[ talking about mundane, meaningless things like how many shirts he owns helps; it detracts away from the topic at hand, with the rapidly cooling soup-soaked shirt still on the floor behind her. it also helps him to not be so aware of her hands on him, the steady firm press of her fingers around his hands. his heartbeats must be running fifteen hundred miles a second right now, the echoes of residual panic still very much there in the way his lashes flutter, nervously blinking it back - but he still returns the sheepish smile back to her regardless.
he isn't going anywhere, you know. the moment when he could have jumped out any convenient doorways or windows have passed ... but he still doesn't make a move to pull away or anything, obediently waiting for her cue.
it is only out of sheer practice that he doesn't curl back into himself at the quietly voiced question. ]
Not really! [ which means, yes, or at least partially so. he won't elaborate on it. ] I mean, it's been a while...
[ a while since he'd found himself in such a strange place as this, with such strange people. ]
[ Then he can splatter as much soup as he likes - that amused quirk of her lips suggests as much. Nothing as mundane as talking about shirts and she too finds it easier to let that be a distraction, for a moment at least.
A distraction from the compulsive reaction she has to what he says next, gently squeezing his real hand with her own, fingers lightly twined with his, just for a moment... until she loosens her hold again.
It's been a while - does he mean a while since someone put a bullet in him? Burned him? Slashed him? And god knows whatever else by the looks of him... She doesn't like to think on that too much, the amount of times he must have been hurt badly enough to cause such permanent marks of damage over the course of more than century and a half. As for "not really", that answer of his does nothing to assuage her concerns that more than one of those wounds still cause him pain. ]
...If anything like that ever happens to you here, don't be foolish. Come to me. I can heal you before it becomes a problem.
[ A problem... Another scar to add to the patchwork, more pain. One less wouldn't make much of a difference, not in the grand scheme of things and not to him. But it's important to her, important that he knows she wants to do that for him. ]
[ his fingers twitch in the hold as mitsuru squeezes around the scarred digits, thick and knobbly with callouses. he can't help but tense up for a fraction of a second before consciously, carefully letting out a breath he'd been holding, letting his shoulders bleed out the tension - though it still lingers in the worried droop of his eyes as he glances back at her once more, scanning her expression worriedly.
bare arms, bare hands; he'd never been without his gloves around others, much less his forearm completely exposed under scrutiny - it's a vulnerable feeling. not exactly fear of being hurt, but it's nevertheless pain of a different sort that worries at him, chewing on the inside of his cheek as he waits for her next words silently. ]
It's ... okay. Really.
[ stupid, like this, still trying to reassure her. his thumb twitches, hesitant, brushing the edge of his thumb across her first knuckle, before falling back away with a wavering laugh. ] I heal fast!
[ As his thumb brushes across her knuckle she swears that she feels a gentle buzzing. She doesn't understand what it is, why it's happening, perhaps she's just imagining it, but it's pleasant, a gentle tingling sensation across her skin, almost like electricity. If she wasn't otherwise preoccupied with what this weirdly stubborn "man"(??) is saying to her she might be entirely distracted by it - and distracted by the fact that she almost feels strangely disappointed when he draws that touch back again.
The redhead sighs, a gentle exhale. ]
That's not the point, Vash.
[ How exactly does she put it into words? The fact that she doesn't want anything even remotely resembling the extent of those injuries to happen to him again, that she doesn't even want to entertain just the possibility of it. Her lips part and she's clearly about to continue, although for once in her life it looks like she might struggle to articulate it, ] I-
[ She's cut off, abruptly, by a very familiar and very disapproving yowling sound, as a flash of regal fur appears from the other room and Eleanor comes to a stop beside them. Mitsuru chuckles softly in response, finally releasing her hold on Vash's hands before kneeling to address the disgruntled feline and gently stroke her head. ]
[ he knows, that whatever mitsuru was saying - that isn't the point. he understands it. but nevertheless there he goes again; running away again, deliberately acting obtuse behind eyes scrunching into a tight smile behind the tinted sunglasses.
it's a welcome distraction when eleanor appears from where she was enthroned on her fancy cushion on his bed in the other room, staring at them with (what he thinks) is an indignant gaze even while her tail sways to rest against mitsuru's leg in a clear show of "pay attention to me". it gives him an excuse to pull his hands away, taking a step back to let the cat take centre stage. ]
... Um, let me just - [ floundering, his eyes land on the spillage still on the ground, and vash jumps at the chance - moving towards the stove to fuss with the pot and its contents. ]
Right! I was making - soup! I hope it hasn't burnt!!!
[ It's meant as reassurance and anyway, it has to be pretty difficult to burn soup, right? Not that she had made a lot of the stuff ever in her life but still.
She scoops the attention seeking feline up into her arms, immediately taking comfort in the animal's warmth as she watches Vash fuss with the pot. ]
...Did you want me to wash your shirt for you, before I go?
[ You know, seeing as one of the first things Shinjiro taught her how to do when the realised they were stuck in this place indefinitely was to hand wash her own clothes.
She should go, she thinks, even if she doesn't actually want to. She'd just grabbed both of his hands, just like that, without even thinking about it because it had felt like the right thing to do, she had wanted to do it... Now she's questioning herself, falling into her usual habit of silently overanalysing her every thought and action. She's torn between wanting to hold them again, tell him what a fool she thinks he is for thinking he needs to hide what he is, what he looks like from her and fleeing and retreating herself.
Instead, she'll paint the perfect image of calm as per usual. ]
The gift I bought as a thank you is over there on the table by the way.
[ The box of donuts she almost dropped during shirtless panic. ]
in any case, it's not in any danger of burning - thanks to mitsuru having enough foresight to turn the heat off earlier before all the fiasco started - but vash keeps his back turned to the other two as he fusses around with it, unnecessarily fiddling with the knobs of the stove and giving it a few good stirs.
his shoulders curl in on themselves, the hunching of his spine made more obvious without the protective shell-layer of his coat in the way - but vash's laugh is almost back to normal; easy and familiar. practiced. ]
Thank you, but ... I can do it.
[ he's already caused her so much trouble already, so he can't really ask her to do the laundry on top of all that, you know? he'll throw it in the sink to soak after she's gone.
quickly, he makes sure that the soup is still okay - despite everything - and ladles it into the thermos, cuts the bread, packing them all neatly into a bundle that's easy to carry even alongside eleanor's carrier, turning around back to her just in time for mitsuru to point out the gift she'd brought. ]
[ Busying herself with getting her cat ready to go home seems like the right thing to do. Eleanor isn't exactly delighted about being put back into her carrier - although as far as pet carriers go it is ridiculously plush so resistance is fairly minimal. The feline clearly likes Vash and doesn't seem all that happy about going, various disgruntled noises announcing it for them both to hear - but then going home also means snuggles with "mum" so it's a good compromise. The disgruntled meows from inside the carrier continue but only very intermittently as Mitsuru turns her attention back to Vash. ]
And you didn't have to make that for me so I suppose we're somewhat even.
[ Honestly, she had been far too guilty in the past of returning from work and not fixing herself a proper meal. She tended to get carried away with her work, with her thoughts - it was the same back at Gekkoukan and fighting Shadows and it's not always that much different here. Without Shinjiro around she was more inclined to slip back into that little bad habit - late nights and not nearly enough sustenance.
Basically, the soup is appreciated. ]
Thank you. I'll return the thermos to you next time you're on a security shift. [ She holds out the carrier for a moment before she retrieves said thermos bundle. ] ...You had better say goodbye to her through the door or I'm sure she will sulk.
[ see, he had a good idea about how her work schedule was like ... besides, he understands a little of how difficult it is to keep things like that in mind when you're alone, with nobody around to remind them or share meals with.
but of course, he won't say anything to point it out; for once he's actually thinking before he speaks, maybe?
with a bright smile, vash drops to his haunches in front of the carrier she's holding out, sticking his fingers through the fancy woven grilling of the door so he can carefully boop eleanor's nose ... even though she still seems quite grumpy about having forced into it once more. ] Haha ... bye for now! I'll see you again soon!! Better ask Mitsuru to bring you to the office again, yeah?
[ a begrudging meow answers him and vash's smile grows a fraction wider, before looking up at the other. ]
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[ talking about mundane, meaningless things like how many shirts he owns helps; it detracts away from the topic at hand, with the rapidly cooling soup-soaked shirt still on the floor behind her. it also helps him to not be so aware of her hands on him, the steady firm press of her fingers around his hands. his heartbeats must be running fifteen hundred miles a second right now, the echoes of residual panic still very much there in the way his lashes flutter, nervously blinking it back - but he still returns the sheepish smile back to her regardless.
he isn't going anywhere, you know. the moment when he could have jumped out any convenient doorways or windows have passed ... but he still doesn't make a move to pull away or anything, obediently waiting for her cue.
it is only out of sheer practice that he doesn't curl back into himself at the quietly voiced question. ]
Not really! [ which means, yes, or at least partially so. he won't elaborate on it. ] I mean, it's been a while...
[ a while since he'd found himself in such a strange place as this, with such strange people. ]
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[ Then he can splatter as much soup as he likes - that amused quirk of her lips suggests as much. Nothing as mundane as talking about shirts and she too finds it easier to let that be a distraction, for a moment at least.
A distraction from the compulsive reaction she has to what he says next, gently squeezing his real hand with her own, fingers lightly twined with his, just for a moment... until she loosens her hold again.
It's been a while - does he mean a while since someone put a bullet in him? Burned him? Slashed him? And god knows whatever else by the looks of him... She doesn't like to think on that too much, the amount of times he must have been hurt badly enough to cause such permanent marks of damage over the course of more than century and a half. As for "not really", that answer of his does nothing to assuage her concerns that more than one of those wounds still cause him pain. ]
...If anything like that ever happens to you here, don't be foolish. Come to me. I can heal you before it becomes a problem.
[ A problem... Another scar to add to the patchwork, more pain. One less wouldn't make much of a difference, not in the grand scheme of things and not to him. But it's important to her, important that he knows she wants to do that for him. ]
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bare arms, bare hands; he'd never been without his gloves around others, much less his forearm completely exposed under scrutiny - it's a vulnerable feeling. not exactly fear of being hurt, but it's nevertheless pain of a different sort that worries at him, chewing on the inside of his cheek as he waits for her next words silently. ]
It's ... okay. Really.
[ stupid, like this, still trying to reassure her. his thumb twitches, hesitant, brushing the edge of his thumb across her first knuckle, before falling back away with a wavering laugh. ] I heal fast!
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The redhead sighs, a gentle exhale. ]
That's not the point, Vash.
[ How exactly does she put it into words? The fact that she doesn't want anything even remotely resembling the extent of those injuries to happen to him again, that she doesn't even want to entertain just the possibility of it. Her lips part and she's clearly about to continue, although for once in her life it looks like she might struggle to articulate it, ] I-
[ She's cut off, abruptly, by a very familiar and very disapproving yowling sound, as a flash of regal fur appears from the other room and Eleanor comes to a stop beside them. Mitsuru chuckles softly in response, finally releasing her hold on Vash's hands before kneeling to address the disgruntled feline and gently stroke her head. ]
We've been ignoring you, haven't we? Forgive us.
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it's a welcome distraction when eleanor appears from where she was enthroned on her fancy cushion on his bed in the other room, staring at them with (what he thinks) is an indignant gaze even while her tail sways to rest against mitsuru's leg in a clear show of "pay attention to me". it gives him an excuse to pull his hands away, taking a step back to let the cat take centre stage. ]
... Um, let me just - [ floundering, his eyes land on the spillage still on the ground, and vash jumps at the chance - moving towards the stove to fuss with the pot and its contents. ]
Right! I was making - soup! I hope it hasn't burnt!!!
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[ It's meant as reassurance and anyway, it has to be pretty difficult to burn soup, right? Not that she had made a lot of the stuff ever in her life but still.
She scoops the attention seeking feline up into her arms, immediately taking comfort in the animal's warmth as she watches Vash fuss with the pot. ]
...Did you want me to wash your shirt for you, before I go?
[ You know, seeing as one of the first things Shinjiro taught her how to do when the realised they were stuck in this place indefinitely was to hand wash her own clothes.
She should go, she thinks, even if she doesn't actually want to. She'd just grabbed both of his hands, just like that, without even thinking about it because it had felt like the right thing to do, she had wanted to do it... Now she's questioning herself, falling into her usual habit of silently overanalysing her every thought and action. She's torn between wanting to hold them again, tell him what a fool she thinks he is for thinking he needs to hide what he is, what he looks like from her and fleeing and retreating herself.
Instead, she'll paint the perfect image of calm as per usual. ]
The gift I bought as a thank you is over there on the table by the way.
[ The box of donuts she almost dropped during shirtless panic. ]
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in any case, it's not in any danger of burning - thanks to mitsuru having enough foresight to turn the heat off earlier before all the fiasco started - but vash keeps his back turned to the other two as he fusses around with it, unnecessarily fiddling with the knobs of the stove and giving it a few good stirs.
his shoulders curl in on themselves, the hunching of his spine made more obvious without the protective shell-layer of his coat in the way - but vash's laugh is almost back to normal; easy and familiar. practiced. ]
Thank you, but ... I can do it.
[ he's already caused her so much trouble already, so he can't really ask her to do the laundry on top of all that, you know? he'll throw it in the sink to soak after she's gone.
quickly, he makes sure that the soup is still okay - despite everything - and ladles it into the thermos, cuts the bread, packing them all neatly into a bundle that's easy to carry even alongside eleanor's carrier, turning around back to her just in time for mitsuru to point out the gift she'd brought. ]
You didn't have to! It really was nothing!
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And you didn't have to make that for me so I suppose we're somewhat even.
[ Honestly, she had been far too guilty in the past of returning from work and not fixing herself a proper meal. She tended to get carried away with her work, with her thoughts - it was the same back at Gekkoukan and fighting Shadows and it's not always that much different here. Without Shinjiro around she was more inclined to slip back into that little bad habit - late nights and not nearly enough sustenance.
Basically, the soup is appreciated. ]
Thank you. I'll return the thermos to you next time you're on a security shift. [ She holds out the carrier for a moment before she retrieves said thermos bundle. ] ...You had better say goodbye to her through the door or I'm sure she will sulk.
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but of course, he won't say anything to point it out; for once he's actually thinking before he speaks, maybe?
with a bright smile, vash drops to his haunches in front of the carrier she's holding out, sticking his fingers through the fancy woven grilling of the door so he can carefully boop eleanor's nose ... even though she still seems quite grumpy about having forced into it once more. ] Haha ... bye for now! I'll see you again soon!! Better ask Mitsuru to bring you to the office again, yeah?
[ a begrudging meow answers him and vash's smile grows a fraction wider, before looking up at the other. ]
Um. See you next time to you ... too?