Ripples

As time continued to pass, Sophia and Noah seemed to become more secretive. Nephrite felt that every time he walked into the room, their conversation would stop. Why were they hiding things from him suddenly? What was going on? One morning, after he woke up, Nephrite got out of his bed and after changing his clothes, he walked out of his room. He could hear his parents talking in hushed tones in the kitchen, so he crept as quietly as he could down the hall until he was outside the doorway, just out of their line of vision. His breathing became shallow as he listened to their conversation.

"So, who is this queen, anyway?" Sophia asked. Nephrite could hear the sound of a knife tapping against the wooden cutting board as she spoke. Noah sighed, and the wall he was leaning against creaked slightly under his weight.

"I don't know, exactly. There's some rumor going around that she's the most powerful entity in the universe." Sophia stopped what she was doing long enough to turn and look at Noah.

"What kind of power does she have?" she asked, her voice trembling with fear.

"Judging by the way people have been acting, it's safe to assume it isn't good" Noah said quietly. Nephrite craned his neck slightly so he wouldn't be noticed, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw the worry in Noah's eyes. This was the first time he had seen his father like this, and that scared him. Sophia set the knife down and walked over to Noah, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"It's human nature to overreact when things are uncertain" she said softly, resting her head against his chest and listening to his heartbeat. "I'm sure everything will be fine" she assured him, looking up into his eyes.

"I hope you're right" Noah said softly. He then looked up and furrowed his brow.

"Is something wrong?" Sophia asked.

"Nephrite is usually awake by now…I'm going to go check on him" Noah said, stepping past Sophia and heading for the hall. Hearing this, Nephrite quickly sprinted back into his room and tried to act as naturally as possible. When he heard Noah's footsteps in the doorway, he slowly turned and smiled at him.

"Good morning" he said with a smile.

"Good morning, son" Noah replied. "I was just coming to check on you since you hadn't come out of your room yet."

"Yeah, I just woke up a few minutes ago" he lied, giggling nervously. Noah was silent for a minute, then walked into the room and sat down on Nephrite's bed. He looked into his son's eyes and grinned mischievously.

"So, how much of your mother's and my conversation did you hear?" he asked, and Nephrite gulped. He was caught, and there was no way to get around it.

"How did you know?" he asked.

"You and I are more alike than you know" Noah said with a chuckle, pulling Nephrite into a hug. "I used to eavesdrop just like you when I was your age. I guess we were both cursed with the mindset that we're sneakier than we actually are" he teased. The two of them laughed about that for a moment, then Noah's expression turned serious. "How much of our conversation did you hear?"

"I don't know…something about a queen?" Nephrite replied, trying his best to remember what he had heard. "You and mom seem really scared. Who is this queen or whatever, anyway?" Nephrite asked, hoping he would finally get some answers regarding their behavior.

"I don't know if you'd understand. You might be too young" Noah responded. Nephrite frowned and stood up, turning to face him.

"Why are you hiding things from me?" he asked. Tears began to form in his eyes, but never fell. "If something is going to happen that concerns us, don't you think I have a right to know?" Noah sat in silence, avoiding eye contact with Nephrite. After several moments of neither of them speaking, Nephrite exhaled sharply.

"I'm going for a walk" he mumbled, turning on his heel and walking out of the room. Noah watched him leave, and once he was out of sight, he sighed and stood up, walking into the living room where Sophia was. She looked at him, her face filled with confusion.

"What happened?"

"I was going to tell him what was going on, but something held me back. I don't know what it was…" Before Noah could explain any further, a warm golden light filled the room. When it dispersed, Helios was standing before them. Before Noah or Sophia could say anything, Helios bowed his head slightly and began to speak.

"I feel I should apologize to you, Noah. I was the one who caused you to hesitate."

"Why? I don't understand" Noah wondered aloud. Helios looked at him, and his eyes were filled with an intensity Noah had not seen before.

"Telling him now will only make him worry. He deserves to live freely and happily for as long as possible, before…"

"Before what?" Sophia asked shakily. Helios closed his eyes and sighed, hesitating to look at her. Finally, he gathered enough courage and opened his eyes again, and Sophia noticed that they were now filled with sadness.

"I really don't know how to tell you this…" he said softly.

"Please" Sophia begged. "What's going on, Helios?"

"There is a great darkness threatening this world. Once awakened, it will not stop until every last person is taken over by its power. Those who resist will perish."

"Is it…is it that queen, I wonder?" Sophia murmured, looking at Noah. Helios nodded and turned his head toward her.

"That is correct."

"What are we going to do? Can she be stopped?" Noah asked.

"I'm afraid not. The fate of this world is in her hands. The only thing you can do is the thing you know is right." Sophia looked at Noah, then the two of them looked at Helios.

"What do you mean by that?" they asked.

"I can't answer that for you. that is something you will have to figure out on your own." Noah and Sophia looked at one another, and a vision of Nephrite's smiling face appeared in each of their minds. It was then that they knew.

"No matter what…" Sophia murmured.

"…Our son must stay safe" Noah interjected. They nodded at one another, then turned to face Helios.

"Helios, can you promise us something?" Sophia asked, stepping forward and taking his hand in hers.

"Of course" he said softly.

"No matter what happens to us, will you make sure Nephrite is safe?" Helios nodded and smiled softly at the two of them.

"I will protect him at any cost, even if it means my life" he assured them. The three of them continued their conversation, and the fear that seemed to loom inside the house lifted, being replaced by laughter.

Meanwhile, Nephrite was wandering through the woods, trying to distract himself from the frustration he was feeling. After walking for a while, he came across a river. The sun was shining down on it, causing the water to sparkle in its light. Up ahead, he could hear what sounded like light splashing. He walked up the riverbank a little ways and stopped when he saw a young boy sitting by the riverside. The boy seemed to be staring blankly out in space, picking up small pebbled and tossing them into the river. Nephrite carefully approached him and sat in the grass beside him.

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" he asked. The boy looked at him, but said nothing. He turned his head away and continued throwing pebbles into the water, seemingly mesmerized by the ripples that spread across the water's surface at their impact. Finally, after a long pause, the boy turned to Nephrite.

"I could ask you the same thing" he replied. There was an almost hostile tone to his voice. Nephrite thought about leaving, but something told him to stay. He kept talking to the boy, and finally got him to open up. After they talked for a while, Nephrite smiled and stuck his hand out toward the boy.

"I'm Nephrite. What's your name?" The boy hesitantly reached for his hand and was about to introduce himself, when a woman's voice cut through the quietness of the day.

"Where has that wretched boy run off to now? I swear, when I get ahold of him he'll regret running off again." The boy jerked his hand back from Nephrite and stood up quickly, turning to run away.

"I-I have to go" he said, his voice shaking. Nephrite watched him run, then decided to get up and chase after him.

"Wait! You never told me your name!" he called out. By then, the boy was too far away to hear him. Nephrite sighed, then turned to sit by the river on his own. He tossed a pebble into the river and watched the ripples spread across its surface, and silently prayed that he and the mysterious boy would meet again someday.