It was a perfectly normal day at Kong studios. The sun was shining, perilous groups of the undead swarmed the courtyard, and Murdoc Niccals was beating the shit out of Stuart Pot in the kitchen. He wasn't particularly mad at him at the moment, but he had had a rough night at the bar, and the satisfying thud of bony knuckles against flesh relaxed him. It made him feel at ease and in control. A hard right hook to the cheek sent the singer to the floor, and Murdoc laughed at his pained gasp. He picked him up by his t-shirt and slammed him against the wall.
"P-please, Mudz..." 2D sputtered, accidentally spitting some blood on Murdoc's face. He was silenced by a bone breaking punch in the ribs. He whimpered and tears mixed with the blood that was dripping down his face. The whimper was met with a demonic laugh as 2D's thin body absorbed more and more blows. Suddenly, his large black eyes focused on something behind Murdoc's shoulder. The attacker turned around to see what he was looking at, but when he saw it was only Noodle who had just entered the room, he decided to go about his business. "C-c'mon mate, ya g-gotta do this in front of 'er?" 2D gasped through the pain, grappling with his consciousness.
"Right, like she's gonna care," Murdoc Sneered, and delivered a final blow to the temple that knocked 2D out cold. Seeing that he was sufficiently unconscious, Murdoc dropped the limp body onto the floor and turned around to face the little girl standing in the doorway. "Ya need somethin' love?" He asked casually.
Noodle stared in terror at her friend lying motionless on the floor, and then directed her stare to Murdoc, her eyes filling with tears. She slowly began walking towards him.
"Aw, come on, there's no reason to cry kid. This's just what grownups do," he tried to comfort her. She nodded, but tears squeezed from her eyes, and she grabbed Murdoc's large hand. "What, whadd'ya want?" he asked, but was cut short when the surprisingly strong little girl pulled his arm hard and flipped him over her head, and slammed his body on the hard floor, yelling angrily in Japanese. He cried out in shock, and Noodle grabbed his hair, and punched him in the eye with a tiny fist.
"ALRIGHT, alright! I'm bloody sorry!" He yelled, rubbing his eye and pushing the little girl away from him. He stood up and stalked out of the room muttering, "fuckin' psycho." She glared at him until he was out of sight, and then turned her attention back to 2D, who was still lying unconscious on the floor. Sitting crossed legged on the floor, she moved her friends head onto her lap and lightly brushed his bruised skin with her thin fingers.
"2D?" She whispered into his ear, "Toochi? T-toochi?" She pried one of his eyes open and stared into the darkness, hoping it would wake him, but the open eye remained unseeing, and she let it close again. There was blood coming from his nose, from his mouth, from a cut on his eyebrow and even a bit from his eyes. It had dripped down to his torn T-virus T-shirt and had gotten in the hair around his temples, leaving it with a purple tint. She cried over 2D's mangled face until she heard heavy footsteps entering the kitchen. Her gaze ascended to Russell, who had just walked in and was looking down at them with concern.
"Dammit Mudz," he muttered, and opened a top cupboard to retrieve a first aid kit. He sat down on the other side of 2D's head and opened the kit, but seemed more concerned about Noodle who was sitting across from him, crying silently. "Hey, don't worry. It's okay," Russell assured her, putting a large hand on top of her head. When she looked at him, the pain in her eyes was more than worry. It was a misery that was deeper than an eleven year old should ever have. "What's wrong?" He asked her. She sighed shaikly, unsure of exactly how to answer that question.
"Many friend die," she said quietly. Russell's eyes softened and he looked at her seriously. Noodle had always told them that she had no memory of her life before Gorillaz, so hearing her mention something so dramatic from her early childhood was a shock to him.
"What do you mean?" he asked gently.
"I have sometime... dream? I not remember everything, but in dream, I am soldier, and my friends... they are soldier." She struggled to speak English, through her tears, but Russell was patient as usual, and listened intently. "Friends are... kodomo? Children. They all die but I not die," Her tears started flowing harder, "I only remember little, but I know. Many friend d-die. And n-now... Toochi... die..." Her words got lost in tears and she covered her eyes with her hands.
"Oh no, honey, no," Russell gently moved the singers head off of her lap and placed her on his own lap, allowing her to sob into his large jersey, "Noodle, honey, 2D ain't dead. And he ain't gonna die. He's just hurt, but he'll be fine."
"Not die?" her bright green eyes met his white ones hopefully.
"No way kiddo," He wiped the tears off her cheek with a large thumb, and rubbed her back to calm her down. "I know losing your friends is awful. I've been there. It hurts more in your heart than anything could ever hurt your body," Russell said. Noodle nodded, and he placed his forehead against hers gently. "Don't worry, I'll always be here for you. Everything's gonna be okay."
Noodle smiled weakly and hugged him, burying her face in his stomach. He sighed and hugged her close to him, letting her know she was safe with him.
"Alright, ya gotta let me go now hon'," he said, "Gotta clean this guys face up before it dries like that. Then it's a pain to get off." Noodle got up off of Russell's lap and looked down at her injured friend, assured that he was safe but still a bit worried for his well-being. She didn't like seeing his face covered in blood like that, so she sat on the floor behind Russell her small back leaning up against his large one. As he started cleaning 2D's injuries with disinfectant wipes, he began humming a low tune. Noodle had never heard it before, but she could feel the music vibrating through his back, and it comforted her. They were connected, and even if some time in the future they would be torn apart, she knew Russell would always be with her. She leaned back further into Russell's music, and fell asleep to the dull hum. Everything was going to be okay.