Chapter Five: Home


They were running low on supplies. They hadn't stop to restock in any of the towns that they passed by, too concerned that they would be recognized by the crowds of refugees and military aide in the areas. So on the last stretch of distance to his old house, he decided to travel through the night, thinking it best to arrive without being seen.

It was early morning before sunrise when they finally neared their destination. The open landscape turned to forest as they passed into the foothills. As they headed further along, the trees thinned a little into a small glade; a layer of mist curled over the patches of pale grass, and at the far end near the opposite tree line was Raven's old home. They had finally arrived, after 4 days of traveling.

The rolling landscape of the surrounding foothills along with the taller tree line to the east provided the area with some cover, although the risk that they were still followed was very low. When Raven settled the Geno Breaker and lowered the cockpit to ground level, Reese observed the house as she exited. She had been here before when Raven had saved her and taken care of her, but she had never really paid any attention back then, as she was too busy thinking about Hiltz and Prozen trying to end the world.

It was a fairly large building; two storeys high, and from where she stood, it had a visible atrium with a sleek structure and glass windows spanning the entire height of the house, and a tower-like structure attached to the corner of the building which she knew to be the stair shaft. She hadn't really been in any other part of the house other than the living quarters, but seeing the structure now, it seemed more like a facility than a home.

She looked at Raven, who had opened the small storage compartment under the belly of the Geno Breaker and was about to unload their supplies and equipment. She thought back to his memories, about the reason why he hated zoids. His parents had been zoid researchers and had often neglected him as a child, too focused on their work, on zoids, to truly be there for him. This building was indeed a research facility, but it was also his home, the only home he knew.

She envies him, in a way, in spite of his tragic circumstances. She doesn't have memories of her own. Even with her powers to reveal memories, in her case there is nothing to reveal. Her memories have all but faded away through time, years upon years spent encapsulated in a time pod. She only has incomplete pieces, tiny slivers of memories from her life long ago. Memories about the war, the destruction, the Death Saurer's rise…traumatic memories tend to last the longest, after all. She has no memory of her family, if she even had one, no friends, no parents, nothing.

Most of her knowledge about her people came from what Hiltz had told her. She was just a child when she was put under, while he, on the other hand, was older when he entered a time pod, so he retained more of his memories…or so he explained. There was a time in her life when she had trusted him, even looked up to him. It wasn't long before she found out that he was hiding so much more than he was revealing, setting up his mental defenses as she became more and more well versed in using her psychic powers. She wondered how much false information he had fed her throughout the years. She doesn't know what to believe now. "Like any of it matters now anyway." She thought sardonically. There was no use dwelling on the past, the man was dead and the world is better off without him.

She heads over to Raven to help him carry their supplies, setting them down once they were inside the building. They entered from the front this time, and upon entering, they were greeted into a wide entrance hall, attached to it is the atrium on the left side. The atrium boasted a high ceiling and, in spite of the layers of dust and grime after years of neglect, plenty of light still shining through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows. Reese surmised that, after a good cleaning, it would offer a stunning view of the surrounding meadows and woodlands.

Raven observed Reese as she admired what was once his mother's favourite place to think. Of course he never bothered his mother when she was working, but he still enjoyed her presence while he played in his corner by the couch, which was no longer there as everything was cleared out long ago.

When Reese showed him his memories, she had only started from the night of their deaths, but every now and again, he would get pieces of his childhood, memories of his parents he treasured the most, scarce as they may be.

He shook his head faintly, trying to shake away the memories, and the sadness that came with them. He focused instead on the woman in front of him, wearing a look of wonder and curiosity as she explored his childhood home, a small smile on her face. It still surprised him, how even a small smile can light up her face, perhaps because it was so rare to see her actually smile, and he's just not used to it.

He gave a soft sigh before continuing to carry the supplies further down the hall to the kitchen area.

"I really am getting soft." He thinks to himself, becoming less and less bothered by the idea the more time he spent around her.

She followed him shortly after with the rest of the supplies, and quietly looked at him after setting them down. He was unpacking some of the cooking equipment and setting them on the dusty counters when he felt her gaze. He looked back at her, waiting for her to say what was on her mind.

"Is it alright with you if I took a look around?" She asked him, almost shyly.

It took him a second to register why she was even asking him. Then it occurred to him. This rundown, abandoned place is still his house, after all, and she was being respectful of that. He smirked in amusement; her formality was a bit absurd, considering who they were.

"I suppose it's only appropriate that I give you a tour of the house." He said as he straightened up, walking back to the doorway. He looked back at her when she didn't immediately follow, lifting a dark eyebrow.

She snapped out of her bewilderment, initially confused at his behavior, before quickly catching on to his somewhat playful tone. She smirked back at him.

"Thank you, how polite of you." She quipped back at him before walking ahead. He only shakes his head at this new type of interaction between them before following behind her.

He let her walk ahead as he explained the areas of the house in brief words, their short banter having lightened up the mood between them. They started in the first floor of the house, going from the foyer in the back entrance, and then showing her the bathroom adjacent to the atrium. The main hallway opened up to the atrium area, which was across from the dining area connected to the kitchen, where they had just dropped off their supplies. It was incredible how much of the place he was able to remember, the feeling of nostalgia not lost on him as he entered every area.

Next they headed to the spiral staircase, located on the northwest corner of the house, heading up to the second floor. The stairwell was fairly dark with no electricity powering the long burnt-out light fixtures lining the walls, and only the early morning light shining through the dirt-stained embrasure windows of the tower.

Upon entering the second floor hallway, Raven took the lead and headed straight past a closed doorway, not even sparing it a glance. As they reached the corner, the left side of the hallway opens up to a view of the floor-to-ceiling windows, forming an indoor balcony over-looking the atrium below. Raven turned right and opened the door on the far end of the hallway, revealing the master bedroom, his parent's bedroom. Adjacent to the master bedroom was the family great room, which Reese remembered as the room where he had first offered her coffee. The hole in the ceiling where Specula had poked her head through was still there, allowing more light to enter the room than the dirty, moss-covered windows.

There were two doors on the other side of the great room. He opened the door on the left, revealing the second floor bathroom, and lastly, he opened the remaining door that lead to the bedroom they had used before, which he revealed to be his old bedroom. She can't believe it had only been about two weeks since she was last here. It seemed like such a darker time when there was a world-ending threat looming over their heads.

"And that's it. That's the rest of the house." He concluded, closing the door to his old bedroom.

"The door at the top of the stairs leads to the roof, but the door has been rusted shut since I last checked. The only way up there for now is through that opening in the ceiling." He explained, gesturing to the gap in the ceiling. And with that, Shadow poked his head through it, having flown to the roof from outside, eliciting a small smile from Raven.

There was a moment of silence before he turns to look at her, his expression so open she was slightly taken aback by it.

"I want to start living here again." He starts, his voice somehow quieter, even though there was no change to his volume. "I want to pick up where my life left off, before I became…this." He gestured vaguely to himself, a tone of self-disgust and self-loathing in his statement.

"Raven…" she started, but didn't really know what to say. She wanted to comfort him, to tell him he is not the monster he sees himself to be, definitely not in her eyes. But she stops herself. Nothing she says would matter, not if it was coming from someone like her…

He saw the conflict in her, and misunderstood it as her not wanting the same thing, or maybe she thought she was unwelcomed based on how he chose his words.

"You're welcome to stay, if you want." He added, seemingly nonchalant, but his intense gaze betraying the truth that he actually wanted her to stay.

She stared right back at him, a warm feeling forming in her chest at the invitation, a feeling she hadn't felt since seeing Nichalo's friendly smile for the first time when she woke up.

"I'd like that…" She replied with a small smile, still a little uncertain with the long-forgotten feeling of being welcomed.

"Good…" He said, satisfied with her answer but unsure of what else to say.

They continued to stare at each other until they were finally interrupted by Specula, who had also poked her head in and given a loud grunt, sensing her master's swirling emotions and wondering what was happening. Shadow also hummed in wonder, having witnessed the interaction but no less closer to understanding their masters than the other organoid.

Raven and Reese broke their gaze and took a moment to recollect themselves before deciding to head back. They still need to settle in and get some much needed rest. After all, they had a lot of work to do before they can call this place home.


A/N: I had re-watched the episodes to get a reference of Raven's old house:

Episode 49: The Distant Stars; the episode that showed Raven's past…and his big-ass house.

Episode 62: The Gravity Cannon; the episode in which they showed Raven taking care of Reese in his old house (about 13 minutes in). It only showed the two rooms so I had to imagine and sketch out the rest.