Chapter Thirty-Three


"What does mediation have anything to do with 'expecting the unexpected'?" Patrick used air quotes around the words, though he kept his eyes closed. "You're not going to cold clock me and call it an accident, are ya?"

"No, but I might if you don't shut up, loser," Rhuben mumbled.

"You shut up, jerk face."

Rocky sucked in a breath through his nose, while Patrick's siblings all shushed him. Rocky's lips twitched when he took in another breath to calm himself, to set his mind back into that blank space that let him completely relax. Able to be in tune with everything around him. He heard his brothers' quiet breathing, proud to find that they hadn't been broken out of their trances through Patrick's outburst.

Mediating could be strange, he understood for some people it wasn't easy for them to get to the calmest state that body could go into. Meditation was to go beyond the mind and experience essential nature; peace, happiness, ad bliss. It was, surprisingly, very hard for Rocky to be able to meditate when he was first learning ninja from his grandfather. Back when he was known as 'Sam' and, at five years old, started to notice how stressful his father's job was, how difficult it was for his mom to raise three young boys, only a few ages apart, and realized how often he was looking after his younger brothers when she needed to get work done.

His grandfather must have noticed it, for when he started his ninja training that day, Rocky was waiting for the next high kick that he would learn, having excitedly mastered the focus and strength needed for the lower ones, and tipped his head to the side, when his grandfather said he was going to sit down and clear his head.

What five-year-old could sit still long enough to do that?

Rocky already was a calm boy at that age, often being heralded by his mother that he was a very calm and easy baby as well. But even after five minutes, he felt himself starting to wiggle around, wondering what was taking so long. But day after day, his grandfather would continue to start and end his ninja training with meditation. Slowly, over time, he understood it and found it helpful to wipe away any stressors he didn't know he had. Eventually, he worked on it outside of his ninja training and found it the best way to improve the quality of his life.

And as he sat in the Jacksons' backyard, working on their first ninja lesson, he cleared his head. Felt all his stressors relax. Felt the uncertainty of whether they were training people who may turn around and stab them in the back with what they learned from him and his brothers. Just focused on the sound of the gurgling water in the pool behind the, focused on the way the light wind blew across the spacious backyard and over his skin. Focused on the way he could hear his brothers breathing quietly, almost completely silent, while the Jacksons worked to follow their lead.

Rocky waited ten minutes before allowing his eyes to open. He winced against the bright lights that lined the backyard and slowly, quietly got to his feet. Reaching over, he tapped Colt on the thigh, who then tapped Tum-Tum.

The three slowly, quietly got up. Hardly making a sound. That was another point of being a ninja, knowing when to be quiet and light on their feet. Knowing how to make themselves and their energies complete with the Earth.

Being friendly to the environment and letting it be friendly to them in response.

Rocky stretched out his arms in front of him and behind him. Then held his hands behind his back. Feet shoulder-width apart. Colt and Tum-Tum did the same. "Okay, now rise to your feet." He watched as the Jacksons opened their eyes and did as they were told. "Meditation is something we use to start and end each of our training practices. It helps us keep our mind, body, and spirit together as one so we can thank the Earth for everything it's given us." He smiled a little, remembering how the medicine woman at Jo's reservation had said something similar to him ages ago. He really needed to go back and visit her. Especially now that Harding had returned.

"It empowers us the way we work to empower it," Colt added. He lowered his head, brushing his hair back from his face. "And being able to tap into that meditate state can come into a pinch when you're sparring, when you're hurt"

"…or if you need to seriously defend yourself." Tum-Tum agreed. "And that starts out by knowing when and how to breathe." He placed his hand on his stomach, breathing deeply as he did so, to demonstrate. "To block out any distractions that can go on around you."

"Which clearly doesn't help Tum, because I think he's still eyeing the pie your mom made for dessert," Colt joked, making Rocky snicker, and Tum-Tum roll his eyes.

Rocky cleared his throat, steadied himself, and faced the Jacksons once more. He studied their faces as they looked back at him, all serious, watching him closely. For a moment, Rocky had the brief feeling that he was wrong, about everything. That Reed had nothing to do with what was going on at MedoCal, that he had nothing to do with the supposed Vendetta against Jo and her tribe, that he knew nothing about Jason's parents having been big investors with MedoCal. That they, truly, just wanted to help their father, who had shown nothing but kindness and hospitality to them that night.

He would've done the same, if anyone had accused his father of the same thing. Felt ashamed of the few times he stayed quiet when people accused the LAPD of being the biggest gang the citizens of LA had to face, despite how much he wanted to stand up and say how wrong they were. But hadn't thought there was anything to say.

But he wouldn't know until they found out the truth.

Expect the unexpected indeed.

Rocky stepped forward, taking the lead of the training. Glanced at his brothers, who looked back at him. Rocky's eyebrows twitched upwards in surprise before he faced forward once more. Surprise, that he wasn't getting any sort of push back for it. Nevertheless, he tried not to let nerves take him over. His grandfather was hard to replace, but he'd do his best.

"So, with every movement you make, you're going to focus on your breathing as you do it," Rocky explained. "Sort of like yoga; we'll start with the breathing techniques and a beginner's kata to go through. But the key thing to remember is the four pints that bring ninja together." He pointed to his heart. "'Your heart." Then his head. "Your mind." Then his chest. "Your body." Then to his heart. "And your spirit. When the four work together as one, a ninja cannot be beaten as it is those four points, combined, that make a ninja whole."

He cleared his throat, waiting or his brothers' input, and received silence in response. Rocky nodded once and continued. "So, we're going to start with a kata, or what is a formation, of beginner moves to get you started." He motioned to Colt and Tum-Tum. "Colt and Tum will demonstrate, and I'll make sure that you're doing the poses correctly. The first pose…you're going to breathe in deeply while bringing your hands up your chest and then position them toward the sky. Place your hands together in the shape of a triangle. Then you're going to turn tot eh side, extending your left arm, palm facing up, and, with your right hand, push out a forceful jab."

And so Rocky continued to talk the Jacksons through the katas. Patiently waiting through the questions and making sure that their form was correct. Through the high kicks and low kicks that went along with it, through the kiai's that expelled the power of the lungs and of the warrior. And through the sense of focus that needed to be contained through ninja. They worked for over an hour, repeating the steps until Rocky felt they truly understood it.

"Last thing is to stretch," Tum-Tum said kindly. He sat on the ground, spreading his legs so that he could lean forward and stretch his back out. "The last thing you want is to pull a muscle or get a Charlie horse when you're in the middle of a fight." He smiled sweetly toward his brother, who eyed him suspiciously. "Right, Colt?"

Colt rolled his eyes, leaving his gaze firmly on the moon as it hung in the sky above them. Nevertheless, he couldn't help the small smile that pricked at the corners of his lips. "I still won, didn't I?" He pointed out.

"Yeah, that was really impressive," Rocky replied. He sat along with his brothers, leaning forward to stretch out, his chest pressed firmly against the ground. He looked to the Jacksons as they sat as well. "Eventually, we want you to get to the point where you can lean forward and place your forehead on your…"

He trailed off, watching as the Jacksons leaned forward, far enough into a split, even further, and brought their hands above their heads to stretch. Rocky leaned back, his eyebrows furrowing together. Something, some little thing sitting in the back of his head. Something he'd seen before…

"Wow," Colt commented, blinking once. He brought his hand up to brush his fringe away from his eyes, eyebrows twitching upwards as the side of his mouth turned up. "You're really flexible. "You sure you haven't done any ninja before?"

Rocky glanced at Colt out the corner of his eye. Colt subtly shook his head, making Rocky understand. He was still asking questions, still trying to get an idea of whether they could be trusted. Just as he'd been mentally working out over the course of the night.

"No." Noah sat back, dusting off his hands before bringing his feet together in a butterfly stretch. "But we do a lot of gymnastics."

"That explains it."

Rocky hadn't realized he'd spoken until all eyes turned his way, and he felt himself blush. He cleared his throat, bringing up his legs from his stretch so that he could wrap his arms around his knees. He nodded toward Riley but looked at his feet when he said. "It explains how you were able to take down that guy in the ice cream shop that day."

Riley shrugged, bringing up a hand to run through her hair, no, to scratch her forehead, hiding the expression she made before dropping it again. She smiled modestly, though her eyes flashed with mischief when she said, "I just threw my weight around, yeah?"

"What weight?" Patrick teased. "A gust of wind could knock you over."

Rocky laughed along with Colt, Tum-Tum, and the Jacksons. Rhuben was the one who spoke up next. She ripped handfuls of grass out of the ground and said. "Mum and dad put us in a lot of activities to keep us busy, gymnastics was one of the only ones that stuck."

"Well, it'll come in handy with your balance and everything," Rocky pointed out. "It goes in hand with ninja training." He rubbed the back of his neck, wondering why that niggling feeling was suddenly gone.

"Right." Sydney pressed his chin in his hands, gazing up at the three boys. "So, what's the plan? I don't think teaching us ninja is going to be the only thing we should have in our defends when going after Harding, yeah?"

"We'll have to wait until he does something first," Colt said. His voice turned grim when he added, "And believe me, he's going to do something first."


Rocky held his breath, watching as Tum-Tum quietly closed the front door to the house behind them. Not wanting to make any noise that'd grab their parents' attention. The were no sounds of the late-night news coming from the TV, no sounds coming form the kitchen, and nothing from their father's office. If they were lucky, their parents and grandfather had turned in for an early night and they wouldn't have to field any questions.

If they weren't…well, it wouldn't have been the first time the boys had lied to their parents. It just would've been the second time they'd have done it that night. And there was only so much lying Rocky could handle before it started to eat away at him. It was why he refused to know anything that it took for Colt to sneak out when he was grounded, or when he found any of Tum-Tum's junk food stashes when he was supposed to be on a diet.

It was also why he made sure not to tell anyone any of the things that he got away with in his own life. Rocky glanced toward the living room once more then motioned for his brothers to go upstairs. They moved quickly and quietly while Rocky moved along the bottom floor of the house, being careful to turn off every light and make sure the door was locked. He stopped at the basement, seeing the light on and hearing sound come from below.

"That you, man?" He heard Jason call up quietly.

Rocky moved halfway down the stairs and leaned against the banister, watching Jason play a video game, blowing up whatever it was on screen. He had a headset around his neck and continuously glanced at the computer screen that was set up beside him. Rocky made sure not to go any closer, seeing he was streaming a game.

"Yeah, it's me."

"How'd it go?"

"Went well." Rocky leaned forward, stretching out his back. "Surprisingly well."

"Awesome." Jason flicked his hair from his face, letting gout a low growl when he knocked his character off-course on the screen and blew up a nearby hut. "Did you manage to lose for once in your life? You've got to tell me everything. I won't believe it 'til I see it."

Rocky rolled his eyes. "Colt's beat me before."

"Yeah, I mean, when you didn't let them win."

Rocky ignored the knee-jerk reaction to spit, "I didn't let him win!". Waited until he calmed down. "We just taught them a few katas, had them end by sparring. They learned pretty fast." Rocky couldn't help the next thought that came to mind. Maybe a bit too fast. Then he shook his head. A ridiculous thought.

It wasn't too weird for people to take to different athletic endeavors better than others. He and his brothers had taken to many parts of ninja very well. And then, there were those that seemed to be able to quickly make a career of the sort; Simon Biles came to mind, and many others who were natural talents at sports that others envied. As much as Rocky didn't care for Darren, he was also a natural talent in baseball, quickly becoming the Mustang's star player and vying for attention from scouts when a game was played, as much as some had come out to see Rocky.

"You must be a good teacher, then."

At that, Rocky snorted. He doubted it. He just repeated what his grandfather had ever told him. It was strange that he wasn't there, almost as if something were missing. He pushed away the dark thought that crossed his mind; that it was the point, that it was why Mori insisted, that he was working to get used to when Mori did, eventually pass away.

"I'm going to head up," Rocky said. He turned to leave, pausing, grasping the bannister tightly in his hand. "Are you going to be okay?"

"I'm be up once I'm done streaming."

"I mean—"

"—I'll call for you if I need a big, strong man to save me when a horde of evil ninjas come bursting through the windows."

Another roll of the eyes. But that time, Rocky laughed as he did so. "Get some sleep, Jase."

"Yes, dear."

Rocky went up to his room, pausing just slightly when he heard a muffled argument coming from his parents' room. He sighed and went to his desk, opening his laptop. Checking his email, he opened the photo attachments he received from Rhuben, even clearer pictures from the tournament than he had before. And a few others that she'd gotten from MedoCal.

He looked through them, looking for anything else that'd point toward JJ and Harding. He'd just looked

"What are you still doing up?" Sam's voice behind him made Rocky jump in surprise. He turned around to see his father leaning in the doorframe, rubbing at his eyes. "It's kind of late, did you just get back?"

"We made it before curfew," Rocky said.

"I can see that." Nevertheless, Sam glanced at his watch. Almost as if he were nervous. "Did you have fun with your friends?"

"You're starting to sound like mom." Rocky thought of the argument he heard, not of the words, but of the tone. They'd been arguing a lot lately. Then he noticed the way his father was dressed. "Are you going somewhere?"

"Oh!" Sam looked down, as if only noticing his clothes for the first time. "Uh…neighborhood watch." He eyed his son closely. "Did you want to ask me something?" His eyes shifted to just behind Rocky, making Rocky surreptitiously lean into his view.

"No, it's just…" Rocky leaned to the side, subtly pushing his laptop away from his father's eyes. If his father noticed, he didn't say anything. He licked his lips. "Well, the homecoming dance is coming up. You know, at the end of spirit week and everything. And Colt's big game and…" He looked at his father out of the corner of his eye, silently asking if he would be attending the game.

Sam hadn't had a great track record when it came time to attend to any of the boys' games, when it wasn't baseball. "Scheduling conflicts." "Something came up." "I've got a lot of work to do." "A big case came up." Rocky understood it all, had to understand it. So, he took it all with a brave face; a smile and a nod while inside he was trying not to be too angry that, once again, they came second to his job. His job's important, he'd always try to remind himself. But that meant nothing in the eyes of young boys who almost never saw their father for long stretches of time.

The pain of disappointment never fully went away.

"And?" Sam prompted. He tipped his head, studying his eldest son's face curiously. After a few seconds, his face nearly split in half with how wide he smiled at him. "Does this have to do with the dance?"

"Sort of."

"It's either a 'yes' or a 'no', Sam."

"Yes, sir."

"Very funny."

Rocky chuckled to himself. "I thought so."

"Did Emily ask you?"

Rocky nodded. Then rolled his eyes when he saw the wide smile come to his father's face once more. "You know, this is the reason why I don't like to tell you and mom about her," he pointed out. "You always make things with me and Em out to be more than it is."

"Okay, okay." Sam held his hands up defensively. As if Rocky had threatened him with a karate chop to the throat. "I'm sorry. But…for a long time it was funny to see you to skirting around things, as if the rest of us couldn't see the way you smiled bashfully at each other."

"Dad."

"Okay, she asked you to homecoming and you said?"

"I said 'yes'."

At that, Sam blinked once. His eyes narrowed a fraction and he slightly turned his head away from his son. "And? You've gone to dances with her before."

"Yeah, but we'd be hanging out with Jason, this is more like a date," Rocky admitted. He stretched out in his seat, crossing his legs at the ankle. "And, I don't know if I want that."

"How do you know if you don't try?"

Rocky sighed, finally admitting what he hadn't been able to say before. "I mean…I'm afraid of what would happen if the relationship doesn't work out. I don't want to lose my best friend." He ran a hand through his hair. "And…I don't want to know what would happen if she thinks something's there and I don't feel anything at all."

Sam hummed quietly to himself. He studied his son for a long moment then said, "Again, how do you know if you don't try? I'm not saying there's risk to it, with all relationships, whether they work out or now, there's risk. I took that risk when dating my high school girlfriend and did it again when dating the woman before I met your mother. And I especially risked it when I met your mother."

Rocky nodded. He knew all about how his grandparents hadn't been too happy with his dad as a choice of a boyfriend, of a husband when they first announced it. For their own reasons. Knew that his grandmother had come around first, had persuaded his grandfather to eventually come around. Knew that, without his grandmother being there, the tension between his grandfather and father had come back and never completely went away no matter how much time had passed.

"You just have to decide whether or not you feel the risk is worth it." Sam cleared his throat. "Now, as for the dance, I'm assuming I'm going to need to get you guys fitted for some new suits. Especially now that Tum's hit that growth spurt since last year." Sam then made a show of shaking his head. "Now, I think this is more of a conversation for your mother," Sam replied after a moment.

Rocky smiled wryly. "Why? Because she's a girl?"

At that, Sam grinned. "No, because I want to see the look on your face when she insists, she teaches you how to dance. Because, unfortunately, you boys inherited my talent for it." At that, Rocky's smile dropped, and his eyes widened in horror. Sam laughed and patted his knees before standing. "Yeah, like that." He was still laughing when he swept out of the room.

Rocky did notice, however, that his father was a little overdressed to go out to do his shift of neighborhood watch. It was a little late, as well.

He'd lied to his father multiple times that night.

But had his father lied to him?


A/N: How are you all doing with the coronavirus going around? I hope you all are safe and are keeping busy. I didn't plan on doing a chapter with a POV from the Jacksons for reasons that I can't say yet, but I may need to so they don't come across so one-dimensional. Or maybe they do come across as three-dimensional? I can't tell while being the one who's writing the fic. And it is also (mostly) from Rocky's POV, so you wouldn't see it as much.

*shrugs*

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Cheers,

-Riles