She wasn't sure what she expected when Eru the Father of All began his newest theme; "Think of it as a new adventure, a way to stretch and grow from your corner of the forest on Valinor," He'd said–though not in such human words. I do love adventure, she thought, though I'll miss Tulkas and his boisterous way of life…
Nessa was at once confused and tentatively excited to find herself suddenly incarnate, robed in the body of a newborn babe, thrust suddenly into a bright new world. A nurse rushed around, a worried man clutched the hand of a pale woman behind her, a doctor held her gently and announced her gender to the room. Nessa found herself lost in thought, comparing what she once was to what she had become. To go from one of the Powers in the West to a baby swaddled in cloth was strange to her at least.
Nessa often found herself surprised at how messy humans were as she grew. During her first year, she discovered that diapers were her least favorite thing (though baths were a close second), the attention of her parents made her feel warm inside, and that humans were ungainly creatures. How ever did Elendil stand against Sauron? she wondered as she dropped to her rear end, once again failing to walk. Her thoughts were an eager whirlwind of what once was and what could be. I want to run, I want to feel the wind in my hair, the ground rushing beneath my feet, to be Nessa the Swift once more, but this time as a human!
As the days turned into weeks, and weeks into months, Nessa grew closer to her new family and celebrated her first birthday on the third of April. As time passed, she would learn and be delighted that her clan raised deer, and her father oft took her for walks in the forest to meet them, and slowly her footing grew surer. She admired the peace and beauty of the trees in the dying light, and the contemplative silence of her father, the strong yet easy grip of his hand in hers. This world is lovely, the trees are so green, so unlike Laurelin or Telperion, but lovely all the same. In her quiet contemplation, she almost missed the resonance within her. Her father glanced her way, a strange look on his face, but she hardly noticed.
It seemed that within her a universe churned, much like her previous nature, she felt a great energy flowing through her body, like she could do anything. Almost as a reflex, she circulated the energy faster within her, excitement flowed as she felt strength fly through her limbs like a gale. With a glance towards her father, she fought a grin that threatened to arise on her face. His eyebrow rose in confusion and she yelled "Let's go!" before taking off in what could generously be called a sprint.
"Wait, Nessa!" her father yelled in exasperation. "You can't just run off!"
She turned and looked at him, a grin finally overtaking her face before replying "Come on, daddy!" Despite her childlike eyes and small stature, she felt swift, but her father quickly caught up and lifted her into the air with laughter on his lips and a smile that warmed her heart.
Her father set her down and knelt down to her eye level "Ness, dear, when did you learn to manipulate your chakra?" His voice was soft and calm but betrayed an inkling of the curiosity he felt inside.
Nessa felt the energy in her limbs return to normal as she looked into her father's eyes, "What does that mean?" she asked. This strange new energy inside me, it feels like dancing and a strong tailwind, is this chakra? Her gaze turned thoughtful as her father spoke.
"Well," he started, "chakra manipulation, or chakra control, is how we describe our usage and efficiency with the energy inside of us. It's our life force, a combination of-" he cut himself off, deciding that her mother would probably be better suited to explain, she always did possess the finer understanding of chakra control.
"A combination of what, papa?" her eyes shone brightly, as she was always keen to learn new things, particularly when such things were so relevant.
Her father stood and stretched before he spoke, "Well let's take you to mama, she'll be able to explain better than I can." he took her hand and began walking home, though he could feel her burning curiosity and slight impatience at their leisurely pace.
When they arrived home, he called out "Mitsu! Nessa has a surprise for you!" he glanced at Nessa and saw that she was deep in thought, but he poked her shoulder and nodded towards the kitchen, where her mother was preparing lunch.
"Mama look what I can do!" Nessa gleefully said before circulating the energy–chakra, she thought–within her and then leaped up as high as she could, which caused her mother to release a surprised yelp.
Mitsu caught her before she hit the ground and gave an exasperated smile to Nessa's father "Yuuma, what are we going to do with this girl?" Mitsu walked into the living room with her under her arm and sat down on one of the larger zabuton, shifting Nessa onto her lap. "Barely two, and learning to use chakra, you're very young you know," she said softly. Mitsu worried that, like most children of shinobi, Nessa would have her childhood stolen from her by joining the academy young as a prodigy, like that poor Hatake boy near the end of the last war.
"Mama, will you teach me? I want to be fast!" Nessa said excitedly.
Her mother held back a grimace, schooling her face into a gentle smile and said "We can start slow, some easy exercises. And maybe we can start running as a family. Doesn't that sound fun, dear?" the last part she spoke louder so Yuuma could hear from the kitchen.
Yuuma walked out into the living room with several cups of tea and a sigh on his lips, "I do prefer walking, but… Well, anything for my little girl." He said, with a small smile.
As the family drank their tea and relaxed a malevolent energy seemed to permeate the air with a suddenness that made Nessa choke, she would have cried if she'd had the instincts, but instead, all she could do was look to her mother, as her heart raced. Her parents stared at one another wide-eyed, when Mitsu shook her head and handed Nessa off to Yuuma, "Take her to the bunker, I'll go find out what's going on."
"I'll come for you as soon as I can." He touched her cheek softly, then started to run out of the door before turning back, "Stay safe."
Mitsu laughed, and replied, "There's nothing in this world that can stop me from coming back to my family." They ran outside and split off, Yuuma to protect his daughter, and Mitsu to do the same.
Yuuma arrived with Nessa to the bunker beneath Hokage Rock and took her inside to where the other children were. As he handed her to one of the caretakers her heart raced ever faster, and she wanted to beg him not to go, to stay where it was safe, but she knew he'd never leave mama to fight alone, not if he could help it. Eru please, you've given me this fascinating new life, don't take these people away from me so soon, she hoped Eru would listen, that his new plan for her included both parents. Yuuma placed his hand on her cheek and smiled before he turned and ran to where the demon fox was wrought havoc in the village.
Life inside the village would never be the same, she knew, but she held hope that it wouldn't be because she was alone.