Chapter 7 – Destruction of the
Watchers
June 19th 20XX
Fire crackled and spread it's warmth
inside the wooden house. Nen sat next to Hensen as he laid asleep.
Four days... four days... how much more are you going to
sleep? How did you do that attack? Aren't you a Water user? Did you
lie to me? What else have you lied about... But you need to wake up.
We only have one day left... one day...
June 15th 20XX (Three Days Earlier)
An old man working in the
field saw Nen, Suzu, and Hensen approaching.
"Nen!
It's good to see you ba-... oh my! What happened?"
Nen and Suzu told them there story. They were sparring, things got out of control, and Hensen was knocked out unconscious.
"My, my. Well it's a good thing you brought him here right away!"
Nen and Suzu took Hensen into Nen's home. They laid him down and awaited the villages doctor to come.
"So you saw Metta
leave did you? Ah, a strong one he is. He will do a fine job on his
mission. In any case, you're friend just pushed himself too hard, he
should be fine."
said the doctor.
Nen looked at Hensen almost as if the doctor told him he wasn't going to make it.
"When will he wake up?"
He said with out taking his eyes off of Hensen.
The doctor stood
putting his equipment back into his bag.
"Well can't tell. A few
days or so. Trust me Nen he'll be fine in no time."
Nen continued to look on at Hensen. If Hensen hadn't done what he did, the three would surely be dead. Suzu walked the doctor out and closed the door.
"So, I take it you two must have some bond huh? A really good friendship?"
Nen looked up at Suzu.
"No
actually. I just met him today, but something... about him... I just
need to know who he is, and why that guy was interested in
him..."
Suzu looked perplexed. He got a sly look in his eyes
and started to poke at Nen with his right elbow.
"So you're
gay?"
Nen instantly
smacked Suzu to the ground from a smack to the back of the head.
"Please, not now."
Suzu sat up rubbing his forehead, having struck it on the hard wooden floor.
"Ass hole! I was just kidding!"
Nen
smiled.
"I know, that was for not caring about my name before.
That's all."
Suzu rubbed his fore head, which to Nens
surprise already had a huge bandage on it.
"I see... fag."
Nen
smacked him down yet again.
"That
was for the gay remark."
Nen went to fetch some pillows from a closest and threw them at Suzu. Surprised yet again to see another, bigger bandage on his forehead.
"I assume you are going to stay. So make yourself at home."
Suzu fluffed his pillow, and looked at Nen some
what confused.
"Wouldn't your parents mind? I mean, I don't want
to impose an-"
"They're dead."
Nen said interrupting
him.
Suzu stayed quiet, almost as if he should have known but asked anyways. The untidy house, the bare shelfs of food and luxuries, and the single pile of hay and single pillow that Hensen laid on. It should've been more than obvious that at the least they weren't around.
"Sorry..."
Said Suzu looking away.
Nen
smiled, the smile was as fake, and any one could tell, but he knew he
had to try.
"It's ok, you couldn't have known, but it doesn't
matter."
The two laid down, and began to close their eyes. The two began to think in sync with out even knowing it, down the very words.
Maybe tomorrow... maybe tomorrow he will awake, and we can go from there. Maybe tomorrow, we can pretend none of this ever happened.
But Nen, thought a little more than that.
Maybe tomorrow... I can forgive... and forget.
June 16th 20XX
A knock on the door awoke Nen and Suzu, but Hensen stayed sleeping.
"Get
that would you?"
Nen
said lazily.
Suzu opened the door to find three people standing before him. An old man and two younger, stronger looking men. The old man wore a brown robe and had a long white beard and was balled. He walked with a wooden cane and sandals. The two body guards dressed exactly the same and were very masculine. Orange shirt, buzz cut hair, and brown sandals.
"Oh? A friend of Nenshou? My, the surprises do not stop coming." Said one of the men.
Suzu realized something important was about to occur. He stepped aside to let the group of three in.
The three stood before Nen as he slowly stood up. He was groggy but tried to wake up faster.
"Nenshou, we have some rather... troubling news. It seems that last night, the Water Tab village was destroyed by the storm last night. We were fortunate enough to not witness the storms destruction but the Water Tab village was in the middle of it all. Very few survived." Said the other strong man.
Nen, now awake looked at them with minor
annoyance.
"I already know what your going to say and the answer
is no!"
The two looked
annoyed.
"Nenshou Futai! These few people left are in need of
our help! You would not open your empty home to a family of the Water
Tab Village? What would your parents think of you?"
Nen closed his eyes
in anger but he controlled himself, and chose his words wisely.
"My
parents... would open their home to anyone in need... but I am not my
parents. And I do not take kindly to those of the Water Tab Village."
Suzu stayed quiet he did not want to get involved.
"They've kept there eyes on our small village as if we were going to attack them at any point. What reason would we have? The only one who can fight worth a damn is Metta!"
Continued Nen.
The old man in the
middle spoke up.
"We know you reasons, but we ask you to not
take in fallen Water Tab soldiers, but a family that has no home to
go to. A family that has no tie to the military. You would deny them
shelter?"
Nen looked at the
floor. Could he really say no? He knew in his heart he
couldn't.
"It's fine. I don't even use most of the house
anyways."
He stood up and
opened a door near Hensen's feet. Something Suzu seemed to have
overlooked.
The door opened to a whole new part of the house.
Suzu fell to the ground in depression.
"You mean you had another part of the house with a bedroom and you made me sleep on the floor?!"
Nen looked at him
out of the corner of his eye.
"You never asked..."
The old man spoke
up again ignoring the display oh childish emotion.
"Well I won't
burden you with my presence any longer, and I will not burden your
hospitality more than I should. Only a single family will stay with
you. A father, mother and there two children, a son and a daughter.
They will be here in four days."
Nen looked at him, he didn't know if he should be grateful for only housing one family.
"Thank you village elder Tsubaki. I promise to make them feel most at home."
He smiled and walked out his cane being the second to last noise heard from the three, besides the closing door.
Suzu looked around.
Sun creped in through the window above where he slept, shining down
at his feet.
"So... what do you have to eat around here?"
Nen sighed and began to get water, pots and some rice. Suzu looked extremely disappointed.
Rice? That's all? Oh man... really?
He saw
Nen add the rice to the water as it began to slowly boil. He turned
over to Hensen and took a glance.
Still asleep?
He looked back towards Nen only to find a bowl of steaming rice in his face.
"Already?! That
was hardly a few seconds!"
Suzu said surprised.
Nen looked almost
annoyed.
"Look eat it or put it in my bowl, I don't care."
Suzu looked at the bowl disappointed. Plain rice cooked for no more than 30 seconds. He looked at the bowl as he talked to Nen.
"Soy sauce?"
Nen stayed quiet. Suzu almost began to tear up in his eyes. He almost felt depressed.
He took a spoonful and put it in his mouth. He had tears running down his cheeks, not out of depression, but out of joy.
"Oh! This is DELICIOUS! I've never had... such good rice! Plain rice at that! What did you do?"
He looked at Nen crying and eating happily.
Nen smirked.
"It's all about
the perfect cooking temperature and time spent cooking it."
Suzu quickly ate his bowl of rice to find himself satisfied.
"Wow, what a cook! Imagine what you could do with beef! Or chicken!"
June 17th-18th 20XX
They following two days were spent just like the first. Bickering, the eating of perfect rice, the hope that Hensen would awake, and sleep. They chopped fire wood, sat outside for fresh air, but never left the the house. They did not want to leave Hensen alone.
June 19th 20XX
Fire
crackled and spread it's warmth inside the wooden house. Nen sat next
to Hensen as he laid asleep.
Four days... four days...
how much more are you going to sleep? How did you do that attack?
Aren't you a Water user? Did you lie to me? What else have you lied
about... But you need to wake up. We only have one day left... one
day...
Suzu looked up at Nen as he stared at Hensen.
"He's been asleep forever. You think he'll ever wake up?"
Even though only four days passed, it felt almost as an eternity. The two of them got to know each other. Nothing too personal, but just the basic likes and dislikes. Suddenly as quickly as he finished saying that, Hensen's eyes opened and he sat up.
"Oh...God... I'm sore all over... ugh!"
Nen and Suzu jumped and hugged one another as they looked at him as if he'd been brought back from death.
"You're
alright!"
Said the two with delight.
"Yeah, why wouldn't I have been? How long have I been out? A few hours?"
Suzu looked at him almost annoyed.
"Few hours? Try four days!"
They told Hensen about what had happened to the Water Tab Village as it was destroyed by the storm. They of course refrained from telling him about their encounter with Acedia. They didn't doubt that he was watching them one way or another.
"I see... so we should be expecting some guests soon? Well, I won't be a burden to you any more Nenshou. I will be on my way tomorrow afternoon. I have something I need to do."
Nen looked confused as he handed him a bowl of freshly prepared rice. Suzu sat crying enjoying the meal. A habit he hasn't been able to break over the past few days.
"Didn't you listen? The Water Tab Village was destroyed by the storm! There's nothing for you to return too!"
Hensen looked at him as he began to eat the bowl of rice.
"I never said... I was of the Water Tab Village... And I never said... I was a Water User..."
