Trigun Fan Fiction ❯ The Resurrection Of Nicholas D. Wolfwood ❯ Memories And Money ( Chapter 9 )

The Resurrection Of Nicholas D. Wolfwood

Part Nine: Memories And Money

By Bekka Mouri

(Trigun doesn't belong to me and I am not making any money so please don't sue me. Wolfwood thinks about his childhood. Spoilers.)

Wolfwood leaned against the Angelina II as sat on the ground and smoked a cigarette. Vash had gotten to the sheriff and returned with plenty of help for the wounded. Cathy had been a nervous wreck so she wasn't able to help and was sleeping because the town doctor had given her something to settle her nerves. It seemed things had calmed down and he needed a moment to himself.

He looked down at the ground as he combed his brain for memories he couldn't recall but he had flashes now and then. He shut his eyes and he could see a little cake with three candles and a lady carrying the cake. Her features were blurry but he could make out long blue/black hair. The image changed and the same lady as well as a man were both lying in pools of blood and riddled with bullet holes.

The man's features weren't as blurry because Wolfwood knew who he was. It was odd he remembered his father a little better than his mother but he did. He recalled some shouting and gunfire. The next thing he recalled was when he had been taken away from his home and given to the man who was to be his guardian.

The man was walking trash and mistreated Wolfwood in ways that would make normal people sick just to think about them. He never understood why such scum had been allowed to be around kids. It seemed no one cared just as long as the children were off the streets back then and that was something he had set out to change. Wolfwood had decided early on that no child should be subjected to the things he had to endure.

At seven, Wolfwood had met a priest and ended up telling him about the bad things his guardian had done to him. That priest had turned out to be Chapel The Evergreen and he told Wolfwood things could change only if he wanted them to. Change was what Wolfwood wanted the most so he listened. Chapel had told him a lot of things he wanted to hear and now he realized some of it was just because he knew Wolfwood wanted to hear them.

Chapel had given Wolfwood hope and he knew what to do with it. When he got home, he found his guardian's gun and hid it under some garbage bags in the alley. It was the perfect plan and he was certain nothing would go wrong. He waited for his guardian to come home; when he did, he was drunk and ready to slap Wolfwood around.

Wolfwood let the pig land a few good jabs and he tore outside to the alley, knowing his guardian would follow him. He dug the gun out of the bags and turned around just as his guardian stepped outside, shutting the door to the house. It took him a few moments to process he had been set up and he lunged at Wolfwood. Small fingers cocked the gun before they closed around the trigger and the brute was knocked back before slumping to the ground.

Wolfwood had laughed once he realized how easy it had been to change everything with such a simple action. Chapel had told him that things would be different if he took matters into his own hands and he saw how true it was. He hid the gun in his shorts the best he could and ran for the church that Chapel said he would be waiting at. Back then, Wolfwood thought that things would only get better but he never realized until much later how a good deal worse things had become.

" Are you going to smoke the filter now? " Vash asked, sitting down next to Wolfwood.

Wolfwood opened his eyes and saw that his cigarette had burned all the way down, " Oh. Looks like I was trying to, doesn't it? "

" Cathy is awake, " Vash sighed.

" Really? Is she feeling any better? " Wolfwood asked, throwing the butt away.

" A little but she thinks you're still mad at her for her little prank, " Vash looked at Wolfwood. " Are you? "

" Under the circumstances, I guess I'll let it slide. If that crap hadn't happened this morning, I would have thrown her over my knee and spanked her, " Wolfwood got another cigarette. " I don't care if she's too old for that or not, I still would have done it because that was just plain wrong. "

" Yeah, it was, " Vash nodded. " It would have been funny though if things had been different. "

" Don't you dare take her side Vash! It wouldn't have been funny either way. That was juvenile and not only that she makes me nervous. There's something not right about that woman, " Wolfwood shook his head.

" How old do you think she is anyway? " Vash arched an eyebrow.

Wolfwood lit the cigarette, " Hell, I don't know. She's got to be eighteen or nineteen at least. "

Vash looked away, " She's fourteen. "

The cigarette dropped from Wolfwood's mouth, " She's WHAT? "

" The doctor told me. He said she was just big for her age… you know, an early bloomer. He said Beck let her tend the bar after her mom died last year in spite of the fact she looked like a full grown woman and would probably get hit on, " Vash covered his face with his hands.

Wolfwood picked up his cigarette, " I knew something wasn't right with her. "

Vash let out a whine, " I can't believe she's ONLY fourteen. She's so cute.

" You were having bad thoughts about her, weren't you? " Wolfwood smirked a little.

Vash let his hands drop from his face and he looked at Wolfwood. " No I was… Okay, maybe a few but I thought she… Aw… "

" Give it up, " Wolfwood patted Vash on the back. " You don't have to lie to me. She would have never gone with you anyway. You saw how she was to you last night when you were annoying the shit out of her. "

Vash sighed, " Man… she's was so cute then too. "

" So, her mom died last year and her dad died today, " Wolfwood muttered as he took a drag off the cigarette. " Poor kid. "

" The doctor also told me that she has some family in May City, " Vash said.

" And we are supposed to do what about that? " Wolfwood narrowed his eyes. He knew that Mr. Goody-Goody had probably offered the kid a ride.

" Nothing. He said he could keep her until he got a hold of her family, " Vash smiled.

Wolfwood slapped a hand to his forehead, " Don't scare me like that! Damn it, needle noggin. Don't you ever think before you speak? "

" The shorthaired insurance girl asks me that a lot, " Vash put his hand behind his head.

" I'm sure she does. You really should get together with her, Vash. She likes you and I can tell you like her, " Wolfwood smiled.

" What? I don't like her that much " Vash blushed.

" You never shut up about her, " Wolfwood pointed out. " You mention her three times a day minimum. "

" No I don't! " Vash shook his head.

" Yeah you do, " Wolfwood shook his head. " I keep count. "

" That's not fair! " Vash whined. " I don't bug you about the tall one! "

" You're too scared to, " Wolfwood took a drag off the cigarette. " Oh yeah, did you ever get a map? "

" Cathy gave us one as a peace offering, " Vash held up a map. " She said it would come in handy. "

" Yeah, it will, " Wolfwood smiled. He looked up when he heard the sound of approaching feet and saw it was the sheriff. " Is there something wrong? " He asked.

" Nothing at all, boys. I am just happy to see you both are still here. I have the bounty for McGee, " He held up a bag of money. " Spend it wisely. "

**

Meryl yawned as she sat down at her desk and noticed someone had put the day's paper there. Her eyes got wide at the headline and her breath caught in her throat. It screamed that the outlaw Maximillion McGee had been captured. McGee had popped up shortly after Vash's rumored disappearance and raised a lot of havoc between Lotenburg Canyon and a small town called Winston that was just on the other side of May City.

It was rumored McGee's gang tried to go up against Brilliant Dynamites Neon for control of Lotenburg Canyon but lost and had to flee to Winston under threat of death from The Bad Lads. Ever since, they had held the town a virtual prisoner by striking at night and stealing anything they could. Meryl read the article, her breath caught in her throat. The man who shot McGee refused to identify himself.

" Winston is the next closest towns to Steele, " Meryl muttered to herself, setting the paper down. " I wonder…? "

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