Tempest Wind (Vash x F!Reader)

Epilogue

Singular notes echo from the large building. The blonde man often stands by the piano, the fingers of his right hand looking for a melody that has escaped him. Each day, he finds solace in the familiar sound of the instrument, hoping that one day the tune will resurface and bring back the forgotten memories.

"Remember anything yet?" the young girl called Lina asks as she holds the tray with a pitcher and a glass. "It's okay if not. You can take your time. By the looks of it, you've been through a lot."

The singular searching strokes on the keys don't stop as she speaks. The tones linger uncomfortably in the air. Their dissonance seems to mirror his inner turmoil. Lina watches intently, her eyes filled with a mixture of curiosity and compassion, as if she can sense the weight of his unspoken pain.

"It's all over now. You're safe here with us. You know that..." She continues, not deterred by the fact that the tall man doesn't look at her or give her an answer. "...right, Eriks?

Lina stands in the middle of the room for a bit longer, unsure of how to help the strange man. He doesn't scare her in the least, but there is something lightly unnerving about the lost way he is. She walks closer to him to offer the water she brought and maybe distract him from his troubles.

"Could you..." His voice is quiet and hesitant. "Could you tell me again? How you found me..."

Eriks doesn't speak much, his mind is a ghost town of memories that are no longer there. Just a few fragments here and there, but he has no recollection of what happened to him or how he got to be this way. He doesn't know who he used to be. Only shadows fill his thoughts. He often asks Lina or her grandmother about how they found him and brought him with them. Lina places the tray on top of the piano and takes a deep breath. She understands his yearning to piece together his shattered past. With a gentle smile, she begins to recount the tale for what feels like the hundredth time.

"We found you after the tragedy of July. You are one of the lucky ones who survived. You were in the crater; your clothes were burned badly, but by some miracle, you weren't injured. You were lying on a weird layer of debris; it felt like wilted lettuce—strange and a bit leathery. I think they were the same things as that one." Lina points at something on top of the piano next to the tray. "They were all black and brown except that one; you were holding it in your hand. I wonder why this one looks different than the rest."

Eriks lifts his hand from the keys to gently pick up the singular blue iris from the top of the piano. He twirls it between his fingers as he looks at its beauty.

"Granny called it a flower. She said it would die soon, but it has been like this for a while, so who knows?" Lina shrugs and pours Vash a glass of water. "Anyway, we threw you on a cart, and since you didn't look injured, we brought you home. Nothing much more about it. Here, Eriks, drink."

She reaches the glass to the man, who is too mesmerized by the blossom to notice her outstretched arm.

"Lina!" Granny's voice calls from somewhere upstairs.

"Coming!" the girl hollers back. "I'll just leave it here for you, Eriks!"

She puts the glass back on the tray. She gives the man another look; he seems so focused on the flower, and she hesitates before running to the stairs to go help the elderly woman. As Lina hurries up the stairs to assist Granny, she can't help but wonder about the mysterious man. His fascination with the blossom intrigues her, and she can't shake off the feeling that there is more to his story than meets the eye.

Eriks tilts his head, and the long hair falls more onto his face. He feels like he should know the significance of this simple thing in his hand; his heart is crying out for him to remember, but there is nothing coming to his mind. He lets out a deep sigh, turns around, and heads through the saloon-style doors.

Since the beginning, the vast open desert has been inviting him, like there are paths carved into it he needs to walk again, but he has no idea where they start, where they lead, or who they are inviting. Eriks is happy here with Lina and her grandmother; he helps them out the best he can while trying to remember what he was doing in July in the first place. As he steps out into the scorching heat, a wave of nostalgia washes over him, as if the desert holds the key to unlocking his lost memories. The sand crunches beneath his boots as he walks. Eriks can't help but feel that the answers he seeks lie just beyond the horizon, concealed within the vast expanse of the desert.

The wind rushes over the dunes, and he sees it picking up dust and sand. The rush of air flows through him; it makes the button-up shirt flap while it caresses his scarred body and teases his senses. It plays with his hair, pushing it away from his face and lingering for a moment on his cheeks. Another gust of air dances along and whispers in his ear. He could swear that, once again, like many times before, the breeze called out his name, if only he could remember it.

Thank you for reading and for the support!

Read my other works and keep up with updates on Tumblr (work available on AO3 and Quotev too)!!!