bountyfull | IC INBOX

[ Vash laughs, the sound light and a little throaty in that way he does, his hands smoothing back up over his brother to slide over the muscles in his neck and higher still to cradle his jaw. He scrunches his nose a little at the affection, careful in particular to keep his prosthetic hand's touch extra light. ]

It'll be a lot more comfortable if you come lie down with me. We can use my room. You look exhausted, Nai.

[ He can just tell if only by the tense way his brother seems to be holding himself even now. ]

( he loves the sound of his brother's laughter, always has and always will, even if he doesn't admit it out loud very often; seeing vash happy, he thinks, is one of the best parts of being here with him now. almost like there had never been any tension between them, and there hadn't been a century and a half spent apart just because he had his own vision of a future he wanted nothing more than to share with the most important person in the whole of his existence.

he presses his cheek into the touch to his jaw, and it's always going to be entirely too easy to give his brother what he wants, even without him asking for it outright. they're both getting better about using their words, and he huffs out a small noise, something caught between a laugh and a sigh as he moves to unfold himself. )

I wouldn't say I'm exhausted. ( he murmurs, pulling away from those soft touches just enough to roll to his feet and come around to the other side of the couch, arms curling around his brother's tiny waist and pulling him in close to murmur against his mouth. )

How can I say no to you, hm?

[ He wants to know the why so terribly badly. Why does it seem like his brother is doing all he can to avoid sleep to the point of sitting up like a ghost at all hours in their shared home? He's a little wary when Knives moves away, his eyes tracking him in the dim lighting to make sure he's not going to try and escape and haunt some other darkened corner of the house instead. The moment hands land on his waist and Knives is in his space again he relaxes again, his hands lifting up to settle on either side of his twins face, thumbs brushing over the curve of his cheekbones. ]

You could, if you wanted to. [ They're barely whispering and it's absolutely just breathing into each other's mouths with how close they are. But even Vash realizes that there's been little to none of Knives saying no throughout most of their lives. It's never been no it's just been Knives doing what Knives thought best, despite what Vash wanted. Vash, himself, was never not let to do exactly what he wanted to do. So, if Knives wanted to, Vash is certain he could say no. But he's almost certain that he won't.

Vash closes the negligible distance between their lips, tongue swiping past teeth and into Knives' mouth just before he chooses to nip sharp teeth against his lower lip. He steps back then, the expression on his face hard to read in the dark, most likely, but he does make sure so slip out of Knives' grip to catch his hand with one of his own instead, to tug him back towards the hallway that leads to however many bedrooms their new home has. ]

( maybe he'll tell him, once they're wrapped up in blankets and one another's arms, once he feels like he might finally be safe from the nightmares he hasn't figured out the source of yet; as it stands, it seems so silly to let something so intangible get to him as it has, especially so easily.

( maybe a distant part of him is afraid of losing what they've found here. together. he thinks he would rather die again than give that up, but there's no real need for such morbid thoughts right this second. )

he can feel the other's eyes on him as he moves, and maybe he's right for wondering if he's going to end up skittering off into another dark part of their shared space, given how adamant he'd been about not sleeping when he'dd first arrived, but he only wants to close that distance between them again, be as close to his twin as he possibly can, and he gives over a helpless little chuckle at the words that come out of his mouth next. )

Mm. Maybe. ( he's never outright denied vash anything, though it does stand to reason that he's done things for his own reasons, thinking of the other's best interest even if his logic happens to be a little bit skewed at times — but everything he's ever done has been for him, he hadn't been lying when he said it, even if the intention ends up falling just short of its mark. ) But maybe I don't want to, either.

( case in point: he's so, so willing to give himself over to that kiss when vash closes the distance between them, parting his lips to the sweet sweep of that tongue — at least he thinks it's going to be a kiss until the nip of those teeth comes and his brother steps back and out of his reach before he can retaliate, and the next noise out of him is something borderline between a whine and a growl. the latter, at least, is playful as he lets himself be led toward a bedroom, just a smidge of petulance in his tone as he follows up with: ) I might start, though, if you keep using your teeth like that.

( liar. you know you like it. )

[ He probably shouldn't be (maybe unintentionally) riling his brother up while trying to coax him into bed to actually sleep but Vash has never really been one to make a lot of plans before falling into the heat of things. This is no different, even though he'd at least had some semblance of an idea on how to get his brother to come to his room and sleep with him.

The growl gets nothing from Vash other than one of those light, throaty laughs he does. He doesn't look back at his brother, but does take a moment to tangle their fingers together instead, tugging lightly as he ambles down the hallway and back towards the end of it where the double doors lead into the little alcove that separate Vash's room and the stairwell towards Nai's own. Instead of dragging Nai up the curved stairs decorated with books and plants in inlaid bookshelves, Vash pulls him into the room that's mostly windows that he uses as his bedroom. He turns when they reach his bed, tugging Nai in close again to nose against the cheek decorated with his own beautymark. ]

Sorry, couldn't help it. Bed's warm. [ It's an implied meaning, one that has no heat behind it, not tonight. The pattering of rain starts to hit the windows that arch into the ceiling and Vash lifts a hand to brush over the back of his brother's neck. ]I'll stay with you.

( it's only just this side of easy to get him riled up because it's vash, and his brother is always going to be able to pull that sort of reaction from him regardless of his intent; he knows what he's trying to do, or at least he thinks he does, and yes it would be a bit too simple to fall into the fairly new habit of seeking to kiss him breathless before moving on to anything else, but. in this instance, he's pretty sure that isn't what he's gunning for.

even if it would be a nice detour, he's not about to spurn his twin's good intentions by turning them into something else entirely.

there's comfort in this, in being led by the hand of the one person he would trust with anything, and he keeps that feeling close to his heart as he's ushered into the space that is the other's bedroom. allows himself to be pulled close again and held, returning the nuzzle to his cheek with one of his own.

when he gives over those words, nai lifts his head slightly, expression imploring without really meaning to be. )

You will?

Yeah. C'mon.

[ He tugs at Nai again, stepping back so he's crawling backward onto his own bed, one knee at a time. Luckily, he'd been barefooted before so there's no extra work to pull off shoes or change into sleeping clothes. The sheets on his bed are unmade, but he pushes them aside with his free hand as he tugs. ]

Just you and me and some sleep. Like when we were kids.

[ Innocent, warm, and safe. Like the bed they shared then (and now) is impenetrable, safe from worries and bad moods. The window of their room open to the darkness of space and bright pinpoint stars. Here it may just be the sky, and there's no rumbling of an engine in the background, time and space separating then and now with hundreds of years and millions of miles. ]

We'll talk till you get tired again. I'll hold your hand.

( he feels a little lost — much like he had when he'd first woken up in this place — but vash's hand is warm in his own, the promise of closeness until he manages to find some measure of solace in sleep again weighing heavy in the air between them and he. of course he likes the thought of it, of course he wants that closeness because he always does. he just never knows how to ask for it, because he still doesn't feel like it's something he can ask for in the first place.

he follows him, quietly and slowly until both of his knees are amidst the unmade sheets; they smell like his brother, a wave of calm and comfort soothing over him like a balm to his very soul, his heart, and if he … near-immediately folds himself down into that unmade mess to bury his face against a pillow or something else, just to breathe him in and hold it in the center of his chest. well. don't comment on it, okay?

this is not one of his finer moments.

he settles, curling up just a little bit, looking up at his brother just this side of expectantly. )

What would you like to talk about?

[ To Vash's credit, his only reaction to Nai's moment of weakness is to tilt his head to the side a little, a smile on his face as he lowers himself down so he's laying down facing his brother, one hand pulling sheets and blankets up over them both as he shimmies in closer, their noses almost touching. ]

Mm... I'm not picky. [ He thinks for a moment though as he lifts a hand up to drag fingers through the white-blonde hair on his brother's head, blue eyes fixed on the action as he thinks. ]

The stars here are different than what I memorized at home, but I'm starting to remember the constellations I've learned about. I think my favorite is the Compass Fish.

[ He's just babbling about astronomy here, at little, little tales that apparently accompany the constellations. He keeps stroking his fingers through his brother's hair, down the nape of his neck and back, slow and methodical. ]

( this is a lot like their first ( and only ) year on the ship, when they really only had each other despite how well rem had cared for them, how well she'd looked after them from the very first moment of their birth; there is always going to be a part of nai that insists this is all they need. just the two of them, nothing and no one else infringing on their personal bubble and everything and everyone leaving them to their own devices.

he doesn't care much that he would rather do anything sleep right now, as long as he can have this kind of closeness with his brother.

his eyes close for a brief moment as those fingers comb through his hair, a pleased and content noise filtering up to the surface without much thought to giving it at all. he's never going to openly admit that he's just this side of touch-starved and soaks up all the attention vash gives him like a proverbial sponge, but there is no denying it when he reacts like this, and if that sound ends up morphing into something that sounds suspiciously like a purr, it's the closest it can actually get when he's this human.

don't worry about it.

he hums quietly during a lull in the other's rambling, brows briefly creasing in thought. ) You always liked those stories, didn't you? The lore behind them … ( gods and goddesses, the stories of heroes from all different sources of mythology, and there is one more thing nai is never going to admit openly, because he's always been so serious about the media he consumed, apart from all those old westerns.

he likes them, too. perhaps the romantic ones the most. ) Do you remember what your favorite was?

A favorite? Mm... I don't know if I could pick a favorite. Maybe Andromeda and Perseus. The story was that he rescued her from Medusa. They're right next to each other in the sky...

[ There's a pause as he turns his attention to watching the way Nai's hair parts around his fingers as he drags his fingers through the soft strands. It's hard to miss the purr and though it's likely nothing like they could do were they not locked away from half or more of what they are, there's a small reciprocated echo of noise Vash answers back with, especially when he makes an effort to press a kiss through strands of blonde hair. ]

Did you know humans assign people constellations based on when they're born, Nai? [ He speaks this in such a soft tone, the timbre and pace of his words quiet and low. It almost makes himself feel a little sleepy, but he exhales a long breath as he pulls blankets around them again, tucking fabric here and there. ]

We were born under Cancer, but there's a constellation that's twins too. Gemini. It's kind of a shame we can't see these in the sky here or at home. [ He would love the chance to stargaze with his brother, pointing out the ones with stories. Falling asleep in grass understarlight.

Not that this is bad, besides the circumstances that brought it about. ]

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