#second one is just me mapping out vash’s scars

[archaicden]

some recent trigun sketches ❤️✌️

[vashuknivesu]

VashWood (I wrote the one I posted previously two hours ago and then got this idea and wrote this fifteen minutes ago?? Idk why I’m on a VashWood warpath?? I hope you like it tho)

Warnings: Uhh scar mentions. A lot. That’s it. Smoking? Wolfwood things.

~*~

“-And that one was from a Bounty Hunter. I really nearly got got that time.”

Wolfwood huffs out a column of smoke, watching with low and heavy eyelids as Vash maps out the scars on his naked abdomen. He can’t remember how they got onto the conversation exactly. A joke, he thinks vaguely, about putting a cap in the blonde’s ass if he carried on being annoying that turned into a rather funny story on how he very nearly actually got a cap in the ass once.

Not a single scar was an accident. From small, barely visible things that could pass as birth marks to the large, horrifying and knotted tragedies that took up vast amounts of his skin. They all had a story.

Wolfwood can remember a time in the early stages of their romantic relationship when Vash was self conscious of the network of mutilated flesh his body adorned. Shying away if the Undertaker looked too closely, ever so subtly hunching his shoulders forward whenever he was shirtless as if to shrink in on himself. He was a little bit proud to say that the Typhoon didn’t really hide from him anymore. Evident in the confidence he had in drawing attention to each and every twisted little scar on his form, hesitant only in explaining how it got there if the origin was a touchy subject.

“Anyway,” the blonde chirps, clearly having had enough of the skeletons in his closet for a day, “do you have any scars?”

The question catches Wolfwood off guard a little bit. And he doesn’t realise the ash on the end of his cigarette is getting a bit too large until it falls, landing right between his naked collar bones, and he hisses at the little sting. Vash laughs as the other man shoots up into a sitting position, swiping the ash off of himself, and stumping the half-smoked cig into the ashtray on the floor beside the bed. He grumbles, laying back down with a grunt and thinking for a moment.

“I got one.”

“Just one?”

“Yea’. When I was a kid.”

Wolfwood holds his arm up skyward, and Vash scoots in, until his cheek is resting on the inky-haired man’s shoulder, peering up at the arm as Wolfwood brings his other hand in to point at a spot in the centre of his forearm.

Vash squints. It’s… green. Like an old bruise.

“That’s a scar?”

“Mhm.”

“What is it?”

Wolfwood inhales, squinting at the spot himself for all of a few seconds before exhaling again.

“At the Orphanage. There was this kid I hated. Constantly made the other kids feel like shit cuz’ apparently he was only there ‘temporarily,’ n’ his Mom and Dad were gonna come back for him. Total lies. Just wan’ed to feel better than everyone else.”

Vash nods, soaking in every word, his big blue eyes shifting their focus from his partner’s arm to his tawny face. The square of scruffy jaw, the hook in his nose. His eyes soften fondly.

“Anyway, I got sick of it. Told him to shut up, n’ that his parents wan’ed about as much to do with him as the rest of us. And…”

The Typhoon blinks.

“And…?”

“… And he stabbed me in the arm with a pencil.”

Vash the Stampede was a good man, despite what others may think of him. Or what he may think of himself. He was open minded, understanding and endlessly kind. He’d never judge anyone for their origins, and would always lend a listening ear if someone needed it. So when a little sound forces its way out of his lungs, he clamps a hand over his mouth. But it does nothing to slow down the sudden onslaught of laughter that uses his entire stomach.

The Undertaker snarls, shoving a hand in Vash’s face and barking at him to stop his laughing. And Vash tries. He really does, but it doesn’t work. He laughs and laughs until his midriff is aching and Wolfwood is on top of him, hands braced either side of his head, straddling his hips and threatening violence.

“I-I’m sorry!” Vash giggles, wiping his eyes, “I just… A pencil.”

“Fuck you.”

“I mean, if you’re so inclined.”

Wolfwood scoffs, rolling his eyes and climbing off of his companion, stomping around to grab his cigarettes.

“I can’t believe that’s the only scar you have.”

“What can I say,” he grumbles, “everythin’ that came after the experiments healed like it never happened.”

“Right…”

Wolfwood turns to look at the man still lying prone in the bed, but his expression is now one of guilt, remorse. His eyebrows are drawn together, looking at nothing in particular as he thinks.

“Oi, Spikes,” Wolfwood calls out, “don’t go gettin’ soft on me now. You were just laughing at me a second ago.”

“Yeah, well that was until I remembered your tragic backstory,” Vash sulks, looking sullen and a bit upset with himself. Wolfwood can tell he’s worried that he may have insulted him with his laughter and rolls his eyes, sitting on the edge of the bed with his new cigarette and lighter in hand, and leans down to catch his lips in a sudden kiss that catches the blonde off guard.

“It’s fine,” Wolfwood breathes against the softness of Vash’s mouth, “I don’t mind you bein’ a bit mean.”

“Well I mind,” Vash pouts in retort, “makes me feel bad.”

“You need thicker skin.”

“Coming from the guy with a pencil scar.”

“I thought you felt bad.”

“I’m over it.”

Wolfwood huffs a laugh.

[goldendivinewrath]

@full-of-mercy

He forgets. Maybe. Forgets what he's doing, or forgets what he's been planning to do, or just. Forgets to be a good host. Vash knows he ought to take the clothes instead of being all too fine with letting fabric drop to the floor, but he doesn't want to break the contact. Wolfwood's fingers resting in loops, on belts, anywhere is too important. He knows he should say something about where the soap is. Help more. Lead.

Less forgetting going on than getting lost, then. Intentionally. Wandering a different landscape together, no maps and nothing to run from. Nowhere to go.

"As if you could ever be too much of a mess for me." Tease for tease, but he feels it, the burn in the back of his throat. Eyes threatening to overflow, but they don't. He doesn't. He tries to hold back the urge to cry, because why? Everything he longed for, for what feels like his entire life even if it's been barely a fraction of that, the loss he's felt in the marrow of his bones and the beat of his heart and the rasp of every whispered word is here. In front of his eyes, under his fingers, in this ridiculous place for reasons he can guess at but isn't ready to try and know. There's no need to cry anymore.

Vash is overwhelmed still. Good overwhelmed. That thing, that feeling, which is so very rare that he hasn't bothered to assign words to it. Again and again with Wolfwood, here, now. Speaking, and breathing, and the same. Different, but the same, and fault-- Fault, responsibility, can't be considered just now.

Still. He's looking, letting himself, trying not to stare but he can't help but see, know, the pain sketched out across the flesh as much as anything else. There's evidence of the hurt now, but he's not sure what could be made any better, any easier, by that. Or worse. It changes nothing, nothing fundamental, nothing important. It changes everything, but only in perspective. A little over to the left of what was before, maybe. Or a little more in focus, a little sharper in detail. Wolfwood is his own, now. Carrying his own markings, some intentional, and some...

He swallows, and swallows, and breathes. Leans in to the other man, forehead to forehead, a handful of seconds with gentle contact. Could still be a dream. A lot longer and more elaborate than the ones which have come before, but it could still be. It's a thought he purposely, willfully dismisses outright when his eyes trace the scar from above. Scars, interwoven, mapping out the past as much as what breaks him away from it. Proof of life, of survival. Proof of pain and loss and misery, too, but that-- Vash isn't willing to let those things be thought of above the rest. All he sees when he pulls back enough to meet the other man's gaze is--

Something he doesn't deserve. Never did. But something he is determined to earn, because he cannot let go. Already torn from his hands once, he... gently, gently lets himself touch. Flesh hand over flesh and blood and beating heart. "Yeah." It's a distracted whisper, it's saying too much and never enough and being the kind of bone-deep honest that usually terrified him to think about. Good thing he's barely thinking at all, as if eyes and fingers tracing lines of scar tissue were enough to keep him hypnotized. "I'll give you anything you want."

The realization of what he'd just said and how much he means it hit him all at once with a quiet, embarrassed laugh, eyes cast back down for a moment, but there's nothing that will make him take it back. Nothing that can make him pretend he doesn't intend to keep his word.

He wants to talk about it.

He never wants to talk about it.

"Wolfwood..?" He doesn't mean to sound timid, scared. It's not that, it's just... reaching. They're both reaching for something that feels like it's worth taking slowly, carefully, but they've also been waiting too long and he's still hoping, hoping-- "Is there anything you want?"

Hot water, hot water. It's like a mantra, enough that the words themselves have begun to lose their meaning, reduced to the nuances of sound and resonance that fill the narrowing space between them. It's a thing that exists. Probably. Likely. Potentially. It's a state of being, metaphorically speaking, and isn't that apt here and now?

There are no windows in this room. The door has closed, and with its tenuous latch the sounds of everything else beyond are blunted beyond recognition.

There is only this:

Cool tile under bare feet, the weighty thump of sock-stuffed boots discarded with the dull hiss of ubiquitous sand, the flap-doff of jacket, and presence so full that it makes the shielded bulb light feel warmer on all of the careworn angles this space has to offer.

Nicholas straightens as Vash's answer comes as it usually does—with action, with movement. He glances off to the slough of carmine fabric, to leather set aside, and then down to the lift of hands. Tentative. Almost.

More than almost.

But he is asking. And that alone seems monumental. It is enough to drag Wolfwood's attention back up to vibrant eyes, all with a nod of assent. Maybe of challenge.

What is his face even doing? It feels odd, skewed, not his usual half-cocked grin but something milder, maybe something just as tentative despite his best efforts.

For want of something to do with his own hands, he bends his arms at the elbows, neutral and comfortable, touching fingertips to the outsides of Vash's hips. He does not grab, does not squeeze, maintaining contact as a matter of balance, as a matter of grounding.

"Hah, well, could always go without, 'less I'm too much of a mess," he teases. Attempts to tease. He never favored sleeping in a shirt. Drawstring slacks were enough, better for contending with the sweltering heat until whatever tinderbox they stayed in at the time became somewhat more tolerable.

Buttons slip from fabric with ease.

There aren't many to undo.

Pale linen parts, untucked from belt and hem, to tawny skin beneath, to the metal spires of piercing adornments left undisturbed, and to the echoes of mortality. On that day in the shadows of Hopeland, Nicholas D. Wolfwood should have died many times over. He did die in so many ways—but the thread of fate, the flip of the tarot card, is a strange mistress.

Chapel impaled him. Crucified him on the ground before the horrified flock of orphans and caretakers, blade-edged barrels punishing the Punisher for transgressions against an organization that spanned generations, for sins against the living embodiment of their Angel of God. The flanges' brute outlines are as distinct as the Eye's brand, four-pointed starbursts of scar tissue matted and silvery over his ribs, left and right, ripped through like blasphemous stigmata.

Ruptured organ. Shattered bone. Drowning in blood and fury and desperation, held together by will and urgency.

Livio and his attendants took their pounds of flesh too, even with the cycling damage-and-healing of serum. Sacrament rewinds time, but there was only so much that it could do. The truth of miracles is often rooted in horror. This has become a part of him. Scars are a sign of mending, after all, whatever that means moving forward.

Muscle cords and slides underneath the stripes marring his obliques. Dark hair shadows his chest, trails his abdomen, somewhat askew disappearing below his navel.

He is whole, by all rights.

His heart, ever the traitorous thing, beats.

"...could probably do with a soak," he murmurs. Clothes or himself, he does not clarify, torn between watching Vash's hands and his face. At this point, he is braced, heels planted, shoulders rolled back.

His fingertips remain poised, prepared to withdraw, prepared to grab, he isn't certain, but they tingle nonetheless. Either way his Adam's apple bobs as he swallows, parts his lips, suddenly craving a cigarette that is at the moment out of reach.

Something to gnaw on beyond the insides of his own cheeks.

Well. He'll have to endure.

A deep inhale comes with a pause, a flex, and then a measured exhale as he relaxes incrementally.

"What do you think, Spikey? Got a pair of slacks I won't rip?"

God. He's trying.

[wherearemyglassesbro]

ooh ooh!! can you do more characters in your genshin au?

Yeah!! ;-; I’m surprised y’all like it alsjalsksk thank you for humoring me :)

Sadik: Pyro, polearm, *

Yells a lot in his voice lines and despite having a whole polearm, he still uses his hands in combat as well. He switches attacks from a good ol polearm whack to a full on sucker punch. Such a variety

Sadik is the best chef at the finest restaurant in the Pyro region of Natlan

He runs the kitchen with an iron fist, nearly making his chefs cry cause he’s like...A muscular Gordon Ramsay. But he will soften up if he actually sees tears

Because of this discipline, his restraunt has 7 stars...When 5 is usually the best of the best. The food there is above and beyond! And only the richest can really go because it’s $5,000 for one serving of spiced chili slime secretions...it tastes better than it sounds

He has full sleeves of tattoos on both arms which show ingredients, dishes and scenery from all of the regions he studied in. His ink pretty much tells his life story so far. Once he runs out of room on his arms he’ll move on to his back

He does interviews for the newspaper and the reporters are like ‘how do you cook so well?’ And he looks at them and goes ‘I don’t burn it’ wow fantastic insight

He isn’t really into combat but he’s a playable character anyway! We have a (soon to be) playable nun so anything is possible

Abel: Pyro, claymore, *

Another hard hitting character who tends to be on the slow side cause of his weapon but his power move would inflict a lot of damage

Abel is a pro bounty hunter, hired by all kinds of people from the varying regions of Teyvat. He gets paid a lot but his line of work is scaryyyy he takes on like 3 ruin guards at once sometimes. His skin is littered with scars from hilichurl claws, burns and stab wounds. He doesn’t care. He looks super cool

His cabin is tucked away and it’s location is unknown to the general public. Only his brother and sister know but they aren’t allowed to go unless it’s an emergency. Whenever he meets them it has to happen at night within the walls of a city. He doesn’t want criminals or monsters finding out he has siblings

He has a map of each region tattooed somewhere on his hand or arm instead of using a paper map. Fire powers and paper dont go well together

Lilli: Geo, catalyst, Springvale Mondstat

She’s a healer and her attacks consist of meteors flying out of the sky and hitting enemies! Best used when enemies are not right up in her face cause she literally can’t do hand to hand combat at all so that’s her only drawback

She’s still a kid but her brother trains her to be the best she can be! Vash is visionless but he expected to get a Geo vision. He didn’t, his sister did. So he’s helping her get stronger and learn about her power. She is so grateful for him :’)

She goes to school as she should and does all of her work and on her days off, she practices out in the fields with her brother. Vash throws rocks at her and she uses her powers to stop them in midair and hurl them back in his direction. She’d never ever hurt him and if she did she’d literally stop using her vison forever

Her idle voice lines are mostly about her brother or getting home before sundown “Hm...I wonder what my brother is doing right now” “The sun is setting! We better get moving” “Ah...The breeze feels nice tonight...” “Let’s get moving! There’s so much to see out here!”

If she dies from fall damage or something her ‘death’ voice line is “Big brother...Please...Dont forget me...” OUCH

Raj: Geo, longsword, his ship

Super fast and attacks jump from one enemy to the other super quick!! Downside is that it’s hard to focus on one enemy if there’s multiple around you cause his attacks go from enemy to enemy

Raj is the captain and owner of a huge cargo ship. He has a crew of 40 strong fighters, all with visions. He carries cargo back and forth from Liyue to Snezhnaya and Inazuma. He carries minerals, food supplies, textiles, anything that pays well!

His sword looks super old and that’s cause it is! It belonged to his great grandfather and has been passed down allllll the way to him! He wields it proudly even though it needs a bit of fixing up here and there every other month

To pass the time while traveling by sea, he plays his flute and his crew sings songs! It warms his heart to see everyone get along

You could hold up any rock and he’d tell you what it is. He has studied up on everything he sells and I mean...He is a Geo vision holder so he takes rock knowledge seriously

Xiao-Mei: Dendro, archer, Liyue

Fast attacks that will knock enemies over for a few seconds, giving you time to run up to them and land a blow while they’re down

Xiao-Mei is a jewelry maker! She and her mother run a small shop under the docks of Liyue harbor. The placement of the shop is actually beneficial cause as ships dock, the crew will hurry in to buy something for their lovers before seeing them on the streets above! Very slick :)

Xiao-Mei works did metal and makes her own beads for her pieces. She incorporates a lot of shapes or colors from natire, often inspired by flowers like glaze lillies :)

She wears tons of necklaces, rings and bracelets at all times!! If someone likes something she’s wearing, she’ll sell it to them!

Antonio: Hydro, longsword, *

Attacks tend to focus on one enemy at a time and isn’t good for multitasking... Groups of hilichurls are his weakness but he’ll excel during big boss fights since it’s just one to focus attacks on!!

He has really flirty voice lines though jeez sir calm down...

Toni is an entertainer!! A sword fighting entertainer! People place bets on him and his opponent and it’s exhilarating work! Is it legal? Maybe! Maybe not! Everything is technically legal in the woods right?

He flirts with the ladies in the crowd and thinks he’s so slick but his pick up lines are just the worst “I’ve got a hydro vison :) I can make you...hehe...wet” STOP-

He tends to stay within the borders of the hydro region(Fontaine(?)) but will venture to other regions if his ‘career’ requires it!

He isn’t the smartest so he has a lot of moments where you’re like ‘wow...theres not a thought behind those pretty green eyes’ so...I mean he’s kinda a comic relief :)

Michelle: Hydro, catalyst, Raj’s ship

One of her power move things is a water shield!! She can shoot through it but things can’t hit her for like 30 seconds! Then the shield can be deployed again and can be used on other characters on your team

Michelle fishes and cooks for Raj and his crew! She was picked up off a beach, lost and disoriented. She’s made a family out of the ship crew and thinks of Raj as an older brother :)

She is a very talented chef but always makes more than needed so they have a lot of leftovers :0

She buys something from Xiao-Mei’s every time they dock in Liyue :)