Chapter 10: Serenity?

Nya sat on the couch next to Pixal, and Lily was in a side chair. They were all watching movies for girls' night. Even better, the remaining guys were all out on a reconnaissance mission, so apart from Sensei, they had the monastery to themselves. Usually, they were always on edge, because at least one of the boys would screw with them. So far, all that had barely interrupted was when Kai texted her telling her that they'd be back a day earlier, but that still left two days for the girls to relax.

When everyone was at home, now, Jay and Suzanne weren't there, so it was a tad bit quieter, they laughed and talked a lot. And yet, it was still about the same every day because Zane wasn't here to keep the peace. Sometimes she missed them deeply, and there were certain times when she wondered what life would be like without them. Things would certainly be different.

She remembered what she'd said to Cole and Jay on one of the greatest days of her life. It was the day that she realized that she didn't need anybody for a long time.

"I just- God! I didn't realize how much I don't need love in my life until it was forced on me!" As soon as she had said that, she had to force back a smile. It was true liberation, and it wasn't just because she had to make a choice.

There was also the time when Zane had first explained to Pixal the concept of love, and it nearly made her cry. She knew she didn't need it, but knowing that Pixal didn't know what love truly meant was so odd to her. What was life without even love for your family? The very thought of the nonexistence of the feeling was so alien to her mind.

With Suzanne, she was a sort of sister figure. A long while ago, Suzanne had told her that she wanted to try really hard to understand a lot of things about life. She had explained that she used to have a family, and that they'd died when she was young briefly, because it looked like the very mention of her past pained her smiling face. Nya swore to protect and educate her about the harm and wonders of life. She knew Suzanne wasn't ignorant, but some things she just wasn't raised to understand.

Nya sighed, and texted Kai back.

Do you ever wonder what it would be like if our parents were still around?

She didn't wait for a response, but just let the thought sit visually. It was a frightening reminder, yet she couldn't imagine it. Perhaps their father or mother would have been the Master of Fire. Maybe she and Kai would have died in their place.

"Are you feeling alright?" Pixal said beside her. Nya nodded.

"You've been really distant all day," Lily added. "What's going on in that head of yours?"

"Just wondering what life would be like if it were like this all the time, with those three out of our lives, I mean," she shrugged, and set her phone aside, not bothering to read her brother's response.

"Oh, well..." Lily put her hand on her cheek, balancing her elbow on the armrest. "I've known Suzanne for a long time, and it would be odd to see her gone. I wonder what would happen if Suzanne didn't have Jay to hang around with."

"It would certainly be quite a bit louder," Pixal smirked, and everyone nodded. "There is a large amount of friendship and affection between them, and I firmly believe that Jay is a good source for all that bottled up energy that Suzanne possesses."

"True," Lily remarked. "But I wanna see them together. I swear, I've been waiting for so long, and I haven't seen them kiss even once! It makes me want to pull. My. Hair. Out!"

"Oh my God I thought I was the only one!" Nya jumped up in her seat. "I mean, they're around each other twenty-four-seven!"

"Perhaps he is hesitant because of what - for lack of a better term - "happened"?" Pixal suggested, taking a sip of her drink and setting it down with a soft thunk on the wooden coffee table. She swung her legs over the cushions and onto the floor, placed her elbows on her knees, and placed her cheeks in her hands, squinting in concentration with a thousand-yard-stare.

"I guess," Nya shrugged again. "It'd be awful if it were my fault. I really just wanted them to know that they were obviously the wrong guys for me, I just-"

"Don't blame yourself," Lily interrupted.

"Of course, it is not your fault. Besides, you may have not seen it, but I have," Pixal continued the Master of Plants' thought. She displayed a look that Nya didn't think a droid - excluding Zane - could make, a devilish grin that screamed 'I know something you don't'. Almost instinctively, the other two girls leaned in, interests peaked.

"Well, I have a higher level of vision, and can go back through what I see if I catch something off. Whenever I come over, I notice that whenever Suzanne gets close or gives Jay an embrace, he can be extremely..." she took the glass and swirled the red wine around. Pixal technically didn't need food, but anything that she could take in, it could be turned into energy. Although not being able to get drunk completely defeated the purpose of good wine in Nya's opinion, Pixal said that although she didn't have as many human emotions, she still had all their senses, and wine was a good delicacy once in a while. She could drink to that.

"Flustered?" Lily beamed.

"Exactly," the droid finished, finally taking another sip. "I'm merely thinking about what we could do if they do not come back holding hands."

Now that was an intriguing thought.

At this point, they'd just stopped the movie and were scheming on the floor of the living room like tweens at a sleepover. Lily, despite being a tough girl who didn't take crap from anybody, was laying on her stomach and kicking her feet behind her, her slipper socks flashing in the half-light. Pixal's eyes glowed with determination, and the thought that this was her first attempt at getting two other people in a romantic situation, and Nya could read her expression easily. All she wanted to see was the adorable outcome, and she obviously was full of anticipation, her internal processor was humming with happiness.

"All I want to know is how do we get them to kiss?" Lily said, wagging a finger in the air to signal that they should get straight to the point. Nya looked to the ceiling in thought, and shrugged. She knew them both, but she couldn't read their thoughts.

"It's mostly getting Suzanne to want to do it," she finally answered. "We need to talk to her about what she thinks love is when she gets back. If she even somewhat mentions him, then we really need to just shove them together."

"Ah, but we don't want to rush them. We should ask Sensei if we could somehow get a communication link. Then we slowly make him her every living thought if we can do so. If not, it's all hope," Pixal suggested, and Lily nodded immediately. "Perhaps it could happen right away."

"No! Not while they're away!" Nya interrupted. "I wanna see it happen!" Pixal gave a small puff of air, which the samurai could only interpret as a smirk. In the end, they'd reached the conclusion that the only way they could get them together was subtly, and it was best left at that.