An hour came and went since Maya left him alone. Although he didn't completely fall over the edge and into an emotional breakdown once she was gone, it took him some time to regain his composure and eat everything on his plate. The long hot shower he took helped him clear his mind of the painful memories her actions reminded him of. After drying his body he saw his armor and weapons still sitting on the dresser. He immediately threw them into the closet and quickly got dressed. The yellow shirt, black hoodie, jeans, and shoes were completely different from what he's worn for years but he quickly got used to them.
Kenshi stood by the front door cleaning Sento before placing it in the scabbard strapped on his back. They silently waited for Maya to join them. A few minutes went by before Hanzo became impatient and wondered why they were still standing around like ducklings waiting for the mother to lead them for a short walk.
"What is taking her so long to get dressed?" He leaned against a wall and crossed his arms against his chest.
"Women always take ages to get ready." Kenshi told him.
"Probably primping and powdering her nose." Hanzo added, an amused smirk appeared on his face.
"Try to get that one curl to stay in place." Kenshi joined in on the teasing.
"Changing her clothes until she finds the right outfit that matches her lipstick."
They continued listing possible reasons why Maya had them waiting and didn't notice her walking towards them. She was happy to see Hanzo smiling and laughing with Kenshi instead of brooding or distressed. She felt guilty for having a hand in making him upset. How she did it, she had no clue. She had a feeling they will have the long hard talk about what's eating him but at a much later time. Brooding or not, she had to admit he's handsome. His strong jaw, broad shoulders, and muscular arms set him apart from the other men she's seen in town. Kenshi wasn't bad looking either but that ship has sailed.
'He's still a fucking jerk.' She frowned. 'A hot jerk but a jerk. At least Kenshi has a sense of humor and can lighten up.'
"Ah, the lady of the hour has finally graced us with her presence." Kenshi bowed before her. Maya rolled her eyes and hit his shoulder before laughing. Hanzo eyebrows were raised at their exchange. The way Maya laughed and how Kenshi smiled reminded him of two courting teenagers. He took a closer look at the woman standing by him. She stood at 5"7, making her 9 inches shorter than him. He wondered how old she was, there was no doubt in his mind that she was younger than him and Kenshi. Her down-turned eyes, short, small nose, round cheeks, and face added to her young appearance.
"Let's go." She told them before opening the door.
"Aren't you forgetting something?" Kenshi smirked and tapped Sento. "I doubt people will let me inside their stores with Sento strapped on my back."
"Shit, I forgot." With a simple wave of her hand Sento was invisible to the naked. Hanzo couldn't help but reach out to make sure it was still there and it indeed was when he felt it on his finger tips. "Alright, let's go!" She told them and lead the way to their first destination.
The leers and looks of disgust Maya received from passerby didn't go unnoticed by Hanzo. They stared at her when she wasn't looking and made sure to keep their distance if she got close to them. Kenshi learned long ago to not use his abilities to read mind while out with Maya. Their comments and remarks were enough to make him want to attack anyone who dared to look down at her.
"Don't worry about them." Maya told the two men. She already knew why they clenched their fists and made sure to be by her side while they continued walking.
"It's disgusting that they would judge you over something that is-"
"Out of my control. Yeah, I know." Maya interrupted Kenshi. He's told her that so many times she's has it memorized and can repeat it in different languages.
What he said hit a nerve in Hanzo because he was guilty of doing the same thing yesterday. He opened his mouth to apologize but was interrupted yet again.
"Ms. Bellamy! You're right on time." A man his age dressed in an all black suit called. He stood in front of a store. "Please come inside, the last thing we need are noisy civilians listening in our conversation." He stepped aside to let the group enter the store and lead the way to is office. Hanzo and Kenshi stood by the door while Maya sat down in a chair in front of his desk.
"Who are you?" Hanzo narrowed his eyes.
"Excuse me, I should have introduced myself first. I am Natsuo Yamauchi. I take it this is the friend Kenshi was talking about."
"That's him alright. Hanzo Hasashi." Maya nodded her head. Natsuo's eyes widen in recognition and let out an audible 'oh'. The two men nodded their heads as a sign of respect, leaving Maya wondering if they knew each other. Hanzo stood straighter and crossed his arms against his chest.
"I understand now. Had I known..." Natsuo paused. Maya looked back and forth between the three men to figure out what he meant by that. "Well, now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's discuss the reason why you are here." Natsuo continued.
'I'm sure you and Hanzo will discuss that later.' Kenshi telepathically told her.
"I know I've told you this over and over again, but thank you for all of your help during the last five years. Learning more effective healing methods that your family has used for centuries made a huge effect on the recovery process of those who were injured."
"No problem, I was just doing my job." Maya couldn't help but smile.
"It took us some time to renovate the temple but it is almost complete." That really got the former wraith's attention.
"The location is strange for someone like you but that doesn't matter." Kenshi added.
"I still don't know what I'm going to do with it. It's really remote but hey, it's nice to have a temple all to myself." She snapped her fingers when she came up with one of the ways she can make use of it. "Maybe I can become a recluse and act like a cranky old woman whenever someone trespasses on my property! That sounds like fun!"
"You wouldn't last a week." Hanzo told her. His remark made Kenshi and Natsuo laugh, Maya didn't think it was very funny.
"Hahaha, you're hilarious."
"How long until it's finished?" Kenshi finally asked.
"A few more months." Natsuo said. The skeptical look on Maya and Kenshi's faces told him they weren't buying it. "Fine, four to six months."
"Where is this temple located?" Hanzo asked.
"The Himalayas." Kenshi answered.
Hanzo shifted when he heard that answer.
"Okay, Natsuo! I'll see you later when you have another update on the temple." Maya told him after getting up from her seat. "Let's go, guys."
They continued traveling around Matsue, frequently making stops at stores to buy things that caught her eye. The smell of ash, smoke, and burning flesh was no where to be found. When they were in less populated areas that was lined with trees or flowers, Hanzo took in deep breaths and appreciated the crisp, unpolluted smell around him. Markets and restaurants offered the smell of different foods he instantly recognized and happily ate. From his repeated movements, Kenshi knew his friend was turning his head to take in his surroundings. He initially though his friend would have been overwhelmed by his new surroundings and want to hide away, it was a drastic change from the Netherrealm. Instead Hanzo was very calm the entire day.
Hanzo kept a close eye on Kenshi while he walked next to Maya. He couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more than a friendship between them. Whenever she moved to stand or walk in front of him, he placed his hand on the small of her back. If she wasn't facing him he had a smile on her face. The same could be said about her. When the sun was setting she decided to make on final trip to a grocery store, something that didn't surprise the two men.
He saw a chance to apologize for how he treated her yesterday when Kenshi wasn't attached to her hip. She was alone picking out fruits when he approached her. She craned her neck to look up at him.
"I'm sorry for being rude to you and making a snap judgement about who and what you are."
"Thanks." She really wanted to rub it in his face that he apologized. 'It had to take a lot for someone as serious and stubborn as him to realize he was wrong. I can''t expect him to be happy go lucky fucker after getting out the pits of hell and on the verge of suicide. He's been through some shit and still is.' "Hey, if what Kenshi said is the reason why-"
"No. I planned on apologizing. There's no excuse for my behavior."
"Look at you being nice!" Her normally silvery voice became high-pitched and annoyed him, so was the light slap on his arm. "You should do that more often."
"I suppose." He rolled his eyes.
"I was just playing." She stuck her tongue out at him. "We're cool."
He wished she would have stopped right there. Accepting his apology and moving on would have been the perfect ending to their problem.
"But you're wrong about not having an excuse. Now that I think about it I can't really blame you for being a jerk, we just met and I should have given you your space instead of following you everywhere and try to make you do something you didn't want."
'She did nothing wrong, why is she doing this? She had every right to attempt to talk to me. I was at fault, not her.'
"It's going to take some time for you to adjust and unlearn behaviors you used in the past. While you continue being nice, I'll do my part by being more patient with you. I'm like that with other people who's been through minor shit compared to you."
'Making excuses and minimizing my behavior never worked in the past.'
She bought essential items: food, cleaning products, toiletries (some he could have lived without seeing). When she moved to pick up some bags, Kenshi and Hanzo took them all. She didn't mind not carrying any bags and directed them to an alley they passed by before entering the grocery store. Before Hanzo could ask why she brought them there, in a blink of an eye he found himself standing in Maya's kitchen. Already knowing what was going to happen, Kenshi quickly put the bags in his hands down and walked away. Hanzo gawked at him while he made a speedy escape before turning his attention to Maya.
"What?" She finally asked.
"Why didn't you tell me you could teleport? You could have brought us here after your talk with Natsuo. Seeing how that was your main objective for the day."
"Main objective? You make it sound like it was a mission." She scoffed. "Besides, I told you there are some things I can do that Kenshi can't."
"It would have been a nice gesture to mention you can teleport." He said flatly.
"We've only known each other for a few days. I can't tell you all of my secrets." She nudged his ribs with her elbow. "Besides, it was nice to walk around. I'd thought you would like to spend some time out of the house."
"I did." He couldn't deny it even if he tried. "Thank you."
"No problem but don't expect me to bring you everywhere I go." She wagged her finger.
"That's fine by me. I do not want a mother hen like you clucking around me everyday." He looked down at her. She could only frown and shoot dirty looks at the man looked pleased with himself.
"Are you going to help me put these things away or just stand there with that shit eating grin on your face?"
"That would be the nice thing to do." He told her before grabbing a bag and handing her things that need to be put away in the fridge.
There was still more work to be done but today was a small victory for Kenshi. Not only did he manage to bring him out of his somber mood, even if it was for a few minutes, he was happy to see that his friends could get along without having him act as a mediator. 'Hmm, I shouldn't call myself that. I always run and hide from them when they argue or a second away from knocking each other out. Ah, who cares. They're going to need to get used to each other without having me around.'
AN: Yay! Maya and Hanzo patched up their little riff, getting along, and Kenshi is happy about it. I'm in the middle of a bad brain fog moment so it took me a while to get this chapter together. Thank you to everyone who read the first chapter, left a review, and followed the story! Reviews, critiques, suggestions are nice. Thanks for reading!