Author's Comment: Good news! I'm off work for the next few days and I'm already working on the next chapter of this story! So the next update will come a lot quicker than usual! Hopefully, the rest of the updates will follow suit. Thank you to all the readers that're being patient with me and extra Special Thanks goes to: destinedjagold and Kirbyhammer100!
Chapter 9: Reminisce
"Alright Kowai. Remember what I said," Sokudo hisses softly to his shed just outside the door of their parents' house. "Last. Chance. Got it?" Kowai merely nods, almost hugging the Barboach body, it is so nervous. Sokudo glares at it before continuing to hiss. "And get rid of that fuckin' thing."
"No!" Kowai squeaks quite defensively, shaking a bit in the stress of what lays ahead. It holds the fish even tighter against its body like a security blanket, whimpering softly. "I need this, brother. Believe me..."
At this, Sokudo tilts his head, blinking as he glances back and forth between his brother and the fish. Taking a breath, he gives an irritated sigh and waves a claw at the shed. "Fine, whatever."
Leading Kowai through the door, he sees his parents sitting on the couch together. "Hey, Mom, Dad. We're back..." He glances over his shoulder at his husk, Kowai trying its best to keep in a growl when its father smiles gently at it. The Shedinja braces itself, ignoring the conflict inside its head and spirit, and it forces its voice to work in a soft mutter.
"... Papa... I just want to say, I..." Focus. It tries so hard to keep focus, not wanting to risk losing control once again and get rejected... "I really... really want to make this work... I... I may not like you very much, and I may want to hurt you... Badly. Very badl-" Its voice is starting to gain that deep rumble and it stops itself, barely having the self-control to do so and keep itself from going on another hostile display. Giving a strange combo of a whimper and a growl, it glances at its brother, who gives it one of his stern warning looks. Shaking a bit, it hurries to him and pushes itself against his side to snuggle.
Sokudo stiffens considerably, not liking this being seen by his parents. Although his mom did have that 'awwwwwww' look on her face that made him blush in embarrassment. Clearing his throat as he glances away sheepishly, he endures the shed's cuddling before Kowai continues, its voice indeed having become noticeably softer after a few minutes.
"I want to be a family..." it mutters, looking to its father. "I really want to make this work... so we can be happy."
"I do too," Kiru starts, getting off the couch to kneel on the ground so he can slowly inch closer. He notices that Kowai gives him a soft hiss, but it wasn't snarling or shrieking and he took that as a good sign. Seems they're onto something here. "You're my son, Kowai, and I love you just as much as I do Sokudo. I just want you to allow me to show it, to let me in."
"I know..." Kowai responds, the prolonged snuggles ceasing even its hisses. "I just have trouble containing myself... this is new to me... very new... and..." It glances at Sokudo then back at its father, contemplating its next words and deciding whether it really meant it this time or not. It decided that it did. "And I'm sorry..."
It feels its brother shift a bit to look at it and it meets his gaze. It knows he's thinking about chiding it again, but it seems that Sokudo sensed the genuine sincerity in it this time. It lets out a short purr when he gives a soft approving nod, knowing that it's doing good so far. Maybe it won't be going home after all! Returning its attention back to Kiru, it still feels the conflict of course, but its plan's working regardless! Taking a moment to gather itself, gather its strength and self-control, it continues.
"I know this will be difficult for everyone..." Kowai whispers. "And I know I'll be making mistakes along the way. But I'm willing to try, Papa. Just... Just don't give up on me."
"Of course not," Kiru reassures, inching closer slowly until he's mere feet from the husk. He watches the Shedinja carefully, Kowai staring back at him silently for a moment. It snuggles even tighter to its brother, almost knocking him over, and buries its face into its sibling's neck as if to avoid looking at the Scyther. It hurts its father to see that, but he knows it's for the best. "I too acknowledge that this will be a difficult road, and I'm sure there'll be dangerous times ahead. But no matter how hard things get, or how much you hurt me, I won't give up on you, son."
Kowai cautiously peeks at its dad, still keeping most of its face glued to its sibling. It glances at its mother, smiling gently on the couch, and it then looks to the floor. "... Thank you, Papa..." It gathers its strength once again, knowing what its next course of action is going to be. Holding the fish in a hug, it feels its mind's conflict grow steadily, the voices making every effort to make this more difficult than it needs to be.
Go on, the calm voice gently ushers. You know what you want to do.
Yeah, the darker voice grumbles. You know you want to make an example of this fish.
Kowai whimpers a bit, but forces the hostile voice to the back of its mind, focusing on the kinder, more encouraging one. It can do this... Taking the fish in a tendril of mist, it focuses on the cuddle and its calming effects before it thrusts the fish into its father's face. Blinking, Kiru stares awkwardly and glances towards Sokudo, hoping for an explanation, but the Ninjask looks just as confused as he was. Looking back to the fish, his confusion rises when Kowai shoves it against his mouth rather firmly.
After a moment of this insistence, Kiru finally gets the point and gives a small smile that may or may not have been forced. "Oh, uh... Thanks, son..." He takes the Barboach delicately in his jaws and nods at the little Shedinja. Kowai immediately withdraws its mist as if eager to get it away from the Scyther, uneasy at the impulse to sharpen the tendril and drive it into its parent's chest. But it did it! It gave its father a present without hurting him and without freaking out.
It can't help but give a purr at its accomplishment.
A soft giggle comes from their mother as Ninika flies over and nudges her mate playfully before landing by her children. She nuzzles the Shedinja in praise and the husk coos at the rewarding attention, before looking to its brother. The Ninjask avoids its gaze as he watches their father get up and take the fish to the kitchen. Sighing, he rolls his eyes before stepping away from his sibling.
"Did I do good, brother?" Kowai whispers, seeking his approval above all else. Sokudo groans a bit, feeling his mother pet his wing encouragingly, and he finally looks to his brother.
"Yeah, I guess..." He exhales a bit before offering a very soft smile. "Good job, Kowai." At once, he finds himself tackled on the ground, Kowai snuggling and nuzzling into him in celebratory enthusiasm. "Kowai! Really?!" He objects, trying to push the husk off of him without success. He blushes again when his mother laughs and the female Ninjask gently pulls the two apart before hugging them both. Kowai almost shudders in happiness, melting in its mother's hold and Sokudo grumbles a bit at his sibling's excitement before he too allows himself to indulge his parent's warmth.
After a moment, Ninika pulls away, placing her claws on both her babies' cheeks. "I'm so proud of you two. Working together and helping each other, like brothers should. You both certainly have been through a lot today," She nuzzles their faces, grooming their foreheads a bit. "Why don't you two head upstairs to the bedroom to the right," She smiles glowingly to Sokudo. "I think you'll like what you find there, sweetie."
Sokudo looks to his mother for a moment before nodding softly, pulling away to head upstairs. Kowai gives its mother one last cuddle before following after its brother. Ninika feels her heart rise as she watches them climb up the stairs, glancing back to her mate as he returns from the kitchen. Her eyes tear up a bit and Kiru nuzzles her, happily allowing his mate to hug him and cry into his chest.
"K-Kiru... After all th-these years... I..." She trails off, her body shuddering in sobs. "We're a family again... W-we can't mess this up..."
"We won't, Ninika," Kiru whispers to her, fighting back his own tears. "We won't..."
"It worked, brother," Kowai coos as it follows its sibling, floating back and forth between its Ninjask and the top of the stairwell. "I can't believe it worked, my plans never seem to work when it needs to!" Sokudo rolls his eyes once again at his brother's babbling, quick to bring it back to reality.
"It worked for now, Kowai," he mutters to it, getting it to stop its obnoxious pacing. "But here's the thing: You can't keep cuddling me forever, and we need to work on getting you weaned off of it."
"Weaned?" Kowai questions before it whimpers in panic. "Brother, I don't want to stop cuddling! I love our cuddles! Please don't-"
"Stop it," Sokudo interrupts firmly. "That's not what I meant, dumbass. You can keep your fuckin' Cuddle Sessions," At this, Kowai's worried whimpers begin to trail off, relieved. "I'm talking about cuddling me around Dad." He stops at the top of the stairs, glaring at his brother. "I can't be your fuckin' pillow 24/7 during our stay here, and you can't keep relying on me for stuff like this."
Kowai doesn't really respond to this, glancing down the stairs as if finding the floor below very interesting.
"We're gonna take this slow, Kowai," Sokudo tells it, starting to move towards the bedroom in question. "You can cuddle me the next couple of encounters we have with Dad, but then you're gonna try to stay on your own for longer periods of time. That way, you'll be able to talk to Dad one-on-one without a single brush of contact from me. Got it?"
"Okay, brother," it mutters. "I'm not feeling too confident in that plan," it admits truthfully. "But I'm willing to trust your judgement, as always." It flies closer and nuzzles him, the Ninjask allowing it to for a few seconds before reaching out to the door knob and opening the door slowly. Kowai tries to squeeze passed its brother to see, especially when Sokudo freezes with an incredibly soft whimper. To the Ninjask, it feels like a blast from the past as he opens the door wider to walk in.
Although this place looks like a normal guestroom, with a large bed and nightstand, he can't ignore some of the objects decorating it. For the last time he has seen any of this was when he was a Nincada, living in his burrow. The toys he used to play with and the seashells he collected from the beach with Mom, as well as some rookie training equipment he used to have when striving to be the best ninja he could be. Snug in a corner is a neat little bed of moss and vegetation and although it's obvious that the bed's contents have been changed over the years, it's still more the recognizable as his old nest.
Walking up to it and sitting by it, he stares silently at his old nest, a small part of him wanting to lay down in it. It would be difficult of course, with the little bundle less than half his size. How much he's grown...
"Brother..." Kowai whispers as it looks around itself, its voice barely audible. "All these things... I'm drawn to them... like that shell... Why is that?"
"'Cause this came from when I was a kid," Sokudo responds, only half listening to his sibling. "I left all this stuff behind in my little burrow when I ran away... Mom and Dad must've dug it all up, looking for me." His eyes start to water and he tries to hold it back. Placing a claw on the nest, he takes a deep shaking breath as he remembers the last few days he spent in his old home and feels the spark of guilt once more. "I've made a lot of mistakes in my life, but..." He shakes his head and looks around the room. "But I doubt I'll ever regret them more than this..."
He catches sight of Kowai, who's staring at a special pile of crudely constructed art pieces, all made of mother-of-pearl. It takes one and hovers over to its brother, placing it by him. "Brother, did you make this?"
Sokudo doesn't seem to hear it at first before he looks down at the shell, seeing it was carved into the vague shape of a Ninjask. He gives a soft laugh, picking it up and looking at it for a long time. "Yeah, it was one of my first arts-and-crafts I made with Mom. I wanted to evolve so badly, back then. Being a Nincada for so long was driving me crazy. Heh..." He again shakes his head at himself. "Things probably would've been a lot different if I've only been patient..."
Finally, he looks to Kowai, his eyes darting over his shed as if for the first time. His voice gets a lot softer, not used to opening up like this, but he's not going to stop himself. "And one of the things that would've been different was..." He trails off and clears his throat. "Remember when we first met?"
"Of course, brother," Kowai tells him. "I'll never forget that..."
"Then you remember how scared I was, because I've never seen a Shedinja before you, so I didn't know what to make of you..." he starts. "If I was patient, and stayed here to complete my training like I was supposed to, I would've been introduced to a Shedinja before my evolution. I would've been told that creatures like you were a natural part of life, and I wouldn't have been scared of you."
"So..." the husk mumbles, taking this in. "If things have been different, you would've loved me from the beginning?"
"I wouldn't go so far as to say that," Sokudo grunts, returning his eyes to the nest. "But I would've been more accepting, and that's something. You never would've been worried of me abandoning you, and I certainly wouldn't have been worried over you hurting me. You certainly wouldn't have had to kill me either."
The silence is thick around them at being reminded of that horrifying night and Kowai can only turn away in shame, knowing its brother is still holding that against it, no matter how much he says he's over it... It wonders if he'll ever fully forgive it for doing such an act, and decides that he most likely won't...
But eventually, after a few moments, the Ninjask breaks the silence to give a buzzing stretch of his good wing, wincing when his bad wing tries to follow suit, and he moves towards the bed. "I've been through hell and back today. I'm exhausted." He climbs up onto the bed, shifting the blankets to his liking before glancing at his Shedinja. "Normally, I'd never say this, but I'd prefer for you to stay in here while I sleep. I don't exactly trust you with my parents just yet."
"Okay, brother..." the little husk mutters, watching its brother curl up in preparation for a nap. Whilst its sibling tries to go to sleep, it looks about the room and the objects around it once more. It feels strange, wanting to explore the new place and learn more of its brother's past, but at the same time it doesn't want to delve too deeply. It's just too overwhelmed at everything that's been happening, and it needs time to let it all settle.
Turning back to its brother after a while, it sees that he's dozed off and it floats over, cuddling into his side. Resting its head on his back like a pillow, careful of his injured wing, it allows its mind to wander into a simpler past, and a hopeful future.