue. “Hey, preacher.”
“Thought…” Wolfwood inhaled slowly, Vash could see that he was shaking. “I thought ya cracked yer head or somethin’.” He looked from Vash to the open bathroom door behind him. “Been waitin’ on ya… I called yer name, but-” He tilted his head to the side and returned his gaze to Vash.
Ah. That made sense. Vash stared into the rusted tub drain as the little remaining water from his shower swirled away. The state he was in dulled Vash’s normal otherworldly senses. It was only rational that after a prolonged time in the shower, and with calling his name to no answer, that Wolfwood would take his silence to mean he had gotten hurt. Was Wolfwood always that worried about Vash getting hurt? Surely, he knew that a simple slip- or even a hard fall in the tub would do little to truly hurt Vash. He had seen him hurt a thousand times worse before and didn’t bat an eye.
“Sorry,” Vash realized he had been silent for too long. “The water um-” He cocked his head towards Wolfwood and gave him a small smile. His lips had grown thinner and his smile wider than when he was his normal self. He showed off more teeth than he meant too, more fangs than he would’ve liked Wolfwood to see. “It echoes in the tub. I guess I didn’t hear you over it.”
Vash had played dumb before, but this was bad even for him. It was so bad that it looped right around to genuine stupidity. Wolfwood was not a dull man. He was one of the sharpest humans Vash had ever met. One able to see right through him from their very first interaction. Vash expected Wolfwood to call him out, to tell him to cut the crap and fess up.
But Wolfwood’s anger never came. He only looked uncertain and maybe even scared. “‘N uh…” He swallowed, removed his cigarette from his mouth, and weakly gestured in Vash’s direction. “What ‘bout… this?”
It was the kindest accusation he’d ever thrown Vash’s way. It took Vash aback, he blinked and gave his mind a second to catch up. “This old thing?” With a nervous laugh, he looked down at himself. “Just uh… happens to happen when I’m in the water a little too long. Nothing serious.”
“Oh,” Looking more relieved, Wolfwood nodded. He relinquished his hold on the thoroughly broken shower curtain and visibly breathed easier. “Does… Does it hurt?” He felt around blindly for the towel rack behind him and with much less force than he showed the shower curtain, grabbed the towel and held it out towards Vash.
Vash guessed that was the cue that his shower was over. He would’ve liked to sit under the water longer, but he was found out. He supposed he owed Wolfwood as much of an explanation about his biology as he could muster, even if it meant the pain would slowly creep back into his bones and his mind would become full with the thoughts that always haunted him. He smiled and took the towel, wrapping it around his body as he untangled himself and stood up. It brushed like sand-paper against his sensitive skin, and he much would’ve preferred to air-dry, but that didn’t look like an option.
“Doesn’t hurt at all,” Vash always was the smallest bit taller than Wolfwood, but in his current state he towered over him. He stepped out of the tub and hunched forward so he wouldn’t stand too tall above him.
He felt… Worried. Vash had so few connections to his Plant-self and his sisters. He'd never be ashamed of what he was, but he knew he was already a frightful thing to humans without his water-activated form. He had lived his life being feared by everyone and traveling alone. Wolfwood’s company and companionship was something entirely new to Vash and he had just gotten used to it. There were moments where Wolfwood was scared of him… moments where pieces of Vash’s inhuman nature came to the surface and Wolfwood was unable to hide his very natural fear. Vash knew of Wolfwood’s fear of him and while it hurt, he couldn’t blame him for it. He was scary and he was not human. The effort it would take to hurt Wolfwood, to kill him, would be no different than the energy needed to crush an ant. Wolfwood had every right to be scared of him, but Vash didn’t want him to be more scared than he had to be. If he could hide parts of himself that scared him, why wouldn’t he? Why wouldn’t he make himself more patible to him and every other human?
“It actually feels…” He pursed his lips and nodded wordlessly. “Good. It feels very good.”
“Good?” Wolfwood looked down Vash’s body. “Good like-?”
“Not,” Vash jumped in quickly. “Like that.” With a nervous laugh, he fiddled with the towel around his waist. “It feels… It’s like a drink at the end of the long day.” That was the closest comparison Vash could make that Wolfwood would understand. A hard drink or a cold beer to wipe his mind blank and make his body feel warm and happy. A drink made everything better. They numbed things for a bit and made an otherwise sad and lonely evening a party.
“Huh…” Nodding, Wolfwood pinched the lit end of his cigarette and extinguished it between his fingers. He didn’t flinch at what must’ve been a small pain and tucked it inside his jacket. He looked at Vash carefully for a second, his mouth open like he had something to say, but then shook his head and stepped out of the bathroom into the bedroom. “That’s… good that it don’t hurt.”
Vash had to stoop to make it through the doorway without hitting his head. He nodded silently and went to sit on the edge of his bed. The real hurt would begin soon enough as he dried out. He watched Wolfwood fidget near the bathroom door without coming closer. He wondered if he had more to ask. Vash would answer most of his questions, but more than anything he hoped that Wolfwood would say what he had to and say it quickly. Drying out without any acclimation wasn’t the most comfortable thing in the world, and Vash didn’t want to snap at Wolfwood because he was in pain and would rather be left alone.
Instead of telling Wolfwood that he’d like him to leave, Vash stayed where he was and watched him. His skin was beginning to itch and his eyes felt dry. Wolfwood normally wasn’t one to beat around the bush, so whatever he was working up to say must’ve been important.
“I uh-” Wolfwood stuttered, looking in Vash’s direction. “I get weird in water, too.”
That certainly wasn’t what Vash had been expecting. He held still for a moment, turning over this information in his mind. His joints felt hollow, aching as his limbs began to shrink. “You do?” He finally responded, not knowing how else to answer.
Wolfwood nodded in earnest. “M’um, my hands get all weird.” He held out his hands. “They look wrinkly ‘n old.” He turned his palms back towards himself and shook his head as he looked down at them. “It’s…” Nervously, he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his blazer. “It ain’t like-” Wolfwood nodded in Vash’s direction. “Well, it ain’t like you, but…” He pursed his lips and looked away, obviously flustered.
The pain felt like it was regrowing within Vash like a cancer, but something about Wolfwood’s silly confession broke through it, treated it and made it bearable. It was in no way the same, but that didn’t matter. It was a connection. Wolfwood was scared of Vash’s unfamiliar appearance, but he still tried to connect with him, to make him feel better about it. Vash’s breath faltered and his itchy eyes burned with tears. “Yeah,” He gasped. “That is pretty weird.”
With a glaring pout, Wolfwood’s head jerked towards Vash. “It ain’t that weird,” He said, despite being the one to call it weird in the first place. He huffed and looked towards the door, then to Vash. “Listen…” He began slowly, cautiously. “Just… answer a guy next time you’re in the bathroom. I’ll pay for the shower curtain, but if that happens again then it’s on you to cough up for it. Got it?”
Vash’s smile was smaller than before, more human; or at the very least… it was as human as it could be. “Yeah, I got it. Thanks.”