Geranium

[nurturing]

[ A small podunk town outside of Lost July now houses a small science station, cobbled together by pieces from an escape pod. Rem has been busy cataloguing everything she's managed to put together about both NoMan's Land and this glitch in it so far. Her data pad is overfilled with information, including some pre-downloaded survival tips for hot climates.

It means she's not longer horribly sunburnt, at least.

A radio dish and a messy attempt at a solar panel has been somewhat haphazardly attached to the roof of the house she's taken over, but there hasn't been enough parts to finish them so neither of them have been working right so far. The radio sends signals, but the receiver doesn't work. She keeps trying, though, and the adult Vash she met had been helping her set everything up so that she could live there.

Right now she can be found outside of the house, shaking out blankets and hanging them over a line. Vash had left to find more provisions, and she wanted the other bedroom to be clean when he came back. It's very domestic, and she's singing softly to herself. ]

Sooo... on the first celestial evening, a pebble from somewhere out of nowhere drops upon the dreaming world~♪

[ Rem has held it together fairly well so far, but she can't deny the nightmares and the rush of grief that falls over her in the times she's alone in the house, scarred to the bone by the catastrophe she barely escaped. All the dead in the crash, and all the suffering on this planet. ]

Sooo... on the second celestial evening, all the children of the pebble held hands and composed a waltz~♪

[ Rem shakes out another blanket - a smaller one this time, perfectly sized for a child. She needs to get that radio working so that she can try to contact other settlements and see if anyone has seen small versions of her twins. While she met an adult Vash, she's worried that this timeline mess also means that her little twins are around. ]

Sooo... on the third celestial evening, the children's waltz spawned rippling waves across the waking world~♪

[ Then there was Nai. She still hasn't found him, not even an adult version, and she's not stupid - she knows what he did now, but he's her boy, and she needs to know more. She needs to understand why, and she's not ready to hear that something happened to him. She can barely stand the well-hidden (but still obvious to her) sadness in Vash's eyes. ]

Sooo... on the fourth celestial evening, the waves showered the ground upon which every child wandered~♪

[ She shakes out clothes this time, her ship uniform changed to some salvaged clothes and a hooded cloak that protects her from the sun. ]

Sooo... on the fifth celestial evening, the showers on the earth became its beacon of existence~♪

Comments

[nurturing]

[ It feels... off, right now, and she slowly reaches for another blanket to hang. She's more careful this time, as if she's expecting some kind of attack and needs to be quick to dodge. It's not really something she would actually manage, wholly untrained for battle, but she would at least make an attempt.

That scent is still in the air. Sharp and burning. It reminds her of something she can't place.

One more blanket, and then a voice. She turns quickly - in the right direction - and then frowns. ]

Nicholas, is that you? What... where are you?

[ It sounded like the man, if a bit deeper. That could be explained by being thirsty, but why couldn't she see him anywhere? It was too close to be a radio signal. Like he was right next to her. ]

This isn't funny! Don't you try to scare me like this, I had two children playing that game all the time, it's not new!

[ She huffs a bit and pulls up another blanket. ]

There's more water in the house, and the room is ready.

[el_llorono]

[He gave a little huff of a laugh at the question, reaching out and grabbing the corner of the blanket in her hands and shaking it as much as he could without putting too much energy into it. Enough that it would be obvious, but if someone weren't paying particular attention, it might have been mistaken for a breeze.]

Right here, old lady. You know this ain't the easiest feat. [But when she continued speaking, his brow furrowed again, and it didn't take long before he was back on his feet, leaning in close again to stare her down intently. She-...did she think-...No, did she not know...???]

Shit. Surely not! What the actual fuck? God damnit, this is gonna be fuckin' exhausting, isn't it??? [Because this wasn't just something that could be communicated about through little manipulations of physical objects, no, was going to require actually making an effort at real communication, and there was a reason he hadn't done that in fucking years!]

Rem, no, you not remember? You found me in December, then moved on with Knives. Asked me to wait for Vash.

[Short-ish sentences, because speaking with the living felt like trying to form sentences when he had no oxygen in his lungs. Which, maybe that's why it was so difficult. Solid objects were connected and messing with a few of them caused a ripple effect that could be seen and felt. But the air was empty, agitating the molecules enough to cause vibrations that traveled to people's ears took so much more effort.

Least, that was what he'd decided the reasoning was. But how would he know for sure? He barely had any real education to speak of, aside from how to shoot a gun. He was definitely not a scientist.]

You gotta pen or somethin'? Easier, maybe.

[nurturing]

[ There's something tugging her blanket again and now she's getting a little bit scared. There's a lot Rem doesn't know about this place, so what if there were invisible things that could mimic voices? She lets go of the blanket and backs up a bit, leaning her back against the house wall.

Just in time for that voice to come back again. The words make absolutely no sense - December? Moved on with Nai?

Wait for Vash? Vash was coming back soon.

(Maybe if she understands what Ghostwood is, she can help. She is a scientist.) ]

A pen...?

[ She makes a break for it, running into the house like she's trying to escape - but comes back out just as quickly, her data pad in her hand. It's the closest she had to a pen, and pressing buttons might be less difficult. Maybe. ]

Will... will this do?

[ Whatever this thing is, it at least deserves a chance to explain itself. ]

[el_llorono]

[Oh. No. That reaction was pretty much the opposite of what he would have expected, and...to be honest, it was the even farther than that from the reaction he knew she would have given if she remembered...everything. He sighed when she rushed off, shuffling to his feet and stuffing his hands in his pockets as he stared at the house and debated on whether he should just let her think he was gone again. But then she was rushing right back out, and his eyebrows shot up when he saw what was in her hands.

That...that was some really old tech. Or really new tech; those Earth Feds had started bringing some really wild things to the planet, but this didn't look quite like anything they'd brought with them.

He'd never tried to manipulate something quite like this before, but he walked over, looking down at the thing and reaching out a hand before focusing on tapping one of the funny little square pictures on the thing's screen and watching it bring up a mirror-like reflection of her from where she held it.]

Uh...whassat? Did I break it?

[On the screen, beneath where his hand was hovering, in place of a physical form, a faint whisp of what almost looked like smoke rippled through the air. He blinked at it, moving so he was standing next to her instead of in front of her and could see it right-side up, and when he did, the whisps moved with him. He pressed another little symbol on the screen, and it changed - the world looked hazy and like it had been lit by a blue-toned lamp, and again - it was in black and white, and once again - this time, a strange little cartoon character danced in place on the lower right corner of the screen.]

I don't have the foggiest fuckin' clue what I'm even supposed to do with this...[This time, when he clicked it again, the world on the screen went strangely dark-and-green, the pupils of Rem's eyes glowing with an unusual light. More than that, though, he could see himself clearly, and he gasped, recoiling in shock.

He hadn't seen himself in a very, very long time. Not since he'd realized that unless he made a very conscious effort to literally put his best face forward, the reflection of himself that only he seemed to be able to see in mirrors was...uncomfortable to look at. Pale and grey and still covered in blood. He avoided them like a fucking plague, now. He didn't think that was how he looked in general, at least...no one else who'd ever passed through the in-between before going into the light had commented on it, and he hadn't ever wanted to ask.

When he very slowly moved back to look at the screen, though...it didn't seem so unsettling by comparison. It was almost as if his eyes had gone pure white, but he couldn't see any blood, and...well, everything was green. It was kind of hard to tell how pale he looked when it made him look as if he had the same skintone as Rem did.

He gave a bewildered, tentative wave to her, where she could see him.]

[nurturing]

[ Something is happening. Her data pad is changing programs on its own, and... wasn't this just like a scary movie she had watched with Alex? A phone possessed by a ghost? It makes no sense at all, but she's standing out here in the mid-day sun, not a scary full moon night - yet her data pad is being used by... something.

Said something also doesn't seem to know how to use it. Rem is about to open a writing program when another app opens instead, and now.... now she can see the other person. Rem outright stares for a moment, and then awkwardly returns the small wave. ]

Are you invisible? [ She asks, breathless in her confusion and curiosity. ] Nicholas?

[ The person does look somewhat like Vash's friend, but he had some facial features the other man didn't. A brother, maybe? ]

What is going on? I didn't understand anything you told me.

[el_llorono]

[His shoulders visibly sank at the question, and he took a moment to pull out the memory of his sunglasses, hiding his pure white eyes behind them before looking back at Rem on the screen instead of directly, since it would be easier for her to see where he was looking when she could return the gaze through the little reflection.]

Yeah, 's me. I... [If she were alive. If she somehow had survived the Fall, somehow knew him, then he wasn't sure what that said about where he was or what was going on. But he didn't think this next part was going to be very comforting for her.] Can explain, but...maybe should sit down first, ok? Gonna take a bit.

[And knowing she would have a stable place to sit when the bad news hit was better than making her stand and listen to him talk about her death, following her son around for over a century, watching him suffer and fight with his brother in a self-made war that nearly took both of them.

He remembered the device in her hands, though, and why she had it in the first place, and he pointed at it]

Also, takes energy to talk. How does this work? Typing probably better. [And then, because he suddenly remembered what she'd said a moment ago,] You mentioned Vash? He here?

[nurturing]

[ Sit down first, he says, and she swallows the immediate lump in her throat. So far nothing she's heard from other people have been good, and it's wearing on her. Still, she keeps pushing forward, and she will listen to this, too.

Moving to sit on a crate, she turns the data pad a bit so that she can still see him. He does look older, the more she looks at him. It makes sense, though - her Vash was older, too. Maybe another time anomaly. ]

Don't strain yourself. If typing works better, let me just... [ Rem turns on the word processor, and then adds text-to-speech so that she can keep things flowing almost like a conversation. ] There, is that easier for you?

[ When he mentions Vash, she smiles and gives a nod to the little station she's slowly building up into a welcoming shelter for anyone. ] He's been helping me set up. I think he's out scavenging right now, but he'll be back.

[el_llorono]

[He watched her sit, tilted his head to watch as she switched the device to another function, and ok, he recognized this a little more. He'd watched people interacting with these a bit after they'd started being delivered on supply drops, so while he'd never actually used one, he knew that the blank white screen and the tiny row of lettered squares were...basically an electronic typewriter, of sorts? Something like that. He sat down next to the crate she was on, leaning his chin on one hand while he took a moment to collect his thoughts.]

don't know where to start [The sound of the voice coming out of the speaker gave him a bit of a startle, but realizing that it was set to read off what he was typing gave him a bit of relief. This was going to make it so much easier! The buttons were strangely reactive to him, even if he didn't try and focus on touching them, as if the device was sensitive to his energy in some way. Thank God for small miracles! The words came out a bit slowly simply because he hadn't ever had a reason to use even the old ribbon-and-paper typewriters when he was alive, but he liked this so much better than the alternative.] cool thingy really handy thanks

also i dont want to upset vash he gets upset over things so much so maybe its better if you dont tell him im here ok [And still, he didn't know how to start. So the thing was quiet for a few more seconds before he started typing again.] something happened earlier i was following him to his home for a visit but there was an earthquake and i found myself here but he was gone

rem where im from you died a long time ago im dead too please dont freak out ok im not going to do any creepy ghost shit ok i just follow vash around but he doesnt know im there when i died you were there you were watching over him you died during the big fall and had been watching out for him since

[The more he got the hang of it, and the worse the information got, the more the little voice sped up, like he was trying to get it out before she could panic, like he was anxious and trying to rush through it as quickly as possible. Which only meant that the words were coming out without proper structure and, even audibly, sounded a bit rushed and manic.]

your other boy [Fuck. None of this was nice info to just dump on someone. This was fucked up. The words went quiet for a few seconds before starting again, a new sentence, a new thought.] this is just where im from ok youre alive here so this obviously doesnt mean anything here alright but knives passed on too and you decided to move on with him so hed have someone with him and you asked me to watch over vash until it was his time ive been following him ever since

sorry about all the shitty news kind of puts a damper on the day huh

so yeah you know vash if he hears any of this hell get upset he took it really hard when i died and i dont want to make it worse on him so lets keep this between us ok

[She couldn't see it, but every time the words stopped, he began chewing on the nail of his thumb, and his leg was shaking where his knee was propped up in front of him. He hadn't talked to anyone in so long, so long, and for the first time in quite a few years, the reality of his situation began to wheedle at the back of his mind. Shit. He'd thought he was past all the doom and gloom of it all, thought he'd come to terms with it. But something about actually having a conversation with someone who wasn't on his side of things had started to bring it back to the surface. He sighed, not even fighting the tears that began rolling down his face as he manifested another non-existent cigarette and went through the motions of pretending to smoke it, hoping the muscle memory of it would calm him down a bit. When the voice started up again, it was slower, more deliberate as he tried to think things through more calmly now that the worst of the information was out there.]

i dont want to scare you i can go if you want me to you wont even know i was here i just thought id lost him for a bit and worried i wouldnt find him again hes good at getting away from you if you dont keep an eye on him constantly

[And then a sudden, horrified thought struck him, and the voice on the device gave a discordant shriek of syllables as he rapidly typed to try and get ahead of a terrible miscommunication he realized he might have just caused that would make everything so much worse for her.]

waitwaitwiatshitwaitjesushowoldisvashyoulookyou ghemustonly eakidforyoushit

[He cringed at the garbled nonsense, shook his hands out, and when a voice came out again, it was his own.]

Vash and Knives are adults- er- were, were, are! I wasn't born until 150 years after the Fall, so they lived a long time before Knives died! Shit, sorry, I really fucked that up! Fuck!

[nurturing]

[ It's... a lot. Rem's really glad that this... ghost Wolfwood told her to sit down first, because she honestly feels faint after all the information he shares. So far she gathers that he's staying around to guide her son after his death? She told him to do that after going to heaven with Nai?

Nai. God, thinking about him dying is shattering her heart almost as much as finding out what he did. Her sweet, sensitive boy. If she's there to take care of him afterwards... then at least she could do more for him in the afterlife than she had managed in life.

She covers her mouth for a moment swallowing down any tears. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she does her best to speak normally. ]

I... my god, Nicholas. If I hadn't already heard thing about other realities and timelines I would have been screaming. [ She sighs and shakes her head. ] My Vash here is an adult man, but my Nai is still the tiny boy I know. There's a younger, alive Nicolas, too.

[ Rem wipes away an escaped tear and then gives the ghost a slightly wobbly smile. ]

This is so strange. I'm definitely happy you clarified that last part or I would have to find a way to yank a ghost's ear. [ There's a little laugh. ] You're really important to Vash, aren't you? For me to ask you to stay and wait for him.

[ She had seen them argue, but they were definitely friends in some way. ]

...you do have to keep an eye on him constantly, you're right about that! [ Then she finally cracks a bit, more tears flowing. It was so, so much, and she was still dealing with the loss of the ships, the knowledge that Nai did it, the other Nicholas saying her kids were dead and that this was hell... and all the stress of this place. Without Vash here, she doesn't have to keep up appearances.

Just a spirit will know about her breakdown. ]

[el_llorono]

[The sight of her beginning to break down over the news makes him angry at himself for not realizing sooner that he should have left her alone when he found her. She didn't deserve this, she was a good person, and the last thing she needed was the spector of someone she shouldn't have even met coming from her future? And dropping the worst kind of portends one could possibly receive. He was never so reminded of what his existence was than the few times living people managed to perceive him and were upset by his presence. This had to be the worst of it, the most he'd ever allowed himself to interact, and it was just reinforcing why he had always contented himself to be a silent, invisible observer, no matter how much he wanted to reach out, to say something, especially in those moments when he had to watch Vash breaking down, alone and hurting with the grief of everything he carried on his shoulders.

The fact that she was already aware of possibilities of there being other realities or timelines was enough, at least, that even though meeting the mirror image of his younger self in the desert hours ago, and realizing she wasn't the Rem he'd known had put the little spark of thought into his head, he was able to pull himself out of those maudlin thoughts. So. Rem was young, still alive, hadn't died in the Fall, but Vash was an adult and Knives - Nai? - was still a child. Was the Vash she knew and the Vash that the other him had talked about the same man? If so, why hadn't that idiot taken water with him when he left?

He was silent, though, all thoughts at attempting to reply to what she was saying grinding to a halt when she asked if he was important. If seeing her breaking down and being forced to deal with his existence hadn't been enough to make him lose whatever composure he'd tried to have, making him think about what he had been to Vash would have done it all on its own. So he sat with her for a little bit, sharing their secret little break even if she couldn't see his beside her.

He waited until there was a moment when the emotions seemed to have settled just a bit before he spoke again, and this time, he settled for using his own voice properly. This really shouldn't have been a conversation had through a mechanical voice coming from a little glorified letter-machine. That was on him. So he reached over, pressing buttons, watching the thing cycle through different programs haphazardly until he finally managed to get it back to the weird little green screen where he could speak to her as properly as possible, meeting her eyes through his sunglasses and through that little device from where he leaned on the crate, just a little below the height of her shoulders as he sat on the ground beside her. He could deal with the fatigue of interacting with the living world later, this was fine.]

I...I think maybe I was, yeah. [He didn't want to speak for the man, knew that Vash cared about everyone, even the people he shouldn't. But he also couldn't forget the way Wolfwood's death had made him break down. How many times he'd heard him laying up at night, crying and whispering out broken apologies or...just...talking. To him. As if he were still there to hear him, unknowing of the fact that he was, but not in the way that really mattered. The number of times he had made the journey back to his grave over the years, still, as if he were still mourning his loss all these years later, even after he'd started to lose the color in his hair from age.]

He cares about everyone he meets, but... [He sighed, though it made no sound she could hear and was only evident in the way his image moved on the device.] We never said what we were, and we bickered more often than not. There were things happening that made it...not a great idea to do anything more than just...look out for each other. He was important to me, though, even if I never could tell 'im. And when I met you-...it sounded like you thought he cared a lot. Like he would want me to be there to meet 'im when it was his time...I'm not afraid to say I love him now, though, not like I was then. Sometimes I wish I'd told him when I had the chance, but I think it would have just hurt him even more when I was gone. So it's for the best. You raised a good man, Rem. He deserves to be happy, and I'm fine with the fact that I can't be a part of that.

[He tucked his arms up around his shoulder and rested his chin on top so that he could still look at the screen, a bit of a self-soothing posture, and gave himself a moment to catch his proverbial breath after speaking for so long. In the time it took for him to continue, his face went through a myriad of emotions; from tense to resigned, his lip twisting faintly as his eyes darted away from the screen behind his sunglasses where she couldn't see them, his mouth pulling down at the edges in a look that wanted to be sad but was being held back as best as he could now that he knew he could be seen.]

I'm really sorry to dump all this on you, Mami. If I'd realized you weren't the woman I met, I wouldn't have made myself known. I'm not sure why we're meetin' like this, and I shoulda caught on sooner, but I thought for a minute when I saw you that you'd...found a way to come back. I...actually found that younger me, mopin' out there in the desert, so I really dropped the ball, here. I never would've wanted to do...this to you.