A/N I'm soooooo sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been dealing with some pretty personal stuff the past couple of weeks, including losing my Grandma, and I didn't have the will to write. I finally found it again, because I knew she would want me to continue. This one's for you, Mimi. 3 Hope you guys like this one!
-Part Three: Zoisite-
Orphan Boy
Helios looked into the boy's eyes, his own eyes displaying neither compassion nor anger. The boy trembled slightly, his nerves shaken by the strange man's silence. After a few moments, Helios finally spoke.
"Please, tell me what happened" he said softly. The boy exhaled shakily and began to speak, and Helios leaned in closer so he could hear him.
"She…she was going to hurt me" he said, sniffling.
"Why would she do that?" Helios asked. The boy looked down at the ground and shook his head, then looked back up at Helios.
"She said I deserved it…" he said quietly. Helios sat silently for a moment, then stood up, extending his hand toward the small boy.
"Come with me" he said gently.
"N-No" the boy said fearfully, refusing to move. Helios pulled his hand back, then sighed.
"I promise, I'm not going to hurt you" he said, trying to assure the boy that he was in no danger. The boy looked over at the woman on the floor, who had completely stopped breathing, then quickly looked away. He looked up at Helios once more, nodding hesitantly.
"Okay, I'll go with you" he said, reaching his hand out toward Helios. Helios reached out and grasped the boy's small hand, gasping and nearly pulling his hand back after their hands touched. Nephrite and Jadeite poked their heads inside the doorway to see if everything was okay, and when they saw the look on Helios' face, they grew concerned.
"Are you okay, Helios?" Jadeite asked worriedly. Helios nodded slightly and managed a half smile, brushing off whatever it was he felt a moment ago.
"I'm fine" he said softly, turning to the orphaned boy once more. "Are you ready?" he asked. The boy looked up at him, confused.
"Should I bring anything with me?" he asked. Helios smiled softly and shook his head.
"No, just come as you are. That will be just fine" he said, and for the first time since they met, the boy smiled. Moments later, the four of them were off. Helios led the group, and the three boys followed behind him. Jadeite and the boy were chatting happily, but Nephrite trudged on behind them, lost in his thoughts. There was something oddly familiar about this boy, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Noticing the silence, Jadeite turned to look at him.
"Are you okay?" he asked, startling Nephrite.
"Yeah, I'm alright. Just thinking…" Nephrite answered, his voice trailing off slightly. He continued to wonder where he had seen this boy before, and his pondering would come to an end sooner than he expected. The newest member to the group turned to look at him, brushing his dirty blonde bangs from his face. When their eyes met, Nephrite and the other boy each gasped and turned their eyes away from one another. After an awkward silence, the new boy spoke.
"I know you" he said quietly. "We met by the river a while ago." Suddenly, the memory came back to Nephrite, clear as day. As he recalled their brief meeting, a smile crept across his face.
"Yeah, I remember that" he said, chuckling softly. "You know, I thought about you a lot after that."
"You did?" the boy asked, smiling shyly. Nephrite nodded, then continued to speak.
"Yeah, I did. I wondered if you were okay. You seemed pretty scared…what happened that day?" The boy lowered his gaze to the ground and blinked back tears, trying not to let Nephrite see.
"I'd rather not get into that, if that's okay" the boy said softly, still looking away from Nephrite. Nephrite smiled, though the other boy could not see, and sighed.
"I understand. If you ever want to talk about it, you can talk to me, okay?" The boy turned his head toward Nephrite and managed a small smile, nodding slightly.
"Thanks" he said softly. The conversation faded soon after that, and the quartet continued walking in complete silence. Finally, Jadeite spoke, somewhat startling everyone.
"My name's Jadeite, by the way, and this is Nephrite. What's your name?" The boy looked at the two of them, a saddened expression on his face.
"This might sound silly, but I don't think I have one. Not unless you count 'wretched boy', 'nuisance', or other things like that" he said, and the other two boys looked at him with as much sympathy as they could muster.
"I'm sorry" Nephrite said quietly, and the other boy cracked a smile, chuckling slightly.
"Don't worry about it. Maybe someday I'll figure out who I am." Helios, who had been silently listening to their conversation, turned his head slightly and smiled contentedly.
"Hey, Helios, where are you taking us?" Jadeite asked suddenly.
"Just follow me" Helios instructed, evading the boy's question. After walking for some time, the group arrived at their destination. By this time, the sun was already starting to set and darkness was falling over the landscape. The three boys looked around them, then looked at Helios, confused.
"Where are we?" Nephrite asked. Helios stayed quiet, so Jadeite tried asking once more.
"Come on, Helios. Why won't you tell us?" The trees around them rustled, and Helios looked at the boys, signaling for them to be quiet.
"Stay here" he whispered. "I'll be right back." With that, he disappeared, and the children were left alone.
Just on the other side of the trees, Helios found himself face to face with two people he didn't expect to see.
"What are you doing out here?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. The pair standing before him said nothing. Though there were hoods nearly covering their faces, Helios knew exactly who they were. "Answer me" he insisted. One of the shadowed figures stepped forward and lowered their hood, but still, not a word was said. The second figure stepped forward and revealed themselves. Helios looked at them and furrowed his brow, growing frustrated.
"Helios?" the second figure, a man, asked. The cloaked person next to him, a woman, lowered her eyes to the ground.
"What are you two doing out here?" Helios asked again.
"We're hiding" the woman said shakily. "Metalia's army is trying to find us, and if they do, they'll…" her voice trailed off as she spoke, and soon she stopped speaking altogether.
"Say no more" Helios said, his voice sounding calmer than it had when he first encountered them. The man smiled, relieved that they had been reunited with an old friend, even if the reunion was brief.
"It's good to see you" the man said, and Helios echoed his sentiment.
"Same to you." The woman managed a half smile, and finally spoke.
"Is our son alright?" she asked. Helios nodded in response, and the pair seemed to relax upon hearing this.
"He's just fine. Well, I should say he's fine now." Helios said, his voice laced with a bitter tone. "What were you two thinking, leaving him like that?" The pair turned their eyes from Helios, and a feeling of guilt washed over them.
"Can we see him?" the man asked. Helios shook his head and scowled.
"I don't think that's a good idea. It might be better if he went on thinking you were dead" Helios sighed, and the pair reluctantly agreed. "I need to get back to them before they come looking for me, so I think it would be best if you two left." The pair turned to walk away, but before they left, the woman turned to look at Helios once more. After a brief moment of silence, she spoke.
"Helios, can you do me a favor?" Helios nodded, answering her softly.
"Of course." The woman sucked in a breath and looked him in the eyes, blinking back tears as she continued to speak.
"Someday, will you tell him that we love him?" Helios said nothing, but only nodded in response. The man stepped forward and extended his hand out to Helios.
"Will you give this to him too?" the man asked. Helios reached his hand out and the man placed something inside it, closing his fingers around it.
The pair said goodbye to him once more, and Helios watched as they disappeared into the darkness. After they left, Helios opened his hand and saw a small blue stone glimmering in the moonlight. He carefully placed the small stone in his pocket and smiled. He turned to walk away, shortly arriving back at the place he had left the three boys.
"Is everything okay?" Jadeite asked, noticing Helios' mood had changed. Helios forced a smile, then sat on the ground next to them.
"I think so" he said quietly, reaching into his pocket and closing his fingers around the stone again.