Dawn Conversations
By: Forlay
And now they're providing for you, too, he thought angrily as he threw the ball at the back board again. And it's all your fault.
Swish! The ball when through the net easily and thudded to the hard packed dirt. He dribble the ball a few times before shooting it again. And again. he shot it a few more times before a hand grabbed the ball from behind as he lined up his next shot.
"Hey!" he said as he spun around to face the thief.
"Sh! You've already woken me up, do you want to wake the entire valley?"
Jake sighed. "Sorry, Aunt Naomi. I didn't mean to."
Naomi put her hand under her nephew's chin and had him look at her so she could look at his face. There was hardly any light in the valley, the sky was only slightly gray in the east and there was only a crescent moon in the night sky, but it was enough to see the dramatic changes that had happened in his face. She didn't see anyone from Dan's side of the family often anymore, even though Greg and Nikki lived just a few blocks away and Jake and Rachel went to the same school, but on the rare times she did see Jake, she should have recognized the difference! She could see them perfectly in hindsight, the way he never laughed, or rarely even smiled, how he never joked with his brother, or vice versa for that matter, how she'd seen younger eyes on the faces of 50 year old men. She half expected to see gray in his hair.
And right now, did he look like the leader of the army that was trying to save Earth? No, he looked like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
It's amazing how fast these kids adapt, she thought to herself. Back before, they'd go out and fight a battle, then come home and watch TV like normal kids. Jake had just pulled a similar act. Just days ago, he lost his entire immediate family to the Yeerks, and now he looks guilty because I scolded him for playing basketball!
Jake began to get uncomfortable with his aunt's scrutiny. "Um, is anything wrong, Aunt Naomi?"
Naomi shook her head and ran her hand through Jake's hair. "You shouldn't be asking me that, hon. It shouldn't be your job to act the adult."
Jake shrugged. "Well, I didn't exactly have alot of choice."
"Take a break for two minutes. Act like a kid. Out of all of you, it seems the only one who remembers how to act like one is Marco, and it's even strained in him."
Jake looked away. "I don't know if I remember how to anymore. Too much has happened. How can I "take a break" when my family's still out there, slaves to the slugs in their heads, when the freedom of the entire human race is on my shoulders?"
"It's not on your shoulders alone, Jake. You have five wonderful friends who fight with you every day, you have the Hork-Bajir who are willing to do whatever they have to to save the others of their kind, the Chee support you whenever they can, and you do have some family. You have me, Sara and Jordan, Marco's parents, Cassie's parents, all willing to help out with support."
"What about Loren?"
Naomi looked across the field that separated the basketball hoop from Loren's and Marco's cabins. "I'm afraid I don't know Loren well enough to speak for her, but if she really did try and save Tobias when she didn't even know if he was truly her son, when she was flying for the first time and her entire life had just been turned upside down, then I'm sure she'll help in any way she can."
Jake sighed. "Okay, perhaps I'm not alone, but it sure feels like it sometimes."
"But you're not alone. Everybody feels that way sometimes, whether they're in your situation or not, but I know your friends have felt the same way numerous times. Rachel and I had a long talk today, and she told me everything she could about this war, and trust me, that girl's been through hell and back and felt entirely alone most of the way, but she knows that if worse comes to worse, you'll all be there for her." Or she'd like to. She didn't always have the greatest faith in Jake, but he didn't need to know that.
"It's different for me!" Jake insisted. "Once the leader shows weakness, then it's okay for everyone to freak out and desert."
"Maybe in a formal army, but you're really just a group of bandits, as you said Visser One has called you for so long. During a battle, no, I suppose you couldn't freeze and get all emotional, but how often has that happened? And after a battle, you need to get your feelings out, talk to someone. Cassie, Rachel, Tobias, Toby, me, anyone. You keep the silent act up and not only will you go crazy, but you'll drive your friends crazy as well. They'd rather follow a human being than an unfeeling robot."
Finally, it was just too much for Jake. All the botched battles, the times he and his friends had nearly died, and finally losing his family caused the tears to well up in his eyes. He threw his arms around his aunt and cried quietly into her shoulder while she hugged him tightly.
Naomi wasn't sure how long they stood there like that, but by the time Jake's tears had subsided the sky had a distinctly pink color, the moon and stars couldn't be seen, the first Hork-Bajir were starting to wake and candles were being lit in Lauren's cabin, she'd taken to waking in time to catch at least part of the sunrise every morning.
"Come on," Naomi whispered to Jake when he'd stopped crying. "Let's go back to the cabin and get some food."
"Okay." He bent down and picked up the basketball. "Aunt Naomi?"
"Yes?"
"Thanks."
Naomi smiled. "No, Jake, thank you."