Mistakes of the Great Beings
38. Of childhood and Saurians
Ignika was sitting in the garden of the Outer Senshi's house, observing and studying the many flowers that were there. All of them were alien to him, though some resembled flowers from Voya somewhat. Flowers were forms of life, too, so as the Child of Life, Ignika took as much interest in hem as he did with any other living thing. Whenever he came across a new living thing, it was his duty as the wielder of Life to observe it and understand how it lived. That, and he was just naturally curious about such things.
The flowers in this garden were all pretty, and had nice colours, though they grew in an unusual strict and set pattern, and not all over the place like flowers normally would. Michiru had explained that that was precisely what made a garden a garden: it was manmade, everything planted in a humanly, orderly fashion. Ignika shook his head at the silliness of it all. Humans and their order, they were kind of like the Great Beings that way. Always trying to get a grasp of things and put themselves above it so they could oversee it all, instead of just simply letting it go.
As Ignika moved on from one flower to the next, he was aware that he was being watched. His oldest sister, Traveller, sat in the shadow of a tree, humming a soft tune while her gaze never left her younger brother. She was as protective as ever, though the Saurian of Teleportation realized that they were as safe as they could hope to be here in this world. Still, old habits die hard, and Traveller was living proof of that. Besides, if she stayed inside she'd soon go insane. Playing the piano, or at least trying to, was wonderful, and she loved every moment of it, but it was still inside the house, between four walls. And Traveller didn't like that. She felt trapped if she stayed inside too long. During the night it wasn't much of a problem, but when it was day, she wanted to be outside, feel the wind, breath the fresh air and be amongst the green. It gave her a feeling of familiarity and safety, and that's how she liked it.
Hotaru was also watching Ignika from a window of her room. He seemed to enjoy studying the flowers, even though he has spent nearly all his time in the garden studying plants... She guessed that he enjoyed it, probably because of his element, but... Watching the same flowers over and over? She didn't think it could be that interesting.
Hotaru also remembered Nightmare's outburst about getting little attention and not being taught anything. Though neither was the case with Ignika, and he didn't complain at all, Hotaru felt a bit guilty that Ignika still didn't know anything about the human world outside the garden. She sighed, got up from her desk, and went downstairs.
Setsuna was sitting in the living room, where she was reading the latest fashion magazine. She frowned as she saw some models. Those, following the latest fashion trend, were suspiciously similar to the designs Setsuna had already included in her yearly project for the art university. She shook her head. Of course neither the magazine nor Setsuna were plagiarising each other, but the professors might not think so. She needed a new idea, a new trend; otherwise what kind of designer is she?
Seeing Hotaru come downstairs, Setsuna closed the magazine. "Something the matter, hime?" She asked.
"Well..." Hotaru replied. "I'm thinking of showing Ignika some of the outside world... I mean, he's a kid, yet the last several hundred years... Didn't give him any chance to play." She explained shyly.
Setsuna looked at her daughter attentively, and said: "So you want to take him to the park, right?"
Hotaru smiled shyly. Somehow, Setsuna-mama always managed to guess her thoughts. "Yeah... The playgrounds there are nice."
Setsuna stood up and said: "Alright. I don't have any inspiration for designing now, anyway... I'll take you to the park." She smiled.
Hotaru nodded. "I'll go tell Ignika then." With those words, she hurried to the garden.
The Saurian boy was carefully watching a particular flower. A caterpillar was making its way up the stem towards one of its leaves, and Ignika was curious about that. Just as the caterpillar started its meal, however, Ignika felt someone coming towards him. The boy got up from his knees, dusted himself and found that the person who approached him was Hotaru.
"Hi, Hotaru, is something the matter?" the being forever trapped in a child's mind and body asked.
Hotaru smiled shyly at him. "Well... I know you like it here in the garden, but... Don't you find it a bit boring to see and do the same things again and again every day?" She asked, deciding not to rush straight to the subject.
Ignika raised an eyebrow and tilted his head sideways somewhat, giving Hotaru a curious look. "No, not at all. Figuring out new forms of life takes time, it'll take me a few months before I'm done with studying this… garden." The word felt strange and alien on his tongue, but Ignika tried not to let it show. "Why do you ask?"
"Ehm, well..." Hotaru continued shyly, looking at the ground. "Just, I thought that you'd be interested in doing something else for a change... I mean, we're still kids, we're supposed to play and have fun... I know the last several hundred years gave you no chance to do that, so... I thought I should try to make up for it." She looked into Ignika's eyes and smiled, waiting for an answer.
"Why would children have to play, Hotaru?" Ignika asked, more confused than ever. "Children have to come out of their egg and start surviving as quickly as possible."
Hotaru didn't expect such an answer. Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, she said: "Well... Human children are weak when born, and can't survive on their own at all... They become more or less independent at... Seven, I think... Yet even so, the law obliges parents to take care of children at least until they're eighteen..." Hotaru sighed. "Thing is, while children are still innocent and don't need to worry about food or anything else, they grow and develop through games they play. It's fun, and childhood is the only time you can do that, the rest is survival."
Ignika scratched his head, his face twisted in a frown. "I suppose that is logical, somewhat… Seeing as mammals take good care of their offspring, most of the time… And humans are mammals." The white-haired child let out a sigh and shrugged. "But I don't have to develop and grow anymore, Hotaru, I did that eons ago!"
"Yes, but you missed out on all the fun you can have as a child." Hotaru replied. "Humans consider childhood the happiest period in life, you know, and with good reason. Having fun is important for mental development as well." Hotaru tilted her head and glanced at the Saurian boy curiously. "When was the last time you had fun?"
Ignika thought about that question for a moment. "Every moment I spend with my family is fun, Hotaru," he replied after a few minutes of silence.
Hotaru sighed and shook her head. "I'm talking about different kind of fun, Ignika. Yes, I do love my parents, as well as friends, but it's not the same as playing games with friends of your age..." Hotaru looked up at the boy. "Hmm... You know, since you like to study life, you should definitely go to the playground with me. That way you can see how human children are, and observe the other life forms in the park as well. What say you?"
"Well… You seem to be pretty insistent about this…" Ignika said, looking thoughtfully at his human friend. Then he just shrugged again. "I don't see why not."
Hotaru smiled and took his hand. "Great! Let's go. Setsuna-mama told me she'll take us there."
The two children were about to run back into the house when a stern voice halted them in their tracks. "And just where do you think you're taking my little brother without telling me, Hotaru?" Traveller asked, having heard everything from her spot under the tree. Now the Saurian of Teleportation was standing right behind the Senshi of Saturn, her arms crossed and looking slightly offended.
Hotaru gave a start and turned around. "Oh, Traveller..." She said. "Sorry, I... I just wanted to take Ignika to the park so we can have fun like all the other normal human children." She quickly said. "Setsuna-mama is coming with us. Is that alright?"
Traveller look at Hotaru, then at her little brother and then at Hotaru again, before she shook her head. "Not a chance. I'm not letting you take him to some place I know nothing about."
"Sister…" Ignika began, on a whiney and pleading tone.
Traveller didn't let him finish, however. "Either I'm going with you to keep an eye on my little brother, or you're not going at all."
Hotaru smiled: "Alright. You can come, too. Setsuna-mama won't mind, I'm sure of it. Let's go to the car." After all, if a relative is in an overprotective mode, it's better let them have their way than deal with the consequences. Besides, Traveller was nice when it didn't come to Ignika's safety.
Traveller nodded, and together with the young Senshi the two Saurians walked to the car where Setsuna was already waiting. All the while, Traveller and Ignika were thinking the same thing: what did Hotaru want to show them so badly, what was the big deal? But they didn't say those words aloud, afraid of offending the young girl, who had been nothing but kind to the both of them. And so they simply got in the car – Traveller in the front seat next to Setsuna, much to the Saurian's discomfort – and drove off.
The park was full of people – parents, children, elderly people, youngsters, all of it – and it unsettled both Ignika and Traveller. When they had been here before, this place had been mostly empty, in the former's case that was because of his barrier, however. But now there were humans everywhere. Not that it was as busy as on those 'streets'. But as they were walking on the path, they couldn't turn a corner around some bushes and not immediately see some humans. Every bench had at least one occupant, on every field of grass there was at least one group of children playing or students sitting together comparing notes.
The two disguised Saurians felt nervous. This was the first time they had been exposed to such a big crowd. What if they didn't act human enough? What if they did something that was very unlike a human, and everyone stared at them? What if somebody found out the truth? Ignika began to doubt that coming here at Hotaru's request was such a good idea, after all.
Hotaru felt nervous, too. She didn't expect so much people to be in the park, either... Hotaru looked at her watch... And nearly slapped herself. "Twelve o'clock! People have lunch or dinner at this time... And walk with their kids... Goddamn it, why didn't I think of it earlier?" She thought almost panicking.
Suddenly, Hotaru felt her mama's hand on her shoulder. "Relax, Hotaru. Things are not as bad as they seem. Now let's go to the playground." Setsuna said calmly.
The playground Setsuna was talking about was located deeper in the park. Hotaru liked it the most because it was usually a bit less crowded than the rest, since many parents didn't want to have to walk for long when the time runs out. It was a nice big playground with four swings, two seesaws, a sandbox, and three slides of different heights, one of those being spiral-shaped. There were many ladders standing there for kids to climb, and several benches for parents to sit on and chat to each other while watching their kids at play.
Plenty of children were occupying the structures, and Ignika and Traveller observed them from afar in silence. Both the structures and what the children were doing with them made little sense to the Saurians. What was the point of them? How did it help to develop them, how did it help them grow and survive? Humans were weird, sure, but this was another step further. Ignika looked from Hotaru to the playground and back again.
"What are they doing?" he asked his human friend.
"Playing," Hotaru simply said, grinning from ear to ear.
"Does 'playing' mean 'make no sense', here, Hotaru?" Traveller replied in wonder. The oldest sister of the Saurian family looked just as confused as her little brother. "I see no purpose or reason in their actions, aside from wasting energy that would be better when conserved for later use."
Hotaru chuckled. "That's because the reason and purpose is exactly to, as you say, waste energy and make no sense." Hotaru smiled, looking at the adult clueless Saurian.
Setsuna nodded, and continued her daughters thought: "Kids get little activities these days, they need to use their energy away, otherwise it'll still find a way out, but the means will be more... Destructive." Setsuna shrugged. "Better let them have fun doing whatever they want in the right place in the right time with the right things than have fun in the wrong time and place and with wrong things."
Traveller shrugged. "Right… I keep forgetting you don't have to hunt for yourself…"
Ignika nodded in agreement. "Yeah, on Voya, energy is spent on and conserved for hunting. Even the children do that."
Hotaru felt pity for the kids of Voya, but didn't let it bother her much. "But you don't need to do that anymore, either! For now, at least. And that's exactly why I brought you here. Here, we can have fun and do whatever we want, as long as we don't harm ourselves or others. Come on, let's go." Hotaru tugged Ignika along.
Ignika frowned but let himself get pulled along with Hotaru. She obviously was excited about this and wanted him to be, too, so he could at least try and see what this was all about by experiencing it himself. But still, the concept of purposefully wasting energy was strange and alien to him. All forms of life he had come across so far just didn't do that. It was unnatural.
Traveller saw her brother get pulled along to somewhere she didn't know, and so she made to follow the two children.
Setsuna took Traveller's hand and stopped the Saurian gently but firmly. "Leave them be. Playground is a place for kids, parents and older siblings only need to interfere to prevent harm from happening... or to join the game." Setsuna then motioned to an unoccupied bench a bit further into the playground. "The bench over there gives a nice overview of the playground, let's go sit there and watch the kids at play like proper parents should." She purposely worded the last sentence so that Traveller would understand what's expected of her.
"I'm not Ignika's parent. I'm his sister," Traveller said, tensed. She didn't like the idea of being so far from Ignika, even if she could see him.
"Doesn't matter, you're still his guardian. And I see you take your duties seriously and personally." Setsuna sighed. "But for now, leave them be. Really, the worst thing that can happen on a playground is a nasty fall, a couple of bruises and scratches, or maybe a small fight. You aren't afraid of those things, are you?"
"Not personally, no, I'm afraid of Ignika being afraid, and what would happen in such a case," the Saurian of Teleportation replied, giving Setsuna a long, hard look. "As long as I am close, I can be certain that he sees me and knows he's not alone. But once he can't see me, he won't rely on me. And if something happens, it will be him that will react, and not me. And in such a case, it can lead to a sheer catastrophe. And Ignika will feel terrible afterwards, and then I'll have to live with the knowledge that it could have been prevented if I had been there, if he had known that I was there and would take care of it."
"But he can see you, and he does know you are here." Setsuna replied, easily coping with the look the Saurian was giving her. "And he isn't alone, Hotaru is with him. And we will be only several paces away, sitting on the bench, watching them and being ready to jump into action should the need occur. Calm down, it's safe."
Traveller didn't look convinced. "There are much more people around than he… we, are used to. He could still panic, and Hotaru's presence would matter little. I know my little brother. I know how he thinks, and how he acts. It's never safe. It never will be. It stopped being safe the day he became the Child of Life."
Setsuna quickly glanced around, checking if any grownup has heard the Saurian's last words. It didn't seem that anybody could hear them from this spot because of all the noise the kids were making, and Setsuna replied: "In case of panic, I allow you to teleport to him, no matter how many people see it. Most will think it's just a figment of their imagination, if you do it right." Setsuna sighed. "Yes, it stopped being safe on that day. But that is exactly the reason why you have to let go for now and let him relax and have fun with Hotaru and the human children. To relieve at least some of the stress caused by so much responsibility and powers."
Setsuna frowned and looked at Hotaru and Ignika by the sandbox, with Hotaru squatting next to a toddler. She continued in a low voice: "Hotaru wants to show him at least a bit of a normal human childhood, the childhood she herself was deprived of the first time she was born, because she was always sick and too weak to go outside and play with the kids. Now she has a second chance, and wants him to have it, too. If not as Ignika, then as Eiju Genkai." She glanced at her guest. "You should remember that, Amane."
Traveller hesitated, but finally relented, though obviously she didn't like it one bit. Letting out a very deep, defeated sigh, she sat down next to Setsuna on the bench and shook her head. "Fine. But I wouldn't call this," she gestured to the scene of the playground. "A normal childhood. When I was young, and when I wanted to have some fun, I went hunting. To be honest, I kind of miss doing just that. And I know Ignika does, too."
Setsuna shrugged. "Hunting was considered fun here for quite a long while, too, but almost never an activity for kids. Even in primitive times, being allowed to participate in the hunt meant that you're a grownup already. A predominately male activity, mind you." The Senshi of Time paused and leaned back on the bench. "Here, childhood is the most carefree and happy time. Parents are there to take care of your food, your clothes, are there to comfort you, teach you, even if they have to punish you sometimes..." The last phrase was spoken with a softness that could only mean affection and love Setsuna had for Hotaru, the shared daughter of the Outer Senshi. Then she snapped out of it somewhat, and said: "And please call him Eiju when we're in public. You never know we might be overheard."
"Eiju…" Traveller repeated, the name sounding strange and alien to her, and she somehow had difficulties pronouncing it. It felt unnatural to call Ignika by anything but his given name, similar to how she felt strange when addressed as 'Amane'.
"You'll have to get used to it." Setsuna said, understanding why Traveller felt uncomfortable. "We also had to get used to call each other by the name of our planets, not our given names." With those words, Setsuna fell silent and looked at the little kids who, unbeknownst to everyone else, each held enough power to destroy the planet.
Next chapter: Of playgrounds and Saurians!
Review replies:
BookLover.A.F.: I enjoy the pairing of Ami and Gravitas, too. But then again, I like every one of my Saurian x Senshi pairings, each has their own situations or happenings that makes them fun to write about. Thanks for reading and reviewing!