nomans_land | Geranium

Geranium

[ 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~♪

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[ She did her best with removing like three feet of hair from two squirmy children, it's pure luck nobody got an ear nipped!

The way Vash's face lights up at the mention of Nai makes her heart hurt, but she shakes her head when the boy calls out for his... twin. Knives. ]

He's by the cliffs to train his gate, I think. I don't think he can hear us, it's quite a bit out.

[ Afraid of humans. There's a pinch of dread in her heart that Rem refuses to acknowledge. ]

[ Vash's face falls at that. ]

Oh.

[ Going to get Knives will mean it'll take him longer to get back to Tessla, and he doesn't want her to have to wait any more than she has to. He shakes off the disappointment easily though, and gives Rem a blinding smile. ]

That's okay. If you see him before I'm back, tell him I've got a gate trick to show him, too!

[ He can make feathers, Rem, it's the most amazing thing! ]

I've gotta go, okay? I'll be back! I love you!

[ That smile alone feels like it could heal any soul with its shine. Vash was always so bright.

I've got a gate trick to show him, too! That's both exciting and concerning. She will probably have to ask the adult Vash how to help him with that... hopefully it's not as sharp as his brother's. ]

I will do that. [ She says with a little nod. ] Careful now, honey... and please come back. I love you forever.

[ And he's off! Not running, because that bag's heavy, but as fast as he can go, following his own footprints in the sand out into the dunes. If he just keeps his eyes on his one footsteps, he should be back to Tessla and the rest of the plants soon! In fact, it shouldn't take long at all for him to see them, a white cloud against the reds and yellows of all this desert.

But he's been walking for awhile, and he doesn't see them. Assuming he just misjudged the distance -- he was running for a good part of it! -- he keeps going, head up and heart full.

By the time the first sun sets, though, he has to admit that he doesn't know where they are... or where he is, for that matter. ]

TESSLA! WHERE ARE YOU?!

[ It's been, what, two days? Three? Maybe longer? Time is strange now, and it moves in ways that Vash can't always predict... kinda like how walking across the desert can take you places you weren't planning to go. But he's young and adaptable, and anyway, so long as his family's here then anything strange can just be excused as exciting!

So: some number of days after he left, and here comes Vash, barreling towards Rem with his (significantly lighter) bag of medical supplies and a huge grin on his face. ]

Rem! Nai!

[And at a distance, still well within easy sight range .. and easy interference range should something go wrong .. a battered vehicle sits idling, engine a low steady rumble. Vash wouldn't be allowed to just walk all the way back, not with his feet still recovering, so a ride was just sensible.

But Knives isn't interested in getting too close. He can observe from here, leaning against the door of his stolen jeep thing, arms crossed over his chest, gun at his hip in a gleam of ominous metal. He had no intention of getting any closer, not til he sorted out what he wanted to do about Rem.

She wasn't a threat. Not exactly. It was ... complicated.

But he watches anyway, a dark and less than welcoming shape against the sand, to make sure someone's actually there to greet Vash. Leaving him alone just wasn't going to happen, it's a dangerous world and anything could turn up and snap up a little helpless plant.]

[ nai immediately rushes outside, that familiar tickle of their connection announcing vash's return before he even hears him call out. ]

Vash!

[ he's so happy, more than he'd normally allow himself to show, but he missed vash. since his older brother's departure, things have been... so quiet.

nai runs out to meet vash halfway, throwing his arms around his brother and nearly knocking them both over. only belatedly does he notice the dark figure in the distance, watching things unfold, and frowns over vash's shoulder. ]

Where have you been?

[ Rem comes out after Nai, wiping her fingers on her makeshift apron. There's paint on her nose from fixing up the rooms and expanding the station with more of them. Her eyes widen as she sees the little Vash and then well up with tears. ]

Vash! I was so worried, you were gone for so long! Is your friend okay?

[ She hurries over to the twins, fondly looking at their hug before she notices a man in the distance. The dark hair confuses her for a moment, but then she remembers the dark-haired Vash and realizes who it is. Nai.

Every ounce of her body wants to run over and hug him, to tell him how much she loves him and that she's so sorry. That she understands, even if she doesn't agree with his choices. Yet she stays where she is, because she doesn't know if he even wants to see her, and... she doesn't want any kind of argument to happen around the kids. So instead she just gives him a small smile and chokes down all her emotions, instead focusing on the twins. ]

What happened to your feet, honey?

[ Oof! Nai slams into him and Vash hugs him back, laughing. He's a little sunburned, tired, and so full of things to share with both of them! ]

I'm okay, I'm okay! Knives fixed my feet! [ He turns, arms still tight around his brother, and wiggles one hand free to wave at his big-big brother. ] Thank you!

[ He can't tell Nai about Tessla yet, not with Rem here, but the secret's spilling out of him and he can barely keep it down. ]

I met a bunch of people! There's a huge guy, Mr Livio, and he lives at an orphanage, and that's you, Nai, but all grown up! He wrapped me up like a mummy, and I saw a worm!

[Another little blond shape, that must be Nai.

And.. Rem.

It was ironic that only in their last days do the twins finally look like they might have been her children, with hair just as ebon black as hers. Whether or not Knives approved, Vash was at least in a secure location, and the risk of sandworms was ... well, it was definitely still there, but he couldn't hang around on the off chance of a worm.

So he offers little more than a nod from his distant spot before getting back in and putting the vehicle in gear - and leaving in a different direction than he'd come. Leaving complicated problems behind for now, all the things he didn't want to dwell on just yet.

There were other towns to hunt down, and he had a list of things he needed to find.]

Hmmm... [ nai frowns, casting another glance towards the figure in the distance - knives. was it the same one he had met or a different one? but he's already leaving, dashing nai's simmering curiosity for another day. ] Mr. Livio? I've met someone with that name too.

[ probably went very differently for vash than it did for him, but he'd rather not get into those details. not when he can feel how exhausted vash is in his arms, pulling away just enough to look over him. then, bumps their foreheads together. ]

You smell like dirt, Vash.

[ Knives gets a small nod back, and then she slings an arm around her two boys, her heart settling into its right place after what feels like so, so long. It doesn't matter that Vash is a little different than the one she knows, he's her boy. They both are. ]

Alright, kids! It's definitely bath time, then you can show Vash your bedroom, Nai?

[ It's theirs, of course. She doesn't think she needs to ask if Nai wants to share, not with the way they lean their foreheads like that. ]

I'll make you two some food and you can tell us all about your adventures with Mr. Livio, the worm and being a mummy.

[ He knew Knives wasn't going to stay, but it's still a little sad to watch him drive off alone. He won't be alone for long, though! Now that Vash knows where he is, he's going to have company all the time. ]

I walked across the whole desert, I think!

[ Everything that I have is yours, a little bit, Knives had said. Vash rubs his filthy cheek -- and his equally filthy hair, let's be honest -- against Nai, sharing his grime with his brother. Everything he's got is Nai's too, a little bit, right? ]

That's why my feet needed to get bandaged. They're okay now, just a little sore.

Ugh...! [ nai makes a disgusted noise as vash rubs his face against nai's, feeling the grime staining his cheek. what belongs to vash belongs to nai, but he'd like it if they didn't share absolutely everything.

rem's arms around them, pulling them all close together in a (gross) hug settles nai down from bombarding vash with even more questions. he pulls his face away before vash can dirty him even more. he was not very keen on having a bath today, vash! ]

I don't need to eat, Rem. Just make enough for you and Vash. [ he wasn't keen on eating on the ship, and he's even less so now when some of their main dishes include worms and tomas meat. ]

[ She laughs at the boys sharing 'love' like that, and with her hug in the middle it looks like they're all going to need a bath. It's a good thing she has that well, with all the water she's giving to travelers and taking care of two dirty, rowdy kids. ]

I know you don't, silly. It still means you can to sit with us while we eat so we can have our first real family dinner on this planet!

[ Rem tousles his hair for good measure, and then stands up so that they can all go inside, holding out a hand for each of them. ]

I'm so happy that you're both here.

[ Vash just giggles at Nai's fastidiousness, and leans more into Rem. ]

I'll eat his! I'm starving! [ What else is new, right? ] I had some snacks at big brother Knives's place, but I'm hungry again! And I told him he should come visit, but Rem, he's worried that because he's grown up now that, uh... [ He can't really say, that you'd be scared of him, because you're human and can't help it, can he? ] ...and because he's from a different world that he wouldn't be welcome here!

[ Boom. Nailed it. ]

I told him that's silly, and that he should come visit anyway. And anyway, me and Nai, we can go visit him any time we want to!

[ Sorry, Rem. Big brother has complicated feelings about seeing you again. ]

[breaking away from vash finally, nai takes rem's hand, yet his eyes never leave vash. he listens to his brother talk (ramble), silent himself, as they walk back to their makeshift home.

vash still didn't know. if he did, nai would know, even without words.

he can hazard a guess as to why knives would avoid this place. there were times, more than nai would care to admit, that he wondered if he should be here too. if he deserved it, knowing what he knew. but knowing the future was a heavy burden to carry, trapped between what if and what will come to pass. could the future simply be changed by force of will alone, or was he destined to following in the steps of his older selves.

nai glances up towards rem before looking away quickly. he needed to stay here, until vash returned from octovern. if he ever would. one brother lost, another gained, but it still hurt all the same. unthinking, his hand squeezes rem briefly.]

He said I could come too? [knives, big brother knives, far out in the distance.]

[ Everything feels so right, having a child in each hand like this. Like the world has righted itself and everything's okay. She leads them inside and looks down at Vash has he talks about Knives. It makes Rem sigh, but she can understand it. ]

You're right that it's silly. Next time you see him, tell him he's more than welcome here. All my boys are, no matter the world they're from. [ As long as they're not going to hurt anyone.

She's not quite sure what to say about the idea of sending them over to the adult Knives, but... she can't imagine they would get hurt. Why would he hurt himself, after all?

She returns Nai's little squeeze with one of her own, then gently releases both boys. ] I'm going to fill up the bath. Try to not get dirt everywhere!

[ Vash doesn't reply out loud to Nai's question, but instead looks around Rem and just nods, with a bit of a frown -- of course Nai can come! Why wouldn't he? It's his adult self they're going to visit, right? ]

See, that's what I said!

[ See, big brother Knives? Rem agrees with him! She might be a human, but she's also Rem, and an old Knives is still Knives! She's not gonna be afraid of her own kid, that's ridiculous.Everyone needs to listen to him more, geez!

As soon as Rem leaves to fill the tub, though, that sunny grin drops right off Vash's face, and he turns on Nai with an intensity that's rare on his usually silly face. ]

Nai. [ He whispers, hands on his brother's shoulders -- Rem cannot hear this. ] I met Tessla. She's here. She's alive.

[ nai gives rem a quiet nod before she leaves them, subdued by his own errant thoughts. when vash turns on him, hands grabbing at his shoulders, he jumps in muted surprise. his brother's intense seriousness, a whiplash from his usual giddy demeanor. ]

Vash-?

[ whatever he expected to hear from vash, heart already hanging by a thread, it wasn't that. if it isn't for vash's hands on his shoulders, nai would sway back, the floor suddenly tilting under him. ] Y-You-

[ he grabs at vash's arms, fingers shaking. his eyes wide as the twin moons hanging over them, tessla tessla, tessla was here? she was here? visions of her discovery puncture through his chest, blow after blow. his eyes burn, staring back at vash when he can't bring himself to look away. when he can finally find his voice, it's tiny, just below a whisper to match vash's without meaning to.] She's... she's okay?

[ That's about the reaction he expected! That's why he made a point to hold on to Nai -- it's a huge shock!

He nods somberly at his brother's question.. ]

She's okay. [ His grip on Nai's shoulders tightens -- she's okay. After all this time, she's finally healed! ] Grown-up you helped fix her. [ That's part of why they need to go visit him, get it? To see her. ] She's still afraid of humans though, so we can't tell Rem, okay?

[ it's not at all okay, nai thinks. the pain he felt over their sister was immeasurable. the nights since her discovery were spent bearing that agony, never dulling in the slightest. he knows the path it led him on, his fear forcefully guiding his every thought and action until it finally spills over, leaving everything ruined.

he knows it won't get easier. he saw it in knives the first time, and he could see it in the tensely set shoulders of the knives that stood from a distance. it doesn't get easier.]

Do you... know why she's afraid of humans?

[nai asks it like a question, hoping that vash reads it as him wanting to know why too. his hands can't stop shaking, stomach rolling uneasily.]

Whaddya mean? [ How long would it take Rem to pull a bath here? He doesn't know, but it can't be long. They don't have much time. ] You saw the report! The...

[ The words get stuck in his throat and he nearly gags around them. Seeing her taken apart like that, reading the impersonal summary of her slow dissection... he doesn't think he'll ever be able to recall it without being ill. ]

...the things they did to her.

[ The things that Rem did to her. He's forgiven her -- he loves her too much not to -- but he will never forget what she did. He will never forget a single thing that was done to their big sister. Her rescue by Knives doesn't change any of that.

But she was rescued. ]

But you healed her! Grown you did! You save her, Nai. [ And he's so proud of that fact he might actually pop. There's nothing Nai can't do, he's sure of it! ] Come with me later to Knives's and meet her.

Y-Yeah... [ so vash did know, nai hadn't been certain yet exactly what vash knew and didn't know. it was nice to have that little confirmation, some of the heavy tension in his shoulders starting to relax.

still, his heart was racing. he can't bring himself to let go of vash yet, either. his eyes fall to the floor, but immediately he's staring back at vash with unfiltered shock. ]

I... did?

[ but how? him? his gaze wanders, feeling weirdly shy under his brother's bright enthusiasm. he didn't understand it, but the fluttery warmth in his heart was almost pleasant. ] ... I'd like that. I want to meet both of them.

[ he wants to ask more questions, but with rem due back any moment he files them away for later. nai gently tugs at one of vash's sleeved arms. ] I missed you.

[ It takes a while to fill a wooden bath tub with water from a well, but she's working on repairing the piping eventually. Once it's full and she's put out towels and soap, Rem walks back to the main room and gently knocks on the door frame so they notice she's there. ]

All little twin secrets better be on hold, I'm coming in!

[ Momma knows they have things to talk about that's for them only, and while she's a doting parent she's not going to eavesdrop unless it seems they're up to no good. ]

Water's still fairly cool so hurry up before it gets warmer. Don't forget to wash behind your ears and scrub your hair really good so there's no sand left, okay?

Geranium

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