Fake It Til You Make It

Chapter 9

"-Even if it was Knives, he'd be long gone by now. Right, Needle-noggin?" You were only half listening to what Wolfwood was saying.

Vash was still the only one you told about your situation, and so far the others hadn't seen your eyes glow so they weren't exactly asking questions. They only knew that you woke up in the middle of the desert about a week and a half before they met you, and had been traveling with the blond next to you for about half that time. And that you 'had amnesia'.

"What's wrong?"

Vash made his move toward the town ahead, you following not far behind him, much to the confusion of the rest of your group. You were nervous, but if Jenora had told you anything it was that things were set in stone. You were just here for the ride.

"Not you too, Heart-eyes!" Wolfwood sighed but hiked up the punisher on his back so he could follow you. The press team followed suit.

In town, you trailed after Vash with Wolfwood at your side. The town was pretty much deserted. The red sand covered anything and everything that was left outside.

"A windmill?"

Wolfwood looked up to the windmill Roberto had pointed out curiously, "It's not 'milling'."

"There's no wind, stupid," you remarked with a roll of your eyes.

"What happens if there's never any wind?" Milly asked.

"Prolonged power outage," Meryl replied solemnly.

"Stupid plan if you ask me."

Great, they're bickering again.

You looked ahead at Vash, knowing he was thinking about the last time he'd been here. About Rolo. A frown made its way to your face, knowing that Vash was riddled with guilt for all the empty promises he's made over his years on the planet.

He started heading deeper into town and you jogged up to his side.

"You know it's not your fault, right?"

Vash looked at you. You had placed your hands behind your back as you walked, curiously looking around the sand-covered remains of the town.

"Vash?" You stopped in front of a building.

There were bundles of cloth folded neatly on its porch, covered in multiple layers of sand. The blond had been suspiciously silent this whole time.

You walked up to stand next to him as he stared at the cloth in his hands.

"Hey-"

Vash inhaled sharply and pushed you back as gently as he could to make you start running. Bullets made contact with the hard dirt floor of the town.

"Fuck!" You and Vash sprinted backward, the latter slipping slightly on the sand that had built up.

You couldn't tell where the bullets were coming from but they were certainly going everywhere the two of you ran.

Vash pulled you behind a piece of wall that conveniently jutted out into the road. Meryl spotted you at another corner, but flinched at the sound of bullets flying.

"You ok!?"

"Get back!" Vash shouted at her just as Roberto yanked her behind the wall. She barely missed being hit by stray bullets.

"God, he's fugly," you remarked, sweat dribbling down the side of your face. Rolo had just dropped out of the sky with a grunt.

"Vash the Stampede!!" His garbled, deep voice sounded so much scarier in real-time than it ever did on the screen.