Born to Fly
A/N: Hey, guys, it's Blue! Sorry I haven't updated in a while, but I'm stuck on 'High School Never Ends'. Send in ideas please! Speaking of ideas, this one came to me after listening to 'Born to Fly' by Sara Evans for about the fifth time today. I was listening to it and out of nowhere, I get this picture of Nicko singing it, so I decided to write about it. I took some liberties with the lyrics to fit how Nicko must feel about her family. On with the story!
Kiryu's POV
I leaned against the back of the bar, cleaning out wineglasses at the tavern I worked at. (If you're wondering, yes, I still duel from time to time.) After the rebuilding of Satisfaction Town, I took this up to help support the kids and I. I couldn't have asked for better kids when it came to Nicko and her little brother, West. While I worked, the kids attended school at the small schoolhouse a ways down the street and we lived above the tavern. I often worked late into the night, with Nicko coming around seven or so to remind me to actually eat something.
"Oi, Kiryu! A shot of whiskey please!" one of the customers, Taro Daimon, called from down the bar. I pushed myself off the bar, set the wineglass down, and grinned at the direction of the voice.
"On it, Taro!" I said, grabbing a shot glass from one of the upper shelves. Once filled with the aforementioned drink, I set it down in front of him and asked, "Don't you think you've had enough to drink for tonight?"
"I know what you're saying, Kiryu, and I'll take it easy when I'm dead!" Taro slurred, making me raise an eyebrow. The person who was singing in the background had just finished his piece and stumbled (nervously, not drunkenly) off stage. The emcee mounted the stage once more.
"Okay, folks, how was that?" he asked brightly. He was met with half-hearted applause as the guy had been slightly off key and too nervous to really sing. "Alright, alright," he said. There was a basically a talent night going on that happened about once a month here and anyone above the age of twelve was allowed to participate, which annoyed West to no end, seeing as he was only eight and wanted to be part of it.
"Who's ready for our next act?" the emcee called out and, this time, he was met with much warmer reception. "Well, here's introducing Miss Nicko Kobayashi singing 'Born to Fly' by Sara Evans!" he shouted, jumping from the stage. My eyes widened, watching as Nicko climbed the stage, an uneasy smile on her face.
"She sure is getting to be a pretty one, just like her mother. Gonna be old enough to marry soon," Taro said, watching her and grinning. I glared and pushed his shoulder. "I didn't mean it like that!" he said quickly, noticing my expression. Everyone in Satisfaction Town knew that if any one of them touched or even looked at the kids the wrong way, I would personally kick their ass.
Suddenly, I heard the smacking of feet against the hardwood behind the bar and turned to see West running toward me, his father's pendant thumping against his chest.
"How did you get behind here? And what is your sister doing up there?" I asked him as he slowed his approach.
"The emcee let me in," he explained with wide brown eyes. "As for Nicko-neechan, she's wanted to do this for forever, but she's too shy." I smiled at that. West was definitely the more outgoing of the two of them, playing tag in the street with the other boys, whereas Nicko was perfectly content in the windowsill of our apartment with a book in her lap.
"She has, huh?" I said, turning back to the stage.
"Yeah!" the boy chirped, grinning. "This was a song Kaa-san used to sing to her when she was little and she sings it to me sometimes. It's about not waiting for your dreams!" He shouted this last part, as the band had started. It started with an irregular drum beat and then a playful guitar melody with which Nicko began to sing.
I've been telling my dreams to the scarecrow
About the places that I'd like to see
I say, "Friend, do you think I'll ever get there?"
Oh, but he just stands there smilin' back at me
So, I confess my sins to the preacher
About the love I've been prayin' to find
"Is there a brown-eyed boy in my future?" yeah
And he says, "Girl, you've got nothing but time."
Then, she looked into the crowd with questioning eyes.
But how do you wait for heaven?
And who has that much time?
And how do you keep your feet on the ground
When you know that you were born
As I watched, I felt her eyes swing to me.
You were born to fly!
I felt more than a few pairs of eyes look back at me, the smile clear in them. My face flushed. West was much more public in the way he showed his pride in me. Nicko was just one of those people who didn't need to say it to show it, people just knew she was.
I didn't have time to muse on this, as West tugged on my sleeve and shouted over the music, "Isn't she great?" This made me smile. Like I said, West was very clear in his pride of his older siblings, biological or not.
My brother, he is grounded like the oak tree
My sister, she is steady as the sun
By brother and sister, I took she meant Misty and I, as Misty would visit us between shoots. The kids loved having Misty around and I could tell Misty enjoyed their company and the change of pace in Satisfaction Town. She would always willingly play with West and talk to Nicko about anything, especially books, as Misty was a big reader, with her long flights and shoots and such.
Oh, you know I love my folks
But I keep starin' down the road
Just lookin' for my one chance to run
Hey, cause I will soar away like a blackbird
I will blow in the wind like a seed
I will plant my heart in the garden of my dreams
And I will grow up where I'll wander wild and free
I smiled. That was the dream of Team Satisfaction, basically, to make Satellite a place that was safe for kids to grow and follow their dreams. The reference to a blackbird made me think of Crow, who wanted to finish building the Daedelus Bridge to unite City and Satellite, so when they were old enough, his flock could fly away free.
Oh, do you wait for heaven?
And who has that much time?
And how do you keep your feet on the ground
When you know that you were born
You were born, yeah
You were born to fly!
The song in of itself was empowering, but with Nicko's radiant smile and glowing eyes, it was truly uplifting, purely because you could tell she meant it as she sang. The song's melody suddenly slowed down, but built up again after Nicko trilled the word "time".
So, how do you wait for heaven?
And who has that much time?
And how do you keep your feet on the ground
When you know that you were born
You were born to fly! Yeah!
You were born to fly, fly, fly!
Hey!
Ooooo!
West raced up to the stage and embraced his sister, his face shining like the sun. The song's melody slowed then built again and once more, Nicko, sweet, but painfully shy Nicko, took the microphone and made this declaration.
"Kiryu- san has taught us that Satisfaction Town is no longer a place to die, but where people can make their own wings, and that the new generation will be born to fly!" she shouted. Then, she turned to me and said, "And we all can't thank you enough for it. You taught West and me especially that making our way in this world won't be easy, but we can do it!" With that, she and her brother dismounted the stage and the crowd erupted into applause.
I unlatched the door to get behind the bar and West threw himself at me, knocking all the air out of me.
"Easy, West," I grunted, and then looked up at Nicko, who was smiling shyly. My smile widened and I pulled her to us and said, "You don't have to wait for the next generation. You were already born to fly."