nomans_land | Near the ruins of JuLai, after the trip to White Shield

Near the ruins of JuLai, after the trip to White Shield

[Late in the night, across the radio waves that could be reached from the transmitter in Rem's old station and when everyone else in the household would most likely be asleep, the device kicked on seemingly all by itself and began transmitting what sounded at first just like static. After a few moments, though, if one were to listen close enough, a voice that was familiar to some could be heard, faint, as if coming from down a hallway. Operating this thing was strange for him, and manipulating the energies to get it to work the way he wanted wasn't quite the same as what he was used to when he was just speaking out loud, but he was doing his best.]

Hey, Needle-Noggin. Really startin' t'miss you over here. We were on the road to Home the last time I saw you. The Earthquakes started and knocked us down. I think you saw me, just before I disappeared. You hadn't done that before. Not since December. It's been a long time. I'm sorry. Anyway, I looked for you for a while, but...I found others, first. A couple different versions of you, another me, a sweet lady who I think you'd be happy to see. Things have been happening over here, though, people have been gettin' hurt, and...I can't really help 'em much, but I don't want to leave, yet. I'm worried something'll happen to 'em if I do, but...I'm startin' to worry that somethin' might happen before I find you again, too. I'm really hopin' you can hear this out there. None of the You I've seen have been right. They don't have the little bits of grey hair near your ears. They're all too young. I know even if you do, you might not believe it's me. Might think it's one of the other ones that're runnin' around. I'm here, though. An' if you wanna come find us, I can explain. I think at this point, I owe you that much, for the little scare I must've given you out in the desert. Look for a little radio station with a house attached to it, on the outskirts of the ruins of July. I know, terrible location, but I don't think they knew where it was when they originally built it. If you see the little cross made out of a couple of nails hangin' from the porch railing, then...just...I dunno. Sit with me. I'll be nearby. No drinks this time, though, it doesn't do anything for me anymore. Otherwise, just give a shout. Someone should be able to hear you. There's people wandering in an' out a lot. Kids you might recognize, old faces you haven't seen in a long time. I don't really do much sleepin' anymore, so there should be someone awake to meet you, whenever you get in. Uhhh...I guess...Punisher? Signing off.

[The crackle of static continued for a few more seconds before the device shut back down. It had been intentionally vague, yes; the last thing he wanted was to alert every bounty hunter on the planet that his old man was headed to JuLai, especially not since it would put an entire family of innocent people in danger. He hoped his voice was enough, that the old nickname and that stupid code name he'd been given, would all be enough to tell the people who needed to know just who was talking, and who the message was for.

Either way, for a good portion of the days that followed, a tiny cross made from a couple of construction nails tied together with twine - a simple enough thing for him to manage on his own - could be seen dangling from the railing of the porch. Anyone who sat down near it wouldn't realize it until he spoke up, but Wolfwood was sitting against the wall behind it, near the door, watching for anyone who might have followed the directions and come by for a visit.]

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[ He didn't hear the radio announcement, but on the third day of Nai's disappearance there's a little kid wandering around the porch looking tired and stressed. He's got the radio in the station turned up full blast so he'll hear it if anyone calls while he's outside, but he can't sit in that little room any more -- he's gonna go nuts. Pacing back and forth on the porch isn't much better, but at least there's fresh air, and sunshine, and things to look at that aren't the radio's flat, silent display.

He ends up sitting at the edge of the porch, poking at the weird metal X that somebody hung from the railing. Now that there's nobody around -- Rem's inside, and that quiet Vash is gone -- Vash leans his head against the railing, and when the sniffles come, he doesn't stop them. It's hard being brave all the time! ]

[The house has been a place of madness, the past few days, so many people worrying and anxious, trying to find little Nai, and it would have been a lie to say it wasn't bothering him, too. But he was less than useless as he was.

What good could he possibly do? He couldn't drive out to look for him, and he would only scare the kid if he did find him. And none of that meant that he was unaffected by it; quite the contrary, even knowing that the kid was the baby form of Millions Knives didn't stop him from worrying in his own way.

Which meant he'd been spending a lot more time outside, on the porch, pretending he didn't exist and doing his best to focus on the things he could do something about. Even if that something was just...watching.

This really sucked.

At the very least, when little Vash came out to pace in front of him across the porch, it gave him something to watch that wasn't endless expanses of featureless dunes. He wanted so much to reach out to him and tell him it was going to be ok. Cheer him up somehow, distract him from thoughts of his missing brother. At the same time, he'd heard enough murmurings about what the living Wolfwood had done, how much of a mess he'd made with the adult Blondie and an apparent incident involving Nai and guns, that he wasn't exactly sure his presence would be appreciated even if his state of existence was acceptable.

But then the kid perched himself next to his little nail cross, poking at it curiously and earning silently-raised eyebrows from behind him, before breaking down into soft little sniffles of distress. And fuck him if that didn't make Nick's memory-of-a-heart hurt in his chest. God, he'd always been a soft touch when it came to kids at the best of times. When they were hurting, he never failed to turn into the biggest pushover on the entire fucking planet.

But what could he do??? He would just scare him, he had no idea he was even here, and finding out he'd been here the entire time-...

...But then...Blondie had told him he was easy to sense, for people like them, hadn't he? He'd apparently never been as subtle and secret as he'd thought, which was something he still hadn't properly thought about if only because it would make him remember all his years following the old man without once reaching out to take some of the burdens off of his shoulders for fear of his reveal causing more pain.

He groaned to himself, looking up at the sky as if silently begging for an answer to a God he still wasn't sure he believed in - an afterlife? Sure. God? Who the fuck even knew? - and receiving just about as much of an answer as he expected. And the entire time, the poor kid - he was only like a year old or something, right? He's hardly even a kid, he's still a baby, and that made it infinitely worse! - sat there in front of him, sniffling and doing his best not to lose his shit because he was worried about his big brother, and it was just too much for him to handle.

So he stood, shuffling close and sitting next to him and resting his head on the railing of the porch so that he could look at the miserable expression on his little face, and fuck that made it worse. It was the exact same face he'd seen countless times before, screwed up in grief, just a hundred some-odd years younger, and he wanted to wrap him up in his arms and make everything ok.

He didn't know exactly what it was that they did to sense their siblings, or even him. How did you use a sense you didn't even have? But after a moment, he...reached out, anyway. Thinking at the boy, feeling a little dumb but hoping it would somehow work regardless.]

"Can you even hear me like this...? I really dont wanna startle you."

[He thought, over and over, as his hand gently reached out, so slowly, until he was resting it lightly against his back and letting the pressure of it gradually build until it was hopefully easy to understand. Please notice me, please notice me, I'm here, I don't want to scare you, it's ok, you're safe, I won't hurt you, please don't be afraid.

When he finally let his voice be heard on a level that living people could hear, it was soft, almost timid.]

It's gonna be ok. They'll find 'em. He's gonna be ok.

[ He's not a baby, he's a year and a half, almost! Practically grown, or so he'd argue if it were brought up! But even practically grown, incredibly brave little plants needed a break sometimes, and the last few days have just been too much. He misses Nai so much it hurts, actually hurts -- his stomach's been weirdly grumbly and he aches all over -- but for some reason, sitting out here seems to be helping. Nobody's around, but it kinda feels like there's somebody there? If he was religious he might have a different name for it, but as a tiny atheist, he assumes it's just the result of finally getting some fresh air after hunching over the radio for almost two full days.

And then a voice comes out of nowhere right as he feels something touch his back, and Vash screams and throws himself off the porch in a frantic scramble to get away from the invisible person who just touched him! ]

Who's there?!

[Oh, definitely a big boy, almost grown, old enough that that half a year makes all the difference, like any mature kid his age knows. The point still stands. And with all of the crap this kid has gone through in his still very-short life (and honestly what he knew about the man he'd grow up to be) it was completely understandable for him to be having a bit of a breakdown by himself. Which was only bound to get worse, when Wolfwood's presence finally being revealed has the reaction he'd really, really hoped it wouldn't.

Guess he wasn't as easy to feel for all of them as he was for Blondie. He couldn't even be mad at the guy for the mistake, it was on his own head. He should have just kept his mouth shut.

He sighed, rubbing his hand down his face as if trying to wipe away the instinct to just melt into the floor and disappear altogether. The damage was done, and if he just went away, now, the boy would be a nervous wreck. Better to try and mitigate some of the harm he'd just caused.]

It's ok, it's ok. I'm just a friend, I promise. I'm not gonna hurt you.

[He let himself slowly materialize on the porch, his hands held up, palms outward in front of him. He was doing his best to appear as non-threatening as possible, as non-spooky; focusing on trying to look alive, healthy, just some guy who could disappear, that's all.]

I'm sorry I scared yah, I really wasn't tryin' to. I thought maybe you could tell I was here.

[ He's still little enough that, in terms of plant powers, he doesn't really know what he knows. He and his brother -- either brother, the one that's here (albeit missing) or the one that he'll never see again -- have always been so close that it's impossible to tell what's telepathy and what's simply twins knowing each other as well as they know themselves. Did he know there was somebody on the porch with him? Maybe?

But he sure knows it now. ]

How'm I supposed to know you're here if you're invisible?

[ The man -- the ghost? -- doesn't look familiar. He's heard all about the various Wolfwoods from Nai but he's never met any of them himself, so he doesn't immediately connect this man in a dark suit with the man in a dark suit that Nai warned him about. The invisible man seems nice enough, but Vash still isn't coming any closer yet. He's seen enough horror movies to know what kinds of scary things ghosts can do! ]

Are you dead?

[ At least he's not crying anymore? ]

[He couldn't help looking a bit uncomfortable, reaching up to scratch at his cheek as his eyes darted around sheepishly.]

Blond-er, sorry, older you, the one with the...fluffy hair that's here most often? Yeah, a while back, he said I wasn't exactly as hard to notice as I'd always thought I was.

[At least the kid seemed to be taking it a bit better than he'd expected, though he was obviously still understandably wary. That didn't make Nick visibly wilt any less when the inevitable question came up, and he sighed, his hands dropping to his lap before he gave a very small shrug.]

...Yeah. You could say that. Sorry, Mijo. I really didn't wanna scare yah. I'm not gonna hurt you, I swear. Doubt I could even if I wanted to, and if it makes you feel any better, your mom knows I been here for a while, now. Blondie, too. Obviously.

[ Your mom knows an invisible ghost's been wandering around the place isn't exactly comforting! But so long as he stays right where he is and doesn't come any closer, or... or grow, like, smoke tentacles or make his eyeballs fall out of anything, then maybe it's okay?

Look, ghosts in movies are scary. This guy's just some guy. ]

That's not my name. [ And he's not volunteering what his name is, either! He's not that gullible. ] What's your name?

[He grimaced faintly to himself, obviously uncomfortable with making the kid this upset. In a lot of ways, this was maybe even worse than being known by the adults. They had the age and experience and mental tools to handle his existence better. To a kid, he was probably just a big, scary, mysterious monster, lurking in the closet or under the bed.

The prickly response to the nickname made him shake his head and wave it off, sputtering a little in mild embarrassment. He'd been doing it for so long, calling people by little nicknames had become some instinctual thing he didn't even realize he was doing, most of the time.]

No, I know it's- sorry, I just do that. Nicknames. Don't worry about it. I know that's not your name, Vash, I didn't mean nothin' by it. [And then came the other uncomfortable question about what his name was, and...he was quiet for just a tad too long. It wouldn't help, lying to the kid, but the man who was still kicking had given the boys even more reason to be afraid of him than they might have normally. He sighed.] My name's Nick. Nicholas. You can go ask your mom if you want. I'll get away from the door so you can get past if it makes you feel better.

[Sorry, Rem. He probably just made your life a bit harder, dealing with everything and now this on top of it.]

[ He doesn't respond when the ghost says his name, but inside he relaxes a little. If Rem and the quiet Vash both know he's here, and he knows who Vash is, then he's probably safe to talk to? Besides, Rem's right inside, and he's be a pretty stupid ghost to try anything when Vash could get her out here with just a scream. ]

That's okay. [ He folds his tiny arms, fully prepared to stand here forever and quiz the ghost about things. Won't Nai be excited when he gets back! They have a ghost! ] So if you're a ghost then you're dead, right? Did you die here? Are your bones under the house?

[It was subtle, but the shift in his stance and the first of those little questions kids had anytime something weird landed in their lap made Nicholas slowly relax, too, before he gave a little smile. As long as the weird-but-strangely-apt kid questions kept coming, it meant, hopefully, that the fear was fading. He could deal with that as long as Vash had more questions to ask.]

Yep, about as dead as you can get. No, I'm not out here. I'm buried a few hundred iles away. [Not that there probably weren't quite a lot of bones buried beneath this house, if they'd been able to recover the bodies to bury them. But he'd been far away from July when it went down and too young to boot.] I was following-...my friend. Watchin' over 'im, I mean, when that big earthquake that brought everyone here happened a few months ago. Got dropped in the middle of the desert not far from here and found your mom hangin' the laundry out to dry, and just...stuck around. Figured this was as likely a place as any for my friend to show up, so I stayed.

[There were so many details left out, but he figured it was better to leave it a little vague than to drop the fact that the friend he'd been waiting for was another of him, when he was much older, and trying to explain that he'd known his mom because she'd been the first soul he'd encountered in the afterlife would probably be less than productive.]

[ For an independent plant, crashed onto a world of humans and possibly dozens of duplicates of himself and his brother at all ages, the idea of a ghost isn't the weirdest thing that's ever happened to him! Nicholas isn't even the first ghost he's ever seen, so there! ]

So you've been here watching us for months? [ His expression and tone make it clear just how creepy he thinks that is, Mr Ghost. ] How come you didn't tell anyone else you were here?

[ He knows the reason -- grownups like to keep secrets from kids, but he wants to hear the ghost admit that he didn't think Vash and Nai could handle seeing a dead person. He double-dog dares you to call him scaredy! ]

[Oh. Yeah. Ok. Maybe he should have expected that question to come up, though he feels like the reasoning is easy to figure out. The little smile he'd settled into faded just as quickly as it appeared, and the way he seemed to wilt and avert his eyes, lifting his arms to lean them on the railing in front of him, was the only reaction he gave for a while.]

I...didn't want to, at first. I've spent...a...really long time. Not really showin' myself. I never wanted to cause anyone more pain.

[Instead of fidgeting with his hands like he wanted to, he manifested a cigarette and went through the motions, giving himself another few moments to think about how he wanted to reply.]

Honestly, kiddo, it's just...the way it always was. Before. Ya know? I hate the thought of-...my friend...bein' alone. But lettin' 'im know I'm still here'd just upset 'im. He takes death real seriously. An'...I knew your mom, years ago, or another version of 'er. So when I found 'er out here, I thought she'd know I was here an' just started rattlin' my mouth off, thinkin' she'd remember me and know what was up, and gave 'er a fright. And I couldn't put the cat back into the bag once it was out, right? Told myself I'd only ever talk to her, help keep an eye on the station for her while I waited for my friend, an' then Blondie came home one day and he just knew I was there. I been tryin' t'help out in what ways I can, which isn't much, but I never wanted to scare you or your brother or any of the others.

[He flicked the cigarette out over the edge of the porch, as if shedding the ashes was even needed, before putting it back in his mouth and sighing. Honestly, he could give about a million reasons he's had over the years, a million ways he's thought about what his existence had to mean and had to be, but he didn't think dumping all of that on a kid was really a very good idea.]

Mostly, though, I just...don't like upsettin' people. The few times people've noticed me over the years, it usually ended in screaming or crying. Sometimes both. People don't like bein' subjected to a walking, talking reminder that they're gonna die eventually. I never wanted to do that to anyone, least of all you guys. Things are already fucked up around here as it is, especially lately.

[ He wasn’t expecting the ghost to get sad about his question, but really, he should have seen that coming. Other than Rem, all the adults here are sad – even big brother Knives, although his sadness is different, and kinda angry. He feels bad about it, but only partially. He doesn’t like it when people keep secrets from him, okay? Especially big ones.

I knew Rem from before, Nicholas says, and oh, okay, that makes sense why he stayed then. Vash’s stance eases a little at that – Nicholas clearly wasn’t crew on a ship, so he must have known Rem, or a Rem, after the ships crashed. That would mean he’s been dead a hundred years or so, wouldn’t it! Wow! He’s really old! Bet his bones are nothing but a skeleton now, huh? ]

You’re not scary at all though. You don’t have any chains or blood or any of that. You’re just… a guy.

[ Vash only screamed because he was startled! There’s nothing frightening about some guy in a black suit smoking a cigarette – he doesn’t even have horns, or too many arms, or anything scary! Who’d be scared of him? ]

Besides, I’ve seen ghosts before.

[Oh, back home, his body had probably been nothing but a pile of bones laid out under a well-loved grave for a very long time, yes. Not that that had to do with Rem and the crash, but he was decidedly trying to avoid bringing up that whole thing. The less reminders Vash had that there were realities where his mom had died the way she had, the better. He had been there for months, after all. Listening. Watching over the station. He'd seen how hard things had been for Vash and Nai as they were trickle-fed more and more information when people finally decided that they'd worked out enough details all on their own and it would be more cruel to not tell them things.

He was doing it, too, really, and he knew that. But he'd hoped he wouldn't be in this position, so he hadn't ever stopped to consider what he would tell him. Maybe if Vash really pushed, he might answer what questions he could, but he wasn't sure if he should. At least not without talking it over with the others, first. Vash wasn't his child, and he wasn't the time-tossed younger version of himself. He didn't feel like it was his call to make.

The confused, grotesque mental image Vash obviously had worked up in his head brought a bit of that smile back to his face, and he gave a soft laugh, though the sadness still lingered there.]

I mean...I could be scary, not that I like to. In the early days...I didn't know how to control the way I looked, and it wasn't...nice. People on this side don't usually want to look the way they went out, unless they got lucky and went in their sleep or somethin'.

[His eyebrows pinched just a bit as he imagined appearing to Vash like he had been, and a few lazy tears rolled down his face without his notice. He couldn't do that to him. He would never make any of them see him looking the way he had when he'd passed, and for a moment, his expression did strange things between the tears on his face and the small bit of happiness that crossed his features. Even if he did eventually make himself known to all of them, even if his old man ever finally showed up, he could at least be sure they wouldn't have to see his face pale and bloodied and gaunt, eyes sunken in, literally the face of a dead man. That was a good thing. He could be happy about that.

But then he just looked suddenly confused, tilting his head at the boy with his mouth open just enough that the cigarette drooped low.]

Wait, you have? When? Didja know 'em, or just catch someone poppin' in for a visit?

[ That's a weird expression on the ghost's face, like he drank too much lemonade too fast and now he's got a stomachache. ]

She's a friend now. I didn't know her then.

[ And that's really all he should say about that. He shouldn't talk too much about Tessla, even to a friend of Rem's... she's a secret, and needs to stay a secret for, well, maybe forever.

He should change the topic, huh? ]

Hey, can you show me what you look like when you're scary?

[That settled some of the confusion, but then his face just furrowed again when it didn't exactly answer the question as much as he initially wanted to accept.]

Oh. Uh. Wait, she's here now? Not from before, up...? [He pointed up at the sky, blinking and looking around as if he expected someone to just manifest, when he knew they wouldn't. If anyone knew about a ghost lurking around the station, it would have been him. But there was no suspicion in his reaction, just pure, simple confusion.

And then, of course, the tiny idiot had to ask for the one thing he'd just soothed himself about not doing, and the confusion evaporated into an expression that was...too neutral.

He didn't answer for a while, suddenly seemed way too interested in his cigarette as he finished the one he'd manifested, flicking the butt away to disappear before it ever hit the sand, and then made another one to immediately replace it.

He shouldn't. He really shouldn't. But the kid hated it when people kept things from him, he had watched how he'd become increasingly distressed as the people around him danced around things they knew he wasn't ready to hear. Maybe it wouldn't be too bad? Maybe without the context of the whole thing, it wouldn't be as upsetting for him? And he was growing fast, if this was how big he was at just a year and a half. It wasn't going to be long before he was an adult, at this rate, and sure, it was a good idea to only let kids in on the really scary stuff as they got older and better able to handle things, but if they waited too long, he was going to have grown up without having some of the big, scary things trickled to him so he could properly deal with them, right-...?

Even with the cigarette, he was fidgeting hard, flexing his fingers in and out fists, shaking the tension out of his fingers, cracking his knuckles. He wasn't comfortable, not at all.

But he was, unfortunately, also a big pushover when it came to children. And to Vash.]

Just...keep in mind. I mean it when I promise ya, I'm not gonna go around lookin' like this. No lurkin' over your bed or nothin'. [The changed happened slowly, and while he couldn't seem to look up and meet the kid's eyes when he did it, Wolfwood was focused on every little sound he made. One little sound of distress, and it was right back to normal, lively-looking, non-scary Nicholas!

He reached up to ruffle his own hair anxiously as the color of his skin went pale and grey, his coat ripping itself to ragged tatters that barely hung properly and revealed patches of the white shirt underneath, drenched in blood. By the end of it, his eyes had gone milky blue and sunken in, the blood on his clothes spreading up onto his face and hands, and the muscles on his face didn't...sit right. Slack, loose, looking even more wrong with the way every expression that crossed his features pulled in ways that shouldn't have been possible as he looked now.

He was very much a dead man, sitting up, blinking nervously and looking downright timid for an adult bearing the scrutiny of a small child as he finally risked a couple darting glances over at him.]

[ She's here now, yup, but Vash isn't going to nod, or smile, or anything. They've changed topics! He's keeping Tessla safe by keeping her secret -- he hates secrets, sure, but this one's important.

Besides, it's more interesting watching the ghost get ready to be scary! He's stretching and shaking out his hands, moving a bunch... Vash watches, excited. This is gonna be good!

And then, the ghost changes... and Vash's excited little face sags with disappointment. Not fear -- there's no fear at all, not even the tiniest bit. Sure, the ghost looks all shot up and bloody, and his face is pale and kinda sagging, but he just looks like a zombie! Not even a really scary zombie with his eyes hanging out and missing an ear or his nose, Vash can't see his organs or anything... he's just a corpse. That's sad, maybe, but not scary. ]

Oh. [ Sorry, Nicholas. That's not going to frighten this kid. ] I thought you'd have big sharp teeth, or... [ He hooks his hands into claws and waves them in the air. ] ...y'know, monster stuff. You just look dead.

[ If he smokes, does the smoke come out of the holes in his chest? That'd be really cool! ]

[He actually looked a bit surprised at the lack of fear or distress in his tone when he reacts, and it was enough to shock him out of the timid glances, the deadly appearance dropping instantly. When he realized that instead of scared, Vash was more disappointed that he wasn't more horrifying, he couldn't stop the little, relieved, maybe slightly-hysterical laugh he gave as he shook his head.]

No, no. No...claws. No monster stuff. Well. Ok, I'll give you the teeth. [He actually pulled his mouth into a wide-open grin, reaching up to pull his lip back so that he could see that he did indeed have strangely large, sharp, fangy teeth for a normal human. Luckily, that had only ever been the single "monstrous" thing about him that people could see from the outside. The rest of it was, unfortunately, all carried internally.] But then I had those since-...well. They didn't happen because I died, let's just say. I bet you got 'em, too, huh? Or...well, maybe you will when you're older? You lost your baby teeth yet? Do plants have baby teeth? I just know big you's got 'em.

[Sorry, bud. All the holes had already closed up by the time he'd passed on, the serum had made sure of that. The damned things had taken their pound of flesh out of his insides, healing up what could be seen on the surface level but stressing his body out far beyond what it was capable of handling. There wouldn't be any smoke coming out of chest-holes for him.]

[ Not even any tendrils of smoke wafting spookily out of his chest? What's even the point then?

He's got sharp canines too, although they'll get bigger and sharper as he grows. He shows them off in a ferocious grin-slash-snarl... but those aren't monster teeth. They're just normal planet teeth, and plants aren't monsters. ]

What're baby teeth?

[ Babies have teeth, sure -- they grew in right after he and Knives were born. But they don't come out, he can't lose them. That's weird! Is that a human thing?

Do humans take out their babies' teeth?! Vash puts a hand over his mouth, and regards Nicholas with suspicion. ]

They don't come out.

Edited 2023-08-22 19:47 (UTC)

[The point was a whole pile of things that either he wouldn't have the answers to until he crossed over into The Light and found out what was on the other side of that, or things that he really didn't want to get into with this Vash. There was no way in Hell he was going to get into the concept of waiting for his old man to finally pass on so he could be there for him, to walk with him into whatever came after. That was definitely something he wouldn't have felt comfortable dumping in the lap of such a young child.

The kid giving him a big, fangy grin, though? That got a grin and a laugh, which only grew at Vash's obvious confusion and distress over the concept of baby teeth. Alright. So they didn't lose them the way humans did. That answered a question for him that he'd never even known he had.]

I'm not gonna try an' take your teeth, kid. It's just somethin' that happens to human kids. We're born with two sets, but the big adult teeth are hidden until our faces are big enough that they'll all fit, then they grow in and push the baby teeth out of the way, and they just... [He pantomimed pulling a tooth out of his mouth on the end of a string - something that might not make sense to a kid who didn't know teeth fell out in general, but that was the frame of reference Nicholas had, regardless - and made a loud Pop with his tongue.] Come right out! Apparently some families who have more money than we did at the orphanage even have a little tradition of tellin' their kids a magical fairy will take their teeth if they leave 'em under a pillow the night they fall out, and leave a double-dollar for 'em in exchange. Then, when the kid goes to bed, Mom or Dad'll sneak in an' swap the tooth out for a coin, an' the kid gets to go buy a candy bar the next mornin'. Makes it seem less scary for the kids who haven't done it a couple times already and won't know it's not as bad as it sounds. We'd walk around with one of our tiny teeth all loose, wigglin' it around with our tongues, until it just decided to come free one day. It was usually only one or two at a time, so by the time we were your size, we'd've had 'em all swapped out over a couple years. Had my first one come off with a piece of sticky candy I had one day. Taffy's the best for it.

[ His hand's staying right over his mouth, thanks. Possibly forever. Little human kids walk around with their teeth falling out? They come out when they're eating? They sell them to their parents?!

Congrats, Nicholas. You found something scary! ]

Do any of your other bones come out? Like your fingers?

[ His teeth grow and stretch just like the rest of his bones do, like normal. What kind of terrifying creature sheds teeth like a shark? ]

[God, this kid was hilarious, and without so much of the emotional baggage his older self had that brought such a deep level of unwell to his goofy little self. He almost felt bad for laughing as much as he did at his continued horror, because he knew kids hated being laughed at, but he wasn't laughing at him, just at the adorable absurdity of a child's mind discovering new and weird things that shook their little worldview.]

Naw, at least not intentionally. Well, unless you count this. [He reached his hands out, pulling on his fingers one by one until his knuckles popped loudly, and then laced his fingers together to bend them all back at once so they popped again in unison, like popcorn.] Though I think poppin' your knuckles is less pullin' out your bones an' more jimmyin' the joints around until they got air under 'em. Or somethin'. But no, they don't come out. It's just the teeth.

[ The ghost cracks his knuckles, pop pop pop, and Vash's hand finally comes down from his mouth. That's just knuckle cracking -- he can't do it, his knuckles won't make that sound, but he's seen people do that in movies before. He's even seen Rem do it a time or too after typing a bunch. That's normal.

Teeth coming out isn't normal, but at least it sounds like that's the only bones that fall out of humans! ]

Humans are weird.

[ He's going to check his teeth -- and Nai's when he's back -- every morning from now on, to make sure none of them are loose, so thanks for that! ]

So did you know me when I'm older? [ Now that he's not worried about the ghost stealing his teeth, he can't help but wonder why the ghost is here in the first place. Was he also brought to help this world's Vash, like the rest of them? If he knew Rem after the crash, he might have known Vash and Nai -- or Knives -- then too, right? ] Is that why you got brought here, because we're gonna know each other later?

[He snorted in amusement, nodding his head in a wry little acknowledgement.]

I mean, yeah. There's nobody gonna argue with you on that one. There's a whole lotta the way we work that just don't make a damn bit of sense.

[He will, honestly, be very delighted to watch the confused flailing that got him the first time he tried to check Nai's teeth. There was even a tiny part of him that would take some smug enjoyment out of it at his expense. Not as much as the other Wolfwood's, maybe, but still a bit.

The grin on his face faltered at the question, though, for just a moment, and when it came back, it was...unsure. Awkward. He hadn't really wanted to get into this with him, but when all you had to do was sit around and literally people-watch the family around you, you picked up on things pretty quickly. Like how frustrated he tended to get, when people kept things from him. And if Vash was going to know he was there, he wanted to be as little of a bother as possible.

So eventually, the smile settled back on his face, a little sadness lingering behind his eyes as he suddenly found the nonexistent dirt beneath his fingernails to be very interesting.]

Yeah. I knew you when you were older. Honestly...I know about as much about why I'm here as anyone else does. Is it 'cause I knew you before? [He shrugged, sitting up and looking back at him as he slapped his hands down on his legs and then leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. He didn't even seem to care that the angle made him sit far enough forward that the porch railing ended up going right through his shoulders.] I dunno. I just know I was walkin' down the road with my friend one minute, found myself here the next, and he was gone. Kinda wish it hadn't happened, I'm real worried about findin' 'im again, but...I got t'meet all of you, and it made me stop...hidin' so much, so. Maybe it's not so bad, yeah? I hadn't really talked to someone properly in a long time. It's nice. I like talkin' t'everyone.

[ That sounds really lonely. Disappearing away from your friend and ending up in a new place where nobody could see or hear you? Not being able to ever go back?

Vash's chin starts wobbling again, just a bit. He's sad for Nicholas here, and for his friend, he's missing Nai so much... and, as much as he tries not to think about him anymore, he misses Knives. They all left people behind when they were brought here, didn't they? People they'll never see again, or talk to again, or... or...

Nope, here come the tears. ]

I'm... I'm glad you're not hiding. It's not good to be all alone.

[A crying Vash was a quick way to get right under his skin. Vash when he was this small - sure, a little bit of a shit but that's no different than he is as an adult and it's that innocent type of shit that reminds him of himself at that age and, from the outside looking in, is kind of adorable - and so young and in need of protection and care and still so unburdened by what happened in the future?

That just makes him immediately turn into a worried teddy bear.]

Oh, hey, no, it's ok! [He pushed himself off of the edge of the porch, but instantly sat down criss-cross in the sand; sitting up above him on that elevated level was no better than standing over him. Kids did better when you were at their level, when they were upset.] Listen to me, you don't have to worry about me, ok? I promise, from your side of things, it always sounded so scary, but it's not, ok? I wasn't ever alone. You meet other people on this side, too. They pass on, an' sometimes you meet 'em, and sometimes it's old friends, sometimes it's new people you never met. I had people to talk to, lots of times. But even when they'd moved on...I still got to be with my friend. And things aren't scary on this side. Nothin' can hurt me, I don't get hungry, I don't get tired, it's peaceful. So don't be afraid, ok? And don't worry about me. I'm ok. I promise, I'm ok.

[He's hurting him, isn't he? Should a kid his age even be dealing with this kind of weight? It's not right for him to be pushing these kinds of existential worries on him before he was ready. He really should have stayed quiet!

The thought that he was the cause of pain for a child had always been enough to upset him, even before December. This was even worse.]

[ His tears are mostly for his brothers, the one that's missing and the one he'll never see again... but the distraction Nicholas provides is a good one. He's never really thought about death before, about what it's like to be dead -- mostly because he assumed there wasn't any being dead! You died, and you were dead, the end!

But being a ghost doesn't sound so bad. Never hungry, never tired, meeting all your dead friends and family and new people, all the time? Plus, Nicholas is here talking to a living person, so ghosts don't even have to give up their living friends! That's not so bad at all!

With a final sniff, Vash rubs his eyes dry. Nicholas is being really nice -- he's even sitting on the ground so Vash doesn't have to look up at him! -- and here Vash is crying like a baby. Tears aren't going to make Nai come back. Tears won't let him see Knives again. They just make everyone else upset and give him a headache. ]

Are there other ghosts here? Or just you?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Near the ruins of JuLai, after the trip to White Shield

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CW: teeth

CW: Baby Teeth talk

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cw: knuckle cracking

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