[The shifting rocks beneath them means Knives misjudges his step and it jars his wounded leg, though he makes little visible indication of it besides the awkward pause in his gait and the way his expression tightens. He'd sooner go through the indignity of flinging himself down the slope to get down than to rely on Vash.]
A peaceful world is all I wanted for you.
[His voice is soft, avoiding Vash's gaze. He's not interested in rehashing any recent arguments about it, except to add--]
But this is still just a dream, Vash. And dreams are fleeting.
[ If vash noticed the subtle shift in Knives' gait or the strain in his face he doesn't make it obvious. Instead he just regards what his brother says quietly. It's funny how the context of just a couple of sentences can hit entirely differently when the tone and atmosphere around them aren't as fraught.
His expression remains soft, if a little sad. His grip on the fishing poles tightens a little, and though he glances in Knives' direction briefly he's ALSO avoiding eye contact. He doesn't close his eyes because he's almost certain if he did he'd fall on his face but... the sigh that is breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth might as well illustrate him with a closed eyed expression. ]
I know. [ To which? Both? Probably. ] But it's all some people have, so it's real to them. Going home just means to die for some people. [ There's a pointed glance over in his brother's direction. ]
Dolph's found a whole new life here. Something for himself when he didn't have anything like that where he came from. So if it's real to him, then it's real to me.
[ He stops as they come to a slope that means either they're going to have to shimmy down slowly or slide down on their butts. He turns to look at Knives, and without much of a word he holds his arm out, crooked, to offer support. Or maybe to just work in tandem so they don't both take a tumble. ]
[Knives has to take a moment to comprehend what he's being told. He scarcely remembers who 'Dolph' is -- had only put a name to the face via the network, and he'd been half-delirious from pain when the man had brought him to that hill -- but it suddenly makes sense why he'd spoken as if he knows Vash well.
It's less swallowing his pride, and more a spiteful act of jealousy, that has him take Vash's arm.]
Always letting them lead you astray. [Though maybe that's unfair to Dolph, so he amends:] Or perhaps you do it to yourself. Even he had the sense to name this place a cage.
[It's doubly bitter for him, when Vash had given such a grand display of wanting to remain at the side of the humans in their own world, now seeming to have abandoned that sentiment. Once again, he's proving himself the weak little brother, constantly pulled around by forces he doesn't understand, too soft-hearted to defend himself from it.]
[ Vash doesn't react to the grip on his arm other than to make sure to try and hold them both steady as they march down the hill. He's concentrating on watching where his feet are landing -- his brother's too for that matter, so for a moment he's silent. It doesn't take over long before he's responding. ]
Dolph's way more practical than I am, but he still hears what I have to say. Maybe it's part of why we get along so well.
[ He's not so sure he agrees with calling it a cage, though he's understood why some might see it that way. Dolph's far from the only person who views this world that way. ]
We don't always see everything the same, and that's okay.
[He feels foolish, to have to lean on Vash for a task even this simple, but at least they're able to move at a steady pace. His pride's taken enough knocks lately that he's able to acknowledge that much.]
If he has nothing else to live for, what alternative would a man have but to indulge such daydreams? In that sense, he has little choice but to listen to you.
[Few would make the choice Knives wishes to, he figures. Humans are too cowardly.]
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A peaceful world is all I wanted for you.
[His voice is soft, avoiding Vash's gaze. He's not interested in rehashing any recent arguments about it, except to add--]
But this is still just a dream, Vash. And dreams are fleeting.
no subject
His expression remains soft, if a little sad. His grip on the fishing poles tightens a little, and though he glances in Knives' direction briefly he's ALSO avoiding eye contact. He doesn't close his eyes because he's almost certain if he did he'd fall on his face but... the sigh that is breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth might as well illustrate him with a closed eyed expression. ]
I know. [ To which? Both? Probably. ] But it's all some people have, so it's real to them. Going home just means to die for some people. [ There's a pointed glance over in his brother's direction. ]
Dolph's found a whole new life here. Something for himself when he didn't have anything like that where he came from. So if it's real to him, then it's real to me.
[ He stops as they come to a slope that means either they're going to have to shimmy down slowly or slide down on their butts. He turns to look at Knives, and without much of a word he holds his arm out, crooked, to offer support. Or maybe to just work in tandem so they don't both take a tumble. ]
no subject
It's less swallowing his pride, and more a spiteful act of jealousy, that has him take Vash's arm.]
Always letting them lead you astray. [Though maybe that's unfair to Dolph, so he amends:] Or perhaps you do it to yourself. Even he had the sense to name this place a cage.
[It's doubly bitter for him, when Vash had given such a grand display of wanting to remain at the side of the humans in their own world, now seeming to have abandoned that sentiment. Once again, he's proving himself the weak little brother, constantly pulled around by forces he doesn't understand, too soft-hearted to defend himself from it.]
no subject
Dolph's way more practical than I am, but he still hears what I have to say. Maybe it's part of why we get along so well.
[ He's not so sure he agrees with calling it a cage, though he's understood why some might see it that way. Dolph's far from the only person who views this world that way. ]
We don't always see everything the same, and that's okay.
no subject
If he has nothing else to live for, what alternative would a man have but to indulge such daydreams? In that sense, he has little choice but to listen to you.
[Few would make the choice Knives wishes to, he figures. Humans are too cowardly.]