fourstrings | I wagered on God in a kind stranger

[ There had been a while when he’d been terrified. Worried that maybe making a baby would drain Vash the way healing the Plants does, that it would take something from him. But he’s trying to be better about that kind of thing; Vash was willing to give everything to make the world safer for humans, and now that he has room to live for himself, Wolfwood needs to let him do that the way he wants.

He’s pretty sure he was worried for nothing. He’s never seen Vash happier, brighter, or more alive than he is with the baby.

The world isn’t perfect, but he’s come to terms with the fact that it doesn’t need to be. It’ll never be so safe that there’s no threat at all, nothing that could possibly harm them. But they’re closer than he ever thought they could have been. Knives – or Nai, as he’s going to have to get used to calling him – is out there, somewhere, no longer hellbent on the destruction of everything that isn’t a plant. He checks in with Vash from time to time – something made possible by a lot of hard work by Vash, Luida and Brad. They’ve tried to explain it to him a number of times, using examples ranging from radio waves to a network of tubes, and he still doesn’t get it. It doesn’t really matter if he doesn’t understand it – the important part is that is works. The Plants can communicate with each other now even over great distances, and it turns out that happy Plants are way more productive. The goal is still a world where they’re not reliant on Plants for everything but the girls are happy to help out, and most of them are now housed where they can look out over the settlements and towns they support, watching over the people they care for as the world slowly becomes one where flora takes root and transforms the soil into something nourishing rather than dry and barren. Vash goes out and visits them, letting people know if something needs changing to keep the Plant happy and comfortable, sometimes just to chat with them – it’s different face-to-face than over their little network, he says. It’s kind of a steady job for him now: Plant Advocate and Counsellor. Sometimes he’ll laugh out of nowhere, and Wolfwood has long since learned not to ask why because he doesn’t get Plant Humour. He did get it when the baby arrived, though – Vash had been holding the kid when he’d suddenly closed his eyes, tipped his head to the side, and started to cry gently, and the baby went silent and still. Wolfwood had freaked, predictably, and Vash had taken his hand, placed it on a patch of feathers that had appeared with all the emotion, and his mind had filled with a sound like nothing he’d ever heard; inhuman, like a wet finger on a crystal glass or the sound you’d think a star would make. Haunting, but somehow beautiful, joyful. Vash had opened his eyes, still wet with tears, smiled wide, and told him: My sisters are singing.

It's all quiet now, though. Vash is tucked up on the sofa, drowsy from a nap with the baby still conked out on his chest. Wolfwood had taken the opportunity to make an easy dinner – pasta for them, a bottle ready to go for the kid – and wolfed his down just watching them as they slept. Seeing Vash stir, he’d gone to get a bowlful, holds it out to trade for their tiny little miracle. ]

Sleep well?

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On the left side. It'll prop up the rest of it.

[ Dryly. But hey, he's sure all the practice from building this means the next part'll be much straighter! It's a nice thought; the little house growing to accommodate a growing family. And maybe when Robbie is old enough to have a family of his own he'll want his own place, somewhere his aging parents aren't constantly chasing each other around, but there'll always be room for them here. A nest to return to. ]

Room for all the family. And... siblings, maybe? You can't deny we knocked this one out of the park.

Duh.

[ it's an easy answer, immediate. not just because they've traded that little daydream back and forth until it's as familiar to him as wolfwood's skin under his fingertips; a bright-haired little boy and a dark-haired little girl, often more of them running through the house until it's bursting at the seams. it's a little bit of a challenge, considering they're both a little fuzzy on the details of exactly how they got mr. rocket here, but vash is pretty confident wolfwood is down to keep at it until they figure things out. ]

We can't just let him be lonely. [ like he doesn't already have a whole orphanage full of brothers and sisters to play with. ] Besides, if we make kids this cute, it's like we're doing the whole world a favor.

Hear that, bud? You have an important duty to grow up strong and good and pass on your papa's good looks.

[ Ever so softly, whispered down to Robbie. ]

We'll do our best. Fix you up with some cute siblings, teach you about the world. We're trying to make it better for you. It's happening already.

[ And then he's gotta clamp down on that, because there are already two criers in this family and it doesn't need a third! ]

[ most of the time, vash still fully expects this to be a dream. at any moment, he figures he's going to wake up back in some too-small bed at some run-down inn, a spring from the mattress digging into his side and wolfwood snoring into his shoulder. what they have feels too good, too perfect to be real.

but the moments always tick by, and vash finds that the dream hasn't faded. he's still here, nestled in with his tiny, perfect family. ]

How many siblings, you think? [ there's a tease in his voice, fingertips rubbing gently along the knobs of spine at the nape of wolfwood's neck. ] Four? Five? Six, maybe?

Wonder if we should just keep going until they stop coming out so cute.

[ He grins. Vash has a sibling, sure, but nothing demonstrates his nonstandard sibling experience quite like that. ]

Never say that when he's awake. Doesn't matter how good we raise him, the temptation of "you came out ugly and that's why they stopped" is gonna be too great.

s'a good plan, though.

That just means we're never allowed to stop!

[ obviously! wolfwood better crack the secrets on immortality and erectile dysfunction. ]

You don't wanna give one of our kids a complex, right? [ nudging playfully at wolfwood's side. ] We're counting on you, Daddy.

[ Oh

oh no.

The context is clear! The context is wrong! But still. He presses his lips together, stifling a laugh. He is not, thank god, about to get a boner while holding their baby, but still. ]

I'm gonna need you to never call me that again.

Liked it a little too much.

[ vash snorts at him, eyes bright with amusement. ]

Oh yeah? You know that means I'm just gonna want to call you that more later.

Careful. Maybe save it for when this one's potty trained.

[ But he's laughing too, quiet as he can, and leans in to press a kiss to Vash's mouth. Which is about the point that Robbie makes a cranky little sound and flails one chubby little arm up to smack him in the chin, only provoking further laughter. ]

See? He's not ready to stop being an only child yet.

[ if this one is just as jealous for vash's attention as the little ones back at the orphanage, they're in trouble. but why make wolfwood fret over his impending doom sooner than he has to?

so vash hooks his chin over wolfwood's shoulder instead, beaming down at their baby. ] Wow. He got your right hook, huh? The world better watch out.

I wagered on God in a kind stranger

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